Finding Their Son by Debra Salonen Page B

years.”
    The whistle from the kettle made her turn to the stove, but over her shoulder, she said, “And yet you chose him as your spiritual advisor.”
    Her soft snicker made him smile. Even though he was still pissed off about his circumstances, he could appreciate the irony. But he quickly reverted to his impassive cop face when she brought him his bowl of hot cereal. Surly helped keep her at a distance, which was the smart thing to do. She was pretty, kind, smart and forgiving. And he was attracted to her. Too attracted.
    They ate in silence. He wolfed his down in five or six bites, the way E.J. would have. He didn’t know where he left his manners—in the Badlands, maybe?
    “So. Your first point was my uncle’s supposed insight into my fractured psyche. What’s number two?” he asked, pushing his bowl to the middle of the table.
    Her hand stopped halfway to her mouth. She lowered the spoon and took a deep breath before answering. “Last night you said that seventeen was a pivotal age for you. I bet you’ve arrested your share of kids who made some dumb mistake at that age and spent the rest of their life regretting it.”
    If they had the rest of their lives. Too many wound up dead. Not that he’d tell her that. Still, the idea that any kid of his—even one he’d never heard about until yesterday—was in trouble made his breakfast lodge in his throat. “What do you expect me to do?” he asked, after swallowing a big gulp of coffee.
    “I don’t expect you to do anything, but I want you to help me find our son.” She pushed her bowl to one side and sat forward. “I need to do this, Eli. The more time I have to think about it the more convinced I am that you’re here for a reason. I can’t explain why. I’m not usually a mystic, woo-woo kind of person, but your showing up at this moment in time…” She hesitated as though she might elaborate, but instead she said, “I started a college fund for him with my first paycheck. When I worked for the B.I.A., I had an automatic withdrawal that put a share of every check in his account. It’s not a fortune, but I want him to have it.”
    “He’s still a minor. You can’t hand a kid money without his parents’ approval.”
    “I know that. I wasn’t suggesting we track him down and suddenly thrust ourselves into his life. Would I like to meet him someday? Of course. But that’s got to be his decision. All I want for now is to know he’s okay.”
    Eli started a mental list of all the ways a teenage boy could mess up his life. Drugs. Gangs. Reckless driving. Unsafe sex with a predatory she-bitch who screwed your best friend first. “He could be happy and safe and perfectly content. He might not even know he was adopted.”
    She nodded. “That’s what I’ve prayed for every night since he was born. And if that’s the case, then we’re both free and clear to move on with our lives. Right?”
    “Where have I heard that before?” he muttered. “Oh, yeah, Bobbi. Her parting words after she asked me for a divorce.”
    Char didn’t say anything right away. “I’m sorry things didn’t work out for you, Eli, but if you were still happily married you wouldn’t have been on a vision quest. Maybe you need to find him, too. For reasons of your own.”
    Reasons of his own. Like to replace the son he lost? As if that was possible. Or because this kid might be the only son he’d ever have?
    “How are we supposed to find him? Didn’t you say you’ve been looking for years?”
    “I tried contacting the lawyer who handled the adoption, but he was dead and the law office he worked for couldn’t find any of the paperwork.” She shook her head. “Knowing my aunt, she had the whole thing burned in case I changed my mind. But she couldn’t keep me from putting my name and all the information I had on the national registry.”
    “What registry?”
    “Online. There’s a sort of clearinghouse for adopted children and birth parents.”
    “Did you put my