The Lavender Butterfly

Chapter 33

I was getting tired of sitting in this dreary room alone. The transcriber was in the room as well, but I might as well have been alone. The man said not a word as he stared at his laptop. I began to think about Mike and Susan, and how they were likely on a hopeless fishing expedition trying to find my identity, and what foster homes I had been in. I knew that they wouldn’t find anything. There was no possibility that they would. The feeling was familiar. These people were wasting their time, much like the coast guard and the rescue workers looking for Chris. I felt bad that people were wasting so much time on me. I didn’t really feel bad about Mike, however. I already didn’t like him very much, considering the tone he was taking to me earlier. I was wondering if they were still talking with Meredith. I was relieved, and surprised that our stories matched up. I was also worried about how they were pressing her. She might have been treated as a criminal. As my kidnapper. They couldn’t think that she had any cruel intentions. I’m sure she was telling them how much she loved me, and how much she wanted me back. I had been telling them the same thing. Unless they were thinking that this was a case of Stockholm Syndrome, they had to realize that this love was real. Without any proof that I was who I said I was, I don’t think it would do any good. I was coming to the realization that I would likely never see Meredith again. I would never see Evan, Chloe, or Stella again for that matter, either. What would become of me? I had nowhere to go from here, no path forward. I was stuck in the system. My frustration and hopelessness were welling up inside me correspondingly. I was about to burst. I looked at the transcriber. I scooted my chair over and leaned closer to him. “I want to see my mother,” I said to him. He said nothing and made no eye contact with me. He just proceeded to type into his laptop. “I said, I want to see my mother. Meredith Parker. I need to see her,” I said to him firmly. The man continued to type into his computer, faster than before. I started to cry again. “I just want my mom; I have nothing in this life but her. Please do whatever you can to make this happen. I’m desperate! Pull some strings, make some connections, just do something to reunite us……Are you listening to me?” I said, frantically. The man looked up at me, continuing to type away on his laptop. “Listen, I am a county provided transcriber. I can’t help you with anything. All I am here to do is to document everything that is said in this room. Including everything you have just said to me. I would advise that you keep your words to yourself,” the man said to me. I leaned back into my chair and scooted my chair back. I sighed as I slouched back in the chair, waiting for the next development. After a while, Mike and Susan walked back into the room and sat across from me. Both looked very tired and frustrated. Mike hunched over the table and glared at me. “I’m going to give you one last opportunity. What is your real name, and what foster home did you break out of?” he said, sneering at me. I took a deep breath and I responded, “I told you; my name is Olivia Marie Foster. I have been in a lot of foster homes in my life. I never knew my parents. All I know is that I left my last foster home and I bumped into Meredith by the beach. I needed a mother figure in my life. Meredith is the best thing that has ever happened to me. Please let me see her again. I beg of you.” The man’s face was turning red. I was afraid of what he would say next. “I have given you numerous chances to be honest with me, and you insist on making a game of this. We scoured the foster care registry for the entire state of Florida and found no record of an Olivia Marie Foster. We also don’t have any record of any children that have run out on their foster home recently.” “I’m telling the truth, I swear!” I replied, raising my voice. He angrily pounded his fist on the table as he continued furiously. “Damnit! Why don’t you understand that we are trying to help you? All we are asking from you is your REAL NAME, not some bullsh—” “Michael, please stop! She is just a child! You aren’t helping matters by yelling at her!” Susan interrupted. The tension in the room was coming to a point. Mike stood up from the table and started pacing back and forth aggressively. The transcriber simply continued typing away at his laptop, completely unfazed by the hostility in the room. After an uncomfortable silence, Susan finally continued, “Michael, why don’t you step out for a while, I would like to talk with Olivia alone for a bit.” Mike gave her a side eye and looked at me, annoyed. He said, “If that is your real name,” as he stormed out of the door. Susan waited for him to leave, and she scooted her chair next to me. “Olivia, I apologize for