"He'll get it when we return," Dad asserts.
"Where are you going?" she asks.
"Dad's going to kill Wyatt's father!" I shout in a panic.
Mom's jaw drops.
"Mind your own business, Willow," Dad orders.
"Jacob?" Mom questions.
"Shotguns are in the truck," Sebastian informs Dad, stepping through the doorway.
Dad grabs his hat off the hook and puts it on.
"Jacob?" Mom says again, tugging on his arm.
"We'll be back soon. Wyatt, let's get your stuff. Then you aren't going back there ever again. Understand?" Dad insists.
"Yes, sir," Wyatt replies, and brushes past Sebastian.
"Dad! Please don't kill him. You'll end up in jail," I plead.
He turns. "Willow, do what your mother says. Go get the first aid kit."
"Yes, sir," I reply, then suggest, "Why can't Wyatt stay here? Can't Jagger and Sebastian go in and get his stuff?"
"Mind your own business, Willow," Dad says, then kisses Mom on the cheek. "I'll be back soon."
"Don't do anything stupid, Jacob," she warns.
He says nothing as he steps outside.
Mom stares after him, then shuts the door and spins toward me. "Do what your father said, and also bring a pile of towels."
"Yes, ma'am," I reply, then run upstairs and into the bathroom. I open the cabinet, grab the first aid kit and towels, then meet Mom in the kitchen.
I set everything on the table and blurt out, "Why does Wyatt's dad hurt him?"
Mom's eyes narrow. "Because he's a drunk and a coward."
"Wyatt doesn't deserve that," I say.
Mom takes a deep breath. "No, he doesn't. I don't know what that boy was thinking going over there alone." She turns on the water and picks up a pot, then scrubs it with a steel pad.
I pace the kitchen.
She stops what she's doing. "Willow, go outside and do that. You're making me nervous."
I don't argue, heading for the door.
She calls out, "Hey. I thought Hazel was here."
I turn, telling her, "I had Ava take her home."
Surprise fills Mom's expression. "Ava? Is that a good idea?"
I shrug. "Probably not, but I don't want Hazel to gossip about Wyatt all over school."
