An Accidental Family Ch. 02

In a stroke of misfortune, it seems that Dale awoke just as Lucy picked up the heart to look at it more closely. Meth can do strange things—it can make you lucid and energized, but it can just as easily make you paranoid, delusional, and violent. Whether because of the drugs or his natural inclination, Dale went down the second path, grabbing Lucy and demanding that she give him back his drugs. When she froze in fear, he threw her against the wall causing her to scream in pain—the scream that Jason heard over the phone. Lisa ran inside to protect Lucy, but by then, Dale was already coming across the room with his knife drawn.

To this day, I still can't think about what would have happened to Lisa and Lucy if their uncle hadn't been woken by Lucy's scream. When he took in what was happening, he threw himself on Dale, while Lisa grabbed Lucy and fled. They couldn't flee the house and leave Bel by herself, though, so they ran upstairs to their room and barricaded it with the dresser. Dale stabbed their uncle and then went upstairs after our girls.

Ted and I were questioned at the scene and, eventually, allowed to go home with the promise to attend the police station for further questioning later.

Our girls' uncle was not a good man. He abused them and put them in a situation that could easily have cost them their lives. But, in the end, he died keeping them safe and that is something. When his body was released by the police, we arranged for a small funeral at the church and his remains were cremated. We erected a memorial plaque in the cemetery, in case our girls or anyone else were ever inclined to visit. Later in life, Bel would visit a couple of times a year to clear away the grime and leave some flowers, but Lisa and Lucy never did.

The story of Dale did not have a happy ending. He was convicted of felony murder, amongst other crimes, and he was sentenced to life in prison. He was placed in the same jail as our girls' father. It turns out he was right to have feared him.

------

By the time I got home, I was exhausted. I checked in at Jen's apartment and she had just put the younger girls to bed in her room. Lisa and Jason were in my apartment, along with Sneaky and Cindy who had come over to comfort Lisa and provide moral support. Jen had sent them across the hall to my place so that the younger girls would have some quiet to go to sleep.

Lisa was in rough shape but, by the time I got back, had cried herself out and was watching a mindless show on TV with her friends. She seemed to be doing as well as could be expected but would certainly need professional counseling at some point (which we couldn't afford). That was a problem for another day.

I went back to Jen's apartment and joined her on the couch.

"Are you okay, babe?" she asked with concern in her voice.

"I am fine, I guess. I just feel a little numb. We could have killed Dale today, but I really don't feel badly about it. Hell, if Dale had a gun, Ted or I could easily have ended up joining their uncle in that pool of blood in the living room. But he was going to hurt our girls, and he had to be stopped.

"I'm really sorry, I ..." I stopped as a profound sense of sadness washed over me. "I haven't seen a dead body since the day I found my father. There was so much blood."

"You did an amazing thing today, JT. You saved our girls. You saved them and you brought them home to us. You told them that if they needed you, you would come for them no matter what and you kept faith. They will remember that for the rest of their lives."

We sat quietly together for a while before Jen gave me a kiss on the forehead. "Those kids really have nobody now. Nobody but us."

"Well, we will just have to be enough for them then, won't we."

"Happy Valentine's Day, JT."

"Happy Valentine's to you too, Jen. I love you."

Interview with a Social Worker

The next week was exhausting. We had to navigate visits from the police, from Child Protective Services, and from a social worker, along with a string of friends and well-wishers. We were not equipped to look after one extra family member, let alone three, but we managed as best we could.

Each of our girls reacted to the trauma they had experienced in their own way, but they were all profoundly affected. The two younger girls could not be left alone in a room without panicking and could only fall asleep while clinging to Jen or Lisa. Lisa could barely sleep at all, worrying incessantly that her sisters would be taken away from her if she let her guard down even for a moment. Our living arrangements were also complicated, and space was at a premium. Jen's apartment ended up housing the girls, while Jason and I shared mine. I insisted that Jason take my bed while I slept on the sofa.

