Starting Point (29 page)

“What the fuck would you know?” he bit back at me. “You ain’t got a fucking clue what it’s been like, how hard it’s been. And you don’t know Darius and Tyler. They a’right, look after me. So back the fuck off, man.”

“You know what, Ruby?” I spoke through clenched teeth. “I can’t even talk to you right now. But I’ll tell you what. Claude’s coming home with me tonight. She’s not going anywhere with you, and you can be as mad as fuck as you want with me, but you know damn well where you’re going is no place for her.”

He looked as though he might argue, but he knew damn well I was right. And no matter how pissed off he was at me, he loved Claude more.

I pointed to the door back out into the gym. “So you go out there and tell her you’re busy tonight and you want her to stay with us. Don’t you dare upset her, because every time she cries it breaks my fucking heart.”

Ruby opened his mouth to say something, but in the end he looked to the ground and nodded.

I exhaled loudly, and as much as I wanted to hug this kid and tell him it would be okay, I just didn’t know if it would be. He’d broken club policy for drug use, not once, but twice. It was a catch twenty-two—he was about to lose his place in the scholarship programme, which would push him further into drug-running, the very thing he needed to be in the programme to avoid.

“I’ll be here at ten tomorrow morning,” I said, not even trying to hide the anger in my tone. “You better be here, and we’re going to discuss your place in the programme, because right now, I’m not sure you have one.”

I turned and walked to the door, but before I opened it, I turned to face him. He looked downtrodden and miserable. “Can you please take a few minutes to see her? Talk to her, ask her about her day, ask her about the dog. Just listen to her. She needs you, Ruby. Just ten minutes. Please.” My voice was quieter, sorrier.

I walked out and went back to my class, and as soon as Claude saw the door was left open, she raced inside. Cody looked at me and asked, “You okay, man?”

“I’m fine,” I replied automatically. Then I took and deep breath and let it out slowly.

“I can finish up these guys if you want?”

I looked at the dozen or so faces who were staring at me. “I’m okay,” I said to Cody, giving a smile. “Sorry. I’m better now anyway. I just hope that kid does the right thing.”

Cody patted my shoulder as he left the class to me, and I finished them with some cool-down exercises, gave them all a high five each, and dismissed them. “See you guys tomorrow,” I said. “We’ll be sparring and putting all these moves into action.”

There was some excited chatter between them while I packed up the mats and tidied the gear. After I’d given Ruby and Claude enough time alone, I stood in the doorway to my office.

They were both there, sitting on one of the tables at the back of the room. Claude was telling him all about Oscar and the hand signals she’s been teaching him. I walked in, and her chatter died away.

I smiled at her and she frowned. “Matt, is you still mad at Ruby?” she asked innocently. “He said he was sorry for leaving me last night. He said he didn’t realise it would take so long.”

“Nah, I’m not mad anymore,” I said softly.

Claude smiled genuinely and Ruby looked at me, I guessed to see if I was telling the truth. Claude looked at her brother. “See, Ruby? I told you he wouldn’t still be mad.” Then she turned to me. “But Ruby knows this time it might take too long and wants me to stay at your house. Is that okay? I won’t be no trouble,” she said. “I can look after Oscar for you.”

“That’s no problem, squirt.” I gave Ruby a clap on the shoulder for at least telling Claude she should come home with me. “You ready, Claude? I’ll call us a cab.”

“I thought Kira was pickin’ you up tonight?”

“I’ll call him and let him know. I just wanna go home, squirt. I’m tired,” I explained. “Plus, I’m sure Oscar won’t mind.”

She grinned and jumped off the table. I thought mentioning the dog would convince her. She grabbed her bag, which she’d obviously been showing Ruby and said goodbye to her brother. I pulled out my cell, called a cab and we walked out. I reminded Ruby about being back here at ten in the morning, and without another word, we left Ruby sitting in my office.

I thought maybe some reflection time might help him realise what he was risking. If I was honest with myself, I wanted him to realise on his own. I wanted his strength of character to shine through. I knew he had it in him. I just had to believe he’d make the right decision.

* * * *

Claude and I just started watching the second animated movie of the night, and ate a very not-nutritious dinner of popcorn and ice cream.

