PROLOGUE

A branch extending from the darkness clawed a small scratch on Amy’s pale white cheek. The tears that streamed down her face were not from the unseen talons or the bruises acquired as she moved relentlessly farther into the Wood. The horror of her situation had brought her tears, cultivating sorrow until despair was in full bloom. Life had become unbearable.

Amy looked into the eyes of the infant child that lay wrapped and silent in her arms. Though she loved the infant dearly, the child was tainted. The child was his as well as hers.

Exhaustion overcame her will to continue and Amy slumped to the ground. The pills that had dulled her senses could do nothing to ease her broken heart. Amy placed the baby on the ground next to her and removed the small knife from the pocket in her white cotton dress. Unravelling the small blanket exposed the baby girl.

Amy shouted, “Oh God why? Didn’t I love you?” Neither the Wood or God offered a reply.

She removed the sheath from the knife revealing a blade that glistened even in the dim moonlight. She held the blade to the child’s wrist. The child looked at its mother and started to cry, perhaps sensing its mother’s distress, or perhaps in some way trying to communicate the desire to live. Amy gripped the knife harder and squeezed on the baby’s arm. The child cried louder. Suddenly Amy let go of the arm, ashamed she had caused the baby harm. Behind the tears, a smile broke as Amy realised she was not able to hurt the child.

“I’m so sorry my sweet little thing, but Mommy has to go. There is a part of you I love with both pieces of my heart, but your father is a devil, a deceiver and a most vile man. I can’t go on but God will decide for you.”

Amy took the blade and drew it across her wrist and then the next. She felt no pain, just a strange warmth in her arms as her life drained away.

Chapter One

Leaving their home Maggie and Taylor Pritchard walked the side roads heading toward Richmond Nature Park. It was six thirty-five and the warmth of the early morning July sun could already be felt on their faces. The contrasting cool air made the hairs on their exposed arms bristle. Maggie grabbed Taylor’s arm tight, giving it a hug as she had done on so many occasions. Taylor looked across to see her smiling; her light brown hair appeared to sparkle as rays of sunshine flashed through the curls.

“It’s not that cold.”

“I’m just giving you a hug. You didn’t warm me up this morning…I love this time of day, it’s so quiet, peaceful and the air’s still fresh,” Maggie replied, taking in a deep breath.

“It’s your turn to cook breakfast when we get back.”

They made their way across Shell Road and entered the west side of the park. Richmond Nature Park is a mass of trees and dirt path walks in an area about a mile square. The park had been cut in half by the construction of the Ninety-nine expressway that headed south to Seattle and ended about two miles north of the park.

Maggie had decided on the walk this Saturday morning. Taylor had proposed a cycle route along the Fraser River toward the airport to watch the planes coming in. Maggie had prevailed.

At this time in the morning it was still possible to catch some of the more nocturnal wildlife snooping around the woods for a final few minutes before disappearing off into their hideaways. The birds would be wide awake and at their most vocal as if this were the only time of the day they could hear themselves talk. The trail Maggie and Taylor chose would take two hours to cover even at the brisk pace they were use to, and meant they would cover most of the twelve miles of trails the park had to offer.

The treks gave them an opportunity to catch up on office gossip. Taylor was a computer programmer for a large IT consultancy. Four years ago he had been assigned as part of a much larger team, to help customise and install a new CRM system for a bank in downtown Vancouver. Maggie was already working at the bank as a Customer Services Manager and had also been assigned to the eighteen month CRM project. Customer Relationship Management was all the rage - knowing who your customers are and anticipating what services they might want or perhaps more precisely, understanding what you might best be able to sell them.

Only two months into the project, Taylor and Maggie had started going out. Just over two years later they were getting married, and they were still working on the same project. One hundred percent over duration and two hundred percent over budget, the new system eventually went live. Maggie was reassigned back to Customer Services but with increased responsibility and not much more pay. Taylor was told to stay on to help clear the four hundred and sixty-two known defects that still remained in the Production system.

As they reached a fork in the main walkway an old man dressed in black shorts and what looked like a blue nylon vest came running up from behind them. Taylor stepped toward the left of the fork.

As he passed, the old man said, “Used to run that way. Too old for it now though, just the five miles for me. See ya.”

“Er..yeah, see ya,” Taylor replied, with a look of surprise. “Wow, I hope I’m that keen when I’m a hundred and six.”

“Come on, no slacking now or you won’t reach sixty,” she said bounding passed him and on up the left fork.

It took about thirty minutes for them to reach the Ninety-nine. The elevated six-lane road suddenly appears as the trees give way to the concrete alien. The path opens up and continues underneath, and then gets swallowed up once again by the trees. By the time Maggie and Taylor had entered the east side of the park, the temperature had risen and the smell of foliage rose with the warming air.

Other than the veteran jogger, the park was quiet and clear of the doubtless many joggers and bikers that would be filling the park in the next few hours. Quiet until Maggie’s scream echoed around the towering trees. She saw a pale hand only partially covered by leaves, lying just off to the side of the path.

