They climbed the stairs as the three grandmothers chatted about their favorite kinds of diapers to use, the best ways to soothe a fussy charge, and so on. As they opened the door to the nursery there was a large gasp. Some clattering could be heard in the basement by James as the flurry of three pairs of footsteps made their way to the first floor.
“Well, he couldn’t have gotten far.”
“Susan, search up here. Nancy and I will look downstairs.”
James’s heart skipped a beat as he curled in the fetal position behind the couch, wanting nothing more than to melt into it and be impossible to find, but fantasy gave way to logic as the two older ladies made their way down the rickety basement steps. He curled closer to the couch as they stopped at the bottom.
