Close To The Heart (Westen Series Book 5) Read online

  “You’re mad cause you can’t eat it. That’s the cooker’s fault, too. Not the food’s,” Lexie said as if everyone knew that, then shoved another bite of maple syrup-laden waffle in her mouth.

  In the first few days caring for Lexie, Melissa had quickly realized that the little girl was smart and very mature for the age of six. Probably from learning to care for herself while living with a drug addict parent.

  “Well, if it’s not your breakfast, what had you staring at your food like you were very mad?”

  Lexie’s face fell as she chewed then swallowed. “The boys call me Shrimp.”

  Ahh. Melissa fought her smile. It wasn’t that she thought the nickname cute or was amused at Lexie’s discomfiture over it. The fact that the little girl reacted like a normal child to a nickname she didn’t like was a good thing.

  “What would you like them to call you?”

  “Lexie,” she said as if there was no other need to call her anything else, then popped two blueberries in her mouth.

  “Hmm,” Melissa said, pretending to give that great thought. “They could just call you that. But do you know why people give other people nicknames?”

  Lexie shook her head.

  “Sometimes they call people a nickname because they can’t quite remember names, like my grandmother. She knew she loved me, but she had so many granddaughters, she’d sometimes get us confused. So, she’d just call us sweetie.”

  “What if you were with all your girl cousins and she said sweetie. Who would she be talking to?”

  Melissa grinned. “She did that all the time. We all just figured she was talking to us personally. We never corrected her.”

  A giggle escaped Lexie. “That’s silly.”

  “Yes, it was.” Melissa gave her a wink. “Sometimes people give a person a nickname and teasing them about something is a way to show they like them. Especially boys. I think that may be why all our boys call you Shrimp. They like having you here, but don’t want the others to know it. So, they tease you about being little.”

  “Like a Shrimp in the big ocean?”

  “Something like that.”

  Lexie took another bite of her breakfast and seemed to be considering all they’d discussed. Melissa hoped she’d given her a good explanation to the nickname issue. The boys always used the name in a friendly, teasing—even indulgent—way. Never mean or condescending.

  Melissa was well acquainted with those kinds of names. Fatty. Lazyass. Stupid. Frank had use those often, even becoming crass when he’d had too much to drink, usually punctuating the name calling with his fists. Looking at the sweet little girl gobbling down her breakfast, Melissa prayed she’d never have to explain why people would call others—those they supposedly swore they loved—ugly, hurtful names.

  She shook off the melancholy thoughts, something she was finding easier to do each day she was further from her ex-husband’s reach, and took her mug to the sink.

  “Hurry up and finish your breakfast. We have appointments in town today.”

  “What’re we doing?” Lexie asked before shoving her last bite of waffle in her mouth, a much happier and excited expression on her face.

  “First we have a visit with Doc Clint and Miss Harriett.”

  “I love Miss Harriett,” Lexie said as she bounced out of her seat and brought her dishes to the sink.

  It had taken Melissa weeks to get the boys to do this simple act when she first arrived at the group home, but Lexie had jumped at every chance to be helpful, even if it was just bringing her dishes from the table. It pleased Melissa and broke her heart at the same time. She believed the little girl was anxious to please because she’d had so little attention paid to her in her young life. Melissa also suspected that Lexie was afraid if she wasn’t perfect, she’d be sent away. Which was why her little bout of anger earlier was such a milestone.

  As the live-in house mother for the group home, Melissa was in no way a trained counselor, which was provided by the county off site for the boys. Heck she was so messed up, she needed one herself. But she could give Lexie a safe and loving place to find her footing. If that allowed the little girl to grow and deal with the life she’d lived for six years with her neglectful mother, then Melissa was willing to do whatever it took to keep her safe.

  2

  She’s gained five pounds,” Doc Clint said once Lexie had gone down the hall with his nurse, Harriett, to check out the new kittens on the back porch. “Must be all that good cooking you do.”

  “I doubt that,” Melissa said nervously. “Is that a good weight gain?”

