Christmas was upon them, the first since becoming a family of twenty. Everything had settled down a lot from the beginning of the school year. Eric was unable to go through with the termination. But he lost the pregnancy not long after. He seemed to be ok with how it happened, but he still hadn’t told Gus who had gotten him that way. He had made the decision when he was eighteen that he would have the operation to sterilize him, even with the risks. Brian hadn’t been happy, but it wasn’t his decision.

Most of Brian’s kids weren’t really fans of his, and same with his kids and Brian. The only good thing was the united force they seemed to have with each other. Mitch was in awe of his new big brother Gus. He would follow him around and Gus was nice enough to include him even with Mitch only being eight.

Sadie’s twelfth birthday was on Christmas Day and Adam was turning fourteen on the twenty-seventh. Because of that they were having a party on boxing day for the two of them. Sadie usually had a little something at the end of the day on Christmas, so she was happy about the party. The two of them had fun lamenting about having Birthday/Christmas presents every year.

After a lot of discussion Brian took over the Christmas shopping this year because he actually had time off. Justin was working on a showing in New York. It was a major thing for him, there was no way he would give it up. After discussing it with Brian he decided he would quit the art gallery. He would be able to stay home with the kids and work on his art. After the visits to the principal’s office, they knew they needed a plan. Thankfully, nothing like that had happened again.

They gave Eric the option to home school, but the brave little fucker said he wasn’t going to let them win and chase him off. In the few months since school started Eric had actually met a nice boy named DeMarcus and they were casually dating.

Noreen and Natasha had even started to do some things separately. Noreen had taken up art classes while Natasha had wanted to start to take piano lessons. As for the rest of the kids they had all seemed to be adjusting well.

Gus actually had a girlfriend, a real one not just a hookup. Brian couldn’t stand the girl, but Justin thought that was because he was worried Gus would get her pregnant. Krista had made the biggest transformation making him realize it wasn’t a chemical source, her reason for depression and self-harm. It was an outside source; he still didn’t know what that was, but he knew when she wanted to tell him she would.

Nina and Lola had started a joint venture, they made funny little videos and were very popular. It wasn’t fashion videos or anything it was all about being in a blended family of such a large one.

Freddie’s arm had healed, and he had made new friends and they were usually out doing something that would give Justin an early heart attack. Adam and Mindy had made new friends easily. He worried the most about Sadie, she just didn’t seem to want friends, she was always just reading in her room. Mitch and Alicia were friends with some neighbor kids. Logan and Lucas were inseparable. Leia and Hannah were very different but got along well. Then there was Baby Bea who had decided Brian is her favorite person in the world. He tried not to get jealous, he wanted her to love him.

Justin was working in his studio that Brian had built for him on their property. All the kids were in school, pre-school or in Bea’s case the daycare at Brian’s office. The daycare had been a Godsend because Brian could go downstairs and check on her anytime he wanted, that made Justin feel better.

His phone started to ring, causing him to lose focus. “Can’t I have a fucking moment of peace?” he asked the empty room.

Picking up his phone he looked and saw that he didn’t recognize the number. “Hello?” he said a little shortly.

“Mr. Taylor?” He had kept his last name exactly how it was because he wanted to share his name with his kids.

“Yes?”

“I’m Dr. Powers with the Green Valley clinic. You came in the other day to have your annual checkup.”

“This I know. What? Did you find something?” Worry about being sick started to run through his head. He had been feeling a little rundown lately, but he assumed it was because all the extra kids meaning extra work.

“No…well…yes. It’s nothing to worry about after checking your records.”

“What does that mean?”

“You’re pregnant.”

When Brian got home that night with Bea, he knew something was wrong. Usually, Justin was doing something around the house with Hannah and Leia as his little shadows. Instead, he found Freddie watching to two toddlers. He had given them game controllers that were broken, they really thought they were playing with him.

“Where’s your dad?” he asked, setting the baby down.

“Aunt Daphne’s. He said he was spending the weekend there,” Freddie said with a shrug.

They had eighteen children; Justin just couldn’t leave for the weekend without even a text. Brian had so much he had to do this weekend he couldn’t take the lion’s share of the child rearing.

