New Blood Part 1 free porn video

November, 2028 It had been a long road for Nick Ross, a young catcher for the Worcester Red Sox. He was just received word from the Boston Red Sox general manager that the team's catcher had signed with another team so he was expected to be in shape to fight for the starting job in Spring Training to battle against their new free agent catcher. It was the news that he had hoped to hear for years, he was about to become a Major League Baseball player! When he went into the living room to tell his wife Kelly the good news, she nearly fainted. Their young son Heath didn't care about that, all he wanted to do was play with his blocks, alone, again. Nick knew to not bother Heath, but it hurt him to see Heath ignore him. Kelly asked what he planned on doing for a home, she hated living in the suburbs far from the city. He wisely told her, "I'll ask around, the guys know a lot of places to live without being hounded. Some say I might have to live in Winnisimmet, it doesn't look like a bad place." Kelly cringed, then told him, "It's really bad. It looks nice, but it isn't. There's a lot of nasty things that it hides- crime, drugs, violence, the Murphy family!" She was adamant that they stay away from Winnisimmet, but Nick wanted to make sure that things had changed in the 11 and a half years since Kelly moved away. The stories that he heard painted a different picture than what Kelly told him about before. He had never heard of the Murphy family, much less the crime and drugs that Kelly was so in fear of. Nick decided to see for himself, it was only a drive and Kelly would be too preoccupied with Heath to be in any condition to go with him. At worst, it's a wasted day. At best, it shows that Kelly was wrong and it was a decent place to live. Either way, he was going to need time away from Kelly to cool off. He called his teammate and mentor Miguel Toro the next morning and got Miguel to show him around the city. Miguel had no problem with doing that, but he had a couple of meetings to attend with his financial team and accountant. Miguel smirked, then told Nick, "They'll ask you questions as well. They won't let you get away without putting money into retirement- more than you do now." Nick cringed and told Miguel, "Kelly handles my finances. She won't let me spend without having it be for something that I need. She has my endorsement money put away for the kids' college. And I did say kids- she might be trying to have a second child, I can see it in her eyes." The next day saw them meeting with Beverly Bollinger and then Greta Nelson. Both ladies had an eye on Nick to see if he was fleecing Miguel but he didn't say anything during the meetings. Miguel did all of the talking and asked about something called, "Winnisimmet Sports" to which Greta told him, "It's doing great. You made the playoffs so ticket sales and merchandise were up then your minor league teams made their own playoffs with one winning the championship. That all added up to a net profit. I hesitate to invest in European teams due to their volatile anti-American xenophobia, but one of the low-level teams could be bought and rebuilt with intent on future sale for a profit." Beverly added, "Your share went to your retirement account, same with your endorsements. The way it's sounding, they might be starting to move away from you to look for fresher blood. I hope that Nick has a good manager otherwise he's going to get fleeced by the PR companies. The companies in Boston are notorious for bad deals and low pay to athletes, he better have a good manager." Miguel smirked then told them, "His wife handles it. She has a degree in business administration and a minor in accounting. She has an eye for profits. She knows how to get her husband the most money for the least amount of work and do it without making others upset. She'd be right at home with Christina and Sylvia, with Juan learning a thing or two from her about ruthless negotiation- not that he's the kind to do that. She's a great young lady with a heart of gold and fiercely protective of her men, I just hope that she doesn't let out of date info spoil the chance to move there." Both ladies laughed and asked how old her info was. Miguel told them to which both laughed and told him, "She moved away before you came East, she hasn't seen what John and Willie did for the city nor is she aware of all of the great people fighting to change it. It's not the same, it's almost to the point that the dealers won't come to the city without bodyguards and even then they get clocked by the police." Miguel led Nick out and sighed, then told him, "John Finn changed the city with his wealth, spending it on a lot of city infrastructure- particularly the schools. Willie Pena has cracked down on corruption and drugs in the city. John unintentionally caused multiple federal agents to move to the city or accept jobs as federal agents while living in the city. He has four feds, three State Police troopers, two local police, a deputy sheriff, and Willie as law enforcement and each with ties to the city. There's a strong chance it might grow to another federal agent as one's son is trying to catch-on with the feds but struggling due to politics and bigotry. He's a hell of a youngster, and will make a hell of an agent soon." Miguel drove Nick around the city of Winnisimmet, MA to show him how it really looked, with all of the dirt and grime of a normal city but with a look of being cleaner for some reason. Miguel pointed out, "There's little graffiti. There's no point, there's too many cameras and the kids know that it's likely to get you a heavy fine. The local cops are on a first-name basis with most kids and know their art style so it's tough to lie about who did it when they learned the style from the police themselves." Miguel then explained to him, "The biggest thing you'll hear about the city is that it's friendly to the trans community. There's per capita more here than anywhere else in the country. It's both for a reason and by luck. John Finn got a lot of kids to come out after he moved here with his family. If Kelly hasn't said anything about John then she's probably trying to forget life before him. I don't know if she's ever met him, but he's one hell of a great man. His daughter is trans, as is his daughter-in-law, one niece, two of his cousins' kids, and a bunch of other kids close to his kids. The list is long and he's helped in a bunch of their situations, but the kids usually turn out alright. We've lost a couple, though. One to suicide and one to her parents forcibly moving away before the kid could get help. It hurts him to this day, he hates to see a kid hurt and was inconsolable when he heard about the suicide of one." The two let it go as the continued driving around, reaching a swanky- looking hill with several towering condo complexes. Miguel sagely told Nick, "This is Navy Hill. It's an old naval base that was sold to the city for development. It's almost a different city, but it's still Winnisimmet. There's not as much crime in the neighborhood, almost always just domestic disputes and the occasional young idiot experimenting with drugs having an overdose. Since there's so many cameras and open space, it's tough to break into houses without being seen so most folks aren't afraid of having burglaries. I live here, as do a couple of the other guys on the team. We also have neighbors who are on the Celtics and Bruins. The biggest one of all is Mitch Gibson, cornerback of the Patriots. He's also John Finn's son-in-law and moved here to be away from the Foxborough crowd as well as be close to his in- laws." The more Miguel talked about living in Winnisimmet, the more Nick felt like it might be a good place to move to. He felt no connection to the rural Essex County town that he moved them to after he and Kelly graduated college, nor did he feel the need to be in Boston just because it's Boston. The tough job was convincing Kelly to move. Back at home, things weren't going so well. Heath was upset at his father being gone all day and tried to cut his hair to get attention. Kelly was furious but calmed herself enough to stop from hitting him. Heath ran her ragged, then told her that she was a bad mom. The more he acted up, the less he acted as his old self. She felt like something was wrong with him, but couldn't bring herself to ask for help. When Nick returned, he told Kelly about his day. She was furious, causing Heath to laugh and run off to his room to play alone again. Kelly refused to move back there, despite the changes. The two couldn't convince the other so they let it go for months. They enjoyed a quiet Christmas at home but couldn't get Heath to stop acting- up and getting into trouble. Kelly couldn't bring herself to ask his doctor about it, she felt that she might be a failure as a mom if she did. Christmas also brought news that Kelly was pregnant again, this time with twins. Nick was excited, but Heath was angry at not being the baby anymore. Nick let him get his anger out, telling Kelly, "He's just upset over our attention no longer being entirely on him. It's what my brother did when I was born." Talking about his brother Mack caused him to cringe. Kelly asked what the problem was, to which he said, "It shouldn't surprise you, but he sent a letter telling me that mom and dad were cutoff from us. He didn't want us around them, he's jealous of me and won't let mom and dad see us. I hate being away from the two but since he's the elder brother so what he says, happens." Winter passed slowly for the family as Kelly steadily grew and Heath was inconsolable. When it was time for Spring Training, Nick took the three south so they could spend the week before he had to be in camp as a family and give Heath a chance to blow off steam. All he needed to do was say, "Disney" and the little boy stopped in his tracks and agreed to be good for his parents. At Disneyworld, Heath started to act odd. He rushed to the princesses and hugged them, while shying away from the male characters. Kelly jokingly asked if he wanted to be a princess too, causing him to run off in tears and try to leave the park. Sitting him down in private, she asked him again if he wanted to be a princess too. Heath looked away then told her, "I'm a princess. I'm a girl. I'm not a boy!" He was in tears, causing Kelly to cry alongside him. Nick didn't know what to do so called someone who would know- Miguel. Kelly didn't know that about Miguel, but he would know how to get Heath help and ensure that it wasn't just a passing phase or something bigger. Miguel listened then told him, "Reyna can talk with him tomorrow. She's transgender, and why I signed with the Red Sox in the first place. She's experienced with kids, hell she helped my daughter become a girl. I know I never told you that before, but I don't like to fool around when kids are in trouble. Yes, I have a trans daughter. She's 'complete'. It's all online, the lies and the truth. Ask about it another time." Nick walked over to the duo and softly told Kelly, "Miguel is having his niece talk with Heath. She's a girl who wasn't born a girl. If what he told me is true, she's but one of many in his hometown." That subtle message was caught by Kelly who sighed and told him, "If we can afford it, and if Heath is a girl, then we'll move there. I don't want you wasting money. And if it's bad, we're done as a family." The next day was long and hard on all of them. Heath was brought to the hotel to talk with Reyna, but it was preceded by Kelly gasping and trying to leave. When Nick grabbed onto her, she told him, "It's Rachel Murphy! What the hell is she doing here!" Reyna and Rachel hugged Miguel then were introduced to Kelly and Nick. Kelly glared at Rachel with Rachel gasping at realizing who Kelly was and excusing herself. Rachel looked morose and wanted to do the same, but Reyna's look of support caused her to stay. When Kelly was out of earshot, Reyna asked what that was about. Rachel looked down in shame and told her, "She's one of the two girls who you replaced. I guess Donald replaced the other. Remember the horrible time before mom and dad? She was one of my victims. All through 7th grade I'd tease her in class or get boys to lift up her shirt. It was all because the Murphys wanted me to be their princess but I hated every second of it! She won't accept that I'm nothing like that nor that I never really was, she was always stubborn- it's why she was such a great friend. I'm sorry, I shouldn't be around her child." Miguel realized just who Kelly was and shook his head, telling Nick, "Rachel was an abused girl doing the bidding of two narcissistic scumbags. She's a really great person, she needed to get away from her parents to be herself. She' fiercely protective of her family and friends. I told you about John Finn- she became his niece. She saved his sister and niece's lives by speaking out against her parents and for that she lost everything and everyone but was given a chance to show that she was a good person at heart." Reyna showed her ring, then announced, "We've been dating since after freshman year. She's done a lot to atone for her past and is helping bring down predators like her parents and uncle. Do a search on the infamous Jackson Murphy and you'll see all about her. That was all done by her to protect two people who she was supposed to hate. They brought her into their family and made her their own daughter. She's a good person, she's a caring aunt and mother. Well, not yet- but we're getting ready for it!" Miguel blushed and told Nick, "She saved semen. Sadly my own daughter couldn't, but she's starting to like boys. I hate seeing her grow-up, but she's blossoming into her mother's beauty." Reyna looked over at Heath and asked to talk to him alone. When they were in a private room, she told the scared boy, "I'm like you. I was born a boy but got to become a girl after I told my mom and uncle. I know you are feeling bad about those feelings, but you can't hide who you are. You don't just become a girl, you had to have felt that way for a while. Your parents want to get you help, can you talk with my doctor? She's a great listener, her daughters are like you too. She knows a lot of things about girls like you and wants to help you. If you let her, she'll ensure your mommy and daddy know the truth." Heath started to cry and told her, "I don't want to be a boy! I hate being a boy! Mommy and daddy say I should be a good boy, but I want to be a good girl." Reyna hugged him and told him that he was going to be alright, they would understand. She walked out to Nick and asked him to tell Heath that he loved him no matter what. Then he told Heath, "Your wife is a tough person to deal with when she's upset, I've heard stories about her and what she was like when in a mood. What our friends told me about her she'd probably hate that I know, but all of them show her to be a good person at heart. Please don't do anything irrational, she just needs space." Nick led Heath up to his room and told Kelly, "Reyna wants him to talk with a specialist. She deals with kids and gender issues. She's a top psychiatrist, she'll get to the bottom of things." He then asked about Rachel and her real feelings over seeing her again. Kelly looked away in shame, it was eating her up inside. Finally, she told him, "I hate thinking about what I missed over the years. It's hard not to know that they had a lot of fun and did things that I could only dream of. John Finn would take them to Salem Lake Park and around the region, I missed all of that because of mom and dad." She shed a tear and asked, "Why is she here? What could she possibly be doing here with someone who she claimed should be locked away in a mental hospital? She doesn't deserve to be here!" Nick hugged her as she cried, then quietly told her, "She's here with her wife. She's married to Reyna. It hurt her seeing you as well, she said something about 'before mom and dad'. Reyna mentioned that she did something that caused her family to get into trouble, I think you should look online about it." Kelly got out her laptop and did a search of the Murphys. What she read caused her to shed more tears as Rachel was prominently featured and even more odd- her name was changed to Sylvester. She saw a bunch of articles on Rachel helping with anti-hacking security and even helped design a new program for protecting servers that earned her a PhD in computer science. Then she saw pictures that caused her to cry as her old friends were all grown-up and looking beautiful. She saw new faces and couldn't see some people that she hoped to see. The more she saw, the more she felt like she missed a lot of thing over the years causing her to grow even more upset at her family. Nick asked her what was the matter, she told him, "Mom and dad cost me my life. I had a great life back in Winnisimmet, but they wanted to become the next President's chief of staff and hitched onto people who got caught in corruption. It's why I was in Connecticut when we met- you never met my parents because they went to prison. Grandma was a great person, I'm just glad that she wanted us to have a big start when she died. Your parents are amazing too, even if your brother is a scumbag." He asked about her early life. Kelly shed a tear and admitted, "We were always together, since preschool it was always Jessie Lawrence, Francesca White-Clark, Iris Donaldson, and Amy Mills. All of us were under the thumb of Rachel Murphy. Then it all changed when Jessie became friends with the new girl in school, Rebecca Lopez. Amy and I joined her over the summer when our families thought that we'd be better off with Jessie and Rebecca than with Rachel. Then in January Rebecca stood-up to Rachel, it caused Iris and Francesca to join Rebecca leaving Rachel all alone. After that, we were joined by Sam York, who is like Reyna but who had it worse as she almost ended up hurt by he grandmother. It was a horrible time. It got worse after that as mom and dad got transferred down to Mississippi then got hired by the local US Representative. We moved to Washington and mom and dad ended up getting caught in a big scandal when their boss was found to be molesting kids. Mom and dad tried to cover-up all of the information that they had and ended up in prison. I went to live with grandma where we met and made sweet love under the stars. You took my breath away, along with my virginity." He blushed at that, she hit him hard but it was the truth. She fell in love with him at first sight and gave her virginity to him as a gift on prom night. They stayed together throughout college and moved to the rural part of Essex County when he was signed by the Red Sox. The two didn't speak much more after that, they hugged and kissed Heath as the two thought about the future and what it meant for little Heath. Heath hugged into Nick's arms and looked to him like a young Kelly, with him looking up at her and smiling. She happily told him, "He looks a lot like me, it irks your brother that he looks like me. I swear the jerk hates me because he sees so much of me in Heath." She looked down at Heath and asked Nick, "Would you be upset if this wasn't a phase and he really is our daughter? I love him no matter what, I can't bear to think about what he'd do to himself if he wasn't allowed to be a girl. I've seen it in Sam, I heard the horror stories from Jaimie- I don't want our son to hurt himself because we won't allow him to be our daughter." She was in tears, he lovingly told her, "Son or daughter, Heath or Heather- our child is our child. I can't choose between happiness and appearances, what others think doesn't matter when health is on the line. I love Heath, but if he's Heather then I'll love her just as much." Heath was listening to them without moving and felt better inside. He was a girl, he knew it in his heart and couldn't let anyone else know. Now they knew and wanted to help him become her. Rachel was downstairs with Reyna the next morning. Reyna saw the look of sadness on Kelly's face so asked her to sit with them. Kelly immediately hugged Rachel, with Rachel hugging her back. Rachel softly told Kelly, "I hate what I did. I paid the price for what happened. I owe my life to Iris and Francesca, I owe my sanity to Reyna. You put up with more than the others, I hated tormenting you. It's something I can't take back. I'm glad that you didn't meet Reyna, things would have been different if you had met her. I owe her everything, I love her for being my friend when nobody would be it." Reyna happily told Kelly, "She turned out to be one of the best in our school and even got herself prime jobs with the state. She's nothing like she used to be, nobody knew the real Rachel- not even her own family. Iris came close but she never got to see the girl who outsmarted the Murphys and brought down a huge criminal empire three times. Four times if you count Acme Corporation." Kelly looked at Rachel who was blushing. Reyna happily explained, "She took down her parents' whole church scheme, took down Uncle Nigel's brother's criminal scheme, took down a greedy developer, and took down Acme Corporation- all while still in high school. And no, I'm not joking. She did it all from home. It was a lot of work by her, but she can turn a computer into a weapon against you easily." Kelly asked why she changed. Rachel looked over at Reyna then at Miguel and told her, "I didn't really change, I just stopped acting the way the Murphys wanted me to act. The whole 'princess' routine was a pain in the ass. I hated it! I wanted to just be a nerd and play on my computer. I'm glad that Reyna and I had that in common, she hid it from the others but she can work a computer well. Do you remember at your house when we'd watch TV? I wanted to be like the woman on the show, doing computer forensic examinations and ensuring criminals go to jail. Mom and dad, my real ones not the ones who donated sperm and carried me for nine months, they love that I found my calling and got Reyna her calling. It's lucky that I found it before everyone else did." She knew what was coming next so Rachel explained, "Thomas and Rebecca married, he's now part of the Samuels family. His dad is in prison for the murder of his sister's parents and then trying to murder his sister. Yes, he has a sister- his real mom was her mom. And to boot she's trans like Reyna but wasn't a girl before the accident. He's a gym teacher at the high school and coaches the football team. She's the proud owner of a physical therapy studio and will likely work on your husband since the team hires her for rehabbing players. The don't have kids- yet. But they are looking into possibly having them." She grinned and happily added, "Francesca married Donald Bollinger. He's Aunt Gabby's son. She was adopted by the Hermans at her mothers' request. She has a great younger brother who's just so cute. Her husband is graphic designer who designs and redesigns websites. They don't have kids yet, but we're in the process of getting them to stop fooling around and have kids. It's hard to do considering that she's in Hollywood making movies so is away filming quite a bit making it tough to raise kids. And yes, she's a big actress- she uses her maiden name to act, but she's legally Francesca Bollinger." Thinking about what to say, she added, "Iris and Sam married. We joked about how close they were but the two really were in love. Iris' family were horrible people once the facade of 'nice police officer' was worn away. They were part of the Murphys' church scam and tried to get Iris kidnapped so they could 'cure her' of being a lesbian. She was adopted by Aunt Leslie then helped to get Aunt Leslie to date the man who would become our dad. We're both Finns through mom and are happy to be Uncle John's two crazy nieces- as he calls us. Sam isn't transgender, she was actually a hermaphrodite. She almost died as after she had her first period, she's fully a woman and the two are working hard for Uncle John's charity groups. They don't need the money, it's just to keep them busy." She saved the toughest for last. She sighed and told her, "Jessie's family is complicated. Donald is her brother, he and his younger sister were adopted by Aunt Gabby. Do you remember Mr. Williams? He ended up marrying Aunt Gabby and taking her name, then adopted all four of Aunt Gabby's remaining kids. I don't know what happened to her asshole sons, but they never contacted her after they were tried and convicted for robbing an old woman. Anyway, Jessie had a huge crush on Reed Clarence for years- you guys all teased her about it all through 7th grade. He got adopted by Uncle Willie so is a Pena now, alongside his sister and baby brother. He admitted on a guy's night out that he had a crush on her which led Thomas to setup the two for a date. They hit it off and it was love at first sight for them as they haven't been apart since. Jessie works alongside Rebecca at the rehab center and has a lot of money- she sued the Bruins for sexual harassment and assault on her by players she was helping rehab. She's a great person, she just takes being the big sister to her sister and sister-in-law seriously." She wisely added, "Yes, he had a brother. That brother was his sister and caused a lot of things to happen to her over the years. The Clarences are all in prison, they were even worse than anyone could imagine. I do mean that: they let his sister get molested in school by a teacher, one who was murdered in jail by the other inmates because of what he did to her and another kid." Kelly started to remember all of the odd headlines out of Boston about things like that. Reyna added a solemn, "A lot of stuff involved the kids and people trying to hurt them. Kidnappings, murders, beating kids to a bloody pulp: it all happened to people we know, most of them kids like Heath. None as young as him, but still happening to kids like him." Reyna stopped as she realized she was wrong. Rachel added, "One was a year older, but it happened. It was all about money and not that she was likely transgender. She wasn't, she was intersexed and was a lucky find as nobody knew she was intersexed until she got badly hurt down there. I don't know if it counts but Miguel's daughter was the same age when her father abused her causing major trauma to her privates requiring surgery. She didn't tell about that until she was six, but it happened at the same age." Kelly wanted to say that things were the same as she remembered, Rachel cut her off by telling her, "It's not the same place. A lot happened there that was because people finally stood-up to the bullies trying to keep control over the city. Iris' parents, your parents, Mrs. Eagleson's husband, the Williams family, the Camps, the Castillos: they were all stopped by our family and when they did the city changed as if their reign of terror