by TJ Fox
I’m shaking my head no before she even finishes. “No. He never said a word. I’m absolutely stunned. There have been no signs, but I also haven’t known him all that long. I don’t know that I would have noticed. Before tonight, I wouldn’t have thought that Dylan would ever lie to me, and that’s why I believed it, but I also just found out about his mom and the fact that he is the guardian of those kids, so… what do I know? Who would lie about something like that and why? Isn’t it a little extreme to go to all this trouble if this is all some crazy lie?”
“Those points do make this seem plausible and are part of my concern and insistence to get the police involved. I think you were right in taking it seriously.” Betty hands the letter back as Jules pushes the remaining paperwork in front of me.
“Okay. But what about the rest? The guardianship and the kids? What happens with them?” I stack the papers, more to give my hands something to do other than trying to squeeze the stuffing out of B’s bear. Worry for the kids and what this means for them tries to swamp me. The more we talk about this as a real thing that is actually happening, the angrier I get at Dylan for putting them through this. I’m just as angry with him for putting me through this, feeling betrayed and blindsided. All these emotions fighting for space are creating a mess in my head.
“Until Dylan is found, they have to be safe and cared for, that is my immediate concern for them and why I’m involved. The guardianship papers make his wishes clear, but…” She pauses as though puzzling through something.
“My initial thoughts are that this is all legal. Highly unusual, but legal. For the short term, as long as you are willing, I won’t argue that point and they can stay with you until something changes. I don’t see how doing anything different at this moment will help them. The longer term is a bit more complicated and is highly dependent on what happens over the next few hours with the police.”
I can see she is expecting me to respond, but… this is so much information, too much. “I don’t know what to say. Dylan made it clear in his letter that he wanted me to take care of them, but I don’t understand why. I’m so confused about all of this, and I have been so focused on taking care of B I obviously haven’t even fully thought about the things he is asking.”
The sympathy on her face eases a little of the pressure. “How about we just focus on the next few hours? Getting B-Rad out of surgery and settled in for the night. Will you be okay continuing with the responsibility for his medical care and having the other two staying with you during that? All three kids will feel safer and more secure if they aren’t separated. I’m hoping we will have some answers from the police soon, so that should help us know more.”
“Oh! Of course! I promised B I would be here.” I’m relieved that I’m not being forced to leave.
That relief doesn’t last long when I remember that Riff and Simone are waiting with what must be a mountain of questions.
“But… what do we tell the kids?” I look to Jules who shakes her head and shrugs, then I turn back to Betty.
She sighs and sits back in her chair. “That is going to be more difficult. You don’t want them to get the impression you are hiding anything from them. Honesty is critical because trust is so important, even for a short period of time. Same with treating them like adults. Yes, they are still children, but in this, we probably need to give them the feeling of self-importance and a sense of control that treating them like very young children wouldn’t provide. That said, with Dylan’s status unknown, there isn’t much to say. For now, let’s just stick with the fact that we are looking for him.”
She leans forward, putting her elbows on the table and rubbing her eyes. It makes me wonder how late it is. “The issue with his illness hasn’t been verified yet, so I don’t believe it should be mentioned yet. I would suggest calling that doctor and at least leaving a message with his answering service. I doubt you’ll hear back until tomorrow at the earliest, but it gets that ball rolling.”
She pulls out a business card and hands it over to me. “Be sure to mention that Social Services have become involved and give my name. It may help to light a fire under them.”
Grateful for the guidance and something to do, I pull out my phone as I get up and move to the side of the room to make the call. After leaving a brief message with the service, I walk back to the table where Betty and Jules are talking.
Betty stands and starts back towards the door. “Are you ready?”
A burble of slightly manic laughter erupts from me. “Oh, not even close.” I gather the rest of the papers and put them back in the envelope. Jules and I follow behind her.
“You’ll be fine. I’ll help you and those kids get through this.” Smiling gently, she holds the door open to let us go first, and we head back to the waiting room.
Chapter 8
Rae is sitting off in a corner of the room with Simone and Riff. I try to gauge the mood as I walk over to them. Things appear to be calm, but not exactly at ease, something I’m certain wouldn’t be the case if it weren’t for Rae.
Jules and I take a seat across from the kids. I grab her hand after I sit. The kids’ tension becomes more obvious. Riff seems closed off and angry, his jaw flexing and he crosses his arms over his chest. Simone just looks lost and worried.
Betty sits off to the side with Rae forming a box around the kids who are sitting up against the wall. It helps to soften the sterile and impersonal feeling of the room, making it a little bit more comfortable. Trying to figure out the best way to start, I’m freed from that particular burden when Betty breaks the ice.
“Riff and Simone, correct?” Simone nods, but before Betty can get any further, Simone again surprises me, this tiny little adult. Her nature is way too mature for her age. It dawns on me that I’ve seen that unusual maturity in all three of them, telling me, even if Dylan’s letter hadn’t, that they have already experienced way more than anyone that young ever should.
“Something’s happened to Dylan, hasn’t it?” Fear and concern are oozing from her.
