The Discovery - 10. Chapter 10

Kyle sat in the cold metal chair staring at the gray prison walls as he waited. He and Michelle had arrived on time for their appointment and after a thorough screening, they were escorted to the small room with the plastic table and small chairs. Since he woke up this morning everything felt so surreal. His weekend with Jacob had been fantastic as they took advantage of their time alone. Even as the end drew near, Kyle felt a growing unease so much so that Jacob had asked him about it while they took in the Steelers game Sunday morning. He expertly brushed off his husband's concerns, but Kyle could not escape the sliver of dread that was building about his upcoming meeting with his new client.

There had been chances over the weekend when the opportunity presented itself to tell Jacob about Joshua, but Kyle continued to talk himself out of it. Jacob surprised him with how much he enjoyed their time together. Kyle had half-expected Jacob to grudgingly go along with his plans but was surprised to find him enthusiastic about seeing the Warhol Museum which led them to exploring other art exhibits in the city. As the day went on, Kyle decided to just forget about it and deal with it later. It had been a great Saturday, a wonderful night and a fun day Sunday before they headed back home to their sons and their responsibilities. In the end, Kyle didn’t want to ruin Jacob’s mood or what felt like a perfect moment for them.

Now, here he was, sitting in a bland room, waiting for this stranger he only knew through the transcripts of his murder trial. Michelle was sitting next to him, looking over the notes, preparing herself for the interview ahead of them. Kevin remained behind at Kyle’s request, to list all the evidence and names they could later follow up on that were already mentioned in the case file. Once this was over, they could start doing the real work.

At the sound of the door opening, Kyle felt his heart lurch and fought to maintain a professional outward demeanor. He looked up and stared as a man in an orange jumpsuit, brown baseball cap and handcuffs was escorted into the room by a prison guard. The guard pulled the chair out and wordlessly helped the inmate to sit down before removing the handcuffs. Kyle frowned slightly and tried to not look at the man’s face sitting across from him, but curiosity won out and his eyes took in the sight across the table from him.

What he saw broke his heart. Blue eyes that may have once been bright were dull and flat as if the life had been sucked out of them long ago. Around them were dark smudges and a few wrinkles that hinted at a restless life before today. He couldn’t see his hair, but Kyle saw a familiar jawline. The rest of his face appeared thin and pale as if undernourished. Sitting across the table, Joshua Carter was a man who had long ago given up living and was now just existing from one moment to another. Their eyes met for a brief moment before the blue eyes dropped to the table between them.

Kyle cleared his throat before he spoke. “You are Joshua Carter?”

“Yeah,” came the mumbled reply.

“My name is Kyle Howard, and this is my associate, Michelle Crowder. Do you know why we are here today?”

“Not really,” he replied, directing his answers towards the table between them. “Something about my case?”

Kyle nodded. “Yes. We want to hear your story and find out from you what happened.” He opened the briefcase sitting in front of him and pulled a thin file folder out and opened. “But first, before we do all of that, I need you to sign this.” He pulled a single page out of the file and pushed it across the table in front of Josh.

The younger man frowned slightly as he stared at the page before him. “What’s this?”

“It’s a standard retainer document,” he explained. “It states that you are appointing me as your attorney to represent you in court.”

“I don’t have any money for a fancy lawyer,” Josh countered with a suspicious stare.

Kyle frowned slightly but he understood Josh’s hesitancy. “I’m here to help you, not take advantage of you. I want to represent you and appeal your conviction. But, to do that, I need you to sign that paper, so that we have attorney/client privilege. Once that’s done, then the guard over there has to step out and we can talk privately.”

Josh reached for the paper and looked it over. “What difference does it make anyway?”

Michelle kept her voice neutral as she explained. “We’ve looked over your case and feel there is a chance to win an appeal. How that ends up depends on what you can tell us. But we can’t do anything until you sign that.”

Josh raised his head to stare at the two of them, looking doubtful. His eyes went back to the paper and with an almost resigned tone he asked, “do you have a pen?” Kyle produced a pen from his pocket and handed it over. With a sigh, he scribbled his name on the form and then passed both back to the two lawyers. “So now what?”

