Page 30 of Refuge for Cherilyn

“The lady who bought all the nice things for us!” Cherilyn stood and reached for Maisey’s hand, surprised at how strong the social worker’s grip was. “I appreciated that so much, and so did the girls. You’ll never know how much.”

“You’re quite welcome. I’m not really much of a shopper, even though my husband thinks I am, but it was fun. As for the girls… Aaron asked me to come and keep them busy while you all were talking to SheriffMcEvers. Are they here?”

“Yeah. Just down the hallway. Come on. I’ll introduce you, and thanks for this. I hate that you’re taking time out of your day to come here.”

“Nah. No problem. I love kids.”

Cherilyn opened the door and stood there with Maisey. “Girls, this is Mrs.Friedman.”

“You can call me Maisey,” the shorter woman said with a smile.

“Maisey? You’re the one who brought us all the pretty clothes! Thank you so much!” Maya gushed.

“PWIDDY!” Lara barked.

“Thank you! You’re pretty too.” Cherilyn watched as her youngest daughter beamed at their new friend. “So, what do you girls like to do?” As Maisey stepped into the room, Cherilyn heard a knock on the door and turned. The social worker leaned toward her and whispered, “Go. I’ve got this.”

“Thanks.” Cherilyn tossed one last look their way, but both girls were interacting with Maisey and paid their mother no mind.

Shaw was in the living room talking to a very pretty, curvy woman in a uniform. “Ms.Travis?” The woman held out her hand. “I’m SheriffCarly McEvers. You can just call me Carly. No need for formalities here. I want you to be completely comfortable.”

“Thank you so much. I really appreciate you coming here. I was afraid to… you know…”

“Come to the station? I don’t know the whole story, but from what Aaron told me, I think this is more appropriate.”

“Anybody want a cup of coffee?” Shaw asked and threw a thumb at the kitchen.

“Please! I don’t know how I’m going to make it through the day. Belle’s teething and had us up half the night. Can we sit?” she asked and motioned toward the furniture.

“Sure. Please.” Cherilyn chose the end of the sofa closest to the chair where Carly sat. “I’ll tell you what I can, but I’m not sure how much it’ll help.”

“If you know the guy, it’ll help a lot.”

“Well, yeah, I definitely know him.”

An hour later, Cherilyn had told Carly everything she could think of. “Do you know what he did for a living?”

Cherilyn thought for a minute. “I don’t think anybody ever mentioned what he did. I do know he was gone and then back. Maybe… I don’t know. I’m not going to try to guess.”

“Okay. I’ll find out. In the meantime, I think what you’re doing is what you should be doing. Laying low. Don’t do a lot of going out, and don’t draw attention to yourselves.”

“We’ll just keep doing it then.” Cherilyn felt completely hopeless. She couldn’t go anywhere, couldn’t do anything, and Shaw couldn’t sit there with them all the time. But it was still better than being out in the woods.

Movement caught her attention, and the three people in the living room turned to find Maisey at the head of the hallway. “Maisey! Hey!”

“Hi, Carly! Hey, Cherilyn, can I ask you something?”

“Sure.”

“How long has it been since Lara’s hearing has been tested?”

Cherilyn thought for a few seconds. “I don’t suppose it’s ever been tested.”

“Oh, if she’s been in the state of Kentucky, it’s been tested. They test kids at every grade level, and being in special ed, which I’m sure she is, they’ve tested it. You’ve never gotten a report?” Maisey’s brow knit downward into a deepV.

“No.”

“I think she’s yelling because she can’t hear.”

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