Re-Forging - 14. Chapter 14

Three hours later, Dr. Selby came into the waiting room and gave us the bad news. “Your father had a stroke, Greg. The scans we’ve done show four areas of damage, and in two, we can see clots. Unfortunately, this happens a lot with trauma victims. Clots form in areas that are healing then, for whatever reason, they break free. They find their way to a smaller blood vessel and cause a blockage. We put him on blood thinners to clear the blockages, but there was massive damage done before they took effect.”

“What’s all this mean, doctor? He’s going to recover, right?”

“I’m sorry, Greg, but there was too much damage done before the medications did their job. Your father has very little brain activity, and it’s slowly diminishing. I wish I could offer you some hope, but I won’t lie to you. We have him on life support, and he'll need it until you decide to remove it.”

“But I was just talking to him. He was getting better.”

“I wish it were true, Greg, but sometimes things are beyond our control.”

I stood there as the tears started flowing down my face. Scott and Tommy wrapped their arms around me, and I turned to them and sobbed. They led me to a chair and let me process what had just happened; my father was dead. I took a few deep breaths and stood. I looked up at the doctor and nodded; I knew what I had to do.

“Can we have a few minutes with him? Alone?”

“Of course, Greg, but…” Dr. Selby took a deep breath, “It’s times like this that I hate my job, but your father never signed as an organ donor, and, well, his death could help a lot of people if you think he wouldn’t object.”

“No,” I said, “he always thought he’d live forever. I guess we all think that. Um… get me the paperwork, I’ll sign it.”

Pulling up his clipboard, he said, “The first one is to disconnect the machines; the second is the organ donation. Once you sign, you can spend a few minutes with him before we turn them off.”

I took the offered clipboard and stared at the form. With one signature, I would be an orphan. One stroke of the pen and I was committing patricide. I was shocked when I heard my beast say, ‘Be strong. He would want this.’ With a shaking hand, I signed the form. I flipped to the next one, and a tear dropped onto the page beside my second signature. I handed the forms back to the doctor, and he led us back to say goodbye.

Scott and I walked into the same room, and I looked at the body on the bed. The same heart monitor was beeping a slow, steady rhythm. He had the breathing tube back in, and the machine was making a woosh sound every five beeps. I stepped over to the bed and took his hand; it was ice cold and limp. I leaned down and kissed his forehead, and a tear dropped onto his cheek. I wiped it away and stood up, still holding his hand.

I stroked his hand as I said, “It’s ok, Dad, you can stop fighting. Scott’s here for me now and Mom needs you more than me.”

I turned to Scott and buried my face in his shoulder. He held me as I was overcome with sobs. After a few minutes, I took a deep breath and looked at the doctor. “Now what?”

With a sigh, he said, “Now we take to surgery to um…”

“It’s ok, doctor; you take him to harvest the organs, right?” I said, surprising both of us with a slight smile.

He nodded. “Yes, Greg. Keeping the machines going keeps the organs alive. If it helps, a nine-year-old boy in Orange County will live because of your sacrifice. If you like, I will get you a list of all the recipients.”

I nodded. “I think I’d like that. Can we wait until it’s over?”

“Of course you can, Greg. I’ll come tell you when he’s gone.”

We left the room and headed back to the waiting room. Two hours and fifteen minutes later, Doctor Selby came in to tell me that my father was gone. At 1:33 AM, my father left this world to rejoin my mother. When he gave us this final news, I was prepared, or I thought I was. I simply nodded and thanked him for everything he had done, turned, and headed for the exit.

I didn’t speak to Tommy or Leonard as I climbed into the Escalade, nor did I say a word to Scott as he sat beside me and put his arms around me. Jake and Chris were waiting for us when we arrived at the house, but I simply walked past them and went straight to our room. I was still silent as I undressed and climbed into bed. When Scott wrapped his arms around me, I fell apart. I was suddenly wracked with body-shaking sobs. I felt the bed move, and three pairs of arms wrapped around Scott and me. I fell asleep engulfed in love.

I heard the knock and woke to see Billy at our door telling George that I was still asleep. “He can come in, Billy, I’m awake.”

George came to the side of the bed as I sat up. Chris and Jake quietly got up and headed for the bathroom. “Good morning, Greg. How are you feeling?”

I sighed. “Drained? Shocked? Confused? I don’t know, George. I’m hoping you’re here to tell me it was a nightmare.”

