A Child's Haven - 42. Chapter 42

Walking to the infirmary, Pat came to us and said a man in the dining hall wanted to see me.

“Thanks, Pat. Tony and I’ll go and speak to him.” I rubbed Pat’s head; I try to touch the kids in a non-threatening manner. They need to understand that it isn’t always in a mean or degrading way if an adult touches them.

When we entered the dining hall, I was surprised to see Aaron Burton. “Hello Aaron, to what do I deserve this visit. Come and join us in a cup of coffee and we can go to my office and talk.”

Taking our coffee, we walked to my office. “This building is complete except for the PA office in the infirmary. As soon as I have someone to fill that position, I can have the office constructed.” We took the elevator to the second floor. As we walked past the small office, I noticed Beth was in the office with Clair organizing the files. They were chatting and appeared to be happy.

Entering my office, I indicated that Aaron should sit down. “Aaron, it is nice to see you. I guess Emily has moved on.”

“I didn’t talk to Emily. When we left the last time, she was upset, so I didn’t say anything. When we got back to the University, she left the car without saying anything. Later, Norma said she went into Dr. Donnelly’s office. Norma left before she came out.”

“I’m concerned about her attitude. I hope she doesn’t do anything that’ll hurt the kids. I don’t care what she does to me, but not the kids. They have gone through too much to be subjected to more religious abuse.”

“I don’t know what she’ll do, but I didn’t see anything unusual. I have had my uncles kiss me and other men in my family. I have a close family, and they are not afraid to show their emotions.”

“I’m sorry for the digression. You came to see me, may I ask why?”

“I want to apply for the NP job if you haven’t filled it yet.”

“Aaron, we haven’t filled it yet. I’ve been too busy to focus on the position. But with Dr. Donnelly’s endorsement, welcome aboard. When can you start?”

“I would say right now, but I’m sure you’ll need to do some reference checking.”

“No, before you came for the tour, I already checked with Dr. Donnelly. She gave me a list of people to request a reference. So I already have a file with your references, as well as Emily. With what you said, I’ll destroy Emily’s file. With you as the NP, I need nurses for the off shift. Any ideas?”

“There are a few nurses I know that worked in pediatrics. They are older and would be a good mother surrogate for the kids when they got hurt. Should I contact them?”

“Yes, remember they’ll be your staff, and you’ll have the overall responsibility if they do not perform as expected. Tony, why don’t you come up with a salary for Aaron?” Yes, out came the note pad.

“We were on our way to visit Amir; do you want to come with us?”

With a nod of his head, we headed for the infirmary on the first floor. As usual, we found Jeff with Amir chatting away. I think Amir was teaching Jeff his language. “Amir, how are you feeling today?”

“I’m feeling much better; I used the crutches to go to the dining room this morning.”

“Was it difficult?”

“A little uncomfortable at first, I was afraid I’d have to go down the steps, but with the elevator, it was easier.”

“Boys, this is Aaron. He’ll be the new NP for Sanctuary. This is Jeff and Amir. If you remember, I told you about how Amir came to us when I gave you the tour.”

“How are you feeling, Amir? If you have any pains or aches, I want to know, ok?”

“Jeff, why don’t you come with Tony and me and let Aaron and Amir get acquainted.”

“Jeff, we want to show you something on 3B. I think you’ll be surprised.” Tony, Jeff, and I walked to the third floor. I pointed out the school as we passed the door to 3A. When we arrived at 3B, I guided everyone toward the lounge.

“Jeff, this floor is what I call the transition floor. Follow me to this quad.” I open the door to Quad 3B-1. I watched Jeff’s face as we entered the kitchen area.

“Jeff, this quad is designed as a transition from the cocoons to ultimately independent living. This is the kitchen area equipped so that anyone living here can prepare their snacks, breakfast, lunch, and even dinner. Of course, all of it would have to be cooked in the microwave, just like in a university dorm. Here are the bedrooms, opening one of the doors. The beds are the same size as the beds in the cocoons. The cabinets over the single bed are for storage. This area is for clothes. This door leads to a small bathroom with a shower. I want your opinion. What do you think?”

“I think this looks great, but who’s going to occupy these ‘quads’?”

“Well, the first person who’ll occupy this quad is you. My idea is that when the kids reach the age of 16 or 17, they’ll move from the cocoons to the quad. Within a few years, the kids here will be going to college or be working outside Sanctuary at a full-time job. I’ll not force anyone to leave Sanctuary, but as you get older, I’m sure you’ll want to start your own life, maybe get married, and maybe you’ll work in a different state. But I’ll do my best to be sure you are prepared to be successful. You’ll then become an alumnus of Sanctuary. What are you thinking?”

“I’m surprised; I think it’ll take a moment to sink in. But where’s Andy? He’s older than me?”

“Andy will be the quad leader; he has an apartment off the lounge area. If you have a question, go and see Andy, but right now, you need to empty your cocoon and get your room set up.”

I looked at Tony as I handed Jeff the key to the quad. He looked at the key, smiled at me, and was gone. “Now, I need to see Adam. He’s number two.”

We left the floor and headed to the cook shack. “Brad, if we keep going up and down these stairs, I’ll get leg cramps.”

“It’s a good exercise. There are only a few more. You can’t tell me that you didn’t enjoy seeing the look on Jeff’s face.”

“Mario, where’s Adam?”

“He’s taking inventory in the fresh refrigerator.”

“Can I borrow him for a few minutes? I want to show him his new digs.”

Mario had a questioning look on his face, “Sure, I’ll get him.”

“Adam, will you come with us for a few minutes? I want to show you where you’ll be staying from now on?”

You could tell Adam was a little confused by the look on his face. Tony was smiling and indicating he should follow us. When we got to 3B, I walked to Quad 3B-1. “Adam, I have had built a quasi apartment on this floor. I call them quads. I want to show you them because I want you to move from the cocoons to this floor and specifically to this quad.”

I opened the door and repeated what I had told Jeff. “You’ll have a roommate, I’ve told Jeff, and he’ll move here soon, I’m sure. Here’s your key to the quad. You can move here as soon as you have the time.”

Adam had a big smile on his face. This was his first move to being independent, and he knew it.

“You know, turning this floor into quads was an excellent idea. Who’s next?”

“I’m not sure; I need to look at the roster.”

When we went to the dining hall, Murray and O’Shea were there drinking coffee. “We were looking for you. Want to take a ride?”

“Sure, Tony, do you mind hanging around until I come back. Call Abe and get an update on the elevator. Then when I come back, we’ll take Bubba and Pat to a nursery, and we’ll see what we find.”

“Have you heard anything from the hospital?”

“No, is that where we’re going?”

“Yep, we had a break in the case, and I need a picture of the kid. I think the papers are going to have a ball with this one.”

“And you’re going to leave me hanging with that bit of information?”

“Yes, some of it is still confidential; your dad put a gag order on the investigation. But from what I read, this city is going to be shocked.”