Page 11 of Finding Little Fiera

The first to reach her beamed as if she’d just won a prize. She had brown hair in playful pigtails and a smile so big it felt like it should come with a warning label. “Hi! I’m Sadie,” she said cheerfully. “My Daddy is Master Derek. He kind of runs everything. If you’re here for summer camp, we’re gonna have a blast! I love your hair! It’s so cool!”

Fiera blinked.

Sadie gestured behind her. “This is Wren,” she said, pointing to the girl with red hair in springy ringlets that bounced even when she stood still. Wren wore bubblegum-pink knee-high cowgirl boots that looked like they’d been chosen on a dare. “And this is Daisy.” Daisy waved enthusiastically, dimples flashing. Her honey-blonde hair was pulled back in a messy braid, and she looked like the kind of girl who said yes first and thought later.

“Hi,” Daisy called out. “Now, who are you?”

Fiera laughed. “I’m Fiera,” she said. “And… do I want to know why you’re trying to set up tents the size of a small plane by yourselves?”

The three exchanged looks. Not innocent ones. No, these were the looks of girls who had a story to tell... a really juicy one.

Sadie cleared her throat. “Okay, so, hypothetically?—”

“Very hypothetically,” Wren broke in to clarify.

Sadie nodded. “We might have gotten into a little trouble this morning.”

“Yeah, like we might have tried to start a game of hide-and-seek,” Daisy said, nodding seriously.

Fiera frowned. “That doesn’t seem like something that would end with you all having to put up tents.” She glanced at the large pile of tents on the ground. “A lot of tents.”

“Right? That’s whatIsaid. I mean, I guess the things we hid were the tools the Daddies were using,” Sadie confessed.

“And maybe some of the important setup stuff,” Wren added with a grin.

“Ah,” Fiera said.

“But we left clues!” Daisy said brightly. “Really good ones.”

Fiera crossed her arms, delighted. “Uh-huh.”

Sadie pointed at Wren. “It was her idea.”

Wren gasped. “Excuse you, no, it wasn’t. That was Daisy’s idea.”

Daisy put a hand to her chest. “I would never. This was absolutely Sadie’s brainchild. You know I don’t come up with these things.”

Sadie grinned. “That’s true, but all we have to do is dare you, and you run with it. And it’s rude to blame others.”

Daisy glared at Sadie. “You blamed Wren first.”

“Let me guess,” Fiera broke in before a real argument began. “The clues were found.”

“Eventually,” Wren admitted.

“But not the tools. But we found them for the Daddies once they got upset.”

“Most of them,” Wren clarified.

“And now,” Daisy finished, “we have to set up all the sleeping tents. By ourselves.”

“We’ve been at this since early afternoon,” Sadie said. “And we’re only halfway done.”

Fiera glanced at the tent, then at the three girls, then back at the tent. “I see your problem. You have four corners on the tents and only three Littles to get them in place. The math doesn’t math. Want some help?”

Their faces lit up in unison.

“That would be awesome,” Sadie said, clapping.