***WARNING: This chapter contains conversations about suicide and rape***
If you're betting, here are our predictions for this year's sport championships!
How does Darius Holt do it? A detailed account of Holt's dealings with various politicians!
Ezekiel did not know how Jimin had done it, but what he did know was that Zay was very unhappy about Jimin convincing Ezekiel to give him a chance and move from Noah and Camille's house to Jimin's penthouse apartment. Ezekiel understood why Zay did not like it. It took him out of Zay's peripheral vision, and Zay was quite invested in watching Ezekiel to make sure he was safe. Even Jimin's offer to let Zay come over whenever he wanted did nothing to quell Zay's quiet, petty rage, and Ezekiel was uncomfortably trapped in between them.
But Zay did not understand the full picture.
Jimin had the space and money to support Ezekiel's children, not to mention the fact that Ezekiel had been in love with his best friend ever since the day in high school when Jimin had quite literally neutered an alpha classmate who had stalked and then assaulted Ezekiel. Who wouldn't have fallen in love after that?
Ezekiel had no idea where the brakes were on this relationship, but he would not have pushed them even if he did. He was not about to give up what might become the best thing in his life.
Jimin brushed his hand across the top of Ezekiel's head, drawing his gaze. "Don't drown."
Ezekiel smiled. "My thoughts aren't that deep," he reassured Jimin, tilting his head in the hope that Jimin might run his fingers through his hair. He sighed happily when his wish was granted and closed his eyes to enjoy the sensation.
"Papa!"
Ezekiel opened his eyes at the sound of Liam's voice. "Yeah?"
Liam appeared in the doorway to the office Jimin had turned into a school room. A wide grin split his face, and he was practically vibrating with excitement. "Come see!"
Jimin got to his feet first and helped Ezekiel up with an arm around Ezekiel's shoulders. "I wonder what mind-bending feat he's learned now."
Ezekiel smiled, shaking his head. "Anything from calculus to nuclear physics," he replied as they approached Liam.
Liam grabbed Ezekiel's hand and pulled him into the room to show him a graph drawn on the large whiteboard. "Look! I can do slopes now!"
Ezekiel bent and kissed Liam's forehead, his heart melting as his son turned his face upward and pressed a kiss to Ezekiel's forehead too. "You're so smart."
Liam's smile turned a little shy. "Ms. Lacey is helping me."
Ezekiel smiled at the high school teacher Jimin had recruited to be Liam's tutor. Ezekiel had seen the check Jimin had given her when she started, so he was not surprised that she made time for Liam whenever possible. He was glad his son had someone to teach him individually at a level that engaged him. "I agree. Ms. Lacey does a wonderful job. We do need to leave in a little bit, though."
Liam perked up. "Are we getting my little sister today?" His voice was full of eagerness and hope. He was so easily overwhelmed by people, but he cared so much.
Ezekiel nodded. "That's the plan." He thanked Lacey before guiding Liam from the school room to put his shoes and jacket on.
Liam did not like shoelaces, so they had gotten him a pair of slip-on shoes, which he tugged onto his feet without any prompting. Then he went in search of his jacket in the closet.
Jimin brought over Ezekiel's shoes and knelt, making a motion with his hand for Ezekiel to give him his foot. He slipped both shoes on and tied them with the perfect tightness before doing his own. He got up and grabbed their jackets, draping his own over his arm while holding Ezekiel's out.
Ezekiel slid his arms into the jacket and headed to the elevator with Liam in tow and Jimin following behind. The three of them rode the elevator down to the garage, where they all got into Jimin's car. As they turned out onto the road, Ezekiel's phone buzzed, and he unlocked it to check the email he had just received. "It's from the agent. She says they have another one of my kids."
Jimin glanced over. "Which one?"
Ezekiel scrolled down. "The oldest. His name's Xuejian Ye. His father is Hao Ye."
"Former chairman of Fang International."
Ezekiel looked up at Jimin. "How do you know that?"
Jimin shrugged. "I know a lot of things. But his name was listed with all the others who hurt you. I read it in an article." His jaw clenched as he came to a stop at a red light. "So he was the first?"
Ezekiel nodded, his throat suddenly going dry. "Xuejian is thirteen," he said after swallowing a couple times.
