Page 72 of Big Bad Wolfe

“Uh ... he’s ... in Heaven.”

“Oh, he’s a angel, like my mommy.” Casey bestowed a confident smile on him. “I bet they know each another. They prob’ly both watch over us, huh?”

The thought was oddly comforting. “Yeah.”

“I like gummy worms. Do you like gummy worms?” Casey stared down at his plate. “Aunt Jelly always cuts my samwich into four halfs.”

Zane firmly slammed the door to the past. “Okay.” He retrieved a knife and quartered the sandwich. “There you go.”

“Thanks.” Casey scarfed his food with gusto.

As Zane watched the little boy relish his simple meal, his own appetite returned. He ate both his sandwiches, and at Casey’s request, searched out dessert. He discovered a cache of homemade brownies in the ceramic cookie jar shaped like a cat. Speaking of cats, hewasgrateful he didn’t have to deal with snooty Aragorn at the same time as the rambunctious boy.

He returned to the table and bit into a soft, chewy brownie, rich with dark chocolate and studded with crunchy walnut halves. A groan of delight slipped out. “Holy smokes, kid, do you know how lucky you are?”

His mouth smeared with crumbs, Casey wrinkled his nose. “Huh?”

He waved the remains of the brownie. “Your aunt is one terrific lady.”

“Yeah. I love her,” Casey stated.

Zane closed his eyes against a stinging rush of longing. Jillian was a remarkable woman. Intelligent, compassionate, courageous, generous and kind.

She deserved everything.

He could give her nothing.

Stoneheart had taught him how to push, how to criticize, and how to destroy. Zane didn’t know how to love.

“Look Zane, my tooth is evenlooser!”

He opened his eyes to see Casey wiggling a chocolate-coated bottom front tooth. “That’s loose all right. How much money will the Tooth Fairy bring you?” The old man had scorned childish rituals of Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, and the Tooth Fairy as foolish bullshit. Knowing Jillian, she did the whole shebang and then some.

“I don’t know yet. This is my very first one. Why does that fairy want all them teeth, anyways?”

Good question.“Not a clue. What do you think she does with them?”

The little boy wrinkled his nose thoughtfully. “Well … I think the people who got teeth and lose ‘em, like me, puts them in a glass of water, and the Tooth Fairy pays for them and takes them away.” Big brown eyes went wide and earnest. “Then the people who don’t got teeth, like my Grandma Anna, puts out aplainglass of water, and the Tooth Fairy gives the teeth to them.” He nodded solemnly. “My Grandma Anna—she’s my mommy’s mommy—has a whole bunch of teeth all hooked together in a glass of water by her bed at the old people’s home where she lives. I seen it with my very own eyes.”

Not only an intelligent theory, but altruistic as well. Pride swirled warmly through Zane. “You’re a nice kid. And smart, too.”

Casey beamed at him. “Ya think?”

“Yeah. I think.” He returned the little boy’s smile. “But you have chocolate all over you.” He found a washcloth and wet it with warm water. Casey obediently tipped his chin up, but cringed and scrunched his eyes shut.

“You don’t like getting your face washed?”

“No. It feels slimy.” Casey shuddered. “But go ahead.”

“Sorry.” Honored by the child’s trust, Zane knelt and gently cleaned the smudges off Casey’s small face, careful not to irritate his tender skin.

Casey’s lids popped open. Their faces inches apart, the little boy stared into Zane’s eyes. His expression was openly admiring. “I like you lots, Zane.”

He swallowed the scalding lump in his throat. “Uh, thanks. I … like you too.”Pull back, Wolfe.“But you know, I won’t be around very long. I’m only in town for a short visit.”

Casey’s face fell. “Oh,” he said in a low voice.

The child’s crestfallen expression upended Zane’s equilibrium, and he sucked in a fortifying breath. “Hey, we can have fun while I’m here. Let’s grab that kite.”

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