Thanks as always to everyone for reading :) This one might seem a little slow, but there is a reason for it, I think... Let me know what you think of it :)
Do not own, make no money.
Chapter 22: What About Home?
Craig allowed Jack to guide him on down the stairs, with Dr. Payne not far behind them. He thought Green was following as well, but when he glanced back he didn't see him, or Johnson. Jack pushed the door opened and allowed Dr. Payne to step past them to exit before pulling Craig on through to the cold air waiting to envelope them. Dr. Payne motioned for them to follow her around the corner to the main entrance, but Jack shook his head. "You go on; we are going to wait in the car." He spoke just loud enough for the older woman to hear him."
"It's cold out here and he doesn't have a coat." Dr. Payne pointed towards Craig but kept her gaze on Jack as she came to a stop at the corner of the building. "I need to check him over and make sure he's okay."
"We aren't going back in there." Jack shrugged out of his leather coat and stopped Craig long enough to quickly put it around the boy, "How's that?" He asked, but didn't wait for an answer. He took a hold of Craig's hand and pulled him around Dr. Payne and towards the Gremlin sitting in front of the Volvo.
The cold took hold of Craig despite having his brother's coat around him and a shiver ran from the back of his neck down his back and on through his legs all of the way to his toes. He didn't argue with Jack, he let him pull him towards the Gremlin.
Dr. Payne trailed along behind them. "Jack, he was sedated, he should be examined by a doctor." The woman sounded genuinely concerned. Her voice trembled as she spoke, and Craig was sure it was from the damp cold that seemed to be drifting about them in the mist that swept to and fro in the shifting breeze. Craig felt as if he were surrounded by clouds that had fallen from the sky, and they were moving in towards him, trying to engulf his mind, and then pulling back as he struggled to keep his thoughts clear.
Jack pulled him to the front end of the Gremlin and easily lifted him onto the steamy hood where warmth seemed to drift up from the still hot engine, soothing away some of the chill that had taken a hold of him, but not all of it. He could now see Dr. Payne clearly, with her arms wrapped tightly around her in an attempt to stave off the same chill that had been fighting to penetrate Craig's own bones. "If you bring him inside I can..."
Jack turned towards the doctor, his jaw set hard as he spoke. "He's fine. He needs his medication, that's all." He spoke with a cold voice that caught Craig off guard.
"Jack, you know I would never do anything to hurt him." Dr. Payne took a step closer to them. "If he's been on medication, then the sedative could have adverse effects, you do realize that, don't you? A doctor needs to look at him. He needs an examination, some blood work…"
"That's for Bobby to decide. Don't worry; we'll take care of him, Joyce." Jack's tone didn't change, he sounded as if he was pissed at the woman.
Craig studied the doctor's face and was sure he could see worry and maybe a tiny bit of hurt. "How do you know Jack?" He asked the question as soon as the realization hit him. She had called Jack by his first name, and he'd replied in kind, calling her Joyce; not Dr. Payne.
Jack turned to look at Craig and his look seemed hard as steel. "She knew Mom. How do you think I know her?"
Craig nearly flinched at the angry sound in Jack's voice, and he wished he could take the question back. "Sorry." Jack probably had met Dr. Payne through their adoptive mother, but it just didn't feel right. He sensed Jack wasn't being honest with him about Dr. Payne, there was something more to how they knew each other than his brother was saying. He recognized something in his brother's eyes that gave it away, but he didn't care to ask him about it at that moment. He didn't care about anything except going home. He wanted to go home and hide in his mother's bed. He would take all of the pills Bobby gave him, he would eat any food that was set in front of him and he would sleep as much as Bobby wanted him to. He didn't care that he had gotten into trouble with his brother earlier; he just wanted to go home and be with him and feel safe again.
"At least let me check him over?" Dr. Payne stepped up to stand next to Jack.
Jack looked at Craig. "Are you feeling okay? You feel sick or anything?"
