by Elle, Leen
From his expression, Sophie expected Rylan to be the first one to burst in on her. Surprisingly, it was Robert whose angry voice stopped Gwyn from saying more.
"What did I tell you day one?" He hissed, his eyes spitting flames. "The first moment I met you, what did I make you swear?"
"I know that, but listen to me!" Gwyn pleaded, her voice rising as well.
"What did I tell you?" He repeated. "When you turn eighteen, what did I specifically tell you to do?"
"Leave." She whispered in defeat.
"Exactly. I haven't spent the last eleven years drilling that into your thick head for nothing. Even before you knew how to say complete sentence you knew that lesson." Robert stood from the couch, his body radiating anger.
Sophie watched him in shock. She'd had no idea he'd known Gwyn that long, or been so close to her throughout her life. She felt like she was just beginning to understand the depths of Robert's relationship with the kids.
If Sophie had been challenging him in this kind of mood, she would've backed down in fear of his passion. Gwyn, having just as much fury, straightened her spine to fight back.
"So what happens after I leave?" She screamed back at him. "What happens when I turn eighteen and I'm out on my own? I have no identity, Rob. I have no education, or experience behind me. I'm already on the path to fail even before leaving!"
"Do you want to become like your mother?" Robert shot back. "Locked into this kind of lifestyle with running away as your only escape? A thief is a thief for life. You, more than anyone, should not want that fate for yourself. What about Teddy?"
"I'll support you." Rylan broke in, his voice shaking. "I'll support both of you so stop fighting."
"What?" Both of them yelled together, causing him to lean back in surprise.
"What I told her goes for you as well." Robert glared at him, as he if were questioning the boy's sanity.
"No way." Rylan opened his mouth in protest. "If my being a thief can prevent them from living this kind of lifestyle, I honestly don't mind working for Cleo for the rest of my life." He reached out for Gwyn, taking her hands in his own. "All I have to do is ask Cleo and she'll release you and Teddy. She'll give you new lives. Think about it." He pleaded. "Think about what you'd be giving Teddy."
Gwyn didn't seem impressed by his offer. She seemed insulted by the suggestion that he would support her.
"Do you honestly think I'd be happy letting you give up your life for us?" She tossed away his hands. "If you can work for Cleo, so can I. It's all I know."
"Will you two listen?" Robert yelled, drawing back the attention on himself. "I've just barely convinced Cleo that taking you on as workers would be a bad investment. The last thing you need is to start training to be a hacker and give her a reason to force you to stay."
"You're the worst person to talk right now." Sophie broke in. All three of them turned towards her, as if remembering her presence for the first time. She'd considered staying silent, but she couldn't contain herself anymore. Part of her was relieved that Teddy was safely upstairs so he wouldn't become a part of the argument.
"Excuse me?" Robert asked, his voice lowering in a growl.
"How can you tell them not to choose the life you've chosen for yourself?" Sophie motioned to Gwyn and Rylan. "If it's good enough for you, why can't it be good enough for them?"
"Don't give them reckless ideas." Robert's eyes were threatening. She could feel flickers of sincerity in his words. "You might've given up all your opportunities to work here, but I'm not going to let them have the same fate. A thief is a thief for life. I've accepted that. They're too young to sign on to forever."
"I'm a bit too old to let you tell me what to do." Gwyn stood, heading for the living room door. "I'll make my own decision when the time comes. Regardless of what you want."
"Sure, just run away!" Robert called out to her cruelly. "You realize this is your fault?" He glared at Sophie. "She listened to me before you came."
Sophie scowled, wondering how he could be twenty-nine years old and still shifting the blame to others.
"I prefer a strong-minded girl to a puppet any day." She stood from the couch as well, following Gwyn out of the room.
She found the young girl at the bottom of the staircase, still shaking with rage. Placing a reassuring hand on the girl's shoulder, she motioned for Gwyn to follow her upstairs to her room.
In the past, Gwyn would've had to face these fights by herself, but not anymore. Sophie would be her support, because despite her doubts, Sophie realized she was a new addition to this family.
* * *
Gwyn stared around Sophie's freshly painted room, as if she were trying to call back the time, only days before, when they'd all been happy.
Her eyes locked on her and Rylan's handprints, and for a moment Sophie wondered if the young girl would cry. Gwyn took a deep breath, trying to draw all the strength she had.
"I don't think they understand." She whispered, sounding completely torn.
Sophie could tell that Gwyn loved them both. She'd known Robert for her entire life, and she loved Rylan more than any other boy, save Teddy.
"They're men." She replied. "It's sort of their job not to understand."
Her comment brought a brief smile to the girl's face.
