Chapter Text
William Regal stood silently with bowed head for several moments. Then he slowly smiled at the tombstone in front of him. “It’s done, laddie.” He slowly placed flowers on the ground just below the tombstone lettering.
James Ellsworth
“All the paperwork’s been reviewed and approved. The Mayor signed off on the settlement just a few hours ago,” Regal smiled. “There’s enough money to take care of your sister for the rest of her life. She’s in a good facility with people who care. And I’ll be keeping an eye on her as well. So, don’t worry about her.” He hesitated, then continued, “And everyone knows you weren’t involved in that bank robbery or the deaths that occurred.”
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“Mr. Mayor, thank you for meeting us here.” Roman Reigns smiled as he held out his hand.
“My pleasure, Mr. Reigns,” Brodie Lee genially smiled in return as he shook Roman’s hand. “I’m most interested in seeing what you have for this project.”
“This is the Assistant Director, Seth Rollins,” Roman introduced. “He’s the owner of several businesses on the other side of the block.”
Brodie shook Seth’s hand. “I’m familiar with them. Especially the deli,” he grinned. Then he looked at the front of the buildings. “I’m impressed with the changes. These buildings look practically brand new. I understand they were on the market for some time.”
Roman nodded. “A couple of years so the previous owner was motivated to sell. He hadn’t done much to keep them up which reduced their value.”
Seth silently wondered just how ‘motivated’ the previous owner had actually been and silently snickered. Roman had wanted to get the foundation up and running as soon as possible.
Brodie studied the lettering above the double doors. “MDM Foundation. May I ask what that stands for?”
Roman exchanged a smile with Seth and opened the doors. Inside, Roman gestured at the large open space. “This will be the lobby with reception and security over there.” He led them to where a picture of a blonde-haired baby girl within a frame was recessed into the wall.
“MDM are the initials for Marie Denise Moxley,” Roman quietly explained. “She’s the younger sister of Jon Moxley who died at the age of 10 months.” He hesitated, then continued. “Mox put a great deal of the settlement money into the foundation to honor the sister he doesn’t remember. He wasn’t even two when she died.”
Brodie sadly shook his head. “Finding out about her must have been very traumatic. I admire that he wanted to honor her and help others in this way.”
Roman nodded and led the way down the hallway. “Offices on either side,” he pointed. “We plan to have volunteer child psychologists and therapists on hand. We’ll also have a pretty well-equipped infirmary with volunteer doctors and nurses on site 24/7.” He stopped at the end of the hallway and pointed to his right.
“That wing will have an indoor pool, basketball court, gym with weights and exercise equipment,” Roman explained. “Outside between these buildings and Seth’s property will be a running track and room for some track-and-field events.”
“Which explains the infirmary,” Brodie chuckled.
Seth ruefully nodded.
Roman pointed to his left. “That wing will have arts and crafts, music, theater, and a computer lab.”
“One of the tutors specializes in computers and IT,” Seth explained. “He’s agreed to help here with any kids who are interested. Because of spacing limitations, I just don’t have the room for a real computer lab.”
“There will also be a full-sized cafeteria,” Roman added. “Seth’s people from the deli are handling the set up and hiring for that. The second floor will be bedrooms and bathrooms. We plan for this to be a sanctuary for kids who’ve fled homes of abuse both here in Davenport and those who’ve wound up here one way or the other.”
Brodie silently nodded. “Child Protective Services might have a problem with that,” he admitted.
Roman and Seth exchanged looks. “That’s why we need you on board with this,” Roman slowly spoke.
“A lot, if not all, street kids have a problem with authority,” Seth quietly added. “Most would rather take their chances on the street than in shelters or even foster homes. It’s a perception that needs to be addressed. And that requires trust. These kids have to know they can trust the people here.”
Brodie frowned in thought. “Hypothetically speaking, a child comes here for what…food? Shelter? What happens?”
“We provide it,” Roman simply answered. “We ask for a first name. A full name if they want to give it. We ask if they need medical help and explain we just want to make sure they’re okay because a lot of them are malnourished or have been assaulted.”
“And if you find something that should be investigated by the police?” Brodie pushed.
“We try to convince them to let us get the police involved,” Roman firmly answered. “But our providing food, medical assistance and shelter isn’t dependent upon that.”
“Without the police or CPS involved, you could be sending that child back to a dangerous situation on the street,” Brodie pointed out.
Seth sighed. “It’s not all black and white. Putting the child into CPS custody could result in the child running again. This time with no safe place to go.”
Brodie heavily sighed.
“We’d like to sit down with CPS and your Special Victims Unit to discuss this and work out a plan that, hopefully, we can all live with,” Roman pointed out.
Brodie nodded. “I’ll set that meeting up.” He looked around. “I see so much value here, gentlemen. And you’re correct. Most of the kids on the street distrust authority.”
Both Roman and Seth smiled. “We’ve set up a meeting with a Mr. Joey Mercury at the Vo-Tech School about possibly enrolling some of the older kids in classes there,” Roman explained. “As an alternative to college. Of course, we’d encourage the kids to go back to school or at least take advantage of some of the tutoring Seth provides with the goal of obtaining their GED.”
