Nowhere to Turn (16 page)

“Huh? Oh. There's something I should have told you yesterday, Robbie.”

“Yesterday?”

He pulled a chair up beside the bed and sat down facing me. “Nick called me after he was arrested at the mall.”

“What? Why?”

“He was afraid to call his aunt. He knows he shouldn't have gone there, but he said he couldn't say no when Isobel told him that Mr. Schuster wanted to see him. All Isobel knew was that her parents wouldn't allow Nick in the house. She didn't know about his bail conditions.”

“Nick called
you
?”

“He didn't have a lot of options, Robbie.”

“Wait a minute.” It was slowly making sense. “Nick told you that someone pushed him, didn't he? That's why you didn't argue with me when I asked if you could talk to mall security and see if there was anything on their cameras. You would have checked it out yourself.”

“It was a good idea no matter whose it was. And the reason I didn't tell you was because Nick asked me not to. And because I know how you feel about him now that you're with Ben.”

I'm sure he
thought
he knew how I felt.

“I took a copy of the security footage to Nick's lawyer right after I left you,” my father said. “He contacted the police. It's obvious Nick didn't push Schuster on purpose. They dropped that charge. But the charges of burglary and breaking-and-entering charges and for the assault on Claudia Schuster still stand. Then there's the matter of his bail conditions, which he clearly breached.”

“If he broke bail, why did they release him?” I said.

“The police spoke to Isobel. She confirmed that Mr. Schuster had asked to see Nick and that was the only reason Nick was there. Even so, it took a lot of persuading. I'd already rounded up some people to write letters on Nick's behalf. Those helped. The judge agreed to release him to me.”

“To you?” I stared at my father. “You mean he's staying at your place?”

“For the time being. His aunt is furious with him for lying to her. She doesn't want him back in her house. I'm hoping she'll change her mind, but in the meantime, he has nowhere else to go. I know this is awkward, Robbie—”

“Mom's out of town for another whole week. What am I supposed to do?”

“He's going to sleep in my office,” my dad said. “He has to report to his youth worker once a week, keep me apprised of his whereabouts at all times, and do exactly what I tell him. If he breaks any of those conditions, they'll lock him up until his case goes to court.” He reached for my coat and helped me into it as best he could.

As we left the cubicle, we found Ben and Nick standing on opposite sides of the hall, waiting for us. Ben was staring at Nick. Nick was staring at the floor. Ben started toward me.

“We'll be waiting at the main door,” my dad said. He nodded to Nick, who refused to look at me. He followed my father down the hall.

As soon as they were out of sight, Ben said, “So that's the guy you used to go out with?”

I nodded.

“He seems pretty tight with your dad.”

“He's in trouble. My dad's helping him out.”

“What kind of trouble?”

“It's complicated.”

“How is your father helping him out?”

I hesitated. “Nick is staying at my dad's place for a while.”

Ben looked at me for what seemed like an eternity.

“Aren't you staying with your father while your mom is out of town?” he said.

“Yes, but—”

“So you and your ex-boyfriend are staying together at your dad's place?”

“It's not what you think—”

“How long has he been staying there?”

“My dad just bailed him out this afternoon.”

“Bailed him out? You mean he was arrested?” He frowned as if he was trying to make a difficult decision. “You said you had just finished walking Orion.”

“So?”

“There was a dog named Orion at that animal shelter where you volunteered last summer,” he said. “Nick trained him, didn't he?”

I stared at him. “How do you know that?” I had avoided giving Ben any details about Nick. I didn't think that they would ever meet, and besides, thinking about Nick always made me feel either angry or sad.

“Morgan told me,” he said.

“Why would Morgan tell you that?”

“Because I asked her.”

“You asked Morgan about Nick?”

His eyes shifted away from mine.

“Why did you do that?” I said.

His face was defiant when he looked at me again. “Because I wanted to know.”

“Know what?”

“Don't look at me like that, Robyn. I didn't commit a crime. I just wanted to know something about the guy who seemed so important to you.”

“If you wanted to know, you should have asked
me
.”

“If I had asked, would you have told me?”

It was my turn to feel uncomfortable. I looked away.

“I thought so,” Ben said.

“I'm sorry,” I said, though I was mostly sorry that we were having the conversation. “I wasn't trying to hide anything from you, but—”

“—but you were walking Nick's dog before you were attacked.”

“Orion isn't Nick's dog. Nick trained him, but he belongs to someone else.”

“Then why were you walking him?”

“I was just helping out a friend.”

“Nick?”

“No. I was doing a favor for the dog's owner.” I was getting angry.

“Are you still in love with him, Robyn?”

Ben looked deep into my eyes. Maybe he thought if he looked hard enough, he would see what was in my heart.

“My arm hurts,” I said. “And my dad is waiting. I have to go.”

For a moment, Ben's eyes were sharp and cold. Then his expression softened just a little. He slipped an arm around my waist.

“I'll walk you out,” he said.

