Run to Ground(41)

Theo stopped a few feet from them, greeting them with a short jerk of his head as he half-wrestled, half-ordered Viggy into a sit. When Dee lurched forward again, yanking against Jules’s hold, Jules realized she still had a grip on the back of her sister’s shirt.

“Dee,” she said, focusing on the girl in front of her so Theo’s…Theo-ness didn’t take away her ability to speak. “Stop.”

“But I want to pet him.” Viggy’s tail thumped against the floor, as if in approval of that plan.

“He’s on duty.” That deep, clipped voice made the hairs on Jules’s arms stand up straight, and it wasn’t from fear. “He can’t play with you when he’s on duty. He needs to focus.”

“Oh.” Dee drooped a little, but she didn’t make any additional efforts to get to Viggy.

“What’s he focusing on today?” Jules asked, trying to keep the question light and casual and not get distracted by how good Theo looked in his uniform.

Theo eyed her with a look filled with so much interest that she had to bite the inside of her lip hard to keep from babbling and filling the silence. “Looks like a false alarm,” Theo finally answered.

False alarm, Jules repeated in her head, confused until she remembered what Viggy’s job was. “A bomb threat?” Her voice went a little shrill on the last word. Her paranoia about the kidnapping made her forget that there were other dangers in the world, and she needed to protect her siblings. After all, they were her kids now.

“Happens a lot.” Theo seemed awfully casual about the threat of a bomb. “It’s usually some kid who’s pissed at a teacher or wants a free day.”

Jules’s brain seized on what she saw as the most important word in that sentence. “Usually? Shouldn’t you have evacuated the school, just in case?”

“We try to keep it low-key unless we believe it’s a legitimate threat. Otherwise, we’re just giving the kid who called it in what he—or she—wants,” Theo explained. “If I thought there was a chance there really was a bomb, Viggy and I wouldn’t be in here. We’d get everyone out of the building and call the bomb squad in Denver.”

Although his words were reassuring, Jules still felt jumpy. She glanced around, trying not to think of all the possible hiding spots—that locker, that recycling bin with the lid, that janitor’s closet. She nibbled on the inside of her lip as she forced herself to quit looking and focus on Theo’s face. If she was honest, that last part wasn’t a hardship.

“Jules.” Tio tipped his head toward the office. The flow of students had increased, although most of them were making a wide berth around the cop and his dog, and Jules wasn’t sure how long it would take to complete the admissions paperwork. She’d hate it if the kids had to walk in late to their first class. Being the new kids was bad enough without drawing extra attention. There was already a lot of staring going on, although Jules wasn’t sure if that was due to them being strangers or the K9 cop in their midst.

Taking a step toward the office, she said, “I need to get the kids registered.”

His nod was just a short dip of his chin. “I’ll wait.”

Jules stopped and blinked at him, trying to keep from smiling. One glance at Theo, and her newly formed resolution was tossed out the window. If only he wasn’t quite as nice to look at, maybe she could resist him. Or if he wasn’t so nice, period.

“C’mon, Jules!” Tio began nudging her in the direction of the office.

“I’m coming!” As she walked, keeping a firm hold on Dee just in case her sister decided to bolt for the dog, she refused to glance behind her, refused to check if he was keeping his word and waiting. She definitely didn’t want him to wait.

She shouldn’t want him to wait.

As she completed the necessary paperwork, she mentally thanked Dennis. Everything was perfect. There were immunization records and transcripts and custody papers. The administrative assistant—who had severe glasses and not a hair out of place—even gave her an approving look, murmuring, “Very organized.”

They managed to get all three boys registered and sent off with a student “buddy” to find their lockers. Jules watched them go, feeling a little scared and helpless that they’d be out of her reach.

A squeeze on her hand brought Jules out of her distracted worry. “They’ll be okay,” Dee said quietly.

“I know.” Giving her sister a small grin—the best she could manage—Jules added, “I just like to keep them close.”

Looking much older than eleven, Dee tightened her grip again. “They’re used to taking care of themselves.”