Craig shook his head and drew in a shaky breath. He felt a little confused. He wasn't sure how his brothers had found him, or why they were able to take him if he was in the custody of the state, like William and Jim had told him. "What's going on?"
Jack frowned at him. "How long were you knocked out for?"
"The sedative they gave him couldn't have been too strong. They probably thought he'd sleep all night though." Joyce Payne finally pushed in between Jack and Craig. "Craig, can you look up at me?" She cupped his chin in her hand and lifted his eyes towards light just behind her, to the right. She used her other hand to shield him from the light for a moment and then pulled it away, apparently trying to check his pupil dilation.
Jack looked as if he was about to argue with the woman, but instead let out a frustrated huff.
"Craig did they give you a shot or a pill?" Dr. Payne dropped her hand to his wrist and felt for a pulse.
"A shot," Craig muttered.
"I'm sure it was just a mild sedative to get you to sleep so they could bring you here without any arguments." Dr. Payne smiled.
"I told you, we'll get him in to his doctor. We'll let him check him over. He knows his medical history." Jack finally pushed back into his place directly in front of Craig, effectively pushing the doctor away.
Craig shivered a little harder as the heat from the car engine seemed to be diminishing.
"You need to get him out of the cold." Dr. Payne spoke quickly.
Jack turned to the woman and drew in a deep breath. "Look, I know what he needs, okay? He's my brother. Just go inside and get warm. I'll get him in the car and he'll be fine." His tone seemed to hold a little calm.
Dr. Payne directed her smile at Jack this time. "I know you haven't forgotten our talks. I also know that seeing me brings back some bad memories, but I don't take it personally." Her tone was more motherly than anything, and Craig felt drawn towards it again, just as he'd felt the comfort in her touch earlier; he sensed she was someone's mother. She was so much like Evelyn. Maybe that was why Jack's anger seemed to die so quickly. Her words seemed to explain part of Jack's anger, and the reason he felt familiar enough with the doctor to call her by her first name.
It would make sense for Evelyn to take Jack to a doctor she knew and was familiar with, wouldn't it? Jack might not have liked going to her, but he would have fallen into the motherly feel of her, just as Craig did. She would have done what she could to help. That might have even been how she and Evelyn Mercer got to know each other, maybe. It really didn't matter.
It made no difference why Jack seemed to not like being around the doctor, or how he knew her, but his mind had found something to concentrate on instead of listening to the words passing between Dr. Payne and his brother. His mind was trying hard to focus on something other than what had happened that day. The feeling of being ripped away from his home and the fears that had surfaced in such a short time were trying to roll around in his head and filling it with what ifs and trying to figure out how Jack knew Dr. Payne was a way of escaping it for the moment.
Jack turned and looked at Craig who wasn't really returning his gaze at the moment, he was staring out at the misty and frost and cold that was visible all around him. The air was cold but worse than just cold, it was wet but not raining. Every breath he sucked in felt wet and icy and his body seemed to be freezing up from the inside because of it.
"Hey, come on; let's get you in the car before you freeze out here." Jack took a hold of his arms and slid him back off the hood of the car. "I hope they hurry the hell up."
"I'm going in, but please have your brother call me? I truly think I can help." Dr. Payne said more, but Craig's mind was wandering again, filling with thoughts of home and safety and familiar walls to protect him. "I'm sure I'll be busy with the police for a couple of days, but that doesn't matter."
"I'll tell him what you said. But don't count on it. Craig doesn't want to talk to anyone about it. Bobby has let him decide that for himself. It never did any good to force him before, so…" Jack let his statement die as he pulled the driver's door open. "Climb into the back." He instructed the teen while pushing the seat forward.
