by Cheryl Faye
“Yes. Will you please contact your husband and ask him to come as quickly as possible?”
“We’ll be there in thirty minutes.”
True to her word, Charisse and Stefàn rushed into the emergency room of Hackensack Medical Center a half hour later.
Immediately upon hanging up from the doctor, she’d dialed Stefàn’s office as she hurried into the house and up to their bedroom to clean herself up and change. She’d caught him as he was walking back in from a showing.
Heading directly to the information desk, Stefàn addressed the nurse, “I’m here for Edna Mills. Dr….” He paused, not remembering the physician’s name.
“Dr. Mazzarelli,” Charisse chimed in as soon as she heard him hesitate.
“Are you a relative?” the nurse/clerk asked.
“I’m her nephew,” he lied, before truthfully stating, “and her emergency contact.”
“One moment, please.” The hospital employee picked up the telephone and punched in three digits. She spoke softly into the receiver, then waited for a reply. As she hung up the phone she said, “Dr. Mazzarelli has her in surgery.”
“Where’s Jared?” Stefàn urgently asked.
“Who’s Jared?”
“Her grandson. My nephew,” he quickly added.
“Oh, the little boy. He’s in the lounge with someone from DCF. That’s right around the corner on your left.”
Charisse called back, “Thank you,” as they immediately started away from the desk.
Upon entering the lounge, they heard, “Uncle Coop! Auntie Risi!” Jared came barreling toward them with his arms outstretched.
Stefàn scooped him up and into a tight embrace. “Hey, man. You okay?”
Jared nodded but tears welled in his eyes as he stated, “Grandma fell down on the floor and I called 9-1-1.”
Charisse reached out to stroke his head as Stefàn replied, “I know. They told us. That was very smart thinking, what you did. I’m proud of you.”
“Is Grandma gonna be okay?” he asked in a worried tone.
“I hope so. The doctors are operating on her to make her better,” Stefàn answered.
“Let’s say a prayer for her, okay?” Charisse suggested.
“Okay.”
The three of them embraced and before Charisse or Stefàn could utter a word, Jared began, “Dear God. Please make Grandma better. Please don’t let her die ’cause I don’t want her to die. She’s a good Grandma and I love her. But if you make her die, please let her go to be with my Mommy so she won’t be alone no more. Amen.”
Charisse was in tears by the time Jared closed his prayer; the innocent request made with the sincerity that could only come from a child’s heart.
“That was a beautiful prayer, Jared,” Stefàn told him.
“It certainly was,” Charisse said.
“How come you’re crying, Auntie Risi?”
She smiled and answered, “Because I’m so proud of you.”
“But why would that make you cry?”
“Well, when I get very emotional, like now, the tears come on their own.”
“That’s ’cause she’s a girl, right?” he asked, addressing Stefàn.
“Yeah, but it sometimes happens to us fellas, too,” he explained. “Just not as much.”
Across the room, Angela Robinson watched the touching scene. In the ninety minutes since she had arrived at Hackensack Medical Center, she’d developed a fondness for the boy, Jared Mills. Quite a talkative little fellow, he’d already told her all about his Uncle Coop and Aunt Risi, as well as how he’d called the ambulance when his grandmother collapsed on the living room floor. He’d given her the impression that he was a fearless young man, but she didn’t miss the relief he displayed at the sight of his aunt and uncle.
She hated to break up their reunion, but she had a job to do. “Excuse me. I’m Angela Robinson from the Department of Children and Families. Are you related to Mrs. Mills?”
Stefàn and Charisse stole a quick glance at one another before answering. Stefàn started to lie and tell the woman he was a member of Mrs. Mills’ family, but quickly decided that he would tell the truth and trust that God would work everything out.
“Not by blood, no. Mrs. Mills is a very close family friend, and Jared is my godson.”
“Can I have your names, please?”
“I’m Stefàn Cooper and this is my wife, Charisse. We’ll be able to take Jared home with us, won’t we?”
“I would have to have permission from his grandmother for that,” Miss Robinson stated as she wrote their names on a form on the clipboard she was holding.
