"Here, I made you some more pan..."
"No thanks, Millie. I'm not that hungry."
"Are you sure? But you love pancakes and sausage."
"I just don't want anymore, okay?"
"..all right."
Mr. Tabootie hadn't meant to sound so pushy. He couldn't help but flinch as he listened to his own bitter-sounding voice. He could barely bring himself to look over and watch as Millie took the tray away. He found himself licking his lips slowly before he shifted his gaze away.
It wasn't that he was not hungry still. A part of him still longed for those pancakes and sausage. But he just couldn't bring himself to eat them. He was too wrought with guilt and worry to think about eating.
Honestly, so was his wife. He had noticed that Millie had hardly touched her food. She had eaten more than him, sure. But it was still nothing compared to how she normally ate. The same went for him. How could they eat when their son was hospitalized? How could they eat when they knew that they could get into legal trouble for what happened? How could they even enjoy eating when they had no idea what Rudy's fate was going to be?
Even if Rudy got out of there and had fully recovered his sight, that would not be the end of it. They were both well aware of this. They still faced potential charges for child neglect, and if Rudy ended up saying anything that sounded suspicious to the officer or whoever was going to talk to their son... There was no doubt in their minds that those people would use that as a case against them.
Then what was going to happen? Was Rudy going to be ripped away from them? If they were sentenced to jail, would that be the last time they could see their son? Where would Rudy go? Those questions and more clamored their way inside of their heads, refusing to let up.
So enthralled, so glued to this situation, that it nearly made Mr. Tabootie forget that it was lunch time. The pancakes and sausage were more for comfort than anything. He chuckled bitterly at the idea. Well they hardly worked very well, did they?
Mr. Tabootie whipped his head around when he heard a small thump at the side of the house. He thought about ignoring, trying to resume reading his magazine. But he couldn't so easily let this go. Lowering his paper down, he got up from the table, ignoring the squeaking that the chair made, and headed over.
He went into the living room and quickly noticed something off about the window. A part of him nearly expected the cliche 'throw a rock at the neighbor's window' thing. But he guessed that the people around here weren't stupid enough to do that. They would rather avoid any serious lawsuits. So instead, the neighbors took to just sending them 'lovely' messages, taping them to the window, slamming them forcefully which is what made the loud thud. Perhaps it was to make sure that they knew what was going on.
Mr. Tabootie narrowed his eyes as he saw the new message. It was hardly different from any others that they had seen. Just more questions of why they weren't watching their boy and how they should be jailed for what they did, or rather, didn't do in this case. A couple of them were more outright threats, telling them that if the police didn't bring in justice, they would.
As unsettling as all of this was, Mr. Tabootie had little fear of his neighbors. They knew that if they tried to take vigilante action, they risked getting arrested as well. A lot of those threats were most likely just hot air with little bite. That didn't make him feel all that better. But it was at least comforting for him to remind himself that his neighbors aren't going to be able enact on their promises that easily.
He let out a small sigh. Regardless, he was going to have to go outside and clean this up. That would mean potentially running into these people. He couldn't imagine it going all that well. A lot of the neighbors had been pretty vocal. Mr. Tabootie had felt his blood rise in heat multiple times. He feared that, if he couldn't contorl himself well enough, he might resort to physical force. That would just be used against him later on as more proof of him and Mrs. Tabootie being unfit as parents.
Oh well, he might as well get it over with.
"Millie!" He called out to his wife. "I'm going to do a bit of cleaning up outside!"
"Again? Are they still leaving messages? It's been hours now." Mrs. Tabootie called back to him.
"Yeah, unfortunately..." Mr. Tabootie let out an exasperated sigh. "I'll be back as soon as I can."
"...be careful."
Mr. Tabootie froze at that statement. He let its meaning slowly sink in. It served to remind him that, at least for a while, he really was going to have to be a little cautious around his own neighborhood. For the time being, the feeling of full relaxation was gone, replaced with anxiety. He hoped that it would end soon.
Mr. Tabootie proceeded to head towards the front entrance to the house. He paused and took a moment to listen. He wanted to make sure that there was absolutely no one there. He wanted to make sure that he was truly going to be safe to head out to clean up the messages left for him and his wife. Only once did he feel as though he would be somewhat safe did he reach over to the door knob to open it up.