Craig obeyed and climbed into the back seat. Jack leaned in and started the car, though it took a few cranks before the engine heaved out a loud rumble. He frowned when he held his hand out in front of one of the vents that should have been blowing air and played with the knob that should have kicked the fan into high, but only resulted in a strange whistling noise somewhere behind the dash. He frowned, slammed his left fist into the plastic just next to the knobs and buttons. The whistling was replaced by a low roar as air pushed through the vents, though the air wasn't all that warm, but it was better than being outside.
Jack turned his head to look at Craig and smiled. "Okay, now I'm going to get rid of the pain in the ass doctor once and for all." He pointed towards Dr. Payne. "Then I'll be right back."
"Jack, she got me out of there. Harris was chasing us, and she…" Craig started to speak quickly, not wanting his brother to be mad at some one's mother. It didn't make sense to him, but that was what he was feeling at that moment. "She called for help, didn't she?" He asked, not one hundred percent sure how else his brothers would have known to find him, if not for the doctor.
"Don't worry. I will be nice, I promise." Jack spoke quietly before pulling back from the car and pushing the door closed, only to have it bounce back open.
Craig watched as Jack struggled with the door three more times before giving it a hard enough slam that the entire car shook. The door stayed latched after the slam, but the knock seemed to kill the heater fan. The teen pulled Jack's coat tight around him and watched through the window while Jack talked to Dr. Payne. He almost wished he could hear their words, but was surprised at how quiet the car felt.
The damp was gone, but suddenly Craig noticed an odor in the air that he couldn't exactly identify. He thought he remembered the same kind of odor hanging in the car before, but not quite as strong, it held a hint of old gym shoes mixed in with hot rubber and citrus. He allowed his body to slide down in the seat and pulled Jack's leather coat up over his nose and mouth for protection against the smell. His eyes still hung on the sight of Jack and Dr. Payne talking. He was almost certain he could see a hint of a smile form on Jack's face and just before Dr. Payne turned away from him they exchanged a quick hug.
Jack climbed in behind the steering wheel and grumbled words under his breath before slamming the door hard enough to get it to latch. The force of the slam kicked the heater fan back into action and warm air started flowing again. It could have been warmer, but Craig wasn't going to complain.
Craig sat back up in his seat and watched Dr. Payne walk quickly to the front entrance of St. Vincent's. "I hate this place." He muttered before he realized it.
"Me too," Jack turned in his seat and looked at Craig. "You really okay?" He asked.
Craig shrugged his shoulders. "I want to go home." He muttered, giving Jack a quick glance before diverting his eyes back towards the building.
"Me too," Jack managed a forced laugh.
That was when Craig remembered the sight in front of him earlier that day, Harris slapping handcuffs around his brother's wrists, "What happened today Jack?" He asked quietly.
Jack cleared his throat as if he was about to speak but nothing came. Craig finally gave his full attention to Jack in the front seat. "What happened?" He repeated.
"I think it might be better to let Bobby explain it." Jack muttered and reached his hand up to his face. It was hard to tell in the dark of the car, but it looked as if he wiped a tear away from his cheek.
"Did they arrest you?" Craig asked.
"Yeah, they arrested me." Jack's head nodded slightly.
"Why?" Craig was sure he should stop asking, but he wanted to know what had happened that day, what was the reason Harris had turned their lives upside down? Was it because of Adam Macks or something more? He had a right to know.
Jack looked at him; he could tell by the tilt that he was looking right at him. "Because Harris wanted to divide and conquer, that's why." His voice was quiet. "But it didn't work; we're too strong for that. You remember that, no matter what, okay?"
Craig felt another chill run through him. "Okay." He muttered, sensing there was something more going on than he knew, maybe something he didn't want to know. "Jack?" He spoke weakly, suddenly feeling just as alone in the back seat as he had felt locked up in that room with the mirror.
"Yeah," Jack had turned away by now and his voice was barely audible.
"Can I come up there with you? I'm cold." Craig felt small asking the question, but he didn't care. He wanted to feel close to someone.
"Come on." Jack turned back to him and waved his hand as if directing him.