Betty has her full attention on Simone and Riff, almost as if I’m not even in the room. “We don’t know. My job is to make sure the two of you and your brother, B-Rad are safe, healthy and cared for. I’m here because Dylan left you in the care of someone who is not a parent or a guardian, and I’m trying to make sure everything is okay. I’m worried about what prompted this, so I’ve asked the police to try and find him. Until I hear back from them, I need to make sure you are with a safe adult who has your best interests in mind. I have spoken with Teri, and she has agreed to keep doing what she is doing for B-Rad and ensure you two are also safe while we wait for news. Are you okay with that? Is there someone else you think I should contact instead?”
What? I sit up straighter in my chair and grip Jules’ hand even tighter. My glance in her direction shows she is just as puzzled as I am. Betty didn’t say anything about this when we were talking. She still hasn’t looked over at me.
Riff sits forward in his chair with his elbows on his knees and his head hanging between his shoulders, just shaking his head. Simone has started quietly crying.
“No. There’s no one else.” Simone glances at Riff as if for confirmation and wipes under her eyes. “We can stay with her until Dylan gets back. B-Rad was pretty upset when he thought she might not be here when he got out of surgery.”
I want to cry. I want to have her certainty that Dylan is coming back. How much more do these kids have to be put through? This is so unfair. It is gutting me to see them suffer.
With a small smile, Betty nods. “Good. As long as you feel safe and comfortable with those arrangements, then that’s what we will do.”
Betty stands, and Rae gets up right after. “I will let you know as soon as I hear anything from the police. Here is my card. Feel free to call if you need anything.” She hands a card to both Riff and Simone.
Turning to me, she say
s, “Teri, that goes for you as well. Call me if anything changes or you hear anything. I’ll talk to the staff and make sure everything goes smoothly for you once B-Rad is out of surgery.” She adds my phone number to whatever file is on her tablet. After hugging Rae and thanking her for her help, she leaves.
“I’m going to head on out myself. Teri, you take good care. You are going to do fine, trust me.”
“Thank you for everything, Rae. You have been a blessing tonight.” She leans in to hug me, then walks over and brushes her hand on Simone’s and then Riff’s head.
“Everything is going to work out. Don’t you worry about a thing other than getting that little brother of yours back on his feet, you hear?” Simone mumbles something, but I can’t make out the words.
As soon as Rae is out of the room, I let my head drop to the back of the chair so I can close my eyes and just breathe for a moment. I hate this feeling of uncertainty and not knowing… well… anything. Not where Dylan is. Not if any of this is real, though it’s feeling more so by the minute. Not what is going to happen next. The only thing I know is that, at least for now, I’m responsible for these three kids.
I look back to Riff and Simone. “I’m probably going to be here all night. It sounded like Betty is going to make sure the hospital will let you stay, but I don’t know for sure. If they won’t, you can crash with Jules for a few hours until they let you back in. Or, if you really don’t want to stay here, you can go stay with her until you are ready to come back. Whatever you need, I will try to make it happen.”
They watch me while I’m talking then look to each other. Riff’s the one who speaks up this time. “We want to stay if we can.”
“Alright. When they come get me after he is out of surgery, I’ll talk to whoever I need to and make sure they will let you stay.”
Simone sits up. “Thanks, Teri. We really should be there for him too.” She gives me a weak smile that doesn’t reach her eyes.
“I’ll stay until you know what’s going on, then head on home if you don’t need me anymore tonight.” Jules looks exhausted. She spent the day getting run all over the house by Jorie and Rusty, so she’s probably even more tired than she looks.
I reach over and hug her tight. “That would be awesome. Thank you for being here and especially for being with me in that meeting with Betty. I know this has been overwhelming tonight.”
She leans back and gives me a look that tells me I should know better. “You know I wouldn’t be anywhere else.”
I nod and lean my head on her shoulder. My eyes close. I left exhaustion behind a long time ago, and what energy is left is barely getting me by. Thankfully, that also means there is no energy left for any thoughts or uncertainty, worry or anger. It’s as if my emotional engine has run out of gas too. This small bubble of calm allows me to sit in the quiet for a moment.
A nudge on my arm jolts me out of the doze I drifted into. I sit up, disoriented until I look around and see Dr. Lee walking towards me with a smile.
“He’s out of surgery, and everything went just fine.”
I shake her hand. “Thank you so much.”
“He will be in recovery for a little while before he’s moved to a room. A nurse will be by in a minute to take you back to sit with him while he wakes. The rest of you can see him once he is in his room. I’ll be around in the morning to check on him.” Giving a small wave to the group of us, she walks back out of the room.
Turning, I see Riff hugging Simone, whispering something in her ear. They shed tears of relief and happiness. It feels so much lighter in this room now than it did just a short while ago. It’s a good feeling. For once.
The same nurse that directed me to the bathroom earlier walks in and calls me over. Telling Jules I’ll let her know as soon as I know about the arrangements for the kids, and still clutching the bear, I rush to follow the nurse.
