Childhood Fantasies

Part 3

 

"She's managing well on that cast."

 

"The displacement was less than five degrees, Ruth. I would expect that it will be completely healed by the time I take it off next week." He looked over at the girl as she began to dig a hole in the sandpit.

 

"And Jamie?"

 

"Is a perfectly healthy one-year-old." Jarod covered his eyes from the glare of the sun as he lay on the grass and looked at the boy who was lying on his stomach.

 

"Do you know how?"

 

"Fate, destiny, a miracle, call it what you want. For some reason, those kids were always supposed to survive in the back seat of a car that was mangled enough to kill both their parents."

 

The nurse nodded and then smiled. "Maybe it was just to give you a family."

 

He picked up the little boy and rolled over, awkwardly placing the child in the middle of his back, and resting his face on his hands. "Funnily enough, I did think of that the other night."

 

"When?"

 

Jarod looked up at her. "How much did Sam tell you?"

 

"She mentioned something about the parents going to a fertility clinic in Georgia, if that's what you mean."

 

"Did she also happen to mention that, according to what they know, the entire family was killed almost exactly a year after their second visit there, just after Jamie was born?"

 

The woman's jaw dropped. "They what?"

 

"The clinic received news of the deaths of all four members of the Taylor family, so that means the kids, too, and applied for copies of the death certificates, which they received."

 

"So the couple basically faked their own deaths?"

 

"That's about as basic as you can get, wouldn't you say?" He grinned. "And those of their kids as well, yes."

 

"How did you know about it?"

 

Jarod looked up. "When we get home, I'll show you."

 

* * * *

 

"So you're telling me that the Taylors faked their deaths more than a year ago so that now you could have the care of their children and not have to worry about some big custody dispute that might have made it into the papers and told the Centre where you were?" Ruth proposed.

 

Jarod shrugged as he looked up at the two women. "Can you come up with a better idea?"

 

"Well, no, not really." Ruth shrugged and shifted uneasily in her seat.

 

"Actually, I began to suspect something along those lines almost as soon as you told me about the Centre, Jarod." Sam's voice was soft. "It just seemed suddenly to click and all the pieces fitted."

 

"So people that you've never met and who had, presumably, never laid eyes on you before they died, go to all that effort, just to ensure your safety?"

 

"They didn't do it for me." Jarod stared down into the brightly burning fire that was illuminating the room.

 

"So who did they do it for?" Ruth demanded.

 

"Their children."

 

* * * *

 

Jarod stood in the doorway, looking down at the small boy as he lay in the bed, wriggling slightly in his sleep. For a moment, there was silence, until the big eyes opened and he looked up, using the bars to pull himself upright. Softly Jarod walked over to the bed and, as the baby held out his arms, scooped up the infant and walked over to the rocking chair, sitting down.

 

"How's my boy?"

 

The baby cooed gently and then closed his eyes, nestling into Jarod's arms as the man made the chair rock slightly.

 

"Hey, these children are supposed to sleep at night!"

 

Jarod looked up with a smile. "He is asleep." He got cautiously out of the chair but the child never moved as he was put down in the cot and warmly covered.

 

"You should have been a dad long before this."

 

"Several people have said that to me over the years."

 

"Were they psychic, too?"

 

Jarod laughed softly as he pulled the door almost shut. "Not that I know of." Coming down the stairs, he looked around the kitchen. "You should have been a mom long ago."

 

"Just because I can clean up?" Sam raised an eyebrow as she sat down on the sofa. "I think that's possibly a slightly old-fashioned idea."

 

He grinned as he picked up his mug. "Exactly what about our situation is old-fashioned? We're not married, they aren't even our kids, I stay at home all day while you work..."

 

"Okay, okay." She laughed. "I get your point."

 

"I'm glad to hear it." He looked over at where Bronwyn was curled up in a small beanbag, watching television, and smiled. When the show was finished and the credits began to roll, he reached over for the remote control and turned it off.

 

"Bedtime, Bronwyn."

