Trusted (Club Indigo Book 2)

by Karen Nappa

  "Mommy, where did Tim go?"

  "I don't know, sweetheart. He was upset and he ran off. We'll find out where he went and get him to come back, I promise."

  "I promise, too." Connor had followed Suzie into the kitchen. "Abby, nothing bad will happen to Tim."

  Suzie had found the list and started dialing the parents of the members of Tim's soccer team. After the first negative responses, she groaned in frustration. "Those were the most likely choices. DeShawn and Eli are his best friends besides Josh. I'll try the coach next. Maybe he'll have an idea." She called the coach to no avail and then thought about the weather. "I'd better go out and start looking for him." She started toward the front door, only to be stopped by Connor's hand on her arm.

  "No, you don't, missy. You can't run after him in the dark with no idea where he went. Let's think this through. What about family? How far away are James and Laura? What about Dan and Mary?"

  "Dad is closer than Laura and James, but it's almost a half hour walk. He can't run the whole way."

  "Call both and let them know Tim is out there and to keep an eye out. He's been gone over twenty minutes now."

  "Okay, that makes sense. But then I really have to go looking for him. It's not safe, and it's cold outside."

  Before Suzie could dial her cell phone again, the landline rang. She rushed over to the telephone to answer it.

  "Mary?" her voice was anxious and Connor hated the insecurity in her face. "Oh, thank God." Suzie sagged against the wall like a deflating balloon and sank to the floor with the phone against her ear. Connor walked closer with Abby tucked securely against his side, while they listened to Suzie's side of the conversation. "Thank you, Mary, and thank Dad for me." Suzie ended the call. She looked up at Connor. "Tim is with them. Dad wants to keep him for the night. They'll have a chance to talk and Dad will bring him home tomorrow. I think Tim can manage to miss a day of school to get things resolved."

  Still holding Abby, Connor extended his hand to Suzie to pull her up and into a hug. The three of them stood linked together until Abby got restless. "If Tim doesn't have to go to school tomorrow, what about me?"

  Suzie exchanged a look with Connor before turning to Abby. "It only seems fair that if he gets the day off, so should you."

  "Okay, lassie, since we don't have to worry about school tomorrow, why don't you find a nice movie to watch and we'll try to have a pleasant evening?" Connor suggested as he pulled Suzie in his arms for a closer hug.

  Suzie's eyes were red rimmed and her face tear-streaked. Connor didn't mind tears on her face, but it had to be the good kind of tears—the ones from the pain that came with pleasure and left her eyes soft and her facial features relaxed. These tears made her eyes dull and her face strained and marred with worry lines. Connor wished he could replace them, but they had an upset little girl to worry about, too.

  "I almost forgot," Suzie said. "I need to call Sonja, too, to see if she can open for me in the morning."

  "Don't forget we have the monthly meeting in the afternoon," Connor reminded her.

  "How could I forget when my accountant is right here to remind me?" Suzie teased, the stress of the day starting to ease.

  Abby had selected the original Shrek, and Suzie produced a bowl of freshly made popcorn with lots of butter. Once the movie started, most of the tension was gone from the room. Abby laughed so hard at the scene where Shrek and Donkey almost got arrested, only Connor's quick reflexes prevented her from falling off the couch.

  Suzie muttered, "We're probably going to hear 'you and what army' all day tomorrow." Nevertheless, she smiled with her daughter. They watched rest of the movie with Suzie settled under Connor's right arm and Abby burrowed into his left side.

  To Connor, the most wonderful moment was when Abby asked Suzie if it was all right if he tucked her into bed that night. After Connor read Abby a chapter from Because of Winn-Dixie , he went downstairs to find Suzie. She was sitting on the couch, the television still on, but she wasn't paying attention to it. "Why don't you get us a drink, rùnag?" Doing something for him would settle the service sub in her.

  Suzie nodded and went to the kitchen.

  Moments later, she placed a glass of Guinness on the coaster in front of Connor. He sat in the middle of the couch in front of the huge television screen he had bought for the house last fall. After complaining about Suzie's television being too small to appreciate a good football game, Connor had shown up at her place the next Saturday with a big screen TV. She had objected loudly, even while assisting him with setting up the monstrous appliance.

