13

Ronan

Ronan had to admit dinner with Corny and Destiny wasn't as bad as he thought it would be. With Destiny's attitude adjustment, she was actually a charming woman, who was very obviously in love with Corny. Ten had mentioned she'd had a bit of trouble in her past but was really hoping that was all behind her now. She was determined to be a good wife and mother. Ronan had no doubt she would succeed if she didn't let Corny's more base desires derail their future.

Was it possible for a con man to change his stripes? Ronan didn't know. What he did know was that he'd been a functioning alcoholic who'd vowed to never stop drinking. Thanks to Tony Abruzzi, Captain Henderson, and the compassionate people at his Florida rehab, he'd turned that page. If Ronan could do it, anyone could. He made a mental note to see if there was a Fraudster Anonymous group. There were groups for gamblers and sex addicts; maybe there was a group who could help Corny see the benefit of living a clean life and earning an honest living for his family.

After dinner, Ten had wanted to get home to the kids, but Ronan insisted on getting together with Carson and Cole. Cassie had come along and sent her kids out to play with the velociraptors. Unless Ronan missed his guess, that meant they had about fifteen minutes before one of the kids came in the house crying, bleeding, or both.

"I don't like the look on your face," Carson said when he opened the front door. "You've got bad news, don't you?"

"I'm not sure," Ronan said, trying not to be a jerk. "It depends on your point of view."

"I'm really not in the mood for your bullshit, Ronan." Carson shook his head and ushered him, Ten, and Fitz into the living room.

"Actually, to be honest, it's Fitzgibbon and Jace's bullshit." Ronan offered a cheeky grin, happy to be out of the line of fire.

"You wanna run that by me again?" Carson asked, looking exhausted.

"Babe, let them sit down and explain," Truman said. "Can I get you something to drink?"

"I'm good," Ronan said, with Fitz and Ten agreeing.

"Okay, so what was Ronan saying about you and Jace?" Cole's full attention was on Fitzgibbon.

"Corny called Ten this afternoon and wanted to meet him for dinner," Fitz said.

"Fuck me blue. Was he trying to grift you out of money?" Carson wore a disgusted look.

"No, he wasn't," Ten said. "He thought I was the only one who'd be able to get through to you and Cole, you know, since I can read him so well and know when he's lying."

"If his lips are moving, he's lying." Carson's mood only seemed to worsen as the conversation went on.

"Corny and Destiny are very scared about their child's future, as well as about his health," Fitzgibbon said. "After some attitude adjustments, I set an offer on the table, agreeing to pay back the scammed GoFundMe money, along with our willingness to pay for their medical bills and an apartment."

"Jesus," Carson muttered. "You and Jace are far too generous. That asshole doesn't deserve friends like you."

Fitzgibbon took a deep breath. "What would you have said if Jace had made this offer to your mother?"

Carson's face dropped. "Okay, that's not fair. You know what kind of person our mother is. She isn't fit to shine his damn shoes."

Fitzgibbon grinned brightly. "Agreed, but I was hoping to get you to realize that he's your father, and like it or not, Destiny is his wife and mother-to-be of his unborn daughter."

"They told you it was a girl?" Cole asked.

"No, Everly did. She was able to read the situation perfectly, with one exception." Ronan watched Carson's face go from angry to curious in a matter of seconds.

"What's the exception?" Carson shook his head, as if he couldn't believe he was asking the question.

"Everly didn't know if either of you would agree to donate a kidney," Ten said. "She told us that the answer to the question keeps changing. I assumed it's because the two of you make a decision and then unmake it. If that's a thing."

"Neither of us can figure out what to do. I suppose it doesn't matter until we find out if we're matches for Corny."

"Everly says you both are." Ronan waggled his eyebrows. It wasn't often he knew something the psychic brothers did not.

"And now's when you try to talk one or both of us into doing the right thing." Cole's eyes were on Fitzgibbon. If looks could kill, Fitz would be six feet under.

"No, not at all," Fitz said. "We're talking about a major organ in your bodies. You're both married fathers with a lot of years left in you and so many momentous moments on the horizon with graduations, college road trips, proms, engagements, weddings, grandbabies of your own to cuddle. To be honest, I don't know what I'd do if I were in your shoes and I had a great father. My first thought is always about Aurora, then Greeley, then Jace. I need to be here for them and the cold case team."

"Aw, thanks, Cap. That's so sweet, but I'd be able to handle the department just fine without you." Ronan felt all warm and fuzzy.

Fitz raised an eyebrow at Ronan. "Are you kidding me? You running the team is what would wake me up from a frickin' coma to go back to work."

The tension in the room was broken when everyone started to laugh.

Not that Ronan begrudged Carson and Cole a good guffaw, but he wasn't too keen on it being at his expense.

"I'm in Fitzy's boat," Jude said. "I don't know if I would do it either. For Cope or the kids, absolutely. Same goes for everyone in this room and Running Eagle, but I don't know what I do for an absentee parent."

Ronan felt mostly the same way as Jude. "I agree with saving you guys and the kids. My mom too, but I think I'd end up donating my kidney because of my Catholic guilt."

"What do you mean?" Carson asked. "You'd do it so that some religion didn't make you feel bad for thinking of yourself first?"

"Hypothetically speaking, what if what Fitzgibbon proposed to Corny turns everything around? What if he becomes an honest man who works an honest day's living? What if he's an excellent father to his daughter? If he dies, so does all of his potential and your ability to forgive him and start a new adult relationship with him and that baby."

"Fuck me," Carson muttered.