 

"Okay." She got out of the chair and came over, giving Sam a hug and then holding her arms out to Jarod. He smiled and put down his mug, picking her up.

 

"I knew I wasn't supposed to get that coffee drunk."

 

* * * *

 

"We have two superbly well-behaved children."

 

Sam glanced up from her book as Jarod came back down the stairs. "Why do you say that?"

 

"Comparison with a couple of others that I saw in the park today while I was talking to Ruth."

 

"Oh, really?" She raised an eyebrow and closed the book.

 

"There was a mom with two kids almost the exact same age as ours. They arrived at about the same time we did and immediately the girl began doing everything she could to torment her brother - threw sand at him, wet him from the drinking fountain, the whole bit. Finally the mother got annoyed, I presume by the fact that her son had started to scream his head off, and announced that they were going home, at which point the little girl threw herself on the ground and had a temper tantrum."

 

"So what did the mother do?"

 

"Picked her up by the arm, forcibly put her onto the step behind the main part of the stroller and pushed it so hard that I thought it might break." He met her eye and grinned. "Do I need to add that the girl screamed for as long as I could hear them and that the boy never stopped screaming either?"

 

"No, not really." She looked up. "But you know why they're so well behaved."

 

"I hope it's not from fear that I'll leave." Jarod's brow furrowed as he sat forward in the chair. "Because, if it is, then they have to get rid of that idea as soon as possible. It's not healthy for kids to grow up under a cloud of guilt and fear." He paused. "I should know."

 

"No, Jarod." She leaned forward. "That might be a reason for Bronwyn to do what her mother told her, but they obey you because they love you."

 

"You think so?"

 

"Oh, come on." She sat back in the chair. "Can you doubt it? If they want food, who do they go to? You. If they want a hug, who do they go to? You. If they..."

 

"Okay, stop." He looked up at her. "You're not jealous, are you?"

 

"Not at all." She smiled at him. "I get a lot of it too, remember. The fact that they both throw themselves at the door when I walk through it every evening it more than enough for me."

 

* * * *

 

"Bronwyn, you have to sit really still for me."

 

The girl nodded and tightly held Sam's hand.

 

"It'll be really loud but, if you don't move, it won't hurt, okay?"

 

She nodded again and he started up the saw. Slowly he lowered it, seeing her eyes widen as it began to whine and cut its way through the thick plaster. Jarod carefully cut along the length of the cast, turning it off as quickly as he could, and then looked up to see her gasp.

 

"Hey, you weren't supposed to stop breathing!"

 

Sam laughed as she looked down and stroked the girl's hair, watching as Jarod cracked open the cast and pulled it away, throwing it into the bin.

 

The girl looked down at her leg and then back up at the man beside her. "It got all small."

 

"That's because you haven't been using it for a while." He smiled and then picked up the square lead sheet, sliding it carefully under the limb and then nodding to the x-ray technician. Sam picked up the heavy lead blanket and placed it over her upper legs.

 

"Bronwyn, we have to take some pictures of it and that means we have to leave the room for a few minutes. All you have to do is sit still while the machine makes a lot of noise. Can you do that for me?"

 

She looked up at Jarod and nodded. He kissed her gently and then followed Sam out of the room.

 

He looked down at where Sam was pressing her two hands together until the knuckles were white. "Hey, she's okay."

 

"Sure?"

 

"Positive. I'll expect that to look like a perfectly solid bone and she won't even remember this later."

 

"What did you give her?"

 

"A light sedative with lunch." He glanced through the small window. "I didn't want it to upset her either."

 

"Dr. Kind?"

 

"Yes?" He turned and looked at the nurse as she hurried up to them.

 

"I was about to page you. There's a child on the way in to emergency right now."

 

He looked at Sam. "She'll probably sleep for a while and I'll come with the x-rays as soon as possible."

 

"No problem." She grinned. "Don't tell me we're about to extend the family."

 

Sam could hear his laughter as he hurried away down the hall.

 

* * * *

 

"How's she doing?" Jarod asked softly as he entered the room.