As soon as the door swung open, Mr. Tabootie was taken aback by what he saw. He let out a yelp of surprise and quickly moved back away, raising his arms up into the air as though to avoid accidentally knocking agaisnt who was at the door. He stared long and hard for a few seconds before he managed to squeak out something.
"Mrs. Sanchez...?" Mr. Tabootie breathed. "Wh-What are you doing here...?"
"Helping with the trash, of course." Mrs. Sanchez rose up her arms. Mr. Tabootie noticed that she had several rolled up papers that he recognized as the neighbor's messages. He looked over at the window and saw that the previous one there was gone now. He looked back at her, still a little speechless. "...do you mind if I come in...?"
Mr. Tabootie shook his head. "N-Not at all." He took a step back, motioning his hand to let the woman come inside. As the woman stepped in, it took him a second to realize that Penny was with her as well. "Oh, hello there. I didn't see you just a moment ago."
Penny nodded her head to the man. "Greetings, Mr. Tabootie. I hope you and Mrs. Tabootie don't mind me being here."
"She insisted in coming. She wanted to go into Rudy's bedroom to look for something to bring him." Mrs. Sanchez explained, holding her hand up in gesture. "She wanted to try to cheer him up."
"Oh go right ahead, then!" Mr. Tabootie waved his hand to the side. "That sounds like a great idea! After what he's been trhough..." His voice trailed off as he bit his lip, lowering his head.
Mrs. Sanchez frowned slightly at this. "Yeah, I know."
The two adults fell silent as Penny slinked away. From the look in her eyes, Mr. Tabootie could tell that she didn't want to be a part of this conversation. She probably feared that she was going to make it worse somehow. Mr. Tabootie watched as she left before he turned his attention back to Mrs. Sanchez.
There was something a little off about the woman. He had never seen her with that expression and with that kind of aura. He wondered if it was just because she was concerned about Rudy as well. That seemed like a most likely case. Unlike the other neighbors, Mrs. Sanchez did get to know Rudy pretty well and came to love him as she did her own daughter.
Still, the silence was pretty tense between the two. It was like neither of them knew what they were going to say. They just kept sort of glancing at each other and looking away, both knowing full well the implications of this situation. It wasn't until Mrs. Tabootie came in that the silence was broken.
"Do you...want to sit on the couch?" Mrs. Tabootie offered.
Mrs. Sanchez nodded her head slowly. "Yes, thanks." She put a hand to her forehead. "This is...a lot to take in."
"Yeah, we know." Mrs. Tabootie whispered. Mr. Tabootie nodded in silent agreement.
The three adults made their way into the living room, moving past the doorless border and headed to where the couch was. It was a bit small, but surprisingly, they all fit on it. They settled themselves down, getting adjusted, trying to ignore the fact that their bodies were rubbing up against each other a little.
And then...more silence. No surprise. Not one of them had a strong idea on just how to continue from here. None of them had a good inkling of an idea on how to talk about this. They were all affected by what had happened to some degree. No, to a huge degree. Especially the Tabooties. There was little doubt that the guilt would fade away quickly.
As for Mrs. Sanchez...
"I am glad that Rudy's going to be okay."
This weak attempt to comfort Mr. and Mrs. Tabootie did have some effect at least. The two parents put their hands on each other and tried to soothe one another. They stared over at Mrs. Sanchez who sat at the end of the couch. Her hands were clasped together and her head was dipped down. There was some kind of unreadable expression on her face.
Mrs. Tabootie was the first one to respond. She licked her lips once and said, "Yeah... We're glad, too."
Mr. Tabootie nodded his head in agreement. "We just...can't believe that this really happened." He looked towards the ground. "I wonder if this really could have been avoided or..."
Mrs. Sanchez turned to stare at them. "Of course it could have been avoided."
The Tabooties stared at Mrs. Sanchez for a few moments. At first, they were confused and conflicted. But there was a part of them that could detect something more. It took a few moments for it to slowly dawn on them. And when it did, their eyes widened. The reason for Mrs. Sanchez's visit suddenly became perfectly clear.
"Mrs. Sanchez, a-a-are you..."
The look that she gave Mr. and Mrs. Tabootie was more stern than before. She was holding back as evidenced by her physical struggles, her body shaking. But it was clear that she had been holding back for too long and she couldn't keep this up for much longer.
