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Chapter 1 It was early December and in a rare bit of bad weather around Boston as the snow was falling hard. The night was the worst night you could pick to travel. Up to four inches of snow was expected to fall overnight. That wasn't the real problem, the problem was that it was near whiteout conditions in Boston at times. Despite the bad weather there were some hearty travelers braving the storm to get to where they needed to go. In the Tip O'Neill Tunnel things were going smoothly until a sudden three car pileup brought traffic to a halt. The accident was horrific. One car crashed head-on into the side of the tunnel while a second flipped over twice crushing the roof and front end. Two cars were totaled; a third had some minor damage and drove off. The state police were quick to arrive but the scene was a nightmare for them. Multiple Boston EMS ambulances were called along with rescue trucks from both the Boston Fire Department and Somerville Fire Department to extricate the victims. When they arrived it was believed they were to be of little use to the occupants of the cars. But that changed suddenly as a firefighter inspecting a black sedan noticed some movement in the backseat. Someone was alive and trapped in the wreckage! All efforts now shifted to helping the poor victim in the crumpled car. The driver and passenger were both dead but by a stroke of pure luck the roof hadn't fully crush around the poor child in the rear. The seat belt was cut away and roof cut out allowing access. It looked like they were peeling back a sardine can but they made every effort to save the poor child. What they found was even worse than expected. The child was unconscious from the shock and blood loss. Parts of the interior were pierced badly in the child's groin and there were bits of flesh visible through the pants. The metal and plastic somehow stopped the flow of blood but removing it could cause the child to bleed-out. They had to take the parts with them, the ER doctors were better suited to remove them and keep the child alive. The ride to the nearby Mass. General ER was tense as the EMTs kept pressure on the wounds to keep the blood vessels from being damaged further. Inside the hospital, doctors immediately assessed the situation and called for a pediatric surgeon for a consultation. Knowing what happened to the others in the car the head nurse asked if they should call social services getting a quick, "Given the look of this wound, better make it an immediate request. It's bad, someone needs to stand up for the child." Mark Sylvester was the one who received the call. He listened closely and told the nurse, "I am sending a legal advocate over immediately. He will act as the child's parent until arrangements can be made by us regarding custody. All decisions will be made by him and him alone." The nurse asked for the man's name, to which Mark replied, "Ricardo Ramirez." Mark called Ricardo immediately and gave him the necessary information. Ricardo lived in a West End condo complex overlooking the hospital and quickly agreed to help. Mark then made a second call, the one that he hoped he wouldn't have to make but it was needed. He called the Samuels Family, Olivia and Richard Samuels who were close friends of his and whom he trusted completely. Olivia Samuels answered and immediately had tears in her eyes. The family just completed fostering a pair of brothers whose mother had been too ill to care for them but this was different. The two boys were regular boys who simply had no other close relatives and needed someone to watch them, once their mother recovered they returned to her care and move on with their lives. Olivia heard the new situation and was adamant. "We will help out any way possible." Mark nodded, knowing that the Samuels family was perfect. Richard was a doctor and Olivia a former nurse. The child needed someone to help recover from wounds and needed someone to ensure that mental health issues didn't emerge. They were the perfect foster parents for this case. Ricardo arrived at the ER within minutes of hanging up on Mark. He was immediately greeted by the head nurse and shown to where the child was being treated. It was bad. Ricardo had to fight back illness seeing the bandages and IVs in place around the groin and legs. The doctors brought him up to speed once he explained what he was doing there. Ricardo asked if the child had been made aware of the extent of the injuries to which the doctors admitted they didn't want to cause undue stress. Ricardo shook his head. He sharply told them, "He has to know. This is his life in the balance. He needs to be the one to make the choice. Nobody but him can do it." The doctors awoke the small boy and told him softly, "You are in Mass General Hospital. You were involved in a terrible car accident. Your genitals were severely mutilated by the car's interior. You have to make a choice about how we proceed." The boy looked up and saw Ricardo and the doctors. Ricardo told him softly, "The metal severed your testicles and ligaments, damaged your urethra, and left several large lacerations to your penis. There is very little that can be done to save it. You will never be able to father children but your life isn't over yet. You have three options. Option 1 is to try to create a new penis from your skin. Due to the need to reroute your urethra it won't work like it did before and it would look nothing like a real penis. Option 2 is to remove everything and let you decide what to do later on. You could have a penis created from other skin but it'll never get an erection. Option 3 is the doctors perform emergency vaginoplasty to create a vagina so you look like a normal girl. You would have to live as a girl from now on." The boy was silent. He looked at the doctor and asked softly, "Is it that bad?" The doctor nodded, telling him, "The tears just won't close without removing some of the skin making it thinner and shorter and we have to relocate your urethra. I am sorry that it's an impossible choice for you to make but it's yours and yours alone." Looking at Ricardo he cried and told him, "I don't want to be a freak." Ricardo leaned in and softly admitted, "You won't be. I have known several young ladies who underwent this procedure after traumatic incidents to their genitals and they turned out alright. You are young enough to look like a normal girl your own age and given time and hormones you can become a beautiful young woman." The boy had more tears in his eyes and told them sharply, "Just do it. I don't want to be a freak but I don't want to be a sexless eunuch." Ricardo signed off on the surgery, assuring the former boy, "You are going to be alright. It'll take time to get adjusted but the people who are going to be taking care of you have extensive experience with children with issues." Ricardo and the doctor left to let the boy settle down before being taken to the operating room. The attending doctor asked what he knew about the foster parents, Ricardo simply told him, "One is a highly regarded pediatrician, the other is a former nurse. Both are used to transgender children." Olivia arrived with Mark and were greeted by a somber Ricardo. The nurse and doctor brought them up to speed explaining what had transpired and what the boy's choice had been. Olivia asked about the surgical team's experience with this kind of injury and were told they had done the job multiple times before with two being extreme cases that were similar yet different. Ricardo softly told her, "They worked on Reyna and Nichole" which Olivia nodded at. The doctor asked how he knew two of the patients' names to which Olivia admitted, "One is my next door neighbor, the other I took care of during her recovery. He is our go-to advocate when our main lawyer would be seen as being biased. He was trusted by the Department of Children and Families to make the right choice." The doctor understood exactly what she meant adding a quick, "Then I believe you probably also know another of the patients" which Olivia added, "Probably two others. Both for true birth defects and one of which the team saved her life." Dr. Richard Samuels was alerted to what happened and came as soon as he could get off his shift. He went right for the boy's charts and saw some issues with it. He discretely told the nurse in charge, "We need to move her to a private room and keep the chart out of sight from casual observers. This is a huge liability issue and we need to protect her secrecy at all costs." The nurse had to confer with the attending doctor who agreed with Richard, adding, "This is a major privacy issue and we don't want this to get out to anyone. The media might try to sniff around soon once they catch wind that someone survived. Nobody is to speak about her outside of her room from now on. Full secrecy protocols are in effect." Olivia called home to tell her son Richard Jr. what was going on. Richard Jr. listened closely then told them, "Just do what you need to do. I'll have the room ready for when she is ready to come home. The last thing she needs is to have me around her. I'll stay with Reyna if need be." Olivia tried to talk sense to him but Richard admitted, "I am not pushing her away, you and I both know that she needs space. She doesn't need me hanging around making her uncomfortable and afraid I might say something." Olivia had to agree, the boy was doing what he was doing for the right reasons. Ricardo and Mark talked about next of kin for the soon-to-be girl. Thinking it over, if nobody was found Ricardo recommended that Olivia and Richard foster her permanently. Mark agreed, telling him, "I'll talk with the State Police about who the two people who were killed were. They may be able to find something in their system or we might have to have someone from our office do an investigation. It'll be several days to get things going, she needs Olivia and Richard's support more than anything else at this time. I just hope that when she awakens she can help us find her family." Meanwhile in the tunnel the State Police were finishing up their own investigation into the accident and were trying to find information about who was involved in the crash. They looked inside the purses of the victims in the second, more heaving damaged car and found home addresses for the two women. What is more they found pictures of a young teen girl, their presumptive next of kin. In the car where the survivor was found they couldn't locate any names or identification. The two who died didn't have anything, just several thousand dollars in cash and two guns. They recognized some gang tattoos on the man, this would be their clue. There had to be something about him in their system, but they would need fingerprints to figure out their identities. The troopers called in the information about both and had the bodies held at the Medical Examiner's Office until further notice. Their next stop was the home of the women, they needed to contact their next of kin and sadly it looked like it was going to be that girl. This was going to be difficult for both troopers but it needed to be done. Richard had moved his things into the Toro home for the short stay when he saw a State Police cruiser pull up next door. Reyna, Lupe, and he watched closely, the two troopers rang the White-Clark doorbell and waited several minutes for someone to answer. Reyna texted Francesca to tell her to answer the door and waited for her to respond. The two troopers were greeted by the tall, skinny girl. They asked her softly, "Is your mother Wendy White-Clark?" Francesca nodded then asked, "Why do you want to know? Has something happened to her?" The trooper asked if she was also related to Belle White-Clark to which Francesca again nodded telling them, "They are my mothers. If you must know they are married." The troopers grew solemn and announced, "We regret to inform you but both were just killed in a car accident in Boston." Francesca wailed loudly. Reyna ran over to her while Lupe got on the phone to Valerie Finn to seek her help. Valerie happened to be talking with Mark when the call came came so she informed him about the deaths. After a few minutes of talking Valerie told her calmly, "Tell them you will be taking her in until arrangements can be made regarding her care. Tell them that representatives from DCF are now aware of their deaths and will have her placement taken care of." Lupe parroted what Valerie told her. The troopers took down Valerie's contact information and left so Lupe could attend to Francesca. Richard just shook his head, telling Lupe softly, "I'll tell the others." Richard sent out a mass text to all of the teens. Within seconds his phone started to ring with Jaimie being the first one through. She listened to what happened and through sobs she told him she'd talk with Sean Beretta and Ben Herman about her missing school. Francesca was in no condition to go to school and she doubted she would be allowed back until the start of the New Year anyway. Sean understood and gave his blessing. The Hermans went one further and discussed who would care for Francesca. Jaimie's interest piqued, the two were reluctant family members so this was abnormal behavior. Whatever was going through their heads was going into new territory for them. Ben just shook his head and told her bluntly, "We can't let her go to foster care, she needs family. You know better than anyone what is going to happen. She won't get the right care, she won't get the love and support she needs. We could even lose her to the system." Beth was too broken up to say anything so Ben told her their real reason, "We are both orphans. My parents were killed in a house fire, Beth's parents were killed in a boating accident. She needs people who know what she is feeling and understands what to do." Jaimie softly asked, "Are you hoping to foster her?" Beth, through sobs, told her, "We have to. She needs us." Jaimie walked to her home and told her mother what the Hermans had said. She nodded silently, John though told her, "Mark will have to investigate them but we believe she is a good fit with them." Valerie added a soft, "I'll look into her affairs and Ricardo will act as her advocate. Wendy and Belle gave me a copy of their will so their wishes are going to be followed to the letter." Reyna and Lupe did their best to comfort Francesca. Jaimie called and told Reyna what was happening regarding the Hermans. Richard asked Francesca if she was alright with them taking her in, to which she, through constant sobbing, was able to tell him, "I don't want to be a bother. Mrs. Herman already has enough trouble with little Benny." Richard sighed and had to tell her, "They are doing it because they care about you and they know what you are experiencing. They and Jaimie are the only ones who lost both parents so suddenly. They try to be distant from us but they care about us more than any other student. I'll be honest, Mrs. Herman needs someone to help her overcome her issues with Benny. She has depression and the way she is acting she might not return to teaching once her sabbatical ends." Reyna asked what he meant. Richard drew another deep breath and told her the truth, "Mom and dad are concerned about her. She isn't interacting with anyone lately and when Mr. Herman is home she all but secludes herself in her office. Despite Aunt Beverly trying to get her involved in our lives she has kept away from most of the family. Maybe you can help her out. She needs someone to talk to and someone to show her that she is a good mother. She needs confidence, you can give it to her." Francesca was quiet but nodded in agreement. She loved Ben as a teacher and looked forward to having Beth as her teacher the next school year. She was torn about what they were asking her to do. She was just 14 and barely a young woman, this was out of her depth but she had to do it for her. Lupe added a somber, "Postpartum depression is tough on some mothers. We are all concerned about her but we were hoping that the holidays would perk her up. Ben is trying hard to get her out of it but this might be one thing he can't help with. But you could. She wants to help you, she needs someone to show her that she is a good mom and you need people who know you and care about you. They really do care, the love all of you kids as family even if they don't realize they are family themselves." Francesca asked when she was going to move in with them. Lupe smiled and told her softly, "Whenever Mark gets the paperwork sorted out. He has to find your next of kin if there is one." Francesca now cringed, tears forming in her eyes. She somberly told her, "Their parents are alive. Mom, Wendy, was disowned and her father told her he would kill her if she ever returned. Mum, Belle, was told that her father would take out a restraining order against if she ever contacted them again. I don't know what Mark can do but I don't want to go with either of them." Lupe hugged her deeply. Reyna nodded and texted Mark to tell him what she said. She then texted Valerie and alerted her to possible troubles in the future if they weren't careful. Valerie texted her back a quick, "They won't succeed." Valerie and Mark were sitting in the dining room after he left Olivia and Richard at the hospital. It was a tough night for him and it was only getting worse. He couldn't locate the boy's next of kin and they had no help from the State Police regarding who they were. Ricardo was concerned that there might immigration issues if not something worse that was going on with them. Ricardo was on edge about the investigation, something didn't smell right about the accident but he couldn't put his finger on it. Francesca's predicament was going to become complicated once her grandparents learned that she was an orphan and would likely seek custody of her. Wendy was a talented writer who had made a fortune with a hit book series that had sold millions of copies. As her sole heir, Francesca was going to be a multimillionaire from the royalties and from her still to be published final installments. Belle was also a talented writer in her own rite but made her biggest mark as Wendy's editor. She too left behind several million in royalties and fees to be paid to her by the publisher for her services rendered that year. With millions of dollars at stake Francesca was going to be the target of a tug of war from three sides. Valerie looked over both wills and it was ironclad, Francesca got everything from her parents and none of their possessions went to their fathers. The wills speculated that Francesca was to be taken care of by the Finn Family as a whole with several candidates being specifically named. She went down the list of people and asked the, personally if they were willing to care for Francesca. Lupe, Lilly Peterson, and Gabby Lawrence all declined as did Tanya and James York. They all said that the only people who had to be considered were the Hermans. This wasn't a spur of the moment thing, their kids had all told them that they thought Francesca should be cared for by the Hermans and they too agreed with them. Valerie strongly agreed as did Mark, they were the best people to care for Francesca. Jaimie's talk with them cleared the way and Mark had the paperwork ready to go as soon as the office opened up once the building was cleared of snow. He and Valerie also prepared adoption papers, they knew that it was inevitable and Beth and Ben were never going to let Francesca think of herself as anything but their new daughter. Mark's phone rang and he calmly told the people on the other end, "Arrangements are being made and temporary care is being sorted out. Any further inquiries should go to Mrs. Valerie Finn, executor of the White- Clark estate. Further, any inquiries about the well-being of Ms. White- Clark are to be handled through Mr. Ricardo Ramirez." Mark listened for a minute then smiled, telling the person on the phone, "I am sorry but I can't divulge that information, I am merely Ms. White-Clark's social worker." Closing the call, Mark told her bluntly, "The first of the vultures is circling. Belle's father just called and is demanding to know how you were appointed and who is paying for Ricardo to represent her." Valerie just smiled and told him, "Reyna worked fast." Mark just grinned and told her, "It wasn't Reyna, Miguel is footing the bill. He loves her like a niece and will be footing the bill for their funeral." Valerie grew grim for a minute as she thought about the other child involved in this situation. She asked softly, "Is your other client still in surgery?" Mark looked at his watch and nodded, adding, "She won't be fully awake for at least 12 more hours. Hopefully she is up to giving us more information about who she was and who her parents were. I also had Dr. Eliza set up an appointment with her. Jaimie and Sam canceled their appointments so she could talk with her." Jaimie and Richard were busy helping Francesca gather her things. Francesca was quiet, not saying a word since the troopers came. Reyna had been by her side the whole time and barely managed to get her to eat dinner before the two came over. Jaimie gave her a deep hug, sobbing with her as Richard and Reyna held back. Francesca softly asked her, "How did you get over losing them?" Jaimie solemnly told her, "I never did. You don't ever get over losing your family. You accept that they are gone and hope they have gone to a better place. I know that they wouldn't want you to dwell on the loss, they would want you to move on and be the best person you could be. The Hermans are good people, they need you as much as you need them." Richard had several bags of clothes packed and announced softly, "I left the intimates and other things for you to pack. That's something I don't want to see from any of you girls." Francesca had to fight the urge to giggle but lost it when Jaimie calmly told him, "I guess you don't want to see mine" which had the effect of causing him to nearly choke from the sudden shock and realization of his words. Reyna herself added, "It's not like we are wearing thongs or see through bras. Well some of us aren't, I don't know about Jaimie." Jaimie faked a blush which got Richard to quickly rush out with the bags. Francesca hugged both girls, adding a happy, "I needed that. You two are the best." Reyna just smiled and told her, "It's what friends do. You needed some humor and Richard was willing to endure that just for you." Jaimie added, "He knows what I look like naked but he doesn't want others to know that he liked it. Wait until you get your own boyfriends, you will learn how to do that too." Over in Boston Olivia and Richard awaited their foster daughter's return from surgery. Ricardo had the paperwork appointing them as her temporary guardians all set. He also added, "I was told to give you the bad news. Wendy and Belle White-Clark were killed in the same accident as your foster daughter's parents. She is going to be my client as well and will be staying with Beth and Ben Herman." Richard thought it over and shook his head. His only thought was, "How is Francesca taking the news?" Ricardo admitted, "I don't know. Mark called me to tell me that Miguel had hired me to be her advocate and that Valerie was handling their estate. Mark is the caseworker for both girls. There has already been an inquiry from Belle's father but I don't expect him to do much once he realizes Wendy and Belle took precautions to prevent what happened to Ethan from happening to Francesca." As he was talking two state troopers arrived and asked to speak with the victim. Olivia informed them that the victim was in surgery and wouldn't be able to speak with anyone about the accident for a few days. What is more they needed to know that the injuries were catastrophic and life changing and that they would need to be respectful of any requests for them to halt. They were also told that Ricardo had been appointed as advocate and Olivia and Richard were the temporary guardians. The troopers wrote the information down fast as it came out of Olivia's mouth. They inquired as to whom paying for Ricardo to which Olivia proclaimed, "That information is not your concern and if you insist we will refuse to cooperate. Who is paying him is irrelevant unless you wish to explain why it matters?" Both troopers looked at one another and nodded, they weren't ready to talk about their role yet and looked like they were trying hard to avoid asking the wrong questions. Ricardo nodded and looked towards the troopers and asked, "If you must know who is paying for my services, nobody is. This is pro-Bono and done for the benefit of my client alone. If you insist on doing an investigation into me know that inquiries will be met with suspicion by the courts as my reputation is both impeccable and your reasons will be put under scrutiny." The troopers tersely asked, "Is that a threat?" Ricardo smiled and told them proudly, "That's a promise. Better men than you have tried to cause trouble for me and failed, I would hate for your careers to be in danger for doing the same especially after you were warned off." Richard took down their badge numbers and quickly texted David Peterson who shot back a quick, "Accident investigation team, on up and up. Likely are seeking information about crash re: Francesca's parents". Richard showed the information to Ricardo who nodded then informed the troopers, "Our new source has cleared you so we will cooperate for now." The troopers took a look around and angrily asked, "Where is his chart?" Ricardo smiled and told him, "Patient confidentiality. If you try to bully your way into finding out what is going on medically I will have your badges before the ink is dried on the lawsuit against you and your department. We know the needs of your investigation and looking at my client's chart isn't it. You have information that we don't know, all of the information on the chart is legally protected and you need a warrant to get access to it." The troopers tried to bluff him but Richard pointed out, "If you are going to investigate you will find out exactly who we have in our corner and who they have in their corner. You won't be able to bully us and you won't circumvent our foster child's rights to try to make your case. You could, but you will end up in handcuffs yourself and facing multiple lawsuits and scorn from your own department." Ricardo added a quick, "This is the only warning you will get as I will be enforcing a restriction on access to my client. Dr. Samuels is not bluffing either, Mrs. Samuels just texted her source who is in contact with her own people so I expect that you will be visited by members of your own department regarding your attempt to illegally access my client's medical information without a warrant especially as it is of no actual relevance to your investigation." Their phones rang and both looked grim. The first answered and tried to create an excuse while the second tried to outright lie. The lie made Ricardo smile as he announced loudly, "We have the interview recorded. Everything you threatened is recorded and will be used against you." The troopers both looked at one another and swore, while Dr. Samuels received a text from David telling him, "New detectives assigned to case, major case squad involved. Accident was not an accident. Troopers should not be there at all!" Olivia announced, "Kennedy is on her way and is bringing some heavy artillery. Pete and Bryan are going to remain here overnight. She also said these two are going to be reassigned to patrol duty until further notice with all of their cases reviewed pending review of their breach of protocol and attempt to access medical records without consent." Ricardo nodded and told the two troopers, "As you no longer have the case you are excused and if you attempt to return you will be arrested. We will be informing the staff that nobody is to talk with police and any threats against them by officers are to be ignored." The troopers walked off to which one said, "We will get them back. They won't get away with this." This was badly timed as Kennedy Pena was just coming out of the elevator and proudly stated, "Thank you gentlemen, that is just what I needed. If you don't mind, these two internal affairs troopers will be speaking with you about this major breach of standards and protocols but it will now will include your justification for threats against the parents of a victim of a crime." The two troopers were escorted off by two other troopers and a sergeant in uniform. Kennedy stopped by the nurse's station and told the nurse on duty, "Nobody is allowed into that room without first being cleared by myself and these gentlemen with me. Any visits are to be closely monitored and all doctors and nurses on duty are to be cleared ahead of time. Any deviation from this will result in problems for your staff and an investigation by my office. Do you understand?" The nurse meekly nodded, jotting down the notes and making note of the orders. Kennedy made sure they were followed through then walked into the room greeting Olivia, Ricardo, and Richard. She was quick and to the point, closing the door behind her after crushing and tossing out the electronic bug that the trooper placed in the room. Kennedy drew a deep breath then announced, "We have located information about the family of your new foster daughter and it isn't good. Her father was a gangster who may have run afoul of the rest of his gang or police that he was paying off. Her mother was a madam who ran a brothel out of a home in Mattapan. Neither were good people and their relatives have long since refused to deal with them. Mark has their contact information and will be calling them in the morning but I doubt they will do anything about her. You two are going to be caring for her indefinitely." Kennedy grew solemn as she stated, "Wendy and Belle were caught in the wrong place at the wrong time. The accident was no accident, the cameras were fully working and caught the third car crashing into the other car with Wendy and Belle being hit in the chain reaction. They tried to avoid them but it was too late. The State Police have the plates of the car but they think that she might have seen them or even knew them. We think that's why they were here tonight, they were trying to make the case before the major crimes unit took over." Richard asked what was going to happen to them. Kennedy shook her head and admitted, "After what they tried to pull they are going to be taken off the accident investigation unit and reassigned to other duties until we finish our investigation into them. They have to explain why they were here without any authorization and why they were asking specific questions that weren't related to the accident. Their best hope is to be put on overnight patrol duty, but it looks like they might be suspended and be sitting behind the desk at the Kensington barracks and Massport barracks until retirement." A knock at the door and Kennedy answered, ushering in two men in suits. She introduced them as the two who will be investigating the case and asked what they knew about the victims so far. Satisfied that none of the three knew anything they asked, "Did the victim say anything?" Kennedy nodded to Ricardo who told them, "There was little time. He had to undergo immediate surgery due to the injuries." One asked, "How badly was he injured?" Ricardo solemnly said, "He is now she. There was nothing else to be done except sex change. As her advocate, I gave consent after she was told the options and she reluctantly agreed to undergo the procedure. She has counseling scheduled for a few hours after she wakes up but it'll still be a few days before she can be talked to." The two troopers were taken aback but looking over their notes it was right in line with what the EMTs had said they had seen. One of the troopers smiled and told Olivia, "This could work to our advantage. We suspect they will try to take a run at her but when she is able to she could be transferred to a new hospital for her own safety for further treatment." Richard spoke up, "New England Children's Hospital is the best for her." Kennedy then informed the troopers, "Dr. Samuels is a doctor there and knows the entire staff. The nurses are trustworthy and if it is possible we will have my cousin-in-law overseeing her care." The troopers made notes and added a swift, "Make the arrangements. We have maybe three days at best with how they are acting." Dr. Samuels made notes in the chart and spoke with the nurses informing them that she was going to be moved as soon as possible. Dr. Eliza's appointment was actually perfect cover as she was going to actually meet her there. They simply had to move her out under the guise of going to a conference room then slip out a secondary exit. Ricardo was silent but he knew best that Kennedy was going to be a bug in the investigation's ear. He then asked, "What about clothing and other personal items?" The troopers hadn't thought of that, but it made sense that she'd need something from her old home and it would help her recover more quickly. Kennedy texted someone followed by Richard. Kennedy told them, "Todd is free as is Taylor." Richard added, "So is David and Patrick. Dan has his van free so the two are going to drive that." The troopers asked what was going on so Kennedy informed them, "My nephews and my son and daughter's friends' fathers are going to help." One trooper put the name Taylor and David through his mind then asked, "Taylor Gault, the ADA?" Kennedy nodded, explaining further, "The other three are Todd Flynn a deputy sheriff, David Peterson a state trooper, and his older brother Patrick Peterson. The van they will be using is registered to Reserve Officer Daniel Lopez Sr." The troopers figured out that she knew the place was under surveillance of some sort. She added a swift, "You have been notified that they will be there. Anyone who tries to stop them will be taken into custody under my orders for interfering with an active investigation. I suspect that the gang has some Boston Police or other law enforcement on their payroll so any local intervention will be dealt with directly by their commissioner, your Colonel, as well as Taylor?s and my own office." The troopers agreed with her and informed their units to allow them access unimpeded. Kennedy then added, "Before we even do anything, Ricardo will also be there to give us the right to search the place for anything that shouldn?t be there." Ricardo added for the record, "On behalf of my client you are given full access to her former residence to inspect it for any illegal items such as drugs or guns. Any money found will be cataloged and placed into a bank account until such time that the state takes action to seize it or it is given to my client. We will of course go over the seizure rights with a certified accountant as well as a tax attorney to ensure that it is dealt with legally." Once the troopers were gone Pete and Bryan showed up and took over as guards for the night. Both had no problem doing the job and both had known much of the staff already. Bryan looked down and saw the chart was hidden from casual view and knew right away it was something serious. Pete just shook his head and calmly said, "Poor girl." Olivia nodded as he said that, they didn?t need to know the story only that this wasn?t a good situation for her. Chapter 2 Richard went home to tend to matters there. His son was already finished setting up the new room and had worked out what he needed for two weeks with the Toros. Richard tried to get his son to reconsider but he was adamant that she needed time with them and he didn?t want her feeling bad by seeing what she couldn?t become. He assured his father, "This isn?t like Rachel, she needs you two with her as much as possible. She needs a week to recover before they can consider letting her go home. Even then she has another two more weeks before she is back to normal. She needs you and mom, Aunt Lupe has already agreed to put me up for the time being." Richard Sr. just hugged his son. This was the most mature he had ever seen him. The boy was now a man in his opinion. Richard Sr. also checked in on Francesca. She was spending the night with Lupe and Reyna before going with the Hermans. She was visibly shaken but otherwise OK. He took her aside and told her softly, "I hate that this happened but it happened." Francesca asked if it was true that someone else survived. Richard chose his words carefully but admitted, "There was a little child who survived. Major surgery needed to be performed this child that is life shattering." Francesca asked him sharply, "You didn?t say he or she. Something bad happened didn?t it?" Richard drew a breath and nodded. She asked what happened to which Richard softly told her, "I can?t tell you just yet. There are things that need to be settled first. What I can tell you is the child had lost both parents and has to deal with a bigger loss." Francesca gasped then blurted out, "Oh god, surgery and you can?t tell. The only thing that could be worse for someone than losing their parents is an unwanted sex change. Oh, that poor girl." Richard nodded, trying to tell her but only being able to say, "She is undergoing emergency surgery at this time. That?s why we were being asked to be her foster parents." Francesca grew solemn. She asked softly, "Does she have any family?" Richard shook his head to which Francesca added, "Is that why this went through so quickly?" Richard didn?t have the heart to tell her the rest of the story but added, "Mark called Ricardo Ramirez and got him to take control. Mark had us in mind when he heard what was going on, he didn?t know you are involved otherwise he would have placed you with us but to be honest we all know Beth and Ben need someone to show they are good parents and help her over her depression and him over his anxiety over being a dad. Kennedy is looking into her family situation but isn't hopeful. We are set to be her parents for the long haul, it sucks but it's necessary until someone can claim her." She smiled at hearing him tell her the truth. She liked that people though highly enough about her to do that. Richard added a soft, "You are more mature than you realize and this is why we know that you are going to help them. Valerie even believes you three will want to make being family official but that?s a while down the road." Richard Sr. left, hugging Richard Jr. and the three ladies goodbye. In the morning he checked in with Olivia and found out their foster daughter was out of surgery and recovering. He went to work and did his shift, making arrangements for the transfer and ensuring that it was kept in confidence. Francesca woke up in the guest room and remembered what happened the evening before. Reyna came in and helped her get dressed, but insisting that she remains home rather than going to school. She was excused for two weeks and Valerie was coming to work with her regarding her inheritance and her parents? affairs. This was also going to follow her packing up her belongings for her move into the Herman home. Lupe dropped her off at the Finn home where Mark and Valerie greeted her. Francesca was silent but knew what they were going to tell her. Cat and JD Finn saw her and tried to get her to play only to have Valerie shoo them away. Valerie got down to business and asked what she knew about her parents? finances. Francesca helped pay their bills so she knew they had no credit card debt and with the exception of one outstanding bill that was supposed to come that morning they had paid up on all utilities and cable. Valerie then asked about their business work which would affect the estate. Francesca had to think but could only say, "Mom had one book ready for print and the next one typed up but needing editing. Mum was in the middle of editing the last book but had her notes typed out so mom only needed to retype certain parts before it was finished." Mark asked if there was a way of getting someone to do that which Valerie added, "We would need to talk with someone." Francesca told them both, "I can do it. I just need everything mum had written out." Valerie asked softly, "Are you sure you want to do that?" Francesca was adamant, telling her sharply, "I have to do it for them. I?m the only other person who knows what their vision for the book was. Mom and Mum would have wanted me to do it." Valerie smiled and agreed, but added, "We will work with the publisher to ensure that you don?t have to do anything to market the book. They may have been the contract holders for it but you don?t have to do a thing. I don't think it's wise to have you anywhere near a camera, and I doubt that they have any legal obligation to force you to do it in the first place." Mark asked her if she was alright with staying out of school for two weeks. Francesca nodded, offering a solemn, "The others won?t let me get behind and I need to work on the book anyway." Mark nodded, having Valerie inform the school and follow through with the publisher. Francesca played with the twins while Valerie made her phone calls. Looking over her notes she smiled at finding clauses that stated that only the three White-Clarks could edit the books. She pointed this out and if the publisher did not allow Francesca to edit the book and accept it as the final word they would be in breach of contract and the book would not be able to be published by them. She then added that she had the right to take the whole series along with all of Belle?s works to another publisher and have the former publisher pay a penalty on top of losing the books. They caved-in easily. The twins were aware that something happened. Francesca should have been in school at that time so her being there meant there was a problem. JD warmly asked what was going on while Cat asked, "Why is mommy keeping you here?" Cat wouldn?t let her refuse to answer and latched onto her arm pleading for the truth. JD did the same forcing her to admit, "My mom and mum were killed last night." Cat hugged her and cried, JD let go and sat down waiting for her to calm down before doing the same. Cat asked her if this was the same accident that caused a boy to have to become a girl. Francesca softly asked, "Where did you hear that?" Cat smiled and proudly told her, "Uncle Mark and mommy talk loud." Francesca had again underestimated the sneaky 3-year-old. She drew a breath and thought what best to say to them. JD was waiting for her answer so she came out and admitted, "There was a boy who was badly hurt in the accident and needed to have surgery to become a girl." Cat smiled and told her, "So she is like Reyna and Nichole and not Jaimie?" JD didn?t try to understand what she was saying, he only said, "Are Uncle Richard and Aunt Olivia going to take care of her now?" Drawing another breath Francesca softly admitted, "She is not like them. Those two were girls on the inside but she didn?t want to be a girl before this happened. Aunt Olivia and Uncle Richard are going to take care of her but she is going to need Jaimie and everyone else to help." Cat hugged her, telling her, "Mommy said you?d say that." JD followed suit and hugged her, both smiling for Francesca?s benefit. Valerie and Mark listened to the kids and mumbled softly, "She is getting too smart for her own good." Mark just nodded, admitting, "Given who her mother and cousins are you are actually surprised by that? She's just like you, but with a childish devilishness and a cute face. I hope when my wife gives birth it's a boy because I don't think I could handle another female Finn." Valerie blushed and added a somber, "She is going to be hell on earth when she is older. If we thought Hannah was bad but she is going to be 10 times worse." Mark tried to stifle a laugh and added a quick, "Sometimes I am glad I missed those fun times." Valerie?s phone rang soon after. She expected the call and put on her lawyer face. Listening to the person she drew a calming breath and announced, "I am aware that you are her next of kin. I am also aware that your first question was not about your granddaughter Francesca?s well- being, but that of the money that Belle had. I?ll say this one time and one time only: all of the money in their bank accounts, royalties from their books, all property, and all insurance compensations go directly to Francesca. After discussing the matter with her we are going to put her money into an untouchable trust fund. There is no money to be made from obtaining custody of Francesca and any threats against her or myself will be reported to the proper authorities." She added a swift, "This phone call is on speaker and was witnessed by Francesca?s social worker. Your threats of violence against me were clearly heard and he has informed his office that your actions are clearly intended to harm myself and thus pose a threat to Francesca?s safety. He will be seeking to have you excluded as a caretaker." Mark then added, "This is your official warning. I heard the threats against Valerie and you have shown that you have no concern for Francesca?s well-being and thus will issue a statement to the courts on behalf of the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families asking the court to refuse to grant you custody on the grounds of threatening behavior and imminent bodily harm to Francesca. All actions are being carried out per Mrs. And Mrs. White-Clarks? wishes and with the blessing for Mr. Ricardo Ramirez and Francesca White-Clark herself." The man swore again and threatened Mark to which he added, "That constitutes assault and I will take legal action against you." Mark hung up and called his office then the police. He gave his statement as did Valerie and presented the officers a copy of the phone call. Within hours Belle?s father was taken into custody, arraigned, and released with a warning to avoid Valerie, Mark, and Francesca. Ricardo called a half hour later and told them that Belle?s father had called him and reiterated the same threats against him. Mark told him that it was going to be taken care of then got down to their more important business. Mark had the Hermans sign forms before Ben left for school and awaited Ricardo?s call before making the transfer of custody official. Ricardo just glossed over the paperwork and told him, "I know she is putting on a tough fa?ade but she is bound to break down." Mark agreed fully, adding a somber, "Beth is a good person, she will be able to help her." Valerie gave him a glance and walked out to check on the kids. Mark asked Ricardo quickly, "Any word about your other client?" Ricardo breathed deeply then told him about the incident the night before as well as the plans to move her. Mark didn?t need to know the details and suspected it was best not to ask over the phone so he added an ambiguous, "I?ll keep back and let you do your thing and talk with Olivia and Richard. Keep an eye out for anything unusual regarding your client." Valerie waited for him to end the call before asking what was going on. Mark thought it best to tell her the truth then explained, "Another Miles situation. Only this time things are more complicated." Valerie asked about Pete and Bryan being at the same hospital, getting an odd look from Mark then realizing they were acting as bodyguards. He shook his head and told her calmly, "They won?t be needed after tomorrow. She is moving to New England Children?s Hospital for treatment. Dr. Eliza is going to do her evaluation of her after the move is finished. Nobody outside Olivia, Richard, Bryan, and Pete will know the whole situation." Valerie had to fight an urge to say something but knew that her nephews had things well in hand. They knew the staff and knew the nurses. If anyone could protect her at the hospital, it was them. Looking at the time she gathered the twins and Francesca to drive over to Francesca?s former home to get her things. Mark headed for his office allowing the four some privacy. The twins were eager to help Francesca, they knew it was because her mothers died but it was their idea of doing a good thing for a cousin that they loved being babysat by. The bulk of her things were packed up by Richard already but he purposely left personal items and jewelry alone. JD stood by his mother as Cat went with Francesca to her bedroom and boxed up her jewelry, underwear, and books. Cat stared at the intimates and blushed, she wasn?t used to handling them but Francesca didn?t have the heart to tell her to let her do it. Valerie packed up some of their photos as well as some of the electronics. JD did his best to help but wasn?t strong enough to carry anything and didn?t know what to unplug or leave alone. After a good 20 minutes Francesca and Cat came down with Francesca?s bedroom items. Cat and JD were told to sit down and watch TV while Valerie and Francesca sorted through Wendy and Belle?s personal items. Wendy was stylish and had a lot of jewelry while Belle was more demure. Belle had simple jewelry of studs and small necklaces while Wendy had larger gold patterns with jewels. They were beautiful but Francesca didn?t seem to care one way or another. Valerie could see that Francesca was holding back and softly advised her, "It?s OK to cry, you need to let your grief out. This was their personal space, you can tell who they were just by what they owned. Your mom was trendy and your mum was laid back yet beautiful. We all envied their looks." Francesca finally broke down, sobbing uncontrollably. Valerie embraced her, kissing her forehead as she wept into her shoulder. Finally able to string some words together Francesca mournfully asked, "Why did they have to die? They never hurt anyone and cared about all of us." Shedding tears herself Valerie remembered something she had heard, "Sometimes good people die. They get the worst of a bad situation for no good reason. Your mothers were victims of something terrible that was happening to another family. We will find who is responsible and make them face justice." She smiled and looked at Francesca. Valerie softly told her, "Wendy and Belle loved you dearly and their biggest legacy isn?t their writing: it is you." Francesca hugged her deeply again with the twins running in to hug as well. The two heard Francesca?s cries and came to see what was going on but held off seeing their mother talking with her. They did the only thing they could think of, they hugged her until she felt better. Francesca hugged them back, the two were just so lovable and knew when to be a brother and sister when you needed them to be. Valerie packed up the last of the personal items that Francesca wanted to take. Francesca somberly admitted to her, "Mom had a safe in the basement but the only thing inside are documents as she didn't like to keep money or anything valuable down there in case someone broke-in." Valerie asked to open it up to take out the contents and was surprised to see multiple account statements and contracts. Poring over the documents Valerie smiled at what she found. Francesca was a wealthy young woman just from the two insurance policies alone. The house was to be held in trust and only to be sold to a small list of dedicated names until she turned 21 or married. Francesca grinned and asked, "Are they going to take the house?" Valerie nodded, telling her, "They are going to announce at Christmas that the weddings are in July. One couple will stay put while the other can move in here." Francesca was pleased with her parents over their foresight. The two thought so highly of the Smith twins that they were the top priority for selling the house. Valerie added a soft, "Bryan and Paige are going to take it. Pete and Hannah like their privacy so having nobody else on their block is a big reason for them to stay put. They love us but they need their alone time." Francesca asked about all the stock and investments her mom had. Valerie grinned again and told her calmly, "Greta and James will take care of all of that at the meeting in an hour. We want you to turn the inheritance into an untouchable trust fund." Francesca grinned, nodding and saying, "Good, I don?t want people coming after me just to get my parents? money." The four drove back to the Finn home and pulled into the Herman driveway. Beth and her son Benny Herman greeted them and hugged Francesca deeply. The twins helped pull the boxes out as best they could before being put on, "Baby watch" to keep them out of the way. Benny giggled at seeing Francesca, begging her to pick him up and carry him. Beth gave her blessing and asked her to feed him his bottle while they put the boxes away. Benny stirred at hearing, "Bottle" and gave Francesca a quiet coo as he suckled the bottle and fell asleep. The twins were instructed to watch him again as Francesca joined Valerie and Beth in Francesca?s new bedroom. Valerie and Beth were giggled at something as Francesca came in. It was a picture of her trying to put on a bra when she was barely older than the twins. Francesca shed tears as she grabbed the picture, she hated anyone seeing that picture of her. Valerie tried to apologize but Francesca fled in tears to her new bedroom. Beth asked her what was the matter to which Francesca admitted, "That was the day that I found out I was adopted. I am not blood to either of them or the people who want me." Beth hugged her and stated, "That doesn?t matter. You were their daughter, you should know that you don?t have to be blood to be family." Francesca looked up at Valerie who added softly, "They loved you as their own. Jaimie, Miles, Reed, Kylie, Willie Jr. Scott, Daisy, and Ethan aren?t loved any less because they weren?t born to either of their parents. They love them unconditionally and no less than anyone else." Francesca solemnly asked if anyone else knew to which Valerie nodded admitting, "All of us knew. Rebecca and Jaimie figured it out on their own and the others suspected long ago. They knew from the start, it?s hard not to notice the eyes and facial features or your lighter skin tone. You are their daughter no matter what." Francesca felt relieved and better. The three again started to put away Francesca?s things only stopping when Beth questioned Francesca?s choice of lingerie. Francesca blushed as Beth told her, "I don?t think I like the idea of you wearing something so revealing underneath your clothes." Valerie countered with, "Didn?t you wear the same to school at her age?" getting a laugh and blush from Beth. Francesca went downstairs to check on the three kids who were now soundly asleep. Valerie quietly asked Beth, "Did you ever envision yourself having that kind of discussion with a daughter?" Beth nearly choked as she heard that then smiled, admitting, "I never thought I?d have a daughter. I love Benny but I don?t know if I could ever go through with pregnancy again." Valerie smiled, adding a quick, "There are other ways to motherhood and the paperwork is ready for when you are." Beth was taken aback by her words. She was quick to deny this, telling her, "I?m not a good mother. I can barely get by doing things for Benny. I don?t think I am cut out for motherhood at all." Valerie shook her head and told her, "All of us thought you would say that. Sometimes your humbleness needs to be tempered by reality. You are a good mother. You don?t have a good model for dealing with babies nor the experience, but you are a good mother. You already showed it just by putting away Francesca?s clothes. Only a mother would react that way towards her new daughter?s lingerie. Trust in your instincts. You'll do fine if you give yourself the chance." Beth was near hysterical over hearing that. She was shaking at the others thinking that highly of her abilities. Valerie moved closer and per her hands on Beth?s, comforting her. Beth murmured, "I can barely keep myself together. If I didn?t set reminders I?d forget to put Benny to bed and forget to feed myself. I don?t know why I keep doing it but I just feel so overwhelmed by being a mother." Valerie tried her best to sooth her then admitted something she never shared with anyone, "When Michael was born I was the same way. I felt helpless and hopeless. My parents worked hard to help me get things in order but I kept struggling to do the basic things. Lance had left me all alone with just my parents to guide me but they didn?t know what to do. I talked with a counselor and she assured me that I just needed confidence and what I was experiencing was part of being a new mother. Beverly and Karen haven?t had this problem with Jack and Nigel as they already knew what to expect but I know Leslie will have the same issue as you. Kennedy had some anxiety but nowhere near what you are feeling and she had Reed to help guide her. You aren?t alone and you aren?t a failure. You are Elizabeth Charlotte Herman, a devoted wife and now mother to two." Francesca sat down next to them and hugged Beth. Beth looked at her in astonishment but Francesca softly told her, "Richard and Reyna said you were having problems but you are doing just as well as the other mothers. You are a good mother, Benny is healthy and happy and loves you. Mom and Mum wanted you to be my new mother because you are a good person and know you will do what is right for me. I don?t want to go to another foster parent, I want to stay here with you." Beth had to give in and agree while Valerie mouthed, "Well done" to Francesca. Francesca asked her to sign the adoption paperwork, she didn?t want to leave which caught Valerie off guard but added, "I thought you would give it a week or two before you asked." Francesca meekly admitted, "She needs me now and I don?t want my grandfathers to have a shot at getting custody of me." Valerie agreed, with the three talking for another hour until it was time to wake the twins up for lunch. Over in Boston things were quiet. Pete and Bryan being there caused a small stir but the staff knew best not to gossip as their family was adamant that nobody talk about the patient and made it known that they would lose their jobs if someone did talk about the child out of turn. The two nearly 19- year-olds treated the situation as an extension of their basic training, bringing their military mentality and ability to endure long periods of utter boredom and tedious work. The nursing staff respected their devotion and any parents who inquired about their standing guard were cautioned with, "Best not to ask as you may not like the answer. They are of no threat to your child." The cafeteria staff were asked to send up some food and sent up coffee and snacks to them with Bryan giving a nice tip to the attendant for the kindness. They shared their coffee with the nurses and told Richard to bring in a couple of dozen donuts when he came by. Olivia slept on the pullout bed in the room. Her foster daughter came back from surgery very early in the morning so she had only four hours of sleep. Pete insisted that she rest, Bryan and he were on hand to ensure everything went well and her privacy was maintained. Olivia reluctantly gave in when she could barely string together two words without her eyes drooping. Richard arrived and relieved Pete and Bryan. The two were told they would be needed that night and if need be David would be on call to help. The two got the gist of the meaning and nodded, they were going to go right to sleep and get as much rest as possible before they returned. Richard hugged Olivia and looked over his new foster daughter?s chart. There was going to be some scars on her upper thighs but the surgery was a success and all that remained was the inevitable talk with her. Neither wanted to tell her the bad news but it had to be done. He didn?t have to wait long as mid-morning she awoke to fear. The two tried hard to calm her with Olivia calmly explaining, "I am Olivia Samuels and this is my husband Richard. We are your foster parents now. You were in a bad accident last evening and needed emergency surgery. Do you remember anything from last night?" There was a groggy, "Yes" then a sobbing, "I?m a girl now." Olivia held her hand and softly told her, "You are going to be alright. Your life isn?t over because you had surgery down there." She cried and let go, trying hard to not look at Richard or Olivia. Olivia asked her what her name is getting a soft, "Al Washington." Olivia asked further, "Do you want me to call you Al?" She nodded, to which Olivia told her, "You don?t have anything to fear from us. My husband is a doctor and I was a nurse. What happened to you has happened to several other girls that we know, including my future daughter-in-law. We are going to help you adjust as best we can. We have scheduled an appointment with a doctor who specializes in kids who have undergone what you have gone through, she is kind and understanding and will work with you for as long as you need it." The girl, Al, asked about her parents. Olivia grew somber but told her, "They were both killed in the accident. That is why we are your foster parents." She let out a cry then stopped, it wasn?t what she should be doing. It went against everything her father had told her and he would not like her crying. Richard motioned for the nurse?s attention and asked for the doctor. 