Authors: E. M. Leya
Evan Mitchell shifted from foot to foot as he knocked on the door. He hated this part of his job. He was never welcome once he stated his business and he was sure that this time wouldn't be any difference.
As he waited, he glanced across the large yard to the barns and corrals. He had little information on Travis Murdock, but he could tell by looking at the large house and the surrounding ranch that the complaints of child neglect had nothing to do with a lack of income.
He turned back as the door opened, his breath catching as a tall, dark haired man stood in the doorway. His hair was cut in a short, military crop. He stood several inches taller than Evan's own six feet. As his gaze traveled over the man, he forced himself to keep back any outward reaction, but the inner reaction his body was having to the good looking man was undeniable.
"Can I help you?" The deep voice pulled him from his physical inspection of the man, and he raised his eyes to meet his stare.
"Hi. I'm Evan Mitchell. I'm looking for a Travis Murdock."
"That would be me."
"I'm with the department of child services and I was hoping I could ask you a few questions." He had given this speech so many times. Too many times. He longed for the day when he would show up to work and be told there were no cases today and he wasn't needed, but unfortunately it didn't look like that day would come.
To his surprise the man smiled. Not the usual reaction he got when he showed up at peoples door.
"Sure, I've been expecting you. Come on in." He stepped back to allow Evan to step inside before shutting the door.
"Let's head to the kitchen. I would like to keep as much of this from Jason as I can." He glanced toward the living room and then called out. "Jake, I have company. You two be okay in there for a bit?"
Evan heard a young boy laughing and then an older voice call back. "Sure. Go ahead. I'm not leaving here until I find a way to beat Jas at this game."
Evan didn't miss the amused smile that crossed over Travis's face.
"Right this way." Travis led him through a narrow hallway and into the kitchen. "Can I get you a drink?"
"No thanks." Evan looked around at the large, modern kitchen. It wasn't spotless, but it was more than clean. He couldn't say anything negative about the living conditions so far. "You said you were expecting me?" He took a seat at the kitchen table.
Travis nodded, sitting across from him. "The Steeles warned they were going to fight me for custody. I wasn't sure what route they would take, a legal custody battle or try to get me deemed unfit. Either way, your being here isn't a surprise. I can only imagine what they have said to you."
Evan folded his hands on the table and smiled. "I haven't spoken to them yet. I find it's best to read the report and then see the accused first. That way when I do see the accusing family, I can get a better feel for what they are saying and figure out how much is emotional and how much is fact. I will be meeting with them tomorrow."
He watched Travis's body relax a bit at the news.
"Well, Mr. Mitchell, I'm willing to cooperate in any way. I just want what is best for Jason."
"And you believe that he is better off with you?" Evan could still hear the child laughing from the other room.
"I believe he is better off with me than with the Steeles, though I do want him to have a relationship with them as well. I don't have any plans to keep him from them. My sister and her husband must have felt the same way to leave me custody."
Evan nodded. "I'm sorry about your loss."
"Thank you." Travis sighed. "I just want Jason to be happy. It's hard enough right now on him having lost his parents, let alone to have to pull him into a custody battle."
"I agree. I will do all I can to keep him out of this, but I might have to speak to him at some point, find out what he feels." Evan would take the child's opinion and feelings into consideration before he had to hand in his recommendations. "Let me explain what is happening. The Steeles have filed with the courts to fight you for custody, stating that the child is endangered and that you are unfit to raise a child. It is my job to research both sides and give my recommendation to the court."
Travis shifted in his chair. "And just what is this based on? What deems me unfit or negligent?"
"There are many factors taken into consideration, living conditions, interaction with the child and others who live in the home, the child's happiness and health. Each case is different. I can't give you a straight outline."
Travis nodded. "I'm going to be honest with you, Mr. Mitchell, the main reason Jason's grandparents are fighting me on this, other than they are probably hurt by my sister's and brother-in-law's choice of Jason living with me, is because I am gay. If this is going to be a problem for you or influence your decision in anyway, I would rather get that out in the open now and keep Jason from suffering any more stress by having to move back and forth or deal with this custody issue."