never happened." Kelly was in tears, Rachel softly explained, "You saw the start of changes, the attack on Jaimie was the start of things changing for the better. Uncle John forced the city to change for the better and he made those who were behind the bad things have to leave. A lot of people that you knew who hated the Finns are gone: they lost their homes, their jobs, and were kicked out of school. The city isn't the same, it's vastly different and I dare say it's better than Boston in a lot of ways." Turning to Heath, Rachel added, "He's a she. I can see him listening to us intently and is feeling bad at the right moments. I've been talking too much with Jaimie, her observations are rubbing off on me. I'm sure he's your daughter, he's done too many things that we've seen girls do." Rachel asked Heath what his name was, when he tried to say Heath she insisted on his girl name. He looked down in shame and told her, "Heather. The girls call me Heather. I like it." Reyna hugged him and told him, "OK, you are Heather from now on. Your mommy and daddy will be a lot happier if you didn't try to act like a boy to make them happy. You don't have to do that, just act like a normal girl and they will be happy that you are their daughter." Heather was in tears an hugged her deeply. Kelly looked to Rachel for advice to which Rachel told her, "It's what we did with Tatum. It's what we did with the other girls and boy. She's a natural mother, she's the only one of us who seems to understand them without being too analytical. We love Jaimie, but she just can't stop being a psychiatrist. She's not even one fully yet, she's still a resident." Across the room, Nick asked what that was all about. Miguel happily explained, "The girls are being the aunts that Heath needs. Kelly might not have siblings, but she has friends. They haven't seen her since 7th grade, but they're still her friends. Deep down, she knows that Rachel was her friend even if she did a lot of things that would make you outraged at her. That girl is long gone, the real Rachel is one of the best people you'll ever meet and cares deeply about people who are hurt." Watching Heath hugging Reyna, Miguel boldly proclaimed, "Yesterday was the last time you saw your son. Today, you are seeing your daughter. Heath is starting to come out of his shell and giving Reyna a hug that could only mean that she's convinced that he's your daughter and he's happy to be out. You and Kelly have to get him some help, but knowing Rachel she lined up Alison Eliza to talk with Heath." Looking at them, he happily added, "Kelly and Rachel are starting to open up to one another. There was a lot of baggage between them that seems to be slipping away. I know that look, Rachel is trying hard to be a friend and wants to help Kelly. She's a great girl, I'm proud to be her uncle-in-law." Kelly walked Heather over to Nick then told her husband, "Our son is our daughter. Heath is Heather I'm sorry, honey, but I can't choose her over your family. She comes first. If your brother is going to fight us, then we'll fight him. I don't want her hurt because he has to have everything perfect." Rachel asked what she meant, Nick mumbled, "My brother's wife is rich and has high expectations of us so he keeps mom and dad away from us to keep us from making him look bad. Mom and dad are in bad health, my brother controls their finances and the farm. What he says, goes. That includes us not being allowed to visit. Mom and dad haven't contacted us in three years, not since Heather was born." Rachel had a look of contemplation while Reyna shook her head and asked if he had it formalized or did he just barge into the hospital and demand actions be done his way. Nick gave her a look that told her that he never thought about that, to which she said, "Then he doesn't have the right to do anything. I'd venture that he's using your parents to fund his lifestyle to keep up appearances for his in-laws. It's not the first time that we've seen that, it won't be the last time either." Rachel was already starting to formulate a plan while Reyna started to text someone. She then told the worried Nick, "Dad will talk with you soon. This is his area and he'll do it for Heather's sake." The two families spent a lot of time together the next week, with Heather getting a shopping trip out of his two new aunts while Kelly reluctantly agreed to let them spoil Heather. Heather pranced around in a sundress which caused Rachel to laugh and boldly state, "Like mother, like daughter! We did that back in elementary school, your parents hated when we did that!" The memory caused Kelly to smile, especially as Rachel added, "You wore your dad's suits and acted as if you were a boy. Iris and Jessie struggled not to laugh as it was so dead-on. He was a real jerk at times when he couldn't get his way, especially after a deal fell through." Heather was pampered by the ladies, especially when they got her earrings and styled her hair so that it looked more feminine and cute. She didn't feel the least bit insecure around Rachel and Reyna, with the two carrying her at times when she started to get tired. Rachel being hugged tightly when Heather fell asleep after their fifth shop showed to Kelly that Rachel really was a friend as Heather wouldn't do that for anyone except Nick and herself and even then she was reluctant to be held by them. While the ladies were off enjoying themselves, Nick and Miguel were at the Red Sox training facility to report for Spring Training. Miguel saw the guys who were there and shook his head at how they had let themselves go over the off-season. He and Nick were in shape, with Miguel and he working hard in a catch session while the others slowly underwent physicals and got chewed-out by the coaches. The two were pulled aside by the assistant general manager(AGM) and told that Miguel was going to be cut this season due to budgetary reasons. Miguel hid his sneer and asked if that was official or did he make that up causing the AGM to tell him angrily, "You are too old, cost too much money, and don't put any butts in the seats. You should have been gone years ago but that idiot John Finn wouldn't let us get rid of you. He's gone now, I'm getting your ass kicked out the first chance we get." Miguel then countered, "So it's your own views and not facts. Just as I thought. I've seen the finances as I'm a part-owner of the team as you well know and I know damn well that I'm less than market rate and the guys that you want are overpriced garbage. You're friends with them, but they are useless. I'll play my way onto the team and then tell the actual GM, the guy who conveniently isn't here to chew you out for trying to force your views and not the team's policy on us. I'll play my way on or I'll pack it in, you have no excuse for trying to get rid of me given that I was an All-Star last year and saved us from being eliminated from the playoffs in mid-September. Coincidentally, that was when you weren't around." The two walked off to which Miguel told Nick, "He's going to make things horrible for me just to get in my head. You know what pitches the guys like, that idiot doesn't know jack shit- he never played, he's a sycophant who rides the coattails of others. Listen to the manager and pitching coach, focus on the hits and the misses. Focus on the game and not the people. It's mostly mental, if you can't focus then you're in trouble. I'm doing what I can to stay active, but my time is running out. Yours is just beginning." Miguel was a natural coach and could talk to youngsters easily, something that few on the team knew. It was easy for Miguel to get Nick to listen to him and work with him to improve his signals and how to fake throws to throw the runners off of their game. The coaches watched the two together and knew it was going to be tough to break any habits that Miguel was about to teach, but being Miguel he had the trust of the pitching coach so he wouldn't dare undo what Miguel was doing with Nick. The week went by slow as the AGM kept making his presence known and trying to get at Miguel but it always ended up with him being hit in the head with a ball tossed by one of the pitchers who had been jarred by the sudden annoying voice trying to annoy Miguel. Miguel tuned him out long before and did whatever he could to ignore the AGM to the point that he and Nick talked freely about other things just to get the AGM upset and storm off. Miguel was asked how he could do that, he told Nick, "You'll learn. If Heather is anything like other girls she'll be a chatterbox so you'll have to ignore much of it." They were overheard by the AGM who smirked. He casually told Miguel, "Heather? Oh, are you going to castrate another kid? Be careful, Nick, or you'll end up with another mutilated freak. Anyone dumb enough to let their kids be around Miguel is going to end up losing a son." Miguel didn't need to say anything as John Finn arrived with his family then told the AGM, "That's real funny coming from you. You have an assault conviction for beating a kid during a camp three years ago while with the Marlins. You have some balls talking to anyone about hurting kids, much less one of the few people that this team fully trusts to not only run their camps but to plan and invite people to them. I might not be the full owner anymore, but I'm still their proxy and what I've seen of you is laughable as you have no idea what the hell you're doing as AGM let alone talking down to one of your best pitchers and the only one on the team able to fill any role in the bullpen- hell, he could start if he needed to!" John boldly told him, "You're fired. Get the hell out of here. Yes, I can fire you. I'm here on behalf of the ownership group and have spoken with the GM about your actions in camp. You thought that you were getting free-rein, you were wrong. He gave you enough slack to get rid of you. You are toast in the big leagues. This little outburst against a player's children just blackballed you. Enjoy trying to get a job in the indy leagues, most won't take you- this is a major black mark that won't get wiped away." John asked to talk with Nick in private to which he reluctantly agreed. He watched as John's son and daughters tried to annoy Miguel who ignored their antics. He started to see what Miguel meant earlier about learning to ignore Heather at times. Once safely out of earshot and in private, John explained to Nick, "She needs to be examined soon. The longer you wait, the more people claim that she's being abused. That idiot shot his mouth off, but he's also why you need her examined. Alison is expecting a call from your wife, she knows her already but it's been a long time since she has seen Alison in person. She'll treat Heather right, she has more than a professional experience with girls like Heather: she's the mother of two transgender girls and is married to a transgender woman. Yes, they can be lesbians. It's more common than folks are led to believe." That brought Nick relief but it still caused more concerns. John handed him the information for the call then walked off to deal with the team. He boldly announced to them, "You heard right. Nick Ross's kid is transgender. Deal with it. This team won't put up with bigotry or taking out your own troubles on an innocent kid. You'd be going after a three- tear-old, you must be big men to attack a defenseless kid just to look good to a bunch of rednecks who don't give a damn about you and only want your money- the few dollars that remain in your bank accounts after you get shipped elsewhere. Multiple players have been released and traded for acting against teammates' families, but in doing so you risk getting beaned or spiked in the groin by teammates and opposing players. It's up to you: go after a teammate's kid and risk permanent injury or leave the kid alone. Your choice." Just to make it clear he spouted off a list of names of guys who had been concussed by errant balls to the head at batting practice and base- running drills. In over 12 seasons it was a long list and a lot of the names caused guys to cringe as they remembered the footage of the, "Accidents". It was clear: leave the kids alone or else you'll get hurt and would be ousted from the clubhouse immediately. Cat Finn had fun watching the players try to look impressive but overdoing things. JD Finn asked if the guys were actually going to make the team, causing John to hastily tell him, "Some are. Others aren't. It takes a while to weed out the borderline guys, your uncle Miguel is considered that but I know that he's going to make the team again. Looking at some of these guys, it's clear that they listened to that idiot I just fired and wasted the winter eating junk and getting big. Some of them overdid it with muscles, I'm not entirely sure that they're 'natural' since they're a bit too aggressive to be 'natural'." John acted as if he was a VIP, which Nick didn't understand. Miguel happily told him, "Ask your wife if he's a VIP and if she doesn't laugh about it she's been away too long. He's a VIP for a reason: he's one of the most respected people in Massachusetts. You might live in the state, but you spent a lot of time in Portland and in Lowell before getting stuck in Worcester last year. He doesn't do much outside of the immediate Boston area because he hates politics and refuses to be used by people, so he does things by way of his charities. The Finn Foundation is his pride and joy, its sister charity the Finn Group isn't his but it may as well be since his daughter does pretty much the same thing as him. Both are involved in a lot of fundraisers as well as being the recipient of millions from Inferno Productions. Trust me on this: you'll be forced to watch the movie 'Closet Secrets' at some point. It's a great movie, but it hits home in Winnisimmet as it's basically the closest we might get to a John Finn biography." Nick shot back, "Kelly loves that movie. She said that something about it made her feel better. If she's as involved with him as Rachel said, I take it that she recognized a few names in it?" Miguel laughed and shot back, "Louis Reagan. John, Leslie, Roland, Karen, and Catherine Finn. Willie Pena. Melanie Rivera. Those are all people she's met or heard a lot about. Roland never met her but she was friends with Rebecca and Jessie back when he tried to have John's son kidnapped and when John visited him in jail to get him off of drugs. She'd recognize a lot of what happened and likely noticed some of the actors in it: John's son Miles playing his birth father, the girls playing Melanie and their friend Katie Eliza, and more. Francesca had the biggest role as she played John's sister Karen in it. She didn't want to play a bigger role, she preferred a simple part that she knew by heart." The other players listened and laughed at the exchange. Miguel happily told them all, "His wife is an old friend of Reyna's friends, she's one of the few to escape Winnisimmet for the better. She's a fighter, she now has a bunch of folks who know her and won't let her get away from them again- not with two new kids on the way and nobody close by to help. They ought to all know about babies, I've heard what she and the kids had to do for punishment back then. Cat Finn really knows how to stink you out!" That got them laughing as Cat glared at Miguel. He timed it right to get a reaction from her, with John and his wife Valerie trying hard not to burst into laughter. John left them for the day and drove over to the hotel to meet with Rachel and Reyna and formally meet Kelly for the first time in years. Once at the hotel Cat and JD ran for Rachel and Reyna, with both looking over at Kelly and gasping at her pregnant body. John and Valerie walked over and hugged her, with Valerie asking if she was taking it easy. Kelly blushed to which Valerie added, "Oh no you don't- 11 years away but you are still one of us. You're their friend and our surrogate niece no matter what and we take care of family." Kelly blushed while Cat asked if she got bigger boobs. JD blushed deeply while Ella Finn tried hard to hide a snicker. John wisely told her, "Excuse Cat. She's like a smaller version of Hannah but without a filter. I hate that she's so much like her cousins, be glad you haven't experienced them in a long time." Cat glared at him to which Kelly asked, "Is she really that bad? We were always afraid of Hannah. I hate to think that she'd be upset at us for not trying to make contact again." Valerie wisely explained, "She wouldn't be upset, you moved away and moved on. First high school and college, then raising your child. All of them understand that time has passed by. She herself has had a lot of things to workout: her books, writing several movies, raising three kids. It happens. They are still your friends, even if you don't realize it. She'll be proud of you, especially now." Turning to Heather, Valerie explained to Kelly, "She'll meet Alison Eliza the day after we return. She'll be tough to handle without your husband, so expect support from your friends. I don't know if Donald and Francesca are in town or not but the others will be expecting to meet Heather. And I know full well that you'll have childcare available from their mothers and at your choice: Winnisimmet or Boston." Kelly was going to say something but Valerie insisted, "Melanie would never let you use someone else's preschool. Lupe and Leslie run the one in Boston while Melanie and Tanya run the one in Winnisimmet so both are under people that you know. All of our little monsters have gone through their preschool, I hope that your daughter doesn't mind being around younger kids who have known girls like her. There's a few kids who are even the children of ladies like your daughter so she will be around those who not only know about girls like her but live with them. The Stoners are amazing kids and will protect her." She didn't recognize the name, John softly told her, "He's that 'mean' English teacher that Hannah told all of you about in 7th grade. He's a good guy, he just gets a bad rap because of his high standards. He's married to a transgender woman and the father of a transgender woman. She's in good hands there." Heather was asleep in Kelly's lap and started to stir. She looked up at John and Valerie and tried to shy away from them. Kelly hugged her and softly told her, "These are Uncle John and Aunt Valerie. I knew them years ago. They are going to help you become a girl. You have to see a special doctor when we're back home. Your daddy has to stay down here, but we're going back home soon." Heather wasn't sure what to do. She got up and sat next to Rachel who explained to her, "They are really nice people. They are my real aunt and uncle, they want you to be happy. This doctor is really nice, she talked with Reyna for a long time. She wants to help you, your mommy and daddy want you to be the girl you need to be but first you have to talk with the doctor." Heather nodded and hugged Rachel, Valerie happily told Kelly, "She's the best with kids. Only Reed is better, but Rachel does well on he own. Rebecca, Donald, Francesca, Sam, and Jessie might have little brothers, but none have the rapport with little kids that she has. And yes, all of them have younger siblings. Rachel does too, as does Reyna. She has two, both boys." Valerie went into motherhood mode and started to show pictures of all of the kids. Kelly didn't believe that Rachel could be a big sister but seeing little Marcus Sylvester hanging off of her and smiling gave her a sense that she really did miss out on a lot of things. Valerie happily added, "The girls really hit the jackpot with their boyfriends. Thomas and Donald are handsome and Reed is a stunner. That boy that all of you girls teased in 7th grade grew into a man bigger and smarter than his sperm donor." Kelly could understand what she meant, he was a stud. He was no Nick, but few could ever be Nick. It pained her to think that he went through a living hell before he found a family, something that Valerie picked up on and added, "His brother and sister are like him: kind-hearted and smart. His sister Kylie is a great young lady who showed that you are more than what people think you are just by being a good person. We all with the girls would be like her, but he's a unique person." Dinner was quiet as Heather barely ate and fell asleep in Rachel's lap. Valerie wisely told Rachel, "It's a big sign. Your moms have been dropping hints about you two starting a family, maybe it's time to think about it. I know that it takes a lot to get Reyna's semen ready to use but you are going to be the last to be parents. Thank goodness Ashley and Rosalind had the sense to wait until their business boomed to be parents, but you two have no reason not to take the plunge." Kelly was perplexed, Reyna meekly told her, "My brother Ashley and his wife Rosalind. They're two of the best photographers in the country. They're in college studying photography and photo editing. He's an OK guy, but she's fiercely independent and won't settle down until they make it on their own." Reyna had to then explain, "My mom married Ashley's dad. He adopted me and mom adopted his sons. I have a younger brother, Liam, who's in 7th grade and mom's baby boy that I wasn't able to be." Rachel countered, "He wasn't that, he's nothing like you. She just loved having a little kid around again. It's who she is: she loves little kids and he was only four when she adopted him. We all know she loves you as much as them, he might have given her what you couldn't but you are still her daughter. Besides, you were the real a big sister to Rosalind that she never had so that evens out." Reyna asked about her parents. Kelly shed a tear then told them, "They're in prison. They got caught in a big criminal ring through their boss. Mom and dad stupidly tried to destroy evidence and lie about their boss' involvement and ended up going to prison for it. It was horrible, the only good to come from it was my getting sent to Connecticut to live with my grandmother. I met Nick there and we've been close ever since. I'm glad that he listened to me and not his brother when he was in high school, his brother wanted him to play for the Dodgers and get rid of me but he went to college instead. We were lucky, he got drafted by the Red Sox and his parents gave us a home after graduation." Valerie asked where they lived then laughed at the answer. She casually asked, "Did you not notice who your neighbors are? You live down the street from Bryan and Paige Smith. They mentioned a baseball player moved there but didn't see much of the family afterward, you must have stayed home a lot." Kelly nodded, telling them, "Heather was usually sick or didn't want to go out. Nick was usually away at games in Lowell, Portland, and Worcester. I didn't have to work too much because Nick made plenty of money to feed us so I didn't need to go out. I didn't want to disturb the neighbors either, especially as I heard rumors about them." Valerie smirked to which Rachel complained, "Those rumors were about Bryan and Paige and us. We'd visit them a lot when Bryan was deployed overseas so that she didn't get overwhelmed by the kids. We would bring Cat and JD with us to help which was the real source of the problems- Cat's big mouth." Cat glared while JD giggled. Heather nuzzled into Rachel's breasts causing her to rock her to sleep, the same motion she had seen the mothers do with their kids before. Valerie gave her a knowing look that Reyna happily retorted back, "This summer. You're going to chain us to the bed until we do it." Kelly started to get tired and had to go up to bed. Heather was carried up by Rachel who struggled with getting her into bed due to her tight hug. The two changed her and saw Rachel affectionately telling the quiet Kelly, "She loves you deeply. This might have saved her life. We'll tell you the worst later on as it's too important not to know, but she's looking like she's relieved to be out in the open as a girl." Kelly fell asleep and dreamed of Heather being happy. She loved the idea of being an aunt to little kids, especially ones from her friends. Heather would be safe and happy, she was sure of it. Heather slept well that night but felt like she needed someone close to her so she joined Kelly in bed. She nuzzled into her chest and suckled from her mother's breasts like she did back when she was an infant. Kelly felt her presence and the stimulation on her breasts and stroked Heather's hair, giving her a loving acknowledgment that she didn't mind what she was doing. The next morning saw Heather awakening after Kelly and looking up in fear. Kelly gave her a hug and kissed her cheek, then told her, "It was a tough day for you and you did what any little kid would do. I'm not mad at you, I'm happy that you still love me. I don't mind that you did that, I know a lot of kids do it when they're afraid and it comforts them. I don't know if your daddy will like it but it's alright." Heather hugged her and was led to the bathroom to shower. She looked at her mother's pregnant body and told her, "I want to be a mommy too." which got Kelly blushing. It was something unintentional but it also showed that Heather wasn't a figment of Heath's imagination and she might be strong in her. The kids hugged Kelly when she came downstairs. Ella and Logan Finn blushed while John told them, "She needs hugs and she knew them from when they were babies. She's changed Cat's diaper more than she'd like to remember. They're also the best with kids, you two moved on from being kids long ago. Cat won't likely to move on until she has a child herself." Cat glared at him while JD giggled and Heather tried to understand what he meant. Kelly smiled as the man she remembered was shown to her and brought back more memories of the adventures with all of her old friends back in the day. Rachel added a happy, "They haven't changed much, although Thomas is a bit worn-out by school and Reed can't keep out of court prosecuting people." The bags were packed and moved to Kelly's car and John's minivan. Rachel and Reyna helped Kelly to get to the airport then told her that they were working with the team for a bit on some things that they couldn't say in public. She didn't have to say more as John added, "It's the real reason we came down for the weekend, there's some folks trying to extort money from players. Your husband is a likely target, it's a dumb move now that we're involved in his life but they don't know that." Kelly canceled hers and Heather's tickets with John's help then walked with the family out to the Finns' private plane. Valerie had to assure her, "It's one of John's rare splurges. You know how much he hates to spend money, this was needed due to Jaimie and Rick living on the west coast and John having to go to meetings on behalf of the Red Sox. It's not something he likes to