Page 182 of Daddy’s Fortitude

However, maybe she should have done something like this earlier because this was kind of fun. She’d found this magnifying glass in one of the drawers in the cabin and was using it to find all sorts of creepy crawlies.

“Kevin really would have enjoyed this walk. Are you sure we couldn’t have brought him, Daddy?”

“I think it’s better that Kevin stay here at the cabin.”

“Ooh, berries,” she said, rushing over to a bush filled with plump, red berries. “These look pretty. I bet they taste nice.”

She picked some off the bush and held them up. Instantly, Ammo was there, slapping them out of her hand.

“Hey, what did you do that for? Those were my berries, Daddy.”

“Were you going to eat those berries?” he demanded.

“Maybe,” she said. “They were my berries, though. You didn’t have to smack them on the ground, Daddy. If you wanted some, I would have gotten them for you.”

“Those were poisonous berries,” he told her.

“They were?” She stared at the berries in shock.

“Yes, and you definitely shouldn’t have been eating them.”

“Bad berries. You’re such a party pooper, though, Daddy. Don’t eat this. Don’t run away. Stop looking at the sun. Don’t touch this. How am I supposed to live if I can’t do anything?”

“You can do safe things,” he told her.

“Safe things are boring.” She took hold of his hand and attempted to tug him along. “Come on. I can hear some water. Can you hear some water?”

“We should head home now. We’ve been out for a while, and you need to rest.”

“I’m tired of resting. I’ve had enough rest. I feel perfectly fine.”

“Do you?” he said.

“Uh-huh.”

“Interesting.”

What did that mean? Honestly, sometimes he talked in riddles.

They walked a bit further until she found the water she’d heard. It was actually a really pretty creek. “Wow. I bet that water’s cold.”

“It will be. Stay well back. I don’t want you falling in.”

“Oh, Daddy, I’m not going to fall into a creek,” she said. “I’m thirsty. I think I’ll just have a drink.”

“No, you can drink the water I brought with us.”

“Oh, yeah, I forgot we brought that, and some food?”

“Yeah. We can eat here by the water, then we’ll go back to the cabin.”

She clapped her hands. “Yay, a picnic! That will be so much fun. I can’t remember the last time I went on a picnic. When’s the last time you went on a picnic, Daddy?”

“Never.”

She froze. “Wait, what? You’ve never been on a picnic before?”

“No, not that I can recall.”