Reading Time: 103 Minutes
Title: Home Is Where The Heart Is
Series: Second Chance Home
Series Order: 2
Author: Duochanfan
Fandom: 9-1-1
Genre: Angst, Drama, Family, Hurt/Comfort, Pre-Relationship
Relationship(s): Pre-Evan Buckley/Eddie Diaz, background pairings
Content Rating: NC-17
Warnings: Child Abuse, False Accusations of Child Abuse, Bigotry, Discussion-Child Abuse, Attempted Kidnapping, Attempted Off Screen Rape (Dr Wells), Violence Canon-Level, Character Bashing.
Author Note: Zachary ‘Zac’ Greenaway and Nicholas ‘Nic’ Bryant are borrowed with permission from ScarsLikeVelvet. Thank you so much for letting me borrow them!
Beta: FaerlyGraceful – Thank you so much for all the hard work you put in.
Alpha: FaerlyGraceful
Word Count: 51,193
Summary: Second Chance Home is up and running and Evan has also applied for the Fire Academy after his friends recommend it to him. When he gets asked to take in a disabled child, he comes face to face with five-year-old Christopher Diaz, taken from his father when accusations of abuse are reported to CPS. Evan has to keep an unbiased opinion when confronted with the two sides battling for custody of the child.
Artist: Nightsong21133
Chapter One
Eddie looked at Christopher and smiled. The five-year-old had taken to his crutches better than Eddie had when he was recovering from his injuries. It had been almost a year since he had been shot down. A year that had changed his whole life around. He had thought that while his marriage was a bit rocky, especially with the disappointment Shannon expressed about his injuries, she had accepted that he was now back and healing well.
It had been only three months before she had left. After a welcome home party that had his family flying out to come. Both sides of his family had attended. It was easy to see the split with his family. His mother’s side was always judgemental of anything that he and his sisters did. No matter what, not one of them was treated kindly by the aunts and uncles. His grandparents had been much the same, often saying that their youngest daughter had married down in life. That she could have done better.
His father’s side was warm and welcoming. Even welcoming the cousins on his mother’s side that dared to go against the grain. They had been able to help defend himself against his parents and their constant need to get in his face about how he cared for his son. They were annoying Eddie more and more as the days went by. He was beginning to think that moving would be a good idea. His parents were always trying to take over and the things they were saying were starting to put him on edge.
“Hey, mijo,” Eddie said as he brought out the meal to the patio. He loved his home, he had worked hard on it when he had brought it at just twenty years old. He had used nearly all his funds to make sure it was paid off as soon as possible and made sure neither of his parents put anything into the house at all. He knew they would use it against him. They had done so when they had helped him buy his first truck. They had used it as a way to get him to do what they wanted. In the end, he had done as much extra work as possible to get funds together to get his own car, paid for by himself. That he had made sure his parents wouldn’t be able to use it against him.
“Dad,” Christopher grinned as he made his way from the grassy part of the guard to the path and up to the patio, “Ohh,” he said as he smelled good, “What we got?”
“Chicken curry, just like you asked,” he said, as Christopher reached the table. Eddie wanted to help him but knew it was better to wait for him to ask for help.
“Yay!” he cheered as he got on his seat, “Thank you, Dad,” he grinned as he looked at the curry and rice he had gotten. Full of vegetables and something that made his eyes narrow, “Is this your curry?” he asked him.
“Yes, this is my version,” he snorted, knowing better than to get a sauce from the store.
“Good,” he nodded as he began to go through the curry for the pineapple and eat that first.
Eddie laughed and shook his head before eating his own. “Chris,” he began as he swallowed a bite, enjoying the tartness of the pineapple.
“Yeah,” he looked up, curry sauce on his chin.
Eddie reached over, and wiped it, “Aim for your mouth mijo,” he teased.
Christopher nodded and laughed, “It’s big enough, since I have a lot of things to say, it needs to be.”
Eddie frowned with a smile on his face, “I don’t think that’s how it works,” he told him.
“It does. I have a lot to say so I need a big mouth to say it all,” he nodded to himself, “It’s why Grandma’s mouth is really big too, she has a lot to say, but I wish she had a small mouth, as she says a lot of mean things,” he added the smile starting to drop from his face.
“Yeah, I know mijo, but you know what we say about it?” he asked him.
“If she doesn’t say nice things, then we don’t have to listen to them and we can walk away. But she follows me, Dad,” he huffed.
“I know, she does with me,” he told him softly, “But it’s all we can do at the moment. But I was thinking, what about if we move?”
“We can move?!” he exclaimed, almost dropping his spoon.
“I was thinking about it. Going to move to be near Abuela and Tia Pepa,” Eddie answered, smiling as he added, “I thought it would be nice. I miss Abuela a lot. You’ve not been able to spend as much time around her as I would like either. Since she lives in LA.”
“Like Granny Jan,” he nodded, “Do you think Granny is okay?” he asked, “I know Mommy was worried about Granny.”
Eddie hid a wince as he wished that he could actually know for sure what was going on. “I don’t know. Maybe we can see if Mommy will answer and she could tell us?” he suggested.
Christopher nodded, now sad as he ate another piece of pineapple that he had found in his curry. “I’d like to see Mommy again.”
“Yeah,” Eddie said, all the love that he had had for his wife was long gone. He understood that he had failed her as a husband in some ways. But she also knew what he had wanted to do with his life. She has started dating him knowing he wanted a career in the Army. That was what had called to him when he had signed up at eighteen. What he couldn’t stand was that she had shut out Christopher as well. He had called her a few times, trying to get her to agree to talk with Christopher at least. He didn’t care if she didn’t talk to him, but she needed to talk to their son at the very least. Instead, she had snapped at him, threatening to call him about harassment if she heard from him again. “We’re going to have to keep this quiet.”
Christopher gave him a look, one that told him he wasn’t stupid he knew to keep his mouth shut. “Duh,” he rolled his eyes, “Grandma would have a fit, then a meltdown, and then another fit before having a temper tantrum that no toddler would ever have.”
Eddie blinked at the words, hearing them once before. “You’ve been talking to your Tia Pepa,” he snorted. Josephina has said the same thing about his mother several times.
“There is gossip to learn, Daddy, and Tia Pepa has her ear to the ground,” he grins at him.
“You’re five years old, why do you need all the gossip?” he asked, and then added as an afterthought, “And why aren’t you sharing?”
Christopher looked at him, “Daddy,” he said like he was talking to a child, “You don’t have enough time to learn everything I know. It’s a lot. Like Cousin Mimi is expecting. But Cousin Theo is divorcing his wife. She cheated,” he told him, “There is so much gossip Daddy, you have so much to catch up on.”
Eddie laughed, “You’re right, I’m working a lot, but I’m hoping that when we move to LA that will all change,” he said.
“Good, I need more dad/son time,” he said with a firm nod and then pouted. “Oh no,” he muttered.
“What?” Eddie asked as he glanced over at his son.
“There’s no pineapple left,” he huffed.
Eddie laughed as he brought the bowl of extra curry that he had made sure was packed with pineapple pieces. “Here you go,” he said, pouring the contents onto his son’s plate.
“Yes!” he cheered as he dug in.
“Eat the rest as well,” Eddie reminded him.
Christopher nodded, now adding a bit of chicken, vegetables, or rice to the spoon as well. “I’m glad we’re going to move Daddy, I’m getting sick of Grandma and Abuelo,” he said.
“Oh?” Eddie frowned. He had been doing his best to keep contact to a minimum after they had tried to take Christopher out of school without permission.
“They say mean things all the time. They treat me like a baby too,” he sighed heavily. “I know I’m not… normal, but I’m not a baby daddy, I’m not stupid either,” he said, looking up.
“No, you’re not and they shouldn’t treat you like that,” he nodded in agreement. “It’s going to take a while before we can move. I need to make sure we have a place to live over in LA and all that, don’t forget. I also need to find a place where I can work as well.”
“So much to do, Daddy,” Christopher nodded.
Eddie smiled, “It is, but we can do it.”
“Yeah, we can,” Christopher grinned at him as they carried on eating their dinner.
XxXxX
Eddie had a rare day off, and with Christopher in school, his mother had been quick to get him to go to his parent’s home to help out with something that needed fixing. It was the usual way that both parents got him to go over these days. He refused to take Christopher, only letting them see him when he was around and in a public place. Eddie was beginning to pack things away. His abuela had talked him into attending therapy during one of their calls a couple of months after returning home. It had done him a lot of good, putting aside the anger and the hurt he had felt by Shannon’s abandonment. His disappointment with his parents and his feelings of failure when it came to his son. However, a lot of that was more because of the way that his parents had berated and put him down about anything he did when it came to his son.
“Eddie,” Helena said as she put a mug of coffee on the counter where he was finishing fixing the unit that had broken slightly.
Eddie looked at his mother. “Mom, I don’t see why Dad couldn’t do this, he knows how and it was a quick fix,” he stated, wondering what she wanted from him this time.
“He’s busy, and you had a free day. And it is nice to actually see you again. I don’t see you, or Christopher as often as I would like to,” she told him.
“Chris is in school and we have other things to do a lot. He has a busy schedule going at the moment. Doesn’t help that he’s making so many friends, and he has playdates with them,” he smiled as he thought of the last one he had taken Christopher to. The school was a normal public school, not exactly set up for helping Christopher with what he needed, but they did well enough. Didn’t hurt that his son was a friendly and outgoing child, always ready to try something new in his own way.
“I’m still not sure it’s a good idea for him to go to school. It would be best for him to be homeschooled,” Helena said as she wrapped her hands around her mug and pursed her lips.
“This is what is best for Christopher. He’s doing well and I don’t have the time to teach him at home. Also, he’s doing excellent at school too. He’s reading and writing at a higher level than the others in his class. It might be occasionally messy, but he still has it down better than others,” he told her, shaking her head.
“I could always teach him,” Helena said, looking at her son again and adding, “It would be nice to have him here.”
“No,” Eddie said without hesitation. “It’s not going to happen at all, he’s going to stay in school, he’ll have a better education there.”
“Eddie, you have to admit that he would do better with one-on-one teaching, and I can teach just the same. He only needs to know how to read and write, and maybe a little math. He won’t need anything else,” she said, dismissive of what Eddie wanted for his son.
Eddie stopped what he was doing, “Mom, it’s not going to happen. I’m not taking him out of school at all. He’s fine where he is, and he enjoys it. He loves to learn new things and I doubt you’ll be able to keep up with him. Considering he wants to know more about sea life at the moment, we’re watching documentaries about them. Anything by David Attenborough is his favorite to watch at the moment,” he said, smiling as he thought of the joy Christopher showed when he was watching Blue Planet.
“He won’t need it though, Eddie, he won’t, he’s too sensitive and delicate and he really shouldn’t be watching anything like that,” she said with a look of distaste on her face.
“Mom, I’m not going to take Christopher out of school. He isn’t as sensitive as you think, nor as delicate. He is a child, I know that he’s going to get hurt occasionally. Have falls, and spills and all that being a kid entails. I knew that the moment he was born, that I was now wearing my heart outside of me. He’s out there walking around and it hurts so much that he will face challenges that others won’t. But I wouldn’t change him for the world. Because he is my world,” he told her, “And I am not about to let him stumble without me there to help him. I’m not going to let him feel like he is anyone but himself, and pulling him out of school will not help him, it will hinder him. I want him to be the best version of himself, Mom, and you’d crush that.”
“You’re going to pull him down and ruin him, if you keep pretending that he’s normal. He isn’t,” she snapped at him, “That’s why your father and I think it would be best that Christopher comes to live with us.”
“Do you really think I don’t know he isn’t like everyone else?” he demanded of her, “Of course I damn well know. I’m the one taking him to his therapies, and his appointments, helping him as he learns how to use his crutches and he is killing it already. He’s so damn fast with them at times. I will not give up my son, he is my world and you won’t be taking him away from me. So don’t even think about asking that again. It isn’t going to happen,” he said as he began to pack up the tools he had used.
“Eddie we aren’t finished with this conversation,” Helena said as Eddie began to head out of the house.
“We are, and when you can realize that you aren’t his mother, that you’re his grandmother,” he told her, “Then maybe I’ll come and see you again.” With that, he walked out and got in his truck to go home. He would have a couple of hours to get a few more things packed before he would need to fetch Christopher.
Chapter Two
It had taken a few more months, but they had managed to sneak out of El Paso, the house he had once owned, sold a few days before the move. He was free, or rather, he was temporarily free. He knew that his parents would soon find him since he was still going to be around family. there was no way he would be able to keep them all quiet. His sisters especially wouldn’t be able to since the two of them told their parents everything. They said he was the Golden Child, but he wasn’t, he was the scapegoat, the one that had all the expectations piled on. He had to do what they said when they said, or they would find a way to punish him. His sisters could get away with everything. They were both married, to people that they loved and had faced no backlash as he had when he had met and dated Shannon.
“Well, mijo,” Eddie said as he set him down on his feet, “Are you ready for a new adventure?” he asked him.
“Yeah, and we’re near Disneyland,” Christopher smirked as he looked at his dad, “We have to go.”
“I know, and we will,” Eddie promised him, smiling as they walked up the path to his grandmother’s. They were going to stay with her until they could take over the rented house that they had found to live in. It wasn’t that far from his grandmother’s home, so he could easily go and see her, with Christopher.
“Nieto!” Isabel cried out as she saw her grandson. “Bisneito,” she shouted out joyfully, she had missed seeing the two of them. Calls and Skype just weren’t enough. “I have missed seeing you both. I’m so happy that you chose to live out here.”
“Well, this is where the main part of the family lives. Do you really think I want to remain around my parents when they are trying to get me to give them Christopher? I’ve spent the last four months fending them off about it. They haven’t stopped. They call me and mention it, Adriana and Sophia have even started to berate me, about letting our parents take Christopher. I don’t know if they are really doing it because they believe that Christopher would be better off with them, or because it is just easier to go along with our mother,” he sighed, shaking his head again as he hugged her tightly for a moment.
“I will be having words with them,” Isabel promised as she let him go so he could head inside. She went over to Christopher, hugged him just as tightly as she had his father, and welcomed him to her home.
