Page 49 of Dead For Teacher

Ten loved moments like this when his daughter was just a little girl. Not a mini Sherlock Holmes or a tiny ghost whisperer. “There’s nothing delicate about you.” Ten laughed when Everly shot him a frown. “You’re the strongest person I know.”

“Really?” Everly asked, wrapping her arm around Ten.

“Yes, really.” Ten pressed a kiss to her forehead. “You have these amazing abilities, but all you want to do is help people. You were angry yesterday that you didn’t get to meet Marie Fairbanks and to help Joe Whittaker.”

Everly nodded. “He’s in the hospital,” she whispered.

“With Miss Marie and Jeremy at his bedside.” It wasn’t a question. Ten knew they would be by Joe’s side until he took his final breath.

“Right,” Everly agreed. “I know you’re worried about me and Ezzie.”

Ten laughed. He shouldn’t have been surprised Everly had picked up on his thoughts. Michael Sullivan’s confession was a tough pill to swallow. It would be a while until the horror of his crimes left Ten’s heart. “I’m not really worried. I’m just playing the what-if game.”

“Ezzie and I are gonna fight. Like when he pulled off my Barbie dolls’ heads and threw them at me. I was mad at him, but only for a little while. Remember how he laughed at the sound the heads made when I popped them back on?” Everly giggled and clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth to imitate the sound the heads had made.

“Oh, I remember.” Everly had been angry enough to breathe fire, especially when one head hit her in the face. She’d been nearly inconsolable until Ronan explained that the heads could be put back on the bodies.

“We’re gonna fight, but we’re gonna forgive too. Just like you and Dad taught me. Everything’s gonna be okay. I’ll always have Ezzie’s back, even when he’s a dumbass like Dad.”

Ten barked a laugh. He wasn’t thrilled with his daughter using that word, but if the dumbass shoe fit… Marie Fairbanks had been right when she said Everly was wise beyond her years. “I’m so proud of the way you helped the kid ghosts.”

“It wasn’t easy. Seeing them made me so sad. They never got to go on adventures together like me, Woofie, and Aurora. I’m glad they crossed over. I’m proud of you too, Daddy.” Everly rested her head on Ten’s shoulder.

A wave of emotion broke over Tennyson. He’d spent so much time worrying about Everly over the last few days, becoming involved in a cold case and dealing with ghosts her own age, but hearing she was proud of him wiped his worries away. There were going to be challenges to come as his daughter got older and developed her gifts, but that worry could be put to the side for another day.

Everly was quiet for a few minutes. Her gaze was on the colorful butterflies floating around them. “I love it here, Daddy. Let’s grow butterfly plants this summer, like we learned about earlier. I want Brooke to see all the butterflies when she comes to visit.”

“Brooke is coming to visit?” Ten and River texted every day since he’d returned from Florida. They also FaceTimed once or twice a week, with the brothers speaking to each other before Everly and Brooke got a chance to chat together. They had talked about River’s family coming to Massachusetts once the school year ended, but no final plans had been made yet.

“Yup, and we’re gonna go to Fun-A-Rama!”

“What’s Fun-A-Rama?” Ten asked. He’d never heard of it before.

“It’s a ’musement park with rides and games and cotton candy and fried dough and ice cream.” Everly’s eyes glowed with excitement. “There’s also a scary clown, but I’ll try to be brave.”

In Ten’s opinion,allclowns were scary, but he’d keep that humble opinion to himself. “I’ll try to be brave too.” It would be easier said than done.

A bright yellow butterfly floated toward Tennyson. It perched on his knee and fluttered its wings open and closed for a few seconds before lifting off again. Ten watched it flit between bright pink flowers. He was completely on board with planting a butterfly garden with his daughter, which he also knew would attract hummingbirds. He couldn’t wait to see the look on his daughter’s face when she caught sight of the tiny birds.

Everly was right when she’d said Tommy, Katie, and Paul hadn’t gotten the chance to go on adventures together. Life was unpredictable, sometimes changing at the speed of light. Ten was going to do everything in his power to make sure his kids’ lives were filled with endless adventures, light, and love.

THE END