advertise, but he likes having it." Kelly was grateful for the wide seats and extra legroom, Heather giggled as she let out a comfortable sigh when she sat down then realized that she looked tiny in her seat. The little girl blushed and looked away, Kelly smiled at the subtle realization and relaxed with Heather hugging her for much of the flight home. Heather was acting vastly different on the flight, so much so that Kelly couldn't help but feel like Heather had truly taken hold and Heath's actions were finally explained. When Heather fell asleep, Valerie asked about where they were going to live as Bradford, MA was a bit too far from Boston. Kelly looked away in shame but admitted, "He's intent on moving to Winnisimmet. I don't want to relive the old days, I hated what the city was like. After Jaimie was hurt I couldn't see it as a nice place that mom and dad said it was to anyone who asked about it." Valerie wisely explained to her, "You saw the start of changes. There's a lot that's still happening but it's not the same place that it used to be when you lived there. Navy Hill is still Navy Hill, Twatville is still Twatville. Our family spearheaded a lot of changes but most of it came down to the residents getting sick and tired of the actions of a few destroying their lives. I doubt you'll live in our neighborhood, so I recommend Navy Hill. I know Miguel probably pitched the idea to you because of living there himself. Our daughter Sylvia and her husband live there, I believe Miguel wants you to be their neighbors as the condo is up for sale and the seller needs the money. It's a nice place to live, despite the city." She didn't know what to say, Valerie kindly added, "Spend a couple of days with us. We'll help you find a place that's suitable for three young children and a husband who works nights and weekends. I'm sure that your old friends will want to see you, especially Iris and Sam. Francesca is filming another movie, one that's bound to get her another Oscar nomination, so won't be around to see you again. Sadly, Jessie and Rebecca are working hard at the physical therapy studio so won't be around much if at all." When they finally landed in Bedford, MA Valerie had Kelly and Heather drive in with them while Ella and Logan drove the twins. Heather didn't do much during the drive except look out the window, lost in a world of thought that Kelly knew to be her processing what was happening. It was better than her not looking out the window as that meant that she was upset and going to have a meltdown at home. John drove up to Bradford then had Kelly pack a bag for a week. He texted someone then told Kelly, "I had someone keep an eye on the house for you for the week. Anyone coming by will be checked, there isn't any reason for anyone to stop by since you're out of town and Nick is in Florida. They're doing it as a favor to me but knowing the duo it means more now." Heather packed her toys, Valerie had to hide a smile as she didn't realize that a lot of the toys were what were considered, "Girls" toys. Kelly didn't catch the meaning, but noticed that most of them were just of certain characters from Heather's favorite TV show. Valerie wisely explained, "Little things like that add up. She was fighting it and unconsciously wanted those things. You didn't notice it but most are of girl characters and in feminine colors. Most companies try to hide that but it's clear to a keen eye." Heather pulled out something that Kelly didn't know that she had: a doll. Valerie laughed and told her, "She took it from daycare. It's probably what she played with the most at home in her room. You didn't know that she had it so she probably only brought it out when she needed to be alone." Once Kelly was packed for the week the group drove south to pickup Kelly's car from the airport. Kelly had to hide her fear as they drove on to Winnisimmet, with memories of horrible events coming back to her: Jaimie Finn nearly dying from an assault. Jaimie passing out in the middle school lockerroom. The mob of people trying to hurt Sam. It all came back and she wasn't happy to remember it. At the Finn home, she noted how big it looked and felt. Valerie got the gist of it and told her, "We built out after adopting Miles. It feels empty now that Logan moved out leaving just the twins and Ella. It's going to be even emptier when Ella moves out west to study fashion design. It's big, but it's still cozy." Heather was led inside and plopped down in the entertainment room to play with some of the toys that were scattered there. It was a large selection, with dolls and blocks and small animals. Heather's mind was on overload trying to comprehend what to play with first. Valerie watched and smiled as the little girl grabbed the dolls and hugged them tightly, then moved off to play quietly in the toy house. Kelly watched this and shed a tear, knowing that it was the last bit of a girl coming out of Heather. Heath was gone, Heather was all that remained behind. Valerie directed Kelly upstairs then waited for the expected phone call from her sister and sister-in-law. It took a few minutes but when they finally called Valerie happily announced, "We are doing a favor for Miguel by hosting his teammate's wife and daughter. They're moving to Winnisimmet from Bradford so we wanted to give them a sense of privacy. She's a nice young lady, I'm sure that she'll fit right in again. She's been away for over 11 years, the girls will be happy to know that Kelly Kale is back home." Melanie laughed while Leslie asked, "The same Kelly? The one that the girls cried for days over leaving for Mississippi? The same one whose parents got caught trafficking a dozen little boys?" Valerie asked what she meant, Leslie explained, "They were actively parts of the child molestation ring that the Nelson kids escaped from and ended up causing a nationwide investigation. They ere initially arrested for lying to federal agents and hiding evidence but once the feds saw just what they hid they were put on trial for it. It's why got heavy prison sentences after ratting on their boss while other rats received minimal sentences. The US Representative got 60 years, they got 30 years each due to only partaking in the kids and not actively trafficking them. I guess she didn't get the full story about what happened, given that she was only 16 then it's not surprising that the feds didn't tell her all of it." Valerie sighed and told Leslie, "I'll try to break it to her but she has another issue. Her son just came out as her daughter. She's only three, but she's a lot like her mother. Kelly is also pregnant with twins, so it isn't the best time in her life to learn the truth about her parents. It might break her heart." Kelly listened and mumbled a terse, "I knew. I don't like admitting it to people but I knew. The FBI and US Marshals interviewed me with grandma watching, we had to go all the way to Boston for it. I was told that it was stopped by two little girls, mom and dad were heavily involved and did a lot of what the others did and didn't have any remorse about it. They didn't do anything to me, they knew full well that I'd run away and beg you for help. The girls would have got me help and you would have gotten mom and dad put in prison so they left me alone." Valerie explained to her, "The man who interviewed you was Callum Campbell. He's a friend of ours and got involved by accident. The two kids were adopted by the Nelsons, Scott and Jessica's parents. It was brave of you to tell the truth, your parents were monsters and deserve to be in prison. We're upset that it hit someone who we know and care about. It's been a long time, but you are still one of us." Kelly was in tears, breaking down over hearing that. Both Melanie and Leslie came over to see Kelly to see how she was doing and had to hide tears as the young woman was crying into Valerie's shoulder. It saddened them to know that one of their kids had suffered while their own kids thrived. The ladies hugged Kelly when she finished crying, with Kelly apologizing for being hormonal. Both of the ladies laughed, Valerie happily told her, "It's more than hormones, it's how you really felt about us. It was your true feelings of missing us coming out, you deserved better than what happened to you. You were our niece and we didn't try to contact you. We're sorry for forgetting you." The ladies hugged Kelly for a while then started to tell her about a lot of the things that she missed out on. Kelly looked away in shame as she heard about trips to Europe and extravagant weddings, but there was a look of shame as Valerie told her, "We sent an invitation to you to go to the Christmas wedding. It likely got lost in the mail due to your moving. We sent one for the wedding in Endicott but it probably got thrown out by your parents. They hated the governor, it was held at his house." Kelly felt bad over hearing about what happened to some of the girls like Heather, Valerie calmly and authoritatively explained, "The one who suffered the most was Al Samuels and that was only because it wasn't her choice to be female. She accepted that she'd never father children, but she wasn't a girl. She chose surgery over complete emasculation and grew into being a woman, but it still wasn't her choice." Looking over at Ella, Valerie angrily added, "Most of what happened was preventable. Greed and their need to be better than others harmed all of the girls. Ella's girlfriend Flora was one of the worse-off, she had no idea what was happening to her beyond that she was living as a girl. The girls recovered fully, it hurt to see them in pain but they recovered. Miguel's daughter is thriving, she's starting to get boys to notice her and she's happy to get their attention." Ella blushed at the mention of Flora, Kelly asked if that happened a lot among the girls. Valerie gave a nod and added, "It's common, especially among closeted women. They're lesbians, they just happen to have something extra in their panties. Two girls have accidentally impregnated their girlfriends by way of normal sex despite being transgender, with one having lovely twins and the other a cute little boy." The ladies asked about her schooling and what she did for work, with Valerie happily explaining, "Shes doing her husband's finances. She'd make a great assistant for Beverly if she wanted to join her firm. It might take some tooling to get her certified, but she has the prerequisites to take the exam." Kelly blushed and told them, "I took the exam and passed, but I never got around to using it. We ended up pregnant before I could get a job, I wanted to work for a company in Boston but had to withdraw my application when I found out that I was pregnant with Heather. I couldn't work while pregnant, it would look bad for the firm and I didn't want to get fired for costing them business." Valerie asked the name of the firm then laughed hard. Leslie apologized for Valerie's laughter and told Kelly, "Bollinger and Associates is Beverly's firm. She said that she had a young candidate apply then it was withdrawn a month later, she never found out why. You're wrong about her, she'd actually be proud of you for working while pregnant. If a client has a problem with your being pregnant they wouldn't be a client at her firm for long. She's tough, but she protects her employees." That made Kelly feel better, especially when Valerie added, "She'll be after you to work for her now that she'll know that you are moving here. She pays well, and is lenient with vacation time especially as you can work from home or remotely. Leslie, Lupe, Tanya, and Melanie will offer you no-cost preschool for Heather since you're part of the family and our health plan is top notch, better than your husband's. It's very lenient with care for transgender children, which his plan isn't." The ladies talked for a while until Leslie got called home by her son Marcus. He walked over to see the big meeting and asked who Kelly was. Leslie happily explained to him, "She's an old friend of Rachel and Iris. She's moving to the city and is going to be offered a job with your aunt Beverly. Maybe if you are nice she'll let her daughter play with you." He cringed and walked away, Leslie happily told Kelly, "He's too old for little kids but too young for the tweens. We love him but he can be a pain sometimes. He's probably going to tell his buddy Brent Jones about the new mother and get a lot of calls started. If the girls aren't rushing here later I'd be shocked." Leslie's phone started ringing and sure enough, Tanya York was calling about the new woman staying in the Finn home. Leslie happily explained to her, "The former Kelly Kale, our daughters' old friend that they haven't seen since 7th grade, is staying with Valerie and John for a bit while her husband buys the family a condo. Her husband is Nick Ross, Miguel's new protege that he can't stop talking about. She's got an issue that is close to us, her son just came out as her daughter and they're struggling with it." Tanya didn't recognize the name, Leslie had to diplomatically explain, "You didn't have much time with her due to your health issues. She was the fashionista that helped Sam with her style, she's to blame for all of those skirts that looked a little too short on Same when she filled out." Kelly blushed at the memories with Leslie happily telling Tanya, "She's pregnant with twins. She'll be over at some point to meet you, her daughter will be with you as I doubt her daughter will want to be away from the kids when she meets them." Tanya crossed the street and upon seeing Kelly inside she gasped in shock. Tanya mumbled a happy, "I swear you got even more gorgeous as you got older. The little ones have helped fill you out a lot." Kelly blushed at hearing that, Tanya hugged her tight then asked where her daughter was. Kelly led her downstairs to where Heather was quietly playing and waited for her reaction. Tanya walked over to the oblivious Heather and proudly announced, "Hello, little one. My name is Tanya and I'm going to be your new preschool teacher when your mommy goes to work." Heather grew scared, Kelly had to explain, "Mrs. York is my friend Sam's mother. She is a nice lady and will make sure that the kids are nice to you. You have met Reyna, her mommy is Mrs. York's partner. I know you don't want to be apart from me, but you're old enough to start spending time with other kids." Leslie and Melanie watched the interaction and saw so much of Kelly in Heather that they had to hide their smiles. Mother and daughter were mirror images of one another, they were seeing what Kelly was like back when she was just three-years-old. It was sweet, with the ladies getting to see what they had missed when Iris, Rachel, Jessie, and Francesca were little. The ladies moved on to the living room with Heather coming up to sit with Kelly. She hugged Kelly to show that she was afraid but the ladies didn't make mention of it. Tanya broke the silence and told the timid Heather, "The kids are at the pool today, I think you'll want to wait until your mommy get used to being here before you go there and to the beach." Kelly asked where Iris and Sam were, Tanya snickered and told her, "Taking Louis and their cousins to the beach then probably having to spend an hour or two washing clothes with my sister. My nieces are conveniently not at home to help them, they planned dates with their boyfriend and girlfriend to avoid the work. Mia just has to get away before she ends up getting the urge to be a mom again." Leslie shot back, "The only thing holding her back is her father's blessing and he won't give it. You know he won't let his little girls grow up, even if she's a woman now. She's too honorable, she could easily go around his refusal and have it done anyway but she doesn't want to upset him." The ladies knew that the talk was having an affect on Kelly. Leslie then added, "Mia's girlfriend is one of the survivors of the same ring that your parents were part of. Ella is dating her sister and the one who actually caused it all to fall apart. We're playing things up, but you did need to know that just because a girl is transgender doesn't mean that she can't be a mother by her own creation. I mean really- we know this thanks to Addison and Carmen Carter and Sydney and Rose Stoner." It felt odd to Kelly but it felt right as well, Heather being a mom made her heart warm. Heather listened and asked what that was about, so Leslie explained to the little girl, "Your mommy was told little girls like you can be mommies too. It's different, but it doesn't mean that you can't be a mommy." Heather thankfully didn't ask anything else as she was a bit too young to know how babies were made. Tanya asked if she had been to an OB/GYN to check on her health getting a nod and soft, "We've had to find a new one, the one I went to for Heather retired. It's been tough finding a new one to replace her." Valerie happily shot back, "Don't worry about that, Sarah Jones will have a referral for you. It's a perk of being one of us, she knows of you but hasn't had the pleasure of meeting you. She's a great doctor and a better friend. Plus, you've met her sister already- Greta Nelson. She's going to want to talk to you about some investing for Nick's retirement, I suggest you listen as Miguel probably has his ear already." Tanya asked Kelly if she heard about, "Closet Secrets" to which she shook her head, only telling them, "I saw the movie a few times and liked it. I thought I recognized some of the places but they don't shoot in Winnisimmet that often so I thought it was Dorchester. Why?" The ladies laughed with Melanie telling her, "It was filmed in this city- by John's orders. His production company made the movie, we all own a percentage of it. Some of the kids were in it, Cat and JD got to play their cousins Bryan and Hannah while Tanya's niece Mia and that little witch Rebecca played me- I really hated that! Mia is a beautiful and Rebecca plays me too well!" The ladies laughed while Valerie explained, "He made a lot of money from the movie and other smaller movies and from buying and selling a large stake in the Red Sox. He's trying to avoid making a movie about his life but he's really waiting on a good actor and actress to play us. Some of 'Closet Secrets' was withheld due to time issues but you can remember them- the whole Daisy situation being the biggest. It got out anyway but it was due to other reasons and not due to the book and movie. It really didn't add anything so wasn't worth bringing up at all. The Miles subplot replaced it- and was better anyway." She understood and didn't ask anything else. The ladies broke for the evening when Tanya's son walked over to get her causing Tanya to see the look on Kelly's face as she saw a cute little boy smiling back at her. She tried to fight it but mumbled a soft, "He looks like his father, but with darker skin." Tanya laughed and happily told her, "He's just like his dad and brother. Virgil is growing into a sexy boy who has girls fighting over him but he won't date any of them. He's trying to avoid being like his birth father, we love him for that but he's holding himself back a bit too much." Cat and JD went out with their friends and Cat's boyfriend Gavin Samuels, which Kelly had to smile at as Cat had a look of awe when she saw Gavin enter. Valerie caught the look and happily explained, "He's a member of the Samuels family now. He was adopted not long ago by Richard and Olivia after he was abandoned by his parents into DCF custody. Richard and Olivia were starting to feel a bit of empty nest syndrome so opted to be foster parents again and ended up adopting Gavin as their own. He's a great son, vastly different from Thomas and Rick and much needier than Al. It's almost a joke that he's the son that Olivia wanted, it was 'third time's the charm' there after Thomas and Rick ended up a lot less affectionate and needy." Hearing Al's name caused Kelly to ask if it was true. Valerie nodded and solemnly explained, "Wendy and Belle White-Clark were murdered by police officers under orders from Thomas' father. They were in the wrong place at the wrong time but their sad deaths saved Al's life. She lived thanks to their car slowing momentum down. She was trapped and badly injured, emasculated to the point of no return by parts of the car. She was asked what she wanted to do and chose to become female. She blossomed in a short time and ended up winning the heart of one of our friends' nephews. That nephew would later be adopted by his uncle and aunt as their own son. She accidentally followed in Jaimie's and Rebecca's footsteps and created a group of kids in her grade over the next year, with two coming out as lesbians and another falling for a transgender boy who also joined them." She wanted to ask about Ella and Logan, Valerie sense her next questions then sadly told her, "They are adopted at their mother's request. She was murdered shortly after asking us to keep an eye on them. We couldn't say no to her request, we also couldn't leave them to the hands of DCF. Their cousins couldn't handle them either, they are related to the Petersons through their mother's elder sister. Their cousins all agreed that we'd be best and we couldn't help but love them as our own. Ella was able to give me the chance to prepare for when Cat hit puberty and Logan is John all over again. Logan really is like John, right down to his style and how he treats people. He's even got a beautiful fiance, she's out with her family for the week since it's tough to get time away due to school." Finally, she told Kelly, "Our daughter Sylvia Gibson was adopted after her first year of college. She was abandoned by her family due to becoming pregnant because of a systemic rape. Rick was the father, she gave the baby up so Jaimie could raise her as her own as Jaimie can't conceive or father children of her own blood. She fell in love with an amazing young man named Mitch Gibson and got married at Mitch's hometown amusement park. We couldn't let Sylvia be alone so asked her if she wanted to be our new daughter, which she accepted. She's been a huge help with Ella and Cat, they go to her for help instead of their sisters-in-law. I don't mind them doing that, Sylvia loves being a big sister to them." Nick called after dinner, with Kelly blushing at his greeting. He asked how things went to which she reluctantly told him, "They're just as I remember them. Only Rachel has changed, and she's nothing like the girl I knew. I hate being wrong, but you were right. Uncle John changed the city, it's nothing like the city that I hated telling people about before. You were right, honey." He chuckled then asked how Heather reacted. She shed a tear and responded, "She played all day with a lot of toys. We gave her what she wanted, we didn't know that they were what girls usually get. She's a girl, we can't deny it anymore. Our son is our daughter." He didn't hesitate to tell her, "Alright. I love her no matter what. I'll fight tooth and nail for her to be her true self even if it means losing mom and dad to my brother. She comes first- always." She asked him about his day, he laughed and told her, "John Finn really did a number on the team. He's a great guy, he doesn't fool around and let people push people around. I'm certain that he only came to the complex to ensure a reaction from the AGM. The moron tried to come back today and got tossed on his ass by security. Nobody will help him, John made it clear that the team is done with him." He added, "Miguel is fighting with the same guys again. They need to be traded away but they keep it to themselves and away from the manager. John seems to know what's going on but can't do anything yet. I'm hoping that they screw-up so Miguel can beat them out for the job. They're lazy and sloppy, but he's fighting them for a spot and it's not looking good for him. The GM is intent on trimming Miguel from the team to cut costs, he's our best reliever and the guys know it but the GM wants him gone." She was starting to feel tired and he knew that she was exhausted so told her, "I'll call you tomorrow. I know they'll be doing things with you so don't overdo it. Let them help you, you know them and they're the same people that you knew before and told me about so they'll be doing whatever you need them to do. Get Heather her examination and get yourself a local doctor. I don't want you three in trouble." She fell asleep after clicking off, with the twins kicking her as she slept. She was joined by Heather, the little girl needing her closeness as her anxiety about staying in a new house caused her to not be able to sleep without Kelly. She didn't suckle from Kelly, but she did nuzzle into her breasts while she slept. The next morning saw Heather fighting her shower, with Kelly having to bathe with her to show that it was alright. Cat wanted to joke but her mother's stern glare followed by Ella leading her away then the elder teen telling her to knock it off caused Cat to mope. She wanted to show that it was no big deal, but she didn't know that it was the worst thing to do with Heather afraid of them. Heather calmed down after Kelly hugged her in the bath. She showed Heather that it wasn't a big deal and she didn't have to worry about people complaining about her privates as nobody would see them. It calmed her a little, but Heather was still afraid of what Cat and JD would say about her. At breakfast, Valerie informed Kelly that both Kelly and Heather had appointments that day. Kelly just nodded while Heather looked afraid. Kelly asked if it was with Dr. Eliza, to which Valerie nodded. The kids were told to go with their friends, with Cat told to leave Gavin alone or else no date. She gave a blush which meant that she was going to get, "Close" to him and Valerie spoiled her fun. Kelly had to hide a smile at Cat getting outwitted, Valerie smirked at that and let it go. Inside the car, Valerie wisely told Kelly, "She's getting too mature and doesn't know when to stop. He's a great boy, she just has to let him mature more before starting to get closer to him. He loves her deeply, it's easy to see it in his eyes. But she just doesn't get it yet that he's not ready for kissing and feeling." Kelly asked about JD, Valerie shook her head and explained, "He's a loner who hangs out with his best friend/cousin Julio most of the time whenever Gavin isn't with them. He and Julio are one and the same but Julio has their friend Willow as a girlfriend. He's fine being single, the girls only want him for his money. It's like what girls were like with Nick back in high school until you came along." She blushed at that, it was the truth. Valerie then added, "Julio is Melanie's son. He was originally their nephew but was adopted when he was left orphaned after his grandparents left him alone to nearly die from freezing. She loves him deeply and