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HE WANTED TO grab his son out of his chair with both arainst his chest and run But instead Jem led the drably dressed woman slowly down a hall to the old kitchen he’d renant with Levi

He couldn’t panic Not yet

Not if soh his mind The only people he kneho had access to Levi besides himself were preschool workers and his mother No one ould hurt him

And who’d called?

Tressa sprang to o that far? She’d pulled some questionable shit a time or two, but only to lash out at him

As far as he knew, she didn’t have any reason to be pissed with hiood Better than they’d been in years

And then so else dawned on him Social services, child protective services, could take his son away from him if they felt the choice arranted

Surely Ms Haht into take better care of the boy than he did

Or love him like he did

She had to have some kind of real proof

Didn’t she?

Ready to grab the woh his house and put her firmly but kindly outside his front door and then lock it behind her, Jem could only s

tand and watch as she rounded the corner, went through the archway to the kitchen and approached the table

“Hi, Levi, I heard about you, and your dad said it was okay if I came to meet you”

He’d heard of a devil in sheep’s clothing Had quite possibly grown up with one, in the form of his older sister