The sound of the mafia van grew louder, and beside Haxsel, the little girl he had rescued from the woods shook violently, her teeth chattering. It was a cold November night, but it wasn't the cold she was shivering from. No, the chills she faced were in her mind.

Haxsel Houston had left his home early that evening with his best friend to go to the mall. His mother's birthday was approaching and he wanted to buy a gift for her. But bumping into a skinny, frightened, little girl on his way back was the last thing he had expected. Let alone, at night in the woods, all alone.

He kept glancing aside at the little girl in the rearview mirror as he started the engine and sped off. Her short brown hair was a tangled mess and her faded pink dress was ripped and covered in dirt. She was drenched in sweat as she panicked for her life. Just seeing her in the backseat was enough to remind him that what happened a moment ago wasn't a fantasy or a dream. It was real.

Haxsel had received his Benz on his sixteenth birthday three months ago and never had anything ever run out in front of his car since he began driving. The scene of the little girl running into the path of his headlights made a chill run down his spine as he recalled it. What if he hadn't hit the brakes in time?

Thank God he had. Haxsel knew God saw everything that would happen, so he wondered...

What was His plan for this poor orphan?

The moment the question rose in his mind, Haxsel's heart swelled inside his chest. He remembered something, evidence of what he felt all the time he looked into the girl's chocolate-brown eyes.

He told her that God wanted to rewrite her destiny, and he meant it. He'd felt it in his heart and his bones that she was what he never had, but always wished for, and what he had been praying for, for the last seven years.

A sibling. Specifically, a sister.

Everything made sense to him now. He'd been at the mall to shop for a birthday gift for his mother. And in a mall that sold almost everything, Haxsel had found nothing that would delight his mother. On his way home, he'd prayed to God, asking Him to send him a perfect gift for his mother.

But Haxsel didn't expect God to be so quick to answer him, just after he had said Amen. Because now, glancing aside at this little girl, Haxsel couldn't be more certain that she was the gift. Not just for his mother, but for him, and his entire family.

Haxsel was the only son of his parents. He had cousins he loved, yes, but he had always wished for a sibling. Since he was nine, having a sibling had been his greatest wish and he prayed to God often about it. But it had been seven years, and he still didn't have any.

Realizing his parents were unable to give him a sibling, Haxsel even asked them to adopt a sister for him. But he didn't know why, his parents never took it seriously. Sometimes it infuriated him, filling him with misery when he saw others with siblings. Why wasn't I blessed to have one? He used to ask God.

In his pain that he never shared with anyone, Haxsel had found God listening to him and comforting him. And for the last four years, he carried a hope in his heart that no one could take away from him. It was never too late; in God's perfect timing, everything in his life would work out for good. Haxsel had faith.

And now, right before his eyes, Haxsel believed this little girl was the answer to his prayers.

Why on earth would God lead her to him? He was meant to be there when this poor girl ran for her life, so they would bump into each other.

Such perfect timing.

Haxsel's eyes became damp with tears when he realized how his life had turned upside down within a moment. He would take her home and treat her like a little sister. He would protect her and give her everything, including his heart. She had won it already.

Haxsel smiled fondly to himself. He was a big brother at last! Wearing an uncontrollable grin, he glanced at the little girl, but as soon as his eyes landed on her, his smile deflated into a frown. She was pressed up against the window, looking for any sign of the mafia.

Haxsel felt his heart break a little and he leaned over to clasp her small, fidgety hands, which were trembling and sweaty. "Nothing to worry about, little one. I won't let them get you, I promise. We'll beat them, alright?"

Her wide, fearful eyes turned to him, giving him a look that pierced through his heart. She hummed shakily in response, nodding at him as her lips formed a weak smile.

Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, Haxsel saw a dim yellow light flashing ahead, from the woods on the left side of the road. His head jerked toward it and a van entered his line of sight.

"Little one, duck! Get under the seat." Haxsel reached to unbuckle her seat belt.

The driver of the van, a bald man with a black beard, looked briefly at Haxsel's car as if checking the road, before passing him.

Haxsel's heart skipped a beat; for a moment he thought that man had seen her, but no, he hadn't. He fixed his attention on the road again after murmuring assuring words to her.

His eyes darkened as they landed back on the van. Haxsel clenched his jaw and gripped the steering wheel tightly, feeling his blood boil in his veins. Inside that vehicle, there must be someone who had hurt this little girl, to make her end up in this situation.

He often stole a glance down at her and felt pity. God knew he would do anything to take all her pain away and make her his little princess. He yearned to know more about her, her name, her age—everything. But first, he had to pass the van and bring her safely home.