George sat on the side of the bed and put his hand on my shoulder. “I wish I could say it was a dream, Greg, but I can’t. I wish I could say that the pain will go away, but I can’t say that either. I watched my father die almost thirty centuries ago, and when I think about it, the pain is just as real as the day it happened. I will say that you will feel the pain less often as time goes on.”

“Thanks, I think.” I took a few breaths, then asked, “What do I do now?”

“I think the first thing is a shower and some breakfast. Take your time, breakfast will be ready when you are. We can talk while we eat. How does that sound.”

I opened my mouth to argue, but my stomach growled, betraying me. I gave a slight smile and nodded. I got up and offered my hand to Scott, to pull him out of bed as George left. Billy said he would meet us downstairs, but I stopped him.

“If you can sleep with us, you can shower with us.” I turned to the two coming out of our bathroom and added, “That goes for the two of you as well.”

No one argued, and soon the five of us were in the large shower. Every time I reached for soap, a washcloth, or shampoo; someone took it from my hand. They took turns washing every inch of my body. Chris washed my hair and Jake massaged my scalp as I rinsed it clean. Any other time, this could have been a very erotic experience; it was, instead, a very loving, comforting act and I appreciated every second of it. Whenever they weren’t touching me, they were washing themselves or another person. This pattern continued when we got out; with Billy and Jake carefully toweling me dry. I could get used to this.

Scott and I got dressed and laughed as the other three ran naked through the hall to their rooms to put on clean clothes. They were all there when I opened the door, waiting for us to go down.

True to his word, George had held breakfast until we were ready, and the servants were just putting out the platters of eggs, sausage, bacon, waffles, pastries, and biscuits. There were urns of coffee and tea, pitchers filled with milk and several different juices, as well as several filled with different bloods. Like every morning, everyone waited for George to fill his plate. Today, he motioned for me to go first. The significance of his action was not lost on his staff; I was their focus for the entire meal.

Once we were all seated, George asked, “Would you like to discuss this over the meal, Greg? Or wait until we’re finished and talk in my office?”

“Putting it off benefits no one, George. Better to rip the bandage off quickly.” I said before taking a sip of elk blood.

“When Tommy called from the hospital last night and told us what was happening, I took the liberty of asking Chris to call his father. I hope I didn’t overstep?”

“No, George, it was the right move, and thank you. What did he say?”

“The first time I called him, your father was still alive, and he said he couldn’t tell me anything but asked us to keep him posted, regardless of the time. I respect his discretion and his concern. At that time, he asked me to pass on his prayers for your father and for you.”

I nodded. “Mike is discreet and takes confidentiality to an extreme. He is also a very caring individual. I would be shocked if you told me anything different.”

“Tommy called us back after you made your decision, and he maintained that he still couldn’t tell us anything, but he had your father’s will in his home computer and would email it as soon as Charlie passed. Your description of his view on confidentiality is accurate. And, true to his word, he emailed a copy of the will while we were on the phone the third time.” George handed me several pages and added, “I have not read that, Greg, nor has anyone on my staff. I simply had it printed and held for you.”

I set my fork down and, as I took the papers, my hands began to shake. ‘Be strong’ my beast told me. My hands calmed and I scanned my eyes over the will. The first part was the typical ‘being of sound mind’ stuff. After that, it listed several donations to charities, with a note that they could not add up to more than ten percent of the total estate. I looked at Chris and asked about that.

“It is possible that he lived for decades after writing this and never updated his will. If that happened, and he hit financial problems, those donations could wipe out the estate without that limiting clause.” Chris explained.

I nodded and continued reading. There was a paragraph saying that I was currently petitioning for emancipation and, if that petition was rejected, he named James and Donna Warnick as my guardians. When I looked at James and read the section to him, he confirmed that Dad had asked him when we had dinner together. I was glad that Dad considered James and Donna rather than some random friend I didn’t know.

My first surprise came when I saw Scott’s name along with mine and the phrase ‘and any other surviving children’. Again, I looked at Chris and read this aloud.

“Same thing, Greg. If he never got around to updating his will and had a child sometime in the future, that clause covers it. Do you have a brother we don’t know about?” Chris asked with a smirk.

I smiled and said, “Well, if I do, I don’t know about him.” I glanced around the table as I said this, and everyone laughed, except George.

I read on. I was now into the legalese that I have yet to learn. If I worked it out right, there were several life insurance policies, retirement accounts, savings accounts, and the house that were to be split equally between Scott, ‘other children’, and me. The final thing that confused me was a life insurance policy that went to a ‘Janet Framingham’, or her heirs. Once again, I looked at Chris and read this aloud.

