“Oh, there are plenty,” I admitted, laughing. “But let’s hear one of yours first.”
“Well,” she said, grinning, “when I was seven, I decided to ‘help’ my mom redecorate. Let’s just say glitter glue and white walls don’t mix.”
“Sounds like something Chloe would do.”
Just as Lily was about to reply, Chloe appeared in the kitchen doorway. Her face was pale, her eyes wide with fear.
“Daddy,” she said, her voice trembling, “I need to talk to you. Alone.”
We walked out into the corridor and I crouched to her level, trying to steady my voice.
“Chloe, what’s wrong? Did something happen?”
Her wide eyes darted toward the hallway, then back to me. “She’s bad.
She’s really bad.”
“What do you mean? Lily?” I glanced over my shoulder toward the kitchen, where Lily hummed softly as she stirred a pot.
Real heads. They were looking at me.”
For a second, I didn’t understand. “Heads?
What kind of heads?”
“People heads!” she hissed, tears spilling onto her cheeks. “They’re scary, Daddy. We have to go!”
I swallowed hard, my chest tightening.Continue reading…
