Page 57 of Sutton's Shadow

“No. But today when I picked her up, she looked freaked out.”

“How so?”

Sutton dropped her gaze to the napkin she was mangling, unsure of how exactly to explain. Wyatt reached across the table and placed his hand on hers, ending her nervous twisting.

“Please tell me,” he entreated.

“It’s not any one thing I can point out. It’s just a feeling. There’s a kind of haunted look she gets. She hides it well from everybody, but I’ve spotted a few times when she didn’t know I was watching.”

“I have noticed that she’s more quiet than she usually is when we’re at home. She’s generally full of piss and vinegar, always busting my balls.” With worried eyes, he glanced over at his sister again, his lips turned down in a frown.

“It may just be she’s trying to adjust to her new normal. From what you’ve told me about her life at her mom’s house, it sounds like she had to be constantly vigilant. Maybe she hasn’t learned she can relax yet.”

Wyatt rubbed his chin, contemplating her words. “You could be right.”

“You just need to assure her she’s safe. That nothing is going to happen to her anymore. Your mother can’t get to her now.”

Wyatt nodded and squeezed her hand. “I’ll talk to her.”

“Good.” Sutton smiled, but it soon dropped as another thought occurred to her. “But what if we’re wrong? What if something truly horrible happened to her that she’s not talking about?” You hear horror stories all the time of abuse in some foster homes. Bethany could have experienced any manner of abuse, beatings, bullying, emotional manipulation. But even worse than all that, she could have been raped. Sutton’s mind was running wild, and each scenario she thought of was worse than the last.

“Sutton, stop.”

“What?” she gasped, wrenching herself out of her spiraling thoughts.

“I can tell you’re picturing all sorts of bad things, but stop. We don’t know for sure anything happened to her. All we can do at this point is be there for her and encourage her to talk.”

She nodded, her eyes landing on his large hand still covering hers. “You’re right.” She took a deep breath and glanced up at him. “So, you’ll talk to her?”

“I will try. But if she won’t talk to me, would you be willing to try? She seems to have clicked with you.”

“She’s a great kid.”

“The best,” he answered, smiling into her eyes. They stayed that way, locked in each other’s gazes. Sutton’s heart leapt at the possibilities she saw in their depths, while her stomach tightened in fear of diving in.

“Whatcha talking about?” Bethany asked as she slid back into the booth next to her, making her jolt. Sutton quickly pulled her hands out from under Wyatt’s and placed them in her lap.

“We were just talking about you,” Wyatt answered, his eyes gleaming.

“What about... what about me?” she stammered.

“Well, Sutton was telling me what a great eye you have for photography, which confused me, considering you can’t catch a ball worth a damn. How can you have such a good eye for the one and not the other? Do you know what it’s been like for me all these years we’ve played catch, having to wait while you chase down the ball? Frankly, it’s embarrassing,” he teased.

While Sutton laughed, Bethany threw a sugar packet at her brother. “Jeez, Wyatt, not everybody can be good at everything like you are.”

Wyatt sat back in the booth, blew on his fingers, and rubbed the nails against his puffed-out chest. “That’s true. I am pretty awesome, aren’t I?”

“If you have to ask, then I’d say definitely not.” The hurt expression on Wyatt’s face made Sutton laugh even harder.

She was still laughing when their meals were delivered. They ate while the siblings continued to tease each other. Sutton was envious of their easy relationship. She had been an only child and hadn’t made friends easily. She’d developed an interest in photography early in life and was always out seeking an adventure to photograph. While other girls her age were playing with makeup and wondering if the boy they liked would ask them out, Sutton had been tromping through the woods searching for the best, most unique image to photograph.

When they were finished with their meal, Sutton grabbed the check, ignoring the growl from Wyatt as she dug her wallet out of her bag.

“I get next time,” he groused.

Sutton smiled at the fact that there might be a next time. “We shall see.”

“Sutton...”

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