Date: Sat, 13 Jul 2002 17:18:16 EDT From: Bwstories8@aol.com Subject: The Castaway Hotel - Book 5 - chapter 15 Legal Notice: The following story contains descriptions of graphic sexual acts. The story is a work of fiction and has no basis in reality. Don't read this story if: **You're not 18 or over, **If it is illegal to read this type of material where you live, **Or if you don't want to read about gay/bi people in love or having sex. The author retains copyright to this story. Placing this story on a website or reproducing this story for distribution without the author's permission is a violation of that copyright. Legal action will be taken against violators. I wish to extend my thank you to Ed for his editorial assistance with this chapter and to Ataan for his suggestions about the storyline. If you have enjoyed reading this story, you will find other stories by me at http://members.tripod.de/wolfslair, in the 'Other Stories' section. E-mail responses to the stories, story suggestions, or other 'constructive' comments or advice may be sent to: bwstories8@aol.com. * * * * * * * * Although the boys in these stories have unprotected sex, I strongly urge all of you out there to be smart and protect yourselves from various sexually transmitted diseases by using condoms when having intercourse. * * * * * * * * The Castaway Hotel-Book 5-by BW (Young-Friends). Copyright 2002 by billwstories Chapter 15 - Dreams and worries. March 2002 At the very beginning of May, Ricky got a phone call from one of the members of the exchange program selection committee, asking him if he and I could meet with them again. He came and asked me, and I told him that would not be a problem, so he set the meeting up for two nights later. When we got there, several committee members were also present, and they soon began to ask Ricky a bunch of questions. "Hi, Ricky. We just wanted to check with you again, to make sure you'd still have no problem in giving up your summer vacation to become an exchange student." "No, sir, I don't have a problem with that. My dad and I have already talked that over, and I'm going to take a month at the end of the exchange program, so I can take a little vacation then. I planned to travel around and see more of the country I'm in, if I got to go." "Well, it sounds like you have things all worked out, so now we can get down to business. You are the committee's top candidate, and we have an opening for an exchange student to go to Australia. We wanted to see if you'd be interested in going there and, if so, we have some other questions for you." Ricky was so excited he could barely contain himself from leaping all around the room, right there and then. Somehow he did manage to contain his excitement, but he did flash that irresistible Ricky smile, which seemed to light up the whole room and everyone in it. "Yeah, that really sounds great," he finally blurted out. "Australia would be a great country to go to. Do you think I'll get to see kangaroos out in the wild?" "Well, I'm not sure about that, but I'm glad you'd be willing to go there and that you are accepting our offer. Here is what we have planned. You'll be going to a city call Penrith, in New South Wales. Penrith is just west of Sydney, about an hour and a half away, and it's in the southeastern part of the country. Penrith is also only a couple of hours away from Canberra, the Australian Capital Territory, and not all that far from Melbourne or Brisbane either. You should be able to travel to all of those places, as that part of the country has fairly good bus and air service, so you'll get to explore those areas too." "That's really nice," Ricky told him, "but what about the school I'll be going to. What is that like?" "That's a very good question. We have an opening in Kingswood High School in Penrith, and judging from what we've seen from your records and from talking to your teachers, the committee thinks you would fit in well there." "Well, I guess that sounds pretty good. I'll check it out on a map and then look it up online too. I want to know all there is to know before I go there." "That would be an excellent idea, but there is one more thing I need to make clear to you. You'd have to leave the last week of May to get there on time, as they expect you to enter classes during the first week of June. Their school year runs from January to mid-December, so you'll be getting there to start the second half of their school year. You'll be staying with a family there, and they have a son about your age, or maybe a few months younger. Would you have a problem with any of that?" "Heck, no. That sounds great. What grade will I be in there? Will I still be a junior or a senior when I get there?" "You'll be in what they call year twelve, or the equivalent of your senior year. You'll be expected to pass whatever courses you take, and we have a tentative class schedule set up for you." After that they talked about the tentative schedule, discussed the community and surrounding areas in more detail, went over what other types of things he might expect to find or see there, and explained a little more about the family he would be staying with. After they finished going over all of this, Ricky formally accepted their offer. He was so excited about having been selected, that he could barely contain himself all the way home. He was ranting on about everything he had learned up to that point, speculating about what it might be like there and what he hoped to do. When we arrived at the house, he raced in to tell his brothers all about it. He wanted them to know what he had been told about the school, about the family he'd be living with, and about the area in general. The boys were all eager to hear about it too, and many of them found this very interesting. It was really kind of cute to see Ricky this excited, and I could just tell Ricky's enthusiasm was rubbing off on the others, as they began to pepper him with all sorts of questions in return. Even Jake got involved in this, but I think he was basically trying to get Shannon excited about being an exchange student. I got the