Chapter 31 #2
The first thing she and Vince did after they entered the hospital, was to head to the adult infusion suite where Lace got hooked up. After her drip was dripping, she and her IV pole—rolling next to Vince—headed for the room where Inez was being prepped for her spinal cocktail.
When they walked in, Inez lay on her side, her eyes closed, clearly waiting for the “little pinch” that wasn’t.
“Hey, Inez,” Vince greeted with a huge smile.
“Fluffo,” she squealed, instantly distracted, and clearly happy to see him.
He bent and gave her a warm but careful hug, for both their sakes, pulling a quarter from behind her unsuspecting ear.
“One handed,” she giggled.
They’d visited her the previous week, so Inez knew about Vince’s shoulder. They hadn’t told her he’d been shot, just that he’d had a little accident while at work.
She’d easily accepted that explanation.
Inez’s full attention, as per normal, was on Vince, which made Lace hesitate to step forward.
But before she could question whether or not she should just sit, Inez peeked around Vince, holding out her arms for an additional squeeze from Lace.
Lace bent to it, fervently.
Inez spoke first. “I really like when we do this together, Miss Lace,” she whispered sincerely.
They’d agreed that Inez would call her that. Lace hoped someday that would change to “Mom”, but she wouldn’t rush it.
Lace gave the little girl a heartfelt hug right back. “Me, too, Inez. It doesn’t seem so scary when you have a buddy to do it with.”
“It still hurts, though,” Inez grimaced.
“I know,” Lace consoled. “But just think, you only have a few more sessions of this thing, and you won’t have to do it again.” From her lips to God’s ears.
She and Vince had been told that Inez would move on to a maintenance therapy program; lower doses, but a longer-term chemo that might last up to two years. Still, she’d no longer have to undergo her spinal infusions.
Lace, on the other hand, once her chemo was complete, would be headed for surgery, then radiation.
But being close to the end of their first stage of treatment? It felt like a decent milestone for them both to celebrate.
Lace and Vince finally sat down, and Lace looked at him.
You start, she mouthed.
Vince squared his good shoulder.
“So. Inez,” he began, “I remember you said you haven’t been exactly happy with your current foster home.”
Inez wrinkled her nose and became diplomatic. “They’re nice enough,” she responded quietly. “Just busy.”
Vince dragged in a deep breath and took Lace’s hand in his, giving it a squeeze.
“What would you think about being put in a different foster home?” he asked, leaning forward.
Inez pursed her lips in thought, her face scrunching up. “Maybe. But what if it’s worse than where I am?” she asked. “What if the new people are mean?”
Vince cleared his throat. “What if the new people were us?” he dared.
Inez blinked. “You?”
She looked back and forth between Vince and Lace, her eyes growing wide. “Both of you?” she dared, her tone sounding…hopeful.
“Yeah. Both of us,” Vince affirmed. “We have a really nice house with a yard. And there’s a new bathroom that would be all yours.”
Lace interceded. She wasn’t sure that the mention of a new bathroom was going to thrill a six-year-old.
“You’ll be able to go to the same school as you attend now, Inez. Which means you won’t be missing any friends you’ve made there. And you’ll still be able to see all the teachers you know when the new school year starts.” Which would be in a few weeks, when September rolled around.
Lace continued. “The only difference at our house is, there won’t be any other children living with us.” She hoped that wouldn’t be a deal-breaker.
Inez grinned, even as she twitched while the attending put the needle in. “That’s okay. Maybe better,” she stated. “The other kids in the house where I am now don’t talk to me much, anyway, because I’m too little.”
It was Vince’s turn to speak up. “That’s their loss,” he stated gruffly, before delivering what he thought would be good news.
“What would you say if I told you you’ll have six little cousins?
” he offered up. “Most of my brothers and their wives have kids. But I’ll warn you, the oldest, Reilly, is only three. ”
“I can help take care of them all,” Inez responded enthusiastically. “And I can play with Reilly; read my books to her, and teach her stuff I learn in school.”
Vince swallowed hard, and segued back, asking the difficult question. “Does that mean you’d like to come live with us?” he asked.