Craig squeezed through the small space between the bucket seats and curled into the passenger seat. He hugged the coat around him and realized that Jack had to be freezing without his own coat. "Are you cold?" He couldn't stop the question.
Jack stared at him for a long moment. "I'm fine Craig." He didn't sound very convincing though.
Craig swallowed hard. "Why did they arrest you Jack?" He repeated the question.
Jack frowned deeper than Craig thought was possible but didn't answer the question. His head dropped and he turned away from Craig as if he were looking out the window to his left.
"It was because you shot Adam?" Craig pushed, he knew he should let it go for now. "But you saved Bobby. You saved all of us." He felt the sting of tears but held them back. "They can't do anything to you for that, can they?"
"Craig, stop." Jack snapped his head back up and looked at Craig. "Just stop. I don't know what's going to happen. I don't know if I'm going back to jail or not, and I'd rather not think about it right now. Okay? I'm just glad we found you. It would have killed me going to court tomorrow without knowing where you were."
It took a moment for the words to penetrate the fuzzy feeling that seemed to be crawling across Craig's skin, "Court, tomorrow?" He managed to get the words past his stiff mouth.
Jack started to speak again, but the passenger door next to Craig jerked open. Craig startled at the sudden movement and was ready to leap across the seat to Jack, whose arm shot across the void separating them as if to shield him from impending danger.
"Jeeze sweetheart, calm down. The kid jumping out of his skin is understandable, but you need to relax a little." Bobby leaned into the car, slapping Jack's arm away. He grabbed hold of Craig and pulled him out of the car. "Now, let me get a real look at you." He said to the boy as he stood him on the sidewalk just outside the car door, he let his hands rest on Craig's shoulders and looked at him. He leaned down slightly. "Hell, you're tough; you ain't hurt none, are you?"
The tears that had been on the edge, teetering to and fro suddenly broke free and Craig's arms flung around Bobby's neck. He was going home now. He was going to be able to hold onto his brother, feel safe and block out everything that had happened that day. He would be able to forget about it, ignore it; pretend none of it had ever happened.
"Hey, it's okay kid. You didn't think we'd let Harris get away with his fucked up stunt, did you?" Bobby held onto him for a long minute, giving him a hard squeeze as if he knew Craig needed to feel him.
Craig opened his mouth, but nothing would come out. He buried his face hard into Bobby and hung on tighter.
"Craig, it's okay." Bobby leaned close to him and spoke the words quietly into his ear.
"Hey, Craig, you're okay." Angel's voice came from behind him just as a third hand rubbed on his back. "Come on now, we got shit to do." Then the hand was gone.
"Bobby, come on, we ain't got all night. Y'all need to be moving your ass." Jeremiah called from the Volvo parked behind them.
"You heard your brothers." Bobby pried Craig off of him. "Okay, get Jackie's coat off before the fairy freezes to death." He quickly helped the boy out of the leather coat and tossed it into the car, where it landed on Angel, who had taken up the space in the passenger's seat.
"Hey, watch it." Angel flung the coat towards Jack.
"You'll ride with me, in the real car." Bobby chuckled and gave the door a slam.
Craig's arms started shivering instantly from the damp cold. Bobby wrapped one arm around him and rushed him back to the Volvo just as the headlights on the car lit up.
Craig expected Bobby to open the back of the car, but instead his brother pulled on the front passenger door, pushed Craig into the seat and then squeezed in next to him.
"Bobby, man, you can't put him in the front seat with us; there is no room." Jeremiah spoke quickly. "There ain't no seat belt for him either." He sounded irritated.
Bobby slid Craig onto his lap and wrapped his arms around him. "I don't give a fuck. The kid's riding with me." He grunted as he adjusted Craig's position, pulling him into his lap.
"Yeah, but he can ride in the back." Jeremiah cried out.
