"Bucky, will you please just write a list so you can stop worrying about forgetting something? And I don't have to hear it over and over," Sarah said, throwing a roll of paper towels at his head.
As the day wound down, Bucky started muttering quietly about all the things he had left to do. The house looked great. All freshly painted and cleaned. He and Sam had done a few maintenance things, too. Sarah bought the girls sleeping bags to use with their inflatable mattresses until they worked out what they wanted for beds. It was ready for the kids, including childproofing. Bucky had to remember not to rip the refrigerator door off the hinges when he couldn't open it in the middle of the night. Sam teased him it was Bucky-proof, too. But then Sam found out the hard way that the toilet seat was child-proofed too. Just a small sign of how his life would change. Bucky made time to run out and buy outdoor furniture after Sam showed up with a big grill as a housewarming present. Then he and Sam argued about a way to childproof the grill too, and Sarah almost had to separate them.
Sam's cousin, Breanna, seemed like she might really work out for him. She was nothing like her rowdy cousins, just friendly and shy. She was the middle child of six kids and very book smart. She asked a lot about the kids. Then she asked what Bucky expected of her. They had a pleasant discussion. He arranged for her to come in a week because Sam was in town then. He didn't want Breanna to feel like she was in an unpleasant situation staying at Bucky's house if things didn't work out with the job.
All the nerves Bucky had the day before came rushing back as soon as his hands were idle. The worst fear was that no matter how nice he made this house, these kids could end up hating him for taking them away from their home and away from everything they knew. The girls had called back again that evening, and Amy seemed more nervous than the night before, or at least something seemed different. Of course, it could be that this will be the third house she had been in since her parent's death. The neighbor had called him to ask some travel related questions about the animals. Bucky had subtly gotten some more information out of her.
Not only had their parents died in a car accident, but when the Blip happened their father and Amy had been in a really terrible accident due to people disappearing while driving on the highway. Since everything was such a madhouse, Amy laid in the wreckage with her unconscious father for hours before anyone even attempted to rescue them. She had PTSD from the crash alone. Then she stayed in the hospital for weeks because of the crush injuries to her leg, followed by intensive physical therapy. He wondered if the Social Worker toned down this when she brought up the Blip, or maybe she didn't know. This kid had really been through hell for such a young girl. He always wondered who the actual victims of the Snap were, those who died or those who survived. At least Bucky had experience with PTSD. And she seemed like a tough little girl.
Sharon showed up late that afternoon, after Sam had called her the night before. Sam stepped into his role as Bucky's social director, rather obnoxiously. At least she was nice to him tonight. Not too nice, though, so it wasn't weird. Every once in a while, she'd give him a look, and he'd remember that Cap left her for her aunt after she'd blown her life up for him. It wasn't Bucky's fault, and he didn't think she blamed him, but he was a reminder. At least she gave him some suggestions about keeping the kids off the radar of his former or future enemies.
It was late in the evening when Dr. Raynor called. "I'm sorry it took me a few days to respond. I was out of town. I have to admit I am pleasantly surprised, James," she said, chuckling under her breath. "I did think maybe you'd go out on a date before you had three kids, though."
"You know me. I never do anything the normal way. I found out some additional information about Amy's history." He told her about the earlier car crash.
"I know it's a lot for a young girl, but at the same time, you need to remember that after that crash, she did have her parents to help her recover. So, while it's bad to think of, the long-term damage is not going to be the same as it would be is if it happened today with no support system," she said in a tone that he recognized as her pondering voice. "No matter what, therapy would be a good idea if only for the loss of her parents. But in the hopes of not making things more difficult for her to adjust to by having another way that her life has changed, I have a suggestion. I have a friend, named Elizabeth Floyd, who is a young therapist, actually she seems even younger than she really is. She's brilliant with children. When she meets with patients, she often comes to them and sees them in their own environment."
Bucky was quiet for a few moments. "So, they don't know she's a therapist? Doc, I don't know about that..."
"Oh, no. That would be completely unethical. She would let her know but rather than being in a sterile office environment with just the two of them talking, she would be someplace that Amy feels comfortable. She probably won't feel comfortable anywhere right now, but a place where her brother and sister are or her pets will let her naturally feel less on guard. Plus, Elizabeth would be able to see more natural interactions with you and her siblings. It wouldn't work during a sit-down appointment. She has the children interact with her drawing or playing outside. And you would just be acting normal."
"Well, as normal as I am capable of," he said with a grin.