Kyle looked up to the frowning guard in the back of the room. “You can leave now.”

The guard hesitantly walked to the door. “You have one hour,” he said as he stepped out, closing the door behind him.

Kyle pulled out a note pad and pencil, getting to work. “First thing I need you to tell me is what happened the night Sharon died.”

“I don’t know,” Josh replied sullenly. “I was hurt at work the day before and I was in a lot of pain. Sharon took me to the emergency room, and they wanted to give me a painkiller since they reckoned it would pass since they said there was no major damage. I told them I couldn’t take what they had so the doc recommended I take a strong sedative to just sleep it off.

“Sharon was supposed to go out with her friends that night, but she wanted to stay with me. She was worried I wouldn’t wake up or something. I told her she should go. She had nice friends and I liked them. Before she left, I took the meds the doc gave me, and I passed out about half an hour later. When I woke up the next morning, I found her on the floor in the… the front room.” Josh’s voice faltered slightly at the end, and he put his hand over his face.

Kyle waited a moment before he continued. “After you found her, you called 911?”

Josh nodded. “Ambulance and the cops showed up. I told them what I knew. They looked through the house and asked me a bunch of questions. I told them what I knew over and over. Finally, after a couple hours, they handcuffed me and that was that. By the next morning, my life was over.”

“Josh…” Michelle paused. “May I call you Josh?”

“Sure.”

“Josh, when did the police officers read you your rights?”

“About an hour after they showed up,” he replied.

Kyle frowned curiously. “You said Sharon was going out with her friends. How do you know she left?”

Josh took a breath and let it out slowly. “When I found her, she was dressed up. Nice outfit. Makeup. She only puts that stuff on when she’s going out with her friends. With me, she was more of a homebody. Tee shirts and jeans type.”

“How long did you two live together?”

Josh smirked. “She didn’t live with me. She wanted to, but I told her I wanted to wait. I’d been saving up and living in a house I was renting. It wasn’t in the best of neighborhoods, but it was decent. I wanted to wait until… until I could propose to her. And I didn’t want to do that until I thought I was able to give her the kind of life I thought she deserved.”

“She cared a lot about money,” Michelle asked him.

Josh shook his head. “No. She came from money. Had a well-off family. Her dad was a doctor, and her mom was some kind of investor or something. I didn’t want to feel like I was trying to marry her for her money. Even if she said she didn’t care.”

Michelle smirked slightly. “How did you two meet?”

Josh’s lips lifted slightly in an almost shy smile. The look on his face nearly made Kyle’s heart stop with how familiar it appeared. Like looking at Jacob from years ago. “We met a couple years earlier in drug rehab.”

Kyle started getting uncomfortable with the familiar sound of Josh’s past. “How long were you in rehab?”

“About a year and a half,” Josh answered. “I met Sharon at a group session when we were in a rehab house, and we became friends and then more than that.”

“Did you have any problems,” Michelle asked. “Did you fight or break up at any point.”

“We argued,” Josh conceded. “But nothing huge. We never yelled at each other. I’m not big on yelling. I had my share of yelling when I was a kid.”

“Have your parents visited you since you got here,” Kyle asked as casually as he could manage.

Josh was quiet for a moment and looked at him. Kyle knew immediately that he shouldn’t have asked. It wasn’t even something important to his case and he was just satisfying his own curiosity. When Josh did finally speak, it was with a softer, sadder voice. “My mom died in a car accident when I was seven. And my dad died two years later. After that, I was in the foster system until I hit eighteen.”

Kyle was stunned. This was far away from what he had imagined months ago. Not only had Josh been adopted, effectively abandoned by his biological father, he had lost what little family he had been given. The effect on Kyle only solidified his desire to learn more. “I’m so sorry.”

