Authors Note: Hello all here's another chapter it's getting crazy at work and I've tried to make time to write. It's a stress reliever, so here is the next chapter please don't kill the messenger…

Chapter 35

Maureen ushered us to the conference room where the meeting was taking place. We walked in and sat across from them. I sat next to CJ and Maureen sat on her other side. Hoyt sat next to me and we waited for them to speak.

I looked across the table and tried to get a reading on these people but they were playing their cards close to their chest.

"Hello I think we should all introduce ourselves, I'll start, my name is Travis Bennett I am in charge of the hospital our counsel Jeff Spencer and Dr. Randall is our head of Pediatrics Unit he states he's already met with you and the child's advocate Evelyn Bloom. This meeting will be recorded and transcribed."

Maureen spoke up, "Well you know who I am. Next to me is CJ Parsons, Matt Houston next to her and Lt. Michael Hoyt with the police department so would you like to proceed Mr. Spencer."

The counselor stood up and said that an investigation was being conducted and a leak had been discovered at the hospital and he thanked us for bringing it to their attention. He stated the person would be dealt with and the next matter at hand was the media outside and the care of the child.

"We want to cause as little disruption as possible. I believe that is why they allowed you to assist in the child's care Ms. Parson. It usually isn't hospital policy to have strangers come in and take over care of a child that they are not related to in any way. We understand that you found the child and had saved its life but you being allowed into the NICU and also assisting in the study that is being funded by a private grant could endanger the hospital of that revenue and also of hospital policy. The Nurse in charge should not have allowed what took place. She will be dealt with also."

I spoke up, "Wait, you can't do that. She was going by her instinct to protect the baby in question, Jake he was in distress and the head nurse her name is Emma she saw that Ms. Parsons had a connection with the child. It was helpful that she was familiar to Jake, he had just experienced a trauma that could have been fatal and she went with her gut instinct and from what I heard he is making strides in recovering quicker than anticipated. So I don't understand why you would want to punish her for saving Jake's life. Is that your job here to save lives?"

Dr. Randall spoke up, "If I can interject, I agree with Mr. Houston and fully back Emma's decision in letting Ms. Parson continue in the child's care. The notes from the EMT's stated they were dispatched to the home the child was taken to. The child had been discovered in a trash bin not breathing in a downpour by the beach by Ms. Parson's with the assistance of a 911 operator by the name of Connie B. she performed CPR to get the child breathing again and Ms. Parson's then took the child out of the rain and kept him warm and dry. She was the first human contact he received and this is vital for a preemie. We still don't know how long he was out there in the elements. He had no other contact and she stepped in and comforted him which is vital in the first hours of a preemie's life. To survive the kind of trauma he had it was a miracle that he was found or we wouldn't be here to discuss this. Where some steps missed, yes we will agree with that but the outcome was a child was saved, he has continued to surprise many in the NICU from the therapist in charge of the Kangaroo Project to those that have been in and out of that department. He's a fighter and a miracle and if this gets technical then I will state that having Ms. Parson's and Mr. Houston assisting in Jake's care is medically necessary. I will put that on record. He will decline if they are barred from assisting in his recovery. There has been other documentation of other children when an instance like this has occurred and the outcome was not favorable. I don't want Jake to fall through the cracks because people that are not on the front line are making decisions."

I reached for CJ's hand under that table and she squeezed it and looked at me. The NICU was on our side as were those that were conducting the Kangaroo Study. That was something good, maybe there was hope.

Mr. Spencer continued, "We understand your position Dr. Randall. We agree that saving the child's life is and we have gotten statements from all the staff but we still have to address the leak and what the perception of what type of hospital we are running that we let people that are considered celebrities to do as they want….

Maureen stood up, "You have got to be kidding. We bring you evidence that you have a leak in your so-called highly secured hospital. We give you enough information on the "leak" that they could be fired. This leak has been working for some time here at your hospital with other high profile clients whose information might have been compromised. It only takes a couple of taps of the keyboard to find out exactly who is here and why. Who knows what other information she has given to other sources like the reporter that was supposed to interview Ms. Parson's? This reporter was given information that Ms. Parson and Mr. Houston were assisting in taking care of the child in question Jacob William. Your leak then went into a record she had no right to look into and gave that information to Ms. Ashley Jacobs who then contacted a photographer and took pictures of Ms. Parson and Mr. Houston leaving the hospital and we have found other evidence that the 'leak' also took pictures of them assisting in the care of the child which I believe is against your hospital policy. You should look within your ranks before you start trying to clean this up. Mr. Houston and Ms. Parson filled out the paperwork that you provided, they did life scans that you require all volunteers to complete so you are going to let one disgruntled employee that is friends with a woman who has had history with Mr. Houston, yes we are aware of this too and the reason this has all come to light. A woman scorn and all that bull. But who is the real victim here? The child is, if you deny their assistance in his care. Listen to the Unit to Dr. Randall, don't let Jake fall through the cracks."

