Total pages in book: 86
Estimated words: 81597 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 408(@200wpm)___ 326(@250wpm)___ 272(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 81597 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 408(@200wpm)___ 326(@250wpm)___ 272(@300wpm)
“You’re leaving your husband?”
“No! Yes! This is none of your business!”
“I saw the suitcases. Is it connected to the argument you had with Ryder?”
Jesus, this guy should’ve been a freakin’ cop.
“It doesn’t matter,” she argued but her resolve was weakening. She sighed heavily, slumping her shoulders.
“Mrs. Richardson, I really am trying to help your son.”
“Yes,” she admitted in defeat. “I’m leaving him because of what happened.”
“I’m going to come straight out and ask you something very serious.”
“Jake, no,” I pleaded. If he was going to ask what I thought he was going to ask, it wasn’t his secret to reveal.
Ignoring me completely however, he continued. “Ryder was expected to return to his hotel after coming to see you. He didn’t. Instead it seems he went out and got drunk, which somehow led to his arrest. Ryder has some quite terrifying demons, Mrs. Richardson. I want to know if he discussed those with you before he left, if maybe your or your husband’s reaction could’ve been what led to his frame of mind that night.”
“Well yes, he did tell us…something. He…he told me that when he was younger he was…he was…”
“Raped?”
“Yes,” she answered, but the word came out as a strangled sob. “And it’s our fault. It’s my fault.”
“You cannot blame yourself for something like that,” Jake assured her.
“We planned it with Frank,” she confessed, tears making her voice crack.
“Frank?”
“Th-the man who…attacked Ryder.”
“Wait, you planned to have your son raped?” Jake spat, all traces of calm evaporating from his voice, replaced with anger so intense it made the large vein in his neck protrude.
“No, no, no! At least I didn’t. Malcolm, my husband, told me Frank was just going to talk to him. Maybe frighten him a little, scare him off the idea of being…you know…that way. But…when Ryder came home the other night, I found out he knew all along. Malcolm knew!”
“Jesus Christ. So Ryder knows what twisted motherfuckers his own parents are?” I couldn’t help interrupting, exploding. What kind of sick, malicious bastards were these people? “Wanna tell me why it’s not your husband in a cell right now?”
“He knows people. He has contacts inside the police force. He would worm his way out of it before it had chance to ruin his reputation. There’s no point.”
“Of course there’s a fucking point!” I blasted.
“Calm down, Mason,” Jake said, placing a hand on my shoulder.
“Calm down? Calm down? How the fuck am I supposed to be calm about this? They’re his parents dammit. They’re supposed to care for him, raise him, love him…and instead they ruined his fucking life!”
The only sound to interrupt my tirade was that of Ryder’s mom’s wails. She was hunched over in her chair, crying so hard her tears were soaking through her shirt, making transparent patterns across her chest. She was distraught, and it was the least she deserved. “Please,” she begged. “I’m sorry! I never wanted any of this. I feel sick. Ashamed. I will never forgive myself. But I’ve told you all I can, I really need you to leave.”
I was about to protest when Jake started talking first. “Come on, Mason. There’s nothing left for us to find out here.”
Anger boiled in my veins, making my hand twitch with the crushing need to reach out and punch something, but I nodded in agreement.
“God help you,” Jake muttered, scowling at Ryder’s mother as he stood up and turned for the door.
I followed his lead, pausing just briefly to stare at the crumbling woman. “I hope you rot in hell.”
Two days passed before I got to talk to Ryder again. It was only a phone call but his voice was enough to make my chest hurt. I could only imagine how frightened he looked. He sounded so low, like all his energy, his life, was slowly slipping away from him. He’d spoken with his lawyer, the best lawyer Sawyer knew, and things weren’t looking good. Given his history and the evidence found in his pocket, it seemed that was enough for a conviction. The only positive thing was that the charges for supplying had been dropped due to lack of evidence, but possession alone could land him up to seven years in custody.
Life was pretty weird, like I was living in a bubble. I didn’t know what was going on in the outside world because the only thing on my mind was Ryder. I’d had a few texts from Gio and Taylor who flew out the day after we did to join us on the DVD tour but I hadn’t replied yet. They were staying in a different hotel with Ivan and Eli and I wasn’t sure what excuse Ivan gave them for me and Ryder pulling out of the tour, but I knew it wasn’t the truth because the texts I received were all asking what was wrong. I was surprised they hadn’t just turned up here at the hotel, but then I didn’t actually know if they knew where I was. I’d had no contact with anyone but Sawyer and Jake. Jake had been keeping in touch with Ivan daily via phone calls, though, and Sawyer met up with him in person yesterday.