by Irene Hannon
“Are you sure you don’t mind waiting?”
“I’ve invested this much time. Another couple of minutes won’t hurt.”
“Okay.” He withdrew his cell phone and hit redial, hoping for an answer but not really expecting one. When a woman’s voice came over the line, his face registered surprise. “Hello. Is Jared there?”
After a couple of seconds, she responded in a cautious tone. “Yes. But he can’t come to the phone right now.”
The woman had to be Jared’s grandmother. Her voice sounded older—and a bit fearful, David noted. He’d seen her name on Jared’s application, and he searched his memory, trying to call it up. Grace. Grace Morris.
“Ms. Morris? This is David Sloan from Uplink. We had an orientation meeting this morning for our new student interns, and we were concerned when Jared didn’t attend. I wanted to follow up and make sure everything was okay.”
Again, a hesitation. “No, Mr. Sloan, I’m afraid it’s not. Jared had a...a run-in with his former gang last night.”
Twin furrows appeared on David’s brow. “Is he all right?”
“I’m taking care of him. But I’m afraid he’s going to have to drop out of the program.”
Whatever had happened last night must have been worse than she was letting on. “We’d hate to lose him, Ms. Morris. He’s a very talented young man.”
“I know. And I’m very sorry that he’s going to miss this opportunity. But I think it’s...better...this way.”
Safer was what she meant, David guessed. But there had to be a way to make this work. He wasn’t giving up on the boy without a fight. “Look, Ms. Morris, I appreciate your concerns. I know you want what’s best for Jared. Why don’t you let me come down and talk this over in person? Maybe we can figure something out to help Jared take advantage of Uplink without causing any further problems.”
“I don’t see how, Mr. Sloan.” Her voice was weary—and resigned.
“Will you at least give me a few minutes of your time to talk this through?”
“I guess that couldn’t hurt.”
Consulting his watch, David did a rapid mental calculation. “I can be there in half an hour. Would that be okay?”
“Yes. That’s fine. But I think you’re wasting your time.”
“I’m willing to take that chance.”
“All right. I’ll see you about noon.”
As David ended the call, Caroline gave him a troubled look. As she’d watched his face and listened to his side of the exchange, she’d gotten the gist of the conversation. Something had happened to Jared. And he was dropping out. Questions sprang to her lips, but she waited while David gathered his thoughts and let him speak first.
“Jared had a run-in with his old gang last night. I got the impression they roughed him up. Enough to give his grandmother—and maybe him—cold feet. I’m assuming it was an intimidation tactic, to keep him from straying too far. They must have found out about Uplink. She says he’s going to withdraw from the program.”
“But you’re going to talk to her?”
“Yes. I’m not sure what good it will do. Her mind seems to be made up. But I can’t let him walk away from this without exploring every option first.”
“I agree. Why don’t I come with you? Maybe between us we can convince her to let him continue.”
The offer surprised him, but before he could respond, Ella came up beside them. “Sounds like a good idea to me. Two heads are always better than one.” She gave the room a quick scan, then directed her next comment to David. “I’ve gathered up all the extra material. Do you need me for anything else today?”
“No. Thanks for your help, Ella. I’ll see you Monday.”
“I’ll be there. In the meantime, you work on that grandma. Together.” She gave Caroline a wink. “And don’t be shy, honey. You just speak right up to that lady. Go for the heartstrings. You’ll be much better at that than David.” With a wave, she went to retrieve her purse.
A smile touched the corners of David’s lip. “I guess I have my orders.”
“It seems I do, too,” Caroline replied, amused.
“Let’s give it a try, then. We can take my car. Since it’s not the best part of town, we ought to stick close.”
His suggestion made sense, so Caroline just nodded and reached for her purse.
