Lynell forces her posture to straighten and pulls a deep breath through her nose. It causes a twinging ache in her chest and she blows it out through her mouth.

Daniel looks down at her. His dark eyebrows hug closer to his eyes in a silent question.

She nods.

He knocks on Alan’s door.

Silence.

Lynell glances at Daniel and back at the door. Her skin crawls with anticipation and she grasps hold of his arm for balance. He places his hand on her back, a steady anchor to reality. She has to fight to stay present, to keep herself from falling into nightmares of the past that lie just beyond this door.

Daniel knocks again. Finally, from behind the door, Lynell hears a crash. She tenses, and Daniel wraps his arm further around her waist, holding her close.

“Who the hell—” someone yells, followed by another crash and a series of curses. “What do you want?” The door swings open to reveal a middle-aged man with a large gut hanging over tattered jeans. His hair is a deep brown and falls unevenly under his ears. He sneers at them with yellow teeth under an upturned nose. Lynell has a very foggy memory from a dozen years ago when he was a decent looking man with a flat stomach and white teeth. Looking at him now, she wonders if that version of him ever existed.

Lynell lifts her chin and says, “Alan.”

He frowns, studying her face. Then his lips break into a wide smile showing off every yellow tooth. He laughs and says, “Awe, little Linnie came home at last! What’s up with your face?” His words tie together in a slight slur, but he’s not swaying.

So, not pissed drunk yet.

“Alan,” Daniel says, stepping forward and gently pulling Lynell back. She wants to argue, but the movement causes her vision to go blurry for a moment and she has to catch her breath to stay on her feet. “I’m Daniel and—”

“I don’t give a damn who you are,” Alan interrupts.

Daniel’s grip on Lynell’s side tightens in response and she sucks in a breath, which causes him to instantly let go and return his hand to her back. “Lynell and I need somewhere to stay for a few days, and your place is our best option. Therefore, we are going to stay here.”

Alan glares at him. “Excuse you. You have no right to—”

“I think the childhood Lynell had to endure gives us the right to a simple favor,” Daniel says.

Alan stands taller and the fat on his cheeks shakes with the anger that’s building. Lynell can see the warning signs in the way his lip curls and his hands roll into fists. But before he can keep talking, or throw a punch, Daniel reaches forward and pushes the door open wider.

“You are going to help us and you’re not going to complain about it. I would prefer to go about this without violence or threats. Really, I’d prefer if you helped because it is the right thing to do, but sadly, I know better. So, you’re going to do this because you’ll get something valuable in return.”