Part two already guys! I am overwhelmed with gratitude for all the reviews, honestly, i was sitting working on this and the alert on my email kept going and i've just never fetl so compelled to post agin so soon!Seriously, thank you so so so much, i so often find my self doubting my own talents, and the last few days ive been feeling down any way for a whole nother reason but you all have just turned that right around, thanks you again!
So here's part two, same disclaimers apply, language and content etc.
Please keep the Reviews coming, you dont know how much they mean to me, honestly! XXXXXXX
Evelyn Mercer awoke to the sound of screaming. She cursed, throwing off her duvet and jumping out of bed, and running for the door.
As Evelyn pulled on her robe and yanked the door open she realised the loudest voice she could hear was a slightly unfamiliar one. "Jack" she whispered raggedly.
She charged down the stairs, running for the den, the source of the screaming. What she saw froze her in her tracks.
Angel was standing in the centre of the room, with Bobby and Jerry standing either side of him. Jack was curled over Angels shoulder as Angel span around and around, holding Jacks legs to keep him from falling.
Jacks long scream crumbled into infectious giggles as Bobby and Jerry swatted his feet as they passed. He wriggled and fought against Angel but the grin on his face told the truth about his enjoyment.
As Angel got dizzy and staggered, Bobby caught the falling Jack easily, setting the boy on his feet and watching as Jack too staggered around dizzily.
Angel sat down hard and Jerry clutched at his stomach as he laughed.
Evelyn covered her mouth with her hand and felt tears in her eyes as she saw the boys finally bonding together. It had only been a month since Jack had been brought to stay with them, but it had been one of the hardest months of Evelyn's life. Jack was, in no uncertain terms, damaged goods. He had night terrors, he barely ate, he rarely spoke. It was only the last few days that he had begun to come out of his shell a little bit, interact with the other boys, actually relax.
And now, here he was, laughing and joking like one of the family.
"Hey Ma" Bobby grinned.
He had a black eye and a cut lip, the result of a tussle he had gotten into with another kid from the neighbourhood. The other kid was in hospital, nothing too serious, and Bobby was loving the attention he had been getting over the incident.
"Morning boys" she grinned at them all.
"Hi Evelyn" Jack said breathlessly, still giggling.
Evelyn realised with a start that it was the first time she had even seen him smile, let alone giggle.
"Well hi Jackie" she crouched down as he walked over to her "They spun ya huh?" she asked.
Jack nodded, still grinning and Evelyn took a mental picture of his smile, memorising it instantly.
"Ma, my ass!" Angel groaned "You gotta get carpets in here Ma" he told her, climbing to his feet, clutching his butt as he rose.
"Or you gotta get better balance" Jerry shoved his adoptive brother playfully.
"Who wants breakfast?" Evelyn rose, catching Jacks hand as she did so.
She felt him hesitate for a second, then his tiny fingers closed over hers and she felt another wave of emotion hit her.
"Me!" Bobby snapped, shoving Angel out of the way and running through the house to the kitchen.
Evelyn and the others followed him, Jack still holding Evelyn's hand and as they got into the kitchen Evelyn lifted him onto the stool instead of leaving him to climb. Again, he let her lift him, even thanking her. "Well, I think today is kind of a special day so…who wants waffles?" Evelyn grinned at the boys.
They cheered in approval, except for Jack who just frowned "I didn't never have waffles" he told her in that quiet voice of his.
"Oh, well you are in for a treat my friend" Bobby told him as he poured himself a glass of OJ.
"You gotta be quick though Ma, I'm meetin Sophi in a little while" Angel told her.
"The crazy one!" Bobby exclaimed, banging his glass down on the counter top.
"Shut up about her man" Angel warned.
Bobby took on a high pitched, girly voice "Ay Angel, I looove you, don't you looove me Angel? Oh Angel, keeeesss meeee, hooold meeee, lick my feeeet Angel, ay papi!" he imitated Sophi's accent, snickering as Angel threw a dish cloth at him.
"Sophi…Miranda's daughter?" Evelyn asked.
"Yeah" Angel said suspiciously.
"Sweetie she is crazy" Evelyn stated, to the delight of Bobby who sprayed the OJ he had been sipping all over Angel who roared and ran at Bobby.
