Ben

Chapter Twenty-four

Chapter 24

Faith

Faith swallowed the lump forming in her throat and slowly sank down onto the stairs, her legs suddenly weak.

"I'm so sorry Faith; there was no gentle way to tell you," her father said, touching her shoulder gently. "I don't think there is anything we can do about this."

"How are we going to tell Ben?" Faith whispered, tears forming in her eyes. She couldn't imagine what his reaction would be when he found out the disturbing news.

"Do you want me to do it?" her dad asked as his eyes displayed his own pain.

"No," Faith replied quickly. "He... I really think I should do it, but I don't know what to say." Her voice caught in her throat, and she swallowed again, hoping the clear it. "Should I just tell him straight out, or...? I don't know what to do, dad." She put her face in her hands and drew in a shuddering breath.

"Shh, honey, he'll be alright," her dad soothed as he rubbed her back. "You'll just have to tell him exactly what I said. No witnesses meant that Jacob and Janice had to be released."

Faith sucked in a deep breath and nodded. "That is the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard!" she hissed. "They tortured him, dad! And they're just going to walk free? You know they're going to come looking for him. Why didn't anyone contact us about testifying? What if they find us?"

Her dad held up his hand, signaling her to be quiet. "They won't. There is absolutely no way they can find Ben. We covered our tracks completely when we left the UK, so they will never lay a hand on him again, Faith; I promise."

"But what do I tell Ben? That the people who abused him for sixteen years are walking around the streets of London?" She sighed angrily and touched her forehead to her fist. "Dad, he's never going to sleep again if I tell him. He has nightmares about them finding him as it is."

"He has a right to know, babe."

"To know what?" a new voice asked from behind them.

Faith spun around to see Ben at the top of the stairs, an uncertain grin on his lips. Her heart began to pound, and she couldn't find her words for a moment.

Ben's smile faltered for a split second. "What's wrong, Faith?" he asked.

"Ben, I need to talk to you about something," Faith said breathlessly, making it sound like she'd just gotten back from a run. "Can we talk in your room?"

"Sure," he replied, his eyes troubled but still a smile on his face. She followed him back up the stairs and shut the door to his room after they were both inside. "So what's up?"

She didn't answer right away, trying to choose her words carefully. How could she possibly tell him that his kidnappers were free?

Ben stood across the room from her, waiting for her to speak.

"Um, Ben, why don't you sit down?" she finally said, motioning to the bed. She took her own advice and waited for him to follow.

He did as she said and continued waiting, his eyes never leaving her face. She was proud of how far he had come in just the past two months; he could finally look her in the eye without flinching. This news could wreck all of his progress.

"Ben, something's happened. So, you know how we left London right after we ran away?" He nodded, and Faith tried to gather her courage to continue. "Well, because of that, we didn't have time to talk to a judge or the police about what had happened, and our report got to their office too late. Jacob and Janice were... released. They're... they're not in jail anymore."