by Aiden Bates
A little boy in the neighborhood, one from Lissa’s own school, hadn’t shown up for classes that day. When the Willow Heights administration hadn’t been able to contact his mother, they’d sent the police over instead.
He’d been found in his home alone. Barely any food left in the kitchen, and no idea where his mother even was.
God only knew how long he’d been there.
I frowned as I glanced at my watch. It was a local call, so the drive to the police station wouldn’t take long. But sorting out a safe place for him to stay for the night would take hours, and it was close enough to three p.m. already that if I took the call, I’d be late picking Lissa up from school.
But the department was already overburdened my dozens more cases just like this one. I knew that I couldn’t pass the buck.
“Hey, Alicia. I need a favor.” I made the call to my best friend on the way out to my car. Alicia worked from home as a transcriber. She’d been a life-saver when things like this had happened in the past.
“Let me guess. You want six more babies and you’re finally going to take me up on my offer to surrogate?”
I laughed. “Seven, actually. But before we get to the baby-making, do you think you could pick up Lissa from school? Work’s keeping me late again.”
“Aww. You poor thing, Danny. You work way too hard.” Alicia popped a bubble into the speaker of the phone. She was always chewing gum—said it helped her focus while she was transcribing and kept her from snacking on junk food all day. “I’ll swing by and grab Lissa in half an hour, okay? We can have a girl’s night. Facials, pedicures, I’ll put on a bunch of scary movies—”
“No scary movies.” I laughed again. “When you showed her Lake Placid last time, she came home insisting that we adopt a crocodile.”
“Okay, okay. Fine.” Another bubble pop. “Swing by my place when you’re done and don’t worry about dinner. I’ll save a couple slices of pizza for you.”
“Thanks, Alicia. I’ll try not to be too late, but I am, as always, eternally grateful. You’re the best.”
“Oh, I know it. I expect my Best Person, Like, Totally Ever medal to arrive shortly. Seriously, though. I love that little girl of yours. Take all the time you need.”
At the police station, they’d moved the boy into one of the interrogation rooms. A small pile of empty snack wrappers from the vending machine made a mountain on the table in the room’s center. The officer they’d left him with, a young Omega who looked a little grumpy about the idea of playing babysitter all afternoon, left as soon as I came in.
“Good luck cracking that nut.” He patted my shoulder, a scowl on his face as he moved past me. “I’ve seen hardened criminals that have been more willing to talk than this kid.”
The boy’s case file told me his name was Neil. He had sandy hair, messy and a little greasy looking. There was no telling how long it’d been since he’d had a bath. He was a little skinny, dressed in mismatched clothes that told me he’d probably picked them out himself. His t-shirt was several sizes too big for him, a men’s work shirt that completely dwarfed his slender frame.
His file said that he was ten years old. If I had to guess just by looking like him, I would have called him at seven. Maybe even six.
“Hi, Neil. How’re you doing? Sound like you’ve had a rough day.”
I sat down across the table from him, but he didn’t raise his eyes to me. In fact, he didn’t even react to my presence at all.
So maybe he didn’t like adults all that much. I knew exactly how that felt.
“I know that all of this must be kind of scary right now,” I told him, gathering up the wrappers on the table. “But I’m here to help you, okay? I’m a social worker. It’s my job to make sure that you understand what’s going on and see if there’s anything you need.”
No response. Not even to the sound of the crinkling wrappers as I pushed them into the trash can beneath the table.
“I’d also like to be your friend, Neil. I care about you, and I want to make sure you’re okay.”
Again, no reaction. His eyes were focused on his lap. He barely even blinked.
“Do you like video games, Neil?” I was wracking my brain for some way to connect with him. Boys his age usually went nuts over any opportunity to talk about Fortnight, in my experience.
But Neil didn’t have anything to say about video games. I was beginning to worry that he wouldn’t have anything to say about anything at all.