Bobby, still laughing, set down his glass and set his feet, expecting Angel to tackle him but Angel swung instead, his fist connecting neatly with Bobby's jaw. Bobby reared back and then Angel tackled him trying to lift him up. Bobby punched at Angel's back, trying to bring up a knee but Angel had caught him low enough that he held Bobby's legs secure.
"Hey!" Evelyn waded into the tussle, grabbing each boy by the collar and pulling them backwards away from each other.
Bobby was giggling breathlessly and it didn't take much effort for Evelyn to hold him back, but Angel was seriously angry and Evelyn had to give him a little push backwards, stepping directly in front of Bobby as Angel went to charge again.
"Enough!" She snapped "The two of you, Bobby calm down and shut up about Sophi and Angel learn when to take a joke" she told them.
Bobby wiped OJ from around his mouth as Angel sighed, wiping his face.
"Ma" Jerry said quietly and something in his voice made Evelyn wheel around instantly.
Jack had that look in his eyes, the distant look that Evelyn already recognized. He had hunched his shoulders in that 'waiting to be hit' way that seemed to be his natural posture sometimes.
"Jack" she said, her voice soothing "It's okay honey, they're just playing, right boys?" she put a certain edge in her voice, so the boys knew to agree with her.
"Yeah Jackie boy we're just messin around" Bobby told him.
"Yeah little man, its all good" Angel shot Bobby a look.
Jack took a few deep breaths, then nodded slowly. He blinked, seeming to calm himself, but his eyes still held that distant stare, even as he looked around the room, and he didn't lower his hunched shoulders.
"Waffles?" Evelyn looked around at the boys.
"Yes'm" Angel and Bobby said in unison.
"I'll start making em, you boys all go get dressed alright?" Evelyn told them.
Groaning, the boys, including Jack trooped out of the kitchen and up the stairs.
"I get first dibs in the bath room!" Angel yelled, making to run up the stairs.
Jerry grabbed his legs, tripping Angel and Bobby grabbed Jacks hand and pulled the boy past the struggling pair, laughing as Angel grabbed at Jacks ankle and Jack kicked him away.
"HA!" Bobby cheered from the top of the stairs "We're the champions, you're the ass holes!"
"Language" Evelyn yelled from the kitchen in the tone of voice of some one who had said it before and would say it again.
"Jackie go in there and wash ya face" Bobby gave Jack a little push.
Jack ran into the bathroom and Bobby followed, pulling the little wooden step out from under the stick and lifting Jack on to it so the kid could see himself in the mirror.
"Do behind ya ears too" Bobby called distractedly as he returned to the stairs and worked to keep Angel from getting up.
Jack sighed but did as he was told. He put the wash cloth and soap back in the sink and hopped down from the step, walking out and toward his bedroom, tugging off his pyjama top as he went.
Bobby winced at the sight of the bruised on Jacks chest, back, and arms, that where still visible despite being a week old. He had scars too, some from cigarette burns, Bobby knew, as he had similar scars of his own, some that looked like the burns but bigger, a lot that looked like slices from a knife, and the one Bobby really hated, a scar from a bite on Jack's shoulder. It was a big enough scar that it was clearly an adult who had done it, and Bobby didn't want to think about what the story behind it might be. He had already resolved to do serious bodily harm to Jack's father, should he ever come onto contact with the…he wouldn't call him a man, no man would do that to his own kid…with The Shit, Bobby decided.
"Jerry, get off!" Angel yelled, bringing Bobby's attention back to the matter at hand.
"Hold him Jerry!" he told his brother, running for the bathroom.
Bobby stripped and threw himself in the shower, washing all over and shampooing and rinsing his hair as quickly as he could.
He leapt out, wrapped himself in a towel and ran back out of the bathroom, charging to his own room.
Jack, now dressed in a short sleeve t-shirt over a long sleeved t-shirt, jeans and sneakers, was crouching at the top of the stairs, watching Angel and Jerry who still fought one another.
Bobby got dried and dressed in an outfit almost identical to Jack's, substituting a hockey jersey for a short sleeved t, in under two minutes then ran back and dove on Angel, holding him down. "Go Jerry!" he snapped.