"Exactly. You wouldn't have the added stress of seeing her in an office appointment either. She would be able to give you suggestions of ways you could help Amy based on what she sees you doing." There was a long pause before she added, "I know you probably are feeling some uneasiness right now, James. But if you think about it, you've always done better in a crunch, where you don't have too much time to internalize it all. You're going to do fine with this. It'll be uncomfortable but trust me when I say, being a parent is frequently uncomfortable for everyone."
Bucky felt surprisingly reassured by her comments. After a few minutes, he said, "Your friend's methods seem like they'd be a good way to try with Amy. Is she booked far in advance?"
"I think I can pull some strings with her. Her husband owes me a couple. I can give her your information and ask her to call you next week, if you want," Dr. Raynor offered. "Do you feel… confident enough to pick up the kids and travel back alright?"
"Yeah, I'll just pretend I'm jumping out of a plane. Like you said Doc, I'm always better in a crunch. I actually feel better about picking them up and traveling back than I do the first day we start our 'normal' life."
"There is no such thing as normal life. You know that. But feel free to call me if you need to. I'll even give you a discount for phone therapy."
x0x0x
Bucky had done all that he needed do and he still found himself feeling like pacing. Instead, he found himself walking around the house and checking to make sure the outlets were childproof. Then he cleaned the kitchen for the third time.
"Come on, let's go, before you melt into my couch," he said, knocking Sam's feet off the coffee table. "Sarah, we'll be back in an hour or so."
"Where are we going? Do you ever sit still, man?"
"We're going to buy a car," Bucky explained, as he got in Sam's rental. "I looked at some online last night and I know which one I want. They should be open another hour, right?"
"Maybe. Are you sure you want to do this now? It's kind of sudden." Sam looked over at Bucky and sighed. "You buy things on the fly a lot, don't you?"
"I don't like shopping. But I rarely buy things, so its fine. I still have most of the money from the POW entitlement they gave me. Anyway, I rented a big SUV a month ago in DC that I liked and last night I checked out its safety features and ratings online. Plus, its American made. And they have used ones for sale." He watched the traffic going by. "I guess I'll be buying things more often now. I should get the kids something for tomorrow. You know, like a gift?"
"Yeah. Get them something they can play with in the car." Sam glanced at him sideways. "Are you feeling less stressed about tomorrow?"
"Yes. I just keep remember that time in Wakanda being attacked by aliens and the kids don't seem scary at all." Bucky chuckled. "I think talking to them made it less overwhelming. Of course, that was only two of three of them and for less than thirty minutes, so I might be deluding myself."
Bucky ended up getting the used SUV he wanted and even got the saleswoman to throw in an entertainment system for the back seat. As he was leaving, he saw something else he wanted: a 1998 Harley-Davidson FXDL Dyna Lowrider. Unlike the car, he didn't care if it was older since it had low miles and had been stored in the garage. After a little flirting, Bucky got both for a steal. He arranged delivery of the motorcycle the following week.
"You can't transport three children on that," Sam pointed out. Bucky just smirked. He always intended to buy another one, but this one reminded him of the one Hydra had given him in the nineties. It was the one thing he remembered fondly.
Sam followed him home and Bucky took Sarah and the kids for a ride after Cas begged him to. Then the four of them left to give him some time to himself. He thanked them so much for everything and Sarah gave him a long hug.
"If you need me to come down there, you call me. Sam can watch the boys and have some guy time. Three kids is a lot to handle on a road trip and I won't mind helping," she said, followed by, "I won't even let Sam pick on you for needing to be rescued because you know he'd need it too."
Hugging her tighter, he kissed her cheek and smiled. "I appreciate that so much but I need to learn sometime and this is the way. Can you guys take the spare key just in case I need you to come here for something?"
After they left, Bucky went around snapping pictures of the house and child safe features. He had a strange feeling that the social worker might ask for it. He threw it in with the house contract that showed all the size details plus his service records, bank statements, and his pardon. Unlike Sam, he didn't have to worry about not having income for the past five years since he received an extremely large sum from the US Government. Apparently, being a POW for seventy years is profitable. Earlier that day, he had paid off Sarah and Sam's family boat. He knew they really struggled with it and yet Sam had paid for Sarah and the boys to come here for ten days just to help Bucky. Plus, Sam had bought that massive grill. So, he paid off the boat, anonymously, of course.
