Chapter Twenty-Six

“Hey, Ms. Lalonde.” Madison opened the door, holding it for Ainsley as she stepped in with a tray of coffees and a box of pastries. “Is it horrible of me to ask if you brought extra apple turnovers this time? Mackenzie ate mine last time.”

Ainsley grinned at the young woman as she carried her breakfast offering to the kitchen. “I noticed that, so I got you two each this time.”

“You’re awesome.” Madison pulled out a chair, sitting slowly, but without the pain that had tightened her features the first few times Ainsley had stopped by. “Dad is on a call in his office, but he shouldn’t be long. Mackenzie’s in the shower, so she’ll take forever.”

“That’s fine, we can spend some time discussing that horror channel you like.” Ainsley handed Madison the chai latte she’d picked up for her on what had become her daily coffee run for the past week, then opened her own regular coffee to take a sip. “Did you finish watching that ‘Dear David’ series?”

Madison’s eyes widened. She sat forward, holding her fluffy white bathrobe close to her chest. “Oh my God, it freaked me out so much. I kept pausing it to get a closer look at the pictures. No one will ever convince me they’re fake.”

“I have a hard time believing the author didn’t make up the whole thing for book sales.”

“Because that’s what you’re supposed to believe. Imagine the panic if people knew ghosts were real? Or demons? I think Dear David is really about a demon and that’s why the story ended.” Madison’s cheeks were pink, as though she was excited, but also a little nervous to be discussing the scary story that had started on Twitter last summer, then continued for months. Dear David was her favorite topic to discuss with Ainsley.

Apparently, her father only tried to convince her not to be afraid and her sister teased her.

With Ainsley, she got into all the theories she’d spent hours reading. Even though Ainsley didn’t believe in ghosts, she found the whole situation fascinating. Even if the illustrator, Adam Ellis, had concocted the whole thing for sales or attention, he had a great imagination. Ainsley had found him on Twitter and read over all the tweets, eager to debate the validity of each one with Madison the next day, knowing the girl would have an explanation for everything because she truly wanted to believe.

Her goal seemed to be to convince Ainsley to believe as well. But more importantly, she just had fun with the idea of all the spooky things. With scaring herself.

And Ainsley, which Ainsley had admitted the second time she’d come here, after they watched a YouTuber, Hailey Reese, give her take on parts of the story. She’d had a nightmare of the young woman, staring at the camera while ‘David’ crept up behind her.

The dream still gave her chills, but Madison had been thrilled. To her, it was more proof that David was real.

To Ainsley, seeing the teen so energetic, growing stronger and healthier every day, was worth being creeped out. There were small signs of what the doctor had warned of. Sometimes Madison’s speech would slur. Or she’d forget parts of conversations. But she was still healing. And either way, all that mattered was she was alive.

“You know, after seeing how Adam’s cats reacted to David in the videos, I really think I should get one, don’t you?” Madison lowered her voice as footsteps sounded down the hall. “Dad says he’ll think about getting a pet eventually, but he’s been saying that for two years. Could you talk to him?”

Oh boy. Ainsley shook her head as Lorenzo stepped into the kitchen. No way was she getting in the middle of this. Though…it wouldn’t hurt to encourage the conversation. “I’m sure he’s been considering it, but it would be best if you asked him yourself.”

“Good morning, Ainsley. You do know you don’t have to keep spoiling us like this.” He smiled at her as she handed him the second to last coffee in the tray. “Though I must say this has become one of my favorite parts of the morning. Thank you.” He leaned over and pressed his lips to Madison’s rumpled blonde hair. “Now what is it you wanted to ask me?”

Madison took a small sip of her latte, eying her father as he took a seat across the table. “You have to promise you won’t just say ‘you’ll think about it.’ If it’s ‘no’, then I hope you’ve truly considered the pros and cons, but I’ll accept your final decision.”

Lips curving slightly, Lorenzo inclined his head. “Fair enough.”

“All right, I think I should be allowed to adopt a kitten. I’m responsible, I always have good grades—I’ve kept up with all the work Mackenzie’s brought home from our teachers—and even though I can’t do chores right now, I’ll make up for all of them as soon as the doctor says I’ve healed enough.” Madison took a deep breath, then continued, speaking fast. “Besides, we need to know if this house is haunted and cats have a sense for the supernatural that is invaluable. Wouldn’t you like to know if something is here, watching you?”