Evan's head snapped up as he looked at the man in front of him with a different perspective. A much more unprofessional one that had his body reacting in a way it shouldn't be when interviewing a case. "Mr. Murdock, I can promise you that your sexual orientation will play no role in my recommendations to the court. I am well aware of some people's views on this matter and neither they nor the Steele's opinion on it, will influence me in any way."
Travis nodded, relief passing over his face. "Thank you. I know this is the biggest issue that the Steeles have with me. They made that very clear last week in the lawyers office."
Evan smiled. "They didn't mention that in the report they sent us when they filed with the court. I will be interested if they bring it up tomorrow. Did the attorney hear them say these things to you?"
"Oh yeah, they didn't hide it at all. He was sitting right there."
"Then I may interview him also." Evan wondered if this case was nothing more than bigotry and hate. If so, he would make sure that it had nothing to do with the final findings of the case. "Can I get his contact information from you?"
"Uncle Travis, can I go swimming?" Jason came dashing into the room, stopping just short of Travis.
Travis grinned as Jake walked into the kitchen, staying back by the door. "Tell you what Jas. I need to talk to Mr. Mitchell for a bit longer, but if you want to help Jake finish up chores in the barn, we can barbeque again, and then after dinner we can swim."
"Chores?" Jason groaned.
"Yep. All part of living here, Jas. I think Jake finished fixing the latches on the stall door. I bet they could use a bit of paint. You want to do that while Jake takes care of a few other things?" He glanced up at Jake, who nodded.
"Paint?" Jason's eyes went almost as big as his smile. "I'm a good painter."
"I know you are. That's why I asked you to do it." Travis reached out rested his hand on Jason's shoulder. "I'll come out and help as soon as I finish up here."
Jason turned. "Come on Jake, let's go." He took off out of the room without another word.
"Thanks, Jake." Travis looked up.
"No problem. Take your time." Jake tipped his hat at Evan and turned to follow Jason.
Evan wondered if Jake was Travis's lover. Glad he had the job he did and could ask questions without being obvious about his curiosity, he asked. "So Jake lives here, too?"
"No. He is my foreman. We've been best friends since high school. He and about six other men work here, but as far as living here it's just me, Jason, and Flossie." He nodded to the dog lying by his feet.
Evan smiled, looking down at the dog. "He seems happy."
Travis grinned. "Jason or the dog?"
Evan laughed. "Jason, though the dog does as well." He sat back, not as on guard as he had been at first. He never knew what he would walk into when coming to do an initial interview. Some people met him with such hostility that a time or two he had needed to call the cops for back-up. It was nice to have a case where the person appeared honest and willing to cooperate. "Listen, I want this to be as easy as you do. I know that no one likes having the state get involved in their lives. I'm going to need to do a few things, with your permission of course. I would like to do a walk through the house, look for any safety concerns, signs of neglect. I know this is a working ranch, but I will also need to look around, make sure there is nothing that could be of danger to a young child." He met Travis's brown eyes. "I will also randomly drop by at different times to check in. I don't want you to think I'm trying to catch you at anything. We just like to get a feel for everyday life in the home."
Travis reached down, running his fingers through the dog's hair. "I am more than happy to give you a tour of the place, and you are welcome to drop in anytime. We have nothing to hide here. Any of my men would bend over backwards for Jason. You're even welcome to join us for dinner once we are done. You can see how Jason is responding to the changes. Like I said before, my biggest worry is that Jason not be dragged into any court battle or arguments me and his grandparents might have."
"I promise you that I will do all I can to keep this from effecting Jason. I agree with you, the boy has been through enough. Has he had any issues with his parent's death?"
