The Academy - Friends vs. Family (5 page)

“She needs help,” I whispered. There was nothing they could say
that would convince me otherwise. Where else would I go? Kota was being brave
but he couldn’t take me in. How would any of them explain it to their parents?
How could I explain everything to them without a voice?

I turned to Gabriel, looking for help. He bent his head over,
pressing his ear to my lips. He spoke for me. “If she’s not there, her mother
may call the police to find her. If the police find out what happened, she’ll
end up under control of the state.”

Kota frowned. He swung a distressed glance at the others.

“We could...” Dr. Green started. He looked over at Mr. Blackbourne
intently. A silent communication using expressions passed over my head faster
than I could keep up with.

Mr. Blackbourne shook his head. “No approval. It’s not a shelter.”

“Application?” Dr. Green.

Again Mr. Blackbourne shook his head. “Trial time. We don’t even
know if she qualifies.”

“We could keep an eye on her until then. Special circumstances?
Expedited? They can’t refuse us.”

“No,” Kota said. “I don’t want her there.”

“What?” I asked. I was having trouble figuring out this
conversation. Did I miss something? Maybe I did need to sleep.

They all ignored me and concentrated on Kota.

Kota hooks his arms under my thighs and around my back, lifting me
off of the floor and pulling me into his lap. “No, she’s not going there,” he
said. He crossed his legs on the ground and drew me in close to him. His arms
encircled my waist. His cheek touched my temple as he talked over my head.
“She’s right. She has to go back.”

“Fucking hell no!” North shouted louder than the others but each
of them expressed equal displeasure, all except Mr. Blackbourne and Dr. Green,
who only looked curiously at Kota.

“Sang goes back,” Kota said in a louder voice. “But not alone.
We’re going to set security up in her house. We’ll monitor her. We’ll be close
by. Anything she needs, we’ll be there for her.” I felt his chest rising as he
inhaled. The sound of his voice reverberated through me. “We’re not prepared to
take her out of her house right now. She’s right. If her mother calls the
police for her, we’re not equipped for it alone.”

“We can handle this,” Mr. Blackbourne said. “We’ve done it before.”

“We aren’t prepared right now, not without asking a favor. Her
mother will call the police today if she figures out she’s gone. I’m surprised
she hasn’t done so yet. What are the police going to do? They’ll arrest her mom
and her dad and they’ll send her and Marie to live in a foster home.”

“We can’t get the police involved,” Mr. Blackbourne said.

Kota nodded. “It’s too volatile. We’ll get her mom treatment.
We’ll make sure it doesn’t happen again. We need a better plan than just
kidnapping her.”

“It won’t be kidnapping,” Dr. Green said. “You’re underestimating
us. If we just call…”

“Not that.” He zeroed in on Mr. Blackbourne. “She is never going
to the Academy. I don’t want them knowing any more about her. We’re going to do
it without their help.”

My eyes popped open. Dr. Green and Mr. Blackbourne were going to
send me to the Academy? How? I didn’t even know it was a possibility.

Why would Kota refuse to let me? And why wouldn’t he let the
Academy help? Wasn’t he part of the Academy, too?

The silence in the room suppressed me until I shivered hard
against Kota.

“None of you understand what you’re doing,” Mr. Blackbourne said.

“I don’t care,” Gabriel said. “Kota’s right. We need a little more
time. I’ll stay with her. Whatever she needs.”

“I’ll do it,” Nathan said.

The others chorused similarly.

Dr. Green nodded. “I will, too. Maybe Kota is right. We need to
keep her close. If we involve the Academy, she’ll be too exposed and it is far
too soon for her. We need a little time, but I bet we could do it on our own.”
His green eyes flickered at me before he turned to Mr. Blackbourne. “And I
can’t believe for one second you’d tell us no.”

Mr. Blackbourne shifted on his feet, frowning.

“What’s the matter, Mr. Blackbourne?” North asked. “Don’t think we
can keep up with one little girl?”

Mr. Blackbourne adjusted his glasses higher with a forefinger. His
eyes closed as he talked. “Fine. If that’s what Kota wants, if it’s what Miss
Sorenson wants, if everyone is sure, we’ll do it.” He opened his eyes again and
pointed a finger at all of them. “But I want your word you’ll never take
advantage of her, given her situation.”