“Can you watch Bea? I need to call your father.”

“Sure,” Freddie said not taking his eyes away from the screen.

“Never mind,” he said picking her back up. Leaving him in charge of three-year-olds was very different from a one-year-old.

He carried her to his office, grabbing the number blocks she liked on the way. Setting her on the ground, he emptied the block container on the floor for her.

Taking his phone, he called his wayward husband. He knew Justin would answer because it was their rule, no matter what they answer each other’s calls.

“What Brian?” Justin said as a greeting.

“Freddie said you were spending the weekend at Daphne’s. Did I miss the memo on this?”

“I just need some time without kids hanging on me. Please, I’m struggling with something here.”

Now he was actually worried instead of annoyed. “And you didn’t think to talk this over with your husband?”

“I will, I just need time on my own to think. Daphne’s working all the time, so I’ve got her place to myself. I promise, when I figure out what I’m going to do you’ll be the first to know.”

Was Justin thinking of ending their marriage? He knew he wasn’t the best husband in the world but didn’t think it would be over before in half a year.

“Do I need to be worried?”

“No. Well, I don’t know. If you’re asking if I’m thinking about ending us and uprooting our family, no. I have something that’s just about me that I need to work out. It involves you and I promise I’ll get your input but just give me the weekend.”

“Ok. Bye.” He didn’t want to admit he was hurt Justin wasn’t confiding in him. When did he become this person? He hung up before Justin could reply.

A while later there was a quiet tap on his door. It had to be one of Justin’s because his didn’t care if they bothered him.

“Come in,” he called out.

Krista walked in, she looked nervous. “I’ve come to get Bea. Dad texted and asked me to give her a bath.”

Brian looked over at the toddler who had fallen asleep on his floor. “Might as well wake her now or she’ll never sleep tonight.” She nodded and walked over to pick Bea up. Something caught his attention. “What’s that?” he asked, pointing at her finger. It wasn’t a ring someone would get for themselves; it was a ring someone would give to someone they liked.

She looked at her hand and blushed. “Oh, this? It’s nothing.” Shoving her left hand in her pocket. He wouldn’t push for the information on the ring, let her have a little privacy in this madhouse.

“You know your father worries about you?”

“I know. I just can’t tell him somethings. I don’t want him to hate me.” She sat down on his sofa.

“He could never hate you.”

“You don’t know. People can hate their kids; they do all the time.”

“Not your father. Why don’t you run it by me? I promise I won’t tell him if you don’t want me. I never lie, you can ask my kids.”

She nodded and bit her lip to the point of bleeding. “My freshman year, an older boy started to show interest in me. I didn’t really like him, but it felt good to be wanted. That’s sounds stupid, I know.” It didn’t, it sounded like being human, but he kept his mouth shut, scared she would stop talking.

“I skipped the fourth grade, so I was a year younger than everyone. Because I was only thirteen, I kept it quiet from Dad, I didn’t want him to get out of shape because a sixteen-year-old was giving me attention. He invited me over to a party. I told my dad I was going to study at the public library. He dropped me off and said he would be back in a few hours to pick me up. The boy picked me up from there.

“I was so nervous about the whole thing, but it felt exciting, doing something that I wasn’t supposed to do. I was the youngest at the party, but he was being so nice I didn’t care. That was until he took me upstairs. I was so stupid to walk into that room with him.” A churning in his gut started happening, he knew where this was going.

“First, it was kissing, I didn’t really want to but didn’t want him not to like me anymore or think I was a baby. But then he started to push me down, his hands under my shirt. I told him no and tried to push him off, but he was so much bigger than me. I clawed at him, scratched his arms and face but he quickly had me pinned. The things he was saying I wouldn’t want to repeat. He had my wrists pinned over my head with one hand, he was so much bigger than me. With his other he went to open my jeans.”

He wanted to tell her to stop telling him, but he knew this was a secret she had kept in way too long already.

