“Shit.” His curse was covered by more shrieking from the girls. He reached for Ava, taking her in his arms before helping Mia to her feet while Emma clung to her. “Let’s go in the living room.”
He led the way, getting them settled on the rug in front of the fireplace where the girls often played. When the girls had calmed down enough for Mia to move off a few feet, he took her arm to speak to her.
“This is a problem,” he said in a low voice, not bothering to sugarcoat it. “The security system is down, which makes us vulnerable. I’m going to check the perimeter, but I need you to be on alert, too.” He hadn’t spoken much about his security system, but he had quietly upgraded it, adding additional cameras the day after the attack. He didn’t like the idea of it going dark.
“Someone would have to be desperate to go out in this.” Mia gestured toward the window, where the rain pelted and the trees swayed in the last light of the evening.
“Maybe,” he said. To him, it seemed like the perfect opportunity for a home invasion. Any unusual sounds would be attributed to the storm. And with no security system alerting him to forced entry, they were sitting ducks.
A whine made him turn around. Eliot was slinking out from under a chair, inching his way closer to the twins.
“Thunder is tough on animals,” Mia said before turning to address the dog. “It’s okay, boy.”
“I’ll be back to check on all of you soon. Keep your phone on you, with my number pulled up.” He waited while she did what he asked before leaving the room.
He went through the house first, checking the windows on the lower floor and all points of entry. Next, shrugging into a raincoat, he ducked his head and went out into the storm. With the rain hitting his face, his vision was limited, but he’d dealt with extreme conditions before and kept moving until he’d circled the house twice and checked the garage.
Nothing was out of place except for the branches downed by the storm. He took a minute to squint into the rain and dark. The nearby houses were all dark except for the glow of candles and lanterns. No one appeared to be moving about. He felt some of his worry ebb. He wasn’t going to let his guard down, but he didn’t see any reason to stand in the rain, either.
He re-entered the house through the kitchen, removing his drenched coat. It had provided some protection, but his clothes were still wet and sticking to him. At the bottom of the stairs, he paused, listening for Mia and the girls. From the living room, he heard happy voices singing a children’s song. Taking that as a good sign, he went to his room and changed into dry clothes. He glanced at the small gun safe in the bottom of the closet. With the kids in the house, he didn’t want to have a weapon out, but did the situation justify it?
He decided against it. There were plenty of ways he could defend his household without a gun if need be. When he returned to the living room, he found that Mia had a fire going in the fireplace and had lit candles that stood on the mantel, giving the room a homey feel.
“Glad you’re back.” She looked up at him. “Everything okay?”
“Seems to be.” Since the girls were listening to what they said, he kept his response short and reassuring.
“Can you keep track of them for a minute? I want to get the marshmallows, chocolate, and graham crackers from the kitchen.”
“S’mores,” Emma shouted. Both girls looked pleased at the unexpected treat.
“Good idea,” he said, plopping down on the rug between the girls. “You might need this.” He pulled a flashlight from his back pocket and handed it to Mia.
“Be right back,” Mia said.
He put an arm around each girl when thunder rumbled outside. The storm was moving off, but he’d checked the radar and saw another wasn’t far behind it. Mia’s idea to have s’mores by the fire was a great distraction.
“Here we are.” Mia returned with a basket of items and spread them out near the fire. “Who wants to roast a marshmallow first?”
Kenton felt a brief moment of panic. She wasn’t going to let the girls closer to the fire than they already were, was she? Mia scooted nearer to it and trapped Emma between her legs. He got her plan now, so he did the same with Ava. Eliot took up a position between them as they extended long sticks toward the fire. Mia assembled the s’mores when the marshmallows were golden brown, letting each girl put the top cracker on her own treat.
“I remember a night like this when I was young,” Mia began. “Your mom and I were staying at my grandparents’ house out in the country, and it had rained all day. There were puddles big enough to swim in. Just after sunset, my grandma let Caroline and me out of the house, and we ran like jackrabbits, stomping through puddles and shaking the water off plants.”
Kenton wasn’t sure if the girls were interested in Mia’s story about running free or if it was the way she modulated her voice, but they were riveted. So much so that Mia told other stories from her childhood that involved her and the girls’ mother having fun.
“Your turn.” Mia smiled at him as she concluded a tale of how a boy dared her to not only touch a frog but carry it around for an entire day.
“Me?” She wanted him to tell a story? Like the kids and Eliot, he’d been happy to listen to her.
“Sure. I’ll bet you’ve got some fascinating stories.” She smiled encouragement. “You grew up in town, right?”
“I did,” he said, giving Eliot, who had come to lie next to him, another rub on the belly.
“Storytelling helps to put everyone at ease.” Her gaze took in Eliot. The quirk of her lips showed she was amused by his role as dog whisperer. The animal had paced nervously until finally settling against Kenton. He felt anything but ease about being put on the spot for a story. Some of his fellow SEALs were storytellers, spinning yarns of their adventures as youths. He’d never taken part in those conversations, preferring to listen. He was going to have to come up with something, though. And quick. He cast around in his memory.
“I went to Boy Scout camp every summer for several years,” he began. He’d loved those weeks. Patrick was always there, and Anderson had come just the one year, but they’d made some memories that time. “One time, I wanted to stay up late to watch the Perseid meteor shower.” He caught Mia’s raised eyebrows and realized he’d lost his audience. Time to correct course. “It’s when there are a whole bunch of falling stars on the same night.” Ava’s eyes grew wide with excitement. “Two buddies and I crept out of our cabin, climbed a big hill, and spent the entire night up there. We saw so many falling stars that we lost count. It was awesome, but we got caught coming back in early the next morning and had to wash the breakfast dishes for the rest of the week.”
“Was it worth it?” Mia asked, her expression relaxed and happy.
“Every dish and spoon,” he said. Not only had he seen dozens of meteors, he’d spent time with two of his closest friends.
“Nice story.” He felt gratified at the compliment. It hadn’t been as good as the ones she’d told, but he’d liked the dreamy expression on the girls’ faces while he’d spoken.
“Time for bed, you two,” Mia said, tapping first one girl and then the other on the nose.