“That’s because you gave your sister a haircut in her sleep.” I tucked a finger under her chin. “I bet she’d let you use scissors if I helped you.”
“Do you know how to cut snowflakes?” She looked up at me, her blue eyes full of hope.
“Not exactly, but?—”
“I do,” Zina volunteered. “I’ll help you cut snowflakes and we can hang them from the ceiling of the dome. How does that sound?”
“Oh yay!” Dolly clapped her hands together. “Can we make them sparkly?”
“Of course.”
“With glitter and diamonds?”
Zina laughed and met my gaze over the top of Dolly’s head. “Well, glitter for sure but we’ll have to see about the diamonds. I’m not sure Mr. Munyon’s budget, generous as it might be, will be big enough to cover that.”
Dolly took Zina’s hand. “When can we do it? Now?”
“Maybe later,” I said. So this was what it felt like to be a buzzkill all the time. “We’ve got to stop and check out some apartments on the way home.”
“Aw, Uncle Alex, can’t I stay and make snowflakes?” Dolly gave me her best puppy dog eyes.
I considered myself fairly immune to children but found myself melting under her pointed pout. “Not today. I’ve got an appointment with the manager at the Pecan Hollow Apartments.”
“Oh, you don’t want to stay there.” Zina’s lips pursed and she shook her head.
“Why not? The price is right.”
“Yeah, if you don’t mind sharing your apartment with cockroaches the size of rodents.”
Dolly stepped back. “Gross.”
“Fine.” I pulled out my phone and deleted Pecan Hollow from my list. “I’ve still got two other options.”
“Which ones?” Zina pressed.
“Doesn’t matter. I need to find somewhere by the warehouse. I’ve got to be close to the penguins and”—I lowered my voice—“that damn parrot is driving me crazy.”
Zina let out a laugh. The sound lifted my spirits just a tad. She was capable of laughter, good to know.
“There are plenty of cheap apartments over in Swynton,” she suggested.
“That’s too far. What if I have an emergency in the middle of the night?”
“A penguin emergency?”
“Yeah.”
“Like what?” She cocked her head. “One of them drowns?”
I didn’t like the attempt at humor. Not at the expense of the penguins. I had yet to meet them, but I already felt protective.
“For your information, it’s impossible for penguins to drown.” That ought to shut her down for a little while.
“What if they have a heart attack underwater?”
“Not likely.”
“I don’t get it. What kind of middle-of-the-night emergency might require you to rush in and save the flock?”
