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"Don’t coue with hiht I wouldn’t coht to check on her

"We talked She fell asleep, then she started having a night I calave o, but he was leaving too "I will But so are you"

He looked at ie sleeping curled up alone in the bed "If I leave, so do you She locks her door at night How’d you get in?" I asked hiet into my old room when it’s locked Besides, once I saw your truck parked down the road, I knehere you were and how you got in here"

I trusted Brady, but I didn’t like that "I leave, you leave," I repeated

"Are you serious?" he asked

"Very"

Brady shook his head and opened the bedroom door "I swear to God, West You’re insane if you think I’d make a move on my cousin"

I didn’t think he would I just didn’t like hi in her room while she was asleep She hadn’t invited hiotten ho I’d wake up to a repeat of last weekend with et it

Instead I oken by the sounds of an ambulance outside the house, and ainst my chest, and I moved fast I ran from my room toward the front of the house where I heard Momma

"He’s down the hall!" she shouted at the parah the door "Hurry! He’s throwing up sopitifully, and the paramedics moved fast I backed up and let the on to the front door as if she were about to collapse She had blood all over her clothing And tears were running down her face "We’re gonna lose hionna lose him" She sobbed as her knees buckled

I hurried over to her and held her against ht now We can break down later But we need to show hi, it will be even harder on hied her to do what I wasn’t sure I could dothose words in ht now That I was strong enough for this

Moht He needs us to be strong," she repeated "Help me remember that" She patted o with theed, and we’ll follow They aren’t going to let you in the back They’ll need all the rooain, but I could tell she didn’t like the idea of his leaving this house without her

I held her as they brought outhiht on a new, deeper sorrow One I hadn’t experienced yet