Eddie watched as Isabel and Christopher walked around her garden, there was a nice wide path around the edge of it, and down the middle. His aunt walked over and sat beside him.
“So, you’re going to tell me what’s really going on with the escape from El Paso?” Josephina asked as she looked at her nephew. She knew her brother was harsh on Eddie, she had also seen the way that her sister-in-law treated him. Like he could never do anything right.
“They keep trying to get me to let them take custody of Christopher. I’ve been hearing them talking when they think I’m not listening. They are even willing to make accusations of abuse if I don’t comply. I want to get settled here, and to see if I can sort out custody with Shannon. I need to know where I stand with her. There is no chance of us getting back together. I’m ready to put our marriage behind us,” Eddie began to explain, leaning back in his chair.
Josephina looked at her nephew, really looked at him and what she saw didn’t please her at all. Eddie looked tired and worn down, and there was an edge to him that reminded her of the first time she had seen him after he had returned home before her mother had been able to talk him into attending some therapy sessions. “What do you mean to accuse you of abuse?” she said, needing to know and knowing she wasn’t going to like the answer at all.
Eddie sighed, “They are determined to get custody of Christopher. They have been talking behind my back for weeks, months even, since Shannon left if I’m really honest. I know they have talked to a lawyer about it a couple of times. They left the damn letters out and a fucking email on their laptop while I was around. I read them all. So I know that they know that the only way they might get a chance of getting custody is if they find out that I’m abusive. That’s what they’ve been trying to do. Goad me into doing something that will give them just cause in calling CPS. We know I’m never going to harm Christopher, so they’ve been talking and seeing if they can just accuse me of it. They know a lot of people in El Paso who will listen to their words and take them as gospel. Which is why I got out of there. I have a better chance out here, in LA in getting them to listen to me so that Christopher isn’t automatically given to them.”
Josephina said a few curses before she said, “You know that me and Mama will not have anything to do with them should they try this. They will be dead to us.”
Eddie sighed, “I wish this was different, I’m just hoping that with the space between us they won’t try anything. I’ve got a place lined up, just a few things are being changed and touched up,” he added, smiling as he heard Christopher laughing.
“Any proof of what they have been doing?” she asked.
Eddie nodded, pulling out his phone. “I took photos of what I could. Even sent myself the email that I found. I know it won’t be used in a case or anything, but well, it shows intent on what they are doing. That they want Christopher. I’ve also recorded them twice talking about accusing me of abuse. I’m hoping that will be enough.”
Josephina took the phone and went through the small folder on it that Eddie had shown her. The videos, pictures, and screenshots of the messages that had been sent to him were right there in front of her. The language that her brother and sister-in-law were using disgusted her. The video broke her heart when she could hear a broken gasping sob coming from Eddie who had been recording it. The sound of a man who had been betrayed by those who should be there to support and help him.
“Doesn’t matter if they do something now, Mama will say the same. They are no longer welcome in our lives. You are a good man, Eddie Diaz, never forget that. You will rise up against my idiota brother,” she said, handing the phone back to him.
“I’ll be doing my best. I’m glad that I went through with the therapy. I think I would be in a bad place if I did,” he sighed, as his grandmother and Christopher began to head their way.
XxXxX
Eddie looked at the woman in front of him. Annoyance was clear on her face at being called in. But things needed to be signed and noted so that they could be filed. It had been almost a month from the day he had moved into his grandmother’s home, that he had taken to tracking Shannon down and to get her to speak to him. In the end, it had been through the lawyers that they had both hired. Now nearing the end of September, he was going to put an end to one chapter of his life.
“Are you sure you want to do this, Shannon?” Eddie asked her, wondering what had happened to the woman that he had once married.
“I’m done, Eddie,” she snapped at him, “I’m just done. I looked after him all the time, I’ve lost my own mother as well. I just want some me time. I don’t even want to think about being his mother at the moment.”
“You do this, and I warn you now. I will not just let you walk back into Christopher’s life when you want to. You’re signing away all your rights, just because you don’t want to pay any child support,” he shook his head.
“Like I said, Eddie, I’m done. I can’t be his mother, I don’t think I ever wanted to be his mother,” she stated, though she didn’t sound as cold as she had done a moment before. “I thought I did. But I don’t want it. I tried Eddie, I did, even your parents tried to tell me that I was a failure of a mother,” she added, sounding even more defeated.
“Shannon, they were wrong. Christopher is amazing, and I know that’s on you, he is such a joy because you were a good mother. I understand why you left, but I can’t understand why you didn’t stay in contact with him. Please, Shannon, don’t do this. You are his mother and he loves you. He talks about you even now. When I mentioned moving here, he asked if he could contact you,” he begged her, wanting her to change her mind about signing away her rights.
Shannon looked at him, “I’ve already made up my mind on this Eddie. I don’t want to be a mother, not to Christopher or anyone.”
“Then make sure that it is noted that should you wish to have your rights re-established then you must go through the courts. There is a high chance that you will not be able to get them back, it is extremely rare that they are after such a decision is made,” one of the lawyers said as she looked at Shannon.
“That’s fine,” she said, waving a hand dismissively, “I just want this over with.”
Eddie and Shannon began the tedious task of signing all the paperwork on their divorce and Shannon signed away her rights as Christopher’s mother. Eddie sighed when it was all done. It had taken them almost two months to get to this point. Shannon had been demanding half of Eddie’s assets. Eddie had been able to get around that with the prenup that they had both signed, this was mostly because of Helena that they had signed it. Now, Eddie was a little grateful, since that would mean he would have to give her half of what he had saved for Christopher, half of the house sale back in El Paso, which he had been the only one to add to anything. Shannon had kept her funds separate from his and never contributed to the house financially.
“Are we done?” Shannon demanded to know as she stood up, wanting to get away.
“Just so you know, there will be six months before the divorce will be finalized. The papers will be delivered to your homes at such a time,” one of them said as he looked at the two.
Shannon nodded and walked out, not even wanting to talk to Eddie at all.
Eddie received some of the paperwork concerning Christopher. So everything was in place for him to have sole custody of his son. He didn’t know how he was going to break this to Christopher, the five-year-old was hoping to see his mother again, but with how she had wanted to sign away her rights, Eddie knew that wasn’t going to happen. Now, to break it to Christopher. He left the building and headed to where he had parked the truck. He could see Shannon not far away from him. She stared at him for a moment, glared and then left. Eddie sighed again and rubbed at his face. He got in his truck and headed home, it was time to break the news to his son, that his mother wasn’t going to be seeing him anytime soon.
XxXxX
With only a week of the divorce being final, his parents had received word that the papers had been signed. Eddie sighed as his phone began to ring once more. It had almost been stopped since they had learned. Now three days after that, he was on call five hundred and something.
Eddie answered it this time. “Hello, Mother,” he stated, his emotions locked away as he knew showing anything to her would give her something that she would try and use against him.
“Eddie,” Helena greeted with a huff, “It took you ages to answer. Is everything alright? Is Christopher hurt?” she demanded to know.
“Nothing is wrong, everything is fine. Christopher is happily playing at the moment, his cousins are over and are playing with him as well,” Eddie said, wanting to roll his eyes.
“What!” she yelled, “You can’t let him do that, his cousins are all bigger and stronger than him. You need to get him inside, where it will be safe for him.”
Eddie couldn’t help the little snort, “He is sitting on a pad playing with blocks with his two-year-old cousin. There is nothing about her that is bigger or stronger than Christopher.”
“He is a special, sensitive, and delicate child, Eddie, you need to protect him and all I hear is you putting him into situations that can’t be good for him at all,” she snapped at him.
Eddie rolled his eyes as he looked out at the garden, his cousin, and her husband were sitting out there with the children. Abuela happily talked with the two of them. “Christopher is absolutely fine, and enjoying himself. I’m not going to limit him because you can’t see past his CP. He’s more than those crutches, he’s more than shaky legs and stammered words. He’s a five-year-old, almost six, that loves life, and enjoys finding out more about it.”
“You are going to pull him down with you. I am trying to make sure I do right by you and Christopher. Send him back to El Paso. So he can at least have a chance of being in a stable environment. He isn’t going to get that with you. You’re putting ideas into his head that he doesn’t need and it’s only going to cause him heartbreak later on,” she warned him.
“Mother, Christopher is doing fine, we’ve got good doctors out here for him and he is doing well with his physios. The transfer to the doctors here has been easy and they are talking about what we can do to keep Chris active and happy,” he told her, “I’m not going to stop any of that, just because you believe he should be confined to a room and a wheelchair for the rest of his life.”
“Mark my words, Edmundo, Christopher will be living with us before the end of next year,” she warned him before hanging up.
Chapter Three
Eddie yawned as he got out of bed. It had been months since he had first arrived in LA. The divorce with Shannon was finally through as well. The last of it had been filed and he had the divorce papers in hand. Everything was in order, including him having full custody of Christopher.
The day he had to tell him that he wouldn’t be seeing his mother had broken something in Eddie. Christopher was crying and even screaming a little, wanting to see her. Telling Eddie he was evil for keeping his mom away from him. It took a while to calm him down, and then it was tears and apologies as Eddie did his best to explain what was going on to the five-year-old.
Eddie went into his son’s room and smiled. He would be six in two months, and Eddie couldn’t wait, he had a few things planned for his birthday. He had been thinking about inviting his parents to the planned celebrations, though with the way they were still behaving he was unsure if he would be doing that. “Mijo,” he called out, “Time to get up buddy,” he said, as he went into the room and began to wake his son. He had school soon and needed to get up for breakfast.
Eddie stopped what he was doing as someone knocked on his front door. “Get up, okay, I need to go and see who that is,” he said, smiling and ruffling his son’s hair.
“Dad,” he complained as he giggled.
“Call me if you need help,” he added. Christopher nodded and began to slowly get out of bed. He was mostly self-sufficient in getting up in the morning. The bathroom had been set up so he could mostly shower alone, though Eddie tended to be there when he did, making sure he cleaned himself properly.
Eddie walked to the front door and looked down himself to make sure he was somewhat presentable. He was still in the clothes he had slept in, but they were clean. He opened the door and saw two people standing there, “Hello, can I help you?” he asked.
“Mr. Edmundo Diaz?” the man at the front asked.
“Yes, may I ask who you are, and why you are here?” he said, keeping his tone polite. He had a pit of dread starting to form in his stomach as they pulled out some ID.
“I’m Jerry Conner, and this is Galen Walis,” the first one said as they showed their IDs, “We are with Child Protective Services here in LA.”
Eddie took a breath, “And what can I do for you both?” he asked, looking at them wearily.
“May we come in, it would be best to discuss this inside,” Galen suggested, keeping his tone even.
“Alright, my son is getting ready for school at the moment, so I may be jumping up and down to make sure he’s doing okay. He has CP, and while he likes to do things himself, he does need a hand occasionally,” he told them as he let them into his home. He was nervous, but he had a feeling that what was to come was going to test his patience.
“We know,” Jerry told him, “We’ve been getting a number of reports of abuse within the home. We’re concerned about Christopher. At the moment, because of the nature of the reports that we’re getting. We’re going to be taking Christopher at the moment, and he is going to be given to someone else while we investigate things.”
“They finally did it,” Eddie said, rubbing his face, “I can guess who mainly made the claims and if there are others involved, then I can guess who else would be the ones doing it. The Main ones would be Helena Diaz and Ramon Diaz?” he asked, not really expecting to get an answer. “Doesn’t matter,” he muttered. He wanted to get angry, wanted to get defensive. He had talked to his lawyer about this possibility after he had first found out how far his parents might go to try and get custody of Christopher.
“That’s true, I’m sorry to say that you’re not to know,” Galen replied, “We’re going to have to take Christopher into custody. We already have someone lined up to take him in.”
“I want you to know now, that he can’t go to his grandparents, Helena and Ramon,” Eddie stopped him before he could say anything else. “Please, I get that you have to take him, but I ask for him to be taken by my parents. There is a reason, may I get a few things to show you, why they aren’t to have custody?” he asked them.
Jerry and Galen shared a look, “You may,” Jerry finally said after a moment.
Eddie jumped up, going to Christopher’s room and looking at his son. Christopher grinned up at him. “Hey, we have some visitors at the moment,” he told him, not wanting to tell him what was actually going on. “Will you be alright in here for a bit?”
“What about school, Daddy?” Christopher asked, frowning.
“Won’t be going today, and I’ll make sure that your teachers will try and send you your work,” he added, knowing that Christopher hated missing school. He loved to learn and often roped Eddie into learning beside him.
“Okay,” he huffed, not happy as Eddie got him settled to play with some of his legos.
Eddie hurried to his room, and grabbed the folder he had that was full of photocopies of the messages that he had been sent, and a USB stick that had copies of the calls that his parents had made and even a couple of voicemails that had been sent to him. He had them noted as well, to make sure that they could be used as evidence if it was ever needed. Walking back into the living room, he handed them over and sat back down.
“This is what they are doing,” Eddie said, “They and family members in El Paso, along with some of my parent’s friends, have been harassing me. Messages and voicemails, the occasional call, telling me that I should give Christopher up, that I should send him to my parents. I wouldn’t do so, and things kept escalating,” he finished, as they began to look through things.
“Hmm,” Galen said, “Normally we wouldn’t do this, but the names that we are seeing are some of those that have reported things to us,” he told him.
“We’re still going to have to take Christopher into custody,” Jerry added, making sure that Eddie understood that there was no getting out of that. “But we will no longer be sending him to stay with his grandparents.”
“May we speak with Christopher?” he asked, “You can be in the room, but please do not say anything.”
“That’s fine, but don’t expect him to be very cooperative. He’s seeing a therapist at the moment because of his mother’s abandonment, and this… is going to set his recovery back. Being taken away, so please, whoever gets him, needs to make sure they take that into consideration, as well as the fact that he has doctor appointments as well as therapy. He needs this for his CP, there is no getting out of it. It needs to be done and I expect whoever takes him to take his care seriously. I will be fighting to get my son back and I don’t want this to set him back at all,” Eddie told them, watching as they read, “I have a file of everything for Christopher, all the doctors and therapists that he sees weekly. The groups and such that he is also part of.”
