Chapter 15
Roz didn't remember the drive into Riverdale being so long. She remembered as a child, her parents would take her to the neighboring town and it would only take 20 minutes to get into the heart of the city. Tonight, it felt like hours to get there. She nearly jumped out of the car once she pulled into a spot. Sabrina and Prudence practically ran to catch up with her.
As soon as they ran through the doors, they spotted a middle aged man in uniform talking to another officer. He was tall, well built, and rather handsome. He removed his hat to reveal his short, slicked back black hair. His beard was the same shade of black, but had a few specks of grey. The badge pinned to his shirt indicated he was the sheriff as the nameplate read 'Jones.'
"Ladies, how can I help you?" Sheriff Jones asked.
"I'm looking for my boyfriend," Roz said quickly. "His name is Harvey. Harvey Kinkle. Is he here?"
Sheriff Jones nodded as he tossed his hat onto the desk behind him. "He is," Jones sighed. "Miss…"
"Walker."
"Miss Walker, why don't we talk in my office?"
"Can my friends come?"
Sheriff Jones nodded and the three women followed the older man to his office. He sat behind his desk and leaned back in his chair as Roz, Sabrina, and Prudence sat across from him.
"Given the fact Mr. Kinkle is only 18 and about to graduate, I didn't want to talk about this out in the open. Your boyfriend was in the middle of a street fight," Sheriff Jones stated.
"Harvey Kinkle was in a street fight?" Prudence laughed. "Are you sure?"
"I'm positive. When we arrived on scene, he and the gentleman he was fighting with caused significant property damage to a local business. To top it off, Mr. Kinkle was intoxicated."
"I'm sorry. Did you just say Harvey was drunk?" Sabrina asked in surprise. "But Harvey doesn't drink."
"Sabrina, we'll talk about it later," Roz whispered to her friend. "Is Harvey ok at least?"
"He's got some cuts and bruises and he'll be sore tomorrow. He's lucky his brother offered to pay for all the damages so the owner wouldn't press charges."
"His brother?" the three girls asked at the same time.
Sheriff Jones raised a brow. "Yes. A mister…." He shuffled some papers on his desk until he found the stack pertaining to Harvey. "Nicholas Scratch. Your friend, Theo Putnam, gave his name when we asked about next of kin."
"And Nick said he would pay for all the damages?" Sabrina asked.
"He did. In cash."
"He paid for everything. In cash?"
Sheriff Jones nodded. "Around here, when someone pays a large sum of money in cash, it usually means something."
"That Nicky doesn't believe in banks?" Prudence asked mockingly. "If memory serves me, Greendale hasn't had any less reputable ongoings. Riverdale, on the other hand has had how many murders in the last few years? I believe one even included yourself, Sheriff F.P. Jones."
The sheriff leaned forward and glared at Prudence. "We all have our pasts, Miss…."
"Night."
"Miss Night. I'm sure you do as well. As you can see, I've cleaned up my act and done something with my life that can make my kids proud. I'm hoping your friend, Mr. Kinkle, can do the same."
"Ooook," Roz said, trying to ease the tension. "Can we see Harvey?"
F.P. cleared his throat and straightened up. "In a moment. His brother asked for a moment alone with him. Miss Walker, I've discussed this with your boyfriend's brother already but I would suggest getting Harvey some help. He's too young to end up a drunk. I got a boy his age. Thank God he's never hit the bottle, but if he did I'd pray his friends would help him out like you are Mr. Kinkle."
There was a knock at the door and a teenager in a beanie that oddly resembled a crown poked his head in. "They're ready for you," the boy said.
"Thank you, Jug," the sheriff nodded. He stood and pointed to the door with his hand. "Ladies, right this way."
Harvey sat in his cell with his face in his hands. His body was sore and he was sobering up fast. He could barely remember what happened. He remembered leaving the bar and accidentally bumping into someone. Things got blurry after that. He remembered fists flying and he and the thugs went flying through a diner window.
The poor older black man behind the counter yelled for the two boys to stop, but they didn't. Adrenaline was pumping through their veins. The man must have called the police because seconds later the sheriff and a swarm of officers descended on them. He remembered yelling at Theo who stood on the curb not to call his father.
Harvey wasn't sure if his friend listened to his plea. The last thing he could see before the cruiser pulled away was Theo on his phone. So for the last hour and a half, Harvey sat in his cell waiting for what was to come. All he could do was think of the worst that could happen. What would his father say when he saw his son like this? What would he do?
"Mr. Kinkle," Sheriff Jones called, "you have a visitor."
