Page 80 of Steel

“Bailee?” I call out so she knows it’s me. “I brought someone to meet you.”

The place is quiet. Something about it makes me uncomfortable because it’s far from the vibrancy I’m used to with my Hummingbird. I keep Lyric’s hand in mine as I take us farther into the apartment. Bailee’s phone is sitting on the counter along with the contact case and all the faux facial jewelry.

“Daddy?” Lyric whispers. “What’s going on? Where is she?”

“Don’t know, Princess,” I admit, swallowing tightly.

Her clothes from yesterday lay on the bathroom floor, and a damp towel is tossed over the shower curtain rod.

“Let’s check her room,” my daughter suggests and pulls me down the hall as if she knows where she’s going.

The bedroom door is cracked slightly, and we stop in front of it. Lyric peeks over her shoulder at me, and I glance down at her as we both debate what to do.

Do we go in, or do we walk away?

I should have known my daughter wasn’t going to give up, though. She’s too much like her old man for that.

She pushes the door open and pulls me through. Our steps are quiet on the carpet beneath our feet as we approach the bed holding the sleeping beauty. We stop in front of her and stare for a few minutes.

Lyric looks up at me with stars in her eyes. “She’s beautiful.”

My throat tightens at the way my daughter’s voice takes on the adoring tone I knew it would. It’s not hard to adore Bailee at first glance.

“Yeah,” I murmur.

“Why does she look so sad in her sleep, Daddy?” she asks, keeping her voice low.

“Because your daddy is an asshole who fucked up and broke her heart.”

“Well, that was incredibly rude of you,” she whispers snarkily.

“It was.”

“So, fix it.”

“I’m tryin’,” I argue back. “Why do you think we’re here?”

“Good.”

“Good.”

“My money’s on the small one,” a quiet, husky voice says from the bed beside us.

We both jerk our glares away from each other and turn our attention to Bailee as she sits up in bed. She runs her hand through her short hair, and I pretend I don’t notice the way it shakes when she does.

“Good choice,” Lyric says, pulling her hand from mine and hopping up on the bed to sit beside Bailee.

My body is coiled tight as I prepare to grab my daughter and leave the apartment if Bailee tries to reject her because of who her parents are. It wouldn’t be fair to Lyric. She can’t help whose nut she came from or which cunt she slid out of. She’s the only truly innocent person in this room, and if she’s punished because of me and Heather, then Bailee isn’t the person I thought she was, and that’d be a huge fucking disappointment.

Lyric wiggles a little as Bailee continues to stare at her, but she doesn’t lose her smile, nor does she give up. “Hi,” she chirps. “Daddy said you’re coming with us. I’m Lyric. I’m almost seven years old and love horror movies. Do you like them? If you do, can we watch some when we get to our house? Your hair is really pretty. Do you think Daddy would let me have mine that color?”

Bailee’s eyes soften the more Lyric talks, and her lips part as she watches her in wonder.

“Red hair and green eyes. Hey, then I’d look like Christmas.” Lyric giggles. “Just a horror girl who loves Christmas.” Lyric turns to me. “What do you think, Daddy? Can I have red hair like Bee too?”

My eyes flick to Bailee the moment Lyric gives her a nickname only to find them a little glossy. She bites the edge of her bottom lip and glances away from us to look at the wall while she gathers her composure.

I give my attention back to Lyric. “Think you better wait for a while on that one, Princess. That’s a big step, okay? Compromise?”

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