"If it makes you feel better, I understand you." She plopped down on her bed, crossing her legs. She had a suspicion that this would be a long conversation. "The problem is, I understand everyone's argument."
"I do too...I just wish I could reason with them. Robert's always like this when we bring up working for Cleo. He's not being practical." Gwyn complained, taking a seat beside Sophie.
"In his own way, I think he's being a parent." Sophie reached down beside her bed to pull out a bin of various colors of nail polish. "Here." She offered Gwyn the container, motioning to her fingernails. "When I'm upset, I always feel better when my hands are occupied."
Gwyn accepted her offer, and soon they were both half focused on the conversation and their nails. The tension in the room also faded now that they had other things to think about.
"You know, I didn't realize how stupid Rylan was." Sophie mused, glancing up at Gwyn to see if she'd struck a nerve. However, Gwyn only seemed mildly exasperated with her crush. "He can be really dense sometimes."
"He makes up for it by being sweet." Gwyn smiled a little as she talked. "He's kind of like my guardian angel."
"He just hasn't realized that sometimes you don't need protecting."
"I know!" She sighed as blew the nail polish dry on her nails. "I've known him since I was six. When he first moved in, I didn't like him at all." She scrunched up her nose at the memory. "I thought he was gross."
"What happened to change your mind?" Sophie asked. "Other than the fact that he became gorgeous?"
Gwyn laughed easily now. "One morning, when I was about eight, I decided to teach myself how to ride a bike. Teddy was two at the time, and my mom was either busy with him, or with work." The way she spoke of her mother made it seem like she still had a few good memories of her mom. "I would secretly practice outside for hours. I ended up with so many injuries." She lifted up her skirt to reveal her scarred knee.
"Ouch." Sophie winced, shocked by how long the cut was.
"Some were more serious than others, but my mother was too busy to notice. After I got this cut," she stroked the scar gently. "I tried to clean it up before she yelled at me." Gwyn's eyes were faraway. "That's when Robert walked into the bathroom. He had bandages and towels to help me clean up the blood." She smiled at the memory. "I'd never been in so much pain, but he distracted me by just talking. I can't remember what we talked about. I just know he kept me laughing."
"That sounds like him." Sophie grinned.
"Oh, that's not what made me trust him." She sat down the nail polish, focusing her attention solely on Sophie. "After we'd cleaned everything up, I went upstairs to check on Teddy. My mom was rocking him to sleep when I walked in. She took one lo
ng look at me, and didn't make one comment about my knee. It was still pretty obvious, but she looked through me." Gwyn's voice dropped to a whisper. "I think that's when I realized she didn't love me. The way she didn't notice, the way she didn't care...it was obvious."
"Was Rylan with you?"
"Yeah. I closed the door, and the moment I turned around I was in his arms. They were so warm." Her eyes closed. "From then on, he's always been there for me."
"I'm jealous." Sophie mused. "To have someone like him, you're very lucky."
"I know. I just worry that he's not the lucky one." Gwyn bit her lip. "I care about him, more than anything. I don't want him always putting me first. It's not fair, and I can take care of myself. I wish he thought more about what he wanted." She collapsed backwards on the bed. "He's so perfect sometimes, it's awful."
"Well, let's not go overboard. He's not the brightest little berry. That should take away from his perfect points."
"It should." Gwyn commented. "But doesn't it make him look cute?"
"Kind of." Sophie agreed and they both began to laugh together. "Isn't this nice?" Sophie asked, laying back on her bed beside Gwyn. "I haven't had a real girl's time since my grandmother passed away." Sophie's heart sank at the thought of how long ago that was.
"I've never had a girl's time." Gwyn admitted. "I like talking to you though. You're kind of like an older sister."
Sophie felt her throat close. She hadn't wanted to define what Gwyn was, but little sister fit so perfectly. It was shocking how connected she felt with Gwyn.
"I always wanted a sister." Sophie grinned, squeezing the girl's hand.
"Me too." They both laughed again.
When Sophie's door creaked open, both of them frowned, shooting glares at the intruder.
"Did I interrupt something?" Rylan asked, offering them a boyish smile.
"Go away." Gwyn said coldly.
Ryan frowned, looking like a hurt puppy. "I came to apologize."
"Boys are so stupid." Gwyn whispered to Sophie. "They have the worst timing."
"I agree." Sophie threw a pillow at Rylan, who blocked himself with the door. "We're having girl time!" She shouted, flashing Gwyn a smile and wink.
Rylan couldn't have seemed more confused. "What's that?"
"What's what?" Robert peaked in the door. His expression had returned to its' normal carefree nature. All of his former anger had evaporated.
"Go away!" Sophie ordered, throwing another pillow.
"Hey, now. I just cooked an apology dinner for the two of you!" He scowled.
"The two of us?" Sophie asked in surprise.
