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Her heart ached for him. She set the coffee down and moved closer to him, with Duke squeezed in between them. She put a hand on his chest. “I’m so sorry.”
“And I have to decide what to do. Do I keep my father on the meds and lose him or do I hold out hope that they’ll find some better drug that can help him?”
“Do you know if there are any other drugs in development?”
“I read up on a couple of trials, but I decided to go with this one because Lila’s brother is involved. He’s very smart and he’s right. The drugs do help, but they hurt Dad’s physical condition. I don’t know. I have to think about it.” He sat there for a moment, looking down where she’d laid her hand over his chest. He placed his own on top of hers. “I’d like you to meet him.”
“Of course.” She would love to meet anyone in Major’s life.
He would be alone when his father was gone. That was what he was truly afraid of. Losing his father was always going to be a part of his life, though he was young to have to go through it. For most people, losing a parent meant leaning on the rest of their family.
Major didn’t have any.
Duke’s head came up and then he moved closer to Major, as though he knew the man needed some comfort. That was the beauty of a dog. Duke might not like the way Major was intruding on his life, but the pup had never denied comfort to anyone.
His version of comfort meant he started to lick Major.
A brilliant smile crossed Major’s face. “Well, now I know how to make him like me. He likes sad guys.”
“He’s getting used to you.” She scooted closer to him and felt more connected to another person than she had in forever.
That was the moment when her mother screamed.
They all sat up, Brynn clutching the sheet around her while Duke took off barking.
There was a flurry of knocks on the door. “Deputy! Deputy! You have to do something. There’s been a crime.”
Major ran for the door, throwing it open while Brynn pulled on a robe. “What’s happening?”
Her mom stood in the doorway and pointed. “My cell phone was stolen and I was assaulted.”
“Brynn, call it in.” Major pulled on his shirt and started for his boots. “Tell the dispatcher that I’m on the move. My radio and gun are in my truck.”
“Yes, shoot it,” her mother said. “I normally am very against killing animals for any reason that doesn’t involve high-end dining, but that criminal has to be brought to justice.”
Major stopped and took a long breath. “Diane, did a raccoon steal your phone?”
“Yes, and I think he had help. I was walking back to the main house and I tripped over one of them. My phone fell out of my hand and another one ran away with it. I was talking to the head of casting at Universal and now my phone is gone. I didn’t even hang it up. What are they going to think of me now?”
Brynn covered her laugh because it was such a Papillon thing to happen. “You’re going to require a task force now, Major.”
Major sighed. “I’m going to find your mom’s phone. I’ll be back. Hopefully. Diane, why don’t you show me where you lost it?”
Her mother frowned and pointed her well-manicured finger Major’s way. “It was stolen. ‘Lost it’ implies I was negligent. This is victim blaming, and I won’t have it. Even now, there is a major player in Hollywood listening to the skittering of overly large rodents and wondering if I’ve finally lost my mind.”
“I think he’ll understand.” Sometimes her mom got paranoid.
Her mom turned those laser-focused eyes Brynn’s way. “Yes, one of the foremost Hollywood casting agents will understand that here in Louisiana, raccoons routinely steal smartphones.”
“I would not say routinely,” Major offered. “But I would also not not say routinely.”
“You know they never leave LA. They believe anything outside of the city is a rampant apocalyptic hellhole where they will likely be eaten by cannibals.” Her mom was also excellent at hyperbole.
Brynn couldn’t stop her eyes from rolling. “Not everyone is so elitist, Mom.”
Major stepped in front of her, giving her his “I’ll take care of everything” nod. “I’ll find her phone and if I can, arrest the offending party. The good news is the last time they were brought in they didn’t appear to have rabies.”
“Rabies!” Her mom practically screeched. “And are you saying they’ve done this before?”
Major winced. “No rabies and yes, ma’am, they aren’t first-time offenders, though up to this point they’ve only stolen trash. Mr. McGovern will tell you they stole his dentures, but I’m almost certain he just doesn’t like wearing them.”
Her mom’s jaw went tight, and the words pressed from her lips with obvious frustration. “I need my phone, Deputy.”
