Trevor watched the girl closely as both of them were checked before being allowed to enter the visiting area. She was shifting her weight from one foot to the other while looking around with anticipation.

For Trevor it was the first time he'd come face to face with the girl's brother. He had no idea what to expect, but he prepared for the worst.

They were led to a large room with several tables and seat arranged in neat rows. Some tables were already occupied, but he found one in the back that was still vacant. He pointed. "Come, Alyssa, we'll sit here."

Seemingly a little nervous now, Alyssa followed him to said table and slowly sat down. Now they would have to wait.

It didn't take long for an official to arrive with a young man at his side. Judging from his features, this had to be Alyssa's brother. They looked a lot alike.

His suspicion was confirmed when Alyssa flew from her seat. "Ray!"

A surprised look spread over the young man's face. "Ally," he breathed.

"Sit down at the table," the official that had accompanied him instructed.

Obediently, Ray sat down. Trevor had stood up and regarded the young man cautiously and curiously. A light stubble adorned Ray's cheeks. He had short dirty blonde hair and greyish eyes that took in the world around him with a guarded look. His short sleeves showed muscular arms.

Trevor glanced over him as unobtrusively as possible. No tattoos. No needle marks. A slight scar underneath one of his eyes, but it was barely noticeable.

Trevor flinched when he locked eyes with the young man.

"Are you done checking me out?" the man asked in a gruff voice.

Trevor narrowed his eyes slightly. "I was only trying to see what kind of man I'm dealing with."

"You her foster father?" Ray asked with a glance to Alyssa.

"No," Trevor said calmly, "I'm with CPS. I have taken over Alyssa's case. She asked to visit you."

Ray raised an eyebrow. "And you arranged it for her? Why? That woman never did."

Trevor glanced at Alyssa. "We have made an agreement," he said calmly, "she promised to stop running away from her foster home if she'd be allowed to visit you."

Next to him, Alyssa crossed her arms annoyed. "I just said I'd be nice."

Ray sighed. "Ally, we talked about this. If those people take good care of you, then you gotta try. Go to school an' all that."

"You said I could always live with you!" Alyssa growled, "you'd always take care of me."

"And I will," Ray said calmly, "I will never send you away, but I can't take care of you in here. And I don' want you livin' at Vince when I ain't there. Can you try make it work? Ally? At least til I get outta here?"

Alyssa unfolded her arms and huffed annoyed.

"Ally?" Ray persisted.

She glared at him.

Ray turned to Trevor. "She won't run away."

Trevor followed the exchange with interest. This Ray wasn't at all what he had expected. He nodded at the young man with new found respect.

"Now," Ray said to his sister, "you can tell me all about this family you're stayin' at. How's school?"

Alyssa sighed. "It's stupid."

Ray frowned. "Stupid huh? How so?"

She crossed her arms again. "I ain't smart like them. They make me read a lot. And they make fun of me. I ain't goin' back."

Ray cast her a stern look. "You should, Ally, you're gonna make somethin' of you're life. You don' have to do well in school, but you have to try."

"You didn't go to school," Alyssa countered stubbornly.

"And look where that got me," Ray cast back, "no, Ally. I don' want that for you. Promise me."

Alyssa huffed. "Fine."

"That's my girl." He smiled at her.

"We should go," Trevor stood up and placed a hand on the girl's shoulder. "Come, Alyssa."

Alyssa glared at him and shook off his hand. "I don't wanna go yet. I wanna stay."

"Visiting time is over, Alyssa," Trevor informed her. All around , people were leaving.

Ray smiled at her encouragingly. "Go on, Ally. I'll see you again soon enough. Okay?"

She sighed. "Okay," she muttered. Slowly she stood up and pouted.

"Go now, Ally," he said gently, "be good, okay?" He turned to Trevor. "Make sure she's alright."

Trevor studied the man carefully and gave a nod. "It's my job."

"It ain't a job for me," Ray said, "that's my sister and I need her to be alright."

Trevor looked at him with a serious expression. "I will make sure of it."

...

He wasn't sure what to think. Ray Scott seemed to be a decent guy that had his sister's best interest at heart, but he still didn't make the necessary changes in his life to be able to take care of her.

Even though Trevor saw a lot of that in his line of work, it still made him shake his head every single time.

He let out a heavy sigh and turned back to the report he was writing. Every aspect of Alyssa's visit with her brother needed to be documented, along with her progress in her foster home.

She really was trying, though her grades in school were not that good and she hadn't befriended any of her classmates.

Her brother would be getting out of prison soon and Trevor worried Alyssa would use it as an excuse run away again.

"Everything alright?"

Trevor looked up and noticed his co-worker standing at his desk. Lynda had been the one to handle Alyssa's case before him.

He sighed. "Working on the Scott case."

"Ah," Lynda nodded in understanding, "troublesome girl that one. No matter what we do, she'll find a way to make things complicated. What did she do this time? Steal something? Fight in school? Run away?"

Trevor frowned and shook his head. "No actually. She's doing well. It's just her brother I'm worried about. He'll be out of prison soon."

Lynda pursed her lips. "He hasn't given us much trouble, though he is adamant in taking care of his sister. He filed for custody several times since he turned eighteen. I think they even granted it once, but soon after he got arrested for breaking and entering some facility with his friends. He was cleared, but the judge still took the girl away from him. The people they were living with weren't exactly a stable environment."

"She'll run away again, won't she?" Trevor sighed.

Lynda shrugged. "She'll run away regardless. It's only a matter of time. There's no use in chasing after her. The best we can do it place her somewhere whenever she gets herself in trouble again. That's also only a matter of time."

Trevor listened to her quietly. She didn't see to have much confidence in Alyssa. He took a deep breath. "Well, I suppose we'll just have to wait and see."

Lynda patted his shoulder. "Don't get too wrapped up in it, Trevor. You're new to the job. If you get too involved in your cases, it will break you. Trust me. Just keep your distance and let them figure it out. We are only responsible for finding them a good home. The rest is up to them." She shook her head. "We can't fix everybody, Trevor. Some of them don't want to be fixed." She offered him a smile before picking up her bag and leaving the office.

Trevor watched her go with a frown on his face. Lynda had been doing this job for a long time. Had she always been so bitter and cynical? Of course he knew he wasn't responsible for the actions of the kids he placed in foster care, but he was responsible for their well-being. Most of these kids had never been given a chance in life. And wasn't that really all they needed? A chance?

He closed the file and placed it on the stack on his desk.

How long before he'd run out of chances to hand out?