The Discovery - 19. Chapter 19

Josh walked down the hall silently, following the guard in front of him to his weekly appointment. The last three weeks had been nothing more than quiet conversation between him and Kyle. Kyle had not mentioned much about his efforts to find new evidence but had hinted a few times that there were things happening that he wasn’t ready to tell him yet. When Josh pressed him about telling him the week before, Kyle informed him that he did not want to get Josh’s hopes up on dead ends. When it was explained to him like that, it reassured him that Kyle was doing his best.

When he stepped into the room, Josh saw Kyle sitting at the table alone. When his head turned towards him, Josh noticed a certain look in his eyes. A kind of quiet determination mixed with concern. That look told Josh that this meeting was not going to be a casual conversation.

After sitting down, and the guard left the room, Josh looked across the table and said in his usual quiet voice, “something up?”

Kyle didn’t want to say just how complicated things had become since his meeting with Dylan Goode. After discussing what he learned with Monica, he gave her a new assignment to dig through her contacts and find out what was going on with Dylan’s family. He sighed as his shoulders dropped slightly. He felt tired and the stress of how big this situation was getting was starting to overwhelm him. “We have a trial date.”

Josh frowned slightly. He would have thought that would be good news, but it seemed to not be to Kyle. “When?”

“Four weeks from today,” Kyle replied. “So, we’re getting into the tough part now.”

Josh privately wondered how tough Kyle thought being in prison for over five years for a crime he didn’t commit was. His lips twitched up slightly at the kind of response Kyle would give him, but he kept it to himself. “Is there something going on that needs more time?”

Kyle shrugged slightly. “Well… I hired an investigator to look for Angela Crawford. No telling where she is. We have to find her.”

Josh frowned, not understanding. “What’s so important about her? According to you, she wasn’t at the party that night.”

“She wasn’t. But I think the killer was. And I think Angela might know something about his past that could shed light on things.”

The chair Josh was in creaked slightly as he sat up a little more. “The real killer? Who?”

Kyle looked at him and took a breath. “Tell me… exactly how well did you get to know Dylan Goode?”

Josh looked at him in muted surprise. “Well, I met him in rehab. He was a friend of Sharon’s.”

“An ex-boyfriend,” Kyle corrected.

Josh waved his hand dismissively. “That was years ago. They were still teenagers. It didn’t last a year even, I don’t think. She and I were together a lot longer than that.”

Kyle opened his briefcase and pulled out a few pages and passed them over to Josh. “According to some who knew them both well, Dylan did not take their breakup well. And that he never completely gave up on getting back together with her.” Kyle nodded to the pages. “Says so right there.”

Josh picked up the pages and read them. This didn’t seem normal to him for some reason. Dylan had been nothing but polite to him. Just polite though. “But he never talked down to me or said anything about me.”

“To your face, perhaps,” Kyle conceded. “But I talked to him myself and found him to be an elitist. When he spoke about you, he wasn’t all that kind.” He saw the look in Josh’s eyes and decided to expand on it. “Dylan, and a few of his friends, were of the opinion that certain classes of people weren’t meant to mix. Before you, Sharon was with a couple other men after she broke up with Dylan Goode. But they were all in college. They all were from upper-class backgrounds. That was seen as acceptable to him and, as I said, he hadn’t given up on getting her back. But when you entered the picture, it seems Dylan did not approve of the relationship. He said things to people. Things overheard by some of our witnesses.” He shrugged and added, “I also have a theory that he went into rehab at the same time as Sharon just to try and win her back and you successfully cock-blocked him, but I’ll never find proof of that.”

“But that’s just talk,” Josh countered. “That doesn’t mean he…” He could barely find the will to say it out loud. “…he killed her?”

“It doesn’t, no,” Kyle agreed. “But it could point to motive. And that’s what we need to exonerate you. I’m making a motion to the court to subpoena all phone records from everyone at that party on the night of the murder. I don’t need all of them, I just need his but if I were to single him out, he would lawyer up and it would take years to get them through the courts.”

Josh wasn’t convinced. “Phone records? From six years ago?”

Kyle nodded. “It’s a gamble, I know. But I know a forensic data analyzer who can take that information and give us times and locations from the phone numbers in question. If we can pin him to being anywhere near your apartment on the night of the murder, then we will have evidence that he was there. And if he was there, then we can point the finger at him.”

There was a moment of silence as Josh took in all the information. He shook his head slightly, wondering if this was just a nightmare he found himself caught in. “What about me? Why didn’t he kill me to?”

“It’s possible that he didn’t intend to kill her,” Kyle said. “I don’t know. That would work well in his own defense, but I’m not worried about him. All I care about if you.”

“How do you intend to prove it?”

Kyle smirked. “I’ll figure something out when I get him on the witness stand.”

Josh’s lips rose in a rare smirk. “Just like that, huh?”

“Just like that.” Kyle smiled a little. He wanted Josh to maintain hope that this would all work out. “Oh. There is one other thing I need you to do for me.”

“What’s that?”

Kyle reached into his briefcase again and produced a file. He pulled out a small stack of papers stapled together from within it and set it down in front of Josh. “I need you to sign and agree to this.”

Josh looked at it. From his limited knowledge, it looked like it had nothing to do with his trial. “What is it?”

“A petition to unseal your adoption records and your birth certificate,” Kyle said. “I think if I have that, then we can confirm your identity and your birth name.”

