Chapter 25:
Author's Note: I feel this will be 50 chapters by the time I'm done. Hoping to write a chapter once every two weeks.
Bombay sat on the edge of his bed, the weight of everything bearing down on him.
The apartment was quiet—too quiet—and his mind was racing.
He'd spent the last few days avoiding Ted, his longtime friend, and Hans, his mentor. They had been trying to check in on him, but something inside him recoiled whenever he picked up the phone to answer. The conversations felt too forced, too heavy. It was like they were waiting for him to say the right thing, to offer some neat, put-together response about how he was doing.
But Gordon wasn't doing okay. He felt he was sinking.
It wasn't that Ted or Hans weren't his friends — they were. But he just couldn't bring himself to talk to them. Not about this. Not now. He had come so far and felt that if he told them everything, it would go back to square one.
He couldn't talk to Ted. Not about this. Ted had enough going on in his life without Bombay adding to it. He had his daughter to think about.
And with Hans, it was different. Hans had this way of seeing through him, of cutting straight to the heart of things. Hans didn't want to be that vulnerable. He didn't want to face the reality of the mess he had made for himself.
So, he sat silently, battling the urge to numb everything again. But then something clicked in his mind—call Jade.
Gordon grabbed his phone and dialled Jade's number, his fingers trembling slightly as the phone rang. It only took a few seconds before Jade's calm, steady voice came through the line.
"Hey, Gordon. What's up?"
Gordon exhaled slowly, the tension in his shoulders easing after hearing Jade's the wordswere harderto come by.
"Hey, Jade. I—I don't know. I just... I failed. I've been avoiding Ted and Hans. I don't feel like I can talk to them right now, and I don't know what to do."
"Gordon, slow down, "Jade's voice came through the line. "What did you do?'
Gordon rubbed his eyes, trying to put his scattered thoughts together. "I ... I... I..." he stuttered. "I need a meeting."
"Gordon, I have to go to work in an hour," Jade said. "There's a meeting on Thursday."
"I can't wait until Thursday," Bombay said impatiently.
"Fine," Jade relented. "Meet me at Mickey's after my shift. "
The summer evening was warm, the kind of night where the air felt thick and heavy, but a soft breeze offered just enough relief to make it bearable. The neon lights from Mickey's reflected off the pavement, casting a colourful glow across the street.
Gordon shoved his hands deep into the pockets of his shorts as he waited for Jade to get off her shift.
He stood outside the restaurant for a few minutes, his arms crossed, waiting for her to come out.
She looked at him and could immediately tell he was struggling.
"You okay?" she asked, voice soft but direct.
Gordon fumbled for something to say, but the words felt like they were stuck in his throat. He tried to force a smile, but it only made things worse. "Just needed some air."
Jade raised an eyebrow, unconvinced. "You sure about that? You asked for a meeting."
Gordon exhaled heavily, shoulders slumping. He didn't want to drag her into his mess, but the weight was too much to carry alone. Finally, he nodded and walked toward the curb, sitting on the stone steps outside the restaurant. Jade followed, sitting next to him, her posture open and unpressuring. He knew she was waiting for him to talk,and,reluctantly, he did.
"I messed up," he said quietly, his voice strained. He stared down at his sneakers, fidgeting with the laces. "I started using again. Drugs."
Jade blinked, not entirelysurprised,but still taken aback. "Drugs? Gordon, why? I thought—"
"I know," he cut her off, running a hand over his face. "I thought I was done with it too. But it just… it felt like the only way to deal with everything. Casey, Charlie, the stress—especially when we were being intimate. I couldn't relax. And I thought… I thought maybe if I just took a little something, it'd take the edge off. It'd help me, y'know? Be better. But it's like I just dug myself deeper."
Jade didn't say anything right away, letting him speak. Her eyes softened, but she didn't pull away. Instead, she leaned in a little closer, the concern in her voice clear but not judgmental.
"You can't keep doing that, Gordon. You know that, right? You can't just keep numbing everything. You're not going to find your way out with drugs or alcohol, and you're not going to be able to hold everything together if you keep running from it."
