Chapter 6 Ava –––––––– I ARRIVED A few minutes early to Sheila’s visitation on Wednesday. As I entered the church, I found myself face-to-face with Dwayne, who was standing just inside of the double-doors wearing a dark gray suit. “Ava?” he said, staring at me with wide eyes. I managed a smile and nodded. “Wow, look at you,” he said, looking me up and down with a sad smile. “You’ve changed a lot and yet, I still see that sweet little girl Andrew used to brag about.” “Thank you,” I replied, noticing that he’d aged pretty roughly. There were deep lines and crevices along his face, especially around the lip area, and there were bags under his eyes. He looked haggard and rough. “So, he bragged about me?” “Of course. You know how big brothers are. He used to talk about you all the time.