Taylor looked around at Maggie wondering what was going on. Maggie’s hands were held to her face, her mouth agape, her eyes fixed on something. He turned and looked in the direction she was staring. The body of a young woman lay motionless on the ground, eyes open and motionless fixing a stare at the sky above. The body was clothed in a white dress that was soiled, muddied, and bloody. There were deep lacerations to each wrist and lines where blood had poured out and onto the ground, darkening the soil and reddening surrounding leaves. Taylor looked back at Maggie, tears now escaping her eyes. She turned away and into Taylor’s arms as he walked over to her.

Taylor sat Maggie down on the floor.

“Are you okay?” Taylor asked.

“I think I’m gonna be sick.”

“Sit here for a moment, I’ll call the Police.”

Taylor stood up and pulled his cell phone from his jeans back pocket and checked for a connection. As he was about to make the call, Taylor heard something, faint but familiar and totally unexpected. He took a few steps beyond the body of the girl and looked into a clump of mixed leaves and foliage. A soiled white blanket partially covered by leaves, lay on the ground. Another sound, loud enough this time that Maggie heard it, she too registered the noise but not quite believing what her ears were telling her.

“Maggie, come here.”

Maggie looked up, her sobbing stopped. “What is it?” She said, getting to her feet.

“Come here. There’s a baby, it’s just lying here.”

Maggie got up and took the few steps over to Taylor. Looking down, she saw a beautiful baby, not more than a few weeks old, lying on the ground amongst the leaves. The baby looked up at Maggie, its eyes wide and alert, repeating the gurgle sound it had made earlier. Maggie bent down and gently picked the baby up. Gently tilting the baby around Maggie checked the infant for any signs of harm.

“It’s a beautiful girl…who needs a clean nappy. She’s beautiful,” Maggie repeated, using the palm of her hand to warm the child’s cheek. “She looks healthy but her cheeks are a bit pale and she’s cold. Do you think she’s been here long?”

“I’ve no idea. I guess probably just a few hours,” Taylor replied, looking around at the scene.

“Why would a mother take her own life and leave her baby like this?”

Taylor remembered the phone in his hand. As he dialled 911 he said, “You don’t know if she was the mother.”

*  *  *  *

Maggie sat holding the baby. Taylor kept pacing backwards and forwards and for a moment he thought about leaving the baby and the body for the Police to find; not getting himself involved. The thought quickly left him as he realised it wasn’t something he could bring himself to do, and he knew Maggie wouldn’t leave the baby. He then remembered that he had given his name when making the 911 call. He became anxious with the possibility of others passing-by and how the situation might look. Taylor was thankful when the first people to arrive were the Medics.

The Police arrived moments later, initially only two uniformed officers who soon radioed in and requested more support. Taylor checked his watched. It had taken them around twenty minutes to arrive; must have stopped at the top of the embankment and made their way down, he thought.

 Taylor provided personal details and confirmation of his ID to one of the officers, who also took a short statement. One of the two medics that had arrived at the scene took the baby from Maggie. After checks for heart rate, blood pressure and temperature, he seemed happy with the infant’s condition. The second medic and other officer were with the body. Maggie found herself unable to take much of an interest in what they we doing, her thoughts were for the child.

The baby was taken away by one of the medics. The second medic appeared to be making preparations for the transfer of the body, apparently in agreement with the Police Officer that they were dealing with a suicide. A support team would be arriving shortly to take photos and cordon off this area of the park until it had been checked, cleaned, and cleared as a potential crime scene.

“What will happen to the baby?” Maggie asked the medic.

“We’ll take her to the hospital, run some more checks and make sure she’s all right. After that she becomes the custody of Child Welfare. They’ll want to come up with an ID and run checks for other family members. We’ve found no ID on the body and somebody will want confirmation that this is the mother. Could be this woman simply abducted the baby but then that’s his department,” indicating to the police officer. “Are you sure you’re okay? It must be quite a shock.”

“Err…yes thank you. It is, but I’ll be all right, thank you.”

The officer turned to Taylor. “Would it be all right if we stopped by, perhaps later on, to take a full statement from you both, Fisher Drive that right?”

“Yeah…sure. Yeah, we have no plans,” Taylor replied.

“Well we have everything we need, you can go on your way now. Thank you for calling it in you’d be surprised how many folks would just ignore something like this. Somebody’ll probably stop by later. I suggest you get a good coffee or something and try to have a good day now.”

Taylor put his arms around Maggie, then gently rubbing the tops of her arms he asked, “You sure you’ll be okay? I don’t need to get pills off these guys or something?”

“No, I’ll be fine. It’s just so…horrible. How could you do that to yourself and leave a baby like that?”

“Come on, let’s start walking back. I think I’ll skip breakfast though if you don’t mind.”

*  *  *  *

The walk back home seemed much shorter than when they had come although it had in fact taken twice as long. Maggie and Taylor couldn’t stop thinking of what they had witnessed. They speculated on what had happened with the woman and baby, to the circumstances that might have led to a young woman killing herself and a baby abandoned. They had taken little notice of the houses and roads they had passed while walking back to their home.

Although the temperature was up, Maggie felt she needed a hot bath. Events had left her with a chill in her bones and the sight of the body had made her feel somehow unclean. Taylor made them a strong coffee, and grabbed a pen and notepad, intending to capture the experience as it still remained clear in their minds.

