Chapter 4

On the day after July 4th, Caleb and Annie sat across from Bill Simpson and waited for him to finish reading the medical report in front of him. Finally, he looked up and said, "Well this ought to do it. Dr. Friedman says X-rays show some evidence of a mild case rickets in the wrist bones and knees. On top of that, some of the lab reports suggest long-term vitamin and mineral deficiencies. He's amazed that Caleb grew to be so tall in spite of his poor diet, and says it's a case of nature having a slight edge on poor nurturing. He's willing to testify that he was malnourished for several years. He says the fact that he put on so much weight over the last few weeks says a lot about how underfed he was."

Annie felt relieved. "So that justifies taking Caleb away from his aunt. Now how do we get me appointed as his foster parent until I can get adoption proceedings started?"

"Ah, yes. Well Dr. Friedman and I can both help that process along. I'll talk to Samantha Lewis over at Social Services and describe how well Caleb has done under your care so far. I can't see her standing in the way of you being named as his foster mother. As soon as that's done, we'll go to work on the adoption."

Caleb couldn't control himself. He twisted in his chair and threw his arms around her, laying his head against her breast, crying and laughing at the same time. "You done it, Annie! They're gonna let me live with you forever!"

Annie hugged him back and kissed the top of his head. "Well, maybe not forever, but until you're ready to be on your own, that's for sure."

Bill Simpson held up his hands and cautioned, "Hey, don't be popping any champagne corks just yet! There's still a helluva lot of paperwork to be done, and there's about a half a dozen people between here and there we have to convince. I don't want either one of you doing anything that will hurt our cause. Don't go around bragging or calling Meg Wilson any names; nothing that can come back on us at a hearing, you understand?"

Annie's mind briefly flashed on the thoughts she had on seeing Caleb naked, but quickly pushed them aside. She hadn't acted on those thoughts, had she? "Don't you worry about us, Bill. We'll be as pure as the driven snow."

He laughed, "I know you will, Annie. You two head on home and I'll go over to the courthouse and file the paperwork to have Caleb officially removed from Meg Wilson's custody. She'll be served notice tomorrow, and you can probably expect a visit from someone from Social Services in the next day or two."

"We'll be waiting for them. Thank you so much, Bill."

"Yeah," Caleb agreed as he stood with a wide grin and teary cheeks and offered his hand across the desk, "I sure do thank ya too, Mr. Simpson. I ain't never felt this happy before!"

"Grammar, Caleb," Annie laughed. Then she tousled his hair and said, "Never mind. I guess rules of grammar shouldn't count when you're excited, should they?"

On the way home, they couldn't help but celebrate just a little bit by stopping at the diner out on the highway and ordering two of their famous fried chicken dinners. Caleb ate all of his and most of hers.

The next morning at breakfast, Caleb laid Annie's book on the table and said, "I finished it last night. Boy, it sure was a grand story, Annie. Can I get started on the other one, the one about Huck's friend, Tom Sawyer?"

Annie was delighted with his enthusiasm. "You sure can. I'll get it for you right after breakfast. And just for your information, Mark Twain wrote a lot of short stories, too. They're fun to read when you just have an hour or so to use up in the afternoon or before bedtime. Most of them are really funny."

"Well I wanna read that one then. His stories are a lot better than comic books."

She patted him on the back and said, "You don't know how much it pleases me to hear you say that. What have you got planned for today?"

"I don't know. Not much, I guess. Is there somethin' you need done, 'cause I'd be happy to do it?"

"Nothing in particular. I was going to work in the garden for a while after breakfast, then drive over to Maywood High School to be interviewed for a teaching position I saw advertised in the paper. I think I'm about ready to go back to work."

"How come you don't try to get a job here, Annie?"

"Because I want to teach, and I have too much of a history with this high school. I think you know that."

"Yeah, well I heard what Aunt Nag said about ya, but they was all wrong, wasn't they?"

Another correction. "Yes, Caleb, they were shown to be wrong, weren't they? But that doesn't mean it will be forgotten. For some people, once they've heard a story, they can't let go of it. I just don't want to deal with that issue any more. Anyhow, Maywood's only twenty-three miles away. If I get the job, it won't be that much of a drive."