Our friends came through for us in a big way. Ted and Sue were, once again, our rocks and helped us in any way they could, including bringing our girls to school in the morning, once they were able to return. My mom watched our girls when we had to go out, and she brought over enough food, prepared by the Women's Guild at her church, to feed a small army. It was Sneaky's family, though, that really made the difference.

Sneaky was one of fifteen grandchildren in the sprawling Jiminez family. They had been an institution in our county for at least five generations. The heart of the family was Sneaky's Abuela (grandmother), who loved all of her of grandchildren equally. In her heart of hearts, however, she might have loved Sneaky a little more equally than the others. He was kind, he was funny, and he was always willing to help his Abuela out with whatever chores she needed him to do. And he was hopelessly in love with Lisa.

Even back then, he had known that she was the only one for him and had shared his feelings with his Abuela. Without knowing it, Lisa had already become a part of the Jiminez family, and by extension, so had her sisters. The family had only one inviolate rule—you look after family. And that they did.

For those first weeks, various aunts, uncles, cousins, and other more distant relatives would regularly drop off supplies for our girls, and for Jen and me. They were so generous, in fact, that I worried it was too much. So, I pulled Sneaky's Abuelo (grandfather) aside for a quick word the next time he stopped by.

"I can't thank you and your family enough for all your kindness and support. Your generosity is overwhelming, but you have your own families to think about as well."

He stopped, looked at me, and considered what I had said before he replied.

"You are a father now; you have four children who look to you. You carry their weight. That is what it means to be a parent. You carry their weight, and we will help to carry yours."

And that was the end of the conversation.

At the end of our first week with our girls, the counselor from Child Protective Services delivered some crushing, but not unexpected, news. Because there were no direct family members willing to take our girls (the reason they were with their uncle in the first place), they could stay with Jen as their temporary guardian. But as soon as Child Protective Services conducted a full assessment, they would be placing our girls in a permanent home that would be better suited to their needs.

We asked about the timing on this decision and were told it would take from four to six weeks for a final decision. The counselor was sympathetic, since it was clear that we loved our girls deeply, but she said that they deserved to be in a stable home with people who had the resources to care for them. And we could not provide that home.

The Talk, Part 1

Both Jen and I were crushed at the news. It was like all the joy and light were sucked out of our hearts and crushed under the counselor's heels. We decided not to share the news with our girls, since they were just beginning to settle into their new lives with us. They would be devastated when they found out.

The next night, I asked my mom if she could watch our girls while Jen and I went for a drive. We ended up at Shelly's, although neither of us felt hungry, our appetites having been lost to anxiety and worry. I looked at Jen and she looked at me, and she started to talk.

"JT, we can't lose our girls. We can't let them down like that. We have to figure this thing out, don't we?"

She paused and looked at me. I thought for a minute and answered her with a question of my own.

"When my dad and I first started working on the Shelby, it seemed like an impossibly large and complex job. How would we even decide where to start? But my dad never let that bother him. He would just look at me and ask, 'Son, how do you eat an elephant?'"

I looked at Jen, and she thought for a minute before answering, "with a really big knife and fork?"

"That's a pretty good guess," I said with a laugh. "But Dad's answer was always 'you eat an elephant one bite at a time, just like anything else.' When you're faced with a seemingly insurmountable problem, tackle it one step at a time. So, what's our first bite?

"We know that there are three bites we are going to have to eat to make this work: we need to prove that we are a stable family, we need a good home that is big enough for all of us, and we need to have enough resources to provide our family with a good life.

"It might sound crazy, but I have an idea for how we can eat two of those bites in one meal."

"You do, do you?" Jen replied. "Why don't you tell me about this elephantine feast."

At that point, I got up out of our booth, got down on one knee in front of Jen and took my mother's engagement ring out of my pocket. The half dozen other patrons in the diner stopped what they were doing to watch how my proposal would play out.

"Jennifer Anderson, will you marry me?"

To say Jen looked surprised was an understatement. While I was hoping for an enthusiastic "yes!" what I got was a perplexed "JT, thank you, but you can't be serious."

While her answer wasn't a "no", it wasn't very encouraging.

