"Barney and Brownie don't get to go either. OK? OK?" she said to each of the kittens to make sure they understood.
"Good morning," Rico told her. "It's a special day and look what I got here." He held up a grocery bag and brought out an oversized peach from it. "I have the biggest peach ever. Guess who I'm going to give it to."
"Daddy!" Sammy guessed.
"No. Sammy!" Rico said. "This is to get you ready for being a peach in the parade tomorrow. It's training."
Rico went to the sink to wash it then he had Sammy sit at the kitchen table. As he gave the peach to her, he told her, "Now watch out. That peach is so big it might eat you."
Sammy shook her head and grinned at him. She wasn't afraid of a peach, but in her little hands the peach did look like a monster.
Mitch agreed. "That's a lot of peach."
"But it can't eat you if you eat it first," Rico told Sammy.
"I'll cut it for you, honey," Mitch said but Rico wouldn't let him.
"No. I want to see her tackle that thing whole," Rico said then he elbowed Mitch. "Get ready to shoot video. This is going to be epic."
Mitch got out his phone just in time for her first bite. "Maybe I should throw down a tarp," he said as he watched juice dribbling down her chin.
"I'll clean up," Rico promised.
"Are you going to do laundry too?" Mitch asked since peach juice was now all over the front of Sammy's shirt.
"Whatever it takes. This is how legends are made. Child vs peach. Who will emerge victorious?"
"Too bad you can't have her doing this while she's in her peach costume," Mitch said.
"Yeah, I'm pretty sure they wouldn't let us do that," Rico said but he was already wondering if he could sneak a peach to her somehow.
"Is this going to be her breakfast?" Mitch asked.
"Could be. She'll eat plenty of goodies at the festival. They have this thing called Peach Fuzz. It's a giant ball of peach cotton candy for your kid to stick her face into," Rico told him with a grin. "Be ready to shoot video when she tackles one of those things too."
"That will be a balanced breakfast," Mitch said while he grabbed some paper towels to go and wipe Sammy from her nose to her elbows. There was more where that came from as she kept biting into the peach. She was definitely winning that contest.
Rico poured himself some coffee and he and Mitch watched Sammy make a mess of herself while she demolished that peach. When she was done Rico raised her arm in the air and announced, "I declare Sammy, The Pink Tornado, the winner and undisputed champion of this fight. That peach didn't stand a chance. But now we both need to wash up." He picked up Sammy and took her over to the kitchen sink.
"Hands and face, and your arms too," Mitch told her.
"That's right you don't want to be sticky at the festival," Rico said as he tried not to get splashed as she washed up.
"Everyone is going to the festival!" she said excitedly. "I'm gonna wear my dress with the pink flowers, and tomorrow I'm gonna be a peach."
As soon as Rico was done drying her off, she ran out of the kitchen. Mitch was about to follow her so he could help her get ready, but Sammy ran right back to Mitch and Rico.
"There's a man!" she yelled clearly scared.
"Hello?" Mitch called out as he went to check it out. Rico stepped out into the hallway right behind him then stopped dead. There was a man with a gun standing there.
"Hi there, folks. Now let's all stay cool and collected," the man said while he pointed a gun at them.
Rico put himself between the man and Sammy, and placed his hand on her arm to make sure she stayed put. He recognized the guy. It was that older guy who came by the yard sale looking for silver, the same one grandmother said had wanted to see the house. His grandmother called him Mr. West. He wore that same old suit and he looked kind of sallow, like he might not be well. A tight smile was plastered on his face as his eyes darted around nervously.
"What do you want?" Mitch asked him as he made sure to stand between the gun and Rico and Sammy. Rico wanted to be the one who stepped between Mitch and that gun, but he could feel Sammy shaking as she made a frightened sound.
"I just want to have a friendly word. I need a little help, you see. I lost something important to me. I'd like your help finding it," Mr. West said. He cocked his head to the side a little so he could look past Mitch at Rico and Sammy. "You don't mind helping me, do you?"