I flipped open his file, searching for something that I could talk to him about. Only his mother’s contact info was included. His father was listed as deceased.
Well, there was something we had in common, at least. And in cases like this, having a shared experience was usually a good place to start. Neil needed to know that I wasn’t just another scary adult. I’d gone through some bad times, too. If he could see that, then he’d be more likely to open up to me.
“It’s hard only having one parent around to take care of you,” I began. It was important that I talked about this casually, but seriously. Kids like Neil could spot a disingenuous narrative from a mile away. “My Omega dad died when I was only a little younger than you are now. It was really hard for my Alpha dad. It was hard for me, too. But sometimes, adults get stressed out like kids do. Did you know that?”
His eyes flicked up to meet mine for a moment. They were a pale, listless blue. But as quickly as he’d looked at me, he turned his gaze back down to his lap again.
Okay. That was a start.
“When adults get stressed, it can be hard for them to make good decisions. When my Omega dad died, for example, my Alpha dad only wanted to eat ice cream for a whole week. It was fun at first, but after a few days, I started getting pretty bad tummy aches.”
I waited for a laugh. Usually the idea of ice cream for dinner at least earned me a smile. But instead, Neil only met my eyes again.
“My mom killed my dad.” His voice was a quiet rasp, like he hadn’t spoken to anyone in weeks.
It wasn’t what I was expecting to hear. Neil’s file certainly didn’t say anything about that.
But now that he was talking, it was important that he didn’t stop.
“Why don’t you tell me more about that?” I said softly. “That sounds like it must have been really hard on you.”
Over the next hour, Neil told me the story of his parents. It took a lot of question-asking on my part at first, but eventually he started to open up a little more. His mother and father had gotten into a fight. When his dad drove away after—it sounded like he’d probably been drunk—he’d gotten into a car crash. Neil’s mother hadn’t been the same since the funeral. Neil blamed her for his father’s death. From the sounds of things, she’d probably blamed herself, too.
He didn’t know where she was now. She hadn’t been home in three days.
His story shook me. It nearly left me speechless, in fact. It was all a little too close to home.
But I couldn’t let him know that.
“I’m so sorry this has happened to you, Neil. That’s not fair at all.” It was all I could say.
“What happens now?”
That, at least, was a question I could answer.
“We’re going to find a nice, happy home for you while your mom works some stuff out. You’ll be safe there, with plenty of food and hot showers and a comfy bed.” I always made sure of that. Sometimes the foster care system could be a nightmare to navigate, especially with so few families willing to take kids on such short notices. But I’d take Neil home myself before I left him somewhere unsafe. “And Neil?”
He blinked at me, his face a blank canvas. “Yeah?”
“Accidents happen. Sometimes it feels good to have someone to be angry at, because it makes the world feel like it make it makes sense. But your Mom didn’t mean for your dad to die.”
“Yeah.” Neil hung his head. “I know she didn’t, I guess.”
It took a few hours to find Neil a place for the week. I to
ok him back to my office and let him nap on the couch in the break room while I made some calls outside. Most places were all full up, no surprise. There were always too few foster families and too many children in need of a place to stay for a little while. But finally, I found a family in Fort Greene, of all places. Harlan and Jeremy Spencer already had three other foster kids at their place, but they lived in a big Victorian house and had a bed free that they were happy to put Neil up in.
I’d have to drive Neil there to drop him off, but at least he wouldn’t be staying in his house alone again. Or worse, sleeping on a bench at the police station that night. Not on my watch.
“Hey, Alicia.” I could hear the fatigue in my own voice as I called up to check in on Lissa. “I’m so sorry, but I’m going to be even later than expected. You two okay over there?”
“Avast you…you scurvy…rascals!” I could hear Lissa’s voice in the background, doing her best pirate’s growl.
“Oh, yeah. We’re good here.” Alicia’s voice was as bubbly as the gum she was always chewing. “We’ve dyed Lissa’s hair purple, gotten a few tattoos together—”
“Purple?” Lissa perked up at that. “Can we really?”
