“So, she began to cry, and he told her to shut up, then blamed it on someone else.”
Maisie inserted, “He kicked a girl.”
Colin felt his temper begin to climb but tried not to let the kids see his anger because he didn’t want to frighten them.
Maisie reiterated her point in Jaqueline’s direction. “Uh-huh, Jaq. He did… hard. A girl. Maman wouldn’t like that, would she Charwie?”
“Yeah, she’d be so mad. The big meanie came at Maisie. But I wouldn’t let him touch her. She was scared of him.”
Colin’s hands clenched under the table, but he kept the spiraling rage out of his voice. “You did good, Charlie. I’m proud of you. How many were living at that house? Foster kids I mean.”
“Lots. Like maybe this many.” Charlie held up the fingers on both hands and began to lift each one, stopping at seven. “Maybe even more. Like babies. Some of them weren’t allowed in the TV room.”
Jaq’s expression hardened. “Now I know why you weren’t willing to stay with them Charlie. I need to ask one more thing. How did you come up with the hunger strike?”
“You mean not eating? Their food was yucky. Macaroni mushed with ketchup. Maisie and I didn’t like it. Same with their breakfast. Soggy cereal I never saw before. They mixed it with watered milk. Blegh!” He made a face that Jaq had to laugh at.
Colin coughed and covered his mouth to hide his grin. “Did any of the other kids play with you and Maisie?”
“A few did. But they told us we had to be quiet, not to make a lot of noise… and only talk to the adults if they ask you a question. It was weird. Anyway, Maman said we should be with Colin, no one else. Maisie and I didn’t want to be with strangers who only agreed we could stay because Ms. Lather pleaded with them.”
Colin looked at Jaq to see if she caught the underlying message, and she had. Sounded to her like those miserly foster parents kept a very controlled environment, not exactly what one might consider overly kid-friendly. Just then the food arrived, and she watched Maisie beam.
Impatiently, the little imp waited for Charlie to cut it up for her, and before he’d even finished with the pancakes, she’d picked up a large slice of bacon and stuffed it in her mouth until both cheeks bulged. Which made chewing difficult. Rather than correcting her table manners, Jaq pretended not to see, letting both kids enjoy their food to the fullest. As far as she was concerned, they deserved it.
When Charlie’s poutine arrived, they watched him devour his favorite treat and let it pass when he ignored his fork and started eating with his fingers. Colin grinned and whispered to Jaqueline, “Fries taste better eaten that way.”
Jaq lowered her head and whispered, “Not when they’re covered in gravy and melted cheese.”
His eyes lit with glee, Colin nodded. “You got me there. But today is special.” He reiterated his statement loud enough for the kids to hear. “Today is special so you’re allowed to eat like little puppies because we know how hungry you are but only this one time. Manners will be followed after this, right?”
Both kids looked up, their eyes gleeful. With faces sticky from syrup or gravy… and cheeks bulging, they cheerfully nodded in agreement. Charlie even put it into words. “Starving kids get a pass, right Colin?”
“Right.”
By the time they’d finished their food and drank their orange juice, both kids were worn out and ready to go home. When Colin lifted Charlie out from behind the booth and picked up his jacket to help him put it on, everyone came to a dead stop. There on the floor lay a bag that had obviously flipped out of his pocket.
The see-through plastic clearly revealed a number of brightly colored purple pills. Before he could check his tone, Colin demanded, “Where did you get these, Charlie?”
Sensing the tension, poor, tired little Maisie burst into tears. “What did you do, Charwie?”
The scared boy picked up on the conflict immediately. “I promise, Colin. That ain’t mine or Maisie’s.”
Colin eased his tone, being careful not to frighten Charlie worse. “I’m positive that’s true, son. But you need to tell me where they came from?”
Charlie looked toward Maisie who was cuddled in Jaqueline’s arms and had her face against Jaq’s chest. “Did you see anyone touch my jacket, Mais?”
“Nuh-uh. I never seen it.”
“Me neither. No, wait. When we were leaving, Josh was getting in trouble. His dad was yelling at him about something, and he came and hid behind me. It made me nervous cause he kept pushing me in front of him. Maybe he put this in my pocket then.”
Colin held the bag out in front of the kids. “Do you know what these are?”
Jaqueline recognized them immediately and whispered the name of the drug. “Morphine tablets.”
Maisie broke in and added, “They look like Maman’s special candies. They make grownups better. But she towd us never to touch them cause they make kids vewy sick.”
“That’s true. Maman’s pills were for her only. But there are special medicines they make for children, pills that are safe, yes? I don’t want to frighten you about this.”