Jerry mimicked Bobby, running for the bathroom, showering as quickly as he was able, drying and dressing himself in record time, while the entire time, Bobby sat on Angel's back, holding his struggling brother down.
Jerry emerged from his room wearing jeans and a sweater with sneakers. He grabbed Jacks hand and guided the boy down the stairs, past Angel.
When he and Jack where at the bottom Jerry yelled to Bobby who braced himself, then let Angel go, running down the stairs.
Angel thumped his hands down on the steps and stood, stomping his way up the stairs and into the bath room.
Snickering, the other three headed back to the kitchen where Evelyn was laying out the first waffles.
"Where's Angel?" she asked.
Bobby shrugged, grinning wickedly. "Oh Bobby! I told you already about trapping him on the stairs like that!" Evelyn scolded.
"He shouldn't take so long in the bath room then we wouldn't have to cheat to get in there!" Jerry piped up.
Jack, who seemed to have relaxed again, watched the exchange with a grin.
"Well just cos he cares about how he looks that's no reason to gang up on him" Evelyn stated as she set syrup and cream down on the table.
Bobby grabbed the syrup and thoroughly soaked his waffles, leaning over to pour some on Jack's "It's the only way to enjoy em" he told the boy.
"Thanks" Jack smiled at him.
Jerry took a spoon full of strawberry jam and plopped it onto Jacks waffle "that is the only way to enjoy waffles" he stated as he put jam on his own plate.
"What does Angel have?" Jack asked.
Evelyn grinned and pulled a jar of peanut butter and a separate jar of chocolate spread from the cupboard. Bobby and Jerry each reached for the jars, scooping ample amounts of both onto Jack's, then their own waffles.
"Wow" Jack raised his eyebrows at the meal before him.
He picked up his knife and fork and cut him self a slice, getting some of each confection on the piece.
Bobby, Jerry and Evelyn watched as he put the piece in his mouth and began to chew. His face went from thoughtful, to surprised, to delighted and he cut another piece, barely swallowing the first before he ate the second.
Evelyn laughed out loud as Bobby and Jerry shared knowing looks and went to work on their own waffles.
They where all on their third helping by the time Angel came down. He piled three waffles on his plate and smothered them all with peanut butter and chocolate spread, shovelling chunks into his mouth as fast as he could.
"Hey!" Evelyn warned him "Close your mouth, try chewing, it's not as overrated as you think" she told him.
Angel began to chew with his mouth closed "Sorry Ma, but I'm gonna be late thanks to these three" he told her.
"Oh Sophi will wait for you" Evelyn scoffed "Hey, what are you two doing today?" she looked at Jerry and Bobby "Saturday, I bet you got plans?"
Bobby shrugged elusively "We're gonna go the park, meet up with some people" he
told her.
"Yeah…you want to take Jack? He hasn't met anybody from the neighbourhood yet" Evelyn reminded them.
It was true. Jack had been so unsettled in the time since he'd arrived that Evelyn had kept him house bound, wanting to let him relax in the house before she exposed him to the neighbourhood kids.
Bobby gave her a look indicating he didn't like it, so she shot a 'it wasn't a question' look right back at him.
"Alright" Bobby said, just managing to keep the anger from his voice.
"Great. Go brush your teeth all of you, then put your coats on, weather says its gonna snow today" Evelyn stated.
The boys finished their food and did what she had told them and within ten minutes Bobby was absent mindedly zipping up Jacks coat and pulling a new woolly beanie over the younger boys head.
Evelyn watched as Bobby, wearing a battered, over sized leather jacket, stood and regarded the boy, asking Jack if Jack had tissues, his gloves, if his laces where tied, if he had the couple of dollars Evelyn had given him in his pockets.
Jerry walked by and pulled Jacks hat off, combed Jacks hair then replaced the hat, dropping the brush on the table beside the door.
Angel strode by, checking his appearance briefly in the mirror on the wall, before he stooped and wiped a smudge of tooth paste from Jacks face.
Evelyn grinned as the boys looked back at her and waved at her. "Don't be late" she smiled back as they ran out of the door, banging the door closed behind them.
