Chapter 19River
The kids were awesome. Mona was flourishing, and Lake had even asked her if she wanted to do some “school stuff” which she’d readily accepted. He was now giving her math lessons while Ben taught her reading and writing.
We’d been pleasantly surprised when it had become obvious that she knew the basics, at least, because Madden had taught her as much as he could.
Madden, on the other hand, was struggling. He’d lost part of his liver and his spleen, and there had been complications that left him weak as a kitten for the time being. He hated that someone—Toby—was paying for his medical bills and medications, and that he couldn’t be independent.
He did, however, understand the full scope of the situation and tried his best not to show Mona how upset he really was. On the po
