Chapter 4

The next day one of the staff helped Dean to pack his few belongings and took him to the front office to wait on the foster couple that was going to take him, George and Beverly Patterson. They had been fostering kids for years and had a good track record with them. Social services thought that the Patterson would be a good fit for Dean because they had delt with troubled children before and knew what to expect.

Dean sat on the bench and swung his leg back and forth as he waited. He kept his ears open and listened to all the conversations around him. He picked up on one when his name was mentioned and focused on it. One worker was talking to another about it was a shame none of the Campbell's would take the boys in. They didn't understand the feud between Mary and her family. He frowned with this knowledge not even knowing his Mom had family since he had never met any of them. He looked up when a middle-aged couple was shown into the room.

"Dean, this is Mr. and Mrs. Patterson, they're going to be your foster family," the director of the group home told him.

"Hello there, young man," a warm, deep, male voice greeted him.

Dean glanced up for a moment and let his eyes quickly drop back down. He didn't respond to the greeting and kept his body stiff and straight. The voice sounded nice, but that did not always tell the true story. He was going to be cautious and leery of them and if he didn't like what they did, he would find a way to escape. Curt told him of places he could hide and how to survive out there in the world.

"You are such a handsome young man," a soft female voice said.

"I think everything is in order Mr. and Mrs. Patterson," the director announced happily. "Dean, are you ready to leave?"

Dean stood and picked up the backpack from the floor and slipped it over his shoulder. He didn't have much to bring with him and what he did have fit into the pack. He waited for the door to be opened and shunned Mrs. Patterson's hand as she tried to lay it on his shoulder.

"He still doesn't like to be touched," the director whispered to her.

The Patterson had been told the story of what happened to Dean and how he was still withdrawn and had hardly spoken since the tragedy happened. It didn't matter to them. They wanted to help a boy who needed them the most and just knew Dean was the one. They would give him his space and show him there was still love and caring people out there, who only wanted to help.

"Here we go," Mr. Patterson said. He opened the back door of an SUV and allowed Dean to crawl into the backseat. "Do you need help with the seat belt?"

Dean shook his head no and fastened the belt around him as he sat back and drew in a long breath, not knowing what lay ahead of him. Would it be good or bad? Would he have to try and make it on his own in a world full of strangers. He couldn't be optimistic because he didn't understand the concept, never having experienced it in his short lifetime.

spn

The couple lived on a small farm above Lawrence in the town of Valley Falls. Dean watched out the window at the scenery as it became rural, and they even passed a large lake named Perry Lake. The drive took less than an hour and Dean sat forward slightly to look around as they drove up to a house.

The house was a one story, clapboard with a large front porch that had rocking chairs sitting on it and a swing at one end. There was a large barn sitting back behind the house and he could see what looked like a garden nearby. There were beds of flower at the front of the house and along a walkway that led to the porch. The lawn was neatly mowed, and the house and barn had been kept up. A chicken coop stood beside barn with chickens milling around on the ground, scratching, and pecking.

"We're home," Beverly told Dean as she got out and opened the back for him.

Dean slipped from the SUV and grabbed his backpack. He took several steps from the car when a large dog bounded toward him, skidding to a stop as Dean staggered backwards away from him.

"It's okay Dean, this is Moses, he takes care of the place. He won't hurt you," George told him kneeling down and petting Moses who was staring intently at Dean with warm brown eyes.

Dean stood still as the dog stepped toward him, stretching out his head to sniff his hand. He moved close enough for Dean to cautiously pet him and wagged his tail as he licked Dean's face before bouncing off to go check out the farm.

"Guess you're part of the family now sweetie," Beverly laughed when Dean wiped his face and grimaced. "Why don't we go inside, and I'll show you around and show you your bedroom?"

Dean followed them inside, looking around with interest thinking it looked homey. He didn't see anything that would throw red flags up that this was not a safe place to stay. Everything was neat, clean, and lived in.

"This is the family room and through that archway is the dining room and kitchen," Beverly told him. "Down this way are the bedrooms. Our room is at the end and your bedroom is across from it. There's a bathroom here for you to use and the other room is a guest bedroom."

Dean stepped into a large bedroom and saw a twin bed, nightstand, dresser, desk and chair, and a window bench that looked like it had storage under the seat. There was a bookshelf with books on it and a small box of toys sitting in the corner.

"Those are from other boys who stayed with us, you can play with anything you like," Beverly told him. "Why don't you leave your pack in here and come to the kitchen? I have some fresh made lemonade in the fridge."

Dean did as he was told and followed her back down the hall and to the other side of the house to the kitchen. It was airy and bright with soft yellow walls and a breakfast nook for them to eat at when they didn't want to use the larger dining room. He could see a back deck through the sliding glass doors.

