It was Thursday, October 20, 2016. Dr. Bradley W. Todd, called Zip by family and friends, was in his library at home. He had no classes on a Thursday, and so devoted much of the day to either grading papers or preparing his own papers for presentation at professional meetings. The Midwest Modern Language Association was meeting in St. Louis from November 10 through 13, and he was not only a member of the Board, but was also scheduled to chair a panel on teaching non-Western languages. Zip was in the field of linguistics, and taught the Bambara language, one of the more important languages of West Africa. That was for the Department of Foreign and Classical Languages, but he was also on the search committee in his primary department, English, where he taught Comparative Grammar. The Department of English was seeking to fill two vacancies this year, and so a search committee had been appointed, and there would undoubtedly be hopefuls at this meeting wanting to get a foot in the door before formal interviews got underway.
But, his professional reveries were interrupted by a phone call from Stanley Riverman. Zip knew Riverman from the Maj. John Castleman Chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution, of which he was the Registrar. Stan attended pretty regularly, and they had lunched together only the previous Saturday, at the regular monthly meeting. After apologizing for disturbing Zip at home, Stan confessed he had a problem, and he hoped Zip could help with it.
“You’re pretty thick with that ex-actor, Brandon Dowling, right? He was at the meeting, but not at our table on Saturday,” Stan stated.
“Brandon is about as close to a son-in-law as possible under existing laws, Stan. He’s in a committed gay relationship with my youngest son, Chris,” Zip said, perhaps a bit more forcefully than necessary, but he resented the negative vibes he was picking up.
“Okay. Then you know about this group home he has for run-away boys, right?” Stan plowed on.
“Sure. Brandon does a great job. Real public service,” Zip insisted.
“Well, I’ve got some work for him,” Stan said.
“Work? Explain, please,” Zip requested.
“Okay. You know I’m the manager of the MacDonald’s franchise in the Oxmoor Mall out on the Shelbyville Road, right?” Stan began.
“Heard you mention it, yeah,” Zip agreed.
“Well, I just caught some kids trying to help themselves to a free lunch. They won’t tell me who their parents are. I hate to call the cops, Zip. These kids look really pitiful, like skeletons. So, I thought of that son-in-law of yours,” Stan expanded.
“Sounds like just the sort of thing Brandon is used to. Let’s see, today is Thursday. Brandon is probably out at the Farm, so it would be quicker if I came and picked up the kids. Oh, I should ask, they are boys aren’t they? Brandon only takes in boys. If there are girls, we’ll have to make other arrangements.”
“Yeah. Three boys,” Stan confirmed.
“Okay. Hold on, and I’ll be there in about twenty minutes,” Zip promised.
Before leaving for the mall, Zip called across to Aunt Barbara, alerting her to the immanent arrival of three new boys. They would probably be hungry. “I’ll square it with Brandon later,” he assured her.
Aunt Barbara Menendez smiled. She had come to appreciate very much the service Brandon performed by taking in troubled boys, but she had also come to like the boys a lot. Well, all except Eric, who just would not cooperate. But there were eight boys currently living at the large house across the street from the Todds, and they were all just fine boys. Of course, she did not tell them that too often, as they would get big heads about it. Brandon and Chris told them often enough. There were Mike and Freddy, and Daniel Marlow. The older boy, the original Daniel, had graduated from high school, and was now on his own. Well, he was with his boyfriend, Colby. Barbara gave a passing thought to the fact that she no longer felt strange about gay boys. Then she resumed her roll call. After Daniel came Raman, then Bobby Ferguson. Again, there had been an earlier Bobby, Bobby Ackerman, who was now at the University. Heavens! I hope there will not be more boys with the same name. That gets confusing, she thought. Anyway, then there came Tom, and Bert, and last of all little Paco, who was coming along very nicely now that he was getting good food. And, she reluctantly admitted, maybe good medical care as well. Like so many good women, Aunt Barbara was convinced that good food solved most problems.
While Aunt Barbara was thus musing, Zip Todd drove out to the mall in question, and sought out his fellow SAR member. He liked to tweek Stan about that, as Stan was just a little racist, like he was just a little homophobic. He really tried not to show it, but it was just the way he was raised, and it inevitably came out from time to time. Stan was rather proud of his descent from a Pennsylvania militiaman during the American Revolution and was in his direct line of descent, as his name had originally been Revermann, of Pennsylvania Dutch origin. This Revermann was supposedly a crack shot. But Zip was descended from a free black man, Theodore Dodd, who was living in Philadelphia when Washington’s army came through on its way to Yorktown, and he joined up and took part in that climactic siege in 1781. He even had a pen and ink sketch of Dodd hanging in the front parlor. So, Stan did not boast about his ancestors when Zip was around.