B is still asleep when I get into the recovery room. There isn’t much to do other than more sitting and waiting. Dean is tucked into the bed next to B. I want him surrounded by as much comfort as possible when he wakes.
I sit and hold his hand, waiting. I watch him sleep, knowing that what was hurting him, making him so sick, is gone. My phone shows that it’s nearly three a.m. which explains why it feels like every part of me wants to shut down.
I clarified with the nurse on the way in about all of us staying. Betty had already made the arrangements. Under normal circumstances, they wouldn’t allow it, but exceptions are sometimes made. Betty’s position apparently carries enough weight to help get those exceptions. That’s one less worry off the constantly growing pile.
Stirring from the bed pulls me from my thoughts, and I see B’s eyes start to flutter. The nurse had said he may not be fully awake or aware at first but just to keep him calm. She would check on him regularly as well. It takes him a few more minutes before he opens his eyes.
When he finds me after looking around, his initial confusion and growing fear seem to ease. “Is Dylan here yet?”
Oh, this poor baby. The last thing I want is to cause him any more pain or suffering, but there is no way to avoid disappointing him. I hate it. I hate that Dylan isn’t here for him and that I have to tell him that.
“No, sweetie. He isn’t here yet. I made sure Dean was here for you when you woke, though.” I gesture to the bear under his arm.
He looks at it with a soft smile and gives it a squeeze, then looks back at me.
“As soon as the nurse checks you out, and everything looks good, they will move you to another room where Riff and Simone can see you again. We’re all going to have a little sleepover tonight.” I catch myself rubbing my thumb over the back of the hand I’m holding in an unconscious gesture, so I stop. “How are you feeling?”
His eyes are droopy, but he looks like he is fighting it. “I’m tired, but I wanna see Riff and Simone.”
The nurse comes over, asking a few questions about how he feels and checking him over. She says they will be moving him soon.
B doesn’t last long and is back asleep shortly after she steps away but wakes again when they start moving him around to transfer him to his room.
“B, I need to go get Riff and Simone and let Jules go home. I will meet you in your room, okay?”
I can see he doesn’t want me to leave him alone, so I lean down and kiss him on the head and whisper, “I’ll be back soon, I promise. Hold onto Dean. He will keep you company while I’m gone.”
He just nods his head as a lone tear runs down his face, and his eyes start to droop again.
I hurry back to the waiting room and make arrangements with Jules to call her later in the morning. She hugs the kids and me, then heads out.
Grabbing the envelope with all the paperwork, I usher Simone and Riff out of the waiting room and through the halls to B’s room. It looks like they are just getting him set up as we enter. There are more people in the room than I thought necessary to get him moved, but not all of them are focused on B. One young man sets a stack of what looks like pillows and blankets on a small loveseat shoved to one side in the corner by the window. Another has just pushed a second, larger chair into the other corner. The first chair is near the head of the bed by the window, and a smaller chair is against the wall under the window between it and the love seat.
The nurse from recovery comes over and points to the loveseat and one of the larger chairs. “We scavenged a couple of pull outs for you from other rooms. We also made sure to grab one of the bigger rooms so that there was enough space.” She points to the stack, “There are pillows and blankets there. That chair over there can be pulled out as well. They aren’t the most comfortable, but they’ll be better than trying to sleep sitting up.”
Simone goes over to B as soon as the room starts to clear. Riff is standing back, letting her have her time.
“It was really important to them all to be able to stay
together right now. So, thank you so much for this.” It is incredibly moving to see everyone going so far out of their way to help out.
“Not a problem.” She nods to Riff as she passes him to go out the door, leaving the four of us alone in the room.
Riff goes to the other side of the bed, and both he and Simone are chatting with a sleepy B. Sitting in the chair in the corner to give them their space, I feel like an intruder for the first time.
Simone motions me over. I get up to see what they need. She leans over to kiss her brother, and I hear her whisper a good-night before she walks over to the loveseat to sit. Riff just ruffles B’s hair. “’Night, B-Rad.” He then goes to help Simone set up the loveseat and the chair for sleeping.
B is barely awake but fighting it when I step to the head of the bed next to him. “You’re gonna stay, right? We’re havin’ a sleepover, so you can’t leave.” His eyelids are getting heavy as he fights sleep.
“Absolutely, I’m staying. I wouldn’t miss a sleepover with you guys. I’m not going anywhere, B. Get some sleep, sweetie. I’ll be here when you wake up.”
“’Kay. Night, Teri.” His eyes are closed before he has even finished, and the rest of his features relax into sleep only moments later.
I go over to sit down, choosing the middle chair under the window.
“Do you guys need anything? I don’t know how much sleep we’ll get because they will be coming in to check on B often.” Simone is the only one who has anything, her backpack, so a change of clothes is not in the cards for either of them. It’s not something that had even occurred to me until just now. Same thing for B. I’ll need to figure something out, but it’s going to have to wait until morning. It is morning. So, just later then. Damn, we all left tired behind hours ago.
Simone is already under the covers, and she just shakes her head and closes her eyes. Riff is sitting up with a blanket over his lap looking tired, but not like he is ready to sleep.