Page 12 of Heal
Maybe he really wasn't meant to do this job. He'd gone in thinking about helping the kids, but he hadn't thought through what he would have to witness doing that. It was becoming clear that placing a child in a foster home was only half of the job. He wasn't scared of the work, but he just wasn't sure he had it in him to look into the kids' eyes and tell them he was trying to help when he couldn't really promise that. Once he handed the kids over to the foster parents, his job was done and it would be up to others to do home visits and make sure they were safe.
He hated doubting himself, but there was no way he would be able to place the four kids from last night in a new home and walk away without checking in on them and always worrying that they were okay.
He paused at the nurses' station. He wasn't even sure why he was there. He'd talked to the CPS therapist who would be meeting with the children, shocked to find that she wouldn't even go in to see the children until they were released from the hospital.
The way he saw it, the kids should have someone to talk to right away. It could be days, or even a week or more before the kids were released, and that was a long time for any child to try and process everything that was going on.
No wonder most of his co-workers were cold-hearted people who didn't seem to care about anyone but themselves. It was probably the job causing it. To care would make it too hard doing what they had to do every day.
Parson stopped at the nurses' station. "Hi, I'm with CPS. I was wondering if I could visit with the Baker, Ridgemont, and Campbell children."
She glanced up, taking a quick look at the badge that hung around his neck before she met his stare. "Dr. Maddington is on his way up. Until he gives the okay, no one is allowed to see the children."
Parson had expected this, but it didn't help his mood. He wanted to help, and sitting on the sidelines, waiting for a chance to do his job wasn't why he'd signed up for this job. "Thanks, could you let him know I'd like to speak to him when he gets here?"
"There's a waiting room down the hall, on the left. You can wait there, but I don't have any idea how long he'll be."
Parson nodded. "That's fine. I'll wait."
His hope of seeing the children faded as he sat down on the small couch in the waiting room at the end of the hall. He'd known coming in that he was rushing things, but he wanted to help. There had to be something he could do. He had a stack of case files on his desk to follow up, but he couldn't get the kids out of his mind. These kids needed help now.
A wave of guilt rushed through him. He hadn't even looked at the other files on his desk today. He had no way of knowing what the other kids needed, but he was sure that they weren't lying in a hospital bed after being abused. If they were, he would have gotten a phone call about it.
"Mr. Detry?"
Parson stood as a tall, dark-haired man, wearing a name tag saying Dr. Maddington walked into the waiting room. "Call me Parson."
"And you can call me Beau." The doctor sat down on the arm of the couch. "You're with CPS?"
Parson nodded. "The children's previous caseworker passed away. I was just given the case."
"I hear you want to see the children. You know I can't let you do that yet."
Parson ran his fingers through his thick, unruly hair. "I know it's soon and most caseworkers wait until the children are released, but I just feel like I need to do something. I can't just sit and wait."
Beau nodded. "I understand that, but right now, I can't let anyone talk to them. The hospital caseworker is aware of the situation, and she's visiting with the children today, but I need to focus on their physical injuries. I know it's hard to sit by and wait, but I'm honestly not in any hurry to return them to state care and have them tossed into another foster home."
Parson sighed. "I feel helpless."
"I feel the same way." Beau gave him a weak smile. "It's hard to sit by and just wait, I understand that, but right now, the kids are safe. I'm about to head out and get them McDonald's for dinner in a bit. We're doing everything we can to keep them comfortable. They've got a lot to work through. It's more than just the physical injuries. Their trust of adults is shot to hell. Right now, the best thing we can do is give them time to heal, mentally and physically."
"You're right. It's just hard. There's just something about this case I can't let go of, something I'm not seeing." Parson leaned back in the chair. "I have a caseload of other children to follow up on, but I can't get these four off my mind long enough to concentrate on the others."
Beau ran his fingers through his dark hair. "Listen, maybe the best thing you can do right now is focus on the other children."
Parson stood, pacing across the small room. "I've worked cases like this before. Something is off here."
"What do you mean?" Beau raised a brow.
"I'm not sure. Little things. Like why didn't a doctor notice this when the children were examined, why didn't anyone notice that the school records listed were falsified? The school doesn't even exist. How was that not caught? I know CPS isn't known for being the best, but we should be able to tell if a child is really going to school or not."
"You said that the caseworker handling this case died?" Beau asked.
"About a month ago." Parson turned to him. "Why?"
Beau blew out a long breath. "I don't know why I trust you, but I do. I don't believe you are part of this."
"Part of what?" Parson was confused. "I only want to help the kids. If there is something going on, I need to know about, please tell me."
