“You can claim we held you hostage when the police get here.”
“And then run away with half the money that they don’t realize you’re holding.”
“It’s a good plan.”
“You should thank us for not involving you.”
“If you smile any broader, I fear your cheeks will fall off,” I murmur to Bea.
“Don’t worry,” she murmurs back. “They’ll need us for something other than being the scapegoats eventually.”
“Thescapegoats? But they’ve said they intend to leave us innocent.”
“In my experience, what they say and what they do doesn’t always line up.”
Charlie looks over at us. “Just becauseyourbrothers are terrible doesn’t meanEddieand I are terrible. We mean it. We won’t utter your names to the police.”
“Charlie! Look. Look at the clue.” Eddie points to something on the index card. “It has a bone on it.”
“That’s not a bone. That’s a key.”
I frown. “Whoops.”
“Whoops?” Bea repeats.
“I believe I was supposed to take one of them to the optician for an eye test.”
“You’re not really a parent if you don’t forget to make at least one doctor’s appointment every once in a while.”
It’s odd to realize how much I enjoy her company without a single item of clothing coming off.
Make no mistake—I would enjoy the hell out of locking Bea inside my bedroom for days on end—but with the difficulties in scheduling bedroom time, I’m still happy to be in her company, day or night, in person or on the phone or over text message.
She simply makes me happier.
“It’s about the cash register,” Eddie says.
“Banks don’t have cash registers. They have cashdrawers.”
“How do you know?”
“I helped Dad practice a script once for a bank robbery.”
Eddie’s eyes pinch together, and he stares at me as if he’s been slapped. “Why didn’t I get to help with that script?”
“I believe you were bedridden with some kind of flu,” I reply.
He scowls. “I miss all of the fun scripts.”
“You can help Dad when he has to memorize his lines for his new script,” Charlie says. “Right, Dad?”
“Indeed. You’re both welcome to assist.”
“Do I get to be the bad guy?” Eddie asks.
“If you wish.”
“Good. C’mon, Charlie. Let’s crack this case and steal this money.”
