The Castaway Hotel - 6 - 16. Chapter 16 - An Eventful Autumn

November began with Vinnie’s retaking his driver’s test and passing it this time. Once that was behind him, his adoption by the Shays was also formalized. Judge Shay had a colleague/friend, who was also a judge, hustle things along, so the process happened much quicker than normal.

In talking to Steve, I discovered Mary and he were quite excited about doing this. He told me they’d wanted to get more involved in helping me raise my boys for quite some time, but were never able to figure out just what they could do. They said it looked as if I had everything under control, but they were always happy to help out or join in whenever we asked.

What had started out as admiration, when Steve presided over my adoption of the first group, had grown into a friendship between the two of us. The relationship expanded over time, as he began to join in our festivities more and more, until his wife and he became aunt and uncle to all my sons. Now they were truly beginning to have feelings about the boys and wanted to increase their roles by doing as much for their nephews as they could. It just worked out that Vinnie’s situation gave them the perfect outlet to do so and they weren’t taking their new role lightly.

Kevin and Vinnie had talked about this adoption at great length. At first, Kevin didn’t understand why Vinnie didn’t want me to adopt him, although Vinnie tried to explain his feelings many times. Kevin just couldn’t understand why Vinnie had problems with having a brother as a lover, if he didn’t.

Seeing they’d reached a stalemate on this issue, I decided it was time for me to step in and discuss the situation with Kevin, privately. I thought I might be able to shed some light on things, since I wasn’t directly involved. It didn’t happen quickly, but after many phone calls, I was finally able to help Kevin understand why Vinnie was so adamant in his view.

Now that Kevin understood this wasn’t an arbitrary, unreasonable or capricious view for Vinnie to hold, he agreed this would be a suitable arrangement to resolve Vinnie’s concerns. I think Kevin might have stood his ground if Vinnie wasn’t still going to be living with us and I wasn’t made his permanent guardian, but that helped seal the deal for him. Not only that, but the boys would also be able to maintain their room together, so it was a win-win-win situation.

Once Vinnie’s issues had been resolved, I was able to concentrate solely on Cody. The first thing I did was to arrange for him to have a complete physical. I even told the doctor I wanted Cody checked for everything and my request made the doctor ask me why. I merely explained that Cody had been through a lot before he came to me and I wanted to be absolutely certain there was nothing wrong with him. I believe the doctor thought I was just being a paranoid parent, but he agreed to do as I requested. Even though he wasn’t convinced it was necessary, he gave Cody a thorough physical.

As part of the process to honor my request, the doctor ran a host of other tests on him too, including a full blood work up. After he examined Cody, the doctor told me my newest son appeared to be fine, but he wouldn’t be able to give me his final determination until the results of the other tests came back. I thanked him for his help and then Cody and I left. As we drove away, I felt a little better and wondered if it was possible that Graham was wrong this time.

Even though Cody was still foremost in my mind, the following Sunday my attention was suddenly taken in a new direction. It all began when I received a phone call from Frankie. He was quite agitated and not totally coherent at first. After I got him to calm down, he informed me about a situation he had found himself involved in.

“Dad, I had to call and tell you about something that happened here, before you heard about it on the news or saw it in the newspaper,” he began. “I’m fine, but something bad went down here.”

“Look, just get to the point and tell me about it,” I insisted. “What happened and did any of your friends get hurt?”

“No, well I guess you might say a couple of them did,” he answered me. “Everyone’s fine now, but two of my friends almost died. They were taken to the hospital and treated, but it was a close call. From what I gathered talking to others, they weren’t the only ones taken to the hospital last night. The college president has even suspended and banned two of the fraternities from campus for their part in this, because their houses held the parties. Since this was such a big deal here and the frats have had their charters taken, I knew it was going to make the national news. That’s why I called to tell you first, so you’d know I was okay.”

“Frankie, I think you should back up, slow down and explain exactly what happened this time,” I told him. “Tell me what you know, how your friends got involved and why they almost died.”

“Oh, yeah, I guess I did forget to tell you that part,” he agreed. “I’m not going to try to pretend I was an angel in all this, because you’d know I was lying, so I’ll tell you straight up what happened.”

“I appreciate that,” I informed him.

“It all started when some of my friends and I went to this party.” He hesitated before continuing, as if he was waiting for me to say something, but I didn’t. I think this surprised him. “What, no comment about my going to a party?”

“Frank, you’re old enough to make your own decisions,” I replied, “but I hope you’ve learned enough living here to make the correct choices.”

“I guess I blew it this time, then,” he told me, before pausing again.

“Okay, go ahead and tell me what happened,” I pressed. “I take it there was some drinking at this party.”