10 minutes later the doctor came in and explained what happened. She listened closely but silently, nodding as the doctor told her what procedures were done and why. She meekly asked, "Is there any way to undo it in the future?" The doctor shook his head no, explaining, "It?s theoretical at this time but due to the extensive nerve and ligament damage it is likely that it won?t work properly." She looked at Olivia and calmly asked, "How old are the girls who went through this?" Olivia was quick to say, "Nichole was eight, Reyna was 13, Jaimie was 12, Nichole was 8. Sam was 14 but her surgery was due to her being a hermaphrodite. Daisy was 4 but her surgery was to correct abnormal genitals. Both Sam and Daisy had female organs inside while the other three were boys who needed to become girls. Jaimie didn?t have the full surgery, she was brutally attacked and she lost her testicles and the use of her penis as anything other than a straw to pee through." Al listened closely. Olivia could see the doctor was uncomfortable hearing all of that so Richard told him, "Two who underwent full surgery had to undergo emergency surgery after assaults, both were done in this hospital." The doctor wasn?t entirely convinced this was a normal situation but Richard sharply told him, "Both were my patients, I don?t expect you to understand their situation and they were only mentioned because your patient needed assurance that she wasn?t alone in her ordeal. If you have a problem with this then please by all means ask to have another doctor assigned." Al listened closely and tried to hide her smile. Olivia caught a glimpse of it and knew she was starting to trust them. Al thought to herself, "These two are serious but I don?t like what happened to me." The doctor did his initial examination and made some notes then complained about Al's chart being not where it should be. Richard put it back out of view and admonished him, insisting, "This is strike two. You might be her doctor but that will easily change." The doctor tried to admonish him telling him, "Mr. Samuels with all due respect you may be Mr. sorry Ms. Washington?s foster parent but don?t tell me how to do my job." Richard proclaimed, "My name isn?t Mr. Samuels, it?s Dr. Richard Samuels, MD. I am a pediatrician and emergency medicine specialist at New England Children?s Hospital with over two decades of experience. If you feel the need to tout your credentials you will find that yours will fall well behind mine especially as you are just a first-year resident barely out of medical school." Al listened again as Richard tore into the young doctor for his arrogance and inability to follow rules. The nurse came in and set the chart out of sight and instructed the young doctor, "Dr. Samuels left instructions for a reason and it was cleared by the chief resident, I?d advise you to follow them or the chief will have words with you. He has a decade of pediatric experience, you are still new. He also happens to be highly respected and someone whose opinion on child health is not to be questioned." The doctor left in disgrace, mumbling under his breath. The nurse just shook her head and advised Richard, "He won?t last. It?s only five months into his residency and he is starting to show signs that he can?t hack it." Richard nodded, adding a somber, "If somebody doesn?t get him to pull his head out of his butt he might be out of luck. He lacks proper guidance, but it?s not entirely his fault. I?ll speak with him later, if he doesn?t take the advice of someone who has been there and done that then I don?t know what else to do for him." Al turned over and softly asked, "Is he always like that?" Olivia thought and smiled, proudly telling her, "He knew a few doctors who coasted through medical school because of their families and who went on to cause several patients to die because of their errors. He swore he would do his best to correct the errors of colleagues especially the younger ones. He cares about kids and doesn?t want any to get hurt, making one young doctor learn the error of his ways will help dozens if not hundreds in the future." Al smiled at that. She never knew someone who cared about anyone else. Her parents only cared about themselves and barely took notice of her. She tried to think of good memories but the only ones that she found were of her mother and father kissing her goodnight when she was three. After that they were different people and she didn?t get the attention she sought even when she was sick or hurt. Mark called to check in on Al. Olivia told him her name and that she was getting comfortable if still in pain and groggy. Mark asked if she knew the details of the accident to which Olivia told him, "We still haven?t asked and it?s too early to disturb her. We will try later when she is fully awake." Mark understood and added, "OK I?ll allay and inquiries from the State Police until after the move." Al fell asleep soon after with Olivia heading home to change and shower. Richard worked out the details of the move through texts with Nigel Smith, who kept things cryptic in case others intercepted his texts. Bryan actually knew the details and split the information among Pete and himself. They were doing the actual coordinating and did so from their fiances Hannah's and Paige?s phones. The whole setup was a bit clunky but it worked. Al slept for only a short two hours and watched Richard as he examined her chart and made notes on it. He looked over at her and smiled, unsure what to say to her. She in turn kept quiet, she didn?t know what to say or do. The two just sat in silence, the TV playing in the background with Al not really paying attention to it, instead keeping an eye on Richard. Chapter 3 As Al and Richard were doing their silent dance Ricardo was over in Mattapan with Taylor, Todd, David, and Patrick. They were joined by Olivia and Miguel, who refused to sit by and let them do the heavy work alone. Taylor and Ricardo were in charge, with Ricardo having all the necessary paperwork on hand in case things got dicey as he fully expected it to be. The house had people inside already. Taylor called the Boston Police and Massachusetts State Police to have them send units. He then called the head of the Boston Police Patrolman?s Associate to inform him that several officers were about to be arrested for breaking and entering and impeding a state-run murder investigation. Ricardo opened up the door with Taylor right behind. David and Todd had their handcuffs out while Miguel and Patrick went around back. Taylor announced loudly, "To whoever is inside the building, you are here illegally. We have the building surrounded and will not hesitate to arrest you." There was a loud crash and several footsteps towards the back but the men inside were caught by Patrick and Miguel before they could flee. Taylor looked at them and laughed. He told the others that he recognized the officers as members of the gang unit that he constantly had trouble with regarding legal issues. The two had caused multiple cases to be tossed out damaging or even scuttling several investigations. Now he finally had them dead to the rights as they had no business being in the house. Taylor announced loudly, "Check their car, there is evidence in there." David acknowledged and found the city-issued unmarked car up the street. David received a text from the surveillance team that they had the men discussing what they were trying to find and had video of them removing several boxes. David texted back, "Evidence secured. Will not touch without forensics. Do not attempt to go near car you will be implicated if you do." David made the phone call using Taylor?s phone. The team was en-route as soon as he hung up. Within seconds the phone rang and the detectives assigned to the actual case asked for an update. He told them, "The surveillance team is on scene and claimed to have video of them entering." David received a surprising, "They weren?t assigned until an hour ago and are en-route to your location. Tell them to come to the unmarked cruiser. My team, the only one assigned, is arriving now and has you in sight." David thought about the situation and realized that his phone was likely compromised. He shut down the other phone and called using his own phone and had them come forward to identify themselves so he could speak with them in person. The team came out of a yard facing the Washington home and showed their badges. David noted they weren?t detectives and more importantly they were unarmed. David?s other phone called and informed him, "Place them under arrest. They were warned two days ago by Assistant Attorney General Pena and her team to not interfere with an investigation and are suspended until further notice." David pulled out his gun, smiled and told the duo, "Hands behind your back, you gentlemen are under arrest for hindering an active investigation." The duo tried to struggle causing Taylor to come came over. David explained what they had to which Taylor told the duo, "Illegal phone tapping and now you have interfering with an active investigation. You were removed from the accident investigation so you have no business being anywhere near this house. That wasn?t a suggestion that Kennedy Pena and the AGO detectives gave you, that was an order." Todd came over and wrote something which Taylor indicated to David to go check out. Taylor took his phone back and called Kennedy then the South Boston barracks to pick up the wayward troopers and place them in a cell while he processed their arrest. Taylor?s phone rang with the actual surveillance team stating they had sight of the house and were going to be on scene until further notice. To boot he texted their identification information and added, "Clear this with the Suffolk County Detective Unit" which Taylor shot back, "No need, I had the information already." Patrick and Todd pulled the wayward Boston cops out and sat them next to the state troopers, the two groups began arguing with one another to which Taylor loudly proclaimed, "So you know one another? Good, now we know you were working together. Thank you for verifying what we already believed. So criminal conspiracy charges are now being added to your breaking and entering. Patrick added, "We found them carrying a crowbar and saw a safe with marks on it." Taylor just shook his head and added, "That damage means that you also have destruction of property and tampering with evidence charges added on top of burglary. You guys are going for the hat trick." The Boston Police came to try to claim their officers but were told sharply, "This investigation is a state matter. Charges have changed for them and your department will be informed of the situation." The state troopers who were there to assist took the four into custody while the Boston officers tried to cry foul only to have Taylor inform them, "We don?t have to justify to any of you what is happening. Your department and union representative were notified that two officers were being placed under arrest. You can cry foul all you want but this is an active scene so unless you are going to a work traffic detail for the State Police please leave this minute." The officers received a radio call informing them to exit the scene immediately per order of the police commissioner himself. They were then told, "There will be an additional State Police presence is in the area so until further notice any calls on that street will have them responding alongside our own units Do not interfere nor hinder their responses." The officers just groaned and left, Taylor just ignored their glares but noted they were staring constantly at the four in custody. Things just got more interesting. He called the Boston dispatch and asked that the two officers assigned be barred from any responses in this area. He then called the detectives direct and informed them, "Keep an eye out for those two officers who just left. They are in on this. They didn?t take their eyes off the four in custody." Taylor got a quick, "Noted and two additional units will follow up on them. Your hunch could be right, this is bigger than just those four." As Taylor was talking on the phone outside and otherwise distracted, inside the house David looked at the safe and saw that they were actually just about to break it open. It was larger than expected, it took up much of the crawlspace behind the stairs. Ricardo gave his blessing to finish the job, whatever was inside there was important. Patrick looked it over and simply banged in certain spots weakening the frame and allowing David to force the tumblers out of the way so it could be easily opened. Inside was over $2 million in cash. Ricardo immediately called Beverly Bollinger who informed him, "Deposit the money then I?ll file a claim. She might be able to get it cleared as she was the victim of a crime and it was rightfully found in her home. Take it immediately to our bank, I?ll call ahead and have the appointment made so you can put it into her account. Don?t tell anyone else about it until you have to. It?s legally hers and if the troopers take it then she will never receive a penny of it and it may not end up in any known bank account if my hunch is right." Ricardo hung up and told the others to get boxes. The filled them with the money and put them inside Ricardo?s car. Al?s other things were left alone, this was more important. Inside the safe once the money was removed Ricardo found some jewelry and documents that gave a new life to Al?s situation. The deed to the house was in her name, the utilities were in her name, and the insurance policies named her as the sole beneficiary. She had over $20 million in policies from a few different companies, he could see that her father prepared for the inevitable but the bad news was Al needed to wait until she could receive her benefits. Ricardo drove off with the money and documents as the others closed up the house. Miguel noticed across the street a familiar car and three familiar faces and knew they were going to have to explain things soon. Todd and David caught his gaze and recognized them as well, with Patrick finally saying, "This just got interesting. I hope Joshua and Peggy are keen on keeping an eye on the place for us." David was the first to reach the Raymond home. He rang the doorbell and was shown inside, followed by Olivia and the others. Joshua asked, "Is the new true? They were killed?" David sighed and explained, "They died, as did the White-Clarks. Their death saved Al from dying along with the Washingtons. It's a tough situation but Al lived through that hellish crash." David had to write down, "Can?t talk freely, ears and eyes on us" as he was speaking to the Raymonds. Joshua nodded while Astrid gave them some drinks and talked about other things. David wrote down, "Watch the house. Nobody is supposed to go inside. Call police if you see someone going inside. No Boston Police allowed inside, any seen call this number." He wrote down the number to the detectives unit and added, "Only speak with him. He is the lead investigator for us." The six said their goodbyes and drove away. Joshua Raymond kept an eye on the place as did Peggy. Astrid though was the bold one and walked through the neighborhood and noticed multiple unmarked police cars several of which she knew were Boston Police. Whatever was really going on they were going to be told in due time but she suspected that with Olivia there it meant that Al Washington was alive and well which was all that mattered to her. Joshua feared for the worst but Astrid wrote down, "Olivia was with them for a reason" which relieved his fears. Peggy shook her head in disbelief but wrote, "Ricardo found what was hidden, Al has future secured." Astrid wrote out, "Al has other problems, my friends worked the scene and told me how bad SHE was after the crash. It's worst they've every seen." Both Peggy and Joshua looked at her in shock. Astrid nodded, writing down, "No way Al is able to be a boy anymore. Olivia is her foster parent for that reason. Al is a girl now." The three sat in silence watching the street and the house. Astrid had seen horrific scenes as a Boston EMT but that was one of the worst that she had ever heard about. She felt for Al, but knew that she was with the right people. Greta Nelson and James York met Ricardo at the bank. It was one of the most respected banks and the one that held all of the children?s trust fund money as well as the main savings accounts for the family. It was unusual to request a personal meeting regarding the opening of a new trust fund but this was an emergency and Greta and James held a lot of sway thanks to the other funds. Greta was in no mood for chic-chat and got down to business with the manager, "We are starting a trust fund for one Alexander Washington. This name is provisional as it is going to change in the near future. This account is going to be a child?s account and all information is to be kept private as per your rules. Do not release any information to any law enforcement official without a proper warrant and notify the three of us of anyone who tries to obtain information about the account even with a warrant. We will be declaring the money to the IRS and state and are invoking multiple clauses to the tax code to allow it to be tax free. Again any inquiries regarding the account are to be refused without a proper warrant and any threats by parties against you are to be logged and will be prosecuted by the state." Greta signed the paperwork alongside James and Ricardo. Ricardo handed over the money and watched as it was counted. The total sum was just over $2 million, Ricardo took all of the paperwork and handed copies to Greta and James and left. The bank manager didn?t know what to make of the situation but knew not to deviate from Greta?s instructions lest John Finn pull the trusts from his bank which would mean he would be fired in retaliation. No sooner had Ricardo, Greta, and James left than two state troopers tried to demand to have access to the new account created for Al. The manager kindly told them, "May I see your warrant?" The troopers tried to bluff him to which the manager pointed out, "Without a warrant you cannot have access to the account. Further I was advised to contact the proper authorities regarding anyone who tries to access that account without proper legal right." The troopers threatened the manager and physically tried to intimidate him. He signaled for security and had two large men on them explaining to the troopers, "If you have no actual business here, please leave or you will be arrested." The troopers tried to threaten them but the security guard simply smiled and pointed to the cameras telling them, "Video and sound were taken of your threats against us and will be presented to the proper authorities." The manager made the necessary phone call and was told to copy the recordings and save it to a secure place. Ricardo returned and obtained the copies, telling the manager calmly, "The money from this old account has been transferred to a different account under an assumed name and is being held in a new secured trust that has been created. Whose account it is under is not going to be disclosed to you nor your bank. There is only $100 in the old account so it remains open. I thank you for your time and diligence and we have given notice to your superiors on behalf of your biggest account holder about the fine job you did today on behalf of your customers so expect a bonus soon." Ricardo left and knew he was being followed. He called Willie Pena and told him what going on to which Willie was slyly telling him, "Come by the station so the two of us can discuss things personally." Ricardo read between the lines and smiled, Willie was going to have his people stop the two tails. Even if they managed to bluff their way into the station they had no business there and would be tossed out while Ricardo slipped out the back door. The ensnarement worked as at the foot of the Ferry Street off-ramp two Winnisimmet Police cruisers were waiting and stopped one SUV. The second slipped by before they could box it in but the sergeant at the front desk was alerted to the impending visit. Ricardo parked in the lot and walked inside, getting a nod from the sergeant and was buzzed into the secure section of the station for his meeting. The men in the SUV tried to bully their way past the desk sergeant demanding to be let in, brandishing badges as they did so. The sergeant smiled then pointed at the cameras and announced, "Sorry but this is the Winnisimmet Police Department not the Boston Police Department, please state your business and I?ll have whomever you wish to speak with paged. If you continue to yell like you are doing I?ll have to place you under arrest for disorderly conduct." The two tried to threaten the sergeant but made the mistake of doing so in front of two Winnisimmet Police officers who were exiting the secure area. Both were taken to a side room and given their Miranda Rights then told, "State your business immediately." The two claimed they were following a suspected thief to which the officers took down the information regarding what they had witnessed and what they believed the contents contained. The officers read back the statements then told the two officers, "Right, we will investigate these claims while you wait." The officers were led down to the holding cells and placed inside. They complained but the two Winnisimmet officers stated, "You are being detained pending an investigation into your claims, you were warned by the desk sergeant to cease your attempts to enter the secure station area. Regardless of being officers or not you are not in your jurisdiction and had no right to enter the secure area without authorization or a Winnisimmet officer escorting you." The occupants of the adjacent cells burst into laughter as the two Winnisimmet officers left. The two knew exactly what was happening, they were just a short distance away and diverted to the station to assist after the cops slipped past the off-ramp trap and came into the station using the rear entrance so they could head off the officers from inside. They were just waiting for confirmation that these two were neither assigned to nor allowed to investigate what they claimed to be investigating and expected lying to police charges to be added to their disorderly conduct charges. Upstairs in Willie's office, Ricardo and Willie talked about the investigation. Willie suspected there were a dozen members of the police department and the State Police that were involved. There were now 12 people directly linked to the case. His own people were alerted to some strange chatter among the gangs and were suspicious. The officers were all current or former members of the gang task forces. He knew the State Police officers involved from his own work with the joint task force and knew they had ties to Mattapan and the gangs there that he and his team weren't able to get them removed from the gang unit for. Something stunk and until Al was able to talk freely with detectives they couldn't solve the case. His wife Kennedy was alerted to the attempts to get at the money and at Ricardo and she herself told him, "I had complaints from both gang unit commanders about interfering with their work. The funny thing is there was nothing going on in that neighborhood so there was no interference in their work which to me means those officers and troopers were acting on their own. They are involved in something and it has to be regarding whatever you found inside the house today." Ricardo nodded writing down, "$2 million." Willie nearly choked in shock but saw that he was serious. Kennedy added a somber, "What you found has been taken care of and the proper people were notified. Lookouts are in place and a visit tomorrow will be the last visit any of us make there until this whole situation is resolved." Willie closed out the call and saw Ricardo out through the backdoor. Willie?s secretary drove Ricardo?s car around for him, not asking any questions and knowing that if Willie asked her to do something like that it was for the greater good. Ricardo slipped her a note telling her, "Expect calls from officials in Boston and State Police. Do not put them through." She nodded and walked away, tearing the paper apart while placing the shreds into the trash barrel inside the secure area. Ricardo drove on and didn?t see anyone tailing him. He stopped off at the Herman home to speak with Francesca and Beth while Valerie took the time to give Beth a breather regarding Benny. Beth silently thanked her as the twins eagerly took Benny for a walk. Francesca knew he was going to talk about the custody situation so she came out and shot back to him, "I?ll sign whatever forms I need to sign to get the process started." Ricardo asked her if she was sure, getting a solid, "I don?t want my supposed grandfathers to get me. They never cared about mom or mum and they were terrible to them whenever they did contact them." Ricardo smiled and asked, "Do you have any proof that they were terrible?" Francesca nodded, showing him threatening letters from both men that she had in her box of important documents. She told Ricardo with a strong voice, "They threatened to have me taken away because they were lesbians. Neither have ever met me but both threatened mom and mum several times over the years to take me away." Beth read the letters and shed a tear. They were so hurtful and violent. Ricardo just grinned and proudly stated, "These constitute threats against your safety. Your mum?s father already threatened Mark and all but assured that he would never be granted custody. Your mom's father did the same with these." Beth looked over the notes and asked, "Given that they have stated that they refuse to acknowledge her as their granddaughter how is it that they plan to care for her?" Ricardo grinned and nodded, she had a point. Francesca calmly told him, "Mom?s dad gambles a lot and he probably has massive debts. That?s why he was always threatening mom, she would send him money to stop harassing her. If he somehow gets custody of me he can pay off his debts and do what he wants with the money." Ricardo asked if she had proof, she took out some documents and showed bank old transactions to his account over the course of several years. Beth smiled and felt relieved, Francesca herself smiled and admitted, "The casino that he goes to routinely cuts him off. If you ask them they will gladly tell you about his account with them. Mom used a private detective who found out the truth." She showed the invoice to which Ricardo examined thoroughly. Ricardo called the number and asked to speak with the man and got the runaround until he mentioned Wendy?s name. The man stopped his evasion and asked what he was after to which Ricardo explained the situation. The man was eager to assist, Ricardo then told him, "I?ll hire you to do a follow-up investigation as this now impacts Wendy's daughter Francesca. It shouldn't be too difficult to do the same investigation into him again." The man laughed and proudly told Ricardo, "For Francesca? Hell I?ll do it for free. The man is scum and if he is after her it?s going to be a cold day in hell before I let you spend a penny on her behalf. I?ll do some digging, give me a few days. It?ll take that long anyway for him to get a court hearing and serve you notice but he is crafty and will try to force you to do what he wants." Ricardo grinned and happily announced, "His counterpart already tried that and ended up with a pair of silver bracelets." Francesca smiled at hearing the exchange. Ricardo assured her, "Your parents were great people and for someone like that to give up an easy payment for you the two of them made a positive impact on him." Francesca just nodded her head, she heard they were beloved but it?s another thing entirely to see the direct result of that. Looking at the time Beth informed them that they needed to get the paperwork signed so she could see Jake about changing her records to reflect the change of custody. Ricardo handed them over and then explained everything, Beth signed and Ricardo witnessed. Ricardo then handed them the adoption paperwork to which Francesca read fully and signed, handing it to Beth so she could sign. Beth held off, asking that Ben be there to sign it with her. Ricardo reluctantly agreed but Francesca kept silent, feeling terrible at seeming to be overeager. Beth drew a deep breath then told Francesca, "I don?t feel right signing this without Ben. I know you are intent on staying here with us but I need his vote of confidence first." The three drove to the high school to collect Ben and finish the forms. Jake Bollinger was in the office and greeted the three warmly, giving Francesca a caring hug. The secretary made the necessary changes to Francesca?s records and Jake gave his blessing for Ben to drive her to and from school. Ben arrived and the group was shown to the conference room. Ben did the usual, "Are you sure this is what you want?" as Francesca showed the paperwork to Ben. Francesca said an enthusiastic yes to which Ben signed. Beth seemed reluctant but Ben and Francesca both put their hands on hers giving her the courage to sign. With that out of the way Jake informed Francesca that John had informed her teachers about her sad situation and gotten her clearance to work from home. Her English teacher was the only one reluctant to allow her time off but Jake soothed over the situation. Ricardo informed Jake, "She is going to be editing her mom?s final book" which Jake quickly stated, "Then there is no need for any English work as she is already doing something more advanced than what she would be learning. As long as Beth keeps track of her progress she will be excused and given credit for it." The four left before Francesca was noticed, barely making it out without being seen by most except for the vigilant eyes of Jaimie and Reyna. Back at the Herman home Ricardo took one final look at the paperwork and announced he was going to file it with the court. Beth and Ben were informed that they would have to attend the custody hearing as soon as it was known with Francesca being told, "You don?t have to appear as their intimidation won?t work without you." She countered with, "I have to go. Their ruse won?t work if I am there. Over in Boston Olivia returned to find Richard sitting silent with Al asleep. Olivia told him about what happened in Boston but kept the conversation of what was found and what they suspected away from the full story. Richard told her, "Dr. Eliza has confirmed tomorrow?s appointment and Al is doing better than expected but she is still reluctant to open up." Olivia looked over at her sleeping form and couldn?t help but feel some pain over Al's constant and frustrating troubles. She admitted, "It?ll take time. She just met us and needs to see that we can be trusted. Maybe tomorrow she will open up but for now she is still not fully over the surgery?s affects." Richard didn?t have a chance to reply as there was a knock at the door. The nurse handed them a note which caused Richard to make a phone call. Olivia read it and shook her head. This day was just kept getting worse and worse. Richard?s call ended and he announced, "They are on their way. This time they are bring with them a big court order." Olivia didn?t need to ask who it was, from the look on Richard?s face it was going to be war and he was getting ready for battle. He rarely showed that kind of anger, the only times before she had seen it was during Daisy Peterson?s surgery refusal situation and the way that the English hospital administrator acted regarding Nichole Smith. This was even closer for him, this was someone in his care and he was going to fight tooth and nail for her sake. Richard informed the nurses not to allow anyone onto the ward who wasn?t medical personnel. The nurse in charge reiterated to her nurses that they were to follow his orders. Richard headed back to the room and waited for the text from his people. It came within a minute much to his relief. Out on the ward the nurses were calling for security as two men tried to barge their way inside. Mark and Kennedy announced to the men, "State your business on this ward." The two officers claimed to be there investigating a gang-related crime. Mark nodded to Kennedy who then announced, "We know for a fact that you are not here for that reason and are being given your official notice from the courts. Stay away from Ricardo Ramirez, David Peterson, Patrick Peterson, Todd Flynn, Wilfredo Pena Sr. Olivia Samuels, Richard Samuels Sr. Richard Samuels Jr. Taylor Gault, Astrid Raymond, Joshua Raymond, Margaret ?Peggy? Raymond, Valerie Finn, Al Washington, and any and all family of said people. Failure to comply will result in arrest. Attempt to intimidate any person to coerce any of the named will result in arrest. This is issued from the Suffolk Superior Court and any infractions will result in immediate arrest." Kennedy issued her own subpoena and stated, "You are hereby ordered to appear before a Statewide Grand Jury sitting in Suffolk County. Failure to appear will result in your arrest. You are also hereby ordered to stop any and all action at the Washington Family residence in Mattapan. Any further attempt to investigate on your own will result in your arrest. Any further attempts to enter the home will result in your arrest on burglary and criminal conspiracy charges." Kennedy smiled and stated, "We know who is supposed to be there and who isn?t. You managed to upset three departments and none of them wants anything to do with what you are trying to do. You are not investigating and we will find out what is really going on. Stay away from all of the previously named and your sentences might be light. Continue to try to intimidate them and we will have no choice but to throw the book at you. I don't threaten, as any of your colleagues will happily tell you: you don't mess with my office. See you in court, be there or you will be arrested." The two left but Kennedy further added, "We have you under surveillance so do not even attempt to take out your wrath on any of the previously named people. If anything happens to them you are all going to be the ones to take the fall. Whatever it was that you were going to pay someone to do your dirty work is money wasted. You'll only cause your charges to get bumped up to federal RICO charges." Kennedy walked over to the nurses and announced, "We are transferring patient Washington this evening. This will be done without your prior knowledge and with only a few people knowing. The hospital has been notified and is expecting it so do not attempt to interfere with the move and do not ask where the patient is going." The nurse readily agreed, Kennedy was on a roll and she didn?t want to get on Kennedy?s bad side. Mark just shook his head and smirked. Kennedy on a tirade was one thing he never wants to be on the opposing end of. He alerted Taylor about the encounter and the court orders. Taylor said he was coming by to hand deliver them to the heads of the Boston Police and Massachusetts State Police gang units and would personally distribute them to all members. Inside her room Al listened to what happened outside. She looked over at Olivia who was watching her. Al softly asked, "What?s going on?" Olivia sat down on the bed and told her, "You are being moved to a different hospital tonight. We are taking precautions to ensure that nobody bothers you and those who may be responsible for the accident are kept away from you." Al softly said, "They were the gang unit. Dad used to deal with them a lot. Mom had them as clients and dad paid them off for the right to operate in our neighborhood." Olivia shushed her, telling her, "We can?t talk freely here. You confirmed out suspicions but please, for your own safety, don?t talk about that yet. We'll talk about this when it's safe." Al sniffled, apologizing for causing trouble. Olivia stroked her hair, telling her, "You did nothing wrong, it?s they who did it. We don?t want them to know any of our plans yet and we don?t want them to know everything that you know." Al understood but kept saying, "I?m sorry" as she grew tired again. Over in East Boston, David was confronted by two troopers in plain clothes. He spotted that something was amiss right away and called for his supervisor to respond immediately to his location. David tried hard to ignore their presence until he was confronted by them to which David again ignored them. David?s sergeant responded and was slipped a note that said, "Violation of court order taking place, told to place them under arrest for violation per order of AGO." David calmly asked what he could do for the two to which both said, "We need to speak with you about this morning." David tried to play dumb and draw out what they meant by saying, "Oh you mean my double parking? I tried to tell my brother that he needed to move faster but he didn?t do it." One of the two grunted and hissed, "We are talking about your trip to Mattapan this morning." David nailed them. He nodded to his sergeant who indicated to keep talking. David asked, "What, you mean my visiting my pseudo-cousin?s grandparents and aunt? I haven't seen them in weeks and wanted to say hello to them since i was in the neighborhood." The second one hissed, "You know what house we are talking about, the Washington home. We need to talk with you about what you found inside." David feigned ignorance and asked, "What was I supposed to find? We were only there to collect some personal affects for a resident of the home, the little kid who lived there." The first troop asked, "Did you find any documents? Any money stored in a safe?" David nodded to his sergeant and announced, "I?d tell you but I don?t have to say a thing. You two are already in violation of a standing court order and thus are going to be placed under arrest. My sergeant here will read you your rights while my lieutenant phones your office to inform your lieutenant that you broke two outstanding orders that were issued against you that he is currently in possession of. You will have to explain why you are investigating a place that you were warned to stay away from just an hour ago. I imagine internal affairs will also want to know why you ignored your subpoenas as you are supposed to be in front of a grand jury at this very moment. Aunt Kennedy is going to be very unhappy that her people have to rearrange their schedules to accommodate you." The sergeant read them their rights and called for transport. David called Kennedy and alerted her that the two had already broken the order which she prompted told him, "Ship them right to East Boston Municipal Court, the deputies will be waiting for them. They are going to be denied bail and placed into isolation in Nashua Street until this mess is sorted out." Ricardo fared no better than David did as the Boston Police officers tried to speak with him at his office while he was with Francesca and Beth. His secretary told them that he was unavailable and then issued them copies of the court order and told sharply, "You have been served. If you attempt to ask any more questions and I?ll call the police." When they stated they were the police she smiled and added, "Not for long." When they refused to leave she phoned the police, with Willie Pena personally taking the call and explaining to them, "My wife just issued you a court order and you chose to ignore it. Just be glad I am placing you under arrest instead of her colleagues, you wouldn?t want to see her when she is angry. The Hulk has nothing on her. Todd had the funniest moment. The two Boston officers stopped by the Winnisimmet Police at the foot of Ferry off-ramp showed up at the deputy sheriff training center and tried to bully their way around. The deputies just laughed, the officers were in no position to force them to do anything. Todd toyed with them by asking them, "Let me get this straight, you two men are threatening me inside our training center, in a city that is not your jurisdiction, while I am in the company of several deputies that have been with the sheriff?s department for longer than either of you have been alive? And you two expect me to be intimidated by your badges and posturing?" The two officers again tried to act tough only getting laughs while Todd smiled at them. He ignored their request then kindly told them, "I was going to simply ask you to go take a hike but seeing as you insist on being pests I?ll just show my colleagues here a little piece of paper I was given an hour ago." Todd leaned over and watched as his buddies burst into laughter and nodded to one another. Three stood up and called for the recruits to come inside the office then proceeded to show them the proper way to arrest someone for violating a court order. The recruits noted the deputies? stances and watched as the two cops tried to struggle to get away. Todd just sat back and relaxed. Those two fools saved them an hour of training. There was no substitute for the real thing and they were providing the recruits with plenty of visual experience. The recruits were then instructed to note how even those who knew how to arrest someone could still be subdued if they had the right leverage to which Todd added, "Even seasoned police officers can be subdued if you do it the right way. These two clowns are now going to experience life from the other side of the bars." The two were issued their Miranda warnings then the recruits informed, "These gentlemen violated a court order. They were warned to stop acting as if they were investigating a crime when they in fact may be participating in one. They are members of the Boston Police Department gang unit and are now going to be under arrest and detained for violating the court order and tampering with a major state police investigation. That?s just for starters; they may have additional charges levied later on." After the wayward officers were hauled away by their colleagues Todd explained what was going on without giving away too much information. His sergeant and lieutenant were both in agreement that this was dirty through and through. They had the novel suggestion of getting an order from the court to allow the removal of personal items from the home leaving anything that wasn?t personal to the new homeowner making whatever claims the dirty cops had against them moot. Todd liked the idea and called Ricardo and Kennedy. Both agreed with the deputies, it was ingenious and cunning. The only way the dirty troopers and cops could stop them was to get a Superior Court order themselves and it would have to be an extremely valid reason which none of them had. They were essentially cut out without any recourse. What is more, the new owner would be able to get what was needed while leaving anything that wasn?t needed behind. Kennedy obtained the order within minutes, the judge was keen to assist them after hearing that it was going to directly lead to the outing of multiple dirty officers. Ricardo got his own copy within minutes and alerted David and Patrick of the plans to go the next morning. Mark added that he would try to get a list of what was wanted and what wasn?t needed with Al?s comfort being the most importing thing. Chapter 4 Al was growing bored. She missed playing video games and surprisingly she missed her school. She knew she could never go back but she still missed some of her classmates and her old teachers. Olivia sensed Al needed to talk and asked what was bothering her. She sniffled and told her, "I miss my friends. I know they are going to abandon me because of what I am now, but I still miss them." Olivia asked what she meant and was told, "The kids heard about boys who became girls and say nasty things about them. They heard about one girl in Winnisimmet who caused a whole town to cease to exist because she didn?t want to be a boy anymore. Any boy who acts girly is beaten up and any girl who acts like a boy is tormented. It?s horrible." Olivia fought for the right words but Richard beat her to the chase showing Al a picture of Jaimie. He softly told her, "This is the girl who caused the town to not exist anymore. But she didn?t actually do it, some very bad men did. She just wanted to be a normal girl and her dad wanted to adopt her but a bad man tried to stop the adoption by doing some illegal things. This led to many other people in the town being found doing illegal things and causing their government to be shown as corrupt and inept making the town dis-incorporate and their county reorganize." Al was intrigued and asked for more information. Richard told her the story of the Finn Family?s origins. He told her all about Jaimie and how through her many families were changed for the better. He then showed her pictures of all of the kids at Mark and Leslie Sylvester?s wedding and asked her calmly, "Can you pick out the three who were like Jaimie?" Al looked closely but shook her head. Richard pointed out Reyna, Kylie, and Nichole getting a shocked gasp from Al. Olivia added a soft, "Nichole and Reyna had emergency surgeries like you had. Reyna already started to look like a young woman but her surgery kick-started her development further." Al asked about Kylie getting a quiet, "She, thankfully, has been spared the trauma of the sudden change. She is more girly than any of her friends. She does have to endure some bigotry due to still having boy parts though. Unfortunately, it?s part of life that all have to face regardless of circumstances." Al looked down at her groin area and sighed. Olivia added a soft, "The girls are going to help you out. Our son is helping set things up for you at home and is going to give you some space so you can get used to our home." Al was shocked an asked, "Does he know about me?" Olivia nodded then added, "He knows all about you and knows that you are going through a tough time dealing with this so he will give you some space. But don?t be scared about what he thinks, he is dating Jaimie and both Kylie and Nichole are her cousins. Jaimie and her family have an amazing capacity to understand people who need love and affection like you. They even have a whole group of us coming together as a big extended family. As long as you stay with us you are considered part of our family." Al was floored. Richard added, "As far as school goes, you are going to go to a school that has two of the best and most understanding principals." Al asked, "Am I going back into the 6th grade?" Olivia nodded, adding, "Both principals dealt with Jaimie and Reyna and Sam. They can deal with the bigoted students and parents. You mater more to them than any bad image that they may get form helping and supporting you. They care more about your rights than about people complaining." Al asked, "Who is Sam?" Olivia thought how best to describe her then told her, "She is a young woman who we all thought was transgender but it turned out she had an unknown but serious birth defect that caused her to be female internally and male externally. She almost died because doctors didn?t know she had girl parts inside. When she had her first period we found out the truth and she had surgery." Al grew solemn over hearing that. Deep down she wished she could have been like that so she could just pretend that she was a girl from birth but it wasn?t meant to be. Olivia admitted, "Sam is a very rare case. She hasn?t changed who she is just because she was always a girl. You don?t have to change who you are because you have a vagina. You are you and nothing can change that." Al asked, "So I can still like video games and comic books and wrestling?" Olivia giggled as Richard blurted out, "Rebecca has been hoping another girl would play the same games as her. She is tired of beating Michael and Will in ?Call of Duty? all the time." Olivia added, "There?s some books that Reed, Eric, George, and Michael can lend you that you might enjoy. They are normally for older kids but given what you have had to endure reading and looking at pictures of violence doesn?t really seem all that bad." Richard added, "Kylie has one set of books you could borrow as well, it?s a little sweet and funny but it?s a nice read." Al asked about Rebecca and why she was so special. Olivia smiled and told her warmly, "She grew up a tomboy, always putting up with boys who thought they were better than her because they were bigger and stronger just because they were boys and she was only a girl. She showed them just because she was a girl she could be better than them at their own games. She is great at sports to the point that she might give Richard, Miles, Scott and Will a run for their money. But she is also just as much a girl as any of the others. She endured a lot of problems because girls were jealous of her beauty to the point of bullying her but when they found out that she could make people look 10 times more beautiful than anyone else they left her alone. She was the first to wear makeup and did so well nobody notice that she was wearing any until a little bit of fun with Jaimie, Kylie, and Nichole?s cousin showed them." Al looked in disbelief to which Richard admitted, "She is a good person and was the first girl in her grade to have a real boyfriend. The two have been together for nearly three years but until last year they didn?t admit that they liked each other in that way." Richard showed a picture of Rebecca which Al had to look at closely and denied she was a tomboy. Olivia giggled then showed a picture of Rebecca playing volleyball earlier in the year and Al had to admit that she was both beautiful and sporty. She stared at the boy standing next to her and asked, "Who is that?" Olivia smiled and proudly told her, "That?s Thomas, her boyfriend. Next to him is her friend Jessie who is just as athletic as her but isn?t adept with makeup as Rebecca." Al looked at the girls in closely. She didn?t want to be a girl but she had no choice. The girls wanted to be girls or grew up as girls. It didn?t seem fair that she was stuck like she was but she knew she didn?t have to be different just because she was a girl down below. Her silent self-loathing was interrupted by the doctor coming to check up on her. Richard stepped out while the doctor checked Al?s lesser wounds. He didn?t need to be in there with her making her any more uncomfortable and Olivia knew the procedure as well as anyone so she would stop him if he did or said anything out of line. The doctor did his exam and didn?t do anything out of the ordinary. When he left Richard pulled him aside and talked with him in private. Richard fatherly told him, "I have spoken with the head nurse and you are in major trouble. Your work ethic is fine but your bedside manner needs a lot of work. You need to learn to listen to those who know more that you and accept advice from your nurses. These children need you but if you can?t learn to accept that you are still a student you are going to be out of a job and practicing medicine in another country. You have the makings of a good doctor, you just need humility. Check your ego at the door and don?t try to act like you are smarter than everyone else in the room. We have all endured this problem but only you can overcome it. Just take my advice and listen to those who know. If you can?t, you won?t last here or in any major hospital. You family can?t save you from yourself and if they try to intervene they?ll end up cutting you off to save themselves." The doctor heeded his warning. The nurses were thrilled at his sudden turnaround especially the head nurse. Richard just told them the truth, "I learned long ago not to ignore my nurses. The last time I did I ended up with a son." The group burst into laughter as Olivia gave him a glare. Richard looked at the time and told Olivia, "It?s time." Olivia?s phone rang and the only reply she got was, "We are downstairs. The forms are signed and ready." Olivia turned to Richard and then signaled to the nurses the move was on. Richard unhooked the monitors and secured the IV lines while Olivia secured Al onto a gurney. The move was swift and seamless, Richard took the chart with him and gathered all of their belongings while a second nurse helped move the gurney. They stopped at a different floor then moved to another bank of elevators down the corridor. This time they went straight down below and were met by David, Ricardo, Pete, and Bryan. Al was transferred to a different gurney and loaded into the back of an ambulance while her GPS bracelet was taken off and placed on the former gurney. Olivia took this gurney and went back upstairs then around to the main entrance and were swiftly met by the dirty cops who tried to force Olivia away from the gurney. Olivia resisted and was struck by two of them prompting bystanders to grab the cops and force them to the ground. Olivia stood up and announced, "Exactly what do you think you are doing?" The cops told her sharply, "We are here for our witness. We are taking him into protective custody." Olivia asked, "Who exactly is that?" One stated, "Al Washington." Olivia nodded as the bystanders flashed their badges and promptly stated, "You are under arrest for assault, attempted kidnapping, and violating court orders." The bystanders were no ordinary bystanders, they were Boston Police officers and ones assigned to internal affairs. The hospital receptionist tipped them off that there were Boston officers trying to enter the hospital without reason looking for Al and followed Ricardo and Richard?s orders to alert the real cops quickly. Olivia gave them a copy of the court order to which they nodded and told her, "Wherever Al Washington is going you are should avoid for the time being. If possible take a different car there. They aren?t alone and are watching your car." Olivia drove home. She texted Richard that she wouldn?t be there that night but would come the next day if possible. Richard texted back that things were fine, that she needed to check on their son?s well-being and get some sleep in her own bed for the night before going to get Al?s possessions. Richard was fine. He and Reyna were friendly and after a quiet night he drove her to school. She was so used to him already after nearly a year of being neighbors that he was practically a brother to her and he saw her as just one of the family. The day was slow and monotonous especially considering they didn?t have one of their members there. The others were upset over Wendy and Belle?s passing but they were more concerned about Francesca. Reyna and Richard assured them that she was taking things better than anyone could hope and Ben and Beth were preparing for her to move in that morning. The only ones undeterred were Jaimie, Iris, and Rachel. They knew more than the others but couldn?t share. Reed kept quiet for other reasons, he knew about the investigation into the Washingtons as well as about the troopers and cops trying to intervene or hinder things. Sam was the quietest, her grandparents texted her the bad news about Al?s parents. She told the others, "I knew the other people involved in the crash." This shut down all talk as the others looked at her in disbelief. She admitted, "Grandma and grandpa live across the street from them. Their son used to play with Virgil when nobody else was around." Richard looked at her with sad eyes, he knew more than he let on but Sam nodded indicating that she knew as well. Sam wasn?t afraid to ask the tough questions so she asked her grandparents if he was now she. She read the news about the accident and the way they avoided telling her about Al she knew it was bad. Al survived but it was just too nasty not to have caused the damage that she suspected. After lunch Richard asked her pointedly, "What do you know?" Sam admitted, "Al isn?t going to be able to be Alexander anymore." Richard nodded adding a solemn, "Mom and dad are preparing for the worst. She is in denial but it?s going to be bad when she finally sees the damage for herself." Sam shook her head telling him, "It?ll be for different reasons over in her old school. They torment kids who are different in those schools. She grew up around bigots and ultra-masculine males who bully any ?sissy? boys. She likely already heard the horror stories about girls like herself and saw what happened to boys who transitioned. This is life ending to her, her entire life is over." Richard shook his head boldly saying, "No, it?s life changing. She may not be Alexander but she can still be Alice or Alexandra or Allie. Your genitals don?t define you, your head and your heart do. You above all should know this. She?ll survive and she?ll thrive. Mom and dad will ensure she does." Richard rejoined the others as they went to class. Reyna was listening and asked, "Is he now she?" Sam nodded. Reyna shook her head and told her, "Then we have a duty to help her. You and your brother are the only ones she knows and she is my new neighbor. The four of us have a duty to help those in need and she needs our help." Reyna spotted Francesca and Beth at the school just before they left. She texted the rest, telling them that Francesca was doing alright and was with the Hermans. Jaimie caught a glimpse of them as well, texting the others that she was to be left alone for a few days. This wasn?t going to stop her from checking in on her to ensure she was alright, but it was going to be tough to get her to open up. Once home she made her way over to the Herman home to check in on her. Beth had Benny on the floor trying to get him to sit upright. Francesca was over at the computer typing away, telling Jaimie, "I?m a little busy right now." Jaimie was shocked to see her hard at work. Ben came over and told her what she was doing and why. Beth added that it was school work for her so Jaimie felt that she wasn?t needed and left with a smile. Beth followed her outside, telling her softly, "Thank you for caring." Jaimie just nodded, adding, "We were all upset and Reyna and I saw her earlier and thought best to check on her." Beth told her about the upcoming custody fight to which Jaimie nodded and added, "Ricardo will ensure they lose. You are her mother now, and you are a great mom. We all love you as a teacher and miss you in school." Beth had tears in her eyes. Jaimie shook her head and boldly told her, "It?s the truth. Dad said that kids were complaining that you weren?t teaching and Uncle Jake said that since you were hired more kids are taking French and the other language teachers are getting jealous. You are loved by all of us for a reason, you mother us in school. You were acting like a mom to all of us students without realizing it. You are a good mother no matter how much you think otherwise. Benny is happy and healthy and now Francesca is doing better than anyone could ever hope for." Beth softly asked, "Then why do I feel like I am failing?" Jaimie shook her head and then told her, "You aren?t. It?s the hormones and the realization that you created a life and are now bound to it for the next 18 years. You need to see that you are doing a great job as a mother, we wouldn?t tell you that you are a great mother if it wasn?t true. You are a great mother, you need to tell yourself that and try hard to not listen to your doubts. It?s no different than when I first started to transition, I didn?t think that I could do it but when I talked with Dr. Eliza she helped me overcome the doubts. You can too, if you try." Beth looked and saw Jaimie meant what she said. Francesca came out and told her the same thing, adding, "We really are upset that you weren?t there this year. You do so well with Benny, better than Aunts Karen, Kennedy, and Beverly. You are doing great as a mom, even if you can?t see it. We love you and we know you are better than you realize." Jaimie left so Francesca could get back to work. Beth though sought out Ben and Benny and broke down. Ben just hugged her and kissed her forehead, he knew her well enough to know that his wife had seen some truth in their message- the girls were right and she was the last to see how great she was. Francesca rushed through the work. Her mum had done a thorough job and gave her little to actually do except delete and retype certain parts. She smiled at the words, she could hear their voices in both the notes and the files and she felt that she was seeing who they really were on the screen. It was her way of connecting with them and she loved doing it. Beth called her to dinner an hour later, she had completed 20 pages editing and had another 140 to go. Beth looked at the work and told her softly, "You should go slower, I don?t want you to wear your eyes out trying to finish this. The publisher will wait as long as they have to, your health comes first." Francesca softly said, "Thanks mom" not realizing she had said it. Beth hugged her, shedding a tear over the words. Ben looked over and asked what happened to which Beth said, "She called me mom. I always wanted someone to call me that." Ben knowingly backed away to give the two time alone so they could have their mother/daughter moment. Francesca hugged Beth back, herself crying. She told her, "I didn?t mean to say that, it?s just that mom and mum used to say that to me all the time." Beth quietly told her, "I liked it, I have wanted a child to call me that since I was a little girl. I used to dream that I?d have a little girl who looked up at me like you did and told me that. You gave me the gift that I would have waited another couple of years or more for. If you want to call me mom you can, I would gladly call you my daughter if you wish." Ben wisely let the two settle down. Benny watched eagerly as they talked and Ben finished putting the food on the table. Ben jokingly told Benny, "Looks like your mom finally accepted that you have a new sister and your sister accepted that she has a mom and dad." Benny giggled and burped, Ben shook his head at the little baby?s unique ability to make you happy by doing the little things. Dinner was quick as Francesca was eager to get more work done. Beth set a limit of 10 more pages before she called it a day. Ben added that she needed to start on her homework as well, he added that John sent her the link to his lecture and Ben gave her a copy of the class notes for biology. She just smiled at the situation, they were playing the part of mom and dad as well as teacher perfectly. She followed their orders and turned in early, settling into her new room after setting up her TV and laptop. Ben and Beth came in to hug her goodnight, which she didn?t expect. She kissed Ben and said a soft, "Thanks Dad" which he tried to ignore but replied, "Sleep well angel." Over in Boston the transfer of Al was seamless. She was put into a contract ambulance under the guise of it being a simple transfer. The people involved were friends of Paul Douglas, a member of the family and close friend of Willie?s and handpicked by him to make the move. Paul emphasized the need for speed and discretion which they were good at. Seeing Al vulnerable and suspecting that something was amiss they were eager to ensure that Al was kept safe. Astrid by pure luck happened to be working that evening and also happened to be friends with the crew doing the transfer. She caught sight of the transfer and texted the crew to be careful with Al. She also told them to tell Richard that she would misdirect anyone trying to ask about the move. Astrid?s hunch was true. Despite their best efforts it was noticed by other EMTs and talked about. She told them it was a VIP leaving. She then told them that this person was itching for a lawsuit so if they tried to find out it would point back to them and that person would gladly ensure they were out of the job and lose their certification for breaking HIPAA rules. The bluff worked. Astrid?s colleagues moved on to talk about other, less career-threatening topics while the ambulance left with Al. Richard did her a favor and texted her when they arrived and thanked her for the assistance. Astrid texted back, "We are hoping to see her at some point when she is settled in." Richard reluctantly told