Page 15 of Eleven of a Kind

“Thanks a lot, bro.” I reached over and slapped the back of his head.

“Ouch. What the hell was that for? Oh, wait. He won’t let you have your phone out while eating?” He stared at Riley.

“Nope.” She popped her lips. “Which is dumb because my mom and I always had our phones out at the table. She never had a problem with it.”

“Your mom isn’t here now, is she?” I blurted without even thinking.

“No. She isn’t.” Tears formed in her eyes as she stood from her seat, ran up the stairs, and slammed her bedroom door.

“Shit.” I ran my hand down my face.

“Not cool, bro,” Grayson said.

“No shit.” I shook my head. “I better go talk to her.”

Grayson placed his hand on my shoulder as I went to get up. “Let her cool off first. You know it always made it worse when Dad tried to talk to us right after pissing us off.”

After putting the leftover pizza away and cleaning up, I went upstairs and lightly tapped on Riley’s door before opening it.

“Go away.” She sat on her bed, hugging her knees.

“I’m sorry, Riley.” I walked over and took a seat on the edge of the bed. “I didn’t mean to say what I did.”

“I miss her so much.” She brought her hand up and wiped the tears from her eyes.

“I know you do, and I’m sorry you have to go through this. Life can be really unfair sometimes. You know how I know you’re a Kind?”

“How?” She stared at me.

“Because you knew exactly what you wanted and didn’t let anything or anyone stand in your way.” The corners of my mouth curved upward.

“You mean about coming here to find you?” she asked.

“That’s exactly what I mean.” I placed my hand on her knee. “It’s going to take time and effort on both of our parts.”

“I know.”

“Not only do you have me, Riley. You have a whole village here who are dying to get to know you better and love you the way you deserve to be loved.”

“I still can’t believe how big this family is. I also think it’s weird how you all live next to each other. And what’s up with your Aunt Barb wanting me to call her grandma?”

I chuckled. “Aunt Barb is complicated, and one day, I’ll tell you all about her. For now, humor her and call her grandma. She loves it.”

“Okay.” A soft smile crossed her face.

“By the way, I should tell you about Ava.”

“Uncle Grayson’s girlfriend?” she asked. “What about her? She seems really nice.”

“She is. She’s an extraordinary woman, but sometimes she’s not Ava.”

“Huh?” Her brows furrowed.

“She has a condition called dissociative identity disorder. When she was a child, she suffered extreme trauma at the hands of her mother. That trauma caused her brain to split into different personalities.”

Riley’s eyes widened. “She has multiple personalities?”

“Yes, and you’ll eventually meet them. So, I don’t want you to freak out if one of them comes out around you.”

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