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.What’s up?”“The State Police are very interested in talking.Kevin lives close by and he’s on his way here.He wants to talk here, without your mom first.He also sent a female officer to the hospital to watch over your mom.Her name is Pam, she’s really nice.I just wanted to talk first.”He looks nervous and I decide my hair is dry enough for now.No sense in putting any makeup on.I put on some colored watermelon flavored lip gloss which will have to do.I’m not really a makeup girl anyway.“Okay, well, do you want to talk in the bathroom or your bedroom?”“The room is fine, I just wanted to talk, just us.I don’t want you to feel pressured in any way.I want you here, with me, more than anything.But I will drive out to see you as much as I can.I have been given several sports scholarships, but the closest school is down near Albany, about an hour from here.I haven’t given anyone any decisions yet about where I’m going next year.I need to decide on some of them in January, but since it’s November, I have some time.I just want you to know that if you decide to stay here, you can have one of the extra bedrooms, or you’ll probably steal my bed and I’ll take the extra room.Though I want visitation rights to my waterbed, I will never pressure you, for anything.But if you want to go with your mom and Eva, then go.I’ll do whatever I can to see you as much as possible.I just want you all safe.”“What my eloquent son is trying to say, sweetie, is that he loves you and he’ll go anywhere he has to in order to be with you.” Ryan’s dad says with a sigh.I start to giggle and say, “Yeah, Dad, I got that, I do speak teenager.I kind of gathered that from what he said before we fell asleep last night.”“What did he say?” Ryan asks.“He said what his eloquent son was trying to say was that you love me and you’ll go anywhere to be with me.”“Nice, Dad.Nothing like telling the girl I love her before I do.” Ryan says.“Well you did kind of hint at it last night when we discussed what body spray I was wearing at your last match.I was half asleep, but I remember you saying Love Spell was accurate and you were okay with that.”“Stay, Emma.I’m going to be crazy and cheesy and probably a stupid selfish teenage boy, but stay.My mom wouldn’t have offered if she didn’t mean it, and I don’t want to lose you.I meant what I said, if you need to be with your mom and Eva, I’ll be there as much as I can.I won’t lose you now that we finally have each other.You can have your own room, we’ll take this as slow as you want, but I love you and I just want you to know I really want you to stay.”Living with a boy, in his house, at seventeen? Before I’ve even had sex? Yeah, welcome to the country.It could be worse, I could be pregnant and on a television show for a paternity test.I do love him, and I do want to stay, but no matter what Eva and he say, I need to know my mom and sister will be okay before I decide.“I love you, too.As crazy as that may be, I’ve wanted you and fought it forever, and I know we are perfect for each other.You are my missing puzzle piece, just like you said yesterday.If my mom and Eva are okay, then I’ll stay, but I want the waterbed.”“Oh, that’s a deal.You may have to share it sometimes, I mean it is a king size, but you have the right to kick me out of it anytime.Let’s go talk to the police, get your mom and sister safe, and get that bastard put in jail.Are you ready?”“Yeah, just give me a minute to talk to your dad, please? Alone?”Ryan looks confused, but he shrugs, kisses me quickly and runs downstairs.“So, do you come every day or is something wrong?”“You do know your spirits, don’t you sweetheart? You tell me what you know, and I’ll tell you what I’m allowed to.”“I can tell you that you glow, and not every ghost does.I feel a warmth right now from you, which isn’t normal either.Normal dead spirits who don’t move on are cold.I’ve felt your kind at church.Who are you here for, and what can you tell me?”“I can tell you I’m here for whoever needs me.I can tell you that what happened to you, you dying and coming back changed you.You’re what some call a tweener.You have died, come back, and you retained some of the in between when you came back.You can see and hear the dead as if we were alive, because you were partly one of us.Your empathy, being able to feel from those close to you, is also part of it.You have people watching over you because of that.Go downstairs now, Emma.The police officer is here, he is a good man.You’ll be moving in here soon.Welcome to the family.”“Can you tell me if my mom will be okay?”He smiles and pauses for a moment.“Yes, Emma.You trusting in Ryan, Grant, your teacher, and my wife has protected them.You will all be safe from him.Your father can’t hurt you anymore.That is as much about the future that I am allowed to share with you at this time, and I must go now.Blessed be.” With that, he disappears.Well, at least I can breathe a little easier knowing that my mom and sister will be safe and my father will get what’s coming to him.The one thing I can’t forget though is how he said we will all be safe from him, meaning my father.It almost seemed like he knew that someone wouldn’t be safe from someone else other than my father.What other threats were out there, other than my father? Maybe I’m just overthinking it.I head down stairs and see a tall man there in a New York State Police uniform.“Hi, you must be Emma.I’m Officer O’Neil, but please call me Kevin while we’re here.I’m an old friend of Marie’s here, though you probably already call her Ma, everyone does.Let’s sit and talk, okay? I’ve just met Eva and Grant, and of course I already know Ryan.”We go sit in the comfortable family room.They have the big sectional as well as two recliners so we can all sit comfortable.Ryan and Grant turn the recliners so they face the sectional.“Would anyone like coffee or anything, or shall we just get to it?” Ma asks.I look at everyone and everyone is just looking at Kevin.“Unless Kevin would like some, I think we’re good, Ma.Thank you.”“I just had two cups with breakfast, so I’m good for now, thanks Marie.So Marie tells me your father is very abusive and your mom is in the hospital right now because of him.You have told the local police and they cover for him because they are friends?”“Yes, well, it is a small town.He grew up in the next town over, so he knows everyone.They usually just laughed and walked away.” I tell him with a shrug.“Marie gave me the name of the officer from the school, so that will be looked into on a state level.I am a detective.I outrank the local piss ants, by a lot.I want you to know that the local police are literally my bitches, if I snap they jump, so I want you to feel absolutely safe telling me anything.Are we good?”Ryan squeezes my hand and Eva is smiling, though I see she’s gripping Grant’s hand too.“Yes, I think we’re good on that.Ma explained a bit that state is a higher rank, so I’m glad she knew to call you.Where do we need to start?”“Well, Ma here says that you girls have had a lot of injuries.Let’s start with a small list of the injuries and the causes.Don’t feel that you need to go into a lot of detail, and stop whenever you need a break [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]