Page 28 of Wed
"Wait, take this to Eric. The boys said he never lets go of it. It might help him relax." She thrust the stuffed animal at Faith.
Faith smiled as she took it. "Might be the best thing we can give him right now. Thanks." She took the bear and rushed away.
Becca leaned against the wall as tears stung her eyes. She had to be strong and keep it together. This wasn't new to her. She'd heard of worse through the years, but this was the first time she'd actually dealt with the children in person. Well, other than Faith, but that had been different and not right away. It had been a while before Faith had come to the team house and interacted with everyone. These kids were still injured and suffering. She needed to make sure the others weren't injured but wasn't sure how to bring it up. She slowly made her way back to Lenora's room.
She leaned against the open bedroom door and smiled as she watched the three children sitting on the bed talking in hushed whispers. She couldn't imagine the hell they'd been through. She knew Andy and Lenora's backstory, but wondered about Geo. What had caused him to end up in foster care? Had he and Andy been abused the same way Eric had? She prayed not. "Hey, you guys want food?"
Lenora smiled, but Andy and Geo just stared.
"I'm going to head to the kitchen and start burgers. Lenora can show you where to go when you're ready to eat." She wanted to keep the kids with her but figured giving them independence was the best way to earn their trust and show them that they weren't in danger here with the team.
"I'll show them. Can we have olives with our burgers?" Lenora asked.
"I think I saw a can in the kitchen. If it's there, you can have olives too." Becca gave the kids one more smile. "If you need anything, just ask. Once you eat, you guys can hide out in here and talk and sleep."
"Thanks." Geo took a deep breath. "Let us know how Eric is when you find out."
"I promise." She crossed her heart and then stepped away from the door.
Once in the kitchen, she focused on the food and tried to listen to the conversation going on in the living room, but the men's voices were muted. She was dying to know what happened and if the police were searching for the kids yet. What had happened at the house? She'd expected Andy but hadn't been surprised to find the other boys with them. She would have taken any other kids too, but what had happened to the other girl that Lenora said had been there?
She made enough burgers for everyone, knowing the men would want to eat as well. If there was food around, they'd eat it. She hoped the kids wouldn't be too overwhelmed by everyone around but trusted the team to approach them carefully.
"Something smells good." Noam walked into the kitchen.
"I figured the boys could use some food. They're so thin." She glanced over her shoulder at him, debating on asking what was going on, but deciding it was better to let Bryon tell her when he was ready. "There's enough here for all of you. Just leave the olives for the kids. I promised them to Lenora, and we only had one can."
"I'm sure the boys will need stuff. We can make a run to the store tomorrow. It's so late now, I'm guessing they'll sleep half the day away." Noam grabbed a burger from the platter she'd put them on.
"I won't complain. I'm exhausted." Becca sighed. "But they're safe and that’s all that matters."
"Agreed." Noam smiled.
Becca paused as Lenora ran into the kitchen. "It smells good." She went to the table and hopped up in a chair without any hesitation.
Behind her, the boys walked in slower, cautiously looking around, appearing a bit overwhelmed by things.
"Hey, grab a seat." Becca put three plates on the table she'd already arranged for each child. "Juice or water to drink?"
"Juice," Lenora said.
The boys sat down but didn't say anything.
Becca pulled the juice out of the fridge and set it on the table. "You two a little overwhelmed?"
Geo looked up at her. "We can really choose?"
"Of course. There's milk too if you'd rather that." Becca turned back to the pan and turned the burgers so they didn't burn. "It's late and we all need sleep, but tomorrow, you guys can sit down with me and let me know what you like and don't like to eat."
"Are we staying here? You're not going to move us to another foster home?" Andy asked.
"For now, we're staying here. I'm not sure what will happen in the future, but I promise you that whatever happens, you'll end up in a good place. Not in someplace like you've been at. And I promise Lenora and Andy will stay together. Tomorrow, we'll sit down and talk about everything. I don't want you to be scared. We won't let anyone hurt you." She turned off the stove before grabbing a burger for herself and going over to sit with the kids. "I need you guys to be honest with us though. No lies. We can't help you if we don't know everything. The most important thing is for us to find out if any of you need to see a doctor." She met Geo's gaze across the table. "I know it's not easy to talk about some things, but we need to make sure you aren't hurt."
Geo dropped his gaze.
Andy squirmed in his seat and glanced at his sister.
"We don't have to discuss it right now. I'll find time to talk to each of you alone." She figured Andy might not want his sister to know or worry about him. "Another thing to be thinking about is if you need a comb, toothbrush, clothes, or anything like that. We'll do some online shopping tomorrow and have stuff delivered."
