Chapter 12 - The Visit From Vermont
Daniel opened the door but kept the chain fastened. “Can I help you?”
Maren Cole, a Pine Hollow intake coordinator, and a transport worker had come to verify Oliver and complete placement paperwork. Their file said Daniel had approved it.
“I canceled that appointment,” Daniel said.
Maren said Sloane had called the cancellation a misunderstanding and promised Daniel would agree once he heard the benefits.
“I do not consent to this placement. My son is not going anywhere with you.”
The man glanced at the folder. “Sir, we have signed authorization.”
“Then you have a forged document.”
Daniel put Asha on speaker. She ordered them to leave and send the papers to her office. Maren apologized; the transport man kept looking toward the upstairs windows.
Daniel noticed.
“Look at me,” he said. “You will not approach my son.”
The man raised both hands. “I’m just doing my job.”
“Then do it somewhere else.”
They left. Daniel locked the door and checked every window, shaken by the thought that a forged signature could let strangers carry his child away.
Oliver stood on the stairs, clutching the rail.
“Were they here for me?”
Daniel went to him. “Yes, but they’re gone. They are not coming back for you.”
“Did Sloane tell them I was bad?”
“No. She told them lies. That’s not the same thing.”
Oliver looked toward the front door. “She said grown-ups believe paper more than kids.”
Daniel knelt in front of him. “Sometimes grown-ups make that mistake. I’m not going to make it with you.”
That night, Daniel slept beside Oliver’s bed and held his hand through a nightmare.
At dawn, a message came from an unfamiliar number. It was a photograph of the riverside warehouse, taken from across the street.
May you like
Under it were six words:
“Your wife kept more than invoices.”