Twenty minutes later, as they pulled up in front of the apartment building where Jared lived, David’s lips settled into a grim line. Calling the dilapidated, five-story building with a dozen plastic-covered, broken windows and a small bare patch of earth in front a tenement would be too generous. A few youngsters were playing with a cardboard box in a side yard, and rap music blared from one of the open windows. In a vacant lot next door, a clump of wild tiger lilies had somehow managed to gain a foothold, providing the one touch of beauty in the desolate setting.
When David turned to Caroline, it was clear that the abject poverty and dismal environment had made a deep impression on her as well. Her face reflected sadness as she stared at the surroundings, and when he caught a glimmer in her eyes, he knew she was fighting back tears. All at once he was sorry he’d brought her. If he thought it was safe, he’d suggest she wait in the car and spare her a visit inside, which he suspected was as bad—or worse—than the outside. But there was no way he was leaving her alone in this neighborhood.
Reaching out, he laid a gentle hand on her shoulder. “This wasn’t such a good idea. It’s not very pretty down here.”
His tender, caring touch choked her up even more, and she tried to swallow past the lump in her throat. “I’ve seen worse. I spent time in the Middle East, remember? But I’m always blown away when I come across poverty like this in our country. In a land where so many have so much, where a few miles from here people drive Mercedes and belong to country clubs and live in five-thousand-square-foot homes.” She took another second to compose herself, then turned to him. “Ready?”
“Yes. I’ll get your door.”
She waited for him to come around, and he took her arm as they walked toward the entrance. A group of teenage boys sat on a stoop at the next building, and as he and Caroline picked their way over the cracked and buckled concrete sidewalk, whistles and catcalls followed their progress. David’s grip on her elbow tightened in an instinctive, protective gesture. Once more, he regretted bringing her into this environment.
By unspoken mutual consent, they climbed the stairs instead of taking a dark, dingy elevator ride to the third floor. But the stairwell wasn’t much better. The smell of stale urine assailed their nostrils, and garbage was wedged in every corner—except for the one where an older man slept with an empty whisky bottle beside him. More than ever, David resolved to do everything in his power to help Grace Morris find a way to feel comfortable—and safe—letting Jared participate in Uplink. It might be the boy’s one and only chance to escape from this world.
When they reached the third floor, a long, dim, deserted corridor stretched before them, echoing with the noise coming from behind the dozens of closed doors. Shouts, curses, rap music, the blare of a TV set turned to full volume, a child crying—the cacophony of sound assaulted their ears. Resolving to get out of the hallway as fast as possible, David urged Caroline forward. She followed without protest, making it clear she was of the same mindset. Three doors down they came to Jared’s apartment, and David knocked.
Within seconds, a woman’s muffled voice came from the other side. “Who is it?”
“David Sloan.”
A lock slid back, and an older woman cracked the door to peer out at them. Then she pulled it open and stepped aside, motioning them in. With a firm click she shut the door behind them and slid the lock back into place. “How do you do? I’m Grace Morris.” She extended a gnarled, work-worn hand.
Both recognized her at once from Jared’s photo. David took her hand
first. “I’m David Sloan. This is Caroline James, from the Chronicle, who has agreed to be one of Jared’s mentors at the newspaper. She was at today’s meeting and offered to come with me.”
Caroline took the woman’s rough, sinewy hand as well—a hand that spoke of too much exposure to hard work and abrasive detergent. “It’s nice to meet you, Ms. Morris.”
The woman gestured toward a couch and rocking chair in the tiny living room. “Please sit down. May I offer you something to drink?”
Glancing at Caroline, David shook his head. “No, thanks. We’re fine.”
As she and David took a seat on the couch, Caroline gave the room a discreet perusal. Though the furnishings were shabby and the ceiling bore water stains, the apartment was tidy and spotless. A hand-crocheted afghan draped over the couch camouflaged the threadbare patches in the fabric, and a bud vase containing one of the lilies from the vacant lot next door sat on a small table beside a worn Bible. Photos of Jared at various ages were grouped in cheap frames on a small credenza, and pictures of scenic vistas—the kind found on many calendars—brightened the walls.