Josh shrugged, having accepted his place in life long ago. “It’s not easy. Being nine years old and knowing no one wants you. After that, I was just trying to survive. The drug habit started after all that. I got in a bit of trouble for the next few years before I finally got into rehab and cleaned myself up. Court ordered, really. But I really wanted it to change.” He sighed and rubbed his eyes. “It was never easy. But I’ve managed and been clean for over eight years now. One reason why Sharon and I worked out so well was because we helped each other stay sober.”

“So,” Kyle tried to get the conversation back on track. “When you were charged with her murder, you pled not guilty.”

Josh had a pained look in his eyes, still maintaining his focus on the center of the table. For a moment, his voice hinted at the anger and bitterness he was holding onto inside. “They wanted me to stand there and say that I killed her. Killed the one person in the world who meant more to me than myself. I couldn’t do that. And, with her gone, I had nothing left anyway. But I wasn’t going to lie and say I killed her just to get a reduced sentence that may as well be a death sentence.”

Kyle had a sudden urge to tell him everything. That he had a family and that he wasn’t alone. He wanted to give Josh hope. Something he could cling to, to keep him going. One thing Kyle knew for certain. No matter what he had to do, he was going to see Josh walk free. But for now, he had to bury those feelings deep down and keep focused on that task at hand. “We need to focus on that night. You said she was going to go out with some friends. Do you remember any of their names?”

“Sure,” he replied. “I hung out with them all a few times. They were a nice bunch. I got along with them pretty good.” He rubbed his face with his free hand as he sighed. “One thing about being in prison, it sort of retains your memories. Nothing good happens in this place, so it’s like everything you remember before you came here plays over and over in your head.”

Michelle wrote down the names he provided before she spoke up. “We’ll need to run down these names and see if any of them are still in the area. Is there anything else you can think of about that night or the day before that may help?”

Josh shook his head. “Not really. I told all this to my last lawyer. Do you really think any of it will matter?”

“Your last lawyer sucked,” Kyle stated plainly. “He was overworked and didn’t have the resources to defend a murder case. I should know since I used to be a prosecutor.”

Josh raised his head for the first time and regarded Kyle curiously. “So, why did you get a sudden interest in mine? Flipping through old news clippings or something?”

Kyle’s lips pressed together to keep himself from saying too much too soon. “Your file came to me from a colleague I trust. Once I read it and had Michelle review it, we decided to meet with you. Now that we have, we have a good idea of how to handle this case and get your acquittal or get the charges dropped completely if possible.”

Josh was silent for a moment. His voice turned sullen and quiet again as his head lowered. “Wouldn’t matter if you did or not. Sharon was all I had in the world. In here or out there, I’m still alone.”

Kyle felt his heart lurch in sympathy. Josh and Michelle couldn’t know or understand how powerful an effect Josh’s words had on him. It was a reminder to him of a teenage boy who had once confided in him about the abuse he had suffered from and how alone he felt having to go through it over and over. Without thinking, Kyle stood and went around the table, sitting on the edge right next to Josh, looking down at him. He held his hand out and said, “take my hand, Josh.” The younger man’s eyes looked at the offered hand for a moment before doing as he was asked. Kyle gently but firmly gripped his hand and in that moment, he was totally committed. “I promise you that I will never give up on you. You will get your day to really defend yourself. And as long as I live, you will never be alone.”

It was a simple, yet powerful act of compassion. Something that Josh had rarely encountered in his life. For a brief moment, Josh felt the dying light of hope flicker again inside him. “Thank you.”

Kyle held onto his hand for another moment before releasing him and tried to put on a more professional look. “I’ll be in contact with you at least once a week. Every time I learn something new, I will make sure you’re informed. If there’s anything I can do or if there’s any problems you have while you’re here, let me know right away. They can limit your time, but they will have to give you access to your lawyer. Do you understand?”

“Yeah, okay,” he replied with a slow nod.

“Good.” Kyle went back to his seat and picked up his pencil again. “Now. We have some time left. I want to go over your story again.”

