The McRae Series 01 - Twelve Days Sam and Rachel

didn't. She stopped right there, staring up at their house. So he took his time walking across the street to her, wishing he knew this child better, wishing he would somehow just know what to say to ease her mind.
    "Out for a stroll?" he said, as casually as he could manage and noting that she was in her nightgown. It was long and the edges were hanging down below her coat, brushing the top of the snow. She was going to freeze.
    "No," she said. "Just to here."
    "What are you doing, Emma?" She finally looked up at him and he frowned. Those were definitely tears. Emma, who'd been so brave, was now reduced to tears.
    "I had to see the house," she said.
    "Why?"
    "It's a secret."
    "I think you're going to have to share it with me, Em."
    She frowned up at him, tearing up again. "My mom called me that."
    "Does that mean I shouldn't?" Sam asked gently.
    Her bottom lip trembling, she said, "I don't know."
    He slipped an arm around her thin shoulders and pulled her to his side, something he'd wanted to do for a long time. She bent her head against his chest and rested there for a moment.
    "You want her back, too. I know that."
    She nodded. "Do you believe in magic?"
    "You mean like rabbits coming out of hats and stuff like that?"
    "No. I know that's not real."
    "Then what?"
    "Signs?" she tried. "Do you believe in signs."
    "I don't know. Do you?"
    "I want to."
    "What kind of sign, Emma?"
    "This."
    She finally showed him what she'd been holding so closely to her, hidden in the folds of her coat. It was a snow globe. He took it in his hands. A cheap, plastic copy of Rachel's grandfather's work, the kind they mass-produced overseas, while the nicer, more expensive ones were made here at the factory in town.
    "It's this house, isn't it?"
    "Yes," he said.
    "It's one of my most favorite things. Zach's and the baby's, too."
    "Where did you get it?"
    "I don't know. For Christmas, maybe. A couple of years ago. I've had it for a long time, and I love looking at it. It's so beautiful, and I thought it was a sign. That I had this, and I always thought nothing bad could ever happen in a place like this. And now I'm here. I'm living in this house..."
    "So you thought everything was going to be okay?"
    "I was sure of it. I came outside and checked the first night we were here, and even before the Christmas decorations were up, I could tell it really is the same house. That's why I knew it was okay that we were here."
    "You checked? The first night you were here?"
    She nodded.
    Sam decided to let that one go. They had bigger things to worry about tonight. "So you thought everything was going to work out? But now it's almost Christmas and your mother's still not back. Now you're not sure."
    Emma nodded.
    Sam turned her fully into his arms, drawing her close and wrapping her up inside his coat with him. She acted so much like a grown-up at times, he often forgot how little she was. She felt so fragile now, seemed so young.
    He thought about all the platitudes he could offer her, about things just magically working out and signs and hope, and he just didn't have it in him to say any of those things. Not now.
    He had no idea if she'd ever see her mother again, and he'd love to promise her that he and Rachel were going to make it and that Emma and her brother and sister could stay. That they'd love them and keep them safe forever. But Sam knew there were damned few promises he could make with any certainty, damned few certainties at all. So he thought of what he could do.
    "Sometimes, you just don't know what's going to happen, Emma. Sometimes you're going along and things are fine and someone comes along and yanks the rug out from under you. I know that's scary. But I'm afraid it's just the way things are sometimes. But it helps to have people around you that you can count on. I know it's been a lot easier for Zach and Grace because they've got you, and you're so good with them. It's been easier for me and Rachel because you're here, too."
    "I'm glad we're here," she said. "If we can't be with Mom, I'm glad we're here."
    "I'm glad, too," he said. "And you can count on us. Will you do that, Emma? Will you let us do what we can to help you? And when you're worried or scared, you should come to us, okay?"
    She nodded. "I will."
    "Good. I don't know where your mother is. I don't know what happened to her, but I was thinking that I could go look for her."
    She brightened at that. "You would?"
    "Yes. And I don't want you to be scared of that. I don't