Ava: Mom (I)

Selene perks her head up before there's a knock rapping against my door.

Vanessa, she confirms before I open it.

"The boys have dialed in," Vanessa announces as soon as she sees my face. "It's up to you. We can head straight to the hospital, or you can settle in and wait until tomorrow."

My stomach twists, heartburn coming out of nowhere to spread fire through my esophagus. "Oh." I could almost forget why I'm here, distracting myself with everything else.

"Tomorrow's just fine—"

"No," I cut in, shaking my head. "I need to talk to her now. The quicker we get answers, the sooner we can get Lisa back."

Vanessa searches my face, her brows drawing together as she weighs the situation in her mind.

After a moment, she steps back, motioning me out of the room. "I'll let Ves know."

"Ves? Oh. Vester." I've never heard her talk about him before, and their curious interactions earlier have me wanting to ask her what's going on.