A Fork Stuck in the Road
Author's Note: I read a story yrs ago where Ressler becomes a dad (unknowingly) and I decided to explore that concept as well but put my own spin on it. It's a Keenler fic as usual. The title comes from Good Riddance by Green Day.
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Don Ressler walked quickly through the hospital ICU to the nurse's desk and asked for Maria Antanuchi's room. He was directed to a room with a woman on life support and he gasped. He hadn't seen her in years; they'd dated for a few months before she took a job in Pittsburgh and hadn't spoken since. She was the last woman he dated before he and Audrey got back together and he always thought it was serendipitous that he was single when Audrey came back into his life.
And here she was, in an accident in DC and he must have still been listed as an emergency contact for some reason.
He sat next to her bed and took her hand, looking carefully at her. She looked practically the same. They'd been good together; she had a ridiculous sense of humor and he appreciated all of her Italian cooking. She'd moved back to Pittsburgh to be closer to her grandma who raised her who was not doing well. Ressler regretted that once Audrey was back in his life, he'd kinda forgotten about Maria. She was a good person; they should have stayed friends.
He sat holding her hand, wondering what the expectation was of his role. She had no family except her grandma, and if he was her emergency contact then Ressler wasn't sure if she was still alive all these years later. But he knew from experience, that sometimes you forgot to change your emergency contact which is how an ex-boyfriend ended up holding your hand in the hospital as you were hooked up to machines.
A doctor walked in and was surprised to see him.
"Oh, sorry," he said as he looked at Don.
"Don Ressler," he said as he stood and shook his hand. "How's Maria?"
"And you are?" The doctor asked.
"Uh, it's complicated," Ressler said. "Ex-boyfriend."
The doctor looked at a sheet on his clipboard and seeing Donald Ressler and Sofia Antanuchi listed nodded.
"The accident two days ago left her paralyzed from the neck down and her brain activity has been...sporadic and then, as of this morning, non-existent," the doctor said calmly and sadly.
"Is her grandma...?" Ressler asked.
"Sofia Antanuchi is deceased," he said. "We contacted Maria Antanuchi's work and they don't have any other family listed besides you."
Ressler looked at him surprised. He knew Maria only had her grandma; her father died when she was young and her mother kinda abandoned her with her grandma and left to be an artist in California. Maria had learned her mom died of an overdose before they got together. The rest of her family was in Norhtern Italy and, as far as he knew, she'd never been in contact with them. Something about bad-blood with her grandma.
"She has clear directions on her insurance that when brain dead she is to receive no additional supports to..."
"Wait, I need to talk with someone, I can't..."
"It's actually not your decision," the doctor said. "She was clear that she was to be taken off life support."
Ressler swallowed and looked down at her limp hand in his. They should have kept in touch.
"We tried to reach you..." the doctor noted on the record.
"I was in Luxemburg for work," Ressler said as he pulled out his FBI badge. "Sorry, she didn't have my new cell number and I came as soon as I heard the message on my home phone."
The doctor nodded.
"Well, social work has the little girl and should be coming by..."
"I'm sorry?" Ressler asked.
The doctor looked at him confused.
"Ms. Antanuchi's daughter," the doctor explained as he flipped a sheet. "Uh...Luna Antanuchi."
"She has a daughter?" Ressler asked.
The doctor nodded and wondered why a man who didn't know his patient had a daughter was her emergency contact.
"Does her husband...?" Ressler asked as he looked at her hand and saw no wedding ring.
"She's unmarried," the doctor said. "We don't have anyone listed but you and her grandmother who is deceased."
"Uh, do you have her work number? Maybe I should call them and..." Ressler asked as he took out his phone.
The doctor provided it and Ressler placed the call. Maria worked in technical publishing. She wrote manuals for equipment and tools.
After a brief conversation on the phone with her boss Ressler discovered that for the last 5 years Maria had worked from home so she could care for her daughter and put in her hours. Her boss said he was sad to hear about her condition and said she was a great person and worker. When Ressler inquired about a boyfriend her boss said he didn't know of any and that he had always known her as a single mom with Luna's dad not in the picture. He said she was an amazing mother for Luna, very patient with her child's needs.
The fact that Luna was 5 and that there wasn't anyone else but him listed as an emergency contact got Ressler a little...concerned. Maria and he had always been very careful, but had there been the odd time when they weren't? Yes. Did he think Maria would keep his child from him? Never. It had to be a weird coincidence.
The doctor came back into the room and looked around.
"Her daughter isn't here yet?" He asked, annoyed.
"No," Ressler said, his mind still reeling.
His phone vibrated in his pocket. He pulled it out and saw a text from Liz.
Everything okay with Maria?
He texted back.
No, she's about to be taken off life support.
He swallowed hard and tried to put dates together.
"Do you have her daughter's birthdate on file?" Ressler asked.