I could only imagine how Maureen's opponents felt after she got through massacring them in court. CJ said she was on her way to becoming a partner due her courtroom skills and her dedication to her clients. She sat and leaned forward waiting for their rebuttal. If there was one after that I doubt it. I felt much more confident but the only one that hadn't spoken was Jake's Child Advocate.

"Ms. Flanders your defense of your friends is commendable but still protocol was not followed but it really is out of our hands."

I looked at Mr. Bennett, "What do you mean out of your hands?"

Ms. Bloom cleared her throat, "He's speaking for me. I am the child's advocate and will do what is in the best interest of the child. The DCFS has taken over the case and we thank you for the information that was obtained, charges may be brought up against the 'leak' that will be handled by our investigators. I will also be conducting an investigation regarding what effect this will have on the child. Yes, I understand protocol was not followed but this instance had extenuating circumstances. We also failed in our department if we had enough social workers on duty this could have been remedied. It's a system that needs to be overhauled and fixed but it won't happen overnight. Do you have anything you would like to say or would you like me to answer before we proceed? "

I looked over to CJ and her to me. "Whatever you need to ask, please do we have nothing to hide. We are willing to cooperate and only want to help Jake. He is our priority."

"Okay. Good so you are two well-known figures in and out of the spotlight. I know who you are, Mr. Houston. I've read the papers and seen the news coverage. Trouble does seem to follow you. Your lifestyle has been well documented and you do not shy away from the limelight and that is a good and bad thing. Ms. Parson's is known but not like you. She tends to only come into the limelight only when you bring her into it. Correct? But Ms. Parson's I am just puzzled why would you give an interview regarding the child's rescue? You both stated that he is your priority so if this is to be believed you would think you would want the less amount of attention not more. As you can see outside of this hospital it's not the path we wanted. It makes you look like you are wanting your 15 minutes of fame now and using this child to gain it. Another question, is this some kind of publicity stunt to gain more notoriety for your agency? I've seen all types of gimmick and this interview does not sit well with me or my superiors. Why would you want Jacob to be exposed to this?"

CJ stood up, "No you don't understand it's not like that please let me explain we…"

She stopped and looked at me. She was on the verge of a panic attack. I had seen this before and knew I had to act fast. I stood up, grabbed her hand and sat her down. She was having trouble breathing. I was rubbing her back and speaking softly telling her to remain calm, breathe deeply and focus on my voice. Dr. Randall came over to help me out.

"Do I need to call a code assist? Is she okay, I know this is stressful and what she's been through…?"

"No, give us a minute."

I turned CJ's chair towards me and grabbed both of her hands and whispered to her that she needed to hold it together that this is not what Jake would want. He needed us to explain to these red tape yahoos what he really means to us.

"Don't they know I only did that stupid interview to get the footage of the farmers market on Friday? That Jake's momma might be on that footage and maybe we can figure out what happened to her whether it was too much for her to keep Jake or heaven forbid something happened to her and Jake was taken against her wishes. Houston, do they think I want publicity? I hate being in the spotlight. I value my privacy and try my damnedest to keep my private life private. Did we make the wrong decision in giving that stupid interview we wouldn't have to if they hadn't blackmailed us into doing it. God why is this happening. It's my fault we are going to lose Jake."

She burst into tears and I pulled her into my arms. I was done if they wanted a fight we would bring in lawyers or a Navy SEAL team and take the little guy from this place. I wonder where we would end up.

Ms. Bloom was next to us with a glass of water. I wanted to tell her to shove that glass where the sun doesn't shine. When Maureen shook her head and mouthed, behave.

I took the glass from her, "You all have made up your minds on how this will turn out so why put us through this? None of you understand. She's been with him from the beginning; she only wants what's best for him. She gave me the honor of helping her out with Jake's care and I will never forget singing to that little boy like he was my own. When we got that call telling us that he was going in for surgery I swear I aged 10 years. He's not my blood or hers but we would give our lives for him. I know it sounds unreasonable that you think we are putting up an act but we are not. We love that boy. You heard the reason why she did the interview. She didn't want to do it so I told her we'd find another way. She is a very special and private lady and she put that aside to help Jake. We haven't even told you the hoops we still had to go through to get that footage and still we did what was asked of us because he is very important to her and all of us, he has an extended family that he hasn't even met yet. You have met Aunt Maureen, Aunt Carol, he's got Uncle Michael here and another 2 uncles and a grandpa and a grandma that will welcome him with open arms because he means the world to this woman I have crying in my arms."