“It was a college party, so what do you think?” he asked, sarcastically. “I didn’t drink much, but I did have a few beers. I didn’t do like my buddies though. They started chugging beers and doing shots, but I didn’t want to get into that. Instead, I found a girl and spent my time talking and getting to know her better. I noticed my friends were making fools of themselves, but I didn’t think they’d appreciate me telling them that, so I didn’t.”

“Well, I take it something more must have happened,” I prodded.

“Yeah, well, I don’t know exactly how much those guys drank,” Frankie continued, “but I heard they had a lot in a very short period of time. When I came back to get them later, I knew they were in trouble. They didn’t barf or anything like that, but they were both passed out and I couldn’t wake them. Their skin looked really pale and they felt cold when I touched them, but that wasn’t what scared me. That happened when I noticed their skin was beginning to turn blue. I immediately checked to see if they were breathing and it seemed like they were, but just barely. I got really worried then and called 911, to get paramedics to take care of them.”

“That was probably a wise thing to do,” I interjected.

“That’s what I thought, but it sure put an end to the party,” he informed me. “As soon as the siren came up the street, the place cleared out and several people have given me shit about making the call since then.”

“Don’t worry about what they have to say,” I told him. “You did what you needed to do and what you thought was right. How are your friends?”

“Well, they’re both okay now,” he told me, “ but it was touch and go for a while. One of them had a blood-alcohol level of .22, but the other one’s was over .30. The doctor said they both could have died from AOD, that’s an alcohol overdose. My second friend had an irregular heartbeat when they brought him in, his breathing was about half of what it should have been and he was suffering from hypothermia. That’s why his skin was turning blue.”

“It looks as if your friends have you to thank for saving their lives then,” I told him.

“I guess.” Frankie responded, before hesitating. “Is that all you’re going to say? Aren’t you going to chew me out or something?”

“Frank, I don’t think it’s necessary,” I replied. “It seems you knew enough not to overindulge and you were the one who actually saved their lives. I’m just glad you were there for them and smart enough not to do the same things they did.”

“Not everyone feels that way,” he responded, and I could tell this affected him deeply. “Some of my former friends hate me now and say I ruined their party. They’re also telling me I’m the one responsible for getting the two fraternities banned from campus. It was a joint party.”

“And what do you think about what they’re saying?” I asked, in an effort to get his take on the situation.

“Hey, it wasn’t me who caused the problem,” he reasoned. “It was the guys who were encouraging all the binge drinking, especially the guys who brought the liquor, including the 151 rum.”

“And did you ask them what they thought would have happened if those boys had died instead?” I pressed. “If you hadn’t got help for them, they might not have made it and then some of the fraternity members would have be charged with manslaughter or maybe even murder. That would have been much worse than just having their fraternity banned from campus.”

“No, I didn’t think of that,” he admitted, “but I should have. I think the next time someone says something, I’ll ask them that instead.”

“That sounds good, but are you going to be able to handle those people?” I worried. “The might try to retaliate, even if it isn’t justified.”

“Hey, they aren’t going to start any shit with me, cuz I can kick most of their asses,” he boasted. “Besides, they’ll probably get over it in a few weeks, or at least I hope so. It’s just that I probably won’t get invited to things like that any more. Oh, well. Guess I’ll just have to make some new friends then.”

“I’m glad you’re keeping a positive outlook on this,” I commented. “Frank, I’m glad you’re who you are and I’m proud to have you as a son.”

“Thanks, Dad, but I had a good teacher,” he added. “Whenever I’m not sure what I should do, I just ask myself what you would do. I’ll admit it doesn’t always work and I sometimes ignore what I think is right, like with the drinking, but I do know better.”

“Well, I’ll forgive you your small indiscretions, because you’ve come a long way since I first met you,” I informed him. “In fact, I once wondered if I’d ever be able to get through to you.”

“I know. I was really bad back then,” he concurred, “but I’m glad things worked out after that. I’d hate to think where I’d be now, if you hadn’t given me another chance.”

“You earned it and have proved I was right in giving you an opportunity to redeem yourself,” I replied, “so I won’t blow this out of proportion. I’m pretty sure it was your level head that kept those two young men alive.”

“Thanks, Dad, and I’m glad I called to tell you about this,” he announced. “You’ve actually made me feel better about what happened and I think my two friends will be happy I was there too.”

“Thanks, Frank, and I’m glad you called to tell me about this in person,” I added. “Please keep in touch and don’t be afraid to tell me anything. I’ll try to keep everything in perspective.”

“I know you will, Dad, and that’s why you mean so much to all of us.” Frankie’s words touched me deeply and I had trouble responding, so I merely said good-bye and hung up.

Now that I was off the phone, and once my emotions had calmed down, I called the rest of the boys together. I wanted to advise them about what Frankie had told me. I thought it would be good for lesson them to learn, and if they could see how dangerous this incident was, then maybe it would prevent me from losing one of them to AOD some day.

