Date: Wed, 4 Jul 2012 04:48:02 -0700 (PDT)
From: Pete Bruno <farmboy7456@gmail.com>
Subject: A Single Soul Chapter 10

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A Single Soul
Chapter 10
Desperate, Deceptive, and Discovered

  The smoke thickened as they neared its source, and Jim's pulse began to
race. With every mile that passed, he became more anxious. Repeatedly, he
called Matty's phone; but, there was no answer. He urged Frank to drive
faster.

  After another few frantic miles, they could both see that the smoke was
becoming even denser. Then they saw the flashing lights of police cars, and
a long line of brake lights that told them the traffic had come to a
complete stop, probably due to a wreck.

  When Frank stopped their car, Jim jumped out and started running towards
the scene. It appeared to be about two miles away. He ran like he had never
run before. All sorts of scenarios ran through his mind, from his worst
fears to maybe it was only a random collision between strangers. He ran
faster.

  When he reached the source of the smoke, he saw something that made his
heart almost stop. A van that looked like Linda's was laying on its side,
engulfed in flames. Firefighters were dousing it with foam.

  As he neared the scene, he was grabbed and stopped by a trooper who told
him he couldn't get any closer. Jim grabbed the officer's arm and flipped
the trooper on to his back. He walked closer to the wreck; he could see a
tractor-trailer stopped a few hundred yards from the wrecked van. He stood,
transfixed, just staring at the burning van. He began to hyperventilate,
thinking his son was in that blazing vehicle. At that point, the trooper
whom he had flipped ran up behind Jim, grabbed him, and was trying to
handcuff him.

  "Officer, can you give me a fucking break? Jim cried out. "My son is in
that van!"

"Sir is your son about eight years old?" the officer asked.

"Yeah, his mother and her brother kidnapped him, and they were taking him
to New Jersey in violation of a court order," he babbled.  At that point
Jim began to shake and tears rolled down his cheeks.

  The Officer placed his hand on Jim's shoulder; "It's okay, Gunner; your
boy and his dog are fine.  We were able to get them out before the fire
started. Unfortunately," the officer added quietly, "your wife and her
brother were trapped and the car burst into flames before we could get to
them."

  It took a second to register on Jim's consciousness; the officer called
him "Gunner." How could he know that?  Then it dawned on Jim that he was
still in his uniform.

  Just as the officer finished relating to Jim what had happened, Frank
came running up. Jim hugged him.

  Jim's emotions were on a roller coaster ride. In less than a week, his
wife, who had lost his baby, had asked for a divorce. Then, she and her
brother had tried to kidnap their son.  His wife, her brother and Jim's son
had just been involved in a traffic collision. The two adults now lay dead
in front of him in their burning vehicle.  Their son was still alive, by
the grace of God, although injured and stretched out on a nearby gurney.

  Jim began to shake uncontrollably and his legs refused to support him any
longer. As he began to collapse, Frank grabbed him and kept him on his
feet.

  The officer helped Frank walk Jim to an ambulance across the highway.
Matty was lying on the gurney, a splint on his arm and one on a leg.  While
an EMT worked on a cut on Matty's forehead and a few more on his face, Jim
looked at his son, and his tears began again.  Ian began barking in his
crate when he recognized Jim.  Matty looked up to see his father standing
there and tried to smile, while Ian was barking in his crate.

  "Dad!" cried out Jimmy.  "I just knew you'd come to rescue me, just like
Officer Mike did.  He saved me and Ian before the car blew up!"  Then his
tears began to flow.

  "I'm really sorry, Dad; I didn't wanna go with them, but Uncle Joe
grabbed me and locked me in the car," Matty sobbed.  "Him and Mom kept
telling me that I was going to live with them in New Jersey and that you
weren't coming," he went on crying.

  Jim went to the boy and hugged him.  All he could do to comfort Matty was
kiss his son's forehead and hold his hand.

  "It's okay, sport.  I know it wasn't your fault," Jim told him.

