Page 59 of Demon and the Raven

It was so nice outside with the sun and the warm breeze, I could almost forget about anything at all troubling. When JJ leaned their head against my side, I gave them a gentle hug.

“Who’s Missy Campbell?” I asked Toby.

“She’s a new girl in my class. She just moved here with her family last month.”

“I see.”

“She goes to Bible study and her youth pastor is Tanner Murphy.”

“I’ve seen him driving the church van,” I threw out.

“Me too. I didn’t know who he was until Missy introduced him to me when he came to the youth center.”

“Gotcha. Was he nice?”

He shrugged.

“You don’t know if he was nice?”

“I mean, he was okay, but then yesterday at recess she told me what he told her about magic being bad, and I didn’t understand why she said that.”

“Are you worried she’s right about magic?”

“No. I’m worried we can’t be friends, and she has a drone.”

Ah, priorities. “Is the drone amazing?”

He nodded.

“And if she says magic is evil and you say it’s not, then you might get in a fight and then you can’t play with her or the drone.”

He was quiet then, which was his way. He was a very thoughtful child, had been since he was a toddler. He never ran around and screamed, never threw things, bit people, or jumped up and down on their bed. His penchant for self-reflection had spoiled Amanda, as she was certain JJ would be similar.

JJ was not.

Her youngest was a thunderstorm contained only by their present size.

There were benefits to both.

Toby sighed deeply. “This is dumb. I’ll just save up my allowance for a drone. Dad said I could get one as long as I don’t buzz the squirrel.”

“The squirrel?”

“He’s eating all the birdseed. But I can get him his own squirrel feeder now since…” And then he stopped talking.

“Since what?” I prodded him.

Toby glanced at JJ, then back at me. “I can’t tell you right now.”

But one look at JJ told me they were dozing. “Tell me super quiet.”

Toby moved in close and dropped his voice to just above a whisper. “There used to be cats that would come into our yard, so Dad didn’t want to build a squirrel house in case the squirrel got too busy eating and one of the cats got him.”

“Makes sense.”

“But the cats are gone now.”

“What cats are gone?”