CHAPTER XXII

"Cael, wake up", Nate said, shaking the man sleeping next to him.

"What?", He answered, still sleepy.

"Wake up. Antoine called. He said it's urgent and he wants both of us in his house asap".

"Just five more minutes".

"You have until I finish showering to get up. If you don't I will splash water all over you".

"Okay", he said, slurring.

"Babe, Ant is not the kind of person that will say something is urgent when it's not. And he promised not to send me anything about work before 10 a.m.. So you can guess what it's probably about. Does that give you a reason to get out of bed?"

"Yes, I'm getting up", he was still sleepy, but he was clearly more awake now. "I'll go get us some coffee ready while you shower".

"Great. Thank you".

He went to the kitchen and brewed some coffee, enough for the two of them. He also got some sandwiches ready. He was finishing his second one when Nate got out of the bathroom only on a towel and said.

"The bathroom is free".

"Ok. There are sandwiches and coffee ready".

"Thank you. Now, go. I don't want to be late".

"Sure, sure".

They finished getting ready quickly and half an hour later they were at the gates of Antoine's house. The security was stricter than before, as he fired the culprit from the video - after exhaustively hacking all personnel private and public accounts and ruining every future prospects of the guilty one - he became stricter about who entered the house, and every one had to go through a background search. After a few minutes, the security let them in. When he entered the house, the man they found was a disaster. His hair was a mess and his eyes were red from staying awake the whole night, his clothes were wrinkled and disheveled, and he had those wide-eyes. There were marks of crying below his eyes, and Cyrus wouldn't let go of him for even a second.

"Are you okay?", Nate asked as soon as they arrived. Cael wanted to ask something too, but he felt a blazing look towards him since he arrived.

"No, I'm not", he said, with scorn in his eyes. Cyrus hugged him and tried to calm him down. He then gave them the letter that arrived this morning. "Why did you have to come back to our lives? Why do you want to ruin us so much?". He tossed Cyrus aside and left.

"I apologize. He is not himself after all that happened. Please, disregard what he is saying. It is only his pain and anger that are talking". He followed Ant to the backyard.

"What does it say?", Cael asked, already scared, looking at Nate's hand.

"You better look at it yourself". He gave him the letter and Cael quickly scanned through it.

"My parents are disputing the twins' guardianship? They can't do that, can they?"

"After proving that you are really their father, they have the right to dispute the guardianship in case the current guardian is considered... inappropriate, and the other possible guardian, in case you, doesn't take action to become the kids' legal guardian".

"But I wouldn't go against Antoine to take away the children".

"They know that. If you did you'd only add fuel to the fire".

"That's why he is so angry at me. It's my fault they are coming after the kids to get to him. Exactly as he said they would do in the beginning". He lowered his gaze and sat down on the sofa next to him.

"No. What he said is not right", Nate said looking straight into Cael's eyes. "He had no right to say any of those things to you. You're not the one who brought them here, and you are not the one who planned for all this situation to happen. You are another victim of their actions. And Antoine is just an angry man who can't see reason. Don't let the words of this angry man hurt you, because they do not have this power. Alright?".

"Alright". Cael took Nate's hand and kissed them. "Thank you, love".

"You're welcome. And Ant better apologize to you or I'm going to be extremely mad".

"It's nice having someone getting mad in my place".

"Well, you can count on me to be very mad in your place".

Cyrus and Antoine came back again after a while. Antoine had fresh tear marks all over his face. He sat down and Dev went to get him some tea. He took some deep breaths to recompose himself and for a while he just looked in the distance.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said all those things to you. Especially with what I'm going to ask of you after this". He said just as Cyrus was coming back with a tea pot and various cups. He served the tea to Antoine and asked the others if they wanted some. He served two more cups and looked at Antoine.

"She is already at the gate".

"Then we shall wait".

Nate was about to ask who when the door was opened and he saw a woman with long black hair. Antoine got up and Cyrus followed him.

"Nisa. It's so good to have you".

"Well, when a friend is in need, I have to come". She hugged him, and then made a grave pause. "I saw the video. And the letter you sent me. These people are really the spawn of hell. I can't imagine how you had a child with one of them".