As Grace Morris sat in the rocking chair at a right angle to the window, the sunlight threw the lines in her face into sharp relief. She looked like a woman who had had a hard life, one filled with care and worry. Yet her demeanor and bearing conveyed dignity and strength. As if she’d found a way to deal with the unfair hand life had dealt her without growing bitter. Caroline’s gaze flickered to the Bible, and she suspected that book was the sustaining force in the woman’s life. Jared’s photo had suggested as much.
“Thank you for seeing us, Ms. Morris,” David began. “I hope you don’t mind that I brought Caroline along, but she’s taken a great interest in Jared as well.”
“I appreciate that very much.”
“Is he here?”
She glanced toward the bedroom. “He’s been sleeping. I didn’t want to wake him.”
“Can you tell us what happened last night?” David prodded gently.
A shadow passed over the woman’s face. “He went out to pick up some medicine for me at the pharmacy. On the way back, some of the members of his gang jumped him. He’s been trying to break off with them.” Pausing, she reached over and laid her hand on the Bible. “I’ve been praying for that for a long time. Those boys are bad news. And they don’t like defectors. They were putting pressure on Jared to get more involved, and when they heard about Uplink, they figured he was slipping away for good. Last night was a strong message that he better come back into the fold.” She removed her glasses, closing her eyes as she massaged the bridge of her nose. Then she replaced the glasses and looked at David and Caroline. “I want Jared to find a way out of here. I want something better than this for my boy. But I also want him to have a long life. And I’m afraid if he continues with Uplink, that might not happen.”
His face intent, David leaned forward. “How badly hurt is he, Ms. Morris?”
“Enough that we spent twelve hours in the emergency room. At first he didn’t want to go. He knew there’d be questions. But he was having trouble breathing, which scared him—and me, too. By eleven last night I convinced him that we needed to get help.”
“What did the doctors—”
A door opened down the hallway off the living room, and David stopped speaking. The sound of shuffling feet followed. Neither he nor Caroline had a view of the hall from where they sat, but it was in Grace’s line of sight. She rose just as Jared appeared in the doorway, leaning against the wall and clutching his side.
“Nan, the bandage on my arm came off. Do we have any...”
Caroline shifted in her seat, and the movement caught Jared’s attention. Startled, he jerked his head their way and stared at her, then at David. “What’s going on?” He directed the question to his grandmother.
“Mr. Sloan called to see why you missed the Uplink meeting, and asked if he could visit to talk with me. Ms. James came along.”
As the two conversed, David took a quick inventory of Jared. It was clear from his bent posture that the boy was in pain from injuries David couldn’t see. But there were plenty of visible injuries as well. Jared’s right eye was almost swollen shut, his lip was puffy and split, and on his upper arm, just below the sleeve of his T-shirt, there was a jagged line of stitches.
A quick glance in Caroline’s direction told him that she was just as shocked as he by the boy’s condition.
Jared tried to straighten up, but the effort was too much and he winced. “Didn’t you tell them I’m dropping out?”
“Yes.”
“We’d like to find a way for you to stay in the program, Jared,” David said.
The boy looked at him, his face bleak. “It ain’t gonna happen, man. I won’t put Nan through the worry.”
“But there has to be a way,” Caroline countered. Now that she’d seen his living conditions, she was more determined than ever to help him find a way out. She didn’t want the gang’s intimidation tactics to rob Jared of the best opportunity he might ever have to escape this environment.
“I already have two broken ribs. I’m not angling for two more. Or worse.”
“Look, why don’t you sit down for a minute while we discuss this?” David rose and moved toward the boy, whose instinctive reaction was to recoil. Slowing his advance, David stopped short of Jared and reached out a hand. “Just lean on me, okay? There’s nothing wrong with admitting you need some help. We all do at times.”
For several seconds Jared stared at David. Then his shoulders slumped. “Okay. Thanks,” he mumbled.
David moved closer, and the tall, lanky teenager grasped his arm as he shuffled toward the couch. Caroline moved over to make room for them both, and David eased the boy down before taking his own seat.