He didn't share her enthusiasm. "I wish you didn't have to work, though. I really like you bein' here at home with me."

"Well, when school starts again in September, we'll both be gone at the same time, won't we?"

He thought, then conceded with a grinned, "Yeah, I guess you're right. That was kinda dumb of me, wasn't it?"

"Not dumb, Caleb, just not thought through all the way! I appreciate your concern, sweetheart. Come give me a hug."

He stepped around the table and embraced her, laying his face against her thick hair. He loved the smell of her shampoo. They twisted back and forth as they hugged and Annie was suddenly aware of a bump pushing against her belly. She recognized it for what it was. She didn't dare do anything that might make him feel that he was doing something wrong, but she didn't want to encourage him either, so she stepped back, touched his cheek and said, "Now, what do you want for breakfast? Eggs or cereal?"

"Yes, please," he laughed as he quickly turned away and sat down to hide his little problem. He hoped she didn't notice. It's just that with the feel of her body against his and the smell of her hair, he couldn't stop it from happening. He loved her, but he was pretty sure he wasn't supposed to love her that way.

After lunch, when Annie was in the bathroom putting on her makeup before driving over to Maywood, there came a loud knock on the front door. Caleb was in his room reading.

Annie yelled out, "Caleb, go see who that is! I'm in the bathroom."

"Yes'm!" he hollered back.

When he opened the door, there stood Aunt Meg, red-faced and as mad as a wet hen.

She jerked the screen door open and started to push her way into the living room. "Where's that hussy? I'm gonna snatch the hair right outta her head!"

"No you ain't!" Caleb shot back as he blocked her way.

She did what she always did when the boy irritated her; she slapped him.

But he didn't do what he always did, which was to cringe and scramble out of her way. He hauled off and slapped her back. Hard!

Meg Wilson brought her hand up to her stinging face and stepped back with a look of utter shock. "Caleb," she gasped, "You slapped me!"

He glared into her eyes with pure hate and defiance. "That's right, Aunt Nag! And if you don't get off Miss Jamison's property this minute, I'm gonna do a lot worse!" He showed her his doubled up fist and she took another step back.

That's when Annie emerged from the bathroom in her robe to see what all the noise was about. When she spotted Meg, she went cold with fury. "What the hell are you doing here? Caleb's no longer yours to boss around!"

Meg recovered from the slap and came back, "You lied to me, you cheap slut! You said you wouldn't say nothin' if I let the boy stay here. Now you gone and told the Social Services and they come out this mornin' and served me with papers takin' him away from me. I ain't gonna git no more county allotment!"

"I didn't lie to you, you old witch! I just changed my mind, and you wanna know why? It's because the doctor said you damn near starved this boy to death, that's why. I wouldn't be surprised if the County Attorney didn't charge you with criminal neglect and send you to jail. I hope to hell they do, because I'll be more than happy to testify against you. Now you get off my property before I forget my manners and kick your fat ass all the way out to the road!"

Meg turned and waddled across the porch, shouting over her shoulder, "You ain't gonna git away with this! I swear you ain't!"

Annie shot back, "I've already gotten away with it, bitch! You show up here again and I'll file charges of trespassing and assault on a minor."

She slammed the door shut.

As his anger, ebbed, Caleb actually trembled at the thought that he'd struck his aunt. "Jeez, Annie, I sure didn't expect that, did you? I hit her! I mean, I never hit nobody in my whole life, but I slapped her right in the face!"

She gave him a quick hug and said, "First of all, you were justified. She hit you first, didn't she? And secondly, I actually did kind of expect her to do something. At least I knew she wouldn't give up that monthly check without a fuss. But don't you worry, Caleb, she won't dare come back here again. Just to make sure, I'll tell Bill Simpson and see if he can't get some kind of a restraining order against her. That way, if she comes back, she'll be arrested."

Caleb considered that for a moment, then said, "Well, I guess I don't wanna see her hauled off to jail, but I don't ever wanna see her again, neither. Why can't she just leave us alone?"

"Just try to forget it, OK? Hey, do you want to ride with me over to Maywood? You can take some of your money and shop around in some of the stores while I do my interview."

That brought a smile back to his face. "Yes'm, I'd like that. Could we get some ice cream when you're done?"