****

Michelle was silent as they walked out of the prison to Kyle’s car. She had not spoken since Kyle’s very unprofessional declaration, choosing instead to watch the two of them interact. Since she had first been handed the file by him, she wondered what Kyle’s reasoning was behind picking up an old case like this one. The truth, or at least a good hypothesis, started to grow into her consciousness as she started to spend more time watching her boss instead of listening to Josh speak. It was obvious to her that she would need to say something before this could potentially get out of hand.

She got into his car and waited patiently for him to get onto the highway headed home before she spoke her mind. “So, who else knows?”

“Knows what,” Kyle asked as he kept his eyes on the road.

That sounded evasive so she continued to play along. “Knows about Josh. There’s me, you and Kevin. Does Rose know?”

“No.”

She looked over and watched his face as she asked her next question. “Does your husband know?”

Kyle’s eyes widened in alarm as his skin paled. “Wh-what does my husband have to do with this case?”

His reaction only served to confirm her suspicions. “You tell me. When I first went over his file, I saw his mug shot. For the longest time I thought I knew him because he looked familiar. But once I heard the way you spoke to him, how you held his hand, and knowing you, you’re probably going to drop a couple hundred dollars into his account, it dawned on me that he’s related to Jacob somehow.”

He kept his eyes on the road as he weighed the pros and cons of telling her before he answered her. “He’s his brother. As best as I can tell, Josh was adopted out by his father and his mom died in childbirth. Why, I have no idea. He took that little piece of information to his grave. We didn’t know Josh existed until a few months ago. I tried to track him down but kept coming up empty. Halfway through it, I called for a favor with the DA’s office where I used to work. Last week, I got the answer and here we are.”

“What did Jacob say when you told him?”

Kyle swallowed nervously. “I didn’t.”

Michelle looked at him incredulously. “Why not?”

He cringed slightly as he explained. “Jacob… hasn’t been all that interested in knowing about his brother. Why, I’m not entirely sure because he hasn’t really explained himself. At a certain point he told me to just stop trying. And I did stop. But then I got the file and the more I read, the more I couldn’t just turn my back on it.”

“Are you going to tell him now?”

“Well… I’ll have to eventually, I guess.”

Her mouth dropped open in total shock at his obvious reluctance. “Kyle, you have to tell him! You can’t keep this a secret from him. You and I both know that unless the DA is going to just let it drop or we find some kind of super-amazing exculpatory evidence that any appeals court in this state is going to send it back to the lower court for a retrial. And when that happens, you’re going to be bogged down in paperwork, examining evidence, taking depositions and going into a trial where someone’s life hangs in the balance. He’s going to notice your absence at the dinner table and he’s gonna start asking questions.”

“I know,” Kyle said with a sigh. “I kept wanting to tell him last week, but I didn’t know enough. I figured if he was guilty, then I’d just drop it and never mention it again.”

“He doesn’t have a rock-solid alibi, but we have enough for at least a sliver of reasonable doubt,” she said thoughtfully. “But there’s not nearly enough for a jury to acquit.”

“I know I’m going to have to tell him eventually,” Kyle said quietly. “Just not yet. I don’t want to do that, not knowing how he’ll react and then have us lose and it’s all moot anyway.” A moment of silence fell over them as he continued to drive before a thought crossed his mind. “We should find the doctor that gave him the drug he used that night. That might be enough to get the charges dropped.”

Michelle eyed him sardonically before launching into a dialogue. “’Doctor, you prescribed the drug to the defendant the day before the murder?’ ‘Yes.’ ‘And were you present when he took the drug?’ ‘No.’ ‘So, you can’t tell us if the defendant actually took the drug you gave him, can you?’ ‘No, I cannot.’”

Kyle frowned. “Yeah. I thought about that.”

“Then you know it was a silly idea. We need to find real evidence.”

“Such as?”

Michelle blinked and admitted, “I don’t know. But we do have a dead girlfriend. If he didn’t kill her, someone else did.”

“Oh. Well, simple as that then,” Kyle said with more than a little sarcasm. “All we have to do is find the real killer. That should be easy.”

