“No, I’m sorry, but that can’t possibly be right, Headmaster Bricks,” Devil denied vehemently even though in his heart he knew that his daughter was entirely capable of carrying out the charges of which she was currently being accused. Snapping his fingers at Molly to get her attention, he watched his wife walk toward his desk, her brows furrowed as she approached him. “Look, I’ll talk to Molly and Devlynn about this tonight and get back with you first thing in the morning, but I absolutely will not tolerate my daughter being expelled for this infraction. It’s preposterous! My daughter has an inquisitive mind, and if one of your teachers was silly enough to leave her password to the grading system in plain sight, you’ve got to expect that a student is going to use it. And as you’ve already said, Devlynn didn’t actually change anyone’s grade. She was merely reviewing her scores. I hardly think that’s a crime worthy of the name hacking.”
“Oh, dear God,” Molly choked, pressing a hand to her chest as she listened to Devil’s side of the conversation.
“As you recall, Headmaster, I’ve donated several thousand dollars to the technology center at Dalton Academy, even though you people get public funding that I’ve already paid for with my sizable taxes. The way I see it, my daughter was simply using one of the computers I provided to her school to check on her grades. Perhaps, she went about it the wrong way…” Devil paused, his face reddening as his jaw clenched. “I beg your pardon! My daughter is NOT on her way to a life of white-collar crime, you uptight pencil pusher! I swear to God, Devlynn had better not be sitting there listening to this bullshit or so help me God, I’ll ruin you,” he threatened severely before going silent for another half-minute. “Fine, damn it! Maybe she did hack into your precious system, but suspected hackers have feelings, too, you asshat! Hell, if you ask me, my girl’s brilliant if she was able to overcome your so-called firewalls and get into your impenetrable system! Besides, they were her grades! She had a right to review them, did she not?”
“Devil, calm down,” Molly hissed as she tried to pry the phone from her husband’s hand.
Pressing the phone harder to his ear, Devil’s eyes narrowed as he heard the needledick of a headmaster threaten his kid for the fourth time with a disciplinary action that she’d carry in her permanent education file. “Well, perhaps, I’ll simply contact my own attorney and see how legal these threats of yours are, Headmaster Bricks. Even if my daughter committed these actions in exactly the way you’ve described, for a first-time offense, I’m fairly certain you’re overreaching the limits of your authority. Or are you still holding a grudge regarding The Great Apple Standoff of her kindergarten year?” he asked snidely before looking at his worried wife and smiling smugly. Covering the mouthpiece of the phone, he winked at his wife. “I’ve got him running scared, Molly. Don’t worry.”
Rolling her eyes at her husband’s antics, Molly huffed impatiently. “Devil, her academic future is on the line! Be serious,” she begged, sighing as her husband wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her down into his lap.
“I’m always serious when it comes to my girls’ well-being,” Devil assured her before turning his attention back to the phone call. Lifting the phone back to his ear, he smiled as he listened to the Headmaster backtrack. Suddenly, it seemed that his devious little spawn, perhaps, wasn’t quite so bad. “So you’ll retract your comment about a permanent note in her file?” Devil asked harshly. Silent a moment as he listened to the other end of the conversation, Devil smiled. “That’s good to hear, Headmaster Bricks, and yes, I’ll be sure to speak to Devlynn about appropriate boundaries and computer conduct,” he agreed readily. “Yes, goodbye, Headmaster.”
Hanging up the phone, he chuckled as he turned his attention toward his wife.
“Well?” Molly questioned, moving restlessly on his lap. “What happened?”
“Honestly, it appears our little darling pilfered her teacher’s password to the grading system and went in to try and see her grades. She didn’t alter anything. Hell, she had no intention of making any changes, but the Headmaster initially wanted to make an example out of her. Unfortunately for him, he chose the wrong kid to try to make his stand on.”
“Ugh! This is all your fault, Devil! You’re the one that kept her in your lap all those times you worked on the computer. She’s picked up on things! It’s a wonder she’s not surfing the dark web by now,” Molly complained, shooting her husband an irritated look. “You’re gonna have to do something about this, Devil!”
“Oh, I will. Once I figure out if I’m more proud of her or horrified by her. Right now, it’s a close race,” he noted with twinkling eyes and a wide grin.
“Something tells me that you’re leaning toward being proud of her,” Molly grumbled, leaning back against Devil’s chest as she heaved out a heavy sigh and shook her head.
“And why is that?” Devil asked, dropping a kiss to the top of her head, his heart skipping a beat as he felt that familiar tug in his soul that came around every time he touched his amazing wife.
“Because, Devil, you always are! And for the record, days like this? They’re the reason there will be no siblings for our Spawn!”