by Sheila Kell
She liked the idea their parents had of Brandon staying in one of their cottages after the first of the year. They could do all kinds of things together until he got girl crazy and didn’t have time for her. Maybe she’d do background checks on them. Surely Uncle Devon would’ve taught her by then. Then she could weed out the bad for him. Only the best for her cousin.
She froze for a moment. They were basically the same age. Would he try to date her friends? She wouldn’t like that and would fight him about it. If that didn’t work, she’d go to Cousin Lee and her dad.
Things could get complicated. What did she do if he wanted to date one of her friends? She’d heard there was a bro-code, which she had no idea what it was, but what about a cousin code? She’d have to find out before they were old enough to date. Then she thought of Robbie and the Christmas ball. Returning to school after vacation made her nervous about how things would be.
Tossing her blanket over her shoulder, Reagan accidentally hit Brandon in the face.
“Hey.” He grabbed the material that hit his head. “What’d I do?”
“Nothing. Come on. It’s late already so we need to move before we get told to go to bed.”
Brandon snorted. “I’ve already been told.”
Frowning, she admitted, “So have I.” Even though it was late, she wasn’t tired. Not in the least.
Jason snorted. “Oh yeah, nothing can go wrong on this adventure. You’ll run into your fathers at some point. If they’re not in their rooms, they’ll be together somewhere. In one of the rooms.”
Not liking his observation, Reagan answered for the both of them, “We’re not worried. What’s the worse they can do besides send us back to bed?”
The football spun in the air again as it left Jason’s hands and returned. “Maybe a loss of Christmas presents?”
Brandon shook his head. “My dad won’t. He might ground me from my phone for a few days.”
Wide-eyed, she turned to him. “My dad would do the same.”
“Oh, Lord,” Jason said. “Get out of here and do your damage.”
Before knocking on Uncle Devon’s door, she heard a few voices and turned to Brandon. “It’s probably the doctor.”
He shrugged as if it didn’t matter. But it did. She didn’t want Brandon to get into trouble. Brandon reached around her and knocked. The room went quiet.
Uncle AJ opened the door and shook his head. “I should’ve guessed.”
He moved back and they entered the crowded room. To her horror, her father shook his head at her. At least he didn’t point a finger for her to leave. Uncle Devon was on his side on the bed. He didn’t look well, but she had no idea what being shot felt like. She never wanted to either.
Kneeling beside the bed, she clasped her hands with her arms on the mattress. “How are you?”
His smile looked a little forced. She wondered if it was from the pain or him taking the bullet for her. She was scared to ask.
“Hey, kiddo, I’m doing okay. Thanks for asking. How are you doing?”
She scrunched her nose. “I’m fine. Why wouldn’t I be?”
He chuckled. That had to mean he wasn’t mad at her, right? “You’re my brother’s daughter all right.”
Of course she was. Why would he think different?
“Stop running that crazy brain of yours. It means you do things just like Jesse. Like he’s able to push past a crisis and move on. Does that make sense?”
It didn’t, and she didn't want to talk about it anymore. “No. I’m sorry for you getting hurt.” The sadness in her voice spoke to her level of near despair on this topic. She couldn’t let it go.
“Look at me.” Reagan lifted her head to look at her uncle, not realizing she’d dropped it when she’d apologized. “This isn’t your fault.”
Her shoulders dropped. “Jason told me the same thing.”
“He’s right. This is the fault of Milton. He’s the one who decided to shoot. It could’ve been any of us. Think how close you were to me. Don’t feel bad at all about this. It comes with the job in HIS.”
“I’m not ready for that part.” Her voice sounded smaller than she wanted it to.
Uncle Devon chuckled again and stopped. He must’ve been hurting. “You will after you complete your prerequisite to being hired at HIS.”
“But I’m—”
“It’s not handed to you. Remember what your father said to you and Jason? For family, you must have college, then either military or law enforcement. Jason’s chosen the Marines after graduation. Have you thought about what you might like?