He vegged out in front of the TV for an hour or so before deciding to pack, take a shower and go to bed. Or at least read before bed. He still felt weird sleeping on a bed but hopefully he'll get used to it. It didn't take him long to pack and he made sure than he put in the stuff for the kids. Finally, packed, clean, and in bed, he tried to empty his mind of all stressing things When that didn't work, he just stared at the ceiling until he went to bed.
x0x0x
About twelve hours later, Bucky was sitting before Mrs. Krenshaw in what had to be the most depressing office he'd ever seen. Whenever she filled in paperwork or focused on the computer screen, Bucky sat staring at the gray cement walls. Where most people who worked with children would have put up bright photos or even art work the kids had created, she went with nothingness. And she looked exactly how he'd expected: gray hair in a tight bun, glasses, minus the chain he envisioned but she did have the fake pearls. She also seemed so cold and distant with him in person.
Focusing on him now, she handed him a large envelope. "Alright, here are their health summaries, a list of dentists, doctors, specialists, and school information. You'll need to get Amy's records transferred to her new school. I put the deadline for that on there. By law you have to have registered by that date, but due to their situation you could probably call and get an extension. I included the recommendations for Tessa's schools. Luckily in New York City you have lots of options. Now these are adoption papers for the State of Tennessee, but if you wait a year, they will be residents of New York and it can be done local to you."
"I have to adopt them? I just assumed that as the last related relative, I became their guardian and wouldn't need an adoption."
"You're their guardian and you may remain that way forever if you choose. Adoption is optional. If you adopt them, by law they are your children," she explained. "Usually, people wait until they are sure that the situation will work."
"Well, you get no guarantee when you have your own children either," Bucky pointed out. "But I will definitely wait the year at least. It will give them time to mourn their parents. I don't want to step in and imply I'm replacing their dad, after all."
She looked impressed that he had thought of that. "You're very correct. Mr. Barnes, I don't get the impression that you're in a relationship. But do you have a support system? Have you considered what will happen to the children if anything happens to you? You mentioned the risks of your job before."
Bucky had actually thought about it, but he had no definite answer yet. That would be horrible for the children to be bounced to another home. "I'm working it out. And I'll have my will done when I determine the best solution."
"Excellent. Well, if you have no more questions, we can go meet the children. Their current foster mother also wished to speak to you about a few things." She stood up and reached out to shake his hand. "I'm thrilled that this worked out so the children can stay together. Considering the difficulties in your life, I'm sure you'll find being their guardian more rewarding than difficult."
"Thanks for all of your help." He nodded to her, then when she left the office, he followed her down the hall.
She took him to what appeared to be a playroom and the woman there stood up and came to meet him. "Mr. Barnes, it's truly an honor. I'm Marion Jones," she said, with a big smile. "I…"
The clatter of toys falling cut her greeting off, and Bucky saw Tessa running in his direction. He couldn't help but smile, and he caught her as she threw herself at him. She began signing rapidly, asking him many questions about going to their house and picking up their pets.
"She's been very excited about you coming," Mrs. Jones explained. "She's a little dear and has never met a stranger. She doesn't let her impairment slow her down at all. From what I understand, her parents expected everyone that interacted with her to communicate through signing, including their babysitters and close friends."
He signed to Tessa that he would have to learn to sign with only one hand if he was going to be holding her while doing it. She laughed at him like he had said the funniest thing. He was pretty sure she was the cutest thing ever. He asked her to take him to meet her sister, and she wiggled in his arms until he put her down and she pulled his hand, dragging him to where Amy stood watching them.
"Hey, Amy. It's good to finally meet you in person." He held out his hand, and she took it cautiously. "Are you as ready as your sister to go get Milo and Otis?"
Shyly, she nodded. The two girls were the total opposite in their personalities. Looking down, he saw Jamie, who was wide awake and kicking his feet and waving his arms, making his carrier bounce around. "He wants you to pick him up," Amy said.
Bucky crouched down and unfastening the straps, then he carefully lifted him. He was more nervous about the baby than the girls. Mainly, he worried he'd hurt him somehow. Jamie immediately started sucking on Bucky's finger and drooling all over the place. Hesitating for a minute, he saw a pacifier in the carrier and grabbed it, popping it in Jaime's mouth. Tessa signed to him that Jamie was hungry. By that point, Mrs. Jones had come up behind them.
"I'm sorry. I did feed him but he's going through a growth spurt and eats a lot more often than they said he would." She went to the diaper bag and grabbed a bottle and some formula.
Amy brought him a cloth to wipe off his hand and, after Jamie decided he preferred his hand to a pacifier, Bucky almost had to wrestle the baby to get his hand back. "Come on, buddy. I only have the one hand. You can't eat it," Bucky said, making Amy laugh.
