“And another dog.”
“That would be up to Carmen. But I tend to agree that dogs are the best deterrent.”
“Next to a gun,” Chip agreed.
“She’s already got one of those.”
“Yeah, I signed off as a character reference for her permit. Was glad to do it. Girls as pretty as they are need all the barriers they can get.”
“Yeah. I’m adding better locks to the doors too. And alarms for the windows, in case anyone tries to open them when the girls are asleep.”
“When is the little one leaving?”
“I don’t have an exact date. But it sounded relatively soon. Think shit moves fast on daytime television.”
I barely knew these women.
But I was somehow simultaneously thrilled for Sofia… and nearly debilitatingly worried about Carmen.
Not just for her physical safety. But for her mental health. Up until a year or so ago, she had both her sister and her best friend to lean on when she needed support. Now, Vicky was long gone, and Sofia was all but on a plane across the country.
What then?
When there was no one around to worry about and lavish her attention on? What happened if there was no one there to distract her from her own life and future? To soften the sharp edges of her past?
Would she fall deeper into depression?
Would she fall into a hole of revenge? This time, with no one around to tether her to the consequences of rash decisions?
“What are you doing over here?” Chip asked, snapping me out of my thoughts.
“I’m having your windows fixed too,” I told him.
“I can take care of my own affairs.” Chip attempted to straighten his bent spine.
“I’m sure you can. But these guys are here, they have the supplies, and gave me a deal to do both sets.”
That last part was mostly a lie.
But his pride didn’t need a blow.
“It’s the least I can do to thank you for keeping an eye on the girls for me when I’m not around.”
Chip accepted that, then spent the next hour lecturing the men on how to do their jobs. For which they got a big tip as they were heading out.
“Alright. I’m gonna head back. You holding down the fort?” I asked.
He patted the shotgun propped next to him.
“Don’t worry about me.”
The problem was, I would.
I’d somehow gone from not having any real, active concerns about the people closest to me to being almost debilitated by worries about Carmen, Sofia, Hammy, and now, Chip.
I said my goodbyes, got on my bike, and headed back to the hotel to find Carmen standing on the grass to the side of the building with Hamster.
Spotting me, she beelined for my bike.