 

Sam looked up from her seat beside the bed, leaving her hand in that of the little girl. "Been asleep for about twenty minutes now. How's your patient?"

 

"Stable, for the moment." He pulled the x-rays out of the envelope and held them up to the light so that she could see them. "Before. And after."

 

"Completely healed."

 

"She'll need a week or so of massage before she can walk on it properly again, but we can do that at home."

 

"We?"

 

"Okay, me." He grinned. "Luckily it wasn't far enough down the tibia that her knee or ankle had to be involved at either end, so we don't have to return a joint to full flexibility."

 

Reaching over, Jarod picked up a roll of bandage and began to gently wrap it around the girl's leg. As the child muttered, he looked up.

 

"It's okay, Bronwyn." Sam gently stroked the small forehead and the girl rolled her head in that direction without opening her eyes.

 

Jarod quickly wrapped the rest of the bandage around her leg and then taped down the end. Gently he picked her up and wrapped her in a blanket that Sam held out to him before the two of them left the room, heading for the children’s ward.

 

"Can I have my son back, please?" Sam demanded as she entered the room where Ruth was feeding Jamie.

 

The nurse laughed. "Well, I don't know. It'll cost you..."

 

Sam scooped the boy up, using the bib to clean his face. "I asked you to feed him, Ruth, not cover him."

 

"I was hoping to hide him down in the kitchen and take him home with me." She laughed and turned to Jarod. "How's she doing?"

 

"The fracture's completely healed but she's still asleep right now." He leaned down slightly so that the nurse could see the little girl, long lashes lying on her pink cheeks.

 

"Are you heading home?"

 

He nodded. "You can call me if you think it's necessary."

 

"We will, don't worry." She glanced through the doors to where two parents were sitting on either side of the bed. Jarod glanced at Sam.

 

"Do you mind if I do a quick examination before we head off?"

 

"Not at all. Go for it. I'll feed him." She waved her hand towards the jar that Jamie was eyeing hungrily. Jarod nodded and carried the girl into the room, putting her down on the other bed before walking around to the anxious parents.

 

"Is that your daughter?"

 

Jarod nodded. "As of a few weeks ago, yes."

 

"So she's not..."

 

"Not biologically, no." He heard a slight muttering and raised his voice. "It's okay, Bronwyn. I'm right here."

 

The muffled voice stopped and the other father smiled. "I don't think it needs to be biological."

 

"No, that's possibly true." He smiled and then looked down at the little boy who lay on the bed in front of him, placing the back of his hand gently against the small forehead, forcing himself not to react to the hot skin. "I think he'll be fine - probably sleep through the night and, with any luck, the fever will go down."

 

"But you don't know what it is?"

 

Jarod's lips thinned. "I'd like to be able to definitely say 'it's this' or 'it's that', but I can't without opening him up for exploratory surgery. I don't want to have to do that unless circumstances really require it." He looked up to see the anxious expressions on the faces of both parents. "But we'll do it if it's necessary, I can assure you."

 

* * * *

 

"Jarod?"

 

"Hi, sweetie." He undid the last of the seatbelts and then picked the little girl up in his arms. She put both hands around behind his neck and snuggled close to him, yawning.

 

"Can you manage?" Sam asked.

 

"If you open the door for me."

 

"What, I can't leave the two of you outside in the cold? What a disappointment!"

 

He laughed and carried the girl into the living room, placing her down gently in the corner of the sofa and laying a blanket over her, before turning to stoke the fire.

 

"You want coffee?"

 

"Actually, I'd prefer dinner." He got up and started the mobile spinning above Jamie's head before walking over to the kitchen area.

 

"What's with your new patient?" Sam asked as she pulled the covered dish out of the fridge and began to heat the contents in a saucepan.

 

"Not too sure. It could be an infection of some sort, but I don't know where. He's got a fever but that's pretty much it. I've ordered blood tests and that should tell me everything, I hope."

 

"Not expecting to be hauled out of bed by a phone call, are you?"

 

Jarod eyed her. "What are you trying to be, Sam, psychic?"

