The moment his palm touched the back of Darlene's hand, Avery felt as if time had gone back many years.
Darlene, who was 12 or 13 years old at that time, would always follow behind him in fear. She often could not help but grab his hand when something happened or ran into someone.
When Avery turned around and gave her a warning look, she would immediately come back to her senses and retracted her hand back in hurry.
When Darlene first arrived at the Gallard residence, Teresa told her that she would be a child of the Gallard family from now on. Teresa wanted her to address Avery as "brother".
She did as she was told. The first time she addressed Avery as "brother" in front of him, he almost lifted her and threw her out.