Bringing Home Danny (30 page)

“
Oww! Stop!” Danny yelled. He was tired of Mitch's fooling around.
 

Mitch spanked him harder. “I said, face the wall!”

Danny waited to hear Antonio say in his reproachful voice, "Mitch, stop being ridiculous and leave Danny alone." But no such words came. Danny thought he must not be paying attention. He turned around again in hopes to catch Antonio's eyes, and garner a sympathetic response.

SMACK!

“
Ooowww!” Danny stomped his foot in anger, and to distract from the sting caused by Mitch's hand.
 

SMACK!

“
We could do this all day if you like.”
 

“
You suck,” Danny moaned, as he crossed his arms in a pout.
 

SMACK!

SMACK!

SMACK!

“
Let me explain to you the purpose of being in the corner,” Mitch said piously, causing Danny’s eyes to roll. “The purpose is for you to calm down so you can use this time as an opportunity to think about what you did wrong, and to consider smarter choices for the future.”
 

Danny huffed and sucked his teeth.

SPANK!

“
The other purpose is to give the rest of us a respite from your petulant and instigating behaviors."
 

Danny bit his lip.

"Now for the rules," Mitch continued. "You are to face the wall…” He repositioned Danny so he was once again wedged with his face in the corner.

Danny jerked his body out of Mitch's grasp and refolded his arms.

SPANK!

“
...And, you will stand still with your arms at your side.” Mitch unfolded Danny's arms and yanked them to his side.
 

“
Anything else?” Danny asked sarcastically.
 

SPANK!

 
Danny grimaced, regretting his last remark and the sting in his backside.
 

“
Yes. While serving your time in the corner you will remain quiet! That way you will not be distracted from your thoughts, and the rest of us will get a break from your mouth.”
 

Danny breathed heavy, but remained quiet.

“
Good, I think you're beginning to catch on. There is one more rule for you to be aware of. Your corner time sentence will begin immediately after you have settled down, and complied with all of the corner time expectations.”
 

Danny fought the urge to punch the wall and make a rude comment.

“
Lastly, if you break a rule then your time starts over from the beginning. If, for whatever reason, corner time becomes completely unsuccessful, you will receive a spanking before trying it again.”
 

Danny was burning with anger and embarrassment.

“
Is that clear?”
 

“
Yes, sir,” Danny answered hotly.
 

“
Wonderful, then your time can begin. I believe they say children should be able to do one minute of time-out for each year they have been alive. Therefore, you owe me sixteen minutes.”
 

Danny groaned.

Spank!

"OW!"

“
I don't want to hear any more noises coming from you.”
 

Danny eventually complied and stood quietly. Hyper alert to all nearby sounds, he felt completely self-conscious standing in the middle of his new home with his back to where there was a lot of house traffic. Even though he knew it was illogical, he imagined that people from outside the window could see him. He strained not to move in order to save himself from having to start over and risk being seen by a passerby. He silently cursed, and resented the smirk he assumed was on TJ's face.

Today Danny was having similar thoughts when one of his worst fears were realized as he heard the front door open, and Antonio walk in with someone.

*****

With his big brown eyes wide open in fear, Mitch's first thought was of an injured fawn caught in the headlights. He hurried over to the wounded boy standing beside Antonio.

“
What happened?”
 

Antonio spotted Danny in the corner, and quickly guided Ricky over to the couch.

“
He had a bit of an
accident
,” Antonio said discreetly.
 

Ricky was still in shock, but he could have sworn as he passed by that he saw a boy standing in a corner. Mitch quietly went over to Danny and dismissed him to his room before rejoining the others.

“
That looks like a nasty hit to the eye. Has he been seen by a doctor?”
 

“
We were just discussing that. I would like Ricky to be examined by Jason as soon as we can arrange it.”
 

“
I'd rather not,” said Ricky. “I don't think it's such a good idea.”
 

Mitch didn't respond to Ricky's comment. He directed his questions to Antonio.

“
Where's the boyfriend?”
 

“
I left him in the gym almost two hours ago. He'll be looking for him soon.”
 

“
Does he have any idea where he is?”
 

“
Not yet.”
 

“
Where's TJ?”
 

“
Working the front desk for me.”
 

“
Get someone to cover for him, and send him home. I'll give Jason a call.”
 

Antonio patted Ricky on the shoulder. “Relax, honey, I'll be right back.”

Antonio met Mitch in the office. Mitch shook his head as he pinched the bridge of his nose. Antonio sighed knowing this wasn't going to be an easy sell.

“
Do you have any idea what you're doing?”
 

“
Mitch, what did you want me to do? Leave him in the hands of that maniac?”
 

“
There are shelters.”
 

“
Really, Mitch? You go in there and tell that poor boy we're sending him to a shelter.”
 

“
Antonio, those places are set up for people in his situation.”
 

“
Those places are only so safe. Besides, how many are really out there for men? Once Ricky gets a restraining order, that's when the real danger begins.”
 

“
Once Brendan finds out we are providing him with sanctuary, all of us are at risk. I wouldn't mind if it was only the two of us, but we have TJ and Danny to consider.”
 

“
Don’t you think I have thought about that? I'm sick with worry. But how would you feel if it was TJ or Danny in his situation? Think about Danny in particular. He is bound to leave us soon and start adult relationships of his own. What if he was being hurt? Wouldn't you want someone to help him?”
 

