They waited outside her office, fluorescent lights buzzing overhead. After a long while, Eileen returned holding a thin folder. She whispered, “Someone requested to alter this file. The signature is smudged, but it matches the initials of your mother in law.”
Trevor’s breath left him like a punctured tire. “My mom. Why would she do something like this.”
Breanna felt cold from the inside out. “I am going to ask her myself.”
Trevor’s mother lived in an adobe style home on the edge of town. Wind chimes tinkled across the porch. She opened the door with a polite smile that shattered when she saw Milo.
Her hand flew to her chest. “Where did you find him.”
Breanna’s voice shook. “In the plaza. Selling trinkets. Why did you hide him from me. Why did you take my child.”
The older woman’s composure collapsed. She backed up and sank into an armchair, trembling. “They said he would not survive. He was not breathing. The doctor said they did not have the equipment here to help him. A nurse I knew had a sister who volunteered with families in need. She took him. I thought he was gone. I thought I was saving you from grief.”
“You stole him,” Breanna whispered.
Trevor’s mother sobbed. “I believed it was merciful. I believed I was protecting you. I was wrong. I was so wrong.”
Milo hid behind Mason, watching the adults with wide frightened eyes.
Breanna knelt in front of him. “Milo, I am so sorry. For everything that was taken from you. If you want to come with us, we will make you part of our family.”
Milo’s lip trembled. “Do families stay. Or do they leave when things get messy.”
Breanna gathered him into her arms. “We stay. Even when it is messy. Especially then.”
They found Aunt Delores two days later in a clinic receiving treatment for pneumonia. When Milo saw her, he leaped into her arms and spoke so fast the words became jumbled. Delores listened to the story with eyes full of grief.
“I never meant to lie,” she murmured. “I was told he had no family who wanted him. I thought giving him love was better than losing him to a system.”
Breanna reached for her hand. “Thank you for loving him when we did not even know he existed. You saved him.”
Delores wiped her eyes. “If you can care for him now, let him go with you. Just let me visit. I want to watch him grow if he will let me.”
Milo nodded solemnly. “I want both. I want two moms. If that is allowed.”