"I am deadly serious. Why not Jen? Getting married is about the only way I can think of to show that we are a committed family quickly enough to make a difference for Child Protective Services. And if we were married, between the two of us, we could make the finances work for a family of six. It would be tight, but we could do it."

"Well, aren't you just a romantic fool," Jen teased me, but her mouth quirked up into a small smile, before turning back down.

"It's a nice idea, JT, but it wouldn't work. Thanks to my ex-husband's credit card debt, my credit score is terrible. The banks wouldn't let me buy a kettle on credit, let alone lease, or buy a house big enough for our family. If you marry me, then you also marry my credit score, so we would be homeless together.

"Also, to be honest, I kind of hoped that my second marriage would be born out of love, not necessity. I got married once because I got pregnant with Jason. As much as I love them, I am not sure I want to get married again just for the sake of our girls."

"But Jen, our marriage would be born out of love. I love you, Jen, and you know I love Jason like he's my own son. There is nothing I want more than to watch Jason grow up as we get old and cranky together. But our marriage would be born out of love, regardless of that, because we both love our girls. I have seen the way you are with them, Jen, you love those girls with every fiber of your being. Can you really tell me that you would rather let them take our girls than marry me?"

That last question was a cheap shot, and I knew it. But I continued,

"I would rather our girls be at our wedding in two weeks, than for them to be gone when we marry in two years. I know this is fast, but I do love you, Jen. Marry me. Please."

Jen looked around at the people watching our little drama unfold. Lowering her voice, she whispered, "but JT, we haven't even been together yet ... you know, in the biblical sense. What if I am no good? What if I am a disappointment to you? What if you leave me?"

"Jen, you could never disappoint me, and I would never leave you. I know you've been hurt before, that you've had your heart broken, but trust me when I say that I will cherish you. There is an inscription inside this ring, written in Polish, that means 'unbroken love.' Family legend holds that the ring will remain unbroken as long as the giver and receiver remain true to each other. Say 'yes', and I vow that the ring will remain unbroken to the end of our days."

"But think of everything you would be giving up, JT. Raising four kids would take all our time and money. Our girls have had rough lives, and they will need so much love and support. We would have so little time for ourselves. And what about children of your own? Don't you want children that are of your own flesh and blood?"

"Those are sacrifices I would happily make, Jen. Our girls need us, they need our love. I need your love. Please, Jen, say 'yes' and let's give this a try."

"Even if I say 'yes', there would still be one more bite of the elephant left to go."

"Well, I have an old family recipe that might just solve that problem too. If you say you'll marry me, I promise we will eat that third bite before you walk down the aisle."

"Okay, Jake, yes. Yes, I'll marry you," Jen said with a shy smile. I could actually see the light begin to return to her eyes. There was a smattering of applause from around the room before the other tables went back to their dinners.

"But we need to ask Jason and Lisa for their blessings before its official. They both have to be on board, or we don't move ahead."

"That's fair enough, let's talk to them when we get home."

Before we left, Shelly herself appeared with a celebratory piece of pie, on the house. As she put it on our table, she leaned over to me and said in a stage whisper, "well, that was close ... I wasn't sure she would say 'yes'."

"I wasn't sure either, Shelly, but I am sure glad she did."

The Talk, Part 2

When we got home, Lisa was in Jen's bedroom with our girls while my mom read quietly on the sofa. Without disturbing them, we asked Jason to come to my apartment to talk.

Jason pre-empted our worries about how to start the conversation by asking, "when are you two getting married?"

A bit taken aback, I responded, "what makes you think we are getting married?"

Jason rolled his eyes and looked down at Jen's hand, "Mom's wearing an engagement ring, and normally that is a good sign that someone is getting married. Unless Mom agreed to marry someone else, which is possible I guess but seems unlikely."

It was easy to forget how observant that kid is.

"Well, you're right. I proposed to your mom, and she said 'yes.'"

Jason blinked a couple of times then replied, "that's great, congratulations. Can I play Call of Duty now?"

At that point, Jen jumped into the conversation, "there's more to it than that, Jason. One of the reasons we are getting married is, so we have the best possible chance for Lisa and her sisters to be placed with us permanently. But we will only try to make things permanent if that is okay with you."

