“I have no desire for a dad bod like what you’re rocking.” Greer turned around and started pulling food from the refrigerator.
Dean sucked in his practically nonexistent stomach and then let it out. He was in shape, as they all were. They had to be to do this job. The team was only as strong as its weakest link.
As the lone female of Station 4, she’d been prepared to fight for their respect when she’d arrived four years ago, but they’d welcomed her to the family. She trusted each of these men withher life, and they trusted her with theirs. Now she didn’t want to go anywhere else.
“Williams.” Captain Bennett’s voice came over the speaker system. “Telephone call. Line two.”
Her stomach clenched as she jogged to the lobby for a little privacy. The only telephone call she would be getting at work would be from the school. Was Bella sick? She’d have to take time off to go get her sister and run her home.
She snatched up the phone. “Sam Williams speaking.”
It might have been years, but part of her would always hesitate before she called herself Sam and not Madison.
“Ms. Williams. This is Vice Principal Woodworth. I’m calling regarding your sister Isabella.”
“Yes, ma’am. Is everything okay?”
A list of illnesses rolled through her mind. It wasn’t quite flu season yet. Maybe strep or a sinus infection. Bella had seemed fine last night. Had she woken up ill? Maybe that was why the neighbor had noticed she’d been late this morning.
“Physically, she’s fine, but she is in trouble. We caught several young ladies vaping in the bathroom this afternoon when they were supposed to be in class. Isabella was one of them.”
Vaping was no better than smoking in the girls’ room. Hadn’t she taught Bella better than that?
“Since this is her first offense, we’ve only given her lunch detention. We just wanted you to be aware of the situation.”
“Yes, ma’am. I’ll have a discussion with her tonight. Thank you for calling.”
Isabella had been a good kid all her life. Was this the start of a teenage rebellion, or just a misunderstanding? Sam intended to quash this as quickly as possible so it didn’t disrupt the tenuous hold they had on the peace in their lives.
She headed back to the kitchen and ran into Dean in the hallway by the noticeboard, which was covered with safety posters someone had drawn mustaches all over.
“Everything okay?” He frowned.
“It will be once I talk to that sister of mine.” She gritted her teeth. “I taught her better than that.”
“Uh-oh. What happened?” Dean sidestepped to lean against the wall.
Sam moved with him and checked no one else was nearby. She didn’t want to talk about this in front of the others. “That was the school. Bella skipped class to vape in the bathroom.”
“Typical teenager doing typical teenage stuff? Might not be a big deal.”
“I’m hoping she was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. I’ll know more tonight when shift is over.” It couldn’t be more than that, right? Isabella knew she had to mind her p’s and q’s. She knew how essential adhering to the rules was. Their lives depended on it. Depended on anonymity and flying under the radar. Right now, it was a simple note in her school file, but if the behavior persisted and the police got involved, that would create official reports.
No one in WITSEC who had followed the rules had ever been located—or worse. It was when people broke the rules that their lives were endangered.
Part of following the rules meant staying out of trouble. Vaping in the bathroom was no big deal, but it could lead to a big deal if she kept hanging out with those girls.
“Ah, teenagers. Gotta love ’em. I know you like rules and all, but she’s a kid, and kids make dumb mistakes. They push boundaries and see how far they can get before it breaks.” Dean folded his arms over his chest.
“What do you know about teenagers? Your kids are little.”
“Uh, Iwasa teen. And I watch TV. She’s at that age where she’s learning about the world. She’s moving from being a kid to an adult.”
“She’s fourteen. She’s not an adult, Dean. She’s a kid I’m responsible for.”
“To you, she isn’t an adult. But in her mind, she’s close. She’s going to make some dumb decisions in her life. Didn’t you when you were her age?”
“It’s hard to find the time to make dumb mistakes when you’re working a full-time job and raising your sister.”