  "Mom's dead, isn't she?" Matty asked his Dad, and the crying continued.

  "Yeah, after they rescued you and Ian, there just wasn't enough time to
get your Mom and Uncle out of the car," Jim said quietly.
  "How `bout you, son; how are you feeling?" Jim asked.

  "It hurts a little bit, Dad.  My leg really hurts; but I guess I'll be
okay."

  "You sure will big guy.  Right now, I need to talk to the trooper who
helped you, and then I'll be right back," Jim said. He approached the
trooper and extended his hand, "Excuse me, Trooper..."

  "Mike Gallagher, Gunner; I spent ten years in the Corps, sir," the
officer said.

  "Cut the sir- shit Mike. I'll never be able to repay you for what you and
your partner have done for me and my son," Jim said sincerely.

  They made their way over to another officer, who was talking with a group
of other troopers and sheriff's deputies.  Mike introduced Jim to his
partner, Tim Grant.

  "Tim, this is Chief Warrant Officer James Flannery.  It was his boy we
pulled out of the van."

  Jim grabbed the man's hand.  "I can't thank you enough," Jim said, as he
grabbed the other trooper's hand and shook it vigorously.  "Can you tell me
anything about all this?" Jim asked.

  "We just happened to be sitting for a red light at the intersection.
Your wife's car had the green light and was entered the intersection when
that eighteen-wheeler ran his red light, hit the van in the front of it and
knocked the van into the ditch.  We managed to get your son out, and he
kept screaming, "Get Ian!"  That's when we saw the dog crate strapped in
next to where your son had been sitting; so, we grabbed it," Officer Tim
said.

  "The front doors were too damaged to open.  We were waiting for fire
rescue, and then we smelled gas; so, we hustled the boy out of there just
as the van went up in flames," officer Mike finished.

  "Holy shit," Jim said, as he looked over at the smoking vehicle.  The
front of the van was a mangled mess; but, by some miracle, the door in the
back where Matty sitting was untouched.

  The sight of the smoldering vehicle and the thought that his wife and
brother-in-law were lying inside, burned to death, made him queasy.
Regardless of how crazy Linda had been the last couple of weeks, she was
still his wife; and he honestly hoped that she hadn't suffered.  But aside
from that, he was angry with her for what she had done; after twenty years
of marriage, she had kidnapped their son.

  Traffic had begun to move again, so Frank walked back and got into his
car.  The EMT's had already left for the hospital with Matty.  The officers
offered to escort Jim and Frank to the hospital; so, when Frank arrived,
they loaded Ian into Jim's car and headed off, following the troopers.

  On the way, Jim called Matt and told him what had happened, and that they
were on the way to the hospital.  He asked Matt to meet him there.

  His next call was the difficult one; he really didn't want to call
Linda's parents with the news of their daughter's death.  He decided to
call Linda's younger brother, Sean, instead.  Out of all of Linda's family,
Jim was closest to Sean.

  Sean's wife, Jane, answered and was surprised to be hearing from Jim in
the middle of the afternoon. She seemed uncharacteristically nervous to
him; and when he asked for Sean, she said he was at work and then asked
Jim, with concern in her voice, if he would like his office number.  Jim
thanked her and scribbled down the number on a piece of paper from his
wallet, said good-bye, and hung up.

  "Sean Butler," the voice answered on the other end of the phone.

  "Sean, it's Jim."

  "Hey, buddy," Sean replied. Like his wife, Sean sounded nervous. "How are
you?  I've been meaning to call; but, my mother ordered me to have no
contact with you.  I mean, I know about Linda wanting a divorce, but..."
Sean was saying when Jim cut him off.

  "Sean, I need you to help me and stay calm," Jim said his voice as level
as possible, under the circumstances.  There's been a car wreck.  There's
really no good way to tell you this, Sean ... both Linda and Joe were
killed in the accident," Jim quietly told his brother-in-law. Jim heard
nothing but silence on the other end. "Sean, are you okay?" Jim asked.

