Their names snapped me out of my haze. I moved without a word, picking up my phone and hitting one of our staff member’s numbers. Kristin picked up on the third ring. “Hey, Anna. What’s up?”

I did my best to keep my voice even. “I need you to take Justin and Lyla to the cottage right now. Try not to worry them, but don’t leave until I call or come to get them.”

“Sure…is everything okay?”

“Not really. I’ll call when I can.”

“All right. Don’t worry. I’ve got them.”

My fingers tightened around my phone. “Thank you.”

As soon as I hung up, I pushed to my feet, taking a deep breath. My parents didn’t get to do this. They weren’t allowed to sully the place that had been my refuge for so long. They didn’t get to win. Not this time.

Mason stood, too. “You okay?”

I nodded. But as I met his stare, worry gnawed at my resolve. My parents were expert manipulators. It was why Chelsea had stayed away for so long. They’d convinced her that I was an addict and dangerous. That I’d abandoned her, choosing drugs over her. They could color Mason’s view of me, too. “They’re very convincing.”

His expression hardened. “I know a wolf in sheep’s clothing when I see one.”

The anger pouring off Mason told me there was more to that statement than I had knowledge of. But now wasn’t the time to push or prod. I had to face the last two people I ever wanted to see again. “Let’s go.”

I moved down the hallway, the voices echoing from the main room of the shelter. Jefferson stood, muscular arms crossed, blocking their path. He caught my movement out of the corner of his eye. “Sorry about this, Anna. I’ve already called the station. They’ve got officers en route.”

My eyes were solely trained on the two people who had once been my parents. No, that was wrong. They had never been what a parent should be. They were simply two halves of my genetic makeup. I lifted my chin, refusing to be intimidated by my father’s stare. “You’ll have to leave. This is private property. If you choose not to, the police will remove you.”

“Now, Anna,” my father began, his voice deceptively gentle. But that softness hid a threat. One his family knew all too well. “This is unnecessary. We simply want to talk with you. I know you were too ashamed to return to us after what you did, but that’s no reason to push us away now.”

It took everything in me to keep my face a blank mask, digging my nails into my palms for some outlet for the pain and rage flowing unchecked through me. “I have nothing to say to you. Please, leave.”