"I have moments of kindness." He replied in a mocking voice.
"I don't trust him." Sophie commented to Gwyn.
"Me neither." They'd run out of pillows to throw, so Sophie pelted a tissue box at the door.
"That was uncalled for." Robert turned to Rylan. "Did you say something to piss them off again?"
"I thought they were upset with you!" Rylan answered.
"We're not mad." Gwyn interrupted. "We're having girl time."
"What's that?" They asked in unison.
"Look it up." Sophie answered, finally deciding to shut them out with force. She politely waved them away as she pushed her door closed. She couldn't help but grin at their confused expressions as she locked them out.
"I will never understand women." Rylan complained on the other end of the door.
"You know what? Neither will I." Robert answered as they clumped down the staircase.
Gwyn and Sophie shared a long look with each other before collapsing in a fit of giggles.
Sophie had thought a lot about joining their family. At first, she'd wanted them to accept her because she didn't want to be an outcast. Then, she'd wanted to avoid them to not hurt them later on. However, now, more than ever, it was clear that she already belonged with them. Whether she was Robert's rival, Rylan's friend, or Gwyn's sister, this is where she needed to be.
Accepting their family meant accepting the fights, the disappointments, the problems. It also meant embracing their happiness, love, and support.
It wasn't an easy road that lay ahead, but Sophie no longer questioned her decision to stay.
She'd found what she needed to believe in.
* * *
The sound of the clock ticking in the background was the only reminder of time continually passing by.
As Sophie stood in the hallway outside of the living room, she felt all the warmth she'd held the day before leak out.
The house was cold and empty without the kids in it. They'd left an hour before to go on a picnic in the park. She'd been invited to go, but declined at the last minute, wanting to finish unpacking the last of her things.
It seemed that Robert had assumed she'd gone, as he hadn't informed her that they had company. In truth, both Cleo and himself were oblivious to her presence outside the doorway. It was obvious from the way they were speaking to one another.
"You're not surprised she lasted this long." Robert commented the moment Sophie had approached the doorway.
"She has her parents blood in her. I'm not surprised." Cleo answered, a smile in her tone.
If that had been all she'd heard, Sophie would've stepped in to announce herself. Before she had the chance, Cleo continued.
"What surprises me is that you haven't told her the truth yet."
"I'm still hoping she chooses a path away from this life." He replied.
"You insult me, Rob. Don't you like working with someone like myself?" Cleo joked.
"I'm not like the rest of them. I don't have a life of opportunity ahead of me."
"She will need to find out soon." Cleo sounded like she was amused at the prospect.
"You're planning on using her?" Robert's voice was emotionless.
"She's proven that she has the potential."
"If you asked me to, I would take her place. You know I'm the best there is."
"Not the best in the world, but the best available to me, yes. However, this is not your mission. They were not your parents."
Sophie clenched her fists, too taken in by their conversation to think clearly.
"She still thinks they died when she was three. It won't be easy convincing her the truth." Sophie listened to him shift his position.
"It would be silly of her not to accept the truth at this point. If she's come this far accepting such a strange lifestyle, more hidden truths shouldn't be a surprise."
"We'll see about that." He sighed again.
"Don't tell me she's grown on you. I didn't consider you the kind of man who grew attached."
"I made a promise to her mother." He admitted. "Back when I first came here. I don't keep my word on many things, Cleo, but I promised myself I wouldn't fail her."
"It's interesting how one letter can change everything." Cleo made a dramatic sigh.
Sophie's heart sank. She felt chill bumps race up her arm. Without recognizing it, she'd begun to hope for something impossible.
If what they were saying was true, it seemed like her parents could still be alive.
"Well, a lot of good that did them." Cleo commented patronizingly. "Their reckless actions will probably lead to death of their beloved daughter."
"Does it have to lead to that?" Robert's voice was grave.
"If she fails me, I'll make sure of it." Cleo's tone had grown cruel. "Max wasn't the only one Gerry and Anne betrayed. I'm not a forgiving person."
Sophie heard someone stand, and gradually began backing away from the doorway.
"I guess I was right, in the end." Robert said, his voice unnervingly close. "It would've been better if I hadn't discovered her."
Sophie realized too late that she was going to be caught. Before she could disappear, the sound of footsteps caused her to freeze.
Robert paused in the living room doorway, his eyes focusing on her without a hint of surprise.
"It would've been better if she'd chosen to run away." He whisper
ed, his words directed only to her.
CHAPTER NINE
It seemed as if every danger in the world became less threatening when I accepted the fact that I was no longer alone in the fight.
Sophie found all the truth she needed in Robert's eyes.
The countless warnings he'd given her before were nothing compared to the reality he'd just doused her with.