Chapter 14: Carrying Him Past the Frame
The sirens got louder outside and then they cut off all at once right in front of the house. I could hear doors slamming on the driveway and boots on the front walk. Arthur was still on the blanket on the living room floor where we'd moved him after they cut the tape off his wrists. He hadn't said much, just breathed, and his hands stayed curled in his lap like he didn't know what to do with them now that they were free.
Two paramedics came in with the deputy. They had a gray medical bag and a folded stretcher. One of them kneeled next to Arthur right away and the other talked to my dad.
"Sir, we're going to evaluate him here before we move him," the first one said. She put on gloves and looked at Arthur's face. "Mr. Arthur, can you tell me your name?"
Arthur nodded. His voice was rough. "Arthur."
She checked his pulse at his wrist and then shined a small light in his eyes. I stood by his shoulder. She lifted the edge of his shirt sleeve and I saw the red rings around his wrists where the tape had been, raw and indented. When she helped him shift his weight a little to look at his back, I saw the pale sores starting low on his spine. She didn't say anything loud about it, she just glanced at the second paramedic.
"Dehydrated, restraint marks on both wrists, early bedsores, low blood pressure," she said quietly while she wrapped a cuff around his arm. "We're going to get fluids in him at the hospital."
The APS caseworker came and kneeled on Arthur's other side. She put a blanket from her bag around his shoulders even though he already had one. Arthur looked at me and tried to reach for my hand. His fingers were cold.
The paramedics unfolded the stretcher next to him. The metal legs clicked open. They asked Arthur if he could help them slide him over and he shook his head a little. So they counted, one two three, and lifted him. He made a small sound but didn't complain. They buckled the straps across his chest and legs. One of them tucked the blanket around him again.
My dad stayed right next to the stretcher. "I'm riding with him," he told the deputy.
The deputy nodded. "You can follow the ambulance or ride up front if they have space. Either way, you're clear to go to county."
They started to move the stretcher toward the front door. To get there they had to go past the living room wall where the portrait still hung. The canvas was torn straight down the middle and the two gray metal doors behind it were propped open. I could see the dark space inside where Arthur had been. The blue bucket was still in there.
I walked beside the stretcher. I didn't let go of Arthur's hand. He squeezed mine once, weak but on purpose. As we went past the frame, he turned his head and looked at it. I felt his hand tighten for a second and then relax.
Outside, the ambulance was parked with its back doors open. The light was bright on the driveway. A couple of neighbors were standing down by the mailbox watching. The paramedics lifted the stretcher and slid it in. My dad climbed in the side door after them. Before they closed it, he looked back at me.
"Stay with the deputy and Ms. Carter," he said. "I'll call you from the hospital as soon as they let me. You did good. You stay right there until I get back, okay?"
I nodded. "Okay."
The doors shut and the ambulance pulled away slow at first and then faster down Calder Road, no siren now, just steady.
Back inside, the house felt too quiet. Mom and Vincent were standing in the dining area by the window where the deputy had told them to wait. They weren't near Arthur's blanket anymore. The caseworker, Ms. Carter, stood between me and them.
A second deputy came in from the front hall holding a clipboard and two papers. He walked over to Mom first.
"Ma'am, I'm serving you with an emergency protective order," he said. His voice was even. "And you, sir. This order says you are both prohibited from having contact with Arthur Carrow and you are not to return to or remain at Calder House. You are not to leave the county without permission from the court. Do you understand?"
Mom didn't answer right away. She looked at the paper in his hand and then at me. Vincent took his paper without saying anything. His jaw was tight.
"You need to collect any essential personal items under supervision and then you will need to leave the property today," the deputy said. "If you have questions, contact the number on that sheet. It has your court date."
Ms. Carter turned a little so she was facing me and not them. "Eli, is it okay if you and I sit in the kitchen for a few minutes? Your dad said it was okay for us to talk while he's at the hospital. You can tell me anything you want to, and you can stop anytime."
I looked at the front door where the ambulance had been. The deputy by the door nodded to me that it was okay.
May you like
"Yeah," I said.
We sat at the kitchen table. I could still hear Mom and Vincent in the other room getting their coats while the deputy watched. I kept my hands on the table where Ms. Carter could see them. Through the doorway, the torn portrait was still hanging open, empty now, with light falling across the dark gap where Arthur had been.