impression that he was hoping that Shannon might try to do something like this in the future, seeing that up to this point in his life he hadn't had any opportunity to see many other places. This way he could afford to get to see another part of the world, without it costing quite as much as if he had to pay for everything on his own. It took almost an hour before things began to settle down, then Ricky went up to use the computer, to look up the various sites the committee had given him about the area. After that, he did a general search using a search engine, looking up the community and things about it, and then doing a search on the surrounding areas as well. When he finished with that search, he came back to share more information with me, and he was even more excited now than he was before, which I didn't think was possible. After he filled me in on all the new information he had discovered, I tried to get him to calm down, so he would actually be able to go to bed and fall asleep. Even though I attempted to do this for him, I was pretty sure my efforts would be in vain and he wouldn't be getting very much sleep tonight. In getting caught up in Ricky's excitement, the rest of us had kind of forgotten about other things that were going on in our lives. During the day or two that had passed during this time, we still hadn't heard anything from Cole or Graham's mother about what she might do next. Due to her lack of contact with us, both boys began to assume that maybe she had decided that we wouldn't give in to her demands or she had changed her mind her mind altogether, and they even began to wonder if maybe she had even left town. I know Graham was slightly hurt by this idea, as he was hoping to get to know her a little better, but I think Cole was relieved that this ordeal might be over. I did speak to Graham about his feelings on this topic, and it was then that he shared his suspicions with me. I asked him how he'd feel if she had changed her mind or left town, and he advised me of his thoughts concerning this matter. He told me quite frankly that he felt, if she didn't bother to return or try to get ahold of either of them, then he would just assume Cole had been right in the first place, about her not really caring. I tried to explain to him that this wasn't necessarily the case, even if she didn't come back right away, but I think his mind was made up by that point. It was just a day or two later, however, when someone else came to our door. This also happened while the boys were at school, and when I opened the door, I found a fairly young man standing there. He was probably in his mid-twenties, and dressed in a business-casual fashion. He merely asked me if I was Josh Currie, and after I answered in the affirmative, he served me with a summons. This summons indicated that I was to appear in court on a specific date, where a judge would determine if I had strong-armed Cole and Graham's mother into giving up her sons. In this document it also alleged that I had tried to poison the boys' minds against her, causing one to hate her and the other to be uncertain if he wanted to get to know her again. I was a little surprised at how that was worded and what was inferred, but I really had felt that she might get desperate and try something like this. Immediately I went inside to call Steve (Judge Shay), and he said he already knew about this, as it had come across his desk to be placed on his calendar. Of course, he had recused himself from this case, on the grounds that he was our attorney, and this matter would now be presided over by a judge from a neighboring county. He wasn't sure who that would be yet, but he told me he'd let me know, just as soon as he found out. I spent part of my time before the boys got home, trying to decide how I was going to break the news to them. Would I just sit down with all of them and explain to them about the summons, or would I just sit down with Cole and Graham first, sitting down with the others after I had apprised them? Eventually I concluded that it would just be best to tell them all at once, explaining what was alleged in the summons and how I was planning to respond to it. After that, we'd just play the rest of it by ear, as I wasn't sure if I could predict how they were going to react to this news. When they arrived home, I had all of the boys join me in the living room, where I would give them the information. It was going to affect all of them, just to varying degrees. "What's up, Dad?" somebody asked, but I didn't even take notice who had made the comment. "Well, I got a summons today, to appear in court." "It's her, isn't it?" Cole asked, in a very hostile tone. "Yes, it's your mother who's taking me to court," I responded, trying to take the edge off the situation. Cole just stared at me, mulling this over in his mind. "Is she still asking for us to come live with her?" Graham wanted to know. "Yes, she is," I answered, very simply. "So what does she think is going to happen?" Cole asked, defiantly. "I already told her there's no way I will go live with her." "Well, that's part of the problem, Cole. She's claiming that not only did I take advantage of her being under the influence when I adopted you, but she's also claiming that I've brainwashed you boys, making you hate her too." "I hate her because of what she did to us, not because of anything you've done or said." "WE both know that, but she doesn't, and that's what she claiming. She's hoping this will help her to get you both back. I'm not worried, though, and I'm sure this will all work out." "But I'm telling you now, I'm not going with her, even if the court says I have to." "Well, let's not fret about that quite yet, as nothing has been officially decided about that. We'll just play it by ear for now, and see what happens." "Won't Uncle Steve be the judge?" Graham asked. "No. He had to remove himself from the case, because he's our friend and our lawyer." "Then who will the judge be?" Graham followed up. "We don't know yet. It will probably be a judge from another county." "That's not fair. Uncle Steve knows us, and he