Jimin nodded in reply, acknowledging the change in subject. "So why were you informed just now that the agency has him?"
Ezekiel glanced back down at the email. "He was in the hospital, and they didn't know when he would be released. I guess he got released earlier today."
"I'm worried about that one," Jimin admitted. "Thirteen is when kids really start to act out. After everything that's happened, I wouldn't be surprised if you become the recipient of that acting out. He might blame you for what's happened to him, even though it isn't your fault at all."
Ezekiel slumped in the seat. "Yeah," he muttered, "but I couldn't blame him for it."
Jimin's hand came to rest on his knee, and it stayed there until they parked at the agency's center.
Ezekiel left Liam and Jimin in the waiting room and followed the agent, Jennifer Simon, into one of the back hallways. "If you don't mind, could we go to Adelynn first?"
Jennifer nodded, leading the way down the hall. "Of course. She's in a playroom down here. For a three-year-old, she's quite calm."
"I assume her family gave her to you?"
"Yes, but she wasn't abused in any way. Mrs. Schindel just felt that it was best for Adelynn to be with her dad."
"That's a relief," Ezekiel said and stopped when Jennifer did, looking through the window in the door to see the little girl inside. "Not that she was given up, but I'm glad that she wasn't hurt for something that wasn't her fault."
Jennifer opened the door with a smile. "Adelynn, look who's here!"
The girl perked up, and her jaw dropped when Ezekiel stepped in. For a moment, she stayed like that and then exclaimed, "You're so pretty!"
Ezekiel laughed a little as he sat down on the floor next to Adelynn. "Thank you," he replied, shocked at the out-of-pocket compliment. "I don't feel particularly pretty right now, but thank you."
Adelynn frowned immediately. "Why not?" She cocked her head as she examined him with all the scrutiny of a profiler. "Cause you're gonna have a baby?"
Ezekiel laughed again, this time a bit more nervously. "I guess so," he admitted.
Her smile came back in an instant. "That doesn't matter. You're still soooooo pretty!"
Ezekiel reached out and patted her head, his palm compressing the light brown curls. "Thank you," he replied again, accepting the compliment this time.
Adelynn seemed like the perfect child: sweet, thoughtful, observant. She and Liam would probably get along wonderfully.
"Would you like to come home with me?" Ezekiel asked, still patting her head. "I have a son who I think you'd get along with."
Adelynn nodded without any hesitation. "Yeah! I've wanted a brother forever!"
Ezekiel pushed himself up, using the wall to help him get off the floor. "Should we go meet him?"
Adelynn bounced up, a wide grin splitting her face. "Yes, yes, yes!" She grabbed Ezekiel's hand when he offered it to her and skipped along beside him out to the waiting room. She scrambled onto the couch beside Liam and peered over his shoulder at his book of math problems. "What's that?"
Liam glanced up, and he did not look scared, which was a relief. "Math. Like counting and numbers, but complicated."
Adelynn leaned closer to the page. "I can count. All the way up to thirty!"
Liam gave a faint smile. "That's good. Maybe I can teach you to add?" He looked up at Ezekiel, who nodded his approval. He flipped back in the workbook and started pointing out the simpler parts of the algebra problems.
Jimin motioned for Ezekiel to go back to where Jennifer was waiting. Jimin was good with Liam, so he would likely be good with Adelynn as well, especially since it seemed like Adelynn was interested in what Liam was doing.
Ezekiel headed back into the hall and followed Jennifer to another room. This one did not have any windows. "Tell me about Xuejian Ye."
Jennifer actually looked pained at the name.
Ezekiel closed his eyes for a brief moment. "He was abused, wasn't he." He said it more like a statement than a question because he already knew the answer.
Jennifer nodded. "Yes, but his story is a bit confusing, since he grew up out in Oregon and his health files are extremely limited. We know that he was taken once a year to a doctor's appointment, but those all look legitimate and there are no concerning signs. The dip in his medical records occurs when he was admitted to a hospital because of attempted suicide about two years ago."
Ezekiel felt his heart break. Two years ago would be when this thirteen year old boy was eleven. That was far too young for a suicide attempt. "And there was no history of abuse at that point?"