"He is here, Nisa".

"Well... He might be the good apple in the basket". She got close to Nate and Cael and introduced herself to them. "I'm Nisa Baden, attorney at Ahlgren, Baden and Costa".

"I'm Nathaniel Proulx, I'm Antoine's secretary".

"I'm Cael Delaney, I'm..."

"You're the kids' other father, then".

"Yeah. The good apple".

"Sorry. I swear I have better control in court, but out of it I tend to say too much".

"Let's sit down", Antoine called. Cyrus served two more cups of tea and sat next to Antoine. With one hand he held the cup, and the other held Antoine's hand. "As you saw in the letter, they are accusing me of child abuse, and using that as a reason to take the children away. They say that as Cael didn't take action, they are acting in defense of the children's well-being. We believe they fabricated more material beside this video. Johann, our ex-gardner, provided him with many photos and videos and we won't know what they have until we have full access to it". He said in a grave tone. "They will probably ask for Social Services to come take the kids while the process unfolds". He paused for a while, and they could hear him trying to control the tears. "That's why I have something important to ask of you. Nisa has a petition ready for the kids to stay with Cael and his boyfriend for the duration of the process, without visitations from the grandparents. Taking care of the kids is hard, so I wish you could do that together. I know I'm asking a lot, especially after my behavior. But don't think you are doing this for me, but for the kids. I can only imagine what you've gone through in their hands. Don't let them spend even a second with the kids before we win this".

Cael looked first at Nate who nodded at the question in his eyes. He then looked back at Antoine.

"We'll do it. Whatever we need to do to keep the kids safe".

"Thank you. I'll let Nisa explain everything to you".

"First, we need you to have the same address. The place needs to have at least one separate room for the kids with separate beds. We need to make sure that the place has everything they need, that you can take them from and to school, and that every need is met. The social service will probably visit the house once in a while. The school will be alerted against strangers, so their grandparents can't go there, but you still need to be alert. They can send someone to your apartment too. We need to make sure that they don't have any access to the kids. The address of the apartment you choose will be kept confidential, but they might have ways to find it out".

For a long time, Nisa explained everything to them about how the situation would transpire, all the troubles they might face and all the cares they would have to take. When she was almost finished, they heard little steps on the second floor.

"I'll get them", Cyrus said and left. A few minutes later, he came back with two kids in his arms, both half asleep and looking for breakfast. He took them to the kitchen and made grilled cheese for each of them to eat with a papaya smoothie. When Nisa finished, Cyrus brought them into the room to stay with Nate and Cael as they discussed the case strategy. When they arrived, Collin was in his usual happy mood, but Killian definitely sensed something was strange.

"Where are Amaya and Ritter?", Killian asked.

"Who?", Cael asked.

"Amaya and Ritter. Aunt Nisa is here".

"Aunt Nisa is here to talk to mommy and daddy Cy". Nate answered.

"Why?", Killian asked. Collin was already distracted playing with his toys. "Are mommy and daddy in trouble?"

"No, they're not". Cael asked.

"Liar", Killian shouted. "Aunt Nisa helps people in trouble. Why is mommy in trouble?"

"Your mommy is not..."

"Did you cause mommy trouble?", he said accusative towards Cael.

"No, I didn't".

"Why did you cause mommy trouble?", he asked again even more aggressively.

"Kid, your dad didn't cause any trouble, other people did". Nate said.

"Other people?", he asked. "Why?"

"Because they are bad people. That's why. People you should stay far away from". Nate answered.

"Far away?", he stopped pensively. "Who are they?"

Nate froze. Cael looked at him saying he didn't know what to do either. His parents were terrible people, but he couldn't say that to a three year old, or explain why they were terrible people.

"Just really bad people that want to hurt mommy. So you should stay away from them. They are so bad that we shouldn't even talk about them".

"Like Voldemort?"

"You know about Voldemort?", Cael asked curiously. He loved the Harry Potter series and watched every movie and read every book many times.

"Yeah. Daddy read me the story. He says he will let me watch the movie when I'm older".

"Yeah... You should probably leave the movies to when you're older. They are a little scary".

"I'm really brave". He said, making his brave face.

