Little Red

SIXTY SEVEN

He mouthed the word Sorry in response, which made her roll her eyes and turn back to her father, who looked in between them before he settled his eyes on Dani with a sigh.

"Alright, alright, fine," he mumbled and looked at Pinocchio. "But I swear to you if my daughter turns out worse than she did when we first got here, you're going to wish you remained a puppet."

"Dad!" Dani exclaimed while hitting his arm. "Cut it out!!"

Pinocchio's eyes held a sudden seriousness to them as he kept eye contact with David and said, "With all due respect, Mr.Richards, I am the only person in this town who knows how to help save your daughter. I can see how much she's struggling, and I'm willing to help her out of the kindness of my heart. So it'll do you good to never threaten me again. And while we're on the subject, never ever call me toyboy again."

He then turned his attention to Dani with a small smile and said, "I've been following your story for a very long time, Dani. I don't believe in harming kids, and though you may not be one now, you were one when this all started. So, I'm going to do the very best that I can to help you get better, okay? I promise you."

A small form of hope grew inside Dani's chest at Pinocchio's words as she could see that he had meant everything he'd said. She couldn't quite explain it, but from the moment he had stepped out of the shadows, she'd had an overwhelming feeling to put her full trust in him.

So she did.

With a smile, Dani nodded and said, "Okay...I believe you."

A wide grin spread across Pinocchio's lips as he gave the girl a wink.

✧

After getting David to - reluctantly- apologize for his words, Pinocchio led the father-daughter duo to his upstairs apartment where they all sat in his living room. Although David and Dani had informed him of everything that had been happening to her since Henry's death, Pinocchio had yet to explain to them exactly how he could help them.

"Okay, so, to recap," Pinocchio said with a clap. "You, David, killed Henry by shooting him in the head, correct?"

David sighed and nodded, which caused Pinocchio to nod in response and turn his attention to Dani.

"And you, Dani, are now hearing him in your head, and have a mysterious claw mark on your abdomen?" he questioned, causing her to nod as well. "Interesting...If you don't mind, may I see it?"

"Absolutely not."

Dani huffed in annoyance. While initially understandable at first given how they were welcomed when stepping into the store, David's hostile attitude towards Pinocchio had slowly begun to work the girl's nerves.

"Yes, you can if it'll help," she answered, and directed the last word towards her father with a pointed look.

The man rolled his eyes at the gesture.

Dani got up to sit beside Pinocchio, who sat on the opposite couch and lifted her shirt. Pinocchio furrowed his brows as he examined the mark before glancing up at Dani.

"Do you mind if I..?"

Getting the hint, Dani nodded for him to continue, and Pinocchio looked back down as he raised his hand to gently touch the mark. As soon as his fingers came into contact with it, his eyes widened in shock.

"Oh...Oh, God," he mumbled while pulling his hand away.

A frown curved on Dani's features at his reaction as she shared a worried look with David.