Gordon let out a sharp breath, shaking his head. "I know. I know it's wrong. But every time I try to deal with things head-on, it feels like it's too much. And Casey… I want things to work with her. I want to be a good father to Charlie. But there's always something… always something else." He paused, his chest tightening as he looked over at Jade. "There's something I haven't told her. Something I've been keeping from her, and I don't know how to say it."
Jade's heart sank. She could see where this was going. "What is it?"
Gordon swallowed hard, the words coming out in a rush, like a confession that had been too long in the making.
"I got Tracey pregnant." He winced, looking at her as if he couldn't believe it himself. "One night. One stupid mistake. But now she's pregnant, and I have no idea how to tell Casey. How do I tell her I'm going to have a kid with someone else? And on top of all that, I'm fighting for custody of Charlie, and if anyone finds out… if anyone finds out I've been using, or that I've got another kid on the way, I'm screwed. I'm gonna lose him. I'm gonna lose everything. And I don't know how to fix it."
Jade was silent for a moment, letting him breathe, before she gently touched his arm.
"Gordon… that's a lot. But you've gotta face it. You've got to be honest with Casey. You can't keep hiding from this stuff. Not with her, not with Tracey, and not with yourself. Running from it, trying to numb it with drugs—it's not going to make it go away. It's just gonna make everything worse."
Gordon looked down, his face clouded with guilt. "I don't know how to tell her. I don't know how to fix this."
"You can fix this," Jade said firmly, her voice cutting through the fog of his thoughts. "But not if you keep using. Not if you keep avoiding the hard stuff. You've got to step up, Gordon. Not just for Casey or for Charlie, but for you. You can't be the kind of parent they need if you're still running from your problems. You've got to get help."
Gordon's face twisted in frustration, but Jade didn't flinch. "What kind of help?"he asked bitterly. "How am I supposed to fix all this? I can't even fix myself."
Jade's expression softened, but her voice was unyielding. "You can. But you need to do more than just wish it away. You need to go to rehab and get into a real treatment program. You need to be serious about getting clean, Gordon. Because if you don't—if you keep turning to drugs every time things get hard—you're never going to be the man you want to be. You'll never be the father you want to be. And you'll never be the partner Casey deserves. But you've got to start by being honest. With yourself. And with her."
Gordon's shoulders drooped as he let her words sink in. The idea of going into treatment felt like a mountain, one that was too high to climb. But Jade was right. He couldn't keep pretending, couldn't keep running.
"I don't know if I can do it,"he murmured, his voice full of doubt.
Jade didn't let him off the hook. "You don't have to do it alone, Gordon. But you can't keep doing it this way. You've got to make the choice to change."
For a long moment, they sat in the warm summer night, the sounds of the city drifting around them.
Gordon's mind was a mess, but beneath the weight of his mistakes, something stirred. A small, flickering ember of hope, something that made him believe that maybe, just maybe, he could still turn things around.
Finally, he nodded slowly, his voice barely above a whisper. "Okay. I'll get help."
Jade gave him a small, encouraging smile, the first sign of relief she'd shown all night. "You can do it. I know you can."
Gordon had been looking for Jason for weeks.
It wasn't easy, especially since Jason didn't make himself easy to find. Gordon had tried reaching out to everyone he knew—old classmates who lived in Nebraska, acquaintances, even enlisting legal resources from Ducksworth—but no one seemed to have a clue about where Jason lived or worked.
At first, Gordon had thought he could handle this on his own, but as the days wore on, frustration began to build. This wasn't just about finding some random guy. This was about Charlie. Gordon had barely been a part of Charlie's life, but the idea of raising Charlie - stepping in as a father figure—living with Casey and raising her son—drove him to desperation. He wanted this more than anything.
After weeks of getting nowhere, Gordon decided to take more drastic measures. He didn't like it, but he hired a private investigator. He was burning through money - his savings from working as a lawyer - were almost gone, but he knew it would be worth it. The investigator, an ex-cop who once testified in the Orion's trial, quickly found a lead: Jason worked at a local mechanic shop.
