Chapter 5 – The Visit

Three days later Steve found himself standing nervously on the sidewalk facing a well kept house. Apprehensively he fingered his tie, feeling very much like the teenager he had been the last time he had seen Amy's parents. As he stood there Steve pondered one of the many questions that he and Mark had posed for themselves over the last few days. Why hadn't he gone to see Amy's parents to find out the reason that she left?

On the face of it there was no logical, rational reason for it. However, Steve hadn't been capable of anything that resembled either of those emotions. The girl he loved had left without a word, leaving him to find out about it through a mutual friend and that had hurt. He'd known that he should find out where she had gone but he simply did not have the emotional resources to deal with it.

Bringing his thoughts back to the present Steve took a deep breath and made his way up the path towards the front door. Ringing the bell, he waited and a few seconds later he heard footsteps coming towards him. The door opened and Amy's mom stood there. She looked very much the same as she had nearly a quarter of a century previously, although with a few more lines around the face.

"Can I help you?" she asked, making Steve realise that he had been standing there just staring into her face.

"I'm sorry," he apologised, "I was just thinking how little you have changed, Mrs. Tyler."

A confused expression crossed Amy's mother's face,

"Do I know you young man?" she asked.

A grin flickered on Steve's face as he replied, "My name is Steve Sloan, I used to date your daughter, Amy."

At the mention of her daughter's name Alison Tyler's face dropped.

"I'm sorry," when she spoke, her voice was soft and filled with grief, "but my daughter died recently."

"I know," Steve replied, "and it's partly that I have come to see you about."

The confused look from earlier on returned to Alison Tyler's face, "I still don't understand…………..Steve, was it?"

Nodding, Steve continued, "May I come in?"

Pulling the door a little closer to herself Alison Tyler said, "I vaguely remember the name Steve Sloan but how do I know you are who you say you are?"

Reaching into his back pocket Steve pulled out his police ID and held it up so that Alison could read it.  She raised her eyebrows a little but opened the door and stepped back, allowing Steve to enter the house.

Leading him along a very familiar hallway Alison said, "I really can't imagine why you want to talk to me about Amy's death."

Steve waited until they were both seated in the spacious lounge before he replied.

"I received a letter the other day from Amy," he began, ignoring the astonished gasp from the sofa, "it was written nearly fifteen years ago and concerns the son that she gave up for adoption. My son."

At these last two words Alison looked up, shock etched across her features.

"Your son?" she exclaimed, "Amy told us that she didn't know the name of the father, that he was someone she met once at a dance."

"I brought the letter for you to read," Steve continued, holding out the pink paper towards Alison who took it.

Giving her a few minutes to read Steve let his gaze wander around the room in which he was seated. He hadn't been inside Amy's house that often when they were dating but he did remember the stunning view from the enormous picture window. Amy had loved that view and often spent hours just sitting and taking it in.

He became aware that Alison had finished the letter and was looking across at him.

"You didn't know that Amy was pregnant?" she asked.

"I had no idea." Steve responded, "All I knew was that one day Amy was here and the next she wasn't."

"I don't remember you coming around to find out if she was alright," Alison's tone was slightly acid.

"I know now that I should have done," he said, looking slightly dismayed, "but I was a seventeen year old who had just lost his mom and whose girlfriend had suddenly gone away. It's no excuse but, at the time, it was just one bad thing too many and I couldn't deal with it."

"What do you want of me?" Alison asked.

Taking a deep breath Steve spoke, "I want to know if you have had any contact with my son since he was adopted."

"That's not the way things worked back then," Alison answered.

"Then, no," Steve agreed, "but things have moved on in the last twenty odd years and there are a number of ways in which people can trace adopted family members."

"It was not something that we ever considered doing." Alison replied, a little stiffness entering her tone, "The decision was made twenty four years ago and neither I, nor my husband, ever considered re-thinking our decision."

It was on the tip of Steve's tongue to say that surely being their grandson was enough and then stopped himself. Alison Tyler may well be grieving the loss of her daughter but it seemed obvious that she hadn't ever grieved the loss of her grandson.

He stood and said,

"Thank you for your time, Mrs. Tyler, I won't take up any more of it. Please accept my sincere condolences, Amy was a wonderful girl and I will always remember her with affection."

So saying he allowed Alison Tyler to show him out, walked back down the path and got into his car, driving off without a backwards glance.

As he drove back to the beach house Steve began to think about the difference between the Tylers and his father. Mark hadn't hesitated for a second in his determination to search for the grandson of whom he had just learnt, whilst the Tylers had no intention of looking for the young man that they had known about for twenty four years. Steve shook his head. He knew his dad was terrific, but it took a situation like this to make him realise just how special Mark Sloan really was.

A steely determination came over Steve. He resolved to find his son and show him that his birth-father wanted to get to know him and that there was a grandfather, not to mention an extended, if slightly unconventional, family who also wanted the chance to be in his life.