The Inheritance

Chapter Three

Chapter Three

I went with the officers. 

Well, I followed them in my car. The five of my friends were staying at my house and Carly was going to care for Maddie if she needed it. When I walked inside and told them I had to leave, my face stricken with grief, they didn’t ask what was going on. They just told me they would take care of the house and clean everything up from the party.

The place they were keeping the children was some sort of office or agency. By the time I got there, the place was ringing with different telephones going off. People were dashing from desk to desk with paperwork. Other 

I looked around nervously. One of the policemen had lead me inside, but the other stayed in his vehicle. They were called to retrieve me from my home and bring me to the office to receive the children, but they had to get back to work soon. Apparently, they had stations to be at and had “left at their boss’s request to bring me in”. That sort of explanation somewhat made me feel like a criminal, but not everyone had a way with words.

“Officer Reynolds,” a woman greeted, coming to shake his hand. She looked up at me. “Who is this?”

“Bethany Wallace,” he answered.

Her eyebrows quirked up in surprise. “You’re so young,” she said. 

I bit my tongue from replying sharply. “Where are the children?”

She nodded curtly and turned. I followed her past many busy desks and back to a room. I supposed it was hers. 

“Sit,” she demanded. “Officer Reynolds, could you retrieve the children from Pat Carson’s room? She was in charge of watching them.” 

He left. She turned to watch me, sitting down in her large leather chair and pulling it closer to her desk so that she could rest her elbows. I glanced down at her name tag. Officer Darres. 

“How old are you?” she asked. 

“Nineteen.”

“Full name?”

“Bethany Claire Wallace.”

“I.D.?”

I pulled my wallet out and handed it to her. She nodded.

“Parents?”

“Amelia and Joe Wallace.”

“Siblings?”

“Nathan Wallace. In another state for college.”

“Religion?”

I raised an eyebrow. “Christian?”

“Is that a question?”

“It’s an answer. What does my religion have to do with anything?”

“Job?”

“I’m a waitress.”

She scoffed. “Education?”

“Just graduated. Going to a college in Florida in a week.”

She raised an eyebrow. “How do you plan to take care of the children while attending school?”

I twiddled my thumbs nervously. “Uhh…”

“Beth!” a young voice called.

I turned to see three of my cousins coming through the door. Baby Cole was on Officer Reynolds’s hip. Fee, short for Fiona, was holding onto Todd’s hand. Cole was only eleven months old. Fee was nearing two and Todd was a grand age of nine.