“Henley, stop fretting over Clutch, and let’s get inside. Dallas is waiting for us,” she urged.
I looked back towards the house and saw that Dallas was already waiting for us at the front door. It was a great little ranch style house with white rockers on the front porch and a big shop in the back. Cassidy told me that Guardrail’s construction company helped her husband build the house several years ago, just before Dusty was born. In the front yard, there was an amazing treehouse with swings and a slide and several bicycles were scattered on the grass.
“Thank you both for coming. I appreciate it more than you could ever know,” Dallas said as she picked up her purse and keys from the side table. “I shouldn’t be long. I think I just have to sign some papers or something, and then, I’ll be back.”
“There’s no rush. Take your time,” Cassidy told her. “We’ve been looking forward to babysitting.”
“They’re hanging out in Dusty’s room playing video games. That should keep them entertained for a little while, and there’s sandwich stuff in the kitchen if they get hungry,” Dallas explained. “Call me if anything comes up.”
“We’ll be fine,” I assured her.
As soon as Dallas pulled out of the driveway, Cassidy said, “I’ll go make up some lunch for them. You go make sure they aren’t up to anything.”
“Gotcha,” I said as I went in search of Dusty’s room. Considering everything that had happened, the house was extremely neat and organized. Everything seemed to have its place. As I walked through the house, the walls were filled with pictures of their family, and each photo told its own story. They were happy, and it broke my heart to see such a precious family destroyed by such a malicious act. Those men really had no idea what that one night, that one act of violence took away from this family. I was looking at one of the most recent pictures of the kids sitting on Skidrow’s motorcycle when the sounds of the children’s voices rumbled down the hallway. When I peeked my head through the doorway, both of them stopped what they were doing and looked at me with mischief in their eyes. I wasn’t sure what was going on, but I’d been around enough kids to know something was going on.
“So, what are you guys up to?” I asked smiling. They looked so adorable sitting there together side by side with their video game controllers in their hands. Looking at them made it hard for me to believe that they would ever misbehave.
“Playing Batman. We’re trying to get the bad guys, but Katie won’t do it right,” Dusty complained. His nose crinkled with frustration as he looked over at his sister.
“I am doing it right, Dusty. Stop being such a twerp,” Katie protested. Her face flashed red with anger as she tossed the controller towards Dusty. “You do it. This game is stupid anyway.” She stood up and started for the door. Dusty watched her walk out of the room, his long blonde hair falling into his eyes, almost covering the tiny freckles that dappled the bridge of his nose. I had always heard that Down’s children were extremely lovable and happy, and Dusty certainly fit that description.
“Don’t go, Katie. I wanna play wif’ you,” he pleaded. The sound of his little voice tugged at my heart, and I wished Katie would come back to finish the game. I remember what it was like when Cassidy and I would argue over little things like our Barbie dolls and tea sets. It always killed me when she would storm out of the room, leaving me to play all alone. Dusty was ten years old, and he clearly enjoyed playing with his older sister.
Regrettably, she was officially a teenager with a short fuse and wasn’t willing to listen to him. “We’ve been playing that stupid game for over an hour, Dusty. I need a break,” she huffed just before slamming her bedroom door. I felt certain that it wasn’t just the video game that was getting to Katie, so I decided to distract Dusty in hopes of giving her some time to cool off. I walked over to him and placed my hand on top of his head, drawing his attention away from Katie.
“Cassidy is making up some sandwiches for lunch. Are you hungry?”
“Is it Peanut butter and jelly?” Dusty asked.
“If that’s what you want, I’m sure Cassidy will make you one.”
“Yay! That’s what I want and wif’ lots of chips… and one of those cherry popsicles, if I clean my plate,” he declared, his eyes bright with excitement.
“You got it,” I answered. His face lit up, and his argument with Katie was totally forgotten. He raced for the kitchen, his little feet clomping on the floor, and sat at the table. A wide smile spread across his face as he watched Cassidy fix his plate. So freaking cute. Happiness radiated off of him, making it impossible not to smile right along with him.
“Yum,” he hummed as soon as Cassidy sat his sandwich and chips down in front of him. He grabbed a few chips and shoved them in his mouth. Knowing that he was distracted, I went to go check on Katie.