Read Online When Jeff Comes Home by Catherine Atkins - Free Book Online

perfectly straight. Brian sat on the floor next to her, watching Stephens. Charlie was nearby, curled up in an armchair, her feet drawn up underneath her. She caught my eye as I paced by the window, across the room from the rest of them, and smiled encouragingly at me.
    "Jeff," she said softly, patting the arm of the chair, indicating that I should sit there. Everyone turned to stare at me.
    "No," I said rudely, looking away from Charlie as a hurt expression crossed her face.
    "Slaight worked for a firm in Los Angeles," Stephens continued, looking down at his notes again, then back at Dad. "But he lived in Costa Mesa. Four years ago he was convicted of assault, the only evidence of a criminal record I found. He served four months in   the L.A. county jail." For the first time since Stephens had entered the room, I relaxed.
    See, Ray may be a criminal, but he's a normal criminal, not . . .
    "'Assault '  could mean anything, though," Stephens said. "Sexual attacks against children, particularly boys, are often bargained down to simple assault." He curled his lip as I froze. "The lawyers always say it's to protect the victim. Of course, the one who really benefits is the perpetrator. He goes into jail as a tough guy who beat somebody up, not a pervert who raped a kid."
    My face flamed. I glared at Stephens.
    Don't talk that way in front of them.
    "I'm going down to Southern California tomorrow to see what I can find out," Stephens said.
    "While you're gone ..." Connie said nervously, clutching at Brian's shoulder.
    "Don't worry. I have an agent stationed in the lobby."
    "That's not necessary," Dad said. "I've got..."
    Stephens raised his hands. "Don't tell me anything I'll have to officially discourage you against. Look, the agent is just a nice, precautionary measure. The odds are Slaight is long gone. Someone else's headache by now," he added. I held my face expressionless. "What you do have to worry about is if the media finds out where you're staying. At least my guy downstairs can keep them away."
    Dad nodded grudgingly. He stood as Stephens did, reaching out to shake his hand. "All right. Good luck. And thanks."
    "Sure," Stephens said. He pointed at me. "Jeff, take care. I'll see you soon." I nodded, wanting to tell him that his trip would be useless, that I wanted him here, yes, here.
    As Stephens turned to leave, his pager beeped.
    "You mind?" he asked, not waiting for Dad's nod as he strode over to the living room phone, which happened to be near me. I backed away, but Stephens ignored me as he quickly punched in the number he read off the pager.
    "Who could that be?" Connie said nervously. No one bothered to answer her. I watched Stephens's face.
    The person on the other end of the line was doing all the talking, and I could hear the agitation in his voice. My stomach tightened.
    It's about me.
    "Yeah, he's here," Stephens said shortly. "I'll be right down." He hung up and turned to Dad. "Ken, this has to be fast, so don't argue with me. The agent downstairs has someone in custody resembling Slaight."
    “What?” Dad said, the color draining out of his face.
    Stephens was already shaking his head. "I know you want to be there but you can't. Stay with the family and I'll call you as soon as I can. Don't leave this room." With that, Stephens ran off, slamming the door after him.
    Dad watched him go, motionless, one hand on the back of the couch where Connie sat. She looked up at him, reaching for his hand, her face as pale as his.
    " Jeff, "  Charlie said finally, breaking the silence. "Oh my God. What does he want?"
    "Maybe it's not him," Brian said.
    "Shut up," Dad barked. "Both of you. No one say anything."
    I started counting silently: one one thousand, two one thousand, three one thousand...
    "The hell with this," Dad said suddenly, pulling away from Connie and heading for the door.
    "No, Ken," Connie called after him, half rising from the couch, her face stricken.
    "Dad, don't," I said, wrapping my arms around