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Stu listened impassively, his hands clasped on the desk blotter in front of him. My employer was attempting to be calm as well, but her lips thinned as I described how Ron had been beaten because of her sister's lies.

Christy looked surprisingly upset as I told the story. I almost stopped at one point, but that would have embarrassed her. She was sitting on the far side of my employer, so nobody was noticing her reaction but me.

When I finished, my employer shook her head. "I confess that I've always thought my determination to keep Ron with us was somewhat selfish, because she means so much to me. But she is never going back to those people."

"If they did get custody somehow," I said, "I'm quite sure that she would run away at the first opportunity and try to get back to us."

"A journey which might be beyond even young Ron's capabilities," Stu said. "We should make sure it doesn't come to that."

Christy blew her nose and they turned to look at her. "I'm sorry," she said. "It's just that the description of her father sounds a lot like Jason's father." She glanced at Stu. "Jason is my son," she explained. "Do Ron's parents drink?"

I shrugged. "She didn't mention it. Maybe."

"Doesn't matter. I hope not. It sounds bad enough without that."

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