Travis shook his head. "And that worries me. Right at first, the first couple of days after it happened, he did cry, asked a lot of questions about life, death, and God. I did my best to answer them, but…" He shrugged. "Since then he has shown no signs of it bothering him. I expected the adjustment to be a bit harder for him. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad it's not, but I'm worried he is holding it in. I honestly don't know if it's just his age, maybe they bounce back faster or it might hit months down the road. I just don't know what to think."
"Does he talk about his parents?" Evan was treading into an area best left to counselors, but he was concerned and it was after all his job to make sure the child was okay.
"Some, but not their death. More like telling me things they did or asking me to do things like they do. I keep waiting for the grief to hit, but it hasn't." Travis wiped his hand down his cheek and sighed. "If he grieved while at his grandparents, I wasn't told about it."
"I'm guessing you don't get along with the Steeles?"
"I have nothing against them. I'd only met them a couple times at family gatherings. Maybe two or three times before this all happened. If you had asked me before if I had a problem with them, I would have said no. Now, after the day at the lawyers, and the way they acted when I picked Jas up, well, I can't say I like them very much."
Evan nodded, not blaming Travis for not liking them if this really was based on the fact he was gay. "Why don't you give me a quick tour of the house and you can tell me what happened when you picked him up."
Travis stood, stepping over Flossie on the floor. "Sure, follow me." He led him out of the kitchen and up a flight of stairs. "I had told them I would be over at four. Figured that would give them time to pack and get Jason ready. When I got there, they had told Jason he was only coming to visit and packed him one small duffle bag. I've had to take Jas shopping for most things he has here. Even the booster seat. They wouldn't let me have his. We drove a mile into town to pick one up before heading home. I couldn't believe they would put his safety at risk, just to be uncivil to me."
"Ah yes. That was mentioned. They claimed you drove off without him secured in the truck." Evan glanced into what had to be Jason's room by the amount of toys, and cartoons on the sheets.
"He was seat-belted in the backseat of my truck. I stopped at the first store that sold them and bought one." Travis shook his head. "This is crazy."
Evan turned, leaning on the small desk covered in crayons and paper. "It usually is. These kind of disputes are never easy. That's why I have to be so careful in my investigation. I never know who is telling the truth or if either side is." His gut was already telling him who was the civil, honest one in this case, but he couldn't let that change the way he did his job. Nor could he let the fact that he was finding Travis to be one of the most attractive men he'd ever met, detour him from finding out the truth.
Travis slumped against the doorjamb. "I will give you whatever you need. Hell, you can move in if you need to. I'm not hiding anything. My biggest worry is that my being gay will be the major deciding factor in all this. It's the main case the Steeles will make as this goes on."
Evan pushed away from the desk and met Travis's eyes. "Mr. Murdock, I promise you that it will play no part in my investigation. I know how others view it. You won't get that from me. Luck must have been on your side when I got handed this case because I'm gay, too."
Travis let out a small gasp or possibly a sigh of relief. "Oh, thank God. I was really worried. I thought for sure everyone would side against me."
Evan smiled. "I want what is best for Jason. That shouldn't have anything to do with sexuality. I understand your fears, and have seen cases lost because of it, but I can promise that it won't have any bearing on my report to the court. I will suggest what I think is the best thing for the child."
Travis closed his eyes for a moment and then looked back at Evan. "That's all I want. I want him happy. I'm not going to try and sway you either way. In my heart I know God brought Jason here for a reason. I have to have faith that He will make this all work out."
"You're a religious man?"
"I believe. Now that I have Jason here, I won't be as lazy getting to church on Sundays. My sister was very active in the church and I want Jason to continue to be. He says he has a lot of friends there. I won't take that from him. Won't hurt me none to go more often either."
Evan nodded. "Doesn't hurt any of us. I'm glad to hear you're keeping him with his friends." He looked around the room. "I assume this is his?"
"No, it's mine." Travis grinned and then laughed. "Sorry, yes, it's Jason's room. I still need to get him a few things and there are boxes of his stuff at his grandparents in the garage, but I have hesitated asking for them. It might just be easier to replace it all than ask them for it."