Glen

Chapter 8

Walter Cody Jr. was a smart, happy boy. He loved to play pretend, tell wild stories. He was talented, artistically, from a very young age. He was my...everything.

We taught him about stranger danger, early on, making sure he understood who to talk to and when. I guess none of that matters if the person who hurts him is not a stranger, does it? Walt loved everyone and everything. He was tender-hearted and affectionate. I was sure he would change the world!

My sister married Trent when Walt was just two years old. Walt worshipped the ground he walked on! Trent was his best friend and confidante. No matter how sad or angry Walt was, Trent could always make him smile. That's what made it so shocking! How could someone who seemed to love my boy so much hurt him like that?

Two weeks after Summer vacation started, Trent asked me if he could come take Walt out for the day. I agreed, not thinking anything of it. He told me he had planned to take Walt swimming and out for pizza, ice cream, and maybe a movie. I packed up everything Walt would need and sent them on their way.

The day went by so quickly. I used the quiet time to update some of my patients' files and to do odd jobs around the house. When I finally sat down, I dozed off on the couch. When my wife came home from work, it was 9:00 at night.

"Where's Walt?" She asked.

"Trent took him for the day, but they should have been back, by now!"

A second later, the phone rang. I could hear my heart in my ears. Were they hurt? Was Walt calling to ask if he could sleepover? I had hoped it was the latter.

When I answered the phone, I died inside. My sister was in tears, I could hardly understand her. She had finally heard from Trent, and the news was the worst that it could possibly be. He had been at the police station. Walt had gone missing.

"Why didn't he call me?!"

"He said that he wasn't allowed to," she sobbed.

A lie. "Where is he, now?"

"He's on his way home. Why?"

Good. I wanted to be there to meet him. I needed to know what happened and where he'd really been. I could hardly breathe.

The drive over to my sister's house was the longest drive of my life. It was only three blocks, but it might as well have been 3,000 miles. When I arrived, Trent was climbing out of his car. He looked a little dazed.

I didn't even turn my car off when I pulled in. I just put it in park and jumped out. I grabbed Trent by his collar and slammed him against his car.

"Where were you?! Where is Walt?!"

"I just turned around for a second. It was just for a second, Walter."

"Why did you tell me the cops wouldn't let you call me? I'm his father! They would have called me! Did you do something?"

"Walter! Stop," my sister cried. "What are you saying?"

"I'm saying he lied about the cops! I'm saying I want to know where my boy is!"

"Trent, was...was what you told me a lie?"

Whether he answered her or not, I'm not sure. The world around me grew dark and desolate. When I came to, I had been moved to my sister's couch. My wife sat nearby, but she didn't look at me or speak to me. I could already feel her blame. That's usually how it goes, isn't it? It's never the bad guy's fault. It's always the fault of the person who made a mistake. I didn't need her blaming me. I was doing plenty of blaming without her help. We set up search parties and put up fliers. People all over the county were trying to help us find my boy. The more time passed, the quieter and angrier my wife and I got. We lashed out at each other, said hateful things we would have and should have never said. All the while, Trent went on as if nothing happened. My sister claimed he was trying to keep the morale high, but I knew better, and he knew I knew better.