“What’s the point of that?”

“Just to confirm you are who your DNA test says you are,” Kyle replied with a slight smirk. “That you are the son of Joseph and Kathrine Eaton. And that your brother is, or rather was, Jacob Eaton. For all we know you weren’t born with the name Josh.”

Josh pondered it as he looked over the pages in front of him. “Is it really that important? I mean, what if we find out that I’m not? Are you going to suddenly take off on me?”

Kyle’s smirk stayed on his lips even as he showed disappointment in his face. “No! No, Josh. Ultimately, it doesn’t matter if you are or not. I’m not giving up on you. Even after this is all over, I’m still going to be there for you. But wouldn’t you like to have a family again?”

A sudden sting of tears in his eyes caught Josh off guard and reflexively lowered his head to stare at the table. The idea of not being alone again. Of having someone who cared. To be a part of something. Despite himself, those needs keep coming back to him. Even as he longs for that kind of connection again, it terrifies him that he could reach for it, only to have it lost once again. He never wanted to say it out loud to anyone out of fear that saying it would make it never happen. There was a time, after rehab, after Sharon had proven that she wasn’t going to leave him like everyone else had in his life, when he shared that dream with her. It didn’t work with her. She was taken from him too soon. And through this nightmare that he had lived since that horrible moment, he had accepted that the dream of having a life with a family was never going to happen.

But here it was again. Like a fire that had gone out from neglect now is found to have an ember still warm beneath all the cold, dead ash. With the potential to make that dream come alive again. Josh rubbed his eyes and took a breath before he felt comfortable speaking. He was still in jail. And showing weakness was dangerous. His eyes glanced up at Kyle, seeing the look of concern on his face meant so much to him. When Kyle offered his help, Josh had only half-believed him. He thought it was only a matter of time before Kyle gave up or said it was best to settle and accept the guilt that wasn’t his to accept.

“Josh?”

He knew Kyle was letting him know it was his decision to make. To capture his dream in a new way. A chance to have a normal life. Even as he got to the last page and saw a place for his signature, it still felt unreal to him. There was so much uncertainty attached to his life ever since he lost his parents, it never felt like he was ever going to have something solid to rely on. Even now, there was still no absolute guarantee that this was going to work out the way he hoped. There was one thing he did know for sure. He couldn’t take anymore disappointment. As he signed his name on the page, he silently prayed for a miracle. “Here.”

Kyle watched Josh’s face as he slid the papers back across the table. They looked at each other for a long moment before he could speak again. “In about a week, I’m having you see a psychologist.”

Josh blinked at the sudden turn of the conversation. “Why?”

“Because we need a mental and emotional expert to get on the witness stand and say to the jury that you were in no way capable of killing anyone. That your actions that morning when you called 911 and after were clear signs of grief and not of anything nefarious.”

Josh didn’t like the idea but could see merit in it. “Fine. Will you be here with us?”

“No. He gets privileges just as I do so there’s no worry about you being monitored while you’re with him.”

“Alright then.” He didn’t want to admit it, but he wished Kyle could be there with him. “I’ll do my best.”

Kyle smirked slightly and shook his head. “No. Josh don’t over think it and don’t go into it like you need to convince him. Just let him do his job and be open and honest with him. Let him help you. It’s doubtful it’ll be the last time you talk to someone about everything you’ve been through.”

“Oh?”

“You’re going to need a professional to help you make peace with all of this,” Kyle stated. “And not only just the trial and being imprisoned. You have a lot of things you need to get off your chest and talk to someone about. Trust me. Having a therapist to talk to is helpful.”

Josh shrugged. “It wouldn’t be my first time, Kyle. I went through counseling when I was in rehab.”

Kyle nodded. “I expected as much. I’m just saying you should keep going. Even after the trial.”

“Not really something I’m able to afford,” Josh pointed out.

Kyle shook his head to dismiss the notion. “Money isn’t an issue. We’ll get it done.”

Josh nodded and let it drop. “Anything else?”

“Nothing on my end at least. Anything you need?”

Josh shook his head. “How’s everything at home?” They had talked a few times about Kyle’s home life with his kids and Jacob. Over the course of their conversations, Josh had come to learn about Kyle’s father along with his friends and their respective families. It was a sort of bittersweet thing for him to listen to someone who was living the life he had always dreamed of. A few times, after Kyle had left and he was back in his cell, Josh would imagine what it would be like to live like that.

Kyle smiled. “Matt is looking to be on course to getting straight A’s this year. We’re trying not to put a lot of pressure on him being so young, but he seems pretty determined to pressure himself.” He chuckled as he added, “he’s still dreaming of being a pro-baseball player someday. Hopefully he’ll have a backup plan to go along with it.”

“Never know,” Josh said with a shrug. “He could end up surprising you.”

“If there’s anything Matt is really good at, it’s surprising me,” Kyle said with a chortle. “We need to finish up and I need to go file this motion. I might run into a few roadblocks, but I think everything will work out and we’ll get our answers.”

“And Dylan?”

Kyle grimaced slightly. “That will take more work. If he did kill Sharon, I’ll need more than phone records to prove it.”

Josh felt some concern. If he were being honest with himself, he would say that his odds of being acquitted were slim. But he wasn’t going to give up. He knew he was innocent, and he was never going to say otherwise. “I want to believe someone out there saw or heard something. I just know it.”

“In the middle of the night,” Kyle asked dubiously.

