Zach’s Perspective
I had been humbled watching my Dad and Pop N prep for Karen’s court appearance. The judge had originally sentenced Karen to seven years behind bars, but my dad went through her case with a fine tooth comb. He found a lot of holes in the prosecution’s case and was convinced that her court appointed defense attorney was useless. The biggest hole he found was the damning video clip of her wielding the gun at the convenience store… Dad had gone through all the surveillance footage (not just what was submitted as evidence) and found several seconds of video right before the clip used in court that showed her “partner in crime” (the infamous Johnny Black) pulling the gun on the gas station clerk then handing it to her afterwards proving that she didn’t pull the gun on the clerk… which was the smoking gun (pun intended) that got her put away for armed robbery.
Dad filed a “motion for modification of sentence” so he could revisit the case, show the entire video, and ask for a more lenient sentence. It was Wednesday morning and we were sitting in court waiting for the judge to bring the court to order. Dad had brought Karen a change of clothes (that Kelly picked out) and she was sitting at the table between him and Pop waiting; I was in the gallery watching. She looked so different to me that morning, not like a defeated prisoner, but like a flawed human being like the rest of us, I hoped the judge saw he that way. The judge who had sentenced Karen entered the court room and called order, In Karen’s case the judge had the power to modify her sentence, but it was up to my dad (with Pop’s help) to convince him he didn’t have all the facts and there was a reason to do so. I had only been a lawyer a couple of years, but I had learned that judges didn’t like to be told they were wrong, so it was an uphill battle. But Dad handled it like a pro. I watch as he presented Karen’s case, apologizing to the judge that the prosecuting attorney hadn’t fully present the pertinent evidence. He built his case and rebuilt Karen’s character as he did. He told the judge upfront that his son had adopted her two kids and that it was clear that she had loved those kids and did her best to provide for them and keep them safe, although he conceded that there were lapses in her judgment but that just made her look more human. He talked about Seth and I working to keep her in our kids’ lives, he even got me on the stand as a character witness. After me, Karen got on the stand to answer questions and speak up in her own defense. She came off as a flawed human with regrets, and an understanding of what she did wrong, and true remorse for her actions. She took accountability for her actions, then she said something that will stick with me forever. “I regret what I did and I mourn the loss of my parental rights, however, the silver lining is that my kids are living the life they deserve, a life I sure as hell could never have given them.” Think about that for a minute… it hit me hard as fuck. She had come to the conclusion that her kids were better off without her. As Freddy and Izzy’s adoptive parent, I was proud that she felt that way, as a parent my heart was torn to shreds… can you imagine how painful it must’ve been for her to admit that her kids are better off without her. It was a very emotional testimony.
Dad’s closing argument was heartfelt and human, to paraphrase: keeping her as a burden on the state for a crime for which she shows remorse, and has done time, is just a waste of a life and tax dollars. He truly was masterful as he weaved a story of circumstance, bad choices, regret, rehabilitation, remorse, and determination.
The judge called a recess to make his decision. I hung out with Karen and her lawyers, damn she was a bundle of nerves just shaking. “What if I get out, Zach?” She asked me.
“Well, I talked to Jason (her old landlord) on the way over and he has a studio open for you on the bus line and said he’ll waive the first month’s rent and security to give you a head start. We can help you furnish it, and Seth has several leads on jobs. All that to say… we’ll help set you up, but you gotta make it work.”
Karen nodded, “what if I can’t?”
“There is no ‘can’t’ here, Karen” Pop Nicholls said speaking for the first time. Me and Dad were very close to the situation, but Pop was keeping us all in check. “If you become a free woman, then your job is to succeed, it’s not an option.” Damn, he was putting some pressure on her, I was kind of surprised because he was typically a soft guy. “In all the decades I’ve been a lawyer, I’ve only seen a few second chances, and not a single third chance… don’t screw it up, you owe it to yourself and those who believe in you.” Pop got the last word.