  "Yeah ... Oh, my God ...," Sean answered with tears in his voice.  Then,
Jim heard nothing but silence for a few moments, as Sean tried manfully to
absorb the news.

  "Shit," Sean gulped; are you all right, Jim?  What about Matty!?" Sean
asked, as panic entered his voice.

  "I'm fine, Sean; I wasn't involved in it, but Matty was.  Other than a
couple of broken bones and some cuts here and there, he's all right; and
his dog, Ian, made it through okay, too.  Just a few cuts on Matt's face
and the medics think maybe a broken arm and leg; not sure, yet" Jim said,
and then he told Sean the whole story leading up to the wreck.

  "Look, Sean, I really didn't want to just call your parents and tell them
over the phone. I was hoping you would tell them in person; and maybe you
could call their priest and ask him to go over with you?"

  "Yeah, that's a real good idea," replied Sean. Then Sean broke
down. "Jim, I'm really sorry about everything... I wanted to call
you... I'm so sorry... my mother...I'm so sorry, Jimmy..." Sean was crying,
and Jim could barely understand him.

  "Sean, buddy, calm down and take a deep breath; you're not making any
sense," Jim said, trying to remain calm himself.

  Sean went on, "When Mom told us that Linda had lost the baby, she also
told me and Jane we were not to come visit her, `cause she just wasn't up
to it.  Then, Jane was at a yoga class with one of her friends who was a
maternity nurse; and she congratulated Linda on her new nephew.  Linda, of
course, was floored by this; but, she played along.  She ran home and
called me, first thing.

  I went right to Mom and Dad's and confronted both of them with it.  Can
you believe they all knew, and were going to keep it from you until after
the divorce?  I mean, suddenly I don't know what's happening to my family!
Sean babbled.  Mom has the baby...Linda lied to you ... She was actually
nine months pregnant all that time; and Joe never was in jail!  It was all
a made-up story to get her up here to have the baby without you knowing
about it.  She had her labor induced and ..."

  Jim was listening to what Sean was saying; but, he couldn't absorb it
all. His stomach began churning.  He told Sean to stop for a minute, and he
would call him back.

  "Frank!" Jim screamed. "Pull over! Like, now!"  Startled and wide-eyed
with concern, Frank began screeching to a halt by the side of the road

  Before the car had come to a full stop, Jim threw open his door, jumped
out, and began to vomit and cuss at the same time.

  Frank barely got the car stopped before he leapt out his door, tore
around the vehicle, and immediately started rubbing Jim's back, trying to
calm the young man down, but baffled by what was happening.

  When he finished throwing up and his dry heaves had subsided, Jim wiped
his mouth and continued to shake with anger; but, he let Frank take him
into his arms and comfort him.

  Jim tried to give Frank a quick explanation of what Sean related to him;
but, he was so angry and confused that his words came tumbling out of him.
Frank listened patiently and managed to piece together what had basically
happened.

  Then, Jim's Marine training apparently began to kick in.  He quickly got
his anger under control so he could think more rationally, and told
himself, "I'm not going to let this stand the way it is."  Quickly, he put
a plan together in his mind and opened his cell phone to call Sean back.

  When he saw that it was Jim calling, Sean immediately answered the ring
with, "Jimmy, are you okay!"

  "Yeah, Sean thanks. Listen, I need your help, man.  Please don't tell
anyone what you just told me.  You should still tell your parents about the
accident; but nothing else.  I'll be there by morning.  I'm gonna fly up
there, rent a car, and I'll be at their house sometime in the
morning. Okay?" Jim said.

  "Of course, buddy," Sean replied. "Jane and I are both so sorry for what
they've been doing to you; I'll do anything to make it up to you," Sean
added.

  "Thanks, guy.  But, remember; don't say anything to anyone about me
coming up there.  Except for Jane, of course, just make sure she doesn't
say anything, either," Matt reiterated.

  After hanging up, and with a plan in place, Jim's mind became calmer; so,
he finished telling Frank all that Sean had told him.