"I know you are really brave", Cael said, holding his laughter.

"I'm really really brave. I will protect mommy from the bad guys".

"But mommy has so many people to protect her already. Aunt Nisa, daddy Cy... And I will protect your mommy too. I promise that". He said, extending a finger.

"You promise, promise", Killian answered, hooking his finger with Cael's.

"Promise promise".

"Okay. I will believe you. Don't hurt mommy".

"No hurting. I'll protect your mommy".

And that's how their promise was established. After the finger hooking ritual, Killian went next to his brother and started to assemble a puzzle. It was a complicated puzzle for his age, but he did it easily. Pronto, he was assembling the next one. Cael was always astonished by how smart that kid was. Even the way he was combative towards him, was just an extension of his own comprehension about the world and how things work. He had to respect that, and understand that sometimes taking it slowly was the best way to respect the boy's wishes. Cyrus was giving him small tips about how to get close to Killian. At the same time that it made him happy, as the man told him stories about his hobbies and temper, it gave him a bad feeling as someone knew more about his child than him.

He kneeled next to Killian to see what he was doing. He was already in his third puzzle.

"What are you doing?", he asked.

"Harry Potter puzzles. Daddy bought it for me".

"Wow. They are really cool".

"I love them. I love puzzles. I have Vengers puzzles too".

"Avengers?" The boy nodded. "That is really cool. What else do you have".

"Princess. I don't like them. They're easy. I have dinosaur puzzles. I love them".

"You do?"

"Yeah. They are my favorite". He stopped to think. "I got a puzzle from the museum".

"I remember that".

"I didn't open it. I want to play with you".

"I'm glad to hear that. Do you want to get it?"

"Yes! But I can't use the stairs alone".

"I'll go with you". He said getting up and extending his hand to the small boy. "Let's go get the puzzle"

"Okay!".

He went to the second floor, holding the boy's hand. He got to the twin's room for the first time. He could see the dedication put into decorating that place. Each side showed exactly to whom it belonged.

"Your room is very beautiful".

"Mommy and daddy did it. I love it".

"You love many things, kid".

"Yeah... I love mommy, daddy, Collin, uncle Nate, uncle Emile, uncle Hunter, grandma, grandpa...", he paused, "And I like you too".

"Only like?", Cael said, disappointed, but wished he didn't say it out loud.

"I'm learning to love".

Cael kneeled next to the boy. His answer gave him a little hope.

"I hope that soon you learn to love me like you love your other daddy". He petted his head. "Now go get your puzzle".

"Okay".

As he left, he got a little lost in the direction and ended up in front of Antoine's office and he listened from the ajar door.

"I'm going to ruin their lives, so they will never play with my kids again".

He knew he was talking about his parents, but a shiver went down his spine from the anger that filled those words. But it was also good, as deep down he wanted his parents to suffer for all the pain they inflicted, not only on him.

***

The next day, he moved in with Nate and they began to prepare the room for the twins. It would be good to live together with them for the first time, but he was also nervous. As he was assembling the beds, his hands were trembling. Nate noticed it and held his hand.

"Let's drink some iced tea", he invited.

"Yeah. I think I need it". Cael smiled.

They went to the kitchen and served two cups. He stared at the water and breathed in, trying to relax. Antoine had already filed the petition asking for the kids to stay with him during the duration of the process, and for the grandparents not to be allowed visitations. He also filed for a restriction order, but he didn't think it would be accepted.

The kids would probably come live with them the next day. The social worker was going to visit Antoine this afternoon, and even if she didn't find anything wrong, with the fake evidence that his parents presented in court, she would probably take the kids away until the investigations are completed. That was when he and Nate came in. The lawyer said they could do it even without petitioning to the court, but it was better to make it all clear. Antoine and Cyrus were going to explain the situation to the kids, but he knew they would face some resistance, especially from Killian.

Cael drank the tea while thinking about all these things, but still imagined the kids running and playing. He smiled. He took another deep breath and looked at Nate.

"Let's go back to the beds. They aren't going to build themselves".

"No, they won't".

