Chapter 33 Melanie
Melanie
Abby was setting up her room for the senior class, which mainly involved making sure enough materials were available.
It was her favorite class since she didn’t really instruct the students so much as guide them in the genre they favored.
Most of them were working on end-of-year projects or building their art portfolios for submission to college admissions boards.
“Abby?” Principal Newton stood in the doorway of her classroom. “Do you have a minute?”
She dropped the brushes into the old coffee can. “Of course.”
He stepped into the classroom and closed the door.
Her stomach dropped; he had on his bad news face. It was the face he’d used to tell them a teacher had died last year. Was it Will? Olivia? Her mom? “What’s wrong? What happened?”
“I know you have a connection to the Veterans Against Child Abuse group, so I wanted to tell you in person instead of hearing it from somewhere else. Melanie Driscoll is in the hospital,” he said gently.
Abby brought a hand to her mouth. “Oh, god. What happened?”
“She was beaten pretty severely. Her social worker called to let us know she wouldn’t be in school. I know she’s a favorite of yours and you have a relationship with some of the people at VACA. I thought you’d want to know.”
Tinker. Oh, god. “I— I need to go.” She untied the smock and slipped it over her head, throwing it on her desk. “I need to— Shit. My class.”
“It’s okay. I’ll get someone to cover it. I’ll cover it myself if I need to. Go do what you need to do.”
Abby grabbed her purse from the table behind the door. She stopped in the doorway. “Thank you, Isaac.”
He nodded and she ran for the entrance, ignoring the call of one snarky student who told her no running in the halls.
Her phone rang through the car speakers as she pulled out of the teacher’s parking lot.
“Hello?”
“Abby, it’s Katherine. Have you spoken to Tinker in the last hour?”
“No, but I heard what happened. The school got a call,” Abby said.
“Have you tried calling him? He’s not answering his cell phone or his work phone,” Katherine said.
“I’m on my way there now.”
“Abby…Tinker is going to lose his shit when he finds out. He was really close to Melanie.”
“I know.” Abby came to a stop at the red light and tapped her thumb against the steering wheel. “How did this even happen?”
“The mom’s boyfriend was released on probation.”
Abby placed her hand on her forehead and closed her eyes. “Jesus.” She could only imagine how Tinker was going to react when he heard. She jumped when a horn sounded behind her and raised her hand in apology.
“I’ll be at his office soon. I’ll call as soon as I can,” she promised.
“Okay,” Katherine said. “We’re here when you need us.”
Abby didn’t remember the rest of the drive to TLC, only the frantic urgency to get there as quickly as she could.
Shoving through the exterior and interior glass doors of TLC’s entry, she found Graham Senior at the reception desk, magazine in hand and coffee cup in the other. So normal. Maybe Tinker hadn’t heard.
“Hey, pretty lady,” Graham Senior said. “Here to see Tinker?”
“He’s here?” she confirmed.
“Far as I know. Haven’t seen him pass through here since he came in this morning.” He must have sensed her panic because he set his mug and magazine down and straightened in his chair. “What’s wrong?”
A roar came from the hallway on her right that led to the offices. And Tinker.
“Abby wait—”
But she couldn’t—she needed to get to Tinker.
She raced down the short hallway. He was off to the side of the room, close to his desk.
Paige, Graham, Angie, and a couple of guys whose names she couldn’t recall at the moment stood around him.
They looked like game wardens trying to calm down a cornered animal.
With his fists clenched, every muscle in his body clenched, neck tendons straining, that’s what he looked like—a cornered animal.
He roared again. Putting his whole body into releasing his anger.
Through the rage and anger she saw what was really driving him though. Pain. So much pain. The pain of someone who tried to take on the hurt of others and had failed.
“Christian,” she said softly.
His head jerked in her direction.
Graham saw where he looked and stepped toward him. “Tinker, calm down.”
Tinker shoved past him. If she didn’t know him, didn’t know how gentle and tender he could be, how caring he was down to his very core, she’d be afraid of the raging beast bearing down on her.
“Abby.” His voice was guttural, as if the strain of his rage made it hard to talk.
“I know,” she said.
He grabbed her and crumpled. It was the only way to describe how quickly he fell to the ground, taking her with him and holding her like the last lifeline available to him.
His arms banded tightly around her ribs, and he buried his head in her neck, folding in on himself and engulfing her.
She did the only thing she could—wrapped her body around him and held on.
The force of his sobs shook his whole body.
Her heart broke for him. All he wanted to do was protect kids from the monsters in the world. She petted his head, running one hand down the close-cropped hair at the back of his neck. “Shhhh. Shhhh.” She tried to gentle him the same way she would Will when he had a bad dream.
She looked behind him at his friends and coworkers. Many of them had their mouths open, staring at her in shock. Her brows pinched. What had they expected him to do?
Paige gathered herself first and started shooing people away.
They didn’t go far. Angie’s workstation was in the far corner and she positioned her chair to face them.
She sat cross-legged, elbows on knees, hands folded prayer-like.
Everyone else did pretty much the same—positioned chairs so they could keep an eye on them. Or maybe just Tinker.
Abby saw worry etched on their faces. She knew they cared and maybe were a little scared that this big, strong man had finally reached his limit.
Paige came close and said, “Call us, when you need us.”
Abby nodded, then tucked her head down close to Tinker’s.
She didn’t know how long they sat like that.
Every now and then, he would grip her tighter, his fingers digging into her ribs.
A sob would escape, then he’d slowly ease off.
One leg was asleep and her hip was cramping, but she’d stay like that until he was ready.
Finally, he slowly lifted his head as if the weight of it was almost too much.
She framed his face with her hands and searched his bloodshot eyes.
“This is my fault,” he said hoarsely.
She frowned. “What?”
“She asked me out.”
“Who?”
“Becky, her mom,” he said. “Told me point blank Melanie needed a dad and she wanted it to be me.”
“Christian, no. Don’t do that to yourself. You can’t control the choices other people make in their lives,” she said.
“If I’d said yes, if I had agreed to even a date—”
“We wouldn’t have met,” she said. “I wouldn’t know you.
I wouldn’t know the strong and caring man in front of me.
Choices have consequences, bad and good.
Becky made her own choices. For all you know, she would have done the exact same thing even if you had agreed to go out with her.
Her taking her ex-boyfriend back was not something you could control. ”
“I—”
“No,” she said firmly. “I’m not letting you do this to yourself. You can’t save everyone, Christian. As much as you want to and as much as you try, you can’t. And if you try to take on the guilt of every fucked-up person in this world, you will destroy yourself.”
“She’s just a little girl.” The pain in his voice broke her heart all over again.
“I know.” She ran a hand down the side of his face. “We’ll help her.”
He buried his face back in her neck and let out a shuddering breath.
She felt another presence close and looked up.
Dani stood over them, tears tracking down her face.
Abby didn’t know if she was crying for Melanie or her brother.
Either way, she sat down behind Tinker and wrapped legs and arms around him, pressing against his back.
A few seconds later, Angie sat on Tinker’s left, facing Abby, and rested her head on his shoulder.