Chapter 14

Silvia "Silvia." His voice caught in my throat, the sound nearly strangled. I stared at the TV remote in my hand, pretending to fumble with the buttons though the family soap opera was already playing on the hospital room's screen. It was late afternoon. Four hours had passed, and I still hadn't told him the truth. Thank the Moon Goddess he was practically bedridden. He would have tied me to the chair with his IV tube if he'd had any strength left—anything to force the truth out of me. I could feel the waves of fury radiating from his hospital bed. My strong, vulnerable brother, just recovering from heart surgery, looked ready to commit murder. I cleared my throat, quickly flipping through episodes we'd already watched a hundred times. "Episode fourteen?" I asked weakly. His eyes narrowed to slits. "Silvia." This was bad. He'd slept for two hours earlier. I'd used that time to breathe, plan, gather courage to tell him everything. I hadn't come up with any strategy whatsoever. Now there