  The handsome doctor smiled. “Yes, she was very underweight when we found her last month. There’s no telling how long she’d gone without food, or how long she was in that house by herself.”

  “Whenever I’ve asked when she last saw her mother, all she says is before the snow started,” Melissa said, tightening the grip on her intertwined fingers. In all her life, even her years with Frank, she’d never wanted to hit someone as much as she did the woman who’d abandoned that sweet little girl. “It could’ve been the day the blizzard started. It could’ve been days before.”

  “She’s in a safe, warm place now,” Doc Clint said.

  “But for how long? Westen House was meant for troubled teens, not one shy little girl. Although…” Melissa smiled at the memory from breakfast this morning.

  “Although, what?” the doctor asked with a quizzical look.

  “The boys have all been very accepting of her since she arrived at the house. They’ve been teaching her to play video games and let her pick the movies on Friday Night Movie night. They’ve even given her the nickname of Shrimp.”

  “Sounds like she’s been as good for them, as they have for her.”

  “Yes, I agree. She’s softened some of their rough edges. Given them something or someone to actually champion.”

  Good Lord. She sounded like some silly teenage romantic, picturing her wards as knights in shining armor, protecting Lexie from the world. Only she knew better. Life wasn’t a fairy tale. No knights protected you from the dragons, especially the ones who lived with you. You had to do it for yourself.

  Quickly, she shook off the morose thoughts. This wasn’t about her. This was about Lexie.

  “The thing is, Doctor, this morning each of the boys called her by the nickname as they left. It was all good-natured, but she took exception to it. Not in their presence. She didn’t throw a fit or anything,” she rushed to reassure the doctor. “But after they left, we talked about it and I think she may not be as offended as she was.”

  Clint chuckled. “That’s actually a good sign.”

  “It is?” Melissa relaxed the grip on her fingers.

  “Yes. It’s normal for siblings to give each other names and for the recipient not to like them. The twins call Belle ‘Carrots’ even though their hair is every bit as red as hers, maybe more so.”

  “Does she mind it?” She knew the doctor had two stepsons and a baby daughter with his wife Emma.

  “She’s not old enough to protest yet, but I’m sure when she is, those boys will get a piece of her mind about it.” He grinned then made a note on the file in front of him. “What’s good about Lexie’s irritation at the nickname is that she feels safe and comfortable to voice her opinion about it to you. It also shows she’s learning to stand up for herself. Something she’s probably not learned from her mother. Lexie is feeling like she belongs and is important to others.” Clint closed the file and smiled at Melissa. “And I’m quite confident all that has come from the love and care she’s found with you these past weeks at Westen House.”

  Melissa blushed and fought the urge to disagree with him, but one of the things her counselor was teaching her was it was okay to accept compliments.

  “Now, we need to talk about the upcoming custody hearing,” the doctor went on. “Libby Reynolds dropped off a few things for me to give you. First, is a card for a local child psychologist. Another is for a lawyer.”
r />   Melissa took the cards he handed her and recognized the lawyer’s name, Chloe Roberts, the Sheriff’s sister-in-law. “A lawyer? I thought it would be the local district attorney asking the judge for the State to get custody of Lexie. What do I need a lawyer for?”

  “You’re right, the DA will be leading the custody case against Lexie’s mother. The lawyer isn’t for you. The judge appointed Chloe to be the child advocate for Lexie. Her sole mission is to see to Lexie’s welfare, that includes speaking for Lexie in the hearing and voicing what Lexie wants.”

  “Ah, okay. I’ll contact her today.”

  “The psychologist is going to determine if Lexie’s suffered,” he said pausing, the corners of his lips tightening, “any abuse…” Again, he paused, his eyes meeting hers with a weary pain in them. “Abuse of any kind.”

  Melissa quickly understood. He wasn’t just talking physical or emotional abuse, but sexual as well. They knew from the gentle exam his wife, Emma, who was a nurse, and his nurse, Harriett had done on Lexie’s first appointment that no rape had occurred to the little girl. Something they’d feared might have happened living among drug addicts. But it still didn’t mean she hadn’t been molested.

