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“Okay.” She rubs her hands down the front of her pants and walks toward me. I go to the small round table in the corner of the room, pull out a chair for her, and then take a seat, leaning in with my elbows on my knees. I know she’s nervous and probably scared about what is going to happen.
“First.” I lean toward her. “Are you sure that neither you nor Ezra needs to see a doctor?”
“I’m sure,” she tells me while fiddling with the sleeves of her sweatshirt.
“Your and Ezra’s caseworker is going to be here soon to talk to the two of you and—”
“Like he cares.” She cuts me off with her eyes on the top of the table.
“It’s someone new; her name is Sandie.” She lifts her eyes to mine. “She seems pretty solid, so maybe you can give her a chance.” I continue before she can comment. “Barbra and Steven are also on their way.” At that news a fresh wave of tears fills her eyes. “You have a lot of people worried about you.”
“Me.” Her eyes fly up to mine while she presses her hand to her chest. “I have people who care, not him. He doesn’t have anyone worrying about him.”
“Is that why you ran away?”
“What was I supposed to do? He was living with people who didn’t care about him. They didn’t even care if he ate.” Her chin wobbles. “I . . . since I moved in with . . .” She cuts herself off. “I never have to think about that. I always have food and my bed and a big house. I have so much stuff, and he has nothing.”
“So you decided that you’d take care of him?”
“Yes.” She lifts her chin. “I found a place way up in the woods. It wasn’t great, but it’s been okay.” More tears fill her eyes. “Or it was, but it’s gotten colder, and it started to snow today.” She drags her eyes off mine. “I knew it wasn’t safe anymore, and I just need to know that he’s okay, that he’s safe.”
“I understand, and I’m going to do what I can to make sure that Ezra gets in a better place, okay?”
“Sure,” she mumbles as Ezra comes out of the bathroom.
When Cole walks in with food some time later, I take it from him and set the kids up in front of the TV, then head out to intercept Sandie when she sends me a text letting me know she has arrived. As I’m filling her in on what Romey said, the front door of the sheriff’s office opens, and Barbra and Steven walk inside, with two young boys around Ezra’s age and Lucas right behind them.
“I know you said that we should wait for you to call and tell us to come, but I just couldn’t do that,” Barbra says.
“It’s all right,” I assure her. Any mother who cares about their kid would do the same, and even if Romey doesn’t get it now, maybe one day she’ll understand how lucky she is to have Barbra in her life. “I know that you guys have had the chance to connect over the phone, but Barbra, this is Sandie, Sandie, this is Barbra.”
“It’s good to finally meet you,” Sandie says, stepping forward to take Barbra’s hand.
“You too,” Barbra murmurs while Steven gets close. “Have you had a chance to talk with her?”
“Not yet,” Sandie tells them, then adds, “I’m going to do that now. Then if everything is okay, you’ll be free to get her home before this storm hits.”
“What about Ezra?” Barbra asks.
“We’re going to figure that out,” Sandie says, then looks at me. “Do you want to take me to them?”
“Yeah,” I tell her, then turn to Barbra and her family. “I’ll be back out to get you guys soon. If you need anything, Sandra will help you out.”
“Wait,” Barbra says, stopping us. “Can Ezra come home with us too?”
“I don’t understand,” Sandie says, and Barbra looks at her husband, who nods, before she looks at me.
“She ran away to look out for him, right?” After she gets my nod, she turns her attention to Sandie. “Can they both come home with us?”
“I . . . I’d have to make some calls and . . .” Sandie shakes her head, seeming frazzled by the offer. “I’d have to see if that is something that we could do.”
“Can you make those calls now?” Barbra asks, and Sandie nods her head, then takes out her phone and steps away from us. With my chest feeling heavy, I look at Barbra.
“You’re a good mom.”
“I grew up in foster care. I know how hard it can be when you don’t have a family to take care of you, and I know what it feels like to be separated from your siblings,” she says, and Steven pulls her into his side. “So if she ran away so that she could look out for him, then he should be with us so that she can do that, and we can look out for both of them.”
“My boss is going to be calling me back after confirming a few things, but Ezra should be allowed to stay with you all,” Sandie cuts in, and I watch Barbra give all her weight to her husband.