Michael. He can get pretty……intense.” She looked firmly into my eyes. “I just want to make sure that you are telling us the 100% truth. So, your name is Olivia Marie Foster, and you are being truly honest?” she said to me. I nodded my head. “And you don’t remember where the last foster home you were staying at?” I shook my head no. “Mike was right, we scoured through every record we had, and we found no trace of you in the system,” she said soberly. “We…. spoke with Meredith….” “You did?” I interrupted, as I perked up. “Meredith, she’s very upset. She wants so badly to see you, but….” “But what?” I replied. Susan looked at me somberly as she continued, “I just want to say, that I believe your story. After speaking with you and Meredith, I can see that the two of you love each other very much. If it were up to me, I would return you to her and you could get on that plane and go home.” “Then please, let me see her again,” I replied, starting to cry. Susan leaned forward and hugged me. “I’m sorry, but there’s nothing I can do there. It’s not that easy. I will do everything in my power to express that the two of you love each other very much, but the authorities are going to investigate it as if she was kidnapping you. The best course of action is to find a safe place for you to stay. I’ve arranged for a foster home for you.” “A foster home, er, another foster home? I replied. Susan’s phone started to ring. She looked at the phone. “Pardon me, Olivia, I have to take this call,” she said. I listened in to her conversation as much as I could. “Okay, we’ll meet up front at the valet drop-off,” she said, before she hung up the phone. Susan looked at me and said, “That was Molly, she will take you to a foster home that she runs in the area. We are going to meet her up front.” I walked with her reluctantly out of the room and down the hall. “Olivia, I just want you to know that this isn’t a permanent solution – we are going to try everything in our power to reunite you with Meredith, I trust that she is a good person…and I trust that she will make a wonderful mother,” she said to me compassionately. I looked back at her with a slight smile. The closest thing to a smile I had given over the past couple of hours. As we walked out the airport doors, we approached a green sedan parked in the valet drop off. A younger woman exited the car, shook my hand and introduced herself. “Hello Olivia, my name’s Molly Engstrom. I’m going to take you to your new temporary home.” Susan bent down to speak to me one last time before we departed, “I’ve worked with Molly many times. She’s very kind and she will take good care of you. And if you need anything, here’s my card,” she said, as she handed me her business card. “Thank you, Susan,” I said. Molly comforted me and rubbed my shoulder as she directed me to the passenger seat of her car. I sat down and buckled up while Molly got into the driver seat. As we pulled out of the drop off, Molly started to fill me up on the details. “So, Olivia, I just want to fill you in on what’s going on. I run a small foster home at my house just outside of Daytona. It’s administered by the county, but I try to do what I can to make you girls feel at home,” she said to me. “Girls? How many other girls will be there?” I asked. Molly replied, “You will we bunked with three other girls. Right now, we have Lauren, she’s 17, Allie, she is 14, and Amaya, who is 9. They’re a lot of fun, I’m sure you’ll love them!” The thought of being in a house with other girls, and potentially making new friends was promising, despite the bleakness of the current situation, I guess it could be worse. “So, you said, right now, do these girls come and go a lot?” I asked. “Yes, the group we have right now have been together for a few months, but girls do get adopted,” she replied. “Adopted?” “Well, it is a foster home, so girls get adopted from time to time. All of our girls are on an adoption list, so we have prospective parents come in from time to time to interview girls they are hoping to adopt.” She informed me. “I see,” I replied. “If, by any chance, a woman with the name Meredith Parker inquires about me, I would like to interview with her,” I told her. Molly sighed. “Susan told me all about Meredith. I’m sorry, but I can’t make any guarantees that she will be able to adopt you, even if the mother/daughter bond is true. I wish I could wave a magic wand and reunite you two, but it’s not as easy as it looks. She must go through the adoption process like anybody else would.” She said, and furthermore, she said she adopted you to a federal agent, which was a lie. Unfortunately, that is not going to look very good upon the adoption process.” A magic wand, huh? I really wished I could have that magic wand she spoke of, because it sounded like it was going to take a miracle for me to reunite with Meredith and the others.