Indemnity: Book Two: Covenant of Trust Series by Paula Wiseman Page B

what I do know.” As Chuck began filling his sons in, Bobbi motioned that she was leaving to put Shannon to bed. She’d heard enough of Tracy’s schemes for one evening.
    She couldn’t have scripted this any better, though. The boys handled the news with reason and maturity. She expected a little more shock, but no matter. They could just keep chipping away at Chuck, forcing him to admit that he hasn’t thought this situation through, that he’s operating purely on instinct. Once they were done, she could explain what she read about Abraham, Sarah and Hagar, and the case would be closed.
    “ Teeth brushed?” Bobbi asked Shannon as she stepped in her bedroom.
    “ Yep, but what took you so long? What are you guys doing?” Shannon was propped up in bed, arms crossed, frowning in irritation.
    “ I made some coffee and Daddy and the boys are talking.” Bobbi sat on the edge of the bed.
    “ What about?”
    “ Brad is showing us how well prepared he is for law school, and Joel is asking a bunch of questions that Daddy can’t answer.”
    “ Sounds boring,” Shannon huffed.
    “ It is. You aren’t missing anything.”
    “ Promise?”
    “ I promise,” Bobbi answered, raising her right hand.
    “ Is Brat gonna work for Daddy?”
    “ I think that’s the plan once he finishes law school.”
    “ Does that take a long time?”
    “ Three years.”
    “ I’ll be ... eight!”
    “ Good adding,” Bobbi patted Shannon’s knee. “You’re gonna sail through kindergarten.”
    “ How old will you be?”
    “ Old.”
    “ In numbers, Mommy.”
    “ Forty-nine,” Bobbi whispered.
    “ That’s how old Daddy is now!”
    Bobbi nodded. “Right again. Now, smart cookie, what time is it?”
    Shannon squinted at the clock, and pointed with her index finger as she counted. “Kinda nine ... twenty.”
    “ Kinda?”
    “ Well, it’s between three and four.”
    “ And what time is your bedtime?”
    “ Eight o’clock,” Shannon groaned. “You’re so tricky with that.”
    Bobbi smiled at her. “It’s a mommy thing. Now say your prayers.” She reached out and took Shannon’s hands, then bowed her head.
    “ Dear God, thank You for our day, for Mommy and Daddy and Grandma and all my brothers. Amen.”
    “ All your brothers?” There was no way Shannon could know about Jack.
    “ Joel and Brad. I can’t thank God for just one of 'em.”
    “ Of course not. Goodnight, sweetie.” Bobbi kissed her, and then pulled the covers up as Shannon scooted down in the bed. “Sleep tight,” Bobbi said as she turned out the light.
    All her brothers ... No, Shannon had two brothers. Two. No more. The sooner they settled that, the better.
    When she returned to the kitchen, Chuck was wrapping up details of his convoluted adventure through the public records.
    “ Wait a minute,” Brad said, raising a hand. “She gives birth using her real name, files a fraudulent birth certificate, then drags the baby to Massachusetts to change his name. Then she comes back, running the risk of being found out.”
    “ For the express purpose of being found out, I think,” Chuck said.
    “ She’s nuts,” Brad said. “It makes no sense.”
    “ That’s what I said,” Bobbi agreed. She hadn’t prompted or primed the boys at all. Chuck couldn’t claim she influenced them.
    “ Crazy like a fox, maybe,” Joel said. He pushed back from the table, and walked over to the counter. “She couldn’t hold down a job if she was really insane. She’s either a sociopath, or there’s an explanation behind it that makes sense, at least to her.” Joel poured a second cup of coffee for himself and refilled Bobbi’s.
    “ What’s a sociopath?” Bobbi asked as she slid into the seat at the table.
    “ No morals, no conscience,” he answered dryly and began rummaging through the cabinets, finally settling for a bag of pretzels.
    “ I think that just about sums her up,” Bobbi said.
    “ What’s next? What are you gonna do?” Brad asked his