Page 23 of Desire

“Good. Now, I’ll take you back to the library. Then, I’ll follow you home and make sure you’re safe when you get there. I’ll hang out for a little bit. If something happens, I’ll be there.”

He sagged in relief. “Thank you.”

On the drive back to the library, I let him know I’d be in touch with him about the meeting with Bridget.

“Also, Webber will begin an investigation into the abuse. While he’s investigating, you’ll need to be removed from your uncle’s house. They’ll probably either place you in a group home or a foster home until they’ve finished asking neighbors, friends, and teachers if they have seen anything or suspect anything. I don’t know how long the investigation will last.”

Alex’s head whipped around and he ground out a sound of disgust. “Do you have any idea what you’ve done? He’s going to kill me or my mom now! Don’t you understand what I’ve been trying to tell you? He threatened to kill both of us if I told anyone. And there is no chance anyone would be able to tell the police anything. God, this is pointless and a waste of time to try and do anything about it. You’re only making my life, and hers, worse. I never should have called you.”

He refused to speak to or even look at me the rest of the drive. He had his seatbelt unbuckled and jumped out of the car, cradling his ribs, clearly in pain, before I could even come to a complete stop.

“Just leave me alone.” He started walking in the direction of his house.

I thought about calling him back, but there wasn’t anything I could say to him to make him feel better, so I did the only thing I could. I slowly followed behind him as he made his way home. Once he got inside, I waited in my car down the block to make sure he didn’t need me, even though I noticed Malcolm’s car was missing. After an hour passed and Malcolm hadn’t returned, I left and hoped for the best. The threat of the investigation was leverage Alex could use if things got out of hand. He was a smart enough kid; he wouldn’t hesitate to use it.

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