Page 88 of Special Agent Murphy

Chapter Fifty-two

Murphy didn’t get surprised by much. Being a realist, a people watcher and a fairly good reader of characters, he often closed cases because of his common sense and practical nature. He understood people followed routines and not often did he get surprised.

So, finding out that Kayti was Kale’s niece did a number on him. Watching them interact, he saw the affection and kind of liked knowing Kayti had yet one more person in her world who mattered.

As much as he respected Kale, having a family relationship with the hard-assed woman might be something he’d have to work on. With Kayti’s happiness on the line, he’d bloody well do it; take the high road and put up with what he couldn’t change.

He backed away from the pretty scene and headed off the doctor who’d looked after the boy.

“Hey, doc. How’s Mark?”

“Mark? Oh, the boy in 302. Williams. Right.” He opened a page on the tablet in his hands and scrolled down through the information. Then a narrow-eyed look drilled into Murphy and a hard glean appeared. “You family? Maybe his stepdad?”

“Nope, I’m Agent Murphy. I was with the boy earlier when he got shot.”

As quickly as the vitriol appeared, it faded, and tiredness returned to the doc’s expression. “I gotta tell you, officer. That kid’s taken some beatings and not just recently. I’ve called Social Services. If they don’t get him away from his father… says here he’s the only family member, that kid won’t make it to high school.”

“His old man’s in jail and won’t be coming out for a long time. Guess the kid will be a ward of the court.”

“Good. Let’s hope they find him a good family. Kid needs a break.”

“Yeah, I agree. He was a hero tonight. We need to protect special people like him.” Murphy waved to the doctor and carried on to Mark’s room when he spied the social worker heading his way. “Hey, Claudine. You here to see about Mark Williams?”

“How did you know? I was here to see another case when they called to say the boy was brought in.”

“Just a hunch. Look, he’s under my custody for now. It’s a delicate situation. Any chance you could just leave him with me until the new year. Then I promise I’ll get legal foster papers started.”

Claudine, a motherly type with a heart of gold and a mind like a legal file cabinet, shook her head. “Come on, Murphy. You know that’s not the way we do things. It’s not legal.”

“Legal schmegal! It’s Christmas in two days and the kid just got shot.”

“And the doc says his wound wasn’t critical and they’ll release him tomorrow. Because of overcrowded wards and a shortage of nurses, they’ll need this room.”

Murphy flashed his winning smile, the one that always got him tail whenever he put it to work for him. “You gonna make me beg, doll?”

“Blasted all to hell, Murph. You know I can’t take it when you turn on the sweetness. If you hadn’t of given my Toby a second chance when you busted him with marijuana, I wouldn’t be in this beholden pickle.”

“He’s a good kid, just ran with the wrong bunch. You straightened him out.”

Claudine looked beaten. “Fine. Take the kid. I’m only agreeing ‘cause we haven’t any foster homes available, juvie’s a mess and the shelters are overrun with sad cases. You give that boy a good holiday, then come and see me in January.” She reached to give him a hug and Murphy, hating hugs of any kind unless they were from Kayti, sighed and let her close in.

“Thanks, Claudine. Merry Christmas.”

Once he had Mark’s future settled, he needed to gather all the pertinent information to close this case. But before he did anything, he went to the second floor to check on Talin and Rob.

Approaching the room, he heard something he hadn’t for a very long time. Rob, together with Talin, was laughing over some show they watched on TV. He stood in the doorway and let the wash of good feelings happen. His well-protected heart couldn’t be anything but thrilled seeing them enjoying being together.

Talin spotted him and grinned. “You should see this episode, Murph. Sheldon is making up a rental agreement for Rog to stay for one night.”

“Hey, Batman, me and canned laughter ain’t happening. Told you that the last time you tried to suck me into watching The Big Bang Theory with you. That’s more your dad’s style.”

Rob chuckled. “Hey, Black. They say I can go home Christmas Eve. Is it okay with you?”

Murphy saw the fear hovering within the pleading look and turned it back to Rob. “What do you want to do?”

“I want you to set me up with that rehab place you been yammering on about. But could we take me there in the morning on Boxing Day? I’d really like to spend Christmas with my kid. Kinda like it used to be.”

Thrilled to the bone, Murphy hid his elation and gruffly added, “Yeah, sure. You just want another one of my home-cooked turkey dinners. Well, that’s fine with me. Having Talin as a houseguest is also fine with me. But it looks like I’ll be needing some support in the future when I foster a homeless kid called Mark Williams who’s close to Talin’s age. You guys up for helping?”

---