I squeezed CJ close to but I was not done getting what I felt off my chest.

"We are both private investigators and Jake is our only client right now. We will find his mother. That is everyone's end game to reunite Jake with his momma and father if he is in the picture. But what you don't know is once we do find her we will continue to be a part of his life. He will always be a part of our lives and in our hearts never to be erased. He has an extended family that loves him as if he was their own. That little boy has touched so many lives in the little time he's been on this earth and he will never be alone again. He has a family for the rest of his life."

I swallowed down my tears not wanting to break down in front of these people. We were both wounded and needed to regroup. I whispered to CJ if she was thirsty and she shook her head.

Ms. Bloom looked to the Hospital staff, "Gentleman, thank you for your time. I would like to speak to Mr. Houston, Ms. Parsons and their team privately. I will come back to your office Mr. Bennett and we will pick up on our earlier conversation."

They looked at each other and started to protest. Mr. Spenser said he should be here to protect the interest of the hospital. She looked at him and shook her head.

"I think you should leave, I gave you both ample time to provide me with your side of the story now I would like to give them the same courtesy. So please can I have the room with them and I will speak to both of you once I am through."

They got up and left.

She leaned against the conference room table and crossed her arms. "Mr. Houston that was quite a speech. I've spoken to Emma and Roxy. I work very closely with them and they have nothing but praise, for how you've both cared for Jake. I agree with Dr. Randall's opinion these are the people that are on the front line they make life and death decisions and Emma did do something she should have gotten permission for but I understand why she did it. We've been colleagues for some time and actually do know each other outside of the work area. Emma did contact me once everything settled down, I was out of town and the advocates that where assigned to the hospital should have been here but decided they didn't want to brave the rain and instead decided to be at home on standby and I was not made aware of this till I checked my phone after the third call from Emma. So Yes we were aware that there was a breakdown in communication with my staff and I think I know where it will lead me since the 'leak' was working with my department closely. I want to apologize to you Ms. Parson. I am sorry my line of questioning was a bit harsh but like you I am only interested in what is best for Jake. "

CJ looked at her, "So what do you think is the best thing for Jake?"

She smiled, "I know what I said was out of line but I wanted to see your reaction on asking you about the interview, you did not disappoint and again I apologize, you don't know how many people will pull a stunt to get publicity. To get the public to see what a humanitarian they are. Ms. Jacobs has left me countless messages as has the staff that were supposed to be here. But I see you are genuinely concerned for Jake and his care. I need to get used to calling him Jake. It's usually baby boy Doe, but we eventually name them if a parent does not step forward. So where did you get the name Jacob William since I know Mr. Houston's first name is Matt correct?"

CJ explained to Ms. Bloom why she named him Jacob William and why it was just Jake now. She nodded to us and I gave her the update on the footage and what we were doing with it and how we had people looking at the footage as we spoke to see if we could see any pregnant women on the footage and then get them identified.

She nodded, "So Mr. Houston you are assisting the police with their investigation?"

I smiled, "Yes ma'am, Lt. Hoyt will attest to this, our agency works hand in hand with the police on some cases and we are good friends. And can you call me Houston? Mr. Houston is my father and he lives in Texas I'm use to just Houston"

"Only if you call me Evelyn. Okay, I need to be blunt here. How serious are you in helping Jake out with his day to day care?"

CJ blurted out, "Very serious we want to be there every step of the way, we were here this morning when he had his surgery, Emma called us in the middle of the night to tell us what was going on and we raced over here so we could tell him to fight and we were there for him and not to leave us. I don't know if you believe in fate Evelyn but I do believe this child was put in my path and I will not abandon him. I'll tell you right now I will fight anyone that will come in my way of helping him. We want what is best for him and I believe it is us."

Evelyn walked over to where she was sitting and went to the files she had on the desk. Ms. Parsons I read you were given an emergency placement permission a couple of years back for a minor by the first name Butterfly?"

