[b][i]Chapter Two[/i][/b] [right]7.[/right]

	Cole put his hands to either side of his face in frustration. It was beginning to be just another back-and-forth argument that would get them nowhere, and was ultimately leaving their little sister out in the cold and rain in the woods, longer and longer.

	“Look,” said Cole after a moment of silence, “You’re the younger one here, okay? And I am [i]technically[/i] your parent now. Penny will be just fine; I was taking care of you [i]and[/i] myself when [i]I[/i] was seven years-”

	“Fine,” Dillon interrupted. “Let’s go.”

	If he found himself feeling any more surprised, he might just explode, Cole thought. Nonetheless, he trailed after Dillon into the woods. Crickets chirped and frogs croaked, and both brothers were getting pummeled with rain. Dillon maneuvered through the trees skillfully, almost moving faster than Cole could keep up. Cole was broad and bulky, and Dillon was thin and lanky. Having been looking at the ground, Cole bumped into his little brother, who turned around and practically snarled at him.

	Jenna was lying across the fallen oak on her belly. Her eyes were closed and she was breathing lightly and rhythmically, obviously deep in the clutches of sleep. Cole bent over and reached down to shake her awake.

	“Stop!” Dillon shouted before he could touch her. Cole looked at him incredulously and saw him biting his lip.

	“[i]What[/i]?”

	“Just hold on a second, okay?” he said, crouching beside Jenna. He lay his hands over her head, not quite touching her. Cole watched with a puzzled expression, utterly confused. He wondered if his brother had lost his mind.

	Withdrawing his hands, Dillon looked up at Cole and innocently asked, “Did you eat the cinnamon bun?”

	With that question, it clicked in Cole’s head.[i] That[/i] must have been it. The snacks Dillon brought them must have been what made the girls faint. He [i]was [/i]trying to hurt them.

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