While Stan had his limitations, he also had some good points, and one was immediately apparent. In his tiny office at the fast food outlet, there were three young boys. They looked most woebegone at having been caught, and forced to sit and wait for they knew not what. But Stan felt sorry for them, and so, rather than calling the police, he called Zip.
“What have we here?” Zip rhetorically asked as he was ushered into the office by Stan. He noted that an employee had been standing by the office door, presumably to prevent the boys from running.
“Like I told you over the phone, I caught these boys helping themselves to lunch without paying. Well, to be completely honest, it was one of my employees who initially noticed them, but anyway here they are. As you can see, they look like they’ve been starved and beaten. Now, I can’t see allowing kids to just help themselves to the goods, but they look so pitiful, I couldn’t bring myself to call the cops, either,” Stan explained.
The three did look pretty bad. They were very thin, with spindly arms, and they did have scars and bruises on arms and face. Zip felt much more positively towards Stand than previously when he realized the situation.
“Stan, your sentiments do you proud. I quite see that just letting them help themselves would not be good business, but I appreciate the call to me. I’ll see to it that Brandon is informed as soon as possible, and that they are taken care of until he can deal with it himself. What do you know about these three?” Zip said.
“Not much. They refuse to talk. No names. Eric, the boy who was sort of standing guard until you got here, tried to search them for some identification, but they put up such a ruckus that we gave up on that.”
“Okay. Can I borrow Eric to help see that the boys all get to my car without disappearing? After that, your responsibility ceases, but I’ll keep you posted,” Zip promised.
“Sure. No problem,” Stan agreed.
“Well, boys,” Zip said, address the three waifs, “how would you like to go back with me, and get a free lunch without having to run and hide?”
They looked at him skeptically, and said nothing. But, with help from Stan and Eric, all three were tucked into Zip’s car, and transported back to Chestnut Street. Rather than stop at the Todd residence, however, they went immediately across the street to Brandon’s Boys group home. Zip had called ahead. By this time, the resident boys were home from school, so a delegation met them at the Todd garage, and performed the same function as Stan and Eric in preventing the three new boys from trying to escape. The fact that it was other boys, more or less in the same age bracket, significantly reduced the determination the new boys to make a run for it. That and the promise of food.
At Brandon’s Boys, they were greeted by Aunt Barbara, who ushered them first into the downstairs restroom and told them to wash their hands, then into the kitchen, where she began to feed them. The boys ate ravenously. Of course, so did the resident boys, just not as desperately as the new ones. Boys were always hungry, as Aunt Barbara knew.
The new boys did not say much. Their mouths were always full anyway. But Brandon’s boys talked a mile a minute. Among other things, they told the newbys that they were very lucky to be there, as Brandon would see to it that they were treated right, and they would get good meals every day from now on. They advised the new boys to be honest when Brandon asked them questions. He was a good guy, and would not let anyone hurt them. Things were going to get better. Lots better.
By the time the boys had run down as far as talking was concerned, and the time the new boys had at last eaten their fill, Brandon appeared. Zip had called him on the way out to the mall, so he had time to get back into town from Todd Farm. It was only about an hour’s drive, but he did have to explain to Chris why he was leaving.
After the greetings, Brandon asked the three to come into the library, and told the other boys not to interrupt. When all four were seated, Brandon began.
“You guys look like you’ve had a rough time. Tell me about it.”
“We got caught at the MacDonald’s at Oxmoor Mall,” the oldest of the boys said.
“Yeah, that’s what Zip, the older black man who picked you up, told me. Been on you own for a while, have you?” Brandon tried.
“A while,” the oldest again was the only one to say anything.
“How would you like to come in off the streets? Maybe live here with the other boys? Enjoy Aunt Barbara’s cooking?” Brandon pushed.
The three boys exchanged glances. “Can we talk in private?” the oldest boy asked.
“You and the other two?” Brandon asked, just to make sure he understood.
“Yeah.”
“Okay. I’ll leave you here. When you’re ready, just come and find me. I’ll be around,” Brandon said.
“First,” the second boy said, speaking for the first time, “I need to take a piss.”
