And so it begins...
First saved message…Stef Lena this is Mark please call me back, Mr. Jacobs has been in touch and we really need to talk.
Stef had replayed that message left by their lawyer a million times by now….each time a different version of what they needed to talk about popped into her head. The first version was the most hopeful as she envisioned Donald Jacobs wanting nothing to do with Callie or Jude. Stef knew that was just wishful thinking. With each replay of that vague message her thoughts grew darker. Even though they had been assured Donald Jacob could not contest Jude's adoption the insecurities still swirled around them. What if a small detailed was overlooked….what if there was a small opening for Donald Jacob to slink his way into their lives. Jude was a part of their family and just the thought of him being taken was gut wrenching.
"No matter how many times you listen to that message it is not going to change," Lena said walking into the kitchen startling Stef.
"I know…I guess I am just hoping it does," Stef said dropping her head into her hands that were resting on the counter.
Lena walked over to pour a cup of coffee and then stood behind her wife slowly rubbing her back.
"As soon as their offices open we will call them and figure out what this is all about. Until then we are going to get the kids up and fed so they can go shopping with your mom for the day."
"I am not sure what is going to be more painful…this phone call or having to spend a day shopping with mom," Stef mumbled.
"Be nice," Lena said dropping a kiss to her wife's head before starting breakfast.
Their lawyer wasn't going to be in the office until 10am and the moms were thankful for the distraction of having to get 5 kids ready and out of the house. Even though they were older and mostly independent now, it was still an ordeal getting them all together and ready to go for the same departure time. When Sharon had arrived she could tell there was some tension within her daughter but opted not to push it right now.
"Sure you can handle them all at once," Lena joked as her kids slowly trickled out the door?
"These 5 angels….we won't have any problems. This will be a walk in the park compared to the time I took Stef prom dress shopping," Sharon laughed.
"Mom," Stef groaned rolling her eyes.
"Please…please tell me there is a picture of that," Lena asked Sharon?
"She hasn't showed you her prom picture," Sharon asked surprised?
"No, she refuses…..told me once it was destroyed in a tragic pyrotechnic accident and another time that it was lost to flooding. In fact her high school years remain a mystery to me."
"That's because they are the dark years and I would like to forget them," stef mumbled.
"Oh I will have to bring pictures my next visit."
"Yes please," Lena said with a bright smiling clapping her hands excited.
"God NO," Stef said using her cop voice. "Just try and bring back 5 kids please….and if they actually belong to us even better," Stef said pushing her mom towards the door.
"I love you too darling," Sharon said playfully rolling her eyes as she left the house.
Stef and Lena stood in the door as all the kids piled into the suburban with Sharon behind the wheel. Within a few moments they were backing out and on their way.
"It is kind of funny seeing your mom behind the wheel of the suburban it is such a big car and she is even more petite then you," Lena said shutting the front door.
Lena barely got an uh-huh out of Stef as she wondered back into the kitchen.
"They aren't taking Jude away. Let me get my phone then we will conference and call Mark."
Stef moved to the living room plopping down on the couch with a sigh. She could already feel the beginnings of a migraine. Lena soon joined her bringing her advil and a glass of water. She smiled appreciatively and downed the pills before making the call. She loved how well Lena knew her….she wasn't always certain she would want someone to know her better then herself but at times like this she was grateful.
"Ross, Bello and Associates how can I direct your call?"
"Yes we are returning the call from Mark Ross is he available?"
"Who is calling?"
"The Fosters."
"One moment please."
When they were put on hold music filled the dead air.
"I hate hold music," Stef mumbled not so much for a response.
"You hate being on hold period miss impatient."
Stef once again rolled her eyes rethinking how she enjoyed having someone know her so well.
"This is Mark."
"Mark this is Stef and Lena is on the line too. We are returning your call….
"Yes, let me just pull up your file," Mark said he voice fading out as he clicked through his computer.
"You mentioned Donald Jacobs contacted you….how did he even know to contact you," Stef asked not wanting to wait a second longer.
Stef was about to rattle off 20 other questions when Lena grabbed her arm gently silencing her giving their lawyer a moment to get everything together.
"Well, it was not Mr. Jacobs directly but it was his lawyer."
"Oh my god he has a lawyer," Stef gasped out almost throwing the phone. "Why does he have a lawyer?"
"Well, he was in prison Stef I would imagine he needed a lawyer quite often."
"Oh right," she said not really thinking about that. "Well, what did his lawyer want?"
