“I’ve got Joey. We’ll take him and Lotte’s SUV home. Call us if you need us,” Jason said. Then he came to Emil. “Hey, do you need anything from Lotte’s car?”
Emil tried to make his brain work and eventually managed to shake his head. “No. Thanks.”
“Okay. I’ll take care of Joey.”
“Thank you,” Emil said, making eye contact with Jason, who nodded and gave him a small smile.
Then Joey came to give him a hug, and soon they were gone. When Emil looked around, he realized he and Dad were in a small room that must’ve been one of the waiting rooms.
“Can you,” he started, then swallowed hard and tried again. “Can you tell me what happened?”
Dad sat next to him and sighed. “We got a call about an accident on County Highway G. Hazardous material tanker fell over after hitting an SUV. Nobody was hurt, but there was a possibility of a leak, and we had to go there as fast as possible because we were closer than the Mercer guys.”
Emil nodded. County Highway G was north of Acker, and depending on where the accident happened, it made sense that they’d called the sheriff’s department for help with something like that.
“While we were there, Erin was at the station, and apparently Makai called because he’d seen Frank rough Lizzie up in town. I can’t tell you details, but Erin said it sounded like Makai had a feeling something really bad was going to happen.”
Emil nodded again. Makai had seen violence. He’d know the signs.
“So Makai followed them to their house, and however things went there, Frank shot him.”
“How’s Lizzie? And what happened to Frank?”
“Lizzie has a broken arm and a concussion. Frank is heavily guarded in the ICU.”
“What happened to him?”
“Makai used something heavy to hit him to get him to drop the gun. He hit a bit too hard.”
Emil swallowed the bile that threatened to rise. “Is he… are they going to say he’s to blame?” He looked at Dad now.
“No. I don’t think so, son. He went in to protect Lizzie. He almost—look, Makai is going to be fine, and this time, Lizzie is talking. It’ll be okay.” Dad seemed to figure out what he’d been about to say when Emil let out a small wounded noise, and Dad gathered him against his side. “He’s going to be fine. They’re going to fix whatever is wrong, and you’ll just have to help him while he gets better, okay?”
Emil wanted to believe him, but for this, he’d have to see Makai first.
They sat in silence for ten or so minutes, and then Emil sighed. “He was so adamant about coming to see you on Thursday, after he goes with me to Evy’s. He’s…. Dad, he’s so important, I can’t….” He choked a sob, and Dad squeezed him harder.
“I will do everything I can to make sure he won’t be blamed for anything. Even if Frank wakes up, he won’t be able to get a lawyer good enough to spin this in his favor. Nobody around these parts who works with law would take his case, anyway. And the public defender who gets assigned to him will soon learn what kind of guy he is and how long he’s gotten away with what he’s done to Lizzie. It won’t go anywhere.”
Dad tensed then, and Emil knew he was trying to choose his words very carefully. Emil pulled away so that he could see Dad’s face for whatever it was he had to get off his chest.
“I might’ve requested all possible files on Makai last week,” Dad confessed, looking shamefaced.
“You… what?” Emil didn’t know how to feel.
“Yes. I mean his prison files. I pulled some strings. I know what happened to him there, son, and….”
It wasn’t often Emil had seen his dad tear up, but now there was a glimmer in his eyes. For Makai.
“Dad, I don’t even know what to say.” Emil sighed. “I want to be mad at you for looking all that stuff up. It’s Makai’s story to tell, not for you to look up in some impersonal paperwork!” He felt frustrated for a moment, but…. “I understand, though, why you did it. I appreciate it, but….”
“He lost a decade of his life. He hasn’t had normal young adult experiences, and he’s thirty, Emil. That was one of the things that worried me. But I know him better now, and with what I learned….” Dad took a deep breath and looked at Emil. “Sadly, you two aren’t that different. You aren’t on two different levels like I originally thought. And it’s so wrong. Neither of you should’ve had to go through all the things you did because of other people.” Dad swallowed hard. “If this is who you want to be with, if Makai is the person for you, son, then I’m glad. He’s a good man, and he shouldn’t have had to save two people he didn’t even know that well just to get me to see through my prejudice.”
Tears rolled down Emil’s cheeks, and he lunged at Dad to hug him again. They stayed like that for ten seconds or so, then pulled away again.
Something occurred to Emil. “Wait, has anyone called his mom?”
Dad groaned. “No, didn’t even cross our minds. We were too busy getting to you.”