  “I see,” was all Melissa managed around the sudden lump in her throat.

  Doc Clint nodded and cleared his throat. “She’ll also do a rudimentary evaluation to see where she is on an educational level. We know by her age she should be in first grade, but there’s no record of her in the school system.”

  No one had wanted to push Lexie into a social setting like school so soon after being abandoned, so they’d kept her at Westen House for the time being. Melissa knew from her conversations with Deputy Löwe that the Sheriff’s Department was afraid the mother would come back and try to take Lexie. Because of that, the handsome deputy stopped by almost daily to check on things. Melissa tried to shift her attention back to the doctor and away from the warmth thinking about Daniel gave her inside.

  Focus. Say something productive.

  “Lexie reads chapter books,” she blurted out.

  The doctor blinked. “She does?”

  Melissa nodded. “Libby brought some over, along with first grade workbooks. We’ve been working on them every morning while the boys are at school or work.” She paused. “And she likes to bake.”

  “I bet she does. And I bet all those boys enjoy scarfing down the results.” Doc Clint smiled and stood. “I think you’re doing a good job with her, Melissa.”

  She stood and returned his smile, his second compliment filling her with pride. “She’s been a pleasure to have the house. I just wish she didn’t have to go anywhere else,” she said as they walked to the office door.

  The doctor opened it, then laid one hand gently on her shoulder. Melissa flinched. She couldn’t help it, even though she knew Doc Clint was being supportive, not looking to hurt her.

  God, would she ever get over being afraid of men? Would Frank and his fists always be inside her head?

  Doc Clint must’ve felt her muscles clenching slightly, because he dropped his hand and his eyes filled with a sadness, but he quickly changed to positive and supportive. “Nothing’s set in stone. The whole point of getting custody of Lexie away from her mother is to find the safest, most loving place for her. You meet with the counselor and Chloe, then we’ll see how things shake out with the courts. And try not to worry.”

  “I will,” Melissa promised, turning to find Lexie standing in the hallway with a black kitten cradled in her arms and hope in her eyes. Melissa turned to smile and shake her head at the doctor who had a twinkle in his eyes. “Good thing I’m not allergic to cats. Looks like we have another new resident at Westen House.”

  How did it go out at the old Josiah Thurber place?” Deputy Sheriff Wes Strong, the acting chief for the day, asked Daniel as he entered the office with fellow deputy, Cleetus Junkins on his heels.

  “Got the pictures DA Howard and Libby will need to prove neglect and child endangerment in court next week.” Daniel shucked his winter jacket and hung it over the back of his chair, unable to keep the disgust out of his voice. “I’m surprised we didn’t have to chase off rats and cockroaches to get through the place.”

  “We didn’t look to hard for them, neither,” Cleetus added. “Bet those crime scene people will find some either alive or dead in that trash heap when they dig through it.”

  “Better them than us,” Daniel said, holding a fist out to his friend.

  “You know it.” Cleetus fist bumped him and headed to his seat.

  “Damn. And that sweet little girl was living in that mess?” Wes asked.

  Daniel shook his head. “Looks to me like Lexie took refuge in her room. It was the only place in the house that wasn’t dangerous, what with all the drug paraphernalia and trash filling up the rest of the rooms.”

  “Any sign the mother came back after the weather broke two days ago?” Wes asked.

  The blizzard that had blanketed the entire state had kept the town and rural area in survival mode. Which also meant the Sheriff’s department was busy making sure people had heat, electricity and water; that the residents had road access and medical attention if needed. On top of the initial two feet of snow, subsequent storms had added more ice and snow to the area for another four weeks. Finally, a warm front had moved through the area with the subsequent melting leading to some flooding of the local creeks. Again, forcing Sheriff Justice and his deputies into duty, helping in the community.