Eventually, the woman tightened her hand into a tight fist and struck it against the arm of the couch. It wasn't as hard as it could have been, but it still sent shockwaves throughout both the couch and the Tabooties. They flinched and leaned away from her when she turned to continue giving them a firm glare. There was no mistaking that emotion, and the intent behind it.
"What were you thinking?" Mrs. Sanchez spoke. Her voice was low and hushed. It was as though she was straining to speak. "Why did you leave him alone like that...?"
Mr. Tabootie could feel his heart pounding in his chest. He struggled to think of how to respond. But there was little that he could say in his defense. He pressed his teeth against his lip in a small bit. "It wasn't like we kicked him out. H-He was in the house when we told him to wait."
"And yet he was still outside." Mrs. Sanchez interjected, still glaring at the two parents. "Not one of you thought it would be a good idea to keep an eye on him and make sure that he was safe? That thought never crossed your mind once?"
Mrs. Tabootie flinched at this. She took in a few shaky breaths as she tried to think of what to say. She looked left and right before she spoke, her fingers fumbling together. "W-We didn't know he was going to do that... Please, we feel bad enough as it is."
"Feeling bad about this is not going to make things better." Mrs. Sanchez said coolly.
Mr. Tabootie felt a mixture of fear and anger rising up inside of him. He was still having trouble swallowing the fact that one of their friends was turning against them like this. But what right did Mrs. Sanchez have to speak to them like this? After all, didn't she do something similar with her own daugther? He had seen the way things operated at her house before.
"What about Penny?" Mr. Tabootie spoke. He hadn't meant to growl, but he could hear it on the tip of his voice. Mrs. Sanchez stared at him expectantly. "You blame us for not keeping an eye on our son. But you go about and have your daughter, who is the same ate as our boy, by the way, work around a variety of animals, doing chores even around animals that could hurt her!"
Mrs. Tabootie opened her mouth to speak. She looked like she wanted to say something, but she soon decided against it. She just placed her hand on her husband's shoulder while she glanced at Mrs. Sanchez nervously.
Mrs. Sanchez seemed to take what Mr. Tabootie said to heart. There was a slight softening of her expression. At first, Mr. Tabootie thought this meant that he had gotten through to her. But when she resumed talking, he realized rapidly that this was not the case.
"Yes, I do give her chores. Yes, the chores are not what you would normally expect a ten year old these days to do. But you know what? If you're trying to use that as proof of me being hypocritical, then you are going to be sorely disappointed." Mrs. Sanchez' voice was unusually coolled at this point, The Tabooties could feel her near-icy breath hitting against their skin as she continued to glare at them. "In case you two didn't know, I've come from an upbringing where caring for animals was a dayly thing. My family has had a history of having our children help out, even as young as ten. It helps them learn responsibility and to be better prepared for the outside world."
Mr. Tabootie tried to speak up. "But that doesn't..."
Mrs. Sanchez cut him off immediately. "But that's the difference between my parenting and yours. I've taught my Penita what she needs to know to keep herself safe. She knows how to handle feeding the animals and cleaning their cages. She knows about their behavior and what to look for and what to avoid. She knows what is dangerous for her to use and how to approach each chore safely." Mrs. Sanchez paused for a moment, staring at the two parents as though to make sure they fully understood what she was saying. Then she added in, "And do you want to know why...?"
Mrs. Sanchez gave some pause in that moment. She stared intently at the Tabooties, clearly waiting for a response. Mr. Tabootie glanced at his wife. They both exchanged glances, neither able to come up with any sort of reply. They could only just look back at Mrs. Sanchez in silence. The tension around them just grew thicker, creating some kind of barrier that made it difficult to move anything.
Mr. Tabootie tried to think of what to say. A part of him had a feeling of where this was going. But he felt a bit of reluctance to fall right into that. If it's what he thinks it was going to be, then if he said his thoughts, then it might just further prove Mrs. Sanchez's point. All he could do was just stare at his wife out of the corner of his eye. All the two of them could do was just sit there and wait for some kind of response from Mrs. Sanchez.
Although he knew neither of them were going to like the answer.
"It's because I care about her. And I know I won't always be there to help her. I've taken the precautions to make sure that she would be safe. Penny has enough knowledge to avoid getting herself into trouble, and even then, I only let her do her chores on her own when I'm nearby. If there's anything that I feel is too dangerous, I block access to it."