"He wants you to know Mr. Jacobs would like to meet with Jude…all on your terms and when you all are ready. He more just wants you to know there is interest."
Stef and Lena knew this was probably the case but still hearing Mark confirm Donald Jacobs wanted to meet with their kids sucked the air right out of their lungs. Instantly they had awful flashbacks of the situation with the twins and Ana.
"Wait, you said he wanted to meet with Jude," Lena asked slightly confused?
"Yes he would like to let you both know he wants to meet with Jude but is willing to do things on your terms," Mark explained reviewing his notes.
"What about Callie?"
"Well, you are not Callie's parents or legal guardians anymore. Your rights over Callie ceased when she turned 18 and became a legal adult. Even though she is residing with you, you do not have a right to make decisions for her. Mr. Jacobs does not need your permission to see or meet her…. he can contact her directly if he chooses too. Jude, however, is a minor and you are his legal guardians/parents and it is up to you how we proceed."
Stef and Lena looked at each other slightly stunned. In all their stresses and worries they never thought about the fact that they could not control what happened with Callie. They had no intention of keeping either child from their "father" if they wanted to meet him, but their lack of controls over the situation make them a little wary.
"What if he shows up here looking for Callie and Jude answers the door or something," Lena asked clearly concerned?
"Well if you decide Jude is not going to have contact with him and these issues come up there are legal steps we can put in place to keep him away from Jude. You can also talk to Callie and see if she would be willing to not have him at the house."
Stef and Lena shared a look knowing this had the potential to but a little more complicated than originally thought. If one child wanted to see their father and the other did not it would be hard with both kids living in the same house.
"Ok, is there like a time frame on this," Stef asked?
"No, Mr. Jacobs just wanted to express his interest and will wait to hear from you."
"All right we will talk about it and talk to the kids and let them know what is going on," Stef said her mind spinning with information.
"Umm do you know if Donald has anyway of contacting Callie," Lena asked?
"I am not sure. I can try and find out but he doesn't have to tell me anything."
"No it is fine…we will talk to her today…I just hope he hasn't already tried to contact her," Lena said biting her nail with worry.
"All right well if I hear anything else I will let you know and I will touch base with you next week if I don't hear from you before then."
"Thanks Mark we appreciate it."
Stef and Lena hung up their phone and sighed. While this wasn't as bad as they thought it could be it certainly wasn't good news. The last time a biological parent came back into the picture it had almost catastrophic cascading effects within the Foster family. Lies, sneaking around, illegal activities and ultimately the adult using her children for her gain were just a few of the awful results from having Ana back in the twin's lives. Stef and Lena hoped this time around they could control the meetings rather than having Jude or Callie go behind their backs.
"Ok so now we know….what do we do," Lena asked wanting to know Stef response first.
"I want Mr. Jacobs to fall off the fact of the earth," Stef spit out. "Since that isn't an option we have to deal with this. We have to talk to Callie and Jude about this…we promised to include them and I will not go back on that promise."
"I agree….I want everything out in the open this time around. I want to let them know he is interested in meeting and their options. I want them involved in the planning or at least as much as they want to be."
"I don't think that man has a good bone in his body but I will not stop either of them if they want to meet with their father. I will also stop at nothing to protect them from anything less than honorable intensions that man has," Stef said with a fierceness Lena only sees when it comes to protecting her family.
"I know you will Stef but we have to be smart about this….no flying off the handle. I love your fervor and protectiveness but we just don't have the bail money right now," Lena said with a smile.
"I'll try my best to behave. I don't think I get an employee discount on bail."
Lena smiled and gave her a kiss.
"So we will talk to them when they get home," Lena concluded.
"NO," Stef jumped up. "I mean yes….but I want to do it separately. We will talk to Jude first and then Callie."
"Ok," Lena said clearly confused.
"I want to know what each kid is thinking…Callie is usually the one making choices and Jude goes along with it or relies heavily on her opinion to formulate his own. I want to know what he is thinking without his sisters opinions….plus he will no doubt ask us what Callie thinks and if we haven't talked to her we honestly say we don't know."
"You know I am starting to think some of my child psychology degree is starting to rub off on you," she said with a smile. "Ok we will talk to Jude when he gets home and then we will talk to Callie and come up with some sort of game plan."
"Sounds like a plan. We can than work on a game plan to keep me from losing my mind."
"I am right there with you babe."
Lena gave Stef a kiss before walking into the kitchen and working on a little lunch for the two. Both knew this was just the start of it and the worst was yet to come. They would have to lean heavily on each other and their family to navigate these familiar yet very different roads.