Page 14

thirteen

M ost days I love coming to the center and mediating visits between children and their family members, but some days it’s rough. Earlier a little boy bawled when his parents had to leave him behind. His parents are young and made a mistake and are trying to make amends so they can get him back. It broke my heart watching all three of them crying for each other. I wish I could just give them my blessing and tell them to go home and to have a happy life, but I can’t do that.

After they left and the child calmed down, I was ushered into the next mediation.

Carol isn’t exactly what I would call maternal. She doesn’t know how to talk to her ten-year-old daughter, and it’s obvious that Shelby wants nothing to do with her. In fact, the way that Shelby flinches every time her mother moves makes me wonder if this is much more than a case of neglect. As much as I want to usher Shelby away from the woman, I can’t. I have to make sure they have their time and then report my findings to the courts so they can make their decision.

I clear my throat. “Shelby, did you tell your mom about the play?”

Carol’s eyes narrow. “What play? We don’t have no money for a play.”

Shelby wilts into herself, and it takes everything in me not to reach out and smack her mom against the back of her head.

“Don’t worry, Miss Carol, it’s just a school play. No fees,” I say as cheerfully as I can.

Carol makes a noise in the back of her throat but keeps her mouth shut. For now. Lord knows it’s only a matter of time.

“Go on, Shelby. Tell her about it,” I prod.

Shelby looks up at me with dread in her eyes before she turns back to her mom. “It’s a play about traveling to a new world and joining the people who already live there. It’s for our American History class,” Shelby says softly.

“What are you excited about most with the play?” I ask.

Shelby smiles. “I’m excited to work on the props. We all get a small acting part, but I’m really excited to paint. Did you know that they have us painting on big pieces of wood?”

“Really? That’s amazing! Isn’t it, Miss Carol?” I say, trying to pull her mom into the topic at hand.

Carol scoffs. “It sounds like a waste of time. If that’s what our tax dollars are paying for, it sounds like I shouldn’t send you and keep you home to do things around the house.”

Shelby flinches and looks down at the ground. Grinding my molars together, I try to rein in my temper. Couldn’t she have said it sounds nice and supported her daughter? Of course not, that would be too easy for her. That and the only person Carol cares about is herself.

“Well, fortunately for Shelby here, she is required by law to receive an education,” I say brightly.

Carol starts digging through her purse, ignoring her daughter while I eye the clock. There’s only fifteen minutes left in this visit, and for the first time ever, I want to call it early. I can’t, though. While Carol has said some questionable things, she hasn’t made a move to hurt either of us.

“Shelby, how about we leave this one here and go get a snack from the vending machine? How does that sound to you?”

Before Shelby can say yes or no, I cut in. “Actually, Miss Carol, you can’t take Shelby to the vending machine alone. It’s policy. I’m sure you understand.”

Carol’s eyes narrow. “Excuse me? Where do you, a child, think you can tell me what I’m allowed and not allowed to do with my own daughter…”

I feel Shelby tense next to me, and I rest my hand on her leg. “Again, Miss Carol, it’s nothing personal. It’s just the policy we have in place to protect everyone involved.”

“Policy be damned. She is my daughter, and I will do whatever the hell I want,” Carol says as she jabs her finger toward Shelby.

Shelby whimpers and buries her face into my arm.

Very carefully, I pull Shelby up and stand. Slowly I try to tuck her body behind mine as Carol stands.

“Miss Carol, I think it’s time to cut this visit short. I think it’s in Shelby’s best interest since she’s uncomfortable,” I say, trying to defuse the situation.

Carol jumps up, and her eyes narrow. “Uncomfortable? I’ll give you something to be uncomfortable about!”

Carol lunges toward me, and I push Shelby away from me, hoping she gets out of reach. Shelby cries out right as I get hit across the face. Before I can even react, the door to the conference room is slammed open and someone grabs Carol, pulling her out.

Holy shit. She hit me. That crazy fucking bitch hit me. All because I wanted to protect her daughter. I can’t believe it.

“Are you okay, Cora?” Martha asks cautiously as she rests her hands on my shoulders.

“Shelby…” I say as I frantically look around the room, not spotting my charge.

Shit, where did she go?

“Calm down, sweetheart. Shelby slipped out right as we were coming in.”

Relief hits me that maybe, just maybe, Shelby didn’t see her mom hit me. Not for my sake but for hers. No child should see their parent snap like that.