Mr. Tabootie turned his gaze down. He could feel the weight of emotion hitting him like a sack of bricks. He wanted to argue back with her. But he knew that there was nothing that he could say in his defense. He could only just exhale softly as he started to speak, "Yes, we both understand. You've taken the measure in ensuring your daughter would be safe and that's admirable and..."
Mrs. Tabootie cut him off, interjecting into the conversation. "We love Rudy very much. We would have thought that you of all people would understand that." There were noticeable tears moving down the large woman's face.
Mrs. Sanchez didn't seem all that fazed by their words. Not positively nor negatively. It was as though she didn't hear the mat all. She stared intently at them like she had before. Only this time, there seemed to be something harsher about her gaze. The two couldn't help but cringe away from her as though she was about to strike at them.
Eventually, Mrs. Sanchez broke the silence. "Why didn't you put on child locks...?"
Those words again... They had heard the officer using them as well. Those two simple words sent a whirlwind of emotion through the Tabootie's bodies. They glanced at each other nervously. How could they hope to respond to that?
Mr. Tabootie had wanted to shove it away as some sort of...he wasn't sure of the right terminology to use here. But he was getting frustrated with that being used against him and his wife for a second time. He felt some burning anger inside of him. He would have told the woman that plenty of parents stop using child locks when their children are ten, even less so. Why was this being used as a weapon against them?
He wanted to believe that it was just some sort of conspiracy to make them feel worse. He wanted to think that they just had it out for him and his wife and they just wanted to make them out to be the villains. Everyone seemed to be turning against them, and the fact that it seemed like Mrs. Sanchez was following suit...
But a part of him knew that their point was valid. If they had at least child-proofed the cupboards, then maybe Rudy would have been fine. Maybe all of this could have been avoided. Maybe...
"Furthermore, why didn't you try to clean out his eyes? With water?" Mrs. Sanchez's voice seemed to be slightly darker at this point. It was almost bone chilling to hear her talking like this. "Didn't you ever bother learning that stuff? If you had cleaned out his eyes right away, then he would be out of the hospital sooner. By not acting, you made things worse for him."
Neither Mr. Tabootie nor Mrs. Tabootie could say anything to this. They couldn't even try to look at each other. They just stared at the woman before them, their minds reeling. Even if they could speak, there was nothing that they could say to this. They both knew that there was nothing they could say to explain away that so easily.
Mrs. Sanchez was clearly getting heated up at this point. Their lack of a response only seemed to irritate them further. She ground her teeth up and she looked like she was struggling to keep herself under control. Mr. and Mrs. Tabootie could tell that much of this fear laid with her own daughter. Mrs. Sanchez was a mother and had the same parental instincts that they did. She was likely imagining the same situation happening to her daughter and...
Suddenly, Mrs. Sanchez shot up from the couch swiftly, taking the Tabooties by shock. They barely had time to register this happening before she screamed a single phrase at them.
"You should have been watching him!"
Mr. and Mrs. Tabootie stared at the shaking veterinarian as the truth of her statement clouded over their heads. They couldn't try to respond. They just allowed their tears to flow down as the guilt settled in more firmly now, like a rock anchored down to the bottom of a lake.
sss
Penny flinched as she felt Blocky's arms moving around her tightly. She let out a small gasp of pain, not really expecting him to be able to hold onto her like that with those tiny little arms. She remained frozen for a few moments before she returned the hug tentatively. She whispered softly to him, "I know... It'll be all right..."
"A-A-Are you sure...? Poor Rudy..." Blocky cried as he cuddled up against her.
"It's certainly a tragedy." Lars spoke from a distance. "I do hope that he will be okay."
"Of courser he is! Just wait, he'll return soon and it'll be like nothing happened!" Snap raised his hand up, looking at the others around him, particularly Blocky. As they all stared at him, he cleared his throat and said, "What, guys? You know how Rudy is. He's...He's resilient. He'll be fine." He looked over at Penny. "Right, Buckette?"
Penny just remained silent. She focused on hugging Blocky. No words could flow out of her mouth.
Snap seemed to catch her expression and this only made him even more worried. She could hear him breathing in and out a little faster as he took a few steps towards her. He was still smiling, trying to act more optimistic than he had been when she first told him of the incident. But Penny could see right through his expression.