She smirked and rolled her eyes. “I didn’t say it would be easy. Especially with a case this old. Getting people to remember something that happened six years ago isn’t going to be easy in itself.”

“Well,” Kyle began with a sigh, “I’m not going to give up on him. He’s been alone almost his whole life. He needs someone to step up for him. And that person is going to be me. One way or another, I’m going to find out who killed her and get him the justice he deserves.”

Michelle nodded. “Alright then. Give me and Kevin until tomorrow and we’ll make a list of these names and where to find them all.” With that agreed upon she settled into her seat. A few moments later, another revelation came to her. “Josh doesn’t know either, from the sounds of it. Doesn’t know he was adopted or that he has a brother.”

Kyle frowned. “Let’s just focus on getting his appeal filed and start our investigation for now. We’ll leave everything else for later. And let’s keep it to ourselves in the meantime.”

Michelle frowned, not bothering to hide her disapproval. “I hope you know what you’re doing.”

****

Blake got his lunch tray and made his way through the school cafeteria to his usual spot. It had been a nice day so far. For the most part he disliked school, but it was tolerable so long as his friends were with him. He liked his teacher and while there were in the first half of the school year most of the discussion between his friends concerned starting junior high next year. A few of his fellow students waved or greeted him as he walked to his usual table on the side of the room where Matt and Carter were waiting.

“Are we going to be doing a group project for science next week,” Matt asked as Blake sat down.

“How should I know,” Blake countered. “I’m not the teacher.”

“But you read ahead,” Carter grinned.

The red headed boy smirked playfully at his friend. “How do you know I read ahead?”

“You always read ahead,” Matt said.

Blake smirked. “Okay, so, maybe. I don’t know.” The other two chuckled as he looked away, feigning innocence when he caught sight of a classmate. Mark Taylor might not be the most popular boy in class, but Blake liked him. But Mark had been looking odd lately. For the past two weeks that he could remember, Blake never heard him speak up in class or smile that much, for that matter. “Hey, Mark,” he called out over the din of noise surrounding the cafeteria.

The boy turned at the sound of his name and saw Blake waving him over. With an uncertain look, the boy approached with his tray in his hands. “Hi.”

Matt and Carter watched the interaction curiously as Blake spoke to the newcomer at the table. “You can sit with us if you want,” Blake offered.

Mark hesitated. “You sure?”

Matt spoke up with a polite smile. “Sure. Sit down.”

The boy sat next to Blake facing the other two boys. Matt and Carter knew him as an okay sort. He wasn’t the smartest person in class or the best looking. But he was nice and never got in trouble. He was likable by most, but no one ever thought of him as a close friend before. “If there’s a group project for our science lesson, you can be with us, if you want.”

“Um. Okay,” Mark replied. “Thanks.”

Blake frowned slightly in concern. “How come you’ve been so quiet lately? Has anyone been bullying you or something?”

Matt and Carter’s ear perked up and they paid better attention to Mark as they ate their lunch. The only time the three of them have gotten into trouble has been when they see someone picking on another kid. Their reputation had started to be known around the school and most of the meaner kids tended to give them a wide berth.

“No, no one’s been bullying me,” Mark replied quietly as he began to pick at his food.

“So, what’s wrong?”

“It’s nothing,” Mark sighed which, to even boys as young as the three of them, meant there was something bothering him.

“It’s okay,” Carter said as he leaned in closer, feeling sorry for him. “You can tell us.”

Mark frowned sadly as he lowered his head. “My mom and dad told me that they’re going to get divorced a few weeks ago.”

The boys looked at him with mild surprise and pity. “That sucks,” Blake declared. “But it’s no big deal, really. It just means that they won’t live together.”

Mark’s eyes misted as he explained. “Yeah, but what if I end up having to move away? I don’t want to go somewhere else. I want to stay here.”

Blake looked at him sadly and put a hand on his shoulder in sympathy. “It’ll be okay. Just tell them. They’ll listen.”

“I don’t want to make them mad, though.”

