Paradox - Progeny Of Innocence (bk2) (Paradox series) by Patti Roberts Page A
Authors: Patti Roberts
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edges."
"Then right to the edges it is." Wade grabbed a plate for himself and sat down next to Grace at the breakfast bench. "You haven’t made friends with the little girl next door yet?" he asked.
"Nope. I’ve seen her at school, but mostly I just sit by myself. The other kids don’t really like me that much."
"Hmm, not to worry, I’m sure she will come over soon enough and introduce herself, and before you know it, you will be the best of friends. She probably has a few things to take care of, you know, settle in, all that. Moving into a new house, a new school and making new friends, things like that take time."
"You’re not telling me anything I don’t already know. I’ve been here for ages and I still haven’t made any friends. I had one friend once, Patrick, but he died." She took a mouthful of milk and left a milky moustache across the top of her lip.
Wade smiled but said nothing as he leaned across and wiped the milk gently off her top lip with his napkin.
When Grace waved goodbye to Wade that morning on her way to school, she didn’t know that it was going to be their last breakfast together for a while. Then, just days later, precisely as Wade had predicted, Angela and Champsie appeared at the back door to introduce themselves to her.
So yes, Grace could imagine how alone Zach must have felt moving to a new city with no family or friends.
Grace let out a sigh as she watched Zach leaning against the kitchen bench drinking his lemonade. She would be his friend; his family, too, if he wanted one.
"So I take it you are okay with this, Kiddo?" Wade asked as he walked into the kitchen and picked up the two mugs of freshly made coffee from the bench.
"Yes! It will be like having a big brother."
"Thank you," Zach said shyly, "I like the sound of that." He put the can down, wiping his hands on the front of his shirt.
"Come on then, I’ll show you the spare room, your room," Grace said, grabbing his hand and dragging him off down the hall.
A spark of blue and white electricity arced between their fingertips, but Zach could tell that Grace had felt nothing.
"Tomorrow, you can meet my friends Angela and Josh."
Wade watched them go, then headed back to Kate in the lounge room. "Thanks for this, Kate," he said, sitting down. "He’s a good kid; you won’t have any trouble with him."
"It will be nice having him around the house. Good for Grace, too, I think. I always regretted not having more children, having brothers and sisters for her to grow up with. But it just never happened."
Wade nodded. "You working tonight?"
"Six days straight. Old Mrs Cravits, our kitchen hand, fell down a flight of stairs last night in her home. They say a dog had started tearing her to bits. Her head was found under the kitchen table in a pool of blood, well there would have been a pool of blood, thirsty dog I guess. They hardly found a drop anywhere. And nearly every bone in her body had been broken from the fall. It’s just so terrible, her poor family." Kate shook her head, thinking about Mrs Cravits’s head being chased around the house, like a dog playing with a soccer ball. "So anyway, I’m taking on all her shifts until they find a replacement for her."
"Yes, I heard about that one from a few of the guys down at the station. It wouldn’t be the first time a person was eaten by his or her own dog. Makes you think twice about the saying, ‘man’s best friend’".
"She didn’t own a dog..." Kate replied absently and then added. "I don’t know how you can sleep at night, Wade, with all those horrible visions racing around in your head."
Wade stared into his coffee cup and swirled it before taking another sip. "You get used to it after a while. You have to." Then he looked up at her and frowned. "What do you mean?"
"About seeing all that blood and death, I don’t know how-"
"No. What you said about the dog just now."
"What about the dog?" Kate asked.
"You said she didn’t own a dog."
Kate shrugged
"Then right to the edges it is." Wade grabbed a plate for himself and sat down next to Grace at the breakfast bench. "You haven’t made friends with the little girl next door yet?" he asked.
"Nope. I’ve seen her at school, but mostly I just sit by myself. The other kids don’t really like me that much."
"Hmm, not to worry, I’m sure she will come over soon enough and introduce herself, and before you know it, you will be the best of friends. She probably has a few things to take care of, you know, settle in, all that. Moving into a new house, a new school and making new friends, things like that take time."
"You’re not telling me anything I don’t already know. I’ve been here for ages and I still haven’t made any friends. I had one friend once, Patrick, but he died." She took a mouthful of milk and left a milky moustache across the top of her lip.
Wade smiled but said nothing as he leaned across and wiped the milk gently off her top lip with his napkin.
When Grace waved goodbye to Wade that morning on her way to school, she didn’t know that it was going to be their last breakfast together for a while. Then, just days later, precisely as Wade had predicted, Angela and Champsie appeared at the back door to introduce themselves to her.
So yes, Grace could imagine how alone Zach must have felt moving to a new city with no family or friends.
Grace let out a sigh as she watched Zach leaning against the kitchen bench drinking his lemonade. She would be his friend; his family, too, if he wanted one.
"So I take it you are okay with this, Kiddo?" Wade asked as he walked into the kitchen and picked up the two mugs of freshly made coffee from the bench.
"Yes! It will be like having a big brother."
"Thank you," Zach said shyly, "I like the sound of that." He put the can down, wiping his hands on the front of his shirt.
"Come on then, I’ll show you the spare room, your room," Grace said, grabbing his hand and dragging him off down the hall.
A spark of blue and white electricity arced between their fingertips, but Zach could tell that Grace had felt nothing.
"Tomorrow, you can meet my friends Angela and Josh."
Wade watched them go, then headed back to Kate in the lounge room. "Thanks for this, Kate," he said, sitting down. "He’s a good kid; you won’t have any trouble with him."
"It will be nice having him around the house. Good for Grace, too, I think. I always regretted not having more children, having brothers and sisters for her to grow up with. But it just never happened."
Wade nodded. "You working tonight?"
"Six days straight. Old Mrs Cravits, our kitchen hand, fell down a flight of stairs last night in her home. They say a dog had started tearing her to bits. Her head was found under the kitchen table in a pool of blood, well there would have been a pool of blood, thirsty dog I guess. They hardly found a drop anywhere. And nearly every bone in her body had been broken from the fall. It’s just so terrible, her poor family." Kate shook her head, thinking about Mrs Cravits’s head being chased around the house, like a dog playing with a soccer ball. "So anyway, I’m taking on all her shifts until they find a replacement for her."
"Yes, I heard about that one from a few of the guys down at the station. It wouldn’t be the first time a person was eaten by his or her own dog. Makes you think twice about the saying, ‘man’s best friend’".
"She didn’t own a dog..." Kate replied absently and then added. "I don’t know how you can sleep at night, Wade, with all those horrible visions racing around in your head."
Wade stared into his coffee cup and swirled it before taking another sip. "You get used to it after a while. You have to." Then he looked up at her and frowned. "What do you mean?"
"About seeing all that blood and death, I don’t know how-"
"No. What you said about the dog just now."
"What about the dog?" Kate asked.
"You said she didn’t own a dog."
Kate shrugged
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