Monk (K19 Security Solutions 7)

With wide eyes, both girls nodded their heads. Saylor looked over at her mother and winked.

THEY MADE two more stops before driving inland to the cabin where their father used to take Saylor and her brother fishing. She doubted her mother had been here since her father died.

“Are you okay?” she asked, reaching over to squeeze her mom’s hand.

“I’m fine, sweetie.”

Razor walked out the front door just as they drove up.

“Where’s Ava?” Saylor asked, climbing out of the Jeep.

“Uh…she’s calling me Razor again.”

Saylor burst out laughing, knowing she only called him that when she was pissed; otherwise, she called him Tabon, his given name.

“I need help,” Razor whispered to her.

“Aunt Ava is sleeping,” Saylor said to the girls, putting a finger to her lips. “Why don’t you and Ya-Ya take a walk down to the lake. When you get back, she’ll probably be awake.”

“Okay,” both girls grumbled, taking their grandmother’s hands.

“All right, they’re gone. Tell me what happened. Word for word.”

After Razor reiterated their conversation, Saylor left her brother sitting on the porch and went inside to see if she could smooth things over with Ava.

They’d only been talking a few minutes when they heard a knock, and then Razor stuck his head inside. “Can I come in?” he asked.

Saylor excused herself, went back outside, and sat on the porch. She closed her eyes, remembering a time she and Razor came to the cabin with their dad when they were teenagers.

It had started out as a shitty day. Their father had picked a fight with their mom and then hustled Saylor and Razor into his Jeep, the same one Saylor still drove.

As they got closer to the cabin, it was as though the tension in the car simply faded away.

They ended up having a great day and caught lots of fish. When they trudged up to the cabin, their mom was there too, and it was as though the earlier argument had never happened.

“AVA WILL BE OUT SHORTLY,” Razor said when he came out and sat down next to her.

“Good.”

“How’s Ya-Ya?” he asked.

“She’s okay. I don’t think she’s been up here since Dad died.”

“Who has been?”

“Me. I bring the girls up here sometimes. I want them to know things about him, ya know?” Saylor sighed, looked toward the lake, and saw her mother and the girls walking back up.

Before they got to the cabin, Ava came outside.

“Aunt Ava!” Both girls shouted and came running, dragging their grandmother with them.

Saylor leaned back on her hands and watched the look on her brother’s face as Ava talked to them. Her brother was absolutely head-over-heels in love with this woman.

She envied that, but not enough to ever go down that road again herself. She’d learned her lesson; love worked out for some people, but not for her.

When Razor got up and walked over to the picnic table, Saylor followed.

“Thanks for getting the phones, Sis.”