“Oh good.”

“Are you okay, though?”

“Yeah, my cheek kind of stings, but that’s it.”

Martha nods. “Well then, come on. Let’s get you some ice.”

Side by side, we move toward the break room.

“Sit,” Martha demands when we slip inside.

Completely exhausted, I don’t bother putting up a fight and do as she says.

I watch as Martha puts some ice in a Ziploc bag before wrapping it in a towel. She brings it over to me and presses it to my cheek.

“Thank you,” I tell her as I grab hold of it.

“You’re welcome. Want to tell me what happened?” Martha asks as she sits.

Blowing out a breath, I give her a quick recap of the visit. I even admit that I think Carol might have an abusive streak and tell her why. By the time I’m done talking, my throat is dry and scratchy.

Shit, I could go for some water right about now, but my water bottle is with my things in another room.

Martha drums her fingers on the table as she thinks about what I’ve told her. “Well, we will report it, and I’m sure the judge will have someone ask Shelby about your suspicions. Do you think she will admit it if it’s true?”

“Possibly. I could be wrong, but it doesn’t seem like Shelby is in a rush to be reunited with her mom.”

“I hate that,” Martha mutters.

“Me too.”

“How about you head out of here? You’ve had a long day.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, now go before I change my mind.”

“If it’s all right with you, I want to stop and check on Shelby first.”

“That right there, girlie pop, is why you will be fantastic at this job.”

Ducking my head, I smile. “Thanks for the ice.”

“Anytime, just don’t make a habit of needing it.”

Shaking my head, I leave the break room and go in search of the ten-year-old girl who appears so much older than she actually is.

“Hey, I’ve been looking for you. Are you okay?” I ask softly as I lean against the doorframe.

Shelby looks up at me with tears in her eyes. “She hit you.”

Dammit, I was really hoping that she didn’t see that. I could lie, but I won’t. I can’t if I want her to trust me.

“She did.”

“I’m sorry,” Shelby sobs.

Unable to handle it anymore, I go to her and pull her into my arms. “You know that her actions are not your fault, right? What your mother does has nothing to do with you and everything to do with her, okay?”

“But…”

I shake my head and cut in before she can give me some sort of excuse. “No excuses. I’m serious. Your mother’s actions are hers and hers alone. You can’t control another human and what they do.”

Shelby pulls away and wipes the tears off of her face. “I don’t like her.”

I don’t like her either, but I can’t tell her that.

“You have a right to feel that way.”

“I wish I knew who my dad was,” she says, breaking my heart.

God, how many candles did I blow out hoping my dad would show up? How many times did I wish on him on a shooting star? I understand what she means by wanting him because I’ve been there. The only difference is I had a mother and brother who I knew would always be there for me and never allowed me to feel like I was missing out.

“Maybe we can talk to your caseworker and see if we can test your DNA. Maybe we can find some of your dad’s family that way. How does that sound?”

“Can we really do that?”

“I don’t know, but it wouldn’t hurt to try.”

Shelby throws herself into me and wraps her arms around my waist. “Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.”

I laugh softly. “Don’t thank me yet. I don’t know if I can make it happen.”

But I’ll try. I’ll try to get all of these kids what they want. Even if it kills me.

* * *

Tapping my pen against my list, I look down at the names I’ve written down so far.

Cora, Grace, and Clay.

Who the hell else do I need to make amends with? Who do I actually care to make amends with?

“Hey, man, what are you doing?” Wyatt asks as he slides into the chair across from me.

“I’m making a list. What are you doing here?”

Wyatt raises a brow and looks around the library.

“Okay, stupid question.” I laugh quietly.

“Nah, man. It’s all good. I just got done with a study group, and I saw you, so I thought I would come see what you were up to.”

“Not much other than staring at this piece of paper.”

“Do you want to go grab a burger or something?”

My stomach rumbles, reminding me I haven’t had anything to eat in a couple of hours. “Sure, why not.”

Quickly I pack up my shit and we head outside. “Do you want to drive or should I?”

“My Jeep is right there.” He points toward one that’s parked right up front.

“Nice.”

We get in, and while he starts to drive, I look around the Jeep. “This thing is way cleaner than my truck.”

Wyatt laughs. “Yeah, I’m not a fan of messes.”

“And yet you live in a house full of guys.”

“And a girl. Grace lives with us.”

“Wait, she lives with you guys?”