Jennifer shook her head, eyes sad. "No, but the notes in his file from that time note what was called 'typical pre-teen bruising.'" Her tone implied she thought that was utter bullshit.
Ezekiel put the pieces together too quickly. "He's an omega, isn't he?"
Jennifer gave a slow nod.
Ezekiel wanted to cry. "He differentiated around then and someone started raping him. So he tried to kill himself to get away." He knew it was the truth even before Jennifer's confirming nod.
"There is no indication that he was sent to a therapist beyond the couple required sessions. The next thing in his record is from a few months ago." Jennifer exhaled a long breath. "Another hospitalization for another suicide attempt. The Ye family was in Falville for a business trip when the news about you hit the public. We suspect that was the trigger for the attempt." She ran a hand down her face in what could only be emotional exhaustion. "The moment he was discharged from the hospital, they dumped him in a psych facility. No one asked any questions and did whatever the family wanted because of a very big check. They had him put in a fucking straitjacket."
Ezekiel's jaw dropped. How could anyone be so cruel? It was clear the boy needed therapy and love, so why had they treated him like he was insane?
"My fellow agent Ron was the one who found him there. We got him to the hospital, where we found out he had been assaulted by one of the psych facility's employees." Jennifer shoved her hands into her pockets. "I can understand if taking him would be too much of a burden. He's not dangerous, at least so far, but people who have gone through that kind of horror are prone to fits of violence. He hasn't been violent with us. He's actually been respectful, when he's not in a near-catatontic state."
Ezekiel put his hand on the door handle. "It sounds like he's a good kid that got dragged through some horrible shit. No thirteen-year-old should have gone through all that. I'd like to talk with him. If either of us doesn't feel safe, I'll come back in a little while, after he's had some time to adjust and get therapy."
Jennifer nodded and used her ID to unlock the door. "Good luck," she said as Ezekiel turned the handle.
The room was stark like an interrogation room, two chairs and a small table sat in the middle of the space. One of the chairs, the one facing the door, was occupied by the object of Ezekiel and Jennifer's conversation. His pin-straight black hair fell over his almond-shaped eyes like a curtain hiding him from the rest of the world, and his arms were wrapped around himself in a self-protective way Ezekiel was all too familiar with. He looked up, those brown eyes taking Ezekiel in, and got up. He walked around the table and pulled out the other chair. "Please sit." His tone was gentle, talking to Ezekiel almost like he was the parent.
Ezekiel sat. "Thank you," he said as the boy resumed his seat on the other side of the table.
Xuejian inclined his head in acknowledgment. "You're my dad, right?" The question was sudden, but delicately spoken. "My omega father?"
Ezekiel nodded, unsure how his son would react to him as an omega after everything that had happened to him. "Yes. I'm Ezekiel, but you can call me Kiel if you'd like."
Xuejian's face furrowed into a confused frown. "But you're my dad. I shouldn't call you by your first name."
Ezekiel shrugged. "You've grown up without me in your life, so I just want to do whatever makes you most comfortable." He tipped his head slightly. "What would you like me to call you?"
"Alex." The answer was immediate. "It's what my friends called me in school before I got pulled out."
"Alex," Ezekiel repeated. "I'll call you Alex if that's what you want."
The boy nodded. "I'd like it a lot." He suddenly frowned again. "Do you actually want me?"
Ezekiel's heart wrenched painfully in his chest. "I do," he reassured Alex. "I really do want you. You're my son."
Alex dropped his head, a sniffle escaping him. "But I'm so much work."
"Can you look at me, Alex?" When Alex raised his head enough to meet Ezekiel's eyes, Ezekiel leaned forward as best he could, extending his hand across the table. "You will never be too much work. Even if you were, nothing easy is worth keeping. I want to be part of your life and if that includes helping you heal, I'm more than happy to do that with you."
Alex stood up abruptly, but then he was coming around the table and kneeling by Ezekiel's side. He dropped his head into Ezekiel's lap, silent tears soaking the fabric of Ezekiel's pants. His arms tentatively reached around Ezekiel in a hug.
Ezekiel immediately enclosed his precious son in a protective embrace. "How does home sound?"
Alex hugged him tighter. "Home sounds great," he whispered.