Learning to Live Again

Chapter 3

Mike walked into the school and remembered a time in his life where being in a school was a normal thing. When his own kids were alive. He had been an involved parent. Sure, he and Christine had their issues, but she couldn't fault his parenting. He went to all the school plays, recitals, practices and games when he was home. He just wasn't home nine months out of the year.

He had received confirmation of Christine and the girl's deaths when he got home from the Med, even though he had known it long before then. He had dreamed about a happy reunion, where he fixed his problems with Christine, spent time with his girls, retired and lived happily ever after, but that was not how his world operated.

In his world, people he cared about died. Mike wondered sometimes if he had a black cloud around him. He and Andrea had connected and were quietly dating. It was inappropriate and in the pre-Red Flu world, would have gotten them in trouble, but things relaxed, and no one cared anymore. Then she died in his arms. Then the James sunk. He helped rebuild the Navy, but that had no allure to him.

He had grown up on a farm in Illinois. His dad had wanted him to take it over, but Mike wanted a life in the big city, so he went to Chicago and become a cop. He met Christine, they married and had Kaitlyn. Then 9-11 happened and Mike joined the Navy.

Throughout his marriage, Christine dreamed of him retiring and buying a horse ranch. She was also a farm kid and had moved to the city for job opportunities. He hoped that in buying the horse ranch so many years after her death, he honored her. She would love his farm and Mike made repairs and updated the house how she would like.

Mike checked into the office and was escorted to Libby McDonald's classroom. She had a small class of about fifteen kids, but the room itself was bright and welcoming.

"Kids, as I told you, Admiral Slattery has agreed to be our adopt-a-veteran this year. He's going to talk to you all, answer questions and then we'll all eat lunch together. Admiral?" Libby offered him a barstool and Mike took his place in front of the class.

"Alright guys, I was in the Navy for almost twenty years. Do you all know what the Navy does?" Mike asked.

"They have big ships with big guns!" One boy said.

"That's correct, but more than that, we offer air support in areas where ground support is hard to get. We can launch a plane that can go hundreds of miles in a matter of an hour, when it would take a truck or tank hours. We also help the Marines, who provide ground support to get where they need to go." Mike explained.

"What do you eat on the ships? My dad was in the Army and he talks about M.E.R's." A girl asked. Mike chuckled at her mistake and started explaining.

"I think you mean M.R.E's or Meals Ready to Eat. They are freeze-dried and they are terrible. I bet your dad didn't much care for them. As for what was eaten on the ship, we had a staff in the galley that fixed us pretty much anything we wanted. Since I was an officer, I got to choose a weekly menu, but the enlisted men and women also eat well. I ate meals with them frequently, and I have to say, sometimes I preferred what they had." Mike explained.

"How did it differ?" Libby asked.

"Well, I preferred meat and potatoes. Salads. Most people in the military eat pretty healthy. I prefer steak, or beef roast. For breakfast I always ate three scrambled eggs, one sausage link, one piece of bacon, a bowl of oatmeal, and one piece of wheat toast. For lunch, I usually ate a salad and ham sandwich, and for supper; it was some sort of meat, mashed potatoes, steamed vegetables and another salad. Pretty boring really." Mike told them.

"Where did the food come from? Wouldn't it get nasty if it was on the ship all that time?" The same girl asked.

"We would sometimes pick up fresh items from different ports. The Navy had distributors that they worked with. The food was always very good." Mike explained.

"Did you ever shoot any of the big guns?" Another boy asked.

"Yes. I was qualified and could shoot the same guns our weapons people could. Torpedoes and such." Mike said.

"Is it hard to aim them?" A boy asked.

"It can be. My last deployment on the Nathan James, one of the big guns got broke. We really needed it to work. It would shoot but it wouldn't move the way we needed it to, to acquire the target. So, we used the ship to aim the gun. It couldn't move, but we could move the ship to where we needed it to." Mike explained.

"Did you ever get shot?" A girl asked.

"I did. A couple different times. It hurt." Mike told them.

"Alright, guys. Admiral Slattery, the kids worked on some letters and drawings for you. I also have a note in there with the dates for the Veteran's Day skit and other things we would like for you to attend. There's also some fresh baked cookies in there too, as a thank you." Libby said as she handed him a basket, loaded with different items.

"Thank you all. What's for lunch?" Mike asked.

"Chicken nuggets, mac and cheese, yucky corn and chocolate milk!" A boy in the back exclaimed. Both Mike and Libby chuckled.

"Bobby always loves lunchtime." Libby said.

"I wish it was pizza day." Bobby complained. Mike smiled down at the boy as the other kids lined up. He could tell Bobby required a bit more direction. Something was off about him and as Mike lined up with the kids, Bobby stood next to him.

