Chapter 3
My rabbit felt damp against my hands. I didn't let go. Marcus still knelt beside bed, leather vest creaking when he breathed. Chrome rail cold where his scarred hand rested. Fluorescent light hummed above us. Andrea stood near doorway, dark blue shirt catching light, gold necklace small against her throat. She held notebook, pen uncapped.
Marcus looked at me, then at Andrea. His voice came low, careful.
"Sarah worked at Ricky's diner off Highway 17," he said. "She waited tables. Night shift. I stopped there late. Few weeks ago."
Andrea wrote fast. "Sarah is Lily's mom?"
Marcus nodded. "Sarah Miller. Single mom. Lily here." He glanced down at my rabbit, at my hands gripping it. "She asked for help. Not money. Asked us to watch. Said boyfriend caused trouble. Said she feared him near Lily."
I swallowed. My throat hurt. Water cup sat on tray beside bed. I didn't drink.
"She came to clubhouse?" Andrea asked.
"No. Diner parking lot. After close," Marcus said. "She waited by my bike. Hands shaking. Asked if Iron Wolves helped moms. I said we did. She didn't want cops then. Feared losing Lily. Feared him more."
Fluorescent light buzzed. Monitor beeped slow behind me.
Marcus kept talking, eyes on me now, not Andrea. "Two weeks ago Sarah showed bruise on her arm. Purple, finger-shaped. Said Ray grabbed her hard when she told him leave. Said Ray heard her on phone, got mad. I offered to walk her home. She said no, he'd get worse if he saw us. Made me promise. Said if anything happened, check on Lily. Promise to keep Lily safe."
My chest tightened. I remembered that bruise. Mom wore long sleeve even inside apartment, even when heat ran. She told me she bumped counter. She pulled sleeve down quick when Ray looked. I tucked that memory away till now. Rabbit ears twisted between my fingers.
Andrea stepped closer, notebook up. "Marcus, what's your last name? Relationship to Lily?"
"Marcus Cole," he said. "Friend of Sarah's. No blood. Brotherhood, not family. Promised Sarah I'd watch Lily if trouble came."
Andrea's pen paused. "You understand brotherhood not legal guardianship. CPS decides placement. Sheriff decides safety. You can't take Lily from hospital. You can't go to apartment alone."
Marcus jaw tightened. Scar on his knuckle caught light. "I know," he said. "I stayed here when hospital called. Didn't move. Sarah listed me as emergency contact at diner. Diner manager called me when Sarah didn't show for shift, when school said Lily didn't get picked up."
I breathed fast then. Andrea looked at me. Her face softened, but her voice stayed even.
"Lily," she said. "You said bad man might come back before sunrise. Is bad man Ray?"
My hands squeezed rabbit harder. Pink nose pressed into my palm. I nodded. Tears burned again, but I didn't wipe them.
"Can you tell us what Ray looks like? Sounds like?" she asked, quiet.
I stared at blue blanket, then at Marcus vest, then back. My voice came small. I remembered boots first.
"He wears heavy boots," I said. "Brown, dirty. They thump loud on floor. Like loud."
Marcus didn't move. Andrea wrote.
"Voice low," I whispered. "Mean when he talks to Mom. Says Mom hides things. Says Mom thinks she's smart."
My throat caught. I coughed. Marcus reached, slow, didn't touch me, just slid water cup closer.
"Ray's last name?" Andrea asked gentle.
I shook head. "Mom just said Ray."
Andrea glanced at Marcus.
"Ray Nolan," Marcus said. "Drove black pickup, dented fender. Worked odd jobs, hung at gas station near diner. Sarah said he stayed at apartment sometimes. Said she wanted him gone."
Andrea nodded, wrote Ray Nolan, black pickup, boots, voice. She looked at Marcus again, eyes narrowed slight.
"Marcus, I document you here as protective adult, not custodian," she said. "Means you stay bedside, don't chase Ray. Sheriff handles Ray. Understand risk. If you go after him, Lily loses you."
May you like
Marcus nodded once, hard. "I stay," he said. "Till sunrise. Till Sarah found. Promise holds here."
Monitor beeped. Window showed black night still, no gray at edges. Sunrise hours away. Rabbit stayed locked in my hands, beige fur warm now. Andrea closed notebook halfway, but kept pen ready. Sheriff not yet arrived, but Ray had name now, and Marcus had reason for kneeling there.