“I see,” Galen said as he watched Eddie get up and then hand him another file, this one a little thinner, but still full of information that was centered around Christopher. “I didn’t realize how much information we would need when it was decided to take Christopher.”
“You believe I abused him,” Eddie stated bluntly, “You believe that I have harmed him and don’t do anything for him, so of course you didn’t think I would have all this. I love my son, he is the light in my world. I will do anything to make sure he can fly. Unlike my parents who just want him trapped in a wheelchair, locked in a room where as far as they are concerned, he will remain for all his life.”
Galen nodded, “That might be why,” he agreed, he had felt very much like they would be coming in, talking for a moment, and then having to call someone to restrain the man before him while they took his son. Instead, they were met with someone that was calm and put together. Like he had expected this, and with what he and Jerry were reading, Eddie had expected something like this to happen.
Jerry tucked things away as he addressed Eddie again, “Please bring Christopher into the room.”
Eddie nodded, sighing as he went to his son’s room, “Chris, I need you in the living room,” he said softly as he walked into his son’s room, the door still open. Thankfully, it was far enough from the living room that Christopher wouldn’t have been able to overhear what was being said.
“Okay, Daddy,” Christopher said as he got up, letting himself steady a little before grabbing his crutches and following his dad out of his bedroom.
Eddie led the way to the living room, and went to the small of the two couches, knowing that Christopher would sit beside him. “Christopher,” he said, “This is Jerry and Galen.”
“Hi,” Christopher greeted them, looking between the two before joining his dad on the couch.
“Hello, Christopher,” Galen said, “You know how sometimes, a child won’t be with their daddy or mommy for a while?” he asked him.
“Like how Mommy left because she didn’t want to be a mom anymore?” he asked, eyes starting to go wide as he looked at his dad, “Daddy, Daddy, you still want me don’t you? Please, Please don’t send me away.”
“Oh, mijo,” Eddie said, gathering his son into his arms, “I am not sending you away. I don’t want you to go, but someone has said something about me that needs to be investigated properly, to make sure that I’m being a good daddy,” he told him, not sure what else he could say to reassure his son that he loved him and didn’t want him to be anywhere else but at home.
“But you are a good daddy, you didn’t leave me, you love me and came home for me and hugged me all the time. We have fun at the park,” Christopher began to cry, clinging to his dad.
“Sometimes, we have to take a child to be in a safe place,” Jerry said this time, “We’re going to have to take you to a home where you’ll be taken care of. As soon as we can we’re going to set things up so your dad can at least visit you occasionally. I know this isn’t nice. But we have to do this to make sure that you’re being well taken care of.”
Galen nodded. They weren’t doing what they usually did, since this wasn’t a normal case in his eyes. The evidence that was in front of him was noted by the courts so he could trust it at least. It showed him that a lot of the accusations could easily be false since a lot of those who had reported didn’t even live in LA. “Christopher, sometimes we have to do something we don’t want to do,” he began, getting the child’s attention, “I know you don’t want to leave your dad, but for now you’re going to have to.”
“We’re going to be taking you to a place where there will be other children,” Jeey added, “I know,” he said as Christopher burst into a fresh round of tears.
Eddie sighed, “Chris,” he murmured, “You’re going to have to be brave for a bit, I don’t want you to go at all,” he stated, “But you’re going to have to.”
“No, don’t leave me, please, please, don’t send me away. I’ll be good, I’ll be really good and not a burden!” Christopher sobbed brokenly as he clung all the more to Eddie.
It took almost an hour for Christopher to let go of his father. Galen and Jerry did their best to make sure that father and son knew that as soon as certain things were settled, they would be able to at least visit each other. In the car, Christopher was silent. They had been planning to give Christopher over to his grandparents, but with the evidence that they had seen, that had now changed. Instead, Jerry had stepped out and called for a placement that would be able to accommodate Christopher. There were only a couple that could handle Christopher’s type of care. The main one was a children’s home that had only been open for three months.
Arriving at the home, they found a manor house. There was a yard that was being used by children, it was fenced off, but the property was also fenced in. They had been buzzed through the gate, which meant that the people who ran the home took security seriously. Galen got out first. a young man and an older woman were standing near the stairs, to the side was a ramp that wound up to the entrance.
“Hello,” the young man said as he stepped over to him, hand out, “You must be Galen or Jerry,” he said.
“I’m Galen, we have a case where a father has been accused of some serious abuse. We’ve taken the child into custody, but he has medical needs, you’re one of two places that we could take him to that can accommodate him,” he told him, taking the hand.
“I’m Evan Buckley, I’m one of the ones that run Second Chance Home,” he replied, “I need the files of the child, so we know what we need to work with. I’ll have a friend come in for a consultation to make sure that everything is in order for the child’s needs and care. This is Doctor Alicia Andrews, she’s our resident counselor on-site as well as a fully qualified psychologist.”
Galen nodded, the home did a few things differently from others that he had seen. “I see, well, the child is Christopher Diaz, he’s six years old, he lives with his father. His mother isn’t in the picture. From one side I get that she was extremely abusive and ran off when confronted. On the other hand, I realized that she just couldn’t cope anymore as a mother and left after her own had passed away. He’s dealing with abandonment issues from what his father has said, not only that, but he isn’t going to be happy with being away from his father.”
“So I can expect a child that is not going to be happy, and lashing out?” Evan asked as he glanced towards the car.
“Maybe. We’re not sure. We’ve been told by one side that he is a delicate and disabled child who needs constant support. But…” he shook his head, “We’re getting conflicting reports on the child. Sorry to say, that you’re going to have to find out for yourself for the most part.”
“That’s fine,” Evan nodded, “let’s go and meet him.”
Galen nodded and they headed towards the car.
Chapter Four
Evan looked at the car as they approached. The child in the back was small, and looked a mix of annoyed, scared, and upset, from the way tears were falling from his eyes. This was a child that loved the parent they had been taken away from. “The parent?” he asked. They weren’t supposed to be taking the child, from what he had learned, just that they had been a quick choice when the grandparents were deemed not fit.
“A father, single. The mother, not in the picture at all, abandoned her son and has signed over all parental rights to her ex-husband. We received over fifteen reports of abuse within the household in the last week. So we went to take him after the grandparents called, they said a few things that made us act that very morning. They are in town at the moment, hoping for custody to be given to them while we investigate,” Galen told him, shaking his head. He stopped before reaching the car.
“Why didn’t he go to them then?” Evan frowned, “Isn’t the first choice usually family?”
“Normally, yes. Mr Diaz gave us some information leading us to suspect that the Grandparents wouldn’t be a good choice at the moment. Both households will be investigated. What is best for the child is what will be chosen, but we’ll need to do a serious investigation. The allegations against Mr Diaz are extreme. There will be a few appointments that Christopher will need to be taken to, to determine any physical abuse, and mental, verbal, and emotional abuse as well. It’s why your Home was chosen over the single foster home that is currently available,” he explained.
Evan nodded, “Well, you know we do our best here,” he said, “Let’s get him inside and settled. Alicia will be speaking to him, and I’ll be in the room. The interviews we do here during intake are recorded. If needed, they can be used by you for your investigation.”
“Thank you, that might be helpful. There is a visitation center that I am going to refer both households to, so they can spend time with Christopher. One of those from the Home will need to remain with him at all times since there are serious allegations that are being thrown around at the moment. We need to clear them for supervised visits but that should hopefully, only take a week,” he added, sighing, “I have to admit, most of the time when I take children, I’m taking them from bad situations, this time, I really don’t think I did. Though I’m going to have to stay impartial enough to investigate.”
“We’ll do what we have to,” Evan said, “Let’s get him inside, and I’ll look through the file as Alicia is talking with him,” he added as Galen went to the car door and opened it. The child looked around five, maybe six. He looked helplessly at Evan.
“Hi, I know that you don’t want to be here, but we’re going to do what we can to sort things out, it’ll just take some time,” Evan said as he knelt by the door. Christopher was strapped into a car seat, one that didn’t look like the normal type for a child. Having learned that he had Cerebral Palsy did explain the seat he was using and wondered if they were going to be taking it, or if CPS would be keeping it.
“I want to go home, please. Daddy said he loved me and he wasn’t going to leave me. Now I’m being sent away, like Grandma always said because I’m too much of a burden,” the child began, only to burst into tears.
Galen and Evan shared a look. Evan now understood what Galen meant by believing they may have made a mistake in taking this child away from his father. “I wish I could,” Evan said softly, “I really do, but for now you’re going to be staying here with me and my friends. We have a few other children here as well. I know, it’s not the same as being home, but the sooner we can get things done, the sooner we might just be able to get you back where you belong,” he told him, not saying exactly where Christopher might go when things were finished.
Christopher gave a small nod but continued to cry. Evan unbuckled him and picked him up. Jerry got out of the car and went to the boot, grabbing a small suitcase and a bag, while Galen grabbed a pair of crutches. Evan carried the crying child to the entrance. Alicia is waiting there for them both. Clive walked out of the Home at that point.
“I’ll take the bags to his room,” Clive said as he smiled at Jerry and took them off him.
“Thank you,” Evan smiled at him.
“No worries,” Clive told him as he added, “Joshie is curious, no doubt he’s been watching from the upstairs window again.”
Evan snorted and nodded, “Yeah, I spotted him,” he said as they walked inside. They would be going to Alicia’s office first so they could talk. Alice took the crutches.
“Right, Christopher, we’ll talk to you again soon, Evan and the others that live here are all really nice. They’ll look after you while we get everything sorted,” Jerry told the six-year-old.
“I just want my daddy,” Christopher sniffled, holding onto Evan tightly like he was the only thing in the world that could comfort him
After saying their goodbyes to the two CPS agents, Evan carried Christopher to Alicia’s office, “Right,” Evan said as soon as they were instead. He set the six-year-old down, putting the crutches next to him. “We’re in Alicia’s room, her office, but the kids here nicknamed it the Walky Talky room,” he smiled, “Since anyone can walk in and talk as much as they need to about what they are going through, and what they are feeling. This is the place to talk, no one can judge you in this room and when a question is asked by Miss Alicia, there is never a wrong answer.”
Christopher nodded, “O-Okay,” he hiccuped, wiring at his eyes.
Alicia walked over and handed him a tissue, “Like with any place you live, there are a few rules we have to live by, but they aren’t hard ones,” she told him gently, “The main one is, Be Kind, we don’t know what someone is going through. They could be hurting so much inside.”
“I hurt, I hurt a lot, in my heart and I just wan… want my dad,” he began to cry again. “Please, I want to go home, I want to go home.”
Evan sat beside him and pulled the six-year-old onto his lap, and rocked him. There was nothing he could really say since he didn’t know what could happen after the investigation had finished. “I know buddy,” he said softly, “I know.”
It took almost an hour to get Christopher calmed down enough that Alicia could start her minor interview with Christopher, as Evan sat on another chair and went through the file that he had been given on the six-year-old. Evan listened as Christopher talked about his dad, how his mom had left, and his grandparents, whom he didn’t like because they treated him like a baby all the time. The file listed the medical conditions as well as information that the father had provided for Christopher’s current care plan.
“Grandma says that I’m a burden,” Christopher said quietly, “That I need too much and that I’m going to hurt Daddy if I keep living with him.”
Alicia nodded, “And what does your daddy say?”
“Daddy tells me he loves me and that I’m his shiny star,” Christopher told her, frowning, “Do you… do you think that Grandma is right? That I’m a burden?”
Alicia smiled at him, “I don’t think so,” she said, “From what you are telling me, your dad loves you a lot.”
“He does, he reads to me every night before bed, and he tucks me in. He tries to cook, and he’s okay at it, but he’s no Bisabuela. She’s really good at cooking, and says that Daddy is almost ready to learn the family recipes,” he smiled, “I won’t be able to see her will I?” he asked, looking sad.
“I’ll see what can be done,” Evan told him, looking up from the file. There had been nothing about the great-grandmother in it that led anyone to believe that she was doing anything to the six-year-old.
Christopher nodded and went back to talking to Alicia. Half an hour later, he was yawning, it was only mid-afternoon and he was the only child there apart from Joshua, who hadn’t been feeling well that morning so hadn’t been sent to school. Evan took him to his room, where all his things were put away.
“Okay,” Evan said as Christopher sat down on the bed in the middle of the room. It was a single bedroom, set up for those with mobility issues. The bedroom was on the ground floor, and next door was the bathroom also set up for the disabled. “I need to know what help you need, there is a buzzer in the room so you can call someone to help at any time. But you have to talk to me about what you need and want. I’m here to help you, and so are the others. Though I think maybe a nap might be a good idea.”
“I’m not a baby,” Christopher said hotly as he glared at Evan.
“I know that you’re a young child, who is six years old, and sometimes we all need help with things. There is no shame in asking. And so far today has been rather heavy emotionally for you, things have changed and rest is needed. It’s only a small nap. I know the other child that is here currently is going to have a nap as well, and he is older than you. A nap is good to have during the day, not a sign of being a baby, a sign of knowing when your body needs to rest,” he told him, “I nap occasionally as well. Everyone does.”
“Okay,” he said with a pout on his face.
“Let’s get cleaned up and changed into something that’s nice and loose for your nap,” Evan smiled as he then watched and helped when asked and got Christopher ready for his nap.
XxXxX
Joshua sneaked along the corridor and to the bedroom where the new kid slept. He had heard Evan talking to his brother, Clive, he opened the door a little and poked his head around it. Seeing the kid awake he grinned, “Can I come in?” he asked.
Christopher sat up and nodded, “Okay,” he said, he had been asleep for a bit, but had woken up and had been lying there, bored and unsure of what he could do.
“I’m Joshua, though most call me either Josh or Joshie,” he said as he walked into the room, “I’m eight years old, and my brother adopted me when I was very little.”
“Oh, my Mommy didn’t want me anymore and it’s just me and my daddy, but they took me away from him, saying that someone was calling him a bad daddy, but he really isn’t,” Christopher said as he shuffled to the edge of the bed.
