Chapter Thirty
At the start of summer, they had unexpected visitors.
“Isn’t that Sam?” Jasper asked him as they walked back from the farm. Bear was with them, taking a great interest in the trees and bushes that lined their path.
“And Drew,” Matt said, as a second man came into view.
They jogged up the path to greet them, Bear running after them and barking excitedly.
“Matt!”
“Sammie!”
There were hugs and greetings all around.
“We weren’t expecting you,” Matt said.
“Don invited us. We weren’t sure we’d manage the time-off, but we pulled it off. I hope we’re a pleasant surprise.”
“It’s great to see you,” Matt replied.
“You’re looking well, both of you,” Drew said, and crouched as Bear pushed between them.
“And who’s this?”
“This is Bear. He’s Jasper’s.”
“When he wants to get up at five in the morning, he’s mine. When he wants to play fetch, Matt is happy to lay claim to him,” Jasper groused although he was smiling happily.
They fell into step together as they walked through the village back to their house.
Matt made cold drinks while Sam and Drew sat down in the living room with Jasper.
“So, what brings you out to see us? Felt like a holiday?” he said, carrying the tray of drinks into the room and setting them down.
“Actually, we have some news. Good news.”
“Oh?” He waited for them to divulge it, curious as to what Sam was going to say.
“Detective Grady wanted us to let you know that it’s all over. They, in concert with the Feds, raided a number of locations last week and made over a dozen arrests. Philippe and most of his gang are in prison, and he was denied bail pending his trial. They also got the guy who was running the auctions. The whole organization is in pieces and they won’t be building it back up anytime soon.”
For a moment, neither of them reacted.
“That’s a relief,” Jasper said eventually. “All over just like that?”
“Grady feels they’ll be too busy worrying about keeping their asses out of jail to be bothered chasing you or anyone else down.”
“So you’re free to come home,” Drew added.
Matt shared a look with Jasper.
“We’re in no hurry,” Matt said. “Both of us like it here, a lot.”
“You’re planning to stay, long-term?”
He and Jasper had talked about that, about what they wanted, about where they were going.
“No, not long-term. Another year or two. While Jasper’s gets his diploma in veterinary studies and I… figure out what is it I want to do. I’ve been thinking about retraining into something less acute, rheumatology maybe, or family medicine. There’s a different pace of life here and I have to say, I really like it.”
“Me, too,” Jasper said. “It’s so freeing. I didn’t know hard work could feel like that. And I’ve made so many friends.”
They caught up with all Sam and Drew’s news, including the date for their wedding.
“You’ll be there, won’t you?” Sam seemed anxious as he asked.
“We wouldn’t miss it, not for anything,” Matt promised.
“Will you bring Bear with you when you travel or leave him here?” Drew asked.
“Oh, don’t worry about him. We’ll bring him if we can but he’s well used to the farm, he can stay there while we’re gone if needs be.” Jasper’s easy answer sent a thrill of happiness through Matt. His confidence in himself had come on in leaps and bounds and it reflected in Bear’s calm manner.
“How long are you staying?” Matt thought to ask as he checked his watch and noticed it was close to dinner time.
“A week. Don said they have a few houses empty this week, that the summer rush hasn’t quite kicked in yet.”
“Not quite yet,” Matt agreed.
“Oh.” Drew paused digging a hand into his backpack. “I have something for you, Jasper. I think it’s an answer to that letter you sent.”
Jasper’s eyes widened and he took the envelope carefully from Drew’s hand, staring at it like it might bite.
“Not something bad I hope?” Sam asked, catching the look on Jasper’s face and Matt’s reaction.
“No, not something bad just something difficult,” Matt assured him. After a lot of soul-searching, Jasper had decided to write a letter to his brother, which they’d then sent to the social work department to forward onto him. He was still a minor, so there was a host of reasons why the letter might not have reached its destination. There was no clue from the envelope about what it contained. A simple refusal to pass the letter on. A polite decline of contact. He could see Jasper was equal parts nervous and eager to open it. They sent Sam and Drew on ahead of them to have dinner, promising to follow on after.
“Well?” Matt asked as Jasper nervously twirled the envelope between his fingers.
“What if he doesn’t want to know me?”
“We’ll deal with that bridge, and any other bridge, when we come to it. That letter could say anything, you won’t know until you open it.”
It was with shaking hands that Jasper finally got the envelope open. Bear, seeming to know he was needed, rested his head on Jasper’s knee with a whine.
Matt took a seat right next to him, his hand on Jasper’s other knee. Both his boys there, supporting him.
He unfolded the letter, feeling the weight of the pages he was holding. He started reading, stopped, and started again.
“It’s from Charlie’s adoptive parents. They… they’re happy to hear from me.” Tears slipped down his cheeks and he couldn’t lift his hands from the paper to wash them away.
“They’ve always known about me. They say they tried to adopt me too, more than once. And that they sent letters on Charlie’s behalf.”
He looked up then, glancing at Matt. “How come I never got them?”
“I don’t know, Jasper. Maybe you were out of the system by then? What else do they say?”
He returned to reading, each word filling a terrible hole that had been left inside him.
“They’re happy for me to have contact with Charlie. He wants it, too. They have other kids, two girls, but Charlie had always asked them about his big brother.”
He frowned as he read the next line, then smiled at Matt through his tears as he shifted to the next page.
“He’s written me a letter.”
Matt smiled back at him, pulling him close and pressing a kiss to his forehead.
“I am so happy for you. Do you want to read it now?”
He set the paper down, brushing the tears from his cheeks. “No, I need some time to take it all in. Can we climb up to the point after dinner? I’ll read it there.”
“Of course, if that’s what you want.”
The point was their place of refuge, of solitude, of shared hurts and healing. He felt he could handle anything his brother had to say, as long as he had Matt by his side.