“But she might be incapacitated for days,” Charisse interjected.
“I’m sorry.”
“But she had the hospital call me. I know it was so that we could take care of Jared. He’s a part of our family. Mrs. Mills would want him to be with us,” Stefàn insisted.
“Mr. Cooper, I don’t make the rules. Unless I have written approval, Jared is going to have to come with me.”
“No!” Jared yelled. “I wanna go with Uncle Coop!”
“Where will you take him?” Charisse wanted to know.
“He’ll be placed with a foster family—”
“That he doesn’t know and who doesn’t give a damn about him,” Stefàn raged.
“What kind of sense does that make?” Charisse wanted to know. “He knows us. Mrs. Mills knows us. We love him and he knows that. His grandmother knows that.”
Stefàn reached out and caressed Charisse’s face reassuringly and winked at Jared before taking the woman’s arm and moving her out of their earshot.
He tried to appeal to her sense of decency. “Miss Robinson, you can’t do this to him. Don’t you think he’s got enough to deal with, with his grandmother being sick and all. He needs stability right now. He needs to feel safe. He’s safe with me and Charisse. As a matter of fact, if it weren’t for the fact that Mrs. Mills took him to the dentist this morning, he would have been at my house, where he spends most of his weekends.”
“Mr. Cooper, the hospital called us. With that call, a file is opened. I can’t walk back into my office and tell them that I released the child to a non-family member.”
“The hospital’s records list me as Mrs. Mills’ nephew. I could have told you the same thing when you asked me, but I didn’t want to start this whole process with a lie.”
When Miss Robinson didn’t immediately respond, Stefàn asked her, “Do you believe in Christ?”
She was taken aback. “My religious beliefs are not at issue here, Mr. Cooper.”
“I know that, but would you just tell me. Do you believe in Him?”
“Yes, I do,” she answered with a challenge in her tone and glare.
“What do you think He would do in this situation?”
“That’s not fair. I’m pretty sure He wouldn’t want me to lie or put my job at risk.”
“Miss Robinson, I’m not trying to put your job at risk either. I want you to think about Jared. He’s like a son to me.” Stefàn paused momentarily, then added, “Truth be told, my wife and I were going to talk to Mrs. Mills tomorrow after church about the possibility of adopting Jared. At her age, she’s really too old to care for him the way he needs. He’s a handful and I don’t mean because he’s a bad kid or anything like that, ’cause he isn’t. He’s a great kid, but he’s a kid; full of life and energy and he wants to rip and run and do all the things that kids his age should do. She can’t keep up with him. The reason he spends so much time with me and my family now is so that he can be a kid in every sense of the word and to give Mrs. Mills a break. He spends time with my nieces and nephews, who are his age, and my wife and I have the stamina to keep up with him. Mrs. Mills should be enjoying her golden years, but with his mother gone and his real father having never been in his life, she’s all he’s got, except for us. We love him and he loves us. If Mrs. Mills could, she would tell you that Jared should be with us.” Sighing, heavily he asked, “Is
n’t there anything you can do?”
Angela Robinson stared up into the piercing brown eyes of this handsome stranger and was torn between her duty as a representative of the state and a child of the King. He had to go and play the Christ card, she thought. Sensing his sincerity, she’d witnessed the genuine love shared between he, his wife and Jared. DCF’s first duty and concern was for the welfare of the children who came through the system, she reasoned. It was hard not to let her emotions get the best of her in her work, but common sense suggested that these people were safe. She didn’t know Mrs. Mills, but she had them listed as her emergency notification. There had to be a reason for that. Trust and believe, a soft voice spoke to her heart.
Her own life flashing before her in seconds, Angela, as a product of the system, had vowed to do everything in her power to see that other children were spared her pain. Having been bounced from family to family, she had never felt the love directed to her that was exhibited by this couple for this little boy; something she had always wished for.
Sighing in submission, she whispered, “I’ll list you as the boy’s uncle since Mrs. Mills has already listed you as her nephew and I’ll put that you were already here when I arrived. But, I’ll need to visit your home and still get permission from Mrs. Mills when she gets out of surgery.”