"What the hell is wrong with you? This is the safest car in the world, ain't it? Hell, we shouldn't have to worry about seatbelts in the safest car in the fucking world Jerr'." Bobby laughed.
Craig looked at Jeremiah. "I can get in the back." He muttered.
"Hell no, I want you right here." Bobby sounded serious and if Craig had to be honest he liked the idea of sitting right there where he was, able to feel Bobby and know that he was close. Part of him was afraid he'd wake up and find himself trapped in that room at St. Vincent's, locked up tight, waiting for Harris and his men to come back for him. Bobby's hold on Craig tightened. "Just put the car in drive and move it Jerr'. We got shit to do, not much time to do it and I need to ask Craig questions. You know that."
Jeremiah shook his head. "Stupid ass, gonna get us all killed the way you act. You really think you can't ask Craig questions with him the back seat? It ain't safe for him to be in the front seat with no seat belt." He went on muttering under his breath as he shoved the gearshift into drive and pulled out from behind the Gremlin. "What the hell you gonna do if we have an accident?"
"You're the one who keeps sayin' this is safest fucking car ever made; stop your bitchin' at me." Bobby cried out, an irritated current carrying his voice.
"Even if we were to have a minor accident Bobby, we'd be cited for no seat belt." Jeremiah looked in the rearview mirror to make sure Jack and Angel were following him.
"Brother, you ain't happy if you ain't bitchin' about somethin', are you?" Bobby cried out. "What the hell is your problem? You need to learn to trust me."
"You'd better know what the hell you're doing Bobby. I swear if we end up in more trouble I am going to kill you myself." Jerry followed the drive back around the building to the street.
Craig looked up at Bobby, and could see a glint in his eyes. He was grinning inside, and scowling on the outside. There was a time not so long ago that he wouldn't have recognized the mischievous glaze across his brother's face, but now he seen it and he knew Bobby was chiding Jerry, spurring him on because it was fun for him to listen to the arguments that spilled out as a result.
"I know exactly what I'm doing, don't I Craig?" Bobby looked down at him and seemed surprised to find the boy meeting his stare. The man's eyes seemed to soften slightly around the corners and he gave him a quick wink. "I ain't gonna leave you in no back seat, not alone." He spoke the words quietly and his whole tone shifted. He was no longer joking.
Craig rested his head on Bobby's shoulder and let out a short shudder of air as he felt his body relax slightly. "You know everything Bobby." He muttered.
"Oh my God, you done got him brainwashed, don't you?" Jeremiah cried out.
Craig felt Bobby's body shake as the man laughed. "Hell Jerr', stop over reacting to everything, just drive the fucking car."
The car grew quiet though Craig was sure he could see the muscles in Jeremiah's jaw twitch and flex periodically. Bobby kept pulling in deep breaths, as if he were trying to calm down, or perhaps in heavy thought. Craig let his muscles relax and found his mind close to drifting off to sleep. He was sure they were heading home now, back to safety and some place familiar.
Jeremiah pulled the car to a stop at a traffic light and looked over at Bobby. "Where the hell are we going? It ain't like we can take him with us for this, you know that don't you? So tell me where I'm driving."
Craig's mind had been close to pulling him into a dark, soothing calm when Jeremiah's words dragged him back to reality. He tensed up as the meaning of Jerry's questions gradually wrapped around his consciousness. He started to sit up, pulling away from Bobby. "What do you mean?" He asked quickly without looking at Bobby.
"We gotta go check on somethings Craig." Bobby held onto him, pulling him back to where he'd been leaning. "Don't worry, it won't take long."
Craig felt his heart freeze up. "Where are you going to take me?" The words felt weak. He didn't want to be separated from his brothers again; he just wanted to go home where he was safe.
The car filled with more silence when the light turned green and Jeremiah pulled on through the intersection.
Bobby sighed and shook his head. "We ain't takin' you nowhere. You're going with." He gave Craig's shoulders a careful squeeze. "Okay?"
