A New Chapter Read online

  “It was weird watching TV last night,” Clayton admitted. “We never had one. Mom said they were a waste of money, and they were evil.”

  “Of course she did,” Colton said. “Because why would she want you to have an independent mind? You could challenge her worldview, if you did.”

  Clayton lay back in the sand and stared up at the sky. A cloud had scudded across the sun, taking the edge off the heat. “Is it always this pretty here?”

  Colton smiled. “Nah. Today’s a crummy day. You should see it when it’s beautiful.”

  Clayton finally laughed. “Crummy day?”

  “Yeah.”

  They finally stood, brushed the sand off, and headed back to the car. At home, Clayton went to his room to take a nap, and Colton pulled Rom into his arms once the boy’s door was shut.

  “Thank you, Master,” he whispered.

  “What’d I do?”

  “For…everything. The beach, the talk. Thank you.”

  “Thank Chad and Ina.” He smiled. “They researched their asses off to raise a halfway normal kid.”

  Meanwhile, Colton knew Ina had been texting with Rom to see if they could stop by with the boys after dinner, and Rom arranged that.

  Since Ina and Chad had apparently taken the news they were off the revenge caravan roster better than expected, Colton agreed it was wise to have them over.

  After Clayton woke up they fixed dinner together, and Colton carefully watched his little brother as he got to know his new cousins…or brothers-in-law, depending on how they wanted to look at it. Clayton acted stiff, at first, like he was scared of saying or doing the wrong thing.

  But then Rom dug an old video game system out of the storeroom, hooked it up to the TV, and the adults sat back while Jeff and Allen taught Clayton how to play it.

  As the adults held back in the kitchen, watching, Rom spoke low enough only they could hear him. “I take it you talked to them?” he asked Chad.

  “Yeah. Told them to go really easy on him. Not to joke around with him like they might their friends. Not until he gets to know them and relaxes. One of their friends is gay, so they’re okay with that.”

  Rom cleared his throat.

  “I mean someone their age, Rommy, sheesh. Of course they’re okay with it in general, but you’re older than them by their ages. You and Colt both. To them, you’re an adult, not a kid.”

  “Ah. Sorry.”

  “You sure you don’t want backup tomorrow?” Chad asked as he watched the boys playing.

  “Yeah. We have an attorney who is definitely an in-charge kind of guy. You met him at the wedding, Loren’s husband Ross.”

  “Oh! He’s an attorney? Wow. I thought he was one of your kinky friends.”

  Colton nearly swallowed his tongue, but he knew Rom had let Chad and Ina in a little on their dynamic, so they wouldn’t get worried about Rom.

  “He is one of our kinky friends, bro,” Rom said. “But he’s also an attorney. Doubly lethal. I want their parents to be the only ones at risk of going to jail tomorrow.”

  “I can’t argue with that logic.”

  By nine, Chad and Ina were collecting their boys and saying goodnight.

  “So? What’d you think?” Colton asked Clayton once they’d left.

  “I really like them. They seem nice.”

  “They are nice. And they don’t care we’re gay.” He spotted “a look” on Clayton’s face. “What’s wrong?”

  Clayton shrugged, but it took him a moment to say it. “I’m not used to people knowing that. No one else knew it before I told Mom and Dad.”

  “Yeah, well, not a problem around here,” Rom said. “Only thing around here discriminated against is peanuts, and that’s because they try to kill me.” He smiled. They’d warned the boy to hopefully prevent any accidents.

  “Make sure you take your thing with you tomorrow,” Clayton warned.

  “What thing?” Rom asked.

  “The needle thing. Mom works for a peanut farm. She always brought peanuts home because they gave them to her free.”

  “Yikes. Thanks for the warning.”

  Well, that was one way to prevent Colton from wanting to go inside and punch them—Rom could be sneaky and remind him of the inherent hazard of peanut contamination.