“Who the hell do you think we are?” Victor barked at him. The fire
roared to life in his eyes again. “You think we’d ever...”

“I mean it,” Mr. Blackbourne snapped back at him. “If I hear one
word from her that you have touched her or so much as looked at her in a way
she didn’t want, any complaint, any rumor, I’ll pull you all out of this, and I
wouldn’t hesitate to drop you from the Academy.”

The threat hung in the air. Everyone drew quiet under the weight
of what he was suggesting.

I couldn’t believe for a moment any of them would hurt me or do
anything bad to me. They were my friends. Kota, Gabriel... all of them. I
understood Mr. Blackbourne. I knew he was just voicing the warning to make sure
he was heard more than he feared any of them doing it. The suggestion was
insulting, but the command had been spoken so everyone would think twice over
every possible action. No one complained.

Mr. Blackbourne turned back to Kota. “And I’m telling you, Mr.
Lee,” he pointed at this face. “If this happens again, we’re calling in the
Academy. I won’t allow anything like this to continue. Not with us.”

Kota’s arms squeezed around me, his hands spreading over my
stomach and waist as he glared back at Mr. Blackbourne over my head. I didn’t
understand what was happening. I didn’t fully understand what was going on, but
I did know they were granting my request. In what way they were going to allow
it, I wasn’t sure.

“That’s enough for now, I think,” Dr. Green said. He waved a hand
in the air. “Let me examine her and we’ll clean her up. We’ll eat and we’ll
figure out what our next step is.”

I
nner
S
anctum

Two hours later, I was wearing the shorts and blouse I had on the
day before, clean and fresh from Nathan’s laundry room. I stood in my parents’
driveway, with Nathan holding my left hand, Luke holding my right hand. North
pulled his black Jeep into the drive, bringing Victor, Mr. Blackbourne and Dr.
Green. The others were close behind them on foot.

Our orders from Mr. Blackbourne were to check to see if my mother
was still sleeping and to stabilize her. If she tried to come after me again,
the boys would pull me out of there.

I padded over in my bare feet, my bandages in place. My fingers
tingled between the knuckles of both Nathan and Luke. With their palms pressed
to mine, it forced back my trembling. I didn’t quite know what to expect. I was
bringing them into my world. This was way further than I ever expected them to
be. Despite what we’d already been through together, was I ready for this?

We walked in to the garage together. At the steps, I let go of
them both so I could open the door.

Once I cracked open the door, I stuck my head in and waited. The house
was quiet. I looked back at the guys, stepped inside and out of the way.

My heart refused to dip lower than my throat as Nathan and Luke
entered. Both of them scanned the room. Luke had been there before. Nathan did
a second and third glance at the near barren family room, with a single, barely
touched couch and not much else. Like my bedroom, the house had just enough and
not a piece more.

While they both had been inside before, it was strange to me to
have them walking in the side door. I felt like at any moment my mother might
come around the corner and find them.

I knew if that happened, they were supposed to pull me out of the
house. I’d been told repeatedly by all of them what was expected of me. If they
couldn’t ensure my safety inside the house, I wouldn’t be allowed to stay.

I led the way through the kitchen and to the hallway on the other
side. I stepped quietly in places where I knew the house wouldn’t creak. When I
turned to the wall to slide over and peek inside my mom’s room, I smelled Luke’s
vanilla scent and felt his warmth. He was so close that his arm warmed mine.
When I looked back, Nathan stationed himself at the other end of the hall,
closer to the kitchen, standing by and ready to charge in or fetch the others
as needed.

I willed myself to keep moving. I was scared. I was worried my
appearance would alert my mother and she’d come after me again. I was worried
for the guys, who would be at risk if they were exposed. I was stuck between
these two worlds and unsure how to break them apart again.

Did I want to?

 I sucked in a deep breath and held it. I tilted away from
the wall, so I could peek inside my mother’s room.

My mother was in her bed, in a deep sleep. She was snoring loudly
this time, too. I moved quickly, pushing the door back to bump against the wall
to see if she woke up. No response.

I stepped into view, shuffling forward along the beige carpet
toward her bed.

She wasn’t sweating any more. There was a pill bottle spilled over
on the comforter. I recognized the morphine pills. The heavy curtains were
drawn tight.

