Page 11 of Crazy Love

His words hit me like a punch in the gut. This kid has been through so much already, and he shouldn’t have to feel like this.

“Have they been feeding you this week? Did you get the food I brought?”

He looks away, watching the family next to us. “Yeah, I think it made them nervous that I’d get taken away, so they’ve been feeding me and acting nicer.”

I sigh and lean back in the booth, taking a deep breath. “Sam,” I lean in again, “you don’t have to handle this alone. I’m here for you, okay? We’re going to figure something out.”

He nods, but the weariness in his eyes doesn’t go away. It kills me. We hit a few more balls, and by the time I drop him off, he looks a little better than when we started, like the time out may have helped. But it’s not enough.

I sit in the SUV after he goes inside, staring at my phone. I’m annoyed that I haven’t heard more from Mrs. Murphy this week. She heard me out and assured me she’d look into things, but I expected more communication.

I decide to call her yet again.

“Penn,” she answers, sounding cautious. “What’s going on?”

“I’ve just dropped Sam off. He’s not okay. What more can I do to have him stay with me?”

There’s a pause on the other end, and I already know she’s gearing up to put me off longer. I get it, she can only do so much.

“Penn,” she says gently, and my fists ball up at her placating tone. “I know you care about Sam, but you should be prepared for the fact that the court might not think you’re a viable option. You travel for work. You’re not consistently home. And…you’re not part of a family unit. Foster care prioritizes stability, and?—”

“I can give him stability,” I cut in, unable to hide my frustration. “I can do better for him than what he’s getting now. A lot better. They yell at him. They withhold food from him as punishment. I’d think foster care would also prioritize feeding a hungry child!”

“I know you mean well, but these situations are complicated. I’ve looked into what’s going on at the foster home and have no reason to believe he’s not being fed. I questioned the other kids there, and no one had any complaints. Perhaps Sam is just trying to get your attention.”

I scoff. “He’s had my attention. There’s no reason for him to work hard to get it, he already has it. And maybe the other kids didn’t say anything because they were scared if they did, nothing would fix it. Sam said himself that he didn’t want to say too much in case he was moved from Jesse and Winnie…and that backfired on him because Jesse ended up being the one who was moved.”

“Okay, I’ll make another visit over there, but we did get some good news. The grocery store didn’t press charges.” She pauses and clears her throat. “Penn…often, these kids will act out. It’s not uncommon for them to steal food. I’m sure there’s more to this than you know. But I’ll keep an eye on things and continue looking into it, I promise you that.”

“If you don’t see this as a cry for help, then I don’t even know what to say.” I end the call, anger and helplessness twisting in my chest.

I promised Sam I’d figure this out, but the system is stacked against us. I get that I travel for work, but I own my home, have no debt, and make millions of dollars a year. Why the hell can’t he live with me? As I sit in the dark, I become more determined than ever to figure this out. I refuse to let Sam down.

When I get home, my phone is blowing up with texts from the guys.

Rhodes

How did it go with Sam?

Weston

Yeah, man, you okay? Let us know.

Bowie

Poppy’s ready to go primal on his foster family.

Henley

You don’t mess with a pregnant woman.

He admitted tonight that they’ve been rough on him. You know he doesn’t usually say much about his foster home, but he said enough tonight to concern me more than I already was. Jesse, the younger kid Sam looked out for, got moved this week, and I think Sam is just…done. He said he’s tired. Tired of moving, tired of everything.

Rhodes

That fucking kills me.

Me too.

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