her, "Might be in a week or two but Olivia will agree it is smart to do so." Al was put into a private room in the ward normally overseen by Nigel Smith. Al was introduced to Nigel and once they were alone and a female nurse was with them he told her, "This is a tough situation for you but we know all about this sort of surgery and the trauma it causes." Nigel nodded to Richard who told Al, "Do you remember Nichole? Nigel is her father. He is also Jaimie?s and Kylie?s uncle. He is also Bryan?s father and Pete?s future father-in-law so they are going to be on their best behavior." Al just nodded then fell asleep. Richard had Pete and Bryan keep watch as he himself relaxed. Nigel informed the nurses, "Al is a special case so try to be extra sensitive. She isn?t like my daughter, she underwent surgery because she had to but she is still a boy inside. Please don?t force any feminine ideals on her, let her act masculine and be herself. It?ll do less damage psychologically to her." Al didn?t fall asleep right away. She was surrounded by people who were trying to help her yet she still felt horrible. She missed her parents. She felt like she is betraying them by liking Olivia and Richard. They were kind and understanding. She liked that they treated her like a person and not some pet. The thought hit her hard. She missed her parents but did she really miss them? Her mom was into sex, she caught her having affairs too many times to count. Her dad was always out with guys she knew ere drug dealers and who routinely roughed up the neighborhood adults. Nobody wanted to be Al?s friend and only really got close to him out of fear of Al?s dad. She thought it over and she really didn?t have any friends at all, just people who were OK being around her or who wanted something from her. Richard was a doctor. Olivia was a mother but she used to be a nurse. They cared about her well-being. They told her about people who went through what she did and made her feel like she wasn?t all alone. They actually cared! Al had tears in her eyes as she drifted off to sleep. She was sure she was betraying her parents, but this felt like it was worth it to want better parents. In the morning Al woke up to her new surroundings. Pete was dozing in the corner while Bryan stood guard. Richard had just left to start his shift so Al was with the guys until Olivia got there. Al stretched and felt relaxed. Pete stirred and alerted the nurse who brought Al some soup. She had to say that even though she hated that she was on a liquid diet for a few more days the food was better than the food she ate at home. Bryan and Pete gave her some privacy as the nurse changed her bandages giving her the first glimpse at her newly rearranged anatomy. She had seen bad scrapes and scratches but this was something else. It was horrid but she knew it was better than the alternative. She was a she, she could see the packing, as the nurse called it, and could see the tubes with one tube leading to what she knew was a urine bag. It was odd, but it was her life now. The nurse asked her how she was feeling to which Al admitted the truth, "There is no going back now. I?m a girl. I?m not a boy anymore." She gave her a sympathetic nod and finished replacing bandages and tape, covering her up and calling Pete and Bryan back in. Pete sat next to her and asked her how she was feeling. She told him somberly, "I?m not Al anymore." Pete looked at Bryan then told Al, "You are still Al. Is it so bad being a girl?" Al shot back, "People are going to expect me to be pretty and date boys and watch romantic movies and like ponies and kittens and all of that other stuff." Bryan grinned and told her, "Who told you that you had to do that? My sister isn?t pretty, she hates romantic movies, she may have been a cheerleader but she was the best tumbler and strongest base that their team had. You can date girls and even marry one, our cousin Iris is dating Sam and Sam is a girl. She dated Sam even before Sam found out she was a really a girl inside." Al looked at him in disbelief. Pete showed a picture of Iris and Sam kissing to which she shrieked. She knew Sam! Al asked them, "Sam was a boy? I know Sam and I can?t believe that she was a boy. She couldn?t have been one!" Bryan nodded, explaining, "Aunt Olivia and Uncle Richard are going to kill me for telling you all this anatomy stuff but she had a penis and what should have been testicles. But those testicles were just scar tissue and her penis was just an elongated clitoris and urethra. Her vagina never fully formed, instead it sealed up and became her scrotum or as you probably know it- her ball sack. Anyway the doctors had to perform an operation to open up her vagina like they did with you. She started having periods and if they didn?t perform surgery on her she would have died from blood poisoning. She likely told you all of this already but you need to know the truth about her as you know her already and will see her a lot." Al winced at the thought but was still surprised that Sam lived as a boy. Bryan told her, "How do you know Sam?" Al reluctantly admitted, "Her grandparents and aunt live across the street. They would play with me from time to time. Sam hasn?t come by that often anymore, Virgil always said she was busy with someone else." Pete giggled as Bryan mumbled, "They better not have been busy." Pete pointed out, "Sam and Iris just started dating last April and spent a lot of time together." Al asked, "Who was the boy and girl with them when they visited in July?" Bryan admitted, "The two are Neil and Faith Jones. They were there because Sam wanted to get away from the girls for the day so the Raymonds took the four of them to the zoo. The girls were really annoying so we can?t blame her for wanting to get away, playing nurse isn?t all that much fun and the girls wouldn?t let her play ?doctor? with Iris either." Al laughed. She felt better. Pete received a text and announced, "Aunt Olivia is on her way with dad." Al asked why he called Nigel, "Dad" to which Pete happily said, "He?s a better dad than my own. My parents kicked me out when I turned 18 and wouldn?t break up with Hannah. I am gladly going to take Hannah?s family name as my own when we marry this summer." Bryan joked, "There is still time to talk some sense into you, you don?t have to marry that harpy." Pete countered with, "You know you love her. She?s your twin, surely that accounts for something?" Bryan shot back, "Yeah: several scars, multiple concussions, and more bruises than I can count." Al was now laughing hard. Olivia came in and asked what was going on to which Pete gladly said, "Just putting on a show for Al." Al told her, "He?s trying to get Pete to not marry his sister." Olivia laughed and added, "If she found out he said that we would be holding a wedding and a funeral that day." Olivia asked about Al?s day to which she told her, "I saw down there." Olivia shook her head and asked if she was alright getting a nod and soft, "I?m a girl." Olivia tried to find the right words but softly told her, "Yes, you are now. But that?s alright. If you are going to be a girl then be the girl you want to be and not the one others think that you should be. You are your own person, you are unique." Al smiled. She liked her thinking. Olivia dismissed the two teens with hugs and kisses, informing them that they weren?t going to be needed anymore now that she was in safe territory. Al asked her, "Why are they wasting their time watching the door?" Olivia asked if she was feeling well enough to tell her everything to which Al nodded. Olivia looked over her chart and saw she was doing alright and her IVs were now down to just an antibiotic and she was lucid enough to understand things. Olivia drew a deep breath then told her, "The police believe your accident wasn?t an accident. Someone hit your car causing it to spin out and hit a second car. The second car hit the tunnel wall head on while your car flipped twice and hit the wall. You survived, your parents and the ladies in the other car did not." Al told her bluntly, "Like I tried to tell you before it was the gang unit. I know the two men who in the car. Dad paid them money to leave him alone. Dad has the names of who he paid and how much in the safe under the stairs. He has a lot of information at home." Olivia nodded adding, "We found a lot of money and some documents. This is money that is going to go to you. You are a wealthy young lady." Al shot back, "I don?t want it" to which Olivia added, "We know, but we put it into a trust fund for you anyway. You?ll need it for school when you get older." Looking at Al she admitted, "We know the ladies who were also killed. They were members of our large family and neighbors to us. They left behind a daughter. They lived two doors down from us, we are going to ask her to meet you so you can see that you aren?t alone in losing your parents." Al asked why she was doing that to which Olivia somberly told her, "She feels just as bad as you about your losing your parents and is a sweet and sensitive girl. She just needs to know that you are alright now." Olivia showed her a picture of Francesca to which Al immediately said, "She is beautiful." Olivia told her, "She gets that a lot" which Al giggled at. Al asked if she wanted to split the money which Olivia smiled and told her, "There?s no need. She wouldn?t accept any of it anyway. It?s yours and you can do whatever you want with it when you turn 25." Olivia grew serious and asked about Al?s parents. Al grew angry and told her, "Mom was a whore and dad was a gangster. They were terrible people. I don?t miss them." Realizing she touched a raw nerve Olivia backed off asking more questions. Al somberly told her, "I know you think you made me feel bad but my parents were bad people. You have shown me more care in two days than they showed in years. I like you, you care about me. You don?t act like you do to keep DCF at bay, you really do care about me." Al had tears in her eyes and wept. Olivia hugged her and let her cry herself out. Olivia softly told her, "We are happy to have you as our foster daughter." Al asked softly, "What about as your real daughter?" Olivia didn?t know how to respond so she put it as best she could without giving it the full commitment, "We will need to discuss this later, it?s a big decision to make. Richard and Richard Jr. will have to give their opinions on this. I don?t want you to come into the family and realize it is a mistake, we have a lot of relatives and they will want to get to know you and we don?t want you getting scared or to have any more problems. It?s tough to acclimate to and accept so many people." Al looked disappointed. Olivia knew she would be but had to tell her the truth. She turned to Al and softly told her, "I would love to have you as my daughter. I always wanted a daughter but when I was pregnant with my second child we lost her. The complications from it left me unable to have any more children. I avoided the talk of adopting for years until my sister remarried and had a second child. Our first attempt to foster a child ended in disaster as my son became jealous and was upset at losing our full attention. The girl we were fostering was in a bad way emotionally but thankfully she ended up with a couple that was a much better fit. Richard learned the error of his ways but I still want to run this by him before we make plans. We care about you and we will love you as our own if the guys agree." Al just nodded, she was disappointed but hearing the full story she understood why she was reluctant to move forward yet. She asked, "When can I meet Richard?" Olivia had to think it over and smiled as she announced, "I can have him come by tonight after your appointment with Dr. Eliza. She is going to help you deal with becoming a girl. She helps children who want to become the opposite sex but she also helps kids like you who had this happen to them. All of the girls see her as patients." Al grew silent. She didn?t want anyone else knowing about her situation. Olivia calmly assured her, "Dr. Eliza is discreet and just wants to help you. She is good with kids and will know the right words to assure you that your life isn?t over." Al gave her a quiet, "It is over. I?m not a boy anymore. My parents are dead. Al Washington died in that car. I don?t know who I am or what I am. I?m not a boy. I never wanted to be a girl." The dam had finally broken and Al cried hard. Olivia hugged her and held her tight. Al hugged her back, it was the first real comfort she had felt in years and it came at the expense of her manhood. She was scared and she didn?t know what to do. She trusted these people but it was still all new to her. Chapter 5 Over in Winnisimmet Francesca woke up late. Ben had already left for school and Benny was up gurgling and drooling over Beth?s shoulder. As she leaned down to awaken Francesca Benny giggled at seeing her. This woke Francesca who just smiled at Benny getting another giggle and coo from him. Beth made breakfast for the two while Benny sat playfully in his bouncer. The two ate in silence while Benny sought their attention. Beth asked her what her plans were for the day getting a quiet, "I?m hoping to get another 40 pages done. It?s getting to the heart of the book and mum started to ease up on the notes." Beth looked at the time and told her, "Alright, you have until lunch. After lunch I want you to talk with Valerie about the funeral arrangements. It?s important that you know what is happening." Francesca rolled her eyes and complained, "But mom, I need to do this." Beth smiled and reiterated, "I know sweetie but this is just as important. Valerie wants your input and the twins want to see that you are alright as well. They are upset and want to see that you are doing better." She pulled the twins card. There was no way she could refuse now, Cat would be worried and JD would be upset that Cat was disturbing him to allay her fears. She reluctantly told Beth, "Alright mom, I?ll do it. But let me finish tomorrow." Beth smiled and agreed, she was starting to love being called mom. Francesca worked diligently and finished early. She joined Beth and Benny in the living room where Benny eagerly demanded to be held by Francesca. He immediately fell asleep, to which Beth asked her, "How did you do that?" Francesca was as surprised as Beth, all she could say was, "I didn?t do anything, all I did was hold him. He fell asleep on his own. I think he just wanted attention from me and gave up fighting his nap when he got it." Beth noticed that he held her closely like he held Ben and her. He never did that with anyone else, not even Valerie or Kennedy when they held him. She thought to herself, "Maybe he thinks she is his sister already." Francesca laid Benny down for his nap in the crib and waited for Valerie to come over. She softly told Beth, "I think he knows something is the matter with both of us. He loves you and he likes me, maybe he wants us to stay together." Valerie told them both, "He knows you two are closer than you were before and in his mind if Francesca is there then she must be family so he is treating her like family. JD did the same thing with Miles and Cat did the same thing with Daisy and Nichole. Make no mistake, Benny may only be four months old but he sees you two as mother and daughter already." Cat asked, "Are you going to be her new mommy?" JD asked the same. Valerie rolled her eyes at the two and apologized but Beth admitted, "I think we already feel that way. She has called me mom several times and Ben and I have called her sweetie." Valerie asked if they had signed the paperwork getting a, "Yes" from both. JD looked at both and then announced, "Cousin", hugging the two. Cat just shook her head then did the same. The twins smirked at one another, they had played them perfectly. As the twins sat in front of the TV Valerie told Beth and Francesca, "Things are all set for the funerals. I wanted to know what flowers you wanted for both." Francesca had to think hard then smiled, telling them, "They wouldn?t want flowers, they would want the money people would spend on them to spent on donations to charities. It?s their final gift." Valerie nodded, adding, "We have made arrangements for a side by side burial and just need to know if you were going to have a large open funeral or small select one." Francesca wasted no time in saying, "Just us family, all of us. My grandparents are not welcome. They wouldn?t want them there." Valerie asked somberly, "Are you sure you want all 70 of us?" Francesca nodded, telling Valerie, "All of you. You meant the world to them. We grew up together and mom and mum made friends with all of you. They were never happier than the last three years when they were with you." Valerie smiled and wrote it down, telling her she had set the date for that weekend. Before she left she asked, "Are you alright with having a double funeral?" Francesca asked what she meant so Valerie told her somberly, "This is about the other couple who died in the same accident. Are you alright holding their funeral at that time as well? I would rather that David, Nigel, and the others not take two days off for the funerals" Francesca quickly agreed. They deserved to be laid to rest at the same time even if only Al and the Raymonds knew them. Valerie looked at Francesca and asked somberly, "I am not sure if you were told yet but they had a child who survived the accident. Ricardo is also representing that person. Olivia asked if you were willing to meet at some point." Francesca nodded. She then added, "Uncle Richard already told me about her. I know that she wasn?t always her. That?s the only reason for Ricardo and Mark to be involved." Valerie shook her head saying, "There is more to her story than just that but it is something we can?t say yet. Yes she used to be a boy but had to have surgery to become a girl. She asked to meet you and I think it is a good idea for the two of you to meet. It?ll help the both of you. She needs reassurance that she is going to be OK and you need to see that you aren?t alone in losing your parents." Valerie left on that note. The twins followed close behind, hugging Beth before they left. Beth somberly asked Francesca, "Are you sure you are alright meeting her?" Francesca nodded, telling her, "We are linked. She and I are going to cross paths at some point, at least we will have something in common before the rest get to know her." Valerie texted Olivia that Francesca had requested to meet Al. Olivia solemnly asked Al, "There was a request from the other victim in the crash. She would like to meet you before the funerals." Al quietly asked, "Why?" to which Olivia told her, "She is concerned about you. She doesn?t know the full story but she knows you went through a lot of trauma in addition to losing your parents. She is just the sweetest young lady and won?t let you go through this alone." Al reluctantly agreed. Al asked how she knew them to which Olivia somberly admitted, "She lived two houses down from us. She is staying with another couple who needed someone to love like we are showing you. She wouldn?t have asked if she wasn?t genuinely concerned about you." Al thanked her and told her sharply, "You all are unbelievable. I thought that you had to be related to be family." Olivia smiled back and repeated the family?s motto, "You don?t have to be related to be family. Family is more than blood, your friends are your family as well." Al asked what that meant to which Olivia proudly told her, "Many of the family members have relatives who are or were terrible people or who shunned them because they followed their hearts. We have had people who were disowned, abused, abandoned, or ignored by their families because they were proud to be friends with, date, marry, or adopt others who were different. The kids started this family when the kids banded around Jaimie when she first started school here but we adults joined together through our own friendships. Eventually some of the friendships turned to love and some even found long lost family they didn?t even know they had or who they had lost contact with over the years. It?s highly complicated but the gist of it is we all share a love for one another and when there is trouble we come together to help one another out. I?ll guarantee you that you will see a dozen people within 24 hours of coming home with us, that?s not counting Richard and Jaimie or the Toros." Al couldn?t believe it but somehow Olivia?s serious expression showed that she wasn?t lying. Thinking about it Al softly told her, "I hope I can get out of here soon." Olivia nodded, telling her softly, "You have a few more days until you are fully recovered and some tough lessons in personal care to get through first but the good news is you don?t have to endure school yet." Al giggled knowing she was going for a joke making her feel better. Al?s day was spent watching TV and drawing in a coloring book while trying to stave off boredom. After a late lunch she was visited by the doctor again. With Olivia keeping close eye and giving her permission the doctor just looked her over and didn?t see much bleeding from her wounds announcing, "You are healing well. The stitches have held firm and there is less blood than we had expected. Your packing should come out tomorrow and you should be alright to go home in a few days. The bad news is the dreaded dilation which your mom can explain to you about." The doctor left only to be replaced by a tall, skinny young woman wearing a suit. Olivia introduced her to Al, "This is Dr. Eliza. She is the doctor I told you about before. She is going to help you to deal with your change. She has heard many things before and dealt with many problems so please just be honest and open with her. Nothing you say will upset her. You need to speak with her alone, but I?ll be outside if you need me." Olivia left and chatted with the nurses while Dr. Eliza sat down on the chair beside Al?s bed. Her first question was simply, "What would you like to be called?" Al meekly said, "Al" to which Dr. Eliza asked, "Do you still see yourself as Al the boy or are you now Al the girl?" Al forcefully said, "I?m Al the girl. I can?t be Al the boy anymore. Not without my wiener and balls. I?m just a girl now, I?m not a boy. Boys don?t have vaginas like I have." Dr. Eliza had her opening. She softly asked her, "So just because you have one you are automatically a girl? Can?t you be a boy with a vagina?" Al changed her posture and told her meekly, "Dad said that no real man would let himself lose either his dick or balls. He said that you aren?t a real man without them. He said that if I ever had that happen to me he?d kill me. I can?t be a boy anymore, I have to be a girl." Al was holding back due to her father?s influence. Dr. Eliza went further and asked her, "So you have to be a girl now because you were in an accident and needed emergency surgery that gave you a vagina. Does that mean you have to give up all of the things that you like? Can?t you still do what you used to love to do? Can?t you enjoy the same TV shows or movies or do the same activities?" Dr. Eliza knew this was the heart of her troubles. She already accepted her fate as a girl physically but emotionally and mentally she was in turmoil. Al shed tears as she said, "I can?t play sports anymore. I can?t play video games. I can?t build things. I can?t watch certain movies. Dad said boys play sports, video games, watch action movies and sports on TV. Girls can?t do any of that. They have to just stay home and watch the kids, play with dolls and watch cheesy comedies and dramas. I have to like those things, I?m not a boy anymore because I?m a girl. I can?t do anything that I used to do." This was interesting. No mention of her mother yet. Dr. Eliza asked softly, " but why can?t you still like those? You may have changed physically but inside you are still the same Al that you were before your accident. Why can?t you play basketball or football or watch action movies or play video games?" Al bluntly said, "Dad said girls don?t like those things and can?t do them." Changing course Dr. Eliza asked about her mother. Al shed another tear and angrily told her, "She didn?t care about me. Mom was barely at home and when she was home she was too tired from sleeping with her clients to do anything. She told me to cook and clean for myself while she went up to her bedroom with her boyfriends. Dad would come home and have sex with her then goes off with the cops to make whatever deals he was doing. I never did anything with her, it was like I didn?t exist to her!" Dr. Eliza wrote down several words: emotional abuse and neglect. Al as a boy was trying to please his parents to the point of trying to be who they thought was an ideal son. Dr. Eliza softly told her, "So you have to live as a girl now, but this is a new opportunity for you. Tell me about your school and friends." Al grew solemn talking about the boys in her class and slowly realized the fact that she had no actual friends. Whomever she had were only friends with her because they feared her father or they wanted to gain his favor. What is worse, they bullied other students relentlessly. Al grew even more solemn as she told her, "They constantly talked about girls who used to be boys and what they would do to them. They found out one girl was once a boy and beat her to the point that she had to go to the hospital then told her that if she told anyone who did it to her, they?d kill her. I don?t know who was actually involved but the boys tormented her to the point that she ran away. I don?t want that to happen to me. I can?t go back there. I have to go to a new school now." Dr. Eliza knew the child she was talking about but didn?t let on how bad things actually were. She kept her anger over the blatant bigotry and bullying in check knowing Al wasn?t involved as she was one of the few who didn?t do anything to her. Al was in fact one of the few who were kind to her. Instead of keeping on that vein of thought she asked, "What do you know about Winnisimmet?" Al asked what she meant to which Dr. Eliza informed her, "That?s the city that your foster parents live in. What do you know about it?" Al honestly didn?t know anything about it telling her questionably, "I only know that there was a girl who caused the city to start to change because she wanted to become a girl. Olivia told me her name is Jaimie and a couple of things about her and the family that she helped to create but beyond that I don?t know anything." Dr. Eliza drew a deep breath then told her, "Jaimie and her father John Finn started the change in the community. The community saw Jaimie for what she is, not what they thought she was. She won over her classmates immediately that first day of school, making several friends and falling in love with Richard, Samuels? son. Eventually, Jaimie caused the other schools in the city to take notice and forced through stricter anti- discrimination rules to protect kids who are different. It has helped many kids to overcome bullying and thrive as their true selves- be they gay or transgender." Al nodded at this. She asked Dr. Eliza, "They told me about other girls who had to undergo this surgery too. They wanted to be girls though, I?m the only one who didn?t want to be a girl." Dr. Eliza asked her softly, "You don?t have to girl. You can be Al. You are your own person, you can do what you like to do and enjoy what you enjoyed before. Did they tell you about Rebecca and Karen and John?" Al shook her head no saying, "Only a little but I don?t know if it is relevant" to which Dr. Eliza told her, "Rebecca loves video games, Karen is a stellar athlete even after giving birth to three kids and being in her late 30s, and John handles a lot of the cooking and cleaning at home in addition to teaching high school. My point is you don?t have to abide by stereotypes. You are Al, you are your own person. You might look female but you don?t have to act like a girly-girl. You can still do the things you like." Dr. Eliza asked if she had picked out a new name yet. Al cried, telling her, "I don?t know who I am, how can I choose something so permanent like that?" Dr. Eliza softly told her, "It?s alright, Al can be a girl?s name as well as a boy?s. My own name is Alison, my family always called me Al." Al?s eyes lit up, her biggest fear was her name but knowing such a feminine woman had a name like hers relieved her. Seeing an opening and looking at the time Dr. Eliza excused herself. She told Al somberly, "As much as it pains you, I think the best thing for you to do is acknowledge that your parents died. Once you realize they are gone and can?t hurt you anymore your mind can accept some of what they told you is wrong. From what you tell me, they weren?t nice people and a lot of their beliefs are pure hogwash. You are Al Washington but you are your own person, not the person your parents told you that you had to be." Dr. Eliza left with a nod to Olivia. Al was thinking seriously as she entered so she left her alone to ponder everything they talked about. Olivia calmly told her, "Richard Jr. should be here soon with my clothes and some entertainment for you. Is there anything at your house we can get for you tomorrow?" Al quietly told her, "My laptop and iPad and my video games and console. I don?t want to lose them." Olivia asked about books to which she meekly told her, "Dad didn?t let me have any books." Asking if there was anything she?d like to read Al softly told her, "There were some books one of the boys in class used to read. He stopped bringing them around when the other boys beat him up for being too nerdy." Asking what the names of the books were Olivia smiled. She pulled out her phone and called Jaimie asking her to bring Reed?s and Michael?s manga books. Al asked what she was doing to which Olivia told her, "Jaimie?s brother Michael and cousin Reed have every book in that series. I?ll see if they are finished with their DVDs so you could watch them as well." Al?s eyes lit up hearing that, she softly thanked her then fell asleep from emotional exhaustion. Olivia texted Ricardo and David and got them to make the trip the next morning. Todd was bringing firepower, his buddies were going in full uniform. Since the court orders were active they were within the rule of law to enforce them in Boston and not afraid of either the state or local police threats against them. Neither could overrule a court order without another court order that rescinded the previous one and Kennedy had ensured that the order was ironclad. Over in Winnisimmet Richard finished his homework much to Reyna?s chagrin. He gathered his mom?s clothes then waited for Jaimie. Jaimie came along just as Richard was starting to get upset over not hearing from her and was surprised to see Francesca and the Hermans with her. He asked her if she knew where they were going getting a solemn, "Yes, but I still want to go." Richard knew not to dwell on it, it was probably best to let her get her introduction out of the way there than at the funerals. It was going to be tearful, but it would be less awkward for all. A half hour later they were in Boston at the hospital. Francesca was silent the whole drive over as the Hermans assured her she didn?t have to see her. Francesca knew it was the right thing to do, ever since she heard about Al she had to see her to see that she was alight. Richard and Jaimie went ahead as Ben and Beth waited for their signal. Inside Olivia noticed Francesca and had to pull Richard and Jaimie aside and demand an answer for why she was there without telling her first. Seeing Francesca?s reaction she understood her reasoning, the girl was being the usual caring young woman that they knew her to be and needed to see Al right away for Francesca?s own sake. Al was awoken by the sounds and sat up, looking at Olivia and the two newcomers to her. She became embarrassed at her lack of dress and tried to cover up but Richard told her it was alright. He handed her the books that she wanted, getting a bright smile from her in return. Jaimie asked how she was doing getting a meek, "Fine" from her. Jaimie sat down and told her softly, "It?ll get better over time." She directed Olivia and Richard to leave them alone for a few minutes. Jaimie softly asked if she was feeling better down below getting an odd look from Al. Jaimie pointed at her groin, telling her, "I was badly hurt myself. The doctors had to take my testicles and I was left impotent. Even though I am a girl it still hurt a lot to lose something so personal to us. I can?t imagine the pain you are going through emotionally. You never wanted to be a girl yet you have been forced to be one. Dr. Eliza is good but she can?t do everything. None of us could possible know what you are experiencing nor understand it. It?s just too painful and traumatizing." Al looked at her and mumbled, "You couldn?t have been a boy. Boys don?t have boobs like that or have pretty faces." Jaimie smiled and told her calmly, "Hormones can give you boobs but since I was hurt just before puberty started I was able to undergo the joys of a girl?s puberty except I don?t have periods. It also helped that my mom?s family had big breasts so I?m going to end up with larger ones than most of my friends and family." Jaimie grinned at saying that knowing Al could use the humor. Al felt embarrassed at mentioning it but Jaimie countered with, "Are you afraid that you might enjoy life as a girl?" She nodded, started crying at the idea. Jaimie hugged her, telling her, "You don?t have to be like every other girl, you can still be yourself. You can like all the things you used to like and do all the things you used to do. OK, so you won?t be able to write your name in the snow again but that?s just gross anyway." Al laughed, feeling better. Richard knocked and asked if she could have her visitor. Jaimie turned and asked solemnly, "There?s someone who would like to see you. You don?t have to see her but she feels bad about all of this. She lost both of her mothers in the accident too." Al nodded, shedding a tear. Jaimie let Francesca in and moved off to the side. Francesca embraced Al immediately, crying into her shoulder. Al didn?t know how to react so let her cry. Jaimie nodded that it was alright so Al let her cry herself out. not understanding why she was crying. Francesca asked how she was healing to which Al didn?t know how to respond. Francesca pointed at Al?s groin which Al realized she was concerned about her. Al meekly said, "I don?t know. It still feels weird but it doesn?t hurt down there as much anymore. The doctor said something about doing dilation, whatever that is. It sounded bad." Jaimie winced then told her, "You need to put a plastic thing that looks like a penis into your vagina to keep your new vagina open. Reyna and Nichole said it?s painful and uncomfortable but it needs to be done so the vagina stretches and doesn?t close up." Francesca added, "It has to be done, if you don?t you will need to have the surgery performed again when you are 18 only it?ll be tougher and more painful." Francesca somberly asked, "Mom and Aunt Valerie are planning the funerals for our parents. Is there anything special that you want done?" Al coldly said, "No. They got themselves killed" then turned over. Francesca indicated to Jaimie to leave. She asked Al to tell her why she felt that way. Al was blunt in saying, "Dad and mom told tried to blackmail the cops that they were paying off. They got revenge on mom and dad by killing them. Your mothers were innocent people, they shouldn?t have died because my parents were criminals." Francesca softly told her, "If they weren?t there you might not have survived. It was because they were there that the impact on the car was less and even though the car flipped it didn?t crush as hard as it would have. You survived. You have a new lease on life with Aunt Olivia and Uncle Richard. You have a brother who will do anything for you if you ask him the right way." Al giggled at that but Francesca smiled telling her, "I?m serious. He is a big softy and he is going to do anything for you to ensure you are alright. He is taking being a big brother seriously now." Al told her, "I heard what he did before." Francesca nodded, telling her, "He regretted it but it worked out best for Rachel. She is Jaimie?s cousin now and is going to be a big sister in a couple of months. He though is a good person and we set him straight so he will do anything for you. It?s part of being a girl, you get the boys to do what you want." Al mumbled softly, "I don?t want to do that to boys. I don?t even like boys." Francesca moved closer and told her, "You don?t have to like boys that way, you are still young and even so if you like girls then so be it. My best friend, Rachel?s sister Iris, likes girls." She showed a picture of Iris and Sam to which Al shed a tear telling her, "Does Sam know about me yet?" Francesca nodded, admitting, "She figured it out already. She and her grandparents know. They are keeping an eye on your house and Sam says she will help you out if you want. She cares about you, she and Reyna are both concerned about you." Olivia knocked then came into the room telling Francesca, "You had better get going, it?s a school night." Francesca hugged Al then left leaving Olivia there to ask, "Are you feeling alright?" Al nodded, asking, "How can she be so strong. I am barely holding myself together." Olivia softly told her, "She had the chance to grieve and move on thanks to her new parents and friends. But still is still holding back grief. Due to your health issue you haven?t had that chance yet. She also cares deeply about others and is good with younger people. She is a big sister to the youngest family members so she knows how to get you to release your emotions even at the expense of her own." Al asked her, "Can you make sure nobody from my neighborhood goes to the funeral? I don?t want them there except for the Raymonds." Olivia nodded, adding, "They have already asked about arrangements." Al added, "My parents don?t deserve any sort of funeral but I can?t let them rot in the morgue. Just do something simple, no celebration of their life or special arrangements. Francesca?s parents deserve your grief, my parents don?t." Olivia complied, she didn?t like the bitterness but she complied with Al?s wishes and would make the necessary notification to Valerie on her behalf. After a light dinner of soup Al fell asleep again. Richard Sr. came by and took over for Olivia who got a ride home with Nigel. Richard listened to what happened during the day and agreed that she was still holding back but she was stronger than they gave her credit for. In the morning Taylor, Todd, Ricardo, David, and the deputies drove in a convoy to Al?s house. David?s phone immediately rang and he ignored it. There was no reason for anyone to be calling him and he didn?t have to answer to anyone. Ricardo and Taylor also ignored their phones, both seeing the same number and both deciding that the troopers didn?t need to know their intentions. The supporting deputies took positions around the house, keeping an eye out for anyone coming or going. One immediately set eyes down the street on an unmarked cruiser as well as the glint of lenses from a personal vehicle. They were being watched closely. The deputy simply folded his arms and stood tall, pointed at his badge enticing them to come get him. Inside David found Al?s console, controllers, and video games as well as her laptop and a USB stick. Looking through the backpack that contained the laptop he found some documents shoved inside that were intriguing. Taylor looked them over and burst into laughter, Al had hidden what the corrupt cops were looking for in plain sight. The room was ransacked but they didn?t touch her backpack thanks to the laptop and power cord making it look like it wasn?t anything useful. Her iPad was close by and it was untouched. Thankfully both it and the laptop had power cords and the console had all the connections easily accessible. The guys got to work putting her clothes into bags and grabbing whatever Al might need so they didn?t have to return again. There was little that would be of use to her. They were only finding trinkets and small toys that she likely didn?t play with but it was better than nothing. Her electronics were the most important items and those were in hand with her clothes. They searched through her dad?s things and found several guns, ammunition, and surprisingly- a hand grenade. They left it undisturbed and went on to remove the jewelry and pictures from the room. Finding nothing else of value to Al David called in the grenade and cleared out with the others. Before they could leave one of the deputies called out that they had a group coming in hot. It was the locals and they were itching for a fight. Taylor told them to keep them out, they have a bigger problem to deal with right away. The Boston cops were again the dirty ones but this time Taylor was ready for them. He asked them to explain why they were there. When one claimed that they were dispatched Taylor smiled and told him, "No you weren?t." The second tried to claim they were traveling through and saw them enter. Taylor caught them in a lie and told them, "Strike two." Todd finally asked, "If you were watching us enter, why did you hesitate when you saw the deputies outside?" There was no answer from them, Taylor just smiled and told them, "It?s not often that we get someone so stupid as to break the law while on duty but I am glad to have these deputies take you two into custody. As is their job to do so by law, in response for violating the court?s order you are hereby placed under arrest." Todd slapped the cuffs on one while another deputy slapped his cuffs on the second. Taylor returned inside only to have David inform him that two more were caught trying to enter from the back, both were in custody and being brought around front. They were caught actually inside the house so they were receiving burglary charges added on top of violating the court order. While the four were being read their rights Taylor called in to inform Kennedy that she was going to have to open up an active investigation into the dispatchers because one was working with them. It was the only way they could have rushed there so fast and known to be in a certain place at a certain time. She expected it and had the dispatcher in charge take one of the dispatchers offline and place her under arrest. She also added that they had better clear out before they got boxed in by the bomb squad. Todd and the group loaded up the four cops in the two Suffolk County Sheriff?s Office cruisers and headed to Dorchester Municipal Court for their arraignments just as the first of the bomb squad units arrived. David stayed behind to inform the squad where the grenade was. He awaited the disposal up the street with the Raymonds who were evacuated alongside their neighbors. The whole transfer took an hour but went seamlessly. The squad took down information about whose grenade it was but were disappointed that they couldn?t prosecute them for possession of explosives. Joshua and Peggy were eager for news about Al but all David knew was that she was doing better and their visit was to obtain the last of her personal items and clothes. The two were eager to see her so they accepted any news. He understood, he was dreading seeing her but had to put on a brave face for her. Ricardo visited Francesca for a bit to check in on her then drove on to deliver the iPad and laptop to Al. Olivia greeted him warmly while Al was surprised to see him. He gave her the laptop and iPad then asked her about the papers she had in the bag. Al blushed, telling him, "I thought someone could use them. Dad kept these in his safe but I took them out without him knowing. I tried to get the rest but the money was in the way. It?s what you think it is, it?s the names of everyone he paid off and how much. Dad showed it to me and told me what it was and gloated that it was going to make them rich and keep them safe. He was wrong about both." Ricardo asked if there was any way to corroborate the names and numbers with real people to which she said, "It?s on that USB drive. Dad had his buddies take pictures of the meetings and the money changing hands. He has recordings and he has emails. He stuck it in my bag but I forgot to take it with me when we left. That?s probably why it survived and was found. They didn?t think to look inside it." Ricardo smiled, telling her, "If what you tell me is true you just ensured they are all going to jail. I am going to set up an interview with the detectives so you can pick out the men in the car that hit you, we can find the car from there. If we are lucky we can nail the bastards before the end of next week." Al agreed, adding, "Don?t do it for me, do it for Francesca." Dr. Eliza entered after Ricardo left. She asked Olivia who he was getting a simple, "Her legal advocate" response. She just nodded and sat down next to Al as Olivia left the room. Dr. Eliza noticed the laptop and iPad and asked where she got those to which Al told her, "I was bored so Olivia asked if I had anything at home that I wanted so I asked for them. Ricardo dropped them off for me but I might lose them when the police come for me." Dr. Eliza asked for an explanation then told her sweetly, "They won?t take them, they will be given copies of whatever was found. Don?t worry about a thing, I know there will be plenty of people preventing you from losing them." She noticed the books and snickered. Al asked what was so funny to which Dr. Eliza softly asked, "Did Jaimie pester you with questions last night?" Al shook her head telling her meekly, "She just told me some things that I was going to have to do once I was home and then asked me if I was afraid I might enjoy being a girl and a bunch of serious questions about myself." Dr. Eliza expected that question and asked her, "Are you afraid?" Al reiterated what she told Jaimie. Dr. Eliza nodded, admitting to her, "You are a strong person, you will exceed at whatever you choose to do. You don?t have to be girly, just be yourself." Al told her about Francesca visiting her with Jaimie and getting a smile from Dr. Eliza. She admitted to Al, "She is genuine in her feelings about you. I know that she is hurting inside but she works through the pain by helping others. She is a good friend and she needed to see that you were alright to settle her own pain. Olivia and her parents would have had her meet you at the funeral but she probably couldn?t go that long knowing you were here and struggling." Al told her about the parents? funeral plans and how she didn?t want her parents? lives to be celebrated by anyone. Dr. Eliza let her get the anger out then added a somber, "You are angry and you are justified in it but you still feel sadness and grief, it?s unavoidable for you. Even though they were horrible to you and terrible in how they treated you when they were alive, you still love them. It?s alright to feel bad that they are dead, it?s unhealthy to keep those feelings in. They can?t harm you anymore." Dr. Eliza pointed to the pile of books and told her, "There?s one I want you to read. Michael was pretty sneaky in putting that book in the pile but he knew just what you needed. It?ll help ease any of your fears about becoming a girl and help you understand things a little better." She handed Al the only non-manga book in the pile, "Pompom Fortress" by Alecia Snowfall. It was written by the same writer as the manga books but this one was a regular story. Al looked it over and was confused until she read the description on the back cover. Dr. Eliza took this as her chance to exit, giving Olivia a quick, "Let her read that book but don?t ask too many questions about it. I think it?ll be her way of understanding her situation best as it directly deals with her situation." Olivia nodded and reentered, watching Al as she started to read the book. Chapter 6 After leaving Al, Ricardo headed to his office and met with his secretary who handed him the hearing notices for Francesca. They were both at the same time as he expected, the clerk was smart enough to know to double book the hearing so it wouldn?t waste the court?s time to hear the same facts twice. Also in the pile were demands for records from the two gang units. He filed them away, they were all garbage and he had no intention of complying with them. His secretary asked what that was all about to which he smiled and said, "Attorney-client privilege" getting a groan and quick, "In that case should I take up a bail fund or will you be doing your overconfident act?" Ricardo laughed and told her, "No bail needed, the only thing I can tell you is they are frivolous. It does give me reason to contact someone important though. I?ll be a few minutes, no calls unless it?s life or death and only if it?s those on my list." Ricardo got on the phone to both Taylor and Kennedy. He informed them about the demand for records which both said, "They don?t have a reason to request them." Ricardo added, "They were official requests from your office Taylor" which got him to say he was going over there and bringing the big guns. When Taylor signed off Ricardo informed Kennedy about the custody hearing for Francesca. She just sighed and told him that she expects them to play the family card but he added that he had enough ammunition against them to destroy any argument. Kennedy didn?t ask what it was, he just added, "My private investigator should have enough damaging evidence to bury him but Valerie will be the one who works the most magic. It?s what she does best." Taylor arrived a half hour later with the big guns so be ready for them to talk about what happened. He wasn?t kidding, he brought the DA and the head of the county State Police detective unit. The three examined the demand and agreed that there was a rat in their office and were going to flush it out. The person who sent the demand was a lower-level prosecutor, they were doing so at the request of a senior prosecutor that was going to be found soon. Taylor asked if Al had mentioned anything regarding the USB drive. Ricardo carefully tried to avoid admitting everything, only saying that there was information on the USB drive and turned over copies of the files that he had saved onto a disk. Taylor then told him, "Have Rachel make a copy of the hard drive. It?ll save us the trouble and it?ll keep her and Al out of court. You can?t tell us what she told you and as Rachel is also a client what she finds and tells you is still covered by privilege, just have her do copies and give it to us to examine." The DA asked what this was all about to which the detective pointed out, "He?s protecting his clients. He can?t tell us what they know, but he can provide us with what we need. It?ll be up to our forensics teams to figure things out on our own. But if he is going through this trouble it?s going to be gold." Taylor added what little he did know by explaining, "The young lady, Rachel Sylvester, is a client of his and is the best computer expert under the age of 18 in the state. Her aunt will fight any attempt to get her to testify about what she finds, our best option is to do what he said and let our own people find the information. The paperwork that their target kept and that was overlooked by the dirty dozen should tie together what we find in the files." On their way out Taylor told the secretary, "Keep copies of any demands for files and if anyone comes here from our office record their visit with your digital recorder. We no longer have a reason to come by so anyone else is here under false pretenses. Do not hand over any paperwork and if they serve you with a search warrant call me immediately." She took Taylor?s card and placed it in a safe location. Valerie and Beth were eating lunch while Francesca finished another 10 pages of editing. She breezed through the book faster than expected, having just another 30 pages left to go. She stopped to eat which caused the twins to get up from fiddling with Benny to sit beside her. Francesca was strangely silent. Valerie asked what was wrong to which Francesca asked, "What could a parent have done to make their child not want to mourn their passing?" Beth asked what drove her to ask that only to be told, "It?s Al. She doesn?t want to remember her parents. I can?t understand why she wouldn?t feel bad about their being killed." Valerie nodded to Beth who understood she needed a mother-daughter talk. Beth warmly explained to her, "Some people do things to their kids that they don?t realize is wrong. Al?s parents did some things to her that they may have thought was right but were very wrong. We don?t know yet they did to her and what she has told Olivia and Richard they have kept to themselves. It?s possible that they neglected her or didn?t give her love that she needed or they may have given her too much love or done something far worse to her. We just don?t know and it?s up to Al to share it with you if she feels she needs to." Francesca shook her head, telling them, "She said they got themselves killed. That they were killed for blackmailing the police and my mothers died because of their being killed." Beth shook her head as she somberly said, "Al is feeling anger and frustration but that alone wouldn?t cause all of those feelings she has about them. They probably were criminals and their actions did catch up with them but she doesn?t want to be reminded of the pain they caused before the accident. She just wants to move on and not be reminded of what her parents were." Francesca could only ask, "Why? Why would anyone want to hurt her?" Beth didn?t have an answer, Valerie somberly added, "They didn?t know the harm they were causing or worse, they did and just did not care. She has Olivia and Richard to show her love and affection, it?s entirely possible she just wants to move on and not dwell on the past with such a bright future and large family around her." The twins butted in and told them, "They were bad" and, "They left her alone." The three looked at the twins and asked what they were talking about, Cat loudly proclaimed, "They left her alone. They went out and left her alone. Sam said they did that all the time." JD added, "They had men over, men who didn?t live there. They did bad things in there while Al was home. They kissed and hugged her like mommy and daddy do." Valerie looked at Beth who tried to figure out what they were getting at. Francesca just shook her head and proclaimed, "She was a prostitute and they just left her home alone to do what she wanted. That?s why she doesn?t want to mourn them: they were horrible parents." The twins both nodded adding, "Sam knows her, she told Iris and Rachel all of that when they watched us yesterday." Valerie shook her head at the twins being little detectives. Francesca hugged the two causing JD the hug her back as Cat beamed with pride. Beth mumbled softly, "So that?s why she latched onto Olivia so fast: because she just wants someone to love her. Oh the poor angel." After Valerie left Francesca sat with Beth then started to cry. Meeting Al had extended her empathy to the brink, she was starting to break down emotionally and talking about Al?s parents had exhausted the last of the empathy that she had. Beth held her tight, telling her she was a good person for caring about others especially someone she had just met. Francesca simply wept into her shoulder, she had tried but couldn?t hold herself together anymore. Beth told Francesca to call it a day and suggested that she rest. The two sat on the couch with Benny in Beth?s lap and watched TV as Francesca calmed down. Francesca hugged her, putting her head on her shoulder as she fell asleep. Ben came home a short time later to find Beth sitting down with Benny in her lap and Francesca fast asleep. He mouthed, "Breakdown?" which Beth nodded yes. Benny eagerly bounced wanting his father allowing Beth a chance to move out of Francesca?s grip. The two laid her down and put a blanket around her, smiling at the sight. Ben moved them to the kitchen and asked what sparked the affection and was told about the emotional breakdown. He patted her hands and kissed her deeply, then told her, "You did what she needed you to do, you talked with her and let her vent her frustration. It?s something only a mother could do, and before you say it wasn?t Valerie already told me that it was. You really are a great mother, Benny is happier than he has ever been and you aren?t depressed and flustered. You are the beautiful woman we all know and love, with a bigger bust and a little more meat on her bones- not that I can complain, it?s made you more beautiful than ever." Beth shed a few tears. She did feel better lately. Francesca was making her feel like she wasn?t a failure and Benny was less trouble. Ben wisely told her, "You know you are a good mother, you just had to see it for yourself." Beth kissed him again then added, "You have gained a few pounds yourself there mister. But I love you no matter what." Francesca woke up and saw the two kissing and snidely told them, "Get a room" to which both laughed and Benny giggled. Francesca looked at Benny then quickly added, "OK maybe not. I don?t want you two to end up with another Benny." The two laughed again as she smiled, the short nap had rejuvenated her while Beth kissed Ben again much to Benny?s amusement. Ben helped Francesca with her schoolwork then told her that she should take the evening off and go see her friends. Francesca reluctantly left, crossing the street to visit Iris and Rachel. Both were eager to see her after not seeing her for three days and missing out on the last two days of school. Both were full of questions but their mother, Leslie, had them hold off and let Francesca decompress first. Leslie knew what was going on, but could see Francesca didn?t want to rehash everything again. Francesca told them she just wanted to talk about anything except the accident or Al or the funerals or custody fights for the evening even if it meant utter boredom. The girls got the gist of it and told her all of the gossip that she missed in school. Reyna and Sam were buddy-buddy for some reason which Francesca told them, "Don?t go into it, it involves Al and I said I didn?t want to talk about it." Both girls put 2 and 2 together and figured out a connection between Sam and Al that they hadn?t thought of. Iris told her about Reed trying to set Rachel up on a date with his teammate which Rachel laughed off as being impossible to pull off. Francesca giggled at it and asked her, "So when are you finally going to admit you and your lab partner like one another" which got Iris to gasp in shock as Rachel blushed. Francesca had the two sisters going back and forth, with Leslie smiling and mouthing, "Nice deflection". The two had work to do so Francesca moved on to see Sam. She barely avoided Rebecca crossing the street, rushing inside as Sam opened up the door. Sam noticed Rebecca and Jessie across the street and asked quietly, "Not up for 20 questions?" getting a silent nod from Francesca. Sam got down to business and asked her how Al was doing. Francesca was unsure how to phrase it so she blurted out, "She looked like Reyna after her surgery." Sam shook her head and softly mumbled, "Worse than I thought." Francesca thought for a moment then smiled. She retold how Al was taking the change better than any guy should have. Sam again shook her head and told her, "She is a tough kid. Her parents were never home and when they were they ignored her. She played with me and Virgil but only because we didn?t tease her for her parents being criminals. I can?t even begin to tell you about the guys who came by the house, Al probably heard sounds of passion that no kid should ever have to hear." Francesca shed a tear. She thought the twins were exaggerating but Sam wouldn?t lie about something like that. Sam hugged her, admitting to her, "She will be fine especially after she met you. She was probably just as concerned about you as you are about her. Sam?s younger brother Virgil asked what they were talking about only to be told, "Al Washington." Virgil seemed to not know what happened and asked, "Is he alright?" Francesca looked to Sam who nodded. Francesca knelt down and told him, "She was hurt badly in a car accident three days ago. Her parents died but she survived the crash. It was the same accident that killed my mothers." Virgil caught, "Her" and, "She" and quickly asked, "Why are you calling Al a girl?" Sam softly told him, "Al was badly hurt in her private parts. She had to have surgery and the only solution was to create girl privates for her. Al is a girl now." Virgil looked at Francesca who nodded, he quietly asked, " the same kind of surgery like Reyna and Nichole had?" Both said, "Yes" with Francesca adding, "But Al didn?t want to be a girl, she wasn?t like them or Kylie or Jaimie or your sister. It was just that there was little they could do for her." Virgil understood what they were saying, he murmured, "Does she still get to play video games and watch baseball?" Both girls smiled and said, "Yes" which he smiled at adding, "It sucks but she didn?t die which is good." The two didn?t know how to respond so they just let it drop. Sam asked about Beth and Ben getting a smile from Francesca. The others were reluctant to ask about how she was handling her new parents but Sam wasn?t so reluctant. She parroted what the others said, "Uncle Ben has been happier in school. He isn?t so tired and he is joking more." Francesca added a happy, "Mom is happy too." Sam raised an eyebrow then smiled. The others didn?t know yet but Francesca blurted out, "Aunt Valerie pulled the paperwork for adoption at my parents? request. Aunt Beth and Uncle Ben are going to be my mom and dad. Don?t tell the others though, it?s tough enough dealing with their questions already without adding new ones." Sam hugged her and asked, "Who else knows?" Francesca had to think then told her, "Jaimie, Richard, Reyna, Michael, and Miles. I don?t know about Iris and Rachel yet but Uncle Mark probably kept the adoption a secret from them since it wasn?t their business and he doesn?t like talking about work." Virgil asked what was going on to which Sam asked what he heard. Virgil rolled his eyes telling her bluntly, "I may be 5 but I am no fool. I have ears you know. Nobody else has said anything about an adoption. I won?t either, I am hoping Aunt Olivia and Uncle Richard adopts Al so she doesn?t have to go where people won?t like girls like her." Francesca hugged him, telling him, "You are so smart" getting