I was still holding the two teddy bears. I turned back to hand them to Mrs. Penn, but she shook her head. “You give those bears to the boys. I think it’s just what they need.”
Officer Kruger hadn’t said anything since the moment we climbed down from the attic. I glanced at him, but his face was as uncommunicative as it had been back at the boys’ shack. Up in the attic, I’d felt a moment of closeness with him. Perhaps this was the return of his normal taciturn expression. Maybe he’d just slipped into human for a moment.
I smiled at Mrs. Penn and thanked her, then headed for the boys’ rooms. As I’d predicted, both brothers were in Carlo’s room.
I knocked. Carlo was the first to get to the door. “Mommy,” he said.
Frances corrected him, telling his brother to call me Shama. “Our mother is in heaven.”
Carlo’s eyes filled with moisture. He stared at the floor, but then he noticed that I was wiggling something out from under the dress.
“What’s that?” he asked.
“This one is for you,” I said. “And this one is for Frances’ bed. It will look nice there.”
Just as I’d hoped, when Carlo grabbed onto his bear, Frances accepted his, as well. He stared at it a moment. “What do I do with this?”
“They first need names. Then?” I shrugged, leaving the matter up to him. “I’m heading for the bathtub. Do either of you need to use the toilet first? I may be in there a long time. I need to soak,” I told them, laughing.
They placed their bears on the bed, then ran for the bathroom. No tripping in clothes that didn’t fit them. I smiled as I picked up the nightgowns they’d worn and carried the gowns to my room.