Chapter 21
Chapter 21
Ryder
NOW
“Keep your eye on the ball, Miles. Wait for your pitch.”
The umpire calls a ball.
Watching my son play fall ball and helping to coach his team are among my favorite things. I’ve missed more games than I’ve made this season, so I’m thankful to be here for his last game.
“That’s the way. Wait him out.”
“Who’s on deck, Coach?” Petey Johnson asks.
“Jalen. Get out there and take some swings. Come on, Miles! You got this.”
The crack of the bat connecting with a ball has the whole team cheering as Miles grabs a standup double and an RBI. We’re now up four to one. “That’s the way to do it!”
“Mr. Elliott?” The voice comes from the right side of the dugout.
I give the man a distracted glance. “Yeah?”
“I need you to come with me, sir.”
I give him another look and do a double take. A state cop. No. No fucking way. My stomach drops to the ground.
“Sir?”
The kids in the dugout immediately realize something big is happening and turn their innocent stares my way.
I put down my clipboard and walk toward the cop. “I’ll go with you but please don’t make a big production of it in front of the kids.”
“I’m sorry, sir, but we’re under orders. Put your hands behind your back.”
“Please. My wife and kids are watching.”
“Put your hands behind your back.”
As the cuffs encircle my wrists, I glance toward the stands where Caroline is watching with a confused expression. She hands Grace and Elise off to a friend and comes down the bleachers to the fence. “What’s happening?”
“Where are you taking me?”
“Wickford Barracks.”
“Call Cam. Tell him I need him in Wickford right away.”
“Ryder… What’s going on?”
“Call Cam, Caroline. Right now.”
They lead me out of there as everyone watches in stunned silence. The game has come to a complete halt. As we walk to the State Police SUV, one of them tells me I’m under arrest for first-degree sexual assault and sexual assault of a minor. They recite my Miranda rights.
My son comes running in from second base. “Dad! Wait. Where’re you going?”
“Stay with Mom,” I tell him over my shoulder. “Just stay with Mom.”
“ Ryder! ” Caroline’s hysterical cry breaks me.
Tears fill my eyes.
They don’t know yet that I’ve ruined their lives.
Cam
NOW
I’m eating dinner with Sienna and the kids when I get a call from Caroline. I’d hoped to make it to Miles’s game, but I got home late and was starving. “Hey, what’s up?”
“Cam! They arrested Ryder! Just now at the ballfield. No one will tell me anything. He said to call you.”
Her every word hits me like a knife stabbing me in the heart.
“Cam!”
“I’m here. Did they say where they’re taking him?”
Sienna gasps, immediately putting two and two together from what she can hear me saying.
“The Wickford Barracks. What’s happening, Cam?”
“I’ll find out.”
“What should I do?”
“Take the kids and go home. I’ll update you as soon as I know anything.”
“Miles will want to finish the game.”
“Then finish the game.”
“What do I tell people?”
“Just say you don’t know what’s going on, which is the truth. I’ll be back to you as soon as I can.”
“Cam…”
“I know, Caro. I’ll take care of him. Try not to worry.”
“My husband was just arrested in front of our children and half the town. Why would I worry?”
She’s understandably distraught, and I wish I could say something that would soothe her. But things will get a whole lot worse when she hears the rest. “I’ll see what I can find out and get back to you. Try to stay calm for the kids.”
“He’s my whole life, Cam,” she says on a whimper.
“I know. Let me go so I can get on it.”
“Okay.”
The phone goes dead, and I glance at Sienna.
Her expression is hard with anger. “Why would she do this after all this time?”
“Because he’s running for Congress.” I have no doubt that’s why she came forward.
Sienna is less convinced. “What?”
“This is why I told him not to run, Sienna. Because I knew something like this would happen.”
“You knew a witness would come forward?”
“No, I couldn’t have known that, but I knew it might be relitigated and could smear him and the rest of us with shit from the past. Goddamn it!” I pound my hand on the table, causing my kids to startle. “I’m sorry guys. Dad’s upset. I need to go back to work.”
“Finish your dinner,” Sienna says to the kids as she gets up to leave the room with me. “That fucking bitch. That motherfucking bitch! How can she do this to us?”
“It doesn’t matter at this point why she did it. The fact is she did, and now he’s totally fucked.”
“There has to be a way to keep this from ruining him.”
“There isn’t. He’ll stand trial for raping Neisy, who’s probably agreed to testify. With a witness backing her story, he’ll lose.”
“No. That’s not possible.”
“It’s not only possible, but also probable. Now pull it together for the kids while I go see what I can do to get him out of jail.”
I’m on the road to Wickford when my mother calls. “Camden! Your brother has been arrested . What is going on?”
“I’m on the way to figure that out, Mom.” I don’t have the heart to tell her a witness has come forward who saw Ryder rape Neisy. She’ll find that out soon enough.
“What in the world could he have done to warrant such treatment? They hauled him away from the baseball game like a common criminal! Caroline is beside herself, and the children are hysterical.”
“I’m getting another call. I’ll get back to you when I know more.”