a big smile from him and groan from Sam. Francesca walked home feeling better. Jessie and Rebecca tried to call her over but she ignored them. As much as she loved them Rebecca was too much to handle at that time and she would end up telling the two of them everything about Al betraying Al?s trust. She texted them a simple, "Can?t talk have to do something important" which seemed to suffice but she got back a terse, "We talk tomorrow. No more stalling." She hated but she sent Rebecca an equally terse, "I don?t need your inquisition. Get details from Reyna or Sam but leave us alone for rest of week." She didn?t make it home before the two called her. She ignored the calls telling Beth, "If they ask tell them I am busy working on the book. I can?t deal with their inquisition. I don?t want to say something that might upset Al." Ben told her, "If they insist I?ll get Gabby or Melanie on them. You are doing the right thing in keeping Al?s confidence." Francesca really did do work on the book. She needed the distraction as her nerves were again starting to fray over dealing with her friends. If they kept up the pressure she would say or do something she would regret even if it was completely understandable. Reed came by to check in on Francesca. He assured her he wasn?t spying for Jessie and Rebecca. He wanted to ask about Al, he told her how his dad and mom were talking about her and he wanted her take on Al. Francesca told him everything she knew and what the twins and Sam told her. Reed started to piece together things and told her, "Mom needs to talk with her. Everything is pointing to Al being in danger and not from someone they know about already." Francesca grew scared but Reed told her, "Don?t be scared, she is in the safest hospital in the area and going to be getting even more protection." While Reed and Francesca were talking Ben walked over to the Lopez home and talked with Rebecca and Jessie. He was quick on the draw and told both girls, "I know that you mean well but this is an order- leave Francesca alone for the time being. I can?t tell you everything yet but she wasn?t the only person affected by the accident and the other person needs you to stay away until needed. You will be needed, but not just yet. Francesca has met with this person and was confided in and doesn?t yet have permission to tell you anything so if you keep pushing things she will cut off all ties with all of you to protect that confidence. You don?t want her to do that." Rebecca Lopez didn?t buy his explanation and asked for more information. Ben bluntly told her, "She has a right to privacy as does Francesca. You are the best at getting people to tell you what you want to know and finding out information from others. Don?t do it. I have never made any kind of request like this before so if I am telling you as Francesca?s foster father to back off you need to back off. Your interference will seriously hurt a vulnerable child, leave this to Jaimie and Francesca and Sam." The girls stormed off in a huff while Ben was left trying to delicately explain to Dan and Melanie Lopez what happened. Melanie was as sharp as her daughter and whispered, "She was a he before the accident" to which Ben nodded, noticing both girls just out of sight but not out of hearing range. Ben told them, "She had it rough before and needs time to get used to so many people. The girls mean well but it?s the one time where having so many people can do more harm than good." After Ben left Rebecca confronted her parents about what happened. She broke Dan first to which he admitted the girl had a major issue. Melanie rolled her eyes and told her, "She had major surgery and has to deal with the outcome. You can figure it out from there. Do not under any circumstance go anywhere near that hospital or the Samuels home without our blessing. The same goes for you Jessie, I?ll be telling your mother about this. She needs her privacy and the last thing she needs are more strangers trying to butt in." Word got around about Jessie and Rebecca being forceful with Francesca. Rebecca?s sister Stacy came in with Courtney Lawrence, Jessie?s sister, and chastised the girls for what they did. Courtney was the angriest, yelling at them for being so insensitive to their friend in a time of grief. She angrily stormed off, not even bothering to kiss Michael Finn goodbye as she left. Michael had seen and heard enough and confronted the two. He sharply told them, "Since you two feel that you need to know everyone?s business, that girl that Aunt Olivia and Uncle Richard are foster was a boy until the accident and had to have genital surgery. She has to live with being a girl when she was not like Jaimie or Reyna or Kylie or Nichole. She was just a regular boy before, not transgender. And to make things even worse, her parents were a gangster and a prostitute. Are you happy now? You know everything. Both she and Francesca are recovering from a life shattering event and you two are going to stick your noses into it because you have to know everything about your friends? lives. Well you don?t. Francesca is barely holding herself together and I can?t even begin to imagine to torment Al is going through. She is fighting a losing battle with her emotions and the last thing she needs is two people who are supposed to be her friends demanding to know what she knows. Al wants to keep her life private and Francesca is trying to heed her wishes but you two just can?t take no for an answer." Both girls were at a rare loss for words. Dan asked them if they were satisfied or did they want to dig deeper into someone else?s life. Neither gave an answer, Jessie quietly walked home while Rebecca cloistered herself in her room. Michael needed several hours to calm down and didn?t eat dinner. John came up to check on him but even he couldn?t stop his boiling anger. Courtney finally calmed down and talked with him on the phone which helped but he was going to be on a short fuse for the next several days. This was the first time that he had blown up like that in nearly three years but in his mind it was worth it for Al?s sake. Al spent much of her day reading. She was enthralled by the story so deeply that she barely noticed several hours had gone by let alone lunch. During the evening wash she had the horror of experiencing having the packing removed from her new vagina and being introduced to her new, "Friends". She even got to experience the, "Joys" of urinating sitting down with Olivia and a nurse. These were new feelings and while odd, she knew she had to get used to them. Olivia was with her throughout and helped her walk to the bathroom alongside the nurse. Al shed a few tears as she realized this was the official start of her being a girl, she truly had a female body now. Olivia hugged her and assured her she was alright and she would help her along. Al just shook her head and told her, "No turning back. I can?t think about the past anymore, I don?t want to. If I have to be a girl then I have to be my own girl." Olivia proudly told her, "That?s all we ask. You are Al, not Alexander. You get to choose your new name, you get to choose if you want us to be your parents, you get to choose who you are not anyone else." Al hugged her back as she told her, "I like the name Alecia." Olivia shed a tear as she told her, "It?s a beautiful name. Ms. Snowfall would be happy that someone appreciated her work enough to name themselves after her." Al got back to reading as Richard called his mom to tell her about the day. He tiptoed around the whole Jessie and Rebecca inquisition but Olivia saw right through it and asked for the real news. He drew a deep breath and told her, "It might be a good idea for them to meet Al." Olivia told him a quick, "No. She is close to accepting her new self. I would rather that Reyna and Nichole visit her than Jessie and Rebecca. She can?t handle it yet. Sunday at the funerals she can meet them but not until then." Al tuned in on the conversation and asked what it was all about. Olivia tried to deflect it but Al was serious in demanding she give her the truth. She finally caved and told her, "The girls want to visit you. I don?t think it?s a good idea yet." Al asked what was wrong with them seeing her to which Olivia told her, "They will go overboard with affection. They will take things too seriously and might say something that upsets you. They?ll try to make you see that being a girl is fine and force you to accept it." Al looked her in the eyes and told her, "Just let them come. I don?t care anymore. I don?t want to cause problems for anyone else. They are going to keep hounding the others for information so they might as well get it out of the way." Olivia reluctantly texted Rebecca, "Al wants to see you. Come tomorrow. Be on best behavior." Both texted back, "Will do" while she texted Richard to escort them. Olivia looked over at Al and realized she was still clad in a gown. She asked her softly, "Do you want your clothes tomorrow? I can get some of your t-shirts for you." Al meekly asked, "Do I have to wear panties?" Olivia nodded adding, "Your old underwear won?t fit right. You also need leggings and skirts because you can?t wear jeans yet." Al realized this was a lose-lose situation. She asked who was paying for the clothes to which Olivia smiled and told her, "We are. It?s part of being a parent." Al somberly told her, "No pink" which Olivia nodded and added, "Black, gray, white, beige, brown, blue, and red OK?" Al nodded, but Olivia added, "It?ll be hard to get panties in your sizes that aren?t pink. But don?t worry about that, you won?t see them more than a couple of times a day." Al just nodded as she contemplated her new wardrobe needs. The next morning Al awoke to Richard Sr. sitting and Olivia gone. She shifted and got up to go to the bathroom causing Richard to look away. Al asked what was going on which Richard told her, "I didn?t want to make you embarrassed at seeing you almost naked." Al blushed and told him, "Olivia is getting me clothes today" which Richard added, "That means her sister is getting them. Olivia has a tough time with styles and colors." Al giggled and hurried to do her business while thinking, "I?m going to have to wear panties later." Richard shook his head, mumbling, "Women" which Al heard and laughed at. She spent hours thinking about Kaylie in, "Pompom Fortress" and how Jaimie and Francesca had told her about the others. She understood why the book was put in the pile and why Dr. Eliza wanted her to read it. She was like Kaylie in so many ways and she was a girl now. Richard himself had mumbled it but she really felt that she was different and it wasn?t so bad. She was glad that she wasn?t bullied the way Kyle was. She felt for Kyle, to endure that and continue to go to school was beyond her capability. She was thinking about the book so much she didn?t realize Richard was at the door checking on her. As she came out she could see Dr. Eliza there with him. She was deeply embarrassed, but Dr. Eliza saw the book out and marked towards the end causing to softly tell her, "I figured you would understand more now." Richard looked at her bewildered to which she pointed to the book and say, "She was thinking, I trust she was so caught up in it she didn?t realize how long she was in there." Richard wanted to say something about her already hogging the bathroom but Al beat him to it by saying, "I didn?t mean to hog the bathroom" which Dr. Eliza added, "It?s alright, you were busy doing what I wanted you to do and you are still getting used to yourself." Richard took that as his cue to exit as the two talked. Al told her about the clothes and her requests. Dr. Eliza didn?t seem phased by the choices, she added a soft, "You accept that you are now different and have to wear different things as a matter of comfort. It?s a big step for you, and you are right in not wanting pink. There are many girls who don?t like pink just as there are some boys who like it. It?s your choice, your own style." Al complained that she wasn?t happy about the skirts to which Dr. Eliza nodded, but told her, "It?s medically necessary for a while. I am sure you are going to meet a few young ladies soon who also don?t like skirts, I believe Hannah and Rebecca rarely wear them and Jaimie tends to only wear them when it?s too hot to wear jeans." Dr. Eliza asked how she felt about having to pee sitting down getting a blush and quick, "It?s just so odd" response. She expected this and added, "It?ll become second nature in time." Al nodded then told her meekly, "I hate the dilator." Dr. Eliza let out a sigh and admitted, "It?s the worst part of the surgery. It?s needed though. The irony is you have to do something that girls your age would feel embarrassed about doing but many actually think about." Al blushed at the thought but it did actually ring true as she knew about masturbation from the older boys in school and they often joked about dildos and other things girls used. Al never liked that kind of talk, it always made her uncomfortable. Al quickly changed the subject and announced, "I decided on my name. I can?t be Alexander anymore so I am choosing Alecia." Dr. Eliza wrote it down and made a note that the nurses and doctors were to refer to her as Al or Alecia from then on. Richard knocked and signaled the end of her session with Dr. Eliza. She told Richard about the name change getting a nod and quick, "I?ll alert the staff." Al asked him why it was a big deal which Richard smiled and told her, "It?s your name. We can?t have people calling you ?Alexander? because it says that on your medical records. We will have them changed to reflect your new name." Al asked him about adoption which Olivia had forgotten to ask about. Richard asked, "Are you sure? This is permanent." Al told him sharply, "I can?t trust anyone else and I don?t want to go where I am going to be hated. At least with you I know I am going to be alright and with people who are fine with me being once a boy." Richard sighed and told her, "We will get Ricardo to put together the paperwork. You can change your mind. I?ll ask Richard if he is alright with this though." Olivia was busy with her sister Beverly looking over Al?s clothes and having trouble finding shirts that would go with skirts. Beverly smiled and pointed out something obvious- this was very similar to Rachel?s style. She might be a good choice to help Al choose her look especially as Rachel liked dark colors especially ones that matched her purple and black hair. The two went shopping with Valerie and the twins. The twins could sense something was amiss which Valerie told them, "Just say what you are thinking." Cat meekly told her, "Jean skirts not frilly skirts. It?s too cold for frilly skirts." Beverly slyly said, "She is telling us to move away from the girly styles and move towards the basic styles. I think she might have something, I don?t really like the look of these skirts. They are a bit too short for my taste." Cat grinned as JD pointed to a knee length denim skirt. There were several colors all of which matched Al?s t-shirts perfectly. JD beamed with pride as the women tried to guess Al?s size. The leggings were easier to find, with multiple colors that coordinated with Al?s t-shirts. Beverly was right, the leggings, skirt, and t-shirts were similar to what Rachel adopted as her style and Olivia had to admit it was a nice look for a girl Al?s age. She drew the line at makeup like Rachel wore though, Al was too young for it. The panties were a bit of a problem. There weren?t many selections in her size and those that were had several that were pink. There was no choice but to get them, Al would have to endure but like she told her before it was only visible to her a few times a day. Back at home Olivia waited for Richard to come home from school. His father had texted that Al still wanted to be adopted so he was going to ask her in person that evening when Olivia delivered the new clothing and took Rebecca and Jessie to visit. Richard was adamant that he was fine with Al becoming his sister and was surprised that they took so long to ask but given the hectic week it wasn?t a shock that it took a while to happen. Over in Boston Ricardo received the news from his private investigator. He had the evidence he needed to show the debts but also to show a criminal record for assault and theft. Mr. Clark still had several thousand dollars of outstanding debts to both Connecticut tribal casinos that were coming due soon. He needed an infusion of money and Francesca was that infusion. He gloated that his daughter finally did something right in her life by dying wealthy, he would take the money from her bank accounts and dump Francesca on her other grandfather. Ricardo got the information about the witnesses and copies of the debt collection notices provided by the casinos. The man gave them everything they needed and he didn?t charge them a dime in return. He was proud to say, "Wendy and Belle referred more business to me than any other client and set me up for years to come, it?s the least I could do for such easy work." Ricardo gave the good news to Francesca. She took it well, smiling at it. Valerie was told that the book was finished and she only had to submit it to the publisher, the rest was up to them. Valerie set up the meeting and reiterated that Francesca was not to be used for promotion of the book and that she was going to keep an eye on the finances to ensure that they weren?t screwing her out of royalties. They begged her to let them use her for several interview but Valerie held firm. Francesca was still in school and needed to move on. The threat of legal action got Valerie to laugh as she boldly told them, "Please do, she is simply the rights holder not the author. She doesn?t have to endure the promotion schedule nor make appearances. It isn?t needed, Wendy?s name alone will sell books." They capitulated begrudgingly. Francesca spent the evening with Iris and Rachel. Neither wanted to ask about the big secret but Francesca finally told them, "Jessie and Rebecca are going to the hospital to meet Al." Both nodded and added soft, "Hope they get along" followed by, "Hope they don?t cry too hard." Francesca sighed and asked, "Do you miss your parents?" Both gave a quick, "Not one bit." Iris solemnly told her, "Ours are alive but in a way dead to us as people. They chose to do wrong, your parents didn?t do a thing wrong and died. We don?t miss our parents because they weren?t real parents, just people who created us. Mom and dad are our real parents, you have two new ones who can never replace the ones that died but can be the parents you need." Francesca tried to think of a way to counter that but Rachel added a somber, "You are overthinking this. Wendy and Belle White-Clark wanted you to become Francesca Herman. They said so to Aunt Valerie in person and in their wills. They wanted you to have two people who loved you and who needed love themselves. Think about it, how has Aunt Beth been since you moved in? She is clearly stronger emotionally and physically. You are helping her a lot. The same is true with Uncle Ben. You were told already how he is in class, he hasn?t slipped back to being the tired man he was last week. And don?t think for a second that they aren?t treating you like a daughter because I heard about the little scene that you had with the underwear and that was a pure mom moment because our mom did the same thing." Rachel just lectured her. Francesca couldn?t believe it but she did. Francesca hugged her and kissed her cheek getting a quick, "Yuck" followed by laugh from the two. They spent the next hour watching TV before Francesca left for the night, immediately hugging Beth and Ben as she entered. Chapter 7 Olivia took Richard Jr. and the two girls to visit Al at the hospital. Neither girl had a problem with Al?s wardrobe and thought it was a nice style to match her personality. Richard was silent, he didn?t want to say the wrong thing which led Olivia to quietly tell the girls, "Don?t pester him too much, I think he is starting to realize the gravity of the situation. He wants to say the right thing but chooses to say nothing in fear of saying the wrong thing." Al was happy to see Olivia again and hugged Richard deeply. She wasted no time and asked, "Are you still going to adopt me?" Olivia turned to Richard Jr. who in turn looked at his father who simply nodded. Richard Jr. told her proudly, "They would be foolish not to." She was happy to hear that the younger Richard was going along with it but even more surprised by Rebecca and Jessie staying close. Richard Jr. introduced the two with Rebecca being asked, "Are you the girl Dr. Eliza said doesn?t wear skirts?" Jessie and Richard Jr. both burst into laughter to which Rebecca proudly told her, "I don?t wear dresses either." She asked Rebecca, "Why?" to which Rebecca asked, "Why should I? I don?t like how any of the, feel on my legs. Even with leggings they just don?t feel right." Rebecca indicated for them to exit, she needed a serious girl-girl talk. Jessie and Richard Jr. knew exactly what she was talking about informing Olivia and Richard Sr. "Tomboy talk". Jessie added, "If she can?t accept that she can still be her old self just as a girl nothing will get her to accept it." Rebecca was on the mark and asked her swiftly, "You don?t think girls can do what boys can do?" Al nodded, adding, "My dad said boys had to do certain things while girls had to do other things. Only sissies didn?t play sports or video games or fight or build things. He said only lezzies did that and girls had to cook and clean and watch boring shows all day." Rebecca burst into laughter. She proudly told her, "I play video games and I watch action movies and I always fought when I was younger. I play volleyball and am going to run track in the spring. I can?t cook, my sister will gladly tell you I could burn water. I also can barely keep my own room clean let alone clean any other room. So am I less of a girl because of all that?" Al meekly said no. Rebecca asked her, "Do you play video games?" Al listed off the games she played getting a big grin from Rebecca who proudly told Al her gamertag. Al gasped, she recognized the name. She told Rebecca, "The guys in my school keep trying to beat you! They say you are the toughest guy around and always beat everyone easily." Rebecca grinned then told him bluntly, "I have had that gamertag for years. Dad bought me my first game when I was eight and I have played as it ever since. They probably would wet their pants if they found out a GIRL was the one who was always beating them." Al nodded, adding, "So I can play and still be a girl?" Rebecca told her, "Just because you lost something in your pants doesn?t mean you lose what you are." Rebecca turned the tables and asked, "Are you afraid that you might become a beautiful girl?" Al nodded again, adding, "I don?t think I could handle boys liking me." Rebecca smiled and told her, "You are going to have a big problem then, you are beautiful. Seriously, look in the mirror and tell me you aren?t beautiful." She pulled out a mirror from her purse and showed Al her face. Rebecca pointed out, "Your eyes and nose are perfect, your cheeks plump but not big, and your chin small but not dainty. You will be a stunner when you get older. And don?t get me started on your amazing black skin. You can look like a beautiful girl with short hair, long hair, dreadlocks, bun, ponytail- any style imaginable." Al meekly admitted, "I don?t want to look like a freak." Rebecca grinned and told her sharply, "If someone sees you as a freak then they are either blind or just plain stupid. You are beautiful, naturally beautiful. You are going to be one amazing woman when you get older, that is if you let yourself be beautiful. Trust me, you are a stunner and will have boys and girls drooling over you." Olivia knocked on the door and checked on the two. She saw the compact and sharply told Rebecca, "She?s too young for makeup." Rebecca tried to explain what she was doing but Al told her, "She didn?t put any makeup on, she was just showing me something." Olivia was suspicious but relented. Olivia showed Al her new clothes getting a soft, "Thank goodness no frills or lace" from her. Olivia quickly told her, "Thank JD for that" getting a laugh from the girls. Jessie pointed out, "She has t-shirts like Rachel" to which Olivia admitted, "We thought she would copy her style for a bit since she isn?t ready for blouses yet." Rebecca looked over the t-shirts and grinned, telling Al, "Rachel is going to be happy, someone else is rocking the t-shirt and skirt combo." Looking over the panties Al winced at seeing pink. Olivia tried to apologize for them but Al told her, "I know that you wouldn?t have gotten them unless there was no choice. I appreciate the effort." Richard Jr. left the room so Al could change. She slowly put on her panties, trying hard not to think about what wasn?t there but relieved that they fit right and didn?t bunch up or feel itchy in the wrong spots. She was happy that they felt nice against her skin and actually blushed at seeing the flat front. Rebecca handed her the leggings and helped her pull them up then chose a black t-shirt to match the tights. The dark blue denim skirt went on last. She took a bit of time trying to adjust the right way and learned which way was front. Al looked in the mirror and shed a tear. Alexander was gone, Alecia had fully replaced him. She looked like a different person and it felt better to finally see herself as someone new. Richard Jr. was told to come back in. He stared at her in disbelief, she was beautiful. He took a picture and sent it to Jaimie and Francesca. Jaimie quickly replied, "Next we fix her hair". Francesca texted back, "She is going to break hearts." Jessie suggested he send one to Sam as she would want to see too. Al asked why everyone was so concerned about her she looked to which Olivia told her, "It?s not how you look, it?s how you are taking your new look. It?s the first time you are truly seeing yourself as a girl and we were concerned that you might not accept that you could look like you do and be a girl." Al sat on the bed and told them, "I feel like a girl. I don?t feel like a boy. I don?t see any point in thinking I am a boy or trying to be a boy. I don?t even know what a boy is anymore." This caught them by surprise. Rebecca asked her softly, "Do you really mean you feel like a girl?" Al mumbled softly, "I don?t know what a girl is supposed to feel but I don?t feel like the old me anymore. I guess I saw that I am not Al anymore and I am finally able to be anything." Olivia signaled it was time to go. Al was starting to shake and get anxious. The girls helped her get undressed and into the gown. Olivia cursed herself for forgetting to get her pajamas but that would be solved the next morning. Al hugged the three goodbye and kissed Richard Jr. on the cheek. He left saying, "See you tomorrow, sis" bringing a smile to her face. Al?s smile lasted a while. Olivia finally asked her what was going on. She admitted, "He didn?t say anything about the accident or the change." Olivia sat down next to her and calmly told her, "He didn?t have to. He knows enough to know not to ask. He accepts you as Al, his new little sister." Al asked if she could call her mom, it wasn?t right to call her by her first name. Olivia only smiled and added, "I always wanted a daughter to call me that." Al then added, "He really needs a nickname" to which Olivia laughed and added, "Some of the boys would call him ?Rick? and it fits him." Al loved it, he looked like a Rick more than a Richard. In the morning Dr. Eliza checked in on Al again. Al was fully dressed and bouncing around the room trying to get her energy out which sparked Dr. Eliza to take her for a walk. The two talked about the previous day?s events and Al?s new clothes which Dr. Eliza swiftly told her, "They look good on you." Al told her about meeting Rebecca and getting the huge surprise about who she was in the video game world. Dr. Eliza grinned, it wasn?t much of a surprise but it was something that she hadn?t expected Al to accept so soon. Al?s impression of Rebecca bordered on reverence which was what she hoped would happen when the two met. The discussion turned serious as Al mentioned what she told Rebecca. Dr. Eliza had them sit for a bit in a quiet corner of the cafeteria as she explained the talk. Al?s big revelation was as shocking as was her acceptance that she wasn?t her old self anymore. Al smiled at the reaction of Jaimie and Francesca and at Richard Jr. She had passed her first test as a girl without knowing it. Dr. Eliza thought for a bit then told her, "You aren?t your old self but you might have found some parts of the new you that you might enjoy. It?s alright to like the feel of things and like how you look in those skirts and leggings. It might be your new style, it might not be. You could grow out of it and revert to wearing boys clothes or you might find yourself starting to like pink or how you look in skirts. You are still finding who you are as a person, just like millions of other boys and girls do at your age. It?s part of entering puberty, only you have the benefit of starting from to learn about it from scratch surrounded by people who are experienced with this." The two walked back to Al?s room as Al thought over what Dr. Eliza had told her. Olivia asked if she was feeling better, getting a quick, "Yes mom she just made me think about things again." Dr. Eliza caught, "Mom" and quietly asked, "Did she do that by accident?" Olivia whispered back, "She asked to be adopted and wants to call us that. It?s her own doing, we don?t want to refuse her request." Dr. Eliza smiled and added a proud, "She accepted this better than anyone I have ever encountered. You and Richard are going to have your work cut out for you in the upcoming days. She will want to visit her old home one last time for closure then will have a large trial when she sees other kids her age when you register her for school." Olivia added a solemn, "I?ll keep that in mind." That afternoon Rachel called Ricardo to pick up the hard drive copies. She didn?t mention what she found and didn?t mention why she was so happy about finishing but she did tell him, "Al is going to be pleased to have the laptop back." She then called Olivia to ask to see Al as well as bring her laptop to her. Olivia asked if she could stop by Walmart first to get some pajamas for Al getting a hearty, "Absolutely" from her. Richard Jr. was co-opted to drive, taking Iris along as well. The sisters found several sets of pajamas in Al?s size and none were pink but they were on the girly side. Iris was tempted to get her nightgowns instead but Rachel cautioned her that it was taking it a bit far and she wouldn?t want to wear something so feminine yet. Over in Boston the three greeted Olivia outside Al?s door. She inspected the pajamas and approved them, and agreed with Rachel when told about the nightgowns. Richard Jr. entered first and hugged Al while the other two waited outside. She told him, "Mom said I could call you Rick, I don?t want to call you Richard." He blushed and asked if she thought up the name then blushed deeper at telling her, "Claire gave me the name in kindergarten because she couldn?t remember Richard. The girls called me that for a few years after but gave up when we went to middle school." Rachel knocked and entered, handing Al her laptop and telling her, "They are either lazy, stupid, or they underestimated you because I don?t know how you managed to get your dad to do so much of his work on that computer." Al smiled and told her, "He thought he was being safe by using my laptop to do his dirty work. Joke is on him now." Rachel looked over Al?s outfit and giggled. She was wearing practically the same outfit as her. Al looked closely and saw the same thing, the only difference between the two was Rachel had a different graphic on her t- shirt. Iris rolled her eyes and blurted out, "Great, another Abby Sciuto fan". Al asked what she meant to which Richard told her, "She is a character on the TV show NCIS who wears similar clothes and is a computer expert." Rachel grinned and told her, "I wanted to be like her so now that mom and dad are in prison and I have a better mom and dad I can be like her." The newly dubbed Rick stepped out, Iris accidentally started another bonding session. Al asked what she meant by prison. Iris proudly told her, "All four of our parents and her uncle are in prison for abuse, attempted murder, attempted kidnappings, fraud, manslaughter, and civil rights violations. We were adopted by our foster mother and your social worker Mark." Rachel added a somber, "Before you ask, we do know about you and it doesn?t matter. You are you, not what your parents thought of you." Al asked if she missed her parents to which Rachel told her, "No, I don?t. They only wanted me to do what they wanted me to do and if I tried to be anything else they ignored me or made me feel miserable until I acted how they wanted me to act." Al softly added, "That sounds like mine were" to which Rachel added, "Well you have two of the most devoted parents now. And you have a big brother who we all want as our big brother but only you get to call him that." Iris added, "Sam spoke highly of you. She wanted us to make sure you were alright. Jessie and Rebecca didn?t tell her much, and Francesca has been busy. She is going to be thrilled that you look amazing." Rachel added, "You own that look, a little teasing of your hair and you will be making all the boys and girls jealous. Trust me, you will be a knockout!" Looking up at Iris Al asked, "Are you really Sam?s girlfriend?" Iris blushed while Rachel added, "They have barely been apart. The love each other deeply, the only ones more devoted to one another are Stacy and Scott." Iris blushed again while Al said, "I?m happy for her, she was always nice to me." Al asked about Rachel and the computer to which Rachel proudly told her, "I like computers, from fixing them to breaking into them to building them. I saw Abby on TV and wanted to be like her, so I learned all I could about computers and eventually learned how to get around undetected and do things to other computers. My parents used me to funnel their money into secret bank accounts but I ended up taking them down for it. I also ended up helped break a transatlantic smuggling ring that sent dozens of people to prison." Iris added, "She caught Uncle Nigel?s brother red handed in the process." Al asked the obvious, "I thought girls didn?t do things with computers, that was a boy?s thing." Both girls laughed and added, "Don?t tell that to Aunt Gabby, Jessie?s mom. She knows more about computers than anyone." Al was in disbelief to which the girls added, "Just because you are a girl doesn?t mean you can?t do the same things as boys. There are far too many things to do where what you have between your legs doesn?t matter, computers is just one of them. Nursing is another, I am sure you met Uncle Nigel already and he is one of the best nurses you will ever meet." Al smiled. They were telling her the same thing everyone else told her but hearing it from them knowing that they were like her drove it home better. Al hugged them as Richard indicated it was time to go. She said a soft, "Thanks Rick" getting a giggle but returning a warm, "No problem, sis" to Al. Olivia noticed Al had now become happier and more engaging with each new person she met. She knew the girls were good people but Al?s taking to them so quickly was a surprise. She asked Al what was behind the change, getting a happy, "They didn?t say anything about me being a boy, they acted like I was a girl the whole time. They don?t treat me like I am hurt or a freak." Olivia had to carefully pick her words, settling on, "Rachel knows better than anyone what it is like to be entirely alone. You heard about her parents but you didn?t hear how it affected her in and out of school. They had unrealistic expectations of her, trying to create a queen but only getting a pariah. It was all to control her. She was humiliated and tormented by her classmates over her attitude. When they tried to help get Iris and Leslie kidnapped and murdered she told the police, knowing full well she was going to end up in foster care. She could have let it happened but she took a stand against them and paid the price. She was free from their influence but had to live with her past mistakes forever." Al suddenly realized she was the girl Rick had trouble accepting. Olivia nodded, adding a soft, "She knows what it feels like to have nobody in the world and feel like you have lost everything. Rick made things worse to the point that she wanted to take her own life but, thankfully, she collapsed from the emotional exhaustion that she was fighting before she could do it." Al shed tears and asked meekly, "Is that why everyone was so caring towards me? You didn?t want me to hurt myself?" Olivia told her the truth, not wanting to lie for her sake, "Yes. That?s why Francesca came by and why Jaimie has kept her up her inquiries. It?s also why one of us is with you all the time, we just can?t lose you. We know that even though you say you are OK you may not be OK and we don?t want you hurting yourself when we aren?t in the room. We care about you." Al shook her head and smiled as she changed into her new pajamas. She had no intention of killing herself, doing that would let her former parents win. She boldly told Olivia, "Mom, I won?t do that. If I did that I would hurt you and dad and Rick and I don?t want to do that. It will take time to get used to the new me but I don?t want to hurt myself. I don?t want to hurt you." Olivia felt relief but kept vigil over Al until she was asleep. Richard popped in to check on his girls and tell them that Al was going to be released the following day. Olivia questioned why she was getting the release so soon but received a smile and swift, "She is healing well and has a nurse and doctor caring for her at home, there is little need to remain here. Besides, you need to get used to your own bed again." In the morning Mark visited Al. He found her dressed up and hair styled like Rachel and Iris had shown her how to do and had to step out to speak with Olivia and Richard. He first words were, "Is this some kind of sick joke, where?s Al?" Olivia burst into laughter while Richard shook his head in disbelief. Olivia asked him pointedly, "Do you really think that we would pull a joke on you? That was Al!" Mark didn?t believe her, Richard asked sharply, "Didn?t Iris and Rachel tell you about her last night? Or even Rebecca and Jessie and Jaimie? That is Al in there. That?s all Al." Mark looked in again and gasped that the sight that he was seeing. The girls had done a number on her hair and the clothes were clearly Rachel?s influence. Olivia added, "The girls only talked with her and helped her with her hair, those are her t-shirts and she is wearing leggings and her skirt because of the operation. That?s Al, all Al." Mark entered and apologized for mistaking her for someone else. She timidly asked, "Did I do anything wrong?" Mark shook his head, telling her warmly, "I thought your mom and dad were playing a joke on me. I haven?t seen you since Monday and you have changed so much since then." Al meekly told him, "All I did was wear what I was told to wear, the girls helped me with my hair." Mark told her meekly, "It?s just that you really do not look like you used to. Your energy has returned, you aren?t holed up in bed trying to hide away from us." Al proudly told him, "Dr. Eliza and Rick and the girls helped me. Mom and dad were nice enough to let me figure things out on my own. I don?t want to keep thinking about what I lost, I just want to be myself now." Mark asked if she was ready to go to her new home to which Al beamed at hearing. Mark took this to mean she was, but asked, "Are you ready to meet the large number of people your new family is friends with?" Al proudly told him, "They all told me about the others and I know they won?t do anything to make me feel bad. I want to get out, I want to go home." Mark told her that her room was ready and Sam and Reyna were going to visit her first but Al was just eager to get out. Mark asked about the adoption which Al was proud to tell him, "The paperwork was signed. I want it over with as soon as possible." Mark signed and told her calmly, "It?ll take some time. There aren?t factors to force it to be granted immediately as previous adoptions have necessitated. It?ll take a few months but there is nothing to stand in the way of it being completed. You are going to be Al Samuels, daughter of Richard and Olivia Samuels, at some point in the next two to three months." Mark left with Al smiling. Richard asked what that was about to which Al softly told him, "He was just doing his job by checking in on me. He said the adoption will go through, it?ll take time though." Olivia sat next to her as Al played on her laptop, occasionally looking up but keeping quiet. After an hour Al asked, "Are the neighbors alright with a girl like me?" Richard fought a laugh but gathered his wits and told her, "Reyna lives next door and the people on the other side of us don?t interact with us since they are always working overseas and only really live there on paper. The people on the other side of Lupe will be happy to meet you, that is once they move in next summer." Al asked what they meant getting a bright smile and, "Bryan you already met a few days ago, he?s going to marry his fiance Paige this summer and will officially move in then." Ricardo came by just before it was time to be released, carrying with him the personal thanks from the State Police and district attorney?s office. Al told him sharply, "Don?t thank me, thank my dad for using my laptop." Ricardo laughed and added, "You just got yourself kept away from court, you don?t know anything except that it was on there and that you forgot to take it with you last Sunday." Ricardo made no mention of how she was dressed or how her hair was styled, it wasn?t his business and he felt it was best left not being made light of. An hour after lunch Richard got a text to which he told them, "It?s time." Ricardo told exactly what she needed to do, "Head on ahead of us. I?ll drive with Al and Richard. There?s a stop I need to make first." Olivia gathered everything that belonged to Al and left, noticing immediately that she was being followed by several cars. She called Ricardo who in turn told her, "Double back and drive through the Fens, our welcoming party is going to greet you." Olivia doubled back, watching as cars made illegal U-turns and sped to keep up with her. As she drove through the narrow lanes of the Back Bay Fens she noticed off to the side several State Police cruisers that were at the ready. After she passed the cruisers came out of hiding and blocked the road while others pulled up behind her pursuers. She could see out of the rear-view mirror arguing and scuffling but nobody following her. Olivia drove home and made the final touches to Al?s room. Rick, as she now wanted to call her son, was close by and getting more things to take to the Toro home. Reyna tried to talk him out of staying away but Rick was eager to leave Al alone. Richard and Ricardo drove Al to the nearest courthouse, over in Dudley Square, and met with the State Police troopers who had stopped the pursuers. Ricardo rolled his eyes at the sight, the dirty dozen were at it again. This time they claimed they had an arrest warrant for Olivia for obstructing justice to which Ricardo claimed, "Show it, and then show the court order that rescinded the order that stated for you to stay away from Olivia." Ricardo read the order and laughed. The same ADA signed it and this time a Boston Municipal Court judge signed off. Ricardo called Kennedy and Taylor and was then directed by a clerk to follow him to the judge?s chambers. Richard and Al stayed out of sight as the troopers worked with the court officers to keep the dirty dozen from trying to nab Al. The superior court ruling overruled any of the district or municipal court rulings, they couldn?t get near Al even if they wanted to. Their order was nullified from the start and almost laughable that they thought they?d get away with it. Ricardo spoke with the judge on duty and found that she was the same judge who issued the order for Olivia?s arrest. She asked what this whole situation was about to which Ricardo boldly told her, "What this is about is still under investigation and is a danger to my client. You issued an order under that was obtained under false pretenses as your order is nullified by a superior court ruling by three judges. This order preceded your order by several days and still stands firm without being rescinded nor amended." The judge asked for a copy of the order and noticed who requested it and who signed off on it. She had to think for a while but finally admitted, "I was misled and lied to. I was informed that the woman was hindering the investigation by refusing to turn over documents and grant access to a witness." Ricardo countered by telling her, "Access was being denied by this woman because they are not actually investigating anything. Their units were pulled from any investigation into my client?s situation by the order of the head of the investigations division and the police commissioner. Any actual investigation is being done by detectives assigned to the Attorney General?s Office and District Attorney?s Office. None of the 12 are assigned there nor have they been seconded there. Again, you were misled" The judge issued a rescind order and told Ricardo, "I?ll look forward to whatever is the outcome of this investigation. I know you can?t say much but from the way things are going this is going to result in front page news. I hope that the witness is going to a safe home." Ricardo grinned and stated, "The only place safer for her is a castle." The judge issued restraining orders in the name of all 12 of the dirty dozen and had Ricardo personally deliver them. Ricardo handed the new order to the troopers and then told them, "You gentlemen are served. If you come near any of the people listed in the court order and you will be arrested for violating their aforementioned 209A rights. Place them under arrest for violating a preexisting court order. For three of them this is the second strike and thus they will be remanded to custody at Nashua Street Jail pending trial." The troopers smiled as they took out their handcuffs and officially placed them under arrest while the court officers escorted them to the rear to be booked on their new charges. Al knew something was going on and recognized all four of the men. She whispered to Richard, "They are after me, aren?t they." Richard tried to deflect but Al told him bluntly, "You can?t hide the truth from me." Richard sharply told her, "It?s part of being a parent. There are times when I have to do that." Al was sure he was trying to keep her in the dark but realized he was doing it for her protection, it was the first time someone had actually tried to protect her. On the drive back Al asked again this time being told by Ricardo, "They want to talk with you but we know that?s a lie. They are trying to kill you. You know too much. You know where the documents are and where the money is and what your parents told you. We are trying hard to keep them away but we still need someone more important- the brains who is pulling their strings." Al gave them the name that they needed. Ricardo asked if she was serious, she told him bluntly, "I know that person better than anyone. He was over my house all of the time and mom had sex with him all of the time. His son is my older brother!" Richard swore. This was going to be terrible news. It was beyond terrible, it was crippling to the poor kid who was stuck in the middle of the mess. As they pulled into the driveway they were met by Rick and Reyna. Al hugged him deeply while Reyna tried hard to keep from giggling. Al saw his bags packed and asked, "What?s going on?" Rick softly told her, "I?m going to spend some time with Reyna and her mom so you can get used to living with mom and dad." Al tried to plead with him, begging him not to go. Reyna and Olivia both told him, "We told you so" causing Al to ask, "Can you please stay? I don?t want you to leave." Reyna grabbed his bags and moved inside, not bothering to listen to his protest. Al followed behind with Rick slowly trying to figure out what to say. Reyna set the bags down and announced, "As much as I like having you as a guest, you need to be here. This isn?t like Rachel?s situation, you are going to be fine. Just look at her, she needs her big brother. How can you say no to that pretty little face?" Al gave him a pleading look. He grumbled, "Women" as he put his clothes away. Reyna whispered softly, "Nice look, you are a natural." Al countered with, "Francesca told me I could do that to him and it felt right to do it." Reyna smiled then told her, "You had better get your room settled, you are going to need to dilate soon and it?ll go easier for you if you are more comfortable." Al asked if she still did it to which Reyna nodded, telling her, "It?s not that often and more to keep things open than anything. It?s a pain but the only alternative is to have a boy do it for me and mom would freak out if I did that." Al gasped as she realized what Reyna meant, Reyna giggled and told her, "I knew that would work. It?s true though, just remember to use a lot of lubrication and go slow. It sucks but it needs to be done." Reyna helped her put away her clothes and told her, "We will go shopping for more soon. You need more than just those t-shirts and skirts. It?ll help you more to pick out your own clothes and define yourself. I do have to say that you are very pretty and when your hair gets longer you will be the envy of all the kids in your class." She blushed at hearing that, then excused herself so she could do her needed care in peace. Kennedy received a text from Ricardo that shocked and alarmed her. The snake in the grass was worse than thought and explained a lot. Thankfully they covered themselves more thoroughly than the person knew. Beverly had Al?s money tied up with no way to access it without Ricardo or Olivia?s consent and her parents left her a tidy sum in life insurance as well as the premium from the car insurance. The only thing up in the air was the sale of the house which was still unresolved. It was under constant surveillance but the snake had ensured that it wasn?t touched again. He knew there wasn?t anything of value to the dirty dozen left behind. The house itself was in fine working order but Dan and his crew needed to get a look at it for themselves. Kennedy visited after Al finished her needed dilation. She was reluctant to tell her about herself but Al broached the subject by asking her meekly, "Are you like me?" Kennedy was caught off guard and asked what she meant to which Al reluctantly told her, "It?s how you are looking at me. It?s like you are hiding something. You didn?t look at me like mom or dad or Ricardo or Mark, you looked at me like Reyna and the girls look at me." Kennedy was caught in a trap. She didn?t want to lie and lose Al?s confidence but she didn?t want to tell her either. Al softly asked, "Did you want to keep that from me?" Kennedy gave in and softly told her, "I didn?t want you to think everyone who was transgender wanted to know one another or that Olivia and Richard were forcing all of us on you." Al smiled at the thought. Kennedy told her about her transition and her past, letting her know about everything including the troubles she faced and the problems she still occasionally had to put up with. Al asked her sweetly, "Am I going to look like you when I?m older?" Kennedy blushed and told her, "No, you will look better. I was lucky to have had a very late puberty so I wasn?t fully developed as a man." Kennedy called Olivia and Richard in and discussed Al?s accusations. Al retold who she thought was behind all of the actions and why. Her story matched Kennedy?s theory, Al even went a step further and admitted, "He kept things in his home, I went there once and saw where he kept them." They asked why she was brought along to which she angrily told them, "Dad wanted to use me as insurance. He wouldn?t do anything to dad with me there. My brother wasn?t home so dad couldn?t use him against him then." Kennedy asked if Al was willing to talk with some important people to verify her story. Al agreed, telling them, "I think he is mentioned in the emails but I didn?t read them. His initials are used as dad liked to call him by his initials. He said it was easier than using he real name in case someone was listening in on their calls." Kennedy excused herself to make a phone call. When she returned she told Al, "They are on their way. They are bringing an expert with them to help put what you are telling us together." Off to the side Olivia asked what they were going to do about the funeral. Kennedy thought for a bit and smiled, telling her, "That?s the place that they will strike. They are going try to take out her car and hit her then. We will be ready, you are riding with Willie and I. They know not to try anything with Willie so they?ll leave us alone and let us spring our trap on them." The guests arrived a half hour later. The DA was there along with the head of the Suffolk County State Police detective unit and two other detectives. Their computer expert had a laptop and was running a copy of Al?s hard drive. Al showed them what he meant by showing emails between her dad and someone called, "TG". The DA swore loudly, as did the detectives. Kennedy told them, "The money is secure as is all of the evidence. What he knows about is already copied, digitized, and placed into secure storage. Ricardo still retains the originals in a private storage location and he isn?t stupid enough to go after it." Al showed the money transfers, adding, "This account is in someone else?s name, someone also with the initials, "TG". Kennedy whispered, "His son" to which Al told her, "Yes, my brother." She then produced emails explaining her dad blackmailing, "TG" about his lovechild and that his wife might not like knowing that their, "Adopted" son wasn?t actually adopted by her. The DA drew a sharp breath then reiterated what was going on. They had motive through Al?s dad?s extortion and the emails and money transfers. They had means in the form of the court tampering and bogus warrants. There was an alibi but that didn?t matter as there were 12 people that could be turned in exchange for a lighter sentence making the alibi moot. They had him. The DA handed the case off to Kennedy to have her people prosecute as his office was compromised. He would inform the court personally that any requests from their snake were to be logged and ignored. Kennedy pointed out that he could have some already waiting to go into effect to which the DA smiled and added, "We will speak with the Chief Justice of the Supreme Judicial Court tomorrow morning. She will be more than willing to weed out this guy especially given how he has already abused the courts for his own means and doesn?t have the authorization anymore to obtain them." Al asked, "What will happen to his son?" Kennedy softly told her, "We will help him out." Olivia turned to Richard who nodded, she told Al, "If what you said is true then we will take him in. He will have a hard time living down what his dad did. He will need to be around people he knows." Kennedy left with the words, "You have done a great service, and you are braver than anyone your age should be." Olivia started dinner and had Rick and Al help prepare the veggies. Al didn?t protest and noticed Rick did what he was told. He calmly told her, "It?s what mom usually has me do, I stink at cleaning." Rick left for work after dinner and kissed Al on the forehead goodbye. She let out a quick, "Yuck" and blushed but didn?t pull away. Olivia chuckled at the sight and pointed out, "He?s babying you. He?s taking to being a big brother faster than we expected." Al just shrugged, she appreciated the attention. Al asked about her sister and why she hadn?t visited her yet. Olivia smiled and explained, "She is busy with Jack, her little baby boy. She is doing a few things for you behind the scenes, like settling any of the taxes you would have to pay on the things you inherited. Her husband is principal of the high school so he often has to work late which means she wasn?t able to get away to visit you. Will, my nephew and your new cousin, had to work so he couldn?t watch Jack for her." Al felt relieved, she thought she was being avoided. Olivia shook her head and told her, "She isn?t avoiding you, she has asked about you every day and if Jack was older she would have taken him with her. She will be over early tomorrow with her three guys. Jack should be fine with you, but keep away from his fingers as he likes to grab onto anything especially hair." Al hugged and kissed her then went to bed early, knowing it was going to be a trying day. Chapter 8 Over at the Herman home Francesca was feeling the same brotherly love. Benny kept her close all day, refusing to let her out of his sight. Beth was more than happy to let the two bond, they were getting along fine with Benny sleeping more soundly and not fighting her when being fed. Beth hoped that when Francesca went back to school he wouldn?t act up thinking that she was leaving him again. Francesca played with Benny for hours, stopping only when he had to have a nap and for lunch. When he was down for the night she finally felt relieved to be rid of him for the day, confessing to Beth, "I hope he can deal with me going to school. I don?t want you suffering because he is having issues with me leaving for several hours." Beth smiled, admitting, "I had the same thought. We will endure, there are plenty of things to distract him and the twins are close by as well. I am happy that you are concerned about me though, it means a lot that you do. But don?t worry about us, we?ll get used to you leaving for school like he did for Ben." Reyna called her to tell her that Al was home from the hospital and Al had gotten Rick to return home so she had finally rid herself of her guest, and then told her, "Al anointed him ?Rick? too." Francesca laughed, adding, "That?s a good name for him." Beth asked what was so funny and she herself giggled at the name for him as well. Francesca walked over to see Iris and Rachel and greeted Sam as well. The four girls shared gossip with Rachel and Iris telling them, "Rick is going to stick". Jaimie walked over to check in on them and started laughing at the nickname, adding, "He is trying to be polite but now that you know about it, it?ll spread." Francesca asked if she liked the name to which Jaimie grinned, proudly saying, "It?s better than another nickname for Richard and he does look like a Rick to me. He?s so strong and handsome." Rachel added a swift, "And probably has a big...um never mind" getting the five laughing at the image. The girls talked about the next day and what they were going to wear. Francesca blushed at telling them, "Mom won?t let me wear my black bra and panties" to which Jaimie added, "Not a shock, those things are barely more than dental floss and practically see through." This set the others off laughing. Sam asked if any of them had a small black dress. Rachel had one and showed it to Sam, getting a hug and soft, "It?ll fit Al" in return. Iris joked, "You two are becoming too much alike. First it was the skirts now you two are already wearing each other?s clothes. Next she will be borrowing your makeup." Francesca sharply told her, "She?s not ready for makeup" getting a meek, "Sorry" response. Sam gave the dress to Kennedy so Al could wear it. Kennedy asked how she knew to which Sam told her, "I know what Al knows and why. He either forgot or didn?t know that grandma and grandpa lived across the street. They weren?t as sly as they thought and the other neighbors saw him coming and going but I think only grandma and grandpa knew who he was. I kept quiet about all of this because his son is innocent and needs people around him who care about him. It got easier when Francesca, Iris, and I started to drift apart from the others but it is still hard to keep the secret. I just hope that when the news that his dad is dirty hits it doesn?t impact him too much." In the morning Al woke up to Richard making breakfast and Kennedy sitting at the kitchen table. Al saw the dress and asked meekly, "Is that for me?" Kennedy nodded, but told her, "Sam thought it might be a good idea for you to wear it as your normal clothes aren?t appropriate for a funeral." Al nodded, taking the dress to her room. Al looked at the dress and sighed. This was a giant leap for her. Wearing leggings and a skirt was one thing, but this was a whole new level to being a girl. A dress classically defined a girl from a boy, wearing it was accepting that she was a girl. She felt the material. It was soft and satiny, it felt amazing to the touch. Al took off her pajamas and stood ready to put on the dress, then stopped. She took a few minutes to gather her wits and finally pulled it over her head and slipped it on. The material felt good against her skin. It was light and airy. It didn?t rub rough like her t-shirts. It fit differently as well. The top of the dress was very loose but the middle hugged her tightly. The sleeves were lacy and covered her arms to the wrist. It was meant to be for an older and taller girl but it still mostly fit her body. She went downstairs and showed it off to her parents, covering her chest with her arm to prevent the dress from showing off her chest. Olivia shook her head telling her, "We will have to take in the top a little and I think you need a training bra to help fill it in a little more." Al didn?t seem phased by the mention of a bra, she only quietly replied, "Please, no pink ones." Olivia smiled, telling her softly, "We will see what they have. I didn?t want to scare you before but we needed to talk about hormones, you were going to need to get some anyway after you started on them." Al sighed and told her, "I?ll take them. If I am going to be a girl I need boobs or else I?ll stand out for the wrong reasons and I don?t want that to happen. Before you ask, I don?t care about them one way or another. I just want to fit in and if it means I have to have boobs then so be it." Olivia and Kennedy took her up to her room and sat her down, sensing she wanted to say