The sentencing for Misty Arato wasn’t until well after the first of the year, and he was terrified Danae and Dallas might be setting themselves up for heartbreak. Missouri had notoriously tough murder penalties, and Misty’s attorney had said there was no chance she’d escape with less than life without parole. Still, Grant had heard too many cases of criminals getting off easy for one reason or another.
It wasn’t like he was rooting for Austin’s mother to spend the rest of her life in prison, but she had killed her husband in cold blood, after all. And he couldn’t even imagine what it would do to Danae if she and Dallas had to let Austin go back to his mother, or worse, back to the woman’s family in St. Louis. Or God forbid, into the system. It had been a rough few weeks for all of them, waiting on the attorneys, agonizing over the decision whether to agree to Misty’s request that they take Austin in.
He and Audrey had hashed out every possible scenario until they were sick of the subject. But ultimately he couldn’t have been more proud of Danae’s attitude. She and Dallas both had decided to be all in. To do what was best for the boy, even if it meant getting their hearts broken.
And given Austin’s history of abuse, there were a lot of ways he could ultimately break their hearts—even if they got to raise him to adulthood. Abuse like that had to mess with a kid’s mind pretty badly. He only hoped they—
A blood-curdling scream came from the great room, and Sadie shot from the room grasping something in her hand, waving it over her head. “It’s mine! You can’t have it. I chose the blue one!”
Austin chased behind her with fire in his eyes. He was wailing like a banshee and saying something over and over, but Grant couldn’t for the life of him figure out what it was.
Sadie made a beeline for Audrey and buried her face in her grandmother’s apron. “Don’t let him get it, Gram! Don’t let him! I had it first!”
“Did not! DID NOT!” Austin barreled into Sadie and Audrey, nearly toppling them both over, despite the fact that he was half as tall as Sadie.
Dallas and Jesse both jumped up from the sofa and headed to their respective kids.
“What is going on?” Jesse barked over the din.
Link grabbed the remote and turned the game down to a low murmur.
“Austin?” Dallas dropped to his knees and took the boy by the shoulders. “Tell me what’s wrong. What are you guys fighting about?”
Sadie glared at Austin. “He stole my gingerbread man.”
“Sadie.” Jesse put a firm hand on her shoulder. “Uncle Dallas was not talking to you. Now be quiet.”
“I did not stole anything!” Austin burst into tears and stood in the middle of the floor, mouth wide, wailing at the top of his lungs. Jesse and Dallas exchanged your-guess-is-as-good-as-mine shrugs and took the fighters to opposite corners of the room.
Sadie calmed down, but Austin would not be consoled.
Grant heard Dallas trying to pry the story from him, but the boy couldn’t stop crying long enough to answer. Finally Dallas took him downstairs. They could still hear him crying.
“What happened?” Danae appeared on the staircase, casting about the room. “Was that Austin?”
Audrey pointed toward the front door. “Dallas took him to the basement to calm down.”
“What happened?” Danae asked again, looking from Grant to Audrey to Corinne and Jesse.
“They got into a tiff playing Candy Land,” Grant said. “I’m not sure exactly what the deal is.”
“He took my gingerbread man!” Sadie sniffed. “I was almost about to win and—”
Jesse shushed her, then looked at Danae. “Is Corinne upstairs?”
She nodded. “She’s helping Landyn get the twins down for naps. Do you want me to get her?”
He waved her off. “No, it’s OK.” He turned to Sadie. “Listen, Sadie, I’m sure Austin didn’t do it on purpose. You’ve got to remember he’s only three. He might not understand all the rules.”
Danae looked near tears and Grant saw her slink off to the basement.
Sari hollered from the great room. “Come on, Sadie. Aren’t you gonna play anymore?”
“No, stupid! Austin stole my gingerbread man!”
“Sadie, stop it right now. I don’t want to hear another word about the game.” Jesse turned to Sari. “You guys put the game away and find something else to play, you hear me?”
“But Da-ad!”
Jesse snapped his fingers and strode toward the great room.
Sadie ran to obey. She pouted, but both girls clamped their mouths shut, and Grant could hear them picking the game up.
Feeling uncomfortable at the tension, and not wanting to interfere, Grant went to the kitchen and rinsed the few dishes that had accumulated since the men loaded the dishwasher. Jesse had taken the girls back to the living room, and the TV filled the silence again, but Danae and Dallas were still downstairs with Austin. At least he’d quit crying.
Audrey came in and opened the refrigerator.
“Everything OK out there?” He kept his voice low.
“I think they’ll get it worked out. Do you know what set him off?”
“No. They were playing together fine, and next thing I knew those two were going at it.”
She scooted him over to fill a pitcher with water. “I think things are catching up with Austin.”
“Well, the poor little guy has been through a lot.”
“I just hope—”
The volume on the TV went down again and they heard Dallas’s voice. Audrey moved to the doorway, just out of sight, and Grant followed her.
“Sadie, Austin has something he’d like to tell you,” Dallas said.
You could have heard a pin drop. Grant moved to the other side of Audrey so he could watch the little drama play out.
