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Thirty-three

Warning: talk of abuse

"Jack?" Mom calls. I dry my hands off and walk over to the front door, only to stop in my tracks when I see two cops standing in front of our house.

"We're looking for a Miss Elisica Andrews?" one says, looking around behind me. "She's a runaway and we had a tip that she's hiding here."

"Sorry, but we don't have anyone named Elisica here," Mom answers. "We have my son, three of his friends, and my other son and his fiancé."

"And what are their names?" The second cop looks at me as he asks his question.

"Hudson, Jaxon, Elijah, Isaac, and Felix." I lean against the wall and smile, trying not to give away how nervous I am.

"If you turn Elis- Elijah over to us now, we won't arrest you," the first cop states. "She's a runaway and her family is worried sick about her."

I find myself stifling a laugh at that statement.

"Sorry, but I think you need to recheck your information." I clear my throat and wipe my smile off my face.

"Jack?" Eli takes a few steps towards the front door, eyes trained on the guns on the officers hips. "What's going on?"

"Elijah Andrews?"

"It's Elijah Payne, actually." Eli shifts his weight from one foot to the other and scratches the back of his neck. "I'm afraid I don't know an Elijah Andrews."

"We were given a picture of Andrews, mind if we compare it to you?"

Eli shrugs and steps in front of me. The first cop holds up a picture next to his face, and then the second cop grabs Eli's wrist and pulls him out of the house.

"We're not going to arrest you. We're just going to bring you home, okay?"

"I'm not going!" Eli digs his heels into the ground, forcing the cops to use more force to get him towards the car.

"Hey!" I jog out of the house and step into their way. The second cop glares at me.

"You're lucky we're not arresting you."

"Eli's been staying with us because his mom has been abusing him and threatened to kill him," I blurt, looking over at my mom. "Go grab Isaac."

"What proof do you have?"

"If you wouldn't mind letting go of my wrist I can show you the bruises she left the other day when she tried to drag me back to her house." Eli shakes his left wrist. The cops glance at each other before letting go of Eli.

"Those are some pretty nasty bruises," the first remarks. "But you have no way to prove that your mom did that. She called us, sobbing, that she wanted her precious daughter back."

"It's a tactic a lot of abusers use." Felix steps outside, holding Isaac's phone. "They put on a show in front of others and act like the perfect parent and then no one believes the victim."

"You must be Isaac."

"Felix, actually." Felix holds Isaac's phone out to the cops and hits play on a video. I reach out and cradle Eli's head to my chest.

Once the video ends the cops look at each other.

"Officer Brent," the first says. "If she comes after you again, call the station, tell them Elijah's name, and ask for me. I'll be there."

"Thank you." Eli lifts his head and smiles at them. "I'm sorry to make you come all the way out here only to go back empty handed."

"On the contrary, actually." The second officer smiles. "The bruises and the video to back it up is enough to bring her in for suspected child abuse."