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sighed. “That’s a bridge we’ll cross when we come to it.”
    She looked so sad at the thought of losing her family that I felt like telling her right then and there to stop worrying. That Billy and Tom and me, we were taking care of it. But I remembered our oath to secrecy. “Ashes to ashes. Dust to dust.” So I kept my mouth shut.
    Tom staggered in with a huge bag of kitty litter, Billy close behind him with another, carrying it easily on his shoulder. They added the bags to the pile on the floor beside the counter. Then Tom reached up and punched Billy on the shoulder.
    Billy punched back. Soon the two of them were wrestling and giggling around the kitchen table. A chair toppled over. Billy pounded Tom in the stomach. Tom squirmed and pounded him back, and they chased each other, a small and panting David and a big giggling Goliath, around the kitchen.
    â€œKnock it off, you two! Look out for the groceries!” Janice yelled. “Someone could get hurt. Bring in the rest of the stuff from the car. Nell, you and Lisa can set the table for supper.” She looked out the window at Billy and Tom. “I don’t know what’s got into those two boys lately, especially Billy.”
    â€œWhat do you mean? What’s wrong with Billy?”
    â€œOh, I don’t know. He’s different lately—hyper. Like somebody left him a million bucks or something.” Janice stopped packing and looked at me. “He’s not doing anything he shouldn’t, is he?”
    My heart rode a plunging elevator down to my ankles. “Like what?”
    â€œThat’s it. I don’t know. He seems to be on a high. He hasn’t met a girl, has he? Anything like that?”
    I laughed and threw my arms around Janice in a hug. “Billy’s fine. Don’t worry about him. I would know if there was anything wrong, and there isn’t, okay?”
    â€œWell, Nell, if you say so.” She pecked me on the cheek and went back to storing groceries. “You probably know him as well as anyone.”
    It was Joseph’s turn to say grace, which he did with bowed head. “Thanks, Lord, for the family and the food. Amen.”
    â€œAmen,” I said with the others.
    â€œOkay, let’s eat.” Joseph started passing the food along the table.
    I liked the way Joseph always said grace before meals. He was sincere. Not like some of the geezers and old ladies in my other fosters who prayed a lot and talked about God and hellfire and then turned around and…
    The thing about Joseph and Janice was that they were completely upfront. They said what they meant and meant what they said. The Hardy home was the first place where I truly felt part of a real family. They didn’t have a whole lot of money, but they never stinted when it came to taking care of us. They would give us the shirts off their backs, as the saying goes. We all ate the same food, no favorites. But most of all they were affectionate, a new experience for me, and they treated us like we were special and important in their lives.
    It was a squeeze with the six of us around the kitchen table. Janice’s smile went around like a lighthouse beam. “Eat up, everyone,” she said. “Enjoy!”
    I slurped up some noodles. Tomato sauce dripped down my chin and onto my T-shirt. Messy me. Good thing the T-shirt was black. I mopped it up with my napkin.
    â€œNails,” Tom said, “the proper way to eat spaghetti is to twirl it around your fork like this.” He gave a demo.
    â€œYou can use your spoon to help if you want,” he said with one of his superior smiles.
    Everyone, even Billy, stopped eating and watched Tom’s demonstration. Then they all stared at me. I felt my face turning red. I hate it when people stare at me. I felt like a freak in a circus sideshow.
    Sometimes Tom was so prissy, he made me want to puke.
    Seriously.
    I pulled a face at him.
    Janice came to my rescue.