by E. M. Leya
Xander turned, and walked out of the room, glad that Faith was home, and for the most part, seemed okay. There would be a lot of hard times to come, but they had her safe, had her home. Three kids returned to their parents thanks to what his team did. He couldn't lose focus. As happy as he was to save them, there were plenty more out there who still needed to be found.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Matt watched as Faith played on her swing in the backyard. Even though she claimed she was okay, he didn't miss the way that she jumped at every loud noise and kept looking around her as if she expected someone to be standing behind her.
It broke his heart to see how different she was now. She smiled less, laughed less, and even his touch made her tense up when he would try to hold her. He didn't want this for her, and would do anything to take it away if he could.
"Where's Xander?" She asked as she kicked the swing higher.
"He had to go out of town for a few days." Matt was surprised at how well Faith had taken to Xander. He'd been shocked to wake up the first night in the hospital and see them talking, then when Xander had come to the hospital later, Faith had sat with him and played nearly three hours' worth of cards with him.
It was strange to watch them together. He'd never taken Xander to be the type of person to get along with kids, but Faith seemed to love him. Other men she withdrew from. She would move closer to Matt when the doctors came in, and when the cops came to ask more questions, she hardly spoke.
He was glad she was comfortable with Xander, but he couldn't figure out why. He was the one person, just off his appearance, he thought she would shy away from.
"Will he come see us when he gets back?"
Matt nodded. "I'll make sure he knows to come by." He almost wanted to call him now and let Faith talk to him, but it was already six, and that meant it was later in Texas where the team was getting ready for a huge sting.
His stomach tightened at the thought of the danger they were putting themselves in tonight. He almost wished he'd asked Xander to let him know when he was done so he knew they were all safe.
The sound of the doorbell pulled Matt from his thoughts. He stood, glancing at Faith." I'll be right back."
A look of panic hit her face as she jumped off the swing. "No, I'll go with you." She ran to his side, keeping close to him as they walked inside.
It was clear that Faith didn't like to be alone. Even the few nights she'd been home, she'd asked to sleep in his bed, only going into her room when she had to change or grab something. The counselors they'd both talked to at the hospital said it was normal, so he let her do it. If he was honest, he was happier to have her by his side than she probably was. They had an appointment with Katie in the morning, and he hoped that Faith would finally open up to her about everything she refused to talk about so far.
As they got to the door, Faith stayed behind him, touching his back, but hiding from sight as he opened it wide.
"Hey, hope I'm not bothering you." Trish looked nervous.
He'd asked his family to give them some time, but he couldn't blame Trish for wanting to see Faith. They'd been close before the kidnapping, and he hoped that would still be the case. His only worry was that Trish would either baby Faith in sympathy or push her too hard to open up about everything that had happened.
"No, come on in." Matt stepped back, Faith staying behind him. "Faith, it's Aunt Trish."
Faith peered around Matt's leg. "Hi."
Trish's eyes filled with tears as she dropped to her knees beside Faith. "I am so glad you are home. I missed you so much." She opened her arms, but Faith didn't move from Matt's side.
Ignoring the look of hurt on Trish's face, Matt smiled at Faith. "Maybe Aunt Trish would like to have a piece of that chocolate cake we made, and you can tell her about the movie we watched earlier?"
Faith nodded, looking at Trish. "Do you want cake?"
"I'd love some." Trish took the hand Matt offered to help her up. "You made it?"
"Well, Dad did, but I frosted it." Faith smiled. "The frosting is the best part."
"I agree." Trish laughed. "What movie did you watch?"
Faith detached herself from him, but still kept her distance from Trish as they started to talk about the movie. It was clear Faith didn't have trouble with talking, but touching was an issue. He was glad that she didn't seem to have a problem hugging and holding him.
Matt served the cake, almost becoming emotional each time he would look across the kitchen table and see his daughter sitting there. It was a sight he didn't think he'd ever see again.
As he listened to his sister and Faith talk, he wondered how long it would take for things to get back to normal. Would they ever? He hated the thought that Faith would always withdraw from touch, and be nervous, always watching over her shoulder.
The buzz of his phone pulled him from his thoughts, and he was shocked to see Xander calling. He smiled at the girls as he stood, quickly answering as he walked into the other room. "Hello."
"Hey, I thought I'd call and see how you're holding up." Xander sounded relaxed.
"I'm okay. My sister is here visiting with Faith."
"That's good. The sooner things get back to normal, the better," Xander told him.
"How are you? Didn't you have a sting tonight?"
"Yeah, we leave in about two hours. I'm sitting around the hotel room, bored."
"Rough life." Matt would give anything to get away for a few days.
"It is when you're stuck with Dyson and Kasey." Xander laughed. "How's Faith doing?"
"Okay, she's offish around people, nervous, jumpy, but all things considered, I think she's doing okay. We meet with Katie tomorrow."
"You've met with her already, right?" Xander asked.
"Yeah, once after I started. I'm going to sit in on the first session with Faith, then we'll decide from there if she needs me with her or is better one on one with Katie."
"Good. Katie won't push her hard. She has helped a lot of kids in Faith's position."
