The clatter of James in the kitchen drifts up the stairs. Peeling myself from the embrace of my lovely wife…
…my lovely pregnant wife…
pregnant… I tug on jeans and a working shirt. “Think you could spare me an hour or so today? I could use an extra pair of hands in the garden for a while.”
Charlotte yawns and stretches. “Sure, no problem. When do you wa…” Her words cut short at a sound from downstairs. A scream. A child’s scream.
Cara.
It’s not a happy squeal, but a real shriek of rage and fear. “No! No!… Noooo.”
Noooo.Pelting down, I take the stairs three steps at a time, Charlotte right behind me. Mitch bursts from the lounge, Klempner behind her, reaching under his jacket for something.
Bear charges down the hall, overtaking all of us. Scruffy skitters behind him.
Cara’s howls a