  When Suzie had left the room, the television was on but muted. Now the big screen had a screensaver with the sounds of a jazz station. A pillow was on the ground between his feet and Connor gestured to it. "Remove your top and sit down with your back to me."

  Suzie starred in confusion from him to the pillow and back up. She was probably wondering why he was putting her in a slave position and Connor waited for her to object or start asking questions. Tim's outburst must have rattled her badly, because she didn't utter a sound. Suzie complied and settled between his legs on the cushion. Connor placed his hands on her shoulders and started to stroke and knead. He wasn't holding back and he wasn't being gentle. He massaged her tense shoulder muscles with merciless hands. She cried out in pain when he found a particularly tender spot. "I love to hurt ye," he growled, with his faintly accented voice in her ear, and bit the earlobe. Connor continued to massage her until she was relaxed into a boneless heap and he carried her up to the bedroom, television forgotten.

  Suzie woke up early the next morning, feeling well rested. Connor was in a deep sleep. She pushed herself up on one elbow and allowed herself to study him for a moment. Although his fierce roughness was enhanced by a night's worth of stubble on his jaw, sleep made the square angle a little less pronounced. It gave a hint of the sweet lying beneath the testosterone. It was very much like the man himself.

  Suzie smiled in memory of last night. He'd been so sweet and careful with Abby and then sweet and not so careful with her. His massage had hurt, but in a good way. She slipped out of the bed and went downstairs to get breakfast started.

  "Smells delicious in here." Connor's voice held a hint of growl from sleep as he stepped into the kitchen.

  A small body squirmed between him and the doorframe and barreled into the space. "He's right, Mom. What're you making?"

  Suzie smiled down at her daughter. She was happy that there wasn't much that dampened Abby's spirit for long. "Waffles, sweetie." She bent down for a brief hug. "Why don't you set the table? The last ones are almost done."

  Connor stroked Abby's hair as she rushed past him and then walked up to Suzie. He studied her for a brief moment. After giving a nod, he took her face between his hands and pressed a sweet kiss on her hair. Without a word, he turned and busied himself with the coffee.

  After they had their breakfast Abby went to play in her room. Suzie straightened her already neat living room as she waited for Dan and Mary to arrive with Tim.

  When she moved the same stack of books for the third time, Connor stepped in. "Get a hold of yourself missy. They'll be here soon enough," he said as he pulled her into a tight embrace.

  As they drove up a few moments later, she rushed out the front door. Connor waited on the porch. Dan stepped out of the car and stood behind Tim with both his hands on the boy's shoulders.

  Suzie pulled Tim into her arms for a crushing hug and then stepped back with tears in her eyes. "If you ever do anything like that again, I don't know what I'll do. Tim, I was worried sick when you ran out. You didn't even take a coat, and it was cold last night." She hugged him again quickly. "I love you, but I need to know you're safe."

  "I'm sorry, Mom. I shouldn't have run off like that. I promise it won't happen again."

  "Good enough, but no video games for the next month. Now what else do you have to say for yourself?" Suzie said as Connor joined them by the car.

  Tim looked contrit
e as he made eye contact with Connor. "I'm sorry for my behavior yesterday. I shouldn't have shouted at you, Mr. Connor." His gaze turned to his mother. "Or rushed out like that, and the punishment is fair."

  "Oh, honey," Suzie cried and opened her arms. Tim went into her embrace willingly. She noticed Dan making eye contact with Connor behind her, and she sighed. "Why don't we all go in for coffee? I have fresh muffins."

  Mary chuckled. "Of course, you have." She winked at Suzie.

  Tim turned his gaze up at Connor, and still in his mother's arms, he held out a hand. Connor took his offer and they shook hands without a word. As the tension leaked away, Tim extracted himself from the hug.

  A smile appeared on his face, like pale winter sun peaked from behind a cloud. "What kind of muffins?" Even Connor cracked up at that question, and Suzie knew the problems weren't gone but would be solved.

  After everybody had their fill of Suzie's blueberry muffins, Tim turned to Connor. "Can we talk in private, Mr. Connor?"