would make the right decision. He wouldn't make us go live with her," Cole insisted. "Well, when you know someone that well, you can't be the judge on any of their cases. That's only to be fair to the other side." "But why do we have to worry about doing things fairly?" Cole asked me. "She's saying things that aren't true or fair." "Well, regardless of what she claims," I tried to assure him, "the system is set up to try to be fair to both sides. We have to believe that it is, and both sides have to act accordingly. Uncle Steve will be there, but as our lawyer, not the judge. That will work just as well for us." Some of the other boys asked questions about this too, as they were worried that it might break up the family, but I told them I doubted anything that drastic would happen. No matter what, we'd take this one-day at a time, doing our best to make sure things turned out in our favor. After reassuring them and answering their questions, they all seemed satisfied and things went back to normal, at least for the time being. The following day, I got a call from Steve. "Josh, I found out who the judge will be. It's going to be Judge Mullen, from Indiana County." "How is he, as a judge?" "Well, let me put it this way, he's not known for having a sharp legal mind. He's an old country lawyer who got elected through the efforts of his 'good old boy' supporters. He does a lot of things that have no legal basis and things most normal people would never expect him to do. He's had many of his decisions challenged because of this." "Damn, what will that mean to us?" "Well, I'm hoping that he'll react favorably to you, because of me. He knows my reputation, and I don't think he'll try to challenge my knowledge of family court law. I've heard he is easily impressed by reputation, so hopefully that will work in our favor. Therefore, I think we'll do fine." "Well, I'll trust your judgment on that. When do we go to court?" "Next Monday, so we'll get together this weekend to go over everything. Does that sound all right to you?" "Yes, perfect. Thanks, Steve. You're a great friend." Steve and I discussed many things that Saturday, and then he talked to Cole and Graham alone, to get their input for this hearing. We didn't think much would happen at this initial get together, as this appearance would be mostly for the lawyers. They would make their motions or ask for certain considerations, trying to lay the groundwork for things they might be planning to spring later on. It also gave the judge an opportunity to weigh some of the issues, before the real battle began. When Monday came, I went alone to the court, deciding it best not to take the boys along. This seemed to really upset Cole, as he figured he'd be there, but knowing not much would be going on, I thought it best he and the others should go to school. Cole had obviously hoped that he'd be able to tell the judge what he thought about his mother's request and why, but Steve suggested this wasn't the time for that just yet. Therefore, they went to school, while we went to court. Steve and I walked into courtroom, took our seats, and waited for our case to be called. When it was, Steve and I went to our table and waited, while Ms. Van Cott and her lawyer went to their own table, on the other side of the room. "All rise. The Honorable Richard Mullen presiding," the bailiff announced. We all rose as the judge walked into the room and took his place behind the bench, and then we took our seats when he told us to do so. The case was announced and things started from there. First, her lawyer requested that his client be given temporary custody of her children, while the case was being heard. The judge denied that motion, on the grounds that she had made no effort to contact them in four years. My lawyer countered, saying that we were prepared to allow her to visit the boys, either at our house or under the supervision of DSS. Her lawyer countered that she shouldn't have to have her visits supervised by anyone, when Steve announced that we'd withdraw the offer in that case, as we were afraid she might try to take the boys outside the jurisdiction of the court. I think he only did this to let the judge know we were trying to make an attempt to work things out with her, but she was unwilling to compromise. We had both expected any offer like that to be rejected, as I had made a similar offer the first time we met. Next, Steve asked for an immediate dismissal of the case, because the adoption, and everything preceding it, was done according to the letter of the law. He suggested that this indicated there was absolutely no basis for this suit. The judge denied that motion, saying that issue was what we were here to decide. He did say that he would have someone investigate both parties, to determine our fitness as guardians. He also stated he would use someone from the county he was from to do this, seeing I was extremely close to various members of the local DSS and that might influence their appraisal of the situation. Steve objected to his bringing someone in from another area, saying the local department was more familiar with the circumstances surrounding the case, but was quickly overruled. After that, the judge instructed Ms. Van Cott and me that we'd both be contacted within the next few days, to arrange for this meeting. That person would also meet with the boys separately, then talk to the administrators at their schools, and finally question their teachers and possibly a few of their classmates. We didn't see that as a problem, so that was where the things were left for now. Steve and I discussed this further, before we parted company, and he assured me that it went basically as he expected, except for the outside investigator, but he saw that as no big deal. He explained that the report from DSS would carry considerable weight, but also the testimony of those indicating what Ms. Van Cott's mental status was at the time she made the decision to give up the boys. It would be up to them to convince the judge that she didn't have the requisite ability to make an informed and unclouded judgment