Chapter 27

Clementine

“I’m going for a walk!” I called out on Wednesday afternoon as I exited the mudroom and over the back lawn where Vinny and Dad were wrestling. Or at least that’s what it looked like.

“Now brace your position, just like I taught you. I’ll come in from the left, and you need to counteract my weight.”

“Right,” Vinny said, bracing himself into a low crouch.

I watched for a few moments as Dad slammed into him with the full force of a freight train.

“And here I thought you always wanted a son, yet you’re obviously trying to kill him,” I teased as Vinny was pummelled into the ground. “Vinny, just kick him in the gonads. He’ll go down like a sack of potatoes.”

“Vincent, do not kick me in the gonads,” Dad warned, and Vinny laughed, then dusted himself off. “I’m just trying to go through some training techniques with your brother. Where are you going?”

“For a walk. Through there.” I pointed to the trees.

“You’re going into the bush?”

“Um, yeah.”

“You’re a city girl, Clementi