Professor Hot Pants

by Ember-Raine Winters

  “Fuck that, I don’t accept that. Let’s go to the police station and see what they say.” We walked out of the apartment and I stopped before the crowd of reporters, clearing my throat. “I want to make a statement. The little girl who you’ve seen in the photo was taken today by a man who abused her. We are asking for your help. Abby is the sweetest little girl in the world and doesn’t deserve this. If anyone has any information on her whereabouts, please call the police. We want her to come back unharmed. We would be forever grateful for any tips to her location.”

  They all started talking at once. There was nothing else to say, so we pushed through the crowd to my car and drove us to the police station. I was beating myself up the whole way. Philip stared absently out of the window. There was an oppressive silence in the car.

  The police station was alive with activity. There were people all over the place answering phones, and I noticed on the bottom of the TV screen there was a scrolling banner with a tip line number on it. I walked over to the officer at the desk. He looked tired and not like he wanted to be very helpful. “Excuse me? Who’s in charge of the Abby Reynolds case?”

  “Detective Masters, but he’s extremely busy, kid, so unless you have a credible tip then I suggest you go home,” he grumbled.

  “My name is Ryan. I’m in the photo you’ve been showing of her. I wanted to know if there was something I can do to help. I can’t just sit around waiting for you to find her. I need to do something.” My voice broke at the end. Philip rubbed my back to soothe me.

  The man looked up and tried for fake sympathy. “Look, kid, there’s nothing you can do. Go home and we’ll call you if we find something.” Repeatedly calling me kid irked me.

  “Let me man one of the tip lines, then. I can take the place of one of the officers and they can go out and search for her.” I pleaded with him, willing to do anything, even if it was something as stupid as getting the officers’ coffee. Whatever it took to keep my hands busy.

  “I’ve got something,” one of the officers yelled. I didn’t even bother waiting for the man’s response. I ran to the desk. Philip was close behind me.

  “Someone saw a man fitting Harold’s description heading north toward Emoryville. An old blue Honda Civic. They saw a little girl in the front seat who appeared to be crying.”

  “Abby’s not old enough to sit in the front seat.” I had no idea why I just blurted that information. It was stupid. He kidnapped her and planned on hurting her. He didn’t care if she was old enough to sit up front.

  “Get Emoryville PD on the phone. I want them searching for this car immediately.”

  “My sister lives there, her neighbor is a cop,” I said absently. I grabbed my phone and dialed Court.

  “Hey Ry, what’s up?” she sounded sad.

  “Is your neighbor home? The cop, Derek?” I asked.

  “I’m not sure, why?”

  “My friend was kidnapped. Remember I told you about Abby while you were in the hospital? We got a tip the kidnapper was headed your way and I wanted to give Derek my number. Philip and I are leaving now but it will be awhile before we can get there.”

  “Yeah, of course. I’ll call him right now. See you soon, little brother. I’ll call if Derek hears or knows anything.”

  “Thanks Court, see you soon.”

  The drive to Emoryville was a long one. I hated that drive but I hated it more then because it was two hours that I wasn’t helping look for Abby. A thought occurred to me and I felt like a complete asshole. “Any word on the foster brother?” I asked Philip. He kept his hand on my thigh the whole way, which was comforting. His touch always settled me.

  “Their mother isn’t exactly speaking to me right now. She is upset and irrational and blames Abby for what happened to her son.”

  “She what? How could she blame Abby for a psycho being after her?”

  “I know, but like I said that’s her biological child who was hurt. She isn’t being rational.”

  “If it’s anyone’s fault it’s her own damn fault for not listening when we said a sixteen-year-old kid wasn’t going to stop this guy,” I yelled hitting the steering wheel angrily.

  “Calm down, Ryan. We’re no good to Abby injured in a car accident.”

  “I know.” I glared out the windshield at the road ahead. We were almost there. I knew Derek would give me more information than they were giving me back home. I just needed to get there first. My foot itched to press harder on the gas, but I was already going ten miles over the speed limit. No matter how desperate I was to get to Abby, Philip was right. We were no good to her if we got in an accident.