  Last night, Gage had called Daniel to give him the all clear to go out to the Thurber place and begin processing the scene with the state techs. Part of his assignment was to look for any clues that Lexie’s mom, Rose, might’ve returned at some point after he’d rescued the little girl.

  “Place was still locked from when we found Lexie. The door wedged in place like I jerry-rigged it after someone,” Cleetus grinned at Daniel, “broke it down to get inside that day.”

  “I didn’t have time to search for a key,” Daniel muttered, then grabbed his mug and headed to the coffee maker. “While the big guy waited for the crime scene people to get there, I walked the perimeter.” He’d grown up tracking animals in the woods with Dad before he’d gotten ill, and was a tracker in his army days. Among the deputies, he always took that assignment when a tracker was needed. “Didn’t see any new tracks. No vehicles or human. My guess is the bitch is still high in whatever hole she crawled into before the blizzard hit.”

  Closing his eyes a moment, he fought to control the anger surging through him once more, almost hearing the surprise looks his coworkers were exchanging behind his back. He never swore. He never called women disrespectful names. It wasn’t how he was raised and wasn’t in his makeup. But for Rose Cochran? A woman who would knowingly endangered her child for the sake of drugs? Yeah, he’d use the bitch word, with a capital B.

  He finished filling his mug and returned to his seat. “Any word from Gage and Bobby, yet?” he asked to change the subject.

  “Gage called and said they had to wait on the doctor,” Wes said.

  After checking out the scene at the Thurber place with him and Cleetus, Gage had left to take his wife, Bobby, another deputy sheriff, to her obstetrician’s appointment in Columbus.

  “Was there a problem?” Cleetus asked, worry written all over his features.

  Wes shook his head. “Don’t think so. The sonogram was done, but the doc had to go to a delivery. Gage said they probably wouldn’t make it back from Columbus until this evening, so they won’t be coming into the office today. Said something about feeding a pregnant woman.”

  “So, no problem?” Daniel asked and they all laughed. He pulled out his camera to begin downloading the pictures to his laptop. He’d make official files for the case they were building against Rose and send copies to both the DA and the county social worker, Libby Reynolds.

  Wes shook his head as his phone beeped for an incoming text. “The only problem is Chloe blowing up my phone with text messag
es.”

  “She’s just worried about her sister,” Cleetus said with a much less anxious expression.

  “Yeah and since she doesn’t want to cause Bobby undo stress or hack off Gage, she’s decided to message me all day with her frustrations. Typical lawyer. Wants to be in charge of things and hates to be left out of the loop.” He picked up his phone and eyed Daniel and Cleetus. “And no one ever tells her I said that. I know how to make bodies disappear.”

  Daniel chuckled and went on about his business, half listening to the one-sided conversation.

  “Yes, Gage called… No, he didn’t tell me anything… Of course, I’d tell you if there was a problem. I don’t keep secrets from you, Chloe. Gage said they’d be back this evening.”

  There was a long pause.

  “Sweetheart, don’t cry. Gage didn’t sound worried or upset, so I’m sure everything is okay. Why don’t you call Dylan?”

  Daniel leaned back in his chair and grinned at the other deputy who shook his head. The third and youngest Roberts sister was a surgical resident in Cincinnati.

  “Oh, you did and she’s in surgery? See? If there were a problem, she wouldn’t be going about her regular routine.”

  Again, Wes paused, rubbing the back of his neck. “No, I’m not calling Bulldog. If your sister’s in surgery, he is, too.”

  Daniel laughed.

  Wes flipped him the sign of perpetual peace and understanding.

  He and Chloe had become a couple after a pair of stalkers, one from each of their pasts, had forced them together during the blizzard. Bulldog was a former associate of Wes’s when he worked for the government and had been assigned to protect Dylan. Turned out he liked working with her and decided to make his home base in Cincinnati, between missions. The funny part to all this was, Wes didn’t particularly like lawyers, said they always had an opinion and liked to talk a problem to death. But Chloe was his exception to the rule, even though in Daniel’s limited time in her company, the woman did seem to relish both a good conversation and a heated debate.