Joshua walked into the room fully. “My mom is in jail, she was really bad and she… she killed my dad when I was little. She did something to his car when he and my brother were going somewhere. But I was in the car as well. Clive was hurt and I wasn’t. It took Clive ages for him to be able to come and get me. I don’t remember either of them, but he tells me about our dad a lot. Clive misses him,” he said as he sat on the bed.
“I’m sorry,” Christopher murmured.
Joshua looked at him, “it’s okay, it is what it is,” he said with a few nods. “I love having Clive as my dad, he adopted me, though I haven’t got the courage to call him that yet. He’s been my dad now for… five years. He’s really smart, though people don’t always believe it,” he shrugged.
Christopher tilted his head, “What do you think Clive will say when you do?”
“I… don’t know,” he sighed, flopping back on the bed and giggling, “I love him as a dad, and he is my dad, it says so on the papers. I’m scared I might make him sad. I don’t want him to cry.”
Christopher flopped back. “I don’t remember the first time I called my dad, Daddy,” he said, staring at the ceiling, “I’ll ask him what it was like when I see him.”
Joshua nodded, “I want to ask more about my dad as well, but I don’t want to hurt Clive when I ask. He tells a lot, but I have questions.”
“Ask,” Christopher prodded, “What should I do now?” he asked, as he huffed.
Joshua looked at his watch, “It’s afternoon, they have a small meeting with all the adults that work here at the moment, they do that daily to make sure no one living here has problems.”
“Your… brother works here?” he asked.
Joshua rolled onto his side and looked at Christopher as the young did the same, “Yeah, we’ve only been here a few months, but it’s really nice here. Everyone is always willing to listen and help.”
“I just want to go home to my dad, I miss him,” he murmured.
Joshua reached out, “Yeah, I bet,” he nodded as he patted Christopher on the arm. “Tell me about him?” he asked.
Christopher smiled and told him as much as he could about his dad before someone knocked on his bedroom door. “Come in,” he called out, frowning, it wasn’t often that someone would knock on his bedroom door. He mainly left the door open at home, his dad would only stand in the doorway before entering when Christopher acknowledged him, or it was time to wake him up.
“Hi,” a young man said as he smiled at the two.
“Clive!” Joshua yelled out as he jumped from the bed and rushed over.
Clive laughed as he hugged his little brother, “I take it you’re making the new kid welcome, Josh?” he asked him.
“Yep,” Joshua said proudly, “He’s really nice, but he misses his dad a lot,” he added.
“I can understand that,” he said softly as he looked at Christopher, “We’re going to have some lunch together, would you like to come and join us?” he asked.
Christopher nodded and scooted down the bed, grabbing his crutches, he stood up, “Okay,” he said, “Let’s go. I’m kinda hungry, I didn’t get breakfast,” he added.
Clive looked at him, kneeling, “I’m sorry about that, but if you miss a meal, and we don’t notice, please tell one of us, or even tell Joshie, he’ll tell us we’re being silly about something,” he smiled, “Now, this place is really large, we don’t have that many kids here at the moment,” he said as he stood up and began to lead the way to the dining room, explaining more about the Home as he did so.
Chapter Five
Evan walked into the meeting room. There were a few others that were already in the room. Each of them sitting around a large meeting table. Galen and Jerry were there as well. Evan looked at the other three in the room, an older couple that was glaring at a younger man that looked to be a little older than Evan. There were also two more people in the room, one was sitting beside the couple and the other beside the single man. He walked to a chair and sat down as well, glancing at Jerry, he had been the one to call him in. He was to represent Christopher’s interest in things. It had been a week since the six-year-old had been given into his care.
“Right, we’re all here,” Galen said, “Now, we normally don’t have everyone gathered like, but I feel that this might be the best way to get through this investigation.
“I want to know why our grandson has been put in a home?” the woman demanded.
“Mrs Diaz,” Jerry began, “Accusations have been flung around, so both sides are not under investigation. You have a lawyer with each of you; in this room is also Evan Buckley. He works at the Home where Christopher is currently residing. At that moment in time, neither groups are allowed to go near the Home at all.”
“I must say that this isn’t proper,” the lawyer who was sitting with the couple stated.
“Mr Mines,” Jerry began, “I would agree that we usually don’t do this. But at the moment, both sides are being investigated, to see where the Minor Child, Christopher Diaz is to be placed. We have some serious accusations that are being made against Mr. Edmundo Diaz, and then we have statements and court-proved facts against Mr and Mrs. Diaz about things as well,” he added, “Both will need to be investigated.”
“I wish to see my grandson, and I demanded that he be brought here right this minute,” Helena snapped as she looked at the two men.
Galen shook his head, “Mrs Diaz, I will warn you, you can make all the demands that you like, but they will not be fulfilled. We are going to have supervised once-a-week meetings between yourself and Christopher, and doing the same with Mr Diaz and his son. All visits will be supervised and at a specialized center, there will be no other visits, as things are cleared and sorted, we may increase the amount of times someone can see Christopher. We do wish for him to be with family, but we need to make sure that he is with the family that will be best for him and won’t hinder him. Christopher has Cerebral Palsy and requires certain things. That will also be part of the investigation,” he added, looking between both groups.
“Is Christopher doing okay?” Eddie finally spoke, “Is he still going to his appointments? And what about school? He loves to learn.”
Evan leaned forward, “Christopher is doing well, missing his father, of course,” he began, “He has been going to his appointments, and I’ve been learning all that I can about his conditions so I can best help. We have someone that works with us that is doing what she can to help as well,” he explained, “He is going to school, though we believe that the one he is currently in isn’t really suited for his needs. We’re looking at others, but that will be dealt with when he is settled with whoever gains custody of him.”
Eddie nodded, “I was looking at places, but I don’t know what I can afford, I’m in between jobs at the moment, and finishing my own recovery from being shot down in Afghanistan. I’m actually doing some work with my aunt at her small boutique,” he finished quietly.
“That’s good if you can send a list through,” Galen said, “Then we can see-”
“He will not be remaining in Los Angeles when we get custody, he will be going back to El Paso,” Helena interrupted.
“Mrs. Diaz, it doesn’t hurt to look at the type of schools that are around, and it would be a good idea to have a list of those in El Paso that Christopher Might be sent to,” Jerry told her.
Helena huffed as her husband answered, “I will sort that list out,” Ramon said, nodding, keeping a hand on his wife’s arm.
“Good,” Jerry said, “Now, as to why you are both here. We want to lay some rules down for you all. There is no going to the Home where Christopher now lives. If you do that will be a black mark against you. A second time and you will lose your visitation rights. Now, as to the visits, they are to be held at the center, and they will be one hour long at first. They will be upped as we see how you interact with Christopher. They may end up being more than one meeting a week. You will not be able to take Christopher out of the center at all. There will also be two people in the room at all times. One that works at the Home and another that works at the center. They are there for Christopher’s safety, do remember that before you start protesting.”
“I will protest, I’m his grandmother, I would never hurt him at all. He is a delicate young boy and very sensitive,” Helena huffed as she sat forward again, shaking off the hand that was on her arm.
“That might be the case, Mrs Diaz, but we don’t know you. Therefore, supervised visits. If you continue to protest then they can be only half-hour visits instead of an hour. Not only that but there will be a lock on the door, and you will not be able to leave until you ask, this again is for safety reasons,” Galen told her, his voice taking on a stern tone, “There are no arguments against these precautions.”
“You’re treating us all like criminals,” she snapped a little as she leaned back.
“At the moment, you could all be criminals, the only truly innocent in all this is Christopher, so we are doing everything to protect him and his interests. To make sure that we make the best decision when it comes to his life and future,” Jerry told her, “Now, you have files in front of you about the rules that are to be followed at the moment. We mostly do not allow visitation so soon after a placement. We’re doing this as the psychologist who is speaking with Christopher believes that it would be a good idea to have him visited by family occasionally. This also includes his great-grandmother, Isabel Diaz.”
“Oh,” Eddie said, relaxing, “I was going to ask about that. My abuela misses him like crazy.”
“She will be on the list to be able to make an appointment to visit Christopher at the center. This will take place after school and occasionally on the weekends. They will not always happen during those days that you ask for,” Evan was the one to speak this time, “The Home does days out and other things with the children that live there.”
“Christopher needs to be taken care of properly, how can that be done when there are other children!” Helena demanded to know.
“We have a number of people that work there. We also have those that live in-house as well. At the moment, including myself, there are seven people that live full time in the Home. And six more that are on rotation to come in through the day or night, depending on their shifts. I and one other also do work outside of the Home, we’re both just started at the Fire Academy, and we believe this sets a good example to the children. There will always be at least 7 Care Workers that live in the home,” Evan explained to her, “Christopher is getting all the care, we even have someone that is solely there to help him, because of his issues, this is more to make sure that one person will have all the information needed to help him as best as possible. She is a fully trained nurse, in pediatrics and of course general nursing.”
“The Home in which Christopher lives is one of the best in LA at the moment, they have a good fully trained staff. Including an in-house psychologist that the children can talk to at any time. Which I have heard includes the middle of the night,” Galen said, glancing at Evan.
“It has been done,” Evan smiled, “Alicia is very good with young children. She and Christopher have a good rapport going at the moment.”
Galen and Jerry ended the meeting, waiting for each group to leave. They had asked Evan to remain behind so they could talk to him. As soon as the door closed, Galen turned to him, “Thanks for staying behind, Evan.”
“It’s fine, what do you need from me?” he asked, moving around so they could see each other properly.
“I would like anyone that is to supervise the meetings between the Diaz’s and Christopher to be up on all the things that might crop up. Something doesn’t sit right with me and the grandparents. With the way Christopher reacted, I am wondering if something more is going on.”
“The visits are recorded, but I’ll make sure it will be me, Xiaoli, or Janaia who does the visit supervision. We have those types of lessons already down. I think in the end I might make sure that all take the courses that we should have for this. I don’t want anything to slip through the cracks,” Evan nodded in agreement. “Is it really fine for me and Xiaoli to become firefighters?” he asked.
“Of course,” Galen said, “it’s a good job, and you are right it sets an example to the children,” he added. “You also have more than enough people working at the Home to cover for when you are in the Academy and on shift,” he finished, getting up, “Thank you again for coming,” he said, shaking Evan’s hand as he too got up.
“That’s fine, please, if you need to contact us, then do so,” Evan reminded him as he left to go back to the Home.
XxXxX
It was after dinner and Evan was doing some of the coursework for the academy in the living room, sitting at the coffee table, while the children in the room watched TV a little before bed. He looked up and he saw Christopher now sitting across from him. “Hey, Chris,” he smiled, “Are you doing okay?” he asked. The first visit was to his grandparents and that had upset Christopher a little. Though he had cheered up when he had learned that he would also be seeing his dad the day after.
“Yeah, do I have to see Grandma and Abuelo?” he asked him, huffing as he leaned on his arms, crutches lying on the floor.
“Sorry, buddy, I don’t make the rules. They are trying to figure out the best home for you. But that is going to take time, part of that is seeing how each person behaves with you,” Evan told him, being honest. They had learned early on that it was always best to be as honest as you could with the children. Lying often led to them mistrusting you to the point where they wouldn’t go to you if they needed anything.
Christopher huffed again, “They treat me like a baby. I am not a baby. I’m six now.”
“If they treat you like that, then that will also be in my notes,” he told Christopher, “Everything that is said, done and all that, is noted down. It shows us a little glimpse of how they will treat you when you are with them. However some people do pretend to do things in these situations, which is why even if you go to someone, they are still checked over the course of a year, and it will be random, and they won’t be told beforehand.”
“Good, Grandma wouldn’t be able to keep quiet,” Christopher nodded, “She is mean about Mommy and Daddy. She says I’m a burden and that’s why I should live with her, so my daddy can be free.”
Evan didn’t know what to say to that, “I see,” he murmured after a moment, making sure to pass the words on to Galen and Jerry. It might just be the annoyance of a six-year-old, but it could be more than that. Parental Alienation was abuse after all.
“I suppose I can put up with Grandma being mean if I can see Dad as well,” he sighed heavily and lay his head down on the table. “It is nice here, but it’s not my home.”
“And we’re going to do all we can to make sure that you can go home,” Evan told him, smiling a little.
Christopher looked at him, “Yeah, might be with Grandma though. I’d rather stay here than go to Grandma.”
Evan felt a little shocked but understood what it was like to live with someone that treated you badly, in any way. “It might, but it’s going to take some time,” he reminded him, “Let’s wait and see what happens first,” he told him.
Christopher nodded, “Yeah,” he said.
“Chris!” Joshua called out as he rushed over, “Come on, you’re going to miss the best bits.”
Christopher laughed and got up with Joshua helping him in the guise of pulling him up and hurrying him along. “Slow down, not as fast as you.”
Joshua looked at him, “Not like I am no, but if I was using crutches like you, I bet you’re faster than me. If I ever break a leg you’re going to have to teach me how to use them.”
“Slow down, Joshie,” Clive said with a fond shake of his head as he joined Evan for a bit, “The girls are all having fun with mani’s and pedis,” he added.
Evan smiled, “I wondered where Xiaoli went, no doubt he went to join them?” he asked.
“Yep,” Clive nodded, “I am tempted myself,” he said looking at his nails. “I could do with them being sorted out. I’ve been biting them again.”
“Everything okay?” he asked the youngest member of staff.
“Yeah,” he sighed, “Just… my mother has been in contact from the prison, she’s trying to get me to let Joshua see her. He doesn’t remember her at all. Knows that she exists, but he doesn’t like her because of what she did. He doesn’t remember our father either, he was only just turned two when it happened. So I don’t know what to do. I was seventeen at the time, it took until I was nineteen to be able to get him back and recover from the crash.”
“I think it might be a good idea to speak with Joshua, he’s got a good head on his shoulders, even though he’s only eight,” he suggested.
Clive snorted, “Yeah,” he nodded in agreement. “I’ll do that soon then.”
Evan smiled and went back to his studying, listening to the children as they played and talked. Clive was beside him reading himself as he leaned against the bottom of the couch. It was a good day, who knew how it was going to be the next day.
