Nolan's Journal Chapter 8
"Tim Bradford is back, but Lucy is no happier. I have no idea what happened. I think Lucy knows and Lopez knows too, but neither one of them is talking about it. West's father came in to do an IA investigation. I don't know why, or what it was about. Apparently, Tim got through that OK. Still, there was more to it. The brass busted Tim back to patrol. He hasn't lost his rank, at least not yet, but his days at the head of a Metro squad are over. Still, his stripes continue to make him Lucy's superior, even if Grey is her commander. So if Lucy does end up working directly with Tim, they will be under much finer scrutiny than before. Having Lucy work with a superior officer whom she had a romantic relationship with, has always been problematical under the regs. Grey's let a lot of that go since Lucy wasn't directly in Tim's line of command, but it was still a problem. Bishop pointed out to both Lucy and me that when we were sleeping together, our relationship was unwise. However, since we were of equal rank, it wasn't strictly against the regs. For Lucy and Tim, it is a much more dicey situation and always has been. Anything that happens now could blow up even more for Tim. Lucy wouldn't be considered at fault, but it wouldn't look good for her either, especially if she goes for detective again.
"The little boy that Celina and I found still isn't talking. We ran his DNA and fingerprints, but they weren't on file. That was no surprise. Usually, those things wouldn't be on record for a child unless a kidnapping was expected or the child was tested for a genetic disorder. As far as the doctors can tell, the child is healthy, just scared to death. His fear, specifically of women, is making things very difficult for Luna. Most placements she would normally find for him involve women as caregivers. Bailey suggested two gay men married to each other as foster parents. Luna thinks it's a good idea and is looking to find a couple like that who is or can be, qualified to act in that capacity. As yet she hasn't had any luck, but she's staying at it.
"So far, Celina hasn't made any progress asking around the neighborhood about the boy. But she's not about to quit. The community center is still coming along fine. The shelving built so far is solid. The air conditioning is functioning now too, which is making life a lot better for the volunteers. The project is going a lot faster than I thought it would. If the paperwork goes through in time, the center should be able to start serving people in a couple of weeks. Fingers crossed.
"From what I can tell, Grey has yet to forgive Smitty for his sins, and not just the blaring of Daddy Cop. I suppose there are drawbacks to having an office with a glass door and walls. A couple of guys observed Grey going through Smitty's file, and he didn't look happy. No reason why he should have. Ever since I've been at Mid-Wilshire Smitty has found every possible excuse to stay off the street. There are some cops who have sustained injuries that would keep them behind a desk. Aaron was in that category after he was hurt. But nothing has ever happened to Smitty to qualify him to avoid physically hazardous duty. He's just managed to maneuver his way into Property and other assignments that made his life safer and easier. Smitty may also have used his influence as the union rep to obtain privileged treatment. Since I beat him in the union rep election, he can't do that anymore. So he is totally at Grey's mercy. I doubt he'll see much of it.
"After trying to help the little boy we found at the community center, I got out an album of pictures and little stories about Henry that I kept when he was about the boy's age. I was hoping I'd find something to give me a clue about what would make the boy feel more comfortable. I didn't find anything helpful, but I still enjoyed reliving some of those times. Henry's heart condition had already been addressed – for a while anyway. He was exploring what he could do, that he hadn't had the strength to do before. Everything he discovered was an incredible joy for me. The first time that I took him anywhere more than a few minutes from a hospital, was both terrifying and exhilarating. For most fathers and sons it wouldn't have been a big deal. I just took him to a local fair, one that had a first aid station staffed by EMTs. Still, Henry got to pet some very tame animals, go on some kiddie rides, and eat his first cotton candy. He was ecstatic. I had pages of pictures of the incredible grin on his face. I would love to see just a fraction of that on the face of the boy we found. Hmm. I just got an idea."
"I'm back. I called Gino, a nurse whom Jackson dated for a while. He went on to work in pediatrics at another hospital, so he never saw the boy Celina and I brought in. However, when I told him, he couldn't have been more excited. Since he and Jackson broke up, he moved on and found a partner who wanted to settle down. They were married a year ago and have been talking about having a family ever since. They even started the process of becoming foster parents. So if Luna can rush the paperwork through, it could be a match made in heaven. Gino is the kind of soul that just wants to help children, and he told me that his partner is on the same page. It's too late to call Luna now, but I'll contact her first thing in the morning. Hopefully, she can make things work.
"I had to call Bailey to tell her all about Gino and his husband. Finding a gay male couple was her idea. She's really jazzed that something might come of it. My wife really does have a heart for children. I love that about her, but I have no idea where it may lead.
"I think I'm going to call Henry. It's the middle of the day in Japan, so I won't be waking him up. After everything that's come up lately, I really want to talk to him. With the work he's been doing for Ben, he's very plugged into everything that has to do with youth. I suspect he'll have some ideas about what parents need to understand to raise kids today that will be very different from mine. Even with the age difference between Bailey and me, I have a feeling that Henry will see childhood today through a different lens than she does. If Bailey does decide she wants us to have a child of our own, we will both need as much information as we can get. Even with that, it could be, no it will be, very challenging. When I married Sarah because she was pregnant with Henry, I had no idea what I would be getting into. I would have done it anyway, but if Sarah and I were better prepared, things might have been easier for us. It definitely would have been easier on our marriage."