Page 18 of Since the Day We Wished

With an impartial tone, Sheriff Daniels delivered the news. “Jeremiah and the boy got into a scuffle outside the supermarket. The boy's hand was sliced open on a broken beer bottle. His parents are pressing charges.”

Luke gritted his teeth.

“Dad, you’ve got to listen to me—”

“I don’t want to hear it, Jeremiah. Not now.”

Jeremiah lowered his head into his hands.

As Luke continued to scold his son, the office door flew open. A distressed teenage girl, followed by a woman, made a beeline for Sheriff Daniels.

“Sheriff, you’ve got the story all wrong...he was trying to protect me!” The teenage girl bent over, gasping to catch her breath. “Please, just let me tell you what happened.”

The woman smiled politely and extended her hand to Luke. “Hey, we haven’t met yet. I’m Kara, and this is Charlotte, my daughter. I think she might add a little more color to what happened this morning.”

Sheriff Daniels motioned Charlotte to explain. “Go on.”

Charlotte’s eyes darted nervously between Luke and the Sheriff as she cleared her throat. “I was going into the market when I heard Tony call out to me. I had ended things with him when the summer started, but he still acts like we’re together. I dumped him because he’s a complete jerk. He thinks he’s funny, but he’s just a bully.”

Luke listened attentively as Charlotte recounted the incident, sensing the anxiety in her voice.

“I tried to ignore him and that’s when he ran in front of me. He wanted us to get in his car and talk, but I didn’t want to. I was afraid he would drive off somewhere. So I told him I wasn’t getting in, and he grabbed my arm and started pulling me. And out of nowhere, this guy here stepped in and helped set me free. Tony punched him and he fought back. That’s when Tony tripped and fell onto the broken glass.”

Charlotte pointed to a bruise forming under Jeremiah’s eye that Luke hadn’t noticed before. “See? That’s where Tony hit him.”

Luke’s gaze shifted to Jeremiah, who was looking down and away. He searched his son’s face, seeking a hint of forgiveness, but only found the telltale signs of hurt. His guilt gnawed at him for jumping to conclusions without giving Jeremiah a chance to explain.

Why didn’t I listen first?Luke added that thought to his growing list of failures as a father.

Following Charlotte's testimony, paperwork, and formalities, the Grayson’s drive home was marked by a stifling silence. Over the next week, a quiet stillness hung in the air between them, the tension thickening until it became almost suffocating as they prepared for Jeremiah’s hearing in juvenile court.

When that day arrived, the court mandated that Jeremiah complete two-hundred hours of community service, with the choice between roadside clean-up or volunteering at an animal rescue. To Luke’s surprise, his son chose the animal rescue and would start the following week. He contemplated whether to join Jeremiah in volunteering there, wondering if it would help mend their strained relationship or just make things worse.

Although he wanted it more than anything, Luke still didn’t have the answers on how to fix things with his son, especially after this setback.

Chapter 9

Emma

The midsummer sun filtered through the windows of Phil’s Diner, brightening the lively scene: a waitress, her apron stained with the day's work, laughed with a regular at the counter, while a family in a booth celebrated a birthday. From the corner jukebox, Taylor Swift's latest song played, drawing a few patrons into a silent sing-along. All seemed right in the world.

But not for Emma.

Each passing second felt like an eternity as she taped the final flier with Riley’s face onto the diner’s door. She glanced at the wall clock, where every tick seemed to amplify the void left by his absence. Taking a deep breath, she let the aroma of roasted coffee beans offer a fleeting distraction from her troubled thoughts. As the comforting scent faded, Emma slipped into an empty booth and pulled out her phone, hopeful for an update on Riley's whereabouts. But there were no texts or notifications.

Nothing.

Over the past week, the community had rallied around her: neighbors formed search parties, the local radio station and TV channel broadcasted Riley’s story, and several businesses contributed whatever resources they could. Everywhere she went, she was met with sympathetic eyes and gentle reassurances. Though they hadn’t found him, every pat on her back and word of encouragement gave her hope that Riley was still out there, somewhere, waiting to be found.

“How are you holding up, honey?”

Emma looked up at Margie, who had walked over with her notepad. “I’ve had better days. I guess...I just wish I could find him.”

Margie reached out and squeezed her hand. “I know, Emma. Try not to worry. I’m sure he’ll turn up when you least expect it.”

Her shoulders slumped as she nodded. “I hope you’re right.”

“In the meantime, you’ve got to eat. What can I get you?”

---