The Hours in Between - The Devereaux Case Files Book 5

Chapter 7

Dicken's ninth birthday finally arrived. He had been running around the house like a maniac all day, gloating about it being his birthday. And occasionally sticking his tongue out at Raidon, when he told him, jokingly, that everyone had forgotten. He didn't believe them for a second, but it allowed Reed some time to deal with Kelly, and Ayah and Faith plenty of time to decorate the house and get the cake baked and decorated. Raidon had chosen to keep the kids busy in the back garden, and with the exception of Olivia's grazed knee and Dicken's frantic antics, it had been a relatively quiet day.

But it couldn't stay that way for long. By the time Kelly had been dealt with it was going on just after noon and the kids were complaining that they hadn't eaten lunch yet. "Alright then, stop your moaning and get in the dining room." Ayah sighed melodramatically, joking with them as she ushered them in out of the garden, only to smile at their delighted faces. Dicken's smile lit up the room as they all took in the balloons, banners and decorations that had been put up in his honor

"Your seat sir." Reed joked with him as he held out one of the dining room seats for the birthday boy. Dicken took his place, unusually at the head of the table, and everyone fell into their seats around him. Faith carried through two trays of various sandwiches and snacks, while Ayah helped bring through the bags of presents from the living room, where they had been hidden.

"Lunch first, then we'll have presents and cake. Dicken, your friends are coming over in an hour and then we'll have a real party to celebrate your birthday." Faith explained in delight, brushing an errant tear away as she watched her happy children tucking into the sandwiches on offer. She had never been able to throw them birthday parties when she had been with Reggie. It was only once she had escaped him that she realized what they had all been missing. Dicken and Clare talked happily about the upcoming party while Olivia rummaged through the gifts to find the one she had bought Dicken, insisting that she wanted to give it to him herself.

"Did your meeting go well?" She asked Reed quietly, while the children were distracted. She tried not to draw too much attention to the delicate subject. And no-one could fault her for asking. Her life was so thoroughly caught up in whatever Kelly was up to, now that he was working with Reggie, that she needed to know the truth.

"I think he got the message, yes. But I'm afraid that I'm going to have a word with Reggie and his crew tonight. I want to make sure that whatever they're up to stops now." Reed hated the very thought of bringing Reggie into the same house as the wife and children he had tormented for years before, but he had little choice.

It was best to have the home advantage in such cases and he needed Reggie's gang of miscreants to see the power he had behind him with the boys from the agency. In case they continued to stand against him as an enemy. But because things were going well and they were making progress, he decided to change the subject. He waited until Dicken had finished his plate of munchies before suggesting he open some presents before his guests arrived.

Everyone loved seeing Dicken's smile as he opened present after present. Raidon had bought him the only thing he had asked for, which was a metallic blue bike. "Oh wow! It's the exact one I showed you." Dicken gasped in delight as he unwrapped the handlebars and gave it a good inspection.

"I'll take you out on it later in the afternoon, after the party, to give it a good test run." Raidon promised. Dicken beamed up at him excitedly before, very reluctantly, turning to open more presents.

Clare and Olivia had pooled their pocket money together and got him a new football, which he thanked them for, as he was already signed up to the school football team and could now practice more at home. Gideon and Anita had bought him a basketball and a hoop since he had also recently decided he was going to be a pro basketball player when he grew up. Despite having never once played the game. But there Reed and Raidon were experts; they played basketball all the time in the old days, when they were in the agency team, so they promised to teach Dicken too.