25

Cash

I wish Sunday could’ve lasted forever.

My mind was little more than a Britta movie reel on repeat all day at work. I’m back at the skatepark, hoping to help these kids discover more than just a love for the sport, but my heart is still living in whatever state of obsession Britta has brought me too. It’s maddening how desperately I want to be with her all the time.

It’s official. I’m gone for her.

“Hey, Mr. Cash! Watch this!” Margot grabs my attention, pushing off her board and sliding down the bowl. She attempts a flip, but misses.

“Nice try!” I call down to her. “I’m definitely seeing improvement.”

She gives me a thumbs up, then skates to the other side. I smile, happy to see that what A.J. are doing here is making an actual difference. When I first signed up to do this, I wasn’t thinking about the type of influence I’d be able to have on these kids. But now that we’ve gotten to know them and seen a glimpse into their lives, I can’t help but want to…well, help .

Kai didn’t show up today, and for whatever reason, that has me worried. So while the rest of the kids are working on some flip tricks, I step up beside Kelsey. They seem to talk often, so I’m hoping she’ll know where he is.

“Hey, Kels,” I say, holding up a hand to block the sun from my eyes. “Do you happen to know where Kai is?”

Immediately, Kelsey stiffens. Oh, she knows, all right .

“Uh.” Her eyes become glued to her feet. “All I know is that he’s been having some trouble at home and had to move to the shelter on Drixsom.”

My gut twists with dread. “Seriously?”

She bobs her chin up and down, her red curls bouncing. “I don’t know anything else though.” Code for please don’t ask me any more questions . I give her a nod of dismissal, and she takes off toward the half-pipe.

I run a hand over my beard, deciding what I should do. The thought of Kai having to move to a shelter because of family issues makes me sick. I know that place all too well. Memories of when Dad used to search for Mom still plague me. This so-called shelter on Drixsom was one of her regular spots to hide. It’s not a nonprofit or a good, clean environment. And definitely not somewhere a sixteen-year-old kid should be hanging out.

With my mind made up, I run to A.J.’s side. “I need to go,” I say once I’ve filled him in. “He can’t stay there.”

“I hope you find him,” A.J. says. “If you do and he needs something…”

“I’ll tell you.”

With a thin smile, he gives my shoulder a squeeze and wishes me good luck.

It takes me about fifteen minutes to get to the place Kelsey described as a shelter. It’s little more than an abandoned house filled with people up to no good. I hop out of my truck, thankful I drove it tonight instead of the bike, and head toward the large front porch where a few people are smoking. One scrawny individual stands out among the group, and my heart squeezes.

Kai stands with his back against one of the large brick pillars in front of the house, head resting back, cigarette dangling from his fingers. I approach him slowly, not wanting to spook him. There’s a good chance he’ll tell me to get lost, or worse, take off running if he thinks he’s in trouble.

When I’m about three feet away, he lifts his head, and we lock eyes. A few silent seconds pass until he asks, “What are you doing here?”

I shrug one shoulder and stick a hand in my front jeans’ pocket. “You didn’t show.”

His lips curl with a bitter laugh. “Last I checked, that wasn’t a crime.” After taking a long puff from his cigarette, he blows the smoke out of the side of his mouth, still eyeing me with curiosity.

“Not a crime,” I hedge, taking a step closer. “Just a missed opportunity.”

He takes another drag of the cigarette before tossing it onto the ground and snuffing it out. Every instinct I possess tells me to make a snarky remark about how those things will kill him, but I don’t. For now.

“Look, sorry I couldn’t make your wholesome little after-school program. I’ve got bigger problems right now.”

I let my gaze trail to the rundown house, the people laughing about something on the porch behind him. “I can see that. Want to talk about it?”

“With you?” He laughs again. “Nah, I’m good.”

“All right.” I drum my fingers against my leg, trying to think of other ways to get him to open up. “How about dinner, then? You hungry?”

His throat bobs on a swallow as his jaw tightens. He hesitates so long I wonder if he’s going to say anything. “Where?”

“Wherever you want. We could grab some burgers or a pizza…” I trail off, letting him make the choice. I can’t make him accept my offer; all I can do is hold out the olive branch. But the kid does look hungry.

He pushes away from the bricks, hooking his thumbs in his pockets. “Are you going to ask me a bunch of nosy questions?”

It’s my turn to laugh. “It’s just dinner, man. Not looking to dig up your life story.” Just the one that put you out here on the streets. But I’m not about to admit that. Let him get a few slices of pizza in his system first.

“All right,” he says reluctantly. “But you’re not dragging me to the skatepark tonight.”

I hold up my hands in a show of innocence. “I have no intention of doing that.”

Taking a step toward me, he straightens to his full height. He’s still a good three inches shy of me, but the message is clear. “What are your intentions?”

I raise my chin and keep my gaze trained on his. This isn’t a battle of wills as much as it is him being able to accept the truth. “My intent is to buy you dinner and get you away from this place for the night.” He blinks as if surprised at my honesty.

