Santuary of love

The conference room was heavy with silence, broken only by the broken sobs of five women who did not know whether to be sad at the loss or furious at the events that provoke it. Plus, the glow of helplessness in everyone present was vile evidence of the pain that accompanied them all of them sure of having failed. “Armatos, this cannot happen again. One time is too much.” The newspapers with the news, the file that had never reached their hands in the search for information on the future father. All this made up a group of truths and lies, which seemed more like a nightmare. The couple had arrived two years ago to the small town, looking for a child to love, that could complete their family. Finding the Adoption House: Sanctuary of Love, with new formats of adoption. They had ten years of experience, five homes with children of different ages and until that moment one hundred percent of happy and healthy homes, each charged with the support of the Sanctuary administrators. When Cristopher had requested that the couple adopt him a few months ago, they had all taken a leap of faith. The couple had to move again in a few weeks. The eleven-year-old boy was ready to go with them, he had even given a talk to several of the administrators about the reasons why he should go with them. One of the requirements of the adoptive home was that every child had to be under the supervision of the mothers of the homes for one year, the couple received direct support in the process of acclimatizing to new family composition. They even participated in activities and group workshops for new parents according to the ages of the children. With Cristopher the procedure had not been followed, they had been thoroughly investigated, but Paul's truth was never reached, he was an abuser and Laura a passive victim. Two sick beings, who had to hide it very well from everyone. The alarm had come late, a sealed file in Paul's life in which as a young man he had murdered a puppy for being the focus of his girlfriend's attention. Which he had r***d and left for dead, after killing the puppy. The information didn’t disclose all because of the damn bureaucracy, perhaps they should have waited longer, but they never imagined that the information sealed by being a minor of fifteen when he committed the facts, would cost them the life of one of their children. The law had denied them the file. Before the law, there was no way to judge the adult for acts committed in his adolescence. The data on the death of Laura and Cristopher was unclear, according to the news, a jealous man had killed his wife and son. This had been days before two Sanctuary mothers and a lawyer was going to visit them. “How was it that when moving, we lost the visitation rights on Cristopher?” “According to the laws of the Department of the Family, at being in another state, that state officials had to make the visits. But Cristopher was one more on their lists ... so the visits were never made.” Reymund said with a hoarse voice, he seemed not to have slept in several nights, which was shared by all the fellow lawyers of the Sanctuary. No one recognized what rest was since Cristopher's loss. Everyone was looking for answers, everyone needed answers, after that nightmare. “Then explain to me why our first visit was canceled.” Katty's loud cry of anguish made many jumps. A fifty-six-year-old woman used to work with delicate, sick, and addicted children never screamed. “Katty, remember that Cristopher was the one who asked us not to go that week. Since they had planned to make a trip to visit us and he wanted to see us all. The visit never happened. I think it could be an empty promise from the parents, within the outcome. What I do agree with Veronica is that this cannot happen again. Our children cannot get lost in the bureaucratic system. On a legal level, the extra time allowed them to get us out of the process. The mother requested the process, so they had something to hide from us.” Armatos had his fist was white for the force he was doing.   “How did they pass the background check?” “Paul's parents paid a small fortune for their son to be completely clean of a criminal record. The file that is on the table was obtained by one of the investigators in a non-legal way.” Armatos had a piece of himself made into pieces, but he had to be there. Cristopher deserved to review everything they did and look for the mistake. He was more than in agreement with Verónica, this could not happen again. He had accompanied her to recognize the boy's body, had seen her fight with the authorities to recover the body and be able to take it home. During the burial, a wildfire flashed in the female eyes, which had never happened before. Now the pieces had to be picked up, but she seemed ready to make war on whoever wanted to take any of her children. Veronica had always been a calm port in the storm, the safe haven for all those who had gotten hurt. Even when she was a teenager stuck to her grandmother, she was the one who had managed to heal the wounds of all the children who were sent to those places, tagging them as lost. Where a Doña Carlota, with a genius of a thousand demons, with a heart the size of the universe and eager to love as the ocean had welcomed them, her grandmother made the first house, a real home. At that moment, Veronica was more like her grandmother at the time, with a murderous look and a mind capable of destroying the system that had taken from them Cristopher's life. “I want this to be known, I want the Supreme Court to find out what they have done. I don't care how or how long it takes, but I want our homes and adoption centers to have the green light to peer into the damn panties and briefs of potential parents. It is clear?” The voice was not loud, but it gives some of them goosebumps. The problem some of the mothers were affirming and looking to the lawyers as if they must make it possible. “You're going to go against the system,” Raymund says with a little scare in his voice. That could provoke a lot of problems. “I'm going to take God himself, the devil, the system, and even the president through the middle if they dare to put themself in front of us. I repeat it to all of you, this cannot happen again. This case is one of the hundreds that we have worked on, but this damn crap must be happening by thousands elsewhere. We know very well that they did not easily take Cristopher out of this Sanctuary. They were investigated, they were evaluated by different professionals. They even had to work at the homes until a boy or girl chose them. What about places where adults choose children. These homes are not a damn kid’s supermarket!” Veronica's voice had nothing to do with screaming and hysteria, so it was much more intimidating. What guided her was a silent fury. “I want to speak to the investigator who found this file.” “I don't know if it's possible. He is a lone wolf. I got him to work for us in this case, because I promised not to give his information. “I don't give a damn, give him my number, my address and tell him he has work to do. I want him to be the one to investigate future parents. I want to know even the brand of toothpaste they buy.” Armatos did not know what to think, violations of the laws would not be the first time. But Veronica was obsessed with the subject, so there was no way to refuse. “Ok, I give him your info. I do not promise anything.” “Armatos, I'm going to put it clearly for you. Literally, tell that detective that I want him by my side working with our children. I will pay what is necessary if he does not accept and one of our little ones suffers from lack of information, I will keep taking out intestines and put them in his hands.” Veronica looked around without any compassion and speaking very seriously. “Is it clear?” Everyone in the room whispered, hands raised. No one was going to contradict a piss off angel. Veronica walked out the door with her heart pounding, to enter her office as if a thousand demons were chasing her. She had no idea how she was going to get all this back on track, but she refused to lose one of his babies for lack of information. Veronica was sure it would have been enough to have visited Cristopher a few days before, to be able to save his life. Maybe one day would have been enough to save her baby. Hell, why they had been left out. She had failed her grandmother, the children who trust her to protect them, but most of all she had failed Cristopher and she couldn't help feeling without power.