  Connor nodded. "Sure, lad, let's take a walk, hmm?"

  "Tim?" Dan asked, and the boy halted. "Do you mind if we take Abby to the zoo like we discussed?"

  Abby squealed in delight; she loved all animals, and a trip to the zoo was her favorite treat.

  "No, Granddad. I spent time with you and Mary yesterday. Besides, I didn't finish my homework, so I have to do that, too." Tim gave his sister a quick hug and whispered in her ear to 'have fun and bring home some of the peanuts,' which led to giggles from Abby.

  In a matter of minutes, the dining room had cleared out with Connor and Tim off on their walk and Abby gone with Dan and Mary in their car.

  Suzie thought about what to do. In two hours, she had a meeting with Sonja and Connor about the café. As far Suzie could tell, the business was doing great, but she wasn't all that good at finances and was happy to be able to lean on Connor.

  For now, she put the makings for beef stew in the slow cooker. Even if the meeting took longer than expected, the food would keep.

  "What started Abby giggling?" They'd been walking for about ten minutes and Tim hadn't started talking.

  Tim smiled, and as always when he was thinking about his mom or sister, he got a loving and protective look on his face. Connor might have his difficulties with the lad, but he couldn't deny how deep Tim's love and affection for his family went.

  "When we went for the zoo the first time, Abby was very disappointed we weren't allowed to feed the animals." Tim chuckled and shook his head. "I took pity on her, and when we'd gotten some peanuts from Aunt Laura, I pretended to be a monkey and let Abby feed me."

  Connor smiled at his tale. He could imagine how much Abby would have enjoyed feeding her "monkey" brother.

  Tim took in a big gulp of air. "I want to try to explain to you why I reacted the way I did yesterday. I talked about it with Granddad." He fell silent again, and they strolled on. "The thing is, when my father was ill and he knew he wouldn't get b-better," Tim's voice wobbled but he braved on, "Dad asked me to take care of Mom and Abby. He t-told me I would be the man in the house." One lonely tear ran down his cheek and he rubbed his sleeve over it.

  Connor grunted, and Tim continued. "I can see that Mom is happy around you. Abby likes you a lot." He sighed and blinked up at Connor. "There's some stuff going on with my friend, Josh, that doesn't help. We kind of had a fight yesterday morning, and I took it out on you. I'm really sorry, Mr. Connor."

  Connor swung his arm around Tim's shoulder, and they walked on in silence. They didn't need to talk. There was a certain understanding between them.

  When his mother and Connor had left for their meeting with Sonja, Tim did his homework. Luckily, it wasn't math, so he had it done in no time. Maybe Josh would have time to hang out after school, but Tim wasn't sure if Josh would welcome him. After a moment of indecision, Tim concluded it would be better to leave him be for a while. In the meantime, he would go to the treehouse and look for something to do. Although the treehouse was done, they kept making little changes and additions, like a cot from an old bed they used to sit and lie on.

  Tim rounded the corner of the house and strode through the backyard. It was kind of funny how his perspective of their yard changed. Although it was a decent size, it wasn't huge. When he was younger, it had seemed so big to him. With his longer legs, he reached the treehouse at the far end of the space quickly and climbed the ladder with ease.

  Tim opened the trap door to see Josh lying on the sleeping bag in the corner. "Josh, what are you doing up here? School isn't out yet." When he didn't get an answer, he moved closer and gasped. Josh wasn't moving. Time stopped as Tim worked to get control of himself. What the hell was going on and how long had Josh been here? "Josh! Josh!" Tim shook his friend. Why wasn't he waking up? With shaking fingers, Tim brushed the hair from Josh's face and gasped. Josh had a black eye and a big bruise on his cheek, the skin over his cheekbone split. "Josh!" he yelled, and still, his friend didn't move or react.

  Chapter 15

  H e had to call 911! He pulled out the cell phone his mother had given him when she'd started her new job. She had put strict limits on its use—family calls and emergencies only. With clumsy fingers, he punched in the numbers and waited for the connection.

  "911, what is your emergency?" a friendly woman's voice reached his ear.

