He had to get his kids into a safer home.
He’d chosen this place because it was inexpensive, in a decent neighborhood with a good-sized yard. When would he learn that his instincts were terrible when it came to keeping his family safe? Hadn’t Elizabeth’s death proved that?
A busy hour later, Eduardo sat on a concrete wall outside his wet, smoking home. They were fortunate that it was unseasonably warm for mid-March. As he watched firefighters and a police inspector finish examining the smoke and water damage, he tried to think about what to do next.
The firefighters had kept the flames from spreading to the shared attic, limiting the damage to just the Delgados’ bathroom. Apparently, when the men had pulled the ceiling down, they’d found insulation smoldering around an exhaust fan.
Eduardo clenched his fists, then consciously took a couple of deep breaths. The most important thing was that no one had been injured.
Police Chief Dion Coleman, who lived the next street over and seemed to know everything happening in the town, sat down beside him. “You okay, man?”
“Not really.” Eduardo looked blankly as neighbors gathered near the fire truck in the deepening twilight. On the other side of the yard, their landlord was still talking to an inspector, gesticulating wildly.
“I spoke with one of the firefighters, and he says damage looks minimal. You could probably move back in within a couple of weeks, and insurance would pay—”
“No.” Even the thought of taking his kids back inside the duplex appalled Eduardo. “We’ll be looking for somewhere else to live. Somewhere safe.”
“I understand.” Dion leaned forward, elbows on his knees, weaving his fingers together. “Rental market around here is tight, though. Where are your kids now?”
“Lou Ann Miller took them in for the night.” Eduardo gestured down the street toward the older woman’s house. “She was babysitting when it happened. I’m going to crash on her couch later, too, if I can even sleep.”
“This kind of thing can prey on your mind,” Dion said. “But you know the good Lord’s got you in His hand, right? Your kids, too.”
“Right.” Eduardo didn’t want to go into his fear that if Lou Ann and the kids hadn’t been awake and alert, the Lord might not have seen fit to save them. Not to mention the fact that the Lord hadn’t had Elizabeth in His hands when she’d struggled with cancer.
Or maybe it was just Eduardo himself who excelled at letting his family down.
Dion stood. “If you need anything, you know where to find me.” And he was gone.
Eduardo rubbed a hand across his face, and all of a sudden, Fiona Farmingham was in the spot Dion had vacated beside Eduardo on the concrete wall. “Eduardo, is there anything I can do to help?”
He squinted at her pretty features framed by long wavy red hair. “What are you doing here?”
“I was worried. After I got my kids settled, I came over to see if there was anything I could do.”
“You have a sitter?” he asked inanely. He was still trying to process everything that had happened tonight. His brain seemed to be running at reduced speed.
“Yes, and I talked to her. She’s fine with staying later, and she put the kids to bed. But you have bigger things on your mind. Is there anything you and the kids need?”
He lifted his hands, palms up. “No. I’m just trying to figure out what to do. I have to find a new place to live.”
“It’s a total loss?”
“No, not much damage. But this happened because of an electrical issue.” He slammed his fist into his hand, shaking his head. “I knew there were maintenance problems, that the landlord wasn’t keeping the place up. I should have moved us out months ago.”
Hesitantly, she put a hand on his arm. “That must make you really mad. But the kids are okay. And you’re okay.” She squeezed his arm lightly and then pulled her hand back. “You can figure out who’s to blame later, even think about legal action. For now, you need to decide about the day-to-day stuff, what to do.”
Her voice was husky, calm, soothing. A little of the tension left his shoulders, chased away by the strange feeling that he had someone at his side, shoulder to shoulder. “Yeah. That’s right.”
She nodded briskly. “Your kids are settled for the night? And you have a place to sleep?”
“Lou Ann Miller’s house,” he said, nodding.
“Do you need clothes, toiletries, pajamas?”
“I don’t think so. I think they’re going to let me back in pretty soon, take me around and let me gather up some stuff. There’ll be an investigation, but it’s pretty clear the problem started with some faulty wiring in the bathroom exhaust fan. The smoke alarm malfunctioned, too, apparently.” He shook his head. “I’ve got to find a new place to live.”
She looked thoughtful for a moment, and then she nodded as if she’d made a decision. “You could stay in my carriage house.”
“What?” He cocked his head at her and frowned.
“It’s a complete three-bedroom little home. Used to be where people kept their carriages, and then it was a spare garage, but the previous owners modified it into a space that could work as an office or a rental. I was using it for... Doesn’t matter.” She waved her hand. “I’ve been planning to advertise for a tenant, anyway.”
Eduardo looked at Fiona. Her eyes held concern and the desire to help. The woman was kind and good, but he didn’t feel comfortable with the spur-of-the-moment offer. “I don’t see... We probably can’t make that work,” he said. “You have your own plans for the place. And anyway, I’m looking for something really safe, up to code, after what happened here.”
She glared at him. “Do you think I’d offer you a place that was dangerous or unsound?”
Oh, man, now he’d upset this kind woman who was only trying to help. “Of course not. I’m sorry. I’m a mess.”
“Understandable.” She stood up, something like insecurity creeping into her eyes. “I’m sure you have other options, but if you want to talk more about the place, I’ll be at church tomorrow.”
She bent down, put her arms around his shoulders for an awkward hug and then disappeared into the darkness.
Exhausted as he was by the events of the evening, Eduardo was awake enough to feel a particular warmth where she’d touched him.
The next day, Fiona and her four kids walked—or in Ryan’s and Maya’s case, ran—out of the little white clapboard church on the edge of Rescue River.
“Careful!” Fiona called. “Stay on the sidewalk!” But she couldn’t help smiling at her middle two children’s joy. Maya’s exuberance didn’t surprise her—at seven, Maya was her wild child—but Ryan, though only two years older, tended to be way too serious. It was good to see him run and play.
Beside Fiona, ten-year-old Lauren walked with more decorum, as befitted the dignity of the eldest child. Little Poppy nudged in between Fiona and Lauren and then reached up to grab their hands. “Swing me,” she ordered with the confidence of a three-year-old, and Fiona and Lauren held her hands tight while she jumped up, swinging her legs.
“Hey,” Ryan called back to them, “there’s Diego and Sofia!”
Fiona’s heart gave a tiny little leap as she looked ahead and saw Eduardo and his two kids walking in the same direction Fiona was heading. She always parked near the church’s little play area, and today Eduardo’s