 

* * * *

 

Jarod raised his head, listening as the wind began to howl, and then glanced over at Sam. "Well, I hope neither of us gets called out into that."

 

"I'll say." She smiled and looked over to where Bronwyn lay with her head on Jarod's leg. "How is she?"

 

"Fine." He gently stroked his daughter's hair. "She should be waking up soon, though. I didn't give her much."

 

As he spoke, the girl's eyelids lifted and she looked up at him, holding out her hands. Jarod lifted her into his lap as Sam laughed.

 

"I thought you were suggesting I was psychic, not the other way around."

 

He grinned, looking down at the little girl. "How are you feeling, sweetheart?"

"Better." She snuggled close to him. "And my leg isn't big anymore."

 

"No, it's not. You're right." He kissed the tip of her nose and she wriggled. As he was about to say something else, the phone lying on the table in front of him rang and he raised an eyebrow. "Hmm, maybe I am psychic after all." As Sam smiled, he answered it, spoke for several minutes and then hung up.

 

"Well?"

 

"Fun and games." He got up and handed Bronwyn to her. "He's being prepped."

 

"Jarod, do you have to go?"

 

"Yes, baby, I do." He bent down in front of her. "I have to make a boy better like I made you better. So you be good and I'll come and kiss you goodnight when I get home, okay?"

 

She nodded and Jarod stood up, slipping his arms into his coat and wrapping a scarf around his neck to block out the cold wind.

 

* * * *

 

Jarod silently opened the door and let himself inside, securing it behind him and then taking off the coat. As he turned, his eyes adjusting to the dim light thrown by the dying fire, he saw the little figure curled up on the floor in front of it and hurried over.

 

"Bronwyn, what are you still doing out of bed?"

 

She looked up at him. "I wanted to see you."

 

He picked her up and sat down in the chair, pulling it close to the fire and taking off the scarf, wrapping it around her. "You were supposed to wait for me in bed."

 

"I wanted to see you as soon as you got home." She snuggled closer to him and he bent down to kiss her gently on the forehead.

 

"Were you missing me, sweetie?"

 

"Uh huh." She nodded. "It wasn't the same when Sam put me to bed."

 

"So you got up again and came down here?"

 

Bronwyn looked up at him. "You're not mad, are you?"

 

"No, of course I'm not." He gently brushed the hair out of her eyes.

 

"And did you help the boy?"

 

"Yes, I did."

 

The little girl looked up at him sleepily and he smiled at her.

 

"Jarod?"

 

"What is it, Bronwyn?"

 

"Can I call you Daddy?"

 

Jarod paused for a moment, remembering the words that the child's mother had spoken and knowing instinctively that this would be the last in a long series of changes that had brought him to this point. He looked down at her again and there was a tender smile on his face. "Of course you can."

 

* * * *

 

"You weren't kidding when you said you like to sleep late on weekends, were you?" Jarod looked up at Sam with a grin as she appeared at the bottom of the stairs and she laughed.

 

"Not at all. I need my beauty sleep." She came over to the kitchen and sat down at the table. "You've been out already?"

 

"I checked on that new patient and bought some bread at the same time."

 

"And the kids?"

 

"I took them both with me, of course. What did you think I'd do - leave them here to make breakfast for you while I was gone?"

 

She laughed and reached forward, pulling one of the rolls out of the basket and spreading butter on it.

 

"Daddy?" Bronwyn asked.

 

"Yes, sweetie?"

 

"Can you fill my cup for me?"

 

"Sure." Jarod got up and went into the kitchen. He turned to find Sam standing behind him and grinned. "What?"

 

"When did that start?"

 

"After I came home to find her downstairs waiting for me last night."

 

"She got up again?"

 

He nodded. "Apparently it wasn't the same when I didn't put her to bed."

 

"So their mother got it right again?"

 

"Absolutely spot on. She asked and everything."

 

Sam rolled her eyes. "And you weren't sure whether they loved you or not." She snorted and went back to the table.

 

* * * *

 

"So what time did you get home?"

