✅ My Cousin's Keeper [NaNoWriMo 2021]

29. My Maternal Instincts

I was still thinking about people seeing my browser history as I drove home. Something like that doesn't slip your mind easily, once the fear is there. I promised myself that I wouldn't ever look at those stories again, and certainly not on a works computer. I could read well enough on my phone, although it wasn't particularly comfortable staring at such small text for that length of time.

Those thoughts vanished from my mind when I came home and saw two figures standing in the middle of the driveway. I almost sounded my horn to invite them to get out of the way, before my eyes adjusted to the dim evening light and recognised Tess. She seemed as presentable as ever, and not notably distressed by my unexpected absence the night before, so I could reassure myself on that front. My biggest concern now was the boy standing next to her, and the guilty silence in the air. They'd stopped talking when they heard me coming, and to me that spoke volumes about their intentions.

The boy was muscular, probably taller than Ffrances, and certainly larger than Tess in every way. I would have said he was a young man, the kind who certainly shouldn't have been hanging around with school children, but for a half-hearted attempt to grow a beard that showed he was probably still in the final straights of puberty. Maybe an older boy who thought innocent girls would be easier to take advantage of, or a young adult who was a late bloomer. In either case, not someone I would tolerate hanging around with my little. I pressed the button to lower the window, and asked what was happening. Tess made an excuse, of course, but the boy didn't say anything.

I was about to tell him to leave when I realised how much he was shivering a little, despite a thick bomber jacket worn over what did appear to be a Raybridge school uniform. I also took in a faint scar visible on his forehead, not quite covered by hair that gave the impression he'd mistaken a mop head for a toupée.

"It's too cold to be hanging around out here," I snapped. "You should go inside." They headed towards the house, and I was able to park my car. I didn't particularly want to set a precedent where a potential predator would be allowed under my roof, but I also knew that if I wanted to give this Spike a piece of my mind, I needed a place where he would be likely to listen. I could offer him dinner anyhow, and make extra sure the little punk understood to keep his hands off Tess.

* * *

I was home later than usual, and I was already getting hungry. But I didn't have to worry too much about cooking right now, because I'd planned ahead. Yesterday I had left a portion of jambalaya for Tess to warm up while I was away, and most of the pot was still sitting in the freezer. I set it in the microwave to defrost, and fried up a couple of finely chopped peppers and onions to give it a bit more kick. In my experience, nothing was ever as strong on reheating, so I wanted to add a little extra. Tess was rushing to clear the table, and to set an extra place. She tidied up her breakfast dishes into a small pile, and apologised that she'd been rushing too much to clean them this morning. There was an extra coffee mug on the table as well, so I guessed that Ffrances had stopped here for lunch, perhaps while picking up something she had left on a previous visit.

"Can I help?" our unexpected visitor offered. He didn't wait for an answer, but quickly started running hot water to take care of the remaining dishes. I watched him from the corner of my eye while I added some chunks of bacon to the pan, and then stirred them in with the now-defrosted meal. He was careful, and paid some attention to detail; which was an improvement on any of the boys I'd hooked up with in my long-ago high school days.

I put the skillet on the side, and transferred our dinner to the oven to make sure it was heated thoroughly. As I turned to the table, I was a little surprised to see that the young man was content to wash the pan as well. And to my surprise he seemed to have a fairly good idea how to clean cast-iron cookware. It was another point in his favour, but I hastily reminded myself that I wasn't looking for those.

"So, how's your day been?" I asked Tess, sitting down opposite her. She knew something was different today, and she had probably guessed how I would feel about her bringing a boy to visit unexpectedly. She hadn't gone straight to her room today, but stayed in the kitchen to help me out, and I was sure that on some level she knew that she shouldn't have brought the boy here. It was hard to stop thinking about what he wanted to do to her, or what they might already have done if I hadn't been home in time.

"Not bad. I was almost late this morning, but Ffrances gave me a ride. Did your meeting go okay?"

"About as well as you could expect. I'm hoping I won't have to go away again. That's one of the reasons I volunteered for the transfer to Upper Ashfields in the first place. They got a world class conference centre, so clients come to us."

"Oh, you work for SYL?" the boy had sat down, and joined in the conversation without prompting. I guess he thought he was being charming. "I heard a lot about how good that place is, my dad was an engineer."

"Yes. But I have to ask what your plans are, young man."

This time he mumbled and stammered, trying to say that he had just been walking home with a friend because he had nothing better to do. He was supposedly happy jogging all the way back to Raybridge this evening, and made it clear he had no expectation of staying. He seemed to be pretty chill, willing to go with whatever I decided, but I could see Tess was starting to get anxious as I talked to him. I made sure I wasn't prying into her private life, that I was just making sure she was safe like her parents had asked me to, but perhaps she didn't see the difference.

"Do your parents know you're here?" I asked, and this time he had a clearer answer. "Will they know where you are?"

"I sent Shawna a message to say I'm visiting a friend. They might assume Tess is helping me with my music theory again, but they won't know..." He mumbled, and then turned to address Tess: "I mean, I don't think I mentioned that you moved out here, or your parents leaving, so if they wanted to find me they'd probably check your old house. Hope you don't mind?"

"Your family?" she smirked. "I can't imagine them caring where you are."

"That doesn't fill me with confidence," I said. But before the boy could try to defend himself, Tess cut in.

"One time last year Spike didn't go home for four days. His stepdad didn't notice."

"And your parents were okay with you associating with someone like that? I'm more than concerned now."

"His family have problems. Dad would have been mad if I visited him there, and I can see why. Exactly the same reasons Spike spends as much time as he can at his friends' houses."

They carried on answering my questions, but I knew there was something they were keeping from me. I had known from the first time I saw them that I didn't want this guy anywhere near my little one, but he seemed to have her convinced that he just wanted to be a good friend, that his intentions were entirely innocent. I couldn't find a way to make her understand what boys are like at that age; especially the ones who would single out a younger girl. Hearing the vaguest suggestions about his background, never quite giving any details, only gave me a clearer picture of how much he must be hiding from us.

I was ready to ask him to leave when we finished dinner. I'd wanted to get a good sense of the guy, and know that he would take me seriously. But after I learned about his family, I knew there was no reason to give him another chance.