“Can you remember what that old guy looked like?” he asked, making his way into the bathroom.

“What for? He couldn’t have had anything to do with it. He got to the park after us.”

“I know but if I mention that we saw someone to the Police they’ll went a description. Did he have a moustache?”

“Yes, I think so. Black shorts and a blue top that looked more like a vest. White, grey hair that I don’t imagine has been combed or brushed in awhile.”

“Anything else you think we should note?”

“About the man?” Maggie asked.

“No, I mean anything else until we discovered…until we saw them?”

“No, we hadn’t seen anyone else; the Park was quiet, empty, that’s why we like it at that time….. it’s supposed to be peaceful.”

“You okay to go over what we saw?” Taylor asked softly.

“Taylor is this really necessary, they’ll ask us all this when they turn up?”

“If she’s not the mother or it wasn’t a suicide, then there may be something important that we’ve seen and just not realised. The longer we leave it the more detail we’re likely to forget. I saw it on a program on TV,” he said. Maggie looked at Taylor, to her it sounded more like an exercise to help him get over the shock than to be of any benefit to a possible investigation. He had a habit of becoming restless and would speak too quickly when under stress. Maggie reached for his hand.

“I don’t think I’ll be forgetting this morning in a hurry. We walked under the highway to the east side. We hadn’t walked long, taking the red trail, until I saw her hand. It was horrible. I screamed, you turned and then you saw her.” Maggie envisioned the body of the woman, and how she might have looked when life was still a resident. “She had a white dress on, cotton I think, blue eyes and long blond hair, straight,” trying to imagine the hair without the leaves and twigs that had become entwined. “She had a scratch on her face. She looked young and pretty.”

“I didn’t notice any jewelry, did you?” Taylor asked, scribbling into the notepad.

Maggie thought of the hands and then neck, and an ear that was partially visible. “Looked like a small silver ring on her right hand, I remember it because it was in a ‘V’ shape. I don’t remember seeing a necklace or earrings. Taylor what will they do with the baby?”

Taylor stopped writing and looked up. “You heard the guy. They need to confirm who the parents are, and if there’s any other family. She may have stolen the baby and then topped herself with guilt or something for all we know.”

“If the woman was the mother, I doubt she would have done that to herself if there was a loving father back at home,” Maggie suggested.

“Then she’ll go to the grandparents or something. What is it with the baby?”

Immediately Taylor recognised from the look on Maggie’s face that he had said the wrong thing.

‘Listen,’ he said, attempting to make amends, “the baby’ll be all right, they’ll find out where it belongs and it’s certainly better off now than it would have been if we hadn’t have found it. Listen...we saved a child a today.”

*  *  *  *

The knock at the door finally came at just after three in the afternoon. Two uniformed officers, male and female. The female officer took the lead, standing closest to the door.

“Hello, Taylor Pritchard?” she said offering her hand.

“Yeah, please come in.” Taylor replied, shaking the officers hand.

“How are you? A bit of a scare for you both this morning I imagine,” she said as she made her way into the living room. “Hi, you must be Maggie. Nice to meet you Maggie, I’m Officer Sullivan and this is my partner Officer Adkin, but don’t mind him.” Adkin responded with a tight-lipped smile. “We’d just like to go over a few things from this morning, check a few details. Would that be all right?”

“Would you like a coffee?” Taylor asked.

“Yeah, sure. White, one sugar, thanks,” said Sullivan.

“Black, no sugar. Thank you,” replied Adkin.

Taylor went into the kitchen to brew some fresh coffee. He left the door open so he could hear the conversation in the living room. To Taylor’s surprise Sullivan continued with the lead, doing most of talking. Perhaps the Police force is not entirely male dominated he thought. Sullivan was going over the information that had presumably been relayed to her earlier, stopping to ask Maggie the occasional question.  Returning to the living room with the coffees, Taylor sat down next to Maggie on the love seat. Sullivan repeated her routine and questions with him, although this time occasionally throwing in additional detail that Maggie had provided, as if seeking confirmation from Taylor on what Maggie had described earlier.

As Maggie sat listening to Taylor’s answers she noticed how Sullivan gave nothing away, provided no information other than what Maggie had given just a few minutes earlier or from their own statements taken at the scene. When Sullivan had finished with her questions she thanked them for their time and got up to leave. Maggie got up quickly and stepped between the officers and the door.

“Sorry Officer, what will happen to the baby?” she asked.

Taylor understood a little of Maggie’s concern for the child but couldn’t keep a small sigh from escaping. She’s still going on about the baby. Sullivan gave a quick look at Taylor, then back to Maggie.

“We need to establish who the parents of the child are. Assuming they’re alive or at least one of them is, then the baby will likely be returned. It’ll be up to Social Services to decide, they’ll be looking after the child until it’s placed back with family.”

Sullivan moved to the front door with Adkin lagging behind. Before leaving the house Adkin turned to Taylor and handed him a contact card.

“Thanks for your time and the coffee. If you need anything or if you remember anything else, please give us a call.”

“Yeah. Thanks,” he replied, impressed that Police Officers had business cards.

As the two officers returned to their car, Maggie took a step out of the front door towards them.

