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“Shh. You were just a kid. You didn’t know. You just wanted some attention.”
“Yeah, but I got it by hurting myself. Aidan figured it out and told me that I needed to do better. That I was upsetting Ma by constantly getting hurt and that things couldn’t go back to the way they were.”
“Ouch. He could have been gentler.”
“No. He didn’t say it to be mean. And hell, he was still a kid himself. He had to grow up super quick to take care of me and Cash. I guess . . . Cash got into trouble a lot, while I made up illnesses or pretended to be hurt to get attention. Aidan couldn’t do either of those things because he was too busy caring for us. We weren’t fair to him.”
“You were just kids. You didn’t know what you were doing. And you should have had all the care and attention you needed.”
“It wasn’t Ma’s fault,” she defended.
“I know. I wasn’t saying that it was. I hate that some people have so much less than others. I work at least one day a week at a free clinic downtown. I opened it with a few other doctors and some nurses. We all work there to help people who don’t have health insurance or whose insurance doesn’t cover everything. But it just never seems to be enough.”
“You’re a good man. Thank you for taking care of me.”
“Anytime. And you can always tell me when you’re in pain or feeling ill. All right?”
“All right.”
“Now, how about you show me how to make this charcuterie board look good. But I will be in charge of the knife, deal?”
“Deal.”
* * *
“Oh no!”Hack sat from where they were watching another movie. Her brain was going all fuzzy from watching so much TV.
“What is it?” she asked alarmed.
“You never got any treasure for being a good girl after you cut your finger. That’s terrible.”
Oh, was that all? She’d thought that something serious was wrong.
Wait a minute. That was serious.
“I need my treasure!”
“You sure do. Let me get my magic bag.”
“Hey, do you think it could help fix my messed up brain?”
He froze and then gave her a firm look. “Excuse me?”
Uh-oh.
She glanced from his very stern face to the bathroom door. This seemed like a time to run for it.
“Do not even think of running, Little girl.”
She gulped. “Can you read minds?”
“A Daddy just knows.”
Whoa. She stared up at him wide-eyed.
“Fuck. Sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.”
“I . . . no, it’s okay.”
