After suffering the consequences of a physical beating from her father, with a belt, Beth Culbertson decides she will not take any more abuse and runs away, but the father has a different story to tell.






Ethan checked his phone, “Come on, Ty, you can’t still be mad at me, can you?” Since they’d shared punches and Tyson stormed out, Ethan had not been able to reach his friend. It didn’t make sense; something was wrong.

Ethan opened his front door to leave, almost slamming into a man in a suit. 

He flashed his badge.

“Detective Ric Santiago. Are you Ethan Willmington?”

“Yes, sir. What can I do for you?”  

“Could I step in for a minute?”

“Actually, I have an appointment in forty-five minutes. Is this necessary?”

“Yes, sir, I believe it is. Do you know Tyson Jamison?”

“Ty? Of course, I do. What’s this about, Detective? Is Ty okay?”

“I’m afraid not. Ty was in an automobile accident last night and is unconscious in the ICU at Mercy Hospital.” Ric felt sorry for the young man. "May I come in, and we can sit down and talk?"
 

“We verified with his license and a card he carried with your name and address.”

“Where did this happen? Whose car was it? Is he going to be alright?” Ethan was filled with questions.

“Ethan, the car your friend was driving was a stolen Suburban. We found boxes of oxycontin.”

“No, No, No… impossible. Not Tyson. There must be some mistake.” 

“We believe the Oxycontin was from a hijacked truck. There are three bodies in the morgue.”

Ethan jumped from his chair and started pacing back and forth, running his fingers through his hair. “Bodies? You’re crazy.” 

“How long have you known him?” Ric watched Ethan’s reactions to each question.

“We grew up together. Ty’s been part of my life forever.” Ethan slumped into the recliner and buried his face in his hands. “Something’s not right. It can’t be Tyson.”

“Why don’t we go down to headquarters and see if we can work through some of this.”

“No, I have to see him. We fought over something stupid. He took off, and I tried calling him. Oh, my God, if this is my fault.”

“Ethan, it was a hijacking and a car crash; unless there’s something you aren’t telling me, it can’t be your fault. I’m told he was pretty hammered.”

“Tyson wouldn’t do this. I know it.” 

“I understand he’s your friend, but the evidence speaks for itself.”

“No, something’s not right. I’ll get a private investigator and the best lawyer in town. My friend isn’t going down for something he didn’t do.” Ethan’s anger was building, and he moved closer to Ric. “I know how you guys are. Want a quick solution so you’ll railroad, my friend.”

“Ethan, calm down. I’m not that kind of guy.” Ric took a step away, allowing Ethan time to breathe. “Matter of fact, I know a top-notch private investigator if you really want one.”

“Want one. Give me his name and number; I’ll call him right now.”

“I’m meeting him in a few. You can come with me if you’d like, but I thought you had an appointment.”

“Oh, gosh, I forgot. I’m meeting Rachel.”

“Can I drop you somewhere? After all, it’s my fault you’re late.” Ric smiled. “Where do you have to go?”

“DCFS … Roberta Atwell. I’m pretty sure that’s her name.”

“Bert? She’s a great friend of mine. Tell her you’re late because of me, okay?” Ric walked to the door. “We still need to talk later, but you can see Bert first. I don’t want her chewing me out for keeping her appointments from showing up.” They both laughed and walked out the door. 

***********

“Come in, Rachel. Have a seat.” Bert smiled at the young girl. She remembered how nervous she’d been with Beth at the house.

Rachel stood in the doorway, looking at Bert and then down the hallway. She’d expected Ethan to take the lead, and now he wasn’t here. She wanted to turn around and leave.

“Is something wrong, Rachel?” Bert spoke softly, hoping to calm her nerves.

“My friend was going to meet me here, but I don’t see him. I guess he changed his mind.”

“Maybe he’s just running late. Come on in and sit down.” She was curious what the two had to offer and whether they’d seen Beth. “Can I get you something to drink?”

Rachel shook her head. She folded her hands in her lap, fidgeting with a stray thread on her skirt. She glanced down the hallway, hoping to see Ethan, but no one was there.

Bert decided to break the ice herself. “Rachel, have you seen Beth?”

Startled, Rachel shook her head vigorously. “No, no, I haven’t seen her.” She couldn’t lift her eyes to look at Bert. She felt so ashamed of how she’d treated her friend. Beth needed her, and she’d turned her back on her. Bert picked up on the escalation of fear.