The doctor looked at him and nodded as he walked back to the nurse's desk and asked for a file. Her daughter was in the accident too but totally unharmed.
"May 2, 2014," the doctor said.
Ressler thought back; she was born 3 weeks after Audrey died. Maria had moved to Pittsburgh at the start of September 2013 and a few weeks after that Reddington and Liz Keen had come into his life like a bull in a china shop. Then Audrey was back...would the dates match? He and Maria went away to Croatia in July and discovered that condoms were challenging to purchase in a very catholic country...
His stomach dropped.
They had had a lot of steamy sex on that vacation. A lot of unprotected steamy sex on that vacation because you could only buy condoms in 3 packs and sometimes, they ran out.
His phone buzzed.
I'm so sorry Ressler—that's horrible. Want me to come there?
He swallowed hard. This just got a lot more complicated.
No, I'll see you at the rehearsal tonight
His phone buzzed again.
You sure, we don't need to. Honestly, I think we can wing it.
He chuckled despite the circumstances and texted her back.
I'll call you soon. I love you.
He waited for the buzz and the text he always got back.
A kiss emoji came through from her.
Ressler sighed and looked at Maria. He needed some answers and she wasn't going to have them for him.
He heard a throat cleared at the door and saw an older woman standing and holding the hand of a little girl that looked just like his cousin Kim when she was little.
"Jesus Christ," he muttered, taken aback by the resemblance.
"You're Don Ressler?" The social worker asked plainly.
He nodded, unable to take his eyes off the little girl who stood there looking at him with wide eyes.
"It's my understanding that Luna Antanuchi was to be placed in your care?" The social worker asked.
His eyebrows must have demonstrated his surprise.
"You were unaware," she sighed.
"Uh, can we speak privately for a moment?" Don asked as he walked toward them.
The social worker looked down at Luna.
"How about you go sit with mom for a bit while I speak with Don?" She asked, enunciating everything carefully.
Luna nodded and walked past him and sat with her mom, taking the hand Don had just abandoned in hers. She was silent and not like most five year olds he's meet before.
He walked out into the hallway with the social worker and waited for more of an explanation.
"Her insurance stated that you are Luna's father?" the social worker asked.
Ressler grabbed onto the cart next to him. As soon as he saw the child he knew, but to have it said to him was something different.
"She didn't tell me about her," Ressler said shaking his head. "Maria didn't tell me about..."
The social worker shrugged her shoulders; she seemed less than sympathetic.
"She's 5?" Ressler asked.
She nodded.
"I don't know what to say Mr. Ressler except for the fact that Ms. Antanuchi has no other family in the USA that we are aware of and if you do not want to exert your parental rights, Luna will be placed in the foster care system which, for a child with her disability..."
"I'm sorry, disability?" Ressler asked, surprised.
"She's deaf Mr. Ressler," the social worker said. "She signs but I don't, and the one worker who can is on vacation but Luna reads lips pretty well and..."
He swallowed hard.
"But she knows she's supposed to go with me?" He asked.
"She also was told you are her father," the social worker stated. "And by the resemblance I'm going to say that's right."
He swallowed hard.
"Do you know why they were in DC? It's my understanding that they lived in Pittsburgh..."
"Luna was seeing a specialist here once a year," the social worker stated. "The Embassy Suites had to pack up their room and are holding their things. Ms. Antanucci only booked it for the one night and..."
"Where has Luna been staying since the accident?" Ressler asked, cursing the trip to Luxemburg that proved to be a dead-end anyways.
"With a foster family," the social worker said. "I have her medical information and Ms. Antanuchi has a will that...her lawyer is in Pittsburgh and...do you agree to take temporary custody of Luna Antanuchi until social services can investigate if you can provide a permanent home for her?"
Ressler nodded. If this child was his daughter, she was not going to be in foster care.
"Do I need to sign anything or...?" Ressler asked.
She sighed. "It's not dry-cleaning Mr. Ressler, it's a child. You still live at 442 Ferris Park Apartment 4?"
He nodded. "But I'm actually moving once we have possession of our house in 3 weeks."
"We?" the social worker inquired.
"I'm supposed to be getting married in 2 days," Ressler nodded. "We can postpone or..."
"So, Luna will have a family?" the social worker asked. "Is your bride aware...?
"Uh, no, I'll need to make a call..." he stammered, realizing there was more to this then just him. "my wife...the woman who will be my wife, uh, she's also an FBI agent and she has a daughter who is 3..."
"I need copies of your ID and I will come by for a home inspection tonight," she said as she looked at him. "Do you know anything about caring for a 5-year-old deaf child Mr. Ressler?"
Ressler was white as a ghost as he shook his head in the negative.
"I will reach out to the local National Association for the Deaf and get someone to contact you as soon as possible," she said as she took his badge and took a picture with her phone. "I'd also suggest a counselor, if your FBI plan covers one to help Luna deal with the loss and changes to her life."