  Chapter Five

  Colton was glad Rom had ordered him to let him drive, because Tuesday morning, he was too fricking nervous. And he was a little surprised that just as they were opening their bedroom door to go make coffee, Clayton emerged from his room, fully dressed and looking awake.

  “You’re up early.”

  “I didn’t want to keep Aunt Roberta waiting.”

  Colton didn’t bother trying to correct him. They’d have plenty of time after today to deprogram Clayton the way Grammy had to deprogram him.

  Aunt Roberta arrived earlier than normal so she could be there with Clayton and take him into the shop to work. She’d stay all day, and evening, and make dinner for him.

  Ross took the front passenger seat and Colton sat in back with Loren for the drive north. “Don’t worry,” she assured Colton with a smile. “Sir will get them to sign the papers.”

  While he appreciated her confidence, he wasn’t so sure.

  They made decent time up there. Once they turned off I-75 and headed inland, the landscape quickly turned rural with a side order of depressing as fuck. Every turn they made seemed to take them lower down the economic food-chain, until they were less than a mile from their destination. They were starting with the trailer, and if they didn’t find them there, they’d track them down at their jobs.

  Thank god they didn’t bring me up here.

  He didn’t want to be elitist, but he could only imagine how bleak his own future would’ve been had he ended up here instead of with Grammy.

  “Well, this is a charming little shithole,” Ross drawled as they made the final turn, according to GPS. The clay dirt road appeared to dead-end in a small trailer park that looked like it was in need of a good tornado cleansing. Several overturned garbage cans had trash strewn around them, garbage bags ripped open, and from the look of the place it wasn’t the first time it’d happened.

  Didn’t look like anyone cared, either.

  What grass there was wasn’t mowed, but there were more weeds than grass. The plot of land that held maybe twenty-five trailers total was surrounded by something that looked like it’d been the suggestion of a rusted barbed-wire fence maybe twenty years earlier. On the other side were cotton fields and cow pasture.

  Colton let out a shudder, thankful beyond measure that his parents had thrown him out so he’d ended up with Grammy instead of in this place. It wasn’t that it was a low-income area, it was like no one gave a shit. Like hope had been sucked out of them like a rancid cancer.

  The first three trailers they passed were gutted husks, one with a rusted-out pickup truck sitting parked in front of it on three flat tires.

  “Honestly?” Rom said. “Unless it’s pictures or books or something, I don’t want anything from this place in my car.”

  “Agreed,” Colton said.

  They pulled around to the last row of trailers, Colton uncomfortably noticing how different residents peeked out at them, or even blatantly watched them as they passed.

  Loren snorted. “Next week on Meth-House Makeovers…”

  Colton offered her a fist bump.

  “Be ready, Lor,” Ross told her. “Have your stuff ready to go. In and out. Preferably getting them outside and signing on the hood of the car.”

  “Yes, Sir. I am.”

  When they pulled up to the trailer, they saw an old Ford Escort parked next to it, which fit what Clayton had told them.

  “Let me do the talking,” Ross repeated. “I have the scary Dom attorney act down pat. Once they sign the papers, and Loren witnesses them, and we have Clayton’s paperwork, then knock yourself out. But once you start in, they’re going to shut down, and we’re done. Rom, make sure you’re recording video wi
th your phone so we have proof of what happens, in case they try to claim something later.”

  “Will do.”

  Colton noticed Rom parked the car so he could easily leave without having to turn around first, and made sure to lock it once they were all out. Then Rom pulled out his phone and held it so that it’d capture video.

  Colton hung back with Rom while Ross, Loren on his heels, walked up to the door and knocked.

  Not just knocked, but a firm, hard rap that just barely missed being a pounding fist.

  When Colton’s mom opened the door, he felt a sick twisting in his gut. She looked ancient, deep wrinkles in her face that hadn’t been there before. She wore a wary expression that Colton knew meant she’d give in.

  Whether his father would remained to be seen.

  “Eileen Oakes?” Ross asked.

  Colton could tell she recognized him, from the way her eyes went wide for a moment before she focused on Ross. “Who are you?”

