Chapter 48

Thank you for the wonderful words of praise for this story. I thought about who I could bring in to play their dad… hope I don't disappoint. I still don't own any part of STFBE. This is just for fun, and my peace of mind. (if I didn't write, I think I would go nuts!) As always, let me know what you think.

XOXOXOX

Sue hung up her phone, and headed to the park with Levi. It wasn't their normal park, but one in Richmond. Sue had told Jack she was going out of town, and where, to meet someone for the case she was working on- alone. He didn't like that idea, and told her so. Jack had argued to go with her, but Sue thought it was better to speak with him by herself.

Two hours after setting out, she pulled into a park. Close to the parking area, there was a dog park. Sue had agreed to meet him there. It didn't take her long to spot him. She let Levi off his leash and let him run and play inside the fenced in doggie play area. There were four other dogs inside, all already playing with each other. It didn't take long before Levi had joined in the game of tag.

"Mitchel?" Sue asked. A man in a khaki naval uniform turned to look in Sue's direction. He stood and walked to her. He was tall, over six feet. His hair was sandy light brown with the slightest of red highlights. His eyes were a burning blue, the color of the ocean on a clear day. His shoulders broad, two adorable dimples, and square jaw made him handsome. She could clearly see the family resemblance in his children.

"Ms. Thomas?" He asked, holding his hand out to her. Sue nodded, taking his hand.

"It's nice to meet you." Sue said. She instantly noticed his prosthetic which had replaced his lower right leg.

"Don't let it freak you out." He said with a half laugh. She laughed as well. "People sometimes have a hard time with me being handicapped."

"I understand. They say I'm handicapped too." Sue said smiling at him. He looked at her curiously. "I'm deaf." He looked at her with surprise written on his face.

"Well, I'm so glad you told me. I would hate to treat you like a non-handicapped person. Whew! That could have been bad!" He said with a loud chuckle. Sue laughed heartedly along with him.

"Were you in the middle east?" She asked nodding toward his missing leg.

"Tree fort injury." He said seriously catching Sue off guard. His face betrayed him, and his face broke into a big grin. "I'm sorry." He said laughing. "Yes, it's a war injury. IED. Shrapnel tore apart my leg, they couldn't save it." He became serious. "Hey, but it's all good. I'm now 'Steve Austin'." Sue looked at him curiously. "You know, the Six Million Dollar Man."

"Funny guy." Sue said laughing.

"So, what can I do for you Ms. Thomas?" He asked. "You were rather vague on the phone."

"Well, I wanted to talk to you about your family." She began.

"My mom is the only family I have. Is everything OK?" He asked. "She's 58 years old, what did she do to get the FBI's attention?"

"Umm, not your mom. I'm talking about your children." Sue clarified.

"Kids?" He asked shocked. "If you're here about child support, you can check, that's been paid. I'm up to date with those payments. I have them taken out of my pay automatically and deposited into an account. Even now…" He got up and walked around the bench, visibly angry. "If that bitch is saying I haven't taken care of those kids…" He began getting angry.

"No… no… Please, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to get you upset." Sue said taking a deep breath.

He walk, pacing behind the bench. He ran his hands across the top of his closely cropped hair, and covered his face, exhaling loudly.

"Ms. Thomas, please forgive me." He said, pulling his hands down over his eyes, keeping them closed. He breathed another cleansing, slowly, determined to reel in his anger. "I apologize. That shouldn't have happened. I'm usually better at controlling myself." He explained.

"Do you have anger management issues?" Sue asked. He shook his head.

"No. It's the subject matter. Just because I haven't been allowed to see my kids doesn't mean I don't love them with everything inside me, and their mother… well, she's a whole other subject." He explained.

"No worries." Sue reassured him. He slowly walked back to the bench to where Sue was sitting. "Would you like to walk around the park?" He asked.

"Sure. Levi!" Sue called. He came to the gate and sat while she put his leash back on. The two started to walk around, at first in silence. Sue felt he needed time to sort his feelings out and didn't push.

"Ms. Thomas…" He began.

"Sue, please."

"Sue. I do have children, three. My oldest is almost eighteen, Anita." He said with a proud gleam in his eye. "I have two sons as well. Vinnie who is fourteen, and Jacob. He's my baby, but not a baby any longer. He's eight now." He said sadly.

"They grow up fast." Sue said.

"Yes. They do." He looked at her. "Do you have children?"

"No. I hope to, someday. I'm getting married in a few months." She explained.

"So, what about my children? You said you wanted to talk to me about them." He pressed.

"Yes. Can I ask you something very personal?" Sue asked. Mitchel nodded. "Why aren't you in their lives? Why do you pay child support, but don't want to see them, or spend time with them?"

"Don't want to?" He asked. "Sue, like I said, I'm not allowed to." Sue stared at him in disbelief.

"What? Why?" She asked.

