Chapter 8
Kyle
“Uncle Mike.” Kyle reached out to grasp his shoulder in a sideways hug as they walked along the path to the front door. “We’re here. We’ve got you.”
“I-I know,” Mike stammered. “I’m so grateful you’re both here with me.
I couldn’t do this alone.” Mike rang the bell, and a few moments later, Mrs. Powell opened the door, holding Wyatt’s hand as he stood beside her.
Mike had told. Him that Wyatt had started walking but was still a bit wobbly sometimes, and Kyle figured he was just a little too heavy for Mrs. Powell to carry him for very long.
“Hello, Mr. Rockingham,” she said, stepping aside so they could enter.
Wyatt reached out to Mike, saying, “Pa!” On the cruise, he’d started calling Mike Senior this, not quite getting the knack of papa or grandpa yet.
“Hey, buddy,” Mike responded, lifting him up and hugging Wyatt tightly, kissing his forehead.
“Thank you so much for taking care of Wyatt until we could get here,” Mike addressed the older woman. “I can’t tell you how much we appreciate it.” He gestured toward Kyle and Jon. “This is my nephew Kyle and his boyfriend, Jon.”
“Very pleased to meet you, ma’am,” Kyle said, shaking the woman’s hand.
“And you as well, although I’m very sorry about the circumstances. My condolences to you all,” Mrs. Powell said quietly. “If you’ll not be needing anything else, I’ll head home now. But please call if there’s anything more I can do for you.”
Mike passed Wyatt to Kyle and reached into his pocket for an envelope, which he handed to Mrs. Powell. “Thank you again for everything.”
Mike shut the door after she left, then sat on the sofa and sighed. “I’m not sure if I can do this. I just can’t believe that Mike and Becky are gone. How could something like this happen?”
Jon reached for Wyatt and hugged him close to his chest, letting Kyle go to his uncle to comfort him.
“Hey, Uncle Mike,” Kyle said as he sat beside him and put his arm around his shoulders. “We’ll get through this together. Why don’t you sit here with Wyatt while Jon and I go and put a few things together for him. Then we can go to the lawyer’s office and see what we need to do next.”
“Thanks, guys. I appreciate that.” He reached for Wyatt and said, “C’mere, my boy, come sit with Pa.”
Wyatt gladly sat on his grandfather’s lap as Kyle and Jon went upstairs to pack some things.
They returned about fifteen minutes later, each carrying a suitcase.
Kyle had a diaper bag slung over his shoulder, with a stuffed elephant poking its head out, and Jon was holding a Pack ’n Play in its carry case.
“I think we’ve got everything we need for now,” Kyle told his uncle. “After we talk to the lawyer, we can check in at the hotel and then figure out how we’ll proceed.”
“Just one more thing,” Mike said, carrying Wyatt into the kitchen. He returned a few minutes later, toting a reusable shopping bag. “A few snacks for Wyatt.”
“Good idea,” Kyle commented.
“Oh, we’ll also need the car seat for Wyatt,” Mike said. “It’s probably in Becky’s SUV.” He pointed back toward the kitchen. “The door to the garage is through there.”
“I’ll get it.” Jon moved toward the door that Mike had indicated.
When Jon returned with the car seat and a foldable travel stroller, Mike looked around sadly and walked toward the front door, carrying Wyatt.
It took both Jon and Mike to figure out how to install the car seat in the rental, but once that was done and the bags were in the back, they were off to see Mike and Becky’s lawyer.
Things went smoothly at the lawyer’s office.
Jon kept Wyatt occupied while Kyle and Mike discussed the details of Wyatt’s guardianship with one of the attorneys.
Since Mike was a family lawyer in DC, he was familiar with the situation and had advised his son and daughter-in-law when the guardianship was originally brought up.
Taking his dad’s advice, Mike and Becky had included language in their wills to indicate that Kyle would assume guardianship if anything happened to both of them.
“Everything is in order with their wills,” the lawyer who handled Mike and Becky’s estate planning told them. “I’m sure you had a lot to do with that, Mr. Rockingham.”
