Chapter 27 — Raina POV
We drive into a quiet, gated neighborhood nestled near the inner coast of Alden Island. The kind that smells like money and clean air, where the roads curve gently like they have nowhere to be.
Mirelle pulls into the driveway of a pale-stone villa covered in flowering vines. The house isn't ostentatious by Alden standards, but it's still larger than anything I ever imagined for us. Before the car fully stops, staff emerge from the house, dressed in clean uniforms and calm smiles.
"You didn't have to do this," I murmur as I unbuckle my seatbelt.
"They were fine in the compound."
"They deserve more than fine," she replies simply, already stepping out. She doesn't wait for a response.
I follow, tension balled in my shoulders. The door opens for me. Cool air greets me first, followed by the warm, familiar voice of my sister.
"Raina!"
Anika looks up from the couch where she'd been watching over our mother and youngest sister. Her face brightens, losing some of its worn-out edge. She's only fourteen, but years of playing caretaker have aged her in quiet, invisible ways.
She stands and hugs me tightly. It takes effort not to hold her too hard.
Lidia, all limbs and excitement, barrels into me next. "You didn't come last night! We waited and waited!"
She nearly knocks me over, and it's Anika who steadies me with a tired smile.
"You're getting heavy," I joke, trying to sound light.
"You're just getting weaker," Lidia argues, grinning.
I sit down on the carpet, cross-legged. The girls join me immediately, one on either side.
"I wanted to talk to you both," I begin, glancing over at our mother. She's lying on the floor surrounded by paints and construction paper, humming to herself. A staff member nearby supervises quietly but doesn't interfere. She looks peaceful. Safer than she's been in years.
"This place… do you like it?" I ask.
"It's weird," Anika says.
"But in a good way. There's space. And food."
"It's sooo pretty!" Lidia exclaims, twirling a marker in her hand.
I press my palms together. "Well… I'm getting married."
Their heads turn in sync.
"To who?" Anika asks, suspicious.
"The daughter of the people who own this island," I say.
"Her name's Mirelle."
Anika's brows lift. "So… you're pregnant?"
She's always been too sharp. I laugh weakly. "Yeah. I am."
They absorb the news in silence.
"You don't have to stay home anymore," I add softly.
"You can go to school again. With friends. You don't have to carry this."
Anika looks down at her hands. "...Are you okay with it?"
She's always been more worried about me than herself.
"I am trust me," I say, and mean it.
Lidia, quiet for once, frowns.
"What about Uncle?"
That name makes my jaw clench.
"Don't worry, baby," I say.
"He can't touch us here. We're with the Aldens now."
She seems unconvinced, but she nods anyway. I know it'll take time. For all of us.
Then Lidia's eyes go wide.
"Wait—you said you're marrying a girl. But girls can't have babies. So… how?"
I blink. "Uh—"
"I've got it," Anika says smugly, clearly relishing my discomfort.
"I'll explain later."
Bless her.
I take that as my cue and quietly move to the other side of the room where our mother is sprawled in her world of colors and curls.
She holds up a drawing—a childlike landscape of bright suns, stick figures, and impossibly green grass.
"Isn't it beautiful?" she asks.
"It is," I whisper, kneeling beside her. "It's perfect."
And I want to cry. Because, I see her bright, and finally she'll get the care she needs.