“Dork.”She rolled up the window and headed up the drive, as he turned his Tahoe and followed her.
Junie might not be too happy, but Claudia wanted to talk to Auggie and Cal now that the adrenaline had worn off a little.See if anything else would pop up.
Something didn’t add up.Surely Bruce didn’t think that all that money would have still been there after all these years?It had been at least a decade since he had abandoned his daughters for the last time.
But then again…one thing her brother and Auggie had both agreed on—somethingwasn’t rightwith Bruce Tyler.Dylan Talley had said very similar in her statement after Bruce had dragged her into a barn before setting it on fire just weeks ago.That guy was a total looney bird—Dylan had said that very clearly.
Claudia definitely agreed.
Her scars twitched a little.She’d run into that man too many times herself.
She had more than enough scars to prove it.
42
Auggie definitely hadn’t slept wellat all.Except when she’d been curled up in Cal’s arms on her couch that last time.That had lasted only until Maeya had needed her a few hours later.The girls were all restless, and since she was on the same floor they were, it usually fell to her to take care of them.And that was the way she wanted it—shewas their guardian now.She wanted them to trust and depend on her and know that she would be there for them the moment they needed her.
With what had occurred the night before, she just didn’t know what was going to happen next.The girls were already antsy; it was just a matter of time before they figured out that something was wrong.
If she’d had the girls with her last night, she didn’t know that she’d have been able to protect them.That had been what had truly kept her from sleeping last night.Had been what she had poured her heart out to Cal in a moment of weakness.
What would she do if Bruce came back, and it was just her there?And the girls?Or if she was gone and it was just Junie, or just Em?She didn’t like the thought of any of those scenarios at all.
She tried to keep her turmoil from showing.Half the girls needed baths—they rotated morning/evenings on the schedule, they needed breakfast.They needed to go on like they always did.
The girls needed the stability of a routine more than anything.
Hell, so did she.And she and the girls were supposed to go to Gil’s in two hours.
Gil’s ranch—where he had armed ranch hands and even a pair of security guards who patrolled at all times.Gil wasn’t taking any chances with his family—not after what had happened before.
She probably wouldn’t breathe right until she had the girls at Gil’s, and Em and Junie were in town at the retail store and the diner.
And she still had to deal withCal.
Not to mention—referee between his brother and Em.Cadell seemed to do everything in his power to aggravate Em, every chance he could.
Auggie took a deep breath.She could do this.First, dress her baby.Second, deal with the day.
Get through.Just get through, Augusta Dawn.Just get through.
Hadn’t that been her refrain her entire life?
She took care of the baby quickly, laughing at the little faces Maeya made while Auggie was trying to change her sleeper.Most days she left the baby in a clean sleeper until she got to Gil’s.It was easier to keep her warm.Winter wasdefinitelynot Auggie’s favorite season.She had always hated the cold—probably from that asshole father of hers locking her in the basement when she hadn’t done what he wanted.
No escaping that memory.
She shivered, the held the baby closer.She was determined—her girls weren’t going to have any more of those kinds of memories.She hadn’t been able to protect the older four girls from the nightmares he had caused, but Markie and Maeya—she was going to do her best to protect them as much as she possibly could.
Even though Markie had nightmares she never could articulate, too.
Auggie would do whatever she could to help them getthrough.
She stepped into the kitchen—to find a crowd.
Junie, still in her pajamas, was at the stove.Snapping something at the man standing in their kitchen.Well, Auggie hadn’t expected to see him.Zach wasn’t as neat and pressed and pretty as he usually was when she saw him.
“Apparently, Deputy Zach stayed up all night—at the end of our driveway,” Em told her, taking Maeya from her arms.“Now we are feeding him breakfast.If he stops pestering Junie, anyway.”