“Okay. Let’s think about this a little. It’s obvious that we need to get you out of this environment. Ms. Morris, is there anywhere else Jared could live for the summer? A relative who might take him in, in a different part of town? Somewhere away from the gang, a place where they might be less likely to bother him?”
“I have one sister. A widow. She lives in Webster Groves, but we haven’t spoken in a long time.”
“Webster is close to the Chronicle. And far enough away from North St. Louis that the gang might leave Jared alone.” It sounded like the perfect arrangement to David.
“I’ve always taken care of Jared by myself. No one’s ever offered to help, and I’ve never asked. I don’t plan to start now,” Grace replied. “Besides, like I said, my sister and I haven’t spoken for years.”
A family rift. David could relate to that. He knew he was treading on sensitive ground, stepping onto a potential minefield, by pursuing this. But he had to take the chance, for Jared’s sake.
“Ms. Morris, I admire the fact that you’ve always cared for Jared on your own. You deserve a lot of credit for that. But maybe the best way you can take care of him right now is to ask your sister for help. I understand why that may not be easy. I had a rift with my own brother, and I’ve always regretted the fact that we didn’t resolve it before he died.” His voice grew hoarse on the last word, and he cleared his throat. “There’s still time for you, though. And in the process, you’ll be doing your best to take care of Jared, just as you always have.”
Grace considered that for a moment. Then she reached for the Bible on the table beside her and cradled it in her hands. “I tried to contact her once, to mend our fences, when her husband died three years ago. But she didn’t want any part of a reconciliation. I doubt she’s changed her mind since then.”
“And there’s no one else?”
“No.”
Stymied, David leaned forward and clasped his hands between his knees. He couldn’t dismiss Grace’s worry. Leaving Jared in this environment while he participated in Uplink was asking for trouble. But the
re seemed to be no other option. Unless...unless Jared lived with him for the summer. It wasn’t ideal, of course. The board had warned him early on not to get personally involved with individual students. Too many of them had stories of hardship, and the emotional toll could be great. As a result, the board preferred that the executive director be compassionate but maintain a professional distance. Yet if David didn’t step over that line, Jared would be out. And he couldn’t let that happen.
“Look, Ms. Morris, this isn’t something in my job description. But I care about what happens to Jared. If there’s no other option, he would be welcome to stay with me over the summer.”
All three people in the room stared at him. Jared looked shocked. Ms. Morris seemed taken aback, but touched. Caroline looked... He didn’t want to dwell on the soft warmth in her eyes. So he turned back to Jared’s grandmother and focused on her.
“I don’t know what to say, Mr. Sloan,” she told him.
“I hope you’ll say yes.”
Something flickered to life in Jared’s eyes. Something that looked a lot like hope rekindling. He turned to his grandmother. “I’d like to be part of Uplink, Nan.”
Indecision registered on her face. She looked down again at the Bible in her lap, then shook her head. “That’s a very kind offer, Mr. Sloan. But it’s too much of an imposition.”
For most of the visit, Caroline had remained silent. But she could feel the tension in the boy beside her, knew at some instinctive level that even though he might not be very good with the spoken word, he wanted this opportunity. Very much. Yet he would defer to his grandmother’s wishes. At the same time, she understood the woman’s reluctance to accept David’s generous offer. It was a tremendous imposition. That left only one other option.
Leaning forward, Caroline spoke to the older woman, her voice earnest and empathetic. “Would you consider contacting your sister again, for Jared’s sake, Ms. Morris? I know you said you tried three years ago, but many things can change in three years...or three months...or even overnight.” The shadow of pain that darkened her face wasn’t lost on David, and he had to stifle an urge to reach over and give her hand an encouraging squeeze. Instead, he linked his clasped hands more tightly. “Maybe it would be worth trying to contact her one more time. You wouldn’t have anything to lose, and perhaps you’d have a lot to gain.”