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"Danny, this is... amazing."
That million dollar knowing smile lights up the kid's face. "I haven't given one to Mom." The anxiety in his eyes makes a brief appearance as he looks toward the house, but it's wiped clean when he turns back. "Don't want to freak her out too early."
"Yeah." It's apparently okay to freak out John, though. They stand in the yard while John looks at the drawing Danny had given him, inside a tattered manila envelope with a green bow taped on it. It's thirty degrees and the kid has no coat while he leans against John's Crown Vic. Some kids are just like that, though, metabolism too high. Still...
"You don't like it."
"Not true, Danny."
"But... ?"
But. Danny obviously has the wrong idea about him and John has no clue how to fix it with what he's allowed to tell him. The drawing is brilliant. He had no idea the kid was this talented. If this was of him and his wife he'd ask to keep it.
"But... it's not like that."
"What do you mean?"
"Your mom and me, we don't have this kind of relationship."
"You're not going to marry her?"
"No, nothing at all like that. I'm sorry if I gave you that impression." What the hell? He's never touched the woman, never so much as looked at her sideways. He only comes around a couple of times a year.
He shouldn't be checking on them this close to Christmas. He shouldn't have taken Danny for ice cream the last time he came, or played catch with him the time before that. It had helped keep the kid at ease, seemed less like an interrogation each time. John had thought it was helpful.
"How will she get better then?"
"Better? Has she been worse?" The kid doesn't look any thinner than a few months ago though that's not saying much. Last time he checked Danny's records he hadn't been missing as much school. Brooks has never been the picture of mental fortitude but she's kept a job for a few months and she usually seems fairly stable when they speak privately after sending Danny off to play.
Danny snatches the drawing out of his hand. "Never mind. It doesn't matter." He turns around, starts toward the house.
"Of course, it matters."
Now that John thinks about it, this is the first time he's come around without speaking to Parker first in quite some time. Parker had told him from the beginning she'd do whatever it takes to keep Danny out of Child Protective Services. Maybe she's been tipping Brooks off, helping her get her act together during his visits. No wonder Danny wants him to stick around.
"Danny- "
Danny whips back around, his face imploring to understand why, "Then why do you come here? Who are you?"
"Just a friend, Danny."
"Well, we don't need any friends. We're fine."
"It's my job to make sure you are."
"Your... job?"
He hates that look of betrayal, but he doesn't want to lie to the boy any more than he already has to. "That doesn't mean I don't care about all of you, Danny. I want to make sure you're safe."
But Danny's already shutting down. "Sure." The walls surge up as if they'd never talked about art or baseball or The A-Team. He heads toward the porch and pulls his bike down onto the frozen grass.
"Where are you going?"
"Library."
John doubts that.
"Danny!" He doesn't turn back as he disappears down the icy sidewalk, legs pumping the pedals in a determination most nine year olds reserve for racing friends or running from a prank gone wrong.
John sighs, takes in the neighborhood of twinkling lights and greenery edged windows. Not middle class, but trying. Then he turns toward the house in front of him. Paper snowflakes taped to the windows, made out of grade school notebook paper, the only outward sign of the approaching holiday.
Nobody answers John's knocks at the door. It's not the best idea to just let himself in, especially since he didn't bring his badge, but a visual inside the house is part of his regular inspections and it's not like Brooks will call the cops on a U.S. Marshal.
The place is a mess. Either the heat's not working or she's leaving it off, there's not much food in the fridge and there are no lights on the small Christmas tree. He raps on the bedroom door, though it's cracked open and he can see she's out, some type of prescription bottle on the nightstand.
As he drives toward Parker's place, he prepares a mental list of ideas on getting her to move in with Brooks. If she wants to keep CPS away, she's going to have to keep a better eye on them.
Then another list... reasons to stay on this assignment. These witness check-ins aren't any less stressful than chasing the fugitives he'd promised his wife he'd stay away from.