Brandon laughed. “Good idea. Don’t want anybody making a mess, now do we? How about the other two of you?”
“Um, maybe we’d all better take care of that,” the oldest agreed.
And so, Brandon showed them to the downstairs bathroom, where they had washed their hands earlier. When they cautiously emerged a few minutes later, Freddy was waiting to show them the way back to the library. And also to make certain they did not try to leave. So, the three were closeted together for over an hour. It was nearly five o’clock when they emerged, looking for Brandon.
He was in the rec room with some of the boys. Bobby and Tom were locked in a contest of titans over some video game, while some of the boys were watching and giving unsolicited advice, while Brandon was talking with Paco. Paco had only been at Brandon’s Boys since the summer, less than five months, so Brandon was interested to find out how he was getting along, there and at school. Paco was bubbling over with enthusiasm. He still had his bum leg, but in other respects he was in pretty good shape. His cousin, Joe, came to visit him at least once each week. He liked the other boys – most of them, most of the time. He appreciated Aunt Barbara’s cooking all the time. And he was doing great in school. Because of his Hispanic background, he was attending St. Francis Xavier, rather than St. Rose, where the other kids went. He told Brandon he loved having his classes in Spanish in the morning, and in English after lunch. He also loved having Mike, a high school boy, drop him off in the morning and pick him up in the afternoon. He scored with his classmates on that. Brandon was very pleased, not only with what Paco had to tell him, but also with the high spirits of the young boy.
But when he saw the three new boys cautiously enter the rec room, he went to them and gave them his full attention. “What have you decided?” he asked.
“We’ll talk,” the oldest boy said.
“Wonderful! That’ll make things a lot easier,” Brandon said.
But at that moment, Aunt Barbara appeared in the doorway. “All right. Anyone who does not want to go to bed hungry can come help me put dinner on the table,” she announced.
Brandon grinned. “I guess that means us, too. How about we talk after dinner?”
“Great,” the eldest agreed.
“It would really help if we knew what to call you guys,” Brandon suggested.
“Okay. I’m Clint. This one is Brent, and the little one is Tony,” the eldest said.
Brandon grinned at the smallest boy, and said, “Does he always make a big deal about you being the littlest?”
“Always,” Tony dramatically sighed.
Brandon figured they were off to a good start.
Even though it had only been about an hour and a half since they had ravished the snacks offered earlier by Aunt Barbara, no one held back over dinner. One thing which did catch the attention of the new boys was that they prayed before eating. The prayer was led by Raman, as it just happened to be his turn. “Bless us, O Lord, and these thy gifts, which we are about to receive from thy bounty, through Christ Our Lord. Amen.” Brandon noted that, after an initial surprised hesitation, all three of the new boys joined in.
After dinner, but before joining the new boys in the library, Brandon spoke with Mike Grice. He was the oldest boy remaining at the home, having turned 18 in September, and being in his senior year at Baltimore. He was the one who got to drive Paco to school and pick him up each day, whereas the other high school boys had to walk the five blocks to Baltimore. Brandon told Mike to take the car and drive out to a cheaper mall than that at which the boys had been apprehended, and pick up some new clothing for them. Not only was their present attire torn, dirty, and ill fitting, but they smelled bad. Aunt Barbara could tell him about sizes.
Then, Brandon and the three boys, Clint, Brent, and Tony, entered the library and settled down to talk.
“So, do you think you can tell me something about yourselves?” Brandon began.
“We talked about it,” Clint said. “We decided that nothing was getting better where we were, so we’ll take a chance on you guys. So far, we like what we see. I just really hope you’re not setting us up for something evil.”
“Well, if I were, I’d lie about it. But I hope after you’re here for a while, you’ll find that there’s nothing evil here. At least, nothing intended. We all make mistakes,” Brandon said.
“Are you Catholic?” Brent asked.
“Yes. I’m Catholic. All the boys are. But if you’re not, there will be no pressure on you about that,” Brandon tried to assure them.
“No. We know that prayer at dinner. It’s something we learned a long time ago. It’s Catholic, isn’t it?” Brent insisted.
“It’s a traditional Catholic prayer before meals, yes,” Brandon confirmed. “And you?”
“Well, we were Catholic, but like I said, that was a long time ago. I’m not sure what we are now,” Brent said.
“Okay, guys. Do you trust me enough to tell me something, at least, about your story?” Brandon pled.
“We don’t want to be sent back. I think it would be better if we did not tell you anything that might connect us to ... I guess to where we used to live,” Clint said.