Looking a bit perplexed, Jason replied, "why wouldn't that be okay with me?"

"Well, it would be a big change. You would suddenly have three sisters. They wouldn't be guests any more, Jason, they would be family. They would be staying with us forever."

Jason still looked perplexed, so Jen continued, "The girls would take a lot of time and energy, and it would be a real stretch on our finances, even with the two of us combining our resources."

At that last part Jason smiled, and looked like he finally understood, "So you're saying I need to get a job? I can do that if it means Lisa, Lucy, and Bel get to stay with us."

I worried that we weren't doing a good job of explaining things to Jason, so I jumped back in, "This isn't about your getting a job, Jason. It's about major changes to your life, to our lives. It's okay if this seems a bit much or if you think that we are moving too quickly. We understand if you have concerns you want to talk about or need a bit of time to think things over."

"Why would I have concerns? If Lisa and her sisters are taken away, how are we going to keep them safe? How are we going to look after them? Of course they are staying with us.

"You look after the people that you love. You protect them and care for them over everything else. You taught me that, Mom. Who is going to protect Lucy and Bel if they are taken away?"

Sometimes there were advantages to the way that Jason sees the world in black and white. It was so clear to him. There was no question for him as to the right course of action. No debate. Only love and sacrifice.

"If you're sure, Jason," his mom reiterated. "We wouldn't ask you to do this if it wasn't absolutely necessary."

"Mom, of course we make sacrifices for the people that we love. That's the whole point of a sacrifice."

I hadn't thought of it like that before, but he made a good point.

"Alright buddy, I'm proud of you," I told Jason.

"You'll be even more proud of me when I kick your butt at Call of Duty," he replied with a grin.

"We can play in a bit, Jason. But first your mom and I need to talk to Lisa. It's not enough that we want her to join our family, she has to want to join us as well."

"Tell her that we love her. She needs to be loved."

With that Jason went over to the couch and started his game.

------

When we made our way back to Jen's apartment, things were a bit out of control. Lucy and Bel were both crying and asking for Jen, while my mom and Lisa did their best to console them. Lisa was clearly upset that her sisters now preferred to be with Jen when they were upset rather than her. She looked to be on the verge of tears when Jen took the younger girls to her room to help them calm down and go to sleep.

I took a moment to thank my mom and say goodnight. I walked her out to the landing, gave her a hug and then told her the good news about Jen and me. My mom gave me a knowing smile and said,

"Seven weeks is a bit quicker than I had guessed, but not by much. I am so happy for you two and for Jason."

"Mom, we are going to do everything we can to make sure that Lisa, Lucy, and Bel can join our family as well."

"Of course you are dear. Of course you are."

With that, my mom gave me a kiss on the cheek and said, "I am proud of you, Jeremy Thomas. Your dad would be very proud of you as well."

When I went back into the apartment, Lisa was sitting dejectedly on the sofa. I asked her if she could come over to the table so that we could talk. She looked hesitant or even scared, but she came over slowly and sat down.

"Jen and I were talking tonight," I began. "We decided that we are going to get married."

I didn't know what kind of reaction to expect from Lisa, but I didn't expect her to go pale and look at the floor before slumping down.

"That's okay, JT. I understand. You and Jen will have your own family now. Could you ... would you consider keeping Lucy and Bel? They're great kids and wouldn't be much bother for you. If I can't be with them, I would feel better knowing they are with folks who love them."

Feeling a bit confused at Lisa's response, I asked, "why wouldn't you be with them? Where are you planning to go?"

It was now Lisa's turn to look uncertain, but she responded, "you and Jen wouldn't want some teenage girl as part of your new family. You will want to have kids of your own. No one wants teenagers, particularly not broken ones like me. Don't worry, I know the drill. When the social worker comes, I will do everything I can to make sure she lets Lucy and Bel stay with you."

As Lisa was speaking, Jen had come back into the room and overheard what she was saying. Jen walked over and took Lisa's hands in hers.