  "My friend," Tim all but sobbed into the phone. "He won't wake up. I think somebody beat him up."

  "Okay, honey, slow down. Where are you?"

  Tim stammered the address and added, "We're in the treehouse in the backyard."

  "I've alerted the fire department and emergency services. They're on their way now. Are there any adults there?" Tim told her no. "Okay, you're doing great. Can you tell if your friend is breathing?"

  "I don't know," Tim sobbed.

  "Honey, I need you to listen to me. Help is only six minutes away. Can you see his chest move?"

  Tim looked carefully. "I think so. I don't know."

  "Step closer to him, lick the inside of your wrist and hold it in front of his mouth. What do you feel?"

  Tim did as he was instructed and almost shouted for joy as he felt a small movement of air. "I felt it; he's breathing, ma'am."

  "Okay, can you see any severe bleeding?"

  "I can see a wound on his cheek, but it's not bleeding now. It's mostly dried blood."

  "All right, the EMTs will be there in five minutes. What's your name, honey?"

  "Tim Kaspar."

  "Okay, Tim. I'm Madeline. What's your friend's name? Can you tell me how to reach his parents?"

  "I don't know how to reach his mother. Their phone is disconnected."

  "Do you know their address or where his mother works?"

  "I don't think she has a job," Tim said and then rattled off the address so quickly it was a wonder Madeline could understand.

  "Okay, I'll take it from here. Can I call someone for you?"

  Tim looked around in panic. What to do? His mother had a business meeting with Mr. Connor and Ms. Sonja from the café. Granddad and Mary had taken Abby to the zoo. James! Tim exhaled in relief. "Could you call James Black at BlackSmith Construction for me?" Tim asked. "He's my u-uncle. The number is 816-555-6531."

  "Calling it now. Hold on for a few seconds, Tim, while I reach him. Help is on the way." As Madeline said this, Tim could hear multiple sirens approaching.

  "They a-are h-here," he sobbed, dropping the phone from his ear and turning to his friend. "Do you hear it, Josh? Help's on the way."

  Two EMTs and a fireman worked to pull themselves and their gear up the rope ladder into the treehouse. Tim pressed against the wall to make sure he wasn't in the way.

  "Unconscious, pupils dilated, blood pressure 80/40, pulse is weak and thready. Looks like an OD, probably some kind of opioid. Also, multiple signs of blunt force trauma, possible concussion," the first EMT said.

  The second EMT asked Tim, "Do you know what he took?"

  "I thought he was unconscious from the
beating," Tim responded.

  "It's probably an opioid. Let's try naloxone first." The man turned around and reached into his case to pull out an auto-injection device. He quickly injected the drug into Josh's upper arm. The first man had continued to monitor Josh's vital signs. "BP is up to 100/60, pulse still weak but steadying. Give him the second shot. His other injuries could be affecting his response."

  Now, the first man turned to Tim. "What's his name?"

  "Josh, Josh Miller. Is he going to be all right?" Tim asked.

  "We'll do the best we can. Do you have any idea how long he's been here?"

  "No, sir. I saw him yesterday morning, and I haven't been in the treehouse since then. I found him like this and called 911."

  "Good job."

  "How are his vitals now?" the second EMT asked.

  "Improving, BP is up to 140/90 and his pulse is 80. It's taking effect. Start him on fluids and let's figure out how to get him out of here. What do you think, Joe?" He turned toward the fireman who had been standing in the corner taking notes.

  "I think we can manage with a basket stretcher and lower him down without too much trouble," Joe said. He went over to the entrance and called down to the other firemen that they would need a backboard, neck brace, and the stretcher.

  A minute or two later, the equipment came up through the hole like a cobra rising from a snake charmer's basket. Joe grabbed it immediately and laid it down next to Josh. The EMTs put the brace around Josh's neck and shifted him onto the backboard. The three men then lifted Josh into the stretcher and secured him from head to toe. Another fireman had followed the stretcher up with rope to safely lower the stretcher to the ground where two more men waited to help move Josh to the ambulance waiting in the driveway. The EMTs followed immediately after Josh.

  The fireman named Joe stayed until Tim had also climbed down.