is his father's son, especially as he resembles his father more than DJ does. DJ takes after Rebecca and Melanie in looks, if you recall. Thankfully he matured into a great young man even if he hasn't found a girlfriend yet. He's trying, but it's tough to do." Fond memories returned to her of time spent with Rebecca babysitting the young DJ then of the girls trying to get dates for the school dance while making Rebecca and Thomas get closer. She asked about the others, to which Valerie happily told her, "It took until Christmas for Francesca to get asked out by Donald, Sam and Iris were close for a while but didn't date until after 8th grade graduation, and Reyna and Rachel dated after freshman year. Reed and Jessie had to be forced to date by Thomas, they had a rough start due to Reed's issues: a stabbing at Kensington Beach, fear of Melanie's husband Dan, the whole city hating him because he was a Clarence and wouldn't let him forget it." Smiling, she added, "You missed a lot but it wasn't as much as you'd think. After Francesca and Thomas' adoptions things settled down for your friends. Reed is the only one who did anything of note and that was because he was such a great accountant and got himself hired by the state to assist in investigations into crimes. Francesca started acting, but she only started doing it in college and after she was, "Found" by a producer looking to work with John's production company. Jessie had a big issue with the Bruins but that was settled long ago and they learned their lesson and made changes for the better." They arrived in Boston at New England Children's Hospital and escorted Heather to her appointment. It was tough for Kelly to not feel horrible over being there, but seeing Heather trying hard to be good for her made her feel that she had to do it no matter the cost. Heather came first, always. Kelly filled out all of the information and walked with Heather to the office after Alison Eliza met them in the waiting room. Alison gave Kelly a once-over but didn't say anything, he two walked to her office and sat down then saw Alison again give her a look. Kelly finally blurted out, "We met a long time ago." Alison didn't recognize her or her name, Kelly had to explain, "We met at Jaimie Finn's 8th grade party and Sam York's parents' wedding. I moved away after the wedding. I've matured a lot, but I'm mostly the same girl you saw years before and once called 'dressing too mature.'" Alison let it go and asked about Heather. She asked Heather a series of questions but Heather was too afraid to answer. Kelly tried to tell her that Alison wasn't going to hurt her but she wouldn't answer her. Alison wisely explained to Kelly, "It's normal for a girl her age to be afraid of new people. She's just not ready yet to talk. I'll talk with you about her to show her that it's alright, but it might be a while before I get her confidence enough to talk about what's going on with her." Alison asked about what sparked Heather to come out, then about her previous actions and what she'd been doing. All of the little tells were there and Alison happily told Kelly, "It's perfectly normal for her to be curious about girls and want to be like them. She's dressing like girls and playing like them, it's a perfectly natural response. She has a while to go before school so I'd suggest it be allowed to continue. If after her 4th birthday there's no change in her, we can consider transitioning fulltime to a girl. It's just a mater of the school allowing her to be a girl in school, but it's the first step for her. It's just clothing at this time, hormones won't come into play for nine years." Heather tried to say that she was a girl, Alison had to softly tell her, "We aren't stopping you from being a girl. You're only three-years-old, you can't start to become a girl biologically until you're 11 or 12. I'm not telling you that you can't wear skirts and blouses still, I'm just telling you that you're still young." Heather was in tears but Alison whispered to Kelly, "It's a strong showing, but I can't do anything more yet. She needs time to open up and talk, she really could just be confused and not transgender. There's a line between the two, she won't show that line until she's older. I'm asking her to continue to wear girls clothes as a way of helping her mentally, her preschool will understand my motivations." Alison led them out and told Valerie, "The four know what to do. Tanya and Melanie might be the better of the two as I doubt Boston would hesitate to shutdown the preschool to 'protect' the kids because of a transgender girl attending. Don't let her overdo it being mom, she's going to need her energy." The next stop was Dr. Sarah Jones' practice and saw Kelly being examined by Sarah then send to a new OB/GYN for an exam. The babies were fine, Kelly was just overtired from Heather's care so was told to relax more and if possible to get Heather into preschool so Kelly could relax. It was going to be tough to be separated from Heather, but she needed to do it for her own health. Valerie decided to go to another location, springing it on Kelly out of the blue and causing her a bit of shame as she read the name of the office they were outside. Valerie led her inside and told the woman at the desk that Beverly was expecting them, getting a nod and simple gesture from her. Valerie led the upset Kelly inside then knocked, with Heather clinging to Kelly's side in fear. The door opened and Kelly looked away in shame as the woman she applied for a job with was waiting for them to enter. Valerie wisely told the woman, "Go easy on her. You know damn well what fear will do to some people. And she's right, most firms would dump her for being pregnant with a lame excuse of 'affecting our business' to get around a lawsuit." Kelly was seated, her resume looked over, and the woman finally telling her, "You have all of the right qualifications and just need a refresher to get up to date. You've been in practice so it's nothing much to you. Thankfully, you have a positive track record. We offer a highly competitive rate and solid leaves for mothers. I have no problem with your husband's job and want nothing from him so it won't be any problem with us. His money is in your hands alone, just as John's is in mine and Greta's hands." Valerie formally introduce Beverly Bollinger, with Kelly asking if Will was her son as she thought that she recognized her from before. Beverly laughed and added, "I wish he wasn't at times, but he's my son. He and his brother are a couple of jokers, I love them to death but they drive me bonkers. My husband is a great man who puts up with the boys, he's a better man than you thought he was. His reputation in the pre-marriage era was tough, but then again it was well-earned." She then added, "Will went on to marry Claire Peterson and blessed us with two wonderful grandkids. Simon is just like his father while Lilly takes after her mother. Thankfully it's only in looks or else poor John would be running for the hills. I shudder to think about what he'd do when Cat and Daisy have a baby- that's just asking for trouble for John!" Kelly was happy to hear that another couple stayed together all that time that she was gone. Beverly did a quick glance at Heather and asked about her, Valerie shot back, "She's in the discovery phase of being a girl. Alison wants her to just take it in stride, it's just clothing at this point even if she's leaning toward being a girl. She doesn't like it, but thankfully it won't be an issue unless she goes to private school." Beverly asked the tough question: how much was Nick being paid and how could they afford to live in Bradford. Kelly looked away in shame and confessed, "His parents bought the house so we could have a place to stay that wasn't too far of a drive from Worcester, Portland, and Lowell. He didn't have to live in Greenville thanks to the team's need for a catcher messing with their roster so he got jumped to AA fast. I had him sign a signing bonus for $750,000 and put it away for use until he got called-up. He has spent the past three seasons trying to get higher-up before he was called-up to Boston in May and again at the end of the season so he made the minimum of $100,000 for two months on top of his $10,000 for his base salary. We haven't had a lot of money to spend, I've been frugal with it which is why he's staying with Miguel Toro in Florida. I know that he will make the league minimum this year, so we'll be tapping into his signing bonus to buy the condo." She then added, "I did some freelance financial planning for a few hundred dollars for the Lowell and Portland teams. The guys ignored most of what I said so it was a waste of time, I did it so that we'd be able to not dip into his signing bonus. He got some money from endorsements in Portland, but it wasn't much and only really paid for his health insurance. Thankfully he gets full coverage now that he got the minimum number of days to qualify. If it wasn't for that coverage I fear we'd be broke with Heather's care. I hate having to think about money, Nick assures us that we'll be fine but I still worry." Beverly nodded silently while Valerie told her, "You've done enough to keep yourselves afloat and have a job with Beverly if you want it. He'll do well and will make a lot of money in his next contract, he's not going to make above league minimum for two more years then he'll make around $35 million per season along with a hefty $70 million singing bonus. That's not a joke, that's what he'll get at the bare minimum to keep him in Boston. With a strong connection to the city through you, he'll want to stay." Beverly added, "I can offer you $75,000 per year. It's consistent with your experience and education. I'm going a little low, but I'm bumping it up to $90,000 next year once you've proven yourself to the others. I also don't want you to worry about money, the condo will be taken care of by a loan with the bank not even trying to refuse as your husband's name will ensure it's paid in full. Just don't worry about money yet, you have plenty of time to work things out and if I know Valerie she has a place eye already." Kelly couldn't believe her ears. Beverly nodded while Valerie led them out so Kelly could go through the hiring process. After a few minutes, Kelly was officially an employee of Bollinger & Associates. Valerie drove Kelly back to Winnisimmet to have a quick lunch then drove on to another place in the city, this time to Melanie and Tanya's preschool. She had to tell Kelly, "It's for the best to let Heather meet some of the kids before she's officially enrolled. She'll also have a chance to unwind for a bit, she looks tense and heading for a meltdown." They entered and were immediately met by Melanie and Tanya, with Tanya leading Heather over to the other three-year-olds while Kelly handled the paperwork. She recognized someone in the office but did not know how to place her, Valerie happily told her, "That's Skye Toro, Miguel's wife. She's the manager of both offices, she handles their budgets and billing. She's usually out of the larger Boston office but is working from here because her sons don't like her going to Boston." Skye noticed Kelly and Valerie talking and walked over. Valerie smiled and explained to Skye, "Kelly is enrolling her daughter in the preschool. She's known to us, she went to school with the 2024 group." Skye gave Kelly a look then gasped. Valerie had to explain, "Diagnosed today. She's just starting but it's a strong leaning. She's going to ease into being a girl, she needs interaction more than anything." Skye offered her sympathies, then told Kelly, "Miguel talked up your husband but didn't mention why you left so suddenly. He did say that there was some trouble in camp because of the AGM. I didn't get the whole story, I guess it involved your daughter and he didn't want to say anything without consent." The three watched the kids playing and saw Heather smiling brightly as the girls played with her while the boys ignored her but weren't antagonistic towards her. Skye pointed out her twin sons to Kelly, the boys giggled with the girls and played for a bit before going off on their own leaving Heather smiling at being mistaken for any other girl. She felt normal for the first time in her life, as if she was like any other girl in the preschool. Kelly had to fight tears as Heather was smiling and giggling with the girls, Valerie consoled her but she also knew that it was a display that had to be seen by Kelly. Heather had finally taken over and the girl in her was bursting out and showing that she just wanted to be like everyone else. She tried hard to be a boy, but without any restrictions the girl in her bloomed and allowed her to enjoy lie for the first time. After an hour, it was time to leave. Heather was reluctant to go but went without a fight. That fact alone was a huge improvement on Heather's part, she never wanted to stay anywhere except home. Valerie sighed at the sight at her house and told Kelly, "The inquisition has arrived. Melanie will delay it while you prepare, but they won't be denied. Reyna and Rachel could only hold off for so long, Iris is a real pain when she wants to be and can get her sister to tell her anything." Kelly and Heather entered and sat in the living room while Valerie went next door to get the group. She had to tell them to slow down but it was pointless as they were going to rush over there no matter what. She barely opened the door before all four girls screamed and rushed at Kelly, leaving Heather scared at what was going on and Valerie forced to calm her down before she cried. Iris tried to speak but stopped herself, Sam kept looking around as if it was some kind of joke, Rebecca was trying to form words but nothing was coming out, and Jessie was mumbling under her breath. Only Thomas could muster the energy to ask, "What are you doing here after all these years?" Kelly wasn't sure what to say. Valerie wisely told them, "She's moving back here. Her husband is about to get a big raise and wanted her to be close to Boston." Rebecca asked who her husband was, Kelly mumbled, "Nick Ross. He's the new starting catcher for the Red Sox. He wants us close to Boston but away from the high-priced places." Thomas' mouth was gaping while Rebecca asked if it was some kind of joke. Valerie smirked and told her, "Why do you think Reyna and Rachel told you instead of us? They were down there working and by chance met her. Miguel facilitated it so that Rachel didn't end up in a funk again- you know how she is when she has to deal with the Murphys, especially someone who knew them." Kelly then told them, "We were there for some family fun before Spring Training. Miguel asked for help for us because of our daughter. Mr. and Mrs. Finn brought us back here so she could get help." All eyes turned to Heather. Valerie explained to them, "She's trans. She just came out after admitting she was a girl at DisneyWorld. She's not fully diagnosed yet but has met with Alison already. It's looking a lot like she's going to be, there's too much evidence that this isn't crosdressing or gender confusion." The girls went right for Heather and gave her deep hugs and big kisses, with each looking at Kelly and Heather as they saw the close resemblance. Once all four had their fill of hugs they asked about Kelly's big womb causing her to confess, "I'm four months along with twins, both boys. The way they're at it in me I think they're taking after Nick. I'm happy that he's having boys as I don't want him to feel bad for Heather not being the son that he wanted. He loves Heather, but it stings him to be rejected by her." The usual questions about where she went and what she did followed, with Kelly blushing at them all snickering over her being close but so far away from them. They asked about her in-laws, causing Kelly to shed a tear and ask them not to ask about them. Rebecca refused to give up, but Valerie told them all, "It's something that your aunt and uncle are looking into. Something stinks about it and we're going to get to the bottom of it as soon as possible. Don't go doing anything stupid like trying to meet them or drag them down here, you'll upset David and Miles." The name drops caused them to cringe and back away. Rebecca countered, "I'd be more afraid of Reed" to which Valerie added, "Oh, you know he'd be upset as well. He'll be sniffing around if things aren't up to snuff and something is wrong. I'm certain that there's an issue that he'd be interested in." Jessie whined, "He does too much of that boring fraud stuff, he needs to do something better than that. If he wasn't so noble he'd be going after a better job using the dirt on others he has locked away. But no, it isn't his style. He's gotta be Mr. Nice Guy and play by the rules all of the time!" Kelly looked surprised, Thomas grumbled, "He's nothing like what you thought he was. He's bigger than me, stronger than me, tougher than me, and Rebecca says better looking than me but that's a lie: we all know I'm better looking. You can't gt more Adonis than me!" That caused Kelly to smile, it was an old joke that he liked to play when the girls were annoying him in 7th grade. He was a looker to Kelly, but nowhere near the looker that Nick was. She loved that Thomas was still the same, even if he was a lot bigger everywhere that she could see. Heather started to wane and fell asleep in Kelly's arms, leading the ladies so smirk as the mother in her was showing and tough to deny that she wasn't acting like the girl who used to love helping Melanie and Valerie with diaper changes and distracting the kids. Being the first among them to have a child was also a big thing to them as she was the most deserving of that title. They couldn't help but feel like things changed yet still stayed the same among them, they simply matured in a lot of ways. Kelly struggled to keep Heather from trying to suckle in her sleep, Thomas had to look away in shame as the little girl grabbed her mother's breasts and nuzzled her face into them. Rebecca gave a smirk that he glared at, with Jessie happily telling the ladies, "I guess I shouldn't keep it a secret any longer: Reed's finally going to be a daddy! I'm three months pregnant, I didn't want to tell anyone yet." Kelly gave her a look that tried to show apology and sympathy, Jessie happily told her, "We held off for a while because he was working so hard. First it was because I had to get certified, then it was because of law school. The time has come, we're ready. We already have a house waiting for us, I know that we should have let you stay with us but Aunt Valerie does things for a reason." All eyes turned to Rebecca and Thomas. Both said, "Not yet" which only caused Jessie to tell them, "You know you won't wait much longer once she sees me swelling. You can barely see my bulge, once it gets too big to be hidden she'll start feeling the pangs of motherhood." Iris and Sam gave them smirks but didn't say anything. Jessie casually shot back, "You two won't do it until you're good and ready, even if you two go at it like rabbits. Poor Louis is lucky to be able to sleep whenever he's at your house with how much you two do it. At least Thomas and Rebecca have the good sense not to do it when Quentin is around, but you know how they are alone!" Only Rachel and Reyna didn't blush as the two were extremely private compared with the three couples and had learned early on to not do anything with their little brothers at home. Kelly asked who Quentin was, getting a happy, "My nephew" from Rebecca. She then added, "You don't want to know the long list of little kids the older guys and gals have, they didn't wait long to get pregnant!" Reyna glared while Rachel shot back, "One wasn't by choice. Two were celebratory mistakes. Two were a big 'oops' by the ladies. You really don't want to go down that rabbit hole." Rachel saw the look of longing for information so she had to explain, "Jaimie and Rick Samuels have a daughter who is Rick's by blood. She was born because of a dual rape of Rick and her biological mom. Michael and Courtney Finn have a son thanks to graduation fun. Carmen and Addison Carter have twin boys through the two forgetting that Addison wasn't sterile yet. Sydney Stoner has a son because she and her girlfriend lied about where they were going and doing on prom night. Stacy got pregnant due to fear that she might lose Scott during training or when he was deployed overseas. The rest are due to the couples not bothering with birth control after marriage or planned their pregnancies." Kelly asked, "Who are the Carters" causing Rebecca to happily tell her, "It's hard to explain. Addison is trans, Carmen is Aunt Dorothy's daughter by adoption but niece by blood. They married because of the pregnancy, the lived together for months before getting pregnant. There's a lot more to it but they had a couple of twins and are trying for another baby but won't let anyone know about it yet. And Carmen is also a twin- her sister married the governor's granddaughter. Her other sister is trans and is married to Patrick Peterson, she's Aunt Dorothy's only biological child. Her third sister is married to a trans man named Diego who happens to be Uncles Ricardo and Alex's son." The mention of three trans people caused Kelly to ask if they knew the truth. Rebecca nodded and told her, "It's hard not to realize just why you would be with Uncle John. Plus your husband made the news because of the AGM getting fired for crass behavior. Your husband didn't try to avoid the question, he admitted that you have a trans daughter. Your being here right after it happened had to mean that you're going to move here and Aunt Valerie is helping you in some way due to it." Kelly sighed then confessed, "She got me a job with the company that I applied at before I got pregnant. I was hired so I have money coming in but I have to still look for a place to live. Nick is adamant that we move to Navy Hill, I don't think we can afford it yet. I don't trust Bradford now that it's known that Heather is trans but I don't think the bank will help us by giving us a loan." The ladies laughed to which Thomas added, "Uncle John would force them to give you the loan and if it didn't happen he'd give you the money himself. You're getting the condo, he's probably ensuring that it's in the same complex as Mitch and Sylvia. Uncle Miguel lives in the next building, Mitch Gibson lives in the penthouse on one side, the other side is being sold but nobody is buying it." Kelly realized just what he meant. She asked if anyone else lived near there, Rebecca happily told her, "The Stoner ex-wives. They tend to not interact with us but are friendly people. Sydney is their niece by marriage, their daughters are involved with the younger boys. If you met Logan already, he's engaged to their niece Piper. Logan's cousins and friend are engaged to the ladies' other daughters. And you'll get a kick out of this: their daughters are friends with Anita Love, she's married to one of the Power Walk Boys- the guys we used to dance to like crazy! He's really cool, his wife loves to come by to see us whenever there's a break in recording and doing school work. Plus they're doing a movie soundtrack for Hannah's newest movie, she's writing her second movie for Uncle John's production company." That led Kelly to ask about Francesca. Rebecca groaned and Jessie quickly grabbed a tablet and sent a call to someone. In seconds, there was an answer which followed a scream of joy. Jessie happily told the person, "Yes, it's her. Yes, that's her little girl snuggled in her arms. Yes, Kelly is back after all these years. Get your butt on the next plane because you have to meet them!" Some complaining was heard to which Francesca shot back, "Oh quit your whining, I'm done with all of my scenes and there's no need for re- shoots. I'm heading home for a while, you don't need me anymore. You know damn well that I don't party nor do I do the phony meet and greets with producers." Francesca then told Kelly, "That was the director. He's a pain in the ass, he wants complete control over your life while filming. I'm done with the movie, he knows it but wants me here just to have me here. I don't play his game and ignore him when not in front of the camera, I don't care what he says about me- I have the awards to back me up while he's doing second-rate movies for friends. I only starred in this as a favor to a friend, she needed another star to make the movie work and couldn't trust anyone else." Kelly was shocked at how mature Francesca looked. She filled out in all of the right places and had the look of a movie star but without the fake breasts and facial surgery. Francesca happily told her, "I'm all natural. I don't like too much makeup which drive the artists crazy. The directors are a pain and fight it out over what I should look like, I always tell them that I'm not a clown and will wear what's needed." She then grabbed her boobs and happily told Kelly, "It's genetics. Natural D-cups. You filled out as well but I take it from the bulging womb it's assisted by the baby. I do wonder if the little one breastfed." Kelly blushed and shook her head, then confessed, "She's been trying to but it's more fear than anything. She normally doesn't go anywhere near them but seems to want to grab onto them and suckle. I try to keep her from doing it but she's just so anxious and it seems to be the only thing keeping her calm. It's a pain to not want her to do it, but she's too old for them and I'm not going to feed the twins that way." Francesca nodded while Thomas cringed. The ladies ribbed him with Kelly smiling at things being like old times. She wanted to ask about Francesca getting into acting so Francesca happily told her, "You're not the only one who wanted to ask that. It was simple: someone wanted me to get at Uncle John. It's a good outcome compared with what usually happens when someone tries that, I did it on my own thanks to the help of some friends of Uncle John. I've done a few mega-movies but mostly smaller dramas. I was also in the adaptation of my mom's books, that really got my career going!" Francesca knew what was coming next and told Kelly, "Yes, they were murdered. Yes, I was adopted by the Hermans. You heard about dad from Jaimie and the girls, mom was Ms. Helena before she married dad the next year. I have a younger brother, he's dad's twin except he has mom's personality. Mom can't have any more kids because her heart and blood wouldn't handle another pregnancy so they're ready to be grandparents. Mom did a few things that she isn't proud of so she might be a mom biologically to a kid somewhere, she'll never know if it happened because they keep things secret with that stuff." The old friends were getting along well, Francesca was looking better and sounding happier about her being