They drove up to her house in silence. “Are you ready for this, McKenna?” Dr. Olsen asked. They sat in the institute's van, the engine running. The warmth from the heater felt good on her legs. She had been shivering all morning. She suspected it wasn’t from the cold.

“About as ready as I’ll ever be.” Anxiety swirled around her as she gazed at the home she grew up in. Her parents were there waiting for her. She hoped her grandparents were there, too. She hadn’t seen them in a while, and she missed them. “Well, then,” her breath shook. “Let’s get this over with.”

Dr. Olsen had called her parents the day before to let them know she was coming to get a few things from her room. He felt it would make her more comfortable at the institute to have her stuff around her. That’s all he told them. McKenna was grateful for that gesture. There wasn’t any way she could face them alone.

She felt like a stranger as she walked up to the front porch. She couldn’t bring herself to walk in. She stood at the front door, hesitated, then rang the doorbell.

Her father answered.

“Hi, Dad,” she said, voice trembling. “Can I come in?”

“Kenna!” he said. “Of course, you can come in. This is still your home.” He reached out to embrace her.

McKenna shrank back from his touch. He made her feel violated. She felt nothing at the pained expression on his face.

Her mother was in the standing kitchen, wringing her hands. She stopped when McKenna walked into the room.

“McKenna,” she breathed, took two steps toward her, and stopped.

“Hello, Mother,” McKenna said quietly. “I’ve come to get my things.”

“Yes.” Her mother took another step.

McKenna stepped back.

Her mother stopped, chewed on her bottom lip, then caught herself. “Please, please come in. Hello, Dr. Olsen. How are you? Please sit down, would you like some coffee? I have some nice cinnamon rolls—”

“Thank you, Mrs. Dunn,” Dr. Olsen shut her down. “Coffee will be fine.”

“Cream and sugar?”

“Just black, thank you.”

The voices trailed after her as she climbed the stairs. She stood outside of her bedroom. It no longer belonged to her. The double bed with the pink coverlet. The dolls on the pillows. The white shelves with Teenage Love books on them. Did she really read that stuff? This room belonged to a child. McKenna didn’t feel like a child anymore.

She found a suitcase in the closet and packed only her clothes. Once she was done, she closed the lid and snapped it shut. She stood at the door again and glanced around. The dolls and books were still there. The child in her was not coming along. She was leaving her behind.

She turned to leave and found her grandmother standing behind her. “Hello, child.”

“Grandma!” she cried, falling into her open arms. “I was hoping to see you! Where’s Grandpa?”

“I’m right behind you, Sweetheart.”

She whirled around. “Grandpa!” She hugged him. “I’ve missed you both so much. Why haven’t you come to visit?”

“You needed time, McKenna,” her grandmother said.

“Time?”

“Yes,” her grandfather interrupted. “We represented home to you. As long as we kept coming to see you, you would never be able to adjust. You would always be missing your past. But it’s time to move on, Sweetheart. Just like it’s time for me and Grandma to move on.”

“Move on? You’re moving on?”

Grandma nodded. “It’s time, child. We’ve discovered that our duty here is fulfilled. Now we can go.”

Fear crossed her face. “Go? You’re leaving?”

They both bobbed their heads. “You won’t need us anymore, Sweetheart. That’s why we were here. Call us your Guardian Angels if that suits you. But our time has come.”

“Now,” Grandma said. “It’s time for you to go downstairs and finish what you need to finish.”

“Oh, Grandma, I’m afraid.”

Her grandmother stroked her hair. “I know you are, Child. But there’s no need. You have a good and kind doctor looking after you. You have a chance at a wonderful career. It’s time to take the bull by the horns, so to speak.”

“Remember we love you, and we’ll always be watching out for you, even if we’re not here.”

McKenna was numb. She wanted to cry, but she couldn’t. She thought maybe she was in shock. Everything was happening too fast.

“Go on now,” her grandmother said. “Take care of your business and get on with your new life.”

“Okay, I will. I love you both. I’m going to miss you.”

They stood hand in hand, and as McKenna watched, they slowly faded away.

Her hand covered her mouth to stop herself from crying after them. Then she gathered her wits, picked up her suitcase, and headed down the stairs.

Dr. Olsen and her parents were seated at the kitchen table. Their conversation stopped when she entered the room.

“Everything okay, McKenna,” Dr. Olsen asked.

She swallowed hard and nodded. “It will be,” she said.

“Good. Then have a seat.”

She stiffened as she glared at him. “But I thought—”

“It’s fine, McKenna. Just for a minute. There are some things your parents need to tell you before we leave.”

She looked down at the floor for a brief moment, then shrugged, set her suitcase down, and pulled out a kitchen chair. She didn’t sit down but stood behind it as if using it for a shield. Her mother said nothing, only stared morosely into her cup of coffee. Her father stared at his hands. Dr. Olsen remained silent.

“Well?” McKenna finally broke the silence.

Her mother started chewing her bottom lip again. She glanced over at her father.

He cleared his throat and took a deep breath.

“You’re not our daughter.”

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