Nate's building belongs to one of the two complexes owned by Antoine - the other one being the one he used to live in. The security was great and they checked many times that the Delaney couple wouldn't be able to get in. But, for the time being, Antoine's visits would also be limited. He remembered the rest of the conversation from the other day.

"I'd probably only be allowed supervised visits, maybe even only accompanied by the social assistant. As the case got really high profile because of the video, they are being even more severe than usual. I'll try my best to keep it low, but your family may use this to manipulate the media. So you have to shield the kids from anything they may bring. I'll try my best to keep this away from you, but I don't know what I will really be able to filter in the end". Antoine explained the other day when they went to their house.

"I promise that I won't let anything affect them". Cael said. He wanted to say that he won't let anything affect our kids, but he thought it wasn't the right time to say that.

"Thank you". Antoine stopped to think. After a while, he seemed to come to a conclusion and opened his mouth. "Just so you know, in the process I'll be cited as Thierry Bélanger instead of Antoine Rayne. That's my birth name".

Cael had already come to the conclusion that Antoine wasn't his real name. It was probably a persona created to maintain the privacy of its owner. He knew that his brother was a big figure from another company, although his data was just as private as Antoine's, and he definitely used a fake surname when he introduced himself. Well, that all just added to his suspicion.

"Ok". He answered to the revelation, trying to keep it as casual as possible.

"Alright. You need to understand the twins' routine". Cyrus said. "They wake everyday at 6h30, take a bath and have breakfast. They can already undress by themselves, but sometimes they will ask for help. You can help when they ask, but always praise when they do it alone. Killian doesn't wake up before taking a bath, so you normally have to carry him to the bath. But sometimes he walks by himself. They both prefer to bathe 'alone', they need help but they do almost everything by themselves. They usually get dressed by themselves too. Collin likes to choose his own clothes, but Killian prefers if we leave one separated for him. They do that every night before going to sleep. I sent a list of the things they like and hate for breakfast. They are not really picky, but they both have things they don't eat in any way.

We talked to the people from the kindergarten. They will get them at 7h30. You need to have them ready by then. They stay there until 17h30. If they are not going or they are leaving early, you have to call them. You and Nate are authorized to get them, but no one else. You have to get them by 17h30 up to 18h00. More than that and you will receive an admonition. Three admonitions and they call the parents for a conversation. Four admonitions and the kid is suspended for three days. If you call first, they have a tolerance of until 18h30. The kindergarten closes by 19h. If you get the kids after that it's like receiving three admonitions, and they call you for a conversation the next day. After the first suspension, if they get two admonitions they are suspended again. Then one. After the third suspension they lose their spot. Basically: don't get late.

They have swim lessons on Tuesdays and Thursdays. They invite parents to participate. If you have time, it's really good that you participate. You have to remember to pack their swim trunks and an extra set of clothes, beyond their normal extra set. On Mondays and Wednesdays they have art class, they also need an extra set. And on Fridays..."

Cyrus meticulously explained every detail of the kids' daily life. Cael felt jealousy burning inside of him as he heard it. The man knew everything and he was part of everything, while he could barely stay with the kids. He felt a pain in his heart, and he couldn't do anything to appease it. When Cyrus finished talking, he only said "I will try to remember everything". Now that he was trying to organize everything, he tried to recall what was said, but the pain was back. Cyrus had three years to learn the food the kids hated and loved; their favorite games and even their favorite colors; how they liked to take their bath and how to tuck them to sleep. Now he had only two days to memorize all those things. It isn't fair, a voice in his head said. It isn't fair, it kept saying. As he built the beds and smiled at Nate, he could only think of the voice in his head. As he attentively looked at the beds, trying to push away his thoughts, Nate laid on his shoulder.

"We still have some time, right?", Nate asked.

"Why?" He questioned with a smirk.

"'Cause you're too into your head. You did it four times already, and you keep doing it wrong"

Cael looked at it and just then realized that it was wrong again. He got angry and dismantled it.

"Babe, don't take it out on the furniture. It didn't do anything wrong", he gave a small laugh to diffuse the tension. "Come here. We will leave it here for a while, and come back when you're better okay". He gave him a peck.

"But"

"No buts. Only if it's attached to your back".

