Chapter 9
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Anderson watched Pamela as she moved through the day with a grace and some magical ability that just calmed the babies right down.
“So, is it us, or is it you?” Burton asked, when she sat down with the triplets and a pasta dish that she had made for the group.
“What do you mean?” she asked, as she plunked food into all three mouths.
“How are you managing all this?” Burton frowned, pointing. “They’re much calmer around you.”
She thought about it and nodded. “I could just say that they are female, looking for a female connection. That isn’t exactly what you want to hear, but it could be.
I don’t know,” she explained, still feeding the triplets.
“They’re certainly behaving quite well and much better than expected.
But then I’ve always been good with kids.
” She added softly, “And kids have always been kind of—I don’t want to say, easy—but easier for me. ”
“Obviously,” Burton muttered, frowning at Anderson. “Definitely a magical touch is involved.”
Anderson nodded. “I can see that.”
Burton continued. “I mean, we’ve really been trying. You know that, right?”
“Of course,” she told him, “and it’s going great.”
“No,” he argued. “It’s not been going great at all.”
She burst out laughing. “You guys are doing a really good job. Don’t give up.
It’s just … something very foreign to you.
And these babies were used to a woman’s touch, so I’m probably closer to Talia in that sense, you know, feelings, actions, everything,” she explained.
“It’s not about you guys in particular.”
“So, it’s not us, it’s them. Is that what you are saying?” Burton chuckled as he said it.
Pamela burst out laughing. “It’s the entire change in the babies’ situation.”
“Whatever it is, if it helps to keep them calm and happy, I’m all for it,” Burton declared.
“Yes, exactly.”
“And, if your food selections will stop the shit tsunami, you’re elected as the cook for the triplets,” Anderson announced.
“I don’t know what that says about us, but—” Burton glanced at Anderson.
“It doesn’t say anything indicative either way,” she pointed out.
“It’s literally just a case of right now, right here, the presence of a woman is helping them.
In another few days, who knows?” And, with that, she went back to feeding the babies with the same absolute, no-nonsense attitude. And the babies responded equally well.
After watching Pamela interact with the triplets for a few minutes, Anderson spoke up, “You know what it is? It’s confidence. Everything about you is calm and controlled. They understand that you know what to do, and they respond to that.”
She smiled and nodded. “You could be right. I mean, think about it. You go into any store or restaurant, and you’re dealing with people, but, with somebody who’s new or nervous, the whole thing can end up being a big shit show.
But, if you have somebody calm, who knows what they’re doing, it’s all good. ”
He smiled. “Can’t say I would ever have seen this coming, but thank you.”
She looked over at him, and her face brightened. She replied, “You’re welcome.”
“At least now I don’t feel quite so bad. So, if there’s something I can do to help you, let me know.”
“What does that mean?” she asked curiously.
“I mean, you tried to help me before, and I was just too much of a knothead to listen.”
She stared at him. “So, does that mean you remember that part?”
“Yeah, I remember that part,” he admitted sheepishly. “And I remember not taking it very well.”
“No, you sure didn’t, but I realized later that I was overstepping my boundaries,” she shared. “I took a thrashing over that one from Angel too.”
He shook his head. “You shouldn’t have. You were just trying to help.”
“Sure, but, from Angel’s perspective, it wasn’t much help at all.”
“And you’re still friends with her?” Anderson asked Pamela.
“I wouldn’t call it friends, though we are cordial,” she shared cautiously. “Friends would be a stretch …”
“I’m not sure what that means, but I can see that it wouldn’t be easy.”
Burton listened without saying anything.
She finally looked over at Burton and asked half jokingly, “I don’t suppose he filled you in on the details, did he?”
Burton shrugged. “No, not the finer points, but we’ve been buddies for a long time. If he wants me to know something, he’ll tell me on his own.”
She frowned at him, then nodded. “That’s that guy’s oath, isn’t it?”
Surprised, he shrugged. “Don’t know that there’s any oath. Just telling you the facts, ma’am.”
She snorted. “The facts, ma’am, aren’t quite the facts.”
“Then tell me,” Burton said, looking at her, one eyebrow raised.
“Nothing to tell,” Anderson replied, with a shrug. “I was going out with her friend, and, as a result, we did a fair bunch of stuff together at various times. I got pretty hooked on Angel, and then I couldn’t get … unhooked,” he said, with a snort. “And that’s to put it mildly.”
“I’m not sure you were trying, were you?” Pamela asked.
“No, not until I took a good look at what was happening.”
“What did Angel end up doing?” Burton asked. “You halfway mentioned it before.”
“She’s been married three times,” Pamela said, popping out that tidbit of information.
Anderson slowly lifted his head from his fork and stared at her. “Already?”
