“Renee, do you think Brenda would mind if Lieutenant Bradford and I dropped by later this evening for a few minutes to question her a little more about her husband’s associates? There’re a few loose ends we’d like to get clarity on.”
“Hold on, let me check with her.” Renee turned to Brenda and told her Deek’s request. Brenda looked conflicted. Renee could see the tension in her face from the clamped lips and rigidness of her jaw. She could almost tell what Brenda must be thinking, knowing how she herself would just want to spend time with her baby after more than an entire day of not knowing if he were alive or dead. Renee returned the phone to her ear and let Brenda’s silence give her an answer. “Deek, I’m not sure how long all this will take or where we’ll be. How about I call you later with something more definite?” Brenda nodded her agreement as her mouth formed a silent ‘Thank You’ to Renee.
“Good. I’d appreciate it if you’d let me know. My partner’s itching to put this case to bed. You don’t have to tell Brenda this, but we’re on our way to her husband’s autopsy now. There’s no doubt about his identity. Dental records came in last night and confirmed that the victim is Jerome Antonio Johnson.”
Renee didn’t know what to say. She held the phone to her ear in silence as Deek continued. “We’ve got Forensics and the D. C. police crime scenes lab checking for any trace evidence and latent prints collected yesterday. I'm hoping for a clear set of prints or anything that’ll tie the person responsible to the crime.”
“When will you know something?”
“I stayed at the precinct late last night to finish the transmittal letter and put a rush on it. All the significant evidence went out this morning so hopefully the lab results should come back in a few days.”
“You are moving fast. Are you getting any sleep?” she asked.
“Sleep? What’s that?” he laughed.
“I wish you and Detective Bradford would let me help Deek. Did you get a chance to speak to your partner about me working with you on the investigation?”
“Yep, sure did. He wasn’t too keen on the idea. But after some convincing and serious blackmailing,” said Deek, lightheartedly, “He agreed that having a psychologist on board could be beneficial. But one slipup Doc and you’re out.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll abide by all your rules.”
“All my rules? Hum, I like the sound of that.”
“You know what I mean Detective Hamilton,” said Renee, with a flirty tone in her voice.
“Okay, Doc, we’ll give it a try. Good to have you on the team, partner.”
Renee hung up, relieved that their conversation ended on a lighter note. She didn’t go into the details of her conversation with Deek. She was relieved that Brenda could not hear what he had told her about the police’s progress on the murder investigation. When she looked out the window she saw that they had turned onto Independence Avenue in Southwest DC and weren’t that far away. Like Brenda, Renee had taken to silent prayer and she said one for Brenda, praying that the agency would not give them any resistance. They arrived at the Child and Family Services office on 400 6th Street, SW just before 10:30 AM.
When Brenda and Renee entered Miss Shepherd’s small cramped office, they found the social worker perched behind a cluttered desk. She was in the middle of a telephone conversation but smiled at them as they walked in. Still talking, she pointed to a set of chairs in front of her desk. Miss Shepherd snatched off her eyeglasses and rubbed the space between her dark eyes and frowned as she listened to the person on the other end. She held her hand over the telephone mouthpiece and whispered apologetically to Brenda and Renee. “I’ll be with you in a moment. I can see it’s going to be one of those days.” The social worker nodded and grunted “um hum” to the person she was talking to on the phone. “All right. Call me back as soon as you speak to Judge Riker’s calendar clerk,” said Miss Shepherd in an authoritative voice. “I need to be there when the judge hears that juvenile case for disposition. Fine. Okay, Bye.”
As soon as Miss Shepherd hung up, she extended her hand in a greeting and everyone introduced themselves.
“I’m sorry about that,” said Miss Shepherd, “This place stays hopping as you can see.” She walked over to the file cabinet to retrieve Baby Justin’s case file. She took out the Polaroid of the abandoned baby and showed it to Brenda. “Is this your son, Mrs. Johnson?”