“Yeah. I don’t know how things work around your neck of the woods, but in the poor parts of the city, in the middle of a warm spring, there’s always somebody out.”

Kyle hadn’t thought of that before. That there could have been an eyewitness to the crime. Or at least someone who saw something odd that night. It would be a long shot at this point. And if there was, why did the police not find them? “I’ll look into it. Maybe hire a PI to check with the locals in the area around your old apartment.”

Josh shrugged. “The worst that can happen is you don’t find anything.”

This was a first for him, Kyle thought. Josh had never suggested anything in the last three months about finding any information, other than his old boss. He smiled slightly at the thought of Josh starting to really believe that things would work out. “If you get any other ideas, let me know. But I need to get going. I want to file this motion with the court before I have to get back to the office.”

Josh looked at him wistfully. He had dreamed of having kids in the past. Maybe that was still possible for him. “Okay. Thanks for coming by.”

Kyle rose from his chair. “No problem. I’ll see you next week. Michelle will be with me so we can start prepping you for the trial.” He stepped to the door and knocked to let the guard know they were done for the day. After Josh was escorted out, another guard came for Kyle to take him to the exit.

****

Jacob stood next to his truck and waited with shining eyes as he watched kids pour out of the doors of the school. Today was his day to pick up the boys but fortunately he only had to pick up Aaron and Matt. It was a bit of luck that Liz and Andy were picking up their kids as well since he had something exciting to show them when they got home. Maybe it was a little silly to get so excited, but he had been looking forward to this for months and now it was time to show his boys the rewards that come when they work on something.

Andy leaned in close to him and muttered, “what’s got you so excited?”

Jacob blinked in surprise at his question. “How did you know I was excited?”

Andy gave him a slightly annoyed look. “Like I haven’t known you since you were a teenager. You’re pushing forty, you know.”

“So are you,” Jacob pointed out.

“Quiet, you. Don’t be spreading bullshit rumors like that.” Andy’s lips twisted in a half-smirk. “Seriously. What’s up?”

“I have a surprise for Matt when we get home,” he said with a self-satisfied tone.

“Oh. Well then.” Andy nodded, his curiosity satisfied. “Learned anything more about Kyle’s little trial?”

Jacob shook his head slightly. “No. But I haven’t been asking, really. Just going through the motions.” What he did not say was he and Kyle had very few moments together to talk. He didn’t want to ask him in front of the boys, nor did he want to say anything about it while they were in bed. Hard enough to have your husband coming home after dark, tired and stressed without worrying about adding to his problems. So, Jacob remained silent and waited for a time when Kyle wants to talk about his work, he will be there to listen.

His eyes caught sight of Matthew, separating from the throng of kids around him, dutifully holding Aaron’s hand as he hurried to his dad. Behind him, he saw Carter, Blake and Emily breaking off to join their parents. Matt’s smile widened into a grin as he came up to his dad. “No homework today,” he declared.

Jacob’s eyes widened since he was hoping that would be the case. “Excellent. We need to hurry home because I have a surprise for you.”

“For me,” Matt asked.

He nodded as he opened the passenger door of his truck and lifted Aaron up into the back seat. “Yup.”

“What is it?”

“A surprise,” Jacob laughed as he buckled Aaron in and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before helping Matt up.

Matt laughed. “Okay. Is it a good one?”

“Very good,” he insisted. Jacob made sure Matt’s seatbelt was secure before getting in the truck himself and heading home. They passed the drive listening to Aaron talk about his activities in kindergarten. From what he was hearing, Jacob felt a little relief that he was making friends. Not that he worried that he wouldn’t get along with Carter and Blake. They treated him well and Matt seemed almost devoted to him. But Jacob felt it was better for Aaron to have friends in school that he can grow up with as well. Other boys and girls that will be with him through classes and everything else he will experience in these formative years that will pass all too quickly.

Jacob couldn’t remember much of his early years in school, but he does know how few friends he had since his father was a single parent and Joe wanted to spend as much time with Jacob as he could when he was growing up.

Without meaning to, the mental image of his father formed in his mind again as his thoughts started to loop around the face. It wasn’t the drunken, dark and brooding face he knew as a teen. Rather, the smile and gentle eyes that used to greet him coming home every day when he was in grade school. Even as he tried to push the memory out, Jacob could recall the house they lived in then. It was small but bright. There was a vague recollection of his dad singing to the music on the radio in the kitchen. The way his dad would look surprised or excited while he talked. Yet through all of that, there was always a lingering sadness in his eyes that never completely went away.

That sadness seemed the most prevalent of his memories about his father in the early years. He could recall moments when Joe didn’t notice Jacob was looking at him. Those rare moments when Joe let his guard down while they were watching television or going to a movie, and he could see tears trace a path down his face. One fractured memory came to the forefront of his mind. He was a little surprised he forgot about when he caught his father in one of those moments. Instead of ignoring it or pretending he didn’t see, Jacob silently slipped his hand into Joe’s. What made the moment stick was how his father reacted. Joe leaned down and kissed the top of Jacob’s head and whispered, “you’re the best little boy in the world.”

“Dad?”

Jacob blinked and turned his attention to Matt as he drove the truck up the driveway to the house. “Yeah?”

Matt was looking at him curiously. “Are you okay?”

He forced his smile to return and remembered that fateful morning he first got to hold Matt in his arms. “Yeah. Just thinking about stuff.”

