“And once the state brings charges against him, and the case is out in the open, I want to send a letter to members of the parish—then, before the incident, and now—and of any other parish where he’s been, and see if we can get other victims to come forward. Some people don’t want to get involved or have people know what happened to them, but many do, especially once they realize there were other victims. You’ll be amazed at how many people come out of the woodwork and admit it happened to them, too. Guys like this don’t just do it once or twice, or even a few times. We found ninety-seven victims on one of my cases, but only seventy-six were willing to testify. And they all got settlements from the church, very large ones in fact. It was my most important case so far.”
“How do you charge for this?” Ginny asked him in a quiet tone. She suspected he did it on a contingency basis and took a percentage of the settlement and wouldn’t charge them other than that, but she wanted to be sure.
“I think these cases are an important part of our history, as human beings, and as Catholics. We have to make it right. We can’t hide it, we have to heal it, whatever it takes. And for those of us who still believe in the church and its integrity, and I do, we have to give something back. I do these cases pro bono. I don’t charge for them, no matter how many hours I put in. Even if I litigate. I don’t want a percentage of the settlement. In other words,” he said, looking at both of them, “everything I do on the case is free.” Blue thought that was very nice of him, and Ginny was stunned, knowing how expensive legal work could be, and how much most attorneys charged, especially when there were settlements involved.
“How does that work?” she asked him, incredibly impressed.
“It just does. I have paying clients on other matters. I think it’s vital to demonstrate that there are still good people involved, directly and indirectly, with the church.” He wasn’t aware that she knew his history, so he explained, “I was a priest. I left the priesthood for a variety of reasons, but I am deeply troubled by these crimes of sexual abuse committed on young boys. This is what I can do to help, defending those who need it, and doing it for free. I don’t want anyone to think that I’m getting a victim a big settlement so I can take part of it for myself. I’m not the one who got hurt, Blue is. He deserves it all. I’ve been doing it this way for several years. The archdiocese knows who I am. They don’t like me, and I fight hard.” And then he smiled broadly at her. “And I always win. I haven’t lost a single one of these cases yet, and I don’t intend to start now. The sword of truth is mighty.” He smiled at Blue. “We’ll use it to cut off Father Teddy’s head.” Ginny would have liked to suggest other options, but didn’t. She was amazed by the ex-priest who had just offered to represent Blue for free. “You’re his guardian?” he asked Ginny then, and assumed she was. He was surprised when she said she wasn’t.
“His aunt is. Do you need her to sign something?”
“Not yet. But eventually when we file the civil lawsuit, his guardian will need to sign it.”
“I’m sure she will,” Ginny said confidently. Charlene loved the boy, and would want what was best for him, and a settlement surely would be. “I’m sure that won’t be a problem.” He nodded, satisfied, and went on, and told them what the game plan was. He was going to speak to the investigator that he used for sexual abuse cases who was great at ferreting out gossip, rumors, and suspicions in the parish, and sometimes a great deal more than that, that might lead them to evidence, and other victims. O’Connor said he was going to keep in close touch with Detective Sanders as her investigation developed. And once charges were brought against Father Teddy Graham by the state, or possibly several states, he would file the civil suit, and at the same time demand a settlement from the church. Once he was convicted, their suit would be indisputable. The only question then would be how much. But there was a long stretch of road to cover before they got there. Andrew O’Connor estimated the whole process would take a year, maybe less, maybe more, in the case of a settlement. An actual trial might take longer, but he doubted it would come to that. And if the archdiocese tried to hide Father Teddy’s crimes, and backed him up, it would be even worse for its case. The courts expected the church to show remorse for its priests’ crimes, and make restitution.
They chatted for a few minutes then, and Andrew O’Connor tried not to stare at Ginny, but was looking at her intently. She looked different than she had on TV. She was just as beautiful, but in a quieter, more luminous way. He thought she had a face like a madonna. She wasn’t wearing makeup, her long blond hair was pulled back, and she had the saddest expression in her eyes he’d ever seen, even when she was laughing. They were two deep pools of sorrow. The only time he saw her look happy was when she talked to Blue.
