Who's Minding Charlie?
By WritePassion
When you're a spy, and your family and friends have gotten so deep into your secret life that they've become your backup team, it messes with every asapect of their lives. It's easy to run off to some exotic locale at a moment's notice when no one counts on you, but when you have a child to take care of, the logistics can be a nightmare when something pressing comes up.
"Michael needs us now, Madeline." Fiona's voice sounded desperate on the phone.
"But... but what am I going to do with Charlie," Madeline asked. "Mrs. Cartwright is off visiting her grandkids in North Carolina, Mrs. Morris is on a cruise, and I just don't know who else I would trust with Charlie. I can't just run off and leave him alone."
"I know. Let me think about this for a minute. I'm on my way there, and by the time I reach you, I'll have something figured out. I promise."
"Thank you, Fiona. I'll get Charlie ready." Madeline hung up the phone, changed her frown to a smile and with an overly sunny voice called his name. "Charlie, where are you, honey? Charlie?" She fought a momentary panic when he didn't answer. Surely he was around the house somewhere, but then again, if he had the least bit of Michael or Nate's sense of stealth...
"Boo, Gramma!" Charlie exclaimed as his head came around a beam separating the dining room from the living area, and he laughed with that sweet, high-pitched, chortle that never failed to make Madeline smile. He laughed like his daddy did when he was that age. He reminded her of Nate so much, sometimes it saddened her. She tried to hide her emotions from him, but today her anxiety couldn't be penetrated by his cheer.
Taking a deep breath, she said, "Gramma has to go on a mission with Ms. Fiona. Can you help me pack your bag?"
Charlie's face turned from ecstatic to being on the verge of a meltdown in two seconds flat. His bottom lip stuck out. His arms hung at his sides, and he looked up at Madeline with such sorrowful eyes.
She knelt before him and smoothed his bangs. "It's okay, sweetie. I'm going to take you someplace fun, with a nice lady who will take good care of you until I come home. So let's go get some of your things together, okay?"
By the time Fiona arrived with a stolen black panel van, Madeline had Charlie packed and ready to go. She locked the house and hurried with him to the driveway. "Well, did you figure out something?" She let Charlie in and realized that there were only two seats. "Fiona..."
"I know. I hate to do it, but he'll have to ride on your lap." She smiled. "Fortunately, we don't have to go too far. I found someone to watch Charlie."
"You did? Who?" Madeline looked at Fiona, eyebrows arched in expectation.
"We're dropping Charlie off at Elsa's hotel. They have a kids' program there. I called Elsa, and she said it was fine for us to bring him over."
"Really?" She'd never given any thought to Sam's girlfriend and her business having a kid-friendly atmosphere.
"Don't worry, it's well supervised and secure. Charlie will have a great time!" Fiona smiled, putting Madeline at ease.
Fiona drove to the hotel, dropped off Madeline and Charlie at the front door, and parked half way down the block. She didn't want the hassle of the valet wondering why the wires were hanging out of the underside of the dash and there was no key. The three were met in the lobby by Elsa herself. When she talked with Fiona, the woman was more than happy to accommodate them. Now, she looked hesitant.
"Elsa, is something wrong," Fiona asked.
Elsa could barely look at Fiona. Instead, she fixed her gaze on Madeline and Charlie. "You must be Mrs. Westen. It's a pleasure to meet you, the woman whose son drags my man all over the world."
Madeline took her hand and shook it, smiling, not sure if that was a slur or a joke made in her nervousness. Something definitely was not right. "Is there a problem with Charlie being here?"
"No! I mean, no problem at all." Elsa pasted on a smile. "I'm sure you have to get moving, so why don't you let me take Charlie and you ladies get going."
Madeline and Fiona glanced at each other, their radar up and on alert. With their eyes on her, Elsa fidgeted and shifted her weight from one heel to the other. Unable to stand their scrutiny, she blurted, "I'm sorry, Fiona. I shouldn't have committed before checking. My kids' program director quit, and I didn't even hear about it until a few minutes ago. Now don't worry, I'll work something out. You two need to go do whatever you're going to do, and I can assure you that even if I have to watch Charlie myself, he'll be in good hands." The women looked doubtful. "I did raise a son, you know." She smiled at them and her voice took on a passionate tone. "He'll be fine here, really."