Harvey sighed and looked up. He was surprised when he saw Nick in the other side of the cell bars.
"Nick?" Harvey asked in disbelief as he stood.
"Sheriff, do you mind if I have a word with my brother alone?" Nick asked.
"Go right ahead," the sheriff said as he unlocked the door and let Nick step inside. "Just call for a deputy when you're ready."
Harvey waited for the room to clear before speaking. "You told them you're my brother?" he asked.
"Technically, Theo did," Nick sighed as he sat on the bench. "They wouldn't release you to anyone but a family member since you are still a high school student."
"And they believe you're older than me?"
"I am older than you, Kinkle. I'm much older." He rubbed his face and let out another sigh. "I paid the diner owner for the damages you did to his shop. Gave him a bit more for his troubles. He won't be pressing charges."
"Then why am I in here?"
"Because you're an 18 year old kid that dove through a diner window with another guy while drunk. They had to detain you at the very least. I took care of the bail as well."
"This is not what I was expecting. I thought you would be screaming at me or threatening to kick my ass," Harvey admitted as he sat beside Nick.
"I thought about it. Ambrose is even prepared to tackle me if I beat you to an inch of your life. This is some pretty dumb shit you're doing, Harvey. Dangerous shit."
"Seriously, how calm you are is freaking me out."
"Why did you propose to Roz? And don't give me the bullshit answer of how you just love her and want to spend the rest of your life with her."
Harvey let out a breath, leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees. "I don't know. When I asked her, it really seemed right. Then she said no. I was so upset. I just didn't understand why she would say no. The more I thought about it, the stupider I felt. We haven't even graduated and I was trying to make this huge life decision when our lives have barely begun. I realized that after what we went through last year, I just didn't want anymore surprises. I wanted to know that she was safe. That we were safe."
"Can I ask you something? What was it that you saw in Hell?"
Harvey's froze as a chill ran down his spine. They had all endured their own personal tortures as they ventured into the deep to save Nick. The realms and demons of Hell played mind games, extracting agonizing details from their minds to break each of them down so that they could claim another soul.
"Um, well, I saw two futures," Harvey said, his voice shaking. "If I stayed in Greendale, I would turn out like my dad. But if I left, I'd lose Roz. I thought if I proposed, I could leave with Roz. I guess it brought both futures about."
Nick scratched his chin and let out a long sigh. "I'm sorry," he said softly.
"For what?"
"This. Everything. You would have never seen those fates if you hadn't come to save me. Those futures are only one of many. The worst case scenario of your life. When you venture into Hell, the realms try to break you. Question your very existence."
"It worked. I became exactly what those futures said I would be."
"Then be someone else. Be something else. The first thing you need to do is talk to Roz. You also need to stop drinking. It'll kill you one day."
"Who are you? My dad?" Harvey laughed.
"You're lucky I'm not," Nick said half joking.
"Can I ask you something now?"
"Sure."
"Where the hell did you get the money to pay for my bail and the damages to that shop?"
"From my wallet." Harvey raised a brow. "Don't worry about it. You can just be in debit to me for the rest of your life."
They both laughed as Harvey playfully shoved his friend's shoulder. When they volunteered to help save Nick, Harvey did it for Sabrina. He didn't care much for the warlock. He still hadn't for some time after their return. But things had changed. He got to know Nick - the good and the bad. Most of all, Harvey saw just how much and how deeply Nick loved Sabrina.
At times, he wondered if he had loved Sabrina that much. He realized he loved Sabrina differently. He loved a sweet, simple mortal Sabrina Spellman. Nick loved the real Sabrina. He knew exactly what she was from the moment they met and loved her no matter what she was.
Nick stood and called for a deputy. A teenager that looked as old as Harvey came by. The kid looked familiar somehow. His dark brown hair stuck out underneath his black beanie that had a cuff that resembled a crown. The boy's leather jacket had an emblem of a snake with "Southside" above and "Serpents" below the picture. Nick wanted to laugh at the fact that Riverdale's law enforcement was run by a gang.
He told the teen that he and Harvey were ready to leave. The boy asked for a moment as he went to fetch the Sheriff. The blood drained from Harvey's face when Sheriff Jones returned with Roz, Sabrina, and Prudence in tow.
"You called her?" Harvey asked.
"Of course not. Why would I shell out the cash if she was going to come here to murder you?" Nick half joked. "Sheriff, can you let me out first? I need a head start before she gets to him."
"Dude, not cool."
"Self-preservation my friend."
Roz tossed the truck keys into the bowl beside the door as Harvey slowly made his way into the house.
"Thank you for driving me home," Harvey said.