Stefàn’s reaction shocked her. He hugged her and kissed her cheek. “Thank you. Thank you so much. God bless you.”
Angela blushed as she glanced over at his wife for her reaction. She was smiling as she moved over to them and like her husband, embraced her. “Thank you, Miss Robinson.”
“You’re welcome.”
It wasn’t until Sunday afternoon that they were able to see Mrs. Mills. Charisse had arose that morning and began getting herself and Jared ready for church, but Stefàn was of a mind to forego the Sunday service and head straight to the hospital. Charisse insisted that they needed to inform Pastor Young and the congregation so that they could all pray for Mrs. Mills’ quick and total recovery.
When they entered her room, Mrs. Mills was sitting up, but her eyes were closed and initially, they thought she was sleeping. The moment she heard Jared’s voice, however, she opened her eyes and gave them all a weak smile.
Stefàn lifted the boy so that he could kiss her cheek. “How you feelin’, Grandma?”
“I feel better now that I know you’re all right.”
Charisse moved around to the other side of her bed and bent over, placing a soft peck on her forehead. “We’re glad to see you’re all right, too.”
“You gave us quite a scare,” Stefàn good-naturedly added. “Everyone’s praying for you at church.”
“Thank you, baby. Thank you both,” she said as she looked from Stefàn to Charisse with a grateful sigh. “I’m so glad you came. I don’t want Jared to end up with no strangers.”
“Don’t worry. God is doing His thing and the caseworker who came to the hospital yesterday is a sister in Christ. She’s going to do what she can to make sure he stays with us until you come home,” Stefàn assured her.
Mrs. Mills didn’t respond and the look that filled her eyes was one of sadness. “I need to speak to you, Stefàn. Do you think you could come by tomorrow sometime?”
Stefàn looked questioningly at Charisse before he replied, “Sure. But you can talk to me now, if you need to.”
She reached up and took Charisse’s hand and said, “No, I’ll wait until we can talk in private.”
Charisse and Stefàn knew instinctively, she didn’t want to speak in front of Jared.
“It’s okay, Mrs. Mills. He’ll be by tomorrow,” Charisse answered. “Won’t you, honey?”
“Yes. I’ll come on my lunch break.”
“Did they give you my things? My house keys and purse?” she then asked.
“No, but they may be here in this closet,” Charisse said as she moved to the cabinet in the adjacent corner. Opening it, she found a clear plastic bag with clothing, a smaller clear plastic bag that contained a watch and other pieces of jewelry and a woman’s purse. She held it up for Mrs. Mills’ inspection. “Is this yours?”
“Yes,” she nodded. “Would you reach into my purse and get my house keys?” she directed Charisse.
Doing as she asked, Charisse held them out to her.
“Stefàn, before you come tomorrow, I need you to stop by my house and bring me something. In my bedroom closet, on the upper shelf, there’s a lock box. The key to it is in my right night table drawer. Get that and bring them both to me when you come tomorrow, sweetheart.”
“All right, Mrs. Mills.”
“Grandma, I could show Uncle Coop where it is and I could come with him.”
“That’s okay, Jared. He’ll be able to find it by himself. And besides, I need to talk to Stefàn alone.”
“I’m not gonna have to go with that lady, am I?” Jared asked, close to tears.
“What lady you talking about?” she asked him, then looked from Stefàn to Charisse for clarity.
“The woman from DCF,” Stefàn answered.
“Oh no, baby. That was taken care of, right?” she said, again looking to Charisse and Stefàn for verification.
“I think so,” Stefàn replied.
“Well, after tomorrow, we’ll know for certain. I’m gonna make sure of that,” Mrs. Mills said with finality.
Stefàn was at Mrs. Mills’ bedside at twelve fifteen Monday afternoon. When he arrived there was an older white gentleman seated at her bedside. A folder with various official-looking documents was open and spread out on top of her bedcovers.
“Stefàn. Your timing is perfect,” Mrs. Mills greeted him cheerily.