“Like my surprise,” Matt said hopefully.

“Yup.” Jacob grinned as he shut the engine off and hopped out. By the time he got around the other side of the truck, Matt was already out of his seat and helping Aaron. He smiled as Matt carefully helped Aaron down from the truck before they both started for the back door. He said nothing as they walked in and waited for Matt to stop and look at the large UPS box sitting on the kitchen table.

Matt stared at the box and then looked back at Jacob. “What’s this?”

Jacob motioned to the box and said simply, “your surprise.”

Matt looked at it warily before stepping up and ripping off the tape. He opened the top of the box and looked in curiously before his eyes lit up in excitement and pulled out a small strip of paper. “It’s our labels!”

Jacob grinned proudly and stepped up to the table. “Yup. With my design and your picture to go on the jars of apple butter grandpa will be making in the fall.”

“Oh my God, Dad, this is so cool!” Matt stared at it reverently for a moment before he got a confused look. “Wait. How do they go on the jars?”

“Well, that’s where we have some work to do,” Jacob replied. “Starting this weekend, you and I will be in the workshop carefully gluing these to all the jars we have that are waiting to be filled.”

“So, more work then?”

Jacob chuckled. “Baby Boy, there’s always work to be done. But for right now, why don’t you keep the one you have in your hand and put it in your room. Think of it as a keepsake of your first successful piece of artwork.”

Matt looked at the simple paper in his hand. It felt like any other label he had seen on things they bought at the store. To think of it as artwork seemed weird to him. But at the same time, he did feel a sense of pride that the picture of his grandfather on the label was his own hand that made it possible. In that respect, it was worth saving. “Okay.”

Jacob smiled. “Okay then. Go on upstairs and get your stuff taken care of while I start thinking about dinner and ask your other dad when he’s coming home tonight.”

The boys headed out of the kitchen and into the hall. As Aaron ran past him, Matt turned back to Jacob. “Hey, has Dad said anything new about Joshua Carter yet?”

Jacob smirked. “Ask him yourself when he gets home.”

Matt rolled his eyes. “I already tried. He said it’s too adult for me.”

“Your dad is probably right. Go on upstairs.”

“Fine,” Matt said with a sigh before heading to his room.

Jacob chuckled silently to himself as he headed towards his own bedroom to get cleaned up. Visions of his father flitted in and out, but he successfully batted them away, choosing to focus on Matt’s reaction to their new role in labeling jars for the next few months. He was so proud of his older son. In his mind, it didn’t matter what Matt ended up doing in life because Jacob was sure that he would be great at it. While he would like it more if Time would slow things down a bit more so he could enjoy more moments with Matt and Aaron, he accepted that before too long, Matt was going to need him less and less the older he got.

As he stood in the shower, he thought more about Matt’s request about Kyle telling them more about his case involving the murder. It confused him a little that Kyle seemed to have gone out of his way to find a criminal case to defend for the first time that Jacob could think of. In fact, the more he thought about it, the more he remembered Kyle once saying he would never consider defending a criminal in his private practice. Not only because it generally ended up poorly unless there was solid proof, but because of the time and energy it took to research and investigate such a case.

“When it comes to criminal law, the prosecution has an entire team of police, investigators and lab technicians employed by the state to prove their case. For a criminal defendant, they have to do all of that on their own.”

That was what Jacob remembered him saying. The more he thought about it, the more curious he was about this Joshua Carter person. As he got out of the shower and dried himself off, it started to nag at him. No matter how many ways he could consider it, Kyle’s choice to relitigate and defend a possible murderer made no sense. When he got done getting dressed, he went to sit on the couch in their shared sitting room and picked up his laptop from the table. He intended to do some paperwork for his budget for the year but instead decided to open his web browser and start searching for the answers to his and Matt’s questions.

****

When Kyle got back to the firm, Rosette rose from her desk and intercepted him on his way to his office. “You had a phone call while you were out,” she said in a low voice.

“From who,” he asked.

She held up a small piece of paper in her hand and handed it to him. “All he gave me was a number and wanted me to tell you that he found her.”

Kyle understood instantly what she was talking about. “Thank you, Rose.” He took the paper and walked faster to his office, closing the door behind him. He hurried around to his desk, setting his coat and briefcase off to the side before quickly dialing the number on the note.

It took three rings before the line connected and he heard a familiar, curmudgeon voice. “Took you long enough.”

Kyle smirked. “Sorry for the wait, detective Harris.”

“I’m retired, Mr. Howard,” Tom Harris replied dryly. “Did your secretary give you the message I gave her?”

Kyle nodded, not bothering with correcting him about Rose’s title. “She did. Where are you?”

“Believe it or not, Madison Wisconsin.”

“I thought she was in Chicago.”

“She was,” Harris replied. “About three years ago. Took a job with a consulting firm and moved up here. And lemme tell ya, it’s cold and fuck up here.”

This could be one of Kyle’s biggest breaks in his case. Kyle had an irrational desire to jump around the room. “Did you talk to her?”

“I started to,” he began. “But she seemed to scare easy. When I told her I was from Pennsylvania, her whole body language changed. If I didn’t know better, I’d say she’s running from something.”

Kyle nodded. “Alright. Don’t do anything to get yourself in trouble. I’ll send my lawyers out to talk to her in a few days. I just need an address to give them.”

“Yeah,” Harris grumbled. “Like a team of lawyers never scared anybody.”

