Chapter 43

A new wave of parents and kids arrived, the after-dinner crowd, Kiko guessed. He noticed a small group that had finished up painting wandering over to see what Buddy had in the cage and he wanted to go over and tell the brewmeister to leave, but he and Dom were busy situating kids at the tables and making sure things were running mostly smoothly. Kiko gritted his teeth. He’d have to deal with it later.

He helped a five-year-old lay out her canvas and grab some purple and red paint, her parent lingering nearby. The man looked about fifty so Kiko didn’t know whether he was her father or grandfather, but he didn’t bother taking off his orange coat. After he was sure his kid was fine and happily smearing paint all over he left to wander the store.

“Buddy’s really not leaving, is he?” asked Dom as he passed by with a plate too soggy to continue using. He dumped it in the trash. “I thought maybe he’d just go.”