Exit

Roland backed away from the corner and strolled casually but quietly back to Peter. The boy's face was still strained, but seemed calmer now that Roland was there. He had doubtlessly heard the news that nothing was found in the search for the enemy, but seeing evidence of his fellow recruits' survival must be somewhat comforting.

"I'm going to get out of here before they're done talking and see that I've been here," Roland said quietly, "We'll move out in the morning, back to camp. Let Ashley know when you get the opportunity. We meet at the gate at dawn."

Peter nodded instead of answering out loud. Roland gave the boy's shoulder a firm pat before slinking into the shadows and making his way home. Hopefully the Provider would not make whatever move he was planning before he could get Ashley out in the morning.

______________

"YOU KIDS PLAY BALL ALL WRONG. IN MY DAY WE KNEW HOW TO KICK BETTER THAN THAT." The old man wasn't exactly yelling, just speaking in the loudest possible decibel his voice could reach without breaking.

The children paused only briefly to listen to the old man before continuing their game without further acknowledgement of his statements. He huffed and turned away from the boys, spotting Finn on the ground with Victoria. He ambled over to them before speaking in just as loud a voice as he had before.

"YOU'RE A PRETTY THING, YOU MUST BE NEW. I'M HENRY." He smiled broadly.

"I'm Finn!" She remembered Jessie saying her uncle was hard of hearing. She was too embarrassed to match his volume, but she hoped he could hear her anyway.

"GLAD TO MEET YOU. I NEED TO SPEAK WITH MABEL ABOUT THESE CHILDREN. THERE ARE TOO MANY AND THEY SHOULD HAVE HOMES BY NOW. THEY NEED TO BE RAISED RIGHT SO THEY DON'T TURN INTO HOOLIGANS." He nodded emphatically and turned away without waiting for a response, shuffling out of the room.

Finn turned wide eyes toward Victoria, who shrugged. "Mr. Henry is loud."

"Yes, he is." Finn agreed.

"I don't know what hooligans means but the new kids are mean," Victoria told her.

"Maybe they are sad and it comes out as meanness by accident?"

Victoria scrunched her face in thought, "Maybe. Lots of kids are sad when they come. These ones play rough and aren't nice. They don't care." Finn's heart went out to the child. She decided to speak with Mrs. Sherman about the little girl and see if they could give her a home.

"It's getting a little late," Finn said. "I need to go back to where I'm staying right now, but would you like it if I came back tomorrow?"

The little girl gave her a small smile and nodded.

Finn stood and stretched as Jessie made a timely entry into the room. "Finn! Thank you so much for staying today. The children always put on better behavior for strangers. I'm shocked they didn't make more of a ruckus. I got so much done!"

"It was a pleasure. I should head back now, but if it's all right, I'll plan on coming back tomorrow," Finn smiled.

"That would be wonderful! Children, say goodbye to Miss Finn!"

"Goodbye, Miss Finn," The children chorused in reluctant obedience. She smiled at them brightly in response before she headed towards the door. Jessie walked with her.

"Victoria said the new children are mean to her," Finn said softly as they walked.

"I'm not surprised," Jessie sighed, "they're unusually belligerent, even for children that have been through trauma. I can't imagine what they've been through, and none of them will say."

"None of them?" Finn's eyebrows rose. She would have thought that with twenty-two new children of presumably various dispositions, at least one of them would want to talk about whatever terrible thing had caused them to come there.

"It's strange, isn't it? Normally when a child comes here, they usually tend to either want to talk a lot about it or are very quiet and keep to themselves for a while. Something different must have happened to these children. They are all loud and rowdy as children can often be, but no one will say a word about what happened."

Finn thought about Jessie's words later as she walked back to the Shermans' house. She was still deep in thought about it when she entered the home and was mildly startled by the bustling activity within.

"Oh, Finn, you're back! Wonderful. Hurry, Dr. Sherman found out Roland can stay the night and not leave until the morning, so we're throwing him a birthday party!" Mayra excitedly prattled at her. "We just got a lemon cake into the oven, which Mrs. Sherman says is his favorite, but quick! You and I need to run to the market to get him presents." She grabbed her friend's arm and practically spun her out the door.

"His birthday?" Finn picked this out of the quick barrage of language being thrown at her.

"His birthday is in two days, but since he won't be here, Mrs. Sherman and I thought we should give him a little celebration now. We need something to be happy about," Her tone lapsed into a somber contemplation, but she took a deep breath. "It'll be good for us. There's nothing to mourn until we have more news, so I thought it would be better to do the opposite."

"It's a great idea," Finn hugged her friend tightly, "but what do we get him for a present??"