Almost as soon as the door closed behind him Bobby Mercer became a different person. His shoulders hunched almost imperceptibly, his face set in hard, grim lines and his hands curled into fists.
"We gotta talk to Fat Eddie" he snapped.
Angel looked over at him and sighed "Aw man not now!" he rolled his eyes "Can't it wait till I see Sophi?" he asked.
"No it cant he owes me money" Bobby snarled.
Jack flinched away from him but Jerry caught the smaller boys shoulder "It's okay little man" he said soothingly.
Bobby rolled his shoulders, cracking his neck and stomped off in the direction of the park.
Angel made a groaning, sighing sound and jogged after his brother.
Jack looked up at Jerry who made a face at him, grabbed his hand and ran after the others.
After fifteen minutes, Jack was gasping and struggling to keep up with the taller boys.
Angel dropped back and crouched, letting Jack scramble up on to his back. With Jack clinging, monkey like to him, Angel ran through the gates into the park.
Bobby had been walking but now he broke into a run as a portly boy sitting on one of the picnic tables spotted him and took off running.
"Damn" Angel sighed.
He crouched again and let Jack slide off his back "Wait here Jackie boy, alright?" he told him.
Jack nodded and Angel and Jerry charged after Bobby. Crowds of kids whooped and cheered as Bobby ran the boy down, tackling him low on the legs.
"Get off me Bobby!" the kid whined.
Bobby rolled the kid over and straddled him, punching him twice in the face just to start with.
Angel and Jerry reached him and stood behind Bobby.
"You owe me forty bucks fatso" Bobby growled.
"I don't have it yet" the kid moaned "I'm getting it by the end of today though I swear!"
"I cut my hands all up getting those fucking watches for you Eddie, and told you, pay me back by Friday, that was yesterday but you skipped out of school so, I want it now" Bobby punctuated his speech with punches to Eddie's side and slaps to the face.
"Pay up Eddie, he's pissy this morning" Jerry stated simply.
"Yeah man, and we all got other shit we'd rather be doing" Angel threw pointed glares at the back of Bobby's head.
"I…aaw maaaaan" Eddie groaned "Get off me and I'll get it" he snapped.
Bobby raised an eye brow at him. He reached out and grabbed a handful of Eddie's hair, pulling him to his feet.
"Bobby!" the kid squealed.
"You think I'm stupid? I let you up your fat ass is gonna run to your mother like the little bitch you are, give me the damn money!" Bobby yelled.
Eddie dug into a pocket and pulled out a screwed up wad of bills. "Jerry can you count it for me?" Bobby asked, switching back to pleasant so fast it was dizzying.
"Sure man" Jerry sighed, taking the money.
He counted it out "Forty even, in nasty ass damp bills Eddie, what'd you do, piss in yo pants?" Jerry sneered and handed the money to Bobby.
Bobby took the notes and sniffed them suspiciously. He raised an eyebrow and pocketed them as Eddie writhed against Bobby's grip on his hair.
"Thanks Eddie" Bobby smiled sweetly and punched Eddie in the stomach.
As Eddie hunched over, clutching at his stomach, Bobby looked over to where they had left Jack. Where there should have been a seven year old boy, there was simply empty air.
"Jack" Bobby breathed.
He went from standing to sprinting with out apparently needing to build up to it, and Jerry and Angel mirrored him. They reached the spot where they had left him and looked around to see a crowd of kids standing under an old tree. "Where'd he go!" Angel yelled over to them.
"Rufus took him outta the park" some one yelled back.
"Oh my god" Jerry gasped and took off running for the gates of the park, his brothers following him.
They reached the gates and burst out onto the street, searching around wildly.
Angel spotted Rufus and Jack across the street. Rufus, a forty year old man with watery eyes, was pulling a struggling Jack along by the hand. "There!" Angel pointed, running across the street, ignoring the cars that honked him as he cut in front of them.
One car swerved across the road but Bobby and Jerry would not be deterred and simply scrambled over the car.
Rufus had given up trying to pull Jack and had picked him up instead and Jack didn't like it. He began to scream, fighting and struggling against Rufus' grip as the man tried to carry him.
"Hey!" Bobby yelled, picking up speed and charging at the man.
