“Esther, are you well? Would you like a drink of water?” Ash sat at her side, worry gnawing away at his stomach. Nothing could happen to her. Nothing.
“I’m fine, Asher. Really. Why is everyone hovering around me?” Her lips thinned as her eyes narrowed with irritation. “I’m sure it was some neighborhood kids. They do these things all the time. What they need is strong family guidance and a place where they can play or read.”
Her naïveté was sweet, but Ash knew better. For some reason, Drew was being targeted. If it was only the brick, maybe it wouldn’t have raised his warning flag, but the fact that there was a note scared him. They’d already had one close call with Esther.
“I’m sure you’re right.” He stood and kissed her cheek, and he and Rachel exchanged knowing looks. With a brief nod, he threaded his way around the groups of people standing about. The two police officers were taking statements from everyone and were in the process of interviewing Drew, so he joined Peter and his wife, Lisa, as they waited their turn.
“Hi, you two.” He kissed Lisa’s cheek. “Sorry for the extra entertainment this evening.”
“Oh, Ash, what’s happening? I heard that the note mentioned the clinic. Are you in any kind of danger?” Her green eyes clouded with worry, and she gripped his arm.
Even after all these years, he couldn’t stand being touched, even if he knew the person as well as Lisa. He stiffened and gently shook her off, hoping he didn’t offend her. “I don’t really know, but yes, it’s meant as some sort of intimidation against the clinic.” The worry wasn’t for himself. He didn’t spend as much time at the clinic as Drew or Rachel did, or the kids who volunteered, making them easy targets for this kind of hate crime. The thought of something happening to Drew kicked his adrenaline into high gear. Spots danced before his eyes, his vision grayed, and a roaring sounded in his ears.
“Ash, Ash, are you all right? Here, sit down.” Peter took him by the shoulder. The touch wasn’t right. It wasn’t Drew. Oh God, if anything happened to Drew, he knew he couldn’t survive the loss. “No,” he rasped out. “I need to find Drew. I need to tell him something.”
An earnest-looking young police officer was still interviewing Drew, so Ash could only watch him from afar as the thoughts tumbled around in his head. When had this man become so important to him, and why? Mr. Frank, as usual, had been right all along. Somewhere along the way, the need for human touch, to feel warmth had returned to his soul.
“Ash? What’s going on?” Stevie’s voice pierced through his internal musings.
“What are you guys doing here?” Ash saw not only Stevie, but also Javier hovering by his side, a fierce, protective expression on his face. “Are you two dating?” His lips tugged up in a smile.
Javier scowled. “Don’t make fun, man. It’s all right. We’re having a good time together, right?” Javier took Stevie’s hand, and Stevie blushed a bright red.
Stevie’d had a crush on the older boy for several months now, so it made Ash happy that they’d gotten together. Stevie needed a strong male protector to teach him how to stand up for himself.
“But what’s going on? We were biking by and saw the cop cars.” Stevie surveyed the room. “Did anyone get hurt? Is Dr. Drew okay?”
Ash patted him on the back, happy to notice that Stevie didn’t seem as bony as he had a few months ago. “Everyone’s fine. It’s a brick thrown through the window with a threatening note attached. You remember Keith, right? He called the police to come down.”
Instead of looking scared, Stevie looked thoughtful. “Is Dr. Drew gonna have to close down the clinic?”
“Why would you ask that?” It was a strange question coming from Stevie, especially since the note had mentioned that very thing. “Have you heard something, maybe out on the streets?”
All at once, Stevie’s nerves seemed to get the better of him. “No, I don’t know nothing.”
Ash steered him over to the sofa and sat next to him. “Don’t be afraid of anything. If you’ve heard something, anything, let me know. You should talk to Keith again.”
“Now?” Stevie gulped, his wide eyes darting to where Keith stood, talking to one of the officers.
“Don’t worry,” Ash soothed. “I’ll be right here while you talk to him.”
“O-okay,” Stevie stuttered.
Ash motioned over Keith, and Drew followed from behind.
“Keith, remember Stevie?” Ash took the boy by the shoulders. “He said he may have heard something on the street about the clinic.”
“Sure I do. Hi, Stevie.” Keith smiled, and Ash caught Stevie’s eye and nodded.
“Don’t be afraid. You’ve spoken before, and nothing bad happened to you. Tell Keith what you know.”
Javier moved in next to Stevie and held his hand. “Go on, tell ’em everything you heard.”
Stevie took a deep breath. “Um, well, you know the two guys who always give me trouble, right?”
Ash was only too well acquainted with those punks. “Yes.”
“I heard them talking about how they didn’t like having so many queers in the neighborhood now. That Dr. Drew should leave before something bad happens.”
Ash’s chest tightened as Keith spoke. “Did they talk about hurting anyone or doing something to the clinic?”
“No.” Stevie tucked his hair behind his ear. “But they keep telling me that Dr. Drew ain’t gonna be around much longer; then I won’t have any friends.”
Javier put his arm around Stevie’s thin shoulders. “Don’t you worry. I’m here, and Dr. Drew and Dr. Jordan ain’t closing down the clinic, right?”
Ash’s nod was emphatic. “Absolutely not. Don’t you worry, Stevie. Go get something to eat, then go home, all right?”
“Okay, if you say so.” Stevie let himself be led away by Javier but kept shooting troubled looks over his shoulder.
“What do you think?” Ash turned back to Keith, who put a finger up in a “just wait” gesture as he finished jotting down notes.
“I think,” Keith said grimly, “the time has come for me to pay these boys a little visit and make them see the errors of their ways.”
“I’ll come with you.” Ash jumped up from the sofa, anxious to get going and confront the bastards who had not only terrorized Stevie, but also may have hurt the people he loved.
Keith walked toward the front door with the police officers, and Rachel cleaned up the glass from the floor. Most of the guests had left after making their statements to the police, and only Drew and his friends remained, along with Esther and Rachel. Ash joined them, coming in on the tail end of an argument between Esther and Drew.
“Nana, look. I have to go. I’m sure it’s those two punks who are always harassing that boy Stevie who threw the brick. If they’re the ones who hurt you and are also planning something against the clinic, I need to know.”
“Let the police do their job. You could get hurt.” Her eyes bored holes into Ash. “Tell him, Asher. Tell him not to go.”
He opened his mouth, only to be cut off by Drew. “Not you too. Are you going to try and tell me what to do?”
Ash had never seen Drew so upset. “Wait, let me talk.”
“No, Ash. You’re as bad as they are, trying to tell me what to do. I won’t let them destroy what I worked so hard for. They’re only a couple of punks. I can handle them. It’s my clinic and I need to confront them and show them they can’t run me out, despite their threats.”
Without waiting for anyone to speak, Drew ran out of the apartment, and within minutes, Ash heard a car engine revving up, tires squealing down the street. “Damn it. I’m going after him.” He remembered he didn’t have his car. “I need a ride, please,” he heard himself begging, and didn’t care. Drew had run off, spoiling for a fight, and as hopped up and angry as he might be, Ash knew he wasn’t capable of handling a physical altercation with two teenage punks.
Keith waited by the front door. He was on his phone, calling his partner, Jerry Allen, to let him know what was happening and to meet them at Stevie’s apartment building. Jordan yelled out. “Come on, let’s go.”
Ash bent down and kissed Esther’s cheek. “Don’t worry. I’ll make sure he comes home safe and sound.”
She held him close. “Please. You children are all I have.”
He hugged her, then broke away and ran after Keith and Jordan.