"R-Right, Buckette...?" Snap repeated softly. He licked his lips slowly as Penny still didn't answer him. "Penny?"
Penny wished that she could say something. She wanted to reassure the zoners here, especially Blocky who was crying up against her, that Rudy was fine. In fact, that's what she was told by her mom on the way over to the Tabooties'. There was nothing that indicated that Rudy would not survive.
But that wasn't the issue, was it? No, the issue laid elsewhere. It wasn't Rudy's death that concerned her. She knew that, at this point, it would be hard for Rudy to die from his injuries. But what of his sight? What of his mental state? She could tell the zoners that Rudy would be alive, but would that really matter if Rudy was no longer the same person?
But she couldn't just stay silent on the issue, either. The zoners deserved to know what was going on. She told Snap, but the other zoners who stood here, Lars, Rapsheeba, Blocky, and Bath Tub Granny, they deserved to know more, didn't they? She hadn't divulged everything to them yet. She owed it to them.
Well, here goes nothing. Exhaling softly, she spoke to them.
"The doctors say that he will survive. So yeah, he will not...you know..." Penny found it difficult to say the word 'die' to the others. She swallowed hard as she forced herself to continue. "The doctors say he should be out soon. But..."
Blocky croaked, "But what...? Penny, what's..."
Penny couldn't begin to respond. She just turned her head down low, biting her lip. She tried to think of just how she could tell them. She might just be overreacting herself. It might not be this bad. But at the same time...
The zoners were not liking her silence. She could hear footsteps as they got closer. Lars and Bath Tub Granny were both glaring at her, Rapsheeba and Blocky were looking in desperation, and Snap was looking at her expectantly, wanting her to speak up. Penny watched them for a few moments, but still could not bring herself to talk.
Having had enough, Bath Tub Granny spoke up. "Well? Get on with it!"
"Yeah, we have the right to know. What is this 'but' about?" Lars folded his arms against his chest. Penny would have chuckled if she weren't nervous about what Lars would do to make her talk.
"Buckette, you've got to tell them." Snap said. "If it's what I think it is... They should know."
Penny looked at her blue superhero friend. She knew that Snap was right. She just...wished that she was better prepared for this. She still couldn't believe that she was having this much trouble at all. If she told them that Rudy was going to survive, then why is telling them this so much harder? Wasn't death the worst thing that could happen?
...no, and she knew that. And it was for this reason that she hesitated. She knew that she couldn't stay silent for long, though, regardless if she was ready or not. She looked around slowly, carefully, taking everything in. The zoners were staring at her intently and she knew that they were not going to let up. She couldn't just walk away now.
After gathering her thoughts, Penny decided it was best to just start talking. Even if she wasn't fully prepared in how to explain this, she had to at least start. She would figure things out along the way.
"Yes, it is true that Rudy will come back. But there's... The doctors are not one hundred percent sure if he'll..." Penny's voice trailed off. It was so difficult to bring herself to say what came next. But she knew that it had to be done. "...i-if he will be..."
Blocky was nearly screeching in his response. "If he'll be what?!"
"Penny, what's going on?" Rapsheeba asked.
Penny closed her eyes and lowered her head. The next part was so hard, but she had repeated herself that she needed to tell them over and over again. She struggled to keep herself under control, trying hard not to shed any tears, as she lifted her head up and faced the group of expecting zoners. Their gaze seemed to pierce right through her soul, which made it even more difficult for her to do this. But she still managed to respond.
"...if he'll regain his sight or not..."
The group of zoners around her immediately froze in shock. Penny looked around. None of them were replying to what she had said. They could only just stare at her, horror crawling over their faces, their breaths being the only thing that she could hear.
The tense silence grew all around them, causing Penny to grow uncomfortable. It had only been a few seconds, but already it felt like hours. She could not turn her gaze away from how the zoners were looking at her. They had a mixture of emotion plastered on their faces and it would seem that none of them had any clue of what they were going to do. They could only just turn and look at each other before staring back at her. The lack of a response was becoming unbearable.
But what else would she have expected? It wasn't like she had anything positive to say. She didn't have something that they would have liked to hear. All that she had was just... bombshell of news that implied that Rudy might...
A part of her felt guilty for having to tell them this. Yet she would have felt worse if she said nothing at all. They would have found out sooner or later, and they would have felt betrayed if they found out that she knew beforehand. They would have wanted to know why she chose to say nothing.
