Tommy gulped.
Beth Ann—Elizabeth—looked the way Alex felt inside: shaky, nauseous, and afraid. He almost hadn’t reached the kid in time. In fact, if he hadn’t been on guard, watching for some sign of Maeve, he might have been a second too slow, a breath too late.
Alex followed Teddy up the stairs. As he went, he looked around, trying to distract himself from his fears and calm down. The outside of the house was in desperate need of repair, but the inside was worse. Dark walls and dark furniture minimized any light from nearby lamps. What looked like decades worth of clutter filled every table and shelf, spilled out of the entryway closet and covered the floor. It was a depressing sight.
Everything around him needed a thorough cleaning, yet each child was dressed in good clothes with no holes or rips. Their hair was well groomed, and their shoes in decent shape. The kids weren’t exactly clean, but after playing outside, they wouldn’t be. A really difficult situation had been dumped on Elizabeth, but it looked like she’d done her best, focusing on what was most important—the children. Alex respected that.
But damn, was this just the worst day of the year for her or what? Spilled milk and a flat tire were nothing. A kid falling off the balcony, though, that had the makings of a disaster. He might have just broken his leg or arm, but he could have easily died. Which meant it was good he’d been here. This time.
Alex followed Teddy to the end of the hallway. As he opened the balcony door and faced Alex, his gaze was piercing, as if to cut through any crap Alex might throw at him. Alex grinned. “Thanks.”
“Sure.” Teddy stood rigid, watching Alex’s every move. “Thanks for looking at it.”
Alex nodded and carefully stepped through the door onto the wooden balcony. “We wouldn’t want to have one of the little ones fall from here.”
“David and Danielle are the only ones stupid enough to go out here like that. We keep the door shut and locked, but they always manage to get through.” Teddy was irritated, his lips pursed and his eyes glaring. Yet Alex didn’t feel the boy was mad at him.
Watching the floor, Alex eased his feet over each inch, listening for creaking, feeling for soft wood or sagging. Reaching the sides without incident, he shook the low walls, grateful when they didn’t budge. “It seems pretty sound, except for this spot where the wood is wet.”
Teddy’s discerning gaze met his again, and Alex had to wonder how many men were stupid enough to pat him on the head but otherwise ignore him.
“Then we just need to seal the door shut so the twins can’t get through.”
Alex doubted Teddy’s “we” included him in any way, but if not him, then who? There was only one adult with all these kids. All their parents were absent for one reason or another. So absent Elizabeth couldn’t even call them for a ride home. He had yet to see her mother, let alone any of her boyfriends. No. Despite his fears, he’d already chosen. For good or ill, he wasn’t leaving. They needed him. Elizabeth needed him. She just didn’t realize how much.
Teddy shifted, his expression closing down. “I didn’t mean you.”
Hating that his own hesitance had caused the boy’s reaction, Alex reached out and gave his shoulder a light squeeze. “I’m not sure what tools I have that might work. I’ll check the bathroom then go look in the truck.”
Teddy looked at the door to the side of him. “Can you fix the toilet?”
“Probably not, but I can try.” Alex grinned at him, inviting Teddy to share his humor. “I can make it work for tonight, but I think I need to talk to one of my friends. He’s much more experienced at these sorts of things than I am.”
“That’s cool.” Teddy smiled, but Alex felt his considering gaze follow him into the bathroom.
Alex removed the lid of the toilet tank and inspected the interior. Woodworking, he knew. Porcelain toilets, however, were a new animal. He knew to put the wire on the lever, make sure there was water in the tank, and how to unclog it. That was about it.
Wait a minute. Had Teddy said one of them? Did that mean all the bathrooms needed to be fixed? Just how many were there, anyway? Alex turned to Teddy. “I’ll be right back.”
“Okay.”
Alex smiled at him and walked down the stairs, seeing the kids sitting around the living room. The little kids were playing dolls, the twins were kicking ass on Dark Alliance, and one boy sat facing the corner, holding a jar in front of his face. There was no sign of Elizabeth until he reached the bottom of the stairs and saw her in the kitchen, rustling through bags of food.