"You're so busy, we hate to impose," Madeline said.
Elsa heard her but didn't reply. She was too busy interacting with Charlie. Her face lit up as she asked him, "Hi Charlie. Did your Grandma bring your swim suit? We can go to the pool while you're here and we'll have lots of fun."
Charlie nodded, and with the trust inherent in his age, he reached out for Elsa's open hand and clasped it. Her smile widened and she blinked quickly as the gesture reminded her of Evan so many years ago.
"Well, I think Charlie's decided he wants to stay," Elsa said as she stood. "You two be careful, and we'll take care of things here, won't we Charlie?"
Fiona studied Elsa. She had only seen her once and only knew what Sam said about her, so Fiona was basing her trust in this woman on the trust she had in Sam. Considering the fact that Elsa was the first woman Sam had stuck with for any length of time, she had to be trustworthy. The fact that she sacrificed her happiness for the team's common good said a lot about her. She nodded. Charlie would be safe with her.
"Okay. We'll be back as soon as possible," Fiona said. "Madeline, let's go."
"Bye honey. You be good for Ms. Elsa, okay?"
Charlie nodded and hugged her when she crouched for his kiss and embrace.
It was tough to let him go. Madeline watched him standing beside Elsa, holding onto the strange woman's hand, waving at them with the other, until she and Fiona left the hotel and couldn't see him anymore. Madeline sighed. "I hope we did the right thing."
"Right now we have no other choice. Besides, I really believe he'll be fine with her." Fiona led the way to the van and Madeline followed, forcing herself to not worry like the grandma she was and look back at the hotel.
The moment Fiona and Madeline were gone, Elsa exhaled a long breath. "Now what am I going to do," she muttered, put on a cheerful smile for Charlie, and said, "Okay, Charlie. I need to go to my office for a minute, and then we'll see what we can do, okay?"
"Wanna swim," Charlie said. His blue eyes peered up at her as if he expected her to renege on a promise.
Elsa's smile widened. "We'll do that. I just have to tell my secretary that I'm taking the day off."
When Evan was little, Elsa's husband ran the hotel, which left her with time to raise their son rather than leave him with a nanny. She enjoyed that time until Evan started going to school, and then she was bored. That's when she finished her business degree and joined her husband in the hotel. Together they were a formidable team. Unfortunately, Evan didn't get the attention he had when he was younger, and to the present day Elsa regretted that mistake.
This was different. Charlie wasn't her son, and he was there temporarily, so all she had to do was watch him for a few hours. How hard could that be?
Elsa informed her secretary that she was off for the day, not missing how the other woman's eyebrow rose at the sight of Charlie. Elsa escaped with him before she could say anything and took him to the penthouse. "We'll get you changed into your suit, and I'll get into mine, and then we'll go have fun at the pool, okay?"
"Alrighty den," Charlie crowed, causing her to smile.
"You've been spending some time with Sam," she muttered.
It had been so long since she had to dress a little boy, and this one was so excited, he squirmed and giggled when she tried to take off his shirt and shorts. She laughed with him and tickled Charlie's tummy, making him squeal in delight. It was going to make things harder, but she couldn't help herself. She loved the sound of a little boy's laugh. Eventually, his desire to get to the pool won out and he finally had on a pair of red trunks that hung to his knees.
"Okay, can you be a good boy and sit in the living room until I'm changed?"
Charlie nodded his head so vigorously, it would have flown off his shoulders if it hadn't been attached.
"Good boy. You go wait for me on the couch." She patted his behind and he trotted to the couch. Elsa waited until he climbed up and settled in, his feet swishing back and forth, his big toes tapping together in excitement.
She made her change as quick as possible, because she knew that three year olds, especially boys, could be very impulsive and bore easily. She adjusted the strap on her suit and heard a crash, followed by a slow wail that increased in volume. Muttering under her breath, Elsa ran to the living area to see what happened and found Charlie in the kitchen with the refrigerator door open and a pitcher of juice exploded on the floor and cupboards.
Elsa gasped and tip toed through the minefield of stickiness to crouch before Charlie. She pulled his hands from his eyes and examined him with lightning speed from head to toe. "Are you okay, honey?" She smoothed back his bangs like she used to do with Evan when he was upset, and she was rewarded with Charlie falling into her arms. He clung to her and she held him until he calmed down.
