The Officer looks at Dad, "Mr Russel, this is the book Jess Taylor had on her when she went missing, right?"
Dad answers, "Right. She finished reading it here while visiting Kirk, she left it behind."
The Officer looks at Mom, "So why did Casey just call you Mrs Russel, and draw your attention to this book?" Mom's answer is assertive, "She's reading it, just wanted to check she'd left it here and not left it some place else."
The Officer ignores Mom's answer and looks at me, "What do you have to say about this Kirk?" I remain silent. "Give it Kirk, tell me what you know of this book," says the Officer. I have only one answer, "It's Jess's favourite book," I say.
The Officer locks eyes with Dad, "Mr Russel, I'm going to be brutally blunt with you – did you have anything to do with Jess Taylor's abduction?"
Dad lowers his head to the floor. "Answer my question Mr Russel," asserts the Officer.
When Dad raises his head, I note his eyes are wet with something like sorrow. When he speaks, his words sound brittle and broken...
..."I did...
...not abduct Jess."
The Officer shakes his head, "Of course you didn't. I've so little to go on at the moment, I’m clutching at straws," he says, hitting Dad's shoulder with an apologetic hand.
When the Officer leaves, Dad lowers his head again, “That was no lie; I didn’t abduct Jess, I saved her.” He looks at me, “To save you Kirk.”
.
.....
I take extra care over my appearance this morning. Mom tries to intervene, but Dad tells her to leave me to it, "He needs to manage his own appearance whenever possible," he says, while guiding Mom away from me.
When I'm done Mom smiles, "You look great Kirk. I'm proud of you." I get a tiny hint of happy at the sight of her smile. When the doorbell rings, I get a tiny flutter in the depths of my stomach – I know it's Casey; she's right on time. Today is back to school day.
As we walk to school, sentences pour from Casey: angry, frustrated, worried words of what we may have to face when we return. I listen, but don't fully understand; instead I stop and take her hand in mine – we continue the remainder of our journey in silence.
......
I see the crowds growing on the school grounds. Casey hesitates, "Kirk, it's best we don't hold hands from here on. It'll only give em ammunition to attack us."
I stop and stare at Casey. My soul return torments me with half remembered feelings. I recall the 'Hurt Girl' I left behind when I died – I don't want Casey to hurt, I disengage my hand from hers. But I do something before we continue: I take Casey in my arms and embrace her – for a small moment, I feel almost human.
......
The gathering crowd stares. Casey says, "We're news Kirk, gossip. They're saying some really bad things about me on-line, real cruel stuff, like... "
