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“Oh no, it’s the gremlins!” Vincent shouted. The two older girls — who I suspected were twins — flung themselves at him, giggling, as they hugged him. The youngest girl ran straight for Jason, who swept her up and spun her around.
“I caught a bug today, Vince!” she said, bouncing excitedly in Jason’s arms. The other two climbed Vincent like a tree, one settling in each arm. One of them immediately went to work forming a braid in his hair, while the other smiled at me shyly.
“Oh, yeah?” Vincent said. “Did it put up a good fight?”
“No!” the littlest girl exclaimed. “We don’t fight the bugs, silly. They’re friends.” She waved at Manson and Lucas excitedly. “Hi, Uncle Manson! Hi, Uncle Luc!” She held out her arms and Lucas took her, but she quickly insisted, “Shoulders, please!”
Lucas obliged, and Manson helped the little girl get her balance on his shoulders.
“Did you take good care of Jojo this weekend, Miss Kristy?” Manson said, and she nodded.
“Yes! We dug in the yard and she helped me catch bugs,” she said, swinging her legs so they tapped against Lucas’s chest. “She ate some of my candy too, even though she’s not supposed to.”
“Girls, this is Jessica,” Vincent said, motioning toward me as he set the twins down. They wore matching yellow dresses, their skirts stained and their shoes muddy. They looked at me with wide green eyes, the same color as their brother’s.
“Hi,” I said, crouching down to their level to offer my hand. They each gave me a quick, giggling handshake. “What are your names?”
“Anna,” said one.
“Franchesca,” said the other.
“And I’m Kristina!” The littlest girl waved her arms at me from her perch on Lucas’s back. “You look like my Barbie. Are you...are you...” She had to pause her rapid words to breathe, and I stifled a laugh. “Are you my brother’s lover?”
“Oh my god.” I looked up at Vincent. “How does she know that word?”
“Our parents are very open people,” he said, trying to restrain a smile as he poked the giggling girl. “Don’t be a Nosy-Nancy, Kristy. Now where’s that bug you caught?”
“In my room!” She braced her hands against the sides of Lucas’s head, turning his face toward the house. “Go, go! Let’s tell Mama you’re here!”
“Hold on tight,” Lucas said. She squealed with excitement as he jogged toward the house, Jojo bouncing along behind him. Haribo was already glued to Jason’s side and followed him as we made our way in.
Another girl had appeared on the porch, smiling at us as we approached. She looked to be around fourteen years old, tall and slim like her brother, with long brown hair.
“This is my oldest sister, Mary,” Vincent said. Mary politely shook my hand, greeting me in a soft voice barely loud enough to hear.
“I go to school with your sister,” she said. “Stephanie, right?”
“Yeah! Are you two friends?” I honestly didn’t know who my sister’s friends were, but she was so much like me I could only assume she was a social butterfly too.
Mary’s face tightened up for a moment before she smiled again and said, “Oh, um...no...but I’ve seen her around.”
“Come on, come on, we’re gonna let the cold out,” Lucas said as he held open the front door. Kristy was tapping her palms on his head like it was a drum, but he didn’t seem to mind.
The house’s interior was an eclectic mix of decor. Polished wood furniture sat beside plush velvet chairs and a couch, which was occupied by an older man with long gray hair. Paintings covered the walls, some clearly done by the children but framed nevertheless. The windows didn’t match, some of them stained glass, some round, some square. The house smelled like spices with a faint hint of rose, and a fire crackled in a wood-burning stove in the corner.
The man rose from the couch, setting aside the worn sci-fi paperback he’d been reading.
“Welcome home, boys,” he said, hugging each of them before he got to me. His resemblance to Vincent was undeniable, especially in the smile he gave me as he took my hand in greeting.
“You must be Jessica Martin,” he said. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, young lady. I’m Stephan Volkov. Any partner of our boys is family here, so make yourself at home.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you too, Mr. Volkov.”
“Please, call me Stephan,” he said, and I smiled gratefully, right as a woman emerged from the kitchen.
There was a beaming smile on her face as she wiped her hands on her apron. She wrapped her arms around Vincent, leaving a dusting of flour on his shirt.
“Oh, my boy,” she murmured. Her voice was as warm, her long gray-streaked hair pinned up into a bun. “So good to have you home.” She released him from her embrace and hugged Jason immediately after, clutching Manson’s hand as if she couldn’t wait to greet him too.
