Jessica Weiss waited patiently with her son for Charlie's uncle to come pick Finlay up. She knew that Charlie was a good kid but she wasn't sure what to make of Michael yet. Finlay was a fiercely independent child and he chose his friends very carefully. He didn't just randomly bump into you and call you a friend. If you became his friend, it was because he wanted you to.
He had somehow latched onto Charlie when they both entered grade six. Though he got along with just about everyone, he rarely got close to anyone, and Jessica was keen to see their friendship continue.
"Hello Charlie," she said as she opened the front door, "Finlay says that you wanted to go over some maths problems with him."
"Er yeah. Uncle Mike can speak about five different languages but he's hopeless with fractions." Charlie flexed his improvisational skills as a Westen.
Jessica smiled. She knew that Charlie didn't suddenly get the urge to do his maths homework with Finlay as her son had claimed. She wasn't an idiot. But she could see why the two of them got along. Charlie was just as fast on his feet as Finlay was. It was just that Finlay was more proactive.
"He's inside," she told Charlie.
"Thanks for letting me borrow him, Ms Weiss." Said Michael.
"Call me Jess. Ms Weiss makes me sound ancient." said Jessica.
"I'll remember that." Michael smiled.
"Would you like to come inside?" Jessica asked.
Michael was careful not to let anything show on his face. While doing homework wasn't exactly urgent, assisting homicide investigations was more time sensitive. But he couldn't look like he needed to be somewhere else.
"Sure thing." He said and joined Jessica, heading into the kitchen with her.
"Finlay's told me a lot about you," said Jessica as she poured water into two glasses. "I've never seen him so enamoured by an adult before."
"Trust me. I've been pretty enamoured by him as well. He's one of a kind." said Michael as Jessica handed him a glass.
"No that's not what I mean," Jessica shook her head. "As a general rule, Finlay doesn't trust people. Especially adult males. But he trusts you. I want to know a bit more about you since he's going to want to spend more time with you."
Michael found himself being taken aback. Finlay's resemblance to Michael was now complete. On top of being a good reader of people and a natural liar, Finlay also shared Michael's childhood distrust of adults, especially men.
"What do you want to know about me?" Michael asked.
"I want to know why my son thinks you're different." said Jessica.
"I guess 'cause I'm American. I don't know." Michael shrugged in reply and did his best to look nonchalant.
"Don't get me wrong. I'm not trying to pry. I just need to know: Are you dangerous?" asked Jessica.
Michael wasn't sure why but he felt that he needed to gain Jessica's trust. Though he was more than capable of playing verbal dodge ball all night long, Jessica had shown him something that parents don't often show each other when they first meet, especially when it came to protecting their child: respect.
"I'm not dangerous. But I can be if I need to be." Michael decided that even if he couldn't be a hundred percent honest with her, he would respect her and he promised himself that he wouldn't outright lie to her.
"It's just that Finlay… has a tendency to get involved." Jessica tried to explain. "He once intervened in a custody dispute by calling up child services and reporting abuse because the child was seen wearing too many clothes at school in summer."
"That was a very brave thing that he did," said Michael.
"I don't know how to explain it, but I think he's attracted to things that are dangerous and that's part of the reason why he's so drawn to you." Jessica continued. "Let's be honest, you and I both know that he's not coming over to your place to help Charlie with his maths homework. I just hope that whatever he's gotten himself involved in, you'll look out for him."
"Don't worry Jessica, I promise that I won't leave Finlay. No matter what." Michael assured her.
Through his conversation with Finlay's mother, he could see what things must have been like for Madeline when he was a child. Like Jessica, Madeline recognised that her child was attracted to danger. And she knew that sooner or later, her son was going to get himself into trouble. In both cases, the women were less concerned about what their child got involved in and more concerned with whether or not they were going to be alright by the end of it.
"What are you guys talking about?" Finlay asked as he and Charlie came back out from his room.
"Your mother and I were just getting to know each other." Michael smiled in reply.
"Uncle Mike, Finlay was just showing me his homemade Monopoly set." Charlie exclaimed, excited.
"You made your own set?" Michael was impressed.
"He calls it Mininopoly." Jessica laughed.
"Alright, game maker, let's go." Michael said as they headed for the front door together.
"Take care of him." Jessica called out to him.
"You have my word." Michael replied, before taking both kids and heading out the door.