“
He has someone to help him, he has us.”
 

“
That's right, and Ricky needs us, too.”
 

Mitch groaned.
There's no reasoning with this man at times.
 

Antonio and Mitch waited for TJ to arrive home before bringing Ricky to Jason's private practice.
TJ was late again. Just when they were all about to run out of patience, he strolled in, not a care in the world. Then he saw Ricky, and everything changed. It didn't take a detective to figure out what was going on.
 

“Hey, man, are you okay?”

Ricky lifted his head up shyly. He felt awkward having all this fuss made over him. “I didn't mean to interfere with everybody's plans.”

“
Don't worry, sweetheart. You are not responsible for any of this,” Antonio told him.
 

“
Speaking of which, Brendan left the gym right before I did.”
 

Ricky felt sickened by those words and began to panic. “Did he say anything? Did you tell him where I was?”

“
No, of course not.”
 

“
You're safe with us,” Antonio reminded him.
 

“
TJ, do me a favor and bring Danny downstairs," Mitch instructed. "I want to speak to the both of you,”
 

When TJ came back into the room with Danny, it took a moment for it to dawn on Ricky where he had recognized the boy from.

“
Danny?” he asked. Ricky was embarrassed that the kid had to see him like this.
 

“
Hi, Ricky,” Danny said sheepishly. He was mortified that Ricky came in while he was in the corner.
 

“
Boys, have a seat. Ricky is going through a rough spot, and will be staying with us for a little while. TJ, you are going to be sharing your old room with him. So bring a few of your things into the master bedroom to give him more space.”
 

“
No problem,” TJ responded readily.
 

“
Good," Mitch said in approval. "Now, we are going to be tightening up restrictions for the time being. We will be discussing them in further detail when we get back from the doctor's.”
 

“
Okay,” TJ agreed.
 

“
Danny, that goes for you in particular.”
 

“
I didn't think they could get any tighter,” Danny grumbled.
 

 
“
Continue to push your luck, and I'll tether you to a harness and attach it to my hip.”
 

Mitch stared poignantly at him until he answered with a cursory, “Yes, sir.”

“
I need you to stay here with Danny,” Mitch said to TJ. “I don't want either of you to answer the door or the phone. In fact, stay off the phone completely in case we need to contact you. Use it only in case of an emergency.”
 

“
Call us immediately if anything suspicious arises,” Antonio added.
 

“
Sure, we'll be fine,” TJ reassured.
 

Even though Ricky was comforted by the precautions they were taking, he also felt immensely guilty at having inconvenienced everyone.

“
I appreciate all you're doing for me, but it’s not necessary to go through so much trouble. I have a little money. I can stay at hotel until things settle down, and then I'll make an appointment with my own doctor.”
 

“
Ricky, we are no longer discussing that as an option. I have already made the appointment with Jason. He will be sensitive, thorough, and confidential. He is also a busy man, so we don't want to keep him waiting.” Mitch issued his order, in his take-charge mode.
 

*****

Mitch greeted his old buddy with a handshake and a friendly pat on the shoulder. "I appreciate you fitting us in on such short notice. Antonio has a young friend here that needs to be checked over.”

Jason quickly scanned Ricky sitting in the waiting room with Antonio. “Who's responsible for using him like a punishing bag?” he asked.

“
His boyfriend.”
 

“
Poor kid. I imagine he's been battered for a while. Why don't you have Lucy set him up in a back room. Are there going to be charges pressed?”
 

“
We're considering it.”
 

“
I'll get the camera. Will a rape kit be necessary?”
 

“
I'm not sure. He's awfully skittish as it is.”
 

Mitch and Antonio walked with Ricky to the back room, and Antonio assisted him up on the examining table. Jason wasted no time in knocking on the door.

“
Come in,” said Mitch.
 

Jason took Ricky's hand gently in his. “Hello, Ricky, I'm Dr. Phillips, but you can call me Jason.”

“
Hello.”
 

“
What happened to your hand?”
 

“
I broke three of my fingers.”
 

“
Where was it treated?” Jason asked, as he turned them delicately to inspect the splints.
 

“
At the ER.”
 

“
I have someone I can recommend to make sure they heal properly.”
 

Ricky mumbled a quiet thank you.

“
So, what else are we checking on today?”
 

Ricky was overwhelmed by the process and shrugged apologetically.

“
Mitch tells me you got pretty banged up, and from the looks of things he's right.”
 

“
Honestly, I think I'm all right, just a few bruises.”
 

“
Well, that's quite a shiner you got there,” Jason remarked. Tilting Ricky's head back, he examined his eye with a light. “Have you been icing it?”
 

“
Not really.”
 

“
I'm a little concerned about the blood near your cornea. Lets' keep an
eye
on it,” he said, with a wink.
 

Ricky attempted a small laugh, but it hurt too much.

“
Can you get your shirt off for me?”
 

"I can try."

Ricky began to wince when he raised his shirt above his chest. Jason helped by gently pulling it over his head.

“
You have a lot of contusions. Is it difficult for you to lift your arms?
 

“
A little.”
 

Assessing the amount of bruising covering his arms and chest, Jason determined that a full examination was going to be necessary. Pressing his hands against Ricky’s chest he asked, “Does it hurt to take deep breaths?”