Chapter 27
27
After Mark, Brad, and Karen finished talking to Marty, they returned to the living room, where Mark watched as Karen kept Marty’s hand in hers and sat on the sofa next to Zannie. “We’re going to check out things next door and be right back,” Mark said, keeping his tone lighter than he felt. Inside, he was raging.
As soon as he was given Carla’s and Alan’s names, he and Brad had shared a look. The two names were both familiar, though Mark hadn’t heard anything about either of them for a while. When Karen asked him to check the address next door, he came up with a name that was not Carla Perkins. The woman’s name on the lease must have been one of their friends.
Carla was a woman they knew who’d worked at a bar in the northern part of the county. She had a record and was always on the fringes of nefarious activity whenever there was trouble at the bar. When he was a deputy, he’d encountered her several times when they’d been called to break up bar fights.
Alan Solstein had a record in both North Heron County and Accawmacke County. He’d been picked up several times with an assault and battery charge and possession of drugs. He’d spent time in jail, but Mark hadn’t heard about him since becoming a detective.
He and Brad stepped outside and looked at the two deputies. “We need to get inside the mobile home next door,” he said.
The female deputy lifted her hand and jingled a keychain. “I thought we might, so I asked the mobile home park manager for a master key.”
“Good job,” Brad said with a nod. “That saves us time.”
Turning to the male deputy, he asked him to stay outside in case either Carla or Alan came home or drove by.
From the outside of the kids’ home, it appeared that the bare minimum had been done to meet the management's requirements. He figured Alan wouldn’t want anyone snooping, so at least a weed eater had been used to keep the small patch of grass down. The deputy unlocked the door but knocked on it, announcing who they were. With no answer, she brought out her weapon and called out that she was entering.
As they entered, her gaze swept the dimly lit space, immediately sensing the neglect that clung to the air like a thick fog.
The deputy quickly checked the room before walking back into the living area, shaking her head. “Clear,” she called out.
This mobile home's interior vastly differed from Roscoe’s clean, orderly home. Looking around, Mark felt a shiver run through his body at the sight and stench of garbage that had not been removed. The living room was messy, with food boxes and beer cans sitting everywhere. Turning to look at the kitchen, he guessed it hadn’t been cleaned since they’d moved in months ago.
Brad cursed under his breath as he snapped on gloves before checking the kitchen.
Mark also pulled on gloves as he walked down the hall, announced himself, and found two unoccupied bedrooms. One was easily identifiable as the kids’ with only a single twin mattress on the floor and cardboard boxes that appeared to be used as a dresser. Peering out the window, he spied Roscoe’s house, and he remembered Karen once told him that the kids would peek out and wave to her when she came.
Stepping across the hall was like entering a war zone. Trash was scattered across the floor, mingled with the foul odor of unwashed sheets left to rot on a stained double mattress. Beer cans, food wrappers, and crushed cigarette butts cluttered the room. His eyes scanned the mess, but something felt off. There were no clothes. No personal belongings, nothing but the filth left behind.
He pulled open the dresser drawers, but they were bare. Stepping over the trash on the floor, he opened the closet door and peered inside the small closet. No clothes… just empty coat hangers. They fucking left… and abandoned the kids.
Brad appeared in the doorway, his face hard as stone as he relayed information to dispatch, calling for forensics and backup. His eyes mirrored Mark's disgust as they took in the scene around them. Mark stepped into the bathroom. He knew Marty had tried to clean the space, but despite the child’s best efforts, it was filthy. He opened the tiny cabinet with gloved hands, finding the shelves empty except for two small toothbrushes that should have been replaced months ago. Narrowing his eyes, he walked back into the main bedroom. If she were a user, she would have wanted a stash that Alan wouldn’t sell.
Brad stuck his head into the room and cursed.
Mark said, “I want forensics to go over every inch of this dump. Carla would have stashed drugs somewhere Alan wouldn’t get to.” He sucked in a breath that was meant to be calming but didn’t work. Instead, he walked out of the room, desperate for fresh air. “I’m going to talk to Karen, and then we’ll call CPS.”
Karen was peering out of Roscoe’s screen door and hurried out as soon as Mark made it to her. “What’s going on?” she asked, her hands clutching his arms. Her gaze was locked on him, then shifted to look at the mobile home he’d just come from and then back to him.
“It’s a shit show in there. Trash. Stench. The only nice place is the kids’ room because Marty would try to keep it clean, I suppose. And the adults have cleared out. No clothes. No personal items other than the kids.”
“They left?” she squeaked. “They abandoned the kids?”
He nodded, and it hurt to watch her expression fill with agony and then rage. Her jaw was tight, but she steadied her breathing and nodded. “We need to call CPS.”
“Yeah. I can make the call, but I thought you might want to talk to the kids to prepare them.”
She had dropped her chin, and he lost her eyes, unable to tell her thoughts. Suddenly, she lifted her head and said, “Yes, let’s talk to them together, and then we can make the call.”