We all rose as the judge reentered the courtroom and addressed us. He talked about Karen’s crimes, the new evidence, her time in prison, etc. He dropped the armed robbery charges but the other charges remained. He was harshest when he spoke about the child endangerment charges, “it’s one thing to hurt ourselves with bad decisions, It’s quite another when we bring children into it.” Finally, he spoke of her time served and then he ruled. Based on his calculations he ordered that she be released after serving twenty one more days, and then be put on twelve months’ probation after that. If Dad and Pop Nicholls were surprised, they didn’t show it.
The judge left the room, and we retreated to a small conference room down the hall for some time alone with Karen. As the bailiff stood guard, As soon as the door closed, Dad asked her, “So how does it feel to be a free woman?”
She was in total shock and overwhelmed, so much had happened that day. Karen just sat there and looked at the three of us and trying to wrap her head around it all. Finally, she said, “Okay, y’all. Wait a damn minute… I gotta make sure I got this right. They’re gonna let me outta here in three weeks?”
Dad smiled, “yup, but you’re going to be on probation for a year, they’ll be checking in on you. That means finding a home, keeping a job, and staying out of trouble.”
“If you don’t keep your nose clean, you’ll be back in there without a snowball’s chance in hell of getting out.” Pop said. I was kind of liking this ‘bad cop’ side of Pop Nicholls. He was usually the soft, sensitive one, the good guy. But he knew me and Dad were very invested in this, and he had to be the tough one.
“Thank you” Karen said with a nod. “I, I, don’t really know what to say, or what to do first.”
“Well, you’ve got three weeks to figure it out, and we’ll help you” I said. We talked logistics, Dad promised to come see her and go through all the details of her release and probation, and I promised that Seth and I would get things set up for her on the outside and visit her to discuss details. But it was really happening; Karen was going to be free.
The Bailiff knocked on the door, and came in to take her back to the detention center. She left, but not before she gave us each a hug. As she walked out the door she turned and said, “thank you” again, then added, “I swear I won’t let y’all down.” We all believed her.
It was about noon so the three of us decided to go to lunch and celebrate, there was a nice place near the courthouse. I texted Seth to let him know about Karen. My phone rang almost instantaneously.
“Three weeks, then probation?! Are you fucking serious?!” Seth said when I answered.
“Yup. You should’ve seen my dad; he is such a freaking Pro” I bragged.
“What about Pop?”
“Pop fed my dad talking points throughout the entire thing, but he stayed mostly silent” I answered, then I told him about Karen’s reaction, and Pop telling her she had to stay out of trouble, etc. “So, I’ll call Jason and Abby to let them know, he said he had a unit for her to rent, and I’m sure we can dig up some furniture for her.”
“I’ll call around to check on jobs and get her a couple of interviews” Seth said. “So, we gotta set ground rules with her” he added.
“Yeah, we’ll go see her together before she’s released and have a talk.” We were both afraid of her overstepping. We were happy she was free and had a shot at a fresh start, but, as cold as it sounds, Freddy and Izzy were our kids now, and she would have to respect our family. In theory, she was good with that… we were both afraid that it would be a lot more difficult in practice. Anyway, lunch with Dad and Pop was nice. Both of those guys came to the rescue of a total stranger for the sake of our kids (although my dad kept asking if we were sure that’s what we wanted).
After lunch it was back to the office, between vacation and time spent on Karen’s case, I had work to catch up on. On the way to the office, I called Karen’s old landlord, he was elated for her and confirmed that he had a place for her. I was at the office until almost 11PM that night, when I got home, I found three original works of crayon art waiting for me on the counter (one from each of the kids) … that made me laugh. Freddy drew me and him kicking a soccer ball with Petunia, Ali just scribbled, and Izzy drew, um, well… Izzy drew. On top of the pictures was a note from Seth that said, ‘dinner’s in the fridge, wake me up when you get upstairs.’ God, I loved my family. I heated up my dinner in the microwave, then headed up to bed stepping over Petunia who was at her post in the hallway, then peeking into the kids rooms on my way.
I stripped naked, slipped under the covers where Seth was sleeping on his side with his back to me, and kissed his neck whispering, “I’m home, you told me to wake you up.”
