Chapter 537

When Penelope arrived at Natalie’s apartment, she found her making pizza with the two children.
“I want to add ham!”
“I want to add bacon!”
“And I want to add chocolate chips!”
“No, chocolate chips will ruin it!”
“But I want them!”
Kristin wanted to put chocolate chips on the pizza, but Hubert thought it would taste bad, so the two started bickering. After just a few exchanges, however, Hubert relented.
“Fine, you can have your chocolate chips.”
The little guy sighed in resignation. He adored his sister and didn’t want to make her angry, so he had to agree.
“Hubert’s right, it won’t taste good
“Mommy!” Kristin grew even more upset.
Natalie quickly surrendered. “How about we put chocolate chips on one half and not on the other? Is that okay?”
Kristin was actually a reasonable little girl, so she immediately agreed. “Okay, he doesn’t like chocolate, so we won’t put any on his half.”
“My princess really does love Hubert the most!” Penelope said with a smile, leaning against the kitchen doorway.
The two children turned and saw her, their faces lighting up with excitement.
“Mommy!”
“Penelope!”
They raced towards her, and Penelope bent down to catch one in each arm, planting a kiss on each of their cheeks.
“Look what I brought you.”
She had gone to Orenth’s most famous deli and bought a roasted chicken. The kids loved it, and she always brought one back for them whenever she visited the city.
“Wow! Mommy’s the best!”
“Penelope is the bestest!”
The two kids took the bag from her and excitedly ran to the dining room to eat.
Their family titles were a bit of a mess. Both children called their mothers’ best friend by her first name. It started when Natalie joked with Hubert that being called ‘auntie’ made her feel old. The little boy had cleverly started calling her Penelope, and Kristin suit. The adults
found it amusing, so the
unconventional address stuck.
Penelope walked into the kitchen. As the children’s laughter faded, she gently patted
Natalie’s shoulder.
“What happened?”
She had sensed something was off
with Natalie the moment she
arrived Natalie was clearly forcing her cheerful demeanor for the children Sure enough when Natalle turned around, her eyes were red.
“We ran into Hamilton at the audition today.”
At those words, Penelope’s brow furrowed.
She knew everything about Natalie and Hamilton’s past and knew how much Natalie feared him, so much so that she hadn’t returned to Orenth in years.
At the same time, she noticed the marks on Natalie’s neck.
“He laid a hand on you!”
Natalie let out a long sigh. “I’m fine, but he got Kristin disqualified with a single word.
I feel so guilty, so useless
Penelope hugged her. “This is Hamilton we’re talking about. If he decides to go after someone, no one can stand in his way.”
“I’m so scared of seeing him.”
“I know.”
“Let’s go back to our town tomorrow.”
Penelope nodded. “I’ve handled my business here. We’ll go home tomorrow.”
As they talked, they didn’t notice Kristin and Hubert hiding behind the kitchen door.
They saw Natalie crying and heard every word.
The two little ones returned to their room, each angrier than the last.
“That Queena bullied me, and her dad bullied Mommy. That father and daughter are both bad people!”
“We have to defeat the bad guys!”
“But how do we fight them?”
Hubert’s eyes darted around. “I have a plan!”
After dinner, the two children went to bed early.
Before heading to her own room, Penelope peeked in on them. Seeing them sleeping soundly, she kissed each on the forehead and went to bed with her mind at ease.