It was her turn to shrug. She had thought but hadn’t firmed up the idea. Her dad said she had plenty of time. “I’m not sure, but I was thinking CIA if I could be an operative.”
Him studying her for a moment made her squirm and almost fall over to the side. “I think you might be exactly what they need. In college, if it’s still what you want to do, let me know. I’ll see if I can pull some strings to get you the chance. You have to earn it.”
She wanted to hug him, but it wasn’t possible. She knew not to climb on the bed because it would move him. “Thank you, Uncle Devon. I love you.”
“I love you, too. Now, why are you here? I know it’s not just to see me.”
“Oh.” She jumped up and looked around. Everyone she needed to speak with, except Poppy, was here. Goldmine. “I need to see Dad.” A few steps away, she turned. “I hope you feel better soon.” Then she rushed to her dad’s side and told him what she wanted to do and asked if she could while her uncles were all here.
“Why don’t you interview your aunts if they’re not busy and tomorrow you can interview your uncles. It’s late, and we’re a bit busy right now.”
It wasn’t what she wanted to do, but she didn’t have a choice. A thought hit her that she could see Poppy first.
“What’re you talking about?” she boldly asked. They didn’t need to keep secrets from her.
“Well,” her dad said while rubbing his jaw, which meant he was thinking of a story, “we were discussing how our agents have been falling in love and getting married this year.”
She doubted it, but she liked the story nonetheless. “I know. Uncle Ken and Uncle Danny aren’t around as much to help teach me stuff. They’re into their wives like you and my uncles are.”
Her dad chuckled and shook his head. “One day you’ll understand.”
Cousin Lee smiled and put his hand on Brandon’s shoulder. “Since you’re out of bed, would you like to stay a bit and meet your adult cousins?”
Brandon almost bobbed his head off. “Yes, please.”
Jason would love this though. When she thought of how upset Jason would be for not being invited, she waved her dad down so she could speak in his ear. Keeping her voice low, she asked him, “What about Jason? Can he come because I think he’d really like it? Right now he’s just tossing that football. I can go tell him if it’s okay. It is, isn’t it?”
Weaving her way to the door, she was happy her dad said yes. She didn’t want Jason left out, especially if Brandon got to stay. Although she wanted to run to tell him, she walked like a lady—at least until she was in the hallway. Winded by the time she opened the door to their room, Jason jumped up. “What’s wrong? Come here and calm down.”
She shook her head and held up a finger so he’d wait. She needed more than one minute, but he patiently waited. When her breathing calmed, he asked, “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine, now. I just ran down the hallway.”
He raised one eyebrow. “It’s not that long of a hallway.”
“I know. I was running really fast.”
Instantly on alert, he asked, “Why were you doing that? Did something frighten you? What was so important you needed to race?”
She was so excited to tell him that she blurted out words that made no sense. “Dad, Brandon, Uncle Devon, room, men.”
“How about once more in English?”
“The men are in Uncle Devon’s r
oom and invited you.”
His interest showed in his curious expression that turned to excitement. “All in Uncle Devon’s room? What about the kids?”
“I don’t know, but they weren’t there. Maybe with another aunt for the time being.”
“Is it dark in there or should I bring one of our lanterns?”
Shaking her head, she remembered how bright it was and hadn’t even thought of the light. “No, it’s bright enough in there. You might want it to get down the dark hallways.” She’d just done it and hadn’t thought about it.
“Thanks, Reagan.”
Beaming, she hugged Jason. “Have fun.”
As he left the room, she really looked at him. He’d grown up so fast. Even though he always gave her his full attention, it wasn’t the same when he’d sit on the floor or run around the yard playing a game with her. He’d probably do it now if she asked.
She plopped on the bed and felt a pity party coming on. Jason would be off to college soon and have no time for her. Brandon would meet a bunch of boys to hang out with and not have time for her. Amber was always there, but she wasn’t serious about being an agent, so they wanted to do different things.
