Lacy, almost sixteen, sat on the edge of the bed staring at her clinched hands, hating this part of moving into another new foster home; unsure of the 'house rules'. limitations or expectations each new set of 'parents' thought 'the only way' to be. Eight 'homes' in ten years after being allowed to range free in their parent's house, squatting where she would. Hank forging for food when they slept. After the first time she and her brother were separated 'for their own good' because she remained so dependent on him, when she was almost six and he was only ten, they'd clung to one another in secret and in nine months when he 'aged' out of the system he was going to bring her to live with him again. It was all that shielded them from the world. She felt middle-aged, and with Shelly's presumed 'sucide' last month, she might be! She shrugged, as if she'd spoken the words aloud then looked at the frame print of the Good Shepherd she knew to expect in most homes. The passive man in robes with adoring lamb seemed to recognize her, calling to something she feared to dredge up and she looked away, as if he were real.

             Lacy sat upright with a gasp, pushing away the coating of leaves and debris while she'd slept in the Enchanted Forest that was her sole refuge since the Ogre stole her brother away in a room colored like this. They'd all made the same promises as she sat upright on the living room couches waiting for the Social Worker to leave her behind until her new 'Mom' sent her to her room 'to rest', just like now.

            ' Yes! ' She thought bitterly. ' Uprooting your whole life and moving to a new prison with new rules can be so tiring! ' Even as a part of her struggled to believe she could stay this time. Struggled simply to believe in what could be?

            " There must be SOME reason why they let them be foster parents, Shelly! " She argued with the ghost of her roommate. They had been too close for mere death to separate.

            " Now you'rebeing naive, Hommie!  "  The angry Spirit mocked.

            " Don't say that! "  She begged, rocking the golden toy lion to comfort it. The hope that her brother could rescue them and use the money the County provided for her care was both nightmare and comfort. She wasn't sure an eighteen-year-old could find a job that would pay rent for a two-bedroom apartment, and the rules about a separate bedrooms were strict, but without that hope, she had nothing more than Shelly!

            " She didn't even grieve the death of the other girl! " She heard the Social Worker decry from memory. That wasn't true, but they already had enough of her inside! They wouldn't get this!

-

            A light knock on the door startled her violently. She wanted to scream: " Go away! Forever! " But what would it matter how she felt? She wouldn't even bother unpacking anything but the basics!

            " I'm going to the Dollar Store, I was hoping you'd come with me, Lucy? "

            " Lacy. " She corrected as she ripped the door's edge.

            " Lacy "  Candice corrected. " May I come in? "

            " It's your house! "  But she was slow to step back.

            " You don't remember me, o you? "  The woman asked as she sank to th edge of the bed. "  But you were so young. "  She sighed heavily.

           "  Remember what? "  She felt a satisfaction as the seated woman winced.

           ' In nine months I'm going to be history! 'She reminded herself grimly, sensing the ache of want and loneliness on the seated woman's face.

           " That's understandable. You hid behind your brother's back so much I used to think I'd never get to know the color of your eyes! "  The woman laughed, coaxing the lonely girl near. " The room was a different color. We had a canopy bed, with ruffles ... " She sighed.

           Lacy recoiled as the memories rushed in on her.

          " You sent us away! They wouldn't let us live together any more! "

         " I was diagnosed with breast cancer, Sweetie. My license was taken away from me, but ... I couldn't have put you through hat! That uncertainty! " Her voice broke.

         " There wasn't anything you could do about it. "  Lacy said at last, sitting next to her. " Are you going to die? "

         " I'm in remission. I had two little boys but I never forgot my little Chiquita. "

         Lacy instantly withdrew.

         " I'm not anybodies little girl! Not even my mothers! "

         " You'll always be her little girl. Even if she's too sick to show it. Believe me. "

         " Why should I? "

         " Because I'm a mother too. because I'm going to keep the promise I made to GOD and to you. It'll just take time ... "

          Lacy pulled back her hand with a snarl and Candice stood.

         " My husband Jay has gone to pick up the boys at camp, but tonight, you'll meet them. With time, we can be a family...there's no need to rush. "

         ' You got nine months, Lady! '  Lacy thought inwardly, frowning to keep the pretty woman at bay.

         Candice laughed but her eyes stayed serious, looking deeply within her.

         " What if Mrs. Howe comes by and we're gone? "

         " Then she'll leave a note. We aren't in prison. Come on! Girl's day Out before the boys get home! " The woman's humour and hopefulness were contagious.

-

             Lacy ate the cheeseburger in small bites, looking around to see if her brother was hanging around, like he always did, to let her know she wasn't alone. Disappointment squelched her small promise of triumph when she wasn't in sight at the parking lot of the small strip mall where they stopped either. Candice sighed strangely and pulled out a small, embossed greeting card containing a ten dollar bill.

           " So you can personalize your room and not have to wait for me at the check out counter. "

           They embraced shyly, and didn't stop chattering for the next hour as the timid teen debated over her purchases.

           " Give them an inch, they'll take a mile! "  Dewy warned her from memory, annoyed her son postponed her grandchildren for another's cast-offs. But having been formed, pressed, and maligned until she aged out of the foster care system Candice knew one day she'd be the hand that reached out as Jacob's did; granting her security and peace in her marriage despite a difficult mother-in-law! As she stared the car the girl's smiled turned into great, wrenching sobs, spoiling the illusion they'd bonded!

           Lacy's meal threatened to return.

          " How can I enjoy this while Shelly burns in Hell? "

          Candice sat back, stunned.

          " God isn't waiting for His chance to 'zap' us, Child! No matter what they said in sorrow! ... How senseless and cruel this must seem, Lace ... "

          " Ohm and your God is different? "  Lacy sunk deeper into despair.

          ' GOD! Please help me answer! '

          " Yes, He is. But I remember....remember wondering if He was, why did did he allow me to be hungry? Scared? Cold? Abused? First by my mother and then by the ones assigned by the State. Didn't He care? "

           At the long silence, she looked up, finding the girl gap-mouthed.

           " I don't think she's burning in Hell! I think she's curled asleep in His arms as He comforts her! Because He knows what they can't! He remembers having to look down from the cross and not be able to comfort his widowed mother until he gave her a some that would never fail her. It wasn't the one she was born into, it was the one Love enfolded around her! Like He did me, and now you, Miha. He's crying with her, but the tears are tears of joy now. Some day we'll repay the debt in her name, in His name, right here on earth, I believe! "

          Lacy's eyes tightened as she weighed the words, what lay behind them against the promises made or one's she'd broken.

         " Do you really think so? Could it be? "

         " I've never been more sure of anything in my life. After the rain comes the rainbow to remind us of God's promise. "

         " But my brother ... we're going to be a family ... I can't ... "

         " Can't make room for others? Why not? The Bible says 'A Cord of three strands is not easily broken.' ... You and Hank. Me and Jay. Us and Jesus. A strand of three cords making a single melody to keep the heart safe and filled with love and hope for tomorrow. " 

         " I'd like that. "  Lacy admitted, sighing. " I'd really like that! "

         " Bueno. "

         And so, in time, it was.

.

30

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