“How long have you been on your own?” Brandon asked.
“About four months,” Clint replied.
“Really? I’m surprised. You look like you’ve had it rough for longer than that,” Brandon gave them a questioning look. He did not want fabrications this early in the relationship.
“Really,” Clint insisted. “But we had it pretty rough before we left ... where we were before. For one thing, I think we got more to eat today than in a week there.”
“So that’s why you all three look so thin,” Brandon concluded.
“I guess,” Clint agreed. “Can we sleep here tonight?”
“Clint, if things work out as I hope they will, you and your brothers will be sleeping here every night until you graduate from high school and set off on your own,” Brandon said with some feeling.
“We don’t got to fuck anybody, do we?” Tony piped up for the first time.
“No, Tony,” Brandon said in a definite manner. “One of the basic rules here at Brandon’s Boys is that no one is forced to do anything sexual. That is wrong. Of course,” he added with a chuckle, “there are some things you will be forced to do.”
“What?” Brent asked with obvious concern in his voice.
Brandon smiled. “Well, help Aunt Barbara clean up around here. And treat the other boys right. And attend school.”
“School might be a problem,” Clint said.
“Yes. In order for you to attend school, I’ll need to know a lot more about you than I do now, including where you went before you ... can I say left home?” Brandon agreed.
“You can say that if you want, but it wasn’t much of a home,” Clint said with some feeling.
At that point, there was a knock on the door. Brandon invited the knocker to come in. Mike poked his head in, and simply said, “I’m back.”
“Good. Now, boys, I think we’ve made some progress. But you’re going to have to trust me more before we can make much more. So, for the rest of the evening, you will all shower really well, and shampoo your hair, and then spend the time getting to know the other boys. But don’t get in the way of those doing homework. Remember, I said school is important. Tomorrow, we’ll go to a doctor’s office, and have you all checked out You ask the other boys about Dr. Josh. He’s a really nice man, and won’t hurt you any more than he needs to to take some tests.”
“Like what?” Brent interrupted.
“Like poking a needle in your arm, to draw blood, so he can see whether you have certain diseases,” Brandon answered. “Then, we can talk some more. The other boys will be in school tomorrow, but I’ll be here. I’m hoping you will tell me some more about yourselves, and why you left home. Maybe by Monday, you’ll trust me enough that we can get you back in school.”
“We’ll see,” Clint cautiously replied.
The next morning, after a decent night’s uninterrupted sleep, Brandon escorted the three boys to see Dr. Joshua Castleman, the physician at the Todd Medical Clinic who also served on the Board of Brandon’s Boys. They were dressed in the new clothes that Mike had acquired for them while they talked the evening before, and had been fed an excellent breakfast by Aunt Barbara, so they were in a cooperative mood. As a result, they revealed that Clint was 14, Brent was “almost 12,” and Tony was 9 years old. They also confirmed, as had been expected all along, that the three were brothers. The medical examination revealed to no one’s surprise that all three boys were malnourished. There were a few infected sores which needed monitoring. There were the usual complaints of those who had to scrounge for food – worms and lice. They all needed to see a dentist and an optometrist soon. There were signs of abuse, not only in the various bruises and scars, but also in damage to the anal passage on both Clint and Brent, damage which needed to be repaired soon. A second visit for this purpose was scheduled for Monday morning at 7:00 a.m., indicating how important Josh thought that to be.
But all that took up almost the entire morning by the time all three boys had been taken care of. Then, they returned to Brandon’s Boys, where Aunt Barbara fed them again. They definitely liked that part of their treatment. And, after lunch, with no sign of reluctance this time, the boys got back in the car. They were driven by Brandon out to Todd Farm, where they had two encounters. Even as they approached, they saw horses behind the white four board fences along the highway leading up to the farm entrance. And no sooner had they emerged from Brandon’s vehicle than they encountered Chris Todd, Brandon’s partner.
Chris greeted his partner with a light kiss, the turned to the three boys. “Gee, you guys are skinny. But I’m sure Aunt Barbara is attending to that. I’m Chris. Welcome to Todd Farm. How do you get along with horses?”
“You’re weird,” Tony said.
“I know, but that’s just the way I come,” Chris said.
“Are you black or what? The older guy who picked us up yesterday was blacker than you,” Brent asked.
“That’s kind of personal,” Chris replied.
“Well, you started off saying we’re skinny. That’s kind of personal, too,” Brent returned.
