Page 32 of Harts & Hurts

Rosalie Conley checked her phone, where she must’ve had notes. “Yes, Tuesday of this week. Would it be possible for me to do a quick safety check?”

“Yeah, there’s not much to see. You can see most of the house from right here, but I’ll show you the bedrooms.”

Rosalie stood and followed Griffin as he led her toward the back of the house. I sat on the sofa and held Melrose so tightly that I was sure I was hurting her. Even if Griffin had his doubts, I knew that the complaint came from Yolanda Hart. Did she realize how serious a CPS complaint against Griffin or me was? We only had temporary custody of Melrose. She wasn’t ours. We could lose her at any time. At any time, she could be placed in foster care. Did Mrs. Hart not get that?

My entire body was shaking by the time Griffin and Rosalie came back into view. She retook a seat on the sofa. “May I hold the baby?”

I wanted to hand her over. I mean, my brain told my arms to hand her over, but I didn’t move. “I’m sorry,” I said as tears began to fall from my eyes. I couldn’t even believe the situation was happening.

Griffin came over and eased Melrose from my grip. He set her in Rosalie’s lap. “Before you make any judgment about the complaint you received, let me explain the situation to you.”

“Okay.” Rosalie agreed, handing Melrose back over to me when she started to fuss.

“This is Melrose. She’s our niece. My brother was her father. Her mother was Anistyn’s sister. They lost their lives in an automobile accident about ten weeks ago. They left the directive in their will that guardianship was supposed to go to us. We have temporary joint co-guardianship of her. The fact that she came with us”—he motioned between the two of us—“made some people angry. We’re young. We don’t have a lot of experience with children, babies. All the reasons. But this is what our siblings wanted. On Tuesday, a few members of my family came up to visit. While they were visiting, they made the decision to get Melrose’s ears pierced without our knowledge or our consent.”

I saw Rosalie’s eyes go wide as they landed on Melrose’s freshly pierced lobes. “I see.”

“When Melrose was returned to Anistyn, she was cranky and obviously in pain. Anistyn was appropriately upset, particularly when her sentiments about boundaries being overstepped were dismissed. Did she raise her voice? Probably. Was she mad? Yes. However, she was mad because these family members of mine were over three hours late returning her to Anistyn. And when they did return her, the baby had pierced ears.”

Rosalie turned to me. “You seem upset.”

“I am upset,” I managed to say around the huge lump in my throat. “We are her appointed temporary guardians. A report to CPS could mean her being removed from our care and ending up in a foster home.” I broke down in tears. “I did curse at her grandmother—not repeatedly—but I did tell her to kiss my ass. But I was never angry at Melrose, nor was I violent. I packed a suitcase, got my niece, and left the home.”

Griffin’s head fell into his hands. “I don’t even believe this is happening.”

“Okay. I will take everything you just told me under consideration when making my own report. I feel like this complaint was probably more retaliatory than factual. I feel pretty confident that you’ll hear from us in a few days to let you know that the complaint was unsubstantiated.” She stood from the sofa. “Enjoy the rest of your day.”

Griffin showed her out, and it was all I could do not to scream.

“I can’t believe she would do this,” he told me once the door was closed and locked.

I could believe that she would do it, but I kept that thought to myself. I didn’t want to say anything that I couldn’t take back, and I felt like anything I said would be something I couldn’t take back.

“I apologize, Ani. You don’t deserve the shit my mother is doing.”

I noticed that he called me Ani, my familial nickname. I kind of wanted to smile, but I wasn’t ready to smile.

“Come on. Let’s go make a phone call.”

The last thing I wanted to do was be present for a phone call to his mother. I wanted to wring the bitch’s neck, but I couldn’t do that. I definitely couldn’t do it with an open CPS case against me for uncontrolled anger.

I wanted to call my own mother, rest my head in her lap, and have a good cry. That wasn’t happening, so I followed Griffin into the bedroom he used. I hadn’t been in there since the day I arrived. He usually came into the primary bedroom. The room smelled like him, like manliness and a woodsy cologne.

He walked directly to the desk, pulled out the chair, and motioned for me to sit. I did. He typed on his computer, and before I knew it, his father’s face was on the oversized screen.

“You’re calling me on video chat, Son? Why?” He paused. “Oh, hey there, Anistyn.” He raised the pitch of his voice. “Hey, Paw-Paw’s baby. Hey, Melrose.”

“Dad, I’m pissed right now, and I’m doing my best to hold it together. I love my mother. I swear I do, but you gotta do something. She’s out here moving reckless, and she’s gonna end up doing something she can’t reverse.”

“What happened?”

“A CPS worker just left my house, man. They got an anonymous call on Tuesday. There was a complaint about Melrose’s safety because, according to your wife, who made the complaint, Anistyn has a violent temper and uncontrolled anger. Does your wife understand that if the state of South Carolina deems us unfit, Melrose will go into foster care? Does she get that? What is she tryna do, man?” Griffin’s voice cracked, and for the first time since Rosalie appeared at the door, I saw his veneer slip.

“Wait, Son. I feel like I’m not following. Are you trying to tell me that your mother made a complaint against Anistyn on Tuesday?”

“That’s exactly what I’m telling you. She was mad because Anistyn was pissed that she pierced the baby’s ears. Since Anistyn cursed at her, she made a complaint against her.”

“That doesn’t make any sense.”