The Ones Who Saved Us

Chapter 33

Elijah's POV

My fists were clenched as I walked back to the car after hearing the bullshit lies that Marco, Cara, and Raphael were spewing to me. Ava wouldn't skip school without telling one of us just because she wasn't feeling well. She would've powered through the day even though she should have called one of us to pick her up early. That's how I knew those kids were lying the minute they opened their mouths.

Ava was physically okay, but something had happened today that had shaken her up. Opening the car door, I immediately noticed the blank expression that was on Ava's face, the very same look she wore when she first started living with us and was hiding the abuse from us. It scared me seeing my little sister so emotionless, how tightly she was guarding her emotions. There was nothing I wanted more than to help her, but I didn't know how.

I sat down in the driver's seat and turned the car on. "Ava, amore?" I called, only to receive no answer or acknowledgement that she had heard me. "Aves, can you put your seatbelt on? I can't start driving until you're buckled up."

When I received no answer, I lightly tapped Ava's shoulder, causing her to slightly jump before turning to me. She blinked her eyes for a few seconds before sending me a small smile that soon dropped upon noticing how my eyebrows were knitted together. "Hey, Lijah," she said. "I didn't hear you come in. Is something wrong?"

I cupped Ava's cheek, noticing how she slightly recoiled from my touch. "Aves, what happened? You can tell me."

"N-Nothing, really," she said. "It's just that stupid book I read last night. It stirred up some feelings. That's all."

I wasn't convinced, especially after Ava's slight stutter that came out when she was either trying to hide something or felt threatened. But there was nothing I could do in this moment except get her home and hope that Dad and Alessandro could get her to talk.

"Okay," I sighed. "Put your seatbelt on, and we'll head home."

Ava's hands were shaking as she tried buckling the seatbelt, so I reached over and did it for her.

God, what happened to her?

When I started driving us home, Ava turned her attention back towards the window, her hands clasped tightly together. I picked my phone up and dialed my oldest brother's number, knowing that only him or Dad would be able to figure out what was going on with her. But he didn't pick up, and when I called Dad, it went straight to voicemail.

What is going on?

As a last resort, I called Leo, who quickly picked up the phone. "Hey, Lijah. Is Ava okay? Do you know why she skipped school?"

"She's not okay," I said, looking over at my sister who looked spaced out. "Leo, I don't know what happened, but we need Dad and Sandro to come home and figure this out. I'm really worried about her."

"Why? What's wrong with her?" Leo asked, the urgency clear in his tone.

"I don't know. I don't fucking know. It looks like she's in some kind of dissociative state, but I'm not sure. Just try and get a hold of them, please. They're not answering any of my calls."

"I will. Don't worry," Leo said.

"Thank you," I said. "I don't think anyone will be able to get through to her except Sandro or Dad."

"Fratello, relax," Leo said. "We'll handle it once you get home. Maybe she's still shaken up from last night. The lack of sleep is probably just catching up to her."

Leo's voice was hopeful as if he was praying that this was a simple act of teenage rebellion rather than something that most definitely occurred against Ava's will. It hurt us more than anything knowing that even with the extensive measures we had taken to protect Ava, we still continued to fail her.