Eventually, the silence was broken. And by Lars, which she did not expect. Penny looked up as she could hear the words flow from the bear zoner's muzzle.
"You mean he might be..." Lars pushed his glasses down. This caused his eyes to be visible, something that rarely happened. "...permanently blind?"
Bath Tub Granny was next. "He won't be able to see anymore?"
Penny gritted her teeth. She wanted to try to say something more positive. Something to cheer them up. But that was going to be impossible, wasn't it? She could only just... No, there was nothing that she could say to try to make this situation sound better. She just nodded slowly, hesitantly, letting the zoners sink it into their minds of just how grave the situation was, even without death.
Rapsheeba put her hand to her mouth. "I... I don't believe it.."
Blocky had tears flowing down hsi face. "R-Rudy..."
Lars and Bath Tub Granny were silent. They exchanged glances with each other. That was all Penny needed to see to have an idea of what they were going through mentally.
Snap looked upset as well, although not as much as he was trying to stay positive. "But the doctors don't know for sure. H-He'll probably recover. A-A-And..." He paused for a moment as he tried to gather up his thoughts. "Rudy will return like he always does."
Penny stared at him for a few seconds before looking away. That was Snap for you. He liked to try to remain more positive and while she appreciated it, at the same time, Snap was still neglecting to tell them one thing. Something that should be pretty obvious to anyone who knew Rudy.
Penny decided it was best if she told the others. Snap was still struggling to come to terms with it himself. "Even if Rudy does recover enough to come back, if his eyesight suffered permanent damage, even if he doesn't lose it all, he might..." Penny bit her lip. It made her feel sick just talking about this. It was difficult to push herself to continue. "You all know how much he loves art."
Bath Tub Granny nodded her head. "Yes, we all get that." She was slightly bitter sounding in that voice. Maybe it was due to remembering that Rudy drew her in a bathtub and how she was stuck in it now. But despite that, she did still have some appreciation for Rudy's creative skills. "Get on with what you were going to say. What might Rudy do?"
Rapsheeba nodded her head in agreement. "Stop leaving us in suspense, Penny. Just tell us."
"Please...?" Blocky pleaded. "I know it might not be good news, but..."
Penny felt guilty for dragging this on longer than it needed to. She fought against her hesitation and her fear of what kind of response she might get. She just...exhaled slowly and resolved to give the answer straight. It was the least that she could do.
"If Rudy's eyesight is damaged in anyway, that would affect his ability to create. Since he loves creating art so much..." Penny raised her hand up in gesture. "...how do you think this would affect his outlook if...if the damage is so bad that he...can't do what he loves anymore?"
The zoners fell silent at this.
Penny continued, "And he feels responsible for this place. He wants to help protect ChalkZone from danger and help people here. If he can no longer see... Can you imagine how devastated he would feel? Can you imagine how useless he might start seeing himself?" Penny fought against the tears forming in her eyes. "I-I really hope it doesn't come to that..."
No one else said a word. Silence reigned through as it had before. This time, it seemed to last much longer. There wasn't another word that could be said. Just silent exchanges and silent comforting.
sss
Dr. Bendor had to do some regrettable things in the past. But none of that compared to what he had to do now.
He stared at the open hands of the officer. The hands that were expecting him to give him what he wanted. There was little option to just back off and try something else. There was nothing that he could do to just walk away from this. He had agreed and now he had to produce the goods.
A part of him wondered if this was the right thing to do. It was, of course, the legal thing to do. He couldn't just refuse a police request for this sort of thing. But a part of him just felt... He wasn't sure if he was going to feel right for a while after this.
It had at least been a little easier getting the information than he thought. He believed that he would have needed to resort to being slightly more forceful... Well maybe not that. But he was still glad that, in the end, it ran more smoothly and the boy was willing to talk. Although he coudln't exactly say he was happy with what he learned out of that ordeal.
"You got the information, right?" Said the officer. "You said you would get it for me. We had an agreement."
Dr. Bendor bit his lip for a moment. He then nodded his head. "Y-Yes, we did, Officer Lou. I got what you asked for." Dr. Bendor let out a slightly shaky breath before he forced himself to reach over and hand the officer the paperwork. "I asked the boy a few questions like you wanted. I think you'll find the answers...very...interesting."