Matt frowned thoughtfully. “Want me to ask my dad about it? He’s a lawyer. Maybe he knows what you can do.”

Mark looked up at him. “Really? But what could he do?”

“I’m not sure.” Matt shrugged. “But it doesn’t hurt to ask. Dad always answers my questions.”

Mark thought about it. “I guess.”

Blake’s eyes lit up. “Hey, I have an idea,” he said excitedly. “You should come with us to our sleepover at Matt’s this weekend! Then you could talk to Matt’s dad. Uncle Kyle’s really smart.”

Matt looked from Blake to Mark and back. Blake met his gaze with his bright-eyed expression that told him there was no real choice but to agree. Once Blake set himself on a course, there was very little anyone could do to stop him. “Sure,” Matt agreed with a smirk. “I’ll talk to my dads and Grandpa when I get home.”

“Thanks,” Mark said with a bright smile. The worry and gloominess that he had when he first joined them lifted away at Matt and Blake’s generosity.

“No problem. It’ll be fun.” With that declaration, the discussion ended, and they moved onto other topics as they ate their lunch before returning to class.

****

When Kyle and Michelle returned to work, they went to their respective offices to begin updating the draft of their appeal. They knew this was going to be an uphill battle, but they had to approach it at every angle. Kyle understood all too well that they had very little time left. While they could file an appeal, there was a time limit on when it could be filed after a conviction and that day was swiftly approaching. Once filed, it would start the process and he would be bound by the court’s decision on when a new trial would be scheduled. He might be able to hold it off for a month or two longer than a judge would typically allow, but with a case this old, they would be eager to get it started as soon as discovery was completed. There was too much at stake for not only him but maybe his entire family. For this to succeed he needed to be careful about how he approached every aspect of this case.

Kyle paused as he neared Rosette’s desk. “I need to see you in my office,” he said quietly before continuing into his office.

Rosette watched him with a suspicious eye. He never said anything to her about why he left the office earlier in the day, which was unusual in itself. Now with him speaking in a hushed voice, it was obvious he wanted to avoid anyone overhearing them. With her usual professional air, she got up from her desk and followed with a pad and a pen in hand. When she reached his office, she closed the door behind her and stood at his desk with pen in hand. “How can I help you, Mr. Howard?”

Kyle studied her as she stood there waiting. “I’m starting a new case so I’m going to need to get most of my other cases moved to other associates. Excluding Michelle and…” He trailed off, wondering if it was a good idea and then sighed, realizing he had little choice in the matter. “… And Kevin. If either of them needs to see me, just send them in.”

She looked at him from over the top of her glasses. That was an unusual request and she let her feelings be known by the look in her eyes. “Is this another class action suit, like last time?”

“No,” he answered. “I need to keep this kind of quiet. At least for a while. I don’t want rumors and leaks to get information out to anyone outside of the office.”

“That won’t be easy,” she stated plainly. “People talk. You sure Michelle and Kevin are able to keep it to themselves?”

He sighed. “I hope so. I don’t want this to be all over town.”

“What is it exactly?”

“I’m filing an appeal in a week to overturn a murder conviction.”

Rosette arched her eyebrow high. This was a first for her. She had seen Kyle take on a large variety of cases, but he had never touched any criminal cases. “I see. All the more reason to keep it quiet. Don’t want people thinking you’re setting murderers free. What case files will you be needing?”

He opened a drawer in his desk and pulled out the file and sat it down. “This one. I don’t want it filed with the rest for now. At least not until we start doing a thorough investigation. There’s going to be calls coming in and going out. I need to make sure you handle most of those. Coordinate with Michelle and Kevin and make sure they give you any information to you and no one else in the office pertaining to this case.”

She scribbled notes as he spoke. “I’ll speak to them right away and make sure they understand. I’ll also keep any big cases away from them. You’ll need to speak to Monica at some point. She’s the most senior associate and can run interference. Will you be getting any outside help?”

“Most likely at some point,” he replied even as a few ideas sprang to mind. “If I do get anyone, I’ll make sure you know right away. Hopefully we won’t burn through all our resources on this one.”