Kira came home to find the three of us, me, Oscar and Claude on the sofa. He was grinning at us, but had questioning eyes, so I followed him into the kitchen.

“What’s going on?” he signed. He didn’t want Claude to hear.

“Ruby was high again,” I signed back.

Kira’s shoulders slumped. “Oh, Matt. I’m sorry,” he whispered.

I told him, in sign language—probably not very well—that I’d been angry and I had yelled at Ruby, but only said stuff that he needed to hear. I told him Claude had been upset all day and while she was happy to see Ruby, I think she could tell something was amiss with him. “I don’t know what he took.”

Kira frowned. “So, a bad day, huh? I guess that explains the choice in dinner?”

I laughed. “Yep. Want me to cook you some popcorn? The second movie hasn’t been on long. It’s about some monsters at a university.”

Kira laughed and kissed me. “No, I’ll pass on the popcorn, thanks, but the movie sounds pretty good.”

I rolled my eyes but went back out and joined Claude and Oscar on the sofa. Kira came in after he’d fixed himself something to eat, and as soon as Claude had fallen asleep, he put her to bed and told Oscar not to leave her room.

Then he took me to our room and shut the door. “Matt, I really want you,” he whispered.

“Then have me,” I told him.

He pushed me onto the bed and kissed me so hard it made my bones turn to sponge. He quickly undressed us both and soon had our cocks in his hand as he lay over me, kissing me, rubbing against me.

And when I was getting close to the edge, he climbed off me, only to take my cock in his mouth while he offered me his.

I sucked him like my life depended on it, and he took me into his throat. We sixty-nined, fucking each other’s faces while devouring each other. I loved the taste of him, the musky smell and the feel of his hard cock in my mouth.

I loved that I turned him on so much, and I loved the way he gripped my hips and swallowed around me. His hips jerked as he tried not to thrust too hard, so I took him as deep as I could and he gave a strangled cry as he came down my throat.

My cock surged with his, and his lips quickly closed around me while he drank every drop I gave him.

I licked him clean, nuzzling my nose into his pubic hair while he licked and sucked me. He hummed and moaned, then righted himself so his face was now near mine. I kissed him, hoping he could still taste himself on my tongue.

With languid kisses, soft touches and sleepy whispers, we fell asleep.

* * * *

After breakfast, when Kira had gone to work, I asked Claude if she could take Oscar out the back. I needed a few minutes to get my head and heart in the right place before I made some phone calls. I had to call social services and arrange a meeting at the FC—I didn’t want to do it here—to hand Claude over.

I watched her in the yard with Oscar, and I felt sick to my stomach. My eyes burned with tears, but I knew I had to do this. For the sake of the little girl, for the sake of Claude, who didn’t stand a chance in this world on her own.

I had my cell phone in my hand, and blinking back tears, I was about to dial when the room went all quiet, the walls slanted left and the floor went right.

Everything went black.

* * * *

I opened my eyes to see two white and purple sparkly shoes in front of my face, and two black and tan dog paws.

It took my brain a minute to catch up. Claude and Oscar.

I was lying on the kitchen floor.

Then the room spun again and it felt like my head was rotating in all different directions and a wave of nausea hit me.

Fuck.

“Matt. You okay?”

“Yeah,” I said, and foolishly tried to get up. I swallowed down the urge to vomit, and couldn’t even lift my head off the floor.

“Matt, you’re bleeding.”

Through the swirling and complete disorientation, there was a dull ache at my temple. I wanted to touch it to see if it was bleeding, but it was pressed against the tiled floor and I couldn’t lift my head.

“Matt,” Claude’s voice squeaked. Her tiny hand shook my shoulder. “You’re scaring me.”

“It’s okay, squirt,” I croaked.

“Did you get dizzy?”

“Yeah.” I exhaled slowly, trying to stem the urge to vomit. This was one of the worst vertigo spells I’d had in a long time.

Claude’s feet disappeared from in front of me, and came back a short time later. “I got a pillow. For your head,” she said. She put her hand under my head and tried to cram a cushion from the sofa under my head. The action made my head spin in the opposite direction and my stomach lurched. I took some short, sharp breaths so I wouldn’t be sick. It wasn’t something a little kid should see.