They stepped back into Roscoe’s home, and he spied the kids sitting side by side on the small sofa, Roscoe near them in his chair. The older man’s face held creases that had deepened. Marty’s face was tense, and Zannie seemed to pick up on her brother’s anxiety. Mark snagged the two kitchen chairs in each hand and placed them in front of the sofa. Once Karen was seated, he sat beside her, wanting to present a united front.
“Okay, guys, we need to talk. Your mom and Alan have left, and they took most things with them, so it doesn’t look like they’re coming back soon. That means we need to make sure you are taken care of.”
Marty’s eyes narrowed as he stared at her. Zannie looked over at Roscoe and grinned. “Can we stay here? Mr. Roscoe can make us sandwiches and let us eat cereal.”
A noise came from Roscoe, and Mark cut his eyes to watch the older man struggle to hold back tears.
“Oh, sweet darlin’, I wish you could stay here, but I’m an old man. I gotta have Ms. Karen and some others help me. I wouldn’t be able to take care of you… not properly.”
“We could help you,” Marty said in a small voice. “I can clean, and I can?—”
“Hang on, you two. Mr. Roscoe will always be your friend, but we want you to be able to stay with someone who can take care of younger children. Mr. Mark will make a call, and a very sweet woman will come here to check things out. I know her… she’s a friend. She has wonderful people who can let you stay with them until we figure out where your mom is.”
“She left, didn’t she?” Marty asked. “Mom just left us. It’s not the first time, you know.”
Karen gasped, her expression ragged. Mark placed his hand on her shoulder, but it seemed she barely registered the comforting gesture. She leaned forward, holding Marty’s gaze. “Honey, we don’t know where she is, but that’s for Mr. Mark to check into. What I want to do is make sure to take care of you.”
Zannie’s eyes brightened, and she bounced her butt on the sofa. “Yay! Miss Karen is going to take care of us! Can we go to your house? You can fix us more yummy food, and you said you had girls. Can I play with your girls?”
The air left Mark’s chest as he witnessed Zannie’s excitement and watched Marty’s eyes flicker with hope. Shit…
“Let Mark call my friend, and she’ll come to talk to all of us. Then we’ll see what happens. But wherever you go, you will be taken care of.” Karen turned to Mark. “Call CPS and talk to Lisa Berkley. Tell her what’s happened and… tell her I’m here.” She leaned closer. “She’ll know that I can assist with a medical assessment and that… well, just tell her I’m here.”
He held her gaze, feeling there was more than what she was saying. He hesitated, hoping more was forthcoming, but Karen’s attention had turned back to the kids. Finally, he smiled toward the kids and walked outside.
By now, the crowd of interested neighbors had grown. Several more deputies arrived, along with those who were already going inside to start checking for forensic evidence. The mobile home park manager was pacing outside, arguing with one of the deputies because he wanted to get inside. It was being explained to him that he would have to wait. Mark thought about the interior of that home and knew it would take a lot more than a security deposit to get it cleaned up.
Walking to the side, where he had a little more privacy, he called CPS. As soon as Lisa Berkley came on the line, he succinctly explained the situation and made sure to mention that Karen Drummond was with him.
“Oh, if Karen is there, that’s good,” Lisa said. “I’ll be right there. It should only take me about fifteen minutes.”
Brad walked over with John, and the detectives filled each other in on what was happening.
“What do you think?” John asked. “Carla just up and left her kids?”
Mark shook his head. “As a parent, I can’t imagine doing that. From what the kids have said, their mom was taking a lot of pills that Alan supplied. If she was strung out most of the time and dependent on him, then who knows what kind of decisions she was making.”
“What about the kids?” Brad asked.
“Karen has talked to them and explained that we’re going to get them somewhere safe. She had me call CPS and specifically speak to Director Lisa Berkley.”
“Lisa is a good person,” Brad said. “She’ll do right by the kids.”
Mark was glad to hear it. He had worked on a number of foster cases in the county, but as a deputy, he had never worked directly with Lisa. Once the call was made, it was taken out of his hands. As a detective, especially in a suspicious case of abandonment, it would now fall to them to piece together what happened.
After ensuring Brad and John were in charge of processing the mobile home, he waited outside. Mark was glad when the CPS social worker arrived. For some reason, he had expected to see an older woman, but when Lisa alighted from her car, he was surprised to see that she was probably in her thirties. It also struck him that social work might be a job that would burn someone out quickly, and he wondered about the turnover.
Before he had time to ponder that further, she stood before him with a smile. “I’m Detective Robbins.”
“I’m Lisa Berkley.” They shook hands, and he told her what he knew so far. Even with a smile on her face, he could see the seriousness with which she took her job.
“Are the kids in there?” she asked, inclining her head toward Roscoe’s trailer.
“Yes.” He opened the door and allowed her in.
Zannie was smiling, always excited to meet a new friend, but then her gaze darted between all the adults and her brother as though waiting to see if she should be happy or sad. Mark thought of his own son and felt his chest squeeze at the sight of Marty and Zannie. They were close in age yet so far apart in experiences. Benji might have lost his mother, but he’d been surrounded by love and support his whole life. Mark doubted that Marty and Zannie had ever had that.