He stopped to consider it. “Tom… Go ahead and approach her. Tell her who you are and who you’re working for. Tell her we’re trying to solve a mystery and we need her help. If she wants, give her my number.”

“Okay,” he replied. “After that, I’m done though, right?”

Kyle nodded. “Yup. You earned your pay for sure. Thanks for your hard work.”

“No problem. See you later.”

With that, the call ended. Kyle stood there behind his desk and contemplated his next move. He picked the phone up again and hit a button. “Rose,” he said when she picked up. “Have Michelle and Kevin join me in my office. And if Monica is around, ask her to stop by.”

“I think I saw Monica a minute ago,” Rosette said. “I’ll tell them.”

“Thank you.” He put the phone back down and then waited. Within five minutes, all three lawyers were in his office with the door closed. He looked around at their faces before he smirked and said, “we found Angie Crawford.”

“Who is Angie Crawford,” Monica asked.

“A potential witness,” Kyle replied. “Well, not to the murder itself, but a material witness at least.”

“It’s possible she knows more about Sharon and Dylan than anyone else,” Michelle added. “At least, that’s what we hope. Where is she?”

“Madison, Wisconsin,” Kyle said with a smirk. “Took Tom a month to find her. And we’re running out of time, so I want you on your way there in the morning.”

Kevin looked up. “What about me?”

Kyle gave him an apologetic look. “Not this time. It doesn’t have anything to do with you, Kevin. But I think that whatever she may have to say, she’s only going to say to Michelle.” He turned his attention to Monica. “Which is why I’d like you to go with her.”

Monica gave a look of mild surprise. “Me? Why?”

Kyle sighed. “I really hate to put it this way, but like I said, we’re running out of time; Whatever Angie Crawford has to say, she’s not going to say it to a man. She trusted Sharon with a secret. A secret so big none of her other friends knew about it. If she’s going to talk, it’s going to be to another woman. If I went there with Kevin, I have a feeling he and I would strike out and we’d be forced to drag an unwilling witness into court. If you to talk to her, it’s more likely she will be cooperative.”

His partner had to admit that his logic was sound. “Sounds reasonable. Not the first time I’d dipped my hand in this case. What else do we need to know before we leave?”

“She had some kind of falling out with Dylan Goode, if I remember right.” Kyle looked at Michelle and Kevin for confirmation.

“That’s what we’ve heard others say,” Kevin nodded. “There’s also Emma Griffin.”

“Are we having any luck with that?”

Kevin and Michelle exchanged amused looks. “Not exactly.”

Kyle’s brow furrowed. “What does that mean?”

Michelle smirked and answered, “Grant Dawson is giving us a hand tracking her down. He said he would call me once he got ahold of her and explained the situation.”

Kyle felt a small sense of relief. “Alright then. Monica, if you have anything that needs done tomorrow, hand it off to me and I’ll take care of it.”

Monica shrugged. “Just some meetings I can reschedule. No court appearances.”

“Excellent. Guess I got lucky there.” Kyle couldn’t help but feel very lucky at the turn of events. “I went to see Josh earlier today. He’s still upbeat. I’m hoping we can get all the evidence we need in the next week and start working on opening arguments.”

“What about the phone records,” Kevin asked.

“That should come through next Tuesday. Once we get the court order, we need to get that information and get it to our guy at the computer lab we deal with.”

Kevin nodded. “Just let me know where and I’ll get it done.”

“Good.” Kyle looked at them, feeling a sense of pride in all of them. “Good work, all of you. Get done whatever you need to before you leave. Michelle, tell Rosette to book your flights and everything else you’ll need on your way back to your office.” He booted up his desk computer before saying, “I’m going to start working on my outline for arguments.”

Monica and the others left his office to prepare for the next day. Kyle pulled out his notes and started writing out his opening statement. He knew it would change between now and their first day in court. He may have Michelle or Kevin make the opening statement instead. What was important to him was that he got started on it now so the editing would be easier when he had all their evidence gathered. Once that was done and it was given to the prosecution, then it would come time to start selecting a jury. He hoped by then, the DA might be more inclined to just drop the charges. Somehow, he doubted that would happen.

He spent his remaining hours at work making a list of witnesses to call and the evidence he would need to put together, along with the relevant paperwork for issuing subpoenas. Those would be mercifully few since most of the witnesses they planned to call didn’t seem reluctant to testify. He hoped that that would not change between now and the start of the trial. At one point, he got a text message from Jacob asking him about dinner and when he would be home. That prompted him to suggest ordering pizza for the night and that he would be home on time. For once, Kyle knew that wouldn’t be as hard as it usually was.

At the end of the day, the sun had already started to sink towards the horizon. It wasn’t completely night yet and that fact comforted him knowing that Spring would be returning soon and before long so would his father. And with its return, the orchard would slowly start to sprout new leaves and start the yearly cycle all over again. As he drove home, the thought of warm summer days and playing with Jacob and their sons brought a smile to his lips. He felt really good about his chances of winning this case. And after that, then anything was possible. Who knew what changes would come from that? Whatever happened, he at least knew that spending time at home on lazy summer days was a new concept he wanted to try with Jacob this year.

He parked his car and headed inside. There was a half-empty box of pizza on the counter along with a second empty one discarded in the trash. He grabbed a slice for himself and went down the hall to where he heard the television. When he stepped into the front room, he saw Matt and Aaron sitting by themselves on the couches watching an old Disney movie.

