Chapter 24

• Chapter Twenty Four
• Maria felt genuinely safe for the first time sitting in the bright coloured room, filled with all types of toys, and nurses dressed in uniforms. The air was filled with both, loud cries and joyous screams as kids less than three feet tall ran around the room. As much as Rose didn’t understand, being around kids did give her peace. She looked down at the sleeping child in her arms. Michael and Julie had played with Elizabeth all afternoon. After Jane picked Julie up, her little eyes began to flutter close, and her lips parted in a yawn. She looked so cute and Maria found it amusing how children could fall asleep anywhere, as long as they were comfortable. But Michael was different, when he felt sleepy, he would always look for her and crawl into her lap and sleep there. It always annoyed Ricky, so whenever he did, she would find a place to hide and just enjoy that moment holding her sleeping baby, then after a few hours she would prepare herself for an ultimate beating. It was a small price to pay for a few perfect moments of peace.
• Maria looked around in search of Michael. She had been so distracted with Elizabeth and the memories her perfect sleepy face brought, that she had taken her eyes off him longer than her usual time. She watched Michael’s every move, she couldn’t afford not to. She panicked when she couldn’t spot him. She immediately thought of Ricky, and how possible it was for him to walk out with Michael, Dave had. She stood up and rushed to the nurses’ station, careful not to wake Elizabeth.