away from the others. They talked for another hour before Cat and JD stormed in wanting Kelly causing them to hastily end the call. Heather ended up stirring then, with Cat giggling at Heather on her mother's chest looking like she was trying to drink from her breasts. Valerie finally made her presence known and told the ladies that they better get home before Cat went for her makeup set to make them teach her how to properly wear makeup, causing them to rush off as Thomas glared at Cat who was eyeing him for some fun. Valerie sat next to Kelly and softly told her, "I know it's tough seeing them move on without you, but you were never forgotten. They recognized you the second that they saw you, Rachel was in tears after seeing you and needed all of them to help her to get past that demon from the past. She never told them exactly what sparked it, but they had to remind her that it wasn't all horrible as you girls did have some fun times back in elementary school. You were mentioned many times over the years, especially when Reyna moved here. Your presence was always a part of them, even if you weren't physically here. They still love you, you're their friend for life." Down in Florida, things were getting heated. Miguel's progress outshined the rest of the team, so much so that there were allegations of him using steroids and other drugs. Miguel laughed it off and asked if they sat around all winter getting fatter or if they worked their butts off like he did. Looking the worst offenders in the eye, he loudly told them, "I shoveled snow out of my sister's house all winter. I helped renovate houses as part of a side business I invested in. I hired my nieces to be my personal trainers, two people who work their butts off with the other teams in Boston. I know my way around a gym and know not to focus solely on my arms or legs, especially my pitching arm. I worked cardio for hours, I could run the Boston Marathon but I'm not one of those people who announces to the world that they're running and expect people to be in awe of it. You guys got lazy and only focused on a couple of things, I chose to work on everything over time. It's what kept me fit for years and what kept me in the big leagues and injury-free while some of you get a hangnail and are out 15 days." Miguel's devotion to keeping fit and not sitting idle were notorious in the clubhouse, he rarely spent his time in there watching TV when he could be cycling or working on his arms. He kept up his hitting to the point that he could actually be used in a game as a pinch hitter when he wasn't going to be used as a pitcher that night, something few could ever claim was possible among pitchers. To go after him and to accuse him of taking steroids when there was nothing but evidence to the contrary only showed that the ones making the claims were doing so to get after him and his position on the team. Miguel played well and was pitching better than ever, but looks were deceiving. He was tiring faster so had to lessen the number of pitches thrown each day, with the trainers starting to see that he's fit but not so fit that he'd have another decade as some were claiming. He knew that his time was close to ending, it was going to be his last season whether he wanted it to be or not. He confided in Nick that he was feeling his age and if he wasn't in good shape he'd lose his spot. Nick nodded and added a solemn, "You're holding up well but it's clear that you've lost a step. Coach and the skipper won't say it but they're looking like they are ready to designate you for assignment at the first available chance. Keep trying, these guys can't hold a candle to you. So what if you aren't gong to pitch in 80 games, you're only really supposed to pitch in 50 games at this point. You're our setup man and it isn't your job to be in there every game- you're here to setup the closer. You're the guy who holds ties or leads and ensures that we win, you work your ass off while the other guys jockey for more innings and blow their arms out trying to impress. You are valuable, hell those idiots should be listening to you not sniping at you behind your back. You're our team leader, and they know it." The two called home and listened to their wives. Both laughed as Skye told Miguel about her meeting at the preschool while Kelly told about her old friends being there for her. She was in tears retelling all of that, it was even more poignant as she told them about Heather and they didn't say a word. Skye asked if Kelly was going to be alright, Miguel wisely told her, "She's in great hands. She'll be with the girls and Thomas a lot, you're there if she needs you but this is something she has to do herself. It's a tough situation with Heather, but her friends are some of the best people to support you. I don't want her to feel overwhelmed and obligated to appease you because of me, you have experience thanks to Tatum but it's far different to have a younger child come out than it is an older child." After their wives finished recounting the day, the two talked about the move and what it really meant to Kelly. Miguel was adamant that it was going to save her life, especially as they had help if they needed it. Kelly wouldn't be allowed to be alone, she had friends and people who were going to be like family to her and support her as needed even if she didn't think she needed it. Miguel looked away in shame and confessed, "I think she's overdoing things. She's pregnant with twins, I know that isn't easy on women. She has Heather to deal with, which is a huge hornet's nest that'll be a stinger soon. She's tough, but she's overdoing things. She needs a rest and her friends give her that." Miguel went quiet then asked him if he had plans for what to do if something were to happen to both of them. Nick went quiet as the horror hit him, the idea had never crossed his mind. He tried to think of an idea but the only thing he could come up with was a timid, "My brother would take the kids in." Miguel shook his head then announced, "I think you need to rethink things. She has a horde of people to help her and those people have big guns behind them. Rebecca, Rachel, and Reyna are Finns, that isn't going to fly with them. You need to name someone to take care of the kids in case she has to go into the hospital so you don't lose Heather. Skye will do it if she can't think of someone." Nick had a lot to think about that night. In the morning, he called Kelly to tell her to think of someone to look after the kids in case something happened to her. He was serious, to which she had to look over at Valerie for help after she ended the call. Valerie smirked then explained to her, "Take your pick of your friends. All of them are ready, willing, and able to be your caretaker. They won't hesitate to help, no matter the personal cost to them." Valerie asked her about Nick's family and this time give more depth. She looked away in shame but did tell her, "The two have never gotten along. His brother Mack is 10 years older than him, Nick was an 'oops' kid that his parents hadn't planned but loved no matter what. Mack works as a manager for a big farming consortium in Franklin County but always wanted to be a baseball player. He tried for years to make it in the minors but kept getting cut from teams. When Nick hit it huge in high school Mack came sniffing around to exploit him. He wanted Nick to sign with a team right out of high school. Nick just wanted something to fall back on so he wasn't like Mack: living off of his wife before he got handed a job by friends. It was ironic that he did exactly what Nick wanted to do- have something to fallback on just in case. Mack felt humiliated doing that, but Nick was sure it was a smart idea to have a degree." Valerie sensed the crux of the matter and asked about after that. Kelly looked distant as she recalled, "It wasn't a good time after we went to college. Mack was always on his case to quit school and sign a deal with a team. They came to blows junior year, Nick punched him out after Mack grabbed my shoulder and tried slap me for telling him to leave our apartment. They have fought ever since, with Mack's own lawyer sending him notice that he was barred from visiting his parents. They haven't met Heather yet and don't know that I'm pregnant with their second and third grandchildren." Valerie got what she needed, she asked what was wrong with the Rosses if they had to have their son take care of them. She looked saddened but told her, "Mrs. Ross has bad knees and needed a wheelchair to get around. Mr. Ross' health hasn't been the best so he's in bed most of the time unable to move. The two are cooped-up in his brother's house, we haven't been able to see them in a long time. They haven't talked with us since giving us the house in Bradford. Mack won't let them call or let us call them. Nick believes that they sided with Mack, but I'm not so sure. They weren't like that in high school or college and gave us our house as a graduation present so it's tough to see them changing how they saw us after being so generous. Mack didn't get anything after graduating college, all he got was just a long talk about being a man. Nick and Mack have been at odds for as long as I've known Nick, but this is new. I don't know where we went wrong, they were always great parents to Nick and nice to me before then." Valerie started to sense that something was going on and asked if there had been anyone to visit them to check on their status. Kelly shook her head, to which Valerie explained to her, "I'm calling in help. It's a bit shifty that they cutoff all communication after he has a falling-out with his brother, after they were so generous to you for years. I don't want t think the worst, but I want to ensure that they're alright." She called Jessica Vincent and her partner Jenna Daniels, two young social workers who knew the ins and outs of social services and were more than happy to conduct an investigation at their aunt's request. Valerie happily explained to Kelly, "Jessica and Jenna are just as you remember, sweet but protective of those in need. They'll check on things on your husband's behalf. They know what to ask for and what to observe without being observed. They'll get to the bottom of things immediately, but there's a price for it: enduring their kids. Jenna is more than happy to dump her daughters on you for a night. Jessica isn't too quick but a night away from her kids is something too good to pass up." Kelly blushed but Valerie had the look of it being not a big deal. She happily explained, "Odds are that it's going to be Emily and Tracy giving Heather a run for her money doing girly things with them then little Alex will beg you to watch his favorite movie before all four fall asleep on the floor beside one another. They are great kids, they're just hyper." She asked for specifics, Valerie happily explained, "Alex is seven. Emily is eight. Tracy is six. All three are usually nice kids who follow the rules, they're just hyperactive. Alex is his own boy and won't bug you too much, he prefers to watch TV and a particular movie between playing with his toys. The girls love playing tea party and dressing. They won't have a problem with Heather, they've seen 'it' before." Valerie texted the details to Jenna and Jessica with both agreeing to it. The two were happy to help and even happier to get away for the night. She could tell the mischievous look both ladies had as they gave quick responses, with their husbands enjoying the evening away in multiple ways. She tried to apologize if they ended up with more kids, Valerie snickered and told her, "George can't. It's not likely that Jessica gets pregnant either. George lost his testicles to cancer, Jessica struggled with her pregnancy and postpartum depression. Jenna refuses to use a donor and Eric would rather adopt. They won't be out for long, they'll simply relax for a while before picking the kids up." Kelly asked if that was the worst to happen to any of the 2020s. Valerie shook her head and explained, "I wish it was, but Rick and Sylvia's rapes was the worst, especially as he would have gone to prison if he didn't have our help. Jaimie almost died during her gender surgery because of her anesthesiologist was drunk and Scott ended up being saved by George over in Gallifrey but that was the worst by far. I hate to say it, but your friends were relatively unscathed. Rachel, Reyna, Iris, and Sam were groped at Fenway Park and Jessie was sexually harassed and nearly assaulted by members of the Bruins but that's the worst that they've endured. I'm glad that it wasn't anything long-lasting, all of you have been lucky." The two talked for hours, Heather played away downstairs and only came upstairs when she felt hungry or needed to use the bathroom. She was so quiet that Kelly grew concerned that she might be in trouble but Valerie assured her that she was just a quiet player. The smile on Heather's face showed that it was alright after all, she really did enjoy playing by herself and talking with the dolls. Back upstairs, Valerie received a phone call about the condo. She smirked and told Kelly, "A showing is in an hour. We'll have lunch then go. Miguel has photos already thanks to Mitch. Odds are he's heading down there to talk with Miguel about something family-related and getting a night out with them." Kelly wanted to ask about his family, Valerie simply added, "They're up here. It's business, he's doing it as a favor to John and getting Miguel's input on some things that they were talking about doing for the production company. Miguel thought about doing a reality show based on a camp he knew and wanted to show things from the other side that people never see: fundraising, getting support, and planning it all. It's probably just destined for the regional sports networks, but it's still something new." The trio ate quietly then drove over to the condo building. Kelly looked out over the Mystic River and at the Navy Hill Park below and felt great over remembering playing in the park as a kid. She looked at Heather who was silently watching her and felt that she'd love playing in the park too, especially as it was refurbished and more kid-friendly than the previous version. The condo was your typical condo unit, with lots of windows and shelves and lots of open space in the rooms. She noticed something odd which she asked about, the Realtor happily told her, "It's a pool and sun room. It's great for lounging in the sun without being outdoors. It's cool in the summer and warm in the winter with privacy glass and shutters overhead. Light comes in but people can't see inside." The sauna caused her to blush, the Realtor happily told her, "It's a simple sauna but it's perfect for two. I know that it also helps athletes, the neighbor next door uses his every fall and winter. It doesn't affect the rest of the room as it's isolated by the glass doors and has a separate dehumidification system." The more she saw, the more she liked of it. She saw that there were five bedrooms, Valerie gave her a big smile which meant that it was likely a sign that she'd have permanent guests in the future. The kids would have their own rooms, something important for a growing family. She was sold on the condo. She asked the cost then asked for time to get a loan in order. Valerie wisely told her, "A loan is ready to go at our bank. It's a legitimate loan, you have the money to pay it off." She nodded and signed the paperwork. Valerie thanked the Realtor and told the woman, "We had to let her see it in person first. She wasn't entirely convinced, but it's beyond perfect for them. It's big enough and in a great location with a huge draw nearby- all she needed was to see it. She knows my daughter is next door but it's different to see it in person." Valerie walked Kelly over and knocked on the door. A woman answered and hugged Valerie then gave Kelly the once-over. Valerie had to tell the woman, "She's the one your cousins mentioned. She's signed the paperwork for next door so you are getting new neighbors. Sorry if it's not the big businessman that used to live there, but I'd rather the kids not see the neighbors arrested by the FBI again." Sitting down, Valerie told Kelly, "This is Sylvia Gibson and her three little monsters: Matthew, Jae, and Jane. Jae's real name is Jaimie but she refuses to stop using her nickname so she doesn't get compared to her aunt. Matthew is taking after his father in looks and size, but his mom in brains. And Jane is the little mischief maker who loves causing trouble." Jane led Heather over to play without thinking, Heather looked at Kelly for help but Kelly just nodded. Kelly watched the two play and had to fight a smile as Jane wouldn't let Heather get away without the two having fun while the adults talked, with Jane enjoying leading them in their play. The two quietly talked back and forth as the adults watched, with Kelly seeing more and more of her daughter come out of her shell as she interacted with other kids. Sylvia asked what that was about, Kelly solemnly told her, "She's transgender and not used to other kids. She wouldn't let me put her in daycare without a fight so doesn't have much experience with other kids. She's only been out for a couple of days, she's trying hard to not be a boy anymore." Sylvia have a look of sadness on her face as she watched the girls. Valerie wisely told Sylvia, "She's still young, it's really just clothes and adjusting to mannerisms for the next nine years. She could grow out of it or she could simply accept that she has to wait to change and just be herself. She's accepting that it isn't overnight and magically she becomes a girl, she just needs to wait." Matthew was listening and asked if they cut off her boy parts like Tatum. Valerie shook her head then told him, "That was an emergency. It only happens when there is nothing else to do but surgery. She isn't hurt and she isn't sick and she wasn't in a bad accident so she isn't getting surgery until she's 18. I know it's tough to accept, but what happened to Tatum was horrible and only happened because her father did a horrible thing to her to hurt her beyond repair. Heather isn't having that happen to her." Kelly asked if it was true about Tatum Toro, Valerie nodded and once Matthew was out of earshot told her, "It was lucky that she didn't die long before the surgery. His steel-toed boot crushed both testicles as well as pinched multiple nerves and restricted blood flow to the penis and testicles. When she showed it to her psychiatrist she was rushed into immediate surgery. She had issues with blood clots after surgery that were causing her health to fail prompting the final surgery to reroute things. It was a mess, all due to her father's abuse. And the truth is even worse: he did it because she came out at three-years-old!" Kelly looked over at Heather and was thankful that she didn't suffer in that way. Valerie sensed exactly what she was thinking and happily told her, "She's more stable than Tatum was. Tatum was scared to do anything feminine after her father kicked her, Heather is standing strong and showing that it wasn't just a statement of attention. She's going to take a long time to accept that she can't do more than wear her clothes as part of being a girl, but she's at least picking up a lot of mannerisms and acting like a girl." After she stopped talking, Valerie's phone rang. She put Jessica on speak and listened as Jessica told her, "Mack Ross is a real peace of garbage. Nick's parents are there but kept away from everyone- not just Nick. They're up on the second floor of the house with no way out and nobody to help them. Mr. Ross is an invalid but is able to speak freely to you and really only lacks mobility. His stroke was on one side and with rehab he'll be able to move again. A powered wheelchair would allow him to go out and about after that. Mrs. Ross is only able to go from the bedroom to the bathroom and requires all meals to be brought to her. She has bad knees which limits her mobility but with surgery she'd be alright again." Valerie asked about Nick's relationship with them, Jessica angrily told her, "They were told that Nick had refused anything to do with them. When we asked if they were aware that Mack had a restraining order against Nick Mrs. Ross grew upset. When we told her that the reason why we were there was to do a check on them at Kelly's request they were upset that she hadn't contacted them sooner and then at their son for lying to them about their daughter-in-law being kept away. They were completely unaware that they were grandparents, they were told by Mack that the baby had died! And when told that they were going to be grandparents again they were in a sad state. I fear for them as it's clear that they are trapped where they're at and have no way of getting help. They were completely alone, I'm issuing a report to the state about what's happening and getting the Attorney General's Office involved. Reed can't do anything, but Aunt Kennedy can." Valerie agreed and added, "It's in our area now. Nick has to sue for custody and care of his parents as it's clear that his brother isn't properly caring for them. He'll have to hire someone to help with their care, but if it's as you say all they really need is a place that can allow them to move around again." Kelly shed a tear and thanked Valerie, Valerie countered, "This is a double-help. Miguel would want us to help out of respect for his teammate but as you're involved we're helping because you're family. His parents will get the help that they need, even if we have to ensure that his brother is the one kept away." The trio had dinner at the Gibson home, John called Valerie to tell her that he was eating out with the four younger Finns so there was no need to rush home. He was being sly about it, Cat wouldn't ask her usual tough questions if she was distracted by her favorite barbecue foods. JD was blase about all of it, Ella and Logan wisely didn't talk about it and let their siblings be oblivious to the situation. Jane was all over Heather to the point that the two were inseparable. Jae wisely let her sister have all of the attention as she was more concerned with watching TV. Matthew simply kept to himself and didn't do much with the girls, Kelly wanted to ask about that but Sylvia whispered, "He's being normal. He's a loner whenever he's not with his cousins. He loves them deeply, but without Simon or Violet he's bored easily. Simon's better at keeping him focused on games while Violet is more into coloring and art." After dinner, the three went back to the Finn home but first saw Heather reluctantly part from Jane. She actually didn't want to leave, a first for her as she never wanted to stay over anyone's house before. She was taking another major step towards being herself as she had to fight tears as they parted ways. At the Finn home, John asked about their day then gave an angry look that Valerie had to quell. She had her, "Don't do it" face which he backed off at seeing. When Heather went down for the night, Kelly and John talked about the day and saw him softly telling her, "You'll get the loan and likely interest-free as it really is a quick loan that he'll repay as soon as he can. They're doing it as a favor to me but having him as a customer opens doors for future contacts with him." She nodded and let it go. He didn't have to really say it, but he was putting his money behind him. She knew that he was the real reason for it, he'd cover it if there was trouble since it was a small amount. He brought up the Rosses and their situation, with John insisting, "They're going to move in with you. It is their only real option as your brother-in-law clearly isn't caring for them to the point of neglect. If he left them all alone without any way of helping themselves then he's up to no good. I'd call them his own hostages as he's treating them like that in hopes of getting at his brother's money. It's a classic ploy, he's about to face a force he can't intimidate or threaten without it backfiring 10-fold. Miles and David are going to have a talk with him about their living conditions while Jessica and Jenna go to court on your husband's behalf. My gut tells me that he'll try to use Heather as leverage to get something from Nick, it will happen after one of the scumbags on the Red Sox goes after Nick for Heather's transition." Kelly grew concerned, John shook his head and countered, "He has nothing on you. If he tries to go after you it'll end up in court with the case heard in Suffolk County instead of Franklin. Judge Olsen will be on the lookout for the case and send it here as you are now residents of the city. The bank will transfer all of money to the condo owner after you sign the loan agreement and you'll be able to move in on this Saturday. You'll have all of the help that you want, the pack mules will be helping. Ian needs the break, he is getting a bit too big behind the desk in Endicott. Being police chief is a pain for the big guy." Valerie had to explain, "Remember the big, tall, strong police officer from school? That's Ian. He's one of the family through his wife, who's my sister Lilly Peterson's niece. I know it's a lot to process, but we're a huge family now- probably five times the size that you knew thanks to marriage and adoptions." John continued, "Custody of your in-laws is simply showing that he's abusing them by trapping them in his house with no escape in case of danger, no access to food or drink, inadequate care, and likely not even taking them to the doctor for examinations. They'll need exams and if what you said is true then it will mean that they need rehabilitation which Jessie, Eric, and Rebecca can provide. His father is one of the easier cases as it's just repetition and muscle memory, while his mother needs longer but hers is just a matter of working her muscles after recovery. I've seen it before with my friend Oliver Leeds, he's in a rehab for similar reasons and is growing stronger every day because of help from the therapists." Down in Florida, Mitch Gibson met with Nick and Miguel and talked about some things that he had on his mind that he wanted straightening out. His first order of business was simple: showing off the new condo to Nick, which Nick was practically drooling over. Miguel happily told him that the pool was a great relief for sore muscles and the sauna was great for relaxing and other things, which caused Mitch to blush at with Miguel purposely saying that as Mitch knew it was the reason for Jae and Jane. Nick asked why so many bedrooms, Miguel wisely shot back, "Your parents are going to move in with you. There's no way Valerie allows them to be under your brother's care, I'm betting good money that in the next day you'll hear from her about them and what's really going on out there. If she hasn't already then she's