"I like pizza days too." Mike said. Libby began leading the kids through the school to the lunchroom and Mike simply followed with Bobby. At one point, Bobby's sleeve lifted slightly, and Mike noticed bruising on his upper arm. Mike gently touched Bobby's back as they waited in the lunch line and he flinched a little. He would have to mention it to Libby. Something was off.

He ate lunch with the kids and laughed at their corny little jokes and stories about pets and siblings. He could tell Libby was taken aback by his ease with the kids and especially Bobby. The little boy sat next to Mike, ate all his lunch and part of Mike's. Mike wondered if there was a lack of food at home. Bobby certainly didn't talk about his home life.

Mike accompanied Libby and the kids outside for recess and waited until he could talk to Libby privately. He didn't particularly like her, but she seemed to care about her students and seemed very patient with Bobby.

"What's Bobby's story?" Mike asked.

"Mother died during the Red Flu, and his dad is inattentive at best. Why?" Libby asked.

"I…was a cop before I was in the Navy and I noticed some bruising on his upper arm. He also seems hesitant and he flinched a bit when I touched his back. And he ate a lot for lunch." Mike said.

"He does that every day. I suspect food isn't terribly plentiful. I've hot lined it, several times, but Family Services is of the mind that if a child has shelter, then there isn't a problem. So many children in the system now. I also suspect that Bobby has a learning disability. I've suggested testing and his dad said that he already knew that Bobby was stupid, didn't need a test for it." Libby explained.

"My son, Lucas was dyslexic, but I never thought of him as stupid. He just had to learn differently. We had to find things that interested him. Once we did that, he was just fine. I cannot understand parents who think like that." Mike remarked.

"Not all parents thought like you did. Some are ashamed of their child's disabilities. If you want, Family Services is a moot point, but Joey can do a wellbeing check on Bobby. I can call him. He might want you to explain your observations or maybe even go with him. He is aware of Bobby's situation, but unless we have a back up plan for Bobby's care, he cannot remove him." Libby said.

"Like a foster home?" Mike asked.

"Yeah. The foster care system is overrun. And I need to limit my involvement. The dad has already accused me of harassing him. My principal believes that there is also a problem but if he were to pursue it with the school board…" Libby explained.

"You'd lose your job. How about this? I call Joey and explain my concerns and observations. That would keep you out of it, other than I was at your class. I can go with Joey." Mike suggested.

"That could work, but if Joey finds reason to remove Joey, what next?" Libby asked.

"Let me think about that. I'll wait until he's out of school. I will want to see him in his environment. I think at school, Bobby is putting on a front." Mike said.

"I would suspect so." Libby said. They were both watching Bobby off in the distance. The little boy was sitting by himself, watching the other boys play ball. His pant legs were an inch too short, and his t-shirt was not appropriate, due to a chill in the air. He also needed a haircut.

"I'm ill equipped to foster him, but if Joey and I feel the need to remove him, I will take him home with me. Something is really off about his behavior." Mike said before walking away.

Mike drove to the Sheriff's Office and Joey immediately met with him. Shockingly, he allowed Mike to read over the man's criminal history. Assaults, DWI's, drug possession, armed criminal action and domestic violence charges.

"This Jerry is definitely not a father-of-the-year award winner?" Mike remarked.

"No. We are just limited in what we can do with Bobby. Foster homes are hard to come by and more so if the child is deemed less than perfect." Joey said.

"Are Bobby's issues environmental? If he gets some proper food and care, would he do better, I wonder?" Mike asked.

"I suspect he would do better. I also suspect there are some eyesight issues, which could affect the learning problems. Libby usually enlarges Bobby's work sheets, but once he gets home, he has no help with schoolwork." Joey said.

"I told your sister that if you feel he needs to be removed, I could take him in. I am ill-equipped for a child, but I hate the idea that a kid is suffering. He had bruises on his upper arms, and when I touched his back, he flinched." Mike explained.

"I am going to call Family Services. See if we can't get a caseworker to go with us. If there is a removal, I'd like it to be on the up and up. Jerry will fight it. He doesn't really want Bobby, but he won't want him happy and taken care of elsewhere." Joey said as he got up and left the conference room.

As Mike waited, he read the reports, and looked at pictures of assaults that Jerry was suspected in. It made his heart break for Bobby. Jerry was one cruel individual and people like him took it out on innocent and defenseless people. Someone like Bobby would be a prime victim for him.

A social worker followed Mike and Joey out to the rundown trailer house on the outskirts of town. Mike noticed Bobby peeking out from one of the windows but was distracted by a very drunk man opening the front door.

"What do you want?" Jerry asked.

"We're here to do a wellbeing check on your boy. You know the drill, Jerry. We have to check the house over and talk to Bobby." Joey said.