“Again, all typical stuff, Greg. You noticed he referenced an addendum. That’s probably a detailed list of every dollar he had at the time of signing the will. The life insurance policies can’t really be directed by a will unless he set them up specifically that way. Usually, they list a beneficiary and, if they do, it supersedes a will.”

“But who is this, Janet Framingham?” I asked.

Chris shrugged and started to answer when Scott interrupted, “I think your dad was about to tell you when he had his stroke, Greg. Think about what he was saying.”

I set the will down and picked up the glass of elk, sipping as I thought about my father’s last words. A tear fell as I also saw his frown as he struggled to speak, then fell back and had a seizure. I felt a hand on my shoulder and could tell it was Scott by the way my pain seemed to flow out of my body to be shared by my mate. Another hand touched my other shoulder, and I glanced back to see Billy standing behind me. I reached up and took both their hands in mine and smiled at them. With a sigh, I considered my father’s words.

George pulled me out of my thoughts. “I just got another email from Mr. Barnes, Greg. There are two attachments: one for your eyes only and one for James. Would you like me to print them and bring them here? Or should we head to my office?”

I took a page from George’s book and glanced around the table. I was the only one with food still on my plate, and I was no longer hungry. “I think we’ll follow you, George.” I looked around again and added, “Chris, would you please join us?”

I could sense that Jake was hurt, so I asked, “George, is there room for all of us in your office?"

With a grin, he replied, "And more, Greg, my office is in my west wing.”

I rolled my eyes. “You didn’t?”

Tommy laughed as he said, “Oh yes, he did.”

We followed George, and I could sense that Jake and Chris were confused but intrigued. When George opened the door and welcomed us into his ‘oval office.’ Everyone, including me, looked around and gawked. Of course, I’d never been in the actual Oval Office, but I had a feeling that George had increased these dimensions just as he had with the main house. When I asked, he confirmed that the one in Washington measured thirty-five by twenty-nine feet, while his measured fifty by forty. As he moved to his desk, I shook my head and laughed. A grinning George sat at his replica of the Resolute desk and opened a laptop. Soon, we heard his printer and as I sat in a Queen Anne chair, he handed me a copy of a handwritten letter from my father.

Greg,

If you’re reading this letter, something horrible has happened on my trip to Los Angeles. I can’t imagine the pain you’re going through right now, but my faith tells me that we will someday meet again. I know you don’t believe that, but I pray that you will accept this one tenant of my faith and let it comfort you. I also hope you will take comfort in knowing that I am, once again, with my beloved Camilla. I will spend my first days telling her of how proud I am of the man you’ve become, and of the love you’ve found with Scott. (I’m not stupid)

I intended to tell you all of this when I returned home, but obviously, that won’t happen, so I pray you can forgive me for what I’ve done. Since your mother passed, I’ve been very lonely and after about a year, I’ve sought comfort with women I’ve met on my business trips. Most of these meant nothing and were simply physical comfort on long, lonely nights. One, a lady I met in Los Angeles last year, came to be more. I won’t go into her personal issues, but there were many. I did my best to help her, with mixed results. In November of last year, Janet called to say she was pregnant. If you check, you’ll see that I spent the three weeks after Thanksgiving in LA; I spent it with her, setting her up in an apartment and arranging for her medical care. I will say that I wasn’t sure that I’m the father, in fact, I’m still not certain, but until it’s born, I am acting as though it is. She is due next week, and I plan to be there and quietly ask for a DNA test to confirm either way. Depending on when you get this, you might have a little brother. Yes, we know it’s a boy.

I have a life insurance policy that will provide for her for the rest of her life, if she’s smart about it. If he’s proven to be my son, he is covered by my will, if he’s not, she still gets the life insurance money. I’m not asking you to have a relationship with the boy; that is a decision that only you can make. I’m telling you this so you’re not surprised by his existence when Mike settles the estate.

I have to go pack now, so I’ll end this by telling you that you are the best thing that has ever happened to me. From the day we brought you home to the day I left you in the loving care of Scott, I have loved you with all my heart and soul. I wish the two of you nothing but joy in the many years you have left on this earth.

Love, Dad

I was glad that this was an emailed copy of the letter for two reasons. First, I wanted to keep the original for the rest of my life, and second, this copy was soaked with my tears by the time I got to the end. Scott and Billy were standing on either side of me as I read it, but I knew they weren’t reading it, just comforting me by resting their hands on my shoulders. I sobbed and handed it to Scott. As he read it, Billy knelt and gently hugged me as I sobbed on his shoulder. When Scott finished, he took Billy’s place and offered me the letter. I waved my hand and pointed to Billy, who read as Scott held me.

