Lost and Found (A Novel) (12 page)

“You think?” Elise raised an eyebrow and gave Judd a flat look.

“See, the thing is there are some information that I am not sure is the whole truth.”

“I think it will be a good idea if you start from the beginning.” Judd gave Elise a wry smile and started telling her all about Hayley and his suspicions. He looked up expectantly at Elise once he had finished.

“Well,” Elise paused, measuring her words. “I think child abuse is a very grave accusation.” She looked at Judd carefully as she said her next words, not wanting to hurt his feelings. “We need to be very sure of the facts before we can do anything about it.”

“How are we to confirm the facts if Hayley is adamant about hiding the truth?” Judd grumbled.

“We don’t know for sure if Hayley is lying, Judd. Would an eight year old be able to spin such a tale?” Elise said softly.

Judd huffed and stood up, crossing his arms. “I know she’s lying, Elise. She wouldn’t look at me in the eye! Besides, Hayley’s maturity level is beyond her age. And what about the way she flinched when I pulled her arm? That’s not how people usually react!”

“Okay, let’s assume for now that she is lying. Didn’t it occur to you that maybe, there is a reason for her doing so?”

“Such as?”

“Protecting her parents.”

Judd stared at Elise incredulously. He could not grasped the idea that Hayley would lie just to protect the very people who had hurt her. “Why would she want to protect them?

“Judd, life isn’t as simple as black and white. She’s only eight years old. Maybe her parents are a little harsh in the way they treat her but they are still her parents. To her, they might be all she had and it wouldn’t do her any good to betray them.” Elise reasoned wisely. She was older than Judd and could see things more rationally than his impulsive self.

“I see your point Elise but we still need to help Hayley if that is the case. We can’t sit by knowing that she is suffering. Isn’t there anything that you can do? Convince her perhaps?” Judd looked at Elise expectantly, hoping that she would be on his side.

“I’ll see what I can do. There’s no harm in finding out more about her situation. If there is ever a chance, you can arrange for her to meet me. I would love to see the girl who has stolen my brother’s heart.” Elise smirked mischievously. The look on Judd’s face was priceless.

“W...what?” He sputtered, his face turning beet red. “Elise, she’s only eight years old!”

“Still.” Elise stood up and walked towards the door. She stopped at the entrance and turned back to look at a horrified Judd. “Like you said, her maturity level is beyond her age.” Laughing, Elise ran out of the room just as Judd sent a cushion flying towards her.

Judd frowned at the spot where Elise had stood. He could not believe that she still had the mind to tease him in the midst of what she called a grave accusation. Soon, the frown slowly spread into a smile when he recalled that she had addressed him as a brother, for the first time.

With shaky hands, Hayley held the piece of paper that bore Judd’s telephone number, committing it to her memory. Judd had insisted that she kept his number in case she ever needed his help. Despite not telling him the whole truth, Judd had not given up trying to convince her to confide in him. Each time before she left the park, he would remind her that she could trust him. She only needed to ask and he would willingly helped her. Still, she had never been able to bring herself to tell him the truth. No matter how much pain she had to endure each day, they were still her parents and she did not have the heart to betray them.

That day however, as she sat shivering in her room, she knew she had no choice but to trust Judd and get the help that he had promised her. Folding the paper and keeping it safely in her pocket, Hayley inched her way slowly out of her room, looking for the whereabouts of her father. She saw him just outside the front door, talking to a neighbor. Seizing the chance, she ran nimbly towards the study where the phone was and hurriedly dialed Judd’s number. She listened to the ringing tone impatiently as she watched the door nervously. Countless rings later, Judd’s voice finally came through the phone.

“Judd, it’s me Hayley.” She whispered.

“Hayley? Why are you whispering?” Judd’s voice was curious, yet concern.

“I can’t talk for long but I need a favor from you. Can you meet me in the park in half an hour’s time?” Hayley said calmly, trying not to arouse his suspicions further.

“Sure. I’ll see you then.”

“Thank you.” Hayley said gratefully.

“You’re welcome.”

“Err...Judd. Please wait for me.” The sound of movements from the living room made Hayley put down the phone with haste. She ran back towards her room, closing the door shut behind her. Grabbing a backpack, she shoved as much of her personal things as she could get her hands on into it. She needed to get out of the house as fast as she could before her father came looking for her. The thought caused the knot in her stomach to tighten further, speeding up her movements.

Hayley had woken up that morning with a sickening feeling in the pit of her stomach. She could not brush away the uneasiness she felt no matter how much she tried to calm herself down. The feeling was intensified when she walked out of the room to see her mother hurrying past her with a luggage bag in tow. Without so much as a glance at Hayley, Mrs. Price had simply shouted over her shoulder that she had to go to the next town overnight for work matters and reminded Hayley to behave herself. Mrs. Price going on outstation was nothing new to Hayley. It was in the nature of her work and Hayley was used to it. She even secretly enjoyed the times when her mother was away as that meant a reprieve for her from all the beatings. It was no different this time. The thing that was causing her uneasiness though was her father.

Mr. Price had been getting bolder by the day. From talking secretively to Hayley behind his wife’s back, he now showed his affection for her freely regardless of whether Mrs. Price was around. He would casually put his arm around Hayley, ruffled her hair or playfully pinched her cheek. Mrs. Price did not seemed bothered since it appeared to her that he was just doing what a doting father should be doing to his daughter. Never once did she wonder at the sudden change in his attitude towards Hayley when he used to be indifferent towards her. Now that her mother was not around, it frightened Hayley to be left alone with her father. There was no knowing what he would do to her and she did not intend to wait and find out. Her instinct was telling her that something bad was going to happen if she stayed. Her only option was to leave her house and finally confessed everything to Judd.