“I guess you’re right,” Chris conceded. “Okay, the older guy is my father. I’m going to tell him you said he was a older guy. But, anyway, I am what is called a quadroon. That means I am one quarter black, so it kind of fades some by the time the color gets to me.”
“If the guy we met yesterday is your father, it’s no wonder he’s older than you. But he’s not as weird as you. And I like the word quadroon,” Brent insisted.
“I kind of do, too,” Chris admitted. “Let’s go meet some horses.”
Brandon was standing in the background laughing to himself. He suspected his irrepressible partner had met his match in the three new boys. It was strange, but the boys who were so reticent when talking to him, just babbled away with Chris.
They made their way to the nearest stable, where the boys did, indeed, meet several horses in their stalls. As they stood near one such animal, Clint hesitantly noted, “He’s big.”
“This is no ‘he,’” Chris corrected him. “This lady is my best female friend, but if you tell my mother I said that, I’ll get you good. She’s called CH Todd’s Beauty, but you can just call her Beauty for short.”
“Is she really a champion?” Tony asked.
“She sure is. When we go to the house, I’ll show you some of her awards. But Beauty has performed in lots of shows, and she won most of them, but now she’s retired. Even horses deserve some time off when they get old,” Chris informed them.
“How old is she?” Tony persisted.
“Beauty is twenty-two years old, and for a horse, that’s old. It’s about the same as around 65 for a human,” Chris informed the boys. “But she’s still in great shape. That’s because I take great care of her. Would you like to ride her?”
Although Clint looked hesitant, Tony immediately yelled, “Yeah!” Beauty looked down, and kind of nuzzled Tony, who giggled. That was a good sign, Brandon thought. Young boys ought to giggle.
So Chris saddled Beauty, all the while telling the boys what he was doing, and what this or that piece of tack was called, and why it was important. In a very brief time, Beauty was all dressed up and ready for the show ring, or at least the coral next to the stable.
Chris led his horse out, still talking a mile a minute about what a great mount she was, and how she performed. In the coral, he swung into the saddle and rode around once, just to show the boys how it was done. Then, he said, “As Tony was so eager to ride, we’ll let him go first.” And so, the youngest of the boys got the first ride. Tony eagerly mounted Beauty with a good deal of help from Chris, who then led horse and rider twice around the coral, while everyone else withdrew beyond the rails. After that second circuit, Chris asked Tony whether he could do it on his own. The boy replied with an eager affirmative, and so Tony and Beauty made a circle of the coral on their own, but under the careful eye of Chris. Beauty had done this many times, and knew her role.
Naturally, once their younger brother succeeded in the saddle, Clint and Brent could do no less, and so they also had their first experience on horseback. Then, they went into the main house, where Chris did show them a large, glass-fronted case chock full of trophies and blue ribbons. He got one out, and showed them the name CH Todd’s Beauty etched in the silver. Then, they made their way to the kitchen, where they met Winnie Fenwick, who fed them a tasty afternoon snack. But then, they had to get back to town, Brandon insisted. And so, saying ‘good-bye’ to Chris, the three boys joined Brandon in the car.
When they got back to Brandon’s Boys group home, they were greeted by a passel of boys. School was out for the week, and everyone was in great spirits. All the boys resident at the home had been to the Farm, and had ridden, and so that formed a good part of the talk for quite a while. Raman and Daniel agreed, if Beauty accepted them, the new boys must be okay.
After another great meal, everyone had the evening off. Two of the boys, Mike and Raman, had dates, so they left almost immediately. Then Daniel suggested dessert, adding, “And that means Bradford’s.” So the remaining boys, including the newcomers, walked over to the Pike where they entered Bradford’s Bakery and Ice Cream Parlor. The bakery had been in the hands of the Bradford family since being founded by a former slave in 1888, but the ice cream element had been added more recently, and was a favorite among the kids. Old Mr. Anthony Bradford was there, behind the counter, but it was his 14 year old grandson who came to take the kids’ orders, and exchange more than a few words in raillery with Freddy and Bobby, who were in the same year at school, but at different schools. Their respective freshman soccer teams had a match scheduled for the next day, so that formed the greater part of the exchange. Clint, Brent, and Tony experienced the best ice cream desserts they had ever encountered. And, when old Mr. Bradford was told that the three unknown boys were new at Brandon’s Boys, and that the youngest was named Tony, he teased a bit, but offered Tony a second dessert on the house any time he wanted.