Page 13 of The Stone Family Warrior

Instinctually, she wanted to move to him and hug him, but there was this anger in the air. She’d been able to sense it from miles away. She’d been able to sense it since the attorney had told them via phone what the will said about the house being solely hers.

For a few seconds, neither of them spoke. She faced the window and stared out at the beach. She thought of how Tom and Letty had been with them last year when they’d built sandcastles. Tom had played and played with her son, Ian.

Tom moved beside her. “Are you thinking about the last time we were here at the beach together with Grandmother and Ian?”

She nodded, her eyelids fluttering. No, she would not lose it again.

Tom put an arm around her, pulling her into his side. “That was a good day.”

She relaxed, and her mind flashed to another memory. This one was from a year ago, where there’d been two caskets and Tom and Letty had worn black. Her brother had been her rock that day. Of course, her father hadn’t shown up to the funeral. She wasn’t even sure he’d gotten her text, because he hadn’t responded.

“You okay?” Tom asked. “We haven’t really talked about things for some time.”

It wouldn’t be in her best interest to accuse him of creating the distance between them. She didn’t want to fight. “I’m okay.”

Silence reigned for a few seconds.

“My therapist says I need to start connecting with people again,” she blurted, wishing she could tell him that she missed their connection.

Surprising her, he turned and fully hugged her.

She fell into him and found herself crying. She’d been so worried about seeing her brother, and now she found relief in his embrace. “I’ve missed you.”

Her brother let her go and stroked her hair. “You’ve been through a lot, Lib. And I haven’t made any of this easier. Before you got here, I was thinking about all the fun times we had.” A painful-looking smile spread across his face as he looked around the room. “What if you didn’t actually sell the house?”

Of course, the thought had crossed her mind, but it was a shock to hear him suggest it. “You would be okay with that?”

He wandered over to the window that overlooked the pool and the beach. “We loved it here. And …” His voice broke and he glanced at her. “I know you’ll meet someone and you’ll have more kids and they’ll love it here, too.”

It was like he’d thrown a missile at her. The thought of marriage and kids made her feel like she’d been attacked. “No, I’m selling it.”

“Why?”

“Because you should have half. That’s the fair thing.” And she didn’t need reminders about a life she’d once had.

“We both know I don’t need half.” Lightly, he placed a hand on her forearm. “Talk to me, sis.”

She met his gaze. “I quit my job.”

“What?” His mouth fell open.

She hadn’t told anyone except Shane. It’d been easy to quit before Christmas break. That might not be convenient for her principal in having to replace her, but she couldn’t deal with having people ask all the questions. “I sold my house, too. I sold most of my possessions, and the rest I put in storage.” Her heart raced. “I won’t apologize for it. It actually felt like the best decision I’ve made since … Will and Ian passed.”

Her brother sized her up. “I can actually see that.”

She was surprised by his response. “Really?”

He nodded and stared out at the beach. “I get it, sometimes life throws stuff at you and you just want to get away or something.”

She was confused. “Are you okay, Tom?”

He turned back to her. “I’m okay. So what is the plan now?”

She proceeded cautiously. “I’m finally going to go hike the Appalachian Trail.”

Her brother’s brows lifted. “Are you serious?”

“I’ve always wanted to. You know Will would never do it with me, and I didn’t think I could do it by myself. But now he’s gone and I don’t have Ian, so …” She trailed off when she caught a pitying look on her brother’s face. “No, don’t,” she protested as he drew her into another hug.

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