“Officer Sullivan, who in Social Services will be handling the case?”

Sullivan withdrew and opened a notepad from her right top pocket. Flicking through some pages she eventually said, “Bateman, Jenny Bateman from Child Welfare.”

*  *  *  *

A week had past and were it not for a brief report in the local paper, Maggie might have been forgiven for thinking the discovery of the woman and baby had been nothing more than a bad dream. But Maggie couldn’t put the images from her mind and how she had felt holding the baby in her arms. For the past several months she had wanted to discuss having a child with Taylor but she never seemed to find the right time to bring the subject up. A recent occasion when she got close to telling him she wanted a baby, was when she told him that their friends had been trying for a baby for over a year. Taylor made some comment along the lines that if they really wanted a child they could pay someone else to have it; she guessed he was having a bad day that day.

Before they got married both Taylor and Maggie had discussed the prospect of having children at some stage. They both wanted a family, at some point. But they were young and still had things they wanted to buy and places they wanted to visit. They were both paid reasonable salaries but the loss of one income would require a change to the lifestyle they were becoming accustomed to. Taking the available year off work and then putting a child into nursery was something Maggie had considered, but deep down she knew that when they eventually had a child, she would want to be the one looking after it and seeing it grow. She didn’t want a child only to hand it off to someone else to look after.

Maggie had just turned twenty-five. She was well liked and respected at work but she knew that any further advancement was unlikely until she reached her thirties. No one admits to ageism, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. She couldn’t help thinking that now was a good time in her life to have a baby. By the time the child is ready for school, senior management won’t see me as too young, and I’ll already be a mother so they shouldn’t harbour their female prejudices to quite the same extent.

In theory it was possible for Taylor’s company to request that he work anywhere in Canada, or North America for that matter, but given the volume of clients they had in and around Vancouver, it was likely that he would be able to stay working in the area – if he wanted to. Taylor was twenty-six and Maggie was pretty certain he felt they were too young to be parents, or perhaps it was just he that was too young.

Taylor had taken the day off work but was out at the Home Depot as he was after some wood to extend the decking in the back garden. Maggie had been given two weeks compassionate leave. She picked up the Yellow Pages and started paging through it, looking for Social Services.

Picking up the phone, Maggie called Enquiries and asked to be put through to Child Welfare. After listening to the numerous options and then waiting what seemed like hours, someone in Child Welfare eventually picked up.

“Hello, Child Welfare,” an efficient sounding female voice said.

“Hi, I was wondering if I might speak with Jenny Bateman, please.”

“One moment please…I’m afraid Ms Bateman is out of the office at the moment. Can I take a number and get her to call you?”

“Yes please. My name is Maggie Pritchard my number is five-five-seven-six-five-two-four,” ensuring she stated each digit clearly, “thank you.”

Maggie returned the handset not sure she knew what she was really trying to achieve.

*  *  *  *

Rain was falling by the evening. Taylor had made a start on the decking but his time in the back garden had been cut short by the sudden downpour. He had gone upstairs while Maggie was cooking spaghetti, when the phone rang.

“I’ll get it!” Maggie shouted, suspecting Taylor wouldn’t have heard the phone anyway. “Hello,” she said, answering the phone.

“Hello, is Maggie Pritchard there please?”

“Yes, speaking.”

“Hello, I’m Jenny Bateman. Sorry it’s a little late. You phoned for me earlier today, I’m returning your call. Is there anything I can do for you?”

“Err…yes, thank you. I don’t know if you know but it was my husband and I that discovered the baby in Richmond Park last week. I understand you are handling the case.”

“Yes Mrs Pritchard, I’m aware of your name. Thank you for contacting the police. How can I help?”

“I just wanted to know if everything is all right with the baby.”

“I’m not really supposed to discuss any of the details, Mrs Pritchard.”

“Maggie, please. I realise it’s not really got anything to do with me but I can’t help feeling a little responsible, having found her and everything.”

“Mrs Pritchard, Maggie, it’s normal for you to be concerned, especially given the circumstances in which you found the child. I can assure you we will be doing our best to ensure the child is found a suitable and loving home.”

Maggie almost dropped the handset. “Sorry? I don’t understand. Haven’t you been able to trace any family?”

“I’m sorry, I can’t really discuss the child’s welfare with you. Like I said, we will ensure the child is properly cared for”’

Maggie paused for a moment.

“Is there anything else I can help you with?” Ms Bateman asked.

“Please Ms Bateman, it’s been a week and you said you’d be ensuring the baby is found a suitable home. Does that mean there’s no immediate family, no one claiming the baby?”

Now it was Ms Bateman’s turn to pause.

“Maggie, it’s only normal for someone to feel a little attached in these situations. You found a child, abandoned, but you are not responsible for the child’s welfare. The government provides for these situations, we have child care homes and adoption programmes. Lots of children have had to start life in a similar way, and tragic as it seems, most of the children end up leading very normal fulfilled lives.”

Most of the children, Maggie thought. “Ms Bateman, are we eligible for adopting the baby?”

“Well, yes of course but…”

“Then what is the procedure? How do we get things started?” Maggie asked, not quite believing what she was saying.

