Music From Another World - Robin Talley Page 0,113

myself.

Aunt Mandy jumped in to fill the silence.

“Peter.” Her smile had gone thin. “You’re a very confused boy, and I feel a great deal of pity for you, but I do hope you understand you’ve just broken your mother’s heart.”

I wanted to kick her, but Peter didn’t even seem to hear. He was focused solely on Mom, his eyes watery.

Aunt Mandy lifted a sleek brown canvas purse onto her shoulder. “Mrs. Hawkins, this should be a family conversation. I’ll pray for your son to find guidance through our Holy Lord and Savior. Now, I’ll see myself out. It was a pleasure meeting you.”

She was going to look for Tammy. What would she do when she found her? Drag her kicking and screaming back to Orange County to face her family’s wrath? Or was she only here because Tammy had proof that she and her husband were a pair of opportunistic thieves?

I wasn’t waiting to find out.

I shoved past Aunt Mandy, ignoring her yelp of complaint, and tore through the door and down the front steps. She was quick to follow in my wake, moving with astonishing speed in her brown suede pumps.

“You’re wise to leave, Sharon.” Her breath was cool and steady over my shoulder, as though we weren’t running at all. “No need to get involved in this messy situation with your brother. Let’s find Tammy so we can get her the help she needs, and I’ll be on my way.”

I whipped around to face her. “Shut UP!”

Aunt Mandy stepped back, her eyes widening in surprise. She wasn’t expecting me to shout at her. Neither was I.

“After what you just did?” I stood, my chest heaving. “You don’t know me, or my brother. You couldn’t care less if you’ve destroyed our family. All you care about is…”

But I couldn’t muster the rest of what I wanted to say.

I wanted to tell her to stop pretending she’d come here to help anyone. She only cares about herself—that’s all she’s ever cared about. She thinks she’s so important, that her church, her town, is her very own little kingdom.

But she’s going to lose. And when that happens, she’ll be left with nothing. Her, and all the others like her. They can keep trying to stop the world from changing, but nothing they do will make them matter in the end.

I wanted to shout the words loud enough for my entire block to hear. But my chest was heaving, and my voice couldn’t squeeze through the anger in my throat.

Aunt Mandy’s smile had faded a little, though. “Your brother is…confused.”

I wanted to tell her Peter wasn’t confused at all. He understood a lot more about the world than I did. And he knew a Hell of a lot more than her.

From the new tilt to her head and the thin line pressed between her lips, I wondered for a second if Tammy’s aunt might actually be starting to realize just how badly she’d screwed things up for my brother. I wondered if she might even feel guilty for it. Before either of us could say any more, though, footsteps rang out on the sidewalk, then stopped abruptly.

I turned. Tammy was watching us from ten feet back, her mouth hanging open, her purse slung over her shoulder.

She spoke quietly, but clearly. “Hi, Aunt Mandy.”

The strange expression on Mrs. Dale’s face transformed instantly into her usual sickly smile. “Tammy! Good heavens, your hair is so…well, never mind. Your friend here was just about to bring me to you, but I’m delighted you found us instead.”

“Don’t bother lying.” Tammy didn’t smile back. Her lower lip was trembling.

I wanted to shout at Aunt Mandy to get away from us, to leave Tammy alone. Yet when I opened my mouth, it was all I could do not to choke out a sob.

“You don’t have to pretend for Sharon’s benefit.” Tammy lifted her chin. “She already knows the truth. Every bit of it.”

“Then this should be easy.” Aunt Mandy’s smile didn’t fade a smidgen. “Let’s just get your things, and we’ll go back