“The door open, he locked it, but it must have been broken. Gus came stumbling in with a girl. He saw me pinned and crying. He pulled the boy off of me and there was a huge fight. Gus got a black-eye and a broken nose for his trouble.” Brian had remembered that Gus had told him it was a fight over a girl, he wasn’t lying he guessed. “He wanted me to go to the police, said that him and the girl would back up my story. I couldn’t. I just couldn’t.

“I didn’t know how hard it would be to see him every day, to hear the things he said about me. I kept quiet though, just hoping he would stop but he never did. Grabbing me when he walked by me in the hallway, saying crude things when no one could hear but me. I started cutting, and then my sister and dad found out. I couldn’t even tell my doctors because they are those mandatory reporters, you know? Ended up failing my freshman year, couldn’t concentrate unless I was cutting.

“But I started to get help and last year was his last, so I thought finally. Finally, I could have some peace. But he failed his senior year and had to repeat. I was looking at another full year with him. Moving here, it was the best thing that ever happened.”

This was not his area of expertise. Lola hadn’t even started dating yet, she had very high standards and none of the boys at school met them. “You father would have done whatever you wanted. He also would have made sure you won’t have to see that boy again.” Brian was going to get a name from Gus as soon as Krista left.

“I couldn’t say the words. I tried but I would chicken out every time.”

“That wasn’t chickening out, that was self-preservation. You don’t have to do this alone. You could also still have justice for what he did to you. Doing what he did to you, chances are he’s done it to others and still will until he’s outed for his crimes.”

“Can I think about it?” she asked meekly.

“As much as you want. You are the one in control, if you decide you don’t want to that’s what will happen. You will not have to do anything. You said you tried to tell your dad, but you couldn’t. Do you want me to?”

“Would you?”

He nodded. “Yes.”

“Can you tell him that I wasn’t going to sleep with him? I just thought he liked me.”

There was never a time he had as this to keep his emotions in check more than now. “He’ll know that. And even if you did want to and planned to, once you said no, everything stops. Even in the middle of sex, you can change your mind. Remember that you never have to do anything you don’t want.” Unless someone forces you, he thought. She was so much smaller than Nina and Lola who were both younger. “Is there anything else you want to say or ask?”

“Lola said she’s a black belt.”

“You want to take karate classes?” That was very doable.

“No, Krav Maga.”

“Well, I guess, if you’re going to do it you might as well go for broke.”

“Is that a yes?”

“I’ll have to ok it with your dad, but I see no reason not, you’re old enough to make decisions for yourself.”

“Thanks,” she said, her eyes a little teary. She bent over and picked up Bea who woke as she was lifted. Once she left, he felt like he could finally breathe at least for a moment, he texted Gus for him to come to his office.

A few minutes later Gus came in with visible hickies on his neck, he guessed Shana was there.

“What’s up?” Gus asked, throwing himself down on the sofa.

“What’s the name of the boy that attacked Krista?”

Gus froze momentarily. “She told you?” He nodded. “She doesn’t want to go to the police. I tried to talk her into it when it happened. I didn’t even know her then.”

“The name.” There was no room for argument. If Krista didn’t want to press charges that was her decision, but Brian had his own way of justice.

“Davis Nicholson.”

“Leave.”

“Dad…”

“I said leave.” Gus looked to really want to argue but he got up and left. Picking up the phone, Brian hit the name that he wished he wouldn’t have to contact again.

“’Lo,” a groggy voice answered.

“It’s six o’clock in the evening, why are you sleeping?”

“Who is this?”

“Your dear old uncle. How would you like to make some money?”

“I guess this is something illegal,” John said, sounding more awake.

“I wouldn’t be calling you if it wasn’t.”

“We’ll I have nothing planned for the foreseeable future.”

That was the understatement of the century. His sister had two sons, John, and Peter. Peter was very much like him; he was athletic and got a scholarship and never looked back. John was always breaking the law, getting locked up at the age of eleven the first time. In the beginning Brian had helped Clare with the lawyers’ fees but he would go broke if he did it every time. Once Clare died, John really went downhill. He was living in an apartment that he got with the life insurance from his mom’s death. Brian told him he would pay for her funeral and John could keep all the insurance money; he just didn’t want to hear from him again. Now look where he was. John had only been out of prison for a few weeks, Peter usually kept him informed.