Read Online Heart of the Family by Margaret Daley - Free Book Online

still remember as if it were yesterday finding her passed out on the floor in the living room. “Then where does that leave Andy?”
    “I have to try.”
    “Why?”
    “Andy loves his mother. He wants to be with her. He told me he called her to come to the zoo.” She could never share the pain she had gone through when her family had fallen apart. Even though it was under different circumstances and she had continued to live with her mom, she’d essentially lost her that day her older brother was killed. And the person responsible stood in front of her. She tamped down on the words of anger she suddenly wanted to shout at him. They would do no good. She needed to learn to work with this man—somehow.
    “He’ll get over it.”
    Hannah drew in a sharp breath. “How can you say something like that?”
    “Because I did.”
    His whispered words hung in the air between them. Did she hear him right? She stepped closer. “What did you say?”
    He pivoted away from her, gripping the railing. “My mother was like Lisa Morgan. On drugs. Nothing else was important to her. Certainly not me. Or where the rent and food money was going to come from. And when she didn’t have enough money for her drugs, she took her frustration out on me with a fist or a belt.”
    Her anger disintegrated at the anguish in his voice. She wasn’t even sure he was aware of it lacing each word. A strong impulse to comfort inundated her. She held her ground for a few seconds before she covered the distance between them to stand next to Jacob.
    “I’m sorry,” she whispered, meaning it. She caught a glimpse of his expression in the moonlight. Painful memories etched deep lines into his face as though he was reliving his past.
    Finally as if he realized he had an audience to witness his agony, he blinked and shook his head. “I don’t need your pity. All I want from you is to put a stop to getting Andy together with his mother.”
    As though she had no control over her actions, she lay her hand on his arm. “I can’t. Andy is so excited about his mother coming to dinner.”
    He jerked away. “What you mean is, you won’t! You want to try some little social experiment to see if it works.” He thrust his face close to hers. “You’re experimenting with a young boy’s life.”
    Hannah stepped back. “And you’re not? What happened to you was a tragedy, but that doesn’t mean it will happen to everyone in the same situation. What if Lisa can successfully kick the habit? Wouldn’t Andy be better off with his mother rather than in the foster-care system, possibly never adopted? We owe it to him to try.”
    “We owe him protection and a quality life.”
    “I’m not going into this with my eyes closed. I know what can happen and I plan to be there every step of the way.”
    “And I plan on being here, too. Plan to have another person at dinner on Sunday night.”
    “Fine. You’re welcome to come here anytime.” The second she said it she wanted to take it back. That meant she would see him more than an occasional call to the doctor’s office or a social visit from him to see the children every once and a while.
    “Good, because I’ll be here a lot.”
    Her earlier exhaustion assailed her. Her legs weak, she sank down onto the steps. Her emotions had taken a beating today, and it looked as if it wouldn’t be over with for a long time. Again she thought about walking away from the job, but then she remembered Andy’s huge smile at bedtime because his mother was coming to visit him in a few days. He’d already started cleaning his room so it would be perfect for her.
    “You know, I’m not going into this lightly. I told you about my involvement in a program where the children lived in the same neighborhood as their parents and saw them frequently in supervised situations. The program also worked with the parents, helping them address whatever forced the state to take their children, whether it was anger management, drug or alcohol