  The last half hour of the drive was grueling. Abby was never far from my mind. When I finally pulled into the police station parking lot, I breathed a heavy sigh.

  PHILIP

  Ryan was on the verge of breaking. I could see it clear as day. I didn’t know what to do. He was trying to be strong but I knew it was a matter of time before he lost it completely. We needed to find Abby and quick.

  We walked into the police station and it only took a second before he saw who he was looking for. Ryan walked with long purposeful steps toward a man I’d only heard of but never seen before. I followed closely behind him.

  “Derek, this is Philip, my boyfriend,” Ryan introduced. I shook Derek’s hand silently celebrating in my head that he had introduced me that way. It was the truth, but hearing him say it out loud felt good. It felt like we had turned a corner to something more permanent. “Have you found anything?”

  “Sorry, we have the tip line and people have been calling but there hasn’t been anything concrete yet.”

  “Can we do anything to help?” I asked softly.

  “Honestly? Nothing really. I’ll keep you updated as best as I can, but I can’t have civilians out combing the streets for a kidnapper,” he said, which gave me an idea. We weren’t going to rest easy until we found her. I knew Ryan wouldn’t be able to sit still. I nodded.

  “You have Ryan’s number?” I asked getting ready to leave.

  “Yeah, here’s my card. If you see anything suspicious give me a call,” he said as if he could read my mind.

  I took the card from him and led Ryan out the door. “We’re gonna drive around and see if we see anything.”

  “Are you sure that’s a good idea?” Ryan asked with a raised brow.

  “It’s probably a monumentally bad idea, but I know neither of us will rest easy until we have helped however we can.” I reached my hand out for the car keys. Ryan handed them over. For all we knew, Harold had driven straight through town and kept going, but if we were lucky, he found an abandoned house or something to hide in. I just hoped he hadn’t hurt Abby.

  “We should probably check the outskirts of town first. He’d want to stay off the radar as much as possible,” Ryan said thoughtfully.

  “My thoughts exactly. He’ll want a straight shot out of town.”

  We drove through the streets of Emoryville, jumping at every blue car we saw. It was tiring and the sun was setting, which wouldn’t make the search easier. I was getting ready to turn around and go to the hotel when Ryan grabbed my arm. “Stop the car,” he yelled.

  “What?” I slammed on the breaks.

  “That old farm house. There’s an older model blue Civic. It’s half hidden behind the building, but I see it.” Ryan pulled out his phone and dialed Derek. “We found something. It looks to be an old abandoned farm house by the northbound highway.”

  Derek was yelling into the phone but I couldn’t make out the words. Ryan sighed heavily. “Yeah, we’ll stay put.”

  I turned off the headlights and parked in the field away from any windows. The fresh evening air poured into the open windows as we sat there waiting for Derek and the rest of the police to show up. My leg bounced in agitation, knowing we were so close to her and we weren’t able to get to her.

  “She’ll be okay, they’ll get here and we’ll get her back, she�
��ll be okay,” Ryan chanted over and over under his breath. It was heart breaking watching him crumble like that. His hands clenched and unclenched repeatedly like he was ready to jump out of the car and storm the house any second. He was fighting his own battles in his mind, and I wished he would let me in so we could help each other heal. I squeezed his hand in comfort and a weak smile crossed his lips. “Thanks, I don’t know what I would have done if you hadn’t been here.”

  “I love Abby too. There’s nowhere else I’d rather be.” A scream broke through the quiet night. We looked at each other with dread before jumping from the car. Ryan was faster. His long strides ate up the ground between him and the house as he sprinted toward the sound of the scream.

  By the time I got to the door, it was swinging in the breeze. I could hear Ryan’s panicked calls for Abby as he searched through the house.

  I walked inside and looked into each room for any sign of Abby. Ryan’s calls stopped abruptly. My heart beat wildly in my chest as I continued to scan each room. I wanted Harold to think Ryan was here alone. There was nothing I could do about the way Ryan had torn through the house, and I prayed that he was okay, that the reason his calls had stopped was because he found her and not because Harold had done something to him.