Chapter Six
Evan looked at the woman before him, she was in uniform. “You Evan Buckley?” she asked.
“I am,” he nodded as he let her inside, “Thank you for coming so quickly.”
“It’s a children’s home. Of course, I will,” she said, like it was obvious, “I’m Sergeant Grant,” she introduced herself, “You said that you had a disturbance at the gate, someone was trying to get in?” she asked.
“Yes, please come to my office, I have the security footage there. We have three cases at the Home at the moment, where their families are not to come near them. We have an eleven-year-old whose mother and father are both not to contact their daughter. The abuse means she is permanently out of their home. We’re waiting for her aunt to come in, but the custody is taking a while to sort out as the mother has been bombarding her sister. The cases go through the courts soon, so hopefully she’ll have her forever home soon. The second is a teenager, he’s almost seventeen, and he’s been here since mid-January, the second we got. The mother is allowed nowhere near him at all. Not even to visit. They are trying to locate the father, but the mother is making it hard to do so. She’s been warned before about coming here. The last is a six-year-old. He has grandparents and a father. None of them are allowed to come here to see him. They are to go to the center, there are allegations of abuse on both sides. They are under investigation and he is to remain here until we’ve concluded who he is to go home with,” Evan explained as he opened the door to his office and led the way inside.
“Okay, let’s have a look at the footage, and do you have pictures of the people that aren’t to come here?” she asked as she went over to the desk, a laptop already open.
“I do, I think I already know who it is, but I would rather you deal with it. However, I will be making a call to the CPS about what is going on. They will be sanctioned,” Evan said as he let her sit down and pressed play so she could watch the video.
“Two, male and female,” she said, “older.” She looked closely and nodded, “Helena and Ramon Diaz,” she said, “Right, I’ll make a note of it, and I’ll call as well, since I would like their address, they will be getting a warning from me.”
“Thank you, a restraining order will be the next to come into effect if they do this again, and they won’t be able to see Christopher at all. They are supposed to meet with him, but with this, they might not be able to,” Evan sighed, though he had a feeling that Christopher would be happy about not seeing them.
“I’ll be sure to mention it,” Sargent Grant nodded,
“Thank you for coming, and I’ll inform Galen and Jerry so that when you contact them they can give over their current address. They don’t live in LA, they live in El Paso, but they are staying in LA while this is going on,” Evan told her as she took a recording of the video, they had been trying to get into the grounds of the Home, but security was tight, and only the intercom would allow them to talk to the house, and be allowed to enter. it stopped anyone just showing up unannounced.
“Right,” Sergeant Grant said, “Thank you for this, I’m going to make sure that a file is made against the Diaz Grandparents so that if they misbehave again, it will be added to it. Will make a good case against them should they get up to things.”
Evan laughed and nodded, “Yeah when I was in the meeting with all sides. The father seemed concerned about Christopher, wanting to know if he was alright, if he was going to his appointments, and about school. The grandparents were more concerned with just getting him and leaving. No concern about the child himself,” he then frowned, “There was a sense of entitlement from her, and ableist views as well.”
“I’ll make a note,” she told him as she was soon led from the building and to her patrol car. “I hope I don’t have to see you again, Mr Buckley,” she stated as she got in her patrol car. “Dispatch, this is 727-L30, I’ve finished at Second Chance Home, I need to find the current address for Mr. Ramon Diaz and Mrs. Helena Diaz. Currently in Los Angeles,” she said, “It might be an idea to contact CPS and ask for Galen Walis or Jerry Conner, they are in charge of the case that they are currently involved in,” she suggested.
“I’ll get right on that Sergeant Grant,” came the feminine voice on the other end. It was a few minutes as Athena Grant drove out of the grounds of Second Chance Home, the gates closing behind her as she turned onto the road. “Sergeant Grant, I’ve found the current address,” she said as she rattled off the address that she had been given by CPS. “CPS has asked that you record the meeting and send a copy to them.”
“I will,” she agreed. She headed to the address, got out, and looked at the home that the two were staying in. “Dispatch, this is 727-L30, I’ve arrived at the Diaz home. Will be going inside,” she stated.
“Okay, Sergeant Grant,” Dispatch replied.
Anthea looked around, the home wasn’t small by any means. It was a rental AirBnB that was being used for them to live in, from what she had been able to search before getting out of her patrol car. She walked up the path, seeing the car that had been outside of Second Chance Home, and making a note of the registration. She approached the door and knocked on it.
The door opened and a tall woman stood there, long brown hair being pushed back as it got in her way, “Yes, what can I do for you?” she asked.
“Mrs Helena Diaz?” she asked.
“I am, is this about my grandson?” she asked.
“No, but may I come in, I would like to speak with you and your husband?” Athena asked.
Helena hesitated for a moment before letting her inside, “Of course, I’ll just get Ramon,” she said as she went off to go and fetch her husband.
Athena looked around, there wasn’t much that she could glean from what she was seeing, since the place wasn’t the Diaz’s, but a rental. She looked at the two as they entered the room, “Mr Ramon Diaz?” she asked, getting a nod.
“Yes, I am, my wife says you wish to speak with us?” he asked.
“Yes, let’s sit down,” she said.
The two nodded and they sat down first. Athena did the same on the lone chair in the room. “Right, Mr and Mrs Diaz, I need to inform you that I am recording this conversation,” she said, as she tapped the bodycam that she was wearing.
“That’s fine,” Helena shrugged.
“Right, just under two hours ago, can you tell me where you both were?” she asked them, hoping that she would get a straight answer.
“We were here like we have been since we got turned down from taking our grandson home with us,” Helena snipped a little, pulling a face of annoyance.
“Ma’am,” Athena started, “We have video footage of you both outside the gates of Second Chance Home,” she told them, “Trying to enter the property. When you were refused entry you tried to pry the gates open. It was only when the cops were called that you left. We have you both easily visible and recognizable. Why were you there? I understand that you were both told to remain away from the Home.”
“We are to see Christopher today,” Ramon stated.
“Yes, you are to meet at the Briar Rose Center, so you can meet with your grandson there, not at Second Chance Home,” Athena countered, “So please, try again on why you were there?”
“We were there to get Christopher,” Helena snapped, “He needs to be in our home, only we can help him.”
“Mrs Diaz, I’m sorry to say that isn’t going to happen until the investigation is over. You may not receive custody, either. You are not to approach the home again. If you do it a second time then a restraining order will be put in place to protect all that live there and it will also mean that any visitations that you have with your grandson will be canceled, as he will be included in the restraining order. This can and most likely will, work against you since you seem to be trying to gain custody of your grandson,” Athena warned them, “At the moment, we will be making a file, you have been warned not to go there again.”
“We’re just trying to do right by our grandson, he is a delicate and fragile child, and everyone thinks that he should be doing so many dangerous things. He is even let into school, which could be so dangerous, that he will need to be supervised and protected. They are going to ruin him, they are going to give him false hopes, and then what?” Helena ranted as she got up and started to pace, “Christopher is a gentle and sensitive soul. If he gets his hopes up that he can do things like other children can, then he is going to be so upset. It’s going to devastate him, and I don’t want that for him.”
Athena frowned, “Ma’am, it’s not me that you need to talk about this. You have lawyers, talk with them. I have no hold over your case.”
Helena turned to face her, “But can’t you see that I am doing what is best for my grandson?”
“No child is ever able to do everything every other child is able to,” Athena said, shaking her head.
“Do you even have children?” Ramon asked her.
“I do; two,” she answered, “One is good at one thing, and the other can’t do it at all. Just like I know my husband is good at something, I’m really not,” she said, “No one person can be good at everything. ”
“You don’t understand what it is like to have a child that is disabled, that will never be like other children and will have their life confined in such a way,” Ramon huffed, “You have warned us. If that is all, I’m asking you to leave,” he finished.
Athena stood, “Please take heed of the warning,” she said once more as she then was shown out by Helena.
“You need to understand, we want what is best for Christopher,” she told her.
“But do you know what Christopher wishes in all of this?” she asked, “What he thinks and needs are just as important.”
Helena huffed as she slammed the door closed. Athena shook her head and headed back to her patrol car.
XxXxX
Evan sat at the back of the room. On the other side was the one who worked at the Briar Rose, she was there to observe how Eddie Diaz interacted with his son. Two hours before, Helena and Ramon Diaz had their visit with Christopher, delayed a day because of their attempt at entering the Home. Eddie was sitting on the ground, playing with his son. As he had been for most of the time. The first bit was seeing the two reunite. Evan could tell there was genuine love between the two of them. Eddie cared deeply for his son, and Christopher adored his father. Telling the man everything that was going on in the Home.
The meeting soon ended and with some tears, Christopher finally went with Evan. “I’m sorry that you can’t stay with him,” Evan told the child.
“I know, but I miss being with Dad,” Christopher sighed as he walked towards the car that Evan was using.
“I can understand that,” Evan agreed with him. Back at the Home, Christopher was quick to find Joshua, and the two of them headed off. Galen was already waiting in his office. “I wasn’t expecting you to be here,” he said, shaking his head.
“I thought I would come and see you about the Diaz’s, while it’s still fresh in your mind. I’ve already heard from Kaitlyn, who was in the room with you both times. I want to hear what you have to say,” Galen told him.
Evan sighed as he sat down, “I’ll go with the good first. Eddie Diaz adores his son, and Christopher adores him. There is no hesitation in Christopher when he goes to his dad, playing with him, and telling him everything. I do mean everything as well. All the gossip from the Home is now known by Eddie Diaz,” he laughed. “He’s shown no signs of being afraid of his father at all. With the reports you were getting, I would have thought there would be a lot of that, but there’s nothing,” he told him.
“Right,” Galen said as he began to write a few things done, “What about the Grandparents?” he asked, “They’ve been reprimanded as well, making sure that they know not to come here again, that they will lose the privilege of seeing Christopher.”
“Good, they were… assholes, that’s the only word I can use,” he snorted, “Mrs Diaz was entitled and trying to get up to let them take Christopher out. That he shouldn’t be in such a place. Mr Diaz was much the same, blustering and posturing. Neither of them paid much attention to Christopher at all. Their only interaction was them trying to get Christopher to say that he wanted to go home with them now. Not that it would have worked. He did that with his dad and wanted to go home with him. Mr Eddie Diaz was… distraught that he couldn’t give in to his son, but told him to be good and hugged him tightly before letting him go. I have to say, the relationship between the two is strong.”
“How has Christopher been settling in?” he then asked, looking up from his notes.
“He’s become friends with Clive’s younger brother, Joshua. He’s friends with the others as well, but he is closer to Joshua. He’s doing well, going to appointments, those that he is seeing, aren’t sure about us. Carla has come aboard to help with that. So, they are at least making sure we know what we need. His therapy about his mother is what is complicating things,” he explained, “The fact that he was taken from his dad, means that some of his issues are growing instead of being managed. The sooner we can get this sorted the better.”
“The investigation is going well at this point. We’re conducting the home interviews, and such at the moment,” Galen told him, as he began to talk a little more about what he was doing, and how he will be by soon to interview Christopher.
Chapter Seven
Evan looked at Christopher, the child was unhappy, more so than normal. It was as though a dark cloud was hanging over the five-year-old head and wasn’t leaving at all. Evan was home from the academy a little earlier than normal since someone decided it was a good idea to prank someone and cause the sprinkler system to go off in the lecture rooms. Meant everyone else but those involved was sent home early.
“Hey, Chris,” Evan said as he got the young child’s attention, “Want to tell me what’s going on?” he asked, as he walked over and knelt in front of him.
Christopher huffed, “It’s my birthday soon and I wanted to be home with Dad. He promised that we would have a proper party, where we can have family we like all together,” he said sadly. “Last time, Grandma and Abuelo ruined it and made me be a baby, I couldn’t do anything!” he yelled out looking like he was about to cry, “This time, it was just us, and maybe Bisabuela,” he began to cry now.
Evan felt his heart breaking as he took the five-year-old into his arms and held him. He didn’t know what he could do, but maybe he could work something to let the little boy spend a little more time with his dad. The visits were going well, those with Helena and Ramon were not going well at all. He wouldn’t want them around Christopher, as it sounded like the five-year-old had enough of their shenanigans from everything that he had talked about.
Evan comforted Christopher for a while before the child let him go and started to wiggle. Evan let him disappear somewhere else in the Home and headed to his office. He picked up the phone and made a call. It took a while for him to be answered.
“Hello,” came a voice on the other end.
“Hey, Galen, it’s Evan Buckley from Second Chance Home. I’m hoping I can talk to you about one of the children under my care at the moment,” he said, “Would it be possible to do so now.”
“I was heading to you, needed to give you an update on one of the kids as well,” he said, “We’ll talk when I get there.”
“Alright,” he agreed, wondering what child had more information come in.
XxXxX
Galen was shown to Evan’s office, the man going over the last report from one of his businesses, thankfully, being a hands-off boss and having his aunts and uncles help him had made it easier for him to take care of things with the businesses and the Home. “Hey, Galen,” Evan smiled as he put the report aside to carry on going through later.
“Evan, good to see you again,” he smiled as he sat down. “So, I’ll start first and then you can tell me what is going on,” he added.
“Sure,” he nodded.
“Right,” Galen said, “I’ve been able to do at least one of the interviews with Mr Diaz. I’ve not been able to do so with Christopher Diaz’s grandparents at all, they are stopping me from doing so. I’ve also tried to get in touch with his sisters, and they have been bombarding my office with insults and accusations of stealing Christopher from his rightful home with his grandparents. They are mirroring everything their parents are saying in the vitriol that they are spewing. The grandparents aren’t cooperating at all, it might be a while before I can get this one sorted.”
“Damn,” Evan sighed, rubbing at his face. “It’s his birthday soon,” he said, pulling out the file he had on Christopher, “In less than a week. Look, I know you don’t do this during a case like this. But so far you’ve not found anything on Eddie Diaz,” he said, “not a damn thing. The man loves and adores his son to the point where he looks just as damn heartbroken as Christopher does at the end of a visit. Especially when he has to be strong and tell him that he can’t take him home yet. Chris asks each time,” he said, with a heavy sigh.
