Rain started to patter against the windshield. Avery glowered at the sight. Great, just great. That would slow them down even more. She flicked on her lights. Evening fast approached, and the clouds weren’t helping.

Conner sighed. “It has to rain now?”

“I know. Not good timing. Why did you have to take your car to a place so far away?”

“They had the best reviews. I can’t just entrust anyone with May.”

She chanced a look at him. “You named your car? Seriously, I think you put more effort into babying that car than a parent puts into researching a daycare.”

“Ha! I remember how you were when first going back to work after having Aiden. You were frantic to find the perfect place for him.”

She couldn’t deny it. “Well, you can’t leave a child with just anyone.”

“Point proven. You’re just as bad as I am.”

The satisfaction in his voice made her roll her eyes and laugh. “Yeah, my kid is actually a child, not a machine made of fiberglass and metal.”

“Avery, you don’t talk about Aiden’s father much. Could…could he be the reason for some of his more unusual abilities.”

Her heart lurched as it always did whenever someone tried to bring up Sorin. He was a topic she never wanted to talk about. The mere thought of him inevitably brought back a flood of sadness, confusion, and anger. Oh, so much anger.

But she couldn’t ignore her brother’s question, not if it turned out to be detrimental to her son. She kept her gaze firmly on the road, not glancing at Conner. “I don’t know. He was always so secretive, but at seventeen, I thought that was hot and mysterious. Stupid, I know. He only stuck around long enough to get me pregnant and then vanished without a trace. But you already knew most of that. You met him several times. What did you think of him?”

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Conner shrug. “I was preoccupied with college and only saw him over that one weekend. He was cocky, but he seemed to care for you.”

As she braked for a car in front of her, a humorless laugh escaped from her. Sorin had been that and so much more—sexy, handsome, smart, and funny. And all of it nearly fake, apparently. “Cared for me so much he left without a word.” She’d been nothing but a teenager, still wasn’t much more than that at twenty.

“Yeah, he was a real dick and is on my shit list,” Conner said, his tone turning dark. “If he ever comes around, I’ll have a good time smashing my fist into his face.”

“Not if I beat you to it.”

He slapped his thigh. “That’s my bloodthirsty girl.”

She gave a dry smile. “Let’s just say I have a lot of pent-up rage.” Sorin had left her alone and nearly disowned by her grandparents. They’d raised her and Conner after their parents’ deaths but had been old-fashioned in many of their beliefs. A girl didn’t get pregnant outside of marriage, especially not a seventeen-year-old incoming senior in high school.

“Understandable. I’ll definitely let you have the first punch.”

That cracked a smile from her. “Your thoughtfulness astounds me.”

“I know, I’m pretty awesome, right?”

“You’re something else—that’s for sure.” She geared up to say something more, but something odd about the intersection they were paused at captured her attention. She swiveled her head toward her brother. “Hasn’t this always been a T-intersection?”

He frowned, his brow furrowing, and stared past her. “Yeah. When did they change this?”

“I don’t know. I don’t come to this part of town much.” Still, she’d been in the area about two months ago and never saw a hint of a construction going on.

“I swear this wasn’t here just a few days ago.”

They watched as a truck from the adjacent lane turned onto the new road. Conner pointed in that direction. “Let’s take it. Get in the left turn lane. I think it’ll be a shortcut.”

She bit her lip, filled with a strange hesitation that bordered on dread. “I don’t know.”

“Come on. Have a little sense of adventure. There’s hardly any traffic going that way, so it should be faster.”

Avery checked her mirrors. The left turn lane was all clear, and no one attempting to enter it, either. Though that baseless fear was still twisting her stomach, she blew out a shaky breath and pulled into the lane.