“Please do something, Cam.”
“I’ll do what I can.” I juggle the phone to take the call from Rich Morton, my law school friend who works for the AG. I’d texted him to tell him Ryder is my brother and to ask what he could find out. “Hey, Rich. Thanks for calling me back. What’ve you got?”
“The grand jury has issued a true bill on first degree charges of sexual assault and sexual assault of a minor.”
Oh fuck. He’s been indicted. That means this has been in the works for weeks.
“Cam? Are you there?”
“I’m here.”
“You didn’t know about this?”
“No, we hadn’t heard a word about a grand jury or any of that.”
“Oh, wow, sorry it came as a total shock. I assume it was handled very carefully due to his campaign. Prosecutors never want to be accused of trying to influence politics.”
“Was the grand jury verdict unanimous?”
“I believe it was.”
Son of a bitch.
“Why did the state cops arrest him?”
“Apparently, the LE chief has a conflict of interest as the alleged assault took place at a party at his former home. He turned the case over to the State Police.”
Of course I already know about Houston Rafferty’s party because I was there, but Rich doesn’t need to know that. It’s also a shock to learn Houston has been involved in this for weeks and never said a word. “Okay. Thank you, Rich.”
“No problem. I’m sorry about your brother.”
“I am, too.”
“Did he do it, Cam?”
There’s no way I can tell someone from the AG’s office, even a friend, the truth. “I don’t know.”
“Well, good luck to you and your family.”
“Thank you for calling.”
“Of course.”
I feel worse than I did before Rich filled me in on the details. This is bad. As bad as it gets and about to get so much worse. I’m furious that Ryder didn’t take my advice about running for office. I’d told him it was a huge mistake, and I hate to say I told you so , but… If someone had been sitting with this information for all this time, hearing Ryder was seeking that kind of office would’ve been enough to push the witness into doing something about it. I’d bet my life that’s what happened.
And now I also have to worry about what’ll happen if it gets out that we lied about Neisy in a sworn affidavit when the original charges were filed.
I’ve no sooner had that thought when Arlo calls. “What the fuck is happening?”
“Ryder’s been indicted on rape charges.”
“Who are they saying he raped?”
“Neisy.”
“That was fourteen years ago! How is this coming up again now?”
“Apparently a witness has come forward who can corroborate her story.”
“ What? ” Arlo asks on a long exhale. “A witness ? Where was this so-called witness all this time?”
“I don’t know anything more. I’m on the way to the Wickford Barracks now to see Ryder.” Someone else can tell Arlo that the witness is his sister.
“We went out on a limb to save his ass years ago.”
“I’m well aware.”
“Will that come back to bite us now?”
“I really hope not.”
“Christ, Cam. How can this be happening after all this time?”
“I don’t know.” People would find out soon enough how it happened.
“Let me know what’s going on, if you can.”
“I will.”
On the drive across the bay to Wickford, I take three more calls from guys who signed the affidavit about Neisy back in the day, all expressing the same fears Arlo had. I do what I can to reassure them, even as I’m filled with dread over what this will mean for me and my family. If I’m disbarred, how will I provide for them?
In Wickford, I wait more than an hour before they let me in to see Ryder.
He looks wild in the eyes. “Cam! They came to Miles’s game. They arrested me in front of Caro and the kids and everyone we know. They fucking strip-searched me! Is this because of Blaise?”
“Yes.”
“So she went to the police after fourteen years of holding onto this secret.”
“She did, which means she no longer cares about the implications for herself.” I run my hands through my hair as I pace the claustrophobically small room. “Goddamn it, Ryder. This is exactly why I told you not to run. It was fucking arrogant to think the past wouldn’t resurface.”
“How was I supposed to know there was a fucking witness?”
“She might’ve stayed quiet forever if you hadn’t run for Congress.”
“Maybe you could pay her a visit?”
“And say what?”
“Ask her not to testify.”
“I’m not doing that.”
“Arlo would.”
“If you want him to do that, you can ask him yourself.”
“How can I do that from in here?”
“I’m sure you’ll be released on bond after the arraignment. If you want Arlo to deal with his sister, you can take care of that dirty work on your own.”
“I’m sorry, Cam. You were right. I never should’ve run for Congress.”
“No, you really shouldn’t have. You know what your problem has always been?”
“What are you talking about?”
“Everyone said you were the shit, and you believed it.” I poke his chest when I’d much rather punch him. “You believed you could attack Neisy and get away with it. That you could run for Congress and none of this shit would come back to bite you—and the rest of us—in the ass. You’re arrogant and entitled, and you deserve all of this.”
“I’m sorry! If I could go back and change everything, don’t you think I would?”
I have nothing to say to that. You can’t change the past, no matter how much he might wish he could.
“So what now?”
“You’ll be arraigned and hopefully released pending trial. And this time, there’ll be a trial.”
“Not if Arlo can talk his sister out of testifying.”
“Do you honestly think she would’ve done this in the first place if she wasn’t determined to see it through to the finish?”
“So you think I’m fucked?”
“Totally fucked.”
