VERA
The triplets arrive in a tornado of noise and sweat, all seven years old and identical and somehow completely distinct once you know them. Collin is the leader, the one who negotiates and delegates. Ben is the feeler, the one who notices when I'm quiet. Josh is the protector, the one who sees too much and says too little.
They help me clean without being asked. They've learned. They know the rules, the same as I do. Make yourself useful, stay small, don't attract her attention when she's in one of her moods.
But I can't slow down. If I slow down, I'll stay and the atmosphere will shift. The air will get heavy. And heavy air in this house always, always breaks into a storm.
"VERA!"
I freeze with a trash bag in my hand, my spine locking into place.
She doesn't need to yell. She's