Ressler nodded absently.
"And we've contacted Ms. Antanuchi's lawyer so expect a call from him in the next few days with specifics about her apartment and any assets that she may have left in trust for Luna..."
Ressler nodded and swallowed hard.
"And I'd suggest swinging by the Embassy Suites and getting their things. We haven't had the time," she said. "Luna has been wearing clothes from the foster family. I have packed up a few things from them in this bag..."
He looked down at the old bag with a truck on it that didn't appear to have much inside.
"Is there anything else I need to know about her medical needs or...?" Ressler asked, suddenly worried he was being handed a young child with very little knowledge of her or her needs.
"Her speech is significantly delayed because of her hearing loss," she said. "When she does speak the words sound more like a toddler..."
Ressler nodded.
"She knows you are her father, that you are taking her to her home, and that her mom is dying today," the social worker said quickly. "It's not going to be easy. So be kind, don't pump her for information, try and follow her lead, and try and make things as normal as possible as quickly as possible."
Ressler nodded.
They walked back inside.
The social worker tapped Luna on the shoulder.
"I will see you later tonight, okay?" she asked, enunciating every word.
Luna looked at Don a little startled.
"He will take care of you and I will check on you tonight," she smiled at the child as she spoke loudly. "He's a police officer."
Luna nodded.
"Luna, this is your father, Don," the social worker said as she smiled at the little girl.
Luna looked up at him with wide eyes.
"I'm really happy to finally meet you Luna," Don smiled down at her. He hoped she didn't notice that he'd broken into a cold sweat and was feeling like he may throw up.
She nodded and looked back toward her mother.
The doctor, who had left a while ago, came back in and apologized before he disconnected Maria.
Don stood and watched her chest not rise again. He watched Luna as she sat there holding her mother's hand with silent tears falling down.
The social worker handed Luna some tissues and helped her blow her nose. An hour later Don was walking to his car with a little girl holding his hand. Liz had been texting him; he had felt the buzzing in his pocket. But he hadn't had a moment to call her and this was not something you texted.
They arrived at the Embassy Suites and the bags were packed and waiting for them at the front desk. Luna, who had not spoken once, gestured toward the washroom and he nodded and watched her walk inside. Without taking his eyes off the ladies' washroom he called Liz.
"Hey, I have been trying to get you for..." she said, out of breath. "I'm picking up your mom at the train..."
"Liz, I need you to stop for just a second and listen to me," he said, his words soft.
"Babe?" Liz asked, worry caking her voice.
"Uh, Maria had a daughter," he said. "A five-year-old daughter..."
He wasn't sure why, but there was a lump in his throat and he couldn't continue for a moment.
"Oh my god, that's awful losing her mother..." Liz said quietly.
"Hon, she's mine," Ressler said.
The other side of the line went quiet.
"I just found out; I didn't know she even existed..." Ressler explained.
"Wait, she's... yours?" Liz asked, surprised.
"Yeah," he said as it really hit him. He wanted to barf and felt his stomach roll.
"Babe, how is it possible that...?"
Ressler watched Luna come out of the washroom and start toward him.
"I'm sorry, but she's back from the washroom and I gotta go," he apologized. "Can you and Agnes come to my place?"
"Uh, sure," Liz said, still shocked. "We'll...I'll have your mother too and..."
"Shit," he sighed as Luna looked up at him swearing with surprise; she had obviously been reading his lips. "Sorry, I shouldn't have..."
"What?" Liz asked.
"Yeah, uh, bring my mom too and... can we cancel the rehearsal?"
"Of course," she said. "How do you feel about...?"
"I haven't got there yet," he sighed. "I just need to..."
"Okay, we've got this," Liz said quickly. "I'll see you soon."
Ressler nodded and hung up his phone.
"Sorry about that," he said as he looked at Luna. "She's my...well, she's going to be my wife in a couple of days."
Luna sniffled.
"It's...uh, it's going to be okay honey," Ressler said as he crouched down in front of her. "Do you understand me?"
She nodded and a couple of tears tracked down her cheek.
"I know you miss your mom, she was a great mom and a great person," Ressler said. "You're going to be..."
He stopped himself. Was she going to be fine? The only parent she had ever known was dead. A father she hadn't ever met was now in charge of her in an unfamiliar city and he couldn't even communicate with her properly because he couldn't sign. It wasn't okay, none of this was okay.
"Okay, this sucks," he said honestly. "I'm sorry, you deserve better than all this, I'm sure of that. We will figure this out and I will take care of you and keep you safe, okay?"
She wiped at her tears and nodded.
"We'll go back to my apartment and you can meet Liz and her daughter Agnes, she's only 3 but maybe you two can play?" Ressler asked.
Luna shrugged.
Ressler stood and patted her on the head before he threw her bag and her mother's bag over his shoulder, took her hand and led her away.
To be continued...
Let me know what you think.