“Yes, I explained the best way to document their wishes in their wills,” Mike said. “I never expected them to need it all so quickly, though.” His voice cracked, and he was visibly shaken.
“Uncle Mike, it’s okay.” Kyle rested his hand on Mike’s arm.
Once Mike had collected himself, the lawyer asked, “Did you have any questions for me?”
“No, I think we’re okay at the moment. We’ll be taking Wyatt back to DC in the next day or so.
I need to figure out what to do with the contents of the house, so I’ll come back out in about a week.
I’m sure there are personal items that my wife and I will want, and we’ll make arrangements to ship Wyatt’s things to Kyle in DC.
After that’s all done, I’ll sell the house and use the proceeds to set up a trust for Wyatt. ”
“That sounds like an excellent plan,” the lawyer said. “Let’s plan on meeting when you return to California for an update.” He turned to Kyle. “I don’t expect that we’ll need you to come back. I believe your uncle can handle things from here on out.”
“Okay, but if that changes, let me know. I’ll do whatever it takes to make this all work.”
Business concluded, they left the office and drove to their hotel.
It was after five in the afternoon by the time they got checked in at the hotel, and they were all beat.
Sam had been able to get them adjoining rooms, and Jon quickly set up the Pack ’n Play so that Wyatt had a safe place to sit or lie down.
They’d decided they were all too tired to venture to the restaurant for a meal, so Kyle ordered an assortment of items from room service for dinner.
When they heard a knock on the door, Jon said, “I’ll get it.”
A young man entered, pushing a cart. He set various plates and dishes on the dining table in the corner of Kyle and Jon’s room and departed, wishing them a pleasant evening.
Kyle lifted the covers until he located the grilled chicken breast and green beans, which he proceeded to cut up for Wyatt. Mike and Jon, carrying the young boy, joined him at the table, where they all sat to eat.
Wyatt held the small spoon that was part of a child’s cutlery set Mike had found while rummaging for snacks earlier and alternated between the spoon and his fingers to eat his meal as he sat on Kyle’s lap.
“I think you guys should see if you can head home tomorrow,” Mike told them.
“What? No. We can stay here for a day or two and help you get things settled,” Kyle protested.
“Really,” Mike countered, “I can take care of this; it will be good for me to stay busy with it all. While we were waiting for the food to arrive, I reached out to a colleague here who is putting together a list of various service companies that I can use. I’ll have that by tomorrow morning.”
They continued to discuss the situation until Mike added, “I think it’s best for Wyatt to get settled into his new home as quickly as possible.”
“Okay,” Kyle finally relented. “But promise you’ll let us know if there’s anything you need us to do for you.”
“I’ll call Sam to see when she can get us a flight back to DC,” Jon said, leaving the table and walking toward Mike’s room.
“My plan is to hire a service to pack up everything in Wyatt’s room and have it shipped to you,” Mike explained.
“I’ll also have Mike and Becky’s personal effects sent to me and Ellen so we can go through that stuff when we’re ready.
I’ll make arrangements to donate furniture and clothing to a couple of organizations that Mike and Becky supported here, and then I’ll get a crew in to clean and stage the house so that it can go on the market. ”
“It sounds like a lot of work, Uncle Mike. Are you sure we can’t stay and help you with everything?”
“I think I can get most everything arranged within a few days. I’ll have the lawyer’s office here be the contact point so that I can fly home as soon as everything is arranged.
I appreciate your offer but knowing that my grandson is being cared for is the most important thing right now. ” Mike’s voice broke as he spoke.
“Don’t worry, Jon and I will take very good care of him.”
Jon returned, saying, “Sam’s gonna see what she can do and call me back.”
“I don’t know about you guys,” Mike said, “but I’m beat. I’m gonna go call home and see how Ellen is doing, then I’m gonna hit the sack.” He leaned over and kissed Wyatt on the forehead.
“Good night, Uncle Mike,” Kyle replied.
“Good night, boys. Thanks again for being here with me.”