And as Ginny looked at the attorney as he walked them out, she thought he seemed sophisticated and worldly. He had a very distinguished appearance, and despite gray hair at his temples, he had a young face, and she guessed him to be about forty years old.
She remembered that Jesuits were the intellectual elite of the church. And for him to work in the legal office of the Vatican, he had to be a good lawyer and be extremely bright and Kevin had mentioned something about him having lived four years in Rome. He was a very capable man, and just as she had felt with Jane Sanders, Ginny was confident that with him, Blue’s case was in good hands. On their way back to the apartment, Blue said he liked him, too. He didn’t ask how much money he might get in a settlement—the whole idea of it still embarrassed him, which pleased Ginny. Blue was standing up for what was right, and what had been done to him, not for money.
And that night, she called Kevin Callaghan to thank him for the referral.
“He was terrific, and Blue likes him, too. I suspect he’s a very good lawyer, and I almost fell out of my chair when he told us he does these cases pro bono.”
“That’s amazing.” Kevin was surprised, too.
“It sounds like he still believes in all his Jesuit values—he just wants to get rid of the bad priests,” Ginny told him.
“Interesting guy,” Kevin commented, and Ginny agreed. She had been enormously impressed. It had been a very productive meeting on Blue’s behalf, and so had the one with the police.
And after she talked to Kevin, Becky called her. Every time she did, Ginny braced herself for bad news.
“How’s Dad?” Ginny asked, holding her breath for the response.
“About the same as when you were here. In and out. And some days he just sleeps now.” He was like a candle slowly flickering as it went out. “How was your week?” Becky asked her. They hadn’t spoken since their trip to L.A.
“Busy, and exhausting.” Ginny was feeling somewhat frazzled, but pleased with all they’d accomplished.
“What did you do?”
“Some very difficult things,” Ginny admitted. “We dealt with a tough situation for Blue, or started to.” This was just the beginning. Ginny hadn’t told her yet, and didn’t want to embarrass Blue, but the case would be in the public realm soon, even if his identity was concealed, so she felt comfortable telling Becky.
“Something at school?”
“No,” Ginny said carefully. “He was molested by a parish priest three years ago, and we’ve talked about it very seriously, and decided to do something about it. So we met with the Child Abuse Unit last week and today with an attorney who specializes in these cases against the church. It was pretty heavy stuff. But I think it will be a good thing for Blue. It honors and validates what he experienced, and tells him that someone who abuses him can’t get away with it, and that decent people care about him.” There was silence at the other end of the phone when she finished speaking.
“Oh my God,” Becky said a minute later, and Ginny assumed she was shocked at what Blue had been through. “I can’t believe you’re doing this. You’re taking on the church now? And how do you know he’s telling you the truth?” Becky didn’t believe it for a minute. There had been plenty of false accusations among the re
al ones that had destroyed good priests’ lives. It was the flip side of the coin. But Ginny was certain that that was not the case here. She believed Blue, beyond any doubt. His suffering over it was too real.
“I am absolutely sure that he’s telling the truth,” Ginny said calmly.
“You don’t know that. Lots of kids have told lies about it. And your getting involved in it is sick. He’s not your child, you hardly know him, and now you’re attacking the Catholic Church. Don’t you even believe in God anymore? What’s wrong with you?” Ginny was shocked at what she was hearing, and that her sister had said it to her.
“Of course I believe in God. I don’t believe in priests who abuse their position and molest or rape little boys. Let’s not get confused here. And who’s going to stand up for him if I don’t? He has no one, Becky. No parents, no adult who cares about him, and an aunt who doesn’t even want to see him, and has three kids of her own in a one-bedroom apartment, and a boyfriend who beats her up. You don’t understand what he comes from, and you don’t give a damn, but I do.” Ginny was outraged by her sister’s reaction. She was always on some kind of warpath against whatever Ginny was doing, whether it was her human rights work, Blue, or now their case against the priest who had molested him.
