Read Jennifer Apodaca - Samantha Shaw 04 - Batteries Required for Free Online

adored Ali. Looking up to the boys, I said, “I hope you didn’t give her too much chocolate. It’ll upset her stomach.”
    TJ threw the sponge toward the sink, but missed and hit his brother. “Nah, we know people food will make her sick. We just let her lick up the spills.”
    Joel threw the sponge back, hitting TJ on the side of the face. “Mom, the brownies are almost done. Grandpa made coffee. Know what?” Joel looked at me with his vivid blue eyes. “Grandpa got a phone call, then suddenly asked TJ and me to make brownies. I think Grandpa was keeping us busy until you got home. What’s up?”
    I glanced to my left to see the full coffeemaker on the counter. The boys were too smart. I went to TJ first, put one arm around his shoulders, then put my other arm around Joel. We stood with our backs to the sink, looking toward the stove. “I just came from Angel’s house. It looks like there’s been a break-in there.”
    TJ said, “Where’s Angel? Is she all right?”
    I looked at TJ. He was the more serious of the two boys. “That’s the problem, TJ. We don’t know where Angel is. Her car is there, and one of her purses.” I left out the part about the butcher knife and the blood on the towel. “The police are looking, and we are going to look for her, too.”
    TJ’s shoulders went back, his whole body stiffening, while Joel shrank a bit, leaning in closer to me. “Mom,” Joel said, “do you think she was kidnapped?”
    My throat hurt. Ached. But I made myself look at Joel’s pale face. “I don’t know, Joel. But I do know this: none of us will stop looking until we find her.”
    The buzzer on the stove went off. The brownies were done.
    I squeezed the boys, then let them go. “Why don’t you get some milk and we’ll eat the brownies hot.”
    TJ headed toward the fridge, but Ali beat him to it. She stuck her nose in the seam and barked.
    “No beer, Ali.” I grabbed a potholder to take the brownies out. I set the hot pan on the top of the stove and closed the oven door.
    Joel handed me a stack of paper plates. “Mom, is Gabe here?”
    “On the porch with Grandpa. He had some calls to make.” I opened a drawer and pulled out a knife.
    Joel shifted back and forth on his feet. “Do you think I should take him some coffee? Or brownies?”
    Finding the serrated cake knife, I shut the drawer and looked at Joel. I wanted to make the world right for my son. But what Joel needed right now was to check in with Gabe. Though I never had intended to bring another man into TJ and Joel’s life, Gabe had just sort of merged in. The boys respected him, maybe even had a little hero worship going on. “Take him some coffee, Joel. He’d like that.”
    Joel went to the coffeemaker, got a cup down from the cupboard, and carefully poured in some coffee.
    TJ set two glasses of milk on the kitchen table, then went to the coffeemaker. “I’ll take Grandpa some coffee,” he volunteered.
    I watched my two sons walk out to gather strength from Gabe Pulizzi. Ali slid her head beneath my hand and looked up at me. I met her liquid brown-and-gold eyes. She was a female. She understood. Love meant letting them go just a little bit.
    And trusting Gabe to be the man they needed him to be.
    I rubbed Ali’s ears, then decided I’d try to call Rick Mesa. My phone tree Rolodex was on the counter and I quickly looked up Rick’s number. He might be the last person to have seen Angel at Daystar since she was there to watch his group play their set. The phone rang until the answering machine picked up.
    Damn.
    I hung up the phone and went to the sink and washed my hands. On autopilot, I went back to the stove, picked up the knife and cut some hot brownies. But my thoughts were rushing around, dredging up every possibility. Could Angel have surprised a burglar? Been doing some kind of housecleaning and cut herself? What? Where are you, Angel? My eyes stung with tears.
    I heard the front door open. It sounded like they were all