Some nights, I’d fall asleep in Ray’s recliner with Lily resting on my chest.
I’d wake up an hour later and remember that my sister was gone.
Then I’d look down at the baby and keep holding her.
The bikers never left.
Two or three were always somewhere in the driveway, taking turns watching the road. Nobody asked them to do it. They simply treated protecting Lily as a responsibility they had all accepted.
Moose discovered that Lily fell asleep whenever he started his Harley outside.
I’m serious.
Nothing else worked as reliably.
A giant man who looked like he could lift a truck spent his afternoons gently rocking a newborn while humming over the sound of a motorcycle engine.
And every time I saw it, I wondered how many people had mistaken these men for monsters without ever bothering to learn their names.
The custody hearing took place on a Tuesday in December.