Inez didn’t jump on that, which was disappointing. Her face, instead, took on a wary cast. “For how long?” she questioned.
That nearly broke Lace’s heart.
She didn’t hesitate for a second. “For as long as you want,” she offered, then looked at Vince, who nodded.
“If you decide you really like us,” she added, “we’re interested in making it…permanent.”
Inez could barely be contained on the table. The nurse had to hold her down with gentle hands as she squirmed excitedly. “You mean like adoption?” she chirped, incredulously.
“Uh, huh,” Vince quickly agreed. “Adoption.”
Inez’s eyes filled with tears that quickly spilled over.
“That’s what the older kids talk about all the time. But they say people only want babies, so it’ll never happen. Even for me, because I’m six.”
Lace’s chest wanted to crack wide open. “It’ll happen for you, Inez. I promise. If you decide you want us, you’ll be ours, forever.”
“I want you. I want you,” she cried excitedly in reply. “When can I come?”
Vince’s smile couldn’t get any bigger. “How about today? After we’re through here?”
“Really?” Inez looked like she was about to jump out of her own skin.
She turned to her nurse. “Did you hear that? I’m going to my new home. Today,” she shouted.
Lace was finally able to take a deep breath; her nervousness gone. “I’m so glad you’re excited. You don’t know how happy you’ve made us, Inez,” she admitted.
“I’m happy. You’re happy. Everyone is happy, happy,” Inez sing-songed heartily, then burst into sobs, for real. “I have a new house. And real parents.”
Lace and Vince both bent to hold her, letting her cry it out.
They knew happy tears when they saw them.
And the next best part? Inez didn’t even know of the surprise she had waiting for her at home.
Tex, along with Ellen Sothard, had pulled some strings to make miracles happen.
Nearly three hours later, laughing their asses off after finding all the buckets of golf balls on the hood of Vince’s truck, they put them all in the bed and declared the prank a success.
Vince let her know it would only be a matter of time before his brothers retaliated.
But what else was new?
With Inez finally strapped into a booster seat in the back of the vehicle, bouncing excitedly all the way home, they eventually pulled up to the house.
“Is this it? Is this where I’m going to live?” The exuberance in her voice bubbled over, making Lace almost giddy.
“This is it,” Vince confirmed, turning the vehicle off and getting out to help Inez emerge.
Lace reached back and grabbed the one trash bag that had accompanied the girl.
The social worker had come through and brought Inez’s belongings to them before they’d left the hospital. But what she’d been handed, made Lace want to bawl.
One bag was all Inez had.
To her name.
And when Lace had glanced inside, it was only clothes and a toothbrush…and one deflated blob fish. Not much to show for being on earth for six years.
The clothes all looked so small and worn, Lace knew they wouldn’t work for Inez much longer.
A shopping trip was definitely in order.
A good one.
Lace and Vince had been told to be careful; not to go overboard with buying things for Inez; that the little girl would begin to expect it.
They’d both agreed that one outing to spoil the crap out of their new foster-daughter would make them all feel better.
They’d set boundaries and rules, later.
“You want to see your bedroom?” Lace asked, excitedly.
Inez, walking between Vince and Lace, reached for both of their free hands.
“Uh, huh.” She skipped with an energy that was amazing for someone who’d just had a bag of chemicals pumped into her tiny little body.
But it was clear, Inez wasn’t about to let anything rain on her parade today.
“I think you’ll like it,” Vince winked at Lace over Inez’s head.
“I know I will,” Inez chortled back. “I don’t have to share it with anybody.”
They walked in and headed straight for Inez’s room, leaving the rest of the tour for another time. Because first…
“Well, we might have fibbed just a little bit,” Vince teased. “There is one roommate you might have to put up with.”
A frown creased Inez’s forehead as Vince pushed open the door. But her face instantly cleared as she squealed and threw herself toward the bed.
“Murphy!” she cried out, grabbing up the stuffy.
Kisses and hugs were showered upon the long-missing bear, while tears streamed once again down Inez’s face.
More happy ones.
After all, she’d finally been reunited with her best friend.