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Sasha grins into her webcam. “I’m just going to get right to it, okay? So this morning, I broke into my parents’ filing cabinet. The one they keep in a back closet in my dad’s office, under strict lock and key. I’ve always figured my adoption papers were in there, so today, with both of my parents gone, I just went for it.”
She wiggles her eyebrows, and I see a hint of Elijah’s eyes sparkling at me through the screen. “There was a DVD included in my folder. It’s a file my mom saved from her email because back then she put everything on DVDs instead of flash drives. It was dated a few months after my parents had officially adopted me, so I’m not sure why the lady at the agency emailed this video to my mom, but she did. I guess this is when they found out about Elijah … but I don’t want to get into that right now. Right now is about you and me, big brother.”
Sasha grins into the camera, her face still vibrant even though her hair had fallen out by then. She reaches up and the video goes blank. Then another one begins to play.
The grainy footage is obviously from an old digital camera, circa 2000 or so. The room looks like a daycare, with colorful walls and toys all over the floor. Kids are playing in the background, but the camera is focused on two kids in particular. A baby sits on a blanket, holding a toy caterpillar on a string. The baby’s skin is a creamy tan, her hair black and her eyes the bluest I’ve ever seen.
Beside her, a boy, about three years old, plays with a toy car. He has the same hair, the same skin tone and those same eyes. Elijah was a chubby toddler.
Watching them play together makes me completely lose track of what the woman is saying, until she moves the camera closer to Elijah.
“This is Elijah. He just arrived and he wanted to find his sister. Elijah, what are you doing?”
“This is my sister,” he says, his fat little cheeks grinning as he wraps his arms around Sasha’s head. She looks startled, and then bops him in the face with her tiny fist.
“It’s okay. I love you,” Elijah says, placing a wobbly toddler kiss on top of her head.
The video cuts out and big Sasha appears again. Her eyes seem far away when she talks. “I always thought my biggest regret was that we never knew each other until it was too late. But that’s not true, Elijah. We were actually together, at least for a short while. We did know each other after all. There was a time in our lives where we were best friends, even if we can’t remember it.”
She focuses back on the webcam, and I get the chills when her gaze falls on me. “It may feel like that time is gone. But in a universe that is infinite, that moment still exists. It’s in the past, but it’s there, and it makes me happy. You were the brother I’d always wanted. And you still are.”
I think Sasha meant for this to be a beautiful, heartwarming video, but a sadness hits me so hard I turn off my phone and toss it back on the nightstand. I sit up in bed, nausea rolling around my stomach. All those years ago, the future seemed so bright. Two beautiful siblings had the whole world ahead of them.
Now only one of them does.
Chapter Thirty-Two
The blue dress might look good, but a cold front blew in last night and now I’m shivering on the long walk from the parking lot up to the county courthouse. Mrs. Cade throws an arm around my shoulders as we enter inside a set of glass doors.
“Are you cold, or scared?” she asks, her breath smelling like the coffee she holds in her other hand.
“Both.” It’s the honest-to-God answer. My parents offered to take off work for the day, but I’d insisted that they go about their normal lives. After all, letting my parents meet the guy I’m pretty much in love with during his court appearance? Not ideal. I worried that they would have told me not to miss any more school, but they didn’t. After all, my best friend has only been gone a few months.
This is something I have to do.
The courthouse has a life of its own, with people going every which way. Lawyers walking quickly in their tailored suits, faces bored or determined, or too focused on their cell phones. Worried mothers fussing over their sons’ ties, silk formalities that are only pulled from the closet for rare occasions like these.
We have to go through a metal detector before we’re let in the main part of the building, and then Mrs. Cade and I spend a few minutes staring at the map in the lobby to figure out where to go. There are several courtrooms hearing many cases today. Some of them are simple things like people trying to get out of speeding tickets, and others are more severe, like trying to get a drug charge dropped. Mr. Cade told us this morning that Elijah’s meeting with the judge is closed door, and if we want to be here for moral support, we have to wait outside.
I focus on breathing exercises as I sit on a hard bench next to Mrs. Cade, who is reading an ebook on her cell phone. She acts calm, but I notice she hasn’t flipped to the next page in a long time. The only reason we came today is because we want to be here the moment the judge releases Elijah, not that it’s guaranteed. But he has the truth and the tough Texas lawyer on his side, so I refuse to believe the judge would rule against him.
When the doors swing open, I feel like it hasn’t been nearly long enough for the judge to rule in our favor. I bolt off the bench, my heart pounding and my teeth digging into my bottom lip. Does a quick meeting mean Elijah is screwed? Or —
Mr. Cade seems ten feet tall as he strides out of the courtroom, shaking hands with colleagues as he passes. Behind him, Elijah wears a suit that’s too baggy and a subtle grin.
“Well?” I practically shout at Mr. Cade and I rush to meet them.
“All charges dropped,” Mr. Cade says, clapping a hand on Elijah’s back.
All sense of propriety disappears into thin air as I rush forward and throw my arms around Elijah. He hugs me back, lifting me off the floor. I get lost in the scent of his shampoo, the fresh minty smell of his breath as he places a kiss on my cheek.
When he sets me down, the whole world is spinning. I can’t take my eyes off him — not that I’d want to.
“Thank you so much,” Elijah tells Mr. Cade. “I can’t ever repay you for helping me.”
Mrs. Cade inhales sharply. “Oh Elijah,” she says, grabbing him in a tight hug. “It is so great to meet you in person.” His eyes go wide as he looks at me over her shoulder, and all I can do is smile.
When she pulls back, she holds his face in her hands, and even though he’s taller than she is, she seems to be looking down on him with the utmost approval. Her lips curl at the corners. “You do have her eyes,” she whispers, tears filling her own.