something but not in front of Richard. Al looked up at them and told them, "I like the dress. I like the feel and the look. I like how the material feels on me. I don?t see myself as a boy anymore. I am embarrassed to say but I can?t remember what it felt like to have a wiener and balls. I don?t want to hold off the inevitable anymore, I?m a girl. I feel like one, I look like one, I like that I look like one." Kennedy asked, "Did you ever wear girls clothes before?" Al shook her head, but told her, "I tried on mom?s shoes and bras before just to see what they were like. I tried to wear her panties but she didn?t own any." Kennedy asked, "When was the last time you did that?" Al meekly admitted, "Two months ago. I wanted to see what I looked like and it was weird. I don?t know why it felt that way but it did." Olivia hugged her but told her, "That was likely curiosity. Lots of boys do that. Rick did it a few times when he was younger but don?t you dare tell him that I know that he did. It?s normal, but in your case it was brought back to light because of your circumstances. You are a girl physically but you might now be a girl psychologically. You accepted that things have now changed and that you are changing in your mind to fit your new life" Kennedy added a soft, "It?s alright to like a dress, there are plenty of girls who don?t wear feminine clothing yet enjoy wearing a dress once in a while. Remember, Rebecca and Jessie don?t like wearing dresses or skirts but wore stunning dresses last April." She showed her a picture of the girls wearing dresses at the semiformal dance, with Rebecca and Jessie looking stunning in their dresses. Kennedy pointed out proudly, "We didn?t have to bribe them, they wore them on their own. Jessie and my son even were the king and queen of the dance." Olivia looked at the time and had Al get changed so they could go shopping. She called her sister and told her of the change of plans while she told Kennedy, "I never expected to bra shop for a daughter before." Kennedy smiled and told her, "Me neither, thankfully I still have two more years to go to adjust to this idea before I have to go through it with Kylie." Beverly arrived shortly thereafter. Will greeted Al with a big hug then headed for Rick?s room. He joked with her, "Don?t let mom and Aunt Olivia buy up the store" getting a soft, "They are only buying bras, did you want some too?" Will blushed, tried and failed to come up with a good comeback, then rushed off as the two adults laughed hard. Olivia hugged her while Beverly boldly told her, "Were you talking lessons from the girls or did you do that on your own?" Al smiled and told her, "I knew that he was teasing me but the way he said that it seemed like he was jealous, I just wanted to be polite." She had a big mischievous grin prompting them to laugh hard again as they got in Beverly?s car. The store was mostly empty and they were able to find the bras quickly. Olivia picked out a couple in her size that would fill up the top of the dress easily while Al looked at the different styles and cup sizes. Al stared at the different sizes then down at her chest and shook her head whispering, "I hope I?m not as big as mom was." Olivia also picked up some undershirts and additional leggings. Al was drawn to the skirts, she saw some that were in her size and were pleated and lace trimmed but not overly feminine. Noticing Al?s lingering stares Olivia added them to the pile as Al walked on to the blouses. She found a couple that felt good in her hands and were different shades of blues and greens. She didn?t normally like buttons but the blouses were light and airy and felt nice. Beverly had her go to the changing booths and try the blouses on. After trying the first one on and moving around in different ways Al loved the feel, especially on her chest and back. She was told to try it again with the bra on and even though it felt odd having the straps on her shoulder and tight around her back it felt right. Olivia whispered to Beverly, "She?s 100% now. There is no way that she has any masculinity in her anymore." Beverly nodded, adding a soft, "She is fighting the urges but she is loving the feeling. She just needs to get used to the clothes." Olivia had her take off the blouses and bras and put on her t-shirt again. She picked out a few more t-shirts in her size but ones that were yellow, blue, and orange. Those shirts were blank, she didn?t care for any of the images on the other shirts even if they were simple animals and cartoon characters. Her style was simple, Olivia was happy that she had made her own stamp with her own clothes. Al saw the jewelry and asked about earrings. Olivia quietly told her, "I think that can wait for another day. You are still prone to infections and it?s a little early to think about jewelry especially earrings." Al was disappointed but Olivia reminded her, "I know you are disappointed but I want to wait a bit longer before piercing anything. Even though it?s been a week you still have a chance of you getting an infection. If things go well tomorrow we might squeeze a shopping trip in but I don?t think you will have the time this week." Al smiled at that. It wasn?t a solid no, just her mom being caring towards her. Olivia whispered to Beverly, "I think Dr. Eliza might have to speak with her about her feelings, this is a bit too much of a coincidence. She is jumping full force into being a girl." Beverly shook her head and reminded her, "She knows she can?t be a boy again so she is trying to be her own girl. It?s what the doctor and the girls were telling her to do. Just talk with her first, if there were other issues Dr. Eliza will find them." Back at the Samuels home Kennedy got the phone call she was waiting for. She made a quick trip to Boston to pick up the document she needed while the DA told her, "We will get him after the funeral. Mark Sylvester has the custody information in hand and after digging through the court archives with a warrant from us he confirms that the son was never adopted and in fact the mother listed on his birth certificate is Mrs. Washington or rather her name before marriage." Olivia and Beverly arrived back home to catch Kennedy?s sly grin. Al asked, "Is it all set?" Kennedy nodded, adding a proud, "Mark earned his paycheck this time." Beverly added a quick, "He earns it all the time, this should qualify him for hazard pay though." A car pulled up with the Hermans and Francesca inside. Francesca got out quickly, making her way over to Al and giving her a deep hug. Kennedy took them inside and spoke to them, telling them about what was going on and why. Francesca was only concerned about Al to which Olivia countered with a soft, "That?s why she is going with Willie, Kennedy, and myself." Francesca went upstairs to help Al change with Beverly pinning the dress to make it smaller in the bust and shoulders to fit her frame batter. Al was a bit embarrassed at being showing Francesca the bra but Francesca didn?t say anything, merely helping her put it on right and adjusting the straps for a better fit. Francesca looked her over and smiled, then helped her fix her hair just right. It was wavy and just long enough to style in a modified pixie cut. It was boyish but no more so than some of the other shorter girl hairstyles that were popular among the girls in the middle school. The two walked down the stairs together bringing all eyes on them as they reached the foot of the stairs. Richard nearly fainted at the sight while Rick mumbled to Will, "Stop staring at her or I?ll tell Claire that you are drooling all over Al." Will softly countered with, "Not my fault that she turned out so nicely. She is beautiful, for a kid." The group sat in silence as they awaited the limousine to take them to the funeral home for the service. Francesca quietly asked Olivia, "When are you going to let Al wear makeup?" to which Olivia asked her, "When do you think she will be ready?" Al leaned over and told them both, "Maybe a few weeks. I think I am pushing it with the dress today" which both took to mean she wasn?t opposed to the idea, rather she was not ready yet. 15 minutes before the funeral was supposed to start the limousine arrived. Willie was outside waiting, with him explaining to the girls that Reed and Kylie were driving in with their grandparents. Kennedy whispered to Willie, "Take-down is at the cemetery. It?s the only place they can get her since she?s going with us. Willie nodded, asking, "Any coverage?" Kennedy smiled and told him, "Middlesex County deputies are executing the warrants for arrest on our behalf. The termination paperwork was issued late last night for all involved and went into effect this morning. They don?t know yet though. Our contact in the court told us he used a new person this time so it didn?t get back to him but the clerks knew to look out for the names. He used the West Roxbury Municipal Court this time but the clerks in all eight municipal courts and the Winnisimmet District Court were informed about this move before it happened. They are toast." Willie grinned, she was one pissed off mother and this was personal. You don?t mess with family especially her family. The group got into their respective vehicles. Francesca hugged Al for good luck hoping that it wasn?t needed by either of them. Willie drove off first, the dirty dozen would have eyes on the limousine not Willie?s car and if they had seen them going in his car they wouldn?t be stupid enough to go after him. Rick and Will replaced Olivia and Al while Beverly and Jake drove behind the limousine, they were going to be the buffer between anyone trying to get at the limousine and as they were mere regular people to the dirty dozen any attempts to stop them would result in additional criminal charges against them in addition to the ones they already faced. The drive was uneventful but Kennedy did notice that they had tails. They were met by the rest of the family who one by one were introduced to Al. Al made her way through the family greeting them all warmly and putting on a happy fa?ade despite the sad situation. Jaimie gave her a big hug while Rachel complained that Al looked better in her dress than she did. Sam gave her the biggest hug followed by Virgil. Virgil mumbled, "Are you still hurt?" Al whispered back, "It doesn?t hurt much anymore but I still have some trouble being a girl." Virgil told her warmly, "Why, you are so pretty?" which Al smiled at, the little boy knew how to make you feel great. Al expected the worst when she saw the Raymonds coming over to greet her. Joshua hugged her and kissed her forehead, telling her, "I hope you are feeling well." Al meekly told him, "I am trying to get used to it" to which Joshua told her, "You are doing better than anyone could have ever hoped." Astrid and Peggy were distant which Al felt bad about. Peggy quietly told her, "We know you aren?t happy with what happened but you look amazing." Al blushed while Astrid added, "You look much happier than you have ever looked before." Al smiled and told them, "I am happy. Mom and dad are good to me and Rick is such a sweetheart." Both hugged her, shedding tears with her as her fears over the Raymonds? reactions diminished. The service was long and somber. As per Francesca?s wishes there were no flowers beyond the four alongside the caskets. The four caskets were laid out next to one another with Wendy and Belle?s caskets being a different color than the Washingtons? caskets. During the drive to nearby Malden for the burial Al kept herself together until they were within the cemetery. Seeing her parents being lowered into the ground caused her to lose her control and fall to the ground in tears. Olivia and Richard embraced her as she wept, all others standing back shedding tears themselves at seeing Al let loose her grief. Francesca sobbed silently as Wendy and Belle were lowered. She put on a brave face but it started to break down as well. Beth and Ben hugged her tightly as Benny grabbed onto her trying to do the same. The others saw the love that they were expressing bringing many to tears themselves. It was different than when John, Leslie, and Karen?s mother passed away, these were two well loved and respected members of the family. Even the strongest willed of them like Sean Beretta, Mike Daniels, and Alex Vincent broke down and cried at the sight of the couple being buried. The funeral broke up and the family immediately saw the flashing blue lights. The fight was on. Kennedy texted the head of the arrest group that they were finished and were about to encounter them. She immediately received a quick, "All exits blocked and Malden PD is close on standby for assistance". Kennedy laughed at this, the dirty dozen were in for a shock- they were trapped. Taylor held back as they walked. His son Thomas was alongside Rebecca during the service while Taylor kept his normal distance from the family. Thankfully Al hadn?t noticed him during the funeral and Taylor made it a point to hold back out of sight of the family as things were starting to occur. Kennedy caught up with him and grabbed his shoulders, as Willie grabbed his other and enticed him to come along with them. He tried to resist only getting Kennedy to dig into his shoulder and forcibly encouraging him along. He told them that he parked in another lot to which Willie grinned and pointed out his car while continuing to encourage him along. As the family reached the edge of the parking lot the dirty dozen struck. John and Dan demanded to know why they were there. The leader of the group told them sharply, "We are here to execute an arrest warrant on Kennedy Pena, Olivia Samuels, Mark Sylvester, Ricardo Rodriguez, David Peterson, Patrick Peterson, Wilfredo Pena, Todd Flynn, and Richard Samuels." Valerie demanded to know on what grounds they were arresting them to which the leader smiled and told her, "Hindering a police investigation and kidnapping." Kennedy boldly told them, "Gentlemen, I have the honor of informing you that you are hereby under arrest for impersonating police officers and violating restraining orders and court orders. Once again you are under the belief that the lower level court can issue the court orders despite the higher court?s order still being in place. Further those gentlemen with the Middlesex County Sheriff?s Department will gladly inform you that you were terminated as officers yesterday by the State Police and Boston Police departments and that your warrants were bogus. Actually you yourselves have arrest warrants, issued by the Suffolk County Superior Court through the Attorney General?s Office at the request of the Suffolk County District Attorney with the blessing of the Supreme Judicial Court." The leader shouted at her, "We have it signed by the district attorney!" Kennedy shook her head told him authoritatively, "You had it signed by an ASSISTANT district attorney and issued by a municipal court judge. It is useless, frivolous even. His boss, the duly elected DA, knew about this ploy and went to the Supreme Judicial Court getting any orders against us vacated and warrants issued against you. You were played for fools, isn?t that right Taylor?" Taylor smiled and told them, "You guys must be idiots to not know how these orders work." Kennedy smiled back and added, "Well you didn?t really intend for them to work, did you Taylor? You were too busy covering your tracks to ensure that their plan worked. But frankly you knew all along it would fail, you were hoping they would get themselves sent to prison while you got rid of all of the evidence in our secure storage facility that pointed to you. Only you forgot one thing- Ricardo and I were also involved. You might have been able to bully around your colleagues but you couldn?t bully us around. We don?t play nice and we aren?t stupid- you never had a chance of getting the evidence." Taylor?s face went white as Al shouted, "You set them up! You murdered my mom and dad and tried to get the cops sent to prison!" Taylor looked over and saw Al standing there with Olivia and Richard. In the frenzy of trying to escape from Willie and Kennedy he completely forgot that she was there and more importantly- that she knew everything and could finger him. Al told him sharply, "They know about the payments. They know about dad blackmailing you. They know you got the younger ADAs to issue the warrants. Does Thomas even know his mom isn?t even his real mom or that she never actually adopted him as you had planned on saying to him when the truth got out about her not being his real mom?" Taylor tried to lunge after Al but was stopped cold by a punch to his gut by Rick that followed quickly by a knee to the groin by Jaimie. Thomas watched the whole thing and tried to figure out what the hell was going on. Rebecca held him close and whispered, "Wait a bit. Aunt Kennedy is going to talk with you about all of this. She has a plan and she won?t leave you alone in this." The deputies approached and cuffed the dirty dozen then grabbed onto Taylor and handcuffed him. The deputy wasted no time in telling him bluntly, "Better hope the people in the jail don?t find out who you used to work for." Taylor struggled but gave in as the deputy was twice his size and had a firm grip that was causing his arm to twist and nearly break as he struggled against it. When the 13 were cleared away and transported to the Middlesex County House of Corrections up in Billerica Kennedy had to explain to the others what had happened. The fact that one of their own would do something so horrific was almost too much to take. The fact that he would do something so horrible at the funeral of people who were supposed to be friends of his was downright unbelievable and had it not just happened they would have sworn that it was a hidden camera gag. Thomas was at a loss for words and seeking guidance from the adults. Kennedy sat him down and told him the full story. His mother wasn?t his mother and his father faked an adoption to justify having him as a son. His real mother was just buried and Al was his sister. He tried to speak but the only words to come out were, "Why?" Rebecca hugged him tightly and asked that they continue it at home. The family drove on, this time with Al and Olivia riding in the limousine with Francesca and the Hermans. Benny wanted attention and demanded to go to Al, she carefully held him as he snuggled into her shoulder and fell asleep. Beth whispered to the others, "She meets Benny?s approval." At the Samuels home the two families exited the limousine and bid goodbye to the driver. Al rushed upstairs to change, while Francesca set out one of new outfits. Al looked at Francesca?s eyes and asked, "Can you help me with makeup?" Francesca wasn?t sure what to make of the request so gave a non- committal, "If your mom says it?s alright to do so." Al hugged her, telling her, "I want to look pretty now. I like how I look and I want to look like the other girls. Mom and dad are truly gone and there is nothing holding me back from being the girl I want to be." Francesca smiled at this, asking her again, "Are you sure? You don?t have to do things because other girls are doing it." Al nodded, saying, "It felt like I was missing something looking in the mirror, like my face wasn?t complete. Maybe some color around my eyes and lips." Francesca giggled and told her, "That?s just about all your mom will let you put on until you get older anyway and Ms. Rodriguez and Ms. Vega don?t like girls wearing too much makeup in school." Al asked who they were, Francesca smiled and told her, "You will meet them tomorrow; they are the principals at the middle school. Don?t worry about them, they are very nice and take good care of students. They had Jaimie and Reyna as students so they will be just fine with having you there. Plus they like our family a lot, even if they act like they aren?t part of it they really are part of our family." Francesca took out some lip gloss and a little eyeliner and helped show Al how to put in on, which Al tried hard to follow and cope herself. It worked as Al only put a little but it helped her immensely in her eyes as she looked more feminine and pretty. Francesca wisely told her, "That?s all that you?ll be allow to put on. I don?t have mascara with me so I?ll teach you how to put it on later on." The two went downstairs again with everyone?s eyes on them as they entered with Olivia looking closely and softly saying, "Makeup looks good on you." Al sat down next to Olivia and Richard as Kennedy started. She explained to Thomas what was happening and why. He heard about his father?s conspiracy to kill the Washingtons after Al?s father blackmailed his dad over Thomas? real mother and over the money that he paid to him to fix cases in court. Thomas told her meekly, "He has all of the case files at home locked away. Only he has a key." Kennedy nodded, adding, "That won?t matter as the door will be broken to access them." She then continued, "Your mom will have to be told but I don?t think she will stick around. You aren?t her son in any legal way, and knowing that Taylor is facing years in prison she doesn?t have reason to stick around." Thomas nodded in agreement, telling her, "Dad doesn?t have any real family so I guess I?m going to be put with other foster kids." Kennedy smiled and announced, "Your next of kin just happens to be Al. Richard and Olivia have said they are willing to foster you. Mark has arranged for this to happen once Mrs. Gault is informed of your dad?s deception. She could still choose to be your mother but it would be provision until she officially adopts you." Thomas asked when she was going to be told, Kennedy asked, "Are you willing to do it this afternoon while we execute the search warrant?" Thomas agreed, adding, "I want to get this over with as soon as possible." Al asked if she could go along but was refused, it was something that she couldn?t take part in and it was too personal for Thomas. Kennedy called in for the search warrant which the detectives had expected and was given one within an hour. She and the detectives drove with Thomas to the Gault home, he was quiet but focused on the situation throughout the drive. Inside Kennedy explained to Thomas?s mom what was going on and why then she asked her to sit in the living room with Thomas. Thomas asked her bluntly, "Am I your son?" She said meekly, "No, you are adopted." Thomas signaled to Kennedy who told Mrs. Gault that she wasn?t actually his mother, there was no adoption paperwork on file and that the ones she was given were fakes. Thomas then told her, "Dad killed my real mother to keep his relationship with her a secret." Mrs. Gault grew pale and mumbled, "Where is he?" Kennedy informed her, "He is in jail awaiting trial for conspiracy to commit murder, extortion, filing false claims, criminal evidence tampering, attempted kidnapping, tax fraud, and likely additional charges." Thomas asked her, "Now that you know the truth what are you going to do?" Mrs. Gault shed a tear and told him, "You aren?t my real son. Our whole relationship has been a lie. I can?t deal with this. I?m sorry Thomas, but I can?t deal with this. I loved your dad but you were never my son." Thomas shed a tear. She rejected him as expected. He told her bitterly, "Did you ever actually love me? Was I just some status symbol to you? All of the other wives had kids so you needed one yourself but you were too vain and lazy to get pregnant? Or was it that you can?t get pregnant and dad just happened to have a woman ready, willing, and able to give up her kids so you could look like you had me through a surrogate? Is that all I am to you- a status symbol and convenience?" She drew a deep breath and told him, "Your dad insisted on taking you in after you were born. He said that it would make us look better and he would one day get appointed as the new DA or even the US Attorney. I didn?t want to take you in, I only did it for your father. My parents forced me to keep you because they wanted grandchildren but I am sorry, I just didn?t love you as a son. I hate kids and only put up with you because of my parents. To me that?s why your father handled everything but I guess that wasn?t the real reason why anymore. That?s why he always cared for you when you were sick or hurt or needed a parent in school. I was just his wife, I was never your mother." Thomas walked out in disgust. Kennedy shook her head and bluntly told her, "You should have known something was amiss years ago but your own ego got the better of you. Congratulations, you just broke the heart of the strongest young man I ever met. He loved you unconditionally and you couldn?t even get over yourself to show any kind of love back. You didn?t deserve to have him call you mom, good luck in your upcoming divorce but given that there were two victims of Taylor?s crimes the amount you get from the sale of this house will only pay off his victims? civil suit that Mr. Ricardo Ramirez will file against Taylor. However given that Taylor has managed to put a lot of things in Thomas? name you may not have a claim to the house, if It is as I suspect and he owns it and then you will be left with nothing except the clothes on your back. I just hope your parents take pity on you- Ricardo won?t." Kennedy left the living room in disgust. Thomas waited for the troopers to break the door to Taylor?s office in then showed them where Taylor had the files and helped load them into boxes. Taylor?s home computer, laptop, and cell phones were seized. There were dozens of boxed hauled out with Thomas doing the bulk of the work for them, none of them willing to tell the boy that he didn?t need to do it. Thomas packed up all of his personal belongings once the troopers had everything in hand. Kennedy brought out suitcases and spare boxes to which he put all of his clothes, some achievement medals and trophies, bedding, and his laptop and TV. He was thorough in grabbing everything and left nothing except empty hangers and dust. Mrs. Gault wasn?t surprised by his actions, and there was nothing for her to say as his father had bought him everything. Before they left Kennedy showed Mrs. Gault a copy of the only known custody agreement, that of Mrs. Washington giving up all rights to Thomas to Taylor but leaving no mention of Mrs. Gault in the notice. She then showed her the DCF paperwork regarding Thomas care that showed that as she wasn?t his biological mother and had rejected him as a relative she would therefor lose all rights to him and he would be placed in foster care. As Kennedy left Mrs. Gault asked where he would be going. Kennedy didn?t break step in responding, telling her, "He is being taken in by close friends so he is of no concern to you anymore. He?ll be better off with them, as you have made abundantly clear." The ride to the Samuels home was just as silent as Thomas realized that he was no longer the normal member of the family that everyone thought, he was actually just as screwed up as the others. With the Gaults? dirty secrets revealed the only ones who were even close to normal were the Samuels family but even that had changed in the past week thanks to Al and him joining them. Thomas was one of the damaged now, joining his friends in their joint pain. As they arrived Kennedy told Olivia and Richard, "It went worse than expected, she never wanted him. The woman he thought was his mother never wanted to be his mother and tossed him away without a fight." Thomas sharply told her, "She doesn?t deserve anything except contempt. Don?t shed any tears or break a sweat over her, she isn?t worth it." Thomas went upstairs to the 4th bedroom and settled himself in. Al came in to see him and grabbed him into a deep hug. He needed it and Al wasn?t shy about giving a guy a hug. Al softly told him, "I wanted a brother and I got two." Thomas wasn?t sure what to say so he hugged her back. Al softly told him, "You deserved better than them, you are too good of a person to be like them. You aren?t like any of them, you are better than your dad or our mom or that lady you called mom." He sat down and started to cry. Al?s tenderness let loose the slowly building tension and caused him to no longer be able to hold back. Al hugged him tight, not wanting to let him go. Rick tried to come in but was shooed away by Al, she was going to ensure that Thomas was going to be alright first before anyone saw him. Thomas finally broke the hug and stopped the waterworks. Al asked if he was alright now to which he nodded, adding, "You are a pretty good little sister." Al blushed and exited the room, telling Rick, "He should be better now" which he just shook his head at them mumbled, "Women" getting a quick, "Damn right" and smile from Al. Al went downstairs to find the Hermans still there. Benny started trying to go for her again which prompted Al to pick him up and let him cuddle. The others made no mention of his attention seeking but Francesca did point out to Al that she was going to need to wash her blouse now because of his drool. Benny proved her point by wiping his mouth on her shoulder leaving wet marks and giggling. Looking at the time Francesca stated they had better get home because of school in the morning. Al hugged her goodbye and handed Benny off to Beth with Benny fussing over leaving Al?s arms. Ben shook his head, whispering to Olivia, "That boy is going to be trouble when he is older" to which Olivia snickered and added, "Like father, like son" getting a smile and blush from Ben. The next morning the news was full of coverage of the arrest of the 13. Taylor?s face was plastered on all five news outlets with reporters reporting live from Malden District Court as well as the Suffolk Superior Court building. Thomas and Al?s names were not mentioned, only that Taylor was arrested in conjunction with conspiring to murder a witness and using the courts to kidnap the witness. Francesca was ready early, having already had her schoolwork finished and checked by Beth and Ben the night before and knowing that Ben enjoyed getting into school before most teachers. Ben in turn was happy to have her along with him and let her get situated in class before the influx of her friends started. The other teachers were a bit surprised at Francesca riding in with Ben but some words from Jake about her being his new foster and future adopted daughter settled any questions. Her classmates filed in slowly and most took notice of Francesca?s return. The ones that didn?t were her friends, all of whom just smiled and hugged her as they took their seats. Thomas was the last inside, with Ben asking if the change had been made to which he nodded and sat down. The class peppered the group with questions about what happened the day before as the news the arrest after the funeral made it through the school thanks to the media coverage of the arrests. Francesca boldly told them all, "Have a little decency. He doesn?t need rumors and innuendos about him spread." Ben stepped in and announced to the class, "I?ll say this once and only once. What happened was something horrible that was perpetrated by a man who was supposed to uphold justice. This person damaged the lives of multiple people two of which are in this classroom. He is facing justice for his crimes and the victims of his crimes are trying to move on so if you would all be so kind as to allow them the chance to let this settle we can get down to working. But if you would prefer to talk about this further we can ensure that you have a test this Friday that counts for 10% of your quarterly grade and then assign you additional work for Christmas vacation. For some of you this will mean the difference between passing and failing so I assume you don?t want that to happen." None of the students wanted to talk further so Ben started the class. The rest of the day was quiet for Thomas and Francesca. The sympathy she received was only matched by the pity that Thomas received as teachers and students tried to go easy on the two. John and Sean were the only ones who acted as if nothing was out of the ordinary, they having witnessed the whole incident and knowing that Francesca and Thomas just wanted to move on the two kept things going as normal as possible. Al though had a more nerve-wracking day. Ricardo drove to her old school and had to fight to get her records released for the transfer to Winnisimmet Middle School, with Olivia having to show that she is Al?s new foster mother. It got tense as Mark ended up being called to verify the authenticity of Olivia having custody. Mark threatened to have the school sued for violating Al?s rights and adding, "I have already had multiple complaints about your school, you are now giving me more reason to have our investigators take a close look at what is going on in there." The secretaries scrambled immediately to copy the records after hearing that, knowing that they would be sacrificed as soon as the superintendent and mayor were made aware of the possible legal troubles. Al was with them at the time and was unnoticed until Ricardo asked if she had left anything in her class. The principal tried to say something about her clothing which Ricardo sharply told her, "You are already skirting a thin line, don?t cross over it by saying something that completely violates her rights. The only thing you could possibly have to say to her now that she has officially transferred is goodbye and good luck." Al smiled and told the principal goodbye getting a meek goodbye in return. On the way out Al stopped as she saw her class walking by. Ricardo held her shoulder reassuring her that she was alright. None of her classmates noticed her and several of the boys stared at her, looking at her with lust in their eyes. Their eyes were firmly planted on her chest, staring at the fake bumps caused by the bra which she had forgotten that she was wearing. Outside the school Olivia smiled as she told Al, "We joked about your looks before but you just caused three of the boys to walk onto the door then each other as they stared at you. And what is more, several of the girls were staring at you with jealousy in their eyes. None of them could tell you were Al, their former classmate, they only saw you as a new girl in school." Al meekly asked, "Do I look that much different?" Olivia knelt down and looked her in the eyes, telling her boldly, "You look nothing like Alexander Washington, everything from your hair down to your toes is different. That along with the way you are acting around the girls and your brothers screams ?girl?. Those little comments Richard and Rick made about women and girls after you said something that was sarcastic to them or spent a while in the bathroom weren?t made to tease you, you really are acting like a woman. You are Alecia Washington and you had your final proof that you are a new you." Ricardo smirked at hearing that. Olivia the mom was on full display and Al?s confidence was boosted. The three drove on to meet Alice Rodriguez and Dorothy Vega at the middle school to finish Al?s transfer. Al remained quiet during the trip letting Olivia?s words sink in as Olivia and Ricardo talked about what was going to be done to Taylor. Ricardo informed them that he filed suit that morning on Al?s and Francesca?s behalf against Taylor and sought everything Taylor owned. Investigations into his finances had turned up a secret bank account which was seized, the contents of which was several million dollars all of which was traced to Al?s father. Al added boldly, "That was the one I told the investigators about. It was in Thomas? name." Olivia asked Al if she was OK with sharing the money with Francesca but got a surprising, "Thomas deserves it. I have money already and Francesca won?t accept it. He?s my brother so he should have it." Ricardo made note of that and asked her if she was going to make it official getting a big smile and, "It better be, for what his dad did to him yesterday he deserves every penny of it" from her. Al stopped short outside the school. Her fear gripped her again. Olivia had her hand and ushered her in with a smile on her face offering words of encouragement. Ricardo followed close behind carrying Al?s records. The secretaries greeted Olivia warmly and were surprised to see her there again. Olivia smiled brightly and announced that she was there to transfer her foster daughter to the school. Both principals came out to greet Olivia as they heard her voice and ushered her into the offices so they could talk privately. Closing the door tightly Dorothy joked, "I thought we were going to have a two year break from your big family". Al asked what she meant to which Olivia told her, "They had four years of Rick and Thomas and all of their friends, they weren?t supposed to have another member of the family as a student until Kylie, Nichole, Margaret, and Nancy came here in two years." She turned to Dorothy and grinned, "You have a bigger problem, once Al is enrolled you won?t have a break from any of the Finns until Sarah and Mick Jones? son and Mark and Leslie Sylvester?s son graduate in 14 years." Dorothy and Alice laughed at the joke. The family was a delight to them and John, Valerie, and the parents have told them repeatedly that they are part of the family even if they try to stay neutral to keep up appearances. The whole lot were some of the best students that ever came through the school?s doors and their parents were models for how parents should be. Olivia smiled and told them, "Al is transferring from Boston. Her parents were killed eight days ago and she placed in Richard and my care soon after." Alice looked over Al?s records but stopped at the name. She asked, "Are these the wrong records, the name says Alexander Washington on it." Al meekly told her, "I was Alexander." Olivia drew a sharp breath and explained, "Alecia had to undergo emergency surgery after the accident that resulted in her having a vagina created from the remains her penis and scrotum. She isn?t transgender like Reyna or Jaimie, she was just a normal boy before. She has to live as a girl from now on and is asking for the school to abide by the rules and regulations regarding students in her situation." Dorothy looked Al over and smiled asking her how she was feeling; Al was too scared to respond to her though. Dorothy tried a different route and asked her if Richard had been good to her. She meekly told her, "Rick is nice and treats me like his sister." Dorothy asked if she liked that getting a soft nod. Alice asked if she was cleared to return to school yet. Olivia had to think it over but conceded, "She should be able to return in a day or two. She will need to sit on a cushion until vacation but should be healed enough to not need one when she comes back after the Christmas vacation. Alice thought it over and told Dorothy, "I think she would best fit in Stephanie?s class. I?ll tell her to keep an eye on Al. Raul will keep an eye on both in case of trouble." Dorothy nodded in agreement announcing to Al, "You can start Wednesday." The three thanked them for their time and turned to leave. The bell rang for lunch and Al was soon among the crowd of students. One girl came into the office asking for her mother and directed to Alice and Dorothy. She came out smiling, noticing Al she said, "Hi are you new?" Al meekly told her, "I start on Wednesday" to which she smiled and went off. Olivia looked towards Alice and Dorothy?s office and was given a nod from them. Al was going to be alright. Al though was still nervous but it was typical first day of school nerves rather than the fearful nerves that she had at her old school earlier. Chapter 9 At home Francesca, needed something to distract her from her annoying day. Seeing her return home from school Benny started crying out for her attention to which Francesca gladly picked him up and hugged him. Sitting on the couch Beth asked if she was alright to which Francesca mumbled, "I hope I am old news by tomorrow, I don?t know how much I can endure the rumors. Thomas had it worse but having everyone constantly ask if you are alright gets old fast." Beth hugged her as Benny bounced in her lap. Francesca did admit, "I really missed school. I missed my friends and I missed the teachers. It was boring without them. No offense to you, mom." Beth just snickered and told her, "I miss it too. Benny keeps me busy but I still miss all of you kids. I?ll help all of you during midterms but it still isn?t the same as being up in front of the classes teaching everyone to conjugate verbs and pronounce words and learn the proper syntax and grammar." Ricardo called them to inform them about the custody hearing. It was set for Wednesday and thankfully Francesca was not needed to appear before the court. Beth asked if she should bring anyone to which Ricardo gave her a quick, "There is no need. Valerie and I have you covered. Just be there on behalf of Francesca and Ben and don?t let them intimidate you." Francesca insisted on going anyway. It was her life being discussed by the judge and she wanted to be there no matter what the outcome. Ricardo tried to talk her out of it but she was intent on going, telling him sharply, "I have never asked for anything before but I am asking this now." Beth reluctantly agreed, she could see her determination and did not want her in school if she was just going to think about the hearing all day and likely snap at the wrong time or the wrong person. The next day was easy for Francesca. She was old news around school thanks to horseplay by some of the sophomores resulting in them accidentally flashing their genitals to half of the students that were eating breakfast and showing of how underdeveloped the playboys really were. Both Thomas and Francesca were happy to be old news and get on with school. Thomas had even managed to spend some time with Rebecca before school, but all the two could manage were a few quick kisses before the school bell rang and they had to stop. Olivia woke up Al late and had her shower and get ready for her appointment with Dr. Eliza and her new pediatrician. Al complained about being woken from a nice dream to which Olivia told her, "That?s fine but if I have to wake you up again I?m tossing cold water on you." Al shot up and rushed to the shower as Olivia snickered. Al looked over at the clothes and chose her favorite t-shirt and matched it with her new pleated skirt and black leggings. After that Al put on her makeup, taking great care to follow Francesca?s previous instructions and avoid putting on too much. She didn?t notice that she was doing it but Olivia jotted it down, adding to the already existing list of things Al was doing naturally. The two drove to the hospital with Al keeping silent while reading her books. In the mental health suite Olivia checked Al in and chatted with the receptionist and nurses. Dr. Eliza came out and saw Al sitting there in her outfit and smiled, Al was sitting with her legs crossed and fiddled with her hair as she read one of her manga books. Dr. Eliza called for Al startling her but getting a smile as she saw Dr. Eliza was only trying to get her attention. In her office Dr. Eliza asked about her weekend to which Al told her about the shopping trip, the bras, the dress, the makeup, and her brothers? reactions to her. Al had to explain what she meant by brothers and retold what happened to Thomas and how it all related to her. Dr. Eliza asked about some of the mannerisms and little things that she was doing which made Al blush. Al admitted, "I saw some of the ladies and girls slitting like that and realized why they were doing it. I wanted to look pretty with the makeup and I wanted to look my best with the dress. I don?t know why I was doing other things just that it was the right thing to do them." Dr. Eliza asked if she had thought that she might have had some deep feminine instincts to which Al told her, "I don?t know. All I know is that I wanted to be pretty for everyone and I wanted to wear things that feel good on me. Look at this skirt for example. I like this skirt and how it feels, I didn?t ask mom to get it because I thought I should wear it. I picked it out because I liked it." Dr. Eliza grinned and told her, "We talked about you and your style before, well you are still developing it and it looks like your instincts are helping you along. You got a chance to try on other fabrics and styles and you are starting to find what you like and dislike." She asked Al about her brothers. Al smiled and told her, "Rick is a big softy and he shows that he cares about me a lot. Thomas is starting to be that way as well but we haven?t had much time together." Dr. Eliza asked about the girls and their treatment of her to which Al grinned and retold about Reyna and then her conversation with Olivia. Dr. Eliza again grinned, telling her, "She is right, there are a lot of things that you will learn but your instincts were working out things that some girls take years to learn. I have my suspicion that you had some feminine tendencies inherent in you that hadn?t risen to the surface due to your birth father?s words. Just because you had some feminine tendencies before the accident does not make you a female or transgender, all it means is that you had empathy and easily understood some elements of females that most males didn?t understand. It?s helping you out now that you are a female in body. Your mind already partially matched your new body, it is up to you to learn more things." Dr. Eliza asked the most important questions next. Al told her about going to get her records at her old school and that none of the students from her class recognizing her. She then told how the staff realized who she used to be only after Ricardo asked her if she left anything in class to which Dr. Eliza proudly told her, "If the same people who knew you intimately over the past seven years like your classmates didn?t recognize you it?s about as close as you will ever get to recognition that Al Washington is truly gone and Alecia Washington has replaced him." Al nodded but told her that she was scared for the next day. She told Dr. Eliza about the new school to which Dr. Eliza admitted, "They are going to help you out. If Alice is having her daughter help you then she is showing that you are in good hands as she has shown time and again that she cares about her students especially ones who are transgender. I trust Stephanie will be a good influence on you." She grinned at Al and added, "I strongly suspect that she has already met you." Outside Al sat down while Dr. Eliza talked with Olivia. She told Olivia that she wanted her to keep an eye on the boys and ensure that they didn?t go too overboard with their protection. She pointed out the troubles three years before to which Olivia agreed fully about. She then asked, "Was that Alice?s daughter that Al met outside the office?" Olivia grinned and told her, "That was her and I suspect she is going to visit Al after school today to get her ready for the next day. Alice wouldn?t let her go at it alone like that, the two will need a little time together beforehand." Dr. Eliza added a quick, "I?ll also speed things along with the endocrinologist so she can start hormones once she gets a referral from her doctor. She has no reason to delay and I think it?ll help her deal with any feelings of inadequacy she may have from seeing other girls already sprouting." Olivia blushed as she mumbled, "She already felt that way around the older girls." Their next stop was Al?s new doctor. She was kind to Al, checking her scars and asking about what she remembered from previous doctor?s appointments. Al reluctantly had to admit she had only visited the doctor at the start of the school year to show that she wasn?t sick and had all her vaccination shots. The doctor didn?t dwell on why, instead she gave her closer examination to ensure that there was nothing that she missed the first time around. Al was reasonably healthy, albeit a bit underweight and her temperature was elevated but not feverish. She recommended that Al eat a few more snacks to add some weight but otherwise she was fine. Her stitches that weren?t part of her surgery were removed but some of the bandages remained in place. She also gave Al a referral to an endocrinologist for the start of hormone treatment as she agreed with Dr. Eliza in that Al had little reason to hesitate any longer. Al and Olivia drove home. Al was quietly thinking about what Dr. Eliza had said regarding Stephanie having met her. Al holed up in her room playing on her laptop and iPad waiting for Rick and Thomas to come home from school. The doorbell rang to which Olivia called out for Al to come down. As Al reached the bottom step she stopped and saw the girl from the day before standing with Alice. Al grew scared and tried to go back upstairs but was called over by Alice and Olivia. Alice softly told Al, "This is my daughter Stephanie, as I told you yesterday she is going to be your classmate. I wanted you to meet her before tomorrow so she can fill you in on your classwork and anything you should know before starting." Stephanie was as anxious as Al at being put on the spot by their mothers but led her up to her room to talk privately. Olivia sensed Alice had ulterior motives and pointedly asked, "What are you really getting at Alice. This isn?t like you to come by for a personal visit." Alice smiled at her and whispered, "Stephanie was asking about her ever since she saw Al in school. She wouldn?t let me deflect questions about her and I trust her fully with whatever Al tells her about herself." Olivia shook her head in disbelief but softly asked, "And what else." Alice sighed and admitted, "She could use a friend as much as Al. She gets along with the other kids in her class but being the daughter of the principal of the other middle school still causes the girls to hold back from being friends with her. I was hoping Al and her would get along." Olivia breathed a sigh of relief. Recalling the previous December and Reed?s horrible isolation she hoped the two hit it off as well, even if they didn?t make more friends at least they had each other. Stephanie was quiet as she entered Al?s room. It was barely decorated and there were a lot of boy things in the room. She and Al talked about what the class was doing in history, science, spelling, reading, music, art, and gym. Al listened closely to what she was saying and added meek replies to the questions about what she had learned before her move. Stephanie tried to figure out if she was ahead or behind but when Al asked her what they were doing and what they had done the two were almost the same. The two had an awkward silence until Stephanie couldn?t hold back any longer and asked her burning question, "Why do you only have boy?s things in your room?" Al felt tears welling up as she admitted, "Because I used to be a boy!" and ran off the bathroom in tears. Stephanie ran downstairs and apologized profusely for upsetting Al, bursting into tears herself for screwing things up with the new girl in school before she had even started at the school. Olivia sat her down and told her what happened to Al and why she was a girl now. Stephanie still had tears in her eyes, not believing what she was being told. She meekly whispered, "She?s too pretty to have been a boy. She doesn?t look like one." Olivia softly told her, "She had help from older girls who had been through similar horrific experiences." Stephanie sniffled and asked, "Why is she scared?" Alice told her, "Remember three years ago when we were at the basketball game and the boy was hit by his dad? He was hit because he wouldn?t hurt a girl like Al. Some people don?t understand or don?t want to understand girls like her and it is even tougher for Al as she never wanted to be a girl in the first place but has to put up with those kinds of people." Olivia then had to think about how best to put it but she added, "Al?s former parents weren?t the greatest people before they died and she had to endure a lot of abuse from her classmates for what they did. She needs someone to help her; she needs a friend who understands her." Stephanie looked up and again apologized, saying solemnly, "That?s why mom wanted me to look after her. She wants us to be friends so we aren?t all alone. She needs me to help her." Stephanie got up and knocked on the bathroom door only to be told to go away. Stephanie knocked again, asking her to let her in to talk to her. She softly told her, "Please, I won?t leave until you let me talk with you. I don?t care that you were a boy, I like you for you. You aren?t like others; you know what it?s like to be all alone. Mom wants me to be your friend and I need a friend too. Nobody in the school will go near me because of her. Please, can we talk?" Al opened up the door and let her in, then quickly closed the door behind her. Stephanie sat on the tub and asked her, "Are you wearing makeup?" Al nodded to which Stephanie told her, "Mom won?t let me wear it yet." Al told her meekly, "Mom didn?t think I was ready yet either." Stephanie asked about her clothes to which Al mumbled, "My t-shirts were the only clothes that I could wear. Rachel wears ones like mine and the girls say she and I are alike." Stephanie asked about the skirt and leggings to which Al muttered, "I have to wear them because I can?t wear jeans due to my surgery. I like how they feel and I like how the skirt looks." Stephanie blushed and told her, "I don?t like skirts, sometimes the wind causes them to blow up and show off your panties to the boys." Al asked if she wore leggings with them to which Stephanie told her, "Only in cold weather as they get hot in the summer so you have to do without them." Al didn?t think about that but Stephanie added, "You should be able to wear jeans and shorts by then." Stephanie did her best to try to smooth things over with Al. Al asked her bluntly, "Are you alright with me being born a boy?" Stephanie meekly told her, "I didn?t know you as a boy so why should I care that you used to be one. I don?t see a boy. I am sorry, but I don?t. You are too pretty and make the rest of us look bad by comparison. The girls in class are already thinking of ways of making you look bad after they saw you and heard that you were new to the school." Al asked how bad they were to which Stephanie told her, "They are really bad. They make fun of you for the little things to make you look bad. Ms. Vega is itching to suspend some of the girls for how they act but the always manage to keep from getting in trouble." Al meekly replied, "I?m their new target." Stephanie asked what Al liked to do getting a proud, "I play video games" from Al. Stephanie asked what ones getting a smile from Stephanie as she admitted, "I play with my brother a lot. I got good at the game but he doesn?t play me anymore." Al smiled and told her, "I?ll play you. I am tired of playing the jerks in my old school and getting beaten by them. They aren?t fun anymore." Stephanie hugged her. She had tears in her eyes as she did it, Al was being nicer to her than any of the other people in her school had been and she hadn?t even officially started. Al hugged her back, telling her she was scared that she would have nobody again. The two shared something in common that was bonding them. If the two were going to be outcasts at their school then they would be outcasts together. The two moved to Al?s bedroom to which Stephanie asked if she was going to redecorate it further. Al shrugged, but she could understand what Stephanie meant. Stephanie looked over her clothes and saw what Al was doing with her style. It fit her perfectly, a bit feminine but unique. It was a direct reflection of her personality and Stephanie was happy to point it out to her. Al smiled and told her, "Rachel and the girls told me the same thing, I guess it?s just luck that it works for me." Al sat her at table and pulled out her makeup, putting some lip gloss and eyeliner on her then showed her. Stephanie blushed and admitted, "Mom will freak." Al just nodded and added some mascara and finished with a hug. It was her showing Stephanie she was friends with her. The two walked downstairs to their mothers staring at them. Alice immediately asked, "Where did you get that makeup?" Stephanie meekly told her, "Al" to which Alice shook her head and told her, "Alright but if you are going to wear it you are getting your own, at your own expense." Stephanie?s eyes lit up in surprise then joy as Al let out a sigh of relief at not being yelled at for breaking her rules. The two sat down to which Alice asked, "Are you all set now?" Both nodded to which Olivia asked, "Are you certain you are alright with what Al used to be?" Stephanie mumbled a soft, "There was nothing to be alright about. I didn?t know her before and she isn?t that anymore." Al added, "We talked and we decided that if we were going to be outcasts then it was better to be miserable together than alone." Both mothers sat back, relieved that they worked things out and were doing what they had hoped they would do. Alice looked at the time and told Stephanie, "Raul should be done with his practice soon, you two can talk more in the morning." Al hugged Stephanie goodbye as their mothers watched with grins. Olivia sat Al down again and asked again, "Are you alright with Stephanie being your friend? You don?t have to be her friend because we want her to look out for you." Al smiled and told her, "She is what I always wanted in a friend. She?s nicer than any classmates I had and she likes the same things as I do. Thank you for setting us up as friends." She rushed over and hugged Olivia, tears streaming down her face to which Olivia kissed her forehead. Thomas and Rick came in and immediately backed away, unsure what was going on. Al looked up and told them, "Mom set me up to make a friend." Olivia quickly explained to the boys getting grins and form Thomas a quick, "Don?t let Raul think he is the boss, he?s just like Rick. He is all bark but no bite." Thomas ran off before Rick could get after him. Olivia was left flustered and a bit annoyed but Al made her laugh out loud by saying, "Silly boys." She quickly covered her mouth realizing what she just said but Olivia held her hug telling her with a big grin, "They don?t know how funny they are at times." Al asked, "Was I going to be like that?" Olivia shook her head, telling her sweetly, "You weren?t going to be like that exactly, it just wasn?t in your nature. Rick and Thomas are athletes but they have big hearts and are smart. You are naturally smart and witty, you may be good with science or computers if you wanted to learn. It?s a big reason why you and the older girls got along, you are just a younger version of all of them. You have the best of all of their traits. They have already started down their own paths, you are just starting out and will find what you like and what you want to do with your life. You have six and a half years to decide." Rick and Thomas complained, "What you do mean athletes?" to which Al told them, "You do before you think." Rick and Thomas looked at one another but couldn?t argue her point. The two shook their heads and blurted out, "Is this what we have to endure for the next four years?" Al shook her head, shooting, "You are stuck with me forever, big bros." Rick hugged her, but Thomas held off. She grabbed him and pulled him in. Olivia took a picture causing the three to complain but she ignored it. The three went back to their rooms until dinner to which Richard was shown the picture and commented on her big grin. He shook his head in disbelief but he had to admit that in the course of 10 days his wife had never been happier and adding not one but two people to their small family had brought out the mother in her that had been slowly fading in the past few years as Rick grew older. The next morning things were tense as Rick and Thomas waited for Al to finish getting dressed. Al hesitated, taking her time to pick the right outfit while also applying her makeup. Olivia had to hurry her along, choosing the right leggings, skirt, and blouse for her as she struggled with her new bra. The boys stared at her to which Al told them to stop looking at her chest. The two blushed but Olivia told them, "Get used to the sight, she is going to be wearing one for a long time. You two didn?t stare at Jaimie and Rebecca like that." Both blanched at her words and ran to Rick?s car as fast as they could. Olivia shook her head, telling Al, "He has seen what Jaimie looks like naked already. He knows yet he still finds himself staring at her and the other girls." Al asked, "Maybe it?s because he is seeing his sister little growing up a bit faster than he wants?" Olivia looked down at her in surprise, she was probably right. He babied her so it was a shock to him to see it. The drive to school was as close to a lifetime as it could get for Al. Thomas and Rick got out and hugged Al before going on to the high school while Olivia looked around to find Alice and Dorothy. Stephanie found them right away and hugged Al, with Al returning the hug and telling her, "The kids are staring at us." Stephanie nodded but added, "They see the outcast hugging the new girl, they are going to talk about us until the bell rings." Dorothy showed Al inside and introduced her to Mrs. Shriner, her new teacher. Al meekly said hello while Dorothy announced, "Alecia Washington, or Al as she likes to be called, is joining you as a new student. She has recently undergone emergency surgery and will be using a cushion on her seat. She is going to be excused from gym class for the foreseeable future as well." Mrs. Shriner asked what the surgery was to which Dorothy looked at Al who nodded back and told her, "She had gender reassignment surgery due to a severe car accident a week and a half ago. She is in the care of Mrs. Olivia Samuels and as I am sure you are aware Mrs. Samuels is no stranger to our policy on discrimination especially given her son?s choice in his future fianc?." Mrs. Shriner nodded meekly. The only thing going through her mind was the name, "Finn" and not just her colleague John. Having endured the horror stories about Mr. Sky, Mrs. Nunez, Mr. Poland, and Mr. Hogan and Ms. Mead she feared his wife Valerie more than death. Al asked what was going on. Dorothy whispered, "There is only on thing that teachers in our city fear more than being fired, that is facing an outraged Finn. John is tough, but Valerie is ruthless. She knows Richard is dating Jaimie and would not hesitate to tell her mother about any problems that you will be encountering." Al smiled and told her, "Rick would handle this on his own" to which Dorothy added, "As much as he would love to, he knows