Chapter 37: No need
"Your dad... seemed to have misunderstood something."
’What misunderstanding could it be?’ Penny wondered, glossing her eyes over the faces in front of her.
All of them carried this strange look that had a mix of disbelief, shame, and everything. It tickled her curiosity.
At the same time, Butler Jen noticed the tip of the cage peeking out behind Haines. He stretched his neck out of curiosity, squinting as he saw something inside.
"An otter?" he blurted out quietly, but with the silence, his confused voice was clearer than it should be.
"An otter?" Hugo repeated, eyes at Butler Jen.
Butler Jen gazed at Hugo and then at Penny before shifting his eyes to the rest of the family.
"It’s not an otter," Haines sighed helplessly, glancing at Charles to let the man explain.
At this point, Charles’s spirit already hit rock bottom. He looked at Penny apologetically, retrieving his hand from Atlas and Slater.
"It’s a mouse," Charles confessed as he reluctantly stepped away, granting Penny and Hugo a glimpse of what was behind them.
Hugo and Penny intuitively shifted their eyes to the large cage and the animal inside. They looked at it emotionlessly, blinking, trying to figure out what it was.
"A baby elephant?" Hugo guessed, and at the same time, Penny also spoke. "Chinchilla?"