Sandy said, "I think I'll call Mother with Jeremy's story, maybe this will help her to check on Aunt Paula."
"Mother, Dan & I have just had a long talk with Jeremy about what has been going on in his life for the past three years. The poor kid has been through a lot. His Aunt Paula and that boyfriend of hers have been living off the boy's subsistence. She has given the boy nothing except the bare essentials, and made his life miserable. My thoughts are to document everything the boy has told us to use against the aunt, in order to take the boy away from her. We want to adopt the boy. I think we have enough evidence to take her to court for neglect and for misusing his income. I think if Social Services knew that she was letting the boy sleep in a shed, and not feeding him properly, she could be in a lot of trouble. I think that the court would not look kindly at her for her drinking, and for having an unemployed live-in boyfriend hanging around. She does not want the kid around anyway, so why not force her to sign guardianship over to us."
Mrs. Dunnlap said, "If we can obtain affidavits from the boy that stayed with him before he left for Dunnlap and from the McDonald's manager and your maintenance man, we can show that the boy was forced out. See if any of his friends came looking for Jeremy after he left. Find out what kind of story Aunt Paula was spreading. I'm sure she wants people to believe he is still living at home; otherwise she would forfeit his support income. You may have to give her an incentive for her to give you custody. In the meantime, I'll draw up the papers to transfer custody to you. We can take care of the legal adoption after you gain custody."
"Thanks, Mom, I'll get Brian on those affidavits ASAP."
"We need to ask Jeremy the names of his friends who can verify that he was kicked out. Would you mind getting those from him, Dan? I need to get together with Brian."
"I'll be glad to find out," Dan said.
Dan found Jeremy in the boys' suite at their play station. "Jeremy," Dan said, "may I talk to you for a few minutes? This won't take long."
"Sure, Mr. Kelly," Jeremy said.
"Let's go into your suite," Dan said.
"If you don't mind, I think it would be better if you called me Uncle Dan, like the other boys. Mr. Kelly sounds too formal. I need the names of your friends that knew that you were leaving, and also the reason why. We learned that your Aunt Paula is telling people that you ran away from home again to stay with your old friends in Huntsville."
Jeremy shook his head and said, "She is lying, I have never run away, and I certainly wouldn't take off to Huntsville. I was ashamed to let my former friends know the way I was living."
"Jeremy we are trying to help you, and you need to help us. We need the names and addresses for your friends in Georgia that knew your Aunt Paula kicked you out."
"I only had two close friends that I confided in. One was Johnny Brooks, and the other was Charley Moore. They overheard my aunt threaten me more that once, when she was drunk." Jeremy gave Dan their addresses and telephone numbers.
"Brian and one of our agents will contact Charley and Johnny in a few days. They may want to protect you and not say anything about you. So you will need to call them in advance to let they know it's okay to talk to him. Also, you need to tell us how to find your hideout. That may be the best place to meet them. They will trust Brian more if they know you gave him the location of your hideout. It will also be a safe place to meet without drawing any suspicion."
"Yea, that will work; Charley and Johnny are good friends and will want to help me if they can. They have no respect for my Aunt Paula and Hank."
"Thanks, Jeremy, after lunch you and I are going to run up to Atlanta to do a little shopping. So don't make any plans."
"I can't waste my money on shopping," Uncle Dan.
"You won't need any money; I'll take care of that. Run along and get back to your game."
Dan returned to the library and handed Sandy the note that had the names of Jeremy's friends and also a drawing with directions to the hideout.
Sandy handed the page over to Brian, "Here are the names of Jeremy's two friends and their contact information. Jeremy will call them in advance and set up a time to meet, either later today or tomorrow."
Brian said, "That would be helpful, if their parents answer the telephone they won't get suspicious if Jeremy calls. Let's have Jeremy set up the day and time."
"Great," Dan said, "Let's go and talk to Jeremy now."
