Bluebird

34

May 8, 2013. 

Garrett looked at her from the drivers seat as he pulled up to the house. 

"Hey, it'll be okay." Garrett assures her grabbing her hand.

"Thanks, thank you for coming with me, it means the world to me." 

"It's what I do, I'm your best friend for Fuck's sake. Alright, I'll be waiting right here." 

"Are you sure, it could be a while?" Annabel looks at him.

"I'm sure. I have a full phone battery, it's nice out I can roll the windows down and push my seat back and binge Netflix." He assures. 

"Alright." She takes in a deep breath and then she crawls out of the car. She slowly inched towards the front steps and then she rang the bell. 

Chelsea, is Mike's sister. She has red hair and green eyes, if Annabel hadn't known any better, she wouldn't even think Mike and Chelsea were related, but Mike's grandmother had red hair so the gene skipped a generation. 

"Oh Annabel you look lovely." Chelsea smiles when she opens the door. 

Annabel looked down and gave a sheepish smile. She was wearing a pair of bell bottoms, the shoes Stevie had given to her and a white billowy peasant top that laced up the front and had semi-bell sleeves. On the white fabric was green leaves and little peach and light pink colored flowers. Her blonde waves were pulled back half up and half down with a clip. 

"Thanks." She blushes.

"Well give me a hug." Chelsea coos opening her arms. Annabel hugs her, Chelsea's peppermint smell lingering as she pulls away. 

"Come on in. What is it that you had to talk about?" Chelsea asks leading her into the house. 

"What do you know about my adoption?" She asks once they were settled at the kitchen table with some tea. That was always there thing, every time she'd go to Chelsea's and Daniel's, her husband's, house they'd have special one on one talks over tea.

"Why do you ask?" She stiffens and Annabel is on high alert.

"No context, I'm just wondering." She lies through her teeth.

"Honestly, Annabel, I don't know much. I know that Edith had been called away for business and I know they weren't married yet. They were getting married. She came back with you and she was supposed to drop you off at the Salt Lake City Foster Care Facility. It wasn't DHS at the time...But, when Mike  was thinking about proposing he told us that he wasn't sure because she'd been in an accident that caused her to lose her uterus. They never went into too much detail, and we never asked. There was something about internal bleeding coming from her uterus. So they had to remove it. He didn't know if he wanted to marry her or not, because he really wanted children. She brought you back and she got back really late...the center wasn't open. Now a days they're open 24/7 but back then they weren't. So she was your foster mom for the night. The next thing we know, Mike's telling us that the two of them were adopting you...I guess Edith had bonded with you so much that she didn't want to give you up. You were addicted to something, I was never told what, but they had to care for you around the clock. You were an angry little creature." Chelsea explains. 

"The reason I asked, was because when I moved to Los Angeles I found my birth father...my parents aren't together anymore but, I just recently met my mother. It took me a couple years of my father's pushing, but I met with her and we were talking about my life. I said that my adoptive mother was Edith Charleston Bekker. My mom just got this blank stare and she asked my dad why she knew that name, because she knew the name. It was like it unlocked some dark hidden away memory. My dad said that Edith Charleston was the social worker that took me from them...I don't know if that's true, because I haven't contacted the agency yet...but I did always think it was fishy that Mike was the judge who authorized my adoption." Annabel explains. 

"I didn't know he was." Chelsea wrinkles her eyebrows. 

"He was..." Annabel pulls out her adoption certificate and lays it out in front of her. 

She takes it and scans over the documents and then she looks at Annabel. "Honey, I think you need to go to the hall of records...This doesn't look like it was ever filed." Chelsea bites her lips.

"It's close to four now...they close at five, I'll go tomorrow morning." 

"I saw Garrett in the car out front, would you guys like to stay for dinner, I'm making Italian Meatballs." 

"Oh those are to die for, I'll go get him." Annabel chuckles. 

***

May 9, 2013

Lindsey jolted awake when he heard his cell phone ring. He leaned over and grabbed his phone and sat up on his left elbow before answering it. 

"Belle, what's up?" 

"My adoption certificate was never filed...They never legally adopted me. You and mom can get your parental rights back." Annabel states.

"What?" Lindsey asks, then he feels the hand on his bicep and a head hoovers next to his phone to try and hear what's being said.

"I talked to Chelsea yesterday. She said that Edith had been on a business trip out to California when she was asked to take me. I don't have the full story, and I'm going to have to go to Cedar-Sinai and talk to them, but Chelsea didn't know that Mike had signed off on my Adoption certificate. So I went to the hall of records and the court house bright and shiny this morning..." Lindsey looked at the alarm clock, it was just broaching noon so that meant it was around eleven in Salt Lake City, "The hall of records had no form of adoption record for me and the Jude that I talked to in Family Court, said that because Mike's name was signed as the father, he had no legal authority to sign off as a judge and it was null and void." 

"So she did kidnap you?" Lindsey asks.

"I don't know...that's why I have to go to Cedar-Sinai...we're heading back to California tomorrow." 

"Well, keep us posted." Lindsey sighs.

"I will. How's mom?" She asks. 

"I think she's pleasantly satisfied." He smirks as a hard slap comes to his bicep. 

"Daddy!" Annabel scolds. "Are you and mom sleeping together?" 

"Wouldn't you like to know. I gotta go baby, but keep me posted."

"I will. I love you daddy, tell mom I love her too." 

"I will. I love you kiddo." When he hangs up the phone he rolls over and she glares at him. The sheets pulled up to her chest. Because they had in fact slept together the night before. 

It just kind of happened. They weren't drinking, they weren't smoking, they were just hanging out and they started kissing each other and it quickly escalated. They knew that it wouldn't be a recurring event because they were getting old, but it was nice. They had spent the last few days reconnecting on a more emotional level, not a sexual level and it was nice. They were having a good time. 

"They never legally adopted her." 

"We can do it Linds...we can get our parental rights back." Stevie bites her lip.

"But she's 26, I don't know if they'll..." 

"Maybe not, but they can at least acknowledge it so when we die, there's not a question." Stevie shakes her head.

"I'll tell you what, I just want to be home with her." Lindsey sighs. 

"Me too...I want to start making those memories with her. Thanksgiving, Christmas, her birthday...Linds we're going to be with her for her birthday." Stevie lets go of her lip a small smile gracing her face. 

"If we can talk her into going to Australia with us." He tells her.

"Oh yeah." She pouts.

"I'll get her to go Angel. Don't worry." He promises her.

"You better."