Chapter 8

When Otis and Beulah finally returned from their 7-week world tour, they returned to a home that had been completely refurbished and deep cleaned. In appreciation for their generosity Chad (at his girlfriend’s suggestion) spent several weeks, repairing or replacing older appliances, recarpeting, and painting the interior and had a landscape crew come and revamp the entire outside.

He had moved in with Jessica, who had plenty of room for him, Bobby, and Gunner. Her ground level condo was lavishly appointed, and Bobby was ecstatic to be able to swim whenever he wanted. He was also quite smitten with the crimson haired woman who took him in like her own child. They became thick as thieves and spent a lot of time together. She joined him at the park with her inline skates (making him the most popular kid around) and spent hours teaching him the fundamentals of tumbling, wrestling and self-defense. She also proved his equal at the gaming console. His time spent with them made up for the depressing times he had to spend with his mom and Frank. He enjoyed his counseling sessions with Ms. Dillard and showed tremendous progress.

The only downside to his young life was school. Despite their best efforts to shelter the boy from the divorce proceedings, nothing could spare him from the cruel environment of public education. As the time for the hearing approached, the imminent court proceedings became public knowledge and the local news crews got hold of the story. They did not paint Molly or Frank in a favorable light and Bobby found himself the target of countless cruel jokes, pranks and cut downs. Having to return home to his “cheating slut mom,” “gold digging whore,” and “brother lover” was more than he could take. Naturally, when he defended himself against four bullies who set out to humiliate him (“Who’s your daddy?”)—his mother was called, and she simply told the school officials to call his father. By the time Chad and Jessica arrived at the school, the final bell had rung, and the halls were mostly empty. They found Bobby in the Principal’s office holding an ice pack to his left arm.

The principal, Mr. Presley, was a tall, reed thin, man with receding gray hear that he chose to comb across his balding pallet. He wore a charcoal gray suit and sat at his desk with several folders laid out before him. A chubby middle-aged woman with a sour complexion sat in a nearby chair with her hands folded in her lap. She reminded Jessica of Professor Umbridge on Harry Potter.

When he saw them enter the office Bobby leapt up and raced into Jessica’s arms, sobbing. She shushed him and assured him that everything was okay. Chad stood in the middle of the room glancing expectantly from the man behind the desk to the woman.

The principal cleared his throat. “Oh, I am sorry miss, but everything is certainly NOT okay.”

Jess turned her head and gave the older man a withering look that stopped him in his tracks. “Then please do—enlighten us Mr. Presley.” She growled.

“Well ... erm. You see there was an incident earlier this afternoon between young Mr. Hartley here and another boy.” He stated awkwardly.

“There were four of them!” Bobby blurted.

“You will wait your turn to speak!” The chubby woman snapped at him.

Chad stared down at her with a frown and stepped up to the desk. “Who are you?” He asked her directly.

“I am Margaret Jennings, Assistant Vice principal.” She replied haughtily.

Chad turned back to the principal. “So, he got into a fight with another boy? Or 4 other boys?” He asked.

The principal looked down at the folders on his desk. “Allegedly there were several boys involved.” He said hesitantly. “But one lad had to be transported to the Emergency Room with severe injuries.”

“Oh?” Chad looked back at Bobby who was nursing his arm. “And what happened to the other boys?”

“Well, they were released to go home.”

Jessica snorted. “How old were these other four boys?” She asked.

“That is not important...” Mrs. Jennings stated. “The issue here is the unprecedented violence caused by this young man, on school property.”

“They were all 9^th graders.” Bobby muttered angrily.

“Really?” Chad turned back to the frowning Principal. “So, four teenagers were involved in a fight with my 12-year-old, and you called us to...?” He looked at them both expectantly.

Mr. Presley cleared his throat and looked down at the folders again. “Well as Mrs. Jennings stated, this behavior on the part of your son is well outside the standards of this school and we must discuss it.”

Chad pointed at the desk. “I assume those are the records of the boys involved.”

The principal nodded.

“Good. We will need their names for the police report.” He stepped back as the school administrator’s mouth fell open. “Thank you for bringing this assault to our attention. You will be hearing from our attorneys.” He turned towards his incredulous son and smirking girlfriend.