“You’re pissed.”
“You’re goddamned right I am! Everything was fine the way it was, but you just had to want more. I hope you’re not going to take me and all the guys who lied for you the first time around down with you.”
“I never asked you guys to lie for me!”
“But we did it anyway and saved your ass!”
“I’m so sorry, Cam.” His voice breaks. “I know that’s meaningless right now, but I really am.”
“I’m sure you are, but you’re right. That doesn’t mean much to me right now.”
“So you won’t represent me?”
“I’m not a defense attorney. You need someone who knows what they’re doing. I’ll ask around and get someone here for the arraignment.”
“What about Caroline and the kids? What do I tell them?”
I stare at him, incredulous. “How about the truth?”
He shakes his head. “I can’t. She’ll leave me and take my kids. I can’t lose my family.”
“What do you think she’ll do when you’re convicted?”
“Maybe I won’t be.”
“Ryder… They have an eyewitness who saw you rape her. There’s no statute of limitations on sexual assault in this state. The fact that she took fourteen years to come forward won’t mean anything to a jury when they hear her testimony in support of Neisy.”
“We have to do something. We can’t just let this ruin everything.”
“It’s far too late to do anything. This is why I begged you not to run. I was afraid of something just like this.”
“Okay, you were right! Are you happy now?”
“No, Ryder. I’m not at all happy. What do you want me to tell Caroline? She’s frantic and blindsided.”
“Tell her…tell her I’ll explain everything when I get out of here.”
“And you’ll tell her the truth?”
“I…I don’t know.”
“You owe her the truth at this point.”
“I…uh…”
“Ryder! You’ve turned her life upside down! She deserves to know.”
“I’ll think about it.”
“You do that.” I slap my hand against the door to call for a Trooper to let me out.
“Cam…”
I turn back to him.
“I’m scared.”
I want to tell him he should be, but I say nothing, exiting the room after a cop lets me out. On the way home, I call Caroline.
She grabs the call on the first ring. “Cam. Did you see him?”
“I did.”
“Is he okay?”
“He’s upset, but otherwise, he’s fine.”
“What is happening?”
“He’s been indicted on rape charges from fourteen years ago.”
She gasps. “No. That’s not possible. He said he didn’t do it.”
What can I say to that? She’ll need to come around to understanding he lied to her in her own time.
“What do I do?”
“Sit tight until he’s arraigned. He should be released on personal recognizance sometime tomorrow.”
“He has to spend the night there?”
“Yes.”
“How is he being charged with this if he didn’t do it?”
“You’ll have to talk to him about that.”
“What do you know, Cam?”
“I’ll text you when I hear what time the arraignment will be in Newport County Superior Court. He’ll need clothes for that.”
“That’s it? I just have to sit here and wait?”
“I don’t know what else to say.”
“You could tell me this is a big mistake!”
I wish I could. “Just hang in there, Caroline. You’ll see him tomorrow. I’ll be in touch.”
I’ve never been more thankful to end a call in my life. I adore her and always have. She came along at a time when I feared Ryder might never recover from the events of that summer. In addition to committing a horrendous crime—and getting away with it—he’d withstood the devastating loss of Louisa, her funeral and deep, unrelenting grief. All before he’d started his senior year of high school.
He met Caroline during his sophomore year at URI, and they’ve been together ever since. In addition to facing charges, he’ll also have to confront the fallout from the lie he’s told his wife for all these years. Whether she’ll stay with him is anyone’s guess.
When I arrive home, Sienna mutes the TV. “How’d it go?”
“As you might expect. He’s terrified and worried about Caro and the kids.”
“Does she know the truth?”
I shake my head.
“Wow. I always figured he’d probably told her the truth at some point.”
“He didn’t.” I fix myself a glass of bourbon straight out of the bottle and sit next to her on the sofa.
“What happens now?”
“He’ll be arraigned tomorrow and hopefully let out on personal recognizance. That’s the usual routine for first-time offenders.”
“He’s still a first-time offender even though he was charged with this before?”
“He wasn’t convicted, so yes, he’s a first-time offender.”
“What about the campaign?”
“I assume that’ll be suspended after the arraignment. There’s no way he can run now.”
“Even if he’s acquitted?”
“If that happens, and it’s a very big if, it’ll take months. The election will be long over by then.”
“I feel so bad for Caroline and their kids.”
“I know.”
“I should talk to Blaise.”
“No, you shouldn’t.”
“Why not? What can it hurt at this point?”
“We don’t need to add to his troubles with charges of witness tampering.”
“He wouldn’t be going anywhere near her. I could go to her and plead with her to have mercy on Ryder’s wife and kids.”
“Why would she care about them? She doesn’t even know them.”
“She knows me, and I’d be the one asking.”
“It’s too risky.”
“What do we have to lose at this point?”
“I don’t like it, and I don’t think you should do it.”
“So noted.”
If there’s one thing I know about Sienna after eight years of marriage and nearly sixteen years together it’s that she does what she wants when she wants. I can’t stop her from seeking out Blaise.
All I can do is discourage it.