"Faith asked about you tonight. Wanted to know where you were and when you'd stop by again. I told her you were gone for a few days, but would drop by when you got home." Matt smiled hearing Faith and Trish laugh about something.
"Ah, tell her I miss her and… You know what? Think she'll talk to me on the phone?" Xander asked.
"Um, she'd probably be excited about it. Just a second." Matt held the phone down and called to his daughter. "Faith, Xander is on the phone, do you want to talk to him?"
The sound of her fork hitting her plate echoed, then she was running toward him. "He called?"
"He did." He held the phone up high. "You don't want to talk to him, do you?" He laughed.
"Dad, give me the phone." She jumped for it.
Matt laughed harder. "Alright, but it's going to cost you putting the cake plates in the dishwasher later."
"Fine, now give me the phone." She jumped up again, trying to reach it.
"When you're done, I want to speak to him again." He handed her the phone.
"Hi." Faith took the phone and moved to the couch.
"Who's Xander?" Trish stood watching Faith.
"He's a friend of mine. He came and saw her in the hospital and she took to him." Matt shrugged as he went back in the kitchen to his cake.
"Your friend showed up at the hospital, but you told me and Mom to wait?" Trish glared at him.
"No, it's not like that. Xander was with me when the call came in. He drove me there." He brushed his fingers through his hair. "He was there for me, but Faith took to him."
Trish narrowed her eyes. "He was there for you? Shouldn't your family have been there?" She sat down, still glaring across the table at him. "Who is this guy, Matt?"
Matt shrugged. "Just a friend I made at my new job."
"You just met him, and you trust him with Faith?"
"He'd never hurt her, he'd cut off his own balls before he hurt a child, trust me. Besides, it's a phone call. It's not like I'm s
ending her off on camping trips with him alone. If he's who makes Faith smile right now, who am I to stop that? I don't like that she gets more excited to talk to him than she does to me, but for some reason she trusts him. I don't question it because right now she needs people around her she can trust."
"But a stranger?" Trish shook her head.
"He's hardly a stranger, Trish. Damn it, she's my daughter. I don't need to justify anything with you. I know him. I trust him. That should be enough for you." He was pissed that she would think he'd put Faith in danger. "I know what she's been through. I'm not going to let her get hurt again."
"So, what now? Are you going to walk her to and from school every day? Put your job at risk because you have to be with her all the time? How are you going to do this, Matt?"
"Fuck, Trish, did you come over here to start a fight with me? If so, can it wait? Faith is in the next room and I don't need her hearing your bullshit." He was sure their mother had put half this worry in Trish's head, at least the stuff about school and protecting her.
Matt stood and went to the door leading into the living room. He watched as Faith sat on the couch, her knees tucked under her chin as she laughed at something Xander was saying to her. As he listened to her laugh, he realized how much he really did trust Xander with her. He wasn't worried he was telling her one of his perverted jokes, or talking about anything that wasn't fit for a ten-year-old to hear. Xander wasn't like that. There was something Faith saw in him, and Matt was not going to get in the way of anything that made Faith smile. She needed to laugh and be happy.
"How's she sleeping?" Trish was behind him, watching.
"She has nightmares, but won't talk about them. She's jumpy and nervous, doesn't like to be left alone. We start with her new therapist tomorrow. Everyone says it will just take time."
Trish nodded. "I'm sorry I yelled at you. You're right, she is your daughter, and you know what is right for her. It's just hard. We were all worried, and now that we have her back, I guess we're all going to be a little overprotective of her." Trish leaned against the wall. "You'll let me know if you need help?"
"I promise. Right now, it's just finding out what she's comfortable with. My work is great. They have no problem with me taking as much time off as I need to, so that won't be an issue. I'm just taking it one day at a time. We'll see how she does and what she needs."
Trish nodded. "And the other girls?"
Matt sighed. "Faith got to see them before we left the hospital. I have their numbers if she wants to talk to them again. I'm not against that. Only the three of them can really know what they went through. One is close, the other lives in Nevada. One of the girls wasn't doing well. She was having a hard time when we saw her."
"Mentally?"
Matt nodded.
"Honestly, I expected Faith to have the same problem."
"So did I. She's either stronger than we thought, or she's hiding it well. I'm not sure which. Only time will tell."
"And the perverts who had her?" Trish asked.
Matt bit his lip, wishing he could tell Trish the truth. "They are being held without bond. The police promised me they wouldn't get out anytime soon. Now we just wait to see if this goes to trial or not."
"Keep us posted?"
"I will." Matt stepped back as Faith got off the couch and walked toward them. "Here, you can talk to him now." She handed the phone to him.
"Thanks." Matt messed with her hair with one hand as he grabbed the phone with the other. "Go finish your cake. I'll be back in a minute." He stepped out the back door, needing fresh air after arguing with his sister. "Hey, thanks for talking to her."
"You don't have to thank me. She makes me laugh. Honestly, she helped take my mind off the sting for a bit. It's a big one tonight, and I needed to relax."
"Well, she lights up when she talks to you. It's good to hear her laughing." He wasn't about to admit how jealous he was that Xander could get her to laugh and he couldn't.