I think the story made an impression and the boys caught my drift. It was a good thing too, because I didn’t really want to have to preach to them. I’d rather use real life issues as they arise, such as this, to make my point. I feel it has a greater and longer lasting impact than sermonizing or screaming at them. The boys always responded well when I did this, since they understood the events being described actually happened.

It didn’t take long for the ripples from this incident to die down, but then another issue took prominence. That happened around mid-month, when I got a call from the doctor’s office. One of his staff informed me the results from Cody’s blood work were in and requested I come in after work to learn what they’d discovered. I immediately panicked, since this had an ominous tone, but she told me the doctor just had a couple concerns and wanted to discuss them with me. She emphasized it was nothing to be alarmed about, so I told her I’d be in as soon as I could get away.

I quickly made arrangements for my high school driver to pick up the boys I generally took home, since I didn’t know how long this might take. I merely informed him that an unexpected meeting had come up and I would be delayed. Once school was out and my secretary had cleared the rest of my schedule for the day, I drove to the doctor’s office and waited for my turn to speak with him. When he came out, we exchanged greetings and then he led me back to a conference room. Once we were inside, he got this concerned look on his face. I immediately sensed the situation had been downplayed earlier and something was seriously wrong.

“Josh, I need to run some of the blood tests again, so I can better interpret the results,” he began. “Some of the test findings were inconclusive, so I’d like you to bring Cody back in for more testing.”

“Doc, what did you find?” I asked, deeply concerned.

“Nothing definite,” he replied, “it’s just that I think we need to do some further testing, to be certain he’s okay.”

“What do you suspect?” I pressed. I wanted to find out how much he really knew.

“I’d rather not say, until I’m certain,” he informed me, “but if you’ll bring him by the hospital tomorrow, we’ll do some more blood work and I’ll let you know more, once I have a chance to see what those results are.”

“Won’t you at least tell me what you’re looking for?” I asked, more firmly.

“No, I’d rather not worry you until I’m certain,” he insisted. “What I’ve seen may just be false positives. It happens sometime.”

“But I’d feel better knowing,” I urged.

“No, you wouldn’t, especially if what I suspect isn’t the case,” he told me. “Go home and spend time with your boys and I’ll see you and Cody at the hospital tomorrow.”

Seeing he wasn’t about to give in and tell me what he suspected, I left his office and went home. As I drove, I wondered what I was going to tell Cody about why the doctor needed to run more tests. I ran all sorts of ideas over in my mind, but none of them sounded good. I felt they would probably provoke more questions than anything else, so I kept searching for another way to break the news to him.

By the time I arrived at the house, I had decided to tell him basically what I had been told. I went to Cody’s room and found him in there with Graham. Since I wished to share this information with him alone, I asked Graham if he would allow Cody and I to speak privately. Although he wasn’t happy about being excluded, he reluctantly left us alone. Once the door had shut behind him, Cody looked up at me in anticipation.

“Cody, the doctor called today, to inform me your test results were back,” I began. “However, some things weren’t clear, so he wants to run some more tests tomorrow.”

“Why? Is something wrong?” Cody asked, panicked.

“No, it’s just that some of the test results weren’t clear,” I assured him, “so the doctor wants to do a few more tests to clear up the situation. You know, just to be safe.”

“Ah, okay, then. That’s fine,” Cody agreed, while looking more relaxed. “What time do we go?”

“We have to be there by 8:00 a.m., so we’ll go directly from here.” Cody seemed to handle the information well and never asked for more details, so I left it like that. I was thankful I didn’t have to respond to a whole series of questions that I didn’t have answers for.

I half expected Graham to come racing down to see what I had just told Cody, but that didn’t happen. I figured Cody had either answered Graham’s questions or Graham hadn’t pried into what I’d wanted, but I didn’t know which case it was. However, I was grateful I didn’t have to deal with trying to explain this to another person.

The next morning I took the Grand Am and drove Cody to the hospital. Once there, I led him to the lab where the tests would be performed. When we arrived, I was surprised to see the doctor there too, since he wasn’t needed for this purpose. I know he said he’d see me, but I thought it was just an expression he was using. I didn’t actually expect to see him here.

He talked to us while we waited for the technician to show up to draw Cody’s blood, but didn’t stay long. However, the thought that he took the time to be there touched me deeply and I was impressed he had rearranged his busy schedule just for us.

When Cody’s name was called, I asked if he wanted me to go with him and he said ‘yes.’ I followed as he was ushered into an examination room and then we waited briefly, before the technician was ready to begin. While she was setting things up, Cody and I talked about what we were going to do after the tests were concluded, but our discussion ended when she was ready to begin.