"That bi-" He changed course with his language. "Their mother. She didn't want me around anymore. Or at least that's the way I saw it." He explained. Unconsciously, he bent down to pat Levi's head. "I had a great dog. Daisy. She was awesome." He shook himself out of the past. "Anyway… I had lost my job. I was working in a lace factory, it closed. I collected for a while. I applied everywhere. No one was hiring. We had three kids. I needed to do something." He got really quiet.

Sue just let him drift back into his past to grasp the memories.

"She didn't understand where I was coming from. Her idea was to live off the system until something came up. She was working flipping burgers, making minimum wage. I was home, doing nothing." He said sounding frustrated.

"I went to the recruiting station, talked to the guys. I talked to Army, Marines, and Navy." He chuckled, answering her unasked question. "I'm not a fan of heights. Figured it'd be my luck, they'd put me up in an F18 if I joined the Air Force." Sue smiled. "I tried to talk to Annabelle about it, she didn't want to hear a word. Nothing. She didn't want me to go off and get myself killed." He paused, thinking back. "I tried to reason with her. I didn't see any other alternative. As far as I was concerned, I was going nowhere, and fast. I knew if I didn't find a job, something- anything- my family was going to suffer. I thought the Navy was probably the safest branch to join." He stopped, wiping his eyes. He drew in a steadying breath.

"She told me, if I joined, and left, she would get a court order to keep the kids away from me. She did it." He said with a heavy heart. "I thought she was just blowing smoke, pushing to see if I'd bite."

"I was in for six months when I received a certified letter from her lawyer saying that my wife was no longer my wife, my family no longer mine. I was to pay child support, and they were going to have it deducted from my pay weekly. She filed for divorce. Mailed me the papers to sign. Can you believe that?" He shook his head in disgust and disbelief. "Anyway… I've sent them birthday cards, Christmas and Easter cards. I've sent gifts, money… I guess they hate me too. I haven't gotten any acknowledgement from any of them."

"Mitchel…" Sue began.

"Please, Mitch."

"Did you ever receive anything from the courts saying your parental rights had been stripped?" He shook his head. "Did you have a lawyer?"

"No. I was in boot camp for most of it. I got called to the CO's office, handed the paper. I read it in front of him, he said don't let it interfere. He asked if there was anything he could do. I said it didn't seem so. He read the papers and agreed." He explained.

"Did you reach out to her, anyone?" Sue asked.

"Of course I did." He said defeated. "I called my family, her family, her… no one would talk to me, and those who did, didn't know anything about what was going on, and weren't willing to stick their noses into my business."

"Your family?" Sue asked in disbelief.

"My father and I had been on the outs for years. My mother was petrified of him, wouldn't go against him." He shrugged his shoulders. "My best buddy went by to talk to her, but she told him to get lost. The kids were fine, and she'd take care of them. She threatened to run with them if we kept after her. I was scared I wouldn't know where they were, so I told everyone to give her a wide birth. They did. I did." He said. The cold fall wind blew through the near empty trees, rustling the branches and chilling the pair to the bone.

"I'm freezing. Would you like a cup of coffee?" He asked. Sue agreed. They walked the block to the coffee shop.

"And you've never tried to contact any of them since then?" Sue asked sipping on her steaming cup of mocha nut coffee.

"You have to understand, I honestly thought she'd see what I was doing was for the best, and once she calmed down, we'd get back together and everything would be fine." He paused. "I did. Letters, phone calls to disconnected numbers… "I was deployed to Afghanistan, served a year, got transferred to Germany. I spent nearly a year there, then back to the battle again. For the past year and a half I have been dealing with this." He indicated to his missing leg.

"Mitch, how are you set now? What's your situation?" Sue asked.

"Well, I medically retired. I'm still dealing with demons, but I'm better. I can't go to a fireworks display…" He chuckled. "I learned a lot about forensics while I was in. Enjoyed it. I've been going to school part time, trying to sort out the next step." He said smiling. "I called Annabelle to see if I could stop by to see the kids, but she didn't call me back."

"How did you get her number?" Sue asked.

"I hired a detective to find them. He told me they haven't moved, and got me her number." He explained.

"Where do you live?" Sue asked.

"I have a studio apartment, near the base. Now that I'm retired, I might actually look into getting a little bigger place away from the base. I'd love to get a dog." He admitted. "I'd love to be able to bring the kids here, maybe for a long weekend or something. Maybe I could petition the courts for a week during the summer now that I'll be home." He said hopefully.

"Ms. Thomas- Sue, what's this all about? Why all the questions?" He asked. Sue stopped mid sip and looked him in the eye. "Why is the FBI involved with my family? Are my children OK? Has something happened?" He asked.

"They're fine." Sue reassured rather quickly. "They're in a situation." She said. He looked at her nervously.

"Jacob looks like you. Anita has your eyes." She said absently minded.

"You know my kids?" He asked. Sue nodded.

"I've been getting to know them quite well. Anita and I have become friends." Sue explained.