“Wa—wait! That is not the purpose of this meeting!” Mr. Presley stammered, stepping from behind his desk.

Chad turned back expectantly.

“Another child was seriously injured Mr. Hartley!” Mrs. Jennings declared. “This cannot go unanswered.”

Jessica glared back at the woman. “And so apparently has Bobby!” She retorted, gesturing at his arm.

“That is just a bump!” The vice principal muttered.

“Yet you deemed it necessary to apply ice?” Jess asked angrily. “Has the school nurse seen it?”

“Um ... no.” The principal stuttered. “Mr. Hartley was brought straight here.”

An evil glint sparkled in Jessica’s eye. “So, the two of you determined, in your professional opinions, that Bobby’s arm is not injured enough to warrant further medical attention?”

“Now wait just one minute!” Mrs. Jennings cried standing abruptly.

Chad cut her off, “Tell me—was this ‘incident’ caught on video camera?” He asked, facing the older man.

“I ... I am sure that it was. But it’s district policy that...”

“Good.” Jessica interrupted him. “You will receive an injunction to preserve all evidence within the hour.” She turned Bobby towards the door. “My sister is very efficient.”

“If you will excuse us, we will be taking my son to the emergency room to get his arm checked by a ‘professional’.” Chad added and herded his family out of the office.

X-rays revealed a minor spiderweb fracture to the middle of Bobby’s ulna. He described lifting his arm to block the attack of the older boy before striking him back in the throat as Jess had taught him. Chad was proud of the lad and let him know it. Even Jess beamed at him. Sadly, they had to take him back to his mom and Frank where he miserably went to his room and stayed. A day later Chad received a call from his hysterical ex, telling him to come and get their son immediately.

“You can have him!” She screamed over the phone. “And keep him!”

He called Ms. Dillard, Bobby’s therapist, and she agreed to accompany him to retrieve the boy. They arrived at his old house to find Bobby waiting for them, sitting on the porch step crying, with his left arm draped in a sling. He had two large bags next to him and jumped up to hug Ms. Dillard, sobbing into her shoulder. After a moment she handed him off to his father and asked that they wait in the truck as she turned and knocked on the door. Chad took the bags and did as he was told. Though he could hear nothing, he witnessed a very heated exchange between the counselor and Bobby’s mother. Then the door was slammed shut and Ms. Dillard strode angrily back to Chad’s truck and climbed in.

The next day Chad was granted sole and uncontested custody of his youngest child. When asked what had prompted it, Bobby admitted to losing his temper in the house and breaking a couple expensive things. It was clear that keeping him in the same school would not be beneficial and his counselor agreed that it would be more harmful. It turned out to be academic in the end.

The school district decided to up the ante by officially suspending the boy from attending school until an investigation (into the incident) was conducted. Paul filed suit against the school and its administrators for harmful neglect resulting in physical and mental harm to a minor child. By court order the video recording of the incident was subpoenaed and promptly leaked to the public—showing the four to one gang up on Bobby. It also revealed the severe ass beating suffered by all four of the older boys at the hands of the 12-year-old. Of course, any news surrounding the family was prime time material and it quickly became public fodder. An arbitration hearing was scheduled, but Chad was contacted by the school district, via his attorneys and asked to settle. Chad agreed to drop the suit as long as the school issued a formal apology and lifted the suspension. They refused to admit fault but agreed to lift the suspension regardless. Chad told them to collectively go screw themselves, and promptly pulled Bobby from school. The suit became bogged down in a bureaucratic quagmire.

Since he was technically ‘penniless’, Jessica generously pitched in and hired a full-time tutor to provide her ‘son’ with a private education. She also began formally instructing him, his two best friends, and Spencer in Karate.

It took considerable time and research to find suitable candidates for Bobby’s private tutor. Chad and Jess discussed it for hours in the evenings as they sat about planning the rest of their lives together. They both agreed that extensive travel was in their near future, so they were keen to find a person detached enough to accompany them and to serve as both teacher and nanny. They were both in agreement that the candidate had to be female as well as he seemed to bond with women better.