Her mouth was pursed, her brow furrowed, and the look in her eyes stressed. Would he add to her troubles by bringing Maeve to her door? Had the damage already been done? Elizabeth pulled a few cans out of the sacks and set them on the table, her strong hands gripping them with ease. She appeared delicate but capable at the same time.
But even the most self-sufficient of people needed help once in a while. In the end, would he help or hinder her? Alex opened the front door and stepped out on the porch. There wasn’t a clear answer, but he wanted to stay. Hell, he’d always wanted that.
Closing the door behind him, Alex headed toward his truck and his toolbox. Several sets of eyes made his back itch. Keeping his stride and stance casual, Alex reached for his cell phone and said, “Call Geoffrey.”
The front door opened, drawing Elizabeth’s gaze. Alex’s back filled the doorway briefly before he shut it behind him. For an instant, she could see that same image through the memories and emotions of her eight-year-old self. Only it wasn’t because of Alex that her mother had leaned against the door and slid to the floor, mascara dripping down her cheeks.
Mary Beth had sobbed, broken and helpless in a way that had always torn Elizabeth apart to watch. She had run to her mother and wrapped her arms around her, holding her mother’s head against her little chest and offering comfort the way her mom did whenever she fell from her bike. “It’s going to be okay, Mommy.”
“I thought Earl loved me, Bethy.” She’d spoken softly, as if the pain were too great to bear. “Why can’t he love me? That’s all I want.”
“I love you, Mommy. More than anyone.”
“I know you do, baby.”
“You don’t need him, Mommy. You’ve got us.”
But they hadn’t been enough. Not Elizabeth, her sisters, or her brother. Her mother had a hole in her heart. A need that none of the men she’d turned to could ever fill. It was that same need that drove her sister Dallas, no matter what she sacrificed, no matter how often she was disappointed.
Elizabeth refused to have that problem. She probably had that same hole and no man, even a good man, would be able to fill it. No man would be so important to her that she collapsed weak, begging, and pitiful when he left.
Alex was the type who would say good-bye first, at the very least. But if just seeing him walk out of the door made her chest feel tight, it was imperative to send him packing as soon as possible.
“Aunt Lizzie!”
She blinked and looked down as Kevin ran toward her, Tommy pulling on his arm.
“I didn’t mean to,” Tommy snarled.
Kevin shoved him away. “Tommy let Benjamin out!”
Elizabeth’s brow wrinkled as she tried to figure out who Benjamin might be. After mentally cycling through all their names, she still came up blank. Who could forget the name of one of their nephews? What kind of—
“Who’s Benjamin?” Shelly asked, saving Elizabeth from a mental lashing.
“He’s my spider,” Kevin said.
Elizabeth gasped, just hearing the word making her want to screech. She swallowed weakly and tried to speak calmly. “When did you get a spider?”
“See, I told you she’d be mad,” Tommy gloated.
“I’m not mad,” Elizabeth assured Kevin. “When—”
Still looking worried, but too concerned for his spider to give in to it, Kevin said, “I found him when you were outside flirting with that guy.”
“I wasn’t—”
/> “Yeah, you were.” Shelly rolled her eyes. “I’m surprised you didn’t hop in his truck and beg him to take you away.”
Cheeks suddenly hot, Elizabeth scowled. “I wouldn’t do that.”
“Bet you want to,” Tommy sang sweetly.
From the other room, three shrill screams shot straight through her ears, nearly laying Elizabeth out cold. Kevin bolted from the kitchen, shouting, “Benjamin!”
Elizabeth ran after him in time to see the three little ones, all very much girly-girls, jumping up and down in helpless tears as a daddy long-legs crawled over one of their Barbies.
Kevin gently cupped his hands around the spider and slid it into an old jelly jar while Elizabeth tried to shush the girls. But they weren’t ready to be shushed. Their cries climbed higher and higher, building into a shared hysteria. Suddenly, the loud sounds of battle and sword fights crashed over everything, even the girls’ screams.
“David! Danielle!”
“We couldn’t hear the game,” the twins whined in sync.
“Shut the TV off.”
“We’re almost at the next save point,” they wheedled.
