Page 58 of Unhinged Love

My satisfaction is short-lived, though, because Dad is in Thailand, living it up with his new wife, clueless to what’s going to happen. Richard’s going to have to tell him, especially if Dave ends up in the hospital with a broken jaw. Fuck, I didn’t hit him that hard, did I? It’s sort of a blur now. I wasn’t thinking, I was acting. I was letting go of the rage and frustration that had me locked up tight.

At least I’m feeling more clear-headed by the time the pink-tinged water runs down the drain. I was able to vent that anger before it rotted me from the inside.

But what’s the cost? Because my peace of mind sure as hell doesn’t last long. By the time I’m finished, Richard is on the phone at his desk, speaking quietly. Our eyes meet, and I wouldn’t be surprised if I burst into flames on the spot. “I understand. We’ll be waiting to hear your decision. In the meantime, let me assure you we’re dealing with things on our side.” After a few more endless moments, he hangs up, then leans back in his chair with his eyes closed. “His parents are going to press charges.”

I know what that means, and the thought makes my stomach churn. Pressing charges means a police report, which means Dad finding out about this. “Are you sure? Can you talk them out of it?”

“Carter. Are you serious?” He opens his eyes just wide enough to give me a bitter look. “Are you asking me to talk them out of reporting this attack to the police? A couple of angry,horrified parents who are now on their way to the hospital to meet up with their son? You think I would try to influence them for your sake?”

“I’m just saying. Maybe there’s a way?—”

“You think you’re very grown-up,” he seethes, cutting me off like I wasn’t even speaking. “A lot like Tucker. You go and do something like you did just now, thinking you understand consequences—or disregarding them in the first place, because nothing can touch you. I hate to break it to you, but you should know better by now. You broke a student’s jaw. The policies behind that kind of violence are the same for you as they are for anyone else. The fact that I’m even sitting here with you, having this conversation, is more preferential treatment than you deserve. I’m already going against my principles.”

The truth behind his heavy, disappointed speech starts to sink in. I can’t avoid this. “Can we at least keep it quiet until Dad gets back?” I ask. “He’s still in Thailand for another week—they get back next weekend. Can we keep it quiet until then, so it doesn’t ruin their honeymoon?”

Rubbing his temples, he shrugs. “I really don’t have any say over that. There’s a point where I have to step aside and let the police handle this the way it has to be handled.”

“What should I do?”

“Are you honestly asking?” I nod, leaning forward with my elbows on my thighs. He must have some idea of how to help me, because I am lost. “If I were you, I would call your dad. Right away.”

Not at all what I was hoping to hear. “Do you think so?”

“I would rather hear from my son than from a coworker.”

I see the point. That’s the way Dad thinks, too. “Okay,” I murmur, with my stomach churning, as I pull my phone out of my pocket. There are ten new texts waiting for me, most of themfrom Briggs and Tucker. Word spreads fast around here. I have to ignore them for now, pulling up Dad’s contact instead.

He doesn’t need to know the whole truth. What if Dave tells his parents where the photos came from, if he mentions them at all? I can always say it’s a lie, that they didn’t come from me, but I’ll deal with that if and when it happens. First, I have to get through this phone call.

It doesn’t hit me until the phone starts ringing on the other end that I have no idea what time it is in Thailand. It’s probably the middle of the night. But before I can point that out to Richard and promise to call later, Dad answers. “Carter? What’s wrong? What happened?”

“I…” It’s not so easy to have this talk with a witness sitting in front of me. He gets that, standing, raising a hand like he’s the one who needs to feel uncomfortable because he leaves the room to give me privacy.

“Carter? Where did you go?” Dad asks with worry in his voice.

“I’m still here. I got in a fight, Dad. A bad one. The other guy’s parents want to press charges, so I thought I should call you and warn you in case somebody reaches out from the department.”

“A fight? Carter, what were you thinking? How serious is it that they’re pressing charges?”

“Pretty serious,” I groan, nauseously. “They ended up having to take him to the hospital. I… I might have broken his jaw.”

“Jesus Christ!” It’s something between a whisper and a scream, telling me Irene is asleep, and he doesn’t want to wake her. This might be the only time I’ve ever been grateful for her presence. “Why would you do that? What possible reason could you have had to beat a kid until you broke his jaw?”

“He and one of his friends were making fun of Elliana in class. I told them to stop. When they came at me outside of class,I told them to walk away. I did. I didn’t want to fight them. But they wouldn’t let up. And I…”

“Got carried away?” There’s not so much anger in his voice now. Hardly any at all, really. “Oh, Carter. This is a mess.”

“I know. I just couldn’t sit there and let them say those things to her while she was just sitting there, not bothering anybody.”

“What were they saying? No,” he decides before I can come up with something that doesn’t involve the truth. “You know what? I don’t need to know. I know she gets a lot of shit—she always has, according to Irene. At least now, she has somebody who is willing to stand up for her, and that means everything. I can’t say I’m proud of what you did, because I wouldn’t want anybody saying that to their kid if things were reversed, and you were the one with a broken jaw. But you stood up for family, and I’m proud of you for that.”

This just keeps getting worse. He might not be screaming at me, threatening to kill me, losing his shit about having to come home early to deal with me, but it turns out there are other punishments that are even worse. Like getting credit I don’t deserve. Like knowing if I wasn’t so cruel, none of this would’ve happened to begin with.

“Thank you for telling me,” Dad concludes in a heavy, almost sad voice. “We’ll deal with this when we get home. For now, I’ll handle any calls that come my way. If anyone questions you, tell the truth, be upfront, don’t be antagonistic or refuse to cooperate. Understood?”

“Understood.” I hope that doesn’t happen, but I know it probably will. They’ll want to get my side of the story.

I don’t think I’ve ever felt this conflicted. Knowing Dad thinks I’m some kind of hero when I know I’m anything but. Realizing I would like to be the kind of man he thinks I am. Somebody who stands up for family, who protects the people close to him. I didn’t protect Elliana. If anything, I was trying toprotect myself, because the guys were right. I went after them not only for her sake, but for mine. Knowing the worse things get for her, the worse she can make them for me.

---