At first, Hitch had no complaints that Carolyn had no fear of snakes, but he had moments where he was worried her lack of fear would get her into trouble. He didn't mind her running up to the pet store and looking at the ball pythons as part of their ritual coming home from preschool, but her running up to cottonmouths and copperheads whenever they went hiking definitely made Hitch nervous.

He had been bitten by a copperhead himself when he was little. The viper hadn't given him any venom, but he quickly developed a fear of them. Copperheads weren't nearly as bad, venom-wise, compared to the residents of North Africa, namely the Saharan horned vipers and the Egyptian cobras, but they still weren't something to be messed around with, especially by a five-year-old girl with no fear of them.

Every snake was Anah now, even though Hitch tried and tried again to explain to Carolyn that Anah was one of a kind and not every snake was like her. Still, that didn't stop Carolyn from finding snakes in the yard and climbing up on a chair in the kitchen and making a phone call to Cambridge to tell Anah that she "found a friend." Moffitt didn't exactly appreciate having his afternoon tea interrupted, but Carolyn would still grin up at Hitch every time and say, "Uncle Moffitt is having his tea. He's very grumpy."

Hitch would take the phone, apologize to Moffitt, and hang up before telling Carolyn that she needed to ask permission and be mindful of the time whenever she wanted to call someone, and she would argue that "Uncle Troy said we can call anyone whenever we want."

Of course he said that, Hitch would think with a sigh.

Things came to a head one morning when Carolyn came running into the garage with something in her hands. "Daddy! Daddy! Look!"

"What is it, sweetie?" Hitch pulled himself out from under his car, having been in the middle of changing the oil. His eyes widened when he saw the two-foot-long copperhead dangling from his daughter's hands. "Put that down, now!"

"Daddy, it's hurt."

"I don't care! Put it down! Those can hurt you!"

Carolyn looked like she was about to cry as she put the copperhead down on the cool, smooth floor of the garage. "It's not moving, Daddy."

Hitch sat up, looking down at the lifeless snake. The copperhead did indeed have several nasty wounds on both of its sides. Looks like a raccoon or a fox bit it, he thought. Despite it looking barely alive, Hitch stayed as far from the snake's head as possible.

"Can you fix it?" Carolyn asked.

"Uh… yeah. I can try." Hitch glanced around frantically. "Go get your mother."

Carolyn ran into the house, while Hitch got up. He made sure his daughter was out of sight before using a rod to scoop up the copperhead. He sighed as he headed down the driveway to put the snake in the bushes, but stopped partway when he realized what he was doing. You're seriously going to let it die, and lie to your own daughter about it? Yes, I am, because I'm not going to encourage her to keep picking up dangerous snakes like they're not capable of hurting her. I don't want her to learn the hard way. He let out a sigh, holding the helpless snake over the bushes.

Molly came up behind him, holding a towel and wearing oven mitts. "Alright, where is it?"

"I got it," Hitch said. "I'm… gonna dump it in the bushes."

"Is that really the best idea?" Molly asked. "I know you don't like them, but it seems cruel to just let it die, and—" she looked back toward the house, "it'd break Carolyn's heart."

"She can't do things like this. One of these days, she's gonna get hurt."

"I don't think that justifies what you're doing. It clearly needs help, otherwise it would've bitten her."

Sighing again, Hitch lowered the copperhead into Molly's towel. "Alright. Let's see what we can do. It looks dead already, though."

"Get it warm, maybe that'll give it some life," Molly said. She walked with the viper back to the house, and gently placed it in a plastic tub on the kitchen counter.

"Here—put warm water in the tub." Hitch turned on the sink, holding his hand under the water until it was comfortably warm.

"Are you fixing the copperhead?" Carolyn asked, running into the kitchen.

"Yes, we're trying to… fix the copperhead," Hitch replied.

"Should we call Auntie Anah?"

"That might actually be a good idea," Molly said.

Hitch froze. "Anah will know I—"

"Just give it a shot. She'll forgive you."

