"How can I help you, Mr. Houston?" the handsome young lawyer with the neatly trimmed beard and mustache asked.
"Please call me Bill. May I sit down?"
"Certainly," the lawyer said and gestured to a chair and sat down at his desk.
"Thanks," Bill replied.
"So, what brings you here, Bill?"
"I needed an attorney and your wife told me about a year ago that you worked here at Hermann Hospital."
"You're well known and well-connected, Mr. Houston. Surely you have your own attorneys. Why do you need me?" the lawyer asked.
"I do, but they are too close to my business associates and family, and I wanted someone outside the situation at hand."
"What sort of situation?" the lawyer asked.
"I need to formalize an adoption. And I need the child's records here at the hospital sealed. And of course, there would be a name change and other paperwork," Bill replied.
"I'm not an adoption attorney," the lawyer replied.
"It's my understanding that any lawyer can handle an adoption," Bill said.
"True, but I'll have to do some research, having never done one," the lawyer said.
"I'll pay you for your time. All of it," Bill replied.
"I assume that all parties are consenting to the adoption?" the lawyer asked.
"Yes," Bill said.
"That's good," the lawyer said.
Bill looked around the room at the wide bookshelf of legal books, a Norman Rockwell print, the lawyer's plants, and a color studio picture on his desk of a baby with his wife. The baby wore a little pink dress.
"That must be the baby your wife was pregnant with when I met her," Bill said. "She's a beautiful little girl."
The lawyer picked up the framed picture and smiled at it. "Yep. These are the women in my life. That's my little Cady," he said.
"She must be the apple of her daddy's eye," Bill replied.
"That she is," the lawyer replied. "She's eight months old now."
"Eight months….Hard to believe," Bill replied.
The lawyer put down the picture. "What are the circumstances of the formal adoption that you are needing, Bill?"
"Well, just over a year ago, my best friend's wife died in childbirth. It's an understatement that he didn't take it well. He disappeared for a year and he wants to grant my wife and I his child to raise as ours."
"Oh yes. I remember something about that from last year. Cynthia was rather shaken up by it and told me about it."
"You have to keep this adoption between you and the three of us, Mr. Parsons. You can't even let your wife in on it," Bill said.
"It's my legal obligation to keep confidences, Bill. Call me Roger," he said.
"Roger, I'm glad that you can keep this private. We want this to be a smooth transition. Most people, except two people in our immediate circle, already believe him to be ours," Bill said.
"I understand," Roger replied. "Well, let me get going on some research on completing a closed adoption. Sealing the records here at the hospital should be no problem. Does the natural father want anything to do with the child after the adoption?"
"Probably not," Bill said.
"You should make sure. That should be part of the adoption agreement… the degree to which the natural father stays in his child's life."
"Okay. I will," replied Bill.
"Your wife will also have to sign some papers," Roger said.
"Yes. I figured as much," Bill replied. "How long will it take you to research?"
"Oh, not long," Roger replied. "Give me a couple of weeks and in the meantime, find out how much contact the natural father will want with his son."
"Okay. I can do that," Bill replied.
The two men talked more about the situation and family in general for another thirty minutes before Bill left.
A few days later, Bill arranged lunch with Wade to discuss the terms of the adoption more in depth. They met at the Triple A for a late lunch so that the restaurant would not be crowded.
Wade looked around the room after the waitress got them their drinks. "You know, this is where I first met Susan," he said.
"I think you told me that, once," Bill replied. "Are you going to be okay?"
"Yes. It's a bittersweet feeling."
"I talked to the lawyer a few days ago, Wade."
"When do we complete the adoption?" he asked abruptly.
"Soon. He wanted me to ask you and be sure whether you wanted to be involved in the boy's life at all or not," Bill replied.
"I think it would be best if I just disappeared out of the picture, don't you?" he replied.
"I don't know. I've never done this before," Bill replied.
"Look, Bill. It will be too confusing for the boy. He already has a mother and father and I can't raise him, even part time. It's the practical thing to do," he replied.
"Are you sure?" Bill asked.
"I know you are trying to look out for my feelings, here, Bill, and I appreciate it. You're a good friend. But when Susan died, and I know you hate to hear me say this, he died too."
"Wade, I'm so sorry," Bill said.
"Don't be. You're giving Susan a gift, you and Rebecca. I'm serious."
"What do you plan on doing after the adoption?" Bill asked.
