Like Mother, Like Daughter (Season 3)

Chapter Five: Sins of the Father

Leaving Hailey in the care of my parents after Axel had dropped us off back home after our meeting with Maurice Sanderson, I crossed the rain-slicked street and made my way towards Pops and Uncle Ian's place. I went through the gate without hesitation, and up the stairs, and pulled my keys out from my pocket and let myself inside. I felt a lump forming in my throat as I crossed the threshold, shutting and locking the door behind me and making my way through the living room, spotting the pair of them in the kitchen.

"Hey, guys," I said quietly, sticking my hands into the pockets of my jeans as I returned my keys to my pocket and leaned up against the doorframe of the kitchen.

"Hey, kiddo," Pops said.

"You doing okay?" Uncle Ian asked, his eyes as trained on me as Pops's were, but neither of them made any moves towards me, knowing that I'd come to them.

"I met with Yevgeny's parole officer this afternoon," I said quietly, swallowing then, unsure of what their reaction would be.

Uncle Ian turned and looked at Pops then, before he turned back to look at me. "I didn't even know you were looking for him," he admitted.

Immediately, I felt my heart pounding then as my gaze shifted automatically to Pops. "You didn't fucking tell him?!" I demanded.

"Christ, Iana, how should I bring this up in conversation?!" Pops said, spreading his hands. "I mean, how am I supposed to tell my husband that my son, who he kidnapped during a bipolar bender, is now potentially coming back into our lives?!"

"Pops!" I snapped then, narrowing my eyes at him and walking towards Uncle Ian, who seemed to stiffen at his sentence. "Goddammit, you can't just talk about it that way! Or did you forget that your daughter happens to be afflicted with that disease as well?!"

"Shit, Ian," Pops said, dragging his hand down his face. "I'm sorry..."

"We'll talk about this later," Uncle Ian said, his voice the same amount of firmness as mine had before he turned back to me. "What'd you find out, Iana?"

I kept my hand where it was, placed in a supportive manner on Uncle Ian's shoulder, before I narrowed my eyes slightly at Pops, before shifting my eyes back to his. "I know the neighborhood that he lives in, and I've got an address," I tell them.

"Where does he live?" Uncle Ian asked.

"Riverdale," I replied.

"Fuck," he replied, and Pops winced at the pain that Uncle Ian felt for a direct extension of him, and, despite the notion that he didn't have to, I noticed that it moved him as well. "What else do you know, Iana? You said you and Axel met with his parole officer?"

I nodded. "Yeah, the guy's name is Maurice," I replied. "Nice enough guy, but I'm glad that Axel was there to back me up," I told him.

"He do something to you?!" Pops demanded of me then, knowing how I would either keep men at arms length before deciding to use the only way I knew how to keep them from potentially hurting me.

"Mick," Uncle Ian said, his head snapping to look at him. "Not helping."

I sighed, squeezing Uncle Ian's shoulder for a moment before crossing over to Pops, taking ahold of his shoulders in my hands before I allowed myself to clutch at his face, to swivel his gaze from Uncle Ian's to mine. "Look at me," I said then, and his eyes met mine. "I'm fine. I don't think he would've done anything anyway. "And besides, Axel was there, and we both know how to defend ourselves if necessary."

Reluctantly, Pops nodded. "Okay," he said.

I tilted his head downwards with my hands and kissed his forehead. "Good," I replied, letting him go and standing a few paces away from them both. "Yevgeny has a parole officer because he did at least one stint in juvie," I told them.