*** Lou's POV ***
The agents had an answer within a few hours. They would let Paula retroactively sign over custody to me in exchange for dismissing the abandonment charge. She also had to stay put long enough to testify against Stan, something that I hoped that she already planned to do. Apparently the agents wanted her committed to that plan.
"Let's get this over with." I blew out a heavy sigh and dialed my mom. I wasn't dumb enough to call Paula directly. I needed Mom and Dad as buffers.
"Hi...Johnny." My mom answered. She must be with Paula.
"Mom, you can drop the act. I have a deal to make with Paula. Put me on speaker, please." I shared.
"Are you sure?" She questioned, probably doubting that my sister would go for any deal because of how damn stubborn she was.
"This is the only way." I confirmed. I heard my mom say something and then switched her phone over to speaker.
"Where are my kids, Lou?" Paula immediately demanded.
"Where you left them, Paula." I retorted.
"I want them back with me. This thing with Stan is over." She stated.
"Not quite. Look, I have a deal for you to avoid the abandonment charges so you can keep Wilson." I started.
"You can just tell them that you agreed to watch them for a period." Paula said, unrealistically optimistic.
"You know I can't do that, Paula." I insisted.
"It's not that you can't. You won't." She snapped. "You like playing house with Andie, don't you? That's why you won't give them up."
"I won't give them up because they need stability. You haven't been able to deliver that since their dad died." I snipped back. Andie squeezed my arm, silently signaling that I needed to keep my sharp tongue to myself. "Look, I'm not fighting with you over this. I'm going to tell you the deal and then you take it or not."
"You're going to keep my kids from me?!" She shrieked. I heard Mom trying to calm her.
"No, Paula. You can see them whenever they agree to it. They just won't be leaving with you, unless they choose to." I explained.
"I'm their mother. I should be able to see them whenever I damn well please!" She bitched.
"You gave up that right when you disappeared and just expected me to pick up the slack." I responded as calmly as possible through my gritted teeth.
She was muttering to herself when I heard Dad chime in. "Pauli girl. Just listen to the deal. He's offering you a way to look after all your kids. Hear him out."
"Fine. What's this deal?" She gave in. She always was a daddy's girl.
"They want you to testify against Stan." I started with the easy ask. "Which means staying put for the duration of the trial."
"Well I'm kinda stuck here right now anyway. I have no job, no money." She conceded.
"You can't run again." I pushed.
YOU ARE READING
Bed & Breakfast
Romantik*** COMPLETED STORY *** Running her deceased grandmother's bed and breakfast, Andie gets sucked into a former patron's family drama when she agrees to let displaced mom, Paula, and her three children hide out. Things really go sideways when the arro...
