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“Thank you.”
With a nod, Sandie focuses on me. “While we wait for his call, do you want to take me back to see the kids?”
“Yeah,” I tell her quietly with my throat still tight.
I lead Sandie back down the hall, and when we enter the room, I find that Ezra has eaten all his food, while Romey hasn’t even touched hers. Standing off to the side, I listen to Sandie talk to both kids and ask them questions about where they have been while she jots information down in her notebook. About twenty minutes later, her phone rings, and she excuses herself and steps out of the room only to poke her head in a minute later and call me to come out with her.
“Will you come with me?”
“Of course.” I follow her back out to where the Millers are waiting, and as soon as Barbra sees us, she gets up with Steven.
“Did you hear something?” Steven asks.
“Yes, they granted you temporary care of Ezra.”
“That’s great news.” Barbra sags in relief.
“It is, but this doesn’t mean that his placement will be permanent, so I need everyone to go into this with that in mind, especially the kids.”
“We understand,” Barbra says, then asks, “Can we please see them?”
“Yes,” Sandie tells her.
When we make it back to the room where the kids are, I open the door, then stand back and let Steven and Barbra enter before me. I watch Barbra and Romey stare at each other for a long moment. Then Barbra opens her arms, and Romey gets up from the couch where she is sitting next to Ezra, runs across the room, and crashes into her.
“I’m sorry.” Romey whimpers as Barbra’s loud sob fills the quiet space. Glancing over at Ezra, I watch him take in the interaction until Steven slowly walks toward him and takes a seat on the couch at his side, with his young sons following.
“Ezra?” Steven asks, and when the boy nods, he smiles gently. “I’m Steven. It’s nice to meet you.”
“You too,” Ezra says quietly, studying him as the two boys pipe up that they remember him from the jump place they played at.
“So you and Romey have been on quite the adventure, haven’t you?” Steven eventually asks as the boys all talk.
“Yeah, we even saw a bear,” he says. My heart drops.
“A bear?” Steven asks with his face pale, while the other kids look at Ezra like he’s the coolest person they have ever met in their lives.
“We left a bag with garbage in it outside.” Romey pulls herself away from Barbra, and the two of them join everyone on the couch. “I knew better. I just didn’t think.”
“Where were you staying?” Barbra asks, and Romey rubs her lips together before telling them about the cabin she found. She also tells them that she had stocked up on food in the weeks before leaving when Barbra asks what they ate. I can tell that they are horrified at the idea of the kids being out on their own in the woods but proud of Romey for not just taking care of herself but also her brother.
“What’s going to happen now?” Romey eventually asks, and Barbra reaches for her hand.
“We’re going to go home, and you are going to be grounded for at least two weeks,” she tells her, and Romey’s chin wobbles. “And part of your punishment is going to be helping me clean out the spare room and getting it set up for Ezra.”
“What?” Ezra whispers.
“He’s staying with us?” Romey asks.
“Yes,” Barbra says, looking between both kids. “But we need you guys to know we cannot guarantee that this placement will be permanent.” Her face softens. “But we will do what we can to make sure that you two are able to stay together if it’s possible.” She focuses on Romey. “That said, you cannot run away again, and you need to talk to us about things going forward. Both of you need to talk to us about things, because we can’t help you fix a problem that we don’t know about.”
“Okay,” Romey says quietly, and I look over at Sandie. She turns to meet my gaze. I’m sure that she has dealt with this kind of situation before and witnessed a variety of different outcomes. But today, and at least for now, these two kids are going into a home where they are wanted, and I know without a doubt that Barbra will bleed herself dry to make sure the kids are okay and will do her best to make sure they are able to stay together. And really, I don’t think any of us could ask for more. And me, well, I’m going home to Genevieve, and tonight when I go to bed, I will fall asleep with her in my arms, knowing that I might not be able to right all the wrongs in the world, but at least two kids will be safe in a home with people who care about them.
Chapter 27:
Just Play Dead
Genevieve