Rufus turned and had time to widen his eyes in surprise as Bobby, Angel and Jerry barrelled into him as one, knocking him down. As soon as he hit the ground Jack darted away, running back they way the boys had originally come.
Bobby was on top of Rufus, punching the man over and over again in the face. "Fucking pervert! Don't you ever even look at him again!" Bobby screamed in the mans face.
"I didn't do anything!" Rufus wailed.
"Bobby we gotta go get Jack" Angel tugged at Bobby's jacket.
Bobby leaned in close to Rufus' face "You ever even look at him again, and I swear to Jesus Christ Almighty himself, I will fucking kill you" he hissed.
Rufus regarded him with something akin to horror and Bobby spat in his face, kicked him, then took off after Angel and Jerry who had gone after Jack.
At a full sprint it took only a few minutes to get back to the house and the boys got there just after Jack.
They ran inside after him and heard crashes coming from the kitchen.
Jack was screaming wordlessly, his face twisted in anger, almost feral. He had tipped the pile of newly washed plates onto the floor and was climbing up onto the side board to open one of the cupboards. He began pulling out glasses and hurling them across the room.
"Where's mom!" Jerry asked.
"Saturday, she'll be next door playing poker with Miss Abel, Angel go get her" Bobby snapped, ducking as a glass smashed against the wall near his head.
Angel turned and ran and Bobby took a step forward into the kitchen. "Jack!" He yelled "Jackie come on man relax, we got him!" he told the boy.
Jack jumped down from the counter, slipping on something and falling forward into the broken shards from the plates. He climbed to his feet, his hands running with blood and kicked angrily at the shards, still screaming. Bobby took another step for ward and Jack ran again, slipping easily past Bobby and Jerry and into the hall way. He pulled an old walking stick from the umbrella strand and began swinging it, hitting what ever he could. Bobby ran at him but Jack swung the stick with enough strength that when it clipped Bobby's shoulder he fell down.
Jerry tried the same, darting back as Jack swung again. Jack ditched the stick and pulled the curtains on the windows either side of the door down, then ran for the back door, pulling pictures off the walls as he went.
The front door swung open and Evelyn ran in "Where is he?" she snapped
Jerry pointed at the back door, then, with his brothers, followed Evelynas she ran after Jack.
Jack was throwing the plant pots Evelyn had lined up outside the back door at the ground so that they smashed when Evelyn, still running, scooped him up in a restraining bear hug.
He screamed even louder and began to buck and fight against her, panicking in her arms. He was taking deep, hyperventilating breaths as Evelyn tried to carry him into the house. She got him back to the hall before she stepped just too close to a wall and he was able to kick off hard enough that she slipped, falling onto her rear end. Jack tried to crawl away but she caught him by the wrist, dragging him back across the floor, twisting him so that she held him from behind, his back pressed to her chest, her arms folded over his to hold them still. He kicked with his legs but Evelyn ignored them and began rocking him back and forth, gently shushing him.
"No!" he screamed "Lemme go lemme go!" he growled.
"It's alright, it's okay, just take deep breaths, just calm down" Evelyn held him so her mouth was near his ear and repeated her words over and over.
"I'll kill you, I'll kill him, let me go you bitch!" he yelled "I don't want you, get away!"
"Hush now, deep breaths" Evelyn soothed "I'm not going anywhere, deep breaths" she rocked him slower.
He stilled for a second then kicked out again, redoubling his efforts to break free.
Evelyn simply tightened her grip, folding her hands around his, forcing him to open his fists. "You hurt yourself, when you calm down we'll clean those up" she kept her voice very low and soft.
"I hate you! I hate you, you cant touch me, let me go!" he screamed piteously, tears streaming down his face "Please let me go…let me get away, I don't want to go back" he wailed, still fighting.
It took ten minutes before he was finally still. Evelyn tilted her head slightly and cursed internally as she saw that the blank, thousand yard stare had slid back into his eyes, that he had retreated back within himself.
"Oh Jackie no" she whispered "Jack don't go away again" she lifted his legs so that she cradled him in her arms, trying to make him look at her but he turned his head away, deliberately avoiding eye contact.
That spark she had been so delighted by only an hour before was gone. "No, Jack, please don't do this" she begged.