He stopped at Nick's door, opening it half expecting to hear his friend yell at not knocking. But the room was vacant. The bed perfectly made, TV off, books stacked carefully on the desk. He knew Nick didn't come home so that Harvey had an opportunity to speak with Roz without a scapegoat of not wanting to discuss the situation in front of their friend.
"Harvey," Roz called, "we need to talk."
Harvey sighed and headed to the kitchen where Roz was sitting at the table. He sat across from her and leaned back into his chair.
"What did you want to talk about?" He asked slightly annoyed.
"Well, first off, we need to talk about how stupid what you did today was. What were you thinking?"
"I was thinking I was trying to leave and I bumped into someone on accident. I tried to walk away but…."
"Harvey, don't lie to me."
"I'm not lying."
"Theo already told me what happened. He told me how you went to a bar with Tommy's ID and when he tried to get you to leave you got made and stormed out. He told me you bumped into the guy and got mad and threw a punch. Harvey, what is going on with you?"
Harvey kept his eyes fixated on the table. Roz was asking a loaded question he didn't have the answers to.
"It all got out of control. Not just tonight….everything. I was so worried about what was going to happen with us and to me, I tried to keep it from happening. I didn't realize ny trying to prevent it, I made everything worse."
"What do you mean what was going to happen to you and us?"
"When we were in Hell, I saw two futures. One where I became my father and one where I lost you. Stupid me; I managed to do both."
Roz sighed as she reached across the table and put her hand on his. "Oh, Harvey, you didn't lose me. Just because we're going to colleges that are further apart doesn't mean we're breaking up. I just don't think we're ready to get married."
"Yea, honestly, I didn't think we were either. I just didn't know what else to do at the time. I am proud of you though for getting into Harvard."
Roz smiled. "Thank you. And it really isn't that far. We can always meet in the middle too."
Harvey nodded. "So, are we ok now?"
"We still have some things to work on, but we'll be ok."
"Can I ask you something?"
"Of course."
"What did you see in Hell?"
Roz took a deep breath and shifted in her seat. "Greendale."
"Greendale?"
"I saw my life as if….as if I were stuck here. Never moving forward. Never doing better."
"Oh. Because of me?"
Roz shook her head. "No, not because of you. To be honest, what I saw in Hell wasn't anything I didn't know I feared. It was the things I saw since we came back that scare me."
"Like what?"
"Secrets. Things that people have done or will do….secrets that involve our friends. Ones that can change everything."
***break***
Zelda stared down at key in her hand. She knew the moment Nick had handed it to her last year what exactly it was for. Now, behind the closed doors of her office, she was ready to use it. She closed her hand around the brass key and looked at the small mahogany box on her desk. Spellman was written elegantly across the top with the family's crest below it. She toom a deep breath and inserted the key into the slot.
She could hear the small gears turn until the lock made a click, indicating the lid could be opened. She lifted the lid and stared down at the contents. She let out a few long breaths to even her breathing.
Edward knew, she thought to herself.
"Aunt Zelda? Are you home?" Sabrina called.
Zelda quickly shut the lid and locked the box. She returned it to its hiding place just as Sabrina opened the door.
"Sabrina," Zelda frowned. "Where in Lilith's name have you been?"
"We took a small trip to Riverdale," Sabrina replied.
"All of you?"
"Yes, Aunt Zee. Prudence and I met up with Nick and Ambrose."
"I prefer if you stayed on this side of Sweetwater River. Witches did their best to stay away from Riverdale. That place has its own children of darkness that are much more menacing than those in Greendale."
Sabrina raised a brow, expecting her aunt to elaborate but none came.
"We actually booked a place for Aunt Hilda's bachelorette party in Riverdale. Roz's cousin sings are this place and they agreed to host us."
"And what was wrong with Dorian's?"
"Ambrose and Nick are taking Dr. Cee there. Plus, he isn't as keen to hosting an all female party with a mortal."
Zelda sighed. "Fine, but we are going straight to the establishment and straight back."
Sabrina nodded, not questioning her aunt's dislike for the neighboring town. "Well, I'm heading to bed. So you know, Nick is sleeping over. And yes, we will keep things PG-13 because the twins are home."
"Thank you. And goodnight, Sabrina."
"Goodnight, Auntie." Sabrina walked out of the office, closing the door behind her.
Zelda let out a heavy sigh once she was alone again and prayed to Lilith her secret never got out.
**Author's Note: Sorry for the long wait. Life happened lol. In exchange for my poor updating skills, I will be treating you all next chapter. PROM NIGHT! Hoping to get it up in the next few days. Happy post hump day yall!