Wyatt looks over at me for a second before looking back at the road. “Is that a problem?”

“No, not at all. I knew she was living off campus, but I swore she told my mom she got her own place.”

He nods. “Ah, yeah. That was the deal she made with her dad. She could live with us as long as she didn’t tell everyone she was living with a bunch of guys. He didn’t want people to get the wrong idea.”

“That doesn’t surprise me actually,” I say when I think about it.

Her father hates unnecessary drama, and his daughter living with not only her boyfriend but a house full of guys would be seen as such.

We pull up to the local burger joint and get out. After going inside and placing our order, we sit.

“So are you going to tell me what kind of list you were writing?” he asks as he straightens the number placed on our table so the server can easily find us when she brings our food out.

“Do you really want to know?”

“I don’t know if you’ve figured this out yet, but I don’t talk just to make conversation.”

I tip my head toward him. I have noticed that about him. One thing about Wyatt Scott is he’s comfortable in his own skin in a way that I’m not. The guy doesn’t try to be someone he’s not, and I admire that about him.

“I need to make amends with people so I can move forward in the right direction.”

He nods. “Makes sense. Who do you have down so far?”

“Cora, Grace, and Clay. I’m sure there are others, but I don’t know.”

“What do you have to make right with Cora?”

“It’s not necessarily amends with her but reassuring her that I’m with her for her. That I have no other ulterior motives and shit.”

“Makes sense. Grace?”

I fight the urge to rub my chest as I think about her. “I need to make things right with her. Not because I’m in love with her but because I miss my best friend. I realize that I fucked a lot of shit up where she’s concerned. Shit, she’s practically a saint for dealing with me as long as she did.”

“I don’t think you can be a saint and have the kind of mouth she does, but continue.”

I fight back my smile. “She can be mouthy, can’t she? I just want to apologize to her. I don’t know if we will ever be friends like we were at one point, but I would like to try.”

“And if she lets you, are you going to be a self-centered dick again?”

“Fuck, Wyatt, you’re not pulling any punches, are you?”

“Not my style.”

I wait for the server to drop our food off and walk away before I pick back up where I left off. “I hope this time our friendship won’t be so one-sided and all in my favor.”

“What about James?” he asks about Clay.

I pick up a fry and roll it between my fingers. “I need to apologize to him for the disaster that was last year. I didn’t bow out gracefully when it came to him getting Grace. Then he stayed instead of being drafted, taking away the possibility of me being the youngest captain the team has ever had. I wasn’t a team player, and I fucked it all up.”

“You know you were never going to be captain this year, right? Coach only chooses juniors or seniors for a reason. That’s just not how it’s done,” he says bluntly, making me wince.

“Yeah, pride and cockiness can be a fatal combination.”

Wyatt chuckles and takes a bite of his food. Picking up my burger, I do the same.

“What about that girl you dated last year? I’ve heard she’s still hung up on you,” he says after a few moments of silence.

I remember the two run-ins I’ve had with her. I did say I needed to make amends with her at some point too. She might be acting like a bitch right now, but she wasn’t always that way. At least from what I can remember.

“You’re right. I thought we ended on okay terms, but if the way she reacts when she sees me is anything to go by, I guess I was wrong.” I rub my forehead. “Maybe I should add a few of those exes to the list. Grace always did say that I tended to date women until I no longer liked them, then I would drop them. Fuck, I was so selfish.”

“Women can be messy.” He nods. “At least you understand you were a dick and changed.”

“Working on it at least,” I mutter. “Enough about me, what about you?”

“What about me?” He quirks his eyebrow at me.

“Got a girl hiding anywhere?” I tease as I eat a fry.

Wyatt grunts and shakes his head. “Nah.”

“Don’t want one?”

“It’s not that necessarily. It’s more like I’m not in a rush. If I find someone I like enough, then I won’t deny it, but I’m not actively searching.” He shrugs, dipping one of his fries in ketchup.

I nod in understanding. “I get it. I wasn’t looking for Cora, yet she fell in my lap.”

“You really like her, huh?”

I sigh. “More than I can explain.”

“Good. You two deserve each other.” He sounds like he really means it too.

“Thanks, man.”

The conversation turns to hockey, school, and life in general. We sit at the table for so long we get milkshakes just so they don’t kick us out.

By the time I get back to my dorm room, I can’t stop smiling. I feel like I made a friend tonight, and I fucking love it.