waiting for Jessica and Jenna to be clear to send them after your brother. It won't end pretty, but it will end up with your parents getting whatever help they need and your brother leaving you all alone. I've seen some vultures before, but something is way off about his story and what he's doing to them. I mean- no contact for years? No acknowledging that you had a child? That's way off." Mitch received a couple of pictures and shook his head, telling Nick, "My little brat just forced Heather to be her new friend. And she's got her sister going along with it, with the two playing nicely instead of trying hard to annoy their brother. She did a miracle: she got them to act mature for once." Nick smiled at the picture, Heather was happy and playing quietly with Jane. Kelly was with Valerie so it was clear why they were there. He saw Matthew in the background and tried to ask about him. Miguel chuckled while Mitch proudly told him, "He's just bored so he's watching a movie. He doesn't do much without his cousins so he stays alone or watches over the girls to keep them from fighting. It's not a bad thing, he's just not interested in playing whatever girls are playing there." Things turned to finances and what Miguel was doing with his money. Nick listened and was enthralled at Miguel's plans for the TV show, especially as it sounded like something you'd see to see if it turned into a disaster or a success. There wasn't anything like it on TV so it had a chance to be original and not copy anything while still being a usual reality show. Nick was asked if he wanted in on the show as a producer. He didn't know if he could afford it, Miguel suggested that he invest some of his retirement money into the production company so that he'd at least make the money back indirectly from the next movie being produced. He was reluctant to do it without his wife's consent, with Miguel agreeing to hold off on anything until Kelly gave her opinion. Mitch being there caught the media's attention. When he walked out after their evening talk he told the reporters, "I'm showing Nick Ross his new home, he's moving next door to me and wanted to see what the place looked like ahead of moving. It's the exact same layout and features some things that he'd need for keeping in shape and keeping his kids distracted: a pool, sauna, and a nearby park. We were also discussing business matters with Uncle Miguel as Uncle Miguel has a proposal that I wanted to put forward that Nick might want to get in on. Given that his wife is a longtime friend of multiple members of Inferno Productions including one of its leading actresses it was a no-brainer to consider him as part of the company, even if he hasn't accepted being part of the company yet. I don't need your permission to conduct private business with fellow shareholders nor do I need your permission to talk with any of our business partners. I don't see you scrutinizing other players for knowing athletes from other sports nor do I see you asking why they are investing their money in something outside of baseball. You never questioned any of the guys opening sports bars or car washes or buying into minor league teams, he's in a prime place to invest some of his previous earnings into something that's close to home for him and is a big part of the lives of several of his wife's friends." He grinned and happily told them, "Nick has a right to invest where he wants and in what he wants and is doing so with what he earned. He doesn't need your validation nor does he have explain himself. It's a legitimate investment, one that you have seen several members of the team make in the past. It's not his fault that those investments failed because they were tricked. Given that this is being done with the blessing of John Finn and the board of Inferno it's something being done with great care." He didn't have to say anything further, the name drop was key as John wouldn't let Nick invest unless it was a surefire return for him. And Nick hadn't agreed to it, Kelly had the final say and with the money being tied-up in the condo deal there wasn't much room for buying into a TV show. Mitch knew that it would end up happening at some point, with Miguel likely waiting until Nick could afford to invest. Mitch being there caused some of the reporters to look into Nick's life for other reasons. If he was with Finns then he had to have a good reason, his wife wasn't a good enough reason to them as she wasn't a Finn as far as they knew so was fair game in their eyes. It was a foolish belief, but they weren't known to be geniuses and relished the challenge of taking down the next big athlete in Boston sports. They focused in on Heather and the claims that she was being abused due to her crossdressing. It was a tired claim but it still got views and led to whispers about athletes. Nick was going to be marked as an abuser even if they had no idea that they were opening themselves up for a massive lawsuit from him. The reporters posted the story online and saw their colleagues run with it. They got backup for each of the claims form the former AGM and teammates, several with an ax to grind for Nick beating them out of a call-up the previous season when he spent two separate months on the roster. The AGM was one of the worst people to use as a source given his firing, but that didn't matter to the reporters as what he had to say was pure gold even if it was clear that he was lying about everything. As they expected, the story was picked-up nationally and started to spread. Miguel saw the stories over breakfast and cursed the AGM out loud then called the team's legal team to get after the AGM for lying to the press and revealing sensitive information. Miguel's latter claim was easily proven as he was the only person who knew about Nick's involvement with a charity group the previous year that had a bad reaction to players refusing to attend the day camp the group held, with Nick forced to be there due to being the newest person and the only one unable to refuse to attend. The camp was a disaster as the kids were only there for publicity, with the charity a tax write-off for the AGM's friend. Nick was only there for an hour and only did a couple of short drills with the kids, none of whom interacted with him directly and all of whom were kept apart by security. Nick's involvement was minimal, Miguel actually had more to do with the kids and was the one who was stuck doing all of the main drills with the kids while Nick put on and took off his gear before leaving during another drill. The team's lawyer was familiar with both claimed incidents and was ready for a counter that the reports couldn't refute. Every other team employee there that day supported Nick and showed that the only one making the claim was doing so in retribution for his firing. The reporters would have to come up with a second source, with the only ones likely to make the claim being the AGM's friend but that would end up hurting the AGM as the man himself wasn't even there. But the claims were enough to cause some to demand a suspension pending inquiry, followed by Nick being fined heavily. The team waited until noon then hit back hard, going for the throat and accusing all of the reporters of knowingly printing lies then showing the entire video of the camp with Nick clearly coming and going form the ballpark while the entire group was working on drills. That was backed by security footage from outside and bank charges for gas at the same time the kids were in their last drills with Miguel and miles away from the ballpark. The team knew that there was no counter so they addressed the real issue, showing that all of the claims stemmed from the AGM's transphobic views as he had been disciplined for crass statements about the transgender children of multiple charities that participated in camps as well about Tatum Toro and then Heather Ross. Nick gave his blessing so the team's PR person loudly stated, "Nick Ross isn't going to lie to you: he has a transgender daughter. She is receiving treatment under the care of a leading expert in transgender children. He does not deny that he has allowed his daughter to dress as female as it is part of her treatment plan. She is attending a preschool that has extensive experience with transgender kids and is no stranger to the laws and procedures for transitioning. Your own ignorance aside, there was not a single incident of abuse against Nick's daughter except by our former assistant general manager. His crass behavior was directed at not just Nick's daughter, but at Miguel Toro's daughter. She is known to all of you, as is her tragic circumstances. Those circumstances were alluded to in a vulgar slander, one overheard by a member of the ownership group attending a meeting at the complex. He fired the AGM on authority of the ownership group as well as our HR department. We won't tolerate such behavior by representatives of this team. This extends to players as well as front office personnel. Three players are hereby suspended until further notice, with the league being notified about why. They chose to lie about the alleged incident in Boston, one that you have seen for yourself never happened." The damage was done, the team stood by Nick and turned the tables on the AGM and his supporters. It was going to be a pain dealing with the league, but given that they went after a player's family member for doing nothing wrong wrong and following all guidelines it was worth it in their eyes. They wouldn't be missed, they had just ensured that no clubhouse would welcome someone who went after families of players- one of the most serious unwritten rules of baseball. Their suspensions were a boon for Miguel as he was told that he would be retained by the team due to a need for more relievers and being the most experienced and in shape among the relievers. They didn't want to come out and say it, but he was going to be their closer yet again due to the actual closer being out with an injury and his replacement suspended pending contract termination. Miguel knew that this was a blessing in disguise, he had no chance of being let go no matter what so he'd show that he wasn't a wasted choice and would work his butt off showing that he belong on the team regardless. The team was divided over what was happening. Miguel knew he had the majority of support among the players, but there were a few stalwarts whose strong religious beliefs caused them to only see whatever their pastor told them to see. The suspended guys were part of that clique, with their pastors being the most powerful in the Boston area and able to call upon legions of, "Devoted" from several of the surrounding states if needed. The lines became more and more evident as the day wore on and Miguel had to jump clear of several of the guys' line drives aimed directly at his head. Nick's quick reflexes turned pitches aimed at his hip or head into long home runs or line drives that took down two pitchers and almost hit a reporter out in the outfield coincidentally doing a report about Nick's family life for one of the Boston sports shows. That reporter screamed foul but he chose to be out in the open during his at-bat and where most of the home runs would have gone so he had no excuse for being in the line of fire at that time. Miguel was dragged through the mud alongside Nick as Tatum's story was brought up and Miguel too accused of abusing her for allowing her surgery. The reporters had nothing to actually go on regarding Nick so they went for rehashing old claims and trying to create a story to keep the firestorm going. Its impact wasn't what they wanted as they couldn't get anyone else to state that Miguel harmed Tatum or that Heather had been abused in any way other than what was claimed already. The pastors didn't get the reaction that they wanted so called for a boycott of the team by all residents of their area, but that ended up backfiring as their congregations started to question just what their issue with the kids were as they had done nothing wrong and the only issues were claims of abuse that none except the AGM, a few disgruntled players, and people convicted of actually harming Tatum had said anything about abuse. The pastors tried to deflect and claim that it was morally wrong which astute and upset parishioners countered that it was morally wrong to abuse a child to the point of emasculation as well as morally wrong to allow a child to be harmed mentally because of the beliefs of someone else. It ended up doing the trick as they had no counter to that, with their next move being that they asked the ones who dared to confront them to leave and never return, starting a mass exodus of angry people. The news actually had footage of the confrontation and after an in-depth look at the pastors several of them had to answer questions about previous allegations of abuse against themselves and friends of the pastors leading to the real story emerging: deflection because of guilt. They had the indignity of losing a large amount of money as parishioners revoked aid to their churches leaving them now broke. The firestorm lasted just two days, but it did its damage. Miguel was looked at as a villain by some. It was worse for Nick, people couldn't talk to him without skirting around the brewing Heather issue. Up in Boston, Kelly awoke to the news story and had to fight tears as she felt like she was being seen as an abuser for trying to do the right thing for her daughter. John and Valerie read the article, made call after call to certain people, then assured Kelly that she was doing the right thing for Heather. It wasn't a big help, they still called her an abuser for, "Allowing the abuse of a child" for letting Heather transition. Cat and JD were reined-in by Ella and Logan, both of whom hugged Kelly before taking the twins out to their friends' houses so they weren't in the way at home nor cause Kelly to be even more upset. Ella felt the worst as she hated seeing what people would do to others just because they could, Logan knew it was all about power and would end up being exposed when his father showed real power- the power of the people over scumbags who hurt kids like the pastors were doing. He did what he could without John's approval, he went to people who could help and get them to do the needed digging to get at the pastors. His friend Junior Kelly, the son of a longtime columnist for Boston News and Reports, was waiting and knew just what Logan wanted to do. The two brainstormed what to do and how to do it then worked with Junior's father William to get the truth out there for all to see. Logan was ruthless, digging through news stories and articles online as well as in William's computer programs of article databases and found just what he needed to tear apart the congregations: accusers of the pastors, accusations against their biggest financiers, and actual arrests for assaults on kids against the pastors. He wasn't surprised to see that two had ties to Jackson Murphy, Rachel's disgraced criminal uncle who went after Iris years before leading to her becoming part of the Finns through Leslie, but to have a connection in recent years was even worse as he was one of the few who would make you get the law coming down on you as he was a huge fraudster alongside being an abuser. The pastors has to have known about that, and learned their tricks of the trade directly from the man himself. The boys let William take it from there, he'd get the right supporters involved and put the real story out there for all to see. He didn't have to have met Kelly to want to help her, especially as she was just an innocent girl whose only crime was that she wanted to be a good mother to her daughter. The use of the media to advocate for criminals and abusers was a step too far, William would protect Kelly and do it as only the husband of a woman like Heather could do. John read the text from Logan and sagely told Kelly, "Help is coming from the best possible places. You hit a nerve with William Kelly, he's going for the throats of everyone involved and not letting go until it gets resolved in your favor. His wife is trans, as is his cousin. You haven't met her yet, but Kennedy is one of the most powerful people in the entire state. She's also Reed's mother, and is keeping a close eye on this situation. His wife Amanda is trying to keep her elder son and his friends busy but it's tough as I know that they've talked with their elder counterparts about you. You have a vast amount of support, it's also coming with people who know how to exploit things to make them go your way- and legally." She didn't feel better after hearing that, but they didn't expect her to feel that way anyway. John let it go and focused on the day at hand, with Kelly going with him to the bank and talking with bank executive managers about the loan. He simply walked in and was known to the staff, with the executive secretary on him immediately to escort him to a conference room for the scheduled meeting. Once seated, John produced a loan application on Kelly and Nick's behalf and explained the situation to the managers. The name rung bells in their heads to which John nodded and told them, "He has money incoming along with money from a new deal down the road. He's good for it and has the majority of the loan already on hand. I'm asking that the bank loan Mrs. Ross the full amount at a low interest rate." Low turned out to be zero as the loan was basically just a temporary measure. John's backing meant the money was going to be repaid no matter what, and whatever wasn't immediately repaid would come in later through a potential endorsement deal that they'd target him for. John knew what the managers had been thinking and told them, "He'll consider endorsing your bank but only if it's not highway robbery." The deal was signed, Kelly signed on behalf of Nick and contacted the Realtor to transfer the money to the former owner. All of that took a few minutes and was over with with little formality. She now had a home to move into and would be able to be on her own from now on. John drove back home and announced to her, "We know that you want to be alone and do things on your own, but we also want you to know that you have help from us. You have friends who love you, people who care about you even if we don't show it. Reed is working on your behalf today, he's ensuring that a report of abuse isn't made about your allowing Heather to transition. Miles and David are doing a full wellness check on your in-laws, they'll have the official response this afternoon and I doubt it'll do your brother-in-law well. Rebecca is climbing the walls trying not to hurt your brother-in-law. Sam and Iris are trying hard to not offer you a place to stay while Nick is in Florida. And Francesca is flying East to see you. Each of them want to help you- they love you, even after all of these years." At the Finn home, Kelly worked with Valerie on logistics of the move. She ensured that they had all of the help that they needed and what they didn't have would be bought. Kelly blushed as she told her that they had everything thanks to Nick's diet and exercise regime so they only had to move things, Valerie smirked at that but had to give Nick credit for ensuring that they didn't do without. The rest of the day was spent heading up to Bradford to pack as much as possible, with Kelly having to endure her friends coming along for a lot of moral support as well as private talk with Kelly away from Valerie and John. Valerie wisely used that as her cue to leave and visit a neighbor, with Kelly seeing the neighbors for the first time and blushing as she recognized the face of Bryan Smith- her first big crush. Seeing her reaction to Bryan caused Iris to needle her about seeing her crush again. Kelly blushed then asked if she still obsessed over the Power Walk Boys, causing them to laugh hard at Iris. Iris countered, "I've met one, they're not that good-looking. I prefer a more refined person." Sam blushed and kissed Iris, with Kelly shedding a tear over the two getting so close so fast that they found love with each other. The couple hugged Kelly and kissed her cheek, giving her a quick, "He's the one for you. Nobody could find a better boy than Nick. Thomas can't stack up to him." The packing of pictures caused Kelly to blush and cry as she showed them pictures from high school, in college, and finally pregnant with Heather. The pictures of Heather made Kelly cry as she wasn't in a happy mood in any of them and in the later ones she looked upset. Looking closer, it was easy to see it was due to her starting to feel like a girl and not happy to sport a boy's shirt and shorts or jacket. Iris hugged Kelly tight while Sam explained to her, "She wasn't happy for a reason, you now know that reason. Anyone with half of brain can see that she wasn't a happy baby because she knew that she was a girl inside. I know the feeling, as does Reyna. Just because we're normal now doesn't change that we had tough preschool years. I'm glad dad found us because I don't know what I'd have done. I know that I'm female internally and would have died if I didn't get surgery to open up my vagina, but I was still a horrible wreck emotionally before then. You saw me when I was recovering, but I wasn't fully better." They left it alone after that, there was work to do and Sam was looking emotionally drained. She had a big connection to Heather, even if she was fully female it was still a connection. She hated that Heather would feel terrible for years until starting hormones, but at least Heather got help early. As they packed the remaining boxes, Iris asked about high school and what she did then. Kelly blushed but happily told them, "In Mississippi we'd drive out to the rural areas and makeout at one of the fields. I gave a couple of handjobs to boys because they wouldn't take no for an answer, they ended up with a testicle being burst as I yanked on them. One tried to make me give him a blowjob and I bit the head of his penis off. He refused to tell the police who did it, the deputies knew that I did it and wanted to put me in jail but his parents knew the truth and refused to prosecute. Mom and dad were furious at me, it made them look bad but I refused to let any boy hurt me. After that, mom and dad got in trouble. That's probably why they were upset at me, they were doing nasty things and didn't want attention on them." She blushed at what came next. She continued, "When I moved to Connecticut to stay with my grandma I met Nick the first day. He got stuck escorting me around because we had the same classes, but we hit it off immediately. We fell hard for one another, I didn't care that he was the star baseball player and he didn't care that I was there because of my parents' lewd actions. We dated openly after a month and he took me to the prom. I had to fight off boys wanting to show Nick that they were better than him and a couple of girls jealous that the newcomer 'stole their man' from them. Nick didn't care about any of the girls in school, he grew up with them and hated what they were: liars, sleeping with any guy who had a big penis, and stabbing other girls in the back just for fun. Literally, they stabbed two girls and avoided jail because of their parents claiming that it was self-defense. I was lucky that they were afraid of me." They knew what happened after that, it was all work and no play and Heather came along after the two graduated college. It wasn't that different from what they had done, especially the family issues. Poor Thomas related to her more than he wanted to, especially with the girl part. She sensed that something happened, Rebecca explained to her, "He had that happen to him. One girl in school tried to go after him freshman year, she claimed rape but was caught by the principal. She got in a lot of trouble the next year, she went to prion for child pornography and statutory rape for filming her having sex with freshman boys after she turned 18. Her sister is Reyna's sister-in-law Rosalind, we love Rosalind but it is hard for her to live down her sister's actions. She never comes around anymore now that she's almost out of college and has jobs lined up for months." They finished packing and walked over to the Smith home to face inquisition. The Smiths were outside with Valerie and greeted Kelly warmly. She blushed again, with Bryan trying not to notice it. Paige Smith happily asked what they were doing, Kelly looked away in shame to which Valerie finally told them, "She's moving out. She's moving next door to Sylvia and Mitch, her husband is getting a big promotion so wants to be closer to Boston. She's gotten a job with Beverly as well, she's taking care of her husband's finances and now will take care of other clients' finances for Beverly." Bryan groaned and complained, "Cat's already calling about her. She didn't say why she wanted to know if we'd seen our neighbors, she just wanted to know if we'd seen them. She sounded serious, why is she calling and what do we have to do to get her to stop?" Valerie quickly told him, "Cat's concerned that someone might try to do something to the house. She's moving out because we helped her get the condo quickly but Cat saw the news this morning. Someone might try to burn the house or worse, she didn't want us here in case it happened." Paige gasped and hugged Kelly. Bryan fought anger then told Valerie, "I'll ensure that the police know it isn't wise to help people who commit arson and that the State Police will be taking a keen interest in the chain of events going on here. You know someone will try something, they have to know that they live here and this town has no problem helping someone destroy a life." The group left. Valerie didn't ask where Bryan and Paige's twins were because the two were clearly out with their cousins. She wisely noted that it was convenient that they were away that weekend, the kids were too young to see the horrors of bigotry against people, especially against kids. The next day saw them moving everything out that was going south to Winnisimmet. They had all of it packed and in the van in under an hour, with Thomas complaining that he had to do all of the work for the ladies. Rebecca gave a snicker while Jessie complained that Reed was working that morning when he should have been up there helping them move Kelly's things. The drive was fast, Heather reluctantly joined her mother in the drive to the condo and was afraid of the people with her mother. Even though she was hugged and kissed she still felt afraid of them. Seeing her mother in tears as they entered the condo she immediately tried to protect Kelly from them. Kelly knelt down and kissed Heather, telling her affectionately, "I'm not upset at them, I'm happy to be here with them. This is our new home, you have a new pool and plenty of space to play. You can