Devil's Work

We are coming home from Grandma Linda’s house. She is a nice woman who smothered me with kisses just like Frank and Gerard did when they met me. She has a warm voice and a sweet-smelling house. Frank says we should go there more often, but he can never make time in his schedule to take us there. Gerard argues that he always has time. Frank huffs and places his hand on my head. We’re riding in the back seat of the car while Gerard drives.

It’s dark when we get home, the musky smell of night reaching my nostrils when Frank opens the car door and pulls me out. I’m almost falling asleep but I want to stay awake so that Frank and Gerard can talk to me some more. I like the sound of their voices.

Frank and Gerard and I are just on the porch when I see them. Two men who look sharp and dangerous and nothing like dads. I try to warn Frank but my throat doesn’t let me.

“Excuse me sirs.” The voice is cold air.

Frank jumps and Gerard turns around. He draws himself in front of Frank and me, and when Gerard does that he means to protect us.

“Who are you and what do you want with us?” Gerard asks, and he wastes no time cutting down to polite talk. Gerard says you have to be tough to live in this neighborhood but if you are then it’s fine. Frank agrees but shakes his head and tells Gerard that toughness doesn’t come from having a gun under the bed.

“Sir, we’re from the adoption agency downtown. We’ve come to take the baby.” I can’t tell if it’s the first man who spoke, or the second. It seems anyways that they would have the same type of cold voice.

Frank makes a small, desperate noise and pulls me closer to him. “No. We’re doing everything just fine. We love her. We aren’t doing anything wrong.”

“Sir, we’re going to have to ask you to give us the child; we’re acting on orders, we’re from the agency—”

“The hell you are!” Gerard spits, his voice rough. “The agency would’ve called us. You don’t even have their logo. So I suggest that you leave me and my family alone and get the hell off of my property.”

“You will be sorry in the morning if we can’t follow orders.” The men are glaring now, but Gerard glares back.

“Is that a threat? Are you threatening me and my family? Why don’t you just leave. You’re not taking away our child.”

The two men leave without another word. Gerard and Frank race into the house and lock the door, and Gerard looks out the window to make sure that the men get into their shiny black cars and drive off. Frank is breathing heavily and clinging on to me, but I don’t make a sound.

“Who were those men, Gerard?” Frank asks timidly after a long silence.

“I don’t know, Frankie. But I think we should call the agency first thing tomorrow morning and see what they were talking about. There’s no one who could’ve reported us. Nobody’s going to take Kaitlynn away from us. Baby, calm down...”

I have never seen Frank so anxious, nor have I ever seen Gerard act this way towards him. He rubs Frank’s shoulders and takes me from him and tells Frank to go calm down in the bedroom, everything will be fine. But even I sense the apprehension in Gerard’s voice.

When Gerard changes me into my pajamas he looks at me questioningly. He asks softly, “Why do they want you? You love us, don’t you, Kaity?”

I gurgle at his new name for me. He kisses my cheek. “Sorry, hon, no lullaby tonight. Frankie’s just a little scared. And I can’t play as well as him.”

When he picks me up I touch his mouth. I’ve heard him sing before. I try my hardest to get him to stay with me as long as possible.

He presses kisses on my knuckle, where my fingers accidentally curl on his lip. “Baby, baby,” he sighs. “You have to get to bed, and I have to get to Frank. I’ll see you in the morning. Good night, sweet dreams.”

He tucks me into my bed and pulls the blanket over me, kissing my forehead. Then he looks at me for a second before he returns to Frank in their bedroom.