Bailey went upstairs to the master bedroom and closed the door behind her. As weird as it was to know that Nate was staying in the living room, it also put her mind at ease. There was some guilt that he might not sleep well, but the thought of being able to rest without worrying about someone messing with the house took a huge weight off her shoulders.
She took a quick shower, blow-dried her hair, and then fell asleep moments after her head hit the pillow.
For the first time in months, she had a dream about Joe. In the past, they either involved his accident and the nightmare surrounding it, or it would be a replay of something they’d done together as a family: the birth of one of the boys, a camping trip, or a special Christmas memory. She’d had one of those dreams nearly every night for a long time, but recently they’d started to dwindle.
This one was different. In her dream, she awakened to find Joe standing beside the bed, a sweet smile on his face. He looked down at her with such love that her heart nearlyburst. He never said a word as he softly brushed some hair from her forehead and leaned over to kiss her there.
He gave her hand a squeeze and then turned, walking out of the room and closing the door behind him. In the dream, Bailey knew he was leaving for good—that she’d never see him again—but she had peace about it.
She woke up with a start, momentarily disoriented. She pressed a hand to the spot on her forehead where Joe had kissed her and tried to separate her own feelings from those she’d experienced in the dream. There was still a sadness there, but it was as though it were blanketed with a layer of peace that had the quieting effect of snowfall on the chaotic world.
It was only then that she realized her cheeks were wet with tears. She dried them with a corner of her sheet and was about to lie down and try to get more sleep when Seth’s screams made her jump out of bed and almost out of her skin.
“Mommy! Help me!”
Chapter Sixteen
After bidding Bailey good night, Nate got the couch set up. He opted to sleep in his jeans and T-shirt in case he had to get up quickly in the night, but he did empty the contents of his pockets into a zippered section of his backpack so he’d be more comfortable.
He’d also brought a small gun safe that only opened in response to his fingerprints. That way he had a safe place to put his handgun while he was sleeping. He didn’t know if Seth and Jordan ever wandered downstairs at night or not, but he didn’t want to risk it.
Even though his body was tired, his mind was much too busy to fall asleep. He double-checked that all the doors and windows on the bottom floor were closed and locked. After that, he pulled up the Bible app on his phone and spent some time reading the book of John. The last thing he did before falling asleep was to pray for Bailey, Seth, and Jordan. “And Lord, please give everyone wisdom. Help us figure out who’s doing this to Bailey, and give me the ability to keep her and the boys safe.”
He uttered a quiet “amen” before falling asleep.
It was Minnie who woke him up an hour later. She didn’t bark, but she did get to her feet and pace past the coffee table, her eyes alert.
Nate sat up and quickly opened the gun safe. “What is it, girl?” He waited silently, listening to the unfamiliar creaks of the house and hoping to pick up anything that didn’t belong. Minnie cocked her head to one side and looked upward. Was someone moving around upstairs that she could hear but he couldn’t quite detect?
He was just about to relax again when Seth’s frantic voice carried from upstairs, “Mommy! Help me!”
Minnie woofed, and Nate leaped to his feet. He grabbed his handgun and secured it on his belt before taking the stairs two at a time. At the top, he spotted Seth’s bedroom door open and the light on down the hall. He told Minnie to stay and crept closer. Right outside the room, he heard Bailey’s voice as she tried to console her son.
“It was just a dream, sweetie. I promise. Everything’s okay.”
A little whimper was followed by sniffles. “He opened my window and came in. He was really scary.”
“Let me tell you something. No one is coming in your window. For one thing, they’d have to scale the side of our house like Spider-Man to get to it. Do you really think someone could do that?”
Nate imagined the little boy shaking his head no, tears in his dark eyes.
“Of course not! Plus, we have locks on all the windows. They can’t be opened from the outside.”
“What about downstairs? The bad guy can reach the windows.”
It was hard for Nate not to go in and try to reassure thelittle boy himself. Instead, he continued to listen, impressed by how well Bailey seemed to be handling the situation. Her voice was soft and soothing. He imagined her sitting on the edge of the bed, smoothing back Seth’s hair or holding his hand.
“The windows downstairs all have locks. The same with the doors. Plus, Nate and Minnie are sleeping down there. If someone tried to come into the house, Minnie would know it before they ever stepped foot inside. Can you imagine being a bad guy and sneaking into the house only to find a big dog like Minnie waiting for you?”
The two of them giggled together, and the sound warmed Nate’s heart. If his presence there at the house today only served to make Seth feel safer after a bad dream, then it was all worth it.
“Will you sing me a song? Please?”
“One song, and then you’d better get some sleep. You need to make more energy so you can play with Minnie tomorrow. She’ll be disappointed if you’re too tired to play ball with her.”
Seth must have agreed because a moment later, Bailey’s sweet, soft voice filled the air as she began to sing a lullaby.
Had Nate ever heard her sing before? Maybe with a group at a birthday party, but not like this. He suddenly felt like he was intruding and considered trying to retreat downstairs when Bailey spoke again.