Lorenzo rubbed his jaw, looking from Madison to Ainsley. “Actually, I’m not sure I want to know. I sleep better not knowing.”

“You won’t if the ghost gets too comfortable. The more I learn, the more they’ll want to be acknowledged. If they think you’re ignoring them, they’ll act out.”

“And a kitten will satisfy them?” Lorenzo’s tone was serious, as though his daughter’s answer would be taken into consideration.

Which tugged at Ainsley’s heartstrings and made it hard not to smile at him. Sure, some parents would think a girl of Madison’s age being so invested in the supernatural was ridiculous, but she was grounded, and still very mature. She simply had an interest that was a little outside the norm.

Better ghosts than other things young people were into these days. Ainsley hoped she wasn’t dealing with anything scarier than demons when Sawyer hit his teens. The real world could be a much darker, scarier place.

“A kitten will warn us and give me a chance to banish any negative entities. Trust me, Dad, I’ve done enough research to be able to handle pretty much anything.” Madison’s were wide with hope, as she held her father’s steady gaze. “Please? You won’t even know it’s here.”

“Well now, if I don’t know the cat is here, how will it protect me?” Lorenzo steepled his hands on the table. “Is there anything we need to look for when we’re selecting a kitten from the local shelter? I imagine the kitten will need to be intelligent. Not too distracted by toys to notice the ghosts?”

Madison let out a little scream. “Really, Dad? Don’t mess with me. Is that a yes?”

“That’s a yes. We can take a trip down later today.” He hesitated. “Under one condition.”

“Anything.”

He glanced toward the door as Mackenzie slipped in, looking excited enough herself to have caught the gist of the conversation. “Mackenzie will have to help with the litter. I don’t mind doing it some days, but you’re not to lift it for the next month at least. I also expect you both to make sure the kitten always has clean water and fresh food. And I’ll make sure it has plenty of scratching posts, so try to keep it from destroying the furniture.”

“Deal!” Mackenzie rushed into the room, hugging her sister, then her father. “Thank you, Daddy! You won’t regret this, I promise.”

“We both promise.” Madison moved to rise, but Lorenzo got up first and wrapped his arms carefully around her. “But…since Mackenzie is helping me with this, I have to help her with what she wants.” Madison chewed on her bottom lip as Lorenzo returned to his seat and Mackenzie took a seat beside her. “I know you didn’t want to talk about the team when I was going in for surgery and you were worried. But I’m getting better and I think it’s time.”

My cue to leave. Ainsley stood, taking the last coffee and setting it in front of Mackenzie. “I really should get to work.” She smiled at Madison. “I’ll watch that video you suggested, the one about the haunted mirror? We can discuss it Monday after I’ve had all the mirrors removed from my house.”

“Monday?” Madison frowned. “You’re not coming tomorrow?”

“Sawyer has hockey practice tomorrow morning. His first one and we’re both excited about it. Maybe, if you’re feeling up to it, you can come watch his first game?”

“I’d love that, but you should swing by before you head to the rink.” Madison looked over at her sister, as though waiting for her to repeat the request. “Mackenzie gets to see him every day after school, but it would be nice for him to be part of the morning routine.”

Mackenzie nodded. “That would be really cool, actually. He can help me teach Madison more about hockey. And she could teach him all her ghost stuff.”

Ainsley nodded slowly. She had a feeling Madison was feeling left out. Life kept moving around her, but she was stuck here, her whole world put on hold while she healed. Even though Lorenzo was working from home, there was only so much he could do to help his daughter feel included. Maybe having Madison’s friends over more often would help, but until then, if Sawyer would bring some energy into the house, Ainsley was more than happy to bring him along.

“I think he’d like that. I’ll ask him after school and let you know later today.” She said goodbye to the girls, sipping her coffee as Lorenzo walked her to the door. Stopping to put on her shoes, she set her coffee on the hall table. “I hope you didn’t feel pressured to say yes to the kitten because she asked in front of me?”

Lorenzo smiled and shook his head. “Not at all. It’s sweet that she thought it would make a difference though. She knows I care about your opinion.”