"You look like you're okay," Elsa said as she broke the contact and studied him. "Just a little sticky."
Charlie swiped at his wet eyes and nodded.
"I bet you didn't expect that pitcher to come out of the fridge that fast, huh? Next time, if you want something, don't be afraid to ask me, okay?"
"Okay," Charlie answered. "Can I have some juice?"
"Sure, but we'll have to get some down by the pool." Charlie teared up again, and she shushed him softly. "It's okay, sweetie. I'll have housekeeping take care of this while we're out swimming, and I'll get you a nice cup of joice while we're down there. I promise."
"Wanna swim," Charlie said.
"Alrighty then, we'll get you some juice and go to the pool! How's that sound?" She grabbed her beach bag from the counterand hesitated, remembering a box in storage that contained some things she tried to give Evan one time, but he shunned them as 'baby toys'. "I need to grab something before we go, Charlie. Hold onto this bag for me, okay?"
He looked so adorable standing beside Elsa at the door with both handles clamped in his tiny hands as she pawed through the closet. The bag was almost as big as he was, and she found it hard to resist staring at him, but she had a job to do. She found what she was looking for and stuffed it into the bag, hoping that the toy would still inflate. With a grin on her face, she exclaimed, "I'm ready now. Let's go, Charlie!"
Elsa barely got Charlie through a cursory shower to remove the dried juice from his body and swim trunks, and he ran to the steps at the shallow end. "Charlie, wait!" He stopped, turned, and stared at Elsa with his eyes begging. She smiled and said, "Didn't you want a little drink first?"
Charlie shook his head. "I wanna swim, Ms. Elsa!"
Elsa laughed, dropped the beach bag on a chaise lounge near the pool, and slipped off her fancy flip flops and sarong. "Okay, buddy. You lead me there, I'm right behind you."
The boy took his time getting acclimated to the cool water. Elsa took advantage of his hesitancy and worked on blowing up the floating ring. She started seeing spots before her eyes, and the progress she made hissed out of the valve. She groaned and made a move to start again when a voice interrupted her.
"Ma'am? I can do that for you."
Elsa looked up and noticed it was one of her staff, a cabana boy. His name tag read Steven. "Thank you, Steven! You're a lifesaver."
"Don't mention it ma'am. We can't have the hotel owner passing out in the pool, now can we?" He gave her a killer grin and finished blowing up the ring with the head of Donald Duck on it. He seemed to do it in only four breaths, and she was envious of his lung capacity. "Here you go. That thing is old, ma'am."
"Yes, it was my son Evan's. It's good to see it doesn't leak." She took the ring from him and threaded Charlie's upper body through it. "There, you ready to swim now, Charlie?" He nodded. "Good. Now you hang onto this thing tight, and I'll pull you around, okay?"
Steven watched the two go deeper into the pool. "Is he your... grandson?"
"No, Sam's friend's grandson, actually," she answered. "She needed a sitter and I volunteered to help."
Grinning, Steven said, "That's really nice of you, ma'am. If there's anything else you need, you just let me know."
"Thanks, Steven!" Elsa turned away and pushed off the bottom stair, kicking her legs and propelling Charlie around the more shallow end. He laughed and splashed, kicking his legs and feet. She wondered if he had ever had a treat like this before. With losing his father and his mother being in rehab, the poor kid didn't have much other than his Grandma Madeline and her love. Elsa felt sorry for him and vowed to make this a day he wouldn't forget for a long time.
Elsa wasn't sure when Fiona and Madeline were coming back and she was getting worried. Supper came and they hadn't returned. At seven she helped Charlie brush his teeth with an extra toothbrush she kept on hand for emergency guests. There were no pajamas in his little backpack, so she left him in his underwear and shorts, read him a couple stories, and hustled him off to the guest room. He was fast asleep about an hour later when the call came from downstairs that Fiona and Madeline were on their way. Elsa was ready for the knock on the door, but she felt a twinge of sadness that her day with Charlie was almost done.
She opened the door and smiled at the two women. "Hi, come on in," she spoke with a soft voice. "Charlie's asleep in the guest room."
"He is?" Madeline looked surprised. "How was he? He didn't give you any trouble, did he?"