She was sitting up in the bed, a tray of food that didn’t look the least bit appetizing was on the movable table in front of her.
“How are you feeling today?” he asked as he leaned over and kissed her cheek.
“I’m coming along. I’ll be better when they stop sticking me. I feel like a pin cushion, all these blood tests they keep taking,” she griped.
He smiled in response. Turning his gaze to her other guest, he introduced himself. “I’m Stefàn Cooper.” He extended his hand over the bed.
The man rose from his chair to a height matching Stefàn’s and smiled warmly as he accepted his hand. “Art Rosen. I’m Edna’s attorney. I’ve heard a lot of good things about you and your wife. Charisse, right?”
“Yes. It’s good to meet you.”
“Likewise,” Art said.
He was a slender man, although he had a bit of a paunch at the middle and his gray pinstriped suit looked as though it had seen many years of wear. His white shirt was dingy, as though it had never been washed with bleach, and combined with the stained blue tie he wore made him look somewhat shabby, but his eyes gleamed with a friendliness only someone truly comfortable with themselves could display.
“How’s Jared,” Art then asked Stefàn.
“He’s great. He’s at day camp, right now.”
“Stefàn’s gotten him involved in quite a few extracurricular activities in addition to the martial arts lessons he gives him and the other children at church,” Mrs. Mills told Art as she reached for Stefàn’s hand. “He’s been a God-send to me.”
At that moment, another visitor entered the room.
“Mrs. Edna Mills?”
Stefàn turned and recognized the woman from DCF he and Charisse had spoken with on Saturday.
“Yes.”
“Hi,” she said to Stefàn with a shy smile before addressing Mrs. Mills. “I’m Angela Robinson from the Department of Children and Families. How are you feeling?”
“I’m doing much better, thank you,” Mrs. Mills answered. “This is my attorney, Mr. Arthur Rosen.”
“Hello,” she said.
Becoming completely professional, Art replied, “Good afternoon, Miss Robinson. Do you have some papers that you need Mrs. Mills to sign, specifically, related to the guardianship of her grandson, Jared?”
“Yes. Um,
Mr. Cooper told me on Saturday that you would sign over custodial rights for Jared’s care while you were hospitalized,” she said addressing Mrs. Mills.
“That’s right.”
“I have the papers here for you. I was supposed to take him into custody on Saturday, but I could see that Mr. Cooper and his wife have a relationship with Jared, and since you had listed Mr. Cooper as your emergency contact, I made a judgment call and let them take him. Once you sign, if you’re ever hospitalized again, we can avoid going through this.”
“Thank you.”
“After today, that won’t be an issue, anyway,” Art added.
Mrs. Mills then asked, “Stefàn, did you bring that box?”
“Yes, it’s right here,” he said, reaching down and removing it from the shopping bag he had placed on the floor near the wall. After he handed it to her, he reached into his pants pocket and stated, “Here’s the key.”
Taking the box and key, she opened it. “I have all of my important papers in here. Jared’s birth certificate, my insurance papers, my will, everything.”
“CHARISSE, YOU’RE NEVER GOING TO BELIEVE what happened, baby,” Stefàn said excitedly into the telephone.
It was two-thirty that same afternoon, and he was on his way back to his office.
“What?”
“I just left the hospital. Mrs. Mills is doing much better. She was sitting up talking with her lawyer when I got there. That girl from DCF came by, too.”
“Okay, but what happened?”
“Mrs. Mills’ attorney had guardianship papers with him. He said he has to file them with the courts, but that’s just a formality. She signed over custodial rights for Jared to us and asked me to speak with you about us adopting him.”
“You’re kidding.”
“I kid you not, baby. See how God works?”
“Did you tell her we were going to ask her about adopting him?”
“I sure did. She had me crying up in there,” he said with a laugh.
“We’re going to take Jared by there tonight, right?”
“Yeah. What time are you getting off?”
“I’ll leave here at four and meet you at the house. What time are you picking him up?”
“Around five. Why don’t I pick you up and then we’ll go get him and head straight to the hospital. We’ll tell him when we’re all together.”