about what she was doing at the time, otherwise the adoption would stand. However, if she could open that door successfully, and convince the judge that she couldn't possibly have made an informed decision at that time, then she'd have to convince the investigator she was now totally clean and capable of being a fit parent. He told me that wouldn't be easy for her to do, but then explained that almost anything could happen at that point. I didn't really want to hear that she had a chance to win, but I knew Steve spoke the truth and it was better I realized that up front. On Wednesday, the investigator showed up unexpectedly at the house, as they seemed to like to do, so you couldn't put on a show for them. He interviewed me first, alone. He asked me a great many questions, some of which I couldn't see as being relevant to the case, but I cooperated and answered them just the same. When the boys arrived home after school, he questioned Cole and Graham separately, and then he also spoke to some of the other boys. After that he just announced he was through and left rather hurriedly, without giving us any indication of what he thought. He seemed like an odd little man, at least to me, and after he left the boys told me much of what took place with them. They told me about the questions he asked them, and it didn't seem as if those questions were very probing or even relevant, so we weren't sure what his angle was. Maybe I had misjudged him, and he was already leaning in our favor, and that's why his questions didn't seem to be drawing out anything damaging against us. A couple of days later, Steve called me, but I wasn't expecting to hear from him again so soon. "Josh, I just got a copy of the DSS report, and we've got a problem." "Really? What kind of a problem?" "A major problem." "How can that be? The guy didn't really do or ask anything while he was here." "I think that's because he had made up his mind before he arrived there, after talking to people at the school. May I come there right now?" "Of course you can, unless you want me to come to your office." "Well, that might be better. Maybe the boys shouldn't know what he said just yet." "Okay, I'll be right down." I grabbed my keys and went out and got in the van and drove down to Steve's office. He had a very worried expression on his face when I arrived. "Is it really THAT bad?" I asked him, beginning to get concerned about this myself. "Yes, it couldn't be much worse. He's saying that neither of you is a suitable parent and the boys shouldn't be with either one of you." I was shocked to hear this news. "Why the hell would he say anything like that? What the hell could he have seen or heard that was that bad?" "Maybe I should read you an excerpt from his report." He looked at me to gauge my reaction, before he continued. "The Currie household is male dominated, with no female influence at all, and the head of the household clearly promotes something other than traditional values. It is my understanding that many of these boys are openly gay or bisexual, probably at the prompting or encouragement from Mr. Currie, who may also have his own gay lover. It is my belief that he has promoted his own warped ideas of sexuality to these boys, thus encouraging them to become gay or bisexual themselves. This is clearly not something the Department wants to support, so we strongly recommend that the court re-evaluate all placements made here, with the idea of rescinding all prior adoptions and removing said minors from the premises and away from his influence." I was too stunned by what he read to say a word. I just sat there and looked at Steve. It was a few minutes before I could put my feelings into words. "Could that little shit really be recommending that they take away all my sons? Who made him the moral guardian of our society and gave him the authority to do such a thing? That wasn't even part of this case and it wasn't something that he had any grounds to get into. Can he really take all the boys from me?" "I don't think all of them, but possibly he could get Cole and Graham removed. I'll do all I can to stop that, but this judge is so unpredictable. I don't know what to tell you and I can't even venture a guess as to what will happen." "What's our next move then?" "Well, I'll start lining up character witnesses, like Sally and my wife, and I'll have different psychologists interview the boys. Once the psychologists have written their reports and I get their reactions, then I'll know what to do next. If they support our position, as I suspect they will, we'll parade them to the witness stand to speak on your behalf. And we'll also line up some of the boys' teachers too, to state how well they're doing in school and how they relate to their peers. That should help to negate much of what the investigator had to say in his report." "Do you think that will be enough?" "With any other judge, yes, but with this one, I'm not sure." "Damn, haven't you got any GOOD news for me?" "Josh, you know I'll do my best to keep you all together, but I think it's time we met with Ms. Van Cott, to try and reach an agreement outside of the court, if that's not already too late. If we can do that, maybe we can prevent any of his bias from getting into the public record." "Do you think she'll listen and cooperate?" "She will, if she wants to be in her boys' lives, because the recommendation is equally harsh on her. It refers to her as a 'chronic drunk and a long-term junkie', so she won't have a leg to stand on, to get the boys on her own. He read that part about her being a drunk and junkie directly from the report. "If she doesn't want to cooperate with us and reach a compromise, she probably won't ever see the boys again either." "Okay, set up a meeting with her, so we can work this out. I'll do whatever it takes to keep my family together." Steve acknowledged my comment, and then I headed back home. * * * * * * * * If you have enjoyed reading this story, you will find other stories by me at http://members.tripod.de/wolfslair, in the 'Other Stories' section. E-mails may be sent to: bwstories8@aol.com.