They decided to hold the initial interviews at the Law office to keep it formal and professional. Once a candidate was vetted and passed extensive background scrutiny, they would arrange a less formal meeting where Bobby would participate to get a feel for the personal dynamics.

The process went smoother than expected and ended abruptly with the second candidate. Perhaps it was serendipity but after an awkward meeting with their first prospect; Genevieve Guidry entered the conference room like a breath of fresh air. She was a 19-year-old foreign exchange student from Marseilles pursuing post graduate studies in adolescent development and psychology. She was a polymath and a gifted linguist—besides English she was fluent in French, German, (European) Spanish, Italian and Portuguese. She had mixed racial features, her chocolate brown skin bearing her African descent combined with slightly European facial features and reddish-brown hair that she kept shoulder length. Her body was athletic and graceful with modest C cup breasts and a slender waist. Her eyes were a striking steel gray, and her smile was radiant. She spoke clearly, with precise elocution and just a slight French accent. There were tell markers of piercings to her nares and eyebrow, though the ornaments were absent.

She greeted them with polite confidence and carried herself with a sense of humble gratitude. Once the initial introductions were made Chad sat back in wonder as Jessica began speaking smoothly in French. He had no clue how the rest of the interview went but the two women seemed to get along famously. He was amazed to realize that if Genevieve (her friends called her Gee Gee or Evey) had lighter skin and redder hair, she would be a mirror image of Jennifer. Their conversation continued on with frequent bouts of laughter and girlish exclamations. Then they both stood and clasped hands warmly.

“So,” He offered, “how did it go?” He looked from one to the other expectantly. “I assumed you will be joining us for dinner soon?”

With a brilliant smile and slight curtsy, the young woman agreed. “I would be honored Mr. Hartley.”

“Chad.” He corrected as he took her tiny hand in his great paw. “So, Jess mentioned to you that we intend to travel soon? Are you agreeable to helping out as a teacher and a Nanny?”

“Most certainly.” She beamed. “I also mentioned I could be a qualified tour guide for most of Europe and parts of South America.”

Chad turned to his lover with a grin. “I like her!”

The Geegee that arrived at their home was very different from the Genevieve that they had met for the interview. Jess had asked her to ‘just be you.’ “We want to meet the ‘real’ Evey this time.”

The ‘real’ Evey showed up wearing a short halter top with ragged cutoffs and flip flops. Her piercings were on display, protruding from her left eyebrow, left nares and belly button. Her nails were manicured and brightly colored. Several toe rings decorated her feet. She removed her flip flops without prompting and looked about the condominium curiously as she was welcomed in. Her eyes grew wide, and her face lit up with delight when she spotted Gunner walking casually up to her for a sniff and head scratch. “Oh, my goodness!” She cried, “Who is this handsome fellow?” She knelt down and began loving on him shamelessly. Gunner for his part ate it up and leaned into her like she was his only friend. He grunted appreciatively as she scratched his head and shoulders. “Oh, Tappy is gonna love you!” She cooed.

“Who’s Tappy?” Jess asked.

“She’s, my baby!” Evey claimed proudly, activating her phone to show pictures. Tappy (short for Tapioca) was a cream/merle colored Pitbull covered with slightly darker freckles.

Chad entered the room leading his son who dragged his feet shyly. “I see Gunner has made himself known.” He greeted her. The 11-year-old stopped in his tracks as he glimpsed at the dark-skinned beauty in front of him. Chad placed a hand on his shoulder. “And this is my son Bobby.”

Geegee smiled at the boy and stood to shake his hand. “I am so pleased to meet you, Bobby. You can call me Geegee or Evey.”

Bobby gaped at her wordlessly as he opened and closed his mouth repeatedly. “Uh ... you can call me Robert.” He stammered.

Chad laughed and Jess giggled as she rolled her eyes.

After introductions were made Jess and Chad bowed out to take Gunner for a walk so the two could get acquainted without their overbearing presence. The plan was for Geegee to stay for lunch and get to know her charge better.

“I think she is going to be great.” Jess stated confidently as they strolled along holding hands.