The room they entered was a small office room with chairs on wheels and a large table. It looked more like a conference room to Richie, but he didn't think that Eddie would know what that was, so he didn't bring it up.
"Both of you please take a seat," the man said. His voice was deep but gentle at the same time. He had obviously worked a lot with scared kids.
Richie and Eddie sat down in chairs side by side, Eddie shaking a little and Richie holding his hand, running his thumb over the back of it to keep him calm. Richie knew Eddie hated speaking with adults, but he hoped his support would help him to talk to people trying to help him.
"I'm Lacy Kemp and this is my coworker Brent Cooper. We work with child services and try to ensure that children in dangerous situations are well taken care of," the lady, Lacy, said. She looked at Richie, who held eye contact while Eddie played with the bracelet on his wrist under the table. "You were the one that called us, correct?"
"Yes ma'am," Richie said in a sophisticated tone, surprising Eddie. He didn't know Richie could be that serious.
"Could you explain your reasoning for calling?" Brent asked. He was holding a notepad and pen, waiting to scribble down notes.
"Yes, sir. I met Eddie about a week ago. He was really nervous about being around my friends and I when we first met, and it was kinda weird, so I kept an eye on him. He was going to call me one day but never did so I called and he was hysterical, I guess. Crying and laughing at the same time and panicking, so we went to make sure he was okay. We found him literally chained to the house because his mom was on some trip for work, so we helped free him and-"
"He was in a chain?" Lacy cut in, to which Eddie and Richie both nodded. "Why didn't you call child services or the police when you found that?"
Eddie looked uncomfortable so Richie put his arm around him, pulling him closer. That seemed to calm him down.
"We were scared. He was really upset and depressed, and we didn't want to call someone to make him panic more. We figured he'd just be taken away to some orphanage or something and we... I didn't want to lose him." Richie rested his chin on Eddie's head, who still wasn't paying attention to the social workers.
Lacy and Brent both jotted something down, both calm and going along with the situation. It made sense to them that Richie would want to keep Eddie safe and with him.
"Eddie?" Lacy asked, catching his attention for the first time. "I need to ask you some questions that your friend can't answer. Is that okay?"
Eddie looked back down at the bracelet on his arm before sighing and giving Lacy a small nod.
She smiled proudly. "How old are you?"
"Sixteen," Eddie responded in a small voice.
"Can you tell me who your immediate family is?"
"My mom."
Lacy furrowed her eyebrows. "No siblings? A father?"
Eddie shook his head, crossing his legs on the chair he sat in.
Brent began asking questions at that point. He usually focused more on abuse at its duration, and Eddie's case was no exception. "How long has your mother been hurting you?"
Eddie shrugged. He didn't like speaking about his abuse out loud. The only ones who knew were the losers, and Eddie really wanted to keep it that way.
"What sort of treatment did you endure living with her?" Lacy asked, hoping her more gentle voice would urge Eddie to speak.
Eddie remained silent, his eyes on his lap. Lacy looked to Richie, who leaned over to Eddie and took his hand again.
"Can I tell them if you don't want to?" Richie whispered, hoping that if he could tell them, Eddie would stay calm and not have a panic attack. Eddie nodded, keeping his gaze downwards.
Richie looked up at Lacy and Brent, who were waiting patiently for one of the two to talk. "He's been treated really bad his whole life. She didn't let him talk, read, write, or do anything educational. He taught himself in order to learn when she was gone at work. When he spoke out of turn or did something that she didn't like, he got beat. I'm not sure how she hurt him, all I know is he ended up with cuts and welts all over."
"How often were these beatings?" Brent asked.
Richie shrugged. He wish he knew so Eddie wouldn't feel compelled to talk. There was no way anyone could force him. At least, that's what Richie though until Eddie spoke up without warning.
"She hurt me three to five times a week," he said in a low voice, looking up at Brent and Lacy.
Both social workers exchanged eye contact, deciding to ask their most important questions while Eddie was comfortable with speaking to them.
"Why was she against you learning?" Lacy asked, both for her case and out of curiosity.
"If I don't know anything, I can't leave her and live safely in the real world. Richie told me it was a mind trap?" Eddie asked, looking at Richie uncertainly.
"Mind trick," Richie corrected, squeezing Eddie's hand lightly. "I told him she was playing mind tricks on him."
Brent nodded while Lacy continued to scribble things on to her piece of paper.
"So you never went to school and never spoke, Eddie?" Brent asked, earning a nod from Eddie. "How did you interact with people then?"
"I... didn't. She, um, she made sure I didn't see anyone. I, uh, had never left the house before I met Richie. I had never met anyone before I met Richie." Eddie's tone was still quiet, but he sounded a bit more confident.
Lacy narrowed her eyes, not in an angry way, but in a confused way. "If you never left the house, how did you meet Richie?" she asked. It wasn't really related to the case; she was mainly just curious, but asked anyway.
Eddie didn't answer, silently urging Richie to. Richie sighed deeply and gave the social workers a guilty smile. "I, uh, broke into his house when they moved in."
Lacy looked like she was about to laugh while Brent simply raised an eyebrow. "In most cases we'd have to report that," Brent began, before continuing after seeing Eddie panic and grab Richie's shirt, "but in this case we can let it slide because you didn't steal or hurt anyone. In fact, you've helped save this young man."
"What's going to happen to him?" Richie asked, dreading the answer.
"We don't know you. The case will take place in a week, and we'll be meeting with Eddie every few days to prepare him. We're also going to get him into counseling to help him cope, but he'll be staying with the Denbrough family for the week. We've already talked with Sharon and Zack, and they've let us know they're happy to help," Lacy said, standing up and shaking Richie's hand.
She didn't shake Eddie's, but patted his shoulder gently. She had seen how he hid behind Richie, and decided she was going to do everything in her power to make sure that Eddie wasn't forced to leave Derry. He needed and trusted Richie, and trusting at least one person would help lead to his recovery.
