Years have gone by since the death of Noah his special needs son, and Wiley Cantrell realizes it’s time to move on. He and his husband Jackson try to adopt little Tony Gorzola, a deaf boy with HIV who is emotionally traumatized.<br><br>Difficulties quickly set in. Tony is a sweet boy but very damaged by abuse and neglect. And Tony’s mother, in prison, is unwilling to relinquish her parental rights. No sooner do they get the go ahead to foster Tony when another child they had considered becomes available -- the daughter Jackson always wanted.<br><br>With two children on their hands, life is complicated -- wonderfully so. But just as things begin to settle down, Tony, his immune system compromised, falls ill with pneumonia ... and Wiley and Jackson find their little family faced with crisis once again.

Go Tell It on the Mountains

“I was thinking we should put Tony in the room across from ours,” Jackson said. “He might feel safer knowing we’re just across the hall. The other bedroom is bigger, but it’s all the way down the hall on the other side of the bathroom.”


We went into “Tony’s room,” and Jackson flipped the light switch. There was a full bed, a huge chest of drawers, a small walk-in closet, and an antique chair that sat next to the window, among other things.


“It’s a guest bedroom now, but we could move some of this stuff out of here and get him a desk, a toy chest, and whatever else he wants.”


I went to the small window that looked out on the street in front of our building.


“He’s got a nice view,” I said. “Do you think he’s going to like it here?”


“I’m sure he will. We’ll get someone to install a buzzer with a light so he’ll know if someone’s knocking on his door. We’ll also get TTY service on the phone and a TTY handset. We’ll make it work.”


Chapter 57