even play in in the sunlight when it's too cold to go outside, you hate being inside." She reluctantly moved away and watched as her mother's friends moved the boxes inside. She tried to help but was directed next door to play with Jane and Jae while the adults moved the boxes around. It was all that she needed to hear, with Heather's smiling face showing that she wanted to do that too. The beds and couches were a pain for Thomas, Rebecca, and Jessie but they managed them with a lot of laughs from their friends. Thomas tried to complain that they should have asked Eric and George to come help, or even Scott, but that was shot down by Sam and Iris. The two wanted it to just be them as too many people too soon might overwhelm Heather, especially with Scott being so protective of her. It took hours, but they finally had everything moved around and ready for Heather and Kelly to make it their own. Kelly went to get Heather but had to back away with a smile as she saw Heather asleep on the floor next to Jane, both clutching dolls in their arms as they slept. It was a huge step for Heather, it was something she had never done willingly and to do it without Kelly there meant she felt safe. Kelly's look caused the ladies to smirk. Iris and Sam hugged her as she cried into their shoulders, with Jessie telling the oblivious Thomas, "Heather's asleep next to Jane. She must never do that without her mother present. You remember how DJ wouldn't do that without Rebecca or Stacy there, Heather did it without Kelly and did it in a way that shows that she's starting to mature as a girl." He let it go and announced that he was leaving as the only things left were clothes and personal items. It wasn't his place to sort through Nick's things, and he sure as heck didn't want to go through Kelly's clothes. Rebecca would ensure that he cringed every chance she got, it wasn't worth the trouble to him. He stopped down in the lobby when he saw Stacy and Scott Nelson walking inside with their son. The trio spotted him and asked what he was doing there. He knew that he couldn't lie so told them, "I had to help the new neighbors move in. Rebecca is upstairs helping as well." He left before they asked more questions. Stacy and Scott went up to the penthouse floor and stopped short as they saw Rebecca and the others coming out. They demanded to know what was going on, to which Rebecca dragged the reluctant Kelly outside and explained, "Just helping an old friend move." Stacy wasn't sure what to say, Rebecca growled, "Geeze she's Kelly Ross. You knew her as Kelly Kole. We haven't seen each other in years but she's still a friend. And you'll just love this: her daughter is in with Jane and is trans. We didn't ask you for help because you'd go overboard. Her husband is the one getting raked over the coals by the scumbags in the Globe, again. All because she's doing what she has to do to help her daughter be happy." Scott was growing angrier which upset Kelly. Stacy calmed him and went to do what they came there to do, see Sylvia about something. Sylvia answered and told them to be quiet, pointing at sleeping girls on the floor and then at the napping Jae, "Watching" them from the couch. Out in the sun room, Scott asked what was going on since Rebecca wasn't forthcoming. Sylvia relayed what Mitch found out and had to endure Scott getting furious again. Sylvia smirked and told him, "The usual people know and are taking care of things. The media is getting a harsh reality, the guys who are egging this on are about to find out just how badly the messed-up by joining forces with the pastors." Scott didn't have to ask what she meant, Sylvia's smirk was enough to tell him that they were about to get themselves put through the wringer by investigations and public scrutiny and done so with them in a world of trouble once the investigations concluded. He only asked, "Where's Mitch? He's never out of town without a reason, where did he go and why is he away?" Sylvia again smirked, Scott shook his head and complained, "He's down south with the Red Sox doing a bit of investigating and getting some of the reporters that he trusts to do some digging on her husband's behalf. He's under the premise of investing in something Uncle Miguel is doing but really he's there to ensure that things don't get too out of hand and if need be- direct attention to himself. He can take hits, it's Uncle Miguel that's in trouble if they go after him." Sylvia nodded then added, "The deals are legitimate, he's actually the one that they want to help. Having him involved will get ratings and money, and he has the right personality. The issue is how much Mitch can get Nick's interest, which is pretty hard to do. Mitch and he might find something in common and go with it, but it's up to Uncle Miguel to facilitate things. And Mitch has already gotten attention on the right person, he's already called them out for their actions and making them make the next move." Scott's son Quentin asked what was going on. Scott tried to think of something but Stacy beat him to it and explained to the little boy, "We were just talking about your new aunt. Your Aunt Rebecca's friend is next door and will be living next to your Aunt Sylvia from now on. Her daughter is asleep on the floor with Jane, we'd have you meet her but we don't want to awaken her." Quentin nodded and left it alone, Stacy shook her head at her son being so accepting of things at face value that he'd not question someone new in his life. He simply watched TV while his parents talked, a trait he picked-up from his father and one that his grandparents weren't happy about but he always had a way of not upsetting them with his TV watching. He didn't pester the adults to hurry up, he knew that it was better to let them talk and endure the girls if they awoke before the adults were finished talking as it was better to be annoyed by them than upset the adults. When they finally finished, Stacy led Quentin next door and introduced him to Kelly. Kelly looked over the boy and smile, he looked just like his mother but had his father's hair and eyes. She held off an inquiry about Scott, Stacy blushed at her question but Rebecca happily told Kelly, "She got pregnant to have a piece of Scott just in case something happened. He's his father's son, but looks like his mom. I'm sure Scott hates having his father-in-law giving him a glare every time he sees Quentin and Scott." The group left after that, Quentin asked if Kelly was really his aunt or if she was another aunt who was new to them but got called an aunt. Stacy happily told the boy, "She's like your other aunts, only she's an older friend who moved away for a long time. She's your aunt and you're her nephew, even if you aren't blood or related by adoption or marriage. She's a great person, she's just new to us again." Out in the Western Massachusetts town of Prescott, things were looking bleak for the Ross family. The investigation into Mack took a turn for the worse as he received word of the DCF visit. He was home at the time, with him refusing to allow State Police troopers inside to check on his parents despite orders from the court to do so. There was a standoff, with local police called by him to help him. When the police appeared and tried to get the troopers to leave they immediate backed away upon seeing Kennedy Pena appear and tell the officers that they were impeding a state investigation and had no right to stop any State Police trooper from enforcing a court ordered search warrant. They entered the building ahead of the troopers and detained Mack, with the officers refusing to let him go until the troopers finished. Kennedy and the troopers made their way upstairs to where the Rosses were staying. Once there, it was easy to tell that they were in danger as the door was locked from the outside and the windows were barred. Essentially, they were living in a death trap. The troopers gave a closer look at the couple and called for an ambulance for both, it looked like they were severely dehydrated and malnourished with both struggling to speak. Kennedy walked out, told a trooper to place Mack under arrest, then proclaimed, "You're hereby under arrest for elder abuse. I'm going to file more charges at a later point after your parents are well enough to speak. They weren't in this condition two days ago, I have seen the video of DCF interviewing them, their condition has gone from bad to worse since then and the only factor that has changed is your presence." An ambulance took the Rosses away to the Cooley-Dickinson Hospital in Northampton for treatment, Kennedy told the local officers that the house was sealed per order of the state and anyone inside would be considered an accessory to abuse. She wasn't fooling around and personally called the chief, with it then relayed back to the officers that they had to leave immediately. The chief wasn't about to play any games with Mack, after multiple run-ins with Kennedy over the years he respected her and did not want her to take out her anger on him over something that he had nothing to do with. Doctors examined the couple and announced to Kennedy that she was right- they were dehydrated and starving but weren't too bad overall. With someone to care for them and proper medical care they were going to be fine,especially as each had treatable conditions. Surgery on Mrs. Ross and rehab to get Mr. Ross moving again would allow them to be able to be on their own again. She drove to Winnisimmet and asked to speak with Kelly, then explained the situation to her. She was in tears and felt for them, then asked if they would be allowed to live with her and Nick. Kennedy gave a big smile and happily announced, "You just gave them what they needed most: a place to go. They're in need of a place that can allow them to move around freely, with an elevator to leave and a bathroom and kitchen on the same floor. They'll be able to live with you, if the accept." She asked about the restraining order against her and Nick, Kennedy laughed hard then explained, "It's long since expired. Mack Ross never bothered with it and lied to the judge in the first place. There was no evidence and the person he used as a 'witness' was a known liar paid for his services. The judge had to have known that, but as neither of you were in court there was no way to refute the claims." She let that sink in then added, "I suggest that you go visit them tomorrow. They'll be better and it's the best thing for them. They'll need help and you can give it to them. Nick is busy, as their next of kin by his marriage we'll be asking that you be their temporary caretakers until Nick returns." She gave the information to Kelly and left, with Kelly immediately calling Nick for help. Nick listened and told her, "Offer them the chance to stay with us. We have the space, we have what they'll need to get better. I don't want them to feel obligated or alone, and I want you to have company and support." He asked who was going with her to Northampton to see his parents, Kelly was unsure and couldn't tell him. He thought it over and told her to ask Rachel and Reyna to go, they were the best bets for her. She had little time with the two due to their being in Florida and working, she didn't want to upset them by asking such a big favor after only knowing them for a short period of time. When she clicked off, she struggled with asking Reyna and Rachel for help. She took a while to gather her strength but finally made the call, with Rachel agreeing on Reyna's behalf. She could sense Kelly's turmoil and warmly told Kelly, "We want to help you. It's what family does, help others. You asked for help because you need it, you don't know know how they'll react to you so need help. We want to help. I owe you, I have to repay you for the crap I pulled on you in 6th and 7th grade." Rachel's sincere plea caused Kelly to thank her. The next morning saw them awakening Heather early to drive out west to the hospital, with Heather complaining about the long drive. She brightened when Rachel told her that they knew a place that she could go to have fun, all she had to do was be good for the day and they'd take her there- a place they knew well, her mom went there as a kid too. Kelly blushed at the memory while Reyna complained that they were spoiling her. Rachel countered, "I can spoil he all I want, I like spoiling the kids. She needs some fun, especially away from Jane." Kelly had to endure phone calls from her friends not long after they reached Worcester. Rebecca wasn't happy that they left the six of them back East, but Kelly wisely countered, "You guys have to work. It's hard to take a day off when you have patients to help. Reed is working hard as well, and Thomas has to go to school. I wanted you guys to come, but Rachel and Reyna were free. I'm just glad that Francesca is busy out West or it'd be a circus when we got there." At the hospital Reyna and Rachel had to show IDs to the trooper awaiting them then escorted Kelly to the room. The trooper didn't have to ask what they were doing there, as far as he knew they were there to help Kelly because both sported Attorney General's Office IDs. Their true connection wasn't known but it was a big help for Kelly since she needed their moral support as she struggled with entering the Rosses' room once she reached their ward. Before she could enter, the doctor asked to speak with her. He demanded to know who she was as there was supposed to be no visitors allowed. Kelly was about to speak but Rachel interceded and explained, "She's here on behalf of her husband, Nicolas Ross. As his spouse, she's family. With her husband out of state she is acting on his behalf with his full consent. If need by, my boss can confirm that to you." He tried to challenge her but the trooper appeared and asked if there was a problem. The doctor tried to say something but the trooper explained to him, "You do not have the right to restrict visitation and you do not have the right to refuse family access. She's here at the request of Mrs. Pena, with her expecting a report from Mrs. Ross when Mrs. Ross returns home this evening. Should she report that she wasn't allowed to visit because someone who has no right to restrict access felt the need to bar access to her in-laws, well you would have to explain to the state and this hospital's board why you were arrested for violating the rights of patients and their family." The trooper moved the doctor aside and allowed Kelly to knock on the door then enter the Ross' room. Heather stayed outside with Reyna and Rachel until given the world to enter, it wasn't time yet for her to meet them. Kelly needed to talk to them to let them know what was happening, just in case there was any drama and they didn't accept Heather as a girl. Once inside, April Ross saw Kelly and gasped. Troy Ross couldn't speak, he was still very tired but seeing Kelly in the flesh for the first time in years caused him to lose all words that he might have been able to form. Kelly stood strong, but the fact that she was visibly pregnant and scared to be there with the couple quelled any questions until they heard what she had to say. After a couple of minutes of silence, Kelly finally explained to them, "I'm sorry for shocking you but I came at Nick's request. It's my fault that you are here. We were asked about you by my friends' family and couldn't stop them from trying to help you. I didn't want you to be hurt, I just wanted to know that you were alright. I know we aren't supposed to be here, but we couldn't leave you all alone." Calming herself, she explained, "My friends felt that there was something going on with you. You have not seen us since we told you that we were pregnant. I told my friends about you, it led to their parents asking questions which led to that visit from DCF the other day. They want to help you, so I have to. I don't want you upset at us, we just want to help you get better." April softly asked about Nick. Kelly sighed and told her, "He's down in Florida with the Red Sox. He's making the roster this year, he's their best catcher and likely to be their best hitter. His teammate is close with my old friends, his niece is married to one of the people I once told you about- the bully of our year. I wish that I had been there for what happened to her, but she's nothing like what I remember in school. Nick tried to get me to see that she's changed, and it worked. She's why you had the Deputy Attorney General take you from the house, she's why you're going to get better." She had to calm herself again. When she settled, she told them, "Nick and I are pregnant with twins, we also have another child as you know. She's three-years-old. She's also transgender. I wish that she was a normal boy but she isn't. She's all girl, no matter how much I try to remember the boy I gave birth to, I can't see it. You have a lovely granddaughter, she's waiting outside for the OK to meet you." She was in tears, hoping that they didn't react badly. April struggled for words, Troy asked if it was documented as he didn't want anyone upset at them hurting his grandchild. Kelly nodded, tearfully telling him, "She was diagnosed a week ago. She has been slowly improving each day. It's not just being able to wear girls clothing, it's her acting like a girl and enjoying liking dolls and other little things." The sincerity on her face showed that she was deeply serious about Heather being able to live as a girl and be free to grow-up as a girl. They tried to not ask for specifics, Troy wanted to know more but then April asked if they could meet their little granddaughter. Kelly tearfully agreed and left the room, then returned a second later with the timid Heather in tow. Heather was wearing a dress and matching butterfly barrettes with matching shoes that told the world that she was a girl and proud of it. She grabbed onto Kelly's side, waiting for Kelly to say something as she looked over at the two people in front of her. After a minute of silence, Kelly knelt down and told the scared girl, "These two people are your daddy's mom and dad." She looked scared then asked if they were the ones her uncle wouldn't let them see, causing April to angrily tell her, "We are. We didn't know that you existed or else we would have wanted to meet you. Your uncle kept telling us that your daddy moved away and that you had died, we didn't know that your daddy was going to be playing in Boston or that you were alright. We're sorry for that." Heather stuck close to Kelly, Kelly asked if they were alright with Heather to which April stated, "I wouldn't be happy with my son if he tried to ignore the problem. I don't want her upset, I've read about that situation in magazines and seen a lot of stories about people hurting themselves. I never thought it would impact us, but I don't want her hurt." Kelly brought Heather closer to her grandparents, with Heather hugging them tightly. April saw in Heather Nick even though she resembled Kelly, Troy saw Kelly and gave a small smile as memory after memory of the young lady who won his son's heart started to flow into him. Seeing Heather gave the two something that they hadn't had in a long time: family love, with Heather needing their love. Troy asked about her being pregnant. Kelly blushed then told them, "I'm having twins, they are due in late July. They are going to be boys, I don't know if they're identical or fraternal yet." He seemed happy with that, Kelly let that go and asked if they were willing to live with her and Nick in Winnisimmet so that they could get treatment. Troy tried to refuse, but April happily told her, "We'd be happy to stay with you if you have the space. I don't want us crammed, especially when you have twins to deal with along with our granddaughter." Kelly gave a sigh of relief then explained, "It's a five-bedroom condo with pool and sauna. Two of my friends are physical therapists so want to work with you to get better. Their aunt insisted on the condo so that you could go outside, you won't be trapped at home 24/7 anymore." That seemed to satisfy them, Kelly added, "The neighbors are alright with all of us being there. They're a great family, the husband is a pro football player and his wife works for the Patriots front office. They have three kids, the two girls have hit it off with Heather. Their family is one of the most powerful in all of Massachusetts, if not the entire northeast." April joked that they sounded like the fabled Finn family, Kelly blushed and then confessed, "They are Finns. It's hard to explain, but my old friends are part of the family through marriage and through being nieces. One isn't related directly but is considered to be a niece anyway. They're trying to get me to be their niece again but I don't know if I can be considered on yet." The Rosses were at a loss for words, Heather finally blurted out, "Mommy is their niece, Granty Valerie said that she was because she is family. She never stopped being family, she's their niece." The little one was acting like Kelly acted whenever she was serious about something. That little act of defiance caused April to smile at the little girl, she was definitely her mother's daughter. There was no way that she could be denied as family to them, they loved Kelly as a daughter and to offer them a home and moving to a place big enough for them with intent of being there showed that she was. April happily told Kelly, "We'll talk about this in private, but we'll move there when we are able to. I don't want to be a burden, but I don't want you to be alone. You need to focus on yourself and the little ones, we'll manage and endure. Nick won't forget us, he never did and never will." The two were starting to tire so Kelly and Heather left. Heather gave them kisses and hugs as she left, it was making Kelly's heart melt seeing her so loving towards them while the Rosses looked like they had won the lottery in meeting their next generation. She showed that Nick was really the son that they had thought him to be: honest, honorable, and doing what was right for everyone. When they were alone again, April did a lot of thinking about the past few years. They had been told by Mack that Nick abandoned them and refused to see them anymore, but that was shown to be a lie based on Kelly going out of her way to see them and take them in. Nick was nothing like Mack, they knew that he wasn't like what they were told but they were so upset that there had been no contact with him that over time they believed the lie and didn't try to call their son on it. They didn't talk much that night and in the morning they endured talking with a lawyer about what had happened and why. It was a long and tiresome interview that saw the couple trying hard to not yell at the lawyer. The lawyer tried to come up with excuses about what their elder son did then tried to blame Nick for all of it then directed the blame at Kelly. When he did that, April told him to leave. He protested and claimed that they couldn't do that, as their attorney they couldn't send him away. That only caused April to scream at him, "You aren't my lawyer and you sure as hell have no reason to be here!" She was going to call for help but a man entered and told the lawyer, "You are under arrest for fraud and criminal conspiracy. You aren't their lawyer, you lied to the nurses and hospital security about why you were here. You have no right to be here, and you sure as heck do not have any right to claim any care for Mr. and Mrs. Ross. The only one allowed to sign off on their care is their appointed caretaker, Mrs. Kelly Ross. You are not Nicolas Ross, their son and default caretaker, so you have no right to be here." As troopers led the man away, the new man entered their room and explained to them, "I'm Reed Pena. I am here on behalf of the Commonwealth investigating your situation. I need to ask you questions and I need honest answers. I have no interest in your son nor his wife, I am only here due to your case being placed in my hands at the request of the Attorney General." He asked as series of questions about their care and their relationships with their sons. He didn't try to go deep except when they talked about Mack. He seemed to be digging into their son's life and when they thought about it he was clearly trying to fish for information about their elder son. When he finished he explained to them, "Your elder son is under investigation for fraud and embezzling money from his employer. He was hired by them at the request of his friend as you said, but his real job was to oversee the books for the farming cooperative. We believe that he stole millions from the group and overcharged the state for services that were never performed. His held you hostage for four years to get at your younger son when the time came right. Unfortunately for him, his wife chose to move to the one place that your elder son has zero chance of influencing: Winnisimmet. His actions caught the eye of members of our fraud division after being transferred from our elder crimes division. He bit off more than he could chew in trying to keep you from talking to the state, in his actions this past week he has ensured that he is going to prison for abuse alongside fraud. I'm sorry, but you'll lose a son." Reed was asked about their other daughter-in-law, he explained, "They split after her parents retired and left the entire business to her brother. Your daughter-in-law only married him as a business move. She had zero interest in him, he was paid a modest settlement from her trust fund but otherwise they split. It's why your son had to find a job, his wife wasn't able to support him and without her money he had to support himself. It's also why he didn't sire any children: they'd be a burden for him that he could never escape from. As bad as that sounds, it's for the best that they didn't have children." Reed let that settle in then explained, "My wife demanded that we investigate your son on behalf of your younger son and daughter-in-law. She was right, your elder son is more astute than he lets on and his crimes were about to be exposed. He knew who your daughter was friends with even if she hadn't been in any contact with them for years. All it would take was one phone call to any of the group asking for help and his whole operation would crumble. It didn't happen the way that he would have expected it to happen, but it still happened." He asked what they knew about their son's career so far, when they admitted that they had not heard a peep about Nick for years Reed explained, "He was in Lowell, Portland, then Worcester before this year. He befriended a pitcher by the name of Miguel Toro, with Miguel acting as mentor to your son. During a trip to Florida to give your grandson a chance to be with his father before the start of the season, the duo met with Miguel's niece and her wife. Her wife recognized