The Cast-Off Kids by Trisha Merry Read Free Book Online Page A

to have with his biscuit. ‘Is AJ actually his name?’ I asked.
    ‘Sort of,’ said Mark, the social worker. ‘It’s what he answers to. I checked and his full name is Anthony John, but he says nobody calls him Anthony – only
AJ.’
    ‘Would you like to go down to the playroom, AJ, and meet some of the other children?’ I asked him.
    ‘Yes, OK,’ he said with a shrug of his bony shoulders. Even with his clothes on I could see how thin and puny he was. I hoped his carers last night had given him a good hot meal and
a long night’s sleep.
    ‘I’m afraid we don’t have any of his things, any clothes or anything,’ explained Mark as we followed the hubbub coming from the children in the playroom.
    ‘That’s all right,’ I assured him. ‘We’ve got plenty of spares in AJ’s size.’
    Mark left us once he’d watched AJ settle down to playing with Ronnie and given us the rudimentary paperwork – mostly empty spaces.
    The day seemed to pass well for AJ, who ate ravenously at lunchtime before Ronnie and Paul roped him into building a garage and lining up the cars. Then it was teatime and he demolished a big
portion of sausages, mash and baked beans.
    After tea, while the others ‘helped’ Mike and Lizzie to clear up the tea-things, I took AJ up to see his room.
    ‘This is your bed,’ I showed him.
    He immediately picked up the dog. ‘Is this mine?’ he asked, with his first proper smile of the day, then threw the dog in the air and it landed in the middle of his eiderdown.
    ‘Yes, you can give him a name if you like.’
    ‘Buster,’ he said. ‘I always wanted a dog called Buster.’
    ‘I’m going to get you some clothes of your own, too,’ I said, as I showed him his side of the wardrobe and the two bottom drawers that would be his.
    ‘Thank you.’ He looked at me with a solemn gaze. ‘Will I be staying here?’
    ‘Yes, sweetheart. I hope you can stay here for quite a while.’
    ‘Good,’ he said, trying to hold back the tears. ‘I like this bed.’
    After bathtime I tucked him up in his cosy bed, clutching Buster. ‘Sleep well.’ I gave him a peck on the forehead, dimmed the nightlight and half-closed the door, so that I could
listen.
    ‘You’ll like it here,’ said Ronnie. ‘We’re going to be mates, you and me.’
    ‘And me,’ added Paul.
    ‘OK,’ agreed AJ. Then silence. He must have fallen straight off to sleep.
    ‘Our new little lad, AJ, looks very underfed, doesn’t he?’ asked Mike later that evening.
    ‘Yes, but he’s already started to make up for that. He ate three fat sausages for his tea, so I’m sure he’ll soon start filling out,’ I said. ‘I’m more
concerned about his emotional neglect. I gave him a kiss on his forehead as I tucked him into bed tonight, and he seemed to flinch. I don’t know whether he was surprised or dismayed. It was
as if nobody had ever kissed him before. It’s hard to imagine, isn’t it? A mother not kissing her own child.’
    ‘Yes. No wonder he looks so miserable.’
    ‘The other thing . . .’
    ‘What . . . ?’
    ‘Have you noticed his movements? How uncoordinated he seems to be? Almost as if he has a mild case of cerebral palsy.’
    ‘I noticed that he was a bit clumsy today with the building bricks, and there’s something odd about his walk,’ agreed Mike.
    ‘He seems to get on well with Ronnie, doesn’t he? I hope they’ll be good friends for each other.’
    ‘As long as Paul doesn’t mind the competition.’
    ‘Paul’s not like that,’ I said. ‘He likes a rough and tumble with the boys and they’re the only three at the moment.’
    ‘AJ seems a good lad.’
    ‘Never speak too soon,’ I warned with a smile. ‘He may turn out to have a lot of problems!’
    ‘I don’t think so. We’ll get some love into him and he’ll be fine.’
    I hoped Mike would be right, but I wasn’t so sure.

6
A Steal a Day
    O n Monday morning, I trundled the pram and all the children down to the village school as