Angel, Bobby and Jerry where watching her from the den. "Angel get me the first aid kit please" Evelyn said, her voice thick with emotion.
Angel rushed up the stairs wordlessly.
"Bobby what exactly happened?" She asked, standing awkwardly and carrying Jack into the dining room.
"We where in the park and we had to talk to Eddie so we left him alone-" Bobby started.
"What!" Evelyn snapped.
"It was just for a second, and we could see him and the other kids where right there!" Bobby shot back "Rufus got a hold of him" he added quietly.
Evelyn visibly paled "Did he do anything?" she asked quickly.
"As near as we can tell he only got him out of the park, if he…messed with Jack, we didn't see it" Bobby hung his head.
"Jack, did the man touch you?" Evelyn sat at the head table and put Jack in the seat beside hers, "Jack please, tell me, did he do anything to you?" she used her hand to turn his head but he still wouldn't look at her.
Angel carried the first aid box in and lay it down beside her. Evelyn spotted Bobby staring at the ground "Bobby…" she called out.
He looked in her direction but wouldn't meet her eye "Bobby I'm sorry I snapped at you…this isn't you fault, it isn't any of you fault, it was unfair of me to expect you three to be able to look after him so soon" she told them "Will you all, please, start sweeping up?" she asked "Don't touch any of the glass, just brush it into a pile and I'll get it later"
The boys trooped out and Evelyn turned back to Jack. She reached over and pulled his arms so that she could lay his hands, bloodied palms up, on the table.
"Jack, this is gonna sting" she told him as she took a pair of tweezers from the first aid box.
She checked and was relieved to see that the glass was only in his hands, and that none of the shards where too big, but they had gone deep. She pinched the largest shard she could see and drew it out, looking at Jacks face to see if it hurt. He didn't even blink.
Evelyn worked quickly but thoroughly, removing all of the glass and cleaning the blood away from his hands. She wrapped his hands in band aids after smearing them with antiseptic cream, then moved the first aid kit aside.
"Jack?" she asked.
He moved his head ever so slightly and she tried again "Jackie?"
He moved his eyes ever so slightly toward her and Evelyn held her hands out toward him, palms up. His eyes focused on her hands and widened just a touch.
"I know bad things happened to you before you came to me" she told him.
His eyes widened again "Hey look at me" she said, a little more firmly.
Slowly, in his own time, he raised his eyes to her face. He still looked utterly terrified but he was looking at her at least "But you're safe now" she told him, putting as much sincerity into his voice as she could muster.
He seemed to be close to tears but he dipped his head in something vaguely resembling a nod.
"Alright then" Evelyn gave him a smile even though she knew he wouldn't respond to it. "I'm gonna go in the kitchen for a few minutes, are you alright to stay here?" she asked him.
He gave that miniscule shrug in response and she took it as a yes. She picked up the first aid kit and walked into the kitchen to see that the boys had done a stellar job of cleaning up. They had swept all the glass, shovelled it into bins and had mopped the floor where Jack had bled.
As Evelyn walked in to the kitchen, she saw that one of them had collected all the pictures Jack had pulled down, cleared the glass away and left the frames sitting on the counter. She suspected they had tidied the hall way too.
They sat at the counter in silence. "He okay?" Jerry asked.
"I don't know" Evelyn answered honestly, moving to the sink and washing her hands "He's….terrified. What ever happened has sent him right back to square one" she shrugged.
She had told her boys, on Jacks third night, about what he had been through before he had come to their house. They understood what it could mean for Jack's emotional and mental state, if anything had happened to him.
"Ma Rufus only had him for a few minutes, maybe he just got scared" Bobby suggested.
Evelyn walked around the counter so she was behind her boys. She pulled them all into a hug "Hopefully its just that…but in the future I don't want him left alone, at all, okay?" She told them.
"Yes Ma'am" they answered in unison.
"Now…I guess you wont be going out again?" She asked.
"I need to go out real quick" Bobby admitted.
"Yeah I still gotta meet Sophi" Angel said guiltily.
"Well then you each have an hour to go do, what ever, then I want you back here for lunch and then we're gonna have a family day for the rest of the day alright?" Evelyn told them.
They agreed, returning her hugs and filed out through the back door.