"I'm probably going to go back to wildcatting or something related. It's what I know," Wade said.
"Will I see you again?" Bill asked.
"Maybe. I'm sorry, Bill. I just feel like I need to start over completely."
"I guess I understand," Bill replied.
"I bet Rebecca is relieved and excited all at once to finally have Wa…, a baby to call her own."
"She is," Bill said.
"I feel really good that I'm leaving him in such capable hands at least. It will make up for me being such a terrible father," he said.
"I hope you learn to not be so hard on yourself," Bill said.
"I just need to put this chapter of my life behind me," Wade replied.
Their food came out to the table and the two men talked about oil, the economy, and other current events. About a week later, on a Saturday, Bill, Rebecca, and Wade met at Roger Parsons' office at Hermann Hospital to finalize the adoption.
Roger brought in an extra chair from the main office so they could all sit down in his office. He sat down at his desk and pulled out a stack of papers while everyone else sat in their respective chairs.
"Mr. Matlock, it is my understanding that you want a completely closed adoption. That you don't want any contact with Wade Jr."
"Yes," he said confidently but with a tone of resignation.
"Good. That's what I put in the papers. I talked to Bill and we're also changing his birthdate to August 20, 1950, which would have been the Houston's natural child's due date. Correct, Bill?"
"Yes," Bill replied.
"Here's the new birth certificate. If you look here, you'll see that it shows William Davis Houston and Rebecca Nathan Houston as the child's birth parents," Roger said, pointing to the document. "And here's the new birthdate and which hospital he was born in. I kept the attending physician the same, but his original record will be sealed so that won't be a concern in the future."
"I feel like we'll be lying to our son. It seems dishonest," Rebecca said, having second thoughts about a closed adoption.
"Mrs. Houston, this is the most common form of adoption today. It keeps complications low, and he will be your child from now on, even if you did not give birth to him. It's not being dishonest. You are doing the loving thing for this child as is Mr. Matlock," Roger said.
"If you say so," Rebecca replied.
"Finally, note the name change," Roger said. "Bill has told me that you and he have come up with the name of Mattlock William Houston. It's right at the top of the birth certificate," he said to Rebecca.
"Yes. That's what we want his name to be," she replied.
Bill turned to Wade, "We thought your last name made a good first name for him, but changed the spelling. And even though it is my name, we wanted him to have the middle name you gave him, Wade."
"You didn't have to, but it was a nice gesture," he said coolly.
"I'll just need you to sign here and here on the birth certificate," Roger said. Both Houstons signed the document.
"And Mr. Matlock, here's a document that states that you are revoking your parental rights to Wade," Roger said, handing it to Wade Sr. "Take your time to read it fully."
"I don't have to. Give me that pen," Wade said, and he hurriedly signed the document, with the others looking on in surprise.
"And finally, here is the court document sealing Wade William Jr.'s original records. All of you will have to sign this one," Roger said.
They all signed the document and sat briefly in an awkward silence.
"Well, these are all the forms we needed to take care of today. Congratulations Bill and Mrs. Houston," Roger said. He turned to Wade, "You've done the right thing, Mr. Matlock."
Wade quickly put on his hat and stood up. He looked like he was going to say something to everyone, but then stifled his comment. "Goodbye, Bill. Goodbye, Rebecca. Nice to meet you Mr. Parsons," he said as he shook his hand. Bill started to stand up but Wade gestured for him to stay seated and with his head hung down, he silently walked out of the office and closed the door behind him. Roger gathered the legal papers into a folder and Bill and Rebecca reached out to hold hands and looked at each other.
"These adoptions are never easy," Roger said. "But they bring happiness to at least half the people involved."
"I hope Wade will be alright," Rebecca said.
"I hope so too," said Bill.
After the documents were filed and the original records sealed, Mattlock Houston began his life as an official member of the Houston family. That next year was a happy year for all involved and Mattlock had not known any different. Unfortunately, early in 1952, tragedy struck the Houstons again. Rebecca was diagnosed with uterine cancer and died within that year at the tender age of 40. Mattlock was only two when she died. Bill would have shut down if he didn't have his son, after the series of tragedies in their marriage culminating in the worst of all. Little Mattlock Houston became the center of his world from that point forward and other than Roger Parsons, only Cattle Annie and Sergei Polansky knew that he was not Bill's biological son. It didn't matter to them, but they kept the truth in confidence at Bill's request.