Once her bag was packed, Hayley made to leave but stopped in her tracks when she saw her father sitting lazily in the living room, reading the newspaper. With a heavy heart, she retreated back into her room, hoping that he would go elsewhere soon so that she could leave. As time passed, she prayed hard that Judd would stay true to his words and wait for her, no matter how late she was.

The grasses surrounding the bench were already flattened beyond recognition by the time an hour had passed. Judd had rushed to the park as soon as Hayley had hung up the phone. He did not know why Hayley needed to see him on a Saturday morning but if by coming, he would finally get to know the truth from Hayley, then he was more than willing to do so. He had been pacing around the bench waiting anxiously for her but until then, there had been no sign of Hayley. Sighing, Judd heaved himself down on the bench, wondering if Hayley was ever going to come. After all, she had stood him up before, not turning up as planned just because her mother had came home early.

Another hour had almost passed and Judd was getting restless. It did not occur to him that something could have happened to Hayley. He was throwing stones across the field when he heard his name being called.

“Hey Judd, what are you doing here?”

Judd turned around to see three of his friends from school. “I’m just waiting for a friend but I doubt she would be turning up.”

“Well it’s perfect then. We are going to play basketball with a few guys from school but we are short of one person. Do you want to join us?” One of them asked.

Judd looked around for a while trying to see if he could catch any signs of Hayley approaching the park but there was none. Thinking that Hayley had stood him up again, Judd decided that he might as well have some fun. “Sure, why not.” He said as they slapped his back and pulled him along.

Hayley ran to the park as fast as her short legs could carry her. She had been stuck at home for two hours since her father decided to watch the television when he was done with the news. Her heart dropped in dismay when she saw the empty bench. Panting, she sat on the bench to catch her breath as she looked around for any signs of Judd.

“Are you looking for Judd?” Hayley looked up at the female voice who spoke to her. She recognized the elderly woman being one of the regulars who walked around the park each day.

“Yes, have you seen him?”

“Sure, he just left with a group of boys a few minutes before you came.” The woman smiled kindly at her.

“Oh.” Hayley looked down dejectedly. Judd had not waited for her. He had peppered her with promises and planted the seed of trust in her but at the time when she needed him the most, he wasn’t there for her. He could not even spare two hours to wait for her. At that point, she finally understood what betrayal felt like. There was a dull ache in her chest as her heart seemed like it had been ripped apart.

“Ah there you are Hayley.” Hayley’s eyes grew wide at the sound of the voice that she had never wanted to hear again in a million years. Slowly, she turned around, hoping that she had just imagined his voice. Fear gripped her heart as she took in the sight of her father. He had chased her here and Judd was not around to protect her.

“Is this your daughter?” The woman asked him in a friendly tone.

“Yes, she is. Come on, let’s go home Hayley.”

Hayley looked up to the woman, wondering if she would help her but she did not really know this person. There was no guarantee that she would even believe her. Besides, she was already old and needed a walking stick to move around. How could Hayley expect the woman to protect her? The big question though was why would she helped Hayley when even her friend had deserted her? Dropping her shoulders in defeat, Hayley stood up and followed her father as he grabbed tight to her arm and dragged her home.

Mr. Price did not let go of Hayley even after they had stepped foot inside the house. He pulled her further along the hall until they reached the master bedroom. He tore the backpack away from her and threw her roughly on the bed. Hayley gasped and scrambled to get up as her body bounced from the impact but before she could stand on her feet, she felt a pillow slammed into her body, causing her to fall back again.

“Trying to run away, weren’t you?” Mr. Price hissed, making his grotesque face even more fearsome. “I never knew you were such a scheming little girl. Didn’t you hear your mother telling you to listen to me? Let me teach you how to listen, you prick.”

Terror coursed through Hayley’s vein as she watched her father pulled his belt from his jeans, wrapping one end around his knuckles and swinging the loose end with the big, heavy-looking metal buckle back and forth as he advanced towards her. Her lips quivered and tears poured out of her eyes. She closed her eyes and gritted her teeth as Mr. Price raised his right arm for the first whip. She screamed out with pain when the buckle hit her on her shoulder blade.

“You liked that huh? Let’s hear you scream some more before we have our fun.”

The swinging of his arm got higher and higher with each whip. Hayley could feel her skin breaking as the buckle hit her continuously on her bare arms. When she almost could not take the pain any longer, she attempted to hide beneath the soft comforter and started to wiggle slowly into it.

“Where do you think you’re going?” Mr. Price roared as he caught the movement of her body. Thinking that she was trying to get off the bed, he lunged at her, grabbing hold of her ankles and pulling her towards him.

Hayley’s survival instinct set in and she twisted her leg, kicking her father away will all her might. Her retaliation angered him further and he threw his whole body weight onto her, pinning her small body underneath him. The impact knocked the breath out of Hayley, leaving her gasping for air. She felt her heart constrict, making it even harder for her to breathe. Yet, Hayley fought to free herself despite her weakening strength. She knew the chances were slim, still she prayed with all her heart that somehow a miracle would happen and somebody would come and saved her. In the struggles that ensued, both of them ended up falling off the bed with a loud thump, their bodies entangled in the comforter that came down with them.