Chapter 56 Layla

• Layla
• The sun sets low over the ranch as I drive up the gravel driveway, dust settling like a shroud of uncertainty. As I pass through the open gate toward the familiar, weathered main house, the air smells of livestock and hay. My parents sit on the porch, Dad with a cigar and newspaper, Mom with an open book, both unfazed as my car nears.
• “What the hell have I gotten myself into?” I say out loud in my car as my fingers tighten around the wheel.