“Yes, that’s my Justin,” Brenda beamed, “I have another picture of him when he was first born that I keep in my wallet.” She pulled out the photo and handed it to her. “All my more recent photos were destroyed in the fire at our home yesterday. I’d been meaning to add a more recent picture of him in my wallet, but just hadn’t gotten around to it. But you can clearly see it’s the same child.”
“Well, it looks like it could be him,” said Miss Shepherd, wrinkling her nose.
“Can I go pick him up at foster care now?” asked Brenda, “I know my baby must be frightened and confused without his mama.”
“I’m sorry Mrs. Johnson but before I can let you take possession of this child you’ll need to show me some identifying information to prove you’re his mother. Do you have Justin’s birth certificate and your driver’s license or a social security card?”
Brenda dug through her wallet and took out her driver’s license. She explained that she would have to get duplicates of her social security card and her son’s birth certificate. However, she was sure her mother had kept her original birth certificate if the social worker needed that. She could easily retrieve it from her mother if necessary.
“Do you mean this birth certificate for Brenda Jewel Adams?” asked Miss Shepherd and held up a copy of Brenda’s birth certificate.
“Yes, that’s mine. Adams is my maiden name. Did my mother come here?” Brenda asked, in surprise. “Is she still around?”
“Unfortunately, yes your mother did come here this morning and fortunately, now she’s gone. She showed up ranting and raving about her grandson and demanding to know where he had been placed. The woman carried pictures of your baby and your birth certificate as you see here,” said Miss Shepherd. “Obviously, because of custody issues we couldn’t be responsible for placing the child in this woman’s care without speaking to you first, Mrs. Johnson and validating your ID. When I tried to explain that to your mother, she became so hostile that we had to call security to throw her out I’m sorry to say.”
Brenda covered her face with her hand for a few seconds then looked up. “I’m sorry about that Miss Shepherd. I hope you won’t hold that outburst this morning against me. I’m a good mother. My employer, Dr. Renee here can vouch for me.”
Renee nodded her head vigorously. “Of course I can. I can assure you Miss Shepherd that Brenda is a responsible, level-headed young woman. As you can see from her driver’s license she is who she claims to be. You would be doing the right thing for all concerned by returning her baby to her immediately.”
Miss Shepherd leaned back in her swivel chair and clasped her hands together. “Mrs. Johnson, I honestly don’t feel comfortable releasing the child into your family’s care until you bring me the baby’s birth certificate as final proof,” said Miss Shepherd. “The Child and Family Welfare agency is quite rigid about requirements. I can only keep the case in hold status up to four more days.”
Brenda’s face grew tense. “What do you mean by hold status?”
Renee had wanted to stay out of it as much as possible. The last thing she wanted to do was to appear to take over like Brenda’s mother had tried to do this morning, but she now felt it was time to speak up. “Miss Shepherd, I understand the procedure but couldn’t you simply accept the picture in Brenda’s wallet and her driver’s license as valid proof? You already have a copy of her legitimate birth certificate that her mother provided, what more do you need?”
Miss Shepherd’s thoughtful expression
encouraged Renee to continue in a pleading tone. “We’re here because of tragic and unfortunate circumstances that you’re well aware of. We both know that if this case gets out of holding status and the court takes control of her son, there’s simply no telling when this mother will be reunited with her son.”
Brenda’s face grew distressed. She demanded to know what being out of holding status meant. Miss Shepherd explained to her that when an abandoned child is brought to Child and Family Services, the case goes into a five-day holding period. If Brenda had brought in her baby’s birth certificate while the case was still in holding status and could successfully prove that she was his mother, the child could be released to her without going through any more red tape. One day had already passed. After the holding status, it would be out of the social worker’s hands in which case it could take six weeks to get through the Court system no matter what. That’s when an attorney called Guardian Ad Litem would be appointed by the Court to represent the baby while Child and Family Services would have its own legal representation.
“There’s no need to get all these lawyers involved!” said Brenda, leaping from her chair. “Why is all this necessary? I’ve shown you everything?”
Renee could see that Brenda fought back her tears. She touched her arm and nudged her back down in the chair.