Ms Bateman’s voice changed to a firmer tone, her English accent somehow providing greater authority. “Maggie, it’s far too early to be discussing the possibility of adoption for the child, and as I said you are obviously feeling some attachment that will pass with time. We have established and well proven procedures for handling these unfortunate situations.”

A week later and after a few more phone calls from Maggie, Ms Bateman agreed to talk Maggie through the process of adoption. Taylor was unaware of the calls Maggie had been making. Ms Bateman’s attempts to dissuade Maggie had only served to strengthen her determination. At the end of the latest call Ms Bateman proposed a meeting at her office the following Thursday afternoon, for Maggie and Taylor both to attend.

Putting the phone down, Maggie felt a sense of shock and excitement at the same time. What was she going to tell Taylor? She wasn’t sure herself of what she was doing; how was he going to react? But her maternal instincts had been engaged - if a good home couldn’t be found for the baby, they would provide one.

Taylor came down the stairs, a towel wrapped around his waist. Maggie was still sat near the phone in the hallway.

“I heard you talking. Who was on the phone?” he asked.

Unsure what Taylor might have heard, she said, “The lady from Child Welfare called.”

“What lady?”

“Oh, I phoned Child Welfare earlier in the week. I just wanted to make sure the baby was all right.”

A look of astonishment fell across Taylor’s face. “What did you do that for? Did they tell you anything?”

“Not at first,” Maggie said. “They let it slip that they hadn’t found any family yet, and I think the woman was the mother. We’re going to meet Ms Bateman from Child Welfare on Thursday afternoon.”

Taylor looked confused. “Why would we be going to see Child Welfare on Thursday?” he asked.

“Because I told them we are interested in adopting the baby.”

Taylor’s mouth dropped. He slumped down next to Maggie.

Maggie put her arms around him. “It’s okay, it’s just an enquiry, it’s not as if we’re bringing her home tomorrow.”

*  *  *  *

Ms Jenny Bateman’s office was a twelve-by-ten room with a large single desk at one end, a couple of free standing metal filing cabinets, a few plants and pictures that did nothing to brighten the dark and dreary décor. The absence of natural light or any sort of light, made Taylor think he’d fallen down some giant hole in the ground.

Jenny Bateman was in her late thirties. Her hair was a dark brown, almost black from the colour she had been using. She was tanned and wore more than a modest amount of makeup. She wore a white blouse that was largely concealed by the deep red jacket she was wearing, part of her suit. From her ears dangled large brown circular earrings.

“Nice to meet you, I’m Jenny Bateman,” she said holding out her hand to Maggie.

“Hi, Maggie Pritchard, nice to meet you and this is my husband, Taylor.” Maggie responded, politely shaking Ms. Bateman’s hand.

Maggie and Taylor sat in two faux-leather chairs that were positioned in front of the rather imposing desk. Ms Bateman went around to the other side and sat in a large executive style chair.

Crossing her legs and bridging her fingers, Ms Bateman said, “So, you’d like to discuss the possibility of adopting the baby you found? We’ve given the baby a temporary name, June Richmond. She would have been born in June and you found her in Richmond Park.”

Maggie glanced at Taylor; it was clear he expected her to do the talking.

“Yes. Thank you for seeing us. You said on the phone that the baby, June, would probably be put up for adoption if you remained unsuccessful tracing any family, or if no one comes forward within three months.” Ms. Bateman nodded confirmation. “You also said that if Taylor and I wanted too, we have a right to apply for the baby’s adoption, just like anyone else. I know you explained a few things to me over the phone but I wondered if you could go over things again for us,” looking at Taylor, “just in case I’ve missed something?”

“Certainly. The adoption process starts with the Adoption Application, a form that I can provide you with, that you will need to complete. You should be aware that it will require the disclosure of personal information such as financial standing, medical history, personal habits and preferences and any religious beliefs. Normally, the applications are forwarded to the child bearing parents and they, together with support from our trained advisors, make their selection. Clearly in this case that isn’t going to be possible, so the Province will act as the child bearing parents in this case.”

“Sorry what exactly does that mean?” Maggie asked.

“Basically it means I will make a recommendation to the Welfare Board for their approval. In addition to the Application,” she continued, “an Adoption Home Study will be required. The home study is typically conducted over three meetings, one of which must be at your home. The study will seek to confirm information you have supplied in your application and provide an assessment as to your worthiness and suitability, for the proposed adoption. Again, most adoptions are not specific. People applying to adopt simply express their preferences – gender, race, etc, this situation is peculiar in that, if I understand things correctly, you are applying specifically to adopt June Richmond?”

“Yes, that’s right. I already feel somehow attached and responsible for her, even more so knowing that she seems to be orphaned.”

Taylor remained silent. He had a great deal of sympathy for the child but that didn’t mean he was ready to adopt it. He knew he would also like his own children at some point. How was that going to work out if they already had an adopted child?

“Let me just run through a few basic details. You both work. Maggie you work for a bank and Taylor you work for an IT Consultancy. You’ve both been in full employment for over four years. No criminal records. No defaults on any debts or loans. No specific religious beliefs and you both have degree level education.”