"He bites too, but he only has one tooth so its not painful," she explained, still shy but at least she was speaking to him. He stood up and took the bottle the foster mother held out to him. The baby drank like he was starving to death.
"I promise you, I fed him an hour before we got here," she said nervously.
As Bucky fed the baby, he watched the girls play and noticed that Amy had a large purple bruise on her upper arm. He quietly walked over and pulled up her sleeve that covered some of it. There was more than one bruise and it looked like someone had grabbed her arm hard enough to leave the bruises. Bucky instantly grew angry, but he tried not to show it because Amy was watching him nervously as she pulled her sleeve down.
"Did someone do something to hurt you? Where did those bruises come from?" Tears welled up in her eyes and he quickly said, "Amy, you're not in trouble, I promise you. But please tell me." When she started actually crying, he backed off. "You don't have to tell me now if you don't want to. Just tell me when you're ready, okay?" He felt terrible now.
Bucky waited until Mrs Jones walked to the other side of the room and followed her over there. Without preamble, he said, "Why does Amy have rather large, recent bruises on her arm?"
As soon as she met his eyes, she looked away nervously. "I'm sorry about that. We have one child who is a few years older than Amy. He was trying to pull her off the jungle gym and grabbed her arm. She refused to let go and so he jerked her arm harder until she fell. There are a few more bruises on her back. But my husband is a doctor and said there was nothing broken. Honestly, I think it scared her more than anything. Justin is big for his age. I'm so sorry Mr. Barnes."
"You should have told me, not make me see it and ask Amy, probably scaring her more." Bucky didn't know what more he could do, other than reporting into Mrs. Krenshaw, but it seemed like a legitimate thing. He was good at reading liars and didn't think she was lying. But it really pissed him off this boy did it more than once before she fell. Plus, she couldn't have gotten hurt falling. Where were the adults?
Realizing he no longer heard slurping noises, he looked down to find Jamie was completely out with the bottle hanging from his mouth. He glanced up at the clock and saw he had an hour until he had to meet the lawyer. Walking over to the girls, he said, "Did you two eat lunch?" Amy shook her head. "Okay, if you'll help me get the baby into the carrier without waking him up, we can get your stuff from Mrs. Jones and I'll take you to get lunch."
Rather than having little ears here for him to talk to Mrs. Krenshaw, he decided to call her later instead. But he couldn't help feeling less than friendly toward Mrs. Jones. He politely listened to what she had to tell him about the children's care, then he let her give him the car seat and booster seats and other stuff the kids had. The girls barely said goodbye to her. After a brief struggle with the car seat, he got all of them loaded into the mini-van he rented. He couldn't believe he was driving a mini-van.
Letting the kids choose, Bucky ended up at McDonald's. Eventually he would worry about healthy food. Today, he'd let it slide. He got Amy to open up a bit. She seemed willing to talk about her brother and sister, but not herself. Like she warned him that Tessa would insist on a strawberry milkshake but after a sip or two she'd want vanilla, so Bucky headed her off at the pass.
"I booked us a hotel room tonight but I didn't know if you might want to stay at your own home tonight." He said it casually and studied her through lowered lashes.
"Can we? Stay at my house?"
"If that's what you guys want," he replied, still keeping his tone light. He didn't want it to hit her that this would be the last time, or remember her parents being there the last time.
"Yes, please."
Tessa said she was full, and he just shook his head in amusement. She had drank half the milkshake but barely eaten any food, as he suspected would happen. He signed to ask, 'Are you sure?' before grabbing some of her fries. He kept doing it until she was laughing and trying to grab the fries before he did. At least she ate a few more fries.
Gathering them up and getting them in the car, he checked GPS because the cat wasn't at the same neighbor as the dog and Amy asked if they could get him. He let the lawyer know he would be late. The cat made the girls so happy, he really couldn't complain about it. After picking up the cat and hearing her talk to the cat quite a bit, he realized that Amy's quietness might not be just shyness. She had spent the time since her parents' death in the company of a baby, a hearing-impaired sister, and strangers so she might open up a bit more after some time.
When they arrived at the house, Bucky was taken aback by it. He'd never been in a house like this, much less owned one. Even though he technically owned this one, he considered it belonging to the kids. The attorney was there with two women. One of them was one of his employees judging from her attire. The other woman rushed over to Amy's side of the car with a big smile but had tears in her eyes. Bucky unlocked the door and she quickly got Amy, then Tessa out of the car and was hugging and kissing on them both. Bucky got Jamie out of the car seat and just carried him since he was awake now.
