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I’d made several passes through her yard, checking windows and doors before I felt comfortable returning home. Thank God Cliff’s dogs were inside. They would’ve brought way moreattention than I needed. I’m not honestly sure what I would’ve said to her if she’d discovered me there. The truth, perhaps? That I couldn’t sleep until I knew they were okay.
Packing up my things, I prepare to check out with the staff at the shooting range when I see a young woman about Jillian’s age walking toward me.
If I’m ever lucky enough to find someone, they’ll need to be willing to come here. I need to know they are committed to staying safe. If nothing more than to ease the guilt of being a potential target.
Because of me.
“Hi.”
“Hi, Lucy. How are you?”
The teenager blushes like a miniature version of Jillian, and I try not to chuckle. This young girl is sweet.
“Luca!” I’m practically knocked sideways as Caleb collides with my legs.
“Careful, Tarzan. This old man can’t swing through the forest like you anymore.” I ruffle his hair and give him a big squeeze. I have to admit it. It’s not just Jill. These kids have stolen my heart. Mimmo may have been a convenient excuse to spend time with them, but protecting them is as important to me as protecting their mother. I’d die if anything happened to one of them.
Caleb pulls me into the great room where I spot Myla and Truitt on the floor. “Hey, guys. What’s for dinner?”
“You’re supposed to be the one to make dinner.” Caleb laughs.
I squat down as the little turtle crawls to me and scoop him up. “What about you, little man? You have any requests?” I ask as we walk over to the pantry.
“I’m heading out, guys.”
“Lucy, did Jillian pay you?”
“No. But she can pay me later. Thanks for coming. I know you really saved the day. She was so upset when she called.”
Hearing this breaks my heart. She’s had a really hard time finding someone to watch them when Cecilia isn’t around. And something tells me she hasn’t shared this with her mom, because she doesn’t want her changing her plans now that she’s retired.
“Well, I’m glad between the two of us we could help her out.”
Lucy gives a curt wave before heading for the door, and I turn to take inventory of the pantry and fridge. There’s some sauce in a jar. It will never do on its own, but there’s enough here I can doctor it up. “What about spaghetti? You three seemed to like that at Luigi’s.”
Myla and Caleb clap, which in turn causes Truitt to clap. “Where’s your highchair, buddy? You can sit and supervise.”
“It was cool watching you make fire.”
Confused, I turn to Caleb. “What do you mean, make fire?”
“When you were making the movie screen.”
“Ah, you mean all the sparks. Yes. When you weld metal together, sometimes that happens. You have to be very careful.”
“I wish I could make something cool. Mama’s birthday is coming up. I want to makehersomething cool.”
This has my ears perked. I want to make her something cool too. “Oh, yeah. When’s her birthday?”
“I dunno. Soon.”
I’ve learned with Mimmo, time isn’t the same in a five-year-old’s mind. My gaze lands on Myla, who points to the calendar on the side of the fridge. It’s in a few weeks. I can work with this.
“If your mother says it’s okay, would you like to come to my shop, and you and Mimmo can make an art project for her?”
“Yes! This is going to be awesome.”
An hour later, we’ve finished dinner, cleaned up, and are trying to get baths underway. After Myla was kind enough to help Truitt with his bath, I snuck into her mother’s room to see if I could get a bubble bath started for Myla. After running the warm water, I poured some bath gel into the water, stirring briskly until suds start to form.
