Chapter 26
Ethan turned twelve.
He was almost as tall as me now.
Voice starting to crack.
Still loved dinosaurs.
Still played soccer.
Still got straight A’s in math.
He’d started volunteering at the community center, coaching the five- and six-year-old soccer team.
Said he wanted to “make sure no kid ever feels like they’re not good enough.”
I cried when he told me.
Again.
Sophie was fifteen.
A full-blown teenager.
Makeup.
Boyfriends (well, one boyfriend—nice kid, plays guitar, brings me flowers when he comes over).
Still on the debate team.
Still planning to be a lawyer.
Said she wanted to specialize in family law.
“Like Mr. Henderson,” she said. “I wanna be the person who helps moms like you. Who fights for kids like Ethan and me.”
I told her she’d be amazing at it.
She would.
She had the spine for it.
The heart for it.
The truth-telling gene.
I was still working at CPS.
Had been promoted to supervisor.
Ran a team of ten caseworkers.
Taught them everything I’d learned.
To see the people behind the files.
To listen more than they talked.
To assume good intent until proven otherwise.
To fight like hell for the kids who couldn’t fight for themselves.
We’d helped over two hundred families in the last three years.
Kept kids with their parents when it was safe.
Got them out when it wasn’t.
Connected them with resources.
With therapy.
With hope.
It was hard work.
Heartbreaking work.
But it was the best work I’d ever done.
Mia was on my team now.
She’d gotten her degree.
Come to work for me.
She was the best caseworker I had.
Tough but fair.
The kids loved her.
The parents respected her.
May you like
We made a good team.
Full circle.