“You can fight your way back to this point tomorrow. Turn the game off. Now.”
Grumbling, they shut the video game off and threw their controllers on the floor. Elizabeth snapped. She was done with that crap. “You two, pick those up nicely or you’re grounded from it for a week.”
They whined. She ignored them. “After that you can take the girls up for a bath.”
“But we haven’t had dinner, yet,” Jessie said, her little eyes wide and dry.
“Don’t worry, sweetie, I’ll feed you.” Right before she sent them all to bed very early. “Teddy, find the little girls clean jammies and help the twins.” The whole bathroom might end up covered in soapy water, but then she’d have six clean kids instead of three.
“You remember the toilet’s still broken, right?” Teddy asked. They all eyed her, still hoping to get out of it.
“Use the master bathroom tonight.”
With no more excuses, six pairs of shoulders slumped. Teddy herded them up the stairs. Elizabeth could count on him to watch over them all. “Kevin, put away the spider, then you and Tommy clean up the living room.”
“But we didn’t make the mess,” Tommy argued.
“I don’t want to hear it.” Already exhausted, Elizabeth headed for the kitchen. She’d begun the day a little earlier than usual. After getting the older kids packed off to school, she’d had the toddlers and the baby with her when she’d gone to the hospital that morning.
They were too small to fully understand that the tubes and monitors meant their grandma was sick. But next week was Spring Break, and she’d be damned if her mom put off seeing the older kids any longer. The good-byes would be rough, she didn’t doubt that, but the kids deserved more than silence. They deserved closure.
Seeing Shelly almost had the grocery bags unpacked, Elizabeth offered a very heartfelt, “Thank you.”
Elizabeth handed a cracker to the baby and she mashed it into her high chair tray before stuffing bits in her mouth. She smiled at Veronica, loving her uncomplicated happiness. The toddlers’ earlier screams still reverberated in her eardrums. What the hell was she going to do about Kevin’s spider?
Elizabeth took a deep breath, wet a rag, and started wiping out the refrigerator. “Did anyone call while I was gone?”
Shelly snorted, unpacking the bags on the table. “Stupid phone never quit ringing. Woke Veronica up from her nap.”
Elizabeth rose, rinsed the rag, and knelt again. The silence stretched. Shelly did this just to get a rise out of her. She raised her brow and locked her eyes on the teen. “Well?”
Shelly grinned and stacked two more soup cans in the pantry. “You probably want your boss’s message first, huh?”
Elizabeth twisted the rag with extra force as she rinsed it out. Her tone perfectly even, she said, “That would be nice.”
“He said to call him.”
Elizabeth spun around. “That’s it? He didn’t say anything specific?”
“No, he didn’t.” Shelly pursed her lips with her typical “adults-are-always-giving-me-a-hard-time” expression.
Elizabeth raised a doubtful brow.
Shelly huffed, then snapped, “Geez, do I look like a friggin’ secretary?”
Elizabeth gave her a stern look before flipping on the light to the laundry room. “That attitude is not necessary.”
“Sorry.” Shelly shrugged, obviously unconcerned, and began pouring bags of cheap cereal into Tupperware containers.
Elizabeth shook her head at her. She wasn’t Shelly’s mother, or anyone else’s for that matter, and they both knew it, which made it difficult to maintain any kind of authority. Elizabeth tossed the rag on the pile of dirty clothes, flinched at how huge it was, and hurriedly flipped the light off. Dinner first. “Who else called?”
“Rehab. Aunt Felicia disappeared.”
“What?” She came to a dead stop and stared into Shelly’s eyes. They were flat, unsurprised, almost mocking in the face of Elizabeth’s shock. Grabbing veggies off the table, Elizabeth took them to the sink, turned on the water, and rinsed them.
Shelly shook her head. “I don’t know why you’re surprised. I told you it wouldn’t work when you first asked.”
Elizabeth sighed. “I know you did. I just thought a little help would …”
“Some people can’t be helped.”
Elizabeth wanted to argue, she really did. The kids shouldn’t be so cynical. She needed to convince them people could be redeemed, didn’t she? But she couldn’t. Not and be honest. “Anything else?”
