Watson - Kathi S. Barton Page 0,41

him when he told me that he was lazy.” She told him she’d been terrified that he’d not admit to what he’d done to the little boy. “I’ve gone up to check on Louis. He’s in a room now, and they have him hooked up to an IV to help with his malnutrition. AJ was entertaining him while I was there. He’s going into the system unless we take him with us. What do you think?”

“That’s a silly question. Of course, we’ll take him home with us when he’s ready.” Wats kissed her on the forehead, and she laid her head on his chest again. “He’s so afraid, Wats. Do you think he’ll trust us someday?”

“Yes. If for no other reason than we’ve not hurt AJ. He was checking her for marks when I was in the room with him. He was trying his best to be slick about it, but Louis did strip her down faster than my dad did when he looked her over.” She laughed. “Brenda has been arrested, and now that Albert is going to jail, the police will go into the house and find whatever they can to keep the two of them in jail. Finding out about the recording devices was brilliant. I think Cooper nearly wet himself when he confessed to recording his beatings of the little guy.”

“I just want to go up and check on Louis and make sure he gets a good dinner, then I’m going to take a nap. I don’t want to leave him here, but I also am dragging right now and need a nap.” He told her he’d stay with Louis tonight. “Thank you so much. As much as I’d like to stay too, I’m exhausted. Stress will do that for you.”

“I can stay.” She’d forgotten that Wesley was there with Wats. “In fact, I’d love to do it for you. Wats told me you might be taking him home to live with you too, and I think as his future grandpa, I should make sure I get to know him. Don’t you think?”

She kissed him on the cheek and told him she loved him. Wesley just blushed and told her that he dearly loved her as well. As he walked away, rubbing his cheek where she’d kissed him, Rayne suggested that they order the two of them pizza so they could share it over getting to know each other. He told her he’d take care of it.

After putting AJ in her car seat, she got into the car too. Closing her eyes, she thought she was the luckiest person in the world—a home, husband—soon to be anyway—as well as children. There wasn’t much else she could wish for.

~*~

Charlie decided she was going to keep the condo for a while anyway. It was close enough to the hospital that she could walk should she want. It was paid for, and the furniture wasn’t that bad. While her mom had had an eclectic taste in furniture, it would suit her.

Going through the mail that had piled up while she was gone, Charlie found her mother’s death certificate, as well as some things that she could take care of right away. Wats had been nice enough to only keep the mail for her and toss out all the flyers that her mom had gotten. Today she was going to go to the bank and see what was there that needed her attention.

Her mother’s bank account had been frozen when she was shot. Going there this morning, she was going to be able to get into the account and open up one for herself to use to take care of unpaid bills, as well as anything else that hadn’t been cared for before her mother was killed.

Leaning back on the couch she’d removed the plastic from when she arrived last night, she thought about her mom. Mom was a good person. Everyone that Charlie had spoken to since her mom’s death had only good things to say about her. Even people that had been before her in court said she’d been fair and had worked around things so as not to hurt their families when it was unnecessary.

Charlie knew her mom had taken to heart one of the men she had sentenced. She made it so he only spent time in the cell at night after his sitter came for his three children. As he was working too, she told him so long as he didn’t miss a day of