I have a little time to post, so here are two more chapters. There's some of each of at least four storylines, some of it good and some not.

Thanks for reading my story. I don't know when I'll have a chance to post more but enjoy this in the meantime.

Chapter 99.

It had been a quiet night in the Billings household. Danny had only woken once. After Scott changed his diaper, and Gretchen fed him, he'd settled back down for the rest of the night, allowing his parents some much needed sleep.

But when Scott entered A.G.'s room in the morning to get him ready for daycare, the little boy frowned and told him, "I'm not going."

"Why not?" his father asked.

A.G. just shrugged.

"You like daycare. Don't you miss Zach?"

Tears came to A.G.'s eyes. "I don't have a costume."

Scott suddenly realized that there was a Halloween party planned for that day at the daycare, and they'd never gotten around to making A.G. a costume for it. "No problem," he said, and hoped there really wouldn't be one. "What did you want to be? A cowboy?"

A.G. shook his head. "That's what Zach's gonna be."

Of course it was, Scott thought. A.G.'s friend always dressed as a cowboy, so why should Halloween be any different? "Then what?"

"I wanna be a doctor," A.G. said adamantly.

Scott smiled at him. That wasn't surprising, either. "OK." He left and came back quickly with one of his white shirts that might do as a doctor's lab coat. "We can use this."

But A.G. frowned. "No. I wanna look like Grandpa."

Now Scott frowned, too. To look like his father-in-law, his son could wear a button-down shirt, jeans and sneakers. A.G.'s trainers were very like Greg House's. But that wasn't what a doctor looked like. "How will anyone know that you're a doctor?" Scott asked.

A.G. shrugged.

Gretchen had joined them as they were discussing it, and she came up with a solution. "You can have a stethoscope around your neck and carry a little black bag."

Still, A.G. was skeptical. "Grandpa doesn't have a black bag."

"Of course he does," Gretchen said. "I bet if you ask him, he'll show it to you."

Finally satisfied, he let his parents find him the perfect shirt and pants, even crumpling the shirt a little so it looked more like his grandfather's.

"Perfect!" Gretchen declared, looking at A.G.

He looked at himself in the mirror and had to smile. His parents were so cool! They helped him find the perfect costume.

#

Barbara woke late on Friday. Once she started working, she'd have to get up early, but why start before she had to? But the phone wouldn't quit ringing, so she finally picked it up. "Hello?"

"Mrs. Stewart? It's Terry Barton. Um, I'm afraid I have some rather bad news for you."

It took Barbara a minute to remember who Terry Barton was. "Is this about the apartment?" she asked.

"Yes, well, the owners of the building do a credit check on all of their prospective renters, and well, when they did yours, they found you have no source of income," Terry told her. "I'm sorry, but they can't rent to you."

"But I have a job!" Barbara objected. "At least, I will after my interview on Monday."

"I understand that you're applying for a job, but that's not the same thing. Unless you have some other source of income, they won't even consider you," Terry said.

"Can't you at least ask them to wait until Monday afternoon?" Barbara asked. "I'm sure I'll get the position."

"All I can do is ask them, and see what they say," Terry offered.

"Thanks, Terry!" Getting that job had now become even more imperative.

#

Charley had finally settled down once Anita swore up and down that she hadn't told the sheriff or anyone else who Jeff's house guests were. Still, even out here, far from town, his brother would probably have other visitors who wouldn't be as agreeable as Anita.

When he saw that Amy was much better in the morning, he came to a decision. "We're leaving," he told Jeff.

"Where're you gonna go?"

"I don't know yet. Maybe someplace where no one knows me."

"Charley, you can't keep running! How bad can it be? You say you didn't do anything wrong."

"But some people will interpret facts however they want," Charley argued. "I can't wait around and let them do that."

"So, where would you go?" Jeff realized he couldn't change his brother's mind.

"I don't know yet, and I can't tell you. That way you'll have genuine deniability."

Jeff sighed. "When're you going?"

"Tomorrow morning. There are a couple of things I want to do first," Charley replied.

Amy sat silently on the couch, listening to their conversation. She was finally getting used to being here, and to her uncle and Anita, and now they were going away. She didn't like it, not at all.

Chapter 100.

Ellen had all of the children line up for a costume parade. She and the other teachers and aides carried the babies and toddlers.

A.G. and Zach marched with the other two- and three-year-olds. Zach hadn't realized what A.G.'s costume was, at first.

"I'm a doctor, like Grandpa," his friend told him.

"So where's your coat?" Zach asked.

"My Grandpa doesn't wear a white coat," A.G. informed him. "He looks just like me."

"Oh," Zach replied. As everyone expected, he was wearing a plaid shirt, jeans, a big hat and his cowboy boots. Just like he did every day.

The other children in the daycare had either home-made or store-bought costumes. Some were quite elaborate. A.G. noticed that the bigger girl who he'd seen playing with Amy a few times was wearing a brightly colored skirt and white shirt. He wondered what she was supposed to be, but it looked pretty. Still, it made him think about what Amy would have worn, and whether she was someplace she could celebrate Halloween.

#

After her classes were over that day, Moira drove over to Tommy and Emily's house. She hoped to find Clarissa awake so she could show Emily how good she could be with the baby.

Emily answered the door, carrying Clarissa in a sling. She smiled when she saw Moira. "You're just in time. She's decided she's not ready to go down for a nap yet."

Moira smiled. "May I?" she asked, reaching out for the infant.

Emily took Clarissa out of the sling and handed her over, watching Moira to make sure she had a good grip on her.

"She's so pretty," Moira said. "Some babies are just cute because they're small, but Clarissa has the loveliest face." She smiled at the little one in her arms. "Are you breastfeeding?" she asked Emily. It was a major consideration if she was going to babysit.

"Yes, but she also has one bottle of formula each day and water from a bottle, too," Emily replied.

Moira nodded, but Clarissa began to fuss a little, so she started singing to her.

Sing, sing a song

Sing it loud, sing it long...

Clarissa quieted down and seemed to be listening to Moira's clear and sweet voice. She stared at the teenager.

"You have a way with her," Em said.

Moira smiled at Emily. "I think I'm going to enjoy taking care of her." She sang a little more, and Clarissa's eyes began to close. Soon she was fast asleep.

#

Anita had a long workday. Fridays and Saturdays were always the busiest days of the week at the beauty salon where she cut hair and painted nails. She was the most in-demand stylist in the place, and she was great with nails, both finger- and toe-.

When she was finally through at six, and had cleaned up her station, she went next door to the Chinese take-out place to order a bunch of dishes. Fifteen minutes later, several white bags of little white boxes clutched in her hands, she got in her car and drove out to Jeff's place.

She could hear the arguing before she even reached the front door. Now what? She could do without another evening of a verbally-abusive Charley. If it wasn't for Jeff and the little girl, she would have gotten into her car and driven back the way she came.

The shouting stopped when she knocked on the door with her elbow. Jeff opened it and smiled at her. "Glad you're here. Maybe you can talk some sense into my brilliant but dumb brother."

He helped her carry the food to the kitchen and she dared to ask, "What's he going on about now?"

Jeff shook his head. "He's got a notion that he's not 'safe' here, wants to take off in the morning. And get this: he won't tell me where he's going, but he wants me to let him take the 'Vette."

"But that's your pride and joy! Even you don't take it anywhere."

Jeff nodded. "And it's quite easy to spot. All anyone has to know is that's what he's driving. They'll find him in no time flat!"

"Jeff, are you more upset that he's leaving or that he's taking the Corvette?" Anita asked.

That made Jeff stop and think. He wasn't sure what the answer was.