Chapter 15

Kadin's father brought in his son's bags and sat them on the floor. "Remember to be respectful," he said.

"I will," Kadin said. They hugged, and his father left the house. He watched his father drive away before sitting next to Ben. Kadin glanced over at the bottle of sleeping pills and noticed the name on the label. "Deb McBride" was what it said. "What is he doing with someone else's medication?" he asked himself. Kadin wrapped his jacket around Ben's shoulders and said, "I'll be right back," grabbing the bottle and heading out of the bedroom.

Kadin found Alec and Deb talking in Alec's study. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but can I talk with you?" He asked, lightly knocking on the door.

"Sure, son," Alec said, motioning for Kadin to sit down.

"I found these in his bedroom," the young brunette said, placing the open medicine bottle on the desk. Deb reached across the desk and picked up the bottle. She squinted her eyes and read the label.

"This is an old bottle," she said. "Look at the date," she said, handing it to her husband.

Alec glanced at the bottle and said, "I thought you stopped using these," placing it on the desk.

"I did," she said.

"Then how did the boy find them?" Alec asked.

"I don't know," Deb said. She started to feel annoyed. "I thought I threw them away," she said.

"You stay with your friend while we double-check the house," Alec suggested. Kadin headed back to Ben's room to check on him. He found Ben standing at the window and walked up.

"What are you looking at?" Kadin asked.

When Ben faced him, there was fear in his eyes. Kadin faced the window and glimpsed a man behind a bush across the street. He squinted to get a better look. When the older man raised his head, Kadin noticed the similarity. "Ben, come with me," Kadin ordered. The two boys left the bedroom and searched for Mr. and Mrs. McBride.

"I think we might have a problem," Kadin said, finding Alec in the living room and stepping up to him.

"What's wrong, son?" Alec asked.

"Do any of you know what Ben's father looks like?" Kadin asked.

"Officer Jenkins would," Deb said.

Alec called the officer and explained the situation. "I'm going to put you on speakerphone," he said as he handed the phone to Kadin.

"I'm sorry to trouble you, officer Jenkins," Kadin said. "Can you describe what Ben's father looks like?" he asked. Kyle gave Kadin a description, and the boy glanced over at his friend.

"I believe Ben and I saw him from his window, standing across the street, staring at us," Kadin explained. "Isn't he in jail?" Kadin asked.

"He's supposed to be," Kyle said. "Let me double check with the station and call you back," he said. Kadin handed Alec the phone and said, "I have a bad feeling about this."

Kadin sat down beside Ben and wrapped his jacket around his shoulders. Ben's erratic breathing normalized. Several questions ran through Kadin's mind. "Was that Ben's father they saw?" "What was he doing out of jail?" and "If it was him, what did he want?" Kadin noticed Ben clutching his hand. "I'm sorry," Kadin apologized. "My mind was running away from me," he said.

"He isn't going to hurt me again, is he?" Ben whispered in a shaky voice.

"We'll all make sure he is no threat to you," Alec said.

"Even you?" Ben looked over at Kadin and asked.

"Yes, even me," Kadin said, nodding his head.

The phone rang later that afternoon. The two boys that sat on the couch turned their heads.

"Hello, McBride residence," Alec said, answering the phone.

"Hello, this is Officer Jenkins," Kyle said.

"Hello, thanks for calling us back," Alec said. "Have you heard anything about his father?" he asked.

"I contacted my superiors and was informed that he had been released," Kyle explained.

"You mean they let that bastard out?" Alec asked. Alec hung up when he heard a soft gasp behind him.

Ben stood in the doorway. The color drained from his face, and the tray of food crashed to the floor. Kadin came running when Alec yelled, "Kadin, we need you now!" He got to Ben's side as the boy collapsed to the floor.

"What happened?" Kadin asked, holding Ben in his arms.

"They released his father," Alec said. "He overheard the conversation," he said. Kadin looked down at Ben and mentally cursed.

Alec carried Ben to his room, and Kadin followed closely behind. "Stay with him while I call Dr. Quinn," Alec said, leaving after he laid Ben in bed and covered him up. Kadin sat on the edge of the bed and kept watch. Kadin only understood bits and pieces of Ben's mumbling while he drifted in and out of consciousness. Kadin stayed beside Ben, who cried off and on and repeated, "We'll protect you," over and over. Dr. Quinn showed up an hour later.

"Let's see how his body is doing," he said, setting his medical bag on the bed.

Dr. Quinn did his usual tests to check on Ben's health. "His health is fine except for the blood pressure, which is elevated," he said.

"It wouldn't have gone up if that jerk stayed where he belonged," Kadin said, raising his voice and clenching his hands.

"It's not in the danger zone, but keep an eye on it," the doctor said. "The less stress, the better," he said.

"We'll make sure that this problem is taken care of," Alec and Kadin said.

The Thanksgiving holiday had started badly, but good things came out of everything that happened. Kadin stayed with Ben to make sure he was calm. They planned Thanksgiving dinner together.

"We'll be fixing both ham and turkey," Alec said. "Kadin, do you have any preferences?" he asked.

"Cranberry sauce is one of my favorites," he answered. "What about you?" Kadin asked, turning to face Ben.

"I'd like to have mashed potatoes with gravy," he said. "The regular type, not sweet potatoes," he added.

"Okay, that's settled then," Alec said.

Everyone helped prepare for the feast. Officer Jenkins even came over and helped.

"You look a lot better," Kyle said.

"Thank you," Ben said. "If it wasn't for Kadin, I would've lost my marbles completely," he said.

"It's good to have people who care," Kyle said.

"Yeah, but it was Kadin who pulled me through it," he said. When Kadin heard that, he hugged Ben from behind.

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