The Summer the World Ended (43 page)

He waved. “I love you, Riley.”

Riley hesitated at the doorjamb, until the weight of the cop’s presence pulled her out of the room. Sergeant Rodriguez walked at her side through the hospital, down the elevator, and out through the lobby to the parking lot. She was grateful he’d spared her the embarrassment of being hauled around in handcuffs, but dreaded the moment they were out of the public eye. Were cops always this nice to kids looking at felony charges? How far could his charity go?

Probably all the way to the police car.

“Riley!” yelled a voice she’d never thought she’d hear again.

Kieran.

He came running over and grabbed her, lifting her off her feet in a breath-stealing hug. Riley lost the ability to speak for several minutes, sobbing tears of joy. She held on, legs wrapped around him, clinging for dear life.

“They told me what happened. Did you really ask about me?”

“Yes,” she wailed. “Sorry. I can’t stop crying.”

“I drove out to pick you up Saturday, but the house was empty. Both cars were still there, so I walked around, but…”

“Sorry.”

“Hey, don’t blame yourself.”

She sniffled. “I’m so stupid.”

He gave her a firm squeeze and set her back on her feet. “You’re not stupid. It was a… oh, what do they call it? A perfect storm of coincidence.”

The shrink said I’m still desperate for a father figure.
Riley frowned at his shoes. “I’m gullible. I believed him.”

“Anyone in your situation would’ve done the same. I’m so glad to see you’re okay. Everyone… uh, never mind.”

“What?” She furrowed her eyebrows, tears stopped.

“Uhm…” Kieran fidgeted and scratched his head. “People in town, they kinda thought the old guy’d finally snapped and killed you or something.”

“Oh, my God.” She gasped. “He’s not that kind of nuts. I thought
you
were dead.”

Riley shivered in place for another six seconds, and kissed him. His eyes shot wide. He stood there like an innocent bystander as Sergeant Rodriguez cleared his throat twice.

“Sorry.” Riley lowered her weight back onto her heels, leaving her hands clasped around his neck. “You’re really alive. You’re really here.”

“I know you, uh… got some stuff to deal with, but call me.” He handed her a folded piece of yellow paper. “Call me as soon as you can, don’t care what time.”

She took the paper and held it to her chest. “Okay.”

Cold, foreboding dread seeped through her limbs as she faced toward the waiting police car. She paused at the door, waiting for the cuffs, but Rodriguez put a hand on her head and guided her into the seat. She almost suppressed the flinch when the door closed.

Guess they’re gonna be friendly till I get sentenced
. She peered up at Kieran through the window as the door closed, trying not to cry again. The wider he smiled, the more her heart ached with fear.

Sergeant Rodriguez is being nice and not doing it in front of him.

iley scuffed her feet back and forth, making a continuous
ka-whoosh-snap
with her flip-flops on the linoleum tiles. Fear was better than ten cups of coffee. Another sleepless night curled up in an open jail cell hadn’t done much for her nerves. Her fingers dug into an unremarkable brown bench in the hallway of some scary government type building in the heart of T or C. A few people walked back and forth, all in suits and looking lawyer-y. She kept her gaze down, ashamed. Every time a police officer appeared from a side hallway or walked by, she flinched, wondering which one of them would come for her with chains.

Riley, the good girl, is gonna go to jail.
Mom would be devastated.

Sergeant Rodriguez had vanished through the office door two feet to her left over a half an hour ago. Only soft murmuring had come back out since. He’d asked her to wait here, by some miracle not tethering her to the bench. Of course, where would she go? If she ran, they’d only add ‘attempted escape’ to the charges… Besides, she had nowhere to run to.

They’d find me at Kieran’s.

She mulled back and forth over the four-hour meeting she’d had with some woman―Detective Contreras―that morning. Against Dad’s suggestion, she’d explained everything that happened as best as she could remember. She glossed over how close she’d come to shooting the biker, saying she was afraid he’d rape her if he got his hands on her. The detective, and the psychiatrist sitting in on the interview, appeared to agree her father had primed her into a suggestible mental state. They seemed to like it when she said she’d been terrified at the thought of shooting anyone.

I wonder how many years I’ll get for stealing barbecue ribs.
Was running at a cop with a gun in my pants a crime?
The color drained out of her face.
Thank God I wasn’t carrying it in my hand. Holy shit, I was a bloody mess. They’d have shot me.
Breakfast did a backflip in her stomach.
Going to jail is getting off light.
She let her head thud against the cinderblocks behind her, wondering if ‘kid jail’ was anything like the jail they show in movies. The desire to be in her own bedroom, her own sanctuary, away from all the craziness was so strong it hurt.

The doorknob twisted. She shot upright in the seat.

Sergeant Rodriguez exited the office with a manila folder under one arm. He looked down at her for a moment before walking past to sit on the bench at her side.

“Am I going to jail now?”

“Where did you get that from?” He chuckled. “No, Riley. The DA is not going to file any charges against you. You didn’t really do anything illegal. Freebird and Lonnie were more worried about you than you think. Everyone’s looking at you like a victim in this case.”