to let Valerie handle it. She is a great person when you do get to meet her, just don?t let her twins manipulate you." Al smiled as Dorothy left. Mrs. Shriner offered her a clue as to what they were doing in class. Al told her, "Stephanie told me this yesterday. I have done most of it but it shouldn?t take long to get caught up in everything that we didn?t go over." Mrs. Shriner asked what she meant so she told her, "Stephanie and her mom came by yesterday to help me get up to speed. She showed me what you were doing in class in all the subjects. Ms. Rodriguez had copies of my old school?s curriculum so she told me what I needed to focus on." Mrs. Shriner understood exactly what Alice was doing and why. It wasn?t about the schoolwork, it was about getting the two girls together. It obviously worked as Stephanie came in smiling and hugged Al. She placed Al next to Stephanie so the two would be partnered-up for their class projects. Stephanie had been used to doing all of the work when in groups of three or doing things solo so having Al help would make Stephanie?s work better. Plus it might help Stephanie socially as other girls saw her as just a normal girl and not the principal?s kid. Al and Stephanie were talking quietly as the bell rang and the students flooded in. All of their loud talking and laughing stopped as they took notice of the new girl chatting away with the outcast, with several whispering about them as if they weren?t there. Al and Stephanie ignored them, instead keeping up their conversation until Mrs. Shriner cleared her throat and started class. She started off by saying, "Class we have a new student starting today. Her name is Alecia Washington but she prefers to be called Al. She is recovering from a nasty car accident recently that killed both of her parent so she is excused from some of the activities that you will be doing. She has been partnered with Stephanie at their own request so those of you who coasted by with Stephanie doing all of your lab work will have to actually do your own work from now on." There were glares at Stephanie by some of the girls, their teacher knew those girls were in trouble now that Stephanie wasn?t carrying their dead weight around. She thought it best to also add, "Since Al is new to our school I?m taking the time to remind everyone about our rules regarding behavior especially bullying. There is no discrimination based on race, ethnicity, creed, gender identity, sexual orientation, or economic situation. Any violation will be dealt with harshly. Penalties are detention, suspension, and expulsion. You were warned at the beginning of the year and signed statements that you agreed to them but it pays to reiterate them from time to time." She started class while Al and her classmates sat silently, letting the warning sink in. Al proved to be a great student and was on par with the other students. She was bright in some areas but average in others. Her teacher snickered at her having some trouble with history and geography, but realized she likely had little contact with John Finn so far so she hadn?t had a chance to learn from him. At lunch Al was the center of attention. She tried to steer clear of questions about herself and keep things to school but she was failing badly. The kids kept trying to separate her from Stephanie but Al wiggled away each time. She wasn?t about to abandon her friend and Stephanie was showing that she expected it to happen which caused Al to continue to get away from the group. Al knew this was just a temporary bit of popularity and once they realized she was just a normal person they would move on to other things and abandon her like they do other kids. Things were going well until one of the girls, the class? resident extortionist and manipulator Rosalind Porter, googled why Al would need a cushion after surgery and blurted out, "She?s one of those tranny freaks!" The cafeteria went dead quiet waiting for Al to speak. Al looked around at the students and saw the eager faces expecting her to say she wasn?t she told the truth, not giving a damn what they said knowing that Stephanie was by her side. Al calmly told her, "My sincerest apologies for making you feel so bad about your own shortcomings as to pry into someone?s personal life like that, Rosalind. Yes I am transgender. No I am not a freak. I was a boy until a week and a half ago. I nearly died in a car accident that killed my parents and two other people. Unlike most other transgender people who wanted to become girls, I never wanted to be a girl but unfortunately there was too much damage to my groin to save it so the doctors had to make me into a girl. I am not sorry, Rosalind, that you feel so jealous of other people that you feel the need to demean them and I am not sorry that you are upset at having to now do your own schoolwork instead of relying on someone else to do it all for you. I understand that you are going to have trouble doing things on your own but if you are lucky and you focused the energy that you wasted trying to demean other kids into actually doing your own schoolwork you wouldn?t have to bully others into doing it for you. I?m a transgender girl. I admit it. I won?t lie. But you?ll still be manipulative and struggling to get by while I will do my own work. Hopefully you learned enough to not repeat 6th grade but I doubt you did." Alice and Dorothy were within earshot and heard Rosalind blurt out her insults to Al. Both walked over and asked Al if she was alright but Al got up and went to the bathroom, looking very pale and sweating profusely. Al was feeling sick to her stomach after the speech and could no longer hold back either her breakfast or her lunch. Stephanie followed close behind, catching up to her as she vomited into the toilet. Al wasn?t sick due to nerves, it was clear that she was suffering from a stomach virus or something worse. She was in no condition to stay in school, she needed to go home immediately. Stephanie came out and told them, "She?s too sick to stay" which prompted Alice to call Olivia to pick up Al. Dorothy calmly walked over to Rosalind Al and sharply told her, "I expected better of you given your mother?s job but I see that petty jealousy makes you do stupid things. Normally this would have a week?s detention but given what you said about MS. Washington I am going to have to suspend you until the start of the New Year. Any further actions against MS. Washington is immediate expulsion." Rosalind tried to protest but she was immediately told, "Mrs. Shriner went over the school rules and specifically ones against any kind of discrimination. You knew the penalties and you know what you were doing but you did it anyway. Let this be a warning to all of you- we will not tolerate that kind of behavior in this school. I don?t care who your family is: they won?t save you from your punishment." Stephanie sat back down and finished her lunch. Several girls in her class came over and asked why she was hanging out with the freak to which she pointedly told them, "Because we are friends. Unlike any of you, she and I actually have a lot in common and had fun together. And she is no freak, she is more of a girl than any of you are. There?s no need to be jealous because the boys were staring at her and not at you, maybe after they see how stuck up and conceited you girls really are they?ll stop trying to get into your pants and your stuffed bras." That last statement had the cafeteria in an uproar of laughs. The girls who were pestering Stephanie ran off in embarrassment as the rest of her class just sat staring at the newly energized Stephanie. The meek girl was gone, she had a real friend and she was standing up for her. Al was waiting in the nurse?s office when Valerie Finn came in with the twins and little Jack Bollinger. Dorothy apologized to Al for her mom not being able to take her home due to needing to see Ricardo Ramirez. Valerie asked if she was alright getting only a meek, "It?s just a stomach virus or something" to which Valerie told her, "Just the same, we are going to get you checked out when your dad gets home. It?s been tough on you and it could be stress related but I want to be sure you are alright." Dorothy quietly asked, "Why isn?t Beverly here instead?" Valerie grinned and told her, "She had to go to a meeting with Olivia. There?s a hearing about Taylor Gault?s money as it relates to Al, Francesca, and Thomas. Olivia knows about what happened and already alerted Richard." Dorothy didn?t even ask, she would get the full story another day. On their way out Dorothy had to make a detour to deal with the newly suspended Rosalind. Her mother Jeanie was there and complaining loudly over what happened to Rosalind. Dorothy stepped in and explained, "Rosalind was suspended for breaking the school district?s anti-discrimination policy. There is no excuse and the punishment is clear. She was witnessed by the entire student body and her words were clear in their intent: she was trying to humiliate a new student by either outing her or making her out to be something that she wasn?t. Both are in violation and her words only compounded things." Jeanie loudly complained again but Dorothy reiterated the point. Valerie grinned as she listened to it. She was waiting for her cue to enter. Jeanie then threatened to sue to the school for ruining Rosalind?s reputation to which Valerie finally opened up on her with her own salvo. Valerie went right for the jugular and asked, "How exactly are you going to sue for ruining Rosalind?s reputation when it was Rosalind?s own words that caused her to become suspended? What part of the phrase ?no discrimination based on gender identity? did she not understand? It wasn?t just the fact that she used those words, it was the intent to bully another student that resulted in her suspension. Rosalind intended to humiliate another student by outing her as being transgender and causing her undue duress and humiliation in the process. And you should be more outraged at the reason why she actually did it. Apparently Rosalind is upset that she now has to actually do her own work in school and not rely on Ms. Rodriguez to do it all for her. So spare us the dramatics, Mrs. Shriner already alerted me to the fact that she is in danger of failing due to her own laziness in class and frankly by extension your own lazy and incompetent ability to notice a problem with a student right under your nose." Jeanie tried again to threaten to sue to which Valerie grinned and told her, "Just try it. We have upheld this multiple times in court and have had it stand before the Supreme Judicial Court and federal court and both stated it neither violated students? civil rights nor did it pose any danger to students. Their official wording was that it in fact went out of its way to protect students from harm and the ones who had the problems with the policy were the ones who were in fact violating it. So please, spend your money trying to sue. I have been itching for a fight in the court on this matter all year. I know that you can?t afford to actually go after me so you?ll be wasting money that you don?t have on a fight that you can?t possibly win to save someone you should have known was in trouble months ago!" Dorothy grinned as she announced, "Mrs. Finn here wrote the guidelines alongside her husband John. You know John, your vice president? But by the way you are trying throw your weight around he is probably going ascend to the presidency soon. There are four union members on her street, all of whom are avid supporters of the district?s anti-discrimination policy and who have a strong hatred for bullies- be they students or parents. Please, by all means, start a battle with Valerie. See just how much clout is behind her and how little you actually have behind you." Alice added, "I think the union?s Christmas party is going to be pretty quiet once word gets out about your behavior. If you beg and plead you might have enough time to salvage your presidency but you aren?t likely to get reelected. Just be glad that John won?t take the presidency no matter what or else you would have been impeached at the next meeting." Valerie left with the four kids after that. The twins asked what that was all about to which Valerie told them, "Some kids don?t like Al because of her surgery." Cat stuck close to Al, gripping into her arm and acting as a protector after hearing those words. She could sense that Al wasn?t feeling well and wanted to make her feel better. At the Finn home Al lay down on the couch, curled up in a ball, and fell asleep. Cat and JD sat on either side of her, refusing to leave her until she felt better. Valerie smiled at the sight, the twins hadn?t truly met her yet but were being guards for her. Chapter 10 Over in Boston, Olivia was having a field day with the IRS and the state?s Department of Revenue people. Beverly was a shark with them, defending loopholes that she had found to protect the found Gault money from the government. She was able to keep them away from Thomas as he was the one who would take on the money from his house and keep their attention on Taylor. In addition they were protecting the money from being seized for back taxes which would then be added to new taxes shortly. The ploy worked. Taylor was on the hook for everything. Upon hearing the bad news Taylor?s lawyer settled out of court immediately for the full amount demanded as he was going to be eaten alive by the judge and jury and whatever was said in the civil trial could be used against him in the criminal trial. Beverly was able to show that the money was owed to Francesca and Al with both shares being sent to Thomas at their mutual request making the IRS and DoR back off of the girls. Taylor was fully responsible for the taxes, so he was facing additional jail time for tax evasion. There was to be no income taxes charged in the New Year as the money was found and declared, with neither of the girls having to pay a cent in taxes due to the money being the result of a lawsuit against Taylor. In effect, Thomas became a multimillionaire without having to do a thing as Taylor?s money came to a staggering $10 million total and that wasn?t including the Gault home. Olivia received a phone call from the school nurse about halfway through their session with the agents so she quickly called Valerie to take Al home. She then called the doctor and got her an appointment for that evening followed up by a call to Dorothy to give her blessing to Valerie dismissing Al early due to illness and the need to let things settle with parents and students. Ricardo sensed something was wrong to which Olivia told him, "Al was sick in school. I had to make her an appointment for this evening. Hopefully it?s just nerves but it could be something else." Ricardo shook his head, telling her solemnly, "Stephanie is going to be upset. She and Al hit it off yesterday even after the rocky start. She loves Al, they are going to do great things when she returns to school." Olivia was caught off-guard by Ricardo. He chuckled and asked her, "Alice never told you that we are brother and sister?" Olivia asked what he meant to which he rolled his eyes and told her, "Alice is my big sister. Stephanie is my niece. Ramirez is her maiden name, she never reverted after her divorce." She wanted to smack her head at the realization. Ricardo grinned and told her, "Neither know Al is my client so it was simply Stephanie telling me about her new friend. Alice suspected though, she always knows when I am being evasive about my clients. We went through the same evasive dance when Sam had her custody fight." Olivia nodded, adding, "She has that way with everybody, it?s why she?s such a fair principal. You take after her but it?s subtle with you." After they were finished with the IRS and revenue agents Olivia and Beverly drove over to the Finn home only to find Al fast asleep with the twins shooing them away in anger. Valerie quickly told her, "They won?t let anyone get close to Al, they know that she isn?t feeling well." Olivia asked if she knew Alice and Ricardo were related to which she grinned and nodded. It was a well-kept secret to her, she admitted that he kept his work and private lives separate and this was the first true time that they had overlapped even though it had come close with Sam?s case two years before. The twins took their nap alongside Al, they wouldn?t move to their bedroom and fought any attempt to pick them up. Al was still asleep when John, Michael, Jaimie, and Miles came home prompting the four to ask what was going on. The twins again shooed them away with Cat tossing throw pillows at them to keep them from waking Al and possibly making her sicker. Valerie explained what happened in school and on their way out to which John silently nodded and admitted, "Jeanie Porter definitely cost herself her presidency. One thing that we all agreed on was that you don?t do is use your job to bully any of the principals. She was already on thin ice and threatened a strike even before she knew what the terms for the new contract were, she pretty much assured us of losing all concessions and getting a raw deal. This means I am going to have to fight off more attempts to put me in charge of the union but thankfully there are better people for the job than I am that I am putting my support behind. Randy Leeds should be the consensus choice with my blessing." Al finally woke up mid-afternoon and struggled to realize where she was. The twins hugged her as she got up, causing her a bit of a panicked moment as she didn?t know how to react. Olivia came over and checked on her, feeling her head and checking her tongue and eyes. Al was feverish but lucid. Al asked if she was mad at her for being sent home to which Olivia told her, "It?s not your fault that you are sick. It also wasn?t your fault that the girls were jealous of you either. You made a strong impression on everyone there by standing up to them. Rosalind won?t recover from her humiliation, and you won over a lot of people by speaking your mind and telling the truth to her." Al was forced to drink some juice while the twins hovered close by, keeping an eye on her and keeping everyone else away. Richard called to check on Al and told them to bring her in, it was bad enough to get an immediate examination. Al tried to fight going but the twins pleaded with her to go, she didn?t have the energy to say no to them. Rick and Thomas were told what was going on and to be on their best behavior. Lupe would check in on them later to ensure they didn?t tear the house apart or get into any fights. The two thought it was funny but Olivia wasn?t laughing. The two actually got along great and were fast becoming as close as brothers can be. It helped that they had been around one another for the most of the past three years thanks to Jaimie and Rebecca also being so close. At the hospital Al was seen to right away. Her fever was higher than it should be for the flu and she was still feeling nauseous. The ER doctor suspected an infection as he looked over her history. He asked for an X-Ray to be sure that all of the bits of metal, glass, and plastic were caught. A short time later he had the results and he was right. There were still some bits embedded inside her hip and lower abdomen and might have perforated her colon or large intestine. She needed immediate emergency surgery to repair the damage and remove the debris or she risked Sepsis or worse. Al shed tears. She was causing more problems for her mom and dad. Olivia comforted her, telling her it wasn?t her fault. It didn?t ease her anxiety, it only caused her to become more distraught. Olivia phoned Alice to let her know what was going on. She was told that Stephanie was upset over causing the trouble but Olivia assured her that it had nothing to do with her. She told her solemnly, "Al is going in for emergency surgery. There was still debris inside her and it caused a perforation to her large intestine. She isn?t going to be able to return until after the start of the New Year." Stephanie was told what was going on to which she shed tears. Alice assured her that she was going to be alright, but Stephanie was still upset. Alice confided in Olivia, "She and Al have upset the balance of power in the school. Students are showing her some respect and classmates are starting to rethink what they think about her. Stephanie doesn?t know about that yet but the other teachers were talking and relaying the overheard whispers from their classmates." Olivia smiled at the thought. She added, "Al has a way with words and is going to be tough to get the better of. Dorothy said she was doing everything she could to stick with her which probably sparked the jealousy in the girls. The two are going to take the school by force in the New Year, especially now that the truth is out in the open and the consequences are known. They have nothing to use against her anymore, she is a blank slate and not afraid to fight back. And she has her friend to defend her, she?ll be by her side through thick and thin from now on and happily defend Al and herself from them." Al was in surgery throughout the evening as several perforations were found. Olivia had to field multiple phone calls asking for updates. Richard went home to keep the boys out of trouble after Al was wheeled out of recovery and into a private room. He was exhausted but nowhere near as exhausted as Olivia. Olivia got settled in for another hospital stay, this time she hoped didn?t have the drama that the previous hospital stay had. Over in Winnisimmet Francesca and the others heard the bad news about Al. She took it hard, Al was trying so hard to get things together only to have it come crashing down on her. Al was stronger than anyone could give her credit for, she had to have been suffering all day and not said anything. Beth sensed her frustration and comforted her. Francesca quietly asked her, "Why would anyone put up with pain and sickness like that?" Beth told her, "She was in fear of what the other kids would say to her and what they would do to her if they found out. Do you remember Jaimie?s first few days of 8th grade? This is very much like that. She was so scared of saying anything to her parents or her teachers that she endured unbelievable pain before being sent off by Mr. Williams during gym. Al was the same way. She finally got to the point that she couldn?t hold down her food and was sent to the nurse which may have saved her life. She just wanted to be normal, even if it is harming her." Francesca remembered the Jaimie incident vividly, her class was changing for gym as she passed out. Even though she was still under Rachel?s influence back when she was the school bully Francesca still helped Jaimie. Al endured just as much pain and stomach distress, it had to have been torture for her. Beth had her try to think about something else knowing it was just going to cause more anxiety to continue to dwell on the subject. She prepared Francesca for the following day where she had to appear for a custody hearing involving her grandfathers. Francesca went from upset to angry at hearing the news but it was what she needed at that moment. Ben wouldn?t be attending the hearing as he couldn?t afford to take the day off, he had some important labs to conduct in the next week and needed every minute to prepare the students for them. Beth was taking Benny with her, she didn?t want to leave him with someone else and she felt it reiterated her stance as a mother to Francesca. Leslie Sylvester offered to watch him but she was adamant that he should be there with Francesca. In the morning, she and Francesca ate a late breakfast before walking over to meet Valerie for the drive to Boston. Ricardo met them outside the courtroom and announced he had the final report from their private investigator and it was a doozy. Valerie looked it over and laughed hard, showing it to Beth who herself laughed but wisely didn?t show it to Francesca. Court was soon in session with Judge Martha Perez taking note of all parties. Judge Perez asked where Ben was to which Beth informed him, "With apologies to you, your honor, but my husband is unable to attend due to the needs of his job. This week and the next are important parts of his class so he wasn?t able to take the day off. As much as he would have wanted to be by mine and Francesca?s side, the needs of all of the other students outweigh his sitting here today. He sends his regrets but asks that the court acknowledge that not everyone is able to just drop everything and appear in court like Mr. White and Mr. Clarke were able to do." Judge Perez addressed Valerie and went over Wendy and Belle?s will, specifically who they had named as their choice for Francesca?s caretaker. The lawyers for both grandfathers complained about all of the choices being unsuitable with mentions of the fact that three were single mothers and a third was an interracial couple. Ricardo objected to that claim against James and Tanya York to which Judge Perez boldly told the lawyers, "I don?t care if they are red, black, yellow, or green. The issue is whether they can take care of your clients? granddaughter which the color of their skin does not factor into." Valerie informed Judge Perez, "Mrs. Lawrence, Mrs. Peterson, Mrs. Toro, and Mr. and Mrs. York have all agreed that Mr. and Mrs. Herman are the best choice to be the caretaker of Francesca. All declined to be Francesca?s caretaker out of respect and love for Francesca and her parents. They were named as alternates with the intent that should Mr. and Mrs. Herman be unwilling or unable to care for her she would have someone else who was close to her to take care of her." Judge Perez noted this and started the questioning of both grandfathers. Things went as expected. Belle?s father?s lawyer made his plea for custody by trying to play to the judge?s sympathies as Francesca was his only relative still alive. Ricardo asked pointedly, "Exactly how much contact had your client had with Mrs. White-Clark since tossing her out when she revealed her sexual orientation to him 20 years ago?" Belle?s father didn?t have an answer. Ricardo then asked, "Did you or did you not threaten to take out a restraining order against your own daughter if she ever contacted you again?" He tried to deflect and then outright lie but Judge Perez ordered him to answer the question. He loudly told him, "I was justified. I don?t want any dyke in my family! I am outraged that she was even allowed to have a kid let alone raise one. I should get custody of her to keep her from living with any of those perverted sickos." Ricardo knew he had him so he told Judge Perez, "Your honor, you have just witnessed a hate filled outburst from Mr. Clark. This is not the first time that Mr. Clark has had such an outburst. I have a police report stating that Mr. Clark threatened the caretaker of the White-Clark estate, Mrs. Valerie Finn, with bodily harm then again to Mr. Mark Sylvester, Francesca?s appointed social worker and an employee of the Department of Children and Families. Mark has issued a written statement stating that the DCF will fight any attempts to grant custody to Mr. Clark based upon his violent tendencies and his lack of any actual care for Ms. White-Clark prior to her death. Further it is the belief of Mr. Sylvester that Mr. Clark is only after Ms. White-Clark to gain control of her wealth. Mr. Clark has shown so far that he is prone to violence and creates an environment of danger and bigotry which the court cannot overlook. As the child?s well-being is at stake the court cannot in good conscience grant custody of Francesca to him as it would put her in immediate danger from his hostile actions." Judge Perez agreed and ordered that Belle?s father was unsuitable as a caretaker. He swore at Judge Perez and threatened her, Judge Perez calmly told the court officers in the courtroom to take him into custody for criminal threats and public disturbance. It took four court officers to subdue him resulting in additional assault charges against him but he was removed. Wendy?s father grinned widely as his lawyer laid claim that as her next of kin and only suitable relative he should be summarily given custody. He tried to grandstand for Judge Perez showcasing how he was the only logical choice as he was actual family and not a stranger with no ties to Francesca. Ricardo nodded to Valerie who handed the lawyer transcripts and copies of voicemails. Ricardo got up and asked the lawyer, "Were you aware that Mrs. White-Clark and Mrs. White-Clark had taken out a restraining orders against Mr. White for continuous threats against their life?" The lawyer claimed they were blown out of proportion and his client was angry to which Ricardo showed Judge Perez the transcripts and stated, "These are transcripts of voicemail messages Mr. White left his daughter and daughter-in-law over the course of several years. Mrs. White-Clark took out the restraining order to keep him from contacting him yet he still found it best to threaten her continuously. These are all on file with the court as is Mr. White?s multiple arrests for violating the restraining order. As of this moment he still had several thousand dollars in unpaid fines that are owed to the court." Judge Perez read the transcripts then asked that they be played for the record. What she heard were violent, profanity laden tirades that made even the hardened judge wince at hearing. Mr. White?s lawyer objected to the use of the tapes and demanded they be ignored to which Judge Perez overruled him, stating that they were already on file with the court thus fair game. Ricardo then went on to ask about the timing of those phone calls. Mr. White claimed he didn?t know to which Ricardo produced the report from the private investigator and the casinos. Mr. White claimed they were bogus and he was fine financially which Ricardo then produced notarized and signed claims from the casinos stating that he was heavily in debt and facing legal action. Judge Perez reviewed the reports and statements and asked what the correlation was. Ricardo smiled as he proclaimed, "They were followed two days later by phone calls to his daughter and daughter-in-law and were followed within days by money transfers from their accounts into his." Ricardo then showed the transactions and the corresponding days which were all exactly two days after the phone calls. Ricardo then went for the jugular and asked, "Are you in debt as of this moment?" Mr. White tried to weasel out of it but Ricardo showed the judge, "Your honor, Mr. White is facing a $100,000 lien against him for debts and owes approximately $250,000 in back taxes to the state and federal governments for not paying taxes the past five years. This is in addition to the fines he still owes the courts. He has no interest in his granddaughter, he only sees her as a way to finance his way out of debt." Ricardo grinned and asked the man, "Exactly what do you do for a living? How are you going to care for a 14-year-old girl?" He claimed he had a job working construction to which Ricardo showed claims for unemployment with the state and that his benefits were running out in one month. Ricardo then further asked, "How can you support yourself and Francesca when you lack a job and your granddaughter?s money is tied up in trust funds until she is 21?" He swore at Ricardo, claiming that he was lying and that Francesca had enough to support the two of them. Ricardo grinned and showed the paperwork to Judge Perez that showed all assets tied up until Francesca was 21 and the only available asset was the house which could only able to be sold to certain people as per the terms of the will. Judge Perez looked at Mr. White and asked, "Given that you had planned on using your granddaughter as a personal cash machine, how is it that you are now going to support both yourself and her without a job, without any assets, and facing a possible jail sentence?" Mr. White swore at her, telling her, "That lousy dyke cheated me out of my retirement! I should have gotten their money not that adopted brat! The money should have gone to her blood not some knocked-up teenage tramp?s unwanted kid!" Francesca burst into tears hearing him say that about her parents. Benny grabbed onto Francesca?s chest tight, joining her in crying. Beth tried her best to sooth both and it took several minutes before Benny stopped crying. Mr. White?s lawyer objected to the display but Judge Perez asked him, "What is there to object to? Ms. White-Clark and Mr. Herman were in distress due to being verbally assaulted by your client and Mrs. Herman is comforting her. Unless I am mistaken that is exactly what a mother should do for her child regardless of her being her foster mother or adoptive mother." Judge Perez wasted no time in stating, "Mr. White not only have you shown that you have no respect for the dead nor do you have any ability to control yourself you have provoked a display that I had hoped would happen. You will never have a penny of your daughter?s nor your daughter-in-law?s estate. The only person here today who has shown any regard for Francesca?s health, safety, and well-being is the woman who was entrusted with her care by your daughter and daughter-in-law. Full and permanent custody is awarded to Mr. and Mrs. Benjamin and Elizabeth Herman." Judge Perez banged the gavel and dismissed Mr. White. She told Beth and Francesca to wait a minute. She smiled and stated, "Ms. White-Clark ,your application for adoption is on file and it is my opinion that there is little need to wait any longer as your mother has shown that she and your father are who you need as your parents. I am ordering that the adoption be finalized and at your request, a name change is in order if you so choose." Turning to the clerk, she loudly proclaimed, "It is the order of this court that Ms. Francesca Louise White-Clark is now the daughter of Mr. Benjamin Herman and Mrs. Elizabeth Herman. It is also the order of this court that Ms. White-Clark shall be known as Ms. Francesca Louise Herman." The clerk reread the order, signed it, and then handed it to Judge Perez to sign. It was official now, Francesca was a Herman and had a mother, father, and baby brother as family. Beth decided that texting wasn?t the best way to tell Ben the news so she held off giving the news until he returned home. Francesca held Benny firm as they walked out of the family court, getting sneers from people misunderstanding what was going on. Benny just hugged tight and gurgled and drooled, giggling at the people staring at him. He was putting on a show for anyone staring at him, while Francesca snickered at the idiocy of some people. At the Herman home Valerie sat Francesca down and laid out her finances and legalities. She had $25 million ready to be transferred over from Wendy and Belle?s bank account, another $10 million in investments they had made in stocks, bonds, and real estate, and the rights to their books that were worth another $50 million. That also was not including the amount of money that she was going to receive from the purchase of the movie rights to the books. In short, she never had to work a day in her life unless she didn?t want to. Francesca told Valerie authoritatively, "I want some of the money to go to pay for mom and dad to buy their house outright. I want some money set aside for Benny as well. I want them to pay off whatever loans mom and dad may have." Beth tried to dissuade her from both but Valerie smiled and admitted, "I expected she would do this and it?s already set in motion. She loves you too much to let you have to pay for the house and struggle to get by. This way you and Ben don?t have to worry about your bills or the mortgage payment. Don?t fight her on this, she needs to do this for her own sake. It?s her biggest act of love and the only way she sees that she can help you both out." Beth reluctantly agreed and signed the paperwork to have the money transferred. A short time later Valerie told both of them, "It?s all set, you own your house outright and Benny?s trust fund was quadrupled as per Francesca?s wishes. Technically he is now a millionaire but that will change as he gets older. And before you ask, the bank was more than happy to accept the payment from Francesca thanks to your relationship with our family. It?s one of the few perks of John being wealthy that we have no trouble exploiting from time to time." Over in Boston Al was still asleep. The surgeon had found four small fragments in addition to a larger fragment while inside her. Olivia and Richard asked how they could have been missed to which the doctor told them, "The resident didn?t do a thorough job checking the X-Rays. He was so focused on controlling the bleeding and removing the large pieces that he missed the smaller ones that should have been seen and removed. Her bleeding was under control by the time these were taken, there should have been a second one done after they found the largest ones to ensure all of the smaller pieces of debris were removed. The surgeons were only as good as the information that he was giving them." Richard asked if he had the name of the intern to which Richard shook his head in disgust. It was the young doctor he had a heartfelt talk with a week before. The doctor was in for a world of trouble as this was a major screw-up and one that should have been avoided by following the proper procedures. He hated to do it but he called his colleagues at Mass. General to inform them of the resident?s serious error. They were upset by the situation especially as Al was a high profile case for them. Richard told them that he should be glad that Al wasn?t vindictive and could understand the situation otherwise he would have been taken to the cleaners for that nearly fatal medical mistake. Richard called Ricardo who agreed to sue on behalf of Al and quickly obtained a $5 million settlement from the hospital. There was no fighting it, Richard being her father and with the doctor having shown to have been consistently negligent with her care they were going to lose regardless. Richard just told Ricardo to put the money in her trust fund when it cleared and not tell Al, she didn?t need to know yet. Al?s plight had caused Stephanie great concern. She only managed about five hours of sleep as her fears kept her awake. Al was her friend and she could have died but she kept quiet and kept a brave face for Stephanie?s sake. She cared more about her friend than herself and almost paid a heavy price for that devotion Raul, Stephanie?s older brother, was also awake most of the night. His mom was concerned over the two girls and when she was upset he got upset. Stephanie was mopey and ever since the call from Mrs. Samuels she was downright morose. Stephanie came into his room and slipped into bed with him, hugging him and crying. His sister only did this when she was afraid and hadn?t done it in a few years. He hugged her until she fell asleep after which he carried her back into her room. She needed to know more about what was happening to her new friend and soon. In the morning Raul told his mother to call for an update on Al. She asked why to which he calmly told her, "If you don?t Stephanie won?t make it to lunch. She needs to know what?s going on with Al. She is scared mom, so scared she slept in my bed with me." Alice looked up and saw Stephanie looking extremely tired from the long night and made the call. Olivia answered on the third ring, she was more than happy to give Stephanie the update after hearing how hard she took the news. She herself was tired and barely slept the night before, she could only imagine what was going through Stephanie?s young mind. Drawing a calming breath she told them that there was little change in Al?s condition. She was still out of it with the medication and anesthesia still working on her. The good news was that they found the last fragments and repaired all of the damage but she had a bad infection that kept her temperature dangerously high. She was fighting the infection but she still needed a lot of rest and recuperation before she was able to go home let alone go to school again. Stephanie was relieved. She asked when she could visit getting a solemn, "We don?t know yet. It might be tomorrow, it might not be until next week. She is going to want to see you as well but she needs to get better first. When she is able to I?ll make sure you are able to come by but not until then." Alice closed the call and told her she would collect her work for her. Olivia thanked her, Al needed the distraction from the boredom. Olivia expected Al to fight to get out early but she needed as much rest as she could get and going back to school too early was probably a bad idea. At the school Stephanie was met by students giving her odd stares. It now felt weird not having Al there and she hated it. She made her way to class and told Mrs. Shriner that Al was going to be out until the New Year and would need her schoolwork brought to her. Mrs. Shriner asked if she was alright to which Stephanie barely mumbled, "I don?t know if mom told you yet but she had to have surgery again to remove parts of the car that were left inside her and repair the damage they caused. She is very sick." Stephanie sat down and tried to keep her mind occupied but that failed as the class started streaming in and saw Stephanie alone. The jokes started coming about Al getting booted for really being a boy and then others suggesting that she was getting even more surgery to make herself look like a girl until Mrs. Shriner shut them up. She let the last of them settle and was about to make an announcement about Al but Stephanie stopped her. Stephanie stood up and shouted at them, "So what if Al was born a boy. She wasn?t kicked out of school and she sure as hell isn?t here because she is afraid of any of you. She isn?t here because she is in the hospital. She left school early because she was sick, so sick that she almost died last night! She came to school in pain and feeling terrible. She had a temperature that was close to being brain damaging. She had to undergo a major operation to remove bits of her parents? car that were embedded in her abdomen and pierced her large intestine. She almost died yesterday and you are joking about her because she was forced to become a girl? What the hell is wrong with you people!" Stephanie was panting and shaking as she finished her rant. She sat down but knew she was going to be sent to the office for punishment. She knew that she was being sent home for the day. She gathered her things and left on her own not needing to be told to leave. After Stephanie left Mrs. Shriner was shaking her head and explained to the class, "Stephanie told you the truth. Ms. Rodriguez told me the circumstances this morning. Al is very sick and was on death?s door for much of the night. Stephanie knows more than any of you about this because she was told what was happening by Al?s mother and father. She actually is concerned about Al?s well-being, unlike any of you students. She is being dismissed for the rest of the week due to emotional distress but listen and listen well- she is right in questioning your moral and ethical standing. To make such a horrid assumption about a student like you did is beyond belief and shows just how badly you have been raised as human beings. Know this: Ms. Vega and Ms. Rodriguez are not now nor will they ever remove a student from either of the middle schools for being transgender, gay, lesbian, androgynous, or gender variant. They have no problems removing students who feel the need to make such horrible claims about other students though so let this be the final warning to any of you- if you ever make any kind of assumption like you made about Alecia Washington you will not be a student in this school any longer."" Stephanie sat in the school?s main office until Alice could get a hold of Ricardo. He didn?t need to ask what happened, only if she was up for a surprise. Alice shook her head and told him sharply, "If she isn?t feeling well don?t force this." Ricardo grinned and replied, "It wasn?t my suggestion, it was her exact demand: bring Stephanie by so she could see her and comfort her." Ricardo showed up at the school and collected Stephanie. He made a quick pit stop first to Stephanie?s classroom to collect Al?s and Stephanie?s schoolwork. Their teacher asked who he was so he introduced himself as Stephanie?s uncle and Al?s lawyer. The class went silent as he saw all eyes on him with several clearly showing that they were scared of what he might do. He asked again for their homework and reiterated loudly to the students that the school?s conduct policy strictly forbids discrimination based upon gender identity then added, "Especially when this change of gender was forced due to medical necessity." The boys in the class crossed their legs and gulped while several of the girls blushed in shame. There is always one loudmouth and she happened to be the best friend of the girl suspended he day before. She loudly said, "She shouldn?t be allowed back even if she is healthy. You protect the freaks and weirdos especially the trannies who don?t belong here." Ricardo smiled and told her, "That?s right, we do so because of people like yourself who wish them harm when they just want the same education as you. But then I ask what right do you have to determine who gets to attend school here and who doesn?t? So you ban transgender students, are you going to next ban non-Christians? Non-Latinos? Non-English speakers? The right to a free public education is one of the major cornerstones of this state and has been since colonial times, and the right to a public education by all has been guaranteed by the United States Supreme Court on several occasions. Just because you personally have an issue with them does not give you the right to discriminate against them or to exclude them. She is a resident of this city, has no learning or social disabilities, and is up to date in her classwork therefor there is no moral, ethical, or legal reason to deny her the right to attend classes here alongside all of you. It?s her right to do so and we will fight for her rights." Ricardo excused himself while Mrs. Shriner dealt with the girl. She was promptly sent to the office and handed an in-school suspension for disrupting the class and abusive language. Ricardo explained what happened then told Dorothy, "I ended up giving them the ?where does it end? speech with added court rulings and history. It scared most of them but I suspect that there will be one or two troublemakers. Al can handle herself and I know Stephanie will be able to handle herself with Al by her side." Ricardo took Stephanie home to drop off her books then drove her to Boston to meet someone. At the hospital she was concerned that he might be taking her to the psychologist but he steered her towards one of the wards. Outside a door she saw Olivia and hugged her, to which Ricardo told her, "You better go inside, she has been asking for you all morning." Stephanie slowly opened the door to see Al, looking groggy but awake. Stephanie walked over to her and gave her a hug then burst into tears. Al hugged her back, telling her softly, "I?m sorry you got in trouble." Stephanie smiled and told her, "I couldn?t let them insult my friend." Stephanie sat down and watched TV with Al as she started to feel better after seeing her friend doing well. Al in turn felt better knowing Stephanie wasn?t worrying about her. The two sat for an hour before Stephanie had to go home. Al told her she was going to be alright and to not be upset over her to which Stephanie told her, "You are my friend, it?s my job to be concerned about you." Al shed a tear hearing that, the two hugged again then Stephanie left. Al kept herself busy doing her schoolwork. Rick and Thomas came by with her laptop and iPad and spent some time with her before going back home. She spent much of her time sleeping off and on in between meals and dilation sessions. She hated doing them but it was what she needed to do to keep her vagina open and it was something to kill the time. Richard checked in throughout the day and kept close watch on her chart and monitor readouts. He was pleased that her temperature was down but still elevated above normal, but the good news was that she was out danger. He tried to make a fuss over her sleeping all day which Olivia told her to ignore, she needed all the rest she could get if it meant she was getting better. Over at Winnisimmet High School Francesca, Beth, and Benny were waiting to see Ben. Jake met them in the office where Beth proudly told him to change Francesca?s name on all files. She showed him the judge?s order and grinned. Jake burst into laughter, asking, "Did Valerie keep her anger in check or does John need to get some bail money?" Francesca grinned and told him, "Aunt Valerie protected Aunts Gabby, Lilly, Lupe, Tanya, and Uncle James but it was all Ricardo. My former grandfathers made fools of themselves, he just set them up for it and let them do themselves in." Beth added, "Valerie didn?t have to do a thing, all she did was tell the judge that the few people Wendy and Belle wanted to care for Francesca declined in favor of Ben and I. The judge looked like she just needed to hear them speak for themselves before giving us custody and finalizing the adoption." Jake kept a straight face as Ben walked in. He saw Francesca and Beth standing there with disappointed looks. He immediately asked, "She gave custody to one of them? Please tell me she wasn?t that stupid!" Beth nodded then handed him the orders. He read them carefully then hugged her deeply, telling her, "Don?t you ever do something like that to me again. He then hugged Francesca, kissing her forehead and making her blush over Jake smiling at her reaction. Francesca, Ben, Beth, and Benny went upstairs to get her homework assignments. John didn?t ask how things went only asking them, "Seriously, a simple hug was all it took?" Francesca grinned as she told him, "Benny was pretty persuasive." John shook his head mumbling, "That little devil is a genius. A four month old getting the better of a judge- whodathunkit!" The four went on to visit her geometry, French, and health class before meeting with her English teacher, Mr. Stoner. He wasn?t too pleased that she had missed yet another day of school, complaining loudly that she was falling behind. Beth dressed him down for his complaints telling him firmly, "She was absent within the school district?s guidelines for excused absences. Further, had this hearing gone another way she would no longer be of a concern to you so please do yourself a favor and save your critique for something suitable and won?t get you called before Jake for a dressing down." Ben grinned. He didn?t have to say a thing. Francesca simply asked for the homework and intended to go but Mr. Stoner had one last comment, "Beth, Ben, I hope you are seriously reconsidering retaining her. She is nothing but trouble to you two. Since you got her your whole time has been taken up by her needs. Surely you shouldn?t have to endure that just for a foster child?" Ben shook his head and loudly told him, "Correction, she is no longer our foster child. The judge gave us full custody and finalized her adoption: she is our daughter. Further, we endure whatever happens because that is what you have to do as a parent. But then given that you are both single and have no children you would never know that. She is our daughter now and forever, and if I ever hear that you badmouthed another child in foster care you will find out just how much we foster kids stick together." His glare sent chills down Mr. Stoner?s spine. Beth grinned as she knew Ben was not joking. Francesca stayed quiet, holding Benny who took the opportunity to spit up sending vomit on Mr. Stoner?s shirt. This caused Beth to tell him, "I don?t think he appreciated you saying those unkind things about his big sister. Here are some wipes, I do hope that you can get formula stains out of your shirt." The four left with grins on their faces. Francesca gave Benny a lot of attention causing him to coo and giggle. Her friends were waiting for her as they got home to which she immediately told them, "I have bad news, I am sticking around for a long time. And worse news, the adoption was ordered finalized!" The group went inside taking over the living room and did their homework together, causing Ben and Beth to sit in the kitchen. Francesca felt great, the best she had felt in weeks. Thomas had to duck out early to go with Rick to visit Al which Francesca told him, "Tell her to take it easy or we are coming over there." The other five gave the same, "Yeah, tell her" followed by giggles and a kiss from Rebecca. Chapter 11 The next morning Al woke up to Nigel Smith checking her vitals and looking over her chart. He smiled at her and asked how she was feeling to which she asked, "Can I meet Nichole?" Nigel was taken aback by her request to which Al asked again, "Can I meet her? She and Kylie were at the funeral but didn?t say anything to me. I wanted to talk with her." Nigel had to think. He softly asked, "The girls had planned to go to Boston tomorrow but they could come here too. Are you alright meeting the four of them?" Al meekly asked, "Four?" Nigel nodded, telling her, "Nichole, Nancy, Margaret, and Kylie. Ethan may come if he feels up to it." Al smiled and told him, "Can they come by? Please?" Nigel nodded, telling Olivia about her request when she came back from the cafeteria. Al spent the bulk of the morning doing homework and playing on the laptop. Stephanie came by around lunch time to work on some more schoolwork with her while keeping her company again. Dr. Eliza made a surprise visit while they were talking causing Al to grow scared as she didn?t know how she would react to Stephanie being there. Dr. Eliza just smiled at the girls as Al introduced Stephanie to her as her friend. Dr. Eliza asked how they met to which Al told her, "Her mom put us in the same class." Stephanie added, "We passed by each other in the office when Al was signed up for school." Dr. Eliza grinned, Olivia was right. Dr. Eliza asked about Al?s day in school which Al mumbled, "It was fine until lunch." She asked what happened to which Al told her, "One of the girls outed me. It was because I had to use the cushion because of my surgery." Stephanie shook her head and told the real story, "That wasn?t why she did it. The girls were jealous that the boys were staring at Al all day. Al didn?t hear what they were whispering but I did. Al made them look bad for being catty and having to do their own homework and projects now that I had her as my partner. They tried to get back at her by making fun of her and humiliating her in front of the whole school. They looked it up and found the easiest thing to make fun of her for but they didn?t know you really did become a girl. They thought it was like a hernia or something else involving your butt. She stood up to them but went home sick after. She humiliated Rosalind Porter, nobody has ever done that!" Dr. Eliza asked what she meant by standing up to them. Stephanie grinned as she proudly told her, "She told them she wasn?t going to lie and that the cushion was because she had surgery due to the accident and she had to become a girl because of the damage to her privates. She told them she wasn?t sorry that they felt so bad about themselves that they had to demean her to make themselves look good. Then she pointed out that they now had to do their own work which was what really caused an uproar as all the kids knew they were in deep trouble. Al got the better of them and if she had been able to stay she may have won over all of the class." Dr. Eliza looked over at Al who was embarrassed about what she had said. Stephanie grinned at her and told her, "The ones who caused all of that got in trouble both Wednesday and yesterday. Uncle Ricardo scared the class when he told them all about why you should be allowed in school and why you were going there. Mom said that the only ones who didn?t listen to his warnings were the two who ended up getting suspended." Dr. Eliza told Al proudly, "You were right to be nervous about school but you handled it with dignity and in a way that will probably live on in legend." Al told her, "I would rather be there than here" to which Dr. Eliza added, "All of us would rather you weren?t back in here. It wasn?t your fault, you deserve praise for being brave and enduring the problems in the first place. But you heard about what happened to Jaimie when she felt she needed to be confident when she was really in deep pain- you need to speak up. Just because you are different now does not mean you must endure pain and suffering to avoid bringing attention to yourself." Al said a meek, "Ok" to which Dr. Eliza left, adding a soft, "The two of you are going to cause positive changes in your class. Stick together and in due time you will make more friends. You showed you have the makings of a great friend, they just need to see it." At the middle school Raul Rodriguez was talking with Mr. Williams, the gym teacher, during his lunch. Raul?s friends came over and asked what happened to Stephanie as she hadn?t come to school that day. Raul told them bluntly, "She was given the day off by Ms. Vega due to illness." The boys started to tease him about the tranny kid his sister was hanging out with. Raul tried to find the right words while keeping his temper in check but Mr. Williams told them, "Boys, let me just do you one huge favor and tell you that if you ever want to do anything in this city from working the summer jobs program to participating in any after-school activities. You had better keep your mouths in check." The boys laughed at him to which he added, "You can forget about ever playing football, Coach Beretta will be hearing about your views on transgender people and he will never let you put on a Winnisimmet High uniform. In fact none of the coaches will, Mr. Xavier won?t allow it. It reflects poorly on the high school and would cause you nothing but grief. And given that the captain, quarterback, middle linebacker, running back, tight end, safety, and slot receiver are all close friends with, related to, or dating someone who is transgender you are going to be in for a world of trouble before you ever set foot in that school. They run the school, for all of the right reasons and won?t allow those views." Raul shook his head and told them, "The girl you are insulting, Al, is Richard Samuels? foster sister. You know Richard, the quarterback? Dating Jaimie Finn the head cheerleader and who also happens to be transgender herself? Richard Samuels who is the next door neighbor of Reyna Toro, the cheerleader who is also transgender and who most of you had crushes on last year? It?s your funeral if you keep acting like idiots but smarten up before you lose whatever coolness you think you have. You also should know that Jaimie?s father is going to be your geography teacher and Coach Beretta is the health education teacher so it will be a long four years over there for you." The boys tried to play it off like they weren?t scared of them. Raul walked away, telling them, "You are flushing years of friendship down the drain. I couldn?t care less about Al being a former boy, but if it?s an issue with you guys then you aren?t people I want to associate with. It?s your reputation that is going to take a hit, not mine. I stand by my sister?s friend even if it means it costs my friendship with all of you. My sister means more to any of you and if her friendship is an issue with us then our friendship wasn?t a friendship at all." Mr. Williams told the boys, "It?s amazing how you boys can be so stupid at times. The way the others are staring at you they heard everything Raul said and your reputations are pretty much gone. I hate to see that happen to kids but you need this reality check. You were good kids, perhaps seeing that shooting your mouth off about a person who is recovering for a major injury and illness and who has already shown more integrity in half a school day than you have in your entire eight and a half years in school will clarify things for you and show you the error of your ways. It has happened before to an unfortunate bonehead but I am not holding out much hope for you guys." Raul ate his lunch in silence until three girls came over and wanted to talk to him. Hearing him stand up to the boys and defend the younger Al piqued their interest. Raul tried his best to focus on eating until it became too much and he was forced to engage them in conversation. The girls were in his cluster and had gone to school with him for years but weren?t friends with him, merely casual acquaintances. Raul listened to what they had to say and answered what they were asking him. He wasn?t trying to play Romeo to them nor was he trying to ignore them to make himself look good to them, he was treating them like equals and trying to be polite while also trying to eat which the girls found intriguing. The girls kept talking with him as the lunch period ended. Alice came over to Mr. Williams and sharply asked him, "What did you do you my son?" Mr. Williams was perplexed to which Alice told him, "He has never talked with girls before much less had them enthralled." Mr. Williams shrugged, then told her, "The only thing he did was stand up for Al Washington when his friends were mouthing off about her. The girls must have heard it and sat down with him. He didn?t do anything except listen to them and talk. He wasn?t looking for a conversation, they brought it to him." Alice shook her head. Her little boy was acting like a man and not even knowing it. Mr. Williams grinned and told her, "I guess he?s finally taking an interest in girls and didn?t even know he was doing it." Alice countered with, "He didn?t even take an interest, he was just being friendly. I think I raised him too well" which got a laugh from Mr. Williams as both went back to work. During class the girls were close to Raul. He tried his best to concentrate and keep them on track but their interests were on him. The other boys took notice and grew jealous with his friends talking trash about him to anyone who would listen. He ignored them which got the girls to grow even fonder towards him. Mr. Taylor, their history teacher, had harsh words for the boys over their language and gave them their second warning of the day about breaking the school?s discrimination rules. The boys complained that they were innocent but Mr. Taylor pointed out that he was in the cafeteria with them earlier. This