“Which is why she also brought up the team.”

“Yes.” He sighed. “You don’t have to leave to avoid the conversation, but I don’t want you to be put in the middle of another debate. One that won’t be as pleasant as a fluffy little addition to my family.”

“I appreciate that. And I know it’s not an easy topic, but they’ll eventually understand why you have to do this.” She didn’t know how to make this easier on any of them. Lorenzo and his daughters had been through so much. But he was a good father. He’d find a way to get them through this next challenge as well. “If you need to talk, you know how to reach me.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.” Lorenzo reached for the door, hesitating for a moment. “When I asked you Monday if we could have coffee here, instead of going out, I wasn’t sure how it would turn out. But I’ve enjoyed this. And so has Madison. I’d say she looks forward to your visits more than I do, but that’s not possible.”

“You’re not ready to leave her alone, Lorenzo. I’d feel the same.” She’d worried having coffee at his house would be too personal, but it had worked out perfectly. He got to be close to his daughter, and Madison had someone else to talk to. Ainsley enjoyed starting her day with them after the rush of getting her son to school.

Bringing him along would mean an earlier start, but he loved hanging out with Mackenzie. She was older and much ‘cooler’ than his mother. Maybe the chance of getting to discuss comic books and video games with her before school would motivate him to stop sneaking both when he was supposed to be sleeping.

“If it’s all right with you, I’d love to bring Sawyer a few times in the morning. I think your daughters will be a good influence on him. They’re so organized and well behaved and he’s finding it rough adjusting.”

Lorenzo’s lips slanted. “You’ve been an amazing influence on Mackenzie. She’s usually rushing out the door five minutes before she should be in her first class, but having the woman she babysits for here has her determined to prove she’s responsible. Which she is, but it’s nice to see her including school in her priorities.” He shook his head. “Boys seemed to be the top one for a while, but between being here for Madison, and staying at your house late while you have so much overtime—”

“Overtime? I haven’t had overtime at all this week.” A chill ran down Ainsley’s spine. “Lorenzo, how late has she been getting home?”

Staring at her, Lorenzo shook his head. “You drop her off every night around ten.”

“No. She leaves my house at five thirty. I would drive her home if I finished that late, but there’s no way I would work that many hours. Not while Sawyer’s still struggling to adjust.” She swallowed hard, hating that she had to be the one to expose Mackenzie’s lies. “I’m sorry, Lorenzo. If I’d known how late she was…we never discussed it.”

“I didn’t think we needed to.” He pressed his eyes shut and rubbed his hand over his face. “At least I know. Now I just have to figure out what she’s been doing after leaving your house.”

“Would you like me to speak to her?”

“No. I’m going to leave this until after school, I don’t want to start an argument before she leaves and have her distracted. But I’d appreciate if you’d text me when you’re on your way home. I’ll meet her as she’s about to leave and the two of us will discuss this.”

Ainsley wasn’t sure catching Mackenzie in the act was the right way to begin the conversation, but she didn’t feel comfortable questioning Lorenzo’s parenting. If only Mackenzie had been honest…but she hadn’t been. And Lorenzo knew his daughter better than she did.

She nodded to him sadly as he opened the door, finishing her coffee on the way to her car, then heading to work, the lightness she’d felt earlier gone. The day went by like any other, but she couldn’t shake the sense of unease.

Which only got worse when she got a call from the school at the end of the day.

As she hurried to Silver’s office to tell her she had to leave, she sent Lorenzo a text.

Ainsley: I’m sorry to have to tell you this, but Mackenzie never showed up to pick up Sawyer.

The reply didn’t come until about an hour later. Sitting at the table, helping Sawyer with a science project he was outlining, she jumped as her phone went off.

Her stomach dropped as she read Lorenzo’s text.

Lorenzo: I’m sorry I took so long to reply. I’ve just left Mackenzie’s school. She hasn’t been there all day.

Ainsley: Do you know where she is now?

Lorenzo: No.

There was a long pause. Then he continued typing.

Lorenzo: I can’t leave Madison alone while I look for her. I know it’s a lot to ask, but would you be able to come over and stay with her?

Ainsley didn’t hesitate before answering.

Ainsley: I’m on my way.