"Let go of me!" Ricky screamed and renewed his efforts to escape.
After kicking Lawrence in the shins again, he abruptly went limp and dropped toward the ground in a boneless heap. The sudden change threw his stepfather off balance, giving Jack the opportunity he needed.
Before the other man could stage any kind of defense, Jack was all over him. After jerking Lawrence away from Ricky, Jack shoved him face-first up against the back of the building. He yanked Lawrence's arm up behind his back hard enough to hurt but just short of doing any real damage.
The big man twisted and jerked like a fish fighting to get free of a fisherman's line, a steady stream of threats and curses pouring out of his mouth the whole time.
Jack ignored the tirade. "Kid, can you get up? Is anything broken?"
Ricky staggered to his feet. He winced as he rubbed the side of his face. "I don't think so."
"Good. Head down the alley toward those cops headed this way. Tell them I have Lawrence under control. Tino will be close by, too. Stay with him."
As soon as the boy was out of the way and out of hearing, Jack leaned in close to Lawrence's ear. "No matter how this plays out today, Lawrence, if you come near that kid again, you will live to regret it."
Maybe Lawrence hadn't heard the police walking toward them, but then bullies never learn when to shut up. "I don't know who the hell you think you are, but I'm going to press charges against you for assault. Then I'm going to swear to the cops that Ricky put you up to it. With luck, he'll end up in a cage where an animal like him belongs. If he doesn't, I'll make sure he stays away from my wife permanently."
"Mr. McShane, we'll take it from here. Please step away from him."
Jack glanced back over his shoulder and was relieved to see Detectives Daily and St. John among the officers who had responded to Tino's call. Before releasing his hold on Lawrence, he wanted them to know exactly who the man was and what he'd done.
"Detective Daily, this asshole is evidently Ricky's stepfather, Lawrence. He admitted in front of me that he's the one who broke Ricky's arm and put him in the hospital. Ricky went to visit his mother this morning, and she sicced Lawrence on the kid again."
Then he held up his hands and stepped back. "I know you'll want to take my statement, but I need to check on Ricky. I promise I won't go anywhere until you say it's okay."
St. John glanced at his partner before nodding. "See that you don't."
Jack started down the alley, still wound up tight from the overdose of adrenaline because of the fight.
"McShane, wait up."
He turned back to wait for Daily to catch up with him. It was hard to stand there when every instinct he had was driving him to find Ricky and make sure the kid was safe.
"Ricky is waiting down the street with your brother, who already filled us in on what happened today. I wanted to let you know that we called for the aid car so the EMTs can check Ricky out. He'll need to be seen in the emergency room, too. We'll want any injuries well documented in case any of this ends up going to court."
Jack nodded. "I'll make sure Ricky understands why we need to do this right. After he's seen, we'll take him home. That's where he'll be if you need to talk to any of us later."
Daily drew a deep breath. "For what it's worth, we all heard that guy threaten to make sure Ricky stayed away from his wife permanently. We'll be taking him in and pressing charges for assault and anything else we can think of to keep him behind bars. We'll also want the mother's name and address, because we'll want to have a long talk with her, too."
"I'll make sure Ricky gives it to you."
Jack wasn't sure he wanted the information himself, not when he needed a convenient target for his temper and couldn't trust himself to remember that he didn't hit women. Not even one who deserved it. He stopped and placed both hands on the wall while he fought to regain control over his emotions. Eventually, he'd have to vent somehow, but for now he had to hide his anger not just from the cops but from Ricky as well. The kid didn't need to know how close Jack had just come to snapping his stepfather's neck. The world would be a helluva lot better off with one less brute like Lawrence in it.
He finally reached the end of the block and saw that the aid car had arrived. Tino was standing by as the EMTs from the fire department checked Ricky over for injuries. At least they'd already given him an ice pack for his face. Maybe that would keep the swelling down. He hoped so.
As soon as the teenager spotted Jack, he stood up and shook off the blanket they'd put around his shoulders. Jack hurried toward the boy and enfolded him in his arms, taking care not to jar him unnecessarily. Ricky buried his face against Jack's chest, his narrow shoulders shaking from the aftereffects of the brutal encounter.
"I'm sorry, Jack. I should've told you everything."
His voice was muffled, but there was no mistaking the fact he was crying. "Yeah, you should have, but I get why you didn't. No one wants to admit that their family is crap. I've been there myself."
Jack had no experience in comforting distraught teenagers, but sometimes simple human touch could work miracles. A few seconds later, Tino joined them and put one hand on Jack's shoulder and the other on Ricky's. At least the cops and the EMTs allowed them a few minutes of privacy to pull themselves together.
Finally, it was Ricky who stepped back. "They want to take me to the hospital to get checked out. I told them my jaw is bruised, not broken, but the cops said I have to go."
"I know." Jack slung his arm around Ricky's shoulders again. "And just so you know, they'll probably want to take pictures, too. Detective Daily said they want to document everything that happened as carefully as they can. They plan to charge Lawrence with assault, and they want all the evidence they can pull together in case it goes to trial."
Ricky hiccupped, probably a leftover from his crying. "Will I have to testify?"
There was no use in lying about it. "Yeah, you might have to, but we'll be right there with you every step of the way. I know it will be hard for you, but we all want to make sure the bastard never gets his hands on you again."
"And my mother? What will happen to her?"
When Jack didn't immediately answer, Ricky frowned and looked at Tino and then back at Jack. What could they say?
"All I know for sure is the cops are going to want to talk to her about what's been going on. For starters, they'll want to know why she didn't report you missing. You know, stuff like that."
In that moment, Ricky might have still looked like a fourteen-year-old at first glance, but those eyes staring back at Jack were much older. "She and my dad did okay. But after he died, she could barely take care of herself. There was no way she could take care of me, too. I don't blame her for choosing Lawrence over me. At least she didn't have to worry about where her next meal would come from."
Tino finally joined the discussion. "Screw that, Ricky. You should blame her. She's your mother, for God's sake."
Jack waved him off. "Not now, Tino. We can talk about all of that later. Let's see what the cops want from us right now and then get you to the hospital."
His brother held out his hand. "Give me the keys to your SUV, and I'll go get it."
At least one of them was thinking ahead. "Earlier I left word for Caitlyn to call me, but would you let Mom know what's going on? Tell her Ricky and I will be at the hospital."
"Sure thing. And, kid, she'll be really glad we found you. She was worried."
Jack tossed him the keys. "I parked on the street facing the front of the station. On your way, can you pick up the kid's backpack and that plastic bag of clothes, too? They were lying in some bushes beside the building."
"You betcha." Tino smiled at Ricky. "See you both soon. Mom and I will come to the hospital, too, if you need us."
Thank goodness his brother had been there to help out. The last thing Jack wanted right then was to leave Ricky's side even for the short length of time it would take him to retrieve his car. "You hanging in there all right?"
He noticed Ricky was still shivering and led him back over to where the EMTs were standing. He picked up the blanket and wrapped it back around the boy's shoulders. "Keep that on. It's not cold out today, but sometimes chills are a side effect of facing off against the enemy."