Recollection

“Ms. Purcell?” my head turned in the direction of the male voice who just said my name. My heart quickened as I saw an officer fill my doorway.

“Yes?” I answered.

“Hello I’m Officer Mitchell and I’m here to ask you a few questions, relating to the other night.”

“Ok.” I said my head dropping a few inches.

Taking a direct stance he began.

“We'll start with what was going on that night?”

“My boyfriend and I were arguing once again. This time over my son Hunter. He was cranky that night and Declan had just enough of listening to him cry." I paused.

"I tried my best to comfort him, but it just wasn’t enough. He told me to either shut the kid up or he was going to..permanently."

"Hmm.." nodding his head.

"The real problem behind it all is Declan isn’t my son’s biological father and it rubs him the wrong way sometimes.”

I took a deep breath before continuing on, telling the officer about him grabbing Hunter out of my arms and nearly tossing him into his crib, the ever present abuse and starting the fire that destroyed our home.

The visit with the officer took about an hour and once he seemed content with my story he left.

Andy brushed his fingers along the side of my face just as the officer cleared the door.

“Everything will work out, A. I promise.”

I wanted so much to believe him, but how when everything felt like it was going downhill at a fast pace?

“I want to see Hunter.” And Jake, eerily quiet, left quickly to locate him.

Niki entered a few minutes later holding my beloved son in her arms. She came to sit by my bedside and anchored Hunter in my lap.

“Hey there, precious!” I gazed deeply into the now bronze colored orbs of my son. His brows curled in confusion and he started to whimper.

The whimper shot right straight to my heart and made me feel so much worse than the physical pain I was enduring. It seemed my own son didn’t recognize the face of his own mother!

Niki scooped him up and leaned over so I could place a kiss upon his forehead and then asked her to leave. Tears slipped past my lids and spilled down my cheeks.

Hopefully by the time I left here, things would be back so some semblance of normalcy.

Notes