She’d blocked herself from the world she imagined was cruel and
out to get her. How strange I felt about it now. Despite her efforts that she
thought would keep me safe from rape and being murdered, I was now standing
over her with a team determined to keep me safe from her crazy punishments. She
feared people entering her sanctuary, and instead of warding people away, she
drew Kota and the others in as they tried to protect me.

It felt wrong, even as I wished for my friends to remain with me
more than anything. I had made excuses for her behavior in the past for
punishments and lectures. Her illness made her confused and unable to control
herself. My mother didn’t want anyone in her world. It felt wrong because she
was sick, and her only request was to keep everyone out. Your family should
come before friends or anyone else. You should always protect them. Why were
principles such as loyalty and blood bonds such cruel, twisted things?

Luke stepped into the room. He crossed as quietly as I had, using
spots I had picked out as my path. His lean, strong body moved with care and he
hovered over my mother, his head tilted as he frowned. His blond hair fell in
the way of his dark eyes. If my mother only knew, she would die right then.
Despite how kind and affectionate Luke could be, she would only see a stranger,
one of the scary monsters she feared.

Luke reached into his back pocket, pulling a tiny brown bottle
out. He uncorked the top, and held it out toward my mother’s mouth and nose. My
mother breathed in deeply as she slept. A moment later, the snoring softened,
and her head tilted to the side.

“This should keep her out for a couple of hours,” Luke said
quietly. He corked the bottle again and slipped it into his pocket.

“Where did you get that?” I whispered. I swallowed, knowing my
voice was probably too soft for him to hear anyway. “Do you carry things like
that all the time?”

He looked up at me, flashing a smile, his brown eyes catching a
spark from the light from the windows. “Don’t ask those questions.”

I sighed, twisting my mouth. By saying he couldn’t tell me, he
just answered both of my questions. Academy secrets.

Nathan popped his head in. His mouth opened like he wanted to say
something but he caught on my mother sleeping in the bed. His blue eyes
darkened. “It’s hard to believe that’s the same person who...”

“I know,” Luke said. “It doesn’t seem possible.”

My eyes hunted out Luke’s. I wanted to get this over with.

He nodded to me. “Let’s get the others.”

Moments later, Dr. Green sat on the edge of my mother’s bed,
checking her pulse, listening to her breathing with a stethoscope and taking
other vitals. Mr. Blackbourne sorted through the collection of pill bottles on
her nightstand.

“There’s more in her drawer,” I whispered to them, sitting on the
other side of the bed. I scooped up the spilled pills across the blanket and
dropped them back into the open container. The boys were in the hallway,
looking in on us and waiting for orders.

Mr. Blackbourne held out his phone, flashing a picture of the
labels. “There’s at least five different doctors. Some of these prescriptions
are repeats. She’s taking them irregularly and getting double the dose of the
narcotics if these refill dates are right. Duplicates.”

“I’ll call their offices,” Dr. Green said. “I’ll get copies of her
medical history faxed over.” He sighed, pulling himself away from my mother to
sit up and rubbing a finger at his temple. “I’ll need to know more before
making a decision. I need to get an IV in her, though. Sang’s right, she’s
desperately dehydrated. I might have to order an ambulance. That’ll be
complicated to do without the Academy.”

Mr. Blackbourne nodded. He handed the pill bottles over to Dr.
Green. “Do your best to avoid it. Collect what you need.” He crossed the room,
curling his fingers at me so I’d follow. I crawled off the bed, feeling unsure
about leaving my mother alone with Dr. Green. What if she woke up and had a
strange person so close to her?

Out in the hallway again, Mr. Blackbourne closed the door, leaving
Dr. Green alone with my mother. He turned to us. “Okay, Luke, I want a map of
this house, every exit point, every nook covered. Silas and North, go fix that
bathroom upstairs. When Dr. Green is done, Nathan and Victor, I want you to get
in there and look for any more ropes. Anything that can be used as a restraint,
I want it gone.” He focused on me. “Show me your room.”

I blushed but turned at his command, guiding the way to the
stairs. The others followed behind me, with Victor and Nathan staying behind
for Dr. Green.

Silas pointed out to North the upstairs bathroom door. The frame
of the door was split. They collected near it, scanning the damage.

North’s face contorted, eyes going to the floor where the stool
still remained, fractured into pieces. His fists clenched.