“That’s unlikely considering how much we’re bringing in, but I’ll keep my eye on the numbers.” She finished with her notes. “Will there be anything else, Mr. Howard?”

He contemplated letting her in on the bigger secret but decided to wait for now. “Not right now. If something does come up, you’ll be the first to know.”

She nodded and turned to leave. “Then I’ll have a word with your two cohorts.”

Once she was gone, Kyle opened his computer and with silent determination began preparing for his next fight.

****

Jacob grinned as he watched Matt and Aaron separate from the crowd of school children spilling out of the doors. It did not take more than a few seconds before the boys saw him waiting and came running in his direction. As painful as it was the first time dropping them off at school in the beginning, it was a joy to see them every day since. A moment later he could see Carter, holding Emily’s hand and Blake. Andy and Elizabeth had already texted him and asked him to pick the kids up today. It was a system they worked out to share picking the kids up. In truth, he loved doing this. He wanted to have these moments before there were no more days picking children up from school. Next year, Matt will start middle school and sooner than Jacob would expect it, high school.

Matt’s cheerful greeting brought his attention back to the moment and made Jacob’s heart glow in his chest. “Hey, Dad. I think it’s all of us today.”

“Not a problem, son,” Jacob replied. “You can sit up front. The rest of you in the back.” He opened the door to the back of the van to let the kids pile in, making sure everyone was secure in their seats. Jacob had initially balked at the idea of buying another vehicle, thinking it was a luxury that wasn’t needed. But when David pointed out that he had multiple trucks that Kyle and he both ended up driving, he relented and just accepted that one day, his pickup truck was going to end up in Matt’s and later Aaron’s hands as they got older.

Once they were on their way home the chatter in the van began as it usually did. He knew better than to ask any questions while he was driving, since asking one of them about their day became an onslaught of answers that became hard to separate from each other. So, it surprised him when Blake suddenly spoke up and said, “Matt, tell Uncle Jacob about our sleepover.”

Jacob glanced at his son curiously. “What about it?”

Matt made a face, as if he wasn’t ready to say anything yet. “Well, we were wondering if another boy in our class could spend the night with us this weekend?”

Jacob frowned slightly, not understanding. “Sure. What’s the big deal?”

“I figured I’d ask you and Dad at the same time.”

“Oh.” Jacob nodded slowly as if he understood, even though he didn’t quite know what the big deal was. “Well, he’ll be home in a few hours. How about I text him when we get home and at least give him a heads up?”

Matt nodded. “Sure.”

“Alright then.” Jacob relaxed and got the kids to the house. Once they were all unloaded, they filed inside and all of them being greeted by David who smiled through the whole procession as they made their way to various parts of the house. Jacob trailed along behind and shared a smirk with his dad before grabbing a bottled water from the fridge and heading back to his room to continue work on his drawings.

It was several hours later when the door to the room opened and Kyle walked in, looking a little more tired than usual. “Hey,” Kyle said when he noticed Jacob at his drawing desk. “How was your day?”

“Not too bad. Worked at the shop most of the day before I picked up the kids from school.” It was then he realized he had forgotten about Matt. “Oh, shit. I told Matt I would text you before you got home.”

Kyle moved into the bedroom, eager to get out of his suit. “What about,” Kyle called out.

Jacob rose and went to the doorway. “Not entirely sure. Something about a friend of theirs staying the night with him, Carter and Blake this weekend.”

Kyle looked at him, confused. “What’s the big deal? Wouldn’t be the first kid to stay the night.”

“I’m not sure,” he replied with a shrug. “He seemed to really want to talk to both of us about it.”

“Huh.” He pondered that as he unbuttoned his shirt and stepped into the closet. “Well, go ahead and grab him. We can talk it out in here before dinner.”

“Okay.” Jacob stepped back out and headed down the hall that led to the rest of the house. He poked his head into the front room but did not see Matt there, so he turned up the stairs and knocked on his bedroom door. When Matt answered, Jacob opened the door and looked in. “Your dad and I are ready to talk now, if you want.”