"Sure, whatever. Let me guess. Your sister again? I'll have her job. Fat cow." Jerry said.

"I cannot divulge who called in the report, but I can assure you, it was not Miss McDonald." The DFS worker, Katherine said.

"Yeah right. Bobby, get your ass out here!" Jerry yelled. Bobby ran into the living area and gave Mike a brief smile before looking totally petrified. The trailer was a mess and Mike immediately noticed drug paraphernalia laying in plain sight on the kitchen island. He nodded towards Joey, who also noticed it.

"Alright, Jerry; I'm going to go ahead and detain you. You know the drill. Hands behind your back." Joey ordered. Of course, Jerry resisted, and Joey put him on the floor with Mike's assistance and cuffed him. Katherine took Bobby into a back room while Mike and Joey walked Jerry to a patrol car. Another officer had arrived and would be taking Jerry on to jail while Joey searched the trailer and they got Bobby out of there.

"How long will he be in jail?" Mike asked as they walked back to the trailer.

"This isn't his first offense, and there is drugs present. I will file for a warrant and a protective order to keep him away from Bobby. Do you think you can convince Bobby to take his shirt off?" Joey asked.

"I can try." Mike agreed. They walked back in and found Katherine and Bobby in one of the tiny bedrooms, packing a bag. Mike grabbed a thin sweatshirt and exchanged a look with Katherine. "Hey, Bobby; it is getting really cool out. Let's put this on instead of that t-shirt. Can you take that off for me, son?" Mike asked.

"But you'll see…" Bobby said. Mike knelt next to him and rubbed his shoulders.

"We need to see." Mike said reassuringly. He helped Bobby pull the shirt off and heard Katherine's gasp from behind Bobby. Mike gently turned him around and groaned. Bobby's back was covered in welts from a belt, along with what looked like a burn from an iron, and his biceps, stomach and chest was covered in bruises.

"I understand you want to take him home with you, Admiral, but I think we need to take him to an emergency room first." Katherine said and Mike nodded. He helped Bobby into the sweatshirt, picked him up and carried him out of the trailer.

"Bobby, is there anything special you want from here? I'll get it for you." Joey asked.

"There's a picture of my mommy on the living room wall. She was a really pretty lady and was wearing a blue shirt." Bobby described.

"I noticed it and will grab it. You aren't coming back here." Joey said. Mike had put Bobby is Katherine's backseat and strapped him in. The little boy was terrified.

"We'll take him to the hospital and get him looked after. Once he's released, I will let him go home with Admiral Slattery and get him set up as a proper foster home tomorrow, once Bobby has gotten some rest. We can interview him formally tomorrow. Go ahead with your arrest warrant and let the judge know I will be moving to terminate his rights as a parent." Katherine explained.

"What will happen to me?" Bobby asked Mike quietly. Mike patted his shoulder and smiled at him.

"You'll go somewhere where you will have plenty of good things to eat, and it will be warm. I won't be hurting you either." Mike told him.

"Not even when I spill my milk?" Bobby asked.

"Bobby, what happened when you spilled your milk?" Joey asked.

"My dad took his belt off and hit me with the metal piece. It hurt but he was careful not to hit me where it showed." Bobby said.

"That won't ever happen again." Mike assured him. It made his blood boil and his heart break. He would give anything to have his kids back and couldn't understand how anyone could hurt a child.

Katherine drove them to the emergency room where Bobby was checked over. The doctor determined he was also malnourished and underweight. There were bruises all over his body and sores on his scalp. He was also terrified and clung to Mike.

They finally got Bobby loaded back into Katherine's car and headed home. Mike looked at his phone and saw a text message. No one knew that he was fostering Bobby other than Katherine and Joey.

"Hey; its Libby. Joey gave me your number and told me you were taking Bobby in. I know he'll miss school tomorrow, but would you care if I came out tomorrow evening to check on him? I'm sure he is scared." The text read.

"That's fine. I know they will be interviewing him tomorrow, but his evening should be free. Could you bring some books out with you? I have no kid's books and I would like to figure out what his learning disability is over the weekend." Mike asked.

"Sure. I'll grab some of the ones he's expressed an interest in. Thank you for taking him on. He is a really sweet boy. No one else has ever bothered." Libby said.

"You did. Now we just have to keep him away from his father. I'll talk to you tomorrow." Mike answered and put his phone away.

Mike gave Katherine his address once they arrived back at the Sheriff's Office, put the sleeping little boy in his back seat and drove home. He was able to rouse Bobby enough to change into a pair of sweatpants and a long-sleeved shirt just in time to put him in bed across from Mike's own bedroom.

It had been a long time since Mike had tucked a kid into bed and apparently Bobby had never had that luxury. Mike was certain the little boy was asleep before he ever left the bedroom. He just hoped he would stay asleep.