Chapter 25 #2
Well, pardon me, Vince wanted to return, but held himself back.
Dear Midge went on to outline her agenda.
“We can perform a home visit and our initial inspection as soon as possible with just you present. But we’ll have to pin down a Tuesday afternoon interview with Ms. Heiger. I’ll make a note that her energy might not be up to par, but that’s all the leeway I can give.”
There was a loud sniff, as if any concession to Lace’s level of fatigue would be a huge hardship.
Vince cleared his throat instead of swearing at the woman like he wanted to.
“Just to reiterate what I put in my bio,” Vince reminded her, infusing his voice with a little steel.
“I’m retired military, and I’ll be the primary care-giver for any child we take in, which means I’ll be modifying my work schedule to mesh with theirs, and Lace’s levels of vitality while she’s at home, shouldn’t be a problem.
The very good news is that Lace is half-way through her treatments, and her work hours, once this fishing season is complete, will leave her with office tasks, only.
That will allow her to be around on a more normal time-table, at least for five months out of the year. ”
“I fully understand what I’ve read, Mr. Sothard.”
God, she sounded prissy as she continued.
“But I have to see your living situation and meet you both to ascertain those things for, myself.”
“I agree. You do,” he concurred judiciously. “And we look forward to it.”
Not.
He went on before she could spew any more negativity.
“I have no doubt that when you come here and see this great house, and the yard that’s every kid’s dream, you’ll regard our space as not only adequate, but perfect.
And when you meet Lace, finding out what a warm and caring person she is, you’ll know we have the perfect place and attitudes to make a difference in a foster child’s life. ”
“Let’s hope so,” the woman abridged crisply again.
Cripes. Talk about uptight.
Vince was starting to see red.
Is this who they had advocating for kids like Inez? If so, it was total crap.
No wonder the poor little thing had been stuffed into a home where the agency might be paying more attention to her infrastructure than her mental well-being.
But now was not the time to bring up Inez.
Vince had to trust his mother on that one. If Ellen Sothard said she knew somebody who could pull the strings that would put Inez under his and Lace’s care, he’d have to let that process unfold.
Which was tough for him.
For a long time, he’d been the one in charge of every life-or-death decision for his team.
Until he hadn’t.
And now, letting go of the reins was triggering for him.
He was working on that. Sort of.
He’d had a long conversation with Trask, who’d gone through things similar to his; trusting intel, depending on the powers that be, only to be…betrayed.
In light of that, Trask had referred him to a local therapist.
Now the ball was in Vince’s court; to pick up the phone and make that appointment.
But not today. Right now, he had to deal with this bureaucratic bitch.
Vince purposely kept his voice pleasant.
“Any time next week you want to schedule a home visit will be great,” he told her. “If you’d like to aim for Tuesday when Lace is here, we can put it on the calendar. But if she’s feeling poorly, we will need to postpone,” he stated firmly.
“Mr. Sothard,” the dour woman snapped. “I don’t like doing favors for people. That’s not how I work. And as you probably are aware, the agency has already fast-tracked your application since you seem to…know people. But be warned, that’s as much of a concession as I’m willing to afford.”
Hah. Now they were getting to the crux of the stick up Midge’s ass.
Vince’s mother had clearly dipped her toe into DHHS business already, and this woman didn’t like it.
He could work with that.
“Which I appreciate,” he returned, diplomatically, but still, that didn’t mean he was going to let her bully him. “So, does Tuesday work for you?”
“One o’clock,” she posited sharply.
“Two,” Vince countered. He wanted Lace to be able to come home and take a breath before dragon-lady began her interrogation.
“Two,” she bit out. “I’ll expect you both to be there.”
“Great,” Vince replied in an overly cheery voice which Midge might or might not have heard, because with something sounding suspiciously like a harumph, she hung up.
“That seemed…ominous,” Statler snorted, taking a sip of his coffee.
“Just an overstressed case-worker,” Vince told him. “One with a definite bite, but she’s visiting next Tuesday,” he continued. “Any chance the bathroom will be finished by then?”
“Not a chance,” Tonka stated baldly. “But we can make sure it’s all cleaned up so she doesn’t trip over anything. Unless you want her—?”
“Don’t even finish that sentence,” Vince decried, holding up a hand. “We’re going to kiss this woman’s ass if it means getting Inez into a safe place. So, if you are here working,” Vince shook a finger in Tonka’s direction, “you will be nice. Understood?”
Tonka just shrugged.
Vince could only hope that the largely taciturn guy didn’t rub good ol’ Midge the wrong way.
“Now, I’m going to scrub up and head to the hospital,” Vince let them know. “I hope the kids accept me without my clown-face,” he added a little worriedly.
“Spoiler alert, Vince,” Statler snickered. “With or without the make-up, you’ll always be a clown.”
“Hah, hah. Thanks, asshole.”
Still, he found himself whistling on the way to the bathroom.
Half an hour later, Vince was pulling into the hospital lot, excitement stirring in his veins.
He was going to see one of his two new favorite people.
Yup.
Inez had already burrowed so deeply beneath his skin, he felt the warmth of it all the way to the cockles of his heart…whatever those were.
Still, he knew better than to become attached because all kinds of things could happen to keep Inez in her present situation. But screw it. To Vince, any take-a-step-back approach at this juncture was untenable.
Inez belonged in a home where she’d be more than just a number; more than just a paycheck.
She belonged with him and Lace.
And Vince was going to do everything possible—even kissing Midge’s ass—to make that happen.