  Ross didn’t smile. He wore a grim frown that would’ve scared the piss out of Colton if he were on the receiving end of it. “Mrs. Oakes, I’m Ross Connelly, one of Clayton’s attorneys, and—”

  “One of? We’re not paying for any attorney!”

  “—and I’m here for you and your husband to sign the custody papers. Now.”

  “We’re not payin’ you.”

  “Then I suggest you sign these papers, right now, or you’ll be paying a lot of money, because I’ll make you people my hobby. You broke at least six state laws, and I’ll be happy to call the sheriff and file charges against you, starting with child abuse, child abandonment, and child endangerment.”

  Holy shit. Ross wasn’t fucking around.

  “You have no right to tell me how to deal with that boy!”

  Ross’ smile held no humor and a lot of steel. He dropped his voice. “Get your husband out here. Now.”

  A look of uncertainty furrowed her brow. “He’s napping.”

  “Then wake him up, right now, or I’ll call a sheriff’s deputy to come out to this charming hovel and wake him up for me. We can do this fast, easy, and with zero money out of pocket by you, or—and believe me, I’ll enjoy option two a lot more—we can do it the hard way, with you both ending up in jail and me making sure you stay there for a very long time, and I’ll still get the paperwork handled. Totally your choice. Pick one.” He pulled his cell phone out of his pocket. “Before I pick for you.”

  Apparently, she decided she didn’t want to push him. She stepped inside and Colton heard her calling for his father.

  Colton blew out a shaky breath as an adrenaline spike hit his system.

  When she returned, his father was behind her, and Colton nearly laughed out loud.

  I was afraid of him?

  David Oakes could barely walk, and looked like he’d gained at least a hundred pounds since Colton had last seen him. And he had a good three inches in height on the man, at least.

  He scowled at Colton for a moment before glaring at Ross. “What’s going on?”

  Ross offered a devilish smile. “I’m about to save you and your charming wife tens of thousands of dollars in legal fees, bail money, and embarrassment with your church, Mr. Oakes. You’re going to sign over custody of Clayton, right now. Then you will give me any and all personal paperwork you have for Clayton—birth certificate, Social Security number, medical records, school records, baby pictures—all of it. Then we’re going to get in our car, drive away, and you’ll never have to be inconvenienced by me again.”

  The attorney’s smile widened. “Or, you can piss me off, which your wife pretty much has already done, and I’ll have you thrown in jail. Your call.”

  The man lumbered his way down the rickety metal stairs that looked like they could barely hold him. “Where do I sign?”

  Ross’ smile changed, now friendly and warm. “I knew you were a smart and reasonable gentleman. Right this way…”

  Five minutes later, Colton’s mother and father had signed Clayton away, much as Colton remembered them doing for him twenty years ago. Loren witnessed everything, and they gave his parents copies of the papers.

  “And now, paperwork for Clayton?” Ross asked.

  Colton’s mom went inside and returned a moment later with a grubby old banker’s box that looked like his father had sat on it at some point. She plopped it down on the hood of Rom’s car. “There.”

  Rom stepped back from it and Colton bit his tongue to stay quiet as Ross opened the box and rifled through it, removing a Social Security card, which he handed to Colton, along with Clayton’s birth certificate. It was less than a third full, and Colton spotted some pictures in there, too. He hoped there were baby pictures.

  If not, it’d be a shame, but they’d start making new memories with Clayton.

  “Does he have any other personal belongings? Ross asked. “We’ll take them, too.”

  “No,” she said. “We took everything to the church thrift shop yesterday. Wasn’t much.” She finally looked at Colton, an evil glare in her eyes that would have chilled him years ago.

  Today, it only made him sad.

  And angry.

  Ross looked at Colton and tipped his head, his meaning clear.

  Colton stared at them. “You know, I’m supposed to be on my honeymoon this week. But now I have to try to put my little brother’s life back together, because you evil people can’t seem to understand there’s nothing wrong with me, or with him.”