Evelyn went back to the dining room where Jack still sat.
"Hey" she called out "You want to come learn how to make cookies?" she asked.
He slid obediently out of his seat and walked toward her. "I'll let you eat the dough if you gimme a smile?" she told him as she helped him take off the coat he still wore.
He looked up at her, his wide eyes telling her that he was still a long way from a smile but he met and held her gaze, which was something.
"Alrightie, first things first we have to decide, what kind of cookies we're making" Evelyn told him "Because that's the single most important thing in cookie making. That and eating the dough of course"
"I'll be there in ten minutes man" Angel told Bobby, jogging away in the direction of Sophi's house.
Jerry caught up with Bobby as the slightly shorter boy headed back toward the park.
He didn't ask where they where going, or why, he knew that already.
They reached the park in total silence, heading for the crowd of kids who still huddled under the old tree.
"Hey Bobby you get ya brother back?" A lanky red headed kid yelled out, a smile plastered across his face.
Bobby only needed one comment. He reached the kid and swung his fist, knocking the much taller boy on his ass.
The other kids who's ages ranged from nine to fourteen whooped and cheered as Bobby rode the kid down, smacking him in the face.
Jerry sought out the kid who had first yelled that Rufus had taken Jack and grabbed the African American kid by the front of his jacket "What the hell man!" the kid snapped at him.
Jerry butted him in the chin "Why didn't you stop him Greg!" He roared as the kid fell to the ground "Why didn't any of y'all stop Rufus!" he glared at the surrounding group, who grew silent.
Bobby was still fighting the red head but no one cheered them any more. Normally a Mercer fight was a sight to behold but no one had ever seen Jerry this mad before. With Bobby it was his default mood but Jerry was, considering his back ground, one of the gentlest kids in the whole neighbourhood. Now he stood, still holding the other boy, Greg's collar, so that Greg was slumped awkwardly, holding his head in his hands.
"We didn't know who that kid was" a girl yelled out.
"He's seven years old, even if you don't know him you can see that! You just let Rufus, Rufus, walk away with a seven year old cos you didn't know the kid?" Jerry yelled at her.
"He's your tag along Jerry, why didn't you stay with him!" she shot back.
"Cos we figured y'all would have the sense to keep an eye on a kid we brought with us" Angels voice sounded and the group of kids turned as he walked towards them.
Bobby punched the red head as the read head managed to straddle him, stunning the kid enough that Bobby could throw one last punch, then shove he kid aside and stand.
He was panting, blood from his own nose smeared across his face. "You all know what Rufus is, what he does" he growled "And you stood by while he took a baby kid away…yeah, we shoulda been watching him but that doesn't change that you let it happen" he told the group.
"Is he alright?" Some one asked.
"We don't know yet, he's at home, not talking" Angel told them.
"From now on, Jack, is a Mercer" Bobby said, and there was a finality to his voice.
"Y'all are gonna treat him as such, which means you aint gonna fuck with him, you aint gonna hassle him, and you sire as shit aren't gonna stand around while perverts like Rufus try to take him away" Angel explained.
"Why the fuck we gonna listen to you any how?" the girl who had started on Jerry snapped.
Angel rounded on her "Cos if you don't you gonna get beat down" he said simply.
"Aint no Mercer boy ever gonna hit a girl, your mama would whoop yo asses" she snarked back.
"A Mercer boy wont but I sure as shit will" a new voice called.
"Puh leaze Sophi, you couldn't hit nothing" the girl sneered as Sophi, Angel's on and off girl friend walked over to her.
"I could whoop your ass Letitia, I have before and I will again" Sohpi stated confidently, her accent strong and latino.
Her hair was pulled into pig tails and she wore jeans with a pink t-shirt but she by no means looked harmless.
"Trust a crazy bitch like you to get in with the Mercers" Letitia rolled her eyes in disdain, so she didn't see the blow coming.
Sophi knocked her flat on her ass and stood over her, daring her to get up.
"Enough of this shit" Jerry snapped "Its like we said, you treat the kid, Jack, like he's a full on Mercer, or we kick the shit out of each, and every one of you" he said it in a perfectly reasonable tone of voice.
