“Is he okay?”
She looked over her shoulder. “Come with me.”
Brett followed her into a comfortable living room.
She closed the door into the hallway before offering him a seat. “Dave has been hurt. He asked me not to say anything to his mom until he’s feeling better.”
Brett was glad he was sitting down. “What happened?”
Maria sighed. “Before he arrived at his mom’s house, he saw two men parked down the road. He drove around town for ten minutes, but they were still there when he came back. He approached their truck and asked them what they were doing.”
Brett had a horrible feeling about where this conversation was heading.
“The men had been looking for Dave. They beat him up, warned him about not helping his father, then left him in the gutter.”
“Has he been to the hospital?”
“He wouldn’t go.”
Brett clenched his jaw. “He’ll go with me. Where is he?”
Maria shook her head. “Dave is a friend of my son’s. I promised he’d be safe here.”
“He’ll be safer if he goes to the hospital. He needs a doctor to look at him.”
“I don’t think you realize how worried he is. Dave thinks that if he goes to the hospital, the staff will call the police. He doesn’t want his family to get into any more trouble.”
Brett stood. “I’ll make sure they’re safe. Where is he, Maria?”
“I’m only doing this because I know how much Dave looks up to you. But he’s fragile. You have to be gentle with him.”
“I promise I won’t upset him.”
Maria opened the living room door and walked down the hallway. She pointed to a room on the left. “He’s in there. If you need anything, let me know.”
“Thank you.”
Maria nodded and left him in the hallway.
Brett knocked on the door. When he didn’t hear anything, he slowly turned the handle. “Dave? Are you all right?”
“Not really,” came a muffled reply.
He stepped into the room.
Dave was sitting semi-upright in bed.
It was just as well Maria had warned Brett about the beating. His breath caught when he saw Dave’s face. “You’ll have a couple of black eyes.”
“It looks worse than it is.” Dave winced as he pulled himself higher in the bed.
“Are you sure about that?”
Dave dropped his head to his chest. “I’m not sure about anything. I’m sorry I left.”
Brett sat on the end of the bed. “We’ve found the painting. Thomas’ sister knocked it off the wall and hid it in the linen closet.”
“Why did she do that?”