“Hey” Seth said in a sleepy voice as he flipped himself around to face me. “So, court went well?”
“Yeah, Dad and Pop were amazing” then I blurted out all the details. “Karen’s pretty overwhelmed though.”
“Well, we’ll get her set up, that’ll take some of the pressure off” Seth said while he touched my cheek.
“I confirmed with Jason that he has a place for her to live. How were things here tonight?”
“We all missed you” Seth said. “Your mom and Mom N stopped by around dinner time on their way to pick up the other moms for Grannies night out. The kids were good, they laid on the floor and drew… all three of them.” His hand subtly grabbed my manhood, it was cold to the touch but it felt good and a tiny moan escaped my lips as I returned the gesture.
I chuckled, “yeah, I saw the pictures. I missed being here tonight, but got a lot done. I’m almost caught up.” I ended my statement with a kiss to Seth’s lips, then things escalated quickly.
Before I knew it, we were in the middle of a passionate kiss and our bodies were intertwined, our arms were wrapped around each other, our legs were tangled together in a human ball of man flesh, and my semi-soft but willing to grow cock was pushed against Seth’s as the games began. It was slow, quiet, and passionate, just the two of us in the dark, comfort, of our own bedroom. Our passionate kissing was much of our foreplay that night. Seth reached in the nightstand and grabbed the lube; he massaged it onto my cock. Goddammit, his hand stroking the cold lube onto my hot instrument felt amazing and almost finished the concert before the main act ever took the stage!
“Stop” I whispered, I’m so close.”
Seth giggled a little, “already? We just got started, what a lightweight.” Then he grabbed it again and stroked me some more. He maneuvered around until he was sitting on my face and leaning over me stroking my cock. He pushed his perfect bum against my lips and I snaked my tongue inside his tight entry. I loved eating Seth out! His taste and scent just did it for me… it always had. I smacked his ass hard making him yelp. One thing about Seth… he liked teasing me. He knew I was ready to burst so he did his best to take me to the edge… then stop. Take me to the edge… then stop. Take me to the edge… then stop (I think you get it). Damn, he knew how to push every damn button I had and even more frustrating, he knew when to stop pushing them. After about the fourth time or so I had had enough.
“That’s it” I said using all my might to flip us Over so I was on top, then I flipped my ass around and lined my tormented, overly lubed cock up with his saliva prepped hole. “Enough teasing, you hot little fuck” I growled making Seth laugh.
“Damn, I love it when you get all bad ass on me” He whispered. I slowly pushed my way in, as he pushed out, opening his hole and welcoming me inside. Damn, he was hot and tight. My cock kept plunging deeper and further into his guts until finally my blonde pubes pushed against his ass… it had to tickle. “Now fuck me!” I did. Seth was so proper and polite in public, but in the bedroom, he was so much fucking fun.
I fucked him hard; I wanted it to last forever, but it only took about a dozen strokes before I was on the edge and ready to shoot again, but this time he couldn’t stop me. I let loose deep inside his bowels, rope after rope I shot. My slick Jizz made it easier to move in and out of his tight sphincter. I kept going until my cock softened inside him, then I pulled out. Seth put two fingers in his hole and scooped out my manjuice spreading it on his own tool and taking it in his fist, I assisted by moving down and licking his balls. He pounded his meat until he shot an amazing load all over his abs and torso. He lie there breathing heavy while I licked him clean the kissed him deeply. We got under the covers, spooned, and fell asleep.
The next morning, Seth let me sleep in, he got up early and took care of the kids. By the time I got up they were all dressed and eating breakfast,
“Hi Daddy Sach” Izzy said with a smile that would melt any iceberg,
“Hi Daddy Sach” Ali mimicked his big sister. I kissed them both good morning, tussled Freddy’s hair, then came up behind Seth’s chair and gave him a hug and a kiss on the head before sitting down to breakfast. The three kids gave me the third degree about where I was, who I was with, etc. We hadn’t told them anything about Karen’s possible release, we all agreed it would be best not to mention it until she was free.