“No hair dye.” I tried to sound serious, but I couldn’t quite manage it. “I appreciate this so much, Alicia. Really. Don’t know what I’d do without you.”
“Better hope you never have to find out. Anyway, you should get on with your work. Lissa and I are going to pierce each other’s ears, then I’m going to show her how to use my pocket knife.”
“A knife? Woah!” If there was one thing Lissa liked the idea of more than purple hair…
“No knives. I’ll be back before bedtime, hopefully. Thanks again, Alicia.”
I hung up the phone and went back into the break room, where Neil was curled up on the couch. He was cuddled up to a duffel bag full of the only things he officially owned now.
“Neil? You ready to go, buddy?”
I placed a hand on Neil’s shoulder, but he didn’t even stir. Poor kid must have been tired—kids his age were never good at setting their own bedtimes. His breath was heavy against my neck as I scooped him up into my arms and walked him out to my car. It was a shame that his body wasn’t heavier too. For a ten year old, he didn’t weigh much more than Lissa did. I hoped that when I got him to the Spencers’ place, they’d be able to feed him a few meals that might stick to his ribs better than police station vending machine fare and whatever he’d been eating at home.
I propped him up in the back seat, then fastened the seat belt around him. Taking a step back, just for a moment, I imagined Rusty’s arms around me again.
When my own Omega dad had been killed—also in a car accident, also after an argument—my Alpha dad had been left to raise me on his own. Just like Neil’s mother had been. And as much as I appreciated Alicia’s help, I knew that if something happened to me, she didn’t have the time or resources to take care of a kid full time.
Which meant that if something did happen to me, Lissa would end up going to live with my father. As far as I was concerned, that wasn’t even an option. But the alternative was even more strange…
She’d have to go live with Rusty. The father she’d never known. The father she’d barely even met.
11
Rusty
“Impressive. Very impressive.” Ernesto shook his head slowly, his golden-tan skin turned greenish in the blue light of his computer screen.
“You looking up dirt on this guy, Ernesto, or just tracking down his dick pics?” Harper paced behind Ernesto’s desk, slouching with his hands shoved in the pockets of his leather jacket.
“If Governor Kelsey had better private areas to take pictures of, I imagine he would be a much more agreeable man.” Ernesto clapped his hands together and leaned back, still shaking his head. “There’s very little information available on the man, I’m afraid. He’s an impressively difficult man to pin down, it would seem.”
“But?” I’d remain hopeful until Ernesto told me otherwise. If there was one thing I knew about Ernesto, with his black ops past and unshakable charms, it was that he never came out empty handed. Not by a long shot.
“Well…there is one thing.” Just as I suspected, a smile spread across Ernesto’s lips. “I have a contact who claims Sorenson’s Chief of Police position was granted under Governor Kelsey’s recommendation during Kelsey’s first term. So…”
Ernesto waved his hand at Harper like a kindergarten teacher waiting for his student to supply the next letter of the alphabet.
“Either they’re personally connected and the position was granted as a favor, or Sorenson caught Kelsey’s eye when he shot that assassination suspect and Kelsey figured the best way to keep him in his pocket was to offer the position as a reward.” Harper shrugged. How did I do?
Ernesto grinned. “Exactly. Which means…” He waved his hand toward me this time.
“Favor or reward, either way, power changed hands there. Doesn’t really matter which—we’ve got good reason to believe Sorenson is Kelsey’s man.” It wasn’t hard to believe, really. Especially not after Kaleb’s run-in with the man. “It’s not a smoking gun, but it’s something we should pursue.”
“Very good.” Ernesto nodded like a proud father and crossed his arms over his chest. “Reaching out to your special friend seems to have been a successful endeavor, Rusty.”
“Your little visit to Sparkleburg was a success,” Harper agreed. “You think he’s going to keep feeding you information as he comes across it?”
Tentatively, I nodded.