"Hi, Mr. Barnes. I'm Beth Murphy." She rushed over and shook his hand.
"Please, call me Bucky," he said with a smile. Jamie tried to jump out of his arms towards Beth so he let her take him. He walked over to the lawyer. "Mr. Wells, sorry I'm late but we had a feline emergency."
"It's completely fine. I'm sure it will take you awhile to get used to the amount of extra time it takes to get ready to go anyway. I raised five kids and my wife had it down to a science but I was always late when I had all five." The lawyer chuckled. Bucky had forgotten for nice and social people from the south are.
Amy came running up and tapped his arm. "Can we go to Beth's house and get our dog? She said she got us some things."
"Sure. Do you want me to come get you in a little while or will she bring you back?" he asked, unsure which house was hers.
"I'm just two doors down, that white house with the black shutters. But I'll bring them back with Otis and his carrier. If you'll let me take the diaper bag, I'll take Jamie too. My husband will be home shortly so he'll help me carry everything."
"Are you sure? I don't want to impose on you," Bucky said, resting his hand on Amy's shoulder.
"Of course! I've missed my girls and this little Chubb-meister," she said and he could see she genuinely wanted to spend time with the kids.
"That's fine. But can I speak to you alone for a moment, Beth?" Walking towards the car, Bucky waited until she was close and spoke quietly. "I need your help with something. When I picked them up, Amy had bruises on her arm, and her back according to her foster mother. I just saw her arm. I don't know about anywhere else. I asked Amy what happened and she almost broke into tears. I didn't want to upset her but I need to know if the foster mother told me the truth after I asked her about it,"
Beth looked devastated. "Oh my gosh. Of course I will find out. What did she say happened? Does it seem like it could have caused it?"
He repeated the story and was noncommittal about whether it was likely because he didn't really know. But he hoped Amy would confide in Beth.
"I'm really glad you're taking them. We wanted to foster them or even adopt them if they couldn't find you but because of my medical history, they felt it would be unlikely I'd get approved. I had nightmares of them being in the foster care system or worse, being separated and in foster care," she admitted. "I just wish you weren't taking them so far. Maybe you'll let them stay with us in summer sometime." He watched her gather up the girls and take them down a couple of houses. It was good to know that people still cared for them.
Tbe lawyer unlocked the door and Bucky followed him into the house. It was impressive. He was surprised that it wasn't full of museum type pieces of art and furniture. It looked like a normal family house only supersized. The living room and the dining room were formal. But on the other side of the house was a great room three times the size of the living room with a big fireplace that opened to the kitchen eating area as well. There were toys and games and comfortable furniture. It was obvious to him that their family life mattered more to them than status symbols, except the house itself. It made their story much more tragic.
The lawyer and he sat down to discuss the estate and his obligations and options. Then he signed multiple copies of so many documents. By the time they were done, there was a man from a POD storage company. He kept offering to come back with another guy to help Bucky move the heavy stuff. Luckily, the kids walked up with Beth and her husband and the infamous Otis so the man finally left. Bucky had to admit the dog was kind of cute and Amy hadn't stopped smiling since she came back with him.
After the lawyer left, Beth's husband John, suggested they would take Bucky and the kids out to dinner later. Bucky hesitated because Amy would need to leave the dog behind. Beth must have seen him watching Amy playing with the dog and suggested they just walk down to their house and they'd cook out. He agreed to that.
Handing him the baby, Beth told him, "I changed him just twenty minutes ago. He ate again. Amy said he ate before lunch, too. He's grown a lot." Seeing that the girls were busy and far enough away, she lowered her voice. "I talked to Amy. Apparently, the boy had been picking on her a lot, just being mean and teasing her, and that escalated to the altercation the other day. The foster mother found out about it after the fact and assumed it wasn't a problem since Amy was leaving today."
Bucky was livid, but he couldn't do anything about it right now. Less than twenty-four hours into this experience and he already wants to hurt someone. "Thanks for finding out for me. I'll make sure the social worker receives a full report."
Jamie started squealing watching his sisters playing with the dog so he promised to be there at five for dinner. The baby continued to try to jump out of his arms excited. Bucky closed the door and looked down at the baby. "Luckily, I don't like to socialize or you would be dampening my style." He lifted the baby above his head and he squealed loudly. "Okay now that I have your attention. Do you want to behave or will I need to tickle you into submission?" Jamie just squealed and kicked.