Her agent uncles on the teams would probably help. At least those who weren’t afraid of her dad.
For now, she’d survive all the snow, Christmas, Robbie, and getting Dad to approve the softball camp. Then she’d think more on her future. But if her mom and dad thought she’d stop investigating or learning behind their backs, they were sorely mistaken.
Ready to go, she turned the remaining light in their room down to only give enough light, so either of them didn’t stumble into furniture.
Picking up her phone, she’d turned all backdrop apps off although there wasn’t a signal. But rather than using the recorder and note taker, she decided to go old school and grabbed her small notebook and pen, if not her phone battery would be dead in no time.
Checking the time, in her mind, it was way too late to bother the aunts because of the kids. Probably even her aunts were sleeping. She should be but she was so wired, she couldn’t stop. That made her think what was so important the men were together this late. Maybe Jason would tell her later.
Not wanting to disturb her aunts in case they slept, she decided to talk with Poppy if he was awake.
Walking slowly down the hall, she noticed how creepy it was when she wasn’t running. Light shining from behind doors was a beacon, like on an airplane with the running emergency lights on the floor. But they weren’t bright enough to ignite the shadows. It reminded her of movies where a crazy man jumped out of a dark corner. Her pulse raced as she thought of it. Even though her dad said Milton wouldn’t be a problem any longer, she worried.
When she arrived at Poppy’s door, it was partially open. Yes. She did a fist pump like she’d seen Jason do.
Ready to knock on Poppy and Grandma’s door, she heard them talking and thought to wait until they took a break so she wouldn’t be rude for interrupting. According to her dad, she did that enough. She accepted the truth that she had another thing on her mental list for her to improve.
At a lull, she leaned close to hear if they were done, but clothing rustled in the room and she blanched at the thought of them naked. Eww. Maybe she should come back later.
Hearing footsteps, she stepped into the shadows as her grandma prepared to close the door all the way. She’d sneak off after that in case they were doing stuff married people did in private.
Before the door closed all the way, she heard something that made her want to cry. It couldn’t be true.
“Why didn’t you tell them about the cancer?” Grandma asked.
STUNNED, REAGAN’S HEART nearly shattered. This was Poppy. He couldn’t have cancer. Couldn’t. Reagan wanted to pound on the wall screaming, “No, no, no!”
Fear made her tummy swish around. She didn’t want to lose Poppy. Gripping her notepad tight enough it should’ve crumbled into dust, she wasn’t sure what she should do. Go into Poppy’s room and…. Her heart hurt at that choice. She couldn’t face him alone. That left going to her dad. Had he known and kept it from everyone? She shook her head. That couldn’t be, or her uncles would be spending more time with their dad.
Her hand flew to her trembling lips. How much longer did he have to live? Backing up, glad of the carpeting to keep them from hearing her, she turned and raced down the hall to her Uncle Devon’s room, not letting the dark shadows bother her. She opened the door with so much force it slammed against the wall. The room quieted, and every pair of eyes looked at her. Perfect.
Jason stood closest to her, and he approached. He spoke low enough no one else would hear except her. “What’re you doing here, squirt? You’re supposed to be in bed.” Before she could speak, he continued, “Dad’s not happy, so don’t try his patience. I’ll walk you back to the room.”
“But I’ve got something important to say.” Her stomach began tumbling at the possibility she may not get to speak with her dad.
“You can tell it to me when we get in our beds.”
She had to do this. Everyone might hate her for interrupting, but they needed to know this. Unless they already did and hadn’t told the kids. She bit a lip, thinking. If that was the case and she found out by eavesdropping, what would that say?
Indecision made her head hurt.
“Come on, squirt,” Jason said, holding his hand.
Her body felt all crazy inside, like it couldn’t decide what to throw at her. Then, it all settled, and her heart cleared everything. No matter the consequences, she had to tell them, just in case they didn’t know.
Shaking her head at Jason, she told him, “No. This is too important.”