"What's the situation?" He asked, waiting on baited breath.

"Their mother…"

"Annabelle." Mitch offered. Again, Sue nodded.

"She is off 'taking care of grandma'." Sue said with no conviction in her voice.

"Ha!" He burst out with a snort. "Not the Annabelle I know. Her mother's dead, has been for the better half of 15 years now." Mitch explained. "Massive heart attack."

"Well, that sheds a lot of light on things now." Sue said.

"What's going on with the kids?" He asked, less jokingly.

"Anita has been taking care of her brothers and sisters, by herself. From what I've gathered, it's been nearly a year." Sue explained.

"Sisters?" He asked stunned. "No, it's just her and the two boys."

"Yeah sisters. There are two little girls after Jacob." Sue said.

"Umm… I had no idea." He shook his head. "Wow. She works fast!" He said disgusted. Mitch walked toward a bench at the back of the coffee shop, holding onto the back of it, squeezing it in anger. After a moment, he sat. Sue walked closer to him, sitting across from him. He was visibly distraught.

"I cleared her room, Annabelle's, and found drug paraphernalia and a loaded weapon. I removed them from the home, but the kids need help." Sue said, silently suggesting he be the one to step up.

"She just left the kids. Alone with little to keep themselves out of trouble." Sue explained. He shook his head in disbelief.

"What is wrong with her?" He said nearly under his breath. "Who does that? Who fights for their kids, then just walks away?"

"She's an addict." Sue said matter-of-factly. They sat silent for a long moment.

"What do I do now? I always wanted them in my life, always. They were the reason I was doing what I did. The reason I joined the Navy- to make a better life for us. Their mother was stubborn and didn't want that life." He said, rambling.

"I would suggest you get a lawyer. You're going to need one." Sue said.

"Are you working with the FBI with my family? Is that why you're involved?" He asked nervously.

"No. I spoke at your daughter's school about bullying. I tried to make the kids understand what it felt like to be the outcast, the one left out all the time. I wanted them to feel that, so they'd understand what it was like, and to have some compassion for the kids who actually live that every day. Your daughter said she understood. She knew what it was like to be alone. She knew what it was like not to have anyone who cared." Sue explained. Mitch buried his face in his hands and wept. Sue put her hand on his arm, giving it a gentle, reassuring squeeze, but let him weep.

"I'm sorry she felt that. I'm sorry she didn't know- doesn't know- how much I love them, and how much I want to be a father to them, and I always have. I've lost so much." He said sniffling and wiping his eyes, tears still falling on his cheeks.

"It doesn't have to be that way. You can make their future better." Sue said. He rubbed his face, wiping away the tear that had trickled down his cheeks.

"How do I make this better?" He asked.

"What do you want to do?"

"I want my family. I want to be there for them, give them love and stability they need, I need." He said. He paused staring at the ground for a long moment. "What about the other two? What are they like? How old are they?"

"Four and about ten months. The baby is happy and sweet. She loves to play and smile. Lanie is a spitfire. Energy… I've never met a kid with more." They both laughed. "If I had half of the energy she goes to bed with when I wake up in the morning, I would be a happy woman." Sue laughed. Lanie looks a lot like Anita. Lizzie looks like Jacob." Sue gushed almost like a proud aunt would.

"Two baby girls… just babies." He paused, trying to take it all in. "And my Nitie is taking care of them? All? By herself?" He asked. Sue just shook her head. "That's incredible."

"Yeah." Sue agreed.

"Hasn't their father noticed they're alone? You can't tell me that the kids have bs'd him every time he's come over about their mother's whereabouts." He said in disbelief.

"There are two fathers, and neither are in the picture. One fell off the face of the earth, and the other is in prison, not getting out." Sue explained.

"Great. What the hell was Annabelle thinking letting the kids be around something like that?

"Again, she's an addict. I'm sure for her it was whatever or whoever could score her the next high." Sue said.

"So, tell me Ms. Thomas. How do I get the children in my custody? How do I get my family, and my extended family, back?" He asked.

"I think you should start with a meeting. Meet with Anita." Sue suggested.

"She must hate me." He said sadly. "Not that I blame her, I would too. She must think I'm such a slouch, a loser."

"She's angry, hurt, but more than anything else, confused." Sue said. Sue took her card out of her purse and handed it to him. "Go home, take this all in. Call me in a few days when you've had a chance to absorb all of this. Decide for yourself what you want to do in your future. Your daughter is a strong young woman, but she in a lot of ways, she's still just a kid. She can't deal with another disappointment. If you decide this isn't what you really want…" Sue began.

"I want this. I don't have a doubt in the world." Mitch tried to reassure her.

"I know you believe that, and maybe it's true, but I have seen your children. They can't afford to have someone in their lives who is just going to make things more difficult for them. Take this time to think. Call me in a couple of days and we'll see where you're at." Sue said.

Sue led Levi away, leaving a shocked young man to ponder his future.