Spencer finished filling out the papers and handed them to me. I signed without reading, trusting him. Then he stood up.
“I’m going to call your son to also sign the release of the minor. Wait here.”
He left the office. Ethan and I were left alone. I hugged him, this time even tighter. I felt his body relax against mine, as if for the first time in hours he could breathe easy.
“Forgive me, my boy. Forgive me for not realizing sooner.”
“It’s not your fault, Grandma. It’s my dad who didn’t want to see.”
He was right. But that didn’t make it hurt any less.
The door opened. Rob entered alone. He didn’t even look at me. He walked up to the desk, took the pen Spencer extended to him, and signed the papers with quick, jerky movements, as if every second in there was hurting him.
“That’s it,” he said dryly. “Can I go?”
“Rob,” I said, standing up. “We need to talk.”
“I have nothing to talk about with you,” he replied without turning around. “You made your choice. You chose to believe him instead of my wife.”
“Your wife? What about your son? When did your own son stop mattering to you?”
He finally looked at me, and what I saw in his eyes chilled my blood. There was no love. There was no guilt. There was just… nothing. A void I didn’t recognize.
“My son attacked my wife. The evidence is there. Chelsea has the bruises. He has a history of bad behavior at school.”
“What history?” Ethan exploded. “That’s a lie. I’ve never had problems at school.”
“You were suspended last week for fighting with a classmate.”
“Because that classmate was bothering a girl. He was harassing her and I defended her. The principal congratulated me after speaking with the witnesses.”
Rob didn’t answer. He simply turned around and left the office, closing the door with a loud bang.
I stood there, feeling every piece of hope I had of getting my son back crumble.
Spencer put a hand on my shoulder.
“I’m sorry, Elellanena.”
“Don’t be sorry,” I replied, wiping away a tear that had escaped without permission. “He made his choice. Now I’m going to make mine.”
I took Ethan’s hand.
“Let’s go home.”
We left the precinct into the cold early morning. Chelsea and Rob had already left. On the empty street, under the orange glow of the streetlights, I stopped for a moment. Ethan looked at me.