"Yes, her sister came to us and was a client. She was desperate to find her sister and we assisted her in finding her, unfortunately Marcia, our client was killed. But we did rescue her sister Butterfly and she was in my custody for a short time. She was part of the St. Nick sting and all parties are now residing in a prison and she was sent to a foster home and was adopted by the family I still keep in touch with Butterfly. She is growing into a beautiful and intelligent girl that wants to go to college to become a social worker to help kids on the street to honor her sister."

"That's good to know. Okay I will take all of this back to my superiors."

She fidgeted with the files in front of her, she had not told us if we would still be able to help Jake.

I was about to ask when CJ whispered, "So what about Jake are we going to be able to keep helping out with his care?"

Evelyn closed her eyes. I grabbed CJ's hand knowing this was not something I wanted to hear just by her body language.

"Well when this all came to light, my superiors were not happy. We try to keep a low profile and with the media circus outside and the discovery of private information of the child was made public they believe it was you who had leaked the information and you coming out on TV did not help. I have been instructed to ask that you both hand over your badges that give you access to Jake and that you not have any other contact with him or come to the NICU."

"NO! No you can't do that, he needs us why I thought you wanted what was best for him, we are what's best for him, Houston help me convince her please Evelyn don't do this." CJ covered her face and I came next to her and she buried her face into my chest.

I was torn, "You are making a big mistake, he needs us, and his care will suffer if we aren't there. Look at your notes he is used to our voices and will wonder why we left him please don't we…"

Maureen was up, "We will take this to court we will fight for the rights of this child you can't do this it's not right."

Evelyn closed her eyes, "It's out of my hands but off the record I will be advocating for you to continue your assisting in Jake's care. That is why I asked. I will confer with Ms. Flanders on what steps to take. This separation will be temporary the quicker you put in the paperwork the quicker we can get you both reinstated. I am sorry that is all I can offer you now. Emma was beyond angry at me earlier and this is the part of my job I really hate. I believe you are what's right for Jake, we just need to do this the legal way and I am sorry that you won't be able to see him especially after his surgery this is a critical time for him and like I said I really hate to do this but the guards are outside and will be escorting you off the premises."

I looked at her and the tears started to fall, "We can't even say goodbye."

She looked close to tears herself, "I'm sorry."

I pulled the badge off my shirt and threw it on the table and asked CJ for hers. She shook her head no. "CJ please we will find a way I promise."

She put her badge in my hand and gave me a look that gutted me.

"You promised me this wouldn't happen. They are taking him away from us. You said we would do everything in our power to keep him safe and if it didn't work you would help me no questions asked. Everything that's happen today that I've endure and I still lose him?"

"CJ please let me..." I grabbed her hand and she yanked it away from me.

"You lied."

She pushed me away and ran out the door. Maureen got up to follow her out and she turned and tried to explain, "Cowboy give her some space let me talk to her okay? She didn't mean it you know her better than that she's just..."

Maureen couldn't finish her sentence, did she think I lied and failed CJ also? I just hung my head and I heard the door close.

Hoyt came to me and I waved him off. She's right I did lie I told her everything would be alright. Didn't she see one of us had to be rational but the hurt I saw in her eyes the betrayal that I had not fulfill my end of the deal was heartbreaking.

I looked at Evelyn wanting to unleash my anger and she saw it she raised her hands, "I am sorry Houston but you do have a friend in me. I know it doesn't seem that way and your partner feels this I don't blame her for being emotional and it just shows me that Roxy and Emma where right. Jake is my departments priority I will fight for you I will stick my neck out on the line, Emma says to count on both of you so I am. Please, don't disappoint me. Now go find your friend. She needs you and I will call you tonight I will be getting some answers and I please remind Ms. Flanders to come back here to the conference room and I will get her in touch with the people that will make a big stink about what my department is trying to do. My hands are tied but my voice works well. Like I said, please don't disappoint me or Jake."

Was she really an ally? I didn't trust many people having been burned by many but I had to trust her that she was on our side. I took her hand in mine.

"Please do what you need to do to get CJ into helping Jake out again, if they don't want me to help I'll step back. She has a connection to him and him to her. It's hard to explain but he calms her down and she does that for him. Whatever you need please don't hesitate to call. You have all of my numbers you can call me on. It doesn't matter the time, just call. Thank you for believing in us. We only want what's best for Jake and we will keep you updated on our search for his mother."

She smiled and squeeze my hands and left the office.

I sat on the chair and leaned back into it.

Michael put his hand on my shoulder, "Houston she's on our side. You see that right? We need to go through those tapes and find out what happened to Jake's mother."

I got up, "Yeah but first I got to go and try and mend my best friend's heart and find the words so she will forgive me for failing her."