“Beau. I’m here for you. I’m standing right here.”
There was no indication Beau heard a single word I said, and I was too scared to get any closer to him. I had to force my feet not to run to him and wrap myself around him, but I knew better. When someone was in the place where Beau was right now, doing something rash would only be dangerous to us both.
When I saw three police cars careening into the parking lot, followed by an ambulance, I breathed out in relief. Just as I turned back to watch Beau and make sure he stayed right where he was, he turned back to look at me once, his eyes dead, before holding out his arms and falling backward over the side of the bridge. It was seconds before I heard the splash, indicating he was in the water.
“NO!” I leaned over the side, my eyes searching for him. I couldn’t see him! My eyes frantically scanned the water, my heart in my throat. My head spun, stars appearing in my vision. No. I couldn’t pass out or freak out. Beau needed me, and I was going to be the one to find him.
Where the hell was he? The water was still . . . too still. “BEAU!”
The police skidded to a stop behind me. “HELP HIM!” I shouted. “He—he . . .” I collapsed to the ground, clutching my chest as my heart painfully contracted. I couldn’t take it. I sobbed and finally wretched, the contents of my stomach spilling out onto the concrete bridge.
The officer spoke into his radio, but I had no idea what he said. Three other officers appeared next to him. They’d now blocked the bridge so no one could come up there while they worked the scene. The scene. Beau had tried to kill himself. Hell, he might’ve succeeded. One of them walked up to me and helped me up. I wiped my mouth and attempted to settle my shaking nerves. “F-find him. H-he jumped. I c-can’t see him anymore.”
“We need divers,” one of them said into his radio. “We have a man who has jumped off the bridge. Suicide attempt.”
Suicide attempt. Suicide attempt. The words reverberated around my head. I couldn’t process what was happening right now. I covered my mouth with my hand, my entire body shaking as my eyes continued to scan the water. Come up, Beau. Come up and show me you’re okay. I need you to be okay.
“She’s in shock.” A paramedic appeared. “Come on, honey. Let’s sit you in the rig while they get the divers out there. Let’s give her a moment. It isn’t every day you see someone jump off a bridge right in front of you.”
A large blanket come across my shoulders, and then they led me away from the bridge. More police lined the park, and I saw one step up to the pier directly below the bridge, suited up with a dive suit.
I began sobbing again. “B-beau.” I turned to the officers. “You have to find him!”
The paramedic opened the back door of the ambulance, and I sat, my eyes trained ahead as I watched the team on the ground try to find a sign of Beau in the murky water.
“Miss? Can you help us? The more information we know, the more we can help. You said his name was Beau? Was he suicidal?”
Was Beau suicidal? An hour ago I would’ve said no. But now? I had no idea. What had I missed? We’d had such a great day with Robbie. Then Robbie had asked him to come to his room.
I picked up my phone. I needed to call Trent. He had to ask Robbie what happened. I knew the boy was only nine years old, but he was my only clue. “I-I don’t know, but I have an idea. Just a second.”
The officer’s radio crackled, and he turned to the team still standing on the pier. “We think we’ve spotted him. Mills and Gilman are heading down there now.”
Trent picked up after less than a ring. “What the hell happened, April?”
“Beau jumped from the bridge.” I didn’t recognize my own voice. “I need Robbie.” My voice cracked. “I need him to get on the phone and talk to me, Trent. It’s the only way I can figure out what happened.”
“Just a second.” I could hear him moving through the house. “Robbie? April is on the phone. Can you talk to her for a minute?” There was silence for too long, and then a sigh from Trent. “He won’t take the phone, April. He’s huddled on his bed and hasn’t moved since Beau ran out of here.”
I squeezed my eyes shut. I couldn’t leave here to talk to Robbie. Hell, he probably wouldn’t even speak to me. The only reason he’d talked to me before was because of Beau. I had to wait for them to get Beau out of that water.
“Okay.” A sob ripped through my chest. “Can you call my office and tell them I won’t be back today? Don’t tell them . . .” I broke off, unable to continue.