“Because Mrs. Johnson, my superiors could challenge my authority if I give the go-ahead to release the child to you without proper evidence that the Court itself would recognize. And if the case were to be turned over to the Courts, they still wouldn’t release the child into your custody until the minor’s appointed attorney and I visited the home where he would be residing. Will you be staying at your mother’s house temporarily or permanently?”
Brenda cupped her forehead in her hand and spoke in a soft tone. “You mean you’d actually make a home visit before returning my baby back to me?”
“That’s right, ma’am. So to avoid all that hassle and red tape you must bring the child’s birth certificate within the next four days while the case is still in holding status,” said Mrs. Shepherd with finality in her voice.
“Try to understand, Mrs. Johnson. Our main concern is the protection and safety of the children. We have to be very careful. You can say you live somewhere in a decent neighborhood, but for all we know you could be living in an alley or a crack house somewhere. The Court requires us to check out everything before an abandoned child is released to you.”
“Just for the record, my son and I will be staying with my parents on Primrose Street in NW Washington until I can look for my own place. I’m sure you and the Courts would find my parents’ home more than adequate.”
“I’m sure you’re right, but like I said that won’t be necessary if you bring me what I need to close this case,” said Miss Shepherd, leaning forward and planting her elbows on the desk. “I’m not trying to be difficult, Mrs. Johnson. I know you’ve been through hell, but we have to ensure that the baby turned into us is really yours. Please try to see it from our point of view.”
Just then they heard a soft knock on the door followed by the door opening. Another social services representative popped her head through the door.
“Sorry, Donna but one of our foster mothers is outside and she says it’s urgent.”
“Oh, good grief, what is it now!” Mrs. Shepherd rose from her chair and headed towards the door. Before she could get to the door a woman walked in carrying a sleeping, bundled baby in her arms. Renee looked surprised when she saw Shirley Ann Turner, the foster mother that she had grown close to this past summer when they shared in the responsibility of caring for Susannah, a child born with AIDS. Though Renee gave total credit to Shirley Ann who had assumed the bulk of taking care of Susannah on a daily bases. Renee had just been the relief pitcher when Shirley Ann needed a well-deserved break. The women rushed to hug each other. Ever since retiring from the federal government and raising her own kids, Shirley Ann Turner had devoted herself to taking care of foster children. Renee had worked with her ever since joining CASA and loved this lady’s dedication and kind spirit.
“Shirley Ann! How have you been?” said Renee, “I had no idea you’d resumed doing foster care so soon.”
“You know me. I can’t stay away. It’s good to see you, Dr. Renee,” said Shirley Ann, shifting the sleeping baby to her other shoulder. “I got a call from Miss Shepherd last night to say this little angel’s mama would be coming in this morning to identify his photo,” said Shirley Ann, gently patting the baby’s back as she spoke. “I know if it was me, I’d want to see my baby and not some photo of him. I know that’s what I’d want,” said Shirley Ann, nodding her head. “So I decided to bring this little dumpling in person to see if he’s the one. I’m praying for a happy family reunion.”
“You two know each other?” asked Miss Shepherd.
Brenda got up cautiously and approached the baby in Shirley Ann Turner’s arms. She had been staring at the blanketed bundle ever since the foster mother walked in but because of how Shirley Ann carried him and because the blanket was partially draped over his head, Brenda couldn’t see his face. As Shirley Ann began rocking the baby, he woke up from his nap and started to cry. Upon hearing him cry, relief swept over Brenda’s face. She held out her arms.
Brenda recognized that cry. The sound of his cry brought back her memory of him being born. It took what seemed to her like an eternity for the doctor to siphon out the mucus from his passageway. For every deafening second of silence between his first breathe, Brenda and Jerome had clinched each other’s hand and waited for sounds of life from their newborn. Baby Justin’s first strong cry confirmed to everyone in the delivery room that he would be okay. This was the same way he was crying now as if he were taking his first breathe of life.
