Page 158 of The Otherworld

“I gave birth to your brother,” Mom contends. “And I watched him fall to pieces when we thought we lost you. He loves you more than anything in this world, Adam. He wouldn’t hold this against you.”

“I feel like I’ve betrayed him,” I whisper, looking down at the ground. “I know how much he likes Orca—”

“He likes her, sure,” Mom says. “But he doesn’t love her. He’s been having fun with her this past week. But look—last night, when Orca was upset about her mother, where did he go?”

“Probably to get drunk with his friends.”

“And where were you?”

“With Orca.”

Mom nods slowly, letting it sink in. “Jack’s still a kid. He jumps from one exciting thing to the next. He’s not ready to commit to anyone or anything. He’ll get over her in a couple of weeks, mark my words.”

“I hope you’re right.”

Mom squeezes my shoulder. “I’m always right.”

That’s when the screen door whines open, and Orca steps out onto the deck. “Good morning,” she greets us with a tired little smile. She’s holding her linen bag of belongings.

“Good morning,” Mom says. “I hope you slept well. Adam was telling me that you’re leaving us this morning.”

She nods. “I want to thank you and Mr. Stevenson so much for your hospitality. It was so kind of you to welcome me into your home like this.”

Mom pulls her into a hug. “It was a pleasure to have you, sweetheart. I’m sure we’ll see each other again soon.” She passes me a knowing look, and it feels like a glimpse of sunlight in the middle of a hurricane.

“Adam?” Orca looks at me. “Are you ready to go?”

“Don’t you want to wait and say goodbye to Jack?”

She shakes her head. “I left him a note. I know he’ll be upset and try to talk me into staying, and… I think it will be better this way.”

Mom nods, giving her a half-hearted smile. “Perhaps you’re right.”

Jack will raise holy hell when he finds out I took Orca back home while he was out. But he could have stuck around last night if he wanted to be here for her.

Orca says goodbye to Mom, asks her to say goodbye to Dad for her, and heads for my truck. I turn to follow her, but Mom stops me with a hand on my arm and a concerned look in her eyes. “I want you to talk to your brother about this.”

“I will,” I promise. “As soon as I get back.”

48

The Last Kiss

ORCA

The sun is glorious on our drive to the port—a cheerful contrast to the weight of sorrow bearing down on my heart.

I’m ready to go back home. To wrap my arms around Papa and tell him how much I love him, how much I missed him. But at the same time, I want to stay here with Adam forever.

I watch him drive, trying to soak in every detail of him. Morning sunlight spills through the windshield to crest his fingers and chisel the cords of muscle in his arms. We both remain silent until we arrive at the port.

Adam parks the truck and says, “My keys are inside.”

I’ve never been in his hangar before. It’s strange to see a floatplane parked inside a building, not docked in the water or soaring through the sky.

“Is this the one you crashed?” I ask, peering up at the aircraft as Adam searches his workbench for the keys to his other plane.

“Yeah, I’ve been working on fixing her up. Pretty soon, she’ll be ready to fly again. Just a few last minor adjustments… and I’m thinking of giving her a new paint job.”

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