Page 119 of Sticks and Stones
She hugged him.
“Thank you for taking care of him and loving him for us. You’re very important to him and to us. You’re his family and ours.”
He squeezed her hand.
“I know. Don’t stress it, Mom. I got him. I promise,” he said, as John hugged him too.
She understood.
“If you need anything…”
He stopped her because he might just be able to take her up on that offer.
“You still have cop connections. If you hear anything about the trafficking going on of young men, let us know. Like I said, we’re working that case.”
She could do that.
“Thank you,” she said. “We appreciate you facing us down.”
“US?”John asked. “Who is‘US’?” he asked.
Because she could, she elbowed him.
Immediately, John got it.
They were‘US’.
Clearly.
“I have your number in case something comes up,” he admitted. “You don’t have to worry about him being safe. Corbin is very safe now.”
They could see that.
As they walked away, and the coast was clear, Ethan headed back inside. The entire condo was quiet, so the chaos outside didn’t disturb Corbin.
Heading toward the room where Corbin was, Ethan found him gone.
Oh, boy.
Well, so much for that.
Now, he had to find him. There were only so many places he could be.
Heading toward his and Gene’s room, he heard the shower going, and knew that the man had gone there. Well, at least he’d gotten a couple of thigh swabs for DNA, because it appeared that Corbin had made up his mind.
There wouldn’t be more swabs.
The evidence was now, officially gone.
Ethan wasn’t shocked that he chose not to face the reality of what happened, and instead, wash it away. Facing a court and a jury was daunting when you were the victim the defense was trying to shame.
At the door, he heard sobbing, and he knew he had to help him. When he saw the door wasn’t locked, he took that as a sign that he was able to go in.
Once there, Corbin was sitting on the floor, the shower was running, and no one was in it.
He looked up.
“I don’t know what to do,” he whispered. “I want to wash this all away, but I’m scared that it’ll make this harder for you.”