“What have you got in mind?” Galen began.
“Well, I was thinking if we can arrange for his dad to come and be with him on his birthday and maybe Isabel Diaz as well. To let him have some of his family around. This kid was looking forward to his birthday, to be able to spend it without his grandparents being there and treating him like a baby. Those are his words. I was hoping we could do something about it. Do a small party for him. I know we can’t have everyone from his family there of course. But two wouldn’t hurt? I just don’t want it done at the Briar Rose,” Evan suggested, explaining his thoughts and ideas.
Galen was quiet, “Hmm,” he hummed, “You’re right, we don’t normally do this. But we’ve got conflicting, “he said, she said,” situation,” he told him. “Our investigations so far are not doing as well as we had hoped. We can’t get clear pictures because all the players aren’t playing ball properly. The only one that is truly helping and cooperating easily is Eddie Diaz. I am more inclined to believe him over Helena Diaz and Ramon Diaz at the moment,” he added.
“But until you’ve investigated everything you can’t just give Christopher back to his dad,” Evan nodded, understanding where Galen was in the investigation at that time.
“Exactly,” Galen sighed, “Now, I will allow it, we’ll have to do a bit of paperwork and get it signed by a judge. We’ll also ask for some security in a way, to be there as well, to make sure nothing happened,” he murmured as he began to write down what would be needed to allow it.
“A party here, a small one in one of the living rooms. Cut off from the others. Maybe we can allow Joshua to attend, and maybe a couple of the children here at least,” Evan added.
Galen nodded, “Alright, I’ll do some fast talking and see what I can get for it. A temporary lift of the restrictions could be given for a few hours on his birthday.”
“Thank you, if you can do it, contact me so I can start organizing it all,” Evan said as they began to talk about another of the children that Evan was currently housing that would be leaving soon.
XxXxX
Eddie sat on the couch in his living room. Today was his son’s sixth birthday and he wouldn’t be celebrating it with him. Instead of the promise of a party with the family at Isabel’s home. Christopher was in the care of Second Chance Home, a children’s home. All because his parents couldn’t stay in their lane at all. Across from him on the coffee table were the couple of gifts that he had gotten for his son. He just hoped that he would be able to take them with him the next time he was able to get to the visitation center. Eddie slumped back, not wanting to go anywhere, even though his abuela and Pepa had called him, asking him to join them, so he wouldn’t be alone.
He grumbled as someone knocked on the door. He slowly got up and went over, opening it, he frowned as he saw one of the caseworkers that was in charge of Christopher’s case. “Hello, can I help you?” he asked, wanting to go back and mope on the couch, and carry on hoping that Christopher was having a good birthday no matter where he was.
“It’s more of if I can help you,” Galen said with a smile, “This is unusual but with consultation with a judge and with the therapists that are in charge of Christopher’s case. It’s been deemed like a good idea to take you to see your son on his birthday. It’s his birthday wish, and I wouldn’t dare not do so,” he told him.
“I… I can see Chris?” he asked, eyes going wide.
“Yes, get yourself ready, I’ll be driving you to the Home that he is staying at. Please, do not take this as being allowed to go when you wish to. This is a one-time deal,” he added.
“Yeah, that’s fine, I understand that. There would be other children there, and it wouldn’t be good to put them under any type of stress because of strangers coming and going,” he said in a rush, “Thank you,” he nodded as he headed inside, letting the man follow him.
Galen walked into the living room, the front door shutting behind him, Jerry was picking up Isabel and Josephina to take to the home as well. Letting Christopher have a few members of his family there for his special day. He saw the presents on the coffee table, they were wrapped and he sighed, it would be fine to take them if there were labels on the toys to make sure that they would be able to take them back.
Eddie rushed back into the room, “Can I take them with me?” he asked.
“I would suggest one or two toys that would easily be tracked. As they can get mixed up with the toys that are in the Home normally,” he advised him.
“Then, these three,” he said, “Some coloring supplies and paper, and some lego, I won’t mind if they got mixed in with the general, I was actually thinking more for them to be shared with any of his friends there,” he said, gesturing to each one. The coloring supplies were in two different wrapped parcels. One was obviously drawing and coloring books and the other must be a mix of art supplies that a six-year-old would like.
“Those will be fine,” he nodded, “Come on, Mr Buckley, one of the main owners that runs Second Chance, has put together a little party for Christopher, you, your grandmother, and your aunt are going to be the surprise presents for Christopher. From what I’ve learned, he’s been a little down since he wasn’t going to be able to spend the day with you.”
“That’s amazing that he has done that,” Eddie smiled as they headed out of the Diaz home and to Galen’s car. Eddie was quick to lock up, carrying the presents to the car and putting them on the back seat, he got in. “Thank you as well, for coming for me. You don’t know exactly what you have done for us today. What you and Mr Buckley have done.”
“Would you mind explaining it?” he asked.
Eddie sighed. “Christopher’s fifth birthday came a few weeks after I returned home, three days after Shannon disappeared on us. It was supposed to be a good day, a day to help Christopher forget for a while that Shannon wasn’t there at the moment. But my parents decided that it would be in their best interests to bad mouth Shannon, and then have a go at me, yelling at me in front of Christopher. They began to try and treat him like he was a baby and try to get him to have a bottle to drink out of. It was the worst they had ever been. Christopher had a meltdown and they tried to tell him to shut up and threatened him. I called the cops on them and had them escorted from my home. I cut contact with them and soon started the move up here. They kept coming around, all the damn time, attempting to get Christopher from me. If it wasn’t them, it was my sisters. My mother’s family was doing the same thing. It was… harassment, plain and simple. I was so damn scared sometimes to even leave the house if Christopher was going to be looked after by someone else. Afraid that I’d come back and find my son missing. I put my house up for sale and moved out here as soon as I could manage it.”
Galen nodded, it was starting to make sense as to why he had been getting so many reports from the same area, and sometimes from the same number but different voices. They were his family that was doing this to the father and son. The rest of the ride was mostly silent as they drove into the driveway of the manor that was Second Chance Home.
He was led through the hallways, smiling and hugging his abuela and Tia Pepa as soon as he saw them. They waited for a few moments before they were let into a room. It was decorated in a space theme, which Eddie knew was a special interest to Christopher at the moment. He saw his son, sitting in the middle of a couple of kids, and a couple of adults around the room. the one that was there whenever he saw Christopher, was standing in a corner, a smile on his face as he saw Eddie, Isabel, and Josephina.
It took a few moments for Christopher to look up. When he did he froze for a second before he broke into a wide smile. “Daddy!” he yelled out, rushing and struggling to get to his feet.
Eddie rushed over and picked him up, swinging him up into his arms, “Happy birthday, mijo,” he told him, hugging him tightly as Christopher burst into tears.
“You’re here, Daddy, you’re really here,” Christopher hiccuped as he clung to his dad. Isabel and Josephina walked over, patting their grandson, and nephew and wishing him a happy birthday.
Galen walked over to Evan and put down the presents that had been brought. Jerry did the same with the couple that had been brought from Josephina and Isabel.
“You did a good thing in suggesting this,” Galen said as he looked at Eddie, still comforting his son. Watching them was showing Galen and Jerry a lot more than the interviews were.
Eddie finally got Christopher to let him go so that he could enjoy his party. He sat on the floor with his son as his aunt and grandmother went over to the comfy-looking chairs and sat there to watch as Christopher enjoyed playing games and eating party food. Cutting his cake and opening presents. It was nice to see him so joyful. Christopher curled up with his Bisabuela for a bit while Eddie got up and went over to Evan.
“Mr Buckley, thank you, for giving us this chance to have this little party. It means the world to me, Abuela and Tia Pepa,” he told him, “So thank you.”
“You’re welcome. I knew that not letting the two of you meet today would be a big mistake. His therapist even said that it would put his therapy back several steps. I’d rather not do that with him, at all if I can help it. So I’m happy that we were able to pull this together,” Evan told him, “Glad you were able to make it as well. It’s made his day.”
“Yeah, thank you,” Eddie said again before going back to Christopher to spend a little more time with his son before he and his family had to leave.
Chapter Eight
Evan was excited, they were having a day trip to a ranch. The thing was, the ranch was owned by Jolene’s cousin, and Jolene herself was going to be there. Evan had missed the woman, and he was excited to show the children a Ranch since Mavis worked her ranch much the same as Jolene did. Children from Homes and Foster families often attended the place and it was set up for those who had mobility issues as well, so Christopher was able to join them.
“Hello everyone!” a woman called out, she looked a little like Jolene, her hair a little longer and darker, but the same warm eyes looked at the gathered adults and children. “I’m Mavis, and this is my cousin, Jolene. I run a ranch here in California, and we do day visits like what you are doing at least twice a month. My Cousin is here for a visit, and to see two men that you live with. Evan, Xiaoli,” she called, “Welcome to my little part of the world,” she grinned at the two men.
“Nice to meet you, Mavis,” Xiaoli said as he stepped forward, Evan at his side.
“These two know how to work a ranch, they don’t know the horses here though, so I will be walking everyone through everything,” Mavis told everyone. “I will be pairing everyone up with a Ranch Hand that works for me, as they do know the horses that you’ll be with today. Now, a hand up for anyone that has been horse riding before?” she asked, looking at the children.
Christopher was the only one to put up his hand, “I have,” he said, “Daddy took me riding a few times.”
“That’s great,” Mavis said, while she always asked, she still made sure to go through everything no matter how much experience they had.
Evan walked over to Jolene and hugged her tightly, “Damn, I’ve missed you. You need to come and visit the Home one of these days. We’ve still not got many kids yet. Just seven,” he told her as he let her go so Xiaoli could hug her as well.
“It’s so great to see you again,” Xiaoli smiled, as he moved back, “How long are you in LA for?” he asked.
“Just a week, and yes, Evan, I’ll come for a visit, I’ve already made sure to be cleared so I can visit the home and even stay for a night,” she told him before he could even ask.
“Great!” Evan laughed, as he turned to face the children as they were all listening to Mavis with rapt attention.
Buck got some gear on, safety first after all, and got onto one of the horses, listening to the ranch hand that told him about the horse’s temperament he nodded. “Thanks,” he said, as he went to join the others who were going for a ride around, all guided by the ranch hands so that they were there in case anything happened with the horse. Xaoli also geared up and got onto another horse.
The ride was calm as they went around the large field. Evan watched them all, smiling as he moved alongside Christopher, who was grinning widely. “Having fun?” he asked the six-year-old.
“Yeah, Dad would love this. He loves to go riding. We haven’t done it since we moved out here though,” he said a little sad as he answered.
“Maybe, one day you can tell him about this place, they don’t mind people coming in to ride occasionally,” Evan told him, they were a riding school and that as well.
“Awesome,” Christopher grinned and nodded as he held the reins with confidence. “Daddy was teaching me. He said that his grandfather taught him when he was little, and he liked to go a lot, he did after he was hurt too. We went together, it made him smile, especially after Mom left,” he said as he patted his horse gently.
Evan nodded and headed to talk to one of the other children. He felt the horse tense up and rear. Evan managed to hold on as the horse began to buck a little. It was odd, he had been told she had a calm temperament. He could hear the children called out in fear as they were led away from the bucking horse. Evan kept hold, “It’s all right, it’s all right,” he said, keeping himself calm and flowing with the movements as he shortened the reigns on one side so he could see the horse’s face, he got her to move, slowly, stopping her from bucking as he propelled her forward. “There we go,” he said as he felt the horse start to relax a little more with each step. “See if you can find what spooked her so badly,” he called out to one of the ranch hands that were nearby.
“You okay?” Xiaoli called out as he rode over.
“Yeah, she’s okay and so am I. Don’t know what spooked her so badly for her to buck like that,” he answered, shaking his head. He was just glad that he had the experience to be able to handle what happened.
“Snake in the grass,” one of the hands said as he ran over, “We found it, it’s hurt, but should be fine as soon as we can get someone in to trap it and take it to a rescue center.”
“Right,” Evan said as he slowly got down and let the horse out of the area, towards the paddocks. “Linus, can you take care of her?” he asked one of the stable hands, wanting to go to the children who were now off the horses as well.
“Sure,” he said, taking the reins from Evan as he then led the horse away. The others doing the same as the Children began to gather.
Evan walked over, “Hey,” he said, giving them a reassuring smile, as he could see some of them had been scared. “I’m fine before you even ask. I knew what I was doing to help calm the horse down,” he told them as he stood before them, Xiaoli and Jolene joining him as Mavis went to deal with the snake and the horses.
“That was soooo cool!” Christopher said, “I saw Dad do that once, and it was amazing how he calmed the horse down. I want to learn how to do it as well,” he stated.
“Maybe you can when you are older,” Evan said with a small snort, “That was dangerous, and if I didn’t know what I was doing, I could have been hurt,” he said as he took off the helmet he had been wearing.
“You okay, Mr Evan?” one of the younger children asked as she walked over, reaching up.
Evan picked her up, the four-year-old was new at the home, having only been there for a few days. “Yeah, I’m okay,” he said, settling her on his hip, his helmet now dangling by the strap from his arm, “Right, we should head inside, as Miss Mavis has set us up for lunch,” he said as he led the way.
The children began to flow, Xiaoli being up the rear, as Jolene talked to them and Evan reassured Anita he was fine.
XxXxX
Evan was reading through his notes again, it was almost the end of the day at the fire academy, they had been doing rope work and going through the gauntlet a few times that morning, and the afternoon was spent going over the more academic side of things.
“Yo, Buckaroo!” came a joyful shout as Xiaoli entered the room.
Evan groaned, “Really?” he asked him, “Do you need to yell that out?” Looking over at him and glaring.
“Of course,” Xiaoli laughed as he sat down, “The kids love calling you it,” he shrugged, “I think it suits you.”
“What’s this?” their instructor said as he walked over, “Buckaroo?” he asked.
“We were horseriding a week ago,” Xiaoli said as he quickly explained the story and the nickname that the kids had started to call him.
