Page 8 of The Rescuer

Over the next few days, Raven took as many extra hours as the law allowed his employer to agree to and worked himself to exhaustion and slept like a log at night, pushing the events from the library to the back of his mind. The trick functioned for a while, but then, the guilt resurfaced and started to gnaw at him.

No matter how many times Raven told himself that nothing of consequence happened at the library, that he was alive and Luca hadn’t been arrested and accused of any crime, he knew it wasn’t true. He saw the sadness in the man’s eyes when he was calling him a thief and heard the pain in his voice when he asked the librarian to let him live like a man.

With just a few mean, poisonous words, Raven took Luca’s honor and his dignity away, punishing him for an imaginary sin. He didn’t stop from lashing out at him, not even when, in a voice filled with warmth and brotherly affection, the man explained to him why he couldn’t get in touch with him sooner.

Raven knew that whatever he tried to do, he couldn’t fix things, restore Luca’s self-esteem, and wipe off the stain the wordthiefput on his honor, but he owed him and the librarian an explanation and maybe a warning, tardive as it may be. From what he could figure out, the one who paid him was Luca’s and his best friend’s sworn enemy.

Raven took the next day off, much to his employer’s relief, and went to the library. There was no point in saving the money he got from the evil man, so instead of using the bus, the teen paid for a taxi to take him to the library. All the ride there, the kid prayed for Luca to be with the librarian, and to his great relief, someone up there listened to him.

“Hello.” Raven hesitantly went next to the counter, looking around the library. “I came to…” He swallowed hard and looked between the two men. “I owe you apologies and an explanation.”

“You didn’t offend me in any way.” Brian’s voice had an edge that wasn’t there the other times he talked to the kid. “That’s a totally different story with my friend, here.” He pointed to the Sicilian.

“I’m sorry, I just remembered I have something very important to do.” Luca looked the librarian in the eyes. “Please, remember your promise of letting me live like a man.” The man’s voice was tinged with pain. “I have to go.”

“I was paid by a man to say these words to you,” Raven blurted out just when the Sicilian was about to leave the library. “He said you were going to get angry and attack me. When this would happen, I was supposed to call 911 and have you arrested.”

The boy’s words made Luca freeze in place and Brian gasp in shock. “How did the man look like?” the librarian asked after a while. “What else did he say?”

Raven thought for a while. “He was in his mid-twenties or early thirties with stubble, brown eyes, black hair.” The kid swallowed hard and pointed to the librarian. “He told me not to trust you, and that your friend is greedy and would try to strip me from what’s mine.”

“Pezzo di merda! Piece of shit!” Luca cursed in a loud voice. “Next time I see Ottavio, I’ll rip his goddam chest open and take his black heart out. How could he…”

“Do you think he will find out I didn’t keep my word? And if he does, do you think he will come after me?” Raven looked vulnerable and scared.

“I don’t think so. And even if he does, we are here to protect you. And by we, I mean a whole army of brave men who’ll put your life above their own at any given minute.” Brian walked on the other side of the counter and put his arms around Raven. “You are part of the family now.”

Luca didn’t say anything, but his arms wrapping around the teenager’s frame came as a confirmation of his love and forgiveness.

CHAPTER 6

“Hello, son! How are you?” The pleasant voice of his father-in-law made Brian smile, but then he detected a slight tension in it. “Bartholomew told me you’re still on a part-time schedule, and I thought to come by your house and…you know…chat for a while.”

“This sounds great!” The answer came in a lively voice. “Whenever we come by yours, those adorable grandchildren of yours steal the show, so we never get to talk very much.” Brian thought for a moment. “I can come there when I clock out, if that’s better for you. Bart’s at work and the kids are at school, so nothing to do for me for four hours.”

“Thank you, son.” The other man sounded relieved. “I thought you were special from the first time you set foot into our house, and my opinion was confirmed hundreds of times during this past decade.”

“I thank you for giving me the chance to court your son and win his heart. Bart is the best husband I could wish for.” Brian smiled at the sweet memories. “I’m also grateful for the unconditional love and support you and Mom gave us throughout our marriage. We couldn’t have made it without you.”

“Anytime, son.” The older man spoke in an affectionate voice, then sighed softly. “Well, I’ll leave you to work. Thank you once again for making things easier for me.”

“Was that Trent?” The woman sitting across the desk in Bartholomew Hastings’s home office asked. “The man you just spoke to.”

“No, my son-in-law.” Bart’s father stopped for a moment, then continued in a voice filled with paternal pride. “The husband of my youngest son, Bartholomew. Lydia was pregnant with him when you left, so you don’t know him.”

The woman nodded. “Is this the one you said is going to help me and Joris? The one who…knows people?” The last part was spoken in a hesitant voice.

“Yes.” Bart’s father paused a bit before continuing. “He works as a librarian at a child prostitution victims rescue center and is connected with all kinds of people.”

“With all due respect, brother, but how can a librarian get me and my son out from this situation?” The woman wringed her hands. “I’m sorry for being a burden, but I have to remind you that we need a different type of people.” She lowered her head and spoke in a barely audible voice. “Were it not for Joris, I would have avenged my husband’s death with my own two hands, and I would have followed him into the grave.”

Bartholomew Sr. left his seat, went to the other side of the desk, and put his arms around his sister’s fragile shoulders. “Zara, please, trust me. Brian will help you and my nephew, and if he can’t, although I doubt it, he knows people who will.” The man stopped for a few moments. “How’s Joris? I didn’t get the chance to talk to him much.”

“We’ve only been here since yesterday, and he’s not really in the mood to talk to anyone right now.” Zara sighed heavily. “With his boyfriend dead and a baby on the way, things are very hard for him.” She shook her head in defeat. “Speaking of, I think the surrogate ran away or something equally as bad happened because Joris refuses to tell me where she is.”

“Do you think that maybe he’s protecting her and, by extension, his unborn child from your husband’s enemies?” Bartholomew Sr. smiled when he saw the shock on his sister’s face. “You know, Zara, sometimes our children are much wiser than we give them credit for.”

“I…I didn’t think about it, but you’re right. That seed growing in the surrogate’s belly is all my Joris has left from his poor boyfriend.” The woman frowned. “Over the last few days, I also noticed he throws up a lot, is nauseated, and very picky with his food. Do you think it’s his body’s response to the stress he experienced lately?”

---