Matt heard the sound of footsteps and looked back to the door. “Hey, Dad,” he greeted Kyle along with a bright smile.

“Daddy!” Aaron hopped off the couch and ran over to him with his arms outstretched.

“Hey,” Kyle said back as he knelt down to hug Aaron. “Did you guys eat already?”

“Yeah,” Matt said absently, still watching the screen. “Dad said he was busy with something. He’s back in your bedroom.”

“Okay.” He stood and decided to sit with the boys while he ate. “How was your day?”

“Good,” Matt answered before he remembered his surprise. He turned to look at Kyle with a wide grin. “Oh! The labels for the jars came in today!”

“The what?” He wasn’t sure what Matt was referring to, but his son’s infectious smile warmed his heart.

“The ones Dad and I worked on, remember?”

“Oh, yeah. How do they look?”

“They’re awesome! Dad had me keep one just for myself. He called it artwork.”

Kyle grinned. “Well, he’d know more about that than I would. If he says it’s artwork, then that’s what it is.”

Matt turned back to the screen as he thought about that. “I don’t know if I’d make a good artist.”

“Never know until you try.” He sat back and ate his pizza, going back in the kitchen to get another slice and a drink before he felt he was done. “You boys going to be okay while I go see what your other dad is up to?”

“Yeah,” Matt replied. “We’ll be fine.”

“Alright then.” Kyle’s smile stayed on his lips as he headed to the back of the house. When he opened the door to their private suite, he saw Jacob sitting there staring at his laptop with a stoic expression. “Hey there, sexy man.” He walked across the room to Jacob and kissed his cheek. “What are you doing in here?”

Jacob gave him a nearly invisible smile as his eyes remained stoic while he looked at Kyle. “Just some paperwork.”

Kyle chuckled and headed through the doorway that led to their bedroom. “And you complain about me bringing work home.”

“Yeah,” he said with a monotone voice.

Kyle quickly got out of the suit he had been wearing most of the day and went about getting into something more comfortable as he kept up the conversation. “How was your day? Matt told me you got the labels in.”

“Fine.” Jacob remained seated, staring at nothing. “He did a good job. Now we just need to put them on the jars.”

“Plenty of time for that,” Kyle said. “Not like we have apples to make any butter with.” He threw on a pair of sweatpants that had been cut off at the knees and an old shirt. He stepped back into the sitting room and looked at Jacob. He felt concerned when he noticed Jacob’s stoic face. His eyes stared into Kyle, making him wonder if he alright. “Are you okay? You look like something it up. Problems at work?”

“No.”

Kyle would normally be already sitting down next to him, but Jacob’s body language made him instinctively remain in place. After over six years of marriage and a lifetime of knowing each other, it was not difficult for Kyle to discern Jacob was troubled. “Anything else bothering you.”

Jacob’s eyes never left him. “Just one thing right now.”

“Oh? What’s that?”

Jacob could feel his chest rise and fall as he forced himself to remain calm. “Who is Joshua Carter?”

Kyle could almost feel the blood drain from his face. The name sounded almost foreign coming from Jacob’s lips. All the times he had a chance to say something, yet he always talked himself out of it to keep the peace. Now, somehow, there was no getting out of this. “What?” It was a deflection, to give him a moment to prepare for what was coming. In his mind he could hear everyone, Michelle, Stephanie, Kevin… everyone telling him that he should tell Jacob the truth. And now it was too late.

Jacob knew the question for what it was. He remained sitting on the couch with the laptop in front of him. “Kyle… Who is Joshua Carter?”

Without meaning to, he took a half-step back. “He’s my client.”

“You never mentioned him before.”

“I have mentioned him.”

“You talked about ‘your client’ but you never said his name before,” Jacob said in that same quiet voice. “Joshua Carter. So, he’s just your client then?”

“Yes.” Kyle wished he could find a way out of this. He had felt so upbeat about everything that had happened with his investigation earlier in the day. Why hadn’t he done this sooner?

“That’s it? Nothing more?”

“Well –”

Without giving him time to find another excuse, Jacob asked, “is this him?” With a touch of a button, he brought up his browser and turned the laptop around to show the mug shot he found online.

Kyle felt his chest tightening as he looked at the all too familiar face. “Yes.”

Jacob shut the laptop and put it aside as he stood up. “So, I’ll ask again. Who is Joshua Carter?”

Kyle knew there was no point in hiding the truth now. “He’s your brother.”

Jacob crossed the room and stopped inches from his face. His eyes burned holes into Kyle as his lips pressed tightly in suppressed anger. He could barely contain himself as he spoke. “You told me… you promised me that you would drop it. Remember?” His arm shot out to his side as he stabbed a finger towards the doorway leading to their bedroom. “In that very room, you promised me.”

“I know,” Kyle replied quietly.

“Then how is it that you’re his lawyer now?!”

“Look,” Kyle looked down at the floor to organize his thoughts. “I didn’t mean for this to happen.”

“Which part,” Jacob asked as his voice grew louder. “The part where you lied to me or the part where you broke your promise?”

Kyle raised his hands with his palms out in an attempt to calm him. “That’s not what I intended. When I got his file, I felt that there was something wrong in his first trial.”

“When did you get his file?” Jacob took a step back from him. “How did you get his file? I mean… the judge said you couldn’t have his adoption records. Who all did you drag into this with you?”