  "Call Finn, right now, before you do anything else," said a still-stunned
Frank. Jim dialed Finn's number and discovered that Finn, Matt, and Jimmy
were already on their way and should be at the hospital within half an
hour.

  When Jim and Frank arrived at the hospital, they were told that Matty was
doing fine, but that he was in surgery, having his leg set.  It was broken
in two places and needed to be pinned.  Not long after the others arrived,
Frank entertained Jimmy while Jim took Finn and Matt aside to fill them in
on what he had learned.

  Finn, ever the lawyer, then took charge.  He reserved seats for Jim and
him on a flight out of Wilmington for Philly at 0600 hours, and arranged
for them to pick up a car at the Philly airport.  Matt said he would take
care of Matty and Ian.  Jim called Sean back and told him he would be
meeting him at 1000 hours at his parent's house, and reminded Sean not to
alert them about anything.

  After Matty came out of recovery, he was a bit groggy; but obviously
happy to have his family around him.  Matt said he would stay overnight
with the boy, and then accompany Matty to the base hospital at Lejeune.

  Frank took Jimmy and Ian with him, while Jim rode with Finn so they could
plan for the next day's confrontation. Finn called a friend who worked with
the county Family Service division where Linda's parents lived, and she
agreed to meet the two men at the Butler home.

  The morning flight from Wilmington to Philly was quick; the men picked up
the rental and drove over to Jersey.  After stopping at one of Jim's
favorite diners for a quick breakfast and to discuss their plans, they made
their way to the home of Linda's parents.

  Finn had also arranged for a local police officer to be present when they
arrived. Rose Smith, from Family Services, and the policeman met them as
they drove up to the Butler home. They all walked up to the door and rang
the bell.

  Linda's mother opened the door.  When she saw Jim standing there, her
face registered surprise and then quickly changed to one of panic.

  "What do you want? You have no business here," she spat.

  "I'm here to meet my son and take him home," Matt said sternly.

  "I don't know what you're talking about.  My daughter lost her baby.  And
now, because of you, she's dead." the woman stammered.

  Sean appeared behind his mother and said with sadness, "Give it up, Mom.
We know all about it.  Jane has a friend who is a maternity nurse. Imagine
Jane's surprise when she congratulated Linda on her new nephew."

  "You are not taking my grandson! My daughter did not want you to have
anything to do with him! My children died trying to protect him from you!"
the crazed women screamed.

  "Mrs. Butler, my name is Rose Smith, and I'm from the county Family
Services department.  This is Mr. Flannery's attorney and Officer Weekly.
We are here to remove Mr. Flannery's child from these premises, and if you
attempt to prevent it, you will be arrested," Rose told her.

  Sean opened the door and let everyone in.  His mother glared through her
tears at him and backed away, not meeting anyone's eyes, "Sean Butler...you
are no longer my son, for doing this to me and your sister."

  "You know, Mom, I'm very sad to say I have no problem with that.  What
you, Linda, and Joe were going to do was just plain wrong; no...it was
evil," Sean said.

  The sound of a baby crying caught everyone's attention.  They all looked
at the stairs and saw Linda's father coming down, carrying Jim's son.  He
walked over to Jim and placed the baby in his father's arms, but never
meeting Jim's eyes.

  "Jimmy, you have no idea how ashamed of myself I am for allowing this to
happen.  I'll make sure you never have any more problems with my wife."

  Jim looked at his son with tears in his eyes, raised the baby up, kissed
his forehead, turned to show his new son to the others and said,
"Everybody... I'd like you to meet James Kelly Flannery Jr.,"

  Jim kissed his son again, and the baby smiled at him, "We'll call him
Kelly; `cause we sure don't need another Jimmy," Jim announced, as he
beamed with pride.

  "He already has a name on his birth certificate!" His mother-in-law
screamed at him.  "I won't let you get away with this, Flannery! I'll fight
you until I die, you son-of-a-bitch!"

  Sean and his father both cringed at her outburst; but, Jim didn't react.
He handed the baby to Rose and said, "Finn, you're on."