When Dan & Brian returned to the library, Sandy was on the telephone talking to his mother. Sandy hung up the phone and said, "Mother spoke to an attorney with Social Services. He said try to keep Social Services out of this. Don't let this drag on too long. Jeremy has been missing for over two months and no one has reported him missing. So chances are nothing is going to happen until school opens in the fall. So we have time."
Dan said, "Jeremy reached both Charley and Johnny and they will be meeting with Brian later this afternoon. Jeremy explained everything to them and they are willing to help in any way they can."
"That's great," Sandy said. "As soon as you have everything in hand, Bryan, make sure you send a copy to my mother. I don't think it would hurt to bug the cabin with cameras and voice recorders. How do you feel about that, Brain?"
"Peace of cake, boss." Brian said. "My team has some talent in that area."
"Right," Sandy said. "Things are looking good."
Jeremy said, "This is really super, Uncle Dan. That is my first time riding in a helicopter. It also a first riding in a stretch limo."
"I'm glad you are enjoying the trip, now maybe you have something to talk about at dinner tonight."
The chauffer dropped them off at the entrance of Saks Fifth Avenue at Phipps Plaza.
Dan led Jeremy to the boys' department. A salesman walked over to Dan and asked if he could be of service. Dan said, "You sure can, my nephew is in desperate need of a summer wardrobe. As you can see he has outgrown everything he owns. I want you to outfit him with a new wardrobe, suits, sport coats, slacks, shoes, underwear, PJs, lounging robes and casual sports wear. Figure on a dozen of everything," Dan said. He handed the salesman his American Express Platinum card and said, Don't forget anything."
The salesman smiled, "Yes, sir, if you will follow me, we can get started in the sports wear first."
Two hours later they were finished with Saks. Dan told the salesman "My chauffer is parked at the curb; I would appreciate it if you could make sure everything is delivered to him."
Their next stop was to A&F for some casual clothes and shoes. They spent another hour selecting casual wear and several pairs of casual shoes. This time they carried the packages to the car.
Jeremy was overwhelmed, "I cannot believe this, Uncle Dan. I never had a wardrobe like this, ever before. My parents bought me new clothes every season, but never this much at one time. Thank you, so much. I don't understand why you are doing this for me. You only met me yesterday. Why are you spending so much money on me?"
"Because we can, and because we want to. Don't worry about that now, Jeremy, just enjoy your good fortune. Sandy and I will explain our reasons to you later."
Dan asked Ludlow to help Jeremy sort out his new wardrobe. "Jeremy, I need to catch up on some work, can you amuse yourself until dinner?"
"You bet, Uncle Dan. It will take me some time to try on some of my new outfits." Dan left Jeremy and Ludlow to their task.
Dan walked into the library. Brian and Sandy were in conference. Sandy said, "You're just in time to hear Brian's report. Go ahead, Brian."
Brian said, "I met with Johnny and Charley at the hideout and recorded their conversation. It was good thing they were both together because they were able to recall everything. Johnny would forget one incident and Charley would remember something that Johnny had forgotten. They are a few years older than Jeremy, nice clean cut young boys. That Aunt Paula was a real bitch. She was always putting Jeremy down in front of his friends. Jeremy told them that his aunt wanted him to get out, she did not want him around. I learned from Johnny that Aunt Paula and Hank like to spend a few hours every afternoon at Joe's bar and grill. So I've scheduled my specialists to wire the house tomorrow as soon as the aunt leaves. One of my guys checked out Joe's today after the couple left. They stopped at KFC for a bucket of chicken and at the liquor store for a case of Bud."
"I'll make copies of the material gathered and will have it delivered to your mother's office tonight."
"Thanks, Brian, you and your team have done well," Sandy said.
"Thanks, Boss, I don't think you are going to learn much from the surveillance DVD's at the cabin, other than to document the fact that they are heavy drinkers. If you want, we can keep surveillance at Joe's if you think it is necessary."
Sandy said, "I would not spend more than a couple of days there, if your man can single out any customers that appear to dislike the aunt and Hank, it may be worth something down the road. I have a strong feeling that Aunt Paula is going to jump at the chance of signing over custody to me, when we explain to her the trouble she is in already."
