"Are they still awake?" He shrugged the jacket off his shoulders and hung it in the hall closet as he looked back at Hannah and waited for a reply.
"I tried," she admitted, "but Johnny was zonked. That kid must have played pretty hard at that party. I don't know that I've ever not had to argue with him about bed time." She smiled warmly at the disappointment on Billy's face. "But I'm pretty sure Katie's hanging in there. We read three books tonight and when I left she still seemed pretty alert, so if you hurry, you can probably still get your good nights in with her."
"Thanks, Hannah." Billy sighed as he moved to head up the stairs. "And thank you, for agreeing to move in here for a few days. I know it was last minute and I'm sure you probably had other things you'd rather be doing, but I really appreciate the assist. Things have been pretty crazy around here as you can imagine and …"
"It's no problem, really. I love hanging out with the kids and I know Victoria is probably worried sick about them. I like to think it will make her feel better to know I'm around so you have an extra pair of hands." She stopped herself then, realizing how her words might sound to him. "Not that you couldn't handle it on your own, but …"
"No offense taken," he smiled. "I wouldn't even want to try. They are definitely a two person job … three if you can get it. Let me get up there so I can at least see one of them tonight."
He tried to avoid the nagging feelings of guilt as he quickly climbed the stairs. He'd meant to be home nearly an hour and a half ago, but instead he'd been retracing his steps throughout Genoa City, certain that if he revisited all Phyllis' favorite spots, she'd show up in one of them by now, but she hadn't. He didn't want to let his brain go there – didn't want to begin to allow himself to wonder if something was wrong.
The soft light from Katie's lamp filtered through the cracked doorway into the hallway and, as he pushed it open ever so slightly, he saw the covers on the bed shift.
"Hannah?" her tiny voice called out from the bed.
"I'll give you one more guess," he answered, feeling his heart swell at the sight of her bright smile. "Hey sweetie. I was hoping you'd still be awake."
"I am," she nodded. "Katie already read me two stories, but if you want to read me some, you can."
"Oh really? You'll let me do that?" He grinned at her as he pulled up the small pink stool beside her bed. "We'll see about that. I want to hear about dance class first though. Did Miss Lucia let you show her how much you've been practicing your turns?"
Katie's bright smile dimmed a bit. "Uh huh," she answered, her eyes suddenly not meeting his. "She said I was one of the best in the class."
The abrupt change in mood was clear and impossible to miss. "Did something else happen in class?" Katie loved dance. It was one of the few things that she always did without any measure of friction. Katie had his stubborn streak and, if she wasn't in the mood to do something, everyone knew it … without fail. "You still like going to dance with Miss Lucia, right?"
"I do. Dance is fun. I like it."
"Okay. Well good then. You want to tell me what made you sad just now?"
"No," Katie answered honestly. Then, after looking at him quickly, she added, "You might get upset again."
"Upset? Oh you mean earlier what we talked about?"
"You were upset, weren't you?"
"Not with you sweetie and I wasn't really upset. I just think Phyllis should tell me if she's gonna come to school and visit with you because only one person can eat lunch with you and what if someone else was planning to come?"
"But we had fun Daddy and I like having lunch with Phyllis."
Billy sighed. "I know you do sweetie and I'll talk to Phyllis about it. I'll make sure she knows that you had a lot of fun, okay?" He touched her hair softly, waiting on her face to change, hoping his words had made her feel better, but the concerned, melancholy look remained. "You still look sad," he said softly. "I promise I'm not upset with you."
"I know. I'm just said because I won't get to see Phyllis anymore."
"I didn't say that, sweetheart. I just think Phyllis and I need to talk about how we plan things. That's all. We can work something out so that you can see Phyllis sometimes if you really want to. Would that make you happy?"
Katie nodded her head slowly. "Uh huh, but she said no."
Billy stopped, his hand frozen on the soft edge of the comforter. "Who said no? Phyllis?" He tried to control his expressions knowing all too well how easily Katie picked up on everything both the words you said and those you didn't. "When did you talk to Phyllis?"
She hesitated for a moment, the sigh that left her small lips exceedingly heavy and weighted for a little girl so young. "She called and talked to me tonight while I was at dance. Miss Lucia let me talk to her on the phone and she told me she was gonna have to go away for maybe a long time and she wouldn't be able to talk to me anymore."
"I gotta hand it to you, that was very good, very convincing. I have to respect someone that can lie that well. I see how you ended up as the ringleader of the little band of bitches."
"Would you please just stop it? How can you be so cold about hurting a little girl? I mean I know I've done plenty of terrible things in my life, but I've never intentionally manipulated a child this way."
"No. You've just ran over people and buried people alive. Moral high ground is all yours. Besides, Katie will be just fine. She's got the whole Newman clan to surround her and make sure she's okay."
"I still think you're underestimating her. She's a smart little girl and she's gonna know that something's wrong."
"So what if she does? You really think they're gonna believe a four year old when she tells them she's been talking to a dead man? Or better yet, you think they're gonna believe a four year old when she sticks up for you?" He loomed over her, his presence as menacing as ever. "Face it. No one cares that you're gone. No one's looking for you, so if you never come back, if anything, it'll probably be a relief."
Billy stood up, pacing the length of the small bed.
"See," Katie said softly, "I told you you'd be upset."
"I'm not upset." He sat back down, forcing his hands to settle on the side of the bed. "I'm not. I'm just confused because … what did Phyllis say to you to make you think that she was going away?"
"She told me just that. That she was going away for maybe a long time. And she said she was sorry that we couldn't talk anymore. Did you tell her she couldn't talk to me Daddy?"
"No I .. I didn't," he answered honestly. "I haven't talked to Phyllis today. I've been trying to find her, but I haven't been able to. Did she tell you where she was going or where she was when she called you?" He tried not to let the worry show through his voice.
"No, she didn't have much time to talk she said, but I could tell she was sad."
He swallowed hard, the deep pit in his stomach growing more present even as he tried to push it away. "Why do you think that?"
"Her voice cracked like Mommy's does when she reads me the story book with the sad end." Katie's eyes looked up at him, full of emotion. "I don't think she wanted to go away, Daddy."
His heart beat faster inside his chest as he listened to the innocence in her words. "Well, maybe tomorrow you can draw her a picture." He paused for a moment. "Like the one you drew for your friend, J.T.?" He needed to say no more. The look on Katie's face told him everything he needed to know. Phyllis hadn't been lying to him after all. "It's okay, you know." He tucked the covers tighter around Katie. "You don't have to worry about telling the truth and Phyllis didn't want to tell me. I kind of made her. I just need you to know that you're not in any kind of trouble okay?
Katie nodded. She seemed to consider these words for a moment before speaking. "Okay," she said quietly, "but Daddy?"
Billy leaned in closer. "Yeah sweetie?"
"Is Phyllis in trouble?"
