“He …” I start to make excuses for him, and then I stop. “He’s sick.”

“No, he’s mean, and a bad person, Mom,” he says to me. “You don’t treat the people you love like that.”

“You’re right,” I say. “I don’t want you to ever have to doubt how much I love you.”

He looks at me, my little boy who is turning into a man before my eyes. “I know, Mom.”

I sit on the couch next to him with my feet under me, and we fall asleep. I don’t even know how long I’m sleeping, but the doorbell rings, and we both jump up, running to see who it is. Both of us hoping that Andrew didn’t follow us here.

I walk into the living room and see that Justin’s mom, Parker, is now here, but it’s the two police officers that draw my eyes. “Justin,” Matthew says, coming into the room behind them.

“How can I help you?” Justin says, and his eyes fly to mine. My heart starts to beat faster than normal, and I think I’m going to have a heart attack. Dylan runs from beside me to stand next to Justin.

“We are sorry to be doing this,” one of the cops says, “but we have no choice.”

“Do what?” Cooper asks, and if I thought I was going to die before, nothing prepares me for what is about to happen.

“Justin Stone, there is a warrant for your arrest for the assault on Andrew Woods,” the officer says, and I feel like the floor is moving. My head is spinning, and I can’t control it. “We are going to have to cuff you,” the officer says.

“Seriously?” Matthew says. “In front of his kid.” Dylan stands in front of him crying, and there is suddenly screaming. Someone is screaming, and the floor is coming closer and closer to me as my knees suddenly buckle, and I hear Justin yell.

“Matthew, Caroline,” he says, and Matthew catches me right before I hit the floor, and the screaming stops. I suddenly realize that the screaming was coming from me.

“You can’t take him!” I say to the officers, trying to get out of Matthew’s hold. “Get off me!” I scream at him. “You can’t take him!”

“Don’t say a fucking word,” Cooper says to Justin. “Not a peep.”

“I want my lawyer,” Justin says right before the clicking of the handcuffs fills the room. “Sweetheart, I’ll be back.”

“You can’t take him!” I yell at them and fight to get free. “You can’t take him! He didn’t do anything!” I sob and fight to get to him, to hold him, to kiss him one last time. “Please,” I plead with everyone around me. “Please don’t take him.” I finally collapse in Matthew’s arms while Parker holds Dylan, whose sobs now echo mine.