Fine, I get it.
But it also fucking sucks for the kids involved.
Not that I’m a kid anymore.
I’m a grown-ass woman, and I’m used to this crap.
“Thanks for the encouragement, Mom. If you can turn the hate machine off long enough to recall anything useful, call me.”
I end the call without a goodbye and roll over, frustration burning my skin until it itches.
I swear I’m going to overdose on secrets here.
Whatever secret Gramps left, plus the whole weird business with the Babins. Were they really the monsters Edith Griffith said?
Lawsuits?
Arson?
Potentially trying to scare me and the poor kids in this house.
Kane hasn’t said anything else about it, but I know he’s on high alert.
Right now, he’s downstairs with them, watching a movie and doing whatever bonding dad stuff you do with kids that age.
He’s also keeping the evening watch. I just know it.
It’s a relief to have him here, but I can’t stop the pang of guilt that tells me if he hadn’t come, the Saints wouldn’t be sharing this mess.
I text Hattie and power up my iPad while I wait for her reply.
I haven’t forgotten my other sad little secret.
After Sophie poured her heart out about her shoes, I started looking up orthopedic shoes and their designs, their function.
Turns out, there’s a lot to learn.
But Sophie’s shoes are the high-support, clunky ones.
Absolute beasts aesthetically.
So, I’ve taken the design and downloaded it as a base image with a little AI-assisted modeling. I’ve just started working on something that should have the same support but might look prettier.
Functional, yes, but feminine.
A stab at a statement piece.
Not something bland that will blend in, but not an outlier that draws mean jokes from immature kids.
It’s not easy.
These shoes don’t go hand in hand withpretty. Not in the delicate, flowery sort of way that’s stylish. Not with bold, worldly I-don’t-care confidence, either.
My phone lights up with Hattie’s reply, and I stop working to check her message.
Hattie:I’m glad you filed a police report! So scary.
Hattie:Also the stuff with your neighbors is insane.
