CHAPTER 30
(CHRISTIAN)
I have just got off the phone to Welch and I am now feeling satisfied that I have done all I can to protect Elliot from any unnecessary issues arising from his desire to locate his birth family. He called me earlier with the age his mother was when he was born and that age, her name and the adoption record details have all now been passed on to Welch to see if he can track down this woman and see what we are dealing with before Elliot gets Finding Family involved. I was not surprised to learn that she was only 16 years old at the time of Elliot's birth and I assume that she was persuaded by her family to give him up.
Welch assured me with the information he had it shouldn't be too difficult to track down this woman and find out about her background. I do wonder what can of worms Elliot is going to uncover by digging into the past and I just hope that once that genie is out of the bottle he doesn't regret it as it's not only himself that he has to think about, as this will affect Ava if things don't turn out well.
I really hope that this does work out for him, after the success that Ana and Eva have had. Also, it's early days but I think finding my own birth family and finding out the truth has been beneficial for me and I hope to build on that initial success. I glance at my watch, as I need to leave to head to the airport in a while as my biological family are leaving today. It won't be for long though as it has been arranged that I will be visiting Ohio to meet my paternal grandmother Betty at the weekend. I hope by then they will have found out and gotten over the fact I have upgraded their medical insurance for her and arranged for her to see a top lung specialist in Chicago regarding the issues she has with her lungs. I am guessing they will be finding out about that when they get back to Ohio as the specialist – an old friend of my mother's is, as a favour to my mother and to me supposed to be calling Betty personally to introduce himself and explain the situation.
I hope that they won't be offended by my actions, but I have just found my biological family and I don't want to lose any of them any time soon now we have finally reconnected. As I'm thinking this my phone rings and I see Arnie's name on the screen. I smile and quickly answer.
"Arnie!" I say brightly.
"Hello son, do you have something you need to tell us?" he asks simply.
I sit up in my seat and hesitate a moment, "I'm not sure what you are referring to" I say vaguely.
Arnie chuckles, "In which case I'll put Alex on the line and he can explain it to you" he says.
I swallow hard and wait, and a moment later I hear the voice of my biological paternal grandfather.
"Christian, can you explain to me why I got a call from Betty just now telling me that a very nice doctor from Chicago called her to arrange a consultation about her lungs?" he asks. I listen carefully to his voice and I don't detect any anger so I decide to brazen it out and be brutally honest and unapologetic.
"That is correct, so he has called already… that's good" I say simply.
There is a brief silence and then Alex speaks again, "You didn't have to do that…" I quickly step in and interrupt him.
"With due respect I did, you told me my biological paternal grandmother who I am yet to meet because she was too unwell to make the trip to Seattle was suffering. I cannot stand by and allow that to happen. I am in a position to help and so I did. I want to meet her and considering the years that have been wasted I do not want a brief time with her" I say firmly.
There is another lengthy silence and then Alex speaks again, "Well, that is very thoughtful and generous of you so thank you. However, can I ask that before you make any gestures like that in future you discuss it with us first. I do have my pride" he says and those words make me go cold.
"I… I'm sorry" I say as I realise that I have probably offended him.
"No need to apologise son, but just so we understand each other… if in the future you decide that you want to make some big gesture like that or anything, just talk it over with us first. I won't lie that I am incredibly grateful for what you have done for my wife and I know that in the big scheme of things what you did didn't really cost you much but just because you have the wealth you don't need to spend it on us, we are simple people. Do you understand what I'm trying to say?" I swallow hard as this is reminiscent of what Ana said to me when we first got together and I overwhelmed her with my generosity.
"Yes I do, and I'm sorry if I crossed a line… I just wanted to help" I say.
"I know you did son, and that's why I'm not ripping you a new one. I know you meant well" he says.
"I understand" I say.
"Good, we'll say no more about it then, other than I thank you for what you did… Now, we are about ready to head to the airport. Arnie said you are going to meet us there to say goodbye?" he says.
"That's right I'm just about to leave now" I say.
oooOOOooo
I arrive at the airport after picking up Ana and I am glad to note that I have arrived before everyone else as it gives me a moment to collect my thoughts. Ana is looking at me carefully, I had mentioned to her the call with Alexander and she had totally understood what he meant and had gently explained that I can be a bit overwhelming at times.
I glance at my jet waiting on the tarmac, ready to take my relations back to Colorado and Ohio. I briefly wonder what Arnie is going to do, if he will be returning to California. As I am thinking this a familiar SUV pulls up alongside ours and everyone gets out. I immediately see Arnie is missing as I climb out to greet them.
"Where's Arnie?" I ask as I look around.
Edwin smiles at me, "He's already left; he got a call and had to go, the military sent a car for him. He said he is going to call you as soon as he can. This does happen from time to time. Even though he was on leave he gets called back if things happen" he explains.
"I see" I say simply, I had expected it as he has been away for a while. I briefly wonder how this will affect my trip to Detroit but quickly put it out of my mind as I'm sure I'll be able to arrange something with him when he calls me.