Austin’s voice was barely a whisper, but it sounded like, “Sorry I yelled at you.”
“I forgive you, Austin.” Sadie buried him in a hug.
It was the way he and Audrey had always made their kids make up after a fight. It was good to see. Except Austin tolerated it for about five seconds before he spread his arms and busted loose, running for the front door. Danae chased after him and caught him up in her arms. “Hey, buddy. Where are you going?”
“I want my mama!” He started in wailing again.
Danae crumpled into a heap on the steps with Austin in her arms. Her shoulders shook with silent sobs, and Grant went to her and sat on the step beside her. While she tried to comfort Austin, he tried to comfort her. But his heart broke for both of them, and he shot up a silent prayer for peace for all of them, but especially for this hurting little boy.
They sat that way for several minutes and Austin finally quit crying. He kept his head buried under Danae’s chin, sucking his thumb for all he was worth.
After a few minutes, Grant sensed someone standing in front of them and raised his head to see Dallas. He started to get up and relinquish his spot to his son-in-law. But Dallas motioned for him to stay put.
“Danae, I’m going to go start the car,” he said quietly. “I got that box of presents you’d gathered up, but what else do we need to take?”
“Just the dishes I brought. But I need to leave the salads for everyone else’s supper.” Her voice quavered with remnant tears.
“Are you ready to leave?” Dallas put a hand lightly on her arm. “I didn’t mean to rush you, but . . . I just thought it might be best.”
She nodded, then looked up at Grant with an apologetic frown. “I think we need to get Austin home to bed.”
Grant put an arm around her and patted Austin’s back with the other hand. “That’s probably a good idea. This was a pretty big day for him. Do you guys want to take some leftovers with you—for later?”
“Maybe some turkey,” she said. “We don’t need anything else.”
“I’ll go get your coats and hats.”
“Thanks, Dad.”
Oh, Danae. The sadness in her voice just about killed him. He knew thin
gs would look brighter tomorrow, but right now, he wished he could turn the clock back about fifteen years when all his kids—all five of them—had belonged under this roof. No one was running off to another house, no one had suffered any worse heartbreak than a severe case of unrequited puppy love.
Of course, going back meant that half the people in this house would not be part of his family. The sons-in-law he loved like his own. Precious Bree. The granddaughters who had claimed a sizable hunk of his heart.
No. He didn’t really want to go back. He wanted to make it so there were no more wars that tore sons and husbands from their families. He wanted to make it so every daddy loved his wife and son. He wanted to make it so mamas who wanted babies could have as many as they desired. He just wanted to fix everything so no one he loved would ever hurt again.
But that just wasn’t possible on this side of heaven.
24
A brilliant sun streamed in through the window of the master bathroom. It was almost too bright for Danae to apply eyeliner and shadow. Nevertheless, she went through the motions, stroking on layers of mascara and brushing her eyebrows into submission. She took the same care with her makeup today that she had on her wedding day. And she wasn’t sure why.
The new year had spawned a string of bright, sunny days, but she couldn’t seem to shake the cloud that hung over her. She and Dallas had spent the entire week before on paperwork, securing the documents they needed to become Austin’s guardians for however long he needed them to be. Filling out form after form, researching every possible contingency, wanting to be sure that they left no loopholes.
She had no regrets about their decision—despite Austin’s blow-ups, which had happened with frightening frequency since the incident at Christmas at her parents’ two weeks ago. But though that concerned her, it wasn’t the source of her melancholy.
Today they would go visit Misty. Danae and Dallas had decided to ask Austin’s mother to sign papers granting custody to them as legal guardians. Even though they were merely doing what Misty had asked—no, begged them to do—Danae felt as if they had somehow betrayed her.
Misty’s attorney had all but guaranteed them that she would escape the death penalty by pleading guilty. Danae hoped he knew what he was talking about.
She’d rehearsed a thousand different speeches, trying to imagine what she would want to hear if she were in Misty’s shoes, what would offer her the most comfort if she were losing her only son the way Misty was. Today would make it final for both of them. And the agony Misty was experiencing tempered the joy that wanted to bubble up inside Danae, because now she had a child to love.
Not a son of her flesh, not even a boy she could call “my son.” And yet she didn’t think she could have loved Austin more if he were her child. They had asked Misty’s attorney if they could bring Austin to the meeting for Misty to see. And so Austin could see her. A sort of closure for both of them.
But the attorney consulted Misty and come back with her reply: absolutely not. She did not want her son to have a memory of his mother in shackles and a prison jumpsuit.
Danae understood, in a way. And was grateful. She was afraid seeing Misty might reverse the progress they’d made with Austin since Christmas.
And yet she wondered how a mother—one who hadn’t seen her son for almost eight weeks now—could cheat herself of that opportunity. It was either fierce pride, or selfless love. Or perhaps it was simply God’s grace poured over the whole thing. And certainly there had been enough people praying for exactly that, that she shouldn’t doubt.
She smoothed lip gloss over carefully applied lipstick and checked her reflection in the mirror. She was a different person from the woman who’d looked back at her even six months ago when they’d first moved into this house. Different, and better, she hoped.