“You’re not Joan of Arc, for God’s sake! And going after the church we grew up in is sacrilegious and immoral. I can’t believe you’d do a thing like that. Thank God Dad will never know.” Their father had gone to church every Sunday of his life, and their mother had, too, when she was alive. And they had gone to church as children. Becky and Alan went only occasionally on Sundays, and took their children when they did. They were hardly devout Catholics. But Becky felt she had to protect Father Teddy Graham, even though it was he who had violated the sanctity of the church, not Ginny for defending Blue and fighting back. “You can’t be serious about this. You really have to rethink it,” Becky said insistently. Her tone was one of furious disbelief and stern disapproval.
“What? And tell him it was okay that he was molested, that it doesn’t matter, and that the priest who did it is a good guy? He belongs in prison. And I’m sure he’s done it to lots of other boys. I saw him with one of them myself last week.”
“What were you doing? Following him?” Becky was off on a tangent again. It made Ginny realize once again that all her life her sister had criticized her for something she was doing. But nothing she could say would sway Ginny from supporting Blue with the case.
“No, I went to Chicago to check him out. He’s a real piece of work.”
“So are you,” Becky said angrily. “I never thought I’d see the day when my own sister would attack the church.”
“They need to be attacked on this issue, and these men have to be exposed. They’re child abusers in the most perverted possible way. They’re pedophiles, and they belong in prison.”
“Blue’s not suffering. He looks like a happy, healthy kid. It’s happened to others—he’ll get over it. You don’t need to turn it into a sacred mission and make an ass of yourself.”
“I can’t talk to you about this,” Ginny said through clenched teeth. “What you’re saying is too outrageous. What do you think people should do? Uphold the bad priests? Hide them? Forget about it? Because that’s what the church has been doing, and it makes the situation even worse.”
“They’re sacred men, Ginny,” Becky said in an icy tone. “God will punish you if you mess with that.”
“He’ll punish me a lot more, and so will my own conscience, if I don’t help this boy get justice in this world.”
“Why don’t you stop worrying about him, and get your own life together, instead of picking up every stray dog you run across, and chasing around the world trying to solve problems that can’t be fixed? Stay home, get a decent job, get your hair done once in a while, go on a date, and turn into a normal human being again. And for God’s sake, have some respect for the Catholic Church.”
“Thank you for your advice,” Ginny said, and hung up on her, and she was shaking when she did. She couldn’t believe the things her sister had said, not just about her but about the priests who had violated every law with total disregard for morality and decency and were raping children. Her sister clearly would have preferred to keep it hidden.
Blue came looking for her in his pajamas a few minutes later with a puzzled look. “Who was that? I thought I heard you shouting when I got out of the shower.” She was grateful he hadn’t heard what she had said.
“It was Becky. We had a stupid argument. Sisters do that. She told me I should get my hair done more often.”
He looked at her long blond hair, and shrugged at the mysteries of women. “Looks fine to me.”
“Thank you,” she said, and smiled at him. She did not for one instant regret supporting him in this battle. It was actually about respecting the Catholic Church, and defending it, more than the priests who had violated it. And it was about defending the rights of children to be safe and unharmed in what should be a chaste and safe environment for them. She’d had such a good time with Becky when they went to L.A., almost like the old days when they were kids. And now she was on a tirade again, defending what was indefensible in the church. Ginny was furious over it, but it also made her realize that there would be others who would be angry at her and Blue, if they heard about it. They, too, would prefer to keep the sins of a few priests hidden and pretend that the Catholic clergy was infallible. Ginny wasn’t willing to do that. She believed in pursuing the truth, exposing evil, seeking justice for innocent victims, and defending the rights of little boys not to be raped or molested by their parish priests. It seemed totally clear to her that these were principles worth defending, no matter what her sister thought. And if Becky didn’t approve of her, too bad. Ginny believed a hundred percent in what she was doing, and when Blue hugged her before he went to bed that night, with his faith in her shining in his eyes, she knew that she was right.