“Buckaroo, well I was trying to think of a nickname for you, with four Evans in the class it’s getting confusing, and since the last names are all so damn long and more than one syllable, I think Buck would be a good one,” the instructor said, as he looked at the man.
Evan groaned, “I don’t know, why can’t I just remain Evan,” he muttered, “I’ll not have any other Evan in the station I go to… Right?” he said, as he glanced up.
“You never know, Buck,” he said as he walked away.
Evan didn’t know if he should be happy about the nickname or not at the moment. He did not doubt that the rest of the class at the academy would be hearing the story of how he got his new nickname soon enough. Xiaoli loved to tell the story to others. Even Zachary knew of his Buckaroo nickname from the kids when he had stopped by. They had enjoyed telling him all about Evan and the Bucking Horse. Zachary had listened, with Nicholas beside him, both of the ‘oohing’ and ‘ahhing’ in the right places.
XxXxX
Eddie looked at the last photo that had been given to him by the owner of the Home that Christopher was staying in. It was taken during a visit to the beach. Christopher was on a surfboard, and he looked happy and excited. He smiled, wanting his son back, Galen and Jerry were still conducting the interviews of family and friends since Eddie had only just picked up a job at a small store, he was a security guard, it wasn’t what he planned to do, but it was something he could do while he was getting back into shape, he had already been looking at the Fire Academy, and after talking with Evan Buckley, he thought it was the better choice.
His phone started to ring, and he picked it up, making sure it wasn’t his parents. It showed up as an unknown number. He sighed, “If this is them, I’m going to hang up straight away,” he promised himself, he was done speaking or even having anything to do with his parents. “Hello,” he said cautiously.
“What the hell did you do Eddie!” came the voice he hadn’t expected to hear again.
“Shannon?” he frowned, “Why the hell are you contacting me?” he asked her.
“I want to know why the fuck Christopher is in care. What the Hell did you do?” she demanded to know.
“Because my parents are bastards that don’t know how to let fucking go,” Eddie hissed at her in answer, “So why are you contacting me? If I remember right, you wanted nothing to do with me, my family, or Christopher.”
“Of course I would, I should have learned from you what was going on,” she told him, as though signing away her rights toward Christopher hadn’t changed anything in her eyes.
“Shannon, you’re no longer classed as his mother. Your parental rights were signed away, you have nothing to do with Christopher anymore, at your own insistence. You didn’t want anything to do with either of us, if you do, you’re going to have to go to court and obtain them again. At the moment you have nothing to do with this,” he pointed out to her, shaking his head and wondering why she thought that she could just waltz into their lives like this again. It had been a full year of no contact, no matter how many times Eddie had tried to reach out for Christopher’s sake. When that had failed, he filed for divorce. She had signed it and then signed away her parental rights without a single word to him. He had seen her once when this was going on. She had refused to go anywhere near him after that initial meeting.
“I still have rights,” she stated.
“No, you really don’t,” he sighed, “Look, Shannon, I have too much shit going on dealing with this. I need you to just keep away. You have nothing to do with this now, and I need you to just leave it alone. I’m dealing with it, and I’m dealing with the shit my parents are trying to throw at me.”
“I have every right to do something about this, I will be seeing you in court and I will be speaking to the CPS about you,” she said as she hung up.
Eddie sighed and dropped the phone onto the seat beside him. He put his head in his hands, and all he wanted to do was cry, he was missing Christopher like crazy and wanted his son home. He picked up his phone again a few moments later after he had composed himself. “Hey, Galen, it’s Eddie Diaz, I hope it’s alright to call you, you asked if I had anything that might crop up,” he said as the call connected and the man on the other end greeted him.
“Eddie, sure, you know you can speak with us,” he said, “Now, what seems to have cropped up?” he asked.
“My Ex-Wife, Christopher’s mother, has contacted me, she’s found out about Christopher being taken into care. She signed away all her rights toward Christopher when we divorced. She wasn’t happy in our marriage, and not even two months after I returned from Afghanistan, she left in the middle of the night. A year later I moved out here and filed for divorce, she signed everything easily, and never once contacted me until today after our initial face to face. I don’t have the same number, so I don’t even know how she got it. I don’t know what she is doing, or how she found out. But she never liked my parents and came to hate me, as she hated the fact that I was trying to make the Army my career,” he told him, not sure if this would have any bearing on what was going on. But he wanted it out there in case Shannon started to make more trouble for him.
“I see, we may end up talking with her about things,” Galen said quietly.
“She dislikes my parents, they made her feel like a failure of a mother, just like they do to me as his father. I can never do anything right in their eyes. She will tell you everything about that, and the fact that I failed as a husband and was never there when Christopher was little. Like I said, I was in the army, even before we started dating and she got pregnant. I have no idea what she is up to,” he murmured at the end.
“I will keep all that in mind if we talk with her,” he said, “What’s her name?”
“Shannon Whitt,” Eddie answered, “I don’t know where she’s currently living or anything else.”
“That’s fine, if we need to find her, we have our ways,” he said, “Now, you take care and we’ll make a note on the file about this in case she surfaces.”
“Thank you,” Eddie said as he ended the call. It took a moment before he got up and headed out of the house, it was too empty and quiet without Christopher, so he headed for his abuela’s, he would at least have someone around.
Chapter Nine
Evan looked at the station that he was going to be working in. He had been grabbed by a captain but had been given no name when he had taken it. His instructor had said that he was highly recommended, and the captain was going to take him unseen. He walked inside, looking around as he wanted to see if anyone could point him toward the captain of the 118. “Hi,” he nodded as he saw someone near one of the engines.
“What can I do for you?” he asked, looking him over.
“I’m looking for the captain, I was told to report to the 118 for my first shift, I’m a probationary firefighter.” he said, “Evan Buckley,” he added, holding out a hand as he used the other to grip his bag tightly.
“Sure, he’s upstairs,” he said, pointing to the stairs.
“Thank you,” he said as he went toward the stairs and started to climb. He could hear talking and the clanging of pots and pans as the smells of a good breakfast wafted his way. He had skipped breakfast as he was too nervous, even with all the good luck cards that he had been weighed down with. Xiaoli would be starting his first shift the next day. The two had hoped they would have been able to work together, but instead had ended up at different stations and different shifts. Buck heading for A-Shift, and Xiaoli to a B-Shift at 109, Zachary had said it was a good thing since it would mean that someone would always be at the Home.
Evan stood at the top of the stairs and stared as he saw the captain of the station turning towards him.
“Evan,” Bobby Nash grinned as he saw him, “Glad you made it on time. Xiaoli messaged and told me that you didn’t eat breakfast, so, come and sit down. I’ll show you around in a moment and then we can finish your paperwork,” he told him.
“You… You’re my captain?” Evan asked as he walked over.
“That I am, do you really think I would have passed up the chance to have either you or Xiaoli work for me as soon as I saw your names on the books for this year’s class?” he snorted, “Not a chance,” he added, “come on.”
Evan walked over, smiling and hugging the man quickly, “Pity you couldn’t get Xiaoli as well,” he said.
“Yeah, Dion, the captain at the 109, was able to fight me for at least one of you,” Bobby snorted as he went back to the kitchen area, some of the crew now watching the two of them. “I’ll introduce you,” he said as he began going through some of those in the kitchen helping him dish things out and set the table up. “Ah, here we have Hen,” he greeted the woman that had just come up, “Hen, this is our probie, Evan Buckley, he’s got extensive certs and a good head on his shoulders. He did some SAR work out in Montana for a while as well. Evan this is one of our top Paramedics, Hen Wilson.”
“Nice to meet you,” Hen smiled as she reached out a hand.
Evan held out a hand and took it, shaking it with a smile, “Nice to meet you too, Hen.”
“Why do we need a probie, I don’t know, we’re good as we are,” came a voice as someone else joined them. It was the man that had pointed him toward the loft.
“This is Chimney, our second paramedic,” Bobby said, “And yes, Chim, we do need someone,” he stated, “This is Evan Buckley, he’s certified in swift water rescue, rope rescue, he’s damn impressive in that,” he added as he listed a few others, “He took the time to get as many as he could before he joined the fire academy here in LA, before that he worked SAR in Montana for a good six months if I remember correctly,” he said glancing at Evan.
“Around eight months with the SAR team,” Evan corrected, smiling.
“Ah, eight months, oh, yes, that’s right, you went from St Paul to Montana after you did the swift water,” Bobby nodded, “Well, this is Evan Buckley, he’s joining us as a Probie, but as I said, he’s done some SAR work, so he’s not fully wet behind the ears.”
“Nice to meet everyone,” Evan said as he looked around.
“Though, I heard a rumor of a new little nickname,” Bobby said as he showed Evan to the table and got him to sit down, as everyone finished bringing the food over.
“Really, Xiaoli?” he guessed, sighing and he wanted to hide away.
“Nope, Zac,” Bobby laughed as he and the others started to dish the food out.
“Damn,” he muttered.
“Sorry, kid,” Bobby laughed again, grinning as they began to eat.
“No you’re not, and please tell me you didn’t tell Brooke and Robbie?” he asked, looking at the man.
“Zac told them first,” he smirked.
“Damn it, I’m gonna get him next time. Wonder if I can get the kids to join me in my quest,” Evan smirked as he began to make a few plans in his head.
“If so, I’ll join, though only to watch,” he told him.
“Will do, Bobby,” he nodded.
“So you two… know each other?” Chimney asked him.
“I do, as you all know I was a fire captain in St Paul,” he began.
“You sure?” Evan asked, frowning, “I-”
“It’s fine, Evan,” he smiled, patting his arm, “Now, I worked in St Paul, where myself, my late wife, and my kids lived. We weren’t in a safe apartment building. Evan and his friend Xiaoli were staying there at the time and had been helping me out,” he said, “New Year’s Eve, as we waited for the fireworks, I went to get a few things so we could celebrate at home. A fire broke out, faulty wiring, and a whole host of other problems that were slowly being worked on. My wife died from her injuries from the fire. Myself, Brooke, and Robbie survived. Brooke and Robbie were saved by Evan and Xiaoli. I owe them so much. And yes, I knew I wanted Evan on my team since I found out that he was planning to join the LAFD. I know of his work with the SARs unit in Montana, and I knew of what he planned on the cert front since I advised him on them.”
“I knew you were working for the LAFD, but you never told me the station you were working at,” Evan huffed a little.
“Well, I wanted to wait and see if I could get you working here,” Bobby shrugged, eating more of the breakfast he had prepared for them all.
Evan nodded, “It’s great that I am,” he smiled and nodded.
When breakfast was over, Bobby showed Evan around before they finished with the paperwork. The alarm went off not moments later and Evan went on his first call out.
XxXxX
Evan was still feeling the buzz after a good rescue when they returned to the station. It had gone well, a car accident, only two cars, and thankfully, no serious injuries, just trapped in their vehicles until they could be rescued. Bobby was grinning at Evan as they jumped out of the engine and h
“So,” Bobby said as soon as he started up the coffee, “How was your first rescue?” he asked.
Evan sat down at the counter, “It was good, I know it’s not all going to be like that,” he stated with a shrug.
“Saving everyone?” Bobby asked him, bringing over a fresh coffee for him.
“Yeah,” he nodded, “I know what SAR is like, it’s not always going to be good news and such,” he sighed, “If I’m honest, I’m dreading the day it happens.”
“I think we all dreaded the day we lose someone on the job,” Bobby said, “And to me, it never gets any easier,” he added. “Going home to family, being with friends, that… that makes the difference in my eyes,” he stated, “You have me, Xiaoli, Zac, Nic, and others that you can count on to be there, and the kids too,” he reminded him.
“Yeah,” Evan smiled, “It was good to have Jolene around when we were on one search and rescue mission in Montana, having her there helped me when we found a family that had been killed, only the youngest had made it.”
“I remember you calling and telling me about that one,” Bobby nodded, “The type of things that SAR does is a little different from us, we all have some of the same skills, but well, they are damn good at their job.”
“They really are, I was asked about going to a SAR station here in LA, but… well, I wanted to be a firefighter more,” he smiled, snorting slightly.
“I take it that Xiaoli is at the Home today?” Bobby then asked, seeing that Evan was done talking about the call out.
Evan nodded and drank some of his coffee, “Yeah, he’s there today, though he said something that made me think that he might have something going on today, that he won’t be home for fu-” he began as the alarm overhead began to ring and Dispatch came over the PA.
The two listened as they headed down to the truck, Bobby shouting orders. “We have a small fire at a restaurant, a probationary firefighter on the scene! Minor injuries have been reported, mostly smoke inhalation,” he called out as they got in the trucks and headed out.
“Damn, imagine being a probie at that,” Chimney snorted.
Evan looked at him, “If he’s a probie then it means someone in my class no doubt, and they are all damn good,” he stated, “They know what they are doing.”
“He’s right, we don’t know this firefighter, there was a class of over fifteen that came out of this one, and Evan here and his friend broke records, though I don’t think Xiaoli was happy when he realized you beat him by him a few seconds,” Bobby said as he had been able to see the scores that had come out for the class.
“Yeah, he was annoyed,” Evan laughed, grinning a little as he remembered his friend’s reaction.
“We’re here,” Bobby said as Barry parked the engine and they all piled out. “Hen, Chim, start assessing,” he ordered, “Evan, you, Barry, and Marks, check the building and put out any fires.”
“They should be out, it wasn’t large, it was more the smoke that was causing trouble,” someone said as they walked over.
“Xiaoli,” Bobby greeted, “So it was you here,” he said.
“Yeah, the fire is out, but I would check once more, just in case I missed an ember or something,” he said, giving a little shrug. “Josh got everyone out, while I put the fire out, the oil had been at flash point, went up, but damn, the smoke was bad.”
“Josh is here?” Evan worried about the eight-year-old. Then he realized, “What, shouldn’t he be in school?”
“Not that Josh,” he said with a little smile, “I kind of met someone,” he said.
“So that was why you were hinting that you would be out for some of today,” Evan snorted as he then headed inside, “I’ll talk to you when I’m done!” he called over his shoulder.
Xiaoli watched his friend go as Josh walked over, “He’s going to want to meet you straight away,” he warned him.
