Page 14 of An Unhinged Wedding

Savannah is so tiny, huddled against the side of the vehicle, shivering. It’s difficult when we find girls like this, but for me, it re-affirms the importance of what we do. No little girl should even know what this feels like.

“When was the last time you ate?”

She shrugs, “I don’t know. I think almost a week.”

“Max, can we go throughMcDonalds?”

He doesn’t respond. One might think he’s just a grumpy asshole. I know him better than that. He’s trying hard to keep his emotions in check. Since he had kids, I've noticed he’s more sensitive than he used to be. Normally, I’d tease him about it, but not right now. He’s likely thinking about what his sister and wife both went through for so many years.

He pulls into the drive-thru and asks, “Savannah, what do you like?”

“I don’t know,” she says.

Mia asks, “Did they have you for a long time?”

She nods, “I don’t remember my parents' names.”

Jesus. This is going to be hard for Mia. It’s so much like her story it’s got to hurt.

Mia forces a smile, “I bet you like hamburgers. Everybody likes hamburgers.”

She looks at Max, “Get her a kid’s happy meal with apple slices. I don’t want her to eat too much and get sick. We’ll make her something at the safe house as well, if she can stomach it.”

I stare at Mia in awe. The way she just knows what to do and what not to do fills me with pride. This woman is fucking amazing. I shake my head, thinking of how she always describes herself as this dark person. She says her heart is black. It seems the blackness washes away a little more every day, but she has no clue. My girl has no idea that she’s the brightest fucking star in the sky. I’ll show her. I’m pretty sure when I die, I’m going to hell. So, lucky me that I get to experience heaven now.

Max passes Savannah’s food back to us, and I hand it to her. She takes the food out of the bag and inspects it like it’s a foreign object before opening the hamburger wrapper and taking a bite. Her eyes close like she’s thoroughly enjoying it. She swallows her first bite and smiles, “I like hamburgers.”

We laugh, and she relaxes as she continues to eat her food. The two assholes in the back make whimpering noises every now and then. Hopefully, Parker is still alive when we get there. I’d hate for him to have an easy death of smothering with Stephen on top of him.

When she finishes her food, she asks, “Where am I going to go?”

Max says, “You’ll stay at my safe house for now. Trevor’s sister will come and help take care of you. No one can get in or out. It’s safe.”

She scrunches up her face like she doesn’t like what he said, and Mia says, “He doesn’t live there. He owns the house, but he lives somewhere else with his wife and kids.”

Savannah smiles, “Okay. Will you stay with me?”

Mia puts her arm around her, and surprisingly, she doesn’t even flinch, “For a while I will, yes.”

MIA

When we get to the safe house, I have a difficult choice to make. I want to be in the basement dealing with this piece of shit that violated this little girl repeatedly. Savannah shouldn’t be left alone right now in a strange place, so I decide to walk her through the front of the house.

“Come up stairs with me. You need a shower. The doctor will be here soon.”

Her eyes dart all over, taking in the bare walls as we make our way upstairs. She looks around corners as we walk like someone is going to jump out at her.

“You’re safe, Savannah. Nobody is up here except us.”

I walk into the bathroom, she follows me, and I turn the water on for her. Setting a towel out for her, I go to leave the room, but she stops me, “What’s going to happen to them?”

This is a difficult spot for me to be in. Normally, I’m very blunt and get straight to the point, giving an honest answer. She’s a child, though. How honest are you supposed to be with children?

“They will be dealt with. Parker and Stephen won’t get a free pass. What they did, they can never be given the ability to do that again.”

“Are they going to prison?”

Savannah stands with her arms crossed over her chest, her brown eyes appearing angry.

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