Maggie was nodding. Taylor found himself nodding as well, but in disbelief at how much she already knew. How long had they been talking on the phone?

“Here’s the application you will need to complete. Can I suggest you think it over again and make sure you discuss it thoroughly…together? It’s vital that you both want the adoption. It’s no good at all for the child if one party does not really want to do it. Here’s my card. I’ll be dealing with the case directly due to the unusual circumstances.” She stood up and offered her hand again, ‘please contact me if you have any further questions. Nice to meet you both.”

Maggie and Taylor got up and Maggie shook Ms Bateman’s hand again. Taylor managed a polite smile. Just as they were heading out the door, Maggie turned.

“Sorry Ms Bateman.”

“Jenny, please.”

“Sorry, Jenny, could you tell us if anyone else will be being put forward for adopting June?”

Jenny Bateman smiled, she had anticipated that question.

“Maggie, June cannot officially be put up for adoption for three months. During that time the police and social services will be trying to establish the baby’s background and other family. Notices and bulletins will be put out by the police, the social services and even the Salvation Army in case the child is reported missing by anyone. Only after that can June be made available for adoption.” Jenny Bateman took a small step back, “The adoption process rarely operates a waiting list. Prospective parents are matched to children using their expressed preferences and their own individual circumstances. Look, for what its worth, my view is that should we be unsuccessful in locating any family for the child, and should you wish to proceed with the adoption, then subject to you meeting the appropriate criteria, you will be granted first refusal so to speak – but any final decision will be with the Board as I can only make the recommendation.”

After the meeting and on returning to their car Taylor said, “What are we doing here? I mean are you really serious about this?”

“Yes, I’m serious. There is a baby with no mother, an unknown father and no obvious family. It’s been almost two weeks, if someone was going to claim the baby it would have happened by now, which means no one could have reported the mother or the baby missing. Even if someone does turn up later, why the hell didn’t they notice they were missing?”

“You can’t go adopting a child because the family haven’t noticed it missing. And how do we know if we’re ready for this?”

“If they find someone, that’s fine. If they don’t then it’s because we were supposed to find her and we are supposed to look after her. Taylor we’ll be fine, you’ll be fine.” Maggie opened the car door and got in.

*  *  *  *

The following months seemed like years to Maggie. She had left it two weeks after their initial meeting with Ms Bateman before completing the adoption application. She wanted to be certain Taylor was happy to proceed. The first week she tried not to talk it about with him, she wanted to let him think things through for himself. Finally, she booked them a table a Mercers, an upmarket restaurant renowned for fine steaks and where they had indulged themselves occasionally. Maggie wanted a decision. She had prepared herself so that if Taylor wasn’t wholly convinced about proceeding, her decision would be not to file the application.

Taylor knew why Maggie had booked the table at Mercers. They had to make a decision – either get on with the application or leave it and move on. He hadn’t mentioned it to any of his friends or colleagues at work, but thoughts of the baby, the body, and the prospect of adopting someone else’s baby were never far away. He had tried to imagine what it might be like – reading bedtime stories, playing with teddies, finding a place in his heart for a total stranger and taking on that most precious responsibility – the development and welfare of a baby, a new soul. He tried to imagine a time when they would have their own children – would he be able to find more space in his heart or would his own child displace Baby June? By the time their booking arrived he had made up his mind.

Although Mercers had a varied menu, Maggie and Taylor could only ever bring themselves to order the steak. Maggie would order hers medium, cooked in a subtle red-wine jus, whereas Taylor would always have his steak medium-well and cooked in its own juices. The meals were accompanied by a selection of fresh seasonal organic vegetables. The main meals were never too large, allowing just sufficient room for customers with larger appetites to try the belt-busting desserts that were available.

“So you know why we’re here?” Maggie asked.

“Yes. We need to decide what we’re going to do.” Taylor replied.

“So..?” she urged.

“You know what I want to do. I haven’t stopped thinking about it. But I only want to do it if you are absolutely sure. You have to be a hundred percent on this.”

“Well, I think,” he said, taking a sip of wine and savouring the suspense.

‘Well...?’

“I think we should go with it.”

Maggie almost knocked the bottle of wine off the table as she got up and grabbed Taylor by the sides of his face and planted a huge kiss.

“I love you, Taylor Pritchard.” Maggie said, clearly delighted. “Do you know what?”

‘What?’ he replied.

“Not all computer programmers are geeks.”

Taylor laughed.

“Come on, eat up, we have some serious celebrating to do,” she said, with a look that Taylor knew meant he was going to be up most of the night.

“Won’t you want to complete the application?” he asked.

“You just need to sign it dummy. Finish up.”

He finished his steak in record time and they skipped dessert.

*  *  *  *

A week after filing their application, they received an acknowledgement letter from Child Welfare. It looked like a standard letter that simply thanked them for their application and that they would be in touch ‘in due course’.

Despite trying hard not to, they couldn’t refrain from having conversations about what they would need to buy, how to decorate the nursery, which bedroom should be the nursery, and what name to choose for June Richmond.

Maggie had been phoning Jenny Bateman each week for an update. She felt guilty but couldn’t stop hoping that Social Services would be unsuccessful in their search for the child’s other family members.