  "Mrs. Butler, as Mr. Flannery's attorney, I am informing you that we will
be filing for an order terminating your rights as a grandparent and asking
the judge to issue an order to prevent you from contacting, or attempting
to contact, Mr. Flannery or his children."

  "Never!" "I'll fight you; I'll fight you!" she screamed, as her husband
grabbed her and forced her out of the room.

  Sean helped Jim and Finn gather the baby's personal belongings, his car
seat, and his "Sleep-and-Play." Rose Smith and the Officer left and the
three men and the baby drove to Sean's house to spend the night.

  When they arrived, Jane met them at the door, barely able to contain
herself in her excitement to meet the baby.  She kissed Jim, "Hello;" but,
she immediately took the baby in her arms and began to coo and kiss him.

  "Jim, I hope Sean has told you how sorry we are about all this.  We
really were trying to figure out how to let you know.  That's why I was so
squirrelly when you called yesterday," Jane said.

  "It's okay, Jane. I know you two didn't have anything to do with this
craziness," Jim said.

  Jane put the baby down for a nap and the adults all sat down for a talk.
Jim explained to them that he would drive the rental car back down to
Jacksonville in the morning and that Finn would remain behind to handle the
legal issues.

  "What are you going to do about work?" Jane asked.

  "Well, that's a long story; and it's all pretty amazing, actually."  Over
the next hour and two pots of coffee, he filled them in on everything that
had transpired since moving into the new house.

  "So, your friend, Matt, is going to baby sit for you?" Jane asked a bit
surprised.

  "Well, he did an exceptional job with his own son, and I think between
him and his father and me; we will be fine, until I can hire a nanny,
anyway.  And too, you all know that Matty is already almost nine years old,
so even he can help," Jim added with a laugh.

  "It looks like you've got it all worked out," Sean said with a smile. "I
just hope you'll keep us in your life," he added with a hopeful look at his
wife.

  "You two are welcome in our house, anytime.  The boys need their aunt and
uncle," Jim said with sincerity.

  The next morning, as Sean helped Jim load the car for the trip back to
Wilmington; he looked at his brother-in-law and noticed how much Jim had
changed since the last time he saw him.  It seemed to Sean that Jim just
kept growing muscle upon muscle.  He wished that this visit could have been
under different circumstances.

  Jim noticed the looks from his brother-in-law; but, he didn't say
anything.  When Jim married Linda, Sean, who was only two years younger
than the couple, had a serious case of hero worship about Jim, and he
wasn't shy about it.  Things progressed; and, whenever Jim let his guard
down and got a craving for sex with a man, Sean took Matt's place. Sean was
the only other male that Jim had ever fooled around with sexually.

  When they finished packing the car, Jim hugged his brother-in-law and
said, "Don't worry about anything, Sean, I still love you like a brother,
and I hope you and Jane will stay in touch and visit soon," Jim said.

  Jane came out of the house carrying Kelly and handed the baby to
Jim. Kelly cooed, grabbed his dad's finger, and kicked his feet with
excitement as his dad strapped him into the baby seat of the car.

  "Will you look at that? Only one day, and he's already a daddy's boy,"
Jane said, and laughed as she kissed Jim goodbye.

  "If he's anything like Matty, and I hope he is, he'll be asleep before we
make it to the corner," Jim said as he closed the car door.

  He kissed and hugged both Sean and Jane, saying "I really can't thank you
two enough for what you've done. Make sure you get Labor Day week off;
`cause I've decided that's when I'm going to have the baby Christened, and
I want you both there. I thought about this last night.  I wanna do
something a little different; I'd like the two of you to be one set of
Godparents to Kelly and my sister and Matt to be the other.

  Both Sean and Jane looked at Jim in amazement and with tears in their
eyes.  They both hugged and kissed Jim again, saying they wouldn't miss it
for the world. With that, Jim slid behind the wheel of the car and headed
south, to begin his new life as a single father with two boys.

To be continued...

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