"After we have some lemonade, would you like to help me in the barn?" George asked him as he took a seat at the small table in the kitchen.

Dean didn't say anything but nodded his head slightly yes as he moved to sit as far away from George as he could.

"You're going to like Bev's lemonade Dean, it has just the right tartness and sweetness to it."

Beverly sat two glasses on the table and turned to get her glass. She watched Dean as she tried to keep a happy face, but her eyes were filled with sadness for the young boy that had been through so much in his short life. She watched him sip the lemonade and almost smile as he took a longer swallow, enjoying the drink.

"We'll get you signed up for school this fall and find out what supplies you will need. I'm sure the school will get any records from your other school sent to them. It's a nice school and they have good teachers," Beverly told Dean.

Dean frowned and shrunk smaller realizing he was going to be the new kid again in school and would have to go through all that again. He wasn't looking forward to that and was glad there were still about five weeks before school started back. He would have time to get use to his new living situation and deem if it was the real thing or if they were hiding something.

"Okay, want to come with me outside and to the barn?" George asked when he saw Dean had finished the lemonade.

Dean got up and put his glass in the sink before turning and waiting for George to get up. He followed him out of the backdoor and off the deck to walk toward the barn. Moses joined them and walked beside Dean, nudging his hand so he would pat his head. He seemed to know the boy was troubled and needed a friend.

"These are Beverly's chickens. She loves them and they give us eggs to eat. It'll be one of your jobs to feed them and collect the eggs. I'll show you how it's done so you don't get any surprises. Sometimes the hens can be fussy," George explained to him. They stood at the gate and watched the chickens scurrying around, clucking, and eating.

"We have a garden that is my baby. I do like to get my hands dirty. You'll help with the weeding and gathering the ripe produce. We'll start with that to begin with and as you get comfortable, we'll see what else you'll like to do. Once you are a little older and know how to use the lawn mower, you can help with mowing the grass too. Over there is our orchard," he pointed to a grove of trees. "We have apple, pear, peach, pecan, and walnut trees and a patch of blueberry and raspberry bushes there, along with a patch of strawberries next to them. Bev does like the fresh fruit for her pies."

Dean listened to the man talk and thought this didn't seem too bad; he could handle this. He liked being outside and didn't mind learning new things. What he was given as chores seemed easy and not demanding work.

"You'll get a weekly allowance if you do your chores that you can spend on anything you want."

Dean perked up with this information. He would be getting money for doing these chores. Real money that he could use to buy what he wanted. He was beginning to get a good feel about these people but was not going to let his guard down yet. He would be ever watchful and bide his time until he was sure this was a good place, and they were good people. He followed George to the garden and listened as he told him about each vegetable and how to tell when it was ripe. He showed him how to pull weeds and where to dump them at the edge of the woods. George showed him the property line and showed him where a small stream was in the forest.

Dean stood by the edge of the stream and looked out across it. It wasn't a large one, probably only three foot deep in the middle. The stream was riddled with large boulders that made pools of slow-moving water. He picked up a rock and tossed it out into the water, watching it splash and make ripples that spread outward until they vanished. He squatted down and looked closer into the water seeing small fish swimming with the current.

"Dean, check this out," George called to him as he squatted below him at the edge of the water.

Dean went over to him and looked to where he was pointing. He saw small black, round things huddled together in bunches and swimming around.

"These are tadpoles. They'll turn into frogs before long. Have you ever seen tadpoles before?"

Dean shook his head no and dipped his hand in to catch a couple of tadpoles to look at. They wiggled around in the water he had in the palm of his hand until he let them slip back into the stream. They were strange looking creatures and he tried to imagine them as frogs.

"Shall we head back?" George asked him as he stood up and waited for Dean to do the same. They walked side by side out of the woods and strolled to the barn. George opened the large door, letting the sun into the building. There was a tractor sitting to one side along with a riding lawn mower and other assorted tools. George had several work benches against one wall and there were motors torn apart on them. In his spare time, George worked on small engines like lawn mowers, weed eaters, tillers, leaf blowers, and chain saws. "Do you know anything about engines?"

Again, Dean shook his head no, but gazed with interest as George picked up a screwdriver and did something on the engine. He moved closer so he could see what he was doing.

"Can you hand me a rachet and quarter inch socket?" George asked him.

Without thinking, Dean looked at the tools on the work bench and picked up a rachet and started looking at the sockets until he found the quarter inch. He knew these tools from when his Dad had let him help straighten up his toolboxes at the garage. They had spent the day together doing all kinds of things and he had really enjoyed it. John would pick up a tool and tell Dean what it was and how it was used. He didn't know that John had bought him his own toolbox for Christmas. That was a Christmas that never happened for him.

A/N: Seems Dean has found a new home with good people. They will give him the understanding and love that he needs to bring him out of his shell. I do like reviews/comments. NC