caused the class to break into laughter making the boys angrier towards Raul. After school ended Raul walked out with the girls as Raul?s so-called friends watched in shock. The girls were talking animatedly with him while he added a few words here and there. The more time he spent talking with them the more he grew to enjoy talking with them and the more they enjoyed his company- a first for all of them. Things changed quickly though as the boys cornered Raul behind the school. They led him down the street and away from the school into a nearby parking lot. It was four on one as Raul told the girls to stay back, the boys wanted him and wouldn?t dare harm them. The boys told them to move along, this didn?t concern them. It was personal to them. Things got out of hand quickly as Raul was overmatched, overpowered, and overrun. The boys were getting their kicks and punches in until they were yanked back by a small group of high schoolers. The boys tried to fight them but were dropped to the ground quickly with swift kicks to the knees and back. Rolling on the ground in pain the four looked up to see the people that they dreaded seeing. Standing over them were Rick, Thomas, Reed, Michael, Miles, and Will. They were the last people they wanted to encounter especially after what caused this whole mess in the first place. Rick spoke first saying bluntly, "What the hell are you doing ganging up on him?" The boys didn?t have an answer. Rick stepped closer, grabbing one by the jacket and lifting him off the ground and asked the same question again. This time the boys told him, "We are taking care of a problem that is of no concern to you high school brats." Rick looked at Raul?s bruised face and told them, "Is that so, then explain to us what exactly he did to deserve a four on one beating from all of you?" The self-appointed leader proclaimed, "He stole our girls! The bastard made it so none of the girls will go near us!" Rick looked at the girls who had disgust in their eyes for the boys. Thomas wasn?t fooled one bit and told them, "What really happened because there is no way in hell that any of those girls had any interest in you to begin with. Anyone with half a brain can see they are disgusted by what you just did." The leader had a bit of courage and proclaimed, "He got us in trouble for trash talking the tranny freak who got kicked out of school yesterday. He had the gall to tell us to shut up about her. He said he?d make it so we wouldn?t get on the football team or any team in the high school." The girls looked at Thomas and Rick and saw that he had just made a huge mistake. They realized just who the high schoolers were and blurted out, "You idiot you just called his sister a tranny freak! Those are the guys Raul told you not to piss off!" Rick smiled as did the others. Raul coughed then told the boys, "I tried to warn you but you didn?t listen. Don?t mess with the Finns. Don?t mess with any of them or you will quickly regret it." Will helped Raul move away while Rick and Thomas not so politely pulled the four up while Michael and Reed checked their wallets for identification. Thomas was acidic as he told them, "You are lucky the girls are here or we would take you to Navy Hill Park and leave you buck naked and have you walk home in shame. You might have gotten home before the Staties caught your or your balls froze off." Rick added a blunt, "He?s lucky Scott isn?t here, he knows a few ways of breaking bones that would make jerking off impossible for the next few months. But that would be beyond cruel seeing as the girls here are not going to go anywhere near you after today. And once our girlfriends hear about this you will be lucky to get a date with any girl in this state before you turn 30." The girls were by now laughing hysterically as Rick was putting on his show. Two of the boys wet themselves in fear knowing that they could do exactly what they said they could do and nobody would say a word against it. The girls went to check on Raul while Rick told the boys harshly, "We know who you are and where you live. We know your siblings both older and younger. If you ever get the idea of hurting Raul again we will ensure that you feel pain that no person should ever have to endure. And just for your information our sister didn?t get kicked out of school- she almost died in school. So before you shoot your mouth off about anyone check your facts first because you might shoot off to the wrong people and they may not have the same restraint that we have shown to you." They let the boys go and watched as they ran off trying to get as much distance as possible between them and the high schoolers. Raul was bruised and had a black eye but nothing too serious. The girls helped walk him home while Rick and the others drove away. The girls asked him pointedly, "Why did you let them do that to you?" Raul wasted no time and shot back, "Because they were going to do it no matter what. At least you see what kind of guys they really are. I don?t care what they do to me but if they are willing to do that to their friend then they would have done something worse to one of you if you didn?t give them what they wanted." The girls looked at him in awe. It was one thing to be a gentleman but this was beyond reason. The girls sat with him on one of the benches in a nearby park and asked him softly, "Why do you care so much about that girl?" Raul shot back a soft, "She isn?t just a girl." He returned a proud, "She is my sister?s only friend and the two are good together. Stephanie doesn?t have any friends because of mom?s job so Al is special to her, so she is special to me. Three years ago we saw how bad people can be towards kids like Al. Will, the guy who helped me up, was beaten by his dad because he wouldn?t hurt Rick?s girlfriend. Mom made it clear that they were regular people who were born different and who just wanted to be who they really are. Al isn?t like them, she never wanted to be a girl so she doesn?t deserve that crap. I have seen how bad people are and I don?t like it, not when they haven?t done anything except live." The girls waited for him to calm down before saying, "None of us liked them before but now they are going to be hated. You though are different." Raul got up to go, but one of the girls, Avery Long, grabbed him and kissed him on the lips. He didn?t kiss back, not knowing what to do or how to feel about what she was doing. The other girls left the two alone, smiling and whispering to one another. Raul didn?t say anything so Avery said something, "They are going to tease us but I have had a crush on you for a while. I would have asked you out sooner but I just didn?t like your friends. The girls like you too but didn?t want to have to deal with the boys. None of us liked them and to be honest we are glad that you got away from them before they ruined you for all of the other girls in school." Raul blushed and admitted, "I don? know how to feel about you, this is so sudden. I like you a lot but I am not ready for a girlfriend yet." Avery held his hand and pulled him up, telling him, "We can take things slow. You are too nice of a guy to rush into things with. I don?t want to scare you off, you are the best looking boy in our cluster and one of the best in all of the school." Raul blushed and kissed her cheek causing her to blush as well. The two walked home hand in hand. Alice was already home and watched as Raul kissed her cheek and hugged Avery goodbye. When he opened up the door Alice smiled at him to which he grumbled, "Mom, it?s nothing." Alice sat him down and told him sharply, "You leave school with a group of girls and end up hugging and kissing one, that?s something." She looked him over and seeing his black eye she asked loudly, "What happened to you? Who did that?" Raul retold what happened and why. She tried to make sense of why he would let them do that to him then she remembered the girls. He was more mature than she realized and acted like a gentleman towards them. A smile reappeared to which she asked, "Did you enjoy your first kiss?" He groaned at her but smiled. She told him warmly, "They seem to really like you." Raul nodded, adding a soft, "They liked me, they didn?t like my friends or rather the guys who used to be my friends." Alice kissed his forehead again and told him lovingly, "You stood up for your sister and her friend. You treated them like a person and not sex objects. You listened to what they had to say and contributed to their conversations. You did everything a good boyfriend should do. Your former friends are going to take a long time to grasp that." She smiled then added, "Rick called her at the hospital. Stephanie heard what you did and is going to give you the biggest kiss when she gets home from the hospital." Rick did indeed call Stephanie and tell her what Raul did. She in turn told Al who tried her hardest to hide her grin. Al was unsure how to feel about someone being hurt because they stood up for her especially to their friends. Stephanie giggled then told Al, "Raul is going to have a girlfriend now. He didn?t just stand up to the boys, he had the girls swooning over him." Al grinned again, this time giving her a quick, "Is that the knight in shining armor or the taking one for the team method of getting a girlfriend?" Stephanie started laughing hard. After she settled down Al meekly asked her, "Do you like boys or girls?" Stephanie smiled and warmly told her, "I think that I like boys, but if you like me that way I understand and won?t leave you as my friend. You are my only friend and I won?t let feelings for me get in the way of our friendship." Al looked down in shame but told her, "I think I like girls. I started to look at girls differently before the accident, seeing which ones had boobs and which ones didn?t. I didn?t feel any stirring though, if you know what I mean." Stephanie started to think and grinned, telling her pointedly, "Al think about this for a second. You stared at girls yet didn?t feel anything in your wiener, you liked the feel of clothes and their styles, you act, move, and think like a girl without realizing it. Al, you might have been born to be a girl but didn?t have the chance to be one- yet!" Al was puzzled and asked her to explain. Stephanie grinned and proudly told her, "Before the accident you were at most a closeted crossdresser and possibly gay. Now you can put your natural instincts to work and be a girl. That wasn?t you liking girls that way- Al, that was the inner girl in you making an appearance. You could like guys or you could like both. No matter what, you are my friend and I don?t care if you like one or the other or both. I like you for you and as long as you know that I don?t feel that way towards you there is no reason to not still be friends." Olivia stepped in to see what the girls were up to, catching them hugging and giggling. She asked what was going on to which both girls gave her a guilty, "Nothing" which caused both to laugh again. She sat down and softly told them, "Whatever it is, just know that we will love you no matter what." Stephanie looked at Al who agreed with her. Stephanie admitted, "We were talking about what Raul did for us today during and after school. Al thought she might like girls. What she said didn?t sound like she did, only that she was looking at them and not like someone who liked them like that would." Olivia thought about what she was saying and asked Al, "Just because you look at a girl doesn?t mean you like them that way." Stephanie shook her head and told her, "She was looking at them like a girl would look at them, looking at what they were wearing and comparing their boobs and thinking about their clothes. She said she didn?t feel any stirring ?down there? so it couldn?t have been that she started to like them like that. I told her she was more of a girl than she realized and it helped a lot in accepting what happened to her so far." Al nodded to which Olivia solemnly told her, "You were basically sizing them up like anyone in your class would, it?s what all kids do and what they were doing to you two days ago. And further Stephanie is right you might be a natural as a girl. You could still like boys or you could like both or even like neither. It doesn?t matter to any of us, what is important to us is that you are happy." Al offered a sweet, "I am happy mom." Looking at the time Olivia took Stephanie home. During the drive Olivia asked her what she thought about Al and to not lie to her. Stephanie smiled and told her sharply, "I wouldn?t lie to my friend?s mom and I am offended that you would think I would. I like her a lot and she is the friend I always wanted. I asked her all that because she was looking a bit upset over Raul and feeling odd about him being in a relationship thanks to her. She is a good person and needed some reassurance that she wasn?t wrong." Olivia smiled at her response and told her warmly, "I know you meant well, I just had to hear it for myself. I think she needs time to figure out who she likes. Iris and Sam didn?t know who they liked until last year so Al might have a while to go before she truly knows what she likes. Reyna still hasn?t found anyone she wants to date yet so it?s not a big rush. She will figure things out with time." Alice met them outside and ushered them in. Raul came downstairs to face the inevitable awkwardness and was immediately embraced by Stephanie when she saw him. Olivia asked about his girlfriend which caused him to blanch and rush away, with Stephanie breaking the hug to let him through. Alice grinned and told her, "That was cruel. It was funny, but cruel." Olivia grinned and told her about the girls? talk and how much Stephanie was causing Al to come out of her shell and admit more personal things. Alice shook her head in disbelief, admitting solemnly, "She would have been eaten alive in her school had she not had her accident. There is no way that they would have left her alone let alone and not beaten her senseless." Olivia added a knowing nod. At the Samuels home Olivia found Thomas with Rebecca and working on homework, both becoming startled at seeing her. Rick walked in and told her, "Before you say anything, Aunt Lupe was just here and gave her blessing. Reyna is next door looking for something they need for their project and I was with them until just now. They weren?t doing anything, only working on schoolwork." Olivia looked closely at Thomas and admitted, "He doesn?t have any lipstick on his lips and her hair isn?t out of place so they clearly weren?t doing anything that would get the four of you banned from being alone with one another." Rebecca backed away from Thomas as Rick questionably told her, "You trusted us before." Rebecca meekly told him, "She can?t become a grandmother from you and Jaimie having sex. But from us two, on the other hand..." Olivia grinned then announced, "Well now that you have admitted knowing the consequences and as long as you are living under my room you will abide by our rules." Thomas asked her solemnly, "Have you heard anything about custody of me?" Olivia nodded, showing him a letter from his grandparents telling Ricardo that they wanted nothing to do with him now that he had no connection to them. Thomas read the letter and went up to his room, tears streaming down his face. Rebecca was going to go up but Olivia signaled for her to stay. Rick softly told her, "I think I know what mom is going to say and it is something they need to talk about in private." She reluctantly got up and walked over to Reyna?s to help her find the items she was searching for but was really giving them some privacy. Olivia entered to see Thomas still crying, clutching the letter. He barely above a whisper asked, "I knew they would do this but why do I feel so bad about reading it?" Olivia sat down next to him, hugged him, and told him firmly, "You loved them. You see what they did as a betrayal of your love. You think you are alone now but you never were. We aren?t called aunts and uncles without reason, we are family to you even if we aren?t officially." Thomas asked her, "What will happen to me now?" Olivia looked him over and saw the despair. She lifted his chin and told him, "We will speak with Ricardo about what to do. I need to know what you want us to do. We?ll do what you want us to do, we just need to hear it from you first." Thomas meekly asked, "Can I stay here?" Olivia grinned and asked, "Permanently as our adopted son or as our foster child?" Thomas said a quiet, "Permanently as your son" to which Olivia grinned and told her, "We will have Ricardo pull the paperwork and ask for it to be rushed. The two of you needed to be together anyway, we can?t adopt Al without adopting you as well." The two went downstairs after Thomas washed his face. Rick looked up and asked, "When are you asking Ricardo to pull the paperwork?" Olivia grinned and told him, "Tomorrow. We might get lucky and have it done before Christmas but that would be a long shot." Olivia called Richard to tell him what Thomas wanted to do. Richard then called Ricardo and asked that he pull the paperwork for the adoption. Ricardo thought it over and told him, "I?ll have Taylor sign away his parental rights as well. He is going to be in no condition to refuse to sign." The next morning Francesca was out and about with Rachel and Reyna. The three free agents were looking at the boys at the Saugus Mall and enjoying the day away from parents and their other friends. The fun lasted until they noticed they were being followed by some men and ducked into Victoria?s Secret to get away from them. The three waited a good half hour while browsing the store for new lingerie. When they came out they noticed the men were still there and tried to walk casually away from them. The men caught sight of them and followed them again. This time the girls were scared and walked towards the bathrooms, ducking into the ladies room to escape them. The girls quickly called their parents. Mark answered first and told them to stay put while Beth and Ben told them they were bringing help. The trio waited for almost an hour with each girl taking turns looking outside and each still seeing the men waiting for them. Mark arrived first and talked with Rachel. She pointed out the men who were clearly waiting for the girls to come out of the bathroom. Mark called the police and explained what was happening, this was serious and he didn?t want the girls hurt. Beth and Ben arrived and comforted Francesca. Lupe arrived after them and held a meeting in the end of the corridor with the three adults. Mark told them that they were going to wait for the police then find out for sure what was going on. He added that he suspected they were trying to get at Francesca given that they didn?t seem the least bit interested in Reyna or Rachel. They tested that theory by having Rachel go off with Lupe. The men gave Rachel one look then turned back to keep an eye on the bathrooms. Reyna went off next and they did the same, Reyna could clearly hear them say, "She is still in there. We will get her when she comes out." Mark told the police to step it up, this was a kidnapping attempt. The mall?s officers walked by the men and noticed bulge in their jackets as well as on their belts. The two walked towards the corridor and called for immediate help, stating that they were armed and dangerous. Four more officers arrived and the six encircled then approached the men, asking them questions about what they were doing there and why. The officers listened to their claims then boldly asked, "If you were here to shop then why were you following three teenage girls for the past two hours?" The men didn?t have an answer to which the officers stated, "We have you on CCTV following them and you have not left this spot since they went inside the restrooms." The officers waited for a response but the men clammed up. Mark, Beth, Ben, and Francesca walked out and the officers saw the men start to stir and try to get away. One of the newer officers saw the bulge in the jacket then the quick glimpse of the magazine and grip. He pulled out his own gun and stated, "Gun" causing a near panic in the mall. The five other officers followed suit and in seconds the men were on the ground with their hands spread and arms out. Four handguns and two knives were taken from the men, the officers told them sharply, "You are under arrest for attempted kidnapping, possession of firearms, possession of a knife, carrying concealed weapons, and disorderly conduct." The two were read their Miranda Rights and hauled off to the police station where Valerie was waiting, grinning from ear to ear. The men looked at her and asked her, "Are you our lawyer?" Valerie grinned and told them, "I?m the person who is going to get your sentence reduced if you cooperate. Your lawyer is inside and she is itching to get you a deal." The men were led in and listened to their lawyer inform them, "You two are in serious trouble. They have you on CCTV following the girls and one of them has you recorded talking about snatching the girl. They have you nailed on the gun charges and don?t even begin to think you will get off as I doubt your employer will help you. You were expendable, you are of no use to them now that you failed." The two asked for a deal to which the officers asked for everything they knew. Valerie was called in and listened to what they had to say and jotted down everything, reiterating what they told her and asking for evidence. She excused herself and called Mark and Ricardo who both agreed with her that they were looking at a big issue and it had to be taken care of fast. Valerie was satisfied with their evidence and kept multiple copies. As she left she told them, "You two should be glad that you didn?t succeed, there is nothing worse than a group of pissed off cops especially ones who are looking for family." The men asked what she meant to which the officers in the room told them, "At last count there were five officers, a deputy sheriff, a state trooper, and three federal agents in their family. There is nothing cops hate more than having someone mess with their family." The men swore at realizing they dodged a bullet there. Back at home Valerie sat with Mark, Leslie, Lupe, Ben, Beth, and John. Valerie laid out what she discovered, "This was orchestrated by Wendy and Belle?s publisher as retaliation for refusing to do the promotional tour. They hoped to force Francesca to do the tour or sign over all rights to the company. She wasn?t going to be harmed, only threatened and scared." Mark asked if she had proof to which Valerie showed the emails and money transfers. Mark felt his stomach drop as they all but treated this as a business deal and didn?t really give a damn about Francesca. John read them as well and pointed out some problems for them, "They forget that she is still underage. They make no mention of her new parents so they either are ignoring Ben and Beth or they don?t know the adoption was finalized. They think she can just drop everything and do what she wants because she is rich." Ben and Beth looked at him as he grinned at them. John proudly asked them, "Would you ever agree to allow her to go on that multi-city tour to promote the book?" Beth and Ben both authoritatively stated, "No!" John grinned again and told them, "Then they spent money for nothing. You as their parents have the right to veto the deal. In fact she couldn?t go on it without Beth and they made no mention of her or any guardian going along. They must have thought they could hire a nanny or someone to look after her like the Hollywood actors and actresses have done for them." Mark added a harsh, "That would never have been allowed by us" to which John added, "They must have either thought that they could buy your approval or get someone to force you to allow it. Either way, they were in for a nasty surprise. Anne Connors wouldn?t allow it, so they assumed wrong." Lupe asked them, "Could they challenge the inheritance? Maybe discredit Wendy or Belle so the will was invalidated?" Valerie thought it over and told her sharply, "Not a chance. It was ironclad and I wrote the wording so it would survive the toughest challenges. Wendy and Belle ensured that nothing was left to chance, the rights are Francesca?s and hers alone." Francesca was next door with Iris, Rachel, and Reyna. Benny was keeping them entertained while the twins tried to help feed and play with him. Rachel was adamant that what happened was fluke and Valerie would take care of it but Francesca was still upset. Iris told her warmly, "You did what nobody else could do, you stayed calm and kept on shopping. Mom and dad were impressed, you did better than I did." Reyna thought about everything that could possibly drive someone to want to go after Francesca. She realized that maybe it was another attempt to get at her money. Francesca explained that it was all locked up to which Reyna pointed out, "Not all of it is. You still have the book money for the two books that are going to come out soon- the biggest sellers because your mom died so the series ended. This smells like one of those cheesy extortion attempts. Someone wants your book money." Reyna?s words hung over Francesca but the others added in, "It makes sense. Nobody else has a reason to go after you once both of your grandfathers were humiliated by the judge." Rachel grinned and told them, "I think we can make them pay for going after her, we just wait until Aunt Valerie is through ripping them to shreds." Valerie was hard at work doing just that. She and John were in contact with the publisher?s corporate offices and were in the process of having them reorganize the hierarchy after they removed the ones responsible for the extortion attempt. Their corporate lawyers were eager to work out something to avoid a lawsuit that would likely cause them bigger troubles but Valerie assured them that so long as the people responsible were removed, discredited, and blacklisted she would not sue on Francesca?s behalf for what their employees had done. A mandatory meeting was called for the following day. Valerie told Francesca that she would have to be there as would her parents. Francesca asked if it was due to what happened earlier to which Valerie nodded, adding a soft, "It?s actually all taken care of, we just need you there to make it happen." She reluctantly agreed, with Beth putting her arm around her and telling her, "We are going to be with you so don?t worry about what they say about you." Chapter 12 Francesca?s day was a hurricane compared with Al?s day. Stephanie dragged Raul with her to the hospital so he could meet her officially. Al was happy to meet him and hugged him tight for what he did for her. Raul kept quiet, unsure what to say to which Al thanked him for being considerate of her feelings. Raul again blushed and led Stephanie away so she could have her meeting with Nichole and the girls that Al had arranged. Nigel showed in Ethan Smith and the girls and introduced them one by one. Al could not believe how beautiful Kylie Pena and Nichole Smith were, there was no way in her mind that they were ever boys. The way they acted was surprising to her. They were so confident and full of energy that they made Al feel better being so close to them. Nancy Flynn and Margaret Douglas were quiet and less energetic but looked like they were thinking about something as they stared at Al. Neither girl knew what to say or do, not wanting to say the wrong thing to Al but wanting to make her feel better. They both knew Al really wanted to meet Nichole and Kylie but they were part of the bargain and had to come too, but they respected Al?s wishes and kept quiet for her benefit. Ethan seemed afraid of her, holding back and sticking close to his dad. He stared at Al?s nightgown and blushed. Nichole spoke first, asking if her cousins had finally annoyed her enough to call in for the younger, cuter girls. Al chuckled at that as the girls grinned, she warmly told her, "I wanted to see you for a while but I guess there wasn?t a chance yet." Kylie asked her softly, "Are you feeling better about what happened? You don?t have much to worry about with looks." The other three agreed with Nichole adding, "Aunt Kennedy said she was jealous of how natural you look." Kylie added, "Me too, you are too pretty to have been a boy." Al asked about the kids reacting to them. She listened intently as both Kylie and Nichole told her about some of the teasing that went on behind the scenes but also how much the other kids got over the fact that they weren?t natural girls. Nancy added, "They were just jealous that Kylie and Nichole were smarter than them or had more real friends than them." Margaret added, "The 5th graders were the worst but they got told off by Ms. Prince and some ended up suspended and moved to one of the other schools with where they got bad reputations." Ethan hadn?t said a word since entering which concerned Al. Nichole grabbed him and dragged him closer and told him to stop being lovesick. Al grew pale at hearing that, which Kylie snickered and told her, "He is always embarrassed around girls. He practically follows Francesca around like a puppy." Ethan tried to deny it but all four girls told him, "You do." Nichole could see that Al was struggling to find the right words to say so told her, "You don?t have to ask about everything from everyone. We are all different and what happened to each of us is different. Kylie came from nothing but ridicule and abuse, Ethan and I had to start over in new countries with new moms, Nancy?s mom hated Kylie for no good reason. The only normal people in the entire family are Thomas and Margaret." Al shook her head and told her solemnly, "Not anymore. Didn?t you see what happened to Thomas?s father after the funerals?" The girls shook their heads explaining softly, "Mom kept us distracted when the officers came up to the group. We didn?t see or hear anything else. Ethan piped in, "His dad was arrested for doing what my old dad tried to do to Nichole and dad and failed." The girls all looked at him as he explained, "His dad had Al?s parents killed and she nearly died because of it. Al told Aunt Kennedy about him and they were able to prove she was right. He?s in jail awaiting trial along with the officers arrested for trying to arrest some of the family." Al nodded, telling them, "I told her that my mom is Thomas?s real mom and that?s why Thomas? dad set up the whole accident. Dad tried to blackmail him and they killed him for it." The girls asked what was going to happen to Thomas to which Al admitted, "I think they are going to adopt him to keep him in the family and be close to me. He is staying with us already." Ethan told them they needed to get going, hugged Al and kissed her cheek leaving her blushing as they left. Kylie came back in again and whispered to her, "I am jealous of you, you never wanted to be a girl yet you are more of a girl than any of the four of us." Al blushed and told her, "I don?t mean to be it just happens. I don?t know why it?s happening but I?m glad that it is." Al waited for Olivia to come back in for the interrogation but she just sat down and rested. Al did her dilating while she turned away, but told her softly, "Your brother asked to be adopted last night. We are going to ask to have it done by Christmas." Al nodded, telling softly, "I just want him and you and Rick and dad to be happy." Ricardo managed to get a meeting with Taylor and his lawyer early Saturday morning. Ricardo was sharp and to the point about Thomas, stating, "You can?t care for him anymore. We both know that the evidence is ironclad and without your influence one of your dozen dirty cops will turn against you. You are going to be in prison for a long time, most likely the rest of your natural life. Thomas needs a home and people who care about him. Do something decent for once in your life and sign away your parental rights before the state removes them for you." Taylor signed the forms. He bluntly told Ricardo, "I never liked you. You were always too goody-goody for your own good. I should have yanked him from that school and gotten away from you fools." Ricardo read the forms and ensured they were all in order then countered Taylor?s claims by saying, "You had a whole slew of people who respected you, and had a son who worshiped you. Yet you threw it all away. And for what reason? To protect a secret that nobody would have cared about in the vain hope that you would run the DA?s office? You should have known that what you did would have been uncovered and you would be in prison yet your vanity got the better of you. You should be thankful that Thomas wants nothing further to do with you because he is going to be able to live a normal life from now on, one with people who deserve a son like him. You could have had a happy life with a son who loved you and a wife who would have done anything for you to keep up appearances but instead you threw it all away- for nothing. You don?t deserve him as a son, Richard and Olivia Samuels do." After Ricardo left Taylor was left to ponder his future. He was all alone with nothing. He knew that his wife would abandon him and that wasn?t his biggest concern, he only cared about his own future and how he was going to get out of serving in a prison where a large chunk of the populace were there due to his manipulations. Unbeknownst to him, his wife had already abandoned him as she found a friendly judge to give her an immediate divorce and the house which was sold away and given to Thomas. Taylor Gault endured nothing but ridicule and harassment during the week he had been behind bars in the Worcester County House of Correction in West Boylston. His crimes were committed in Suffolk County and he was arrested in Middlesex County but since he was a state employee and used his office to commit crimes he could be tried in any of the state?s 14 counties by the Attorney General. Worcester County won the draw and would host the trial. Even being over 50 miles from Boston it didn?t take long for word to reach back to the facility that he was a dirty ADA and then for the inmates to make his life miserable. He had to constantly watch his back but by Saturday he was in fear of his life. There was little sympathy from the deputies, they were aware of his actions and the stunt he orchestrated regarding one of their own. They kept him as safe as they had to but didn?t intervene when he would get kicked or punched or tripped by his fellow inmates. Hazing and abuse are easy to overlook, but they did intend to step in to prevent him from being killed. Things changed when Taylor was assigned cleanup duty in the showers after his meeting with Ricardo as he badmouthed several inmates prompting them to punch him multiple times. He tried to act like he was tough and swaggered around like he wasn?t hurt but wasn?t watching where he was going. Taylor slipped on his own mop, fell onto the floor, and broke his neck in multiple places causing paralysis. Thankfully for Taylor he didn?t die, but he was now a paraplegic. Al and Thomas were told the news that evening by Ricardo. Due to the extent of his injuries Taylor was transferred to the care of a secure prison hospital until such time as he was physically fit to stand trial. Thomas refused to pay for Taylor?s medical bills and with Taylor?s wife already divorced from him citing his criminal activities, he was left to be cared for by the state. The thing that irked Thomas was his father would never face justice for his crimes. Al thought about it and pointed out, "He is helpless and needs people to do the most basic of things for him. He?s nothing more than an overgrown baby now. For someone who was so powerful this is torture. It?s a fate worse than death, it?s utter humiliation on a daily basis." The others looked at her in surprise. Al shrugged her shoulders and told them, "I may be a kid but I?m not stupid." Rick mumbled to his father, "Keep her away from Cat, those two together will be dangerous for us all." Olivia whacked his head for that joke to which Al retorted, "We can?t help it if you aren?t as clever as us." Thomas wisely grinned and nodded at her retort, she had two really good points and it was pretty darn funny. The next morning Al was told she was going to be allowed out of bed and to walk around. She couldn?t wear her normal clothes yet so had to make due with another nightgown her mom had gotten her and her bathrobe from home. She felt weird walking around like she was but her mom assured her it was alright as other kids had to do the same. Al felt better after walking for a half hour. The staff didn?t look twice at seeing her and those who took notice of her only did so because of her mom and dad. She was a bit sad though, Stephanie couldn?t come by and the older and younger girls were busy with prior plans. After going back to her room she asked if they were celebrating Christmas. Olivia thought it was an odd question until Al pointed out, "I asked because your house wasn?t decorated." Olivia blushed and told her, "We were so busy with you that we hadn?t had a chance to do anything about decorations. Rick was getting old enough anyway that we didn?t think he wanted to do anything like that." Al tried to apologize but Olivia told her, "It?s alright. It?s a family holiday and you had valid reason for asking. If you want to decorate hopefully you will be able to once you are out of here in two days." Over in Boston things were tense as Francesca wore her best dress while Beth and Ben wore their best business suits. Even Benny was dressed up, although it took a lot of coaxing from Francesca to get him to allow them to put his clothes on. Ricardo, Valerie, and John met them outside and all three gave Francesca a big smile. She just blushed and got in the car as quickly as possible. The drive was quiet as Francesca was deep in thought. Benny did his best to keep her attention on him by fussing in his car seat and gurgling at her. Beth and Ben asked her about Christmas to which she told them, "If you don?t celebrate it, don?t worry about doing it for me. I know dad?s family was Jewish so if you want to celebrate Hanukkah I don?t mind doing so." Beth and Ben smiled and told her, "We were going to celebrate Christmas since wanted to do something special but we couldn?t figure out what. Your dad might have been Jewish but he won?t force his views on either you or Benny and he is fine celebrating Christmas as a family. We aren?t religious, we want you to make your own choices regarding that. Just nothing that requires sacrificing animals or kids." Francesca smiled and happily told her, "I don?t mind learning either way, I just want to celebrate with the three of you. I?ll have a bat mitzvah and christening to show I mean it." Beth simply shot back, "It?s your choice and yours alone, if you to learn as a show of respect to your dad then we?ll help you." She then explained, "You don?t have to do anything since I have what everything I could possibly want and need. I have a mom and dad that love me and a baby brother who is just too cute and a home and friends. I have more money than I will ever need and I already asked Aunt Greta and Uncle James to give half of it to Benny so he is set for life as well." The two were at a loss for words, there was no way they could counter any of what she just said. The group assembled in a conference room inside the publisher?s building. Valerie met with three men in suits who stood in the back of the room and spoke in hushed tones. The publishers had their lawyers them in a vain attempt to intimidate Francesca. She just shook her head at the total waste of money as she looked over at Valerie and Ricardo who had grins on their faces. Valerie opened the meeting by telling the publishers, "Yesterday afternoon a plot was broken up by my niece and her friends involving my client, Ms. Francesca Herman. The gentlemen were taken into police custody and under agreement with the Essex County District Attorney are to be given lighter sentences in exchange for information regarding the plot. Sadly for them the plot would never have worked as there were multiple factors why it wouldn?t have worked." The men were unmoved so Valerie went at the heart of the matter. She told them, "Your interest in my client on behalf of your company is commendable but it is futile. She has stated that she refuses to participate in any book tour and her parents have refused to allow her to take time off from school to tour. She will not now nor ever be forced to do something that she does not have to do nor does she want to do any kind of publicity tours or promotions." The men tried to counter with, "She doesn?t have any parents. She is an orphan and ward of the state. Whomever she has as a foster parent can be bought easily. She can?t refuse, it is in her interest to do the tour- her wealthy depends on her continuing to promote those books." Valerie shook her head and told them bluntly, "You failed to notice how I addressed my client as Ms. Francesca Herman. As of this past Thursday she was adopted by her foster parents, Mr. and Mrs. Ben and Beth Herman and therefore no longer a ward of the state. Further her parents have stated they will not allow her to go on any tour. And after consulting with my brother-in-law, her social worker, even if she was still a ward of the state her parents stated that they would have refused to allow her to go on any tour and any attempts to intimidate or forced them to allow her to go would have failed. The state would have disallowed it and would have taken action against you for attempted bribery and extortion. So you see, there was not now nor will there be any tour involving Francesca Herman." Ben got out and told them sharply, "As Valerie pointed out neither my wife nor myself will allow our daughter to be forced to go on the tour. She has stated she does not want to do any promotion for the book and after consultation with her lawyer she is under no obligation to do so. Further my wife has stated that she would refuse to allow any sort of escort or guardian to be hired by you for Francesca to watch over her on our behalf so there is no way she was ever going on any tour no matter what you may have believed. She was not now nor will she ever be forced to endure any publicity tours." The publishers? lawyers countered with, "We had a deal. She has to uphold her parents? end of the deal or she forfeits all of her rights to the books or pays back all the money we spent on promotions." Valerie grinned and told them, "There is no such clause in the contract. In fact she has every right to refuse to do any promotion as only Wendy and Belle White-Clark are obligated to do it and as they are deceased they are unable to do so. You can read it in the paragraphs I have marked, it?s clear as day in the appendixes under ?death clause?. She is the sole owner of all rights to all works by Wendy and Belle White-Clark and is under no moral, physical, mental, or financial obligation to promote and of their books in any way. And I should point out that as a minor she would have required the consent of her parents to do any kind of promotions and again as you heard from her father both have stated that they would refuse to allow it so your intimidation again does not hold up to reality." John shook his head and told Valerie, "Drop the big bombshell already." Valerie grinned and told them, "Due to your actions my client, Ms. Herman, has requested that the book series be published by another company. Your corporate offices have obliged and have transferred the series to another imprint and hired a different public relations firm to handle the marketing and sales of the book series. You will no longer have anything to do with any works by Wendy and Belle White-Clark." John stepped in and added, "After speaking with your company?s corporate officials and legal team your attempts to kidnap and force a minor to continue a contract for her deceased parents is seen as beyond reprehensible and detrimental to the company. This afternoon after Mr. Ramirez gets through with you, you will find that you are out of a job and blacklisted by every reputable publishing group in the world. They have chosen to stand with Francesca and support her wishes to remain anonymous rather than try to milk her plight for all it is worth." John nodded to Ricardo then told them, "You are officially fired by this company and all benefits that accumulated are forfeited." The men tried to protest but John told them, "I have the ear of corporate. My niece found out that this wasn?t the first time you tried to use this kind of underhanded tactic and in conjunction with our family troubleshooter and legal minds took a long, hard look at your contracts and found that you were very naughty with some of your authors? royalty payments. It turns out that you two actually squandered quite a bit of money and by her estimation it was the same amount that you hoped to earn from Francesca?s book tour. Corporate were not the least bit pleased to hear that and agreed to whatever I demanded that they do to keep from being taken to the cleaners by my wife and her client Francesca as well as the other authors that you had defrauded out of money. And before your stooges in suits ask how I was able to do this know that it helps a lot when you are one of the largest shareholders and have a reputation for taking corporations to task for their inappropriate actions. The name ?John Finn? should have been a red flag for you but I see that your own arrogance prevented you from seeing that you were already defeated before you started." Ricardo stepped forward and told the two, "Unless your lawyers there are criminal lawyers and you are going to foot the bill for them they are finished here." The lawyers got up and left leaving the wayward publishers by themselves. Ricardo began saying, "The men who attempted to kidnap Francesca stated that they were hired by you two gentlemen in the hopes of intimidating Francesca into either going along with your planned book tour or signing away the rights to her parents? book rights and royalties." The two claimed this was a lie to which they then added that they would sue for libel. Ricardo spoke up saying, "It is no lie and the gentlemen in the back of the room are here from the Essex County State Police Detectives Unit to place you under arrest once this meeting is completed. Your hired goons kept copies of your emails and money transactions and after a check of your own bank accounts detectives have determined that you are to be arrested for attempted extortion, attempted kidnapping, and criminal conspiracy alongside tax fraud and larceny." The troopers stepped forward and placed them under arrest. The two glared at Francesca claiming, "You ruined us! You could have been rich if you just played along!" The troopers loudly told them, "That?s no way to speak to a lady especially a kid." The troopers towered over them and made them shiver in fear as they were hauled away. Francesca was driven to another building and brought up to meet the new publishers. The two were a married couple and were more open to the arrangements that Valerie had insisted on making. The book series was going to be a big boost for their imprint and give them a larger public image which would help other book series that they published. They didn?t like the idea of Francesca being involved as a spokesperson for the books especially when it would possibly cause negative impact such as stalkers and people trying to make a buck off of her. They pointed out proudly, "We are parents, we wouldn?t want our own children doing that kind of thing either. She doesn?t need the constant reminders of their deaths nor the unwanted attention." They told Valerie that they had looked at the final book?s notes and at some of the changes Francesca had made and agreed that it was finished and in tune with the prior editions. They gave her the details of when the book would go into print and what Francesca needed to do. The only actual thing for her to do involving the book was to attend the launch party for the two books and reveal to the world that the second book was the last book by Wendy. She agreed but added, "I don?t want to do any interviews or go to any conventions or that sort of thing." That was agreed to with the contract changes being laid out in full, with Valerie signing off on it followed by Beth and Ben then Francesca. She would get her picture taken and appear on TV as part of the release parties but she wouldn?t have to say a word to anyone at either event. Finally finished with the meetings Francesca asked to go visit Al at the hospital. Beth and Ben were reluctant to go but Francesca pointed out, "She needs people to visit her." Valerie and John agreed, with Benny bouncing happily at hearing they were visiting someone else. Francesca?s visit came at a moment when Al was at her most bored. She hated being in hospitals and even though she had Olivia there with her it was still creepy to her. She hated being cooped up and a hospital was as close to being cooped up as you can get. Francesca greeted her with a big hug. She lifted Benny out so he could see Al causing him to giggle and cheer at seeing her again. Al was glad that he wasn?t afraid to which Francesca pointed out, "He loves everyone especially someone who mom and dad have talked about. He likes you, he has liked you since he first met you." Benny tried to go to Al but she wouldn?t take him. Francesca had to pull him away but he still smiled and giggled away. Al and he made funny faces to one another until he needed to have a diaper change. When Ben and Beth left to change Benny Al asked Francesca if she was going to be alright now that everything was completed. Francesca grinned and nodded, adding, "Your adoption should be quicker." Al countered with, "It doesn?t seem fair to Thomas though." Francesca grinned and told her, "He should be alright though. He likes you as much as you like him and Aunt Olivia will ensure you are both adopted at the same time." The two got to talking about when Al got home. Francesca told her warmly, "You are already getting new neighbors." Al nodded and told her what Bryan had done for her when she was in Mass. General before being moved off to her dad?s hospital. Francesca happily told her, "That?s how they always act. He?s the big brother to all of the boys, even though David and Patrick are older than him." Al smiled at hearing that, adding, "Bryan is nice, Pete is pretty good too." Francesca added a quick, "If they weren?t nice to you Hannah would have tanned their hides. She won?t let them treat you bad." Al giggled but asked, "Is she that dangerous?" Francesca grinned and admitted, "Only if something she doesn?t like happens, like being bad to her cousin?s future sister-in-law." She then added, "She is like the big sister to all of us girls. But since Nichole came into her life she has been protective of the younger kids. She and Paige have kept away because they had to take their final exams then they wanted to let our parents bond with us and keep the others from getting too overeager and annoying us. They have been kept up to date about us and you officially meet them at some point, just not likely until after they get back from visiting Uncle Nigel?s parents in England during Christmas break." Al let the news digest. Francesca asked her about Christmas plans, specifically if she wanted anything. Al dodged the question to which Francesca told her, "I have a lot of money thanks to my mothers, it?s something I want to do for you." Al mumbled softly, "I?d like earrings. " Sensing Al?s embarrassment Francesca assured her, "It?s alright to want them, some studs might make your look." She grinned and added, "The girls are going to give you a pendant and necklace anyway, the earrings will look all the more better." Al asked her why they were doing that to which Francesca drew a deep breath and retold the story of the tradition. Al was getting an, "A" pendant, one that matched the other girls. Francesca told her, "You aren?t the only one getting one, Ethan is getting one from the boys. It?s just something that ties us all together. We all have one except the babies, twins, and DJ. When they get older they will each get one as well." Al felt better about it all. Francesca hugged her and bid her goodbye so she could get some more rest. Olivia asked what the two talked about to which Al meekly asked her, "Can I get my ears pierced? I know you said I could do it later but I really want to have it done." Olivia was taken aback by the question and asked for an explanation. Al told her about seeing the girls the day before all having pierced ears and remembering Stephanie and the girls in her class all having theirs done. Olivia asked her softly, "Are you doing it because you want to be like everyone else or do you want to look pretty yourself?" Al thought for a bit and smiled. She liked the look of the birthstone studs the girls wore and the pretty flower and fairy designs her classmates wore. Stephanie had small hoops, ones that dangled as she moved and looked more grownup than the studs. Al proudly told her, "I want to look pretty. I like the earrings Stephanie wears but I would settle for birthstone studs like the ones Nichole and Kylie wore. They look nice and might match some of my clothes." Olivia nodded. It was a good answer and one that she had to admit was a good look for her. She warmly told her, "We will go after you get out. Francesca is probably going to tell the girls what you wanted and they are going to ensure you get some nice jewelry in addition to the pendant. I have to admit the ?A? pendant should be ornate, something special for a special girl." The next morning Raul woke up anxious. Word had spread about the confrontation between the boys and him and he was dreading seeing his former friends. The only bright sport of his morning was Alice telling him to hurry up if he wanted to spend any time with his new girlfriend before school started, causing him to rush to get ready so he didn?t miss any time with Avery Long and her friends. Raul blushed. Avery was a beautiful young woman and a girl that he liked a lot. She was smart and she cared about others. He couldn?t fathom why she would take an interest in him but he wasn?t about to complain as long as he had her giving him affection and kisses like he had on Friday. At school Avery embraced him and kissed him full on the lips. She smiled as he blushed and tried to look away. Her friends quietly whispered, "Guess she finally stopped fighting her crush." Avery grabbed Raul?s hand and led him inside and sat down to breakfast, just the four of them at a table. This display of affection rattled the school. Whispers started up quickly about the two and soon they were the talk of every eighth and seventh grader. The news that Avery and Raul were a couple was bigger news than Raul getting beaten up by his friends. Avery?s friends asked about his weekend to which he blushed at telling them, "My sister dragged me to visit Al in the hospital." The girls swooned over him, Raul mumbled, "It was just a visit, all I did was give her a break from the boredom. She had other visitors coming in after we left." The girls started asking about Al and he happily told them about Stephanie and her, getting them to listen intently as he showed them how good of a big brother he was. Raul?s former friends weren?t impressed, in fact they were insulted. Two of them had eyes on Avery, the other two were interested in her friends. Seeing Avery on his arm and her head on his shoulder at times caused them to grow angrier by the minute. The girls took notice of the boys glaring at Raul and turned their backs to them, ruining the boys? views of their figures and causing them to get angrier. Their favorite activity before class was to leer at the girls? breasts, especially Avery?s large bust. When Avery and Raul got up to go to class they struck. Raul was struck from behind then dragged into the girl?s bathroom along with Avery. The boys stripped Raul naked and proceeded to punch him multiple times in the face and chest causing him to pass out from the pain. The boys kicked him several times for good measure to ensure he was out cold. One of the boys grabbed Avery and had a hand over her mouth and told her to shut up or they?d do the same to her. The boys then ripped her clothes leaving her naked and put them in Raul?s hands. The boys then told her to scream after they left. Avery nodded at them, thinking she knew what they were trying to do to Raul and hated every bit of it. The boys exited the girl?s bathroom but were immediately put in handcuffs by the massive Ian Bailey, the school?s police officer, and his backup officers for assaulting Raul. Dorothy entered and found Raul unconscious with the clothes in his hands and Avery frightened in the corner. Dorothy asked her what happened Avery screamed, "They beat him until he passed out. They want to frame him for trying to hurt me. He didn?t do it, they did." Avery broke down in Dorothy?s arms as Alice came in to help. She told the officer helping Ian to call for an ambulance. The officer looked inside the bathroom to see Raul out cold and Avery in tears and asked sharply, "Did he do it?" Dorothy bluntly asked, "How could he if he?s unconscious. She doesn?t have a mark on her, but those boys have bruised knuckles and one of them has a bent ring." The officers examined their hands and they were indeed bruised with one having a broken bone with one having a mark on his finger where he had a ring which was quickly found in a side pocket. On the ring was blood and some flesh. Looking at the ring it also had some threads that matched Avery?s shirt. The officers pulled the four outside and placed them in two cruisers while Dorothy called their parents and started immediate expulsion proceedings against them. They were going to be charged with assault and battery on Raul and sexual assault on Avery- charges that she?d ensure stuck. Avery was in no condition to remain in school so she was sent home for the rest of the week. Raul was taken to New England Children?s Hospital for x- rays and treatment for his injuries. He would be there for only a day but would miss school for the rest of the week as well but would be alright. Al heard the news that afternoon and wanted to see Raul. Her timing was perfect as Avery came by at the same time. Al felt a bit awkward at being there but Raul introduced her to Avery with a big blush. Al asked mischievously, "Is she your girlfriend?" which got a deep blush from Raul and a quick, "Yes I am" from Avery which only caused Raul to look at her with saddened eyes. Raul asked softly, "Are you sure?" getting a smile and, "You were since Friday. How could I not call you that after you were such a gentleman to your sister and Al" to which she kissed him on the lips getting a giggle from Al. His sadness evaporated, turning into wonderment and love for Avery. Al left after that, happy to have made a happy couple come together. Stephanie was already waiting for her when she got back and gave her the latest gossip about school. She listened as Stephanie beamed with pride at the other girls starting to treat her better, she was mostly shunned but there were more and more treating her nicer and a couple who were actually interested in hearing about Al. Al listened closely and sighed at not being there. Olivia sensed her longing and whispered, "You can visit them when you get out. You have to deliver your schoolwork anyway." Al smiled and nodded, it was what she hoped to hear. Over at Winnisimmet High School word got around about Francesca being rich. For the first time, boys were coming out of the woodwork and paying attention to her. Rachel and iris assured her, "They only want your money" which was proven when the first questions out of many of their mouths were about her money. Francesca asked how they got around that problem which Iris admitted, "I have Sam" and Rachel grinned and told her, "I haven?t told anyone I have a lot of money." Ben had to tell several boys to back off of Francesca. Three of them questioned why he cared about them going after Francesca getting a pointed, "She?s my daughter, that?s why." Word hadn?t reached the whole school yet that Ben was her father but when it did the boys backed away, fearful that angering him would cause them to suffer bad grades in other classes. There was one boy that was still interested in her despite Ben?s warning. Donald Lee was a classmate and sat next to Francesca in several of her classes, particularly in biology. More importantly he was her partner for their geography project that John assigned over the Christmas break. He and Francesca had sat side by side since the first day of school and talked normally but he had been too afraid to ask her out. Francesca and he got a lot closer as they worked on their project in the library, getting hushed whispers about their closeness and piqued interest from Reyna and Rachel. He wasn?t like the other boys in their cluster, he wanted to do well on their assignment and ignored her riches. During a break Donald asked her if she had any plans for Christmas break. Francesca shook her head, admitting, "I might have to babysit but otherwise I am free." He smiled and asked if she wanted to go to a movie to which she agreed, but it had to be cleared with her parents first. He blanched at hearing that. He didn?t want to upset Ben but he liked Francesca. As they were walking out of the library, some of the boys started asking why Donald was interested in Francesca. They started tossing around claims that he only liked her for her money or that he wanted to get good grades in Biology. The worst was one of them claiming he wasn?t good enough for Francesca, with Donald being a lanky nerd to Francesca?s beautiful, graceful woman. Donald waited for them to stop then sharply told them, "Unlike any of you I happen to actually enjoy my talking with Francesca. She is smart and insightful and makes class better. I liked her from the start and wanted to ask her out sooner but I didn?t want to cause her to lose focus on cheerleading, and with the death of her parents it wasn?t right to ask her out. I simply asked and she accepted. I am sorry that it offends you but I am not sorry for having taken the chance and asked her out." Francesca overheard them and asked them point-blank, "You seem awfully concerned about my love life for boys who ignored me all year. He is right, he took the time to get to know me and I find him to be a good conversationalist with common interests. I like that he put my free time first