"Okay." Hitch looked at the copperhead in the tub before picking up the phone and dialing Moffitt. Much to his surprise, the snake moved its head a little, and Hitch began wondering if now that it was awake, it wouldn't be so keen on being touched. He looked back at the phone, waiting for someone to pick up.

He heard Jules's voice on the other line. "Hello?"

"Hey, Jules, is your dad there?" Hitch asked.

"He's out in the garden right now. Do you want me to go get him?"

"No, I just wanted to make sure we're not interrupting teatime again. Can I talk to Anah?"

"Sure!" Jules stepped away from the phone, and called, "Miss Anah! Mr. Hitch wants to talk to you!"

"You do not have to yell across the house, dear," Anah said. She sighed before saying, "What can I do for you, Hitch?"

"Carolyn found a hurt copperhead in the yard," Hitch replied. "I don't know how to treat it."

"I see. Describe the injury."

"Looks like an animal bit it, either a raccoon or a fox. Four little puncture wounds on its side, chest area, I think."

"Is it conscious and moving?"

"A little. Once we got it warm, it's been moving its head."

"Alright. How did you get it warm?"

"Plastic tub of warm water. Shallow water. Looks like it's cleaning the wounds out."

"Are they infected?"

"No, doesn't look like it."

"How is its breathing?"

"I can't hear anything."

"Does it appear to be struggling to breathe?"

"No, ma'am."

"Lucky soul, then. Keep up what you are doing, but you will not be able to release it for a few days."

"Anah, this's a wild copperhead. I don't want it in my house, especially not with my kids around."

"Never underestimate an animal's ability to understand the kindness you are showing it. I would still use caution, but I doubt it will seek you and your family out to bite you. What happened to you as a child was an accident. You stepped too close, and the copperhead saw you as a threat."

Hitch bit his tongue. "How'd you know that?"

He could hear Anah's smile. "I know a lot of things, dear, including that snakes make you a bit uneasy. I made you uneasy at first."

Hitch remembered jumping every time he was awake first in North Africa and saw Anah asleep on Moffitt. He eventually got used to her presence, but was wary of her until seeing just how much she cared, not just about Moffitt, but about the rest of the Rats. She didn't make him completely accepting of snakes, but he accepted her and her alone. Now, he was wondering if he made a mistake in letting his daughter interact with Anah no differently than a harmless animal. "Yeah, you did make me nervous at first," Hitch said, trying not to get too lost in his thoughts.

"I sense there is something else troubling you."

"Well, I'm not exactly happy that my five-year-old daughter picked up a copperhead with her bare hands. She's lucky it couldn't do anything."

"I think Carolyn is more intuitive than you give her credit for."

"She has no fear. It's going to get her hurt."

"Having fear of something does not always mean it will protect you. Fear can make one irrational. Knowledge, on the other hand, can protect you, but you must know how to use that knowledge first. Carolyn's lack of fear of snakes means she is more willing to learn about them and the dangers some of them pose when mishandled."

"You got a point, but she seems to think every snake is like you. That's what I'm worried about."

"I see."

"I've tried telling her, over and over, if a snake doesn't talk, it's not Anah, so just leave it alone."

Anah was quiet for a moment. "I see. I am not sure how to help with that."

"I don't want her to learn the hard way."

"I know. I do not want that to happen, either. Trust your daughter's instincts, dear. She clearly loves all animals and I see that as something she maintains in her future. Nurture that."

"I'll try. Thanks, Anah." Hitch set the phone down, and looked back at the copperhead in the tub. He changed the water, then went back out to finish changing the oil in his car.

He returned to find the copperhead was still in the tub. It was more attentive now and watched his every move as he pulled a set of tongs out from a drawer near the stove. "Not gonna hurt you," Hitch said. "Just gonna try and clean your wounds, okay?" I can't believe I'm doing this. He gently gripped the copperhead in the tongs, using a damp washcloth to wipe at the wounds on the snake's side. Once they were as clean as they were going to get, Hitch moved the copperhead to a different tub, and placed the tub near a radiator. He made sure the tub had a lid, and even though the lid was secure, he placed a couple of atlases on top, to really make sure the snake couldn't get out.