“What’s so important that you’re not in bed or visiting your aunts?” She jumped at her dad’s voice. He’d done that ninja sneak-up thing again. She wanted to learn how to do it. Then, maybe, she could do the same to him.
He’d understand why she skipped her aunts. Besides, she’d never have heard this news he needed to hear. “Dad, I’ve something I need to tell all of you.”
He quirked that darn brow again. He must’ve known she hated it and it always put her on edge, whether she’d done something wrong or not. “Why can’t it wait until morning? We’re too tired for another of your mysteries tonight.”
That stung, but she wouldn’t allow it to bother her this evening. “No, it can’t wait until morning, and it’s not a mystery. It’s a family thing.” She hadn’t checked the time lately. It might be morning already. Was that why they were all together this late? Then they should’ve shared with her. She was nearly a teenager after all.
Her dad stiffened, and she knew he turned back into the oldest of the brothers and sister. “Okay, tell me, and I’ll pass it along.”
Her head hurt from how fast she shook it. “All at once. Dad, this is real important,” she stressed, trying to make him understand.
After studying her like she was a frog being dissected, he nodded and turned back to the group, who’d mostly been watching them. “Reagan has something important to tell us, and it’s perfect we’re all here.”
Her hands shook and, for some reason, she was nervous. She couldn’t understand that but had to tell them.
Her uncles, dad, Cousin Lee, Brandon, and Jason circled around Uncle Devon’s bed as best they could, so she walked over to join them.
“Go ahead,” her dad encouraged with a dip of his head.
Looking around at each of them made her mouth go dry. They looked at her expectantly, and she hoped she was able to share it correctly. She always hated to hear bad news.
With a slight nudge from Jason who’d positioned himself behind her, she looked at Uncle AJ’s shirt instead of anyone’s face. “I’m doing a scrapbook of our trip and interviews with everyone.”
A quick glance at her dad as his nostrils flared told her that she’d said the wrong words.
He kept his voice low, but it wasn’t happy. “I told you tomorrow for
this group. Is this why you interrupted?”
“No, Dad.” She shook her head. “It’s more important than that.”
“Then go on.”
“On my way to visit with my aunts, I decided to see if Poppy and Grandma would help me with stuff about each of you.” She stared around at eyes that looked disappointed.
“Reagan,” Brad said, “those rooms are on opposites ends of the hallway.
Busted. She waved her hand as if to brush it off as nothing. “Semantics.” Three of her uncles grinned a bit.
“Pumpkin, get to your point.”
She huffed at him for using her nickname again with other people. “I’m getting to it. So I went to Poppy’s room, and the door was cracked like he does for Mr. Ronald. So, like I’ve been told, I waited so I didn’t interrupt their conversation.”
“In other words,” Devon said, “you eavesdropped.”
She dropped her head for a moment and snapped it up. “It’s a good thing I did.”
Her uncles all raised their eyebrows, and it looked to be in exactly the same way. Interesting. But not for now.
“I was ready to knock, and I heard noises and, what I think were clothes ruffling.”
Her dad shook his head and closed his eyes for a moment as if to not stay mad, which she liked. “That’s not something you should be watching or listening to.”
The low chuckles from her uncles made her dad grimace. “No, Dad, it wasn’t like when you and Mom go to the bedroom. This sounded more like they were just changing clothes and talking.”
As she recounted her eavesdropping, strength in her heart, body, and soul grew, and she knew they would fight this battle with Poppy. They wouldn’t allow him to do it alone.
“Tell us what’s so important.” Her dad usually had more patience than this.
“Did Poppy tell you that he needed to speak with all of you?”
They did some looking at each other, swiveling their heads from one to another. Uncle AJ answered, “No. He did mention he had something to announce at dinner, but I thought introducing Lee was it.” With the exception of Devon who couldn’t really nod with his head on the pillow, they all nodded. Reagan remembered hearing the same thing and had also thought it was Cousin Lee and Brandon.