Craig could see Jeremiah's shoulders tense up behind the steering wheel. "What the hell are you doin' Bobby?" He asked. "That's a bad idea. Do you know how bad an idea that is? Do you?" He cried out.
"We don't have time to find a place to leave him that's safe Jerr'. We don't have time to drive him someplace, ask him the questions we need to and still do what we need to, okay? He's going with us. Don't argue with me on this one, you ain't got shit to say about it." Bobby's tone was different this time, he wasn't playing with Jerry, and he was ready to fight this one out with him he needed to.
Jeremiah shook his head slowly. He turned and looked at Bobby for a long moment. His mouth opened as if he was about to speak, but then it slammed shut as he heeded Bobby's silent warning to challenge him any further.
Bobby carefully pushed Craig up so that he was resting back against the seat. "Craig, I need to ask you some questions, and it they ain't gonna be easy. You can do this though, I know you can, okay?"
Craig swallowed at the fear that was still trying to surge inside of him. He was sick of it never ending. He'd been sure it was over when he'd seen Bobby in the stairwell, but now he was mentally screaming at himself what a stupid idiot he was. He should have known better, he should have known it wasn't over, not with his brothers.
"Harris asked you some questions, didn't he?" Bobby asked.
"Not really." Craig muttered.
"He must have asked you something Craig. He wanted you to tell him something. I want you to think real hard about what he said to you and tell us." Bobby kept his voice quiet.
Craig shook his head. "He didn't ask me about anything except the cemetery." He barely got the words out. He didn't want to talk about Harris, or the cemetery, or the day he'd just spent locked in a room with the man who felt as frightening as his own father had felt.
Bobby planted a hand on either side of Craig's face and pulled his eyes around to meet his stare. "You look at me and listen little boy. This ain't something you can pretend about. You gotta tell me everything that man said to you, everything he asked you. Jack's future depends on it. You got that?"
Craig felt the air around him disappear into a vacuum. The full meaning of Bobby's words seemed to sink into his very skin. Jack was going back to jail and they needed to know what Harris was after to keep that from happening. He understood Bobby and he nodded his head slowly to let him know he did. He understood, and he would do his best to tell Bobby what he could, but he honestly didn't remember a whole lot about Harris had asked him other than the man's insisting on him writing out his statement about what had happened on New Years. He'd done his best to block as much of it out as he could. The picture of Harris killing the metal chair earlier that evening ran through his mind and he swallowed hard. "He didn't ask me any questions." He kept his eyes on Bobby. "He wanted me to write down my statement about what happened at the cemetery. I swear Bobby; he didn't say anything about anything else." He felt his voice breaking as he forced the words.
Bobby's eyes squinted in the dark car, and he leaned a little closer. "Did that son of a bitch touch you? Did he hit you?" He asked.
Craig shook his head quickly and felt himself pull back from Bobby, only to have his brother's hold on him tighten. "I want to go home."
"You talk to me Craig; did he hit you at all? Did he threaten you?" Bobby pulled him closer to him. Craig stared into Bobby's eyes and let his mind play back the fit Harris had thrown in that room with the mirror. He did not want to talk about his time with Harris. He didn't want to think about Harris, he just wanted to forget about the whole day. It was a day that didn't have to ever happen.
The itch that had been crawling under the skin of the inside of Craig's right arm started to twitch hard. He stared at Bobby's eyes, trying to find the strength to answer his questions. No, Harris hadn't hit him. No, he hadn't hurt him, not really. He'd scared the shit out of him, and he'd mangled a helpless chair to draw more fear but he hadn't actually hit him. He tried to think of how to tell Bobby, but instead he just stared at the hard look on his brother's face. "Bobby, I just want to go home." He felt his free hand digging at the crawling under his skin.
