Escape or Eject

Chapter 3

It took me a few hours to bring myself to the front stoop of Haley’s house. I struggled to get the image of her throwing herself over freeway out of my head. And now standing before this heavily bricked home, I could feel the isolation bound to its overgrown boundaries. The shrubs must have gone uncut for years. Vines crept up sides of the building, covering the window panes.

                I rang the doorbell twiddling my thumbs together as I heard footsteps grow closer. The second I saw the middle aged women open the door, I knew this couldn’t be Haley’s mother. They didn’t resemble each other at all. Haley was petite while this woman was a giant. Haley’s face was small and round, her face was long and thin. Her eyes were brown, her hair pitch black, everything was the opposite Haley’s appearance.

                “It’s about time you got here.” The woman grumbled, walking away from the open door expecting me to follow. “She’s been gone for hours we’ve called and called and all we’ve heard is ‘we’re on it, we’re on it.’ Do you know how bad this looks on my part?”

                Of course I did. I’ve been in her exact shoes. Elizabeth ran away right at the same age as Haley. I guess neither of us saw it coming, maybe it wasn’t as uncommon as I thought.

                “I get how shocking this is as a parent, Mrs. Timberson but-”

                She cut me off, “Mrs. Timberson?” she laughed in mockery, “You think I’m Haley’s mother? That’s really a joke. You got me.” As we stepped into the kitchen she snagged out a bottle out of the fridge setting it on the table, “You look like you need a drink Officer.”

                I spoke hesitantly, “I’m not allowed to drink on the job, ma’am. I see that I am missing part of the picture here. You’re going to need to fill me in with all the details. This is a small town department and we need to send this report into the state.”

She took a long sip from the bottle, I couldn’t tell what it exactly was, but judging from the bottle it could have been any kind of hard liquor. She shivered as she swallowed and put her hand over her heart.

“Well, dear, where to start. For one, Haley is under my care as a Foster Parent. I’ve only had her for four years, but she’s been a brat since day one.” rolling her eyes, she took another sip, “I don’t know why I took in another one, guess I just felt bad for the little washout. She has a pretty famous record; you should talk with her social worker.” I took note of that on my pad; it might be one of the only important things I get out of her. “My husband Jett and I foster Haley and this other girl, we’ve had her for years, and Haley was just thrown at us since nobody else wanted to take her.”

“I think you’re getting sidetracked her Mrs...? What is your name exactly?”

“Maureen, Maureen Noxisian. I realize it’s a mouthful just call me Maureen, like everyone else.”

“Do you know why Haley would want to run way, Maureen?” This felt like another dimension. Like I’ve switched roles and was back in my living room. Except, now I was asking the questions, but I’ve come to realize there might not always be an answer.

“She always thought that we treated her like shit. She was always caught up in trying to find a way out of here; she’s ran away in the past, but she’s always either came back or never made it out of town before getting snatched back by one of us. Liliane would always rat her out, since she knows what’s good for her.”

Just the way Maureen talked made me hate her. You always hear stories of foster homes mistreating their kids, but I’ve had yet to encounter one. I’d have to background check her, there was something wrong about the way this place felt, the way she spoke.