The Trouble With Angels Page 0,3

side.

"I should have thought of that myself." Faster than a heartbeat, Mercy was there as well.

"I was referring to Shirley and me." Gabriel stared at the two, although in reality their enthusiasm amused him greatly.

"Of course we meant to include Shirley," Goodness said with a weak laugh.

"That was understood," Mercy added.

Gabriel freed himself of the two. "Shirley and me alone," he clarified, coughing in an effort to disguise a smile.

"Oh." Goodness's shoulders sagged with disappointment.

"Oh." Mercy slowly lowered herself onto a vacant chair.

"Go on without us," Goodness said as though Shirley were about to step into the last available place in a lifeboat leaving a sinking ship. "We'll wait here."

"Stay out of trouble," Gabriel advised.

"What could we possibly do to cause trouble?" Mercy questioned.

Gabriel didn't want to know the answer to that.

Maureen Woods lugged the heavy suitcase from the trunk of her car to the sidewalk. She stopped on her way into the small rental house to pick up the mail. After tucking a few bills and fliers under her arm, she pulled the newspaper free from its box and made her way to the front steps.

The door opened before she could fit the key into the lock, and Maureen brightened when she saw her daughter. "Hi, pumpkin face."

"Hi. How was the trip?" Karen held open the screen door for her mother.

"All right." Maureen stepped inside. She slipped out of her business suit jacket and laid it over the back of the couch before removing her shoes. It felt heavenly to be out of her pumps, which were still new enough to pinch her toes.

"I'll get your suitcase for you," Karen said eagerly.

Maureen appreciated the thought but knew it was too much for her daughter. "Thanks, honey, but it's too heavy."

"No, it isn't," Karen insisted. "See?" With both hands and all her might, the twelve-year-old managed to lift it a scant inch off the worn carpet.

"Karen, put it down, or you'll hurt yourself," Maureen insisted as she absently sorted through the mail. She paused when she saw the bill for her attorney, cringed, then tossed the mail on the counter without opening any of it. "How was your night with Grandma and Grandpa?"

"Fine."

"What did you have for dinner?"

Karen brightened a bit. "Swedish meatballs. My favorite."

"Grandma's going to spoil you," Maureen warned, grateful to her parents for keeping Karen for her when she traveled.

Karen laughed. "With apple strudel for dessert, and I ate three whole pieces."

Maureen gasped. "You'll get fat."

"I won't because I ran it off on Grandpa's treadmill. I can go faster than he can."

"Yes, but then you haven't had two open-heart surgeries, either."

"If you're worried about me not getting enough exercise, I have a solution."

Maureen knew from the sound of her daughter's voice that she wasn't going to like this. "Oh, what's that?"

"I could always take up horseback riding."

"Karen," Maureen groaned. It seemed her daughter brought the subject into every conversation. "We've been through this a hundred times. We can't afford a horse."

"That's where you're wrong." It was as though Karen had been waiting impatiently for this very argument. She disappeared into her bedroom and returned breathless a moment later. "This is the address I got from the library. Did you know you can get a horse free from the United States government?"

"Karen - "

"Mom, it's true. All you need to do is read this brochure. I wrote away to Utah for all the information. It should come any day now, but I had the lady at the library make me a copy of this pamphlet so you'd see I wasn't making this all up."

"Honey, think this through. Where would we possibly put a horse?"

"In a stable," Karen answered as if that much were obvious, or should have been.

"Where in the name of heaven would we find a stable?"

Karen elevated her hands until they were level with her shoulders. "Don't sweat the small stuff, Mom."

"The small stuff? I can barely feed the two of us on what I make. In addition to everything else, I can't afford to feed a horse."

"But I'd find a job, Mom. I'd do anything I could to earn money. I bet even Dad would be willing to help pay for my horse."

Maureen's face hardened at the mention of Brain. "No," she said sternly. "I won't allow you to bring your father into this. As for getting extra money from him, sweetheart, you're a dreamer. I've had to fight for every penny he's ever given us. He forgot about you the minute he walked