 

Jarod tried to hide a yawn. "Around two. It was a hernia, before you ask."

 

"Infected?"

 

"Beginning to be. Very messy."

 

"And how did he do it?"

 

He tried not to grin. "Picking up his nine-year-old brother."

 

"What?" She stared at him. "He was only five."

 

"It was a dare."

 

"It would have to have been." Sam eyed him. "Why don't you go take a nap?"

 

"Can you cope with the kids for a few hours without me?"

 

As he stood up, she threw a cushion at him. "Of course I can cope. Am I their mother or not?"

 

"Oh, so you finally admit to that fact." He tossed it back at her. "It's taken you long enough."

 

"It's only been two weeks."

 

"Is that all?" He stared at her. "It feels like forever."

 

She smiled. "I thought that this morning as well, but it really is only two weeks, or slightly less. We moved in here Monday of last week."

 

"Incredible." Jarod began to go up the stairs. "Just incredible."

 

* * * *

 

He pushed the door shut and walked into the kitchen, dropping the bags onto the bench and looking up at her. She grinned before speaking.

 

"What were you, a body builder in a previous life or something?"

 

"Why?"

 

"Shall I weigh those bags and then ask you again?"

 

"No," Jarod laughed. "It's fine."

 

"So did you get everything?"

 

"Everything on your list, plus two new gas bottles and also some cans of food - and some more ice cream. Oh, and some more meat. We can store it in the large freezer downstairs."

 

"Should I ask why or wait for you to tell me?"

 

He leaned against the bench and grinned. "I was a meteorologist once and I had a long, hard look at the weather forecast yesterday. Unless I'm much mistaken, there's a major blizzard on the way, and soon."

 

"In November?"

 

He eyed her. "Has anything about this year been normal?"

 

"Very funny."

 

"Actually, I'm serious." He stood up. "I'm going to rescue the bottles from the car and take them downstairs."

 

"You really are sincere about this, aren't you?"

 

Jarod looked over his shoulder at her, and all humor had disappeared from his face. "Very."

 

* * * *

 

"I'm going to head off to work, Jarod."

 

He looked up from his book as she appeared in the doorway of his bedroom. "Aren't you going in a little early?"

 

"There's a few things I want to check up on."

 

"Can I give you a hint?"

 

"Sure."

 

"Pack a few changes of clothes."

 

"What?" She stared at him. "Why?"

 

"Well, let's just say we won't be going to the park today."

 

She raised an eyebrow and he nodded.

 

"Okay, if it makes you happy." Sam turned away from the door and went back into her own room, appearing several moments later with a bag in her hand. "Can you cope here, if you're right?"

 

"Shouldn't be a problem. I also bought several more packages of diapers and a few other necessities yesterday."

 

"Well, have fun. I'll call you and let you know what's happening."

 

He nodded, listening to her leave before he lay down again.

 

* * * *

 

"Daddy!"

 

Jarod rolled over and opened his eyes to see Bronwyn standing beside his bed, pulling at the blankets.

 

"What's up?" He reached out an arm and helped her into bed beside him.

 

"Sam's not here."

 

"She went to work early."

 

"So it's just going to be us for the next three days?"

 

"Yes it...how did you know, Bronwyn?" He looked down at her as she snuggled into his arms.

 

"I saw it."

 

"In your picture room?"

 

She nodded slowly, her eyes beginning to glaze over until finally her eyelids shut and she relaxed against him. Reaching out a hand for the book that lay open on the covers, he moved her so that she was comfortably lying beside him and then began to read.

 

* * * *

 

"Jarod?" the voice on the other end of the phone prompted.

 

"Three days, Sam."

 

"Did Bronwyn tell you that or are you guessing?"

 

Jarod looked out at the whirling snow and chuckled. "She told me this morning."

 

"And how did you know?"

 

"I told you, I did a stint as a meteorologist."

 

"Well, despite the fact that it's pandering to your ego and you know I try to avoid doing that as much as possible, I'm the only person here who seems to have thought about it."

 

"Can you tell me if my patient's parents are there?"

