Free Night Light by Terri Blackstock

her family. What if she’d been responsible for her siblings at age nine?
    Shame beat through her for thinking of these kids as trash. Aaron had kept them alive and together. Deni had known something about desperation herself, when she was on the road. Given the same set of circumstances, she might have become a thief too.
    Surely there were relatives who could love kids like this.
     
     
    U PSTAIRS IN L OGAN ’ S ROOM , D OUG HAD HIS HANDS FULL WITH A ARON and his brothers. He knew that when the family went to sleep, the boys were likely to rob them again and return home. For the past four months, since the killer in the neighborhood had been found, Doug had been able to sleep with relative peace. But tonight was going to be a long night. He had to convince the children it was in their best interests to stay.
    But Aaron was having none of it.
    “Look, Mister, I know you’re trying to help us and everything, but we don’t need your help. I can take care of my sister and brothers.”
    “You can’t take care of them by stealing, Aaron. That’s wrong, and it’s dangerous. You could get shot.”
    “I’m not afraid,” Aaron said.
    Jeff sat on the bed, staring at the angry kid. “Guys, wouldn’t it be better if you were in a clean house on decent beds without all that junk around? Without that smell? If you didn’t have to go scrounging for water and food? If you had somebody looking out for you so you didn’t have to leave those little kids by themselves while you go out stealing?”
    “What about Sarah?” Doug added. “She likes being fussed over. Don’t you think she deserves that? And little Luke hasn’t seemed too repulsed by Miss Kay’s affections. He needs somebody, even if you don’t.”
    Luke hung his head, as if he’d betrayed his brother. Doug could see the distrust in Aaron’s eyes.
    “I know what you’re gonna do,” Aaron said, the corners of his mouth twitching. “Now that the sheriff knows about us, you’re gonna get him to get us into foster homes. You don’t want us. You’ll probably dump us on the first person who’ll take us. You only took us because your wife made you.”
    The boy was more perceptive than he thought. “I brought you home because it was the right thing, Aaron.”
    Aaron breathed a mirthless laugh. “I’m not stupid, you know. Nobody here wants us, and that’s just fine.”
    Doug rubbed his face, hoping that he hadn’t just brought danger into his home. The kid was hostile, and desperate or not, he broke laws without batting an eye.
    But what else could Doug do? He couldn’t very well send them home, and turning them over to the sheriff was out of the question. Kay would never forgive him. He’d just have to stay on guard tonight, to make sure they didn’t clean them out. “Look, I know we got off to a bad start, but it was only because you took our food. We just need to start over. We brought you home because we care, but I can’t put you in a cage. If you decide to leave, I want you to think hard about whether you’re going to something better than I’m offering you.”
    Joey sat down on the carpet, crossing his legs in front of him. The boy had dark circles under his eyes. He looked weary with the burden of life. He looked up at Aaron with a pleading face. “We could stay here for a little while, Aaron,” he said. “It was good to have hot food tonight.”
    Aaron just looked at the floor.
    As tough as the kid was, he was scared. Whatever Doug had against him, Aaron did care for his siblings.
    Sighing, Doug set his hand on Aaron’s shoulder. “Aaron, I promise you, no foster homes, period. Trust me. The sheriff isn’t going to take you away from us until your relatives are found.”
    “That could be a long time,” Aaron said. “You don’t even know what you’re getting into.”
    Doug felt like he was talking to a peer, a grown man made stronger through suffering. It was hard to believe this was a little kid.
    “Why do you say that, Aaron?