Turn It On: Turner Twins, Book 1 Read Online Free PDF Page A

his head and torso. “Four hundred seventy-four. Four hundred seventy-five. Four hundred—”
    “I’m here, Carl, I’m here. I’m sorry I was late. I came as soon as I could.” Ryan rose to lay a soothing hand on Carl’s arm as his brother continued to shake his chair with his agitated movements. “I’m going to read to you today, remember? You’ll have to sit still if you want me to read.”
    There was no use in further explanations. He squatted quietly by Carl’s chair, resting a hand on his brother’s thigh until the youth’s breathing calmed. The frantic rubbing slowed and Carl tilted his head to the side. “Hello, Ryan. You are going to read to me today. You promised. You promised to come to see me.” He hiccupped unsteadily a few times and continued to stare at the wall. His anxious movements increased in pace again.
    Ryan sighed. He hooked his foot around the nearby chair, dragged it closer and prepared to wait out the storm. Today it looked like it was going to be the long route to settle Carl down. There was no set pattern, although he had begun to recognize some of the triggers that set his brother off, plus the few responses that helped calm him.
    The most difficult part of the whole situation for Ryan was Carl’s astonishing intelligence didn’t jibe with his childlike behavior. Instantaneous math calculations would be followed by temper tantrums. Photographic visual recall—especially of faces—that Ryan would have loved to have while on active duty, vanished when Carl grew upset.
    He stared at the baby-smooth skin of Carl’s cheek. The mind of a child, mixed with the mind of a genius, in the body of a fifteen-year-old. Ryan sat quietly and hummed a favorite tune, soft and low. A light flickered in Carl’s eyes, and Ryan’s hopes rose. He gave Carl’s thigh a squeeze.
    “Hey, buddy, how are you? You want me to read a story to you?” It was a chance in a thousand this would be one of the rare occasions the situation passed without hours of painful intervention.
    “You said you would read to me. We can read together. Hello, Ryan, I’m your brother Carl.”
    “You sure are.” Ryan sat back in his chair, the tension peeling away one layer at a time. A faint smile pulled at the corners of Carl’s mouth, the tears in his eyes already forgotten. Ryan grabbed a tissue and dried his brother’s face gently. “There you go. Now, why don’t you pick a book?”
    Carl nodded, then wheeled himself away to peer at his bookshelf. A constant flow of words issued from his lips, barely audible. By the time Carl picked a story and Ryan read it to him, they were both back into the normal routine of a visit. Ryan read the familiar picture book out loud without having to concentrate, his gaze instead on his younger sibling.
    He hadn’t even known he had a brother.
    Now as he examined Carl surreptitiously, he spotted small resemblances between the youth and the hardhearted man who he remembered as his father, with his heavy fists and a wandering eye. Home to Ryan had been little more than a battleground. When his mom died, Ryan said goodbye to the constant fighting in a shot, not caring that he was barely old enough to legally leave home. He’d wanted nothing more to do with family. Blood might be thicker than water, but that only meant it was messier to clean up. The anger and frustration of those early years was a burning ache in his belly he’d ignored while building his military career.
    Four years ago he’d received word of his father’s death. The news didn’t make his heart leap or bring any feelings of regret for missed opportunities. He’d felt like he’d buried the man years before. Only through his father’s will, Ryan discovered he had a half-brother. He’d contacted the number he was given and had a long chat with Carl’s mom, Vicky. She was happy to hear from him. And more than happy to tell him not to look them up, especially since he was uncertain how often he could come