CHAPTER NINETEEN
A string of middle-primary-school-aged kids jumped from the bus’s bottom step and raced across the yard. The sweet ring of laughter floated above the sounds of arriving cars and slamming doors. Franklin hated that the innocence and pure happiness of kids was so short-lived. All too soon, life tested or ripped it from them – as he was about to do.
Howell propped on the bonnet of the CIU wagon. Franklin considered warning him he’d get a wet arse, but didn’t have the energy.
Finally, a woman’s hand appeared on the rail. Kendra supported herself as she stepped off the bus, clumsy for her belly that’d shot out since he’d last seen her. Safely down, she held out her hands to help two children much smaller than the rest: a boy and a girl. Irvy’s youngest, except for the one in