 

"They are, yes."

 

"And do you feel like doing my job?"

 

"Are you asking me to take over his care?"

 

"Well, I can't get there, can I? They've closed the roads now. I just heard it on the radio."

 

"Okay, if you're sure..."

 

"It's only post-op. I'd be amazed if he needed further surgery."

 

"Fine, it's only giving me more work."

 

Jarod laughed again. "What, and three days of constant care of these two isn't giving me enough to do?"

 

"Okay, you win." She laughed. "I'll see you on Thursday."

 

"Looking forward to it, Sam. Bye."

 

* * * *

 

Jarod glanced into the two children’s bedrooms before putting up the gate at the top of the stairs and then going down into the cellar. Reaching up, he turned on the light and looked around. Wood, stacked three rows thick, covered one wall and he nodded, satisfied. He looked down at the generator and checked that the two bottles of fuel were both full and far enough away from it to be safe. Going over to the large freezer, he opened it and looked inside.

"Meat, bread, frozen vegetables, ice cream," his lips twitched in amusement as he said the words aloud and then closed it again. "Maria, I sure hope we know what we're letting ourselves in for here."

Walking over, he examined the large gas stove that sat under the stairs. He'd already cleaned it and checked that it worked. Jarod eyed the two large gas canisters beside it, moving them slightly further away from both the stove and the bottles of fuel. Even down there he could still hear the wind howling around the house and he shivered slightly, despite the warm clothes that he was wearing.

 

Clothes.

 

That was the one thing he hadn't unpacked from the car yet and, as he shut the door of the cellar behind him, Jarod mentally kicked himself for forgetting about them. Grabbing his key, he pulled on his jacket and did it up, making sure that the light of the porch was on so that he could find his way back to the house.

 

* * * *

 

"Daddy?"

 

"Just a sec, Bronwyn." Jarod leaned against the door, trying to get his breath, as he put the bags down and took off his coat. "I’ll be right up."

 

"Is it cold out?"

 

His eyes twinkled up at her. "It's very cold." Slipping his arms out of his coat, he ran up the stairs and hugged her, laughing as she gasped at his touch.

 

"I just saw Mommy."

 

Jarod looked down at her in concern. "Where, sweetie?"

 

She tapped the side of her head and he smiled.

 

"So what did Mommy say?"

 

"She said we'll be okay."

 

As Bronwyn began to wriggle, he let her slip to the floor and leaned against the railing of the stairs, staring blankly at the wall in front of him as he realized the full impact of what she had said.

 

* * * *

 

"I'm going to put your brother to bed, Bronwyn. Will you be good down here while I do it?" She nodded, looking from him to the television, and Jarod smiled as he bent down, scooping the boy up out of the playpen. He carried him upstairs and into his room, checking that the small heater was making the room warm as he lay the boy down on the changing table.

 

"Pajamas or sleeping suit, Jamie?"

 

Jarod held the two options out to the baby, grinning as the infant kicked one foot in the air. "Sleeping suit? Very wise choice, sir."

 

He changed the baby's diaper and then slipped the small body into the outfit, doing it up gently at the back. Sitting down in the rocking chair, he cuddled the boy for a few moments, rocking until he saw that the baby was asleep. Standing, he put his son down in the cot and covered him with the thick blankets before going back downstairs.

 

Throwing another log on the fire, he looked up in time to see Bronwyn get up and come over to him. She was walking on her leg as though there had never been anything wrong with it and, although he was massaging it every day, there were times when he felt it was unnecessary. Sitting down on the sofa after replacing the fireguard, he let her scramble up into his lap.

 

"Daddy, when are they getting here?"

 

"Who, sweetheart?"

 

"The people who are coming." She yawned. "Mommy said that some people were coming tonight."

 

Jarod raised an eyebrow and looked out at the snow that was still falling in a heavy whirl around the house. "I don't think anyone will come tonight, Bronwyn. They couldn't. The weather's too bad."

 

She shrugged. "Maybe. Mommy only said they might come." She reached up and put both arms around his neck, resting her head on his shoulder.