Maggie was the first to break the news of the application to adopt. She told her mom, explaining the background and the reasons behind the request. Her mom was delighted for them, and fully supportive. She also seemed to enjoy the idea of being a grandmother. Eventually all their family and friends were told of their plans and all of them seemed genuinely pleased.

Maggie and Taylor had four more weeks to wait before the three month ‘search’ period would be over, when they got a call from Jenny Bateman. She asked them to come and see her at her office as she had some things she needed to discuss with them, but she wouldn’t expand on what those things were. Maggie feared the worst, and felt terribly guilty for doing so.

*  *  *  *

“Thank you for coming to see me,” Jenny said, as she invited Maggie and Taylor into her office. “Sorry for dragging you out here but I have something I’d like to share with you. It concerns your application to adopt baby June.” Seeing the look on Maggie’s face, she added, “It’s nothing to worry about but it is something I feel I should make you aware of.”

“What is it?” Maggie asked, not attempting to hide the concern in her voice.

“We’ve been running some tests on baby June. Don’t worry she’s perfectly healthy. The tests we’ve being doing check things like cognitive processes, manipulation and visual coordination, that sort of thing. The initial tests are simply routine in these situations however, we chose to run a few more. Well…we are seeing some rather exceptional results. She’s seems to possess extraordinary intelligence and spatial awareness.”

Maggie and Taylor stole a glance at each other.

“Of course she is still only a baby,” Jenny continued, “and there are no guarantees that what she is displaying will continue, but what she is currently capable of is way beyond what we would consider normal at this very young stage. We only really became aware to the extent to which she was doing things by chance. One of the carers had placed her on her on her back in amongst a selection of toys.”

“What is it that she can do?” Maggie asked.

“When the carer returned to her, June was trying to sit up. We wouldn’t normally expect a child to sit up until they were perhaps several months old. The carer thought she’d have a go at sitting her up, and she managed to stay upright, for a while anyway.”

Maggie looked at Taylor, was she missing something or was Jenny missing something?

“I know that probably doesn’t sound much and to be honest it isn’t that that shocked us, but it’s pretty impressive nonetheless. What really is impressive…” pausing as if to give her next statement greater profundity, “is that she had put some of the building blocks that were lying next to her together.”

Jenny clearly marvelled at this but the meaning was still lost to Maggie and Taylor.

Maggie responded, “I’m sorry I don’t really understand. That sounds quite impressive for one so young but I’m not sure how amazed I’m supposed to be.”

“Baby June is about three months old, yet she is displaying the awareness and capacities of a two to three year old. We’re convinced that were it not for the obvious relative physical weaknesses, she could complete a number of tests normally not expected until infants are two, maybe even three years old.”

The penny had started to drop with Maggie and Taylor. They looked at each other again now recognising that what they had just been told did sound impressive.

“Further tests have revealed she has a very high attention rate, able to show levels of concentration at least three times what we might expect. We also believe she is already showing exceptional communication and understanding skills. We don’t know how but she can point to different coloured blocks when asked, showing she not only understands colour but perhaps more importantly, the question being asked. Again we wouldn’t expect anything like that until much later. She is an exceptional baby,” Jenny finished.

“I think I understand what you have just told us. Clearly then Baby June is displaying skills way in excess of what is normally expected, but I’m not entirely sure why it needed an appointment to tell us. I’m sorry if I’m missing something.”

“Maggie, Taylor, if Baby June continues to show these kinds of skills she is also very likely to require and need a great deal of attention. If she’s as smart as we think she will be, she’ll be like a sponge requiring a constant flow of water and yet never really becoming wet.’ Leaning forward, she continued, “You need to understand that she is likely to crave new challenges and constant learning, and may well become frustrated and impatient very quickly if she doesn’t get it. Although she is in no way disabled, looking after her could quite easily be just as exhausting. I know Maggie you stated that you would be leaving work to look after the baby should your application be successful, but I do want you to consider what I’m telling you and think again if this is something you really want to commit to. We still have almost a month before Baby June will be eligible for adoption, and there are still two more parts of the Home Study to complete, you can still easily pull out if you wish.”

Easily pull out? Is she mad? I couldn’t pull out now, Maggie thought. Maggie looked again at Taylor and it was clear he was having similar thoughts.

“No. We have no wish to pull out. Thank you for letting us know but we’d like to assure you, that giving the baby lots of attention is what we fully expect to be doing. And personally, knowing that the child could be some kind of genius makes no difference and we’ll give her all the love and care any true parent would. If she needs a challenge we’ll get her to sort out the problems in the computer systems Taylor’s company build.”

Jenny smiled, she was persuaded Maggie and Taylor would make wonderful parents and that they probably represented a much better start for Baby June than any biological family that might be found.

*  *  *  *

The next four weeks passed without any success for the authorities in discovering anything relating to Baby June’s origins. Notices had been posted across all police stations in the Vancouver and surrounding areas, and to all social service departments and buildings across the Province as well as the corresponding websites. Baby June had also been listed with Toronto, Ottawa and with Seattle officials, the Salvation Army and Missing Persons Bureau, in case any leads might show up there. But nothing.