  Both their jaws gaped.

  “You…you got married?” she asked.

  Oooh, it was evil, but he knew right where her mind went, and he decided to play it for maximum impact. “Yep. Had a huge wedding on Saturday, all our friends and family. Loren married us. Everyone said it was beautiful. And you two missed it.”

  “Well…who is she? Why didn’t you tell us you turned straight again?”

  Rom snorted, but stayed quiet, apparently enjoying this as much as Colton now was.

  “No, no no no. You don’t get to be part of our lives now, Mom. You’re as dead to me as I was to you.”

  “But if you could turn straight, then maybe he could, too!”

  Loren snickered.

  “Well, how about I reenact our first kiss for you, then?” He pulled Rom in for a long, deep kiss that was definitely a lot more X-rated than the one they had Saturday.

  His father sounded like he swallowed a frog.

  His mother, however, lost her shit. “What the hell are you doing?”

  Colton added a little extra tongue before he finally ended their kiss. “I’m kissing my husband, Mom.” He draped his arm around Rom and snugged him against his side. “No, I’m not introducing you. I changed my last name to his name, and Clayton will hopefully change his name, too. You can go on living your shitty lives while we help him heal from your abuse, and he goes on to live a happy, healthy life surrounded by friends and adopted family who will love him for who he is.”

  Ross grabbed the box. “Let’s go, guys. We’re done. We got what we came for. They’re not worth it.”

  Ross put the box in the trunk and they loaded into the car. Colton’s parents still stood outside the trailer as Rom pulled out, leaving a dusty orange cloud in their wake.

  They were almost to the interstate when the tears hit Colton. Rom pulled over so he could get out and hug him. Ross and Loren joined them in a group hug.

  “It’s okay,” Ross told him. “You and Rom have what you need right now to take care of Clayton and get him enrolled in school. Ed will file this first thing tomorrow as an emergency, and Pat Donnelly will be the one to hear it. He’ll rubber-stamp it for Ed. He’s one of us. Then we’ll file the paperwork so you and Rom can adopt Clayton.”

  “Adopt him?” Colton asked. “We can do that?”

  “Well, considering they literally just signed away all parental rights to you and Rom, yeah, you can. You’re not just his guardians now—you are legally his parents. I’m not sure what paperwork your grandmother had for
you, but Ed went full-monty. They signed a power of attorney, guardianship, and revocation of their parental rights, including a statement that they are unwilling to care for him any longer. I was flipping through the papers so fast I’m not sure they read any of them, but we’ve got all we need so you don’t have any more contact with them. Once it all goes through, we’ll send them copies as an FYI, with a note that they don’t owe any money as long as they never contact you again, and that should be it.”

  * * * *

  “I really hope it’ll be that easy,” Rom said. “How long do you think it’ll take?”

  “You’ll have an emergency custody order in your hands by late tomorrow morning,” Ross said. “The adoption will take longer, but we’ll try to get that pushed through. At least a month.”

  “Thank you so much for this,” Rom said. “We can’t tell you how much we appreciate it.”

  “Hey, we like to give back when we can.” His smile faded as he draped an arm around Loren’s shoulders. They exchanged a melancholy look. “Sometimes you can’t fix something, but you can help make it right. We want to help make this right for Clayton. He deserves a chance to be happy.”

  They returned to the car and got back on the road. When they reached the Interstate, they found a place to eat lunch. Ross emptied the box into the trunk and then had Loren toss it.

  “How you doing, Rom?” Ross asked.

  “I have my EpiPen with me.”

  “I’d rather you not need to use it.”

  “I probably would have reacted by now if there was enough residue on there.”

  Still, Colton walked next door, to a convenience store, and bought a box of large, zipper-top plastic bags, and Ross loaded the items into them for him so Colton could take them inside to go through them.

  Once they were at a table and had ordered lunch, Colton started going through the contents so he could sort them into different bags by type. Yes, there were baby pictures, and others. Not as many as they wished there were, but it was a start.