He wouldn’t if he knew the truth. I stood there that night, listening to him, and once he was done. Once he told me where he wanted to take me and my family, I protested immediately. He wanted to protect us, protect me, under the shelter of his own family’s roof, his grandmother’s in particular. “You’ll be safe there,” he said. “You, Aiden, and your sister.” Why is he still doing this…? Why? The question of his willingness to help loomed again as I stared into his eyes that night, the ones that looked at me in such a different way than even twenty-four hours ago. I lost something familiar in them. I lost that love that used to shine so bright in only minutes. That seemed to make sense, though. He’d given it to me so quickly, his heart. The night saw me tossing and turning, anxiety and guilt storming over me in their chilling waves. I had taken Brody up on his offer. I allowed myself to give into my own fear. My nephew, he needed something positive. He needed something safe, and if Brody felt his family’s place was that, I couldn’t turn a blind eye to it.