 

"Did Mommy say who they were?"

 

He waited for several moments but she didn't reply and he could feel that she was asleep. Mentally shrugging, he got up off the sofa and carried her upstairs, laying her gently in her bed and covering her, placing the teddy in her arms. He bent down and kissed her softly before leaving the room.

 

* * * *

 

"Who are they Maria?"

 

He sat down on the sofa again, staring at a point in front of him without seeing it, before turning his eyes to the window where he could clearly see the snow. Not expecting an answer, he got up and walked over to the kitchen, putting on the kettle. He was about to reach up for the coffee when his eyes saw the jar beside it and with a grin Jarod took down the cocoa instead. As he mixed the drink, he glanced up to see his computer lying on the table. Going over, he started it and sat staring blankly at the one message in his inbox. It was the video that he had received from Maria Taylor more than two weeks earlier and he had seen it so often that he knew every word but now something made him start it up again. One sentence caught his attention.

 

"...I am able to assure you that you will never be found by the Centre in order to be taken back there."

 

"Is it, Maria?"

 

He looked around the room as he had done the first night of getting the message, waiting for some sign that he knew wouldn't appear. Finally, with a shake of his head, laughing at himself, he closed down the machine again and picked it up, taking it upstairs and into his bedroom.

 

* * * *

 

Jarod placed the mug back on the table and then glanced at his watch. Really, it was too early to even think about going to bed yet, but a couple of weeks had got him used to having company and now he was missing it. Even as he sat back, the phone in front of him rang.

 

"Hello?"

 

"Hi, Jarod."

 

"Sam!"

 

He heard the laughter from the other end. "You sound almost pleased to hear from me."

 

"Well, for lack of anybody better, you know..."

 

"Thanks! Actually, I just rang to check on the kids."

 

"Don't you trust me?"

 

"Implicitly, but I just wanted to be sure. Are they in bed yet?"

 

"Sam, it's nine thirty! What do you think?"

 

"Okay, okay."

 

Jarod laughed. "How's my patient?"

 

"Improving in leaps and bounds. His parents are delighted."

 

"Glad to hear it."

 

He heard a muttering of voices on the other end before Sam spoke again. "Jarod, I've got to go."

 

"No problem. Have a good night."

 

"You too. Bye."

 

He replaced the phone on the table and stretched, glancing at the fire to check that it was still burning well. Getting up, he climbed the stairs and then peeped into the bedrooms, checking that both children were still asleep. Jarod went into his own room and took a book off the shelf, going back downstairs and turning on the radio before reseating himself and beginning to read.

 

* * * *

 

He closed the book with a sigh and poured the last of the warm drink into his mug, swallowing it and then getting up to rinse the mug and jug in the kitchen sink. Looking at his watch, Jarod saw that it was almost eleven and decided that it was more than time for him to go to bed. He had been waiting up on the off chance that Bronwyn might have been right and that people might come but he decided that enough was enough. Glancing at the fire, he estimated that the embers only had another two hours before they would go out and he stood for a moment, considering whether to build it up enough so that it would still be burning when he got up in the morning. Deciding against it, he turned off the lamp in the living room and was about to go upstairs when he heard a knock on the door.

 

Slowly walking over to it, he put an eye to the peephole and then stepped back, drawing in his breath sharply. The light wasn't very clear outside but it provided sufficient illumination for him to recognize his visitors. He narrowed his eyes, wondering how they'd found him.

 

"Maria," he whispered under his breath. "You promised."

 

His daughter's words came into his mind. Okay? How could this be okay? They were here and, although once inside it would be several days before any of them could leave, he had little doubt about what would happen then, unless he took drastic steps to change things. Going over to the hall table, he took out the gun that he hadn't even handled since moving into the house and then walked back to the door. Turning on the outside light and the one above his head, he paused for a moment, his hand hesitating over the knob. Finally Jarod turned the key and unlocked the door, pulling it open.

 

"Well, this is very impressive of you both, I must say."
 

Part 4

 

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