The technician was a cute and petite young lady, who was very sweet and gentle with Cody. She explained each step before she did it and I think Cody appreciated that. I know I did. Over the course of the next half-hour, Cody let her stick him with needles, so she could siphon off some of his fluids, and then we were told we could leave. I was mildly surprised that Cody didn’t talk about what had just happened as we made our way to the car. He also didn’t say anything during the ride, but he did hug me good-bye when we arrived at his school and then he went off to report in.

I spent the better part of the next hour wondering what the tests were going to show and worried that something was already seriously wrong with Cody. Graham’s visions were generally very accurate and I was afraid he was on the money once again. Although I prayed this time he had given me early enough warning to help fend off anything more serious, I couldn’t be sure, so I was truly concerned.

My thoughts were finally interrupted when my secretary buzzed to remind me about a meeting I still had to attend. I thanked her and went to the boardroom, where the meeting was to be held, and put on my game-face for the others in attendance. Once I became focused on the topic being discussed, I put Cody’s problems in the back of my mind, at least temporarily.

After my day ended, I went home and Cody was acting so normal that I found it hard to continue to worry. Seeing he was acting fine, I decided it would be best if I didn’t contemplate the possibilities and waited to cross that bridge when we came to it. Hopefully, when that time came, it wouldn’t be too long or too treacherous a journey. As I often told my boys, it does no good to worry about things over which we have no control, so I thought it best to follow my own advice, even though I couldn’t totally push aside my concerns.

Looking ahead, we were already making plans for Thanksgiving, since it was only a couple of weeks away. We were going to have a houseful again this year and Brandon and Nick’s parents would also be joining us. In addition to them, Carlos and his mother, Sally, the Spences, the Shays, Little Ricky, the Beckers and my biological children and grandchildren would also be here. That’s why there was so much planning to do.

I was also going to borrow some tables and chairs from school, so we could all sit down together. This would most definitely be one of the largest gatherings we have had, up to this point, so I needed to make certain we had enough room for everyone to sit and eat. I also had to make sure there was enough food to go around and that wasn’t going to be easy, with so many bottomless pits.

Sally, the Shays and the Spences had volunteered to house some of our guests, as my home would be filled to the rafters. It was decided that the Lawrences would stay with the Shays, while the O’Haras spent time with the Spences and Sally would take in Carlos’ mother. Carlos had already made plans to stay at our place with the boys and his mother even encouraged it. She agreed it would be best for him, since he didn’t often have an opportunity to spend his time with other young men.

I thanked each of the volunteers for taking in our houseguests, but they just smiled or laughed, before insisting we were all family. Yes, I have always referred to them as our extended family, but this just reinforced my appreciation for what truly great people they actually were.

During the Thanksgiving holiday, all those who hadn’t already done so would also get a chance to meet Cody. Even though I’d told them all about him, I knew my children and extended family were eagerly looking forward to greeting him in person. I hoped Cody wouldn’t be overwhelmed by the mob that would be arriving, but if he were going to live here, he’d have to get used to such gatherings. I wasn’t too worried about him handling it though, but I still wanted to make it as easy and painless for him as I could.

It was just a few days before the holiday, when I received another phone call from the doctor. Once again, he asked me to come to his office after work. He told me he wanted to go over the results of Cody’s latest tests. I asked him if I should bring Cody with me, but he said ‘no,’ so I planned to go alone. I thought this was strange, unless he just wanted to clarify things before we said anything to Cody, so I was hoping it wasn’t bad news. However, the more I thought about it, the more apprehensive I became, so I tried to distract myself with school business, until the time for the appointment arrived.

That strategy did work somewhat, although not well enough to make me feel better. When the school day finally ended, I got in to the car and made my way to the doctor’s office. I pulled into a parking space not very far from the door, but it seemed as though the walk to get inside took forever. A feeling of dread was beginning to overwhelm me and fear was gnawing at my core. This was unnerving, since I was the one who always tried to calm the boys whenever they let their fears run away with them. Now, I was the one who needed someone to reassure me. Why was my logic failing me, when I knew it did no good to worry about things that had not yet happened?

When I walked into the office, I announced my arrival to the receptionist. She told me to have a seat and the doctor would be with me shortly. As I looked around at the other parents and children, it made me wonder if any of them were facing anything as drastic as this. I hoped they were merely here for some minor illness or routine check-up, as I wouldn’t wish any of them to have to deal with all the doubts and anxiety I was currently feeling.

It was a few more minutes before I was led back to the conference room again and then I waited a little longer until the doctor came in. He wore a concerned look on his face as he entered, so I prepared myself for the worst.

“Josh,” he began, “I believe Cody has A.L.L., so there are a few things we need to discuss.”