Bobby nodded slowly "Spread the word to any one who aint here, he's off limits…make sure Kyle and his band of fairies knows it too" he told them all.
Jerry let Greg drop at last and walked away from the crowd without looking back.
Bobby followed suit, and Angel pulling Sophi with him, followed him.
Bobby waited until they where at the gates "You can go know Sophi" he sniffed.
The twelve year old girl raised her eyebrow at him "You wish Bobby, I'm coming over for lunch and I know you gonna thank me for savin your asses just now" she sassed.
"You didn't save shit" Bobby muttered, heading for home.
"Angel you gonna let him give me shit like that?" Sophi rounded on Angel.
Angel pulled his 'trapped between my brother and my girl' face, one he had already perfected even though he had only been 'dating' Sophi for a few weeks.
"Angel!" Sophi shrieked, slapping him on the arm.
"Ow! Relax!" Angel snapped at her.
"Oh you can forget about my mom takin us to the movies tomorrow" Sophi reared back, storming away from him.
Angel sighed wearily "Sophi, come back!" he chased her down the street as the snow finally began to fall.
Evelyn awoke to the sound of screams. She threw the duvet off, hurried out of bed and rushed to the bedroom next door.
Jack had thrown himself out of bed and was huddled in the tiny space between his desk and the wall.
He was shrieking, his eyes open but unseeing, throwing his hands out as if trying to fend off an attacker. Evelyn ran over to him, catching his hands immediately, checking that he hadn't bled through the bandages she had rewrapped his hands in after his bath earlier in the night. His hands seemed fine but he was still fighting so she pulled him forward and into her lap, much like she had done earlier in the day. He still struggled so she called his name as the other boys emerged from their own rooms and stood sleepily in the door way.
"Jackie I need you to wake up now" Evelyn said firmly and loudly, giving Jack a tiny shake.
His screams subsided and he blinked his eyes groggily, staring up at Evelyn. She had been worried when she put him to bed that night, as he still hadn't shaken off what had happened in the park, and she saw as he opened his eyes that that hadn't changed.
"Oh baby" she whispered soothingly "It's alright, I'm here" she cooed.
Jacks face crumpled and he began to cry quietly. After almost half an hour, he finally seemed to be settling.
"You want a nice glass of warm milk, help you get back to sleep?" Evelyn asked him, rocking him gently back and forth.
He nodded silently and Evelyn went to stand.
Her boys walked into the room and Bobby sat down beside her, holding his arms out. Evelyn looked at in surprise but smiled, passing Jack over to him.
Bobby held Jack the way Evelyn had earlier, Jacks back pressed to his chest, Bobby's arms wrapped around Jack in a hug. Bobby crossed his legs so that Jack was sitting in the seat Bobby's legs made. Jerry sat beside Bobby, Angel sitting across from him.
He seemed to take comfort in their presence so Evelyn stood and padded quietly out of the room.
As the she walked down the stairs, Bobby jiggled his leg a little bit, and Jack looked up at him.
"We're sorry we messed up today kid" Bobby told Jack.
"Yeah little man, real sorry" Angel agreed.
"We aint never gonna let that happen to you again though" Jerry promised.
"We decided Jackie…you've only been here a short time but…you're one of the family now, and we're gonna protect you" Angel told him.
"If any body ever hurts you, ever crosses you, we gonna come down on em, like the wrath of God little man, we'll make em pay" Jerry said firmly.
"You're our little brother now Jack, no matter what happens, you're our brother" Bobby told him.
Jack looked around at them, his eyes wider than ever. "Brother?" he repeated softly.
"Brother. And you don't have to be afraid no more either" Angel told him.
Jack blinked and nodded slowly. "Brothers" he said, "My brothers"
"Your brothers" Bobby agreed.
"Four brothers" Jerry grinned as he rhymed.
"Don't be startin in on that rapper bull shit" Angel sighed, but he was grinning.
"What bull shit, that was good!" Jerry exclaimed.
Bobby held Jack as Jerry and Angel began to bicker, feeling the kid relax against him.
He smiled to himself, rocking slightly from side to side the way Evelyn had, feeling the shaking that had been racking the boys body begin to fade.
By the time Evelyn came back with the milk, Jack was already asleep in Bobby's arms.