and am happy to join him on a date this weekend." Overhearing their conversation, Ben nearly choked hearing Francesca mention a date. John chuckled and whispered, "Congratulations, it?s about time you realized that you are now the father of a healthy 14-year-old girl. Don?t worry, he?s a good kid. Just don?t let Dan give him the old speech when they go on the date. I don?t think he?ll handle the threats from him well." Ben sat the two down and told Donald, "If you are going to date my daughter you need to know a few things. First, I have a shovel, a baseball bat, and a map of deep woods of New Hampshire. It?s a bit too cold to charter a boat so I won?t use my nautical map to shark-infested waters." Donald nearly fainted at hearing that while Francesca glared at Ben. John nodded to which Ben continued, "Physically hurt her and I?ll put all of those to good use. I don?t have to tell you what will happen if you gloat to others about doing things that you didn?t do with her but Rachel has ways of making your computer self-destruct and make it look like you did it yourself. You aren?t going alone, Thomas, Rebecca, Sam, Iris, Reed, and Jessie are going with you. Do not try to separate from them or the two boys will ensure you are embarrassed beyond belief." Donald gulped then asked, "Does that mean we have your blessing?" Ben nodded then added, "Just listen to what she says and don?t expect much. If you push her you will lose her and likely any other girl in school." Donald agreed to which Francesca hugged him. Ben grumbled, "What have I just gotten myself into" to which John told him, "Fatherhood." Francesca was met at home by a concerned Beth who scolded her for getting out late and not telling her first. When Ben told her what Francesca had planned she nearly fainted at the news. Francesca grunted and stormed off as Ben grinned, she was taking it better than he thought. Beth came into her room a half hour later to check in on her only to find Francesca crying. She sat with her and hugged her, telling her, "I am sorry for what I did but it was just a shock. I didn?t expect you to start dating for a few more months or more. I am sorry, I know this is tough for you especially with your emotions still being raw from this weekend." Francesca mumbled a soft, "I really like him" to which Beth smiled and told her, "Then your first date will be something special. Your dad is seeing that his new daughter is a young woman and has caught the interest of a young man. I am still trying to come to terms with being the mother to not one but two amazing kids. I am just glad that I don?t have to teach you about periods and the birds and bees." The next day was a big day for Al and Raul as both were being discharged. Alice helped Raul home or rather to Olivia?s home then headed off to school. Raul and Al helped one another, Raul kept her from overdoing things while Al acted as his maid by getting him drinks when he asked her to. Raul tried to explain to Olivia that she didn?t have to do anything for him and that he would prefer that she didn?t to which Olivia agreed. Olivia tried to tell Al as best she could that she didn?t need to do that for him but Al insisted. Al boldly told her, "He got hurt because he stood up for me and nobody has ever done that for me before. I want to do that for him, I have to do it." Olivia didn?t have the heart to tell her to stop after that, she would do it no matter what she said and why she did it was too sweet to refuse. Alice came by later on to pick up Raul and was almost run over by Stephanie as she ran inside to see Al. Olivia told the two that they had homework to do which caused both to grumble and settle down. Raul did the same, but was told he didn?t need to. The group broke up as it was time for dinner. Rick and Thomas came in late with news of having tests the next day so they wouldn?t be disturbed. Olivia told them that they didn?t notice someone to which both rushed to Al?s room and hugged her. Al gave them both dirty looks over ignoring her but started laughing as they fought for the right apology. After dinner when Rick and Thomas holed themselves in their rooms to study Al asked Olivia if she could visit her old home for one last walk-through. Olivia tried to find an excuse but Al insisted. Al rushed off to bed to get an early start on the day after finishing her dilation leaving Olivia to consider the consequences of Al visiting her old home. She couldn?t find any, other than some repressed feelings that needed to be brought out and settled. The next morning Al was up early and eating a light breakfast of oatmeal when Olivia came in. She softly told Al, "We will go to your old home but you need to be careful there." Al countered, "Nobody should recognize me and if they do I don?t care what they say. I am a girl now and I am happy as I am." Ricardo handed over the keys and joined them on the drive over. Olivia parked in the driveway and waited for Al to gather her thoughts before exiting. Al took a few minutes to steel her nerves then told her, "I?m ready, let?s do this." Al went inside and saw everything was as it was when her parents died. She looked at the tacky things that her mom collected to make the place look, "Homey" but Al hated. She saw the flashy appliances her parents bought but never used and all of the new electronics that her dad liked to show off but didn?t actually know how to use. Al asked Olivia, "Can you get rid of all of this? There has to be people or places that could use all of this stuff." Olivia saw what she was talking about and grinned, telling her, "There are some charities in need that would love to have these appliances and could put them to good use. The small stuff might have a bit of worth so I?d like someone to look them over." They moved on to Al?s bedroom and saw her looking sad at seeing it looking so bare. Al dug through her closet looking for things she might like but finding nothing. She looked at the old toys and shook her head again, there was nothing of interest to her. Everything she previously owned was bought by her parents to make her into the person they wanted, she never liked the toys and especially hated the action figures so nothing was opened and all could be given to kids who?d love them. Al told Olivia again, "There are a lot of unopened toys. Can we put them in the charity bin for kids with no toys?" Olivia grinned again, there was enough time to get them to a loving home before Christmas. Moving on again they looked through Al?s parent?s bedroom. Her dad?s clothes were high priced and his mom had some expensive dresses. Al softly told Olivia, "Mom and dad spent a lot on themselves yet put me in cheap t- shirts and jeans. I know I shouldn?t complain but it seems so wrong now." Olivia agreed but didn?t want to say anything. Looking through the closet she spotted something that stood out among the clothes. Al hurriedly dug through the discarded shoes that were barely worn and found something that caused her to burst into tears as she dove for it. She showed it to Olivia who herself cried. It was a stuffed monkey, the same shade of blue that Al preferred over all other colors. It was cute and the way Al held the monkey it was clear that it meant something special to her. It was like she was back to being a little kid again, like she found an old and forgotten friend. Olivia asked about the monkey to which Al told her, "Dad took him away from me when I was 10. I loved it. It was given to me by one of the other parents back when I was in kindergarten and I couldn?t get to sleep without it. Dad took him away and told me that I was a big baby for sleeping with it and if he caught me with it again he?d beat my ass. He must have tossed it in there and forgotten about it." Al continued to hug the monkey, holding it tight. She softly told Olivia, "Just box up their clothes and give it to people who could use them. I have everything I need, there?s nothing left for me here." Ricardo was told what was going to happen and agreed with them about the donations. He grinned as he told them, "Dan could fix the place up and Al could rent it out if she wants." Al shook her head and told him, "Just sell it. I have no use for it. Make sure it goes to someone who deserves it." Al crossed the street and rang the Raymonds? doorbell. Joshua and Peggy greeted her and invited the three inside. Al told them, "I asked Ricardo to sell the house and wanted to donate everything inside to places that could use the things." Joshua grinned at hearing that, Peggy told him, "I know a few places that could use the clothes and the appliances." Olivia grinned as she told her, "I thought you would, Al was adamant about doing that for others." Ricardo got in touch with the organizations that Peggy recommended and coordinated the removal. After hanging up he left so the four could talk in private. Peggy and Joshua were pleased to hear about Stephanie and Al becoming so close and happy that someone cared enough about Al to give up those long-lasting friendships. Al added, "Ms. Rodriguez seemed even happier, he got a girlfriend out of it for some reason" which sent the adults into a big laugh. The four talked for two hours before anyone noticed the time. As they were leaving Al saw some of her old classmates walking up the street. The boys were her worst tormentors; they loved to make fun of Al over her parents and the fact that she wasn?t as manly as them despite being average size for a boy. She stopped and waited for them to go by and saw the boys checking her out, saying some lewd things about her. Two of them double backed and got another look at her, then tried to entice her by saying how hot she was and how they could enjoy some time together. She shook her head and told them sharply, "Glad to know that becoming a girl got your attention. You boys are the biggest and foulest mouths in the sixth grade and I would never date you." The boys stopped and stared at Al. She grinned and heard them babbling, "No it can?t be him, he died!" Al then told them, "I didn?t die from the accident, but I had to undergo a sex change because of it. I did almost die- twice. I got a new mom and dad and two brothers and a huge family of aunts, uncles, and cousins now. I like being a girl and seeing you two gawking at me made me see that I am a cute girl at that. Enjoy jerking off alone, it?ll be a long time before you two ever get a real girlfriend with the way you act towards girls." Olivia scolded her for her language to which she said, "Sorry mom." The two walked across the street and drove off, Al had a big grin on her face and had the last laugh with her former tormentors. Al finally told her, "I needed that. I hated them for years and I needed to do that." Olivia shook her head and politely told her, "You shouldn?t have to stoop to their level of crudeness to make a point. You are better than them, but you did handle yourself with dignity. They said some really terrible things about girls and you embarrassed them deeply. Hopefully they learn but I doubt it. But to be honest, boys like them never do. They?ll make some impressionable girl fall for them and end up as a teen father or as the unwanted dad to kids who deserve better. I am proud of you, but please don?t do that again as it?s unladylike and you are smarter than that." Chapter 13 Francesca had a mostly great day in school. Donald acted like everything was normal between them. The girls were teasing her relentlessly about her date which led to a daylong blush for her. Reed and Thomas admitted that he was a good choice for a boyfriend for Francesca. Having talked with him since the start of the year and since he got the courage to ask her out both liked him a lot and knew he would treat her with dignity and respect and more importantly- wouldn?t try to get in her pants. Rebecca and Jessie told them, "You two wouldn?t know anything about that, you never try it on us." Thomas tersely told her, "Mom told me she didn?t want to be a grandmother and your dad would skin me alive then turn me over to your mother to finish the job." Reed added, "Michael would never let me sit after kicking my butt into next week then Courtney would ensure that she had my balls mounted on the wall for doing anything more than kiss Jessie." The girls laughed at that but Jessie and Rebecca both kissed them deeply for being honest. Despite Donald passing the boyfriend test of both Reed and Thomas as well as the girls the day ended on a sour note as Donald was confronted about his date with Francesca. The guy who confronted him was a senior and self- described ladies? man who was clearly trying to go after her money. He made the mistake of confronting Donald in front of Michael who nodded to Donald that he had his back. The suitor cornered him then harshly told him to break the date or he would break his legs. Donald asked him why to which he told him, "Because I said so. You aren?t good enough for her and you aren?t going to stand in my way of bedding her. She?s the biggest prize in school and I?ll be damned if some skinny loser like you gets in the way of my conquest." Donald calmly told him, "What right do you have to tell her who she can and cannot date? I asked and she accepted. I am not going to break a date with a beautiful young woman that I have wanted to have with her for months for someone I don?t know and who doesn?t have her best interests at heart can do something she doesn?t want to do." The wannabe Lothario grabbed him and pushed him against the wall then punched him in the stomach twice and told him firmly, "Break the date or I?ll break your neck." Michael grabbed his shoulder and yanked him away from Donald, bluntly telling him, "One, she is 14 and you are 18. You are getting a guaranteed charge of statutory rape if you slept with her. Two, you have no right to tell him who he can and cannot date. Three, you stupidly told him you intended to sleep with her in front of multiple people who have no problem informing her that you are already bragging about bedding her. Say hi for the camera, we caught it all on camera." Michael pointed to Thomas who was holding his phone up and told him, "I recorded the whole thing." Jake came over and checked on Donald then told the school?s police officer to arrest the senior for assault and battery. Donald got up and walked away but was stopped by Thomas and Michael who drove him home. As he was getting out of the car the two told him, "As long as you are with Francesca you are one of us. He was stupid to think that we weren?t going to protect you from him." Francesca called Donald that evening to check in on him. He was fine but the conversation turned to other things and the two got worked up not noticing the time. Beth had to come in and get her down for dinner which ended the call. Beth could see that Francesca was smitten with Donald, whatever the two were talking about brought out the best in her. Over at the Samuels house the next day Al was told to get dressed by Olivia as they were going out. Al dressed in her new dress that Beverly had bought her, one that was red and green with black accents. Al loved the look and after putting it on she loved the feel of it. The shoes were even nicer, black Mary Jane shoes with a one inch heel that matched the dress and made her feel taller. Al asked where they were going only getting a simple, "It?s a surprise" from her. They stopped in the middle school parking lot which caused Al some concern until she saw Alice waiting for them. Olivia whispered, "You have to drop off your schoolwork and pick up your assignments for over vacation." The three walked inside and then towards Al?s classroom. All eyes turned towards Al as she walked inside. Stephanie bolted towards her, hugging her in front of the whole class. Al hugged her back, then waited for Alice and Olivia to speak. Alice handed in Al?s schoolwork and asked for Al?s Christmas vacation assignments. Mrs. Shriner nodded and handed the packet to her while the class continued to stare at Al. Mrs. Shriner asked Olivia, "When will Al be returning to class" to which Olivia told her, "If her doctor gives her clearance she will be back to school with the rest of the students on the 2nd. She won?t be able to participate in gym until mid-January though as it?ll take that long to fully heal from the second surgery." Mrs. Shriner asked what exactly happened to which Olivia stated, "Debris from the car embedded in her abdomen and pierced her large intestine several times leading to internal bleeding. It wasn?t noticed the first time due to a young doctor?s error. The holes in the intestine caused an infection that resulted in a temperature that for was borderline fatal for much of the evening and night. Once the emergency room crew got her temperature down two degrees and out of the dangerous zone she underwent emergency surgery to remove the last of the car debris and repair the damage to her intestine. It took three days for the fever to break to below 100 degrees and another two to ensure the antibiotics took to her system. She may look alright but she still has a ways to go before she is fully healed from both surgeries." The kids stared at her in disbelief until their teacher pointed out, "Mrs. Samuels is a pediatric nurse in addition to being Al?s mother. She is not kidding in telling you that Al nearly died from her infection, which was raging as she sat in class among you. She didn?t have to go to school yet she wanted to be here among you. You may not like her past, but her future is uncertain. It?s up to you to be better people by treating her like any other student or be worse people and treat her poorly. Either way, she will be returning and will be a valuable member of our classroom." Al remained silent during the whole lecture. Inside the car she hugged Olivia, telling her, "Thank you for doing that for me." Olivia grinned and told her, "I was doing my job as your mom. It just happens that it overlaps with my former job as a nurse. I know things will be better now that they heard it twice and saw you in the flesh. You are skinnier and paler than you were last week. And you look nothing like you used to look three weeks ago, I suspect that?s why the boys didn?t recognize you yesterday." Al didn?t think about it but told her, "I saw some of the boys looking at me." She smiled at the thought which Olivia asked her, "Did you like them looking at you that way?" Al nodded, to which Olivia told her, "I think you will find that you are going to start noticing more things about boys that you like." Al grew solemn and asked, "Am I gay?" Olivia shot back, "Because you may like boys?" Al nodded to which Olivia told her, "A girl liking a boy isn?t gay. Honey, you have to remember that you aren?t a boy anymore. Technically it?s being heterosexual and not homosexual. Maybe you would have been gay as Alexander but as Alecia you aren?t gay. But if this is a concern for you remember that I already told you that I would love you either way." Al softly said, "I guess like boys. I was looking at them as they were looking at me and noticed how it was causing them to react. I liked them looking at me. I liked looking at their crotches and seeing them liking looking at me." Al blushed and covered her mouth at telling her that last part, not even realizing she had said it before it was out of her mouth. Olivia pulled into the driveway then hugged Al, telling her proudly, "I better have the birds and bees talk with you then." Al groaned and told her, "I can?t get pregnant" to which Olivia told her, "There are other things you can get from having sex, none of which are good." The two talked for an hour before Al started to get tired and Olivia put her to bed. Olivia realized that her new daughter was now a young women mentally blossoming right in front of her eyes. The next morning Donald and Francesca started to grow much closer. Their date may have been the following night but the two acted like they were more than just lab partners, they acted like a couple. Ben noticed it right away as the two worked on their lab during biology. The two would normally work together but this time it was different, this time it was more intimate and friendly. John actually felt proud of the boy for finally taking the next step and asking Francesca out. He was a good young man, one that never caused trouble, never talked during class, and always treated the girls of the class with respect instead of leering at them and making crude jokes. And the way Francesca was opening up to him was the icing on the cake. If they weren?t going to last it would have to be an epic fail on Donald?s part and even then nothing short of transphibic jokes would cause their breakup. During lunch the two sat next to one another and shared their lunches. Reed stated the obvious with, "At the rate those two are going we had better start picking out bridal gifts." Rebecca shot back, "We will do that right after we pick out yours." Francesca shot back a quicker, "Is that before or after Uncle Dan forces Thomas and you to the altar?" Donald was unsure how to react to which Reed told him, "If you think that was bad, wait until the juniors kid around with you. Will is going to have fun with you." Francesca grinned then quietly told Donald, "They like you, don?t worry about fitting in or trying to do what they do. Nobody is like them and none of us can even try to be like them. Just enjoy being yourself." Donald walked Francesca home, walking along with the other three couples. When they reached the Herman home they parted with a hug, to which the others jeered him but he shrugged off. Walking out to see the teens teasing Donald Beth told them, "Why are you teasing him for not kissing her? Don?t you have to actually take someone on a date first before you kiss or didn?t you learn some manners?" She smirked at them and got a silent, "Thank you" from Donald and Francesca as the others went silent trying to figure out a counter to her question. Knowing Donald lived on the other side of the city Ben offered him a ride. He reluctantly accepted it and expected him to grill him regarding his interests in Francesca. Ben didn?t do that, instead telling him, "She likes you a lot and the girls are trying to ease her into the dating scene. Don?t let them cause you to do something you aren?t ready for yet. She understands your reluctance to do things as fast as them and is just as scared about this as you are." Donald looked down in shame and told him, "I know they mean well but I don?t want to do something that upsets her. I like her a lot and don?t want to blow the only chance I have with her. The others had the benefit of knowing each other for years before they dated but I am new to the city and she is the first person to treat me like everyone else. I don?t want to blow that kindness by doing something stupid like trying to kiss her or worse." Ben grinned and told him honestly, "You are right, the others forget that you are the new kid in town and they have been together for several years. Even Reed has been around them for over three years despite only dating Jessie for a year, so it?s different with you. Just do what you are doing and you should be fine with her, especially when you were willing to take a beating from a scumbag to uphold her honor." When he returned from dropping off Donald the girls were gathered in the Herman living room and were talking up a storm. Ben asked Francesca to go upstairs for a few minutes then stood tall and announced to them, "You ladies mean well but knock off the teasing. You seem to have forgotten that Donald is brand new to the school and didn?t grow up with all of you. He is trying to be a gentleman and follow his feelings. He is scared witless and trying hard to do things the right way. Teasing him about things that you take for granted is just going to drive him away. It took three months for him to draw up the courage to ask Francesca out, all the while you seven girls were entrenched with one another. He is scared to death about saying and doing the wrong thing, teasing him about not doing something you do all the time is the worst thing you could do for him." Francesca came back down to dour faces and didn?t need to ask what happened, she already knew he took them to task over their teasing. She moved on to other things which the girls thanked her for, happy to not have Ben?s ire anymore. Ben though texted Thomas and Reed and asked them to ensure that Donald didn?t feel pressured to do anything he didn?t want to do. The two acknowledged and added, "The girls won?t like it" to which he added, "It?s their fault." While Francesca and Donald grew closer the boys who attacked Raul and Avery were arraigned. Judge Matthews read the list of charges and listened to the ADA explaining the situation and couldn?t help but let out a disappointed sigh. The ADA and defense attorney were willing to work out a plea deal but Judge Matthews told the two, "That is within your right to do so but given that the victim?s association with a certain large family I think it would be in your best interest to ensure that they receive proper punitive sentences for their crimes." Both the ADA and the defense attorney looked at the judge oddly to which Judge Matthews explained, "Young Mr. Rodriguez is the nephew of one of the Finn Family members and who is not about to let his nephew?s assault go unpunished. I may even go so far as to say his mother is part of the family as well. Given their penchant for obtaining the most justice allowed by law and will have a keen interest in this case it would be wise to not brush this case aside." Ricardo was sitting in the back of the courtroom and caught the notice of both the ADA and defense attorney to which Judge Matthews nodded acknowledging that he was Raul?s uncle. Both lawyers realized there was no way around it so they agreed to the maximum allowed plea agreement, one that kept the group in state custody until they turned 21 and required them to register as sex offenders. Judge Matthews approved the plea deal while the four boys were told what was going to happen and why. None of them were happy and their parents tried to cry foul but the ADA that to explain to them bluntly, "Your sons can reject the plea deal and go to trial where the DA will try them as adults to which they are looking at a solid 15 years or more in prison. There is no way around it, they were caught red handed- literally. They messed with the wrong students, his uncle is going to rip you apart financially unless you agree to the plea deal." The parents agreed on their sons? behalf, telling them, "You morons screwed yourself. We aren?t being bankrupted for your stupidity." Raul spent the day with Avery and her family. They were under constant supervision by her parents but having Raul there eased the fear and anxiety that Avery was suffering from since the boys attacked her in the bathroom. Avery was actually swooning over Raul, when he went to the bathroom her mother asked about how she felt about Raul to which she smiled and admitted, "I like him a lot. He knows how to treat a girl especially one he really likes. He?s a good friend to all of us and makes the girls at ease whenever he is around." Her mother smiled and watched as her husband?s face grew white at seeing his daughter so smitten with a boy. He tried to think up an excuse to rid them of Raul but his wife reminded him, "She is 13 and has shown more maturing it a week than she has shown in 13 years. He?s a good person for her, he?s better than any other boy in school and her friends adore him." He conceded that she was right but added a soft, "Just keep the kissing to a minimum" which Raul heard and turned beet red at. Al spent the day helping Olivia decorate for Christmas. Al happily helped her choose what ornaments to use and where to place those ornaments on the tree and what colored garland to wrap the tree in. Al rushed through her homework already so had nothing else to do. Decorating the tree and house was the perfect distraction and she proved to have an eye for decorating, something that Olivia was thankful for as Richard and Rick were terrible at it. Al spent the rest of her time reading the books she hadn?t yet read. She liked them a lot and asked if she could get copies of them. Olivia shook her head and told her, "There?s no need, Michael, Reed, Eric, and George have them already and will let your borrow them anytime you want. But why don?t you watch the anime shows Kylie loaned you? I?d rather that you enjoyed some material more geared towards your age range than the older teenage stuff." Al spent the next several hours holed up in her room watching episodes of, "Frills". Olivia took the time to wrap Al?s presents. Richard had subtly gotten her some new video games and Beverly got her some dresses in her favorite color. Olivia hadn?t had a chance to get her anything yet though. She reluctantly agreed to take Al shopping that afternoon so that would be the time to get them, using the usual method of letting her pick out her own gift without knowing it. Olivia called Al down to go shopping. She was reluctant to go as she was in the middle of seeing the, "Frills" girls open their new eatery and wanted to see the hijinks that they got involved in. Olivia grinned and reminded her, "Didn?t you say you wanted your ears pierced?" That got Al rushing to go, bringing a smile to Olivia?s face and causing Al to realize she had been tricked. Olivia held up her end of the bargain and stopped off at a Claire?s for the piercings. Al shuddered but the clerk was quick and it was relatively painless. Al stared into the mirror in awe and saw the gold studs staring back at her, glistening in the lights and causing her to shed a tear of joy. Olivia purchased several other earrings for Al then moved on to the department stores. Al didn?t notice that Olivia was comparing dresses and skirts against her. They were in a larger size which Al thought was meant for Stephanie or Reyna but Olivia was planning for the Spring and Al?s inevitable hormone related size increase. The two spent two hours shopping until Al had to rest prompting Olivia to call it a day. She had more than enough for Al to build a wardrobe to last her until that summer. The two managed to also get multiple outfits for Thomas and Rick, which Al picked out personally and the two would appreciate even if one or two weren?t exactly their style. That evening was the big night for Francesca and Donald. Since it was the last day of school before Christmas break the teachers took it easy on the students and treated it as a review day or had fun with them. Donald and Francesca sat together in all of their classes and finished their work rather than talk about the date that night. Neither wanted to cause the other to call it off and both were happy to enjoy each other?s company. The girls left them alone, while Thomas kept the guys in their class from bothering Donald. School ended all too soon and the girls rushed home. Donald practically ran home, rushing inside to the horror of his parents. He had to explain to them, "I have a date with the most beautiful girl in school in two hours." His dad didn?t believe him until Thomas and Reed rang the Lee doorbell asking if Donald was ready for the date yet. Mrs. Lee asked what this was all about to which Reed told her, "He has a date tonight with Francesca Herman." She asked who she was to which Reed showed a picture. Mrs. Lee burst into laughter while Mr. Lee told them they were lying. Thomas bluntly told them, "It is no joke. The two have been close friends all year and your son finally manned up and asked her out last week. You should have known already about her if you had bothered to listen to Donald." Mr. Lee didn?t believe them but Thomas told them, "You don?t have to believe it, just know that he is going out with an incredibly smart and beautiful young woman who is head over heels infatuated with your son." Thomas added, "Mr. Herman will drop him off after the movie and dinner. You can ask him yourself if this is a joke or if his daughter actually likes him." The three teens left with Mr. Lee trying to find a comeback. Donald tried to apologize for his parents? actions but Reed told him, "They will come around. If not then they will live with knowing that they are pushing away their son. Either way, Francesca really likes you and you like her." The three walked and talked. Donald was a decent conversationalist and a good fit with the two guys. Donald kept to himself and had no friends in Winnisimmet and the two were the first to treat him like one of the group instead of an outsider. The two stopped walking and admitted to him, "You are about as perfect a match for all of us as there can be. You aren?t perfect but you have a good heart and know how to act towards people. Those idiots can?t see a good thing in front of them." Reed explained what Thomas was saying, "All of us have had something happen to damage us. We have had physical abuse, bad parents, neglect, deaths, and worse happen to us. You might be the closest we get to normal." He reluctantly admitted, "You saw my parents? reaction, I wouldn?t know normal. They are disappointed in me no matter how well I do in school. When they see what Francesca looks like I know that they are going to tell her to find someone better than me." Reed softly admitted, "She won?t listen to them and if Mr. Herman hears them say that he will ensure they know exactly the kind of guy you are. You meet his approval and he protects people he likes." Thomas grinned and told him, "I can?t wait to see her tell them they are morons for demeaning you like that. She doesn?t blow up too often but when she does you better hold on tight." The three arrived at the Herman home and got into Ben?s minivan. Donald was right next to him which caused Francesca to mope. Ben noticed Donald didn?t react to which he grinned, accepting that the boy knew better than to push things and respected boundaries. The others took the cue and held off their displays of affection until they were inside the theater. The dinner and movie went smoothly. Francesca put her head on Donald?s shoulder but he kept his hands firmly gripped the armrests. She kissed his cheek and hugged him after the movie was over, telling him warmly, "That was thoughtful of you to not take advantage of me. Most boys would put their arm over my shoulder and try to cop a feel." Donald meekly told her, "I?m not most boys and it wouldn?t feel right doing that to you. I like you, I don?t want to do something just because I am expected to do it though. You are too good of a person to do that to." Francesca kissed him on the cheek again leaving him blushing deeply, he earned the kiss and it sent a message to the others that she was OK with him not moving forward like the other boys. Ben picked them up and saw the big smile on Francesca?s face. The others had big grins as well, they didn?t have to know what he said to know that she was smitten with Donald. He was aloof and trying hard to be caring but he was failing to hide his own eagerness to please her. Donald was the first to be dropped off. Ben walked with them to the front door but held back as they said their goodbyes in private. Donald pulled away to go inside but Francesca grabbed him and deeply kissed him on the lips causing Donald to nearly faint from the shock and sudden lack of air. The two kissed for several minutes before she broke the lock, panting as they stopped. Donald told her warmly, "You didn?t have to do that" to which she cooed, "I did it because I wanted to." Ben tried to hide his grin as the two parted ways, she was in love and he was taking things with great care. They were a good couple, it was more than puppy love between them despite just one date. Donald went inside with a big smile as his parents looked on in disbelief. Francesca and Ben walked off content, Donald?s father seeing her looking back and smiling. Mrs. Lee confronted her son about the date to which Donald told them, "Why do you care? You didn?t believe I was going out with her or that she might like me for myself. She likes me a lot and her dad approves of me as her boyfriend, that?s all you need to know about us." The Lees were outraged at his tone but he ignored them. They weren?t that great to him but he hoped they would back off of him now that he found someone he liked. Worse come to worse he would leave them after he graduated and endure life without any family. Either way he liked Francesca and was just as smitten with her as she was with him. At home, Francesca still had a grin on her face. The others just shook their heads in disbelief and let it slide. Ben sat her down and explained to her, "This was both your first date and first kiss but you need to calm down a bit. It?s not good to get so worked up about it, expectations and reality are different. You only had one date, don?t start picking out baby names and china patterns yet." Francesca grinned at him and admitted, "I wanted to put on a show for his parents because of how they are acting towards him. I do like him a lot, I know it?s just starting for us but I really like him." Beth came in and told her warmly, "He likes you a lot as well but still you need to temper your feelings a bit so you don?t do something you will both regret." Ben added a soft, "He is more afraid of you than you are of him. He will be taking it slow and will build up his confidence and help you two make a solid connection. The spark is there, just let it have time to grow on its own." She hugged them both then went up to answer the flurry of texts from the others about the date while fighting the urge to call Donald so she could hear his voice. The next morning Richard took Al to shop for presents for the others. Unlike Olivia?s trip he let her get what she wanted for them knowing that it meant a lot to her to be able to show her affection to them. She had her limit of $100 for the four, it was going to be her choice what she got and he wouldn?t stop her from getting anything. Richard walked alongside Al through the stores, noting how crowded it was but happy that it wasn?t the mob scene that the news depicted. She asked him what the others needed to which he honestly didn?t have an answer. Al got some basic socks and boxers for Rick and Thomas while buying a new tie for Richard. For Olivia she found a simple gold chain with, "Mom" pendant and three stones. It was perfect for her and Richard knew that it would cause her to cry over seeing. Richard paid for the items and a little extra for the difference that the pendant and necklace caused. It was simply perfect for Olivia and Al needed the guaranteed emotional response it would bring. The two managed to get the gifts inside without Olivia noticing and had the pendant wrapped and under the tree before she saw it. After they got home Al got a visit from Raul and Stephanie. Stephanie talked about the kids in school asking about her and the few who disliked her starting to get on the nerves of everyone else. Raul was quiet to which Stephanie whispered, "Avery is going away for the week and this was their last time that they got to be together. He hates not having her close by." Al hugged him, which caught him by surprise. He hugged her back, thanking her for being caring. The three exchanged gifts and hugged again as they left with Stephanie whispering, "Mom said we can have a sleepover next week if you want" which Al grinned at hearing. It was a minor thing but it was a big step for her- spending time with her friend away from Rick, Thomas, and her parents. Olivia got started on dinner and announced that they were going to host the Toros that evening. Rick asked if Uncle Miguel was coming too which Richard nodded to. Reyna was over first, bringing some drinks while Lupe brought dessert. Everyone was busy as Rick and Jaimie were texting back and forth, Reyna and Thomas were talking about something school related, and Lupe was assisting Richard and Olivia in the kitchen. The doorbell rang and Al was told to answer it sending shivers down her spine. Reyna came over to see what was going on and hugged the man at the door. Looking at Al she softly told her, "Uncle Miguel ran late, he should have been here half an hour ago." Miguel grinned and told her, "Someone better tell the Boston traffic that, the Mystic River Bridge was jammed in both directions and there were people cutting across the street in the heavy traffic instead of using crosswalks. If this was LA there would be a dozen dead pedestrians." Reyna groaned and introduced Al to Miguel. Al was still in shock over seeing someone famous in her presence. Reyna pulled her aside and rushed her uncle off to the kitchen to join the other adults. In Al?s room Reyna explained, "Uncle Miguel knows everything so you don?t have to be afraid of seeing him. He was with Ricardo and the others when they found the money and documents in the safe and caught one of the cops who were inside your house." Al softly murmured, "My dad liked him a lot and I wanted to be like him to make dad happy. Seeing him made me think of dad and what I no longer am. I?m never going to be that boy that dad hoped I?d be." Reyna pulled her close and softly told her, "You can still like baseball and follow the teams. You can still like the players but just not any on the Yankees. We keep telling you that nothing has to change, although your jeans do." Al looked at her oddly to which Reyna snickered, adding, "The thighs and butt and crotch are different, less crotch area and wider thigh and butt area. I didn?t notice this until after my surgery and the hormones started kicking into high gear and I noticed why they were loose in the butt." She pointed at both to which Al blushed, Reyna added, "You should have noticed some of the girls in school had bigger thighs and butts than others, their boobs aren?t far behind. Stephanie is right on the verge of it, I know you were looking at her curves as I saw her and Raul leaving." Al blushed and nodded, to which Reyna told her, "You should get a visit to the endocrinologist soon, and with that you get your first hormone shot. Mom and Aunt Olivia wanted to wait until you were fully recovered from the surgery first otherwise you would have seen the doctor this week." The two walked downstairs and sat down to dinner. Miguel was sat down beside Al and smiled at her getting a timid smile in return. Dinner went smoothly after that with Miguel and the adults talking while the four youngsters focused on eating. Rick and Thomas were in a bit of a rush to get over to their girlfriends? houses while Reyna planned on hanging with Rachel since they were the last two unattached teens. The meal broke up after the teens were forced to wash the dishes while the adults relaxed. Miguel asked Al if she was still afraid of being hit by a baseball which Al asked, "How could you remember that?" Miguel shook his head and admitted, "There are some kids that we meet during those camps who stand out for all the right reasons and then there are some who stand out for all of the wrong reasons. You were there to please your father, and you didn?t have the nerve or ability to play well. It was easy to remember you, you didn?t hit one ball all week and barely avoided getting broken noses each day." Al grinned, she was glad that someone noticed that she hated playing the game. Miguel departed and the family drove on to the Finns for their gift exchange. Al was told to expect the twins to stick close by to which she was pleased, they were good kids and a good distraction. The Finns greeted them warmly and made Al sit down immediately. Reyna and Thomas made discrete exits with Thomas running the gauntlet of hugs and kisses before heading next door to the Lopez home for some time with Rebecca. The twins acted as expected, keeping Jaimie, Miles, and Michael away from Al and getting a big grin from the adults as Al was forced to stay there by Cat and JD?s constant tugs on her arms. They managed to coax her upstairs to their playroom and away from the others. In the playroom the twins forced her to play with their toys, wanting her to help build with their blocks then play with Cat?s dolls. JD played along with them, not caring about the dolls and doing whatever Cat told him to do. Al noticed that JD was as involved as Cat was in their imagining and took the roles she told him to do while Al reluctantly played along. She was starting to see firsthand what Dr. Eliza and her mom had told her about being herself, the two were doing their own thing and not caring that Cat did things boys would normally do or JD did things girls would normally do. After a bit Cat let her go, she and JD found something else to do with just two people and the novelty of Al being there had worn off on the others. Downstairs, she indeed went unnoticed as the adults were talking away while Jaimie and Rick were snuggling closely on the couch. The two took little notice of her and she slowly backed away from them to give them their privacy. Downstairs in the entertainment room she saw Michael and Miles engaged in a heated game. Michael was beating Miles senseless in, "Call of Duty" to which Miles was constantly complaining about him not making it easy for him. Miles caught sight of Al and begged her to take over for him, he needed a break. Al eagerly complied, signing in to her account and showing Michael her stats which made him complain to Miles about bringing in a ringer to beat him. The two played for a good hour without being disturbed. Al got a surprise though as she immediately got messages from her former classmates. She ignored them for a bit but when they requested a video chat she had to end it. Al steeled herself for the inevitable and accepted the request. The boys took one look at her and started laughing. Al calmly told them, "You got your laugh now what do you want?" The boys stopped laughing and asked her, "Are the rumors true? You are living as a girl now?" Al looked to Michael who had her back and had the usernames ready to send for deletion. Al calmly told them, "I have to live as one. The accident nearly killed me twice and the first time it cost me my manhood. Everything down there was ripped apart and the only solution was to make it into what girls have. So I am now a girl. I am also not returning to Mattapan and am being adopted by a nice family in another city. You won?t see me again. Ask the loudmouths in our class just how I look in person, they were leering over me and tried to get me to go out with them before I humiliated them." Michael got a text message and told Al, "Rebecca said she will play against you, she is tired of beating Thomas and wants a real challenge." Al told the boys, "I have to go, I got a personal invitation from RLWINNZ and I know how much she always beat us in the past so it should be a good one." The boys stared at her in disbelief as they realized what she just said. Al nodded telling them, "All that trash talk about girls not being as good as you really is trash talk that you can?t back up. Now you know that the one person you couldn?t ever beat is a girl and she is the best player in the area. Goodbye guys and see you around online." Al closed out the chat and deleted the messages. Rebecca sent her a request so the two started going at it heavily. Michael sat back with a big grin on his face and watched, Al was holding her own against Rebecca and doing things he hadn?t thought of to take out her character. It was pure gold, he could just about hear her complaints and watched Al?s concentrated face turn to a big smile. When Al was finally finished and had managed to narrowly beat Rebecca the two went upstairs for their little gift exchange. Al was handed a small present first and instructed to open it up. Inside was a beautiful gold pendant with diamonds in the form of an, "A". Al started to cry, she knew it was coming but she still felt odd about receiving it. Jaimie hugged her tight and whispered, "It looks good on you." The rest gave Al a minute to compose herself before they started to exchange gifts with one another. They didn?t match the pendant gift but were still meaningful. Thomas rejoined them and received his gift. After the normal gifts were opened John handed Al and Thomas two other gifts with Valerie telling them to wait until Christmas morning to open them. The group left with Reyna rejoining them for the drive. Al told her about beating Rebecca which she burst into laughter at hearing. She proudly told her, "She and you are going to get along nicely. Michael just doesn?t give her that kind of a challenge and the other guys don?t play well enough to get much interest from playing against her." Al grinned, she felt good to be playing the game again and the two were going to be constant foes to her from now on. Francesca spent Christmas morning helping prepare the house for the inevitable onslaught of visitors. They were all alone except for themselves so the visits meant a lot to them. Willie and Kennedy invited them over for Christmas which they accepted, they and Sean Beretta were the closest the Hermans had to family and Sean treated Beth and Ben like his own children. Reed came over and helped Francesca prepare for Willie Jr.?s inevitable crawling and climbing, both enjoying the time together and talking a lot about various things. Francesca was starting to feel closer to Reed than the others, to which Reed admitted to her, "I don?t like you that way but I like that you feel like a real cousin to me. The others are good friends but you feel more like a cousin now than before." Francesca grinned and added a soft, "Mom and dad treat Mr. Beretta like a dad so the feeling is mutual." Sean came over as the two families joined together as one. Kylie and Willie Jr. opened their presents while Reed and Francesca held off allowing the younger ones to get their moments of joy. Once their glory was out of the way Francesca dug into hers and found a framed picture of Wendy, Belle, and herself with the phrase, "Always remember". She burst into tears and hugged Ben and Beth then set it aside to await the opening of their presents. Ben and Beth received a beautiful framed picture of Benny and Francesca, taken by Valerie while Beth and Ben weren?t around. The two hugged her deeply as Beth shed a few tears. Willie and Kennedy opened their own gifts which Reed had snuck out to buy which was the same as Ben and Beth?s. The two grinned and admitted, "She had a two for one coupon she said" getting a groan from the four. Sean announced he had a present for Ben and Beth. The two opened an envelope and read its contents. Both looked up at him and asked, "Are you seriously doing this?" Sean nodded, telling them, "You two are the kids I always wanted but never had chance to have. You are closer to me than anyone else now and I wanted to do something special for you. You already act like Willie and Kennedy are family, this is going to make it official." Beth shed a tear. He grinned and announced to Kennedy and Willie, "If you sign the forms it can be cleared as soon as next week." Beth was encouraged to sign the forms, Ben thought it best to let her have this special moment and she was closer to Kennedy than he was to her. Reed grinned and told Francesca, "I think I jinxed it" to which she smiled and told him, "It?s not your fault that your instincts told you something wasn?t right about us being so close." She hugged him deeply, to which Kylie and Willie Jr. did the same. They were one big family now. Over in the Samuels home Al woke up late. After the eventful Christmas Eve with the Toros then with the Finns, she was bristling with anticipation. Olivia and Richard decided it was best to let her sleep in so they could set things out for her. Rick and Thomas got up later than normal but cooked breakfast for Richard and Olivia. Al did her morning dilation then went down for breakfast and stopped cold at seeing the tree filled with gifts. Olivia and Richard asked her what was wrong getting a soft, "Where did all of this come from?" Both knew she wouldn?t accept anything less than the truth so they both told her, "The family." Al looked at them in disbelief to which Richard told her warmly, "We told you that there were a lot of people in the family. John and Valerie got things done behind the scenes for us, the others wanted you to be happy and enjoy this day. Beverly, Will, and Jake didn?t drop theirs off yet but they will be here shortly." Al hugged the both of them deeply, it meant more than they could imagine that they had done that for her. Olivia grinned and admitted further, "Thomas has a bit in there but most of it is yours. They wanted to ensure you had a good start in the New Year." Thomas and Rick came in and enjoyed the scene with Olivia telling them, "Don?t think they didn?t get you a few things. You two got exactly what you need." Richard dug in and handed them all of their presents. Thomas and Rick groaned at receiving socks and underwear from Al but Olivia grinned and told them, "She is smart. It?ll last you a long time and it?s the thought that counts. Rick complained, "She knows our sizes now" to which Olivia shot back, "And she knows what colors you have too so don?t upset her or she will tell Rebecca and Jaimie what color boxers you prefer." Al snickered as Richard shook his head, the little minx didn?t even realize she set them up. Once all the gifts were open Al took stock of the fact that she had an entire brand new wardrobe in various styles and colors that she approved of heartily as well enough makeup to last her a whole year. The doorbell rang and Will, Beverly, and Jake entered with little Jack. Jack saw Al and immediately wanted to get out and hug her, holding on tight as the three got settled and more gifts were opened. Olivia handed her and Thomas their final presents. Inside the wrapping paper were manila envelopes addressed to them. Thomas opened his followed by a reluctant Al, both reading the paperwork closely then seeing if it was some sort of joke. Both handed the paperwork to Rick who read it over and grinned. Al and Thomas grabbed onto Olivia and Richard in tight embraces, shedding tears as they asked them, "When did they go through?" Richard smiled and admitted, "Wednesday morning. Ricardo got a hearing with Judge Martha Perez and explained the situation closely. There was too much at stake for either of you to remain in foster care. Judge Perez was sympathetic to your situations and wanted to avoid causing both of you any additional undue stress so both were approved. The names are changed as well, you are Alecia Beverly Samuels and Thomas Jackson Samuels now." The two hugged them again as Beverly, Jake, and Will looked on in disbelief. Will jokingly told Rick, "You ask for a foster kid and you ended up with a brother and sister. Maybe if you ask for a car you will end up with two cars." Richard quickly shot back, "Not unless you are paying for them" getting a sly grin from Will as Rick burst into laughter. Al gave Olivia the last gift. Olivia opened it up reluctantly, not expecting anything from the kids but finding something that caused her to gasp. She looked at the pendant and then over at Richard who was grinning widely. Al asked if she liked it to which Olivia practically shouted, "I love it!" Beverly looked over the pendant and saw the stones and noticed they were the same birthstones as the three. Al didn?t notice it but Richard admitted, "I had them swapped out." Olivia was in tears, it was the best gift she had ever gotten. She hugged Al and Thomas and Rick but Richard told her proudly, "That wasn?t the best gift, the kids were. Epilogue The, "Dirty dozen" were tried in the new year and saw a lot of crimes being solved or being re-tried and seeing several innocent people being released while the real culprits were tried. Those who were falsely tried sued and were given hefty settlements from the state, with the DA?s office trying hard to stem the tide of bad PR from Taylor Gault?s crimes. The, "Dirty dozen" were put on trial in Franklin County and saw the jury all but turning against them the second the trial started as they heard evidence that made their skin curl and want to vomit at times. The group weren?t as secure as they believed and once Taylor was arrested and the truth that they were all fired for their roles in attempting to murder Al were exposed they were marked men. The judge refused to accept any plea bargains while the state happily chose to go the full length and put their crimes in the public record, ensuring that there was no denying that they were guilty. Two were tried for 1st degree murder and received the worst treatment from the jury. None of the people brought in as witnesses could help them and anyone who was put on the stand eventually admitted that they were paid for their testimony and told what to say by their lawyers. Things only got worse for the duo as it was shown that they had actually gone to get at Al directly multiple times- they were the ones who were claiming to be accident investigators but were actually gang unit members. Taylor was blamed by all of them yet he wasn?t the one who actually caused the accident nor was he the one who lied to the judges and tried to kidnap Al in the hospital and en-route home. He was clearly the brains of the operation, but they had been guilty of attempting to get at Al. No matter how hard they tried to pin blame on him, it was always deflected back against them. The trials lasted two weeks, with Al barely being kept out of the spotlight each day. The defense tried to use her against the state by claiming that they willingly maimed her but the judge shut them down, had the claims stricken, and a gag order put in place regarding the victims. The media wisely refused to say what had been claimed and turned it around on the lawyers, making their clients look bad. The group were convicted on all charges and saw themselves being sentenced to terms of 50 years to life. All of them were in tears as they realized they were never getting out of prison and would have to watch their backs until they were paroled. The prison was the most dangerous place for them to be, the group had broken a cardinal rule of criminals: never harm children. Taylor was humiliated as he was tried on charges of attempted murder, criminal conspiracy, tax fraud, tax evasion, evidence tampering, lying in court, civil rights violations, and attempted kidnapping. That was just the major charges, the more evidence uncovered regarding the cased he fixed the more charges he faced. It was laughable how much his plot unraveled once the investigators knew where to look, he wasn?t as ingenious as he thought and it took all of a day to show that 30% of his cases were tainted. His trial saw him being wheeled into the court and looking like an invalid, which his lawyers hoped to use against the prosecution. That backfired as the judge informed the jury that he sustained the injuries as a result of his behavior in jail and took place after he was in custody. They were told to disregard his appearance as it wasn?t relevant to the case and to only let the facts matter in the case. His lawyers tried to cry foul but the judge told them to stop complaining as it was his own fault that he ended up hurt. The jury took little pity on him and happily convicted him after a week, not even trying to rehear the evidence as it was too clear that he was guilty. He was sentenced to a combined 40 years in prison, all but guaranteeing that he?d never get a chance to be a lawyer again. After several weeks in a prison hospital, he was left to beg the courts for leniency due to his injuries. The court allowed him to have surgery to allow him to walk but it would be years until he could walk normally. He would have a lot of time to relearn walking, he was going to have 40 years to do it. Al and Thomas didn?t care one bit that Taylor was going to walk again, what mattered was that he got what he deserved and would still have to endure his fellow prisoners going after him. He wasn?t safe as it would be decades before the people he sent to prison were released. He?d have to avoid everyone, it was going to be torture for him- almost as bad as his being helpless was. Thomas thrived as part of the Samuels family and grew closer to Richard than he was to Taylor. Father and son were interested in a lot of the same things and saw Thomas considering a career in medicine if he didn?t take a career in athletics. Rick happily encouraged Richard?s closeness, it was something that he needed and Thomas appreciated the attention that Richard was giving to him. Al started hormones New Year?s Day. She cried as the first dose was administered, it was the final step to becoming a woman and one that she was happy to undertake. She told Olivia, "It?s the point of no return. I?m going to look like a woman and not a boy who lost his penis. I?m happy to let that happen, I love being a girl and want to become a woman." Mother and daughter hugged as the doctor smiled, it was the best possible reaction given Al?s history. It was followed by the doctor telling her that she needed to take things slow from then on as she was still changing and would now have the drawbacks of becoming a woman: mood swings, crying bouts, and a lot of sensitivity to others. She smiled back at Olivia who happily told her, "We?ll endure, it?s something that Thomas and your dad know about already but Rick could learn a lesson about." Al took to hormones quick and saw her first growth in a month. She showed her mother who told her it was the beginning but it would take a while. Al was fine with that, she wanted the growth to happen as soon as possible even if it brought a lot of other issues- like boys. Al thrived as a girl and when she returned to school she showed Mrs. Shriner that she was exactly what her class needed in a student. She loved showing her detractors that she was a good student and wasn?t going to take their abuse quietly, putting them in their place while winning over more classmates. There was a backlash from angry parents that Jeanie Porter tired to muster, however nobody dared to go after Al once they learned just whose family she was a part of. Jeanie dropped her crusade and had her daughter Rosalind permanently put in Alice Rodriguez? school to be away from Al. Rosalind did a lot better in that school, but did so without Jeanie?s influence as Jeanie lost all clout that she had. Al?s year would turn into a whole new direction once she was entrenched in school. She would play a key role in helping a student who needed her help and then help lead another change that would play a major role in changing the lives of many others...but that?s another story. The End.