  Light spilled from a bedroom at the back of the house, quiet sobs coming from the room. My heartbeat hammered in my head as I crept forward quietly, then looked inside and saw Abby tied up next to Ryan who laid on the floor. Blood was oozing from his head. Rushing forward, I felt Ryan’s pulse and looked to Abby. She had some kind of gag in her mouth. I didn’t see Harold anywhere, but when Abby started shaking her head and grunting, clarity dawned as to what happened to Ryan. I turned just in time to duck out of the way. Leading with my shoulder, I barreled into him. His back hit the wall and whatever he hit Ryan with fell from his hand. His arm came around my neck and he squeezed trying to knock me out. That wasn’t happening. I raised a fist punching him in the kidney and he released me from his hold.

  “Might as well give up, Harold. You’re going to jail,” I said as I heard the sirens getting closer. Red and blue lights flashed into the windows and I grinned, putting my arm over his neck pinning him to the wall. Derek walked in shaking his head.

  “I told you to stay in the car,” Derek growled at me then shouted in his walkie-talkie. “I need the paramedics in here now, the suspect is secure.”

  One of the officers took over and handcuffed Harold before escorting him out to the police car. I stumbled over to Abby and started untying her. The gag came away first. “Is Ryan okay?” she whimpered.

  “The paramedics are here to take you both to the hospital to get checked out. Ryan will be fine, all right?” I reached down and untied her hands and feet. Abby launched herself into my arms.

  “I was so scared.” She sobbed into my neck. “I thought I was never going to see you again.”

  “We were never gonna let that happen, Abby bean.” Squeezing her tighter, I heard a masculine groan and looked over to see the EMTs loading Ryan onto a stretcher.

  “Abby? Is she okay?” He was groggy but I noticed the smile that lit up his face when he saw Abby, then they rolled back in his head.

  “His blood pressure is low, we need to get him to the hospital now,” the paramedic said with authority as they pushed him out of the room.

  Derek stopped us before we followed him out. “You must be Abby. I’ve heard a lot about you. I need to ask you some questions, but first we have to take you to the hospital to get checked out.” Abby nodded her head and one of the paramedics came back in to get her, but she refused to release her arms from around my neck.

  The man looked at her with kind eyes. “You want to ride in the ambulance with me?” She pulled away from my shoulder.

  “Philip?”

  “I’ll be right behind you, Abby bean. I need you to keep an eye on Ryan for me.” The best way to get a scared child to do something they didn’t want was give them a job. Abby nodded and let the EMT load her onto a stretcher.

  After waving at Abby as they loaded both her and Ryan into the ambulance, along with the two EMTs, I made my way over to Derek and my car.

  “Can you do me a favor and call Courtney? I don’t have her number. She’s gonna want to know about Ryan.”

  “Sure thing, I’ll let her know.”

  “Thanks.”

  When I got to the hospital, Courtney was already there. She must have driven like a crazy person to have gotten there before me.

  “One of these days you’re gonna get a ticket driving like that.” Derek laughed, shaking his head, fondness clear in his voice.

  “My brother is bleeding from his head and you expect me to follow the speed limit?” She scoffed.

  “Can you get me back there with Abby?” I asked Derek. “She’ll be terrified being alone back there.”

  “Sure, let me see what I can do.” He scratched his forehead before leaving me to go check. “Did anyone get in touch with her case worker?”

  “I’m not sure. If someone called the police back home and let them know she’d been found, he’d be on their call list. I have his number.”

  “Thanks, I’ll go see if I can get you in back there,” Derek said, then left.

  I walked back to the waiting area and pulled out my phone. Daniel answered on the second ring, sounding like he was connected through his Bluetooth.

  “Are you with Abby?” he asked by way of greeting.

  “Getting ready to see if they’ll let me go back and sit with her.”

