“We’ll definitely come to family night on Saturday. That way I can see your world a bit.”
“Sounds good,” he said.
I set my elbow on the island and leaned my head into my hand. “He seems to like you, which is huge in my book. On the other hand, he likes most people. He’s sweet and a rule follower, which means he can be easily manipulated.”
“I don’t think that’s true,” Stoney countered.
I raised an eyebrow. “You don’t?”
He sighed. “I’m gonna fill you in on a couple of things, but I need you not to freak out.”
“Telling me not to freak out makes me want to freak out.”
“Felix told me what happened, pretty much play-by-play.”
“What?” I whispered. “When?”
“In the hospital.”
“Why did he tell you and not me?” I demanded.
“He said he didn’t want you to be scared. He felt it was his job to protect you.”
I covered my mouth with my hand and shook my head.
“You okay?”
I nodded, clearing my throat. “I’m okay.”
“I don’t think this is a good idea,” he said, taking a swig of beer.
“No. It is. I’m okay.” I took a sip of wine, then another. “I’ll just keep drinking until it doesn’t hurt anymore.” I shrugged. “See? I’m totally cool.” I took two more sips of wine.
“I’m gonna tell you everything and try not to stop, yeah? Then you can process.”
I nodded, sipping more wine, and Stoney smiled gently.
“Felix said that the teacher’s aide asked him to help her find one of his friends, but the second he got around the corner, he knew he shouldn’t be there. He said he kicked her and would have gotten away, but then a man grabbed him and stuck him with a needle. He didn’t remember anything until he woke up in a dark room. He was chained to a bed, but he couldn’t get loose, so he yelled at the top of his lungs. Another man came in and told him to shut up, then he said they gave him another shot. But before the shot, he said he told the bad men that Luca would bust a cap on their butts.”
“He didnot.”
“Verbatim, baby. Exactly what he said.” Stoney grinned proudly. “Then he woke up in the ambulance with Luca and he said that he knew his uncle would find him.”
“Jesus,” I hissed.
“So, my takeaway from this is that he was too drugged up to know exactly what was happening. We got to him before anyone could do anything unthinkable to him, and although he was scared, he was also brave. I think he’ll process more as time goes on, and we’ll have to deal with that, but I think he’ll tell us as things come up for him.” He gave my hand a squeeze. “He’s a remarkable kid, Sabrina. Y’all have done a great job.”
I swallowed. “Can I process now?”
“Yeah, sweetheart, do what you gotta do.”
“I’ll be right back.”
I slid off the stool and headed for the downstairs bathroom, closing myself in and sliding to my butt. I dropped my head to my knees and lost my hold on my tears, my heart squeezing painfully at the thought of my nephew being so frightened.
I don’t know how long I’d been in there, but a quiet knock at the door pulled me from my breakdown and I forced myself up off my ass. “I’ll be right out.”
I washed my hands, dabbed at my tears, then pulled open the door. Stoney pushed off of the wall where he’d waited for me and gave me a gentle smile. “The timer went off, so I pulled out the lasagna.”
