Snared(63)

“And he got upset?”

Robbie’s lip wobbled. “I-I thought he liked talking to me. He seemed like he was like me. B-but I made him upset. I don’t know what I did. I’m a bad boy. No one will ever love me.”

I glanced at the picture, wondering what about it might’ve bothered Beau. Was it the image of Robbie with his mother? Did that remind Beau of all of the hateful things his mother had said to him? That didn’t seem to be enough to send him into a tailspin.

“Robbie, Beau just got sick. You didn’t do anything wrong, but we need to try to help him feel better. Would you mind showing that picture to Natalie? She’s Beau’s sister and could maybe help figure it out.”

“He told me how to focus on something to stop being upset, but I made him upset. I didn’t mean to, April.”

“It’s not your fault, sweetie.”

Robbie handed me the photo, and I handed it to Natalie. She ran her finger along the worn edges and the faded center. “Who is this?”

“Me and my m-mom.” As he spoke, tears steadily dripped down Robbie’s cheeks. I wanted to take him into my arms, but I wasn’t sure how he would react to that.

“What’s your mom’s name?” Natalie knew his mom had passed away, which was why he was now here.

“Robyn,” he whispered. Natalie’s head snapped up, her eyes wide as her gaze vacillated between Robbie and the picture. Her eyes narrowed as she studied the faded image.

“And your dad?”

The child shook his head. “I don’t know. My mom said we were coming here to find him, but she never told me his name.”

“You aren’t from here?” Natalie was on to something; I could tell.

“We lived in Miami mostly.”

“So your mom, Robyn, said you were coming here to find your dad.” Robbie nodded.

I wanted to ask what was happening, but I was afraid. Bex didn’t seem to know, either, so we had to wait for Natalie to enlighten us.

“And she never told you anything about him?”

His lip wobbled again. “N-no. She’d never talk about him. Right before we came here, she told me I was going to meet him. Sh-she died before I could find out who he is. Now I’m stuck with a dad out there somewhere that doesn’t know I’m alive.”

Natalie blew out a breath and stood, pacing in front of the small bed. “Beau saw this picture?”

“I showed him,” Robbie said. “It made him upset.”

Natalie’s eyes turned back to me. She nodded, handing the photo back to Robbie. “Thank you for letting me see your picture, Robbie.”

The boy took the picture from her. “What did I do?”

“You didn’t do anything.” I reached out and touched his arm. He didn’t pull back, so I put my arm around his shoulders. “Beau doesn’t feel good right now, but we’re all going to make him feel better.”

“He scared me.” Robbie broke his gaze from mine. “I liked him.”

“Don’t be scared,” I said. “You know how sometimes people get upset and just have to take a break?”

Robbie nodded his head. “I told Beau I get upset and can’t control what I do. He told me to try to focus on something else when I get like that. But then it happened to him, and I didn’t know what to tell him to focus on to feel better.”

Bex gasped and turned to Natalie. She nodded once, and I wanted to scream. What did they know that I didn’t? What the hell happened?

“Can I visit you tomorrow?” Natalie asked. “While Beau is sick, I’d like to spend time with you.”

Robbie shrugged. “I don’t know if he’ll want to see me again.”

Natalie covered her mouth for a moment. I saw her throat working and her eyes filled with tears. “Yes, he will, Robbie. We all will. Is that okay with you?”

“Yes.” He grabbed his dog again and squeezed it.

“Don’t worry, okay? You didn’t do anything wrong. Hey—do you like to draw?” I asked.

“I love to draw.”

“I’m going to have Trent give you some paper and crayons. Will you make get well cards for Beau? I know it’ll make him feel much better.”

Natalie had her head turned, tears streaming down her face. Bex typed furiously on her phone; I assumed to Johnny in the other room. They knew whatever it was, and I needed to know. Right. Now.

“Sure, April.”

“We will see you tomorrow.” Natalie ruffled Robbie’s hair. “Hey—is your first name Robbie or is that a nickname?”

“My name is Robbie. Robbie Oliver Jensen.”

A small noise came from Natalie again, but she masked it with a cough. “That’s a great name. Thanks for talking to us. You’ve helped a lot.”