After the death of their mother, Chris Bottoms adopted his little brother Ted, and Chris and his partner Mickey settle down to raise him. Through paperwork left by his mother, Chris learns his brother has a deeply troubled past.<br><br>During a Thanksgiving visit with Chris and Ted’s maternal grandparents, they find out Chris’s grandfather allowed his friends to abuse Ted, so Chris severs all ties with that side of his family.<br><br>Through his job at a hospital, Chris hears of a surgeon at the Mayo Clinic who has developed an ileostomy reversal technique that has proven successful in cases like his. When Chris enters the clinic for preliminary testing, he learns he is a good candidate for the procedure and schedules the first of two surgeries for the beginning of January. A visit from estranged relatives while he’s in the hospital leaves him wondering how many secrets one family can have.

Bottoms Out

CHRIS TOOK TED with him when he went to his appointment with Mitch, whose building was very near the one that housed Mickey’s office. He’d arranged for Mickey to be waiting at the entrance to his building so he could drop Ted off. There was a short wait at Mitch’s office before he was ushered in to see the attorney.


“What can I do for you, Chris?” Mitch said.


“Two things, the first of which is easy. I’ve learned that my mother had a savings account in her and Ted’s name as joint tenants with right of survivorship, and I need the necessary court order to get it transferred to a local bank in his and my names.” He handed Mitch the bank statement and a copy of the adoption order.


Mitch studied the bank statement and other documents for a minute, then said, “Piece of cake, Chris. I’ll get the paperwork rolling. You said two things?”


“Yeah, and the second thing is a lot more complicated,” Chris said.


Chapter 36