Steeling The Bliss
Chapter 3
Remington, Laura, and Mildred were at that moment in Remington's apartment complex, and got off at the 2nd floor so that Laura could peruse the envelope's contents before their meeting with the INS agent in Remington's apartment on the 4th floor.
Remington stated with a gesture towards Laura, and a glance at Mildred, "Alright, Laura...Go ahead. Can't be any worse than everything else that's occurred with us lately, eh?"
With a swallow, Laura nodded, and answered, touching Mildred's arm,"Quite right, Mr. Steele...But I know our Mildred wouldn't do anything to deliberately harm us, so we just have to have faith here...Now, let's see what we're up against."
Laura opened the envelope, and unfolded the paper inside, and as she scanned the paper she did a double take, and with surprise, uttered, "Oh, my!"
As Laura's face changed from concern to delight, Remington asked guardedly, "What is it, Miss Holt? Is it good news, bad news? C'mon, just tell me! I can take it-"
Laura swallowed and with a smile gave the paper to Remington, answering, "See for yourself, Mr. Steele."
Remington once more glancing at Mildred, gestured to her as he took the paper from Laura, "Alright...But be warned, Mildred. You may still be in our doghouse, hmm?"
Remington, then taking the paper from Laura, scanned the contents thoroughly, and gasped, remarking, as he gave a stunned look to Mildred,"How did-when did-This just isn't possible, Mildred! Daniel didn't give me any indication of this at all! Not even my real name! How were you able to pull this off?"
Mildred smiling at their reactions, shrugged lightly, "Let's just say I pulled a few strings before I came back here from Ireland...Spoke to some locals, checked out the homes around the area, then it was a matter of documenting it all, and then officiating it with the county-"
Mildred then patted Remington's arm answering sadly, "I'm just sorry Daniel's not here any more to clarify any of it..."
Remington gulping as he finished his perusal of the document, responded quietly, "I-I truly don't know what to say, Mildred...This goes past above and beyond here. But tell me, is there anyone I may speak to at the boarding house about this?"
Mildred shook her head commenting with a sigh, "Afraid not, Boss. It closed up in '61...I'm sorry. But if you want, I could do more digging?"
Remington shook his head, and handing the paper back to Laura who placed the document back into the envelope, remarked, "It'll have to do, I suppose."
Remington gestured to both Laura and Mildred towards the elevator, "Shall we? I gather we've kept the INS agent waiting long enough."
-RS-
As Remington, Laura, and Mildred entered his apartment, the INS agent, a rather formidable man, whose nametag read, Stanley Dawes, rose from the couch answering, "Miss Krebs? I thought you would've been back much sooner, as I had checked with the airline, only to discover that the Steele's plane landed some time ago. Care to tell me where you've been all this time?"
Mildred responded irritatedly with a hand up and gestured back to the couch, "Stan, is it? Keep your shirt on! Besides, you know what the L.A. traffic is like! Now, sit down so we can get this over with! These two just got home, and have a client already waiting for them who's as antsy as you-"
Laura quickly intervened, stating firmly, "Mildred, please! I'm sure Mr. Dawes is pressed for time as well..."
Laura answered apologetically with a handshake to the man, "My husband and I are so sorry we kept you waiting. Please sit down. Would you care for a drink?"
As they all sat down, Stanley shook his head and answered with a sigh, "No, thank you, Mrs. Steele. Now, I understand the matter of your husband's passport is in question, as well as his birth certificate? We'll need those for our records to classify-"
Remington nodded, and as Laura handed the envelope to Dawes, Remington stated handing over his passport, "You see, Mr. Dawes, we were in Ireland for our honeymoon, where I learned from Daniel Chalmers, upon his deathbed, that he was actually my father..."
Stanley Dawes, perusing the document, nodded, and asked, " I see...So your mother, listed here as Maggie O'Leary, is deceased as well?"
Remington swallowed hard as Laura laid a comforting hand on his arm, answering for him somberly, "She died after his birth, Mr. Dawes, and there were no other known relatives we could find."
Stanley Dawes, looking over the certificate, and passport carefully, nodded, then asked, "How is it that your name is different on your passport and your birth certificate, Mr. Steele?"
Mildred was about to respond, but Remington put up a hand, stating, "Mr Dawes...When I as a lad, first met Daniel Chalmers in London, he became my mentor of sorts, and coined me Harry. I never particularly liked the name, but he said at one point, that it suited me. Now, looking at the certificate, I see why he said that, although he didn't tell me he was my father until the end, sadly."
Rising from the couch, Remington continued answering, as he paced slowly, then shaking his head, stopped in front of the INS agent, "You see, changing the name of my business to Harold O'Leary Investigations wouldn't be prudent at this point in time, and besides, Remington Steele adds a bit of panache, don't you think? In any case, that's where we stand, Mr. Dawes, so if there are no more ends to tie up here, my wife and I really do have to be going."
Stanley Dawes sighed, and nodded, rising from the couch to shake Remington's hand, then putting the document in his briefcase, answered, "I'm sorry for your loss, Mr. Steele. I'll make copies of your passport and birth certificate for our current records, and send them back as soon as possible. The other matter I wanted to discuss was your living arrangements, but I see you haven't gotten around to that yet, due to your current circumstances. Please let us know when you've finalized them. Good day to you all. I'll see myself out..."
As the INS man left, Mildred answered with glee, "I can't believe we pulled that off! That was brilliant-"
Remington asked quietly, "Mildred? Did you perhaps make a copy of my birth certificate? I'd like another look at it, if I may?"
Mildred nodded answering, "Sure, Boss...Just a sec, here..."
Taking an envelope out of her purse, she handed it to Remington, stating, "If you need more copies-"
But Remington shook his head as he took the document out of the envelope, commenting, "No, thank you...I just want to have a look-see here..."
As he scanned the document, his face clouded over, and as he swallowed hard, Laura put an arm around him, querying gently, "Are you all right?"
Remington, clearing his throat, shrugged lightly, responding as he looked at Laura tenderly, "Well, either Daniel decided to call me Harry, or my mother had already liked the name Harold, but I'll never know now...Anyway, I prefer the name you christened me years ago."
They shared a kiss, and Laura commented, "I do, too...Now, I have to face the other firing squad-"
Mildred grabbed her purse and heading for the door answered quickly, "Your family, right? Say no more! Let's go!"
But Laura pulled her back gently, stating, "M-Mildred! Thank you, but I can do this alone-"
Remington then asked, "You don't want me along? I thought the whole point of this was-"
Laura stated gently with a shake of her head, "Oh, don't misunderstand. I just figured you needed some time to absorb what you've been through lately. You don't need my family adding to your stress, you know?"
But Remington, taking her hand, answered softly with a gentle smile, "I believe the vows were in sickness and in health, were they not? Besides, they put enough of a toll on you, whereas, I hardly know them. I'll referee if need be, hmm?"
Laura sighed and remarked, leading him to the door, "If you're sure, Mr. Steele, all right...Mildred? Why don't you head back to the office, and we'll see you tomorrow."
Mildred winked at the two, stating as they all left the apartment, "Good luck..."
TBC