That was the breakthrough Gordon had been waiting for.
The first step was done. Gordon now knew where to confront Jason—and he wasn't going to waste time.
When Gordon arrived at the mechanic shop where Jason worked, he saw the man standing outside, wiping his hands on a rag.
"Are you Jason Conway?"Bombay asked, cutting right to the chase.
"Who wants to know?"Jason asked, his voice tense with suspicion.
Gordon smirked, his posture relaxed, but his words were sharp. "I'm Gordon Bombay. Been looking for you, Jason. You're not an easy man to find."
"What do you want?"Jason shot back while lighting a cigarette.
"I'm here to talk about Charlie Conway,"Bombay said bluntly. "You're his father, right."
Jason's jaw tightened. "Go away. That ain't my kid. I told her she was on her own."
"Yeah, well, you are still his father,"Gordon shot back, a glint of anger flashing in his eyes. It took everything that was in him to remain calm. "And I'm here to make sure you understand that."
Jason stood up straighter, his patience wearing thin. "If you're here to start trouble, you can leave. We don't want any problems."
Gordon, however, wasn't backing down. He took a few steps closer, his eyes narrowing. He remained silent, clenching his fists, trying to stay calm. "You've never been around for him."
Gordon tilted his head, almost as if he was sizing Jason up.
"That was her choice,"Jason shot back. "I didn't ask for a kid. I have my own problems. "
Bombay thought about what Casey had told him. How the only thing he wanted was to be free of responsibility. "I can make those problems go away for you."
Jason raised an eyebrow. "You don't know anything about my problems."
"I know you're several thousand dollars behind on child support back payments. I can make those payments go away,"Bombay promised. "I can make this easy for you. You sign over your rights, and we'll waive all of the back payments. A fresh start."
Jason's lips twisted into a grin. "I'll sign over my rights. No more worry about paying child support."
Gordon felt a rush of frustration. He had prepared himself for a tough conversation, but this? This was something else entirely. He felt sick to his stomach. How could someone just give up Charlie like he was nothing?"That's it? You'd give up your son just to stop paying child support?"
"Of course,I would,"Jason replied, his voice dripping with indifference. "You can have him. But he's keeping my name."
Gordon's stomach twisted. "That's your condition?"
Jason nodded, his eyes never leaving Gordon's steely blue eyes. "That's right. You get full custody, I have no child support, but Charlie's name stays the same. Take it or leave it."
Gordon's mind raced. He hadn't expected this—of all the ridiculous conditions, this one felt the most petty. But in a way, it was fitting for Jason. He wasn't concerned about his son's well-being. He was concerned about his own ego and his finances.
"You're really gonna hold onto that, huh?"Gordon's voice was tight with disbelief. "You want your name to stay attached to Charlie, even if you won't be a part of his life?"
Jason didn't flinch. "I'm not going to let you rewrite my son's identity. You want him, you can have him. But that's my condition. You don't get to change his name, too."
Gordon stood there, his mind spinning. He couldn't believe he was standing here, negotiating with a man who couldn't even be bothered to be a real father. But he knew there was no other way to get full custody of Charlie, no other way to secure the stability that Casey and Charlie so desperately needed.
"Fine,"Gordon said, his voice a mixture of anger and resolve. "No name change. You get what you want, Jason. No more child support. No more custody. But I'll make sure Charlie remains a Conway. I'll send over the paperwork tomorrow."
Jason nodded, his grinwidening,as though he had won some kind of victory. "That's the deal. You get full custody, I'm done."
Gordon couldn't believe the deal he had just made. But at least now, he and Casey could move forward with adopting Charlie when the time came.
He turned away from Jason, his stomach twisting with the emptiness of it all. It wasn't the way he wanted to win. It wasn't the way it should have gone. But in the end, Charlie's future mattered more. And that was something Gordon would always fight for.
As Gordon walked back to his truck, the weight of the decision settling over him, one thought lingered in his mind: Charlie deserved a better father than Jason. But at least now, he had a chance.