Chapter 4 - The Safe House
I knew we couldn't go back to our house in St. Joseph. Lauren would be there, and with Voss's backing, she would try to get the police to enforce her custody. I needed a place where we could disappear, at least for a few days, until I could get a lawyer and secure an emergency custody order.
I called my older brother, Marcus. He owned a cabin tucked away in the woods near the Ozarks, a quiet, isolated place where he went for hunting trips. When I told him what happened, he didn't ask questions. He just told me where the key was hidden and said he’d meet us there the next morning with supplies.
The drive to the cabin was quiet. Tyler and Leo slept in the backseat, exhausted from the ordeal. I kept checking my rearview mirror, half-expecting to see Voss's luxury SUV or a police cruiser following us. My mind was racing. How had Lauren gotten involved with someone like Voss? Why would she do this to Tyler?
We arrived at the cabin late that evening. The air was cooler here, thick with the scent of pine and damp earth. I carried Leo inside first—he was so light, his breathing shallow but steady. I laid him on the sofa and covered him with a quilt.
Then I helped Tyler inside. He was awake now, his eyes darting around the rustic living room.
"Are we safe here, Dad?" he asked, his voice barely a whisper.
"We're safe," I said, pulling him into a tight hug. "I promise you, Ty. Nobody knows we're here. Tomorrow, your Uncle Marcus is coming, and we're going to get you some real food and some rest."
I went to the kitchen and found some canned chicken noodle soup and saltine crackers in Marcus's pantry. I warmed it up and brought two bowls to the living room.
Leo woke up when he smelled the food. He sat up slowly, his eyes wide and hungry, but he didn't reach for the bowl. He looked at me, then at the soup, waiting for permission.
"It's for you, Leo," I said gently, sitting on the floor in front of him. "Eat as much as you want. There's plenty more."
He took the spoon with trembling fingers and took a small bite. A look of pure relief washed over his face, and he began to eat quickly, almost desperately.
"Slow down, buddy," I said, rubbing his back. "If you eat too fast, it'll make your stomach hurt. Take your time."
Tyler sat beside him, eating slowly. "Dad?" he said after a few minutes. "They told me you died."
The soup spoon froze in my hand. "What?"
"Vance and the other guards," Tyler said, tears welling up in his eyes. "They said you had an accident in Texas. They said Mom had to send me away because she couldn't afford to keep me anymore, and that you were gone. That’s why I thought... I thought you weren't coming."
The sheer, calculated cruelty of it made me physically sick. They hadn't just abused his body; they had tried to destroy his spirit, to make him feel completely abandoned so he would stop fighting.
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"I'm here, Tyler," I said, my voice thick with emotion. "I am never, ever going to leave you. I don't care what they told you. It was all a lie. I'm right here."
We sat in the quiet cabin, the only sound the crackle of the wood stove Marcus had set up. But even as the boys fell back asleep, I knew the real battle was just beginning. Voss wasn't just a local scammer; he was running a massive, multi-million-dollar operation disguised as a charity. And I had just thrown a wrench in his gears.