Matt put down his iPad and hopped off the bed to follow Jacob back to his parents’ bedroom. When they got there, Kyle was just finishing putting on a shirt before turning to regard them both. He smiled at his son. “So, what’s with this special request that you needed to ask us both?”

Matthew edged over to the corner of the bed as he watched his dad patiently wait for an answer. “Well… it’s a kid in our class named Mark Taylor. Blake saw him and he looked down about something so we, or really just Blake, asked him what was wrong. He told us his mom and dad were divorcing.”

Kyle looked at Jacob who just shrugged before regarding Matt again. He joined Matt on the bed and looked at him. “Okay. It happens sometimes. What’s so important about it though?”

“He said he was really worried about what’s going to happen to him. I figured you could help somehow.”

Kyle grinned slightly and suppressed the urge to chuckle. Matt seemed to be taking this much more seriously than he needed to. “How do you think I could help?”

“I don’t know,” Matt responded with a shrug. “I just thought you could help him somehow since you’re a lawyer.”

“Oh, Baby Boy.” Kyle put his arm around his son’s shoulders. “There really isn’t much I can do. It’s up to his parents at his age. What I can do is talk to his parents and ask them. You said his last name is Taylor?”

Matt nodded. “Yeah. Blake likes him and wants to hang out with him more, I think. Not like, not be friends with me or Carter anymore. More like, wanting him to be our friend. Mark, not Blake.”

Jacob watched with an amused smirk as Kyle chuckled softly. “There’s no reason not to invite him, Matt. If he’s a good kid and is polite and you all get along, then we want him to hang around with the rest of you.”

Kyle looked up at Jacob and smiled in agreement. “If I remember right, his mom has someone on my staff as her lawyer. When you see him tomorrow, just have him ask his mom to come drop him off. It wouldn’t be right for me to talk to his dad right now until their divorce is settled. Do you understand why?”

Matt looked up at Kyle uncertainly. “Something about it being ‘based?’”

“The word is ‘biased,’ but close enough.” Kyle grinned and ran his hand over Matt’s hair. “It means, if I had a talk with his dad, it could make the divorce harder, and we don’t want that. Not for Mark or for his parents. Right?”

“Got it.” Matt relaxed and smiled a little. “So, he can come?”

“Absolutely.”

“Thanks Dad.”

“Any time, Baby Boy.” He leaned down and kissed his forehead. “Now, go get ready for dinner.”

Jacob stopped him to give him a kiss on his forehead before letting him leave. He leaned against the doorway casually and looked at Kyle with a smirk. “That was a little weird, don’t you think?”

Kyle stood and replied, “a little, yeah. Maybe he was just wanting to double check. And maybe he likes this Mark kid more than he lets on. Wouldn’t be the first time he made a new friend.”

“Still,” Jacob paused, thinking the best way to address his concern. “Maybe he has the same anxiety problem you do?”

“That’s not a sure thing,” Kyle replied dubiously. “It’s not known to be passed on genetically.”

“Not really something we should ignore either,” Jacob pointed out. “You went too long dealing with it on your own. We shouldn’t make him go through the same thing.”

Kyle had to admit his husband had a point. “Let’s just keep an eye on it for now. If it looks like he might be getting more anxious when he’s in junior high, then we’ll take him to a specialist.”

Jacob nodded. “Sounds good. So, how was your day?”

Kyle bent down to stretch his legs and to also hide his face. “It was fine. Had an interview with a new client.”

“Oh? What kind of client are they?”

Kyle put on his best poker face as he rose and started heading out of the room. “Something new. I can’t really talk about it yet.”

Jacob followed behind as they headed to the kitchen. This wasn’t the first time Kyle had a case he couldn’t talk about right away. “Well, I hope it works out.”

“So do I.” Kyle said nothing more about it and joined everyone else in the kitchen, ignoring that sliver of guilt that was beginning to grow inside him.