By the time Sabrina met Marissa at the door, the two boys had taken off to the barn in search of her father.
Marissa watched the boys from the porch. “I take it that Levi’s as excited about this fishing trip as Bradley.”
Sabrina laughed and held the door open for her. “I don’t think either of them are as excited as Dad. He’s been packing things all week.”
Marissa’s easy laugh put Sabrina at ease. It was clear Marissa wasn’t going to judge her for the sins of her past. As soon as she signed the paperwork in Marissa’s briefcase, she’d officially have a job. And better yet, Levi would get the counseling required to get him back into school. Little Mountain even promised a bonus after six months of employment. A bonus that was large enough to pay the first semester’s tuition for the nursing program.
By the time she’d poured Marissa a cup of coffee, Marissa had papers scattered across the dining table.
She handed the cup to her friend and sat down to look over the forms. “Thanks for bringing these over. I hope it wasn’t too much trouble.”
Marissa sipped her coffee. “No sense in you having to drive to Lampasas to sign papers and turn around and come back. Especially if you want to start today. Besides, it gave me an excuse to go into the office late this morning. And Bradley was going nuts waiting for Levi. This was the fastest way to get him out of my hair.”
A thrill ran through her as she signed the last form. “How are you involved with Little Mountain? I’m going to be working for them, not Crestview, correct?”
Marissa stacked the papers together. “Yes. We’re a contracting company and just assist with the hiring process. They tell us what they need, we find them the best applicants for the job. Once hired, you’re all theirs.”
Sabrina nodded. Her dad was less than thrilled to hear she’d be working at the children’s home. Maybe they were rougher than what she’d been led to believe. “Any advice on working with these kids?”
Marissa nodded. “I understand your concern, but we’ve never had any major problems with them. They’re troubled, yes, but most of them are just kids who need someone to care about them. The state puts those who have a violent history in a different facility. This one only takes fifteen to thirty children at a time, and the ages range from seven to eighteen.
“A couple of the kids have diabetes and need glucose monitoring and shots occasionally. And several of them have asthma. The entire staff is CPR certified, but the state requires someone with more medical training during the day. At least while the kids are out of school for the summer.”
She relaxed. That didn’t sound too bad.
“The home is in the old Johnson house, outside of town. Do you remember where that is?”
Sabrina nodded. She knew the house where the home was located well. Once considered a model home in the county, years of neglect had taken its toll. Sabrina and Tony had gone into the abandoned house one night. Not one ghost jumped out to scare them, much to their disappointment.
It was a large home, but not large enough for thirty children plus all the adults it took to supervise them. “Where do they fit that many kids?”
“The younger children stay in the main home, but they built cabins on the ten-acre property for the teens. The boys and girls are separated, of course, and each cabin has a married couple who lives with them.”
Thirty minutes later, Sabrina stood in front of the double wooden doors of the main house. It looked like the property had been a good investment. The State of Texas had probably bought it for next to nothing, which made the obvious repairs on the home that much more affordable.
The door was unlocked, so she stepped inside. Chimes echoed, alerting anyone in the building someone had entered. Where was everyone? A small girl ran across her path and stopped short when she saw Sabrina. Her dark brown eyes opened wide. “Are you a wobber?”
“A what?” Sabrina squatted down so she could understand her better.
“A wobber,” the girl said slowly, then smiled, revealing her missing front teeth.
Sabrina smiled. “No. I’m not a robber. I’m a medical assistant. Is there an adult around here?”
“Ms. Paula!” the little girl yelled, and ran down the hall.
The hallway ended in a large playroom. Several children, boys and girls who all looked to be under the age of ten, were sprawled across the floor, engaged in different activities. A woman with short, spiky hair sat cross-legged, reading a story to a small group.
She jumped to her feet when she noticed Sabrina. “Can I help you?”
“I’m looking for Karen?”
“Down the hall and to the right.”
Sabrina followed her direction and almost ran into a robust woman in a hot pink dress decorated with ducks. “I’m looking for Karen.”
“You found her.” The woman smiled and reached out to shake hands with her. “From the scrubs you’re wearing, you must be our new medical assistant.”
“Yes. I’m Sab—”
The back door burst open and a young man in his early twenties shouted, “Miss Karen! Help!”
Karen rushed to him, with Sabrina right behind her. The man carried a boy down the hall. Blood dripped from under the hand he had pressed to the child’s scrawny arm.
“Bring him in here.” Karen held a door open.
Sabrina followed closely, recognizing the room as the medical office. She snatched some alcohol wipes and gloves off the shelf next to the exam table. Karen stepped back to let Sabrina examine the wound.
“What happened?” Sabrina removed the man’s hand from the cut.
“We were on a nature walk when Jake decided to run again. He tried to climb the fence and cut his arm.”
Jake, the boy in question, winced as Sabrina dabbed an alcohol wipe over the cut. When she asked him questions, he turned his head, refusing to talk. A current of anger ran through the boy. He was about the same age as Levi. What could cause so much rage in such a young kid?
“What a day for you to show up.” Karen handed Sabrina a box filled with different sized bandages. “It’s usually not this exciting.”
The ringing of the doorbell was followed by a man calling out, “Hello? Anyone here?”
Sabrina didn’t need to look up from the butterfly bandages she was applying to Jake’s arm to know who was in the hallway.
“That must be the new volunteer,” Karen said. “Travis Anderson, our campus director, is out of town for a few days, so I’m holding down the fort. Be right back.”
A few minutes later, Jake was bandaged up and sound asleep on the cot in the corner of the room. Sabrina held her breath. Was Tony gone? Was it safe to come out?
The half-open door swung open all the way and Tony leaned against the frame. “I thought that looked like you in here. Everything okay?” The dimple on one cheek deepened.
“Fine. Thanks.” She kept her voice calm.
“I didn’t know you worked here.” He ran a hand through his dark hair, pushing the curls out of his face. He nodded toward the sleeping figure. “The kid going to be okay?”
“He’ll be fine. And today is my first day. What are you doing here?” She pretended to organize items inside the desk.
“I work with an outreach program to try to keep kids out of gangs back in San Antonio, so I stopped by to see if I could hang out with the kids here.”
She looked up at him. “I thought you were a police officer.”
He cocked