He stretched his hand in common courtesy. She pulled away. Recoiled behind her aunt, like an armadillo, startling the woman.

All eyes nestled on him. He could read the suspicion in their eyes, and the accusations their disposition didn't hide. He went sour with embarrassment.

Philip was informed of his cousin's arrival. His family welcomed her and she had settled into one of the ladies rooms before he arrived.

He was told of how his aunt remarried after her husband died, and the girl, now sixteen, was finding it difficult to adapt to her new family-- A stepfather with a son about her age.

He suggested to his mother to bring her over for the holiday, so she could interact with his five sisters. He managed  to persuade the girl's mother who had refused the offer. But in that moment, he regretted it.

"She just arrived," his mother said, but Philip could feel the scrutiny in her stare. Her tone did little to hide it.

"I feel so bad," he said to his oldest sister when others were gone.

“It's a shocker. She was fine earlier. If I didn't know better, I would say you hurt her.”

"My thoughts exactly," he sighed.

"You didn't, did you?" She turned sharply at him.

“ Are you joking?...no, Mary. I did not!...but I'm afraid someone else might have.”

Mary was relieved. She trusted her younger brother, although they quarreled often.

" I guess I will have to find out what brute laid a hand on her," she stated, “ and God help me if I don't pull his teeth.”

Philip had no doubt about that. Mary was overprotective and a fighter. His missing tooth was the evidence of her partiality towards their younger sisters. 

The moment she saw their mother leaving the girl's room, she went up to frightened one.

Without so much ado, the girl apologized on her knees.

"Get up!" Mary soothed her.

“ I know you have been hurt...he hurt you?”

Seeing the girl shake in fear, Mary doubted her brother's innocence and was ready to march down the stairs to serve justice.

“Not him...Please, I can't tell anyone. He will kill me.”

“I am your family, Naomi! And your elder. Who threatened you?!”

The house shook from the impact. The rest of the family gathered at the foot of the stairs where Philip was reclined.

“ Mary should stop, I have tried to make her open up.”

Philip furrowed his brows in awe at his mother," you didn't really ask her if I hurt her, did you?"

" Who knows!"she retorted.

"Unbelievable!" He gasped. 

After a while, their attention reverted back to the stairs at the heavy sound of Mary's footsteps.

“ Mom, you either call the police on your sister and her beastly husband and son, or I will!”

“Mary calm down...”

"That lunatic of a sister you have, has been serving her husband and his son her daughter's body for the past four years just to keep her failing marriage. 

Mom, she was twelve at the time!

I will make sure she has no marriage to keep at the end of today," Mary decared  and exited the house, exasperated.

Philip turned to his mother, feeling vindicated but she was in shock.

Years later, Naomi would pen the longest eulogy to Mary's lion heart at her funeral, and Philip would live long in the advocacy which his sister initiated with that singular act.