I closed my eyes, but the spinning got worse and I knew I wasn’t going anywhere for a while. “My phone, Claude. I had it.” I had it in my hand before I fell so it couldn’t be too far away. “It’s here somewhere.”

I felt her fumbling around me and behind me. The phone must have hit the floor when I’d fallen. I just hoped it still worked. She handed me my phone, but when I looked at it, I couldn’t seem to get my eyes to focus. I couldn’t even fucking call.

“Claude. Need you to call Kira, okay?” Even though I was whispering, I knew she’d hear me just fine.

She took the phone back. “Um. I don’t know how.”

“See the green square with a phone in it? Press it.”

“Okay.”

“Down the bottom there’s some pictures. What are they?” I couldn’t remember. I’d never had to actually take notice of what was on the screen.

“A star, and a clock, and a man’s head and—”

“Press the man’s head. It’s got people’s names and numbers. Find K for Kira and press the button that says call. Can you do that for me, squirt?”

“Um,” she mumbled.

I guessed she pressed a number or something, but the voice I heard wasn’t Kira’s. It was Yumi’s. “Hello?”

Claude didn’t say anything for a moment. “Um, Matt’s on the floor. He can’t get up.”

I couldn’t focus on what she was saying anymore. The next thing I knew, Claude put the phone down near my head and sat down in front of me. Oscar licked my face. “You okay, squirt?” I asked. I didn’t want her to be scared or get upset, any more than she probably already was.

“I’m fine, Matt,” she said. “You don’t look so great.”

“I’m okay,” I told her. “The dizziness sometimes makes me want to be sick. I’ll be okay if I just lay here a while.”

Claude touched my face, then my hair, almost the way I remember my mother doing when I’d been a kid. Maybe Claude remembered her mom doing the same, when her life had been a happier place. It was strangely comforting, and it made me feel like shit.

Not five minutes ago I was ready to hand her over to the State, and here she was sitting on my kitchen floor comforting me.

“Matthew!” Yumi yelled from the front door.

I had no doubt that Yumi had driven like a bat out of hell, but what was probably ten minutes seemed to take a life time.

“It’s Yumi,” I said to Claude. “Can you unlock the front door for me?”

She disappeared from my line of sight, and a few seconds later, Yumi was kneeling in front of me. Her cool hands were on my face and she was looking closely at what I presumed was a cut on my head. “Cut’s okay,” she said. “Bad one, huh?”

She was referring to the bout of vertigo. “Yeah.”

“Can you get up?”

“Not yet. Feel sick.”

Then Sal was there, and like a father would pick up a child, he slid his arms underneath me and keeping me as horizontal as possible, he somehow lifted me up and carried me to the sofa.

I somehow put my hand to my mouth, because the nausea was overwhelming—and like Yumi somehow knew, she knelt before me with a bowl.

I couldn’t stop myself from being sick, and while Sal took Claude out into the backyard, Yumi cleaned up my mess and wiped my face with a damp washcloth

Within about half an hour I could sit up, and half an hour after that the nausea was all but gone. I felt foolish for being so helpless and needing Kira’s parents to care for me. Yumi told me not to worry, she said it was a pleasure to look after her boys.

I had to make some phone calls. The first was to the FC. I’d been supposed to meet Ruby an hour ago, but after I’d spoken to Boss and told him what had happened, he said I needn’t worry—Ruby never showed. Not for a meeting with me, not for his training session with Arizona. I told Boss I would be there for the sponsorship meeting later this afternoon, but I couldn’t run my classes.

I called Tamara’s office next and cancelled my appointment with her at lunch time. I was supposed to be there in an hour and there was just no way I could get through that.

I called Mitch next. It went straight to voicemail. “Mitch, it’s me. I need you to do me a favour. Keep an eye out for Ruby…Rueben Vaughn. The kid you met at the club? He’s been gone for over a day. It’s not like him to leave his sister this long. Let me know if you sight him. Thanks.”

My last call was to Kira. I left a message, explaining what had happened and that I was fine and not to worry.

Which didn’t stop him, because he called straight back, worried. I told him again not to worry, but he sighed into the phone. Yumi took my phone and spoke to him. When she handed my phone back to me, she patted my knee. “He be here at three.”

Now I sighed. I hated needing a baby sitter. “I’ll be fine,” I told her.