Silas touched his forearm quickly, bringing him back to the job
they were told to do.

Marie’s door was open and I could see the usual mess in her room.
I knew she was probably still over at Danielle’s. I hoped she wouldn’t pop over
right now. I didn’t want her to know the guys were here. I didn’t want her to
know what happened.

At my own bedroom door, I twisted the handle to open it and
stepped in.

I stopped short, mortified by the mess. The window was open, probably
where Nathan got in when he came to look for me. The bookshelf was smashed down
across the carpet. The books were scattered across the floor and torn. My trunk
was open, the contents completely dumped out. My school books were ripped
through, the notebooks and papers spilled out. The contents from the closet
were emptied across the carpet. The sheets were pulled from the bed. The
mattress was slumped over, half hanging on the floor.

Mr. Blackbourne materialized next to me, frowning. Gabriel slipped
up beside me on the other side. He pressed his palm to mine, his fingers
covering mine.

Kota tiptoed around the mess, his eyes seeking out answers to
silent questions.

Mr. Blackbourne studied the room. “Was it like this before?”

I shook my head. “I had my school books on the bed but...” My
whispering stopped. My voice wasn’t going to let me explain.

Victor emerged from the hallway looking curious. He remained
quiet, his fire eyes moving over the contents of the room.

“She was looking for something,” Kota said. He knelt, picking up
the edge of the bookshelf. Mr. Blackbourne crouched with him and helped pick up
the bookshelf, putting it back against the wall. Kota looked over at me. “What
would she want?”

I shook my head, blushing. I had no idea. I looked at Gabriel. He
leaned his head in and I whispered. He spoke for me. “She said her mom found
the notes from the boys at school and the detention slip when she flipped out.
But the room was intact mostly then. She must have come back looking for more.”

“If she found more,” Mr. Blackbourne said, “this might have been
much worse.”

North appeared in the doorway. His eyes, like the others,
searching the destroyed room. He held up the pink cell phone. The face was
cracked and blank. “It was in the tub,” he said. “I don’t think it’s working.”

I leaned in to whisper to Gabriel. “She says she’s sorry, Victor.”
Gabriel smirked, chopping me on the head. “Shut up.”

Victor took the phone from North and pocketed it. “I’ll get her
another one.” He flashed me a look and I tried shaking my head but he pointed a
lean finger in my direction. “Don’t even start with me.”

North disappeared again. I moved away to start sorting out the
mess near the trunk. Gabriel went through my closet. Mr. Blackbourne and Kota
stuffed books onto the shelves. Victor hung back near the door, watching.

Mr. Blackbourne picked up the stereo, putting it back on the top
of the bookshelf. He turned it on, hitting play on the CD player. My guess was
he wanted to test it to see if it still worked. A piano piece started. He
blinked at it, tilting his head as he listened.

“What song is that?” Victor asked. He had his arms crossed over
his chest and was leaning against the wall.

I looked at him, not sure if he could hear me across the room. He
frowned when he realized it and came forward, kneeling next to me. I leaned to
him, hanging on to his arm as I did to whisper in his ear. “Mysterious by Yuko
Ohigashi.”

“Who?” Mr. Blackbourne asked him.

Victor repeated the name. “I don’t recognize it.” I tugged on his
arm so he’d lean in again and I could whisper. He repeated out loud this time.
“It’s one of her favorites.”

He reached out to me, brushing a finger across my cheek. He stood
up, moving to the door and disappearing.

I went back to folding the old clothes and putting them back into
the trunk. Mr. Blackbourne collected my school books. Kota started organizing
the books on the shelves by author and title name. I didn’t have the heart to
tell him he didn’t have to. Some of the books were torn. He collected the pages
across the floor, finding where the missing pages went and tucked them neatly
inside. He stacked the torn ones on the floor beside him.

He pulled out one that didn’t have a title, my journal, and
absentmindedly thumbed it open, looking at the pages. His eyebrows shot up and
he turned to me. “Sang? What’s this?”

Did he expect me to answer? Frustrated that they kept forgetting,
I used sign language to quickly spell out, “Journal.” If Luke knew it, the
others probably did, too. They were smart Academy guys.

Gabriel turned when I was making the last two letters. “Did she
just flip you off?”