Kyle felt a little wounded at the idea that he planned this to happen. “First off, I got his file a few weeks after we lost that court case. As to how I got it, I’m not answering that. All that matters right now, is that I did get it.”

Jacob’s anger started growing along with the feeling of betrayal cutting deep into his heart. “So, you’ve been hiding this from me for months! My God, that was like six months ago, Kyle!”

“I know,” Kyle repeated. “I’m sorry for that. At first, I just wanted to know what was going on. I wasn’t even sure it was true until I saw the same picture you obviously found online. How did you find out about him anyway?”

“Matthew,” Jacob answered back. “You apparently taught him how to search for cases online.”

Kyle sighed and shook his head. “Goddamn, he’s smart.”

“Smarter than you,” Jacob said with more anger in his voice than before. “How could you do this?!”

“I was trying to explain that,” Kyle answered. “I gave the file to one of the other lawyers at the office. She had some experience with criminal defense. When she sat with me the next day, we agreed that things didn’t add up and Josh didn’t get a good defense in his first trial.”

Jacob stood there appalled as Kyle spoke. “Okay, so he’s Josh now. Go on.”

“When we met with him, it was obvious he wasn’t a killer,” Kyle continued. “I mean, he was offered deals to avoid trial. A guilty person will take a deal to cut down on their prison time. But he stuck to his convictions. He said he was innocent, and he meant it. I was convinced at that point to get him a real defense.”

“I see.” Jacob felt like his entire life was bleeding out of him, but he let Kyle continue.

“I haven’t even been doing the hard work, either. I’ve been having Kevin and Michelle doing all the running around. Hell, I got Michelle and Monica flying to Madison of all places tomorrow to run down another witness.” Kyle stepped towards him. “Jacob, I’m sorry that you’re upset, but Josh needs someone to stand up for him. He’s all alone right now.”

Jacob closed his eyes and bit his lower lip to keep from laughing manically at Kyle’s words. As if this person was the only person in the world who was alone. “Yeah. Okay. So, he’s my supposed brother. And you just decided to forget the promise you made to me so you could go fight the good fight.”

Kyle looked at his husband, trying to get him to understand. “Jacob. He has no one else. His adopted parents died when he was a kid. Younger than Matthew is now. He went from foster home to foster home without ever having a real family. He got into drugs and addiction, just like you did. Got himself cleaned up and was trying to do better for himself in life when someone killed his girlfriend. He got accused of the crime by the police and for the last six years, he’s been serving a sentence for a crime he didn’t commit.”

Jacob turned around and squeezed his eyes shut to prevent the tears he could feel welling up inside. “So, you broke your promise to me. To leave all of that shit alone and… just…” He couldn’t bring himself to say what he was thinking. “You decided that you could keep it from me. And in that way, you weren’t really breaking your promise because he and I wouldn’t meet. Is that it?”

“I tried to bring it up a few times,” Kyle said, trying to get him to listen. “But each time I tried, you acted… well… like this. I didn’t want you upset anymore than you needed to be. So, yeah, we just couldn’t find a time to talk about it when you wanted to.”

Each word felt like a tiny blade cutting his heart. The feeling of betrayal was so strong it was choking out every else in him. With effort, he managed to bring his voice and feelings under control again. “You knew I didn’t want this. You knew I all but begged you to let this go. To just live our lives and enjoy having a family. But that wasn’t good enough for you, you had to go looking for trouble. So, I guess what you’re saying is, what I wanted didn’t matter to you.”

“Jacob…” Kyle stepped closer and tried to put a hand on his shoulder. When he turned and backed away, he realized how big of a mistake he made. “I really am sorry. But there came a point in all of this that it stopped being about you and was about getting justice for Josh. He didn’t do what they convicted him of.”

Jacob looked at his husband with his face. He realized that Kyle was telling him the truth as he saw it. At the same time, he knew his own truth. With a disappointed smirk, Jacob shook his head and said with deceptively quiet melancholy, “nothing you do is about me anymore, Kyle.”

Kyle’s mouth dropped open in shock at his words. Before he could say anything, Jacob turned and walked out of the room. “Jacob.” He started following, somewhat surprised that Jacob didn’t stop when he called out. In all the years of disagreements and spats, Jacob always listened to him. He couldn’t understand what made this so different. “Jacob!”

Jacob didn’t answer. He was done trying to be patient, when all he could ever hope to be was an imperfect being trying to be better than who he was years ago. With resolute steps, Jacob went into the front room and wordlessly joined his sons. He smiled affectionately at Aaron before scooping him up and laying down on the couch with him. Ignoring Kyle, Jacob smiled and held Aaron close, giving into the temptation to tickle him for a moment just to hear him squeal with laughter. When Aaron looked up at him, Jacob just smiled and kissed his cheek before settling in to cuddle with him. They had some time before he had to get the boys ready for bed. Mentally, he already decided to not even ask Kyle if he wanted to be included. Resentment and bitterness pooled and festered deep inside him where he had been nursing his other dark feelings. But he kept a small smile on his face to make everything appear normal for the sake of the boys. Without turning his eyes away from the television, he did his best to pretend Kyle wasn’t in the room with them.