_________________

Roland arrived home just before supper time. He thought it was unusual that Mrs. Sherman would send him on an errand on his only day at home, but he didn't mind. He was happy to be helpful. He still worried over Ashley and hoped she was doing all right. He couldn't imagine--

"Happy birthday!!" A chorus sounded as he opened the door to his home, interrupting his thoughts and almost making him drop the package of meat he'd gotten at the butcher for Mrs. Sherman.

He set it down on the table with a smile, beginning to understand the odd request. His substitute parents, Mayra, and Finn stood around a decorated lemon cake.

"My favorite!" He exclaimed, kissing Mrs. Sherman on the cheek and hugging the rest in turn. "Thank you all."

"I made your favorite for supper, too, so let's eat!" The older woman beamed.

The food was even more delicious than usual, and everyone had trouble leaving room for a piece of the delicious cake. They chatted lightly, laughed often, and generally enjoyed a family atmosphere that they all greatly missed. In the midst of the comfort and joy, Mrs. Sherman turned the topic of conversation to Finn's day.

"How was the orphanage, dear?" She asked.

"A bit crowded," Finn admitted. "The woman who runs it said they usually have about five orphans or less at a time, but the new group had twenty-two when it came in. She's found homes for twelve, but that still leaves them fairly overwhelmed."

"The poor little things," Mrs. Sherman commiserated. "What happened to them?"

"That's a very strange thing," Finn explained what she'd gathered from Victoria and Jessie about how the new children didn't act as expected, none of them were siblings, and not a single one would say a word about the events that led them to being found by a peddler on the road.

"It's possible they don't remember," Dr. Sherman chimed in. "Occasionally patients will have no memory whatsoever of their injury if it was particularly traumatic, even if the injury has nothing to do with the head. Some things are so terrible, our minds don't want to remember them and block the memories from forming."

"You're saying whatever happened to them was so incredibly awful that they can't remember it at all?" Mayra's eyebrows shot to her hairline.

"I'm not saying it's so, just that it's a possibility." The Doctor responded, "Children's minds are remarkably adept at coping with tragic circumstances, sometimes to the extent where this occurs."

The dark thought both puzzled and disturbed Finn as she considered it.

"Are there any in particular need of a home?" Mrs. Sherman veered back to her original line of questioning.

"Oh! Yes," Finn remembered, "I wanted to talk to you about that. There is this precious little girl named Victoria. She's about four or five years old. She may have been there the longest of any of the orphans and told me the older kids are mean to her."

She paused. Roland's mouth had turned down into a distinct frown. "She really could use a home." Finn concluded.

"I'll come with you tomorrow then and see if we can arrange for the little sweetheart to come here with us. That is, if you have no objections, Husband." Mrs. Sherman stated.

He masked his mild surprise and swallowed a mouthful of the cake. "None at all, though I did not realize you were looking for someone new to raise."

Mrs. Sherman smiled. "You know I've always had a soft spot for the little ones, and these lovely young women have reminded me what a delight it can be to have a little feminine companionship. It will be an adjustment at first," she conceded, "but I've plenty of good years in me yet for bringing somebody up."

Mr. Sherman nodded. The burden of childrearing would fall mainly upon his wife since he was so often gone with patients, so he left the decision to her discretion.

By this time, everyone had finished their cake, and the women began cleaning up the plates and utensils. They made quick work of it between the three of them as the men talked quietly about the events of each of their days and plans for the next one.

Dr. Sherman took the opportunity to quiz his young apprentice about a couple of the more perplexing patients he'd come across lately, hoping to keep Roland's medical prowess sharp despite the year he would have away from the work.

"Time for presents!" Mayra announced after the dishes were done. Everyone produced some small, wrapped gift and placed it on the table in front of Roland, whose eyes were wide with surprise.

"I don't need any presents," he protested, "this evening with all of you has been enough."

"Nevertheless, my boy, you'll take them and be grateful," Dr. Sherman winked at him.

The Shermans' gift was opened first. It was a small, mobile medical kit he had put together from his supplies. A purely functional gift, especially as it contained salve for the many blisters Roland would get during his training, it was much needed and appreciated.

"I wish I'd had the foresight to prepare something like this for my own training," Dr. Sherman lamented. "They'd likely have taken it from me at registration, but as you're past that now, it's unlikely they'll search you and take it away." Roland smiled and thanked him and Mrs. Sherman for their thoughtfulness.

Mayra's gift was next; a pair of thick, soft socks. "Mrs. Sherman said those army boots can be uncomfortable, so I thought these might be nice."

"That is very kind, thank you so much," Roland told the younger girl sincerely.

Finn blushed slightly as she offered her gift last. She hoped she'd chosen it well. She watched his face carefully as he took it from her.

As Roland unwrapped the fabric around it, a huge smile spread on his face.