Bobby's hand wrapped around Craig's left wrist and pulled it away from the itch that seemed to be traveling up his right arm. "That answers one question. He managed to scare you, didn't he? He threatened you." Bobby nodded his head slowly. "You listen to me. We are going to take Harris down for this. He's gonna pay, and the fucker he works for is gonna pay too. You don't worry about him, he ain't gonna touch you again. But I need to know what he was asking you. I need to know what he thought you could give to him."
Craig shook his head again. "But I told you already. The cemetery was all he talked about." He barely got the words out. He really did want to help Jack, he wanted to tell Bobby everything that he could think of, but right now, his mind felt over loaded. How could anything Harris had asked him help Jack?
Bobby didn't seem happy with the answer. He gave Craig a slow nod though and drew in a deep breath. "Think hard Craig, did he ask you about Adam at all?" He asked.
Craig's gut twisted and he started to pull back from Bobby. "No." He answered without hesitating. "He just seemed mad because he was dead."
Bobby sucked in another long breath and seemed to hold it for an extra second longer than he should have. "Did Macks give you anything Craig? Did he give you anything when you were with him?"
"What?" Craig didn't understand. "No."
"Think Craig. It might not have seemed like much. He might have given you something small, even a piece of paper, or…" Bobby was trying to think of some kind of example. His eyes flicked to Jeremiah as if he could help.
"Bobby, he didn't give him anything." Jeremiah shook his head. "If he had we would have found it already."
Bobby looked as if he was getting pissed. He looked back down at Craig. "Okay think; did Adam say anything or tell you anything that seemed strange? Did he show you anything or brag about coming into a lot of money?"
Craig's entire body started to itch as he remembered his father's promise of all of the things he was going to do to him. He had bragged about making money, about making lots of money by selling something, but that wasn't what Bobby was asking about. He knew what Bobby was asking but couldn't quite separate the two different meanings. He opened his mouth and tried to make his mouth work. One word would answer the question, just one. But he couldn't get enough strength behind his voice to even mutter a simple 'no'.
"That ain't working Bobby." Jeremiah spoke.
Bobby sighed and seemed to give up. He sat back in his seat and pulled Craig back so that he was resting against him. "There's something you know that's the only thing that makes sense. Something that Adam said to you or showed you, something that was important, but you didn't know it was important. You might not know what it meant at the time, but there has to be something." It was obvious that he was thinking out loud and not really talking to Craig.
Craig suddenly felt the urge to curl into a ball and melt away. "I want to go home." He repeated the desire that was eating away at his insides. "Please Bobby, take me home?"
Bobby didn't seem to hear him at first, but after a few seconds of quiet the man pulled him closer. "You're comin' with us. I ain't letting you out of my sight, not tonight." He whispered to him. "This is important Craig. If we don't take care of this shit tonight we won't have anything to use in court to protect Jack. Okay?"
Craig felt a shiver run through him. He didn't understand. "What happened? Why did Harris arrest Jack?" He didn't look at Bobby; he kept his eyes focused on the small slice of road in front of the windshield that was illuminated under the head lights.
"He's after something. He thought if he pressed charges against Jack and used that to scare you, then you'd tell him what he wanted to know. That's the only thing I can come up with. He had to separate you and Jack from us to scare you both. It worked too. He scared you. So I need to know everything you said to Harris." Bobby's voice was barely a whisper.
"I didn't say anything to him." Craig muttered, struggling against the urge to dig at his skin again.
Bobby sighed. "Okay, you need to tell me everything that you seen and heard from the second they grabbed you at the house, okay? Don't leave anything out."
"When can I go home?" Craig asked weakly.
"When I take you home, it's going to be for good and we ain't gonna be looking over our shoulder for trouble. You got that? Now start telling me what I need to know. The more you tell me, the faster I can get you home." Bobby was losing his patience. His tone was all too familiar.
Craig thought hard about the car ride he'd shared with William and Jim. He closed his eyes so that he could picture everything in his head and slowly started telling his brothers what they wanted to know as best as he could.