Today would test what she was really made of.
* * *
This time, instead of an attorney, it was a social worker—she introduced herself as Carol Blye—who met Danae and Dallas in the waiting area. The woman had graying hair and a rather dour disposition. She led them through the halls of the Justice Center to a room similar to the one where they’d met with Misty before.
As before, Misty was in handcuffs, although it seemed to Danae that she sat straighter this time, as if she’d grown accustomed to the restraints. Danae wasn’t sure what she’d expected—that Austin’s mother would be thinner and wan, maybe? But if anything, she’d put on weight.
“Hello, Misty.” She forced a smile.
Misty nodded. “How is he?”
“He’s good. Really good. He misses you, but he’s doing well.” Danae produced the envelope, the only thing the social worker had allowed them to carry in, besides the documents for Misty to sign. “I brought pictures. Would you like to see?”
Tears filled Misty’s eyes, but she nodded. Danae pulled the packet of photos out and slid it across the table.
She’d brought only a few close-ups of Austin taken at Christmas. The pictures showed him happy and smiling, but she’d been careful to crop out anything that would show too much of their home, or her parents’ house, or other family members. It seemed cruel to show how much more they could offer Austin than Misty had ever been able to. Such a strange dichotomy when that was exactly what they’d needed to prove to the social worker who was conducting their home study. That in itself had been a harrowing process. And they weren’t finished yet. They’d apparently passed the home visits with flying colors, but there were still other hoops to jump through. If Dallas didn’t already love Austin so much, Danae wasn’t sure he would still be onboard.
She mentally flipped through the photos of Austin again, and wondered if she should have removed one that showed him with his head thrown back, laughing at some silly game Dallas had been playing with him. How would she have felt if the tables were turned and she saw photos of her own child looking so happy—without her?
And yet, wouldn’t Misty want to see him happy? As wrong as Misty’s actions had been, she was in this place, in part, because she’d loved Austin enough to sacrifice her freedom to keep him safe. To be sure he was happy.
Misty struggled over the handcuffs to open the packet that held the photos. The social worker sitting beside her didn’t attempt to help her, so Danae didn’t either.
When she finally got the small stack of photos out of the envelope and looked at the one on top, she broke down.
Which caused Danae to do the same.
Dallas put his hand on Danae’s back, and after a few minutes, he spoke to Misty in a tender voice that made Danae love him all the more.
“Austin’s getting along really well,” he said. “He’s such a bright boy and always wants to learn new things. Danae and I have fallen in love with him, Misty. We’re honored to be his guardians. For as long as he needs us.”
Misty only nodded, but Danae noticed that the hard set of her jaw, so often present while she was in the women’s shelter, had softened.
Carol Blye seemed eager to keep the meeting moving along and pushed a folder full of papers across the desk to them.
“It’s unfortunate,” she said, “that we’re going to have to do everything again—all the same papers—for the baby.” She shot Misty a look of frustration. “I wish we could just do addendums—and maybe we can for a couple of these—but I’d feel more confident if the documents specifically named each child.”
Dallas and Danae exchanged questioning looks.
“I’m not sure I understand,” he said.
“They don’t know,” Misty told the woman, ducking her head.
Carol Blye turned to her, looking incredulous. “What?”
“I . . . didn’t get a chance to tell them. They don’t know,” she repeated.
The woman slapped the folder on the table, her jaw tense. “Are you kidding me?”
“What’s this about?” Dallas said.
The woman sighed. “It seems Mrs. Arato is pregnant. She just revealed this fact to me thi
s morning. But she led me to believe that you had agreed to guardianship of her infant as well. Is that not correct?”
Danae couldn’t hold back a gasp.
“No,” Dallas said. “No. We . . . had no idea.”
Danae noticed he couldn’t meet Misty’s eyes when he spoke.
Misty turned a silent stare on the social worker before addressing Danae. “I didn’t say anything because these papers will be different. I’ve been doing research and I don’t understand exactly what all has to happen, but I know it’s not the same as what you done with Austin.”
“What do you mean, Misty?” Danae had a feeling she knew, but she didn’t dare let herself go there.
“I want you to adopt this baby.” Misty looked self-consciously at her belly, and Danae realized that what she’d thought was weight gain, was her pregnancy starting to show.
“Misty—”
“Austin . . .” A faraway look came to Misty’s eyes. “Austin’s been mine for so long I can’t see clear to let him go. How would that make him feel? But this one”—again, she looked at her belly—“this one won’t ever know me. It’s best he gets a clean break.”
“He?” Danae blurted. “Do you know it’s a boy?”
“No. I just call it ‘he’ because it don’t seem right to call it ‘it.’ I had sonograms with Austin, but they won’t let me do that here. But I probably wouldn’t want to find out what it is anyway.”
“When are you due?”
“April sometime. I think the doctor said April 11 was the official due date.”
“Then”—the social worker sighed—“I guess we need to know first of all: are you willing to proceed with the adoption of this child?”
It was all Danae could do not to shout, “Yes!” But she looked to Dallas to make sure he was on the same page.
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