Page 34 of In the Name of the Father

Malcolm arched his eyebrows as if waiting for Seth to finish the sentence. When Seth remained silent, Malcolm spoke.

“Good boy. You caught yourself.”

Seth chewed on his lip. Malcolm had said he was a good boy a few times that week. The first time had seemed odd, but then… He needed to shut down his thoughts quickly before he embarrassed himself.Especiallysince he was about to step into a church.

I want Malcolm to think I’m a good boy all the time. His cheeks flushed. “I’m trying.”

“I know you are. You make me proud.” Malcolm released his hold then jerked his chin toward the office entrance on the side of the church. “We don’t want to keep him waiting.”

After they’d exited the SUV, Malcolm gestured for him to go ahead the way he always did. He wasn’t sure why it mattered, but he’d kind of wished he could’ve trailed Malcolm instead, so that Malcolm could be a barrier between him and the pastor at first. While they were close in height and build, that extra couple inches and a tad more muscle made Malcolm seem so much stronger.

It’s more his attitude than anything.

If he could ever shed his lack of confidence, Seth knew he wouldn’t be a target. His mindset was skewed—he understood that on a mental level. Unfortunately, he still viewed himself through the lens of a scrawny teen being whipped with a leather strap by one large man while another one held him down.

“Seth. You’re safe.”

Malcolm placed an arm around his shoulder and Seth realized they’d reached the office door. He regarded Seth with worry, so his expression had to be radiating fear.

Seth gave a shaky nod. “Thank you.”

Seth gasped when the door opened. Malcolm must have already knocked, or perhaps Pastor Callum had heard them walking up, but he hadn’t been expecting it. A tall, dark-haired man with a lean frame stood in the threshold. He pushed his wire-rimmed glasses onto the bridge of his nose then extended his hand with a smile.

“Seth? I’m Pastor Callum. It’s nice to meet you.”

Seth’s mouth had gone dry and his brain seemed to have shorted out. Malcolm jostled his shoulder.

“It’s all right, Seth.” Malcolm’s voice jolted him out of his trance.

“H-hi.” He still couldn’t find any spit. “Uh, nice to meet you too.” He hoped he wasn’t lying.

They briefly shook hands then the pastor regarded Malcolm. “And of course, you must be Malcolm. It’s nice to put a face to the voice.”

Malcolm chuckled. “Agreed. Thank you for taking the time out of your schedule to meet with Seth.”

Callum glanced between them both. “You won’t be joining us?”

Malcolm rubbed slow circles across Seth’s upper back. “This time is for him. But I’ll be waiting out in the truck if either of you need me for any reason.”

“You’re more than welcome to wait in the office, if you’d like.”

“I want to give him his space, if that makes sense. I’d rather he be focused on you and not aware of me being on the other side of the door.”

Pastor Callum smiled. “I think I understand. Let’s get started then, shall we?”

Seth glanced over at Malcolm, who’d take his hand away. Malcolm winked and gave him a reassuring smile before heading back to the truck.

“Follow me. My office is down the hall.”

Seth trailed behind Pastor Callum and contemplated bolting back out of the door, away from this church and away from this Christian man. But then he remembered that Malcolm had said he was brave, and that reminder made him want to try and get through the meeting. He wanted Malcolm to stay proud of him.

Once they entered the small office, Pastor Callum gestured to the mismatched, cushioned chairs that were arranged in a small circle around a low, square table. Seth noted a pile of pamphlets for various LGBTQ resources. Seth chose the chair closest to the door.

Just in case.

Pastor Callum took the chair directly across from him. “All right, Seth. To begin with, I’d like you to know that I’ve heard a bit of what happened to you from Malcolm. Were you aware that he had shared any of your abuse with me?”

Seth rubbed his palms on the tops of his thighs before he could stop himself. Beads of sweat had been forming at his hairline from almost the moment Malcolm had put the truck in park and he thought he might be about to hyperventilate.

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