Both kids scrambled from the table and ran toward their bedroom.
Blaise stared after them. “Where are they going?”
“To get ready for bed.”
“So we can—”
“After their bedtime routine.”
She waited for him to ask how long that would take, but he went back to work on his computer, so she made the kids lunches for tomorrow.
Twenty minutes later, Audra appeared wearing her favorite pajamas, the ones covered in cute llamas. “Ryder is getting out of the shower.”
That was Hadley’s signal; the kids were almost ready for her. “Teeth brushed?”
Audra showed off her pearly whites. “Clean and minty fresh.”
“Good job.” Hadley dried her hands on a kitchen towel. “Let’s go.”
“Ryder wants Blaise to read to us tonight,” Audra said. “I don’t mind if he does.”
Her hopeful tone suggested she wanted that, too.
Hadley glanced at Blaise. “That’s usually my job, but you’re welcome to it.”
Audra bounced on the tips of her toes but didn’t speak.
He hesitated, a wary gleam in his eyes. “I haven’t read a story to someone, most likely myself, in a couple of decades.”
“This will be a much easier audience to please than investors,” Hadley encouraged.
He closed his laptop and stood. “Lead the way.”
Audra did.
Hadley added soap and then turned on the dishwasher. By the time she reached the kids’ room, Blaise was sitting on the edge of Ryder’s bed and reading from C.S. Lewis’sThe Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. As if entranced, the kids stared at him.
Seeing her niece and nephew enthralled didn’t surprise Hadley, but the book wasn’t the one they’d been reading last night. And then she remembered—after Clint’s sentencing, a box addressed to the kids had arrived from Cassandra’s Attic. Inside had beenThe Chronicles of Narniain paperback but no note. The kids were certain their dad had sent it, but Clint had never said a word about the books.
Blaise closed the cover. “That’s a chapter for each of you.”
“Thank you, Mr. M.” Audra cuddled her stuffed llama. “You did good.”
Ryder held on to a shark. His space-ship-themed pajamas didn’t coordinate with his stuffed animal. “Really good.”
“Thank you,” Blaise said. “So…”
“You need to check for monsters. Under here first.” Audra pointed to the bottom of the beds and at the closet. “Over there.”
“Is that where they hide?” he asked.
Audra nodded. “Either my mom or aunt checks every night.”
“Sometimes both of them,” Ryder added. “That way we’re safe. Nothing will come out and scare us in the middle of the night.”
Hadley held her breath, praying Blaise wouldn’t laugh at the kids. They’d had nightmares for months after Clint’s arrest in front of them. They’d watched investigators carry out computers, electronics, and other items from the only home they’d ever known, one that no longer belonged to them.
“We can’t have anyone getting scared.” Blaise kneeled between the two beds. He checked under Audra’s and then Ryder’s, sticking his arm underneath. “These are clear of monsters except for one cat who is giving me the evil eye.”
