Life hadn’t been kind, but he managed the best he could, always trying to find the good in others.
But the people outside that door, in this place…there was no good here to find.
Ben closed his eyes and held his phone close to his chest, willing Sam to respond. He gasped when the phone vibrated moments later. He blinked a few times, focusing his vision, and releasing a shaky breath at Sam’s reply.
I’ll be there soon. I called Aidan. He’s on his way.
Ben’s shoulders slumped. Relief or embarrassment, he wasn’t sure. He battled with the nagging tug in the back of his mind, worried about seeing the detective again, the one who had taken the time to help Ben reconnect with his sister after so many years.
But he’d take the embarrassment. Aidan was the only man who could likely stop Jake with a simple glare, and make a few phone calls to push Sam’s request through the system to move Ben elsewhere. Right now, he’d take the rescue any way he could get it. Welcomed it with open arms, even if he needed to beg or subject himself to a reprimanding lecture.
He wouldn’t survive here.
They would eventually take his phone and wouldn’t care about the damage they left in their wake. A black eye could easily lead to a broken arm or hand if he continued to resist. Without his phone or use of his hands, he wouldn’t be able to communicate in the hearing world.
He closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the wall.
After leaving his childhood home, there had only been one place where he had felt safe.
Right now, that was exactly where he needed to be.
He just hoped Sam arrived in time to take him there.
Ben held the ice pack to his eye as they pulled into the rear parking lot of Halfway House. Thankfully, Sam hadn’t pushed during the hour-long drive. The day had been a long one, so it shouldn’t have surprised him that it would end with a standing ovation of drama. Definitely not the way he wanted to start the new year.
Aidan had arrived with another detective and started quoting statutes and laws and other things that seemed to just roll together too quickly for Ben to understand. The man’s lips had moved a million miles per minute, and Ben couldn’t keep up with the lipreading to decipher more than a fraction of what was said. Especially with his swelling eye and now-blurring vision. But Aidan’s facial expression, body language, and finger jabbing at the house owner were unmistakable. The detective had been livid.
Sam had arrived sometime later, accompanied by uniformed officers and a court representative. With an expedited court-ordered transfer in hand, Ben was out of there and on his way to Julian and Matt’s house, leaving behind that hell and its inhabitants with the authorities.
Sam’s hand on his shoulder pulled him from his thoughts. “C’mon, they’re waiting,” he signed while he slowly mouthed the words. Sam reached out and pulled away the ice pack, his eyebrows twitching as he inspected Ben’s eye. “Keep the ice on as much as you can. It’ll help.”
Ben returned the ice pack to his eye and opened the passenger door with his free hand, trying not to dwell on his failure. He blew out a deep breath and stared up at the two-story building while Sam grabbed his bag from the back seat.
Years had passed since he was last here, but everything appeared the same.
A fresh coat of paint showed they still cared for their house. New paint, but the same earth-toned colors Matt preferred. The tree in the corner of the lot had grown a few feet over the years. The lawn was manicured, obviously freshly cut by the scent of grass lingering in the thick humid night air. Ben remembered how Julian never let anyone touch the house or anything around it. Aside from helping Matt with the initial renovations, Julian was the contractor who did all the maintenance and repairs.
Except for the planting of flowers.
Ben glanced over to the flowerbeds at the corner of the house and smiled. Poinsettias. Matt had obviously been busy changing out the flowers for the season.
“It adds color and makes people smile,” was what Matt had told him back then.
Ben couldn’t argue. Not when the smile played on his lips in that very moment.
He glanced over to the corner of the porch, his smile widening. Protected by the night air and humidity was Julian’s barbecue. The man couldn’t work a stove or oven, but he could grill the best damn burgers Ben had ever eaten.
Sam’s hand on his shoulder nudged him forward. They walked toward the back porch steps seconds before the rear door swung open.
Matthew Doner appeared, a slow smile spreading across his face. “You’ve grown so much,” Matt said as he signed.
Ben half smiled, embarrassed but thankful at the greeting. He had grown about an inch since his last visit, definitely not enough for fanfare. But he had finally grown into himself, slouching a lot less and filling out with daily workouts while serving his time in prison.
Julian Capeletti appeared behind his partner. Those pale green eyes stared down at him, hiding any hint of whatever thoughts crossed his mind.
Ben swallowed heavily and walked up the few steps to meet them on the porch. He stared at his worn sneakers as he moved forward. The last thing he needed to accompany the black eye was a broken leg or sprained ankle from a misstep…at least, that was what he told himself. His heart pounded as he waited, trying to delay confronting the pity, concern, or disappointment he figured he would see staring back at him. He had failed them by screwing up again. And he likely compounded that disappointment by not choosing to come to their house upon his release.
He wanted to hide, but Julian and Matt had never given him a reason to. He looked up and lowered the ice pack from his swelling eye, wanting to meet Julian’s pale green gaze without obstruction.
He was no longer the young kid they’d known. Not entirely. He was now twenty-four, physically stronger, and with the harder edges and tighter lines that often came with age. Still curious as ever and innocent in more ways than he wanted to admit, he was navigating through the bumpy road to responsible adulthood. But he had stumbled far too many times to believe he could do it alone.
“Welcome home,” Julian signed. A single deep swallow from the stoic man was the only indication of emotion. Julian reached out and gripped the back of Ben’s neck, pulling him into a hug.
Ben sagged into the firm embrace, gasping a breath when Matt joined in and stroked his hair.
He had guessed wrong. Again. They hadn’t pushed him away or given him a disappointing shake of their heads. Instead, they greeted him, welcomed him with a tight hold he couldn’t—and wouldn’t—escape.
He hadn’t realized how much he needed this or how much he had missed the support they had always offered.
Tomorrow, he’d worry about finding his way through the maze of life.
Tonight, he wrapped his arms around the house owners, thankful he wasn’t alone as the tears he had held back for years finally spilled.
Bull shut the door of the small storage room behind him, careful to avoid the click of the lock. With his client’s daughter now safely tucked away, he sought cover in a small alcove along the hallway of the hotel. Reinforcements were due to arrive, and he had to buy some time. After tonight, this job would be over. Then the real job of making things up to his sister would begin.
He hadn’t been home for Thanksgiving or Christmas. He was never going to hear the end of it.