Chapter 9

"Wait wait WAIT!" Kelsi stepped in. Tom and I looked at her, "What?"

"What is going on?!" she asked. Tom and I looked at each other. "You gotta tell her, mate." Tom shrugged.

I sighed and sat at the edge of the pool, staring down with my eyes fixed on the water and my hands between my knees, "Its Aden...His dad hits him. And I don't know what to do. I promised him I wouldn't tell, although I kind of just told you guys. And...I don't know I just need to help him and I don't know how and I'm scared. I've never been this scared in my entire life."

I felt the tears coming to my eyes. I guess I didn't want to say this to anyone because I thought maybe if I didn't say it out loud, maybe if I didn't admit it, it wasn't true. But it was. There was nothing I could do to change the fact that an innocent kid is getting hit by his own father.

"So...what should we do?" Kelsi asked quietly. I looked at Tom, "I dunno. What's your plan, dude?"

"Alright," Tom started, "You have to take Aden after school every day until 5:30, right?"

I nodded.

"Well, what if you didn't bring Aden back home?" Tom asked. I looked at him like he was a mad man, "Then his dad would hunt me down and probably kill both me and Aden."

"No, no, no. Listen," Tom said, "You don't bring Aden back home. He stays at either my house, Danny's house, anywhere to keep from getting found. His dad won't be able to find him and eventually the only thing he has left to resort to is..."

"Calling the cops," Kelsi finished for him, smiling.

"And once he calls the cops," I smiled, "They find Aden, probably take him to a doctor or something to make sure he's alright, find the marks from where his dad hit him."

"They send his dad to jail, Aden's safe and you never broke your promise." Tom said.

I smiled and nodded, "But Tom, what if your plan doesn't fall through as planned?"

"It has to." Tom said, "It's fool proof."

"So was the plan in Finding Nemo!" I said, "And that didn't work!"

"Nemo still found his way back to the ocean, didn't he?" Tom shrugged. I half-smiled and nodded, "I guess you're right. Okay, so when do we do this?"

"Tomorrow, you pick up Aden like you do every day." Tom said, "Only at 5:30 when he's supposed to get home take him to my house instead."

"And what do I do if he asks what's going on?" I asked Tom, "What do I tell him?"

Tom shrugged, "I didn't think about that."

"I can't lie to this kid." I told them. "But I can't tell him that I told you guys."

"We'll think of something." Tom said, "Don't worry. For right now, just focus on what you need to do."

I nodded and headed for my house finally with a smile on my face. In just a matter of days Aden would be safe and he would never have to worry about his dad again.

"Hey, buddy what's up?" I said after school the next day when I was getting Aden from school.

"Nothin," he said quietly. He wasn't talking as much as he used to and I was worried about him.

"So, do you wanna go for a swim today?" I asked him, "My friend has a pool. You remember Kelsi, right?"

He nodded and the two of us headed to Aden's house to get him a pair of shorts then we headed to Kelsi's. We walked around to the backyard and I opened the gate to see Kelsi lounging next to the pool with a pair of sunglasses on. "Kelsi," I said, "Kels, you awake?"

She sat up and took off her sunglasses, "Yeah I'm awake. Hi Aden."

Aden waved shyly, "Hi."

I sat down at the edge of the pool like I had the day before and Kelsi and Aden sat on either side of me.

"So Aden, do you like school?" Kelsi asked trying to start a conversation. Aden nodded.

"Ready for summer?" she asked. He nodded.

"Do you like hanging out with Dougie everyday?" she asked. He looked up and smiled, finally talking, "Yeah Dougie's my best friend ever."

Kelsi looked at me, "Aww. He is so cute."

"See," I turned to Aden, "I told you she wants you."

He turned red and laughed the punched me in the arm, "Shut up."

"What?" I asked pretending to be shocked, "You can say that to me," I picked Aden up and tossed him into the pool with his shirt still on. He came to the surface laughing, "You're going down."

He pulled himself out of the pool and I was still laughing, "I'm sorry. I had to do it." I handed him a towel, "Here, give me your shirt I'll hang it on the back of the chair to dry."

Aden looked at me nervously then slowly pulled his soaking shirt over his head to reveal several bruises on his stomach and up his arms. I felt the color drain from my face and my stomach dropped like it did on the Nemesis at Alton Towers. I felt like I was going to throw up.

I knelt down beside Aden, fighting tears and he threw himself into my arms, "Please. Don't make me go back."