Meant To Be (Coming Home To The Grove 2)

“I’m so embarrassed, sir. I thought they were in college,” Officer Crawford says.

I watch him closely as he’s talking, and I’m not convinced he’s telling the truth. However, it’s most likely Crawford didn’t care how old the girls are; he’s just happy to receive attention from the opposite sex. “Being a police officer is not about picking up women. It’s dangerous and requires men and women who have a passion to uphold and enforce the law. Now you’re new here, but being an officer with the Forest Grove Police Department requires you to act a certain way. We don’t flirt while on the job, and we definitely don’t proposition underage girls.”

Crawford starts to speak, but I hold my hand up to stop him. “I know. You say you didn’t know how old they were, but that’s a moot point. This is your first strike against you. You will be reprimanded, and it will go in your file.”

Crawford is red-faced, and I’m not sure if it’s from embarrassment or anger. He apologizes but does so in a way that tells me he’s not really sorry.

“Return your patrol car to the station. You can walk your beat today,” I tell him. I’m not going to put up with this type of behavior. If nothing else, the new rookie cop should know that.

I can tell that Crawford is angry, but at least he’s smart enough not to mouth off.

Dealing with him has left a sour taste in my mouth and ruined the good start to my day. I have a strong urge to return to the bakery to talk with Carrie. Something about her makes me feel happy and rejuvenated. It’s really too bad that I’m now going to have to follow Crawford back to the station to be sure he turns in his patrol car.5CarrieMy mom and her friends are coming in for their weekly lunch at the bakery. Luckily, Patty takes mercy on me and gives me an hour lunch so I won’t have to wait on them. I’m sure Patty knows that if I do, I’ll be the main topic of the conversation and nobody, especially me, wants to be part of that.

I pack up a sandwich and take it with the newspaper to Peach Park. It may be a little premature, but I’m going to start looking for a place to live. I know I’ll have to save first and last month’s rent, and there could be a deposit as well, but I still think it’s a good idea to see what my options are.

I circle one of the four listings just as I hear a child crying. Stunned, I sit startled for just a second before I go in search of where the noise is coming from. I find a little boy sitting on the water’s edge. “Hey there,” I say to him.

He looks up at me, his eyes wide, but doesn’t respond.

“Can you tell me your name?” I ask him.

But still, he only stares back at me with his eyes wide, and I can see that he’s scared. I look at his blue T-shirt that has what looks like a puzzle on it. Instantly, I recognize it as the symbol for autism.

I sit down next to him. Far enough not to scare him, but close enough that I can grab him if he happens to fall into the water. “I’m Carrie,” I tell him.

It’s midweek and schools are in session, so I figure the boy is about nine or ten. He should be at school, but all I can figure is he’s wandered away.

“I’m going to take out my phone and call a friend, okay?” I explain to him as I look up the number really quickly for the Forest Grove Police Department before I hit the button to make the call.

“Hello. I’m Carrie Baker, and I’m sitting at Peach Park near the water. I’m here with a little boy that seems to be lost,” I say into the phone, smiling at the little boy the whole time, hoping to reassure him.

The dispatcher tells me to sit tight, that someone is on their way, so I hang up and put my phone back in my pocket.

Waiting for the police, I ask him again, “What’s your name? Do you want to see a boat?”

He looks out at the water, but there’s not a boat. Finally he looks back at me, nodding his head. “Chris,” he answers me.

“Chris. Well, today is your lucky day. I’m going to make a boat for you.”

I start folding the newspaper, and he watches me closely as I work. Fold after fold and tucking in the edges. As soon as I have something that resembles a boat, I set it in the water and give it a little shove, and we watch as it floats through the water.