She nodded. “Yeah, already. And each time she did very well, … financially speaking.”
Anderson winced.
“Great,” Burton muttered. “Sounds as if you made a lucky escape.”
“Oh, I did. Absolutely I did,” he agreed, with a nod. “Pamela tried to warn me ahead of time, but I was a little too hard-headed to pay attention at the time.”
She laughed. “Yeah, that you were, but you eventually got out, so it’s all good.”
“What about you?” he asked. “Remind me who you were going out with back then?”
“Oh that. I was in a committed relationship, and … my boyfriend became Angel’s husband number one. It was a retaliation deal. When she found out I had tried to warn you to open your eyes and to get clear of her, Angel went after my boyfriend, and let’s just say it didn’t end well for any of us.”
“And you’re still friends with this woman?” Burton asked, aghast.
“No, not friends, acquaintances. … Somebody I see every once in a while.” She hesitated and then shared, “I’ve had to, on a professional level, visit her home.”
“Oh, crap,” Burton muttered. “Sucks to be you.” Burton gave Anderson a sideways glare.
She nodded. “True. That was not a meeting I was ready for,” she shared.
“Not fun at all under the best of circumstances and definitely not when you know somebody, and you don’t want to see them in this situation.
And, of course, she was angry about the visit already and then expected special consideration from me, so not a fun time. ”
“Of course not.” Anderson frowned. “I can’t imagine how you even began to deal with that. And, for the record, I’m sorry I wasn’t very nice to you back then.”
She shrugged and didn’t say anything.
He frowned. “And I’m really sorry for what she did in retaliation.”
She looked up at him and said, “In a way, I was half expecting it. I wasn’t sure how my boyfriend at the time would feel, but I wasn’t particularly invested in the outcome either. We were all quite young.”
“Yeah, weren’t we?” Anderson had to chuckle. “Apparently you went on and did well with your life.”
“As did you,” she pointed out. “I went to college and got my degree, and I’ve been doing social work focused largely on children ever since.”
“I’m surprised that’s a field you wanted to get into.”
“I don’t know that I wanted to as much as I felt called to it,” she explained.
“I’m not sure I’ll stay with this department for as long as some of my coworkers, but I feel as if I needed to do it, at least for a while.
What I’ll do next, I have no idea.” She smiled at the babies and noted, “I get to do things like this.” With that, she leaned over and rubbed a baby’s tummy.
Lisa One laughed and laughed, so Pamela did it again and then again. Quickly she had all three of them giggling. The men just smiled.
“You know, those sounds are so much nicer than the screaming they do for us.”
“Babies are inherently happy,” she noted, looking up at the two of them, her gaze going from one to the other.
“If they aren’t happy, chances are, something is wrong.
Maybe they’re gassy, hungry, or exhausted.
And, in your case, based on what you have seen so far”—she shook her head—“at one time or another, it’s probably been all of the above. ”
He smiled. “That could very well be. We just haven’t had enough of a chance to get to know them.”
“Exactly,” she replied. “Now, I’m okay here for a bit today. I won’t say that I’m okay alone for very long, but, if you two wanted to get something done, this is your window to do it.”
Immediately Burton nodded. “I’m going over to the hospital, and I’ll take a look at the security and the schedules surrounding your sister,” he announced, turning to Anderson.
“I’ll go too. Let’s talk to the doctors and see what kind of response we’ll get with you hanging around and hopefully head off any issues.”
“There won’t be any issues,” Burton declared. “I won’t let there be.”
“I’m glad to hear that,” Anderson replied, “and I know you’ll look after Talia.” And, with that, they looked down at Pamela.
Pamela waved them off. “Go. I’ve got this for the moment. Obviously you’ll need to come home at some point,” she joked.
“I got it,” Anderson said. “It’s not exactly the way you were expecting to spend your vacation time.”
“I didn’t have any plans,” she shared, with another wave of her hand. “Don’t sweat it. Just go.” He hesitated until she looked up at him and raised her eyebrows. “Unless you have any doubts about leaving them in my care?” she asked quizzically.
“No, not at all,” he confirmed, adding a smile, “but, if somebody could be coming after Talia, there’s a chance that somebody might also be coming to the house. So, the same warning applies to you. Don’t open the door.”
“Absolutely,” Burton agreed. “Lock up tight, and no contact with the outside world—unless you know for sure who it is.”
She took a deep breath and slowly released it. “Wow, you guys really know how to show a girl a good time.”
“We mean it,” Anderson stated.
“I know you do,” she said, “and I appreciate the warning. I promise that I won’t let anybody in or out. You phone, text, whatever you need to do, but keep me in the loop.”
And, with that, she waved them both off. “Now go.”