Shelly finished clearing off the table. “Uncle Bobby called.”
“Why? The lawyer already said he can’t leave prison to go to the funeral. I can’t help him.”
Shelly sprayed cleaner on the table and wiped it down. “That’s what I told him.”
“What’d he say?” Grabbing a knife and starting on the vegetables, Elizabeth could only imagine. Her brother was in a place where the only thing he had to think about was himself. Which meant most of his conversation centered on his wants, his needs, his feelings.
And his twin, Felicia. Their bond superseded a lot, something his twin girls, Sarah and Jessie, understood well. As did David and Danielle, Felicia’s identical pair. The Raineses had been blessed with three sets of twins, though the toddlers were so close in age and friendship, they could’ve been triplets.
“He needs more cigarettes.” Shelly began to assemble the ingredients to make spaghetti.
Elizabeth shook her head with disbelief and dumped onions and peppers into the sauce pot. “Sure. I’ll get right on that.”
Shelly turned to her and grinned. “That’s what I said. Pass me the tomatoes.”
Elizabeth tossed her a can of stewed tomatoes. “And what did he say to that?”
“I need to drop the attitude. He may be in jail, but he’s still the adult and I’m just a kid. Blah, blah, blah.” She opened the can and dumped the tomatoes in the pot.
Elizabeth struggled to keep a straight face.
“It’s okay, you can laugh. I won’t take it as encouragement. Wouldn’t matter anyway, I’d still talk to him like that.”
Elizabeth shook her head and started putting together a fresh salad. “I’m sorry. I just can’t believe …”
“What?” Shelly scoffed. “That your siblings care more for their addictions than for their kids? Don’t stress, Aunt Beth, it’s not your fault this family is full of losers.”
Elizabeth paused, looking at her. “I meant I couldn’t believe he still thinks he deserves your respect.”
The teen didn’t say anything, just met her gaze in stubborn defiance.
“You think I’m a loser, too?”
Shelly held her gaze, then wavered. Finally, she shrugged and stirred the spaghetti sauce. “Doesn’t matter what I think, Aunt Beth. Soon as you find a replacement, you’re gon
e.”
And that, Elizabeth knew, was what made her a loser in both their books.
Soon as you find a replacement, you’re gone.
Alex held still in the doorway to the kitchen. She wanted to leave. He couldn’t really blame her. She had a lot to deal with; even more than he’d known. He’d talked to Geoffrey about her bad day, but that had been before he’d learned about her brother and younger sister. And according to the kids upstairs, her mother was in the hospital dying.
At what point did things stop being difficult and become something else? When was it not just bad luck? Alex looked at his hands, then back at Shelly. She’d seen him standing there, though Elizabeth couldn’t see him from this angle. The girl had been warning him off, carrying on a double conversation with more skill than most adults could accomplish.
Shelly’s blue eyes bored into him again, looking so much like her aunt she could have been Elizabeth’s daughter. Her message had been loud and clear. Adults were unreliable, but Elizabeth was all the kids had. He wouldn’t be allowed to mess that up. She’d probably expected him to run from all the dirty laundry she’d laid out in front of him, but he wouldn’t.
Alex met the teen’s gaze head on. He wanted Elizabeth, they needed Elizabeth, and they would soon need him. Whatever he choose to do, the vision would likely come true. He hated that he would bring danger to them, but he was fooling himself if he thought he could prevent the terrible vision. He didn’t know what actions led to the vision, so how could anything he did be a “change”?
He’d suspected that even before approaching her, and Geoffrey’s research had convinced him it was true. If there was anyone Alex trusted, it was Geoffrey. And now Elizabeth and her family’s safety would depend on that trust.
When Alex didn’t duck his head and run for the door.
Shelly’s eyes narrowed in consideration. Alex gave her his best reassuring gaze, his chin firm, his eyes steady.
Elizabeth chopped on the cutting board, making neat piles of olives, cucumbers, and tomatoes. Her movements were slow and deliberate. He could practically see her mind churning. Something about the expression on her face stirred his curiosity. He wanted to know what was happening inside her, on a gut level he needed to know.
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