"Amy, do you and Tessa want to help me put stickers on things that we're taking to New York with us?" he asked grabbing the stickers that the POD people left for him. When Amy came up beside him, he asked, "Do you want to be pink, blue, purple, yellow, or red?"
"Purple is my favorite color," she said quietly. "What will happen to my parents' stuff? Will you get rid of it?"
"No. Everything is going into storage until you are old enough to know what you want to keep. And tbe house will be rented out but still belongs to you, Tessa, and Jamie until you're older too." He saw tears welling up in her eyes and he crouched down beside her. "Amy, I know how hard it is to lose someone. I can't make your pain go away but I won't do anything to take your memories of your parents away. If there are things of theirs that you want to take to New York, you can. Like maybe we can get their photo albums and your mom's jewelry? You could wear one of her necklaces when you miss her. And something of your dad's." She nodded and quickly try to wipe her tears away. Bucky reached out and took her hand. "You don't have to hide your tears. I want you to be happy, but I know now its hard so if you want to cry, then you can cry."
Jamie started reaching for her so Amy took him from Bucky. After a few minutes, she wiped her tears and he noticed she was staring at his hand. He pulled up his sleeve to show her. "I know, its hideous isn't it? But I didn't think getting a hook was a good idea."
Tessa came up and both of them were investigating his arm. "Does it hurt?" Amy asked, with concern when he moved his fingers.
"Nope. It just looks funny. But it also means I can lift a lot." He reached out quickly and grabbed all three of them at once. "I bet I can even lift the three of you at once." With Amy and the baby on his left side and Tessa on his right, he stood up. The girls started laughing when he pretended they were too heavy. "Let's conquer the upstairs."
Bucky went from room to room with them, deciding what they wanted. He rarely disagreed with anything unless it was really big or a duplicate. Tessa put stickers on almost everything. He didn't know if she wanted everything, or just enjoyed putting stickers on them. At least he didn't need to worry about furniture, clothing, books, or toys for a while. He felt a lump in his throat when he saw their rooms. Both of them were like a girl's dream room, he imagined. Their parents invested so much time and energy into these kids, it bothered him immensely that they would never see them grow up.
Going into their parents' room, Tessa got really clingy with him so he shifted the baby and held Tessa's hand. Amy went to her mother's dresser and started going into her jewelry. She turned to Bucky and handed him a silver necklace with a cross on it. "This is antique. It's like over a hundred years old."
Bucky looked at with surprise. "This was my grandmother's. It must have been passed down."
"You should take it," Amy suggested, handing Tessa something.
"No, it belongs to you kids. Maybe we should put the valuable jewelry away until you're older. And you and Tessa can just share the other stuff." He saw at least three diamond rings and a couple of other nice gems. Shiny jewelry that could easily end up in Jamie's mouth.
Tessa dropped his hand and went to climb on her parents' bed. He didn't really know how to comfort her, because she probably didn't understand death. And though she had been receptive to Bucky, he wasn't sure if she'd feel comforted by him.
"Are you going to take my parents' bed too?" Amy asked, avoiding his eyes.
"No, I will put that in storage, too," he said, and walked over to sit beside Tessa. Laying Jamie on the bed, he signed to ask if she was okay. She replied she was sad and she wanted her daddy.
"She doesn't understand," Amy said, watching them. "She thinks they have just gone away on a trip or something. And she thinks you are going to babysit us until they get home."
"That might have to do for now, until she's old enough to understand," Bucky answered, watching Tessa. She didn't cry, just remained sad looking.
"She might understand if they had let us come to the funeral. But the last time she saw them was before they left that night," Amy explained.
Bucky was speechless. Who on Earth would keep them away from their parents' funeral? "Why weren't you allowed to go to the funeral?"
She was quiet for a long time while she fiddled with her mother's things. Finally, she shook her head. "We didn't have a guardian, so they took up to the big place where the kids were. The first place we went. We only got to say goodbye to Beth. No one else got to see us, even Nana and Papa. They just came and took us when they found out that Marta was keeping us here at the house." She turned and looked at him, and he saw a flash of anger on her face. "My parents left us with Marta when they went out of town all the time, but the people that took us said it wasn't allowed that a housekeeper could take care of us."
Bucky closed his eyes and shook his head. They had jerked these kids around since their parents died. Looking at her, he said, "Amy, come here." She approached him cautiously. "They shouldn't have done that. If you want to see Marta or your Nana and Papa, we can stay here another day so you can. I know it's not the same thing but I can take you to your parents' grave and you can put flowers on them if you want." She didn't answer him, just came closer and gave him a short hug.