Haxsel prayed for God's help and turned the radio on loudly, hoping it wouldn't bother the little girl. He lip-synced to the song, pretending to be a spoiled, inconsiderate teenager, trying to look more like someone who wouldn't care to help a little runaway girl.

A minute later, Haxsel passed the van. Someone inside it turned to look at him, but he ignored it. Haxsel darted his gaze to the wing mirror every now and then, to keep an eye on them. In the next minute, he saw them turn into the woods on the right-hand side.

Haxsel and his little girl had gotten.

Haxsel stifled a chuckle as he thanked God. He couldn't believe he had fooled a group of mafia thugs! He turned the radio off and glanced down at the little girl, and his face fell. She still had no idea what happened.

"Here, little one, get back up." Haxsel held his hand to her and helped her back into her seat.

"Are they gone?" her tiny voice asked, her eyes drenched with fear.

"Yes, little one." Haxsel smiled. "Our Father in Heaven scared them away."

"But I don' have a father," she stated, clearly baffled.

Haxsel realized the reason for her confusion. He looked at her sympathetically and reached for her hands again, this time squeezing them gently in his. "I know, little one, and I'm sorry, I didn't mean that. What I was going to say was—wait, I almost forgot. What's your name? So I can stop calling you 'little one'."

"Avery." She answered shyly. "But my friends and my nanny call me Ava."

"Avery." Haxsel tested the name on his tongue. "Just Avery?"

Avery nodded.

"And you have a nanny and friends in the mafia?" he asked, a little surprised.

"Yeah, my friends were ki'napped from their families like me—"

"Whoa. Are you telling me, you were kidnapped?" Haxsel was really shocked now.

Avery frowned. "Yeah, that's what my nanny tol' me. I was only two years then."

Haxsel couldn't find the right words to say. "And how old are you now?"

"I'm six."

He smiled at her side. "Is that from your nanny too?"

"Yeah, she taught me everythin'." Avery smiled but frowned again. "And she helped me run away, knowin' I was in trouble. She said she couldn't watch me get beaten again."

Her eyes turned damp.

"Your nanny sounds good. I believe God told her to do it for you. Or else we wouldn't have met." Haxsel's eyes shimmered with tears and he blinked them away.

"You know God too?" Avery gasped in surprise.

Haxsel tore his gaze from the road to her and got slightly amused at the astonished look on her face. "Of course, He's my best friend."

Avery gasped again, loud this time. "Your best friend? My nanny knows God too! She tol' me a lot 'bout Him."

Her words were so innocent that they melted Haxsel's heart even more.

"It's cool that you know Him, little Ava, because He's the best friend to all who want Him to be their best friend."

"Is He nice?"

Haxsel shook his head to himself at her innocent question. "Nice isn't enough to describe Him. I can introduce Him to you when we get home."

"Home?"

"Yes, sweetheart, home. Today, tonight, God our Father—Jesus—has turned your life upside down."

"Upside... down?" Avery asked, blinking baffled.

Haxsel looked at her from the road again. "Yeah, you're my sister now."

Avery's eyes widened. "B-but how?"

Haxsel chuckled softly. She was a sweet little thing.

"Because I've chosen you to be. Well, God chose you to be my sister," he corrected before adding, "I promise to be the best big brother I can be, little Ava, and I promise to make you the happiest little girl in the world. We'll forget the past, no mafia will be able to hunt you down, and you'll be safe. You'll have God as your best friend, a dad and a mom, and me as your big brother. Would you like to be my sister?"

He could barely hold back the tide of emotion threaded into his words.

Avery gazed at him for a moment before a huge smile broke out on her cute, angelic, innocent face. She nodded with utter excitement. "Yeah!"

"Yeah," Haxsel repeated with a warm smile, his heart practically jumping.

He suddenly remembered the chicken brisket sandwich and lemonade he had bought at the mall. He pulled them out of the cupholder and gave them to Avery.

Haxsel watched her devour the sandwich and drink like she hadn't eaten in days, and made a pledge to himself. He would spoil her all her life with everything she'd ever want—and he would make sure she was his partner in crime, too. He imagined the two of them swiping a chocolate bar from the kitchen into his room once his parents were in bed for the night, and laughing quietly in triumph at succeeding in their sneaky plan.

Haxsel shook his head with a smile, but the smile immediately vanished as he thought of his parents. What would be their opinion on his decision? Would they approve? He slid his gaze from the road—they were nearing his house—and fixed them on his new little sister, finding her staring outside the window and sipping her lemonade eagerly through the straw.

No. I will never let her go, no matter what.