After she had showered, Ava headed back into the kitchen where Brax was sitting, and reached for the cup of coffee that he had poured her. Glancing over at her older brother, she could tell that there was a lot on his mind, and she knew that he had questions for her which she would answer as best she could.

There was so much that had happened over the last three years that she wanted to keep to herself, but she would tell him about everything else, some things were just best kept in the dark, and Ava knew that telling Brax would only do more harm than good. Brax finally looked up from his coffee cup, and looked at his sister, before speaking.

"Where were you?" Brax asked causing Ava to frown a little, "For the last three years I mean, where were you?"

"Melbourne for a while, then the city... we moved around quite a bit, once Rex and dad decided that they had over stayed their welcome."

"Why did you get hurt?"

"I asked to see you... I should have known better, for the first few months that was all I asked, and every time dad would lose his temper. I stopped asking after that, but as time went by and things became more hectic, all I wanted to do was see my big brothers...," Ava mumbled feeling the tears form but refusing to let them fall.

"What do you mean hectic?"

"At first they were just dealing, making drops and collecting money... like you used to... but then things escalated. They started getting reckless with their deals, operating where other people had business, and from time to time they would run into trouble with other dealers," Ava explained, "Of course, that didn't stop them, they just dragged me to the next piece of territory, and started all over again."

"Did they get you involved in it?" Brax inquired seriously.

"Sometimes, they would make me do deliveries... said that I was earning my keep, but it was just because people wouldn't be as suspicious of me dropping off packages," Ava said watching as Brax's hands balled into fists, but relaxed when he saw the slight hint of fear that flashed through Ava's eyes.

The conversation was interrupted with the front door slamming shut, and the sound of laughter filling the air, as Ava looked at Brax who had gotten up. He motioned for her to stay put, and she nodded moving so that she could hear what was going on, but couldn't be seen.

"What's got you guys in such a good mood?" Brax asked as he walked into the living room.

"Great surf today dude, where you been?"

"I've been dealing with something important," Brax replied, "Now that you're all here actually, I have something that I need to tell you."

"What's going on?"

"Ava's in town," Brax announced causing the entire room to fall silent.

"Who's Ava?" Someone asked but his voice wasn't familiar.

"Wait, where is she?"

"Ava," Brax said and Ava reluctantly stepped into the room. Heath and Casey both stared at her, before both rushing forward and hugging her, which made her chuckle. The other guy that Ava didn't know, simply stood to the side and watched the siblings interact for a few moments, before Brax cleared his throat drawing their attention to him, "Kyle this is Ava, our sister... Ava this is Kyle, our brother."

"It's nice to meet you Ava," Kyle added with a small smile.

"You too," Ava replied returning the smile, before averting her gaze to the ground.

"Why don't me and Ava go pick up some dinner from Angelo's?" Brax suggested earning nods of agreement from the others.

Ava followed Brax out to the ute, grateful for a little bit of space to clear her head, and allow the fact that she had another brother sink in. The thing about being a Braxton was that they never did things being halves, Kyle was their brother which meant he was family, and that was the only thing that mattered.

Brax pretty much brought Ava, Heath and Casey up, teaching them that no matter what was happening in your life, that family always came first and she had never forgotten that. It takes a lot more than simply bringing a baby into the world to be a parent, but their mum had never really been in a suitable state to look after children, and their dad was a mean drunk who liked nothing more than beating his kids to make them less soft... at least that was his excuse.

Ava idolised her brothers, each for different reasons but it was Brax that she looked up to above anyone else, and that hadn't changed. She wasn't to sure what to make of Kyle yet, after all she hadn't known him for long enough to really make a judgment, but she did know that her brothers trusted him and that was enough for her.

"You okay?" Brax asked cutting through Ava's thoughts.

"Yeah, I was just thinking."

"Anything exciting going on in that brain of yours?"

"I was just thinking about when I was younger that's all, before everything changed... it's something I've done a lot since the day dad took me," Ava explained glancing over at her brother as they pulled up to Angelo's and got out.

Brax waited until Ava was beside him, before heading inside, and placing an order for a variety of different food. He smiled at Ava, putting his arm around her shoulders, and chuckling when Ava hugged him.

"I'm not going to let them take you anywhere again, I promise," Brax mumbled against her hair as he gently kissed her head.