“It’s okay if you have seen her, you know. Beth needs friends to help her.” Bert waited to see if she’d get a response. When Rachel continued to rub her hands together, she pressed a little harder. “I want to help Beth, but I can’t do it alone. I thought since you were best friends, she might have contacted you.”

Rachel shook her head. She decided Ethan wasn’t coming, and she couldn’t do this alone. “I can’t - Ethan’s not here. Is it okay if we make another appointment?” She stood and moved toward the door.

“Rachel, don’t you want to help Beth?” Bert wasn’t sure what was going on in the young girl’s head, but she knew it wasn’t something good. “I think Beth would do that for you.”

Rachel’s lip quivered. She raised her head and looked at Bert before bursting into tears.

“She would! But now she hates me.”

“Why would Beth hate you? I’m sure you're mistaken.” Bert needed answers, but Rachel wasn’t too forthcoming.

“If your best friend refused to help you and she accused you of doing all the things everyone is saying, wouldn’t you hate her?” Rachel tried to choke back the tears.

“Did you do that, Rachel?”

“Yes, and I’m sorry. I was afraid. My parents said it was true, and they refused to let me see or talk to Beth again.”

“Did you talk to her?”

“Yes, she needed my help, and I told her no. I left clothes for her in the park, but I said I couldn’t do anything else. Later, I felt terrible, and I called her back, but it was too late.”

“How did you call her back? Did you know where she was?”

“She used someone’s phone, and when I called back, Ethan answered.”

An alarm went off in Bert’s head. “Who’s Ethan?”

“He’s supposed to be here. 

A knock on the door startled Rachel, and she jumped. The door opened, and Ethan stuck his head inside. “Sorry, I heard Rachel’s voice. I’m Ethan. I’m sorry I’m late but your friend, Ric, showed up at my door this morning. He said to tell you it’s his fault.”

Bert chuckled. “Would you like to join us? Come in.” She moved around the desk and closed the door before introducing herself to Ethan, “I’m Roberta Atwell. My friends call me Bert.”

Ethan looked at Rachel. Tears streaked her face, and she was trembling. “You okay? Did you tell her?”

Rachel shook her head vigorously. “Only the part where I didn’t help Beth. Some friend I turned out to be.” She started to cry again, and Bert handed her a box of kleenex.

“We’re going to find her, Rach. You’ll be able to tell her that you’re sorry, but first, we need Ms. Atwell -”

“Bert - you can both call me Bert.” She smiled at the two young people. “Now Ethan, how did you come to know Beth, and have you seen her?”

“My friend, Tyson -” Ethan choked, remembering his best friend was fighting for his life. An alarm went off in Bert’s head again. “We were shooting hoops, and the ball got away from us. She was hiding beneath the bushes, and it scared her. Ty thought she was trouble, and he wanted us to leave, but I couldn’t. She was hurt real bad.”

“Hurt?” Several alarms were ringing in Bert’s head. How did Beth get hurt?

“Yeah, someone messed her up. It looked like a belt, but I didn’t know for sure. She was too weak to walk or talk. I live across from the park, so I carried her to my house, cleaned the wounds, and let her sleep in my guest room.”

“And?” Bert pressed for details. She needed to know everything if they were going to find Beth first.

“In the morning, I went to the press conference. I wanted to hurt that man in the wheelchair, saying all the stuff about Beth. I didn’t even know her, but she couldn’t have done it. Someone beat her instead.”

"After the press conference, I went to class. I guess that’s when Beth called Rachel. In the meantime, Ty dropped Jesse off at my house while he went to class.”

“Who’s this Jesse guy? A friend of yours?” 

“No way! He’s a real jerk.” Ethan stopped talking, looking at Rachel for a moment. He nibbled on his lip. He wondered how much he should say.

“Go ahead, Ethan. She needs to know.” Rachel appeared calmer now that Ethan was there. 

“What is it, Ethan?”

“When Ty and I got back, Beth was gone, and Jesse too. I found blood on the sheets. I’m thinking… well, I don’t know, but he might have raped her.”

Bert closed her eyes, trying to compose herself. First, Beth is beaten and then raped. No wonder she was hiding from everyone. She needed to find Beth and do it fast.

“Is there anything else?”

They both shook their heads. 

“Okay, but neither of you has seen or heard from her since, is that correct?”

 Ethan and Rachel shook their heads. 

“You both did the right thing, coming to me. I’ll contact Ric at RPD and get him working on a few things. We’re going to find her. It’s going to be okay.”

Bert wasn’t so sure, but she knew the two young people sitting across from her desk didn’t need to hear that. The streets weren’t kind to the weak, and right now, Beth had to be at her lowest point ever.