Kyle stood there in the doorway, feeling hurt and appropriately chastised. Without speaking, he moved slowly through the room and chose to take a seat in David’s recliner. His eyes went to Jacob and then to Matt. It was a relief that Matt seemed more interested in what they were watching to notice his fathers. To Kyle, there was a foreboding in the room. Yes, he had kept the truth from Jacob. He readily admitted that. If he had to do it all over again, he might have been more transparent in the beginning. But they were beyond that point now. He sighed, loud enough to be heard, but Jacob didn’t turn his head or even acknowledge his presence. That hurt almost as much as his parting words earlier, but Kyle knew it was no less than he deserved. If they didn’t settle things later after the boys were in bed, then they would do it tomorrow. Jacob just needed space right now, he reasoned. Let him brood and eventually they could put it all behind them.

As time passed, the silence in the room started feeling almost oppressive. Like a thick blanket being settled over them. Once the movie they were watching was over, Matt looked up and noticed how silent the room was. He looked from Kyle and then to Jacob. Both of them had stone cold faces all while he could see that something was going on. He sat up before getting to his feet. “I’m going up to my room now.”

Kyle looked at him and smiled a little. “Going to bed early?”

“No,” he said as his eyes went to Jacob who didn’t react at all. He stepped up to Kyle. “I was just going to play some games before bed.”

Kyle shrugged. “That’s fine. Just don’t stay up later than you know you should.” He checked the time before adding, “half an hour. No more than that, okay?”

Matt offered him a smile and nodded. “Okay. Goodnight, Dad.”

With a hug and a kiss Kyle replied. “Goodnight. Love you.”

“Love you to.” He went over to Jacob who hadn’t sat up or said anything. “Goodnight, Dad.”

Jacob looked up at him and gave him a small smile. “Goodnight, Matt.” He reached up and behind Matt’s head and pulled him down into a kiss on his cheek before letting him go.

With that done, Matt quickly left the room and hurried upstairs. He couldn’t hope to understand what was going on, but he could feel something lost in both of his fathers. Once he was in his room, he closed the door and retreated into a video game.

Not long after that, Jacob rose from his place on the couch, keeping hold of Aaron. “Time for cute little boys to be in bed.” He set the boy on his feet and added, “go say goodnight to your other dad.”

Kyle’s eyes flicked up to Jacob’s face and saw an unreadable face. His words were clear, though. He was putting Aaron to bed and Kyle was not needed. As Aaron came up to him, Kyle smiled brightly and leaned down to hug and kiss his little boy. “Goodnight, my precious little boy.”

“G’night, Daddy,” Aaron answered before he and Jacob walked out of the room.

Kyle sat there alone for a moment, listening to the sound of Jacob going up the stairs. In a way, he felt like going upstairs now would be intruding. A frown started to grow on his face as he stood up and walked back to their rooms. Without stopping, he went through the bedroom into the bathroom to shower and try to make sense of Jacob’s actions. It wasn’t hard for Kyle to admit that he made a grave mistake. At the same time, he was also aware of the barriers that Jacob had put up around himself whenever the subject was even hinted at. Add to that, his reticence to talk about his deceased father and any other part of his past prior to their meeting. As he washed himself, Kyle replayed those early moments in his mind. How quiet and shy Jacob had been when they first met.

No, he realized. It wasn’t shyness. It was fear. Fear of rejection. Fear of humiliation. Fear of trying to form a relationship only to be cast aside. Jacob’s fears, along with his own, created those first barriers that Kyle had found difficult to overcome. And here they were again, building up walls around each other for a purpose Kyle couldn’t begin to understand. Someone had to be the first to open up and be honest. He decided it would have to be himself. He would have to deal with Jacob’s anger and let him say whatever he wanted to say and hopefully that would be enough to get him to talk so they could reach a resolution.

He finished his shower and hurried to dry off and put on some shorts for bed. Once that was done, he sat on the bed and waited for Jacob to return. As he waited, he mentally rehearsed how to start the conversation. The best thing to do would be for him to admit all his mistakes so that they could at least agree on something. After that, he would let Jacob lead the discussion. He took a few breaths to relax as he heard the sound of footsteps coming down and getting closer.

When Jacob entered the room Kyle started speaking. “Jacob. I was wrong to keep what I knew about Josh from you. You have every right to be angry with me.”

What happened next went against everything Kyle could have expected. Jacob never stopped in his stride towards the dresser where his eyes remained focused. He said nothing in response to Kyle’s words as he opened a drawer and pulled out a pair of shorts and a shirt that he usually used to sleep in. Kyle sat there stunned as Jacob said nothing and acted as if he wasn’t even in the room before he turned and walked out again. He heard the door shut followed by the muffled sound of Jacob heading through the house and back upstairs.

Kyle sighed and went after him. All the lights in the house were already off as he made his way up the stairs. As he got to the top of the stairs, he saw a single shaft of light from one of the guest rooms at the end of the hallway. As he headed down the hall, Kyle watched the door close. Annoyed with Jacob’s actions, he walked up to the door and knocked. “Jacob, open up.” He waited and listened carefully, but there was no sound coming from the other side of the door. He turned the handle only to find it locked. For some reason, that act only made Kyle angrier and at the same time more desperate. He rapped softly on the door again. “Jacob,” he said in a quieter voice. “Please let me in.” Kyle stood there in the dark and waited, with only the stifling silence of the house as a reply. Time passed in the darkness as Kyle remained at the door longer than he had expected. Eventually, he knew he had to give up and returned to their rooms.

For the first time since they were married, Kyle and Jacob slept in the same house but in separate beds.