ELOY

2: ADA

"Make his file ready, we're moving him," I say to Jeff, my assistant, he is skilled with his soft hands when it comes to carrying out my orders.

Jeff's red hair darts past me and he looks across the room at a drawer, his soft touch caressing each file like a preacher would do when they're reading the bible on their porch.

"This is not pretty," I watch his face wrinkle into a grimace, "Some people are born psychopaths. Poor kid" He clicks his teeth

"I know," I lock eyes with him long enough to notice freckles spread across the side of his nose.

"You allowed him to be taken by ST Julius orphanage?"

"We couldn't find a relative, and they offered to keep him the time I found a home, they're the only ones, the others were too full and had poor facilities, Elloy is a delicate child." I try to explain.

"I see through these files." Jeff grins smugly before approaching my desk with the files. His sleeves rolled up and his tie loosened, he leans forward, and your Attorney decides to take him in for his beautiful African queen." He teases.

"Shut up, James is just a good friend, we are pretty close, nothing more, you know I'm not the type to be caged by a ring." A soft knock interrupts us.

"come-in," Jeff sings. I reach for the file in his grips rolling my eyes when he gives me a heart with his thumb and index finger.

The door is politely swung open and a 6.2 inches man walks in. Today he decided to triple-piece his suit. A short black hair mix with very few gray hairs is pulled to the back causing him to look a little like doctor strange.

"Ada, it is a pleasure." He greets me with a courtesy smile, but you can tell by the shape of the smile and the lines that have formed that he has to do this more often than he speaks. After all, we're speaking of a single father, with five kids.

I put some force on my legs to lift myself off my back-aching office chair, "James." I threw on a small smile as I reach for my tainted red suit which is a perfect match for my off-shoulder ruby skin gown, I slip my hands as both men watch me in silence then I pick up the file, "Let's have lunch," I announce, "Jeff you have to look into Lucy Gold's file and the new evidence found on the rape."

"You do this like you were born for it. When did you start this social work psychologist thing, when you were 2?" James asks, but it sounds like a joke to me so I prepare my words.

"Since I had to stitch your wounds in kindergarten." My words are compensated with a smirk.

"How do you still recall that?" James laughs.

We get into my car and I'm handling my wheel. I had texted him not to bring his vehicle, my Hyundai Tucson will do, and besides I hate when others drive me around.

We take our seats around the table and pass our orders. "How is the family?" I ask.

"Doing as usual little tantrum even for older kids, Caleb would soon go to college and I'll have fewer children to deal with, they're growing up too fast, and I believe if Elena was here she would have been proud of them, Kaila is getting married soon and I'll just have the three of them left." he laughs, but this one is small and sad.

James had lost his wife in a plane crash she was flying from Germany for their sons' birthday, he was devastated for months, but didn't look like it, he stood tall and graceful every day and defended his clients, yet I saw it in his eyes when we met occasional, putting up with five children and depression, it's not like lifting an egg. Kaila once told me that he would spend the night on his wife's favorite bench when she was still alive, and she even confessed that she heard his cries when the lights were out. I have never seen him cry once, not even in kindergarten he was always happy and he spread that happiness around him.

I stare at him for a while and nod to his words, "I bet. You turned out well."

He laughs. "I guess."

A smile forms on my lips as I study his gesture, hand on his trimmed beard. He still has his wedding ring on his index finger, I can picture him staring at it on stormy days and wishing in the wind.

"Can you do this again for a while?" I ask.

His brow shifts a little higher than the other, "Do what?" He questions innocently.

"Elloy," I slip the file on the table as my tone becomes firm. I need to house the kid for the time being and James volunteered when he saw the file.

"I'll be glad to foster the boy, we have got quite a large home. One more kid won't hurt."

I smile, "though you must know, even if a relative of his showed up, we're still investigating." I clear my throat and try to be as serious as can be.

"Okay..." He trails.

"Elloy is a little different," I can't find the vocabulary to define him, I can still picture him in my mind when I first saw him, frail, skinny, very pale, one could practically stare at the veins under his skin. What broke my heart was his age, he was only five, found beside a corpse, belonging to his previous guardian who had died of cocaine overdoses, the boy was cuffed to the bathtub, slowly drowning.

"Ada," I blink multiple times realizing how lost I was in my mind.

"You just stopped speaking, are you okay?" His eyes are fixed on my face, and I try not to take in his worry.

"When he was found at five years old almost drowning, medical tests showed signs of severe physical abuse and starvation. There were also, signs... of molestation, he had to go through dis-intoxication from substance abuse." I pause to catch my words, "We're yet to find his real parents, his DNA does not correspond to his guardian's. He was possibly abandoned or abducted after birth."

"That's terrible," James says with a hand over his face.

"He is slow in speech, retard we'll say, and what is surprising is the fact he hasn't shown signs of severe mental illness which is abnormal. While he is under your care I'll have to interact with him. Children that went through a similar childhood and grew up without proper treatment turn out to be, rapists, murderers, psychopaths, and worse."

"I know. Mr. Billy Gut, who I previously sent to jail, murdered my client's 2 years old daughter, he also has a similar backstory."

I sigh, "Now you know, are you willing to take him in? the others refused to take him in once they found out about Elloy, they said they didn't want him to cause harm to their children."

James looks away, "I guess I have no other choice than to help." He smiles.

It is such a relief finally he can be out of that religious-addicted orphanage. Let's see how he has grown so far and how much of a lively boy he has become...

Thanks
Vote
And Comment.