My dad and Nick were sitting on a bench in the hospital's busy main lobby. They both got to their feet when they saw me. Ben walked me to where they were standing, then leaned over to kiss me. But it didn't seem right, not in front of Nick. I pulled away from him. Ben looked hurt, but all he said was, “I'll call you.” He nodded politely to my father and stepped into the revolving doors. He drove past us a few minutes later, while we were on our way to my dad's car.

“Here we go,” my dad said, unlocking his own car. Nick slid into the back seat. No one said a word the whole way to my dad's place.

My father's loft is mostly open concept. Even if Nick slept in the office, I was going to have a hard time avoiding him.

“The couch doesn't pull out,” my father said as he showed Nick where to put his things—a backpack and a small duffel bag. “You get settled and I'll get started on dinner. It's late. You two must be hungry. I know I am.”

“Do you need any help?” Nick and I said in unison. I had asked so that I'd have an excuse to get away from Nick. Nick had probably asked to get away from me.

“I think I can handle it,” my dad said. “You two relax. Watch some TV.” He disappeared into the kitchen.

Nick ducked into my father's office and closed the door. I went to my room and sat down on the bed, cradling my broken arm. I wished Nick weren't there—at least, that's what I told myself. I wished my dad hadn't decided to help him—at least, that's what I told myself.

But if I were being honest with myself, neither was true.

What I really wished was that Nick hadn't disappeared three months ago. I wished that he'd stayed in town and that we had stayed together. I had the feeling that if he hadn't left, things would be different. Or would they? Nick would still have been walking Orion for Mr. Schuster. He would still have met Elliot Schuster, who probably would still have fired him. And the coins? They would probably still be missing. And maybe Nick would still have been arrested for stealing them. But I would have known about it sooner. I could have helped him.

I shook my head. What was the matter with me? We weren't still together. I was with Ben—who was angry with me. Which reminded me . . .

I dug my phone out of my backpack and called Morgan's number.

“You just had to tell him, didn't you?” I said.

“What? Robyn, is that you?”

“You told Ben how I met Nick! It sounds like you gave him a full play-by-play.”

“Oh,” Morgan said. She sounded almost contrite.

“So you did tell him.”

“Well, I guess I kind of—”

“Why?”

“Because he asked. I'm sorry, Robyn. But it was a while ago—before Nick came back. I didn't think it mattered.” There was a brief pause. “I also didn't think he'd tell you.”

“Well, he did.”

“Sorry,” she murmured again. I relented a little. Morgan was my friend. I knew she wouldn't have said anything to Ben if she'd thought it would hurt me.

“It gets worse,” I said. “Ben was at the hospital with me when my dad got there—”

“You were at the hospital? What happened? Did Mr. Schuster get worse? Oh God, he didn't die, did he?”

“I was at a different hospital. The thing is, my dad brought Nick with him.”

“He brought Nick to the hospital? Is he okay?”

“He's fine. Someone attacked me.”

“Attacked you? What do you mean?”

“I mean, dragged me down a dark alley and threatened me. My arm is broken.”

“Okay,” Morgan said. “Back up and tell me this story in chronological order, or I'm hanging up and coming over there.”

I took a deep breath and told her what had happened from the time I had dropped off Orion to the time I left the hospital.

“Someone attacked you and threatened you and you're mad at me for answering a few of Ben's questions two months ago?” Morgan said. “I don't think you have your priorities straight.”

She was right. Just seeing Nick again had turned my whole world upside down.

“I'm sorry,” I said. “But you should have seen the look on Ben's face when he found out that Nick is staying here.”

“Whoa! Nick is staying at your dad's? But
you're
staying at your dad's place.”

“You sound just like Ben.”

“I bet.”

“Let me get this straight, Robyn. Your current boyfriend is mad because you and your
ex
-boyfriend are living in the same place—and this surprises you?” There was a pause. “It is still exboyfriend, isn't it?”

“You were at his aunt's house, Morgan. You saw what he was like.”

“Things can change, Robyn.”

“Well, they haven't. He and my dad walked in while Ben was hugging me.”

There were a few more seconds of silence before Morgan said, “Does Ben have anything to worry about?”

Was there any chance I would get back together with Nick? No—not if Nick had anything to do with it. But what if things were different? What if Nick wanted me back? I was supposed to be with Ben, but I couldn't get Nick out of my mind.

“Does he, Robyn?”

“I guess not.”

“So talk to Ben. He'll forgive you.”

“Forgive me? I didn't do anything wrong.”

“Except get involved in Nick's problems without telling him. And see Nick without mentioning it to him. And . . .”

“I get it,” I said.

CHAPTER
THIRTEEN

M

y dad whipped up omelets and toast. He ate heartily. I picked at the food on my plate. So did Nick. He stared at the table the whole time. I told myself I didn't care. My arm was throbbing.

“Well, this is fun,” my dad said.

I gave him a warning look. The rest of the meal passed in silence. My father frowned slightly as he ate, chewing over a problem.

As soon as we finished eating, Nick volunteered to clean up. My dad accepted his offer.

“Come on, Robbie,” he said. “We need to talk.”

I followed him into the living room and sank down on one of his comfy sofas. My dad brought along a small bottle of painkillers and handed me a tablet.