Other than my sobs, the room was deathly silent. When I finally got my emotions under control, I gently pushed Scott away and stood. James stepped over and gave me a hug, then handed me his letter.

James,

If you’re reading this, I’ve passed away during my trip. I know that you and Donna will take the same care of Greg as you would your own son, so I can rest knowing he is well cared for. I’m writing this after writing a letter to Greg. I won’t share the details of that letter, but will leave that for him to decide. I don’t know if he knows the secret you shared with me at our dinner, so I will ask that you not share this letter with him until he does know.

This section is to Greg: James has shared a secret that is so amazing, I won’t put it paper on the off chance that someone else reads this. Just know that I know, and I hope you and Scott have many, many, many years together. If you choose to adapt their lifestyle, do so with my blessing. Hopefully, my lame attempt will properly convey my message. I can’t think of any other way to say it.

To Scott: Remember your promise.

Thank you again, James, and I wish you weren’t reading this but life doesn’t always give us everything we want. You, of all people, can understand.

Charlie Fowler

I looked up at James in shock and asked, “Am I reading between the lines what I think I am? Or am I imagining it?”

“I would say you’re reading it right, Greg. When you and Scott cooked us dinner, Donna and I told him of our nature and he easily accepted it. He asked if you had to be changed in order to be Scott’s mate and we assured him that it was entirely your choice. He had many questions, but we knew we didn’t have much time.

“I can now tell you that he called me several times while on this trip, and he died knowing you’ve been changed. I spent hours on the phone answering all of his questions and he was not at all surprised when I told him that you are an exceptional vampire. He even laughed at all of your plans for subterfuge on his return. We both laughed and I will say this. He planned on making you sweat by intentionally ignoring anything that didn’t add up, at least until you worked up the nerve to tell him.”

As James told me this last part, I was laughing and crying at the same time. Leave it to my dad to make me squirm. “I can just imagine him finding a bottle of blood and pretending not to know, just to see me sweat.”

Scott laughed, “Or asking you to move his desk, alone.”

I nodded and laughed. “Oh, he would do that, I’m sure.” When I realized I was laughing, I stopped. I felt guilty for laughing at my dead father.

George came over and put his hands on my shoulders. “Laugh, Greg. From what I’ve heard, I know he would want you to.”

I smiled and nodded, then took in a long breath through my stuffed-up nose and blew it out hard through my mouth. I looked at George and asked, “Have you read my letter yet?”

He shook his head and replied, “I have not, and I will not unless you insist. If I can help with any issues, simply give me the details I need.”

I looked around the room and said, “I have a brother, or I will have one, and I want to meet him and his mother.”

“Greg, I want to ask you for something, as a Baron of Dracul.” I turned to George and stared, wondering why he said it that way. Finally, I nodded. “I need your vow that you will listen to me and my reasons before you react to what I am about to say.”

I stood tall and bowed from the neck. “You have my vow, My Prince.”

“Your brother entered this world this morning, three hours after your father left it, and in the same hospital.”

My beast screamed, ‘He has deceived us. We must kill him.’ I took a breath and reminded him of our vow. I then continued to stare at George as I felt my beast trying to surface. My vision shifted, but I held control and forced him to listen to me as I thought this through. Of course, George had investigated me, probably even had vampires following me around, since the day Scott’s eyes first changed. He knew I was to be a baron, and he had to know all he could about this human who was to become a leader in his world. His investigation would have included my friends and my father. This was how he was able to provide the scholarships so quickly. I considered what I would do if the situation were reversed, and I decided I would do the same. I would know everything about him, down to every girl he bedded, and how often; possibly to the point of what he did with them. It crossed my mind for a moment that Tommy and Leonard had fed him information, but I ruled that out. They stood firmly behind me when I confronted the prince earlier.

In a voice devoid of emotion, I said, “Tell me more, My Prince.”

“I needed to know—”

“Not your reasons, Your Highness; I understand and accept them as proper. Tell me more about the boy and his mother.”

George blew out his breath and said, “Then ask me as your friend, Greg. Your prince didn’t share this information with you; your friend did.”

My beast had retreated to his cave, and I smiled at George. “I’m sorry, George, but please, tell me everything you know.” I took my letter from Billy and offered it to him. “Read this first. It may give you some insight.”