While the kids were pummeling me with questions, Izzy realized that Grandma Kelly hadn’t come by. When my parents were in town, Grandma Kelly always came by for breakfast. “She went out with her friends last night, so she’s probably just tired” Seth answered.
“Did she get drunk? Maybe she’s hanged over” Freddy said as he shoveled some pancake in his mouth. Seth and I just looked at each other.
“What do you know about getting drunk and having hangovers?” Seth asked our eldest son.
“Momma always used to get drunk with her friends and the be hanged over” Freddy said nonchalantly. Those three kids were ours, it felt like they had been with us forever, but the truth is that all three of them had lives before us and we had no clue what they’d been exposed to. Obviously, they had seen momma drunk. “Is gramma Kelly a drunk?” Freddy asked.
“Well, that’s a good question to ask her when you see her next” I responded getting a snicker from Seth. “Okay gang, Daddy has to go get dressed” I said before I ran upstairs to get ready. I took a quick shower, got my suit on, then went downstairs to help Seth load the kids into the Atlas, and kiss my family goodbye. Then, it was off to work.
Seth’s Perspective
Carpool was loud that morning. Izzy sang the entire time (her new favorite was Lizzo Good As Hell – thanks Auntie Mo).Ali was trying to sing along with her, it was more like babbling to his own tune, but at least he was happy again. Lord knows he was hell on our first couple of days home from vacation, but a facetime call to his new pal Uncle Brad helped bring him back to his old lovable self. Meanwhile, Freddy and Teddy were talking over each other about god only knows what in the third row. In other words, life was back to normal. I got into work ta little late that day and ran into Caleb and Ella as they were getting into The Green Dragon (AKA Falkor) and heading to school. They were both so excited about going off to college. After they took off, I made my way to Marilee’s and got coffee, I grabbed an extra for Max who was going to be onsite at the candle factory. He had already left BroMax Farm by the time I picked up Teddy for school. He was going in a couple of days a week to keep up on things. I followed him around the plant, we talked and sipped coffee as he checked in on everybody. I told him what had happened in court with Karen and that we had three weeks to get her set up.
“We can probably find something for her here” Max offered as he bent over to check some setting on one of the huge wax melters.
“Nah, too close to home” I said. “I talked to several people, her record is going to be a problem for some of the jobs, like insurance, or even at the dealership with Taylor. Ray Ray said he’s fine with it and would be willing to take her on at the dry cleaner and train her. It’s only a couple of miles from her apartment.”
“Does it pay enough?”
“Yeah, it’ll be tight, but Jason and Abby are giving her a deal on rent” I answered. “It’s a start and helps her meet the terms of her parole for now, but she’ll need to own it and take control of her own life.” We talked through what else she needed, Max offered an extra bed they had, and suggested I put an email out to our friends to see what furniture they had lying around. I know we had a couple of chairs in the attic she could have, etc. After coffee with Max, I went into the office.
Things were quiet, VERY quit. Rodney was already there and said BA had called in saying she was running late. Looks like Kelly wasn’t the only victim of Grannies night out. I just laughed, hell BA had gone above and beyond so often, she deserved a little time to herself. Rodney and I did the morning meeting without her, then went into our separate offices to work. About twenty minutes later there was a loud… well… ruckus I guess you’d call it, out in the lobby. BA, Kelly, Mom N, Grandma Harrington, and GG were all in the lobby laughing, joking, wearing dark glasses, and drinking their coffee from Marilee’s.
“Mornin’ ladies” I said as I came out to see what was going on. “How was your night out?”
“It was a hoot” BA said in a rough voice as she led the ladies into the therapy room to get more comfortable.
As Kelly walked past me, she apologized, “I’m sorry I missed breakfast with the kids this morning.”
“That’s Okay, we told them you were tired from going out with your friends” I responded. “Freddy asked if grandma was a drunk and hanged over.” The group of grandmas stopped cold and looked at each other with what seemed to be guilt, maybe remorse… then they all cracked up.
Our village had begat yet another village… a village of loving, fun, and very human grandmothers.
To be continued…