Cael laughed.

"Okay".

Nate got up, and holding Cael's hand helped him to get up and guided him to bed. They just laid there looking at each other.

"Thank you, I needed it. Staying here just looking at this beautiful person really makes wonders for me". He said after fifteen minutes. Nate was there, laying with his eyes closed, his black hair falling over his face, and his red lips slightly open. Nate opened his eyes and smiled looking at Cael, he placed his hand on Cael's face gently.

"I'm happy that you're better". He gave him a peck on his lips.

"Yeah, I'm better". He kissed him back. And then a third kiss deeper. Then a fourth and a fifth. Each one deeper than the other. He grabbed Nate's waist and drew him closer. Nate hugged his waist back, and whispered in his ear.

"I really wanted it".

"Yeah... I'm glad that I noticed", he said, kissing his neck. "Imagine if I missed it", he said putting his hand inside his shirt. Nate distanced himself a little and whispered.

"Let me take this away". And took his shirt off. "Let me take this away too". He took Cael's shirt off and laid on top of him, looking him in the eyes as he moved. He kissed him all the way up to his lips, going through his belly, his chest, his collarbone and his neck. His kisses were full of lust and desire, the tongues dancing a sweet tango inside their mouths. Cael put his hands inside Nate's sweatpants and grabbed his ass, dragging him close and rubbing one pelvis against the other. Nate held his neck not letting him escape, as all air was consumed on that kiss. Cael took one of his hands away from Nate's ass and untied the drawstring and started to pull down Nate's pants. Nate let go of his neck and helped him pull down his pants, leaving him in his boxers. Nate untied Cael's pants too and pulled it down, taking the pants away with the boxers, leaving him naked.

"That doesn't seem fair", Cael teased.

"I was really missing this", Nate said and held Cael's dick in his hands and gently kissed its head, and then its body, slowly. Cael moaned a little.

"Give me that ass", he said and Nate turned his ass in his direction. Cael took away his boxers and kissed and licked the perineum and the balls. Then he grabbed a bottle of lubricant and used it on his fingers. As he was doing that Nate was having fun playing with his dick, using his mouth, hands, playing with his balls. From time to time Cael let out a slight moan. Before going ahead he asked Nate. "Are you ready?", and he heard a sound that was the closest Nate could get to a Yes. He gently put one finger on Nate's ass, exploring the cavity. He felt Nate's reaction as he let out a sound. "Are you okay?"

Again a sound that seemed like a Yes, so he kept exploring. With his other hand, he stimulated the penis, that he felt getting harder and harder with his touch. When the hole was ready, he added one more finger, and then another. As he explored, he felt the reaction as Nate's throat also tightened around his dick. God, He thought, That's so good. In his excitement, he went a little rougher and pressed the prostate too hard. Nate gagged from a deepthroat and the stimulus made him come. He let go of Nate and held him, who had cum dripping from his mouth, while kneeling in bed.

"I'm sorry", he said and started to clean.

"It's okay. I already swallowed it".

"No. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done it like that".

"It's okay. It's just not tasty. But it's better than that food we ordered last week". He laughed and Cael smiled a little. Nate pushed him back toward the bed. "Now, you can stop playing with those fingers and shove that big guy up my ass, 'cause I'm yearning for it".

"Oh". He said getting up again, pushing Nate down and opening his legs to give him space. "You're the boss, love". He said inserting his penis in the whole and thrusting it in. Nate moaned loudly, and Cael groaned. He thrust again, and he could see all of Nate's body reverberating with it. Cael enjoyed seeing, hearing and feeling how their bodies reacted together. He got his head down and kissed Nate, lustfully. He then hugged his waist and dragged him up, sitting him on his lap. Nate moved all the way, answering to Cael's movements. They're like partners in a lascivious dance. As they saw face to face, their mouths moving together, Nate moved up and down, their moans contained by the kiss. Cael let go of the kiss for a while just to explore the rest of Nate's body with his kisses, especially his neck and his collarbone.

"I hope we still have time to build that bed", Nate said between a moan and another.

"Yeah", Cael laughed. "I hope we have". He thrusted roughly one more time and Nate let out a loud moan.