I turn towards the three men looking at me carefully, "So, this is goodbye then" I say and I am surprised by the fact I am not really looking forward to this departure.
Edwin shakes his head and walks up to me and engulfs me in a hug. "No son, it's not goodbye… more like see you later as now we have found you, we are not letting you go again" he says.
I feel an odd sensation in the pit of my stomach as he says that and I return the hug, painfully aware this is the closest I am going to get to my biological mother. I turn towards Hal and he hugs me.
"You must come and stay with us in Colorado" he says as he pats my back affectionately.
"We will" I promise.
Then I turn slightly nervously towards my paternal grandfather. I glance at him warily wondering if he is holding any resentment towards me for what I did.
"Come here" he says gruffly and I take a step towards him.
I almost sag with relief as he hugs me affectionately and pats my back. "Thank you for what you did for Betty" he mutters in my ear. I can't speak I am so relieved that he really isn't holding any lingering resentment towards me for what I did and all I can do is nod.
"This is it then" I manage to say as I pull away from him. I watch as the three men say goodbye to Ana and then they turn back towards me.
"Yes, this is it, but we will be seeing you soon when you come to Ohio to meet Betty" Alexander says and I nod.
"Yes, I'm looking forward to it" I say sincerely.
Ana comes and slips her hand into mine as I watch the three men finally move away and climb the steps of the plane. They all pause as they reach the top and they turn and look at us. I hold up my hand and they return the gesture before going inside and the door closes.
I feel oddly bereft. It is a strange sensation and not one I am accustomed to. I didn't expect to feel this way and I stand staring at the plane as it is waiting to take off.
"Ok?" Ana asks me gently and I nod.
"Yes, I'm fine. I just didn't expect to feel the way I do" I say.
Ana responds to that by wrapping her arms around my waist and resting her head against me. My arm automatically circles her and I bury my nose in her hair and inhale deeply and I am immediately struck by the fact that this simple habit comes from a latent subconscious memory I was unaware of until recently. Something I would've remained in ignorance about had it not been for the three men on the plane in front of me.
After the plane eventually takes off, we turn and I hold the car door open for Ana as she climbs in. As we are making our way back into the city, I feel my phone buzzing. I pull it out and see Arnie's name on the screen again and I quickly answer.
"Arnie" I say brightly.
"Christian, I apologise for leaving without saying goodbye but I was needed and was called back to California. It was not my intention to leave the way I did" he says.
"You have nothing to apologise for" I say and I hear a sigh of relief at the other end of the line.
"I've just seen everyone off back home, my plane just took off" I say.
"Good, and you are planning to fly out to Ohio to meet Betty soon?" he asks.
"I am, the plan is to fly out at the weekend" I say.
"Good, and when Betty has recovered, we will arrange to meet up in Detroit?" Arnie asks, but it is more of a statement of fact rather than a question.
"We will… listen, I was thinking that Eva and Liam should be buried together. I was thinking that now we know everything I could arrange for Ella's body to be exhumed and reburied with Liam, or vice versa… what do you think?" I ask.
"I think that's an excellent idea" Arnie says kindly, "I'll talk it over with Alex and dad and see what they think" he adds.
"Good" I say. I am mindful not to start making any decisions without seeking their opinion and approval. It feels odd as normally I would make a decision and just act on it. Having to take other people's feelings and views into consideration isn't something I am accustomed to doing.
"I have to go now Christian. Say goodbye to Annie for me and I'll talk to you both soon" Arnie says.
"I will, and I'll talk to you soon" I say as I end the call.
After dropping Ana back at work, Taylor takes me back to GEH. I stride into my office and close the door. I am still feeling slightly off so I decide to focus on my work and what I need to do for the rest of the day. I am just getting into my stride reading through a contract my legal team have put together for a company I am buying when my intercom buzzes. I press the button and quickly respond.
"Yes Andrea" I say.
"Mr Grey, I have Mr Welch here asking to see you" she says.
"Show him in" I say without any hesitation.
A moment later my office door opens and Welch stands there holding a tablet and a file in his hand. I smile, I'm not surprised at what I see as he is good at what he does.
"Sir, I have found Sadie Sharp and I've done a full background search on her" he says as he walks closer.
I gesture to the seat in front of my desk and he sits down.
"Thank you, sir" he says as he settles himself down. He places the file on my desk in front of me and proceeds to tap on his tablet.
"No red flags, she is a law-abiding citizen living in a relatively good neighbourhood in Detroit. She is 50 years old now. She is married and has two children, and one grandchild. She works as a receptionist/clerk at a doctor's surgery and her husband is a doctor at that surgery. Nothing amiss with any of her immediate family, not even a driving ticket".
My eyebrows rise in surprise at that bit of information, but I don't say anything. I open the file that Welch provided and see all the information down in black and white.
"Thank you, I'll pass this on to my brother" I say.
With that Welch leaves and I call Elliot. I wait and after a couple of rings he picks up.
"Hey bro" he says brightly and it makes me smile.
