Page 28 of The Crowing of Hell
Dear God, these kids could not eat that. I opened the fridge and saw some chicken and fresh stuff. I hunted around and found the ingredients I wanted. Rooster clearly cooked.
“Dad usually cooks, but Brax has avoided a bath for four days, so Dad’s scrubbing him. Especially as he got really dirty earlier by crawling in the mud,” Kits explained.
“Why?” I asked absently as I began chopping the chicken into chunks.
“Because Brax was trying to shoot Troy with his catapult,” Finn answered.
“Shh, we agreed not to tell. Uncle Chance was not happy,” Kit hissed.
“Well, it wasn’t me who shot Uncle Chance’s window,” Finn retorted.
In disbelief, I put the knife down as I listened.
“And I didn’t give Troy the catapult!” Kit denied.
“Nuh, I had mine. Where was yours?”
“Troy had his own. Didn’t you see it? Troy shot out Uncle Chance’s window,” Kit snapped at Finn.
“Wasn’t me who broke Aunt Clio’s flowerpot,” Finn hissed.
“Oh yeah, you’re just an angel. That was Brax,” Kit exclaimed. “And by the way, bro? I saw you aim at Troy and hit Uncle Chance’s favourite mug and smash it.”
“Agree not to tell till death do us part,” Kit and Finn stated together after exchanging a glance.
Holy hell, who were these children? They both turned to me and smiled angelically.
“Can we eat our sandwiches now?” they asked.
“One each. I’m making dinner,” I answered, trying not to laugh. Somehow, I thought laughing was a bad thing.
As I threw the chopped herbs, vegetables, and seasoning into the pan, which Finn kindly grabbed for me, a hurricane flew into the kitchen.
Brax made me stagger as he hugged me and stared adoringly at me.
“My Kenny,” he sighed, and my heart melted.
“Hi, Brax,” I replied, stroking his head.
Brax’s eyes closed, and when they opened, there were tears present.
I stiffened, alarmed.
“Dad washed my mouth out with soap for swearing,” Brax whimpered.
Oh no! The one thing you never did was get between a parent disciplining a child. I glanced at Rooster and saw him looking amused as he entered the kitchen.
“Don’t fall for it,” Rooster warned. “They’re awareof the consequences of swearing, especially in front of a woman. When they’re sixteen, sure, do what they want; until then, they’ll show respect in my household. And you two, I told you no and to get fruit if you were as starving as you claimed. Put that mess away.”
Kit and Finn scowled at their father, and I was shocked at how alike they all were.
“I could have got dinner on,” Rooster said, approaching me and sniffing.
“I don’t mind,” I murmured.
Rooster yelped, and I looked down and saw Brax looking angelic.
“That’s my fu… Kenny!” the boy stated.