Rick waited until Lesley was settled into her treatment appointment before checking in with Bert about the problem with Jesslyn and the harassment where it later resulted with Jesslyn nearly losing her life.
“ Bert, I want something done now about it. These kids cannot be allowed to just go around threatening other kids.”
“ Rick, do you see what I have here on my desk… I have until this afternoon before the D.A is on my tail and breathing down my throat to get them together.”
“ Bert this is my daughter's life that I'm talking about. I will not stand for someone, not even another child going around telling my daughter at 9 years old to either kill herself or that other child will and that child would be able to get away with it.” Rick argued back
“ I have enough to worry about with Lesley's health and her medical situation and I don't want her to have to worry about this and rather or not she'll go home and later find our daughter hanging in a closet or from something high enough.”
Leaving the PCPD to get back over to the hospital, Rick decided to stop and pick up the kids early so that they could be with him when going to pick up Lesley
“ Hi Momma… Daddy came to pick us up..” Jesslyn hugged Lesley but remembered she had to be careful
“ I can see that… you and Genesis buckle up okay me and Daddy are gonna be right here for a couple of minutes.” Lesley turned around after closing the car door
“ Rick what is it… I know that look and I know when there's something that you're worrying about..”
“ Lesley it's nothing that I want you to focus on, I've got things mostly taken care of already...” Rick insisted but Lesley knew better especially as she didn't pretend to point out that he pulled the girls out of school early
“ Ah huh… Rick you picked up the girls earlier than usual today and you don't normally do that… Rick just please tell me what's going on. I can take it, I'm a big girl.”
“ Ramsey isn't handling the situation right now with the school and the situation with the other kids that have been messing with the girls so for today I pulled them out we're hoping to just spend the rest of the day at the house with you.”
Seeing that Lesley was just standing there trying to process what she just heard, Rick was hoping that she wasn't about to get upset. “ What do you mean Bert isn't looking into the problem that has to do with the school and our daughter… She nearly killed herself Rick; it isn't like she fell off her bed a few years ago and had to have minor stitches… She went and took prescription medication that I have to be on.”
“ Lesley I know all of that and that's why I went and picked the girls up and tomorrow morning you and I will go to the school and deal with it...”
“ It scares me Rick… It scares me that I'm gonna have to lose and bury another child and I don't know that I can live through that again.”
Rick lifted Lesley's chin when she looked down. “ Lesley nothing is gonna happen to Jesslyn I will see to it that nobody is gonna hurt her or any of us in our family again. That I will promise you… come on bug let's get you home so you can take the rest of today to relax.”
Later in the evening after finally getting Riley to go down for the night, Rick was finally able to spend the rest of the time with Lesley in spite of her situation and the fact with her not feeling all that well from having to go back and forth with chemo and her appointments. “ Without her I don’t know how I’d survive” Rick thought to himself
“ I think I could say the same thing about you Rick, I would be quite lost if I had to go through all of this alone and then try to manage to be able to spend time with the kids.” Lesley reached out to touch Rick on his arm