He quickly read the letter and handed it back to me. “I’m not sure where to start, so I’ll start when they met.” As he spoke, George moved to a sofa and nodded for me to sit opposite him. Scott and Billy joined me. “Janet wasn’t a prostitute, but she wasn’t far from it. She’d had a series of affairs with men from out of town and led them on while they provided housing and funds for her to enjoy her life when they weren’t around.”

Tommy handed me a glass of elk, and I sipped it as George went on. “Your father’s feelings for her were, well, I can’t say that he loved her, but he was very fond of her. I believe he suggested marriage when she told him she was pregnant. She, of course, had no desire to marry but did realize that she would need help with the boy. I have from a good source that she never considered an abortion, but she did hope to give the boy up without Charlie’s knowledge.

“I firmly believe that she was going to break things off once the boy was born.” He paused, considering, then went on. “I think you have enough background, but I’ll share all the details later if you like. Let me jump to this morning. Janet wasn’t aware that Charlie had had his accident. There were words when they parted, and she probably assumed he was back home. She went into labor last night and would likely still be in labor had the fates not had other plans.

“Unfortunately, she had a blood vessel that crossed her cervix, and it had gone undetected until it ruptured when the boy was crowning. This caused her to bleed out despite the best efforts of her doctors. They performed a cesarean and were able to save the boy. He is, right now, in the neo-natal ICU and will be for another day. You have until tomorrow at dawn to decide what you want to do.”

His story shocked me, but his last words had me confused. I thought for a moment, and I began to understand, but there were things to do before I could decide. “Dad wasn’t sure he was the father, George. Before I do anything, can we—”

“Already had it done, Greg. If he wasn’t your brother, I would have told you already.”

I took a deep breath. “I figured that, but it had to be said. I guess my options are to step in and see if I can foster him or walk away and let some family adopt him. Either way, he’ll have money from Dad’s will, so he’ll be provided for, right?”

Chris spoke up, saying, “I think we should call Dad, Greg. I can’t give you any advice on this, it’s way out of my league, and no offense to George, but this is something you really need to talk with a lawyer about.”

George said, “I agree with him, Greg. Am I to assume that Mike also knows about us?”

“He does, George.” James injected. “Mike is the attorney I used for my businesses in Maryland. I told you about him before I told him.”

George seemed surprised. “I may be losing my edge, James. I spoke to the man on the phone and never put the two together. Certainly, we need to call him. Frederick, get him on the phone please.”

We only waited a few minutes before we heard Mike on George’s speaker phone. “What can I do for you, Mr. Hampton?”

“Forgive me, Mike, but that’s Prince George.” I said quickly.

George rolled his eyes as he said, “Nonsense, it’s neither. Please call me George. May I call you Mike?”

“Of course, Your Highness.”

George glared at me as he rolled his finger, telling me to explain things to Mike. I didn’t think he needed the whole story, so I gave him the short version, including the DNA confirmation. When I was done, Mike confirmed my summary of my options, but he added his opinion.

“You may be an adult in the eyes of the law, and you’re certainly able to afford the care of the boy, but you’re still only seventeen, and I don’t think you have a chance in hell of getting custody. It would be different if he lived in your home already and you had helped raise him, but as a newborn, if I were licensed in California and didn’t know you, you couldn’t pay me enough to take the case.

“Your two best options both require you first to establish the blood relationship. You could then ask the court to foster him for a few years or have the court put his inheritance into a trust and allow him to be adopted. Of course, you could always just walk away if… George? Do you know if the mother listed Charlie as his father on the birth certificate?”

“She did not. They typically ask after the birth, and she died before anyone could ask.”

“Then yes, you could simply walk away. With no one to speak up, it’s unlikely—”

I was growling as he suggested this, and finally, I roared, “Absolutely not!!! I appreciate your input, Mike, but I will spend every penny I have to get custody of my brother. He will get what Dad left for him, even if I have to raise him on the streets.”

Scott stepped to my side and took my hand. “No, Greg, you’re wrong.” I yanked my hand from his and glared at my mate. “You will not get custody; we will.”

I quickly pulled him into my arms and held him tight as George said, “Well, Mike, you heard him. Will you help him?”

“As I said, I’m not licensed in California, so I can’t file any briefs or appear in court, but I’ll do anything I can to support Greg; he knows that.”

“Thanks, Mike. I’ll get in touch once I’ve spoken to a lawyer out here.” I said, feeling much better.

“Because you’re aware of our world, I will let you know that Greg does have one option not available to humans.”

My stomach dropped when I heard his words. I knew what he was implying, and it terrified me.