Chapter 7
Chapter 8: The High-Stakes Rescue
It took three more days for the dam to break.
Leo approached Ethan by the lockers, his eyes red-rimmed and exhausted. "Does your dad really know how to listen?"
That afternoon, Ryan received a phone call from the school counselor. Ethan had brought Leo to the office and refused to leave his side until Ryan arrived.
When Ryan walked into the small counseling room, the air was thick with tension. Naomi, acting in her capacity as an advocate for the Ask Again foundation, had been called in by the school.
Leo sat trembling in a chair, a bruised wrist finally exposed.
Ryan knelt down, maintaining a respectful distance, just as he had done for Ethan so many times. "Leo, my name is Ryan. Naomi and I are here to make sure you're safe. We're going to take this one step at a time, and nobody is going to force you back into a place that hurts."
The intervention was a delicate, high-stakes operation. It involved child protective services, school administrators, and careful legal maneuvering. Through it all, Leo’s parents arrived, defensive and angry, demanding to take their son home.
Ryan stood in the school’s front office, a physical barrier between the furious father and the hallway where Leo was waiting.
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"You have no right to interfere with my family!" the man shouted, his face dark with rage.
"I have every right to protect a child who asked for help," Ryan said, his voice deadly calm, his posture unyielding. "The authorities are already here. It's over."