Chapter 13
Ginny didn’t speak to her sister again after their argument on Monday night. Becky had sent her a text reiterating the same views and opinions, and Ginny didn’t answer her. It wasn’t even an argument to her. She thought Becky’s position was a disgrace.
And on Tuesday she met with Ellen Warberg and after much careful consideration, and consultation with other international human rights agencies, they were assigning Ginny and a handful of others to Syria. The Red Cross was a strong presence there, and SOS/HR had always taken a completely apolitical stance, which protected them, and their workers to some extent. Unquestionably it was a hot spot and there were safer places to go, but Ellen assured her that at the first sign of a change in climate there, or increased tension, Ginny could decide to leave of her own volition, or they would pull her out, if they knew something she didn’t, or even heard a whisper about escalating risk. Ginny felt comfortable with what Ellen said to her, and they had never let her down. The problem for her now was Blue. She had undertaken a responsibility to him, taking on their toughest assignments no longer seemed smart to her. She agreed to go to Syria, but wanted to rethink the kind of assignments she would take in future. Her life had changed.
Ellen had no doubt that Ginny could handle it, and the situation was unpleasant, but their presence was direly needed. Boys over the age of fourteen were being imprisoned for no apparent reason, tortured, in some cases, and even raped, and those who survived it often emerged broken and crippled, physically and psychologically, almost beyond repair. And even younger children were being detained in custody; some were being put in prison as well. The Red Cross had two camps set up to minister to them, internationally staffed and run. SOS/HR was supplying two workers for each camp, and Ginny was one of them. It showed their faith in her that she’d been chosen, but it was going to be heartbreaking work. Because it was a hardship post, they had made it a short assignment, and Ellen said they were going to bring her back in eight weeks, at the beginning of August. She was relieved not to be away from Blue for too long,
and she told him about it that night.
“I’m leaving in a week,” she told him over dinner, “which means I’ll miss your graduation, which I’m very upset about, but you have to be grown up about this. The good news is I’ll be back a month early.” They had expected her to miss the graduation, and she was pleased to be coming back before summer was over. “I’ll get you a cell phone before I leave.” She hadn’t done that yet, which was inconvenient at times, when she wanted to track him down, and she wanted him to have a phone before she left. “You have to be available if Detective Sanders calls you, or Andrew O’Connor, if they need something from you on the case.” For the moment the investigation was getting started, but they might need to confirm something with Blue, or contact him. “I’ll call you when I can, but I don’t think I’ll have much communication in the camp.” She didn’t stress the risks where she was going, and played it down. “I want you to stay at Houston Street. I know you don’t like it, but it’s only for eight weeks.” She was matter-of-fact about it, and hoped he would be, too. He had known he was going to have to stay there when she went away.
“Why can’t I just stay here?” He looked bitterly disappointed that she was leaving again, even if he’d known she would. The reality of it was hard for both of them, now that the time had come.
“You can’t stay alone in an apartment. You’re thirteen years old. What if you get sick?” Or if some social worker discovered that he was thirteen years old and living alone.
“No one took care of me when I got sick on the streets,” he reminded her.
“I feel better knowing that you’re in a reasonable environment with other kids, with any kind of help you need available.”
“I hate it there.” He crossed his arms and sank into his chair in a slump.
“It’s only for eight weeks. I’m coming home early this time, and I’ll be here for almost all of August. And they won’t reassign me till September,” she said, feeling stressed about it, and sad to leave him. But he had survived without her before they met, and she was leaving him taken care of and provided for. Julio Fernandez had promised to keep a closer eye on him this time, and he could play their piano. But that only compensated a little. “If you run away, I swear I’m going to have a fit when I get home—tie you to your bed, hide your favorite pair of Converse—something terrible I’ll have to think of.” He smiled at her empty threat. She didn’t know how to be bad to him, but he still didn’t want to stay at Houston Street while she was gone. But he would do it for her, albeit grudgingly and complaining all the way.
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