Valerie Hansen - Standing Guard

Danny never said a word during their drive, not even when Lindy pulled into the Pearson Products gravel lot and stopped the car.

“I made sure there was a healthy snack waiting for you inside,” she said as she helped him out and hefted his pack. “I stopped at the market this morning and bought some of your favorites.”

Still, he didn’t answer. Lindy was thankful he at least let her take his hand and lead him into the building without throwing a tantrum. There had been times in the not-too-distant past when he’d balked at merely leaving his bedroom at home, let alone the house. Starting back to school had been a big step. Going to church again would be, too. And if Danny already knew his teacher, that would hopefully be an even easier transition.

Work momentarily ceased as they made their entrance. Lindy merely waved at the women packing merchandise and hurried Danny through the warehouse to the office.

The child had always acted withdrawn around his father but with other people he knew, he had been fairly outgoing. Until the shooting. After that he had seemed unable to relax unless they were totally alone. Maybe, once he got used to keeping her company in the office, he’d be able to loosen up and be more like his old self again.

Thad started to rise when she and Danny entered, then eased back down into his chair when Lindy silently signaled him to keep his distance.

What amazed her the most was how quickly he understood what she wanted. Not only did he tip back the chair, he laced his fingers behind his head and struck a nonchalant pose that would have fooled her if she hadn’t noticed the clear concern in his eyes.

“This is Danny,” Lindy said. “Danny, I want you to meet Mr. Pearson.”

Instead of offering to shake hands with the boy, Thad just smiled. “Hi.”

Although Danny didn’t reply, Lindy did see him dart a glance toward the man. So far, so good. At least he hadn’t broken away and raced out the door.

Gazing around for a place to make Danny comfortable, Lindy belatedly realized there were no empty surfaces on which he could do homework, nor was there a suitable chair for him.

She sighed and addressed her son. “Hmm. I wonder where we should put you?”

“Home,” he said softly.

At that, Thad chuckled and slowly got to his feet. “Tell you what, kid,” he drawled. “How would you like a room all your own, like a fort? I used to build those all the time when I was your age.”

Although the child edged closer to his mother and kept her between himself and the man, he seemed interested.

Thad crossed the small room and began assembling and taping empty cardboard boxes into the square shapes used for shipping. Lindy could tell he was choosing the largest ones and quickly saw that he was making the adult equivalent of children’s building blocks.

When he’d completed about fifteen he motioned to Danny. “Think this is enough? I figured we’d stack them over here, like this.”

The timid boy released his mother’s hand, much to her surprise, and took several steps forward. He pointed.

“Where?” Thad asked. “Here? Maybe over there? I don’t quite understand.”

Danny took three more steps, paused, then pointed again.

“Sorry, kid. Guess I’m dense. Where did you want these?”

“Over there, like this,” Danny replied, making the final journey and grabbing the closest cardboard cube. The box was large but lightweight because it was empty. He swung it into place against the wall, then added another on top of it.

“Oh, I get it,” Thad said, maintaining a serious yet friendly demeanor. “That’s smart. If we stack them in the corner we won’t need as many.”

“Yeah,” Danny replied, loud enough for his mother to hear.

Lindy was flabbergasted. Here was a child who exhibited unnatural fear of strangers, particularly big, strong men, yet he was pitching in to build a cardboard fort with Thad as if they were old friends. Amazing!

While she watched, Lindy saw her son allow Thad closer and closer, and her fondest hope was that this temporary truce would become permanent.

“Not like that,” Danny said. “Put the big ones on the bottom and the little ones on top. See? They won’t fall over if you do that.”

“Gotcha. You’re pretty smart, aren’t you? How old are you? About twelve?”

The boy grinned. “Naw. I’m almost eight. But I’m big for my age.”

“You sure are.” Thad straightened and backed away, hands fisted on his hips. “Think that will do or should we go find more boxes and make higher walls?”

“That’s good like it is,” Danny said, considering their construction as if he were the architect of a skyscraper. “It needs a door.”

“Hard to do without a frame,” Thad said. “How about we give that some thought while you get used to your new office?”

The child giggled and looked to Lindy. “Okay, Mom?”

“Perfect. Have you thanked Mr. Pearson?”

Thad raised his hands in the air and backed away. “No need for that. We both worked on it. Now, what about furniture? Danny can’t do his homework without a table and chair.”

“Really, I...” Lindy’s objection was cut short by Thad’s warning glance. “Right,” she continued brightly. “How are you two geniuses going to make those?”

She saw her usually reticent son look up to the ex-marine as if he held the answers to all life’s questions.

Thad began to grin. “I have an idea. We’re pretty much out of boxes in here. Follow me.”

He never looked back as he strode past Lindy to the door. It was as if he knew Danny would follow. As if he was willing him to trust. And so he did.

She stood at the office door and watched an amazing transformation occurring. Not only was Danny keeping up with Thad, he had double-timed enough to walk beside him. The sight of her timid son joining such a sizeable man in any endeavor left her speechless.

Maybe this job was more than the answer to her prayers for employment. Maybe it was for Danny’s benefit, as well.

She began to smile in spite of deep concerns over her fragile financial situation. Yes, she was still very worried about the canceled credit cards and her missing money, but there were more important things in life than that. Danny’s recovery and future happiness meant more to her than all the money in the world.

Even if the cause of the cyber attack on her finances was never found, the unexpected side effects of that hacking were something to be celebrated. There she was, in a job she wouldn’t have gotten if she hadn’t been in trouble, watching her son warm up to a man he might never have gotten close to otherwise. How could she complain? This was almost too good to be true.

* * *

Thad hadn’t been sure his ploy would work until he’d seen the sparkle in Danny’s eyes. It was obvious that the boy’s mother loved him dearly but, somewhere along the line she’d lost her sense of playfulness. That was where Thad had the advantage and he intended to make the most of it.

Gathering stacks of slim cartons that were still in bundles from their delivery, he wound a short stack in plastic wrap and handed it to Danny. “Here you go. You carry the desktop and I’ll bring the sides.”

The child was beaming when he returned to where his mother waited. Thad was pretty happy himself, especially considering the beatific smile on Lindy’s face when she gazed at her son.

It must be comforting to please someone that much, he mused, refusing to let himself dwell on that thought. It was his job to help this fractured family and that was exactly what he was going to do. Period. He wasn’t about to picture himself as part of it.

It had taken him months to accept the fact that the military shrinks had been right about his mental state. Because of nightmares and flashbacks caused by the PTSD, he wasn’t the right person to parent his brother’s kids and it wasn’t fair to make them wait for a new home until he was well again—if he ever would be.