"He was a typical three year old, charming and full of energy." Elsa's smile was wide and her eyes sparkled as she told them about their day. "I took him to the pool and we had a blast with an old Donald Duck swim ring that Evan used as a kid. It still inflated, can you believe it? Charlie loved it."
"He did," Madeline grinned and gave up a little laugh.
Elsa turned toward the front closet and pulled out the swim ring that was now flattened, but easily recognizable. "I let all the air out for easier storage. Here, you can have it. I know Evan won't need it anymore." She snickered. "Oh, and I took him to the Children's Museum after swimming. I know I probably should have put him down for a nap but he was too wound up."
"The museum didn't make him worse," Fiona asked.
"Well, a little, but then we went to McD's. I hope you don't mind, Madeline. I tried to get him to go for the apples, but he insisted on chicken nuggets and fries." Elsa smirked. "It's almost as bad as trying to get Sam to eat healthy!"
Madeline smiled with ease and replied, "If you could get either of them to go for the healthy stuff, I'd think you were superhuman!"
The two shared a laugh with Fiona before Elsa continued her narrative. "After McD's, I brought him back here, got him to agree to get ready for bed, and I sat and read to him awhile before he completely fell asleep." She shook her head. "I thought I was crazy to hang onto all those toys of Evan's from when he was real little, but I'm glad I did. Charlie loved everything." Her voice grew hoarse and she blinked. She whispered, "Sometimes I wish Evan had never grown up."
"I know the feeling," Madeline said as she reached out and smoothed Elsa's upper arm. "Michael wouldn't be doing all these things if he'd stayed at three years old."
Elsa let out a rueful laugh. "They have to go their own way, no matter if we like the path they choose. I tried to be a good influence, but sometimes..." She shrugged.
"Take it from a mother who had two very different boys," Madeline said, her voice shaking slightly with emotion. "You can do everything in your power to raise them right and things outside your control sometimes take over, and there's nothing you can do but wait for them and love them when they come home."
Elsa nodded and swiped at a tear. "You're right." She sighed and broke the contact with Madeline's eyes, her own zeroing in on the bedroom door. "Charlie's in there. I didn't have any pajamas for him so I just let him sleep in his underwear and shorts."
"That's fine. We didn't plan on his sleeping over." Madeline said as she followed Elsa to the bedroom. Her eyes drifted to the area rug in the living room. A farm and house set littered the usually pristine area, and an Army action figure with a foot missing lay sprawled on the couch.
The big bed dwarfed Charlie, who was curled up with his favorite fuzzy teddy bear tucked under his arm. He looked like an angel, and no one wanted to wake him. Eventually, Madeline moved forward and picked up the boy. He was too sleepy to acknowledge what was happening and laid his head on Madeline's shoulder. Fiona retrieved his little t-shirt and shoes and his bag from a chair near the bed and followed Madeline to the door. Elsa opened it and reached out to smooth Charlie's hair.
"Mrs. Westen, I have to confess that I wasn't so sure about babysitting Charlie today. But after we had some time together, it brought back such wonderful memories." She swallowed, and with a smile full of motherly affection, she said, "Feel free to bring him over any time, even if it's just to use the pool. And if you and Fiona have another job and need someone to watch Charlie... I'll be happy to take him."
Madeline's mouth dropped open.
"That's very kind of you," Fiona said. "But we don't want to impose."
"It wouldn't be an imposition," Elsa interrupted. "By helping you, I'm helping Sam, Michael, and Jesse. It's a contribution to the cause."
Overwhelmed with the woman's kindness, Madeline could only say, "Thank you."
After the three were gone, Elsa closed the door and flattened herself against it. If she closed her eyes she could still hear Charlie's lilting laughter ringing through the penthouse. Scenes of Evan mixed with Charlie replayed behind her lids, taking her back to a simpler time. That morning she'd been so engrossed in what had become the monotony of her life. Sam was always a good distraction, but with him gone on a mission with Michael and Jesse, she was alone again and feeling the doldrums kicking in. Charlie was a breath of fresh air. She smiled, wondering when she would be called upon to babysit again on the fly. Maybe they could go to the zoo. It had been a long time since she'd been there. Revisiting Miami with Charlie would be fun.
Until then, tomorrow loomed with a big meeting first thing in the morning. She couldn't be late , tired, and off her game, so she locked the door and went to bed to dream of minding Charlie.