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He shook his head. “I certainly wasn’t telling her.”
“Atticus,” I hissed. “A warning would’ve helped.”
“Nothing is gonna make this easier. And I wasn’t sure you’d be here until you actually showed up.”
I crossed my arms and sighed. “This is going to be a disaster.”
“Some people missed you, at least,” he said, clapping his hand on my shoulder. “And most of us old folks would love to have kids to play with. Even if they’re little demons.” His gaze moved to the window and he stopped. “Shit. Agnes is getting carried off into the sunset by Emily.”
“The horse?”
“Who else? Dammit, she’s fast. It’ll take us hours to catch her!” My stepfather bolted out the door and I let out a long sigh. I was so tired that I couldn’t think straight, and it had gotten worse when Alice died and I’d taken in the girls.
This could easily be a massive mistake.
But the rest of my life had been one too, so this was no different than my usual.
“Agnes!” I yelled four hours later. “Get back here! And do not take your pants off!”
She didn’t pay me any mind. She was too busy running down Main Street, grabbing at the button of her jeans.
This child needed suspenders.
And I needed a nap.
As much as I wanted to chase her, I had another kid to deal with as well, and she was the biggest danger.
“And get out of the tree, Beatrice!”
They’d whispered for all of two seconds before they started chaos. I didn’t have time to realize what they were planning, much less stop it.
“You can’t tell me what to do! You’re not my dad!”
I had to hide the grimace I felt at her words. “I am your dad!”
“Fuck you!”
A blonde woman and a man with dark hair I’d nearly run into on the street gaped at my child’s choice of words. At first, I would try to correct them, but I’d given up over time.
“I got one!” A woman caught Agnes in the street. She had long, golden-brown hair. She must have been a new addition to the town.
“Put me down, creepy stranger!” Agnes screamed, kicking.
“Oh my God,” the woman said. “Why are you so violent?”
“Got the other!” a redhead yelled. Dimly, I recognized her as the TV star who had put Strawberry Springs back on the map with her renovation of the library. “Woo! Teamwork!”
“Let me go! I wanted to jump!” Beatrice said.
“That’s more of a reason not to let you go then!”
They had been caught. Thank God. “Jesus fuck. I can never catch a break with those two.”
“They’re with safe people,” the blonde woman said. “You seem to, uh, have your hands full.”
“That’s an understatement. Nice to meet you both.” I waved.
“I’m Piper, and this is Theo. Are you new in town?” she asked.