Lisa hugged Karen, then greeted Roscoe warmly. Once she was introduced to the children, Lisa sat in the chair Mark had vacated. He stood back, his hip leaning against the kitchen counter, his casual stance belying the tension he felt for the kids. His gut told him that whatever occurred with Carla wouldn’t be good news once they found her.
He listened as Lisa gently questioned the children, and then she asked if they would allow Nurse Karen to check them the way she checks on Mr. Roscoe. The two agreed readily. Karen and Lisa disappeared with Zannie into Roscoe’s bedroom. Marty watched the hallway with an eagle eye despite Roscoe’s attempt at conversation. A few minutes later, the trio of females came out, and Marty stood and licked his lip nervously but reached out to squeeze Zannie’s hand.
“Are you ready?” Karen asked Marty.
He nodded and headed to the bedroom with her. Zannie looked up at Mark and grinned. “I haven’t been to the doctor before. Miss Karen let me listen to my heartbeat with long tubes that went in my ears!”
Mark knelt in front of her. “That sounds really cool.” His attention was diverted as Roscoe pressed a tissue against his eyes, then blew his nose.
“I should have done something earlier. I should have checked on them more.”
Mark offered a shoulder pat to Zannie and then moved to sit near Roscoe. “Don’t do that. Don’t take that on.” The older man looked up with tearful eyes, and Mark continued. “You gave them a safe place to come to. You offered a listening ear. You have been a stable force in their lives for months since they moved in. You gave them food.”
Roscoe lowered his gaze, and Mark moved closer. “And as soon as you knew something wasn’t right, you called Karen. You did right by those kids, and don’t ever think you didn’t.”
Marty hurried out of the room, his smile wide as he and Zannie talked about hearing their heartbeats. Mark watched as Karen and Lisa followed more slowly. Now patting Roscoe’s knee, Mark stood and walked over to them.
“Their home is abandoned?” Lisa asked him. “I need to confirm that, at this time, no parent or legal guardian is caring for the children, correct?”
“That is correct,” Mark agreed. He provided the statement from the sheriff’s department, adding, “At this time, the home is considered abandoned. According to the children, Marty and Suzanne Perkins, and Mr. Roscoe Jefferson, the parent, Carla Perkins, hasn’t been seen since the day before yesterday. Her live-in boyfriend, who has no legal guardianship, has also not been seen. The children spent last night here and did not attend school today. Mr. Jefferson wanted to keep them close and call someone who could check on them. The parent is also now under the sheriff’s department investigation for possible drug use and distribution.”
Lisa added to her notes and then looked up. “I’ll need the photographs you take of the inside of the home. I’ll have them in the file and can use them in case the judge has any questions, and that’s only if the parent returns and tries to file against the placement.”
Mark agreed. “I’ll make sure you have them.”
Lisa nodded, her expression serious but calm. “Okay, then we need to discuss emergency foster placement while your office is investigating the situation.” She turned to Karen and lifted a brow. “You know we are low on placement options until after the next foster class taking place next month. So… the question is, what’s your decision?”
Mark blinked, his chin jerking back as he looked between the two women. Karen looked over at him, her expression a mixture of thoughtfulness and something else—something unreadable. She stepped closer, lowering her voice, though the weight of her words felt heavy in the small space.
“Mark, I’m sorry to just let you know now, but I’m a certified foster parent. I made sure that when I moved to this county, I kept up my certification in this state, but since the girls and I were just getting settled, I had told Lisa that I wasn’t going to be available, and I’d let her know when I felt the time was right again.” Her gaze drifted from his face to Marty and Zannie, sitting on the sofa with their small hands tightly clasped together. Their faces were tense, eyes wide with anxiety as they watched the adults discuss their future, unsure of what it all meant.
Karen's gaze moved back to his face, searching. “Now is the right time for them. But I know for us…”
Without hesitation, he took her hand in his and squeezed. “It’s the right time.”
For a moment, the world around them seemed to blur, everything else fading into the background. Karen’s lips curved slowly, her smile blooming as warmth spread across her face. She mouthed, “ Thank you ,” her eyes shining with unspoken gratitude and relief. Without letting go of her hand, Mark turned with her as they both faced the kids.
“Hey, guys? How would you like to come home with me for a little bit until the detectives find your mom?”
Zannie’s reaction was immediate. She threw her hands up into the air and shouted, “Yay!” Her excitement radiated through the room, her innocence shining through the chaos of the situation. Marty, the more reserved of the two, let out a long, relieved sigh, his smile growing slowly as the tension in his small body finally released.
Mark felt something inside him shift, a tight knot of worry unwinding for the first time since this ordeal began. He looked at Karen, then at the kids, and for the first time since stepping into the mobile home, he felt like he could breathe again. Something profound had just changed, not only for Marty and Zannie but for all of them.
And at that moment, Mark knew their lives had intertwined in ways none of them had anticipated.