"Thanks, Brian, keep up the good work, and we'll talk tomorrow after I talk to my mother."
After Brian left, Sandy said, "I think we should have a talk with Jeremy after dinner, babe. We better be certain he wants to live with us."
After dinner, Sandy asked Jeremy to join him and Dan in the library. Dan and Sandy sat on the lounge and Jeremy sat on the chair facing them.
Sandy said, "Jeremy, you asked Dan this afternoon why we were doing this for you? The answer is that we felt that you needed someone to take care of you, and we don't want to see you end up in a foster home. We were appalled at what your aunt did to you, and we feel that you need to be part of a family. We empathize with the tragic loss of your parents and the disgraceful treatment by your aunt. In the short time you've been with us, we can see what a fine boy you are, and we feel that you would be a welcome addition to our family. We would like you to come live with us and become our son. We have a lot to offer you and we want to take care of you."
"However, before you decide, we must be honest with you. Dan and I are a gay couple. We assure you that no harm will ever come to you and you will be treated as one of the family. You will never have to worry about your future. You'll receive the best education, and all the love our family can offer. Both Dan and I have a large family and are fortunate not to have any money problems. Well, that's what we have to offer you and we hope you will give it some serious thought before you decide if this is what you want."
Jeremy stared at Sandy for several seconds before speaking. Tears began to roll down his cheeks and he started to cry.
"Are you alright, son?" Sandy asked.
Jeremy nodded his head and tried to speak, but couldn't.
Dan arose from his chair and walked over and sat next to Jeremy, putting his arm around his shoulder and pulled him close. "It's alright, Tiger, go ahead and cry. I'm sure it will help."
Jeremy buried his head into Dan's chest and cried. He calmed down after a few minutes, still sniveling a little. Dan took his handkerchief out of his pocket and handed it to Jeremy. "Here, sport, blow your nose."
Jeremy blew his nose and wiped his eyes, still hugging Dan. "I'm sorry for acting like a big baby, but I couldn't hold it back. This is the first time in three years that I wasn't frightened about what is going to become of me. I can't believe that you both want me to be your son. It's like a dream come true. It's still hard to believe. It doesn't bother me that you two are gay. You have both been kinder to me than anyone, other than my parents. People don't really care what happens to me. I will be happy to live here and will be proud to be your son."
Sandy said, "We are delighted that you agreed to be our son. Now that that is settled, we will need to convince your Aunt Paula. We will make her an offer she can't refuse."
Jeremy smiled and said, "Are you going to offer her a lifetime supply of Budweiser?"
They all laughed, "Hey if that's what it takes, we'll be home free," Sandy said.
"We are formulating a plan to offer your aunt, which I'm sure she will accept. I hate to brag, but I do have a lot of clout in this state, Jeremy. Your aunt has broken the law, and lied about you. First of all, Jeremy, your aunt made a big mistake by not filing a missing-persons report on you while claiming you are a runaway. Second, your aunt is still receiving your Social Security, and your trust fund checks, while you have been gone for the last two months. As your guardian, she has the same responsibility for you that a parent has. You are a minor and she should have reported you missing. Dan and I want to keep this out of the hands of Child Protection Services. We want to handle this quietly without any publicity. Let me say that I feel confident that your aunt does not want to end up in jail for child neglect. It's getting late, and I think you've had enough excitement for one day. Tomorrow, we will discuss some of the plans we have for you. Let's all head to bed; are you ready, Dan?"
"You bet, come on, Jeremy, let's head upstairs," Dan said. He kept his arm around Jeremy's shoulder and led him up to the second floor. Jeremy hugged them both and walked down the hall to his suite.
Dan and Sandy entered their suite and closed the door. Dan said, "Well, that went better then I thought. That boy is starved for affection and he'll need counseling. I think you should ask your sister for her advice. I don't know how I would have acted if I were in his position at that age. Jeremy is a survivor and I admire his courage."
Sandy said, "That boy is one of a kind and I'm glad he has agreed to be our son. Well, sweetheart, I'm beat; let hit the sack and make out."