"I promised her I'd drop by the day after tomorrow. I won't be in until late tomorrow night. She'll already be in bed."
"You know you're welcome here anytime." He missed having time alone with Xander, but Faith had to be his priority.
"Thanks. Well, I better get ready to go. Dyson wants to run through everything again. I'll try and call tomorrow if I can, but I'll be over the day after for sure," Xander told him.
"At least send me a quick text and let me know everything goes okay tonight?"
"Sure, but it will be late, so don't worry if you don't get one soon. This could take a couple of hours once we are in. It's a big site."
"Be safe, and tell the others to do the same." He was nervous for them. This was the biggest job he'd seen them do since joining the team, and also the first one out of state.
"I will. Goodnight, and tell Faith goodnight too." Xander hung up.
Matt sighed as the line went dead. Xander and the team knew what they were doing, but he still worried. There was so much that could go wrong. With them out of state, there was no way to help them if things went bad. They were on their own.
Forcing his worry for the team back, he headed inside to sit with Faith and Trish. He found Faith telling Trish a story that Xander had told her about seeing wild zebras while he was in the Army. There was no denying that Xander cheered Faith up because, through the whole story, she never stopped smiling. He glanced up, exchanging looks with Trish, glad that she noticed it too.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Xander stumbled through the door, sweat beading down his body as he tried to catch his breath. He'd gotten home after midnight, and couldn't sleep. The images of the child sex ring they'd taken down the night before still fresh in his mind.
They'd gotten in without a problem, but what they didn't expect was children scattered throughout the complex. Even though their masks kept their identity secret, they'd had to move past the bound children to get to the adults. He tried not to make eye contact, but it was impossible. Each child had stared at him, not even one begging for help, but looking lost and as if they'd just given up on hope. The images were going to haunt him for a long time.
He'd finally given up trying to sleep and went for a run, but even after seven miles of sweating, he was still worked up. They'd been warned the sting wouldn't be an easy one. They'd expected eight kids, but what they'd found had been double that, both girls and boys. They were lucky the number of adults wasn't larger. With four, they'd already been outnumbered, but the fact they only had to inject the needle into their necks to subdue them made it easy to take them out.
Kasey had ended up struggling with one man, and had a black eye to show for it, but all in all the night had been a success. They'd isolated the adults, taking care of business where no children could see, then got out, calling the police to rescue the kids. It was a big enough sting that it had made the local news, but luckily, none of the information seemed focused on STK and what they did, only that the children had been found.
That was how Xander wanted it. How STK wanted it. They didn't want the glory. They wanted the public aware of what was being done to the children and how they could better protect their children. What STK did was happily done without any notice. Talking about the pedophile's injuries only brought them into the media, and they didn't want that. Let the perps remain nameless now that they could no longer hurt anyone.
He glanced at the clock, seeing it was just after six in the morning, wondering what time Matt and Faith would be up. The best thing for his mind was to have something else to focus on, and between Matt and Faith, they would be able to pull him from his darkened thoughts.
He'd talked to Matt a little after the sting by text, letting him know he was okay. But he'd kept it short, aware how late it was for Matt to have to be up. He'd spent the next day with Dyson and Kasey, acting like friends on vacation, just in case anyone looked into people coming into the area to try and connect them to the sting. They never left right after a job when they were out of town.
They always took a day or two extra to make sure nothing pointed at them and leave an appearance of just being guys on a getaway.
He stripped his sweaty clothes off and stepped into the shower, closing his eyes as he leaned against the wall and let the water hit him. What he really needed was some good hard sex, but since Faith was back, he hadn't had a chance to hook up with Matt. He understood that, and accepted it, but it didn't help calm the building need that was settling in his balls.
He'd debated on going out and picking someone up for a night, but the thought left him feeling oddly empty. He didn't want someone he didn't know. He wanted Matt. Sex with Matt was amazing, and while it wasn't the whole of their friendship, it was a big part, one of the best parts.
His cock stirred to life as he thought about it, but he ignored it. He didn't want to use his hand. He needed more than a quick yank in the shower could give him. He needed to feel someone pressing into him, someone taking him hard, someone forcing him to give up all control and forget about everything for a while.
Frustrated, he quickly finished his shower, trying to figure out what he could do all day. He planned on dropping by Matt's with pizza later, but he didn't want to show up this early. With nothing to do and nowhere to be, he dressed, grabbed his keys, and headed to the team house. At least there, he wouldn't be alone, even if there was nothing to do other than watch movies and play video games in the basement.
It was early, but there was always someone working at the house. Bryon lived there, but even when he slept, Carter or Trenton seemed to be working. Even if Bry was still in bed, he could kick back and watch TV without bothering him.
As he pulled up in front of the house, he was shocked to find several cars there, including Matt's. His worry shot up since Matt was taking several weeks off to help Faith get back on her feet. He glanced around seeing Trenton's, Carter's, and Becca's cars there as well. Xander hurried inside, wondering what he'd missed out on, and why all of them weren't called in if it was important.
"Xander!" Faith waved the moment he opened the door.