4
Uncle stood there, frozen for a few seconds,
then spat out, “Danny, are you serious? She
got to you too? I can’t believe it. She played
you, a freakin‘ cop!”
On the other end of the line, my cousin Danny
was clearly stunned.
<
̈IJ, what tne neir ́s going on with you? YOU
used to be so protective of Riley.”
He paused. “We got a call. Found some
remains up in those hills near your cabin.
Turns out, it’s Riley.”
“She’s gone, TJ. Been gone for a year. And
she had brain cancer, suffered like you
wouldn’t believe. Ended it herself.”
Uncle cut him off. “No freaking way! It can’t
be her! You guys screwed up!”
“TJ, the DNA doesn’t lie. You’re her guardian.
Come ID the body.”
Danny ranted for a bit and hung up.
Uncle looked like he’d been punched in the
L
gut. He just stared, his mouth clamped shut.
Brittany, seeing his face, jumped in. “TJ,
what’s wrong? You’re freaking me out. I’ve
never seen you like this.”
It took him a minute to get his head around it.
He stared at Brittany, his eyes dark and
intense.
She looked away, grabbing his arm. “TJ, what
is it? Why are you looking at me like that?
You’re scaring me and the baby!”
Uncle ripped her hand off him and bolted out
the door.
“Ah! My stomach! TJ, take me to the
hospital!”
Г
He stopped, glanced back, his eyes like ice.
“Brittany, you’re the biggest liar of them all.
I’m done believing your bullshit!”
“TJ…”
Brittany was already crying and rushing
toward him.
“Brittany, those tears don’t work on me
anymore. I’m done being a sucker.”
“TJ, I love you! How could I lie? We’ve been
together forever. You know what kind of
person I am, right?”
Uncle punched the wall so hard his knuckles
cracked. “Lying? You lied your ass off! You
く
cracked. “Lying? You lied your ass off! You
said you could take care of Riley, that you
two could talk. I thought, fine, girls together,
that works.
“But you hid the cancer from me! She didn’t
get the treatment she needed. Then you told
me she was out of control, so I had to bring
her back. Lock her up!
“Her only chance to get help, and you
screwed it up!”
“Riley’s gone forever!”
He slammed the door and stormed off.
My ghost was on his tail again.
Uncle floored it, racing through the night like
<
He bit his lip so hard it bled.
He was trying to hold it together, but when he
hit a red light, he buried his head on the
steering wheel and sobbed.
“This can’t be happening. Danny’s wrong!”
He looked up, pounded the steering wheel
with both hands, and screamed.
“No! No! I don’t believe it!”
The light turned green, but Uncle didn’t move.
Horns started blaring, but he didn’t budge.
He was in a daze, muttering, “No, no, no.”
<
Some guy finally yanked open the door.
It was Danny.
He clocked Uncle in the jaw and dragged him
into the back seat.
“TJ, what the hell are you doing? Riley
begged you for help, and you ignored her.
Now she’s dead, and you’re putting on a
show? You treated her like garbage. Did you
even know her?”
“Get your act together. She’s gone.”
Uncle sat in the back seat, crying his eyes
out.
He stopped when the car pulled up to the
police station.
く
“Danny, I can’t let Riley die like this. I’m going
to get justice for her!”
Danny just looked at him, sighed, and shook
his head.
He took Uncle inside to ID the body.
When Uncle saw my bones, he lost it again.
He pointed at the cracks in my skull. “She did
that herself? How much pain was she in? I
didn’t know anything! I’m her uncle, and I
failed her.”
Danny pulled out a bag with my only
belonging.
“You didn’t deserve to be her family, but she
did! You don’t even remember this jade,
<
Juuu,
right? You gave it to her when she first came.
It was the only thing she had!”
“Some people did not even want her to have
the jade. The rope had blood stains on it. She
didn’t want to take off the jade and kept
bleeding!”
“But you, you knew nothing! You trusted
Brittany. TJ, how can you be so smart in
business and so stupid with women!”
Uncle grabbed the jade, held it tight, and
cried.
“I messed up. I’m going to bring her home.”
Danny sighed and gave him an old cloth.
“Diley’s last wich was to have her ashes
L
Uncle opened the cloth. There was a bloody
note.
I had scratched it on the bed sheet.
I did not want to go home!
Uncle didn’t listen. He brought my ashes
home.
My soul was still attached to him.