She covered her mouth with her hands and shook. No words came to mind.

“Your father is going to be held for observation. Looks like the judge will find him not responsible by reason of mental disease or defect. He’ll be hospitalized for some time, I can’t say how long, but he won’t go to prison.”

She smiled and let her arms fall in her lap. “I guess I can’t stay home, huh?”

“Nope. Not at fourteen.”

Riley shrank in on herself. “Guess I go to a shelter again?”

“Probably.” He leaned back. “Usually.”

Fear danced through her belly. Memories of horrible stories about sadistic foster parents from the news left her shaking.

“You seem like a nice girl. Not sure why the universe decided to let you have both barrels.”

She sniffled. “I dunno.”

Sergeant Rodriguez pulled the manila folder out from under his arm and laid it across his lap. “I had a feeling something wasn’t quite right when I saw you at the store. I couldn’t put my finger on it, but you had that air around you like something was wrong.”

“On the ride to New Mexico, some waitresses thought Dad was abducting me. They said I looked ‘forlorn.’”

“That’s a good word for it.” Sergeant Rodriguez chuckled. “You still kind of do.”

“I guess I knew something wasn’t right.” She wiped her eyes and tucked a strand of hair behind her hear. “When Dad sat near me at Mom’s funeral, my first instinct was to get away. He seemed scary.”

“It’s not your fault, Riley. You’re a kid.” He took a breath. “Speaking of which, you need a place to stay, and you don’t seem too happy about the idea of going into the system. I’ve already talked it over with my wife, Elisa. We’ve got a spare room. If you’re open to the idea, we’d love to have you.”

She gasped. A minute ago, she’d expected him to slap her in cuffs and drag her off to jail, and now he was offering to take her in. Never in her life had she imagined a cop could be so… nice. Mute, she covered her mouth.

“There’s one small issue.”

Her heart fluttered.

“Do you think you can put up with an extremely loud nine-year-old boy? My son Daniel is a handful and then some.”

“What?” She gulped. “You’re serious?”

“I convinced the advocate that after everything you’ve been through, ‘the system’ is probably not the best thing for you. A kid in your situation has a high chance of winding up on the wrong end of the law years down the line. You need some stability after the year you’ve had.”

She stared at nothing.

“Not to mention, they’d probably send you to Albuquerque or Las Cruces, which would complicate visiting your father. So much has gone wrong for you, I couldn’t turn my back.”

“I thought you were gonna lock me up.” She took deep breaths.

“I still might, if you don’t behave yourself.” He winked.

A hesitant smile formed on Riley’s face, followed by a grin and a nervous laugh. “Uhm…”

“Take your time. It’s a lot to think about.”

“I… You’d really let me live with you? That’s so… much.”
I need to tell Amber I’m still alive.
Riley reached out to him. “Do I at least get my one phone call?”

He clasped her hand. “Of course, this is America.”

She grinned. “Okay.” The handshake became a hug. “Thank you, Sergeant Rodriguez.”

“You’re welcome. That does seem a bit too formal now. If you’re under my roof, you can call me…” He rubbed his chin. “Hmm. Marty doesn’t seem proper. I wouldn’t feel right asking you to use ‘Dad’, ‘hey you’ won’t work either.”

“Mr. Rodriguez?”

“I guess that’ll do for now.” He stood. “Let’s go, I’ll introduce you to the family. Tonight you can couch surf. Tomorrow maybe I’ll grab a van and we can pick up your things.”

She got up and followed him outside, walking on autopilot to the back door. He went around the trunk to the other side and smirked at her over the bar lights.

“Stop looking like you’re in trouble.” He waved her forward. “Get in up front.”

Riley pulled the door open and gazed out at the desert. What was supposed to have been the best summer in her life had turned into the weirdest. Her horrible rollercoaster ride of grief, terror, loneliness, and panic came to the most bizarre end she never could’ve imagined. She sent a weak smile over the roof at Sergeant Rodriguez, and climbed in.

A pang of sadness at the loss of Mom lifted at the thought her father would be okay, and Kieran still wanted to be with her even after the whole town knew her father was nuts. It wouldn’t be the awesomeness she’d spent the entire year looking forward to, but the remaining weeks of summer didn’t look so bleak anymore.

“Dad would flip if he knew I was living with a cop.”

Sergeant Rodriguez chuckled. “He knows. I asked him before I spoke to the advocate. Having his blessing on the whole thing made it a lot easier.”

She gaped at him, speechless.

“He’s a different person entirely when he’s on his meds.” He pulled out into traffic, craning his neck at the rear view mirror. “Your dad thought it would be a good idea too. That whole stable environment thing. We’re both a little worried about you after all you’ve been through.”

Riley leaned back in the seat, gazing at the blue sky. Buildings of Truth or Consequences slipped past on both sides. It wasn’t much to look at, but the idea of living in Las Cerezas seemed nice. She wondered if she’d ever come to think of the Rodriguez house as ‘home’ the way she’d acclimated to Dad’s place. Probably not, but it might eventually feel ‘safe.’