“Well, I didn’t think I would be meeting the family this quickly,” Josh said with a smile, “We’re only just on our second date,” he stated.
“I know, but things don’t always work like that,” Xiaoli snorted, “They never have in my life, and neither in Evan’s.”
Xiaoli and Josh remained on site as people were treated. Only one went to the hospital as they had breathing problems, and suffered from asthma. Evan came back out, and set down what gear he had used, and went back over to Xiaoli, seeing the man standing beside him, he was a little smaller than Xiaoli, dark hard, and a kind smile on his face.
“Hi,” Evan greeted, “I’m Evan,” he said, “I would give you a hand to shake, but well, I’m a little dirty from dealing with that,” he said, jerking a thumb to the small restaurant.
“Everything okay in there?” Xiaoli asked, “I tried my best.”
“You did well,” Bobby said as he joined them, “There is mainly smoke damage, with one a little fire damage and water damage,” he told him, “Most of the time the fires get back very quickly in restaurants.”
“Well, I saw the flames start up, and could see that the staff didn’t have it under control, they had what I needed to quickly tackle it, unfortunately, something caught alight that caused all the smoke,” Xiaoli said with a shrug.
“Well, it was a good thing you were here, this could have turned out a lot worse than it did,” Bobby told him, “You should be proud of the good job you did. You as well,” he added as he looked at the man beside Xiaoli.
“Thank you, have to admit, I’m used to being the one they call, not in the thick of things,” Josh said with a nervous smile.
“You did well,” Bobby told him. He turned and started to call out a few orders. They would be clearing the scene soon enough, to let someone else take over as the fire was out and people were now safe.
“So, this is Josh?” Evan asked.
“Yes, Buck,” Xiaoli teased, “This is Josh,” he said, “Josh, this is Evan, he runs Second Chance Home with me.”
“It’s good to meet you, and please, you don’t need to use the nickname. I do kinda like it though,” Evan said, “I’m just getting used to it. Only Bobby calls me Evan at the 118, everyone else calls me Buck.”
“Nicknames can be fun,” Josh said, “It was good meeting you as well, but I think I want to go and have a shower,” he said, “I’m feeling distinctly dirty.”
Xiaoli and Evan began to laugh, “We’re a little used to it,” Evan commented with a shrug, “It’s not exactly pleasant, but you have to learn to ignore the sweat and dirt that just clings to you during some rescues.”
“Yes, I can see,” he smiled, “Do you want me to drop you off at home? I know that you got an Uber out here,” he asked Xiaoli.
“Please,” Xiaoli nodded.
Evan said his goodbyes and went to help with the rest of the clean-up. It didn’t take long for him to be heading back to the 118. Listening to the others talk about Xiaoli and wondering what it would have been like to have them both on the job together like Bobby had wanted.
Chapter Ten
Eddie walked through the park, missing Christopher. Galen and Jerry had talked to him a few times over the last few days. They were about ready to finish their investigation. Eddie just hoped that things were going well enough that he would be able to have his son come home. He hadn’t spoken to his parents at all, even though they had been trying to get his attention and get him to stop trying to get his son back.
He went to an area near the small pond and sat down on a bench. He usually brought Christopher here so he could feed the ducks.
“Eddie,” came a voice that he really didn’t want to hear.
“Shannon,” he muttered, turning his head to see her walking towards him, “I thought you would be at the courthouse trying to get your rights reinstated.”
Shannon growled a little as she stood before him. “It failed.”
“Doesn’t surprise me, you signed them away on your own, I didn’t do anything to get you to do that. You’re the one who wanted nothing to do with Christopher after I reached out to you. I tried to get you to take some interest in our son’s life. You’re the one who said no, and as soon as the divorce papers were signed, you signed your rights away. What made you think that you could get them back so easily?” he asked her, shaking his head as he leaned forward, elbows leaning on his knees as he put his head on his fists. “You hurt our son so much that he hates it when someone mentions you. He’s in therapy to try and put aside the anger and hurt he has towards you. You want to be in his life, get those rights restored and it will be a slow process to let you back into his life.”
“And if we just got back together, then it would be even easier,” Shannon said as she moved towards him, reaching out.
Eddie leaned back, avoiding the hand, “Not a chance,” he stated, shaking his head even more. “I will not let you back into my life like that. I could co-parent with you, but other than that, nothing. I don’t love you anymore,” he reminded her, “Why do you think I said we’re going to divorce,” he added, glancing at her.
“Because you were throwing me out,” Shannon muttered.
“No, because you left and ignored our son. Do you know how many times I had to hold Christopher through his tears, as he screamed for you? I left messages, asking you to call for Christopher, never for me,” he told her.
“I needed to concentrate on my mother,” Shannon defended herself, “What did you expect, Eddie.”
“I expected you not to ghost your own son,” he snapped at her, “I never once failed to call or write to you both while I was in the Army, you may think I just left, but I was still present in our son’s life. Instead of doing the same thing, you ignored him, abandoned him fully,” he said, sighing, “At the moment, if you want something to do with Christopher, get your rights back, I’m not going to entertain the thought of you being around Christopher, because you hurt him so much already with the way you left him.”
Eddie got up before Shannon could restore. “Where are you going?”
“Back home, I don’t want to talk to you. Like I said Shannon, get your rights back, and start organizing things yourself. I tried my best to help you get back in touch before you torched the ground. Now I’m done,” he answered and then headed towards the park’s exit. He had wanted to sit there and sulk for a bit, but it looked like he wouldn’t be able to do that at all.
XxXxX
Evan was called to the office of Galen and Jerry for a small talk. Evan frowned when he saw Carla there as well, the woman that had been a god-sent angel when his grandmother had been dying. She had ended up helping and working at the Home when she could with those like Christopher, who needed extra help and care. She enjoyed the work a lot.
“Carla,” he greeted, “Didn’t know you were called in as well.”
“Yes, all I know is this meeting is about Christopher,” she said as Galen opened the door.
“Sorry for calling you both in like this, we’ve just been asked by the local Judge about giving them some information about Christopher Diaz,” he told them as he let them into the office and sat down. Galen went back to his desk and sat behind it as he looked at the two. Jerry was already at his desk.
“So, what is it that they need about Christopher? I thought you were dealing with the case?” Evan frowned.
“We are, another person has come into play, as it were. Though this one is Christopher’s biological mother,” Jerry stated.
“That isn’t going to go down well with Christopher,” Carla sighed, “That young boy has so much hurt associated with her that just thinking about her riles him up and makes him upset and mad at the same time. His therapist is helping, but if you are thinking about letting him go to her, it’s going to do more damage than good,” she warned them.
“He has shown a little hostility at the thought of his mother,” Evan added, “A mention of her made him mad enough that he shouted at one of the other children when they said that he should be thankful he still had a mother. The child he shouted at had recently lost theirs, and we’re in the middle of locating their father.” he clarified for them.
“Right,” Galen nodded, making a few notes, “The Judge in question is working on the appeal that was made by the mother, Shannon Whitt, about reinstating her rights to her son.”
“Not advisable, I’m all for having a child have their mother in their life. But with Christopher, it’s not going to happen overnight. He will need stability first before that should even be entertained. She could have her rights back, but she can not have visitation with her son until such time as a therapist clears him. She will also need to take some time to rebuild the trust that has been broken between mother and son,” Carla told them, “It’s going to be a long time before Christopher will be comfortable with his mother in any capacity other than a short visit and that would have to be after therapy has deemed him ready to see her.”
“I’ll be talking to the judge about Christopher. He’s already spoken to Mr. Diaz about it, and he would like our opinion on the situation as well since Christopher is currently in our care,” Jerry told them, “It’s a bit of a mess if I’m honest. I was thinking that with the mother being around, then Christopher would be able to be with someone he trusted. Then to find out that there isn’t any trust there between them,” he shook his head.
“Then we’ll compile what’s needed and send it to the judge. We’ll leave that up to the judge,” Galen said, “Though we’re coming close on the decision, it’s taken so long since Mr and Mrs Diaz were in LA instead of in El Paso, so doing their home study has been taking a lot longer than it should have done. They were reluctant to return to El Paso for those down there to do it,” he huffed.
“They are… difficult during their visits as well, keep trying to take Christopher. Arguing and demanding that we let them take him out and go places. I’m on the verge of denying them any more visits,” Evan said, “I know you’ve been getting the reports on them, but really, they sound and act so entitled, and the way that they ignore Christopher when he doesn’t do what they want him to,” he shook his head.
“Yes, Chris doesn’t like his grandparents much,” Carla snorted, “According to Christopher, they often treat him like a baby.”
“They do, when we gave him something to drink at the center, they demanded that he have a sippy cup,” Evan rolled his eyes.
“We’ve been getting that vibe from them,” Jerry snorted, “They’ve been unpleasant about everything so far.”
Evan nodded, agreeing with him as they asked a few more questions.
XxXxX
Christmas was fast approaching, the first of the month had come and those in the Home were taken to visit Santa at the Mall. Sylvia had led the charge with that, the young woman laughing and playing with the children, as she tried to keep her red hair from getting in her way. Janaia went over to her wife, rolling her eyes as she grabbed a scrunchie from her pocket and pulled it back for her.
“Really, Syl, you need to put your hair up before,” she said, her soft British accent was warm as she tied up Sylvia’s hair and then looked at the three young children. “Right, orderly,” she said as she took one of the little boy’s hands, and the other grabbed Sylvia’s. The only little girl in the group looked between them before going to Janaia.
“I know, I always forget,” she laughed as she smiled at her wife. They had been married for almost seven years now, and they were still very much in love.
“I’ve been reminding you since we first met,” she said, shaking her head, the dark hijab she was wearing creating a soft rustling sound, “Come on, we’re going to be late if we keep waiting here,” she told Slyvia.
“Yeah, Evan will not be happy,” she grinned back as they began to head into the Mall.
Evan and the other children had gone a little earlier. Xiaoli with him, along with two friends that the CPS has agreed could be around the children often. Sylvia and Janaia had liked the two men, Nicholas, was already a foster parent and was bringing the child he was currently looking after with him. Zachary was a firefighter and someone who often stopped by the Home to help with the children on his days off and play with them. Clive was with them, little Joshua always with his brother if he could be.
The little girl was swinging her arm as they walked. The younger three of the Home had taken a midday nap before being taken to the Mall to join up with the rest of those from the home. “We see Evan?” she asked as she looked up.
“Yes, we are,” Janaia smiled, “It won’t be long,” she added.
“‘Kay,” she nodded, humming as she carried on walking, giggling occasionally to herself.
“There’s Evan!” one of the boys yelled, tugging on Sylvia’s hand as he tried to run off.
“Calm down, Leon,” Sylvia said, keeping a tight grip on his hand. The little boy she was with was one of the few who would often find himself in the oddest of places around the Home, usually because he was playing hide and seek with the imaginary friend he had at that moment in time. It would often take everyone a good hour to find him. However, they had slowly learned the favorite places he liked to hide in.
Janaia chuckled lightly as they carried on, “Hey, Evan,” she greeted, “The last of us are now here,” she said with a little flourish of her words.
“We, here Evan,” the little girl giggled.
“So you are Mimi,” Evan said as he knelt before her, “Are you ready to see Santa?” he asked her.
Mimi nodded, “Yeah,” she said, letting go of Janaia and falling into Evan’s arms. “It fun.”
“Very,” Evan laughed lightly as he stood up, keeping her in his arms, “Right, let’s get you three in the queue,” he stated as he moved over and let Zachary take Mimi, since she started to reach out to him.
“Come on Miss Mimi, we’ll see Santa together,” Zachary said as he went into the queue, Sylvia and Janaia following him.
“The rest of us, we’re going to-” he began, only to be interrupted.
“Christopher!” came a female voice. Not one that Evan recognized as a young woman rushed over and headed straight for Christopher.
Evan got in the way, “Sorry, ma’am, but you’re not allowed to do that.”
“He’s my son,” she hissed at him trying to get past him.
“I’m sorry, but I can’t allow it,” he stated, “Ms Whitt, you don’t have any parental rights, and no visitation is allowed. I suggest that you walk away, we can and will call the cops if you choose to try something,” he warned her.
“You can not stop me from seeing my so-” she began.
“Go away!” Christopher yelled at her, “I don’t ever want to see you!”
“Christopher!” Shannon yelled at him, “You don’t mean that. I’m your mother!”
“My mom left me alone with Dad, and he was hurting and you didn’t care about either of us. I hate you!” he screamed as he began to cry, “I want my dad, I want my dad.”
“Xiaoli, get her out of here, if she refuses, call the cops. Clive, keep an eye on the children and pass me your keys, you’ll have to get a lift with the mini. David, Gemma, Nate, and Susan, keep an eye on the kids, Nic, if you can help them as well, I think I need to take Christopher out of here,” Evan said as he went to Christopher, Xiaoli quickly getting in the way fo Shannon as she tried to get to her son.
“Chris, Buddy,” Evan said as he went over, kneeling for a moment before the sobbing six-year-old. “Come on, Bud, let’s get you out of here,” he carried on as he could tell that Christopher wasn’t going to calm down any time soon. He picked him up, grabbing the crutches and holding them in one hand while the other carried Christopher away from the scene that Shannon was continuing to make. Evan knew that Xiaoli wouldn’t hesitate to call the cops if she continued.
Christopher paid no attention to where he was, or even to who was with him. He was sobbing, clinging to Evan and repeatedly asking for his dad. Evan wondered if it would be possible to arrange a small meeting to help him. He put him in the car that had been brought by Clive, set him in the car seat, and strapped him in. Pulling out his phone he made a call. Getting confirmation that a meeting could be arranged, he went to the home of Eddie Diaz. He just hoped that it was going to be okay.
“Chris, know that while I’m taking you somewhere, you can’t stay there at the moment, you still have to come home with me,” he said, attempting to get through to the now quietly crying child. Christopher just hiccuped and nodded as Evan continued to drive.
Can’t believe Shannon was so cruel to give up parental rights after abandoning her son and then strolling back into his life expecting everything to go her way. Such a selfish person.