Shirley Ann released the baby to Brenda’s outstretched arms. Brenda scooped him up and held him to her breast as she rocked him back and forth. Baby Buddha looked into his mother’s tearful eyes and immediately stopped crying. He cooed and smiled at the familiar loving face looking down at him. Brenda silently thanked God for placing her baby safely back in her arms. She realized then that this moment had happened just as she had seen it happening in her mind’s eye when she had prayed and meditated in bed last night. She silently asked for forgiveness for momentarily doubting the outcome when it appeared that Miss Shepherd was not going to make any exceptions to the agency’s rules. Brenda didn’t perceive this outcome as a miracle. She attributed it all to faith. A feeling of warmth and protection washed over her as she held onto her baby. She knew God would be there with her through the next ordeal ahead—her husband’s funeral.
After signing all the necessary paperwork, Miss Shepherd released sole custody of the minor child, Justin Johnson back to his mother and closed the John Doe abandoned baby case. Brenda thanked Mrs. Turner for taking such good care of her child. She thanked Dr. Renee for always supporting her, as well as, Miss Shepherd for waiving the requirement of the baby’s original birth certificate. Under the circumstances, the social worker agreed to let Brenda mail her a copy of Justin’s birth certificate after she received it from Vital Records in the next six weeks or so. The three joyful women assembled in Miss Shepherd’ office and gave each other departing hugs before they left. Brenda asked Dr. Renee if she wouldn’t mind dropping her at her mother’s house. She explained to Renee that she knew her mother had meant well this morning, she just went about it the wrong way. Renee knew that Brenda was right. While she didn’t want Brenda to leave her alone in that big house, she realized that Brenda needed to be with her own family, especially with the funeral looming ahead. Brenda strapped Justin in the car seat and sat in the back, cooing and playing with her son while Renee drove in silence to Irene Adams house on Primrose Street.
Chapter 29
On Friday morning at 10 o’clock a long, black hearse stood stationed near the carved double doors of Nativity Catholic Churc
h on Georgia Avenue. Inside the church Brenda Johnson with her family and the family members of the deceased took up the first two rows. Dr. Renee Hayes sat on the same side as Brenda, but in the last pew. Renee and Brenda’s eyes met briefly when Brenda turned around and glanced towards the main entrance. Both women smiled and nodded at each other. Brenda wore a stylish black, military-collared suit, tasteful black pumps, a black felt hat with a short mesh veil that did nothing to conceal her red, puffy eyes. Pearl posts were clamped to her ears and served as the only adornment to her outfit. Brenda sat between her father, Marvin Adams and her mother, Irene Adams. After having met Brenda’s mother, Renee was not surprised by Mrs. Adams’s brash wardrobe selection for the funeral. Unlike everyone else, Mrs. Adams stood out in a red Chanel suit, red hat, leather clutch purse, and red stiletto pumps. The rest of Brenda’s family sat directly behind her on the second row, a few cousins and an aunt who Renee had never met. She noticed Brenda’s two best girlfriends, Cha-Cha Taylor and Veda Simms, also seated nearby on the second row to console her. Jerome’s family claimed the first two pews on the opposite side of the sanctuary, his parents, grandmother, siblings, and more relatives.
Baby Justin slept peacefully as Brenda gently rocked him in her arms. Media attention had heightened around the arson/murder case. Watching Brenda from afar with her baby son cradled close to her breast, Renee knew that the recent stories being reported about her had to be lies. Renee was committed to doing everything in her power to prove them wrong. Just yesterday on yet another news headline, a station reported that Brenda Johnson had tried to file an insurance claim the day after her husband died in the fire. Renee hadn’t had a chance to talk to Brenda since she moved back home with her parents several days ago, but she didn’t believe a word of the negative press. To Renee the only explanation she could come up with was that someone must be out to destroy her trusted secretary. Fortunately, Deek still seemed to have an open mind about the case and she hoped that wouldn’t change. He confided to Renee the other day that his partner, Detective Melvin Bradford, the lead investigator, was being pressured by their superiors, the DA, and the public to make an arrest. Renee wished someone would come forward soon with new information leading to other suspects since time seemed to be running out for Brenda.
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