Ice.

Chapter Thirty.

Finn

"Hey man," I say into the phone, running my hand through my hair as I lay in Avery's bed.

"Hi, buddy," Casey answers softly. "What's going on?"

"I'm at Aves'. I'm going to stay here tonight with her." Her mom was surprisingly not against it when Aves asked her at the station. I was sure she was just going to scoff at her and tell her no way. But I think Emily knows that Avery just wants to feel safe tonight, and I'm really fucking glad that I can help her feel that. "She's in the shower."

"How's she doing?"

"She says she's okay, but I can tell she's not." I run my hand over my face. "It's all really fucked up."

"What the hell happened, Finn?" He asks. I had texted him when we were told that she was safely with the officer, but I told him that I would call him later and explain. He responded pretty much immediately and I know it's because they had his phone on the bench at the game and someone had an eye on it until I updated them. It felt good knowing that my team cared that much for Avery's well being. I really appreciated it.

I sigh deeply before I start to explain. "Well, I was at the station for maybe fifteen minutes before she was able text me. I thought I was going to pass out when I saw her name pop up on my phone."

"She stole her phone back from him and sent me her location. After that the police went to the shed he took her too and picked her up without any other complications."

"A shed?" He gasps in disbelief.

I close my eyes, trying to stop the sharp pain that radiating throughout my chest. "She said it was furnished like a little house. Turns out it was on his uncles property. Why his parents didn't think of that, I don't fucking know."

Before he can ask, more words spill from my mouth and I just let it out. "He told her he loved her. He fucking touched her and kissed her and I can just tell she's different. She's letting me hold her but she's so rigid and tense. And you should of seen what she looked like, dude. Her hair was knotted like she hadn't brushed it in days and she had so many tear stains on her face. She couldn't stop crying and shaking."

"Fucking hell." He sighs and I can tell he's trying to figure out what to say. "I'm so fucking sorry, Finn. You guys don't deserve this. That piece of shit is locked up, right?"

"For now." I listen to make sure I still hear the shower running. When I do, I keep talking. "I'm not sure how long he's going to be held though. He didn't physically hurt her or show her any form of a weapon, so unless they find something he'll most likely be let go. His parents are also super rich apparently and they already got him a really good attorney."

"But he took her," Casey says exactly what I did when I found out about this. "He threatened her, didn't he? Isn't that enough?"

"Apparently not." I lick my teeth, feeling the same anger that just seems to be permanently residing in my chest. "She's getting a restraining order on him, but that'll be too little too late if he tries this again. And I know that freak will wait until I'm out of town again."

"He claims he loves her?"

"Oh, yeah. And swears that she loves him too. He wrote her a whole fucking letter about how I'm the big bad guy who took her away from him. Dude, I can't even describe how disgusting it was. He wrote about how he listens to the tape all the time and how he gets off to it. He said that he saw the way she looked at him the night I beat the shit out of him and how he knew she blamed me. It's so fucked. It took everything in me not to go into the holding room and bash his head into the wall after reading it. The only thing we really have against him is the fact that he said he needs me out of the picture and the photos he took of her. And the recording, obviously."