Abby

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

If only the joy, peace and hope of Christmas could last the whole year through. Or at least a couple weeks. Jennie had printed the photos from their Christmas re-do and made a collage out of them. She needed them for when times turned dark again. And they had, ever so quickly. It was as if each good time was better and better, but the effects lasted less and less. She wasn't even responding to the threats of police intervention anymore. The last leverage they'd had no longer worked. Jason was sick of the threat to call the police, and now he was really going to. He knew the police knew her and knew what was going on. Jennie continued to stare at the collage while he called.

"Hi, is officer Hicks available to speak with?" He asked. "Thank you." A few moments of silence. "Yes, hi. This is Jason Demarco, Ab-." He stopped short. "Yes, Abby's father." Some more silence filled the room as Jason paced back and forth. Jennie buried herself in her Christmas memories. "Abby hasn't been home in over a week. We haven't heard from her at all. We usually threaten to call the police when it comes to this point, and she comes home." He paused. "Yes, exactly." Jason listened for a few moments. "Okay. Thank you." Jason hung up and sat down next to his wife. "They're going to stop by the house and see how it goes from there." Jennie didn't acknowledge him. He stood up and paced some more knowing they wouldn't hear from anyone for a little bit. "I can't wait here for a phone call that may or may not come. For a daughter that may or may not show up. I'm going to meet him there." He walked toward the door, not sure if she'd heard him or not.

"I'm coming." She called out.

"Me, too." Aaron said from the doorway.

...

Officer Hicks grabbed his partner.

"Seems the Demarcos can't get Abby to come home. They threatened to involve the police, and she's calling their bluff." His partner grinned.

"I do actually love my job." Officer Barrett said with a sigh of joy, knowing this was their in to get through that front door. Missing child. Amber alert. They turned on to the road that Jace lived on, they saw nothing askew from the outside as they drove by. "What's the plan?" His partner asked as they pulled over a few houses down from their intended stop.

"Walk up, knock on the door." Officer Hicks said, getting out of the cruiser. His partner laughed.

"Just like that?" He asked.

"Just like that." He repeated. They walked up unnoticed, and then they knocked. They heard commotion through the door, but no one answered. They knocked again. This time his voice bellowed. "Open up! This is the police. We're looking for Abby. Don't make this harder than it needs to be!" Some more commotion and some whispers. Officer Hicks knew if they didn't produce Abby, they had every legal right to break down the door and search the place. Everything went quiet. He was confused. Why were they risking everything for her? Usually, they'd make a sacrifice of anyone in this situation. He looked at his partner. And just as he was about to break down the door, it opened. A young male stood in the doorway. "Is Abby here?" Officer Hicks asked.

"No." He answered unconvincingly.

"We have a tip that says otherwise." Officer Hicks countered.

"Why are you so nervous?" Officer Barrett asked. The boy just sniffed and wiped at his nose. The officers looked at each other. They heard a commotion and two male voices, their exact words inaudible. They put their hands on their holsters, ready for anything.

"Get her the fuck out of here!" Once voice demanded, loud enough to be heard. Abby appeared. She was barely on her feet. Jace practically held her up.

"What do you need Abby for?" Jace asked.

"Her father called. Said she's been missing for over a week." Jace inwardly rolled his eyes.

"Well tell him that she's with me, and she's fine." Officer Hicks raised his eyebrows.

"She's barely on her feet." He observed.

"Abby, tell them you're okay." Jace said. Abby tried to focus on them, but she swayed. Jace caught her. "Abby." He repeated. She turned toward his voice, and then the world went black. She lost consciousness, falling into Officer Hicks who caught her in his arms. His partner called 911 requesting an ambulance as he lifted Abby in his arms and carried her to the front lawn. He checked her breathing and her pulse. Twenty beats per minute. She was dying. He started chest compressions, forgetting that he hated her and her kind. He tried to get her back like she was his own daughter. The ambulance was there within minutes. Everything around him was a blur. He was only focused on saving her life. He administered Narcan, not able to bring her heart back otherwise. Someone knelt next to them, he ignored it. Finally, her heart came back enough to get her in transport. The EMT's took over. Officer Hicks sat back, trying to catch his breath, get a bearing on his surroundings. He met the eyes of Jason Demarco. And then Jason ran off to the ambulance.

...

"My baby girl." Jennie sobbed, falling to her knees in the middle of the street as officer Hicks carried Abby to the front lawn. They'd arrived at Jace's house just as Abby passed out in the officer's arms.

"Stay with your mother." Jason told Aaron. Aaron stayed where he was told, his face stoic, detached, sober and unemotional.

"She's going to die." His mother continued. "I can't live without her." The cold hard truth was that they'd been living without her for months now. Jason ran to the perimeter that was being set up by the other officers.

"That's my daughter!" He screamed at them when they tried to stop him from going to her. Officer Hicks was too busy trying to revive Abby to clear up any argument. Jason had heard the shouts when he had jumped out of the car. Shouts for an ambulance. Teenage female. Unresponsive. Possible drug overdose. CPR being administered. Pulse almost non-existent. Narcan. "That's my daughter!" Jason screamed again, pushing past the officer. He knelt at Abby's head, trying to stay out of the way. Officer Hicks continued chest compressions. "Abby." He cried, putting his hand to her cheek. "Abby, please. Just stay with me. Your mother is a mess. She can't live without you." He knew the pleading was useless, but praying seemed even more so, and he had to do something while he watched them put her on a gurney and lift her into the ambulance. It went in slow motion, and for a moment, he was left staring at the shaken man that had just saved her life. His daughter's life. The EMT yelled to him, snapping him back to real time. They told him where they were taking her. And he went back to the rest of his family to follow.