I leaned against the door that leads to the backyard and I watched Kelly and Tony playing some basketball. They both seemed to like the sport. They got along real well, he was still getting used to me but Kelly had always been the kind of girl anyone would love and become instant friends with. I was glad she was here to help, Tony seemed to be relaxing with our family. He had been with us for a week now. I had confronted his father myself. The bastard got on my nerves, and I let him know I had friends in high places too, and I could sure as hell make sure he went to jail for child abuse. There was medical proof of abuse and I would get a therapist to talk to Tony to also add that to the proof that was building up, that he had been abusing him.
In the end the old man had basically said fine, I could have him because he didn't need a piece of shit son like that. I had to stop myself from hitting him because I wanted to make sure I kept the boy safe. We went to the courts together and, in front of a judge, he signed over custody and guardianship of Tony to me. When we were back outside, I also let him know that if he ever came to try and get Tony, that I wasn't a man to mess with and that wasn't a threat. That in his head, he left and I headed home and found them playing ball.
"Hey, Tony, Kelly, come inside, I've got some news for you!" I leaned against the counter as they walked in. Kelly smiled her usual beautiful smile, the one she got from her mother, at me.
"Yeah, Dad, what's up?" Tony just looked at me.
"Well, I took your father, Tony, to the courts and in front of a judge he signed custody of you over to me. I am now your legal guardian."
The next thing I knew, I had Tony arms around me in a tight hug. I stroked his back some, letting him know I was there but he stepped back fast, the look of "shit, I just hugged another man" on his face and I laughed to myself. Since Shannon died I'd never seen myself raising another kid, but it seems I've got myself a son!
The week he had been with us had proved that he was a good kid. He had slowly started to show a bit of a smart mouth, and without thinking about it, I hit him on the back of the head, not hard enough to hurt him but just enough to make him wake up. He seemed to take that as a good thing! When he was babbling and got off the subject, it just redirected him to getting back to what he was talking about. I could tell Kelly was happy about all this too. She seemed to become good friends with Tony and I smiled. She needed someone to keep her company when I was working because her grandmother couldn't be all that much fun.
School was something else he had to learn about. He wasn't us to public schools but I enrolled him in the local school, just as I had Kelly when she started. He settled quite quickly and soon joined the basketball team and he seemed to do good there. The kid was always a bundle of energy! He woke up at 0600 and took a run with me every morning. The weekends that I wasn't working, along the morning runs, I was teaching him how to fight like a Marine. The boy needed to know how to protect himself so he would not have to take abuse from anyone else. Then during the afternoon, I took Kelly and Tony to the shooting range. I know it seems odd, wanting my daughter to know how to shoot, but I wanted her to always be able to protect herself, especially in case I couldn't for some reason.
Truth be told, I didn't feel safe teaching my daughter to fight, so when I started teaching Tony to fight and she asked me if she could learn, I told her that she could take classes with other girls. I was glad I had a smart daughter. She understood me more then most kids of her age would have but I always thought that was because her mother died when she was five and we'd had to learn to live together and understand each other. I missed Shannon, and I knew that she would have loved Tony. Like me and Kelly, Tony was family now and we loved him.
Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. No money is being made from this work. No copyright infringement is intended.