She rose up on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek. "Sounds like a great idea. You buying?"

"You bet I am!"

They stopped at Bill Simpson's office on the way to Maywood to report the incident. He said he'd get one of the judges to issue a restraining order and have it served before the end of the day.

When they got back home late that afternoon, Annie got out of her dress-up clothes and put on an old house dress, then headed into the kitchen to get started on dinner. Caleb went back to "Tom Sawyer". After an hour of reading, he went into the kitchen to ask if there was anything he could do to help. And maybe sneak a bite of something.

"Um, not really," she said, "I've got a pot roast and some vegetables cooking in the oven. Everything will be ready in about an hour. Can you hold out that long?"

"Yes'm. It's just you're such a good cook and I'm always hungry. How about I wash dishes after dinner, since you done everything else?"

"You'll get no argument from me. It's nice of you to offer."

As she bustled about the kitchen, he sat at the table and watched her closely. The old house dress was of a light cloth to begin with, and it had been washed so many times it was becoming tissue thin. He could clearly see her brassier and her panties underneath the dress, and that caused him to get hard. Once, as she reached up to get a platter from the shelf, the hem of her dress rode up in the back exposing her legs halfway up to her underwear. His breath caught and he unconsciously let out a short grunt of approval.

"Hmm?" Annie asked, "Did you say something?"

He looked away, flushing with embarrassment over his momentary loss of control, "Uh, no! I just had somethin' stuck in my throat, is all."

"Oh. Why don't you go out to the garden and cut some lettuce for a salad? See if there are any ripe tomatoes and pull a couple of green onions."

"Yes'm." He grabbed a paring knife and quickly headed out the door, thankful for an excuse to escape, and hoping she didn't see his embarrassment.

But she did. In fact, she was aware that he'd been watching her closely over the past few days. That along with the erection he grew when they hugged that time told her his hormones were making changes in his behavior as well as his body. It wasn't at all uncommon with her male students, so it shouldn't be unexpected with Caleb. The difference was that they lived in the same house. She felt a certain amount of flattery at his reaction to her, but it could easily grow into a problem if she wasn't very careful about what she said and did around him.

As they enjoyed the nice dinner, Caleb asked, "Hey, you know what I seen over to Maywood while you was at the school?"

She chuckled and corrected, "OK, that should have come out, 'Hey, do you know what I saw in Maywood while you were at the school?' And no, I don't. What did you see in Maywood?"

"Well, I was walkin' down by the hardware and appliance store, and right there in the front window, there was a thing they call a television! Honest! It looked kinda like a big radio 'cept it had a glass window about so big in the front and you could watch shows on it. There was a picture of some women singing and then there was a man playin' on a piano. Did you ever see one of them - one of those things?"

"Yes I have. I understand they're becoming very popular. Maybe after we finish all the work on the house, if they're not too expensive, we might think about getting one. But I'll tell you my concern. I have a mental image of people sitting around all day doing nothing but watching that screen. I can't imagine that would be good for us, can you?"

"Um, maybe not, but I wouldn't mind seein' a show in the evenin' or after school."

"Frankly, I'd rather see you reading a book than staring at a television, but we'll see. More pot roast?"

"Yes, please." He held out his plate as she loaded it up.

Later that evening, after he had finished washing the dishes, Caleb was sitting by the radio in the living room listening to one of his favorite shows, 'Fibber McGee and Molly'. Annie came out of her bedroom wearing her robe and pink, fuzzy slippers and headed for the bathroom.

"I'm going to have a nice long soak in the tub. Anything you need before I get started? Because I refuse to be disturbed for at least an hour once I climb in."

"Nope, I'm just gonna listen to the radio for a while. I'll take my bath and brush my teeth when you're done."

"Right. Well don't knock on that door unless the house is on fire."

"I won't."

He heard the water running, then he heard some 'ooh's' and 'aah's' as she got settled in. When 'Fibber McGee and Molly' signed off, he tried to find another comedy program but all he could get was music. As he lay there on the floor listening, he got to thinking about Annie naked in the bathtub and got a little bit excited. As the image persisted in his mind, he was drawn to do something he knew he shouldn't do, but it's like he couldn't stop himself.