Kelly and vice versa. From there, pasts started to come out and before they knew it- Kelly was being invited to Winnisimmet by John Finn. It's from there that things really started: she was asked about her relationship with Nick's family, then about you two, then about your situation. That caused a visit from DCF social workers and then by my office. Kelly tried to do what was right for you, your son chose to try to keep you from talking to DCF again. I was asked to take on the case when his other activities were brought to us by another division, I found a bank account and multiple connections to your bank accounts. He has been pilfering your retirements as well as trying to sell your properties out from under you. He claimed that he had power of attorney to do those things but that wasn't actually true. Until we forced it away from him by court order he had a number of properties in your name that he bought and sol. You are now healthy enough to make your own decisions, anything done on your behalf for the past three years are being investigated and if found to be fraudulent we'll seek a return of your money and property. Nick has been informed of the entire situation and has deferred to Kelly for your care." They asked about his wife. Reed took a deep breath and explained, "She was Kelly's longtime friend, it's a friendship dating back to when they were two-years-old. The friends stayed together for 11 years and only broke apart when Kelly moved away. You know about what happened after that, she hasn't told us much about her time with her grandmother but we have pieced together that it ended when she went to college with Nick. She has been a doting mother ever since, and now has a job with a major financial firm in Boston handling financial planning for multiple multimillionaires, myself included." He asked about their former residence in Connecticut. April shook her head and told him, "We haven't been there in two years. As far as we know, it's simply abandoned. Mack had us moved in with him as he didn't want us living on our own since Troy had his stroke and my knees finally started to hurt too much to walk for long. I don't know of it sold it or not, I'm under the impression that the house that we were in was actually ours but Mack acted as if he owned it." April felt bad about telling Reed, "Kelly's grandmother passed away freshman year of college. She had a heart condition that she kept form Kelly that she couldn't fight any longer. We looked after Kelly in college, the house that she lived in after college was a gift from her grandmother. Her old home was sold by her grandmother to pay for their new home, she lived with us until she died. Nick thought that it was a gift from us, but she left it to them. She wanted them to have a permanent home just in case his baseball career didn't last long, both have degrees to fallback on just in case. Mack was upset that we didn't sell the house when they were in college, he had eyes on the money for himself but it wasn't ours to sell- Kelly owned it outright, not us. He got upset after that, I guess that was when he started to lie to us about Nick and cut us off from him." Reed didn't respond to that, he simply told them, "Arrangements have been made for your transport to a hospital in Boston. The doctors there want to ensure that you're well and can be alright at home. Kelly will remove what she can from your home, she'll also finalize the transfer of the properties to Nick for safekeeping. Your elder son's 'lawyer' is barred from the properties, as are any associates. We have the State Police and deputies putting notice on the properties on your behalf to keep it safe." He left after that, with the Rosses trying to figure out what was going on in their lives now as they had seen their lives torn apart and pieced together in the past two days. Kelly had a lot of powerful people helping her, especially if she had someone personally appointed by the Attorney General investigating their situation on her behalf. Things had gone sideways but it was only due to get better as Nick was now back in their lives and was fighting for them and wanted to be part of their lives instead of just the son who tried to make them proud with what he did on the field. The Rosses were released the next morning and driven East in two ambulances. The couple were bored by the long drive, but seeing Kelly there as they arrived made them feel better. Kelly had Heather with her and was struggling to hold the little girl back as the Rosses were taken out of the ambulances then led to the elevators for the trip up to the penthouse. Kelly wasn't alone, but the group with her didn't try to crowd the Rosses. At the door, Kelly explained that their room was ready and they had some modifications made so that they weren't forced to wait to get help. She insisted that it was done because of her friends insisting that it'd help them and not due to the couple being in need of more help than she could give. She led them inside and the couple immediately saw what she meant: their bed was a normal bed, but it featured rails to help them get in and out of bed as well as wheelchair-level height so transferring to the chairs was easier. They understood why it was that way, they needed it and it would allow them to get out and about easier especially now that they weren't stuck in the room alone. April was happy to see that Kelly had wanted to them to be self-reliant and able to be freer than they had been in a year. There was a motorized wheelchair there as well, which Troy tried to ask about as it looked to be out of place. Kelly sighed and explained to him, "It's for you. It's so that you can move about again. My friends don't want you in bed all day, it'll help in your rehabilitation and allow you to not need us to be around you all of the time. If it wasn't helpful we wouldn't have gotten it for you." She helped Troy into his new wheelchair then watched as he got used to the controls, with him in a fit of giggles as he was able to move without help for the first time since his stroke. His wife tried to be tough but seeing him happy to be able to move freely again softened her stance, with Kelly having her focus on herself and what she needed to do. April tried to walk like she was alright but the pain in her knees was evident and Kelly had to insist that she stop trying to put on a brave face for her. Once she stopped acting tough, Kelly explained to her, "You're going to see an orthopedic specialist for your knees. You need replacements, the pain is too much and you're going to hurt yourself worse unless you have the surgery. We've secured a doctor who's able to do the surgery with less impact on you but it will take a while to recover. Two months of pain and swelling is worth it to be able to walk again." The couple were at a loss for words, Kelly tried to say something but she was losing a battle and cried. April hugged her and thanked her for doing that for them, Kelly tearfully confessed, "I couldn't not do it for you. I care about you, even if if your son didn't believe it. You were kind to me and treated me like a daughter even when everyone else said that I was trouble for Nick. I couldn't let you rot out there anymore. I'm sorry for dragging you all the way out here, but I couldn't leave you there." April shed a tear as well, Kelly confessed something that she had kept deep inside for years. She then composed herself and told the sobbing Kelly, "We are proud of you, even if we haven't told you. You're the perfect daughter, the perfect compliment to Nick. We'd be proud to be called mom and dad by you. I'm happy that Nick saw the greatness in you, you proved that you deserve to be our daughter-in-law and are more of a Ross than our other son ever was. We're happy for you, all three of you." Kelly was weeping over hearing that, with Heather giggling at her mother's tears. She tried to hone in on the affection and ended up in a crushing hug from April that only led Kelly to cry more tears as Heather's smiling face belied her mischievous nature. Heather wanted something from Kelly, with her happily telling Heather, "OK, you can go play with Jane. Be nice to Matthew and Jae." Heather cheered and went next door to play with Jane, with Jane cheering loudly as she opened up and let Heather inside. Mitch came outside and gave a head shake with Kelly having to hide a smile as he told Kelly, "Those two are going to be bouncing off of the walls for the next hour. I'm glad that Matthew went out today or else the girls would be screaming just to annoy him." He looked over at Kelly and asked if everything was alright. Kelly happily said yes to which Mitch told her, "Nick wanted me to ask about an investment opportunity that Uncle Miguel came up with. I think that he's the right person to join as a producer. We think it'll get picked- up by one of the networks if he does well enough this season, his name alone will get viewers. He didn't want to agree to it without your input. It might be his money, but as his wife and financial planner it's your approval that matters." Realizing his mistake, he quickly introduced himself to the Rosses. Troy was stunned and asked if he was the same Mitch Gibson from the Patriots, Mitch laughed and shot back, "The one and the same. I also happen to be one of the few people who can claim to have been unafraid of getting bowled over by a lineman- I've faced an angry Hannah Smith and Cat Finn and that's much scarier than a nearly 400 pound man running at met full speed. I don't know if Kelly ever saw either of them upset- it's horrible!" Kelly blushed and shook her head, telling him, "Hannah wasn't upset at anything. I think the only time it came close was Mr. Finn getting accused of fondling her in school but she wasn't that upset- Bryan was more than her. I think Mrs. Finn was outraged when Jaimie was hurt after 7th grade but never Hannah." Mitch sighed and told her, "Ma and pa will be upset if you keep calling them 'Mr. and Mrs.' They have known you long enough for you to call them Uncle John and Aunt Valerie. You're one of their nieces, a long time away doesn't change that. They care about you too much to not let you see them as anything but an aunt and uncle- you are family, it's why Uncle John bought the condo for you without telling you that he wasn't letting you repay him. It's why he had me try to convince Nick about the investment, it's why you're going to agree to it- because you know that he's right." Kelly was searching for words then asked, "He bought the condo? Why? We have the money!" Mitch laughed then shot back, "It's because of us. Do you have any idea how hard it is to find neighbors who don't want to exploit knowing me, don't want to use Sylvia to get at pa, don't trash the kids for the fact that they're kids, and don't care one bit about looking good for other people? He wants you to stay here and live, to give Jane a friend close by who loves being her friend, and to allow you peace of mind and never have to worry about being alone. It's also saving your friends from buying it for you: Reyna, Rachel, Iris, Sam, Francesca, Donald, and Jessie would have fought over who paid for it. He stepped in and ended the fight. Trust me, they were arguing for hours yesterday. Pa loves you, even if he never got the chance to show it. Ma cares about it too, she's doing her best to keep Pa in line and only let him buy the condo. It's already paid for in full, the loan was just him setting up your trust fund again. It was in escrow for years, he did a bait and switch on you with the bank helping their favorite customer." He left to allow her to get settled, with Kelly receiving texts from her friends that they'd see her later on that weekend. She understood what they meant, the family needed to be alone. Heather got off because she had been good and was only next door, she also needed to get used to being around other kids. Valerie came by after they had lunch and ensured that they were settled- in. She had a good reason to be there, she was intent on helping the couple with their legal issues. The fact that she'd be helping Kelly as well as Heather was a bonus, the Rosses needed help that only she could bring. Valerie led Heather next door with Heather practically running to the door at he mention of Jane. Once she returned, Valerie explained to the Rosses, "We need to talk about some things. Your son claimed that he has 'power of attorney' over you and that you gave him the right to sell your home. I doubt that it's a valid claim, but if it is then I'm sorry to say that your home in Connecticut is gone. His Prescott home is seized by the state at a crime scene and being held until your situation is resolved. We believe that it's a likely purchase from the theft of money from his employers and whatever he might have made from the sale of your former property is held in a separate account that he has in addition to the stolen money." She asked about them being taken to their son's home. April explained, "My knees had just gone to the dogs and my husband was feeling horrible. His heart wasn't working right, but he hated having to see a doctor about it. Our son told us to come stay with him and his wife for a while then put us up on the top floor. I couldn't get down the stairs and my husband was feeling too ill to move. Then he had a stroke, I couldn't leave him and our son wouldn't move him to a rehab center. We were up there for two years, it became our only place. We'd watch TV and read but we couldn't do much. He'd feed us and we had the bathroom but we couldn't leave. After the visit from those social workers he stopped feeding us then he shutoff the water so we were thirsty. I don't know how much longer we'd have lasted before the State Police and that woman came for us. We're grateful to Kelly for doing that for us, our own son kept us prisoner for two years! I don't know why, I hate to think that we'd done something wrong!" Valerie explained, "You didn't do anything to him, this was all to cover himself. He knew that your son would come looking for you, especially after he got involved with Miguel Toro. Miguel's sister and her husband are tough people to keep away from, especially if they think something is wrong. That wasn't the real problem, the real problem turned out to be Kelly and her ties to us. She might have forgotten it, but we never leave anyone on their own. Her links to my niece Rachel were stronger than whatever the Byrne-Toros have to Nick, and they were links that couldn't be ignored. Your daughter-in-law wanted to help you and did, she told us about your situation and after looking into it we took action. Your son is in trouble for a lot of things, all thanks to his arrogance and not due to Nick." With that out of the way, Valerie's main reason for being there was brought up. She asked if they really were alright with Heather being transgender and what would they do if they weren't OK with her being transgender. She made it apparent that she wasn't going to like any answer but the truth, so the couple had to think for a minute before they could explain how they truly felt about Heather. April looked over at her husband who had a look of disappointment at being put on the spot but it wasn't worth it to lie nor evade the question. She explained to Valerie, "We aren't happy but we can't hurt her. She was scared of us, but seeing her today she looked like she was happy and isn't acting like she's putting on a show. It's tough to see someone so young hurt, we don't want her harmed because of us." She knew what her husband was thinking and added, "We would rather have her happy and safe than be what she thinks she has to be to please us. Our sons were miserable trying to make us happy, Nick gave up and forced us to see that he was an athlete and wasn't going to give up on his dream until he had no choice but to give up. He went to college because we wanted him to have a fallback plan, we're happy that he graduated even if it was only biding his time until he could play professionally. Kelly also did it and we are upset that she didn't find work but with Heather we understand why she didn't do it. I hope that she finds a job that accepts her motherhood because it's sickening to not work as a mother. Heather is like her mother, we can see it in her. She has her father's stubborn streak which makes things all the more tough for her as we can see that if she isn't able to do what she needs to do she'll do it anyway and it might be horrible. We don't want her to hurt herself, we'd rather she be a girl than worse- dead." Troy weakly added, "Nick and Mack went through phases of dressing like girls. Nick doesn't remember it and his brother refuses to admit it, but they both did that. It's not the same with Heather, I can see that it's more intense. She loves being a girl, she is happy. She is nothing like the boys were, I can't see any boy in her. I don't want her to hurt herself because we can't accept that our grandson isn't our grandson. Kelly and Nick can have more kids, they can't have another Heather." There was nothing else to discuss so Valerie left, with her immediately telling John, "They're accepting it but are still disappointed. It's the best outcome, they know the consequences and want what's best. It's going to be a long road with them, but being around Heather is opening up their minds. And they have a few experiences with crossdressing kids, apparently Nick and his brother did it. I guess it's common in a lot of boys, you really do love getting into panties- don't you?" John smirked and wisely didn't say anything sexual as Cat and JD were close by. He asked if they had a plan for what will be done with the Rosses, Valerie wisely told him, "Examinations at the hospital then a visit to the law offices for legal talks. They are going to need some help, as much as Kelly wants to be there for them she can't be there all of the time with work. They have a long road ahead of them, they need help that she can't give. A live-in nurse would help, I think I know of a person willing to help." John nodded then added, "They're hiding it but it's gotta be humiliating to them accepting help from us. I want them to do well, but it's a long road ahead of them. Kelly will need their help with the babies, the two can't help as much as they want even if they work hard at rehabbing. Thankfully Mrs. Ross will be able to walk in two months if she undergoes it right away. She's the one that we need to focus on first, she's the key to helping Kelly and Heather. She's the closest Kelly has to a mother and the one she has to go to for advice and support. You're an aunt, Mrs. Ross is mom." John sly look told her that it was really because Valerie wanted to mother Kelly but she knew that John was right. John made a couple of phone calls and arranged the surgery for Mrs. Ross with the team not even trying to prevent the Rosses from being added to Nick's health plan. He then called a home health aid agency to hire a person to help the Rosses, with Nick and Kelly being told later that it was done. After Valerie left Nick called Kelly. She wisely told him that she was with his parents and that they had moved in with them, with Nick asking what happened regarding Heather. Kelly smiled and told him, "It went well, they know what could happen and want her to be happy and safe. Your brother lied about all of them, they didn't know about Heather or us and were upset at being alone. They're doing better now that they're here, Mrs. Finn is helping get them help. Your mom is going to have surgery on her knees and your dad will be having rehab to strengthen his body. They already look better just being close by. I know it's early, but we're starting to be family." He giggled and told her, "They want you to call them mom and dad. They love you, hell they're happy to be your parents even if they're your in- laws. Mom always treated you like her daughter, dad knew that we'd get married and have children before I did." She shed a tear and confessed to him, "I know they love me, but it's tough to break years and years of it being 'Mr. and Mrs. Ross'. I love them too, mom and dad were distant and acted different depending on who they were around but your parents are so good with people. They don't lie, they don't tell half-truth and evading statements: they are honest with you, nothing less than the truth will suffice. You're a lot like them in that way. I love talking with her about female things that I couldn't do with Grandma. It's hard to call them mom and dad, but they're mom and dad to me." April was close by and listened to the conversation. She wheeled over to Kelly and embraced her in a tight hug, then kissed her cheek. When Kelly stopped sobbing April told her, "We'd love for you to call us 'mom' and 'dad'. You earned the right, you're our daughter now and we love you too." Troy did the same as his wife and ensured that Kelly knew that she wasn't going to be anything less than their daughter to them. He did love her, especially as she kept Nick from going overboard and not finding his true worth as a person in college. He had a career in baseball because of Kelly, with a career after it that should pay him well if he ever decides that baseball isn't his thing anymore. Nick called to tell them that the first game was that night and it was televised so Kelly and them could see him play. Troy was happy to hear that, April told him to be safe and not get frustrated with the media. Kelly happily told him that they'd be watching even if Heather would fall asleep early. He clicked off and talked with Miguel, who happily told Nick, "Welcome to the family. You're one of us now, Valerie and John are helping your parents and will ensure that they're alright. They'll get them to get help at home, at least until your mother can walk on her own. Your father will take a while, but he's in the hands of three people who're going to ensure that he has the strength to walk again." The two had bonded and were close, with Miguel not even trying to hide that Nick was close to him. Nick and he had far too much in common, especially now that Nick found out about the betrayal of him by Mack. There was nothing anyone could say about their closeness as Miguel was someone who had to be around Nick and his experience with his daughter Tatum was invaluable to Nick now. The game that night was a tough one as the Red Sox blew the lead several times. Nick ended up hitting two home runs but they were lost the next inning as the pitchers tried and failed to keep the lead. After a big hit to take the lead in the 8th inning, Miguel pitched in the 9th inning saving the game and helping the team secure the victory in a tough one. Miguel and Nick both knew that the pitchers purposely blew the game and called them on it. There was a lot of excuses but the fact that they played poorly yet looked perfectly fine belied their real intent. It was clear that they wanted the team to lose, just so Nick's performance was lost in the shuffle, but then Miguel saved the game causing them to get criticized for their actions. Miguel was blunt and as the unofficial team leader as the longest- tenured player on the team he told the group that anyone else tanking it would get beaned the next plate appearance or in the bullpen. He was telling the truth as the coaches reiterated that they were hurting themselves and in tanking they were all hurting the team and hurting the team intentionally meant they'd be intentionally hurt too. There wasn't any wiggle room, they were serious about team integrity and hurt the team intentionally meant that the team would hurt you and show that egos were checked at the clubhouse door. Kelly shook her head as she watched the game, with Heather asking if they were doing bad because of her. Kelly tried to lie, but then confessed, "They know about you and want to make your dad get ignored. This isn't because of you, it's because they're jealous of him. He and Miguel are great players. They're all going to end up ignored by the media because your daddy really is the best on the team." Troy watched his son outshining everyone and knowing just when to swing, something he learned from his dad years before. It felt great to see Nick play again, and even better knowing that he had help in Miguel. The two clearly were on the same page and showed it in the 9th inning. He asked Kelly what was the deal with Miguel and Nick. Kelly blushed then explained, "They got close last season when Nick got called-up to replace their injured backup catcher. He and Miguel spent a lot of time together in the bullpen, with Miguel helping him hone his pitch selection and other little things that a catcher needs to know in the big leagues. Then after Nick found out that he's going to make the roster this year Miguel started to take him on as an apprentice. Ever since Heather came out and told us that she was a girl Miguel has been even closer. Miguel has a transgender daughter as well, only she's had issues that I hope Heather never has: she got abused by her biological father and harassed by DCF then had to have surgery because of what her father did to her. Heather has been lucky, she's had all of the support she needs and has a preschool that's going to be OK with her being transgender." Kelly had to hide her shame then added, "Miguel's niece is transgender as well, she's also married to the former bully that I told you all about in high school. The girl I feared reformed and turned into one of the best people I've ever met. They got us in contact with her family, she's one of the Finns by adoption. Mr. and Mrs. Finn have helped us ever since, getting me a job that I had applied to before I found out I was pregnant with Heather and getting Heather a preschool that'll accept her." She looked away in shame again and told them, "You might have heard rumors, they're all true. They are a big part of the region, with people who're in power and not afraid to support them. The governor, the Attorney General, a lot of police officers, many lawyers. I don't know how deep it goes, but they're just as much a part of this region as the Kennedy family was. Only unlike them, the Finns give back and do not expect anything in return. The man who visited you in the hospital is my friend Jessie's husband, he works for the Attorney General alongside his mother. She's the one who got you out of the house and is going after your son for abuse, they wouldn't have done it unless it was because he really did hurt you." She was in tears now, with April telling her that they're proud of her for doing the right thing. The couple were shocked that Kelly was so humble about being among powerful people, but seeing Valerie come there and act as if she was just another person showed that it was learned behavior. Kelly acted as she had acted for years, only the true origins of her behavior now became apparent.