“It’s not an easy relationship, whatever we’ve got going now, but it’s a sustainable one. Daniel doesn’t like the idea of getting involved, but he’s smart and he’s got good reason to believe his father is up to something. The whiff of a mystery will keep him interested. His dad’s connection to this will keep him invested.”
“And the promise of getting to spend more time with his favorite King brother will keep him coming back for more.” Harper elbowed me in the ribs as he moved past me, chuckling softly. Every new break in this case seemed to lift his spirits a little—although I wish he wouldn’t show it by making jokes at my expense.
“You and this Daniel boy are involved?” Ernesto leaned forward with interest. He’d always been fascinated by our love lives—was always pushing us to settle down and start families before it was too late.
“Used to be. Not anymore. He’s, ah…we’ve got a kid together,” I admitted.
“Rusty. Then it’s obvious—you must go to him and—”
I groaned. This wasn’t something I wanted to talk about right now, to Ernesto or anyone else. But before I could set the record straight, my phone buzzed.
Daniel. I hadn’t plugged his number into my phone yet, but I’d practically memorized his digits on sight the first time he’d called.
“Actually, he’s ringing me now. You mind?”
Harper smirked and Ernesto grinned, but they both shook their heads.
I ducked out of the King Private Security building so I could answer the call without the two of them shouting suggestions over my shoulder the whole time.
“Hey, Daniel. Good to hear from you. What’s up?”
“Hey, Rusty. Um. I know it’s kind of late, and a little short notice, but…I’m in town. Don’t have a lot of time, but you want to meet up for a drink or something?”
I checked my watch. Nine p.m.—definitely a little late. Especially since I’d promised Kaleb and Harper I wouldn’t come home drunk again.
“You’re in Fort Greene?” I wanted to jump on the chance to meet with Daniel again, especially if he actually wanted to see me this time. But… “Who has Lissa?”
There was a pause, and then— “I’m here for work, Rusty. One of my friends is babysitting Lissa. I’ve been taking care of her for her whole life with a full-time job as a single father. I’d appreciate a little more credit than that.”
Fuck. “Right. Sorry. But, if you�
�re in town… coffee okay? I’m tryin’ to cut down on my drinking these days.”
His voice warmed up by half a degree. “Sure. Coffee’s good. In fact, coffee sounds great.”
We met at a little coffee shop near Harper and Nick’s place. It was run by one of Ernesto’s friends, which meant it was safe. I’d offered for him to come home with me, but he’d refused. Rightfully so too, probably. I was trying to keep a low profile in Fort Greene, and we didn’t need the local police realizing that Congressman Rasner’s son and I were sharing laughs over cups of joe together.
Although, given the way Daniel had gone stiff when I’d given him that awkward-ass hug the other day, maybe sharing laughs was hoping for a bit much.
“It’s good to see you again.” I had to stop myself from giving him another hug as soon as I laid eyes on him. He looked tired as always, but with that golden hair of his and those bright brown eyes, I didn’t think it was possible for Daniel to actually look bad. “You okay?” I asked instead.
“Yeah, I’m fine. It’s been a long day, but in my line of work, they all are.”
We slid into a booth opposite of one another. I signaled the waitress. On cue, she brought over a coffee pot and a couple of mugs.
“Anything to eat, you two?” She looked us over with a knowing eye, then winked. “Split a piece of pie, maybe?”
I laughed. Might as well have ordered a milkshake with two straws. She’d already decided we were there on a date.
“Just the coffee, thanks.” Daniel held up his hand and gave her a tight lipped smile.
“Well, you two cuties just holler if you change your minds.” She poured us our coffee the bustled away.
“What brought you to Fort Greene, then? You mentioned work on the phone…” But I was still kind of hoping that he’d actually just showed up to see, well, me. “Any new leads?”
“Nothing new.” Daniel shook his head. “Just had to drop off a kid at a temporary home. I can’t really say more than that, though.”