All day, Carolyn kept asking about the copperhead. With her brother's help, she managed to take the atlases off in order to see it herself just before bed. "It's moving, Daddy!" Carolyn said excitedly. "It's getting better!"

"Yeah," Hitch replied, unable to feign enthusiasm. "It's time for bed, sweetie. Go on upstairs."

"I wanna stay down here tonight."

"No. You need sleep. So does the copperhead. It can't get better if it doesn't sleep, okay? Go upstairs and read for a little bit."

Carolyn gave a disappointed, "Okay," before heading upstairs to her bedroom.

Hitch heard the door close, then went over to the tub to secure the lid and put the atlases back on. He looked down at the tub's occupant, seeing it was huddled in a corner closest to the radiator outside.

"Are you coming up to bed, Mark?" Molly asked.

Hitch kept his gaze on the copperhead. "I will in a minute."

"Alright. Don't be too long." Molly kissed the side of Hitch's head before going upstairs.

Initially, Hitch didn't think he would still be downstairs, but he stayed and kept watching the copperhead. He wasn't quite sure why. It did nothing, but it fascinated him all the same. "You probably haven't eaten in a while," Hitch said. "I don't have mice or anything."

He stood and went into the kitchen, opening the fridge and taking out a container of chicken tenderloins that were thawing for the next day. He took one of them out of the container, and ran it under warm water until it was completely thawed. Then he cut the meat into smaller chunks, and took one of them in a set of tongs to bring over to the tub.

"Here," Hitch said. "It's not much, but it's better than nothing."

He jumped a little when the copperhead grabbed the chicken in its strong jaws, and dropped the tongs in the tub. Hitch cursed to himself while quickly reaching in and grabbing the tongs back, grateful the snake was distracted. He took a deep breath and checked his hand. No bites. Good. "You, uh, you want another?"

He gave the copperhead another piece of the chicken, and washed the tongs in the sink. The snake was still in the corner closest to the radiator, but it was now facing Hitch, looking up at him. For a moment, Hitch wondered if it really did understand he was trying to help it.

"We both need to sleep," he said. "Good night." Hitch closed the lid and put the atlases on top. Don't die in the middle of the night. I'm not ready to explain that to Carolyn. He made sure the lights were off before heading upstairs and joining his wife in bed. His concerns about the copperhead melted away rapidly as he snuggled up close to Molly.

"That was much longer than a minute," Molly said.

"Sorry," Hitch whispered. "I… gave the snake some food. Now I'm just hoping it survives the night."

"I hope so, too. Carolyn would be devastated."

"Yeah. We did our best, though." He sighed. "I'm still worried she's going to learn the hard way that she can't go around picking up every snake she sees."

"I don't think that'll happen. She's very smart, like you."

"Well, I felt pretty clueless today."

"Think about it—she did exactly what you or one of the others would've done back in the war. Despite the danger, she was determined to save a life."

"Still feels different, but I see your point."

"Wouldn't you compare it to saving Dietrich? He had several opportunities to hurt you all and didn't."

"Can't really make that comparison anymore, and again, Carolyn goes up and greets every snake she sees, because she thinks it's Anah."

"She will eventually grow out of it."

"I hope so. I don't mind her not being afraid, but she needs to be more careful."

Molly nodded in agreement. She shifted closer to Hitch, until her head was directly under his chin. For a few moments, she was quiet, then asked, "Maybe we should just get her a snake of her own."

"Well, she's not keeping that copperhead."

"I don't mean that, silly. You walk by the pet store all the time and let her look at the ball pythons. Maybe let her choose one."

"Let me think about it. I don't want her bringing it into school."

"At least it wouldn't be like Jules bringing Anah into his school."

"True. There's also the fact that Sarge would be worried it'll join in with Anah and Moffitt's horses in conspiring to be annoying and take his hat all the time."

"Good point, but it's not like we'd let Carolyn bring it on our trips to England."

"No, it'll be part of the family. If it's a living thing owned by or related to me, Tully, Troy, Moffitt, or Dietrich, it's part of the family. Those're the rules."