“You don’t have to go with me,” I say. “You can turn around and go back to killing yourself with cigarettes if you want. But you’ll feel better after a good meal, and I’m hoping you might be able to find a better place to stay for the night.”

One of his cheeks caves in like he’s chewing it on the inside before he glances over his shoulder at what he’ll be leaving behind.

Swiveling toward me, he gives me a shaky nod. “Yeah, okay. I’ll go with you.” Hefting the backpack at his feet over his shoulder, he follows me to my run-down truck.

***

I tried my best to hide my amusement when Kai chose an Asian restaurant with a walk-up, all-you-can-eat buffet. My smile was impossible to mask, though, when he started piling his plate with sweet and sour chicken and fried rice. We’ve barely spoken since we arrived, mostly due to him pounding as much food as he can get his hands on.

My smile dims when the realization dawns that it’s likely been a while since he’s had a decent meal. When he finally comes up for air and takes a long sip of his soda, I attempt to carefully extract a bit of the information I need in order to figure out how to help him best.

“So, why the…shelter?” I use the term loosely.

His blue eyes meet mine, but his earlier defiance has melded into hesitancy. “Had to leave home,” is all he says before digging back into his food.

“And you have nowhere else to go?”

He stiffens a bit, pauses his chewing, then swallows. “Tried staying at my girlfriend’s house, but almost got her kicked out too. Her parents thought—” He stops and shakes his head. “Never mind.”

“Is that what happened, then?” I ask. “You got kicked out?”

Slowly, his gaze again meets mine. “No. Not…technically.”

I sit back and fold my hands on the table, making it clear I’m patient enough to wait until he’s ready to talk.

He huffs and drops his fork onto his napkin. “Look, why do you care, man? I’m nothing to you.”

“You’re not nothing to me,” I say with force. “You’re someone I’ve been rooting for ever since we met, Kai. Someone I’d like to help if you allowed it.”

He shakes his head, a derisive smile twisting his lips. “I didn’t take you for a charity worker, but fine. If you want the truth, I’ll give it to you. Then when you turn me in like my mom was going to, I can add you to the list of disappointing adults in my life.”

Dread slithers up my spine as I school my expression. What has he done that makes him think I’ll turn him in? Will I have to turn him in?

“Last night, I punched my mom’s boyfriend in the face for bringing alcohol into the house,” he says without a hint of remorse. “She’s addicted to it, and he knows it. So when I found them passed out on the couch, reeking of booze, I hauled him up and laid into him.”

I wince. “While he was still asleep?”

Kai’s smile grows. “Yeah, man. Woke him up pretty fast, though.” His amusement dims and his mouth curves downward. “Woke Mom up too, though. She started screaming for me to get out or she’d call the cops. When I showed up today, she was waiting for me. Told me to get my crap and leave. Said if I didn’t apologize to him, she wouldn’t let me back in the house.” Tears well in his eyes, but he sniffs them away before they have a chance to fall. “And I won’t apologize for what I did.”

“I’m sorry, Kai.”

Again, he blinks at me as if shocked by my reaction. I do him one better and add, “I’m not going to turn you in for punching a creep.”

He sniffs, dips his chin once, and like the floodgates open with that simple motion, goes on to tell me this wasn’t the first time his mom’s boyfriend has gotten her drunk. Apparently, he’s taken her out and brought her back intoxicated, only to leave her in Kai’s care. And now I’m even more convinced the guy’s a creep.

I listen in horror as more details of Kai’s upbringing emerge. It’s obvious his mom’s addiction has taken a toll on him over the years. It sounds as if he’s tried to hide her problems from others, tried to take care of her, only for her to force him out when he finally had enough. He makes a valiant effort at masking the hurt in his voice, but he’s not that good an actor.

The need to protect this kid I barely know takes over, prompting me to say, “You can stay at my place until we get this sorted out.”

“We?” His eyebrows raise in question.

I force my tone to sound relaxed. “You don’t have to. I’m just offering. But if you can’t go home, you need a decent place to stay. Not like the place we left earlier.” I refuse to refer to it as a shelter again. “If you want, I could talk to your mom. Tell her where you’ll be. But Kai…” I pause and take a deep breath. “Your mom needs help. I know that despite what she’s done, you love her. And when we love someone, we need to try and help them where they’re at. Not hope they’ll change just because we want them to.”

He lowers his gaze to where his hand fiddles with his fork. “I don’t want to get put in the system.”

Sympathy tugs at me. “I know, man. I get it.” Indecision wars within me for a split second as I mentally search for a solution. The only one I come up with feels like a long shot, but I have to try. “Why don’t I go with you? We can talk to someone who can help. Then maybe they’ll let you come home with me for a while.”

His blue eyes bore into mine. “Do you really think they will, though?”

I swallow past the lump in my throat. “I honestly don’t know, Kai. But it’s worth a try. Do you have any other family in the area?”

He shakes his head.

“Then I say it’s our best option.”

He seems to think it all over for a minute while I hold my breath, wait, and pray for him to make the right decision. Finally, his shoulders relax, and he gives me a nod.