𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐏𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐀𝐰𝐚𝐲 ║𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐋𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐁𝐨𝐲𝐬

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐋𝐨𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐬, 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝟏

[Summary] You manage to escape the boys' clutches by calling the police, but you quickly learn that you can't trust the law – or the locals.

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"It's okay, Miss," the kind detective reassured as he perched himself in a chair across from you. "We won't judge you. Just tell us what happened."

You sighed as you pulled the blanket the detective had given you around your shoulders, shielding your nude body from his gaze and the harsh chill of the night.

"I've been dating these four guys for the last six months," you began.

"Four?"

"Yes."

"Names?"

"David, Dwayne, Paul, and Marko."

Detective Ross grimaced, his brow furrowing in distress, but he quickly recovered as he jotted the information down on his notepad, his face professional once more. His reaction made your stomach flip. It was apparent he knew something.

"Okay," he muttered, "So what happened? How did it come to this?" He followed up as his eyes softened in concern.

"We met at a concert, and they asked me out on a date," you continued. "We hit it off, began a relationship, and we've been inseparable ever since. But they've changed."

"Changed how?" Detective Ross prodded.

Tears welled in your eyes. "After my accident, they became cruel and possessive almost overnight. I stayed with them during the holidays, and they wouldn't let me come home," you murmured with a sniffle. "They tried to force me to drink alcohol and take pills."

The detective nodded. "So, how did we end up here?" He asked. "How did you convince them to allow you to come home?"

"We came here because of my son, Laddie. He wanted to use his Batman sleeping bag. He left it here a few weeks ago."

"Wait, you and one of the boys have children? I thought you said you've only been dating for six months?"

"I'm like his surrogate mother. The boys and I haven't been dating long, but Laddie and I are close. He calls me Mama, and over the last few months, Dwayne and I have discussed me signing adoption papers for him."

"But nothing has been legally started?"

"No, not yet," you confirmed.

Detective Ross paused, jotting down the information you gave him. You glanced at the other responders in the room, watching them take photos and whisper as they analyzed your home, their eyes occasionally roaming over you.

Your rental was a mess. It looked like a stampede of wild animals made a detour through your home. Between the ominous claw marks that decorated the wall, the splintered wood, and your bedroom door that was torn clean off its hinges, everyone seemed perplexed that you were even alive. That worried you.

"What happened tonight? Before we responded?"

"I tried to be a good mother," you whispered as your mind recalled previous events, lingering on the verbal abuse and psychological torture you endured. "We didn't want to upset Laddie, so we tried to act like a normal family. But when he went to bed–"

You hesitated.

"Did any of them sexually assault you?"

You paused, sighing as you bit your lip. Was it assault? Did David, one of the men you loved, sexually assault you?