"Oh really? I hope that he managed to say something in defense of his parents." Officer Lou said. "I'd hate to have to take action."
Dr. Bendor couldn't really reply to that. There was nothing to say. Officer Lou would find out soon enough exactly what he had learned. It would only take a bit of reading and flipping through the papers to get an idea. He already knew what the man's verdict was going to be.
There was still a sickening feeling in his stomach that he had to take in part in this. He wasn't sure if the officer felt the same way or not. But for him, bringing legal matters into this regarding Rudy Tabootie's parents while he was recovering didn't seem...like a good idea. He was already going through enough with getting his eyes taken care of. He didn't need the extra stress put on him. Indeed, he felt some level of guilt of having to drill those questions into him.
But at the same time, he knew what the law was and he knew what was legal and what was not. If he had willingly pretended that this issue didn't exist, if he tried to hide the information, he could have been convicted later on if information had gotten out. Someone else would have found out and he could have been linked.
In the end, he knew that the most logical, legal thing to do was, well, what he just did. Operating in compliance with the police and do what needed to be done. If there is enough evidence to convict Mr. and Mrs. Tabootie of child neglect, then they would need to take the appropriate action. Anything less would be an obstruction of the law.
Officer Lou's eyes narrowed into slits as he stared at the paper. "Hrmm... Well this certainly isn't looking good for the boy's parents." He let out a small sigh as he closed the folder up. "That is unfortunate."
"Agreed. I was hoping that this was a one time thing." Dr. Bendor glanced at the folder. "But those incidents have gotten me very worried. I mean, what kind of parent just...doesn't at least try to question the necessity of force displayed by that agency that took them and their son away? Wouldn't they have thought it was rather suspicious?"
Officer Lou frowned. "Even worse, why would they not show concern when their boy fell out of the window onto a car? What if he wasn't so lucky?" He looked in one direction. "And let's not forget how they left him in that Roman Colosseum by himself."
Dr. Bendor flinched at that. He didn't want to think about that. There were so many terrible things that could have happened to the boy. There isn't a responsible parent that he knew that would have done that. "That is worrisome behavior. I'm starting to wonder if there is some kind of pattern with this. Do we even know if this is it? What if there's more that the boy is hiding?"
"Perhaps there is. But I think we've gathered enough evidence to convict his parents." Officer Lou stated as he held the folders against himself. "I will bring this to my co-workers. We'll review it and see if action needs to be taken." He dipped his head forward slightly, making his eyes look like they were growing darker. "But I promise you, from what we both know already, those parents are going to be in a lot of trouble."
"I agree."
Dr. Bendor couldn't bring himself to act surprised by any of this. It hadn't been the first time that he had seen a case of child abuse or neglect. But this was one of the harder cases as Rudy seemed...rather fond of his parents. There didn't seem to be any sign of physical or verbal abuse. Indeed, except for the incidents that happened very recently, in the course of one year, little over one year, they did seem like good parents. It would be a shame if something needed to be done.
But the law was the law. Both he and Officer Lou realized this. They both knew that this wasn't something that could be ignored. These parents have had a history of neglecting their son and while he seemed fine in other cases told to them, this time around, their neglect resulted in their boy, their only child, to get hurt. There needed to be some form of punishment. They got off scott free before.
Well not this time. Not on their watch. They would make sure they got the proper punishment for this, even if he and the officer were still somewhat reluctant about it.
Especially considering the fact that their parents didn't just not use child locks, they didn't seem entirely aware of how to deal with certain poison situations. This was mostly demonstrated in how they did not wash their son's eyes out when they had the chance to. The fact that they weren't sure demonstrated gross ignorance and that...did not spell anything good. If anything, ignorance can be worse than malice.
"I didn't want it to have to come to this. I did speak to those parents myself and they don't seem like they really meant to harm their son." Officer Lou spoke. There was a softness in his voice, a hint of regret. That only further cemented their positions here in this situation. "But good intention isn't good enough." He shook his head slowly. "Sometimes the worst of actions are committed out of good intentions."
Dr. Bendor couldn't disagree. "It is...a grave necessity."
Officer Lou nodded his head. He then said, "I do thank you for your cooperation."
"You're welcome. I hope that things don't have to resort to...well..."
"..so do I..."
