“You’re still punished,” I said, and Lars laughed.
“I wasn’t offering to wriggle out of it.Onkel Kanonused to take Jesper and do stuff. That’s lapsed since…” Lars broke off and flinched.
“Since Dad, Kanon, and Aster died. And with the move, Jesper’s needs got lost.”
“No! I’m not saying that,Mor, but I knowOnkel Kanonused to run Jesper crazy and burn off that excess energy. Tomorrow will be a good idea. What does Magic want from me?”
For a moment, I spotted the scared teen Lars was beneath the bold and brash exterior. He was uncertain and worried Magic would try to take Vulcan’s place. In time, Lars would understand he could care about Magic and still love Vulcan. Right now, he didn’t recognise the difference. Lars saw it as choosing sides.
“Magic wants to get to know you. He knows he’s not your dad and never will be. But Magic can be a close friend and confidant, eventually.”
Lars pursed his lips. “We’ll see.”
“Only time will tell, honey. Anything else?”
“Some boys are sniffing around Laila. They’re the incorrect kind, Mor,” Lars said.
Amused, I smiled. “Are they wrong because they’re boys or for being future ‘wanted poster’ models?”
“Criminals in the making. Oskar and I have warned them, but they’re not listening right now. Laila luckily doesn’t want to know them, but they keep appearing where she is. They don’t know about Laila either.”
That worried me. If Lars was upset enough to discuss them, these kids were a huge problem.
“Have you told her teachers? Is Laila aware of the issue?”
“Ja, Mor. We’ve told everyone who needs to be informed, and we aren’t really bothered, but the other day they asked Laila to a rave. Laila said no, but they were angry,Mor.”
“Okay, I’ll call the school. If Laila’s being tormented, that’s not acceptable.” I was quite annoyed that the principal hadn’t phoned to inform me what was happening. If they planned to hide problems—boys were sexually harassing girls—they had a massive issue. Namely, me. Nobody bullied or harassed my kids. End of story.
Chapter Eleven.
Jody
Iwatched in shock as Jesper flew past me, screaming. Holy crap! We’d been here ten minutes, ten freaking minutes! The firing range was a clearing in the hills. Magic was already there with a truck and was setting up targets. I’d barely managed to stop Jesper and Henrik from jumping out of the moving minivan. No sooner had I parked than they got out and raced over to the table that was holding a load of weapons. Magic snagged their collars in two meaty hands and stopped them dead.
“Safety first! You know that. I don’t believe your father would have told you any different!” he boomed, and the boys paused.
Henrik, looking shamefaced, nodded, but Jesper was itching to get at them.
“Car, now!” I ordered, and Jesper sent me a betrayed glare.
“What?” he screeched.
“If you’re going to ignore all the safety rules Kanon drummed into you, then you can’t take part. No way would Kanon or Vulcan let you run crazy around this,” I stated. Jesper pouted,but nodded. I waved at Oskar to watch him and went to help the others get kitted up.
Magic had brought four lots of protective clothing, and I was a bit shocked. “These ain’t toys,” he explained. “Even though I’ll be standing over them, protection doesn’t hurt. They’re firing blanks today, anyway.”
Grateful for the reassurance, I nodded.
“No!” Oskar shouted, and we all turned. Jesper had escaped, andholy crap, that was a full-sized flamethrower. Magic began lumbering forward when Jesper hit the switch. The force of the blast, meant for a man and not a kid, lifted Jesper off his feet and blew him backwards.
Jesper screamed as I scrambled towards him. He landed flat on his back and had luckily taken his finger off the button, and the flamethrower had switched off.
“Flammekaster!”Jesper yelled, delighted, from the ground.“Flammekaster!”
“Jesper!” I shrieked. “Are you okay?”
“Did you see that,MosterJody?That was sick! I want to go again!” Jesper blurted as I dropped to my hands and knees.