Ronan knew Carson understood the point he was making. "You all know that I'm a pessimistic kind of a guy, mostly thanks to being a cop for the last twenty years. I don't trust anyone but my family. I'm not sure if Corny can actually turn over a new leaf. I tend to think he can't, but if he can, that might just earn him a little grace in your eyes."

"Corny said the other day with this new baby on the way that he has something to live for, which of course means that Cole and I weren't worthy of him changing or turning over a new leaf or of going straight," Carson growled, looking angry enough to punch a wall.

Ronan knew those words were going to come back to haunt Corny Craig. He wasn't quite sure how to defend them.

"He wasn't dying then," Truman said softly. "I remember how angry I was at you when I found out that you lied to me about who you were when we met. Remember?"

Carson nodded.

"All you'd been trying to do was save my life, and you knew I wouldn't believe a story about your psychic vision. I screamed and yelled and told you I never wanted to see you again, but what did you do?" Truman smiled at his husband.

"I showed up at that Christmas party and took the bullet meant for you." Carson sighed. "I loved you and would have done anything to save you."

"Yeah, you did save me, and then you died in the fucking ambulance," Truman said, his voice cracking. "But you fought your way back to me."

"I did," Carson agreed.

"That's what Corny wants to do too." Truman held up his hands for Carson to let him continue. "Yes, Corny was a shitty husband. A shitty father to you. A shittier father to Cole. Now, the two of you hold his life in your hands. It might be too late for him to be much of a father to you or even a grandfather to our kids, but think about your sister for a minute. Doesn't she deserve every chance to know her father?"

Tears rolled down Carson's cheeks. Ronan noticed Cole was in much the same state. He knew from his own experience that mentioning Corny's daughter-to-be would be the game changer.

"I really hate you sometimes." Carson swiped angrily at his tears.

"No you don't," Truman argued back. "You took a bullet for me. You're just angry because you know I'm right. As usual." Truman laughed at the look on Carson's face.

"You're not always right!" Carson shot back. "I'm right at least once a week." He laughed along with his husband.

"Cole, where are you in all of this?" Fitzgibbon asked.

"I don't know." Cole shook his head. "A better question would be to ask Cassie."

"Cass?" Ronan prodded.

"I don't know either. I was up half the night reading about kidney transplants. Things that can go wrong during the surgery. Things that can go wrong years down the road. I love you, Cole. Maybe not enough to catch a bullet for you, but I love you all the same. Our kids love you. So do my parents, your brother, our friends. We need you here with us. If you want to call me selfish, then so be it." Cassie folded her hands in her lap, her eyes on Cole.

"Let me say that the two of you might not be Corny's only option. Another match could be found through the registry. Maybe someone won't mind donating a kidney to a former alcoholic with a criminal record." Fitzgibbon paused. "According to what the doc told me, he could survive for up to a year on dialysis. That's time enough for another match to be found."

"Or not," Carson said. "Meaning that his little girl would lose her father at only a few months old."

"Tru, where do you stand on Carson donating to his father?" Fitzgibbon asked.

Truman frowned, looking deep in thought. "If he did it, I'd stand behind him. It would mean no more wine and eating better. No more middle-of-the-night nibbles."

Carson snorted. "It's the only time of day I can eat my Snickers without the kids begging for some or watching to see where my hiding place is."

"In a bag of frozen veggies in the freezer," Ten said with a laugh. "Ronan stole your idea for his precious peanut butter cups."

"It's something I need more time to think about." Carson shot Ronan a look that said he was doing the best he could.

"Me too," Cole agreed.

"Just remember there are a lot of steps between today and a future date in the operating room. You need to get bloodwork done to make sure you're each a match. The hospital won't take the word of a first-grade psychic." Fitzgibbon raised an eyebrow at Ronan. "Then you'll need full checkups and all that jazz. You don't have to decide on the fly like this."

"I agree to have the tests." Carson sighed as if he already regretted his decision.

"Me too." Cole reached for Cassie's hand. "The least I can do is have all the facts at hand to make a final decision."

"I have a question," Cassie said, turning to Fitzgibbon. "What you and Jace are doing for Corny and Destiny is really amazing, but what happens when Corny gets his shiny new kidney and that baby is born? Your cash is keeping them on the straight and narrow for now, but when they've gotten everything they need, what then? How the hell do I console my husband for being taken for a fool and over losing a vital organ, but also his father and baby sister?"

"That's an answer I don't have, Cass, but what I can tell you is that every second from now on is an opportunity to build a relationship with Corny. Maybe you'll find common ground. Maybe he'll surprise you. I can tell you he asked Ten if he could see pics of your kids, as well as Carson's."

"I said no, that I'd need your permission to show him any pictures," Ten said quickly.

"Thanks, Ten," Carson and Cole said together.

"It could be that your kids are that common ground. If you want to meet with Corny and Destiny, let me know, and I'll set it up. I know Jace is going to start organizing doctors' appointments for both of them, as well as getting them into their own place to live. If anyone has a spare crib or an infant car seat lying around, I'm sure they'd appreciate them. Cute girl clothes too." Ten grinned.

"It's a lot to think about. We'll let you know." Carson raked his hands through his blond hair. "Thanks for all you're doing. Jace too. Please tell him we said that."

"You got it." Fitzgibbon shook Carson and Cole's hands and was out the door. Ronan and Ten were right behind them.

Ronan had managed to make it through a day where he'd consoled a grieving father and helped to give an ex-con a second chance to be a family man, but his work wasn't done yet. He still had to talk to his pint-sized psychic about Sebastian Stark.

A father's work was never done.