“No!” Kimber wasn’t giggling. “If you cut your hair, you’ll lose your magicalpowers.”
“This is your influence.” Denise glared across the table atBree.
She wore an amused smile. “I take all thecredit.”
“You can’t cut it!” Tears welled up in the little girl’seyes.
“Kimber, sweetie, it’s just hair. It will grow back,” Denise said, reaching for the girl’shand.
She snatched her hand away. “It won’t! All of Mommy’s hair fell out and she’s going to die!” She shoved back from the table and ran into the house. Denise’s dog quickly rose from where she lay and trotted after her. It was the first time he’d seen the dog do anything other thanmosey.
He swallowed hard, at a total loss for how to handle this kind of situation. Murderous gang? Sure, no problem. Hostage standoff? Bring it on. Little girl faced with the reality that happy endings are few and far between? Complete and utterblank.
On his left, Kaden sat quietly with big fat tears rolling down his palecheeks.
Denise scooted back her chair and reached for him. “Come on, buddy. Let’s go talk to your sister.” She hefted the little boy in her arms, no easy feat since he was almost as tall as she was. His thin arms and legs wrapped around Denise and he held on as if she were his lifeline. And she was. She was almost all those two kids had left in theworld.
And their father was a wanted criminal he’d been charged to find andarrest.
Fuck. Murphy was anasshole.
Chapter 5
Chris pushedat the food on his plate. Should they check on them? What was the protocol in this kind of situation? He should have just gone to the barber when he realized his clippers werebusted.
Jase leaned over and kissed Bree on the temple. “They’ll be alright, babe. We’ll make sure.Okay?”
She nodded roughly then swiped a tear from her cheek and took a deep breath. “Right. I have an idea.” She looked at Chris. “Come withme.”
Pushing back from the table, he and Jase followed Bree into the house, down the back hall, to what he assumed was the guest bedroom. Denise lay on the bed, Kaden and Kimber sandwiched between her and Sprocket. Kimber had her arm thrown around the large dog, her face buried in its neck. Kaden hugged his sister’s back while Denise hugged them both. Her voice was low and he couldn’t make out what she wassaying.
Bree somehow squeezed herself onto the sliver of space on the bed behind Denise and rested her chin on her friend’s shoulder, reaching over her and Kaden to rub Kimber’sback.
“Sweetie, I have a plan. Do you want to hearit?”
Kaden lifted his head. “I want to hearit.”
Denise rubbed his arm and he laid his head backdown.
“If you and Kaden cut Chris’s hair, he’ll be able to keep his special powers,” Breesaid.
He straightened from the doorway. Whoa. What? He looked at Jase, whose shoulders shook withmirth.
Jackass, hemouthed.
Jase flipped him the bird and keptlaughing.
“How do you know?” Kimber’s voice was small, a slight hitch in her breath fromcrying.
“I looked it up in the secret Disney princesshandbook.”
Kimber’s head whipped around as far as it could. “That’s not a realthing.”
Bree sucked in an outraged breath. “It is, too! I can’t show it to you until you’re older, though. You have to betwelve.”
“I’m only eight.” She dropped her head back on to thebed.
The initial crisis must have been resolved because Bree unwrapped herself from the group and stood. “I know, but I’ll share the secrets Ican.”