DNA tests revealed it was her mother that had died next to her in Richmond Park. Further tests of the dead woman concluded death was self-inflicted and occurred as a result of massive blood loss from the deep cuts applied to each wrist. What blood was left contained high levels of codeine and ibruprofen, pain-killers consistent with suicides. No suicide note was found, and despite a complete set of forensic data, no records existed on file to match it to. The mother died a ‘Jane Doe’. Her picture was distributed and posted around various police stations in the hope that someone coming into the station might recognise her. But nothing.

Every year thousands of missing persons turn up dead across North America. A good percentage of these are never identified and make their way to the grave with only a handful of strangers knowing they have passed on. They are soon forgotten. But how many of those would be found with an infant who also seemed to be a complete stranger to the world, Jenny Bateman was unsure. In a world of so many people, loneliness was something that Jenny felt was profoundly out of place. 

Baby June was now available for adoption.

*  *  *  *

Jenny Bateman made the call.

“Hi Maggie, it’s Jenny, the three months are officially up today, Baby June is available for adoption.’ She paused to give Maggie a moment. ‘We need to get your Home Study complete then all being well, I’ll be in a position to put a recommendation in front of the Board for their approval.”

“Thanks Jenny. Thank you for your support.”

“You are most welcome,” Jenny replied, before finishing the call.

Maggie called Taylor on his cell phone.

*  *  *  *

The final part of the Home Study would be conducted at Maggie and Taylor’s home. The Home Study was being undertaken by an independent assessor contracted to Child Welfare. This provided the Welfare with a level of independence that was designed to improve the decision making process, but ultimately existed to enable the State to share any blame that may arise from poorly matched adoptions. Unfortunately for Maggie and Taylor it meant that timescales were dictated by the assessor’s availability – in this case a further three months due to the Christmas and New Year holidays.

It would be early January before the Home Study would be complete. Maggie had made several calls to Jenny Bateman attempting to speed-up the process but each time she was kicked back with procedure. Jenny advised Maggie would just have to be patient, enjoy Christmas and everything will be completed soon. Jenny reminded Maggie, ‘a few months is not long compared to the rest of your lives’.

Maggie and Taylor decided to take a holiday over the festive season. They spent Christmas at Disney World. Taylor argued they were just checking it out for when Baby June would be older, but given the amount of fun he seemed to getting from the various parks, she wasn’t so sure if he was simply being self indulgent. Either way they had a great time and had made a long list of everything they would come back with Baby June to see.

The final part of the Home Study took place on January seventeenth. It turned out to be a three hour meeting where the assessor looked around the house making copious notes. She asked questions about the type of programs they watched and the films they owned, she looked in cupboards and the fridge freezer to see what food they contained. Maggie couldn’t help but feel a lot of it was overkill and simply the assessor trying to justify her fees, however, if it meant the right result she was happy to play along. On leaving the house the assessor said nothing that gave away her views, she simply said her role was to provide a detailed report which would help with an overall decision – she made no recommendations of her own. This as it turned out, was not entirely honest. At the end of the Home Study there was an assessment form that the assessor was required to complete. She was required to tick a box to indicate that she felt the home, in her opinion, did not represent any risk at all to a child. The assessor ticked the box and filed her report.

A week later, Jenny advised that she was now in possession of the complete case file for the adoption and that the case would be discussed at the Board meeting after next, scheduled for the third week of February. Maggie almost cried with frustration when she was told she would have to wait another several weeks. Jenny decided it was probably best to advise her now that there may also be a further wait given the circumstances surrounding the adoption. ‘There is a possibility the Board will want a second independent review of the family trace work. I’m confident there won’t be any problems but you will have to be patient a little longer’, she said.

Maggie and Taylor spent the time waiting for the final decision, decorating the nursery, buying outfits for Baby June, and looking again at names. They had agreed they would not be keeping ‘June’ but were struggling to agree on an alternative. The short list was, Rebecca, Emily, Emma and Jasmine.

The adoption decision was finally made on March eleventh; it had been approved, Maggie and Taylor were to become parents. They celebrated the news with a meal at Mercers, joined this time by Jenny Bateman. A meal at Mercers was not procedure for Jenny but she had been persuaded by Maggie to join them, she was genuinely thrilled for them and Baby June. At the meal, Jenny confirmed they would now be able to visit and spend time with Baby June at the care home. She said it would be April second before they could take Baby June home as the baby would be given a final set of checks before leaving the care home. Maggie and Taylor would also need to meet Baby June’s carer to go over the care she had received to date, and provide them with the opportunity to discuss the baby’s exceptional behaviour.

“That’s it,” Maggie almost shouted.

“That’s what?” Taylor replied.

“We’ll call her April.”

“But she was born in June.”

“I know and it won’t be long before she asks why she has a birthday in June but is called April. We’ll explain to her that adopting her was so special and important to us, we wanted to forever remember when she became ours – we’ll call her April.”

Taylor didn’t quite follow her logic and wasn’t convinced they would need to tell her she was adopted. Still he liked the sound of April. “Okay, but I get to choose her middle name.”

They raised their glasses and Jenny toasted,

“Here’s to April Pritchard, a truly exceptional child, and her fine new parents. May they enjoy many happy years together.”