Brodie grinned. “Excellent idea!”
“Part of the foundation is set up for tuitions,” Seth added. “My great uncle was a great believer in education as a way out of poverty and to get kids off the street. So, this is an extension of his dream as well.”
“How soon do you plan on being open?” Brodie asked as they slowly walked back down the hall.
“Six weeks if all goes well,” Roman admitted. “We’ve passed all the building inspections. Right now, we’re interviewing and vetting personnel. Because of having kids here and with the infirmary, security is a top concern. We’ll provide private security plus there will be an alarm system that will go straight to the nearest police station which is being installed later this week. We’ll notify them when we plan on testing it.”
Brodie nodded as he stopped in the lobby and looked around. “Remembering how these buildings looked five months ago, I am in awe, gentlemen, of what you’ve accomplished.”
Roman grinned. “Be in awe of Seth. He’s put in a lot of time and hard work organizing everything and helping me stay on top of the construction schedule.” He silently snickered when Seth actually blushed.
“Actually, my wife is an organizational tyrant,” he admitted. “Nikki could organize a train wreck.”
Brodie thew back his head and laughed. “I look forward to meeting her.” He glanced at Marie’s picture. “Will Mr. Moxley be involved as well?”
Roman barely hesitated. “Mox provided the idea and the money. We’ve gotten more donations from other charitable foundations and trusts which will continue going forward.” He didn’t feel the need to mention the bulk of the money came from legitimate Bloodline charities. “However, Mox is getting his own business off the ground and is letting us get this started. He’ll probably be in the meeting with Mr. Mercury at the Vo-Tech since he’s previously worked with him.”
Brodie held out his hand to Roman than to Seth. “I’ll get that meeting set up with CPS and SVU. I’ll block out a couple of hours for the meeting.”
Seth glanced at Roman who barely nodded. “If it takes a whole day or even two, we’re fine with putting that time in, sir. This is very important to us.”
Brodie nodded. “And to me. I’ll certainly do what I can to make this work. I hope Mr. Moxley will join us in this meeting if only for a short time. I think he could speak for this project in a more personal way which might help.”
Roman nodded. “I’ll bring it up with him.”
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“Mr. Moxley, my sincere apologies for running late.” Regal smiled as he led Mox into his office. “A multiple car accident on the highway had traffic backed up for miles.”
“No problem,” Mox shrugged as he sat down. “I just wanted to make some changes to my Will.” He slid a piece of paper across the desk.
“Of course,” Regal nodded as he studied the paper. “More money for the foundations. Elimination of bequest to…*ahem*…Leah Moxley. Change in major beneficiary to your soon-to-be-wife, Alexa Bliss.” His blue eyes twinkled. “Have the two of you set a date yet?”
Mox groaned. “Not yet, but soon, I hope. Alexa’s a busy attorney. And I’ve no idea where to take her for the honeymoon. A good friend took his wife to Colorado to ski, but…” he shrugged.
Regal chuckled. “Alexa is a very good attorney. People are coming to ask specifically for her. But I’ll remind her she needs to set aside time for this wedding.” He grinned. “In fact, I know she’s in her office right now…sans clients, of course. Perhaps you should ask her where she’d like to go for her honeymoon.” He managed not to laugh when Mox quickly got to his feet. “I’ll let you know when the revised Will is ready for you to sign.”
“Thanks,” Mox called out over his shoulder as he left Regal’s office. Seconds later, he was knocking on Alexa’s office door.
“Come in.”
With a grin on his face, Mox sauntered into her office. “I need some advice.”
Alexa grinned at him as she got to her feet. Wrapping her arms around his waist in a tight hug, she played along. “How much trouble are you in?”
“Oh, a lot of the good kind.” Mox gave her a quick kiss on the lips. “A beautiful woman said ‘yes’ and is going to be in my life forever more.”
Alexa giggled. “Give me a couple of more days to clear my calendar?”
“Take all the time you need,” Mox assured her. “You’ve worked hard to get to this point. But I do need some advice.”
“What kind?” Alexa frowned. “Mr. Regal is your attorney.”
“He can’t help with this.” Mox shook his head with a grin. “Only you can.”
“O-kay,” Alexa slowly answered.
“Where in the world do you want to go for your honeymoon?”
Alexa’s blinked her blue eyes several times. “As long as…” She stopped when Mox put two fingers on her lips.
“As long as we’re together isn’t the advice I need because we will be together.” Mox paused then continued. “I never thought I’d travel anywhere out of Davenport unless maybe to Chicago or something. Going anywhere just didn’t seem to be in the cards for me. Then Roman…well, Galina decided they were going on a cruise to get married, and I got to see Jamaica. But that’s been it.”
He smiled down at his fiancé. “Your horizons have been broader. So, beautiful love of my life…where have you always wanted to go?”
Alexa’s blue eyes sparked with excitement. “Japan. I’ve always wanted to visit Japan.”