  “I’m on my way out there now it will be about an hour before I can get there.” He sounded tired. We all were pretty much at our wits end.

  “Okay, I’ll see you then.” I hung up the phone and noticed Courtney crying in the corner. I rushed over to her. “What’s happened?”

  “Ryan has some swelling on his brain. They might have to operate in order to reduce the pressure if it doesn’t lessen.” I pulled her up and wrapped my arms around her. I was in utter disbelief, shocked since he’d woken up for a second before we’d left that awful farmhouse.

  Derek walked over to us with a quizzical frown. “They, um, said you can go be with Abby now.”

  “Shit, Abby. She’s gonna be crushed. Ryan has to wake up.” Tears were falling freely and I didn’t care who saw me cry. I should have stopped him from running into that house the way he did.

  I barely remember giving my name to the nurse and being led to Abby’s room. She was crying even more than I’d been. Her wrists and ankles were bandaged. Dammit, I hadn’t even noticed there’d been marks on them when I pulled the rope from her skin.

  “It’s okay, Abby bean, I’m here. I’m not going anywhere.” Sitting down next to her on the bed, I reached out and stroked her hair.

  “Ryan? They were shouting that his heart stopped in the ambulance. They wouldn’t let me go with him.”

  “Shhh, I know, sweetheart, but we have to have positive thoughts. He’ll be all right as long as we keep believing in him.” It was the only thing I could say to comfort her.

  “Everyone I love dies,” she whimpered.

  “Hey, no don’t do that. Ryan is going to be fine. You’ll see.” I pushed up onto the bed, raising it, so I could sit up and hold her. Pulling her into a hug as she sat on my lap, I was torn wanting desperately to be sitting at Ryan’s bedside but I knew where he’d want me to be. That thought kept me holding onto Abby crying softly with her for over an hour.

  There was a soft knock at the door sometime later. Daniel walked in, there were bags under his eyes that shone with unshed tears. “I heard about Ryan from the police officer out in the waiting room. There’s still no change.”

  “Thanks for letting me know. Was his sister out there?”

  “No, they let her go back already. He’s stable for now and they’re monitoring the swelling closely. It hasn’t gotten any worse so that’s a plus. If they can get it to go down, then they can avoid su
rgery.”

  “Good, I’m glad Court’s in there with him. He shouldn’t be alone even if he doesn’t realize it,” I said absently.

  “How are you, Abby?” he asked.

  “Okay I guess. I want to see Ryan.” She sniffled on the verge of more tears. I reached up brushing her hair back and kissing her forehead.

  “I know, Abby bean, but as soon as he wakes up you know who the first person he’s going to want to see is, don’t you?” She nodded her head pointing at me. I laughed. “No, silly girl, he’ll want to see his princess before anyone else.”

  “The police have some questions for Abby,” Derek said softly. I nodded my head moving from the bed. Abby clutched my hand tightly, not letting me go.

  “Can’t Philip stay?”

  “I don’t see why not. Can I talk to him outside real quick though? I promise we’ll just be a moment.” Abby nodded and released my hand in silent agreement.

  “I’ll be right back.” I opened the door stepping out followed by Daniel.

  “I don’t have a home for her, Philip. The mom is being a real bitch about her son and blaming everything on Abby. I swear people suck when they blame the victim. If I can’t find a place for her, she’s gonna go to a group home.”

  “She’s only nine. She’ll get swallowed alive in a place like that,” I barked at him.

  “I know, but there may not be anything else I can do.” I’d noticed before how tired he looked, but I hadn’t really given it too much thought. This little girl’s future weighed on him as much as it did on the rest of us. His shoulders were hunched forward and his hair was in a disarray as if he’d been running his hands through it over and over.

  “Can I appeal the judge’s decision? There was never even a proceeding where I could plead my case,” I asked. Daniel’s eyes brightened marginally. It wasn’t fair to send her to a group home when there was someone who wanted her. They had to see reason. Her being with me and Ryan was better for her than anything. There were so many kids in the system that felt unwanted. Abby was wanted.