Page 140 of The Otherworld

“Hey,” I whisper, looping my arm around her shoulders. “You all right?”

She nods stiffly, but I can see the glint of tears cresting in her eyes. “I told myself I’d be prepared for the worst—and I was. But it still hurts.”

“I know.” I draw her closer, kissing the crown of her head. “It’s perfectly natural to be upset. I’m sorry you had to find out like that.”

She presses her face to my chest and holds on to me for a few minutes, saying nothing. I rub her back, letting her have a moment to breathe, to cry, to make sense of it all.

Maybe Jack was right. Maybe this whole idea was doomed from the start.

Orca sniffles and takes a step back, drying her eyes. “Perhaps we should stop looking.”

“Not yet. There’s one more person I think we should call.”

She frowns. “Who?”

“I found it!” Loretta singsongs triumphantly, reappearing on the porch with a scrap of paper. “I haven’t called her in over a year, but the number should still be good.”

Orca looks puzzled, but I waste no time explaining. I take the note and say, “Thank you for your help, ma’am. We really appreciate it.”

Loretta beams at me. “Good luck, hon!”

I link hands with Orca and lead her back towards the street, ignoring her persistent demands that I tell her whose number it is and what any of this has to do with her grandparents.

“Her name is Sara Rushbrook,” I explain, stopping beside my parked truck to dial the number on my cell phone. “And I think you should be the one to talk to her.”

“Why?”

“You’ll see why.” I pass her the ringing phone, noticing how her hand trembles as she presses it to her ear.

“Wait, I want you to hear, too,” she says, tugging my sleeve.

I lower my head against hers, and we share the speaker while waiting for someone to answer the call.

Come on, come on…

“Hello?”

Orca freezes up, speaking only when I nudge her foot. “Hello. My name is Orca Monroe. I’m looking for Sara Rushbrook.”

There is a long silence on the other end of the line. “Orca Monroe? You’re joking. This… this is Miriam’s daughter, Orca?”

She squeezes my hand, like she can’t believe what she just heard. “That’s me. How do you know my mother?”

“I’m her sister,” Sara replies, sounding almost as shocked as Orca looks. “I can’t believe it! Little Orca, you were just a baby the last time I saw you.”

The smile that breaks over Orca’s face is enough to light up a solar system. “You mean… you’re my aunt?”

44

The Visit

ORCA

“So let me get this straight—you have a long-lost aunt you never knew about who lives a stone’s throw away on San Juan Island and hasn’t seen you for eighteen years?” Jack volleys the question across the dinner table with a skeptical frown.

“Yes. She’s my mother’s younger sister. Apparently, she met me when I was just a baby, but I don’t remember her. Adam and I arranged to meet her tomorrow. She’s going to tell me about my mother.”

Adam sits next to me at the table, and I can’t resist sneaking him a little smile.

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