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trigger, and with a flash of gunpowder the gun jolts in my palm. The ornamental red glass lamp six feet above his head ruptures into a thousand pieces. His entire body flinches into action as he leaps awkwardly sideways, cartwheeling directly onto a small, antique table full of deviled eggs. With a loud crack its spindly legs snap under his weight, sending the serving tray, silver spoons, cloth napkins, and thirty eggs vaulting through the air, deviling the wall and the face of another man with thick splats of white and yellow.
    Nanny Theresa erupts into the room from the far door. The look on her face alone is worth it. Men are screaming and running and cowering and hiding while I gleefully stand in the doorway, basking in the warm glow of the manic pandemonium unfolding before my little eyes. Skinny Red-Cheek Man’s entire face is red now. I notice a large, dark stain spreading down the front of his gray trousers. I actually giggle out loud.
    On the other side of the room, Silver-Topped Cane Man is hobbling away in a pathetic attempt to escape. I take careful aim.
    BANG!
    My bullet finds its mark, splintering his cane in two. He teeters for a moment, wobbling off-kilter like a faltering spinning top. Almost in slow motion, he falls. He rolls over twice on the Persian rug and comes to a halt on his back, rocking from side to side, his arms and legs pathetically flailing in the air like an overturned turtle.
    I point the gun high and let loose three shots over their heads. Just for the fun of it.
    BANG!    BANG!    BANG!
    From every corner of the room, the men scream like little children, and I can’t help but throw my head back and laugh out loud.
    Jonah and Mariele burst in from the far door and my huge grin evaporates. The fun is over. I drop the gun to my feet with a heavy thud.
    “Mariele!” Nanny screams from behind the sofa, pointing a knobbly finger directly at me. “Take her! Take her to her room! Right now!” Mariele hurries across the carpet and scoops me up into her arms. Over her shoulder, I see Jonah trying his best to calm the situation. Horrible men are breathing heavily; some are clutching their chests, some are holding each other, some are wiping food from their faces, and one man in particular is blotting something else entirely from the front of his trousers. Every last one of them looks terrified. It’s fantastic.
    I bob up and down in Mariele’s arms, and as she hurriedly whisks me along the hall, the raging shouts of the men echo after us. I know that I’ve never been in this much trouble. I really don’t care. Not even Nanny Theresa’s witch’s claws could scratch this radiant smile off my happy little face.

CHAPTER FOUR
    That evening I stare out the window at the section of driveway that snakes through the manor grounds and disappears over the hill behind my bedroom. Mariele sits with me, knitting in silence. One by one I hear the men walk through the foyer downstairs, and one by one I hear them bay for my blood as Jonah and Nanny Theresa apologize over and over and over again. As night falls, I watch the taillights of the last limousine drive into the distance.
    “Do you see? Now do you see?” Nanny Theresa’s voice echoes up the stairwell, amplified by the marble entranceway. “You have absolutely no concept of how dangerous that child is! The investors and the board members will not forget this. Mark my words, Major Brogan; there will be hell to pay. For all of us!”
    “Richard will speak to them. He’ll bring them around,” replies Jonah.
    At the sound of my father’s name, I strain my little ears toward the crack in my bedroom door.
    “That little abomination up there could have killed someone today!” shrieks Nanny.
    “After how they treated her, I’d say they kinda had it coming. Wouldn’t you?”
    The tiniest smile curls the edges of my lips.
    “No, I certainly would not!” bellows Nanny Theresa. “I’m holding you personally responsible for this, Major.