"Hello Elliot, just so you know Ava got to the nanny safely this morning" I begin.
"Thanks bro… and thanks for letting us stay last night" he says.
"No problem" I reply.
"Did your family get off ok?" he asks warily.
I sigh as the odd feeling in the pit of my stomach returns at the mention of my biological family. "Yes they did" I say simply.
"Are you ok?" Elliot asks after a moments silence.
"I'm fine, listen… Welch has done the background check on your biological mother. I have the file in front of me and there doesn't seem to be any issues which are cause for alarm" I say.
"Good, and it is the right person?" he asks and I laugh.
"Yes it's the right person, you are even mentioned in it as a child she had at 16 and gave up for adoption" I say.
"Did she have any other kids?" Elliot asks carefully.
I pause, noting the tone of his voice, "Yes, she did" I say quietly.
"So… I have siblings?" he says after a moment.
"Yes" I say, unsure of what else I can say.
"Wow" he mutters.
"Do you want to come for dinner this evening and we can sit and go through the information Welch found?" I ask.
"Thanks bro… I'd like that" he says.
oooOOOooo
"So there you have it" I say as I watch Elliot closely.
We have had dinner and Elliot is sitting reading the file that Welch provided on his biological family. He is very quiet and Ana and I are just letting him read without pushing him to say anything.
"Thanks for this" Elliot begins as he points at the file in his hand.
"No problem" I say dismissively.
"That woman, that Gideon knows… Miranda Bennett… you know from Finding Family?" he pauses and I nod in acknowledgement, "She called me" he adds.
"Did she?" I ask.
He nods, and looks at Ana and smiles, "Gideon had laid out all the basic details for her and she said that she would help me. I said I had information on my birth mother but not my birth father and she said that if I could provide her with the details of my birth mother they would approach her for me… did it bother you when they approached you about Eva?" he asks Ana and I know what he is thinking. He is concerned about approaching his birth mother after all these years.
Ana shakes her head, "No, to be fair though I thought it was a hoax at first. But when it became clear it wasn't, I was only too happy to help Eva find out about where she came from. Even though I didn't have that much information about Frank I was happy about sharing what I did know as everyone deserves to know where they came from. I think Christian is a prime example of that. He didn't know the details and had made assumptions about his past, which given his experiences and memories were valid assumptions. But when the truth came out it was nothing like he thought it was and while his memories of his birth mother aren't that good, he now has the knowledge that she did love him and he was wanted which was not the case before".
Elliot nods, "Yeah, I'm guessing that by the age she was – which I already knew from the information that dad got for me, that in my case she was just too young. It was a case of kids fooling around and experimenting and things got out of hand and I was the result". He pauses and looks at the file once more. "I don't blame her for anything, I think she did what she thought was best for me" he adds.
Ana gets up and goes to sit next to him and wraps her arm around him. "That's a good way to look at things" she says gently and Elliot smiles at her.
Elliot nods, "I have always been curious. I often wondered if the reason I was the way I was, was anything to do with my birth parents or the way I was raised. You know that nature and nurture thing" he mutters.
I know he is referring to his manwhoring days when he slept his way through the female population of Seattle.
"If it's any consolation, I think it's probably a combination of both" I say.
He nods, "Now, I just want what's best for Ava and for her to know where she came from. Her ancestry and everything" he says with a shrug.
"That's because you are a brilliant dad" Ana says as she squeezes his arm affectionately and places a friendly kiss on his shoulder. I watch her, I am not jealous anymore of gestures like this. At one time I would've been angry seeing my wife do things like this, and also probably angry at Elliot. But I am secure in my relationship with her now and I trust Ana implicitly. She is incredibly fond of Elliot and looks upon him as an older brother and this is just her way of showing it and offering him comfort and support.
Elliot grins at Ana and affectionately bumps his shoulder into hers. Then that seems to remind him of something and he looks up.
"By the way, Kate has signed the divorce papers" he says and we both gasp in surprise at her sudden and complete capitulation.
"Seriously?" Ana asks just as I was opening my mouth to say exactly the same thing.
Elliot nods, "Yeah, apparently her mom talked some sense into her. She told her she only had herself to blame for what had happened, she needed to stop prolonging it and just sign the damn papers and move on and hopefully learn from it, so she did and not only that she has also signed away to me her parental rights to Ava".
"Wow" I say as I am not sure what else I can say.
Elliot nods, "That's what I said when my lawyer called me to tell me. I know about the reasons behind it from Eamon. He called me and told me that Kate was going to sign the papers and I think he wanted to reassure me that he didn't hold it against me. I'm fairly sure that is because he still wants to see Ava… but…" he stops and shrugs.
Ana shakes her head, "No, it's not only that. He was shocked when he saw that footage, he was disgusted by her. There was no way he could ever apportion any blame on to you".
"Yeah, I know that… I'm just glad its over now. I can move on and just concentrate on my life and Ava" he says.
"You'll find someone worthy of you" Ana says as she gives Elliot another affectionate squeeze.
He turns his head and grins down at her, "Thanks" he replies simply.