BITTER PILL:CANTALOUPE

CHAPTER 2* FRIEND OF RILEY*

"Hello, who are you?"

Emmanuel asks, once opens the door and he's met with an unfamiliar face standing on their porch with his hands in his pocket and a frown on his face. 

"Good day sir, you must be Mr Corkett? My name is Ronin and I am a friend of Riley from school."

Ronin answers, offering Emmanuel a half ass smile.

"Yes I am, how may I help you? Please come in."

Emmanuel asks, inviting the boy in, and Ronin nods, following the man and he shuts the door behind him. 

"Who is that?"

Tracy calls from the dinning area, as she hears the footstep of her husband and the sound of the door shutting close. 

"A friend of Riley, from school."

Emmanuel responds wearily and a deep frown etched on Tracy's face.

"I hope I am not intruding on your family time."

Ronin says, seeing as the couple had their dining table set for lunch.

"Of course not, you can also join us for lunch."

Tracy says, in a chirpy voice, that Ronin knows all too well it was not genuine, the boy didn't know what to expect when he drove out down here in anger. 

His mother, Dr Linda, had tried persuading him against the decision, but Ronin was angry, and he couldn't hold himself back from confronting Riley's parents. 

"Thank you for the offer Mrs Corkett, I had lunch on my way and I don't plan to stay long. I haven't seen Riley in school for three weeks that's why I came to see if he is fine. And he doesn't have a phone so I can't call him either."

Ronin was no fool, he saw the way their expressions changed immediately he mentioned Riley's name, and he wished right there he had enough evidence to incriminate them. 

"Riley, he uh, he..."

"Riley is sick, and admitted in the hospital we already informed the school about this we didn't think he had friends in school we would have tried reaching out to you."

Tracy says, cutting in as her husband trailed off on what to say and Ronin didn't miss the stink eye Mrs Corkett gave her husband before replying. 

"Oh, I'm so sorry to hear that? Is he getting better? If they admit him in the community hospital, can I go see him."

Ronin asks, doing a perfect job to hide the anger brewing in him at their lies. 

"NO. I mean he is not here in Crossville, we have a family member in Bristol who is a doctor we took him there."

Ronin saw the panic in Tracy's eyes when he requested to visit Riley, despite their effort their lies were still obvious and it angered Ronin, that didn't even look the least worried for their son but could make up lies to cover their asses. 

"Oh I see, thank you. I better get going I have errands to run for my mom, thank you Mr and Mrs Corkett."

Ronin says as they lead him to the door. 

"You are welcome, may the good lord bless your soul for checking on our son."

'My the good lord strike you dead'

Ronin lashed in his mind against the couple as he offers them a smile and he walked back to his car, holding back the hurt building in his heart. 

"We have to look for him Tracy, see what just happened. Who knows who else would come knocking on the door for Riley again?"

Emmanuel says as they sit at the dining and Tracy dished out their food.

"Whoever comes, we keep telling them the same thing."

Tracy snaps, pushing a filled plate towards her husband.

"For how long, how long do we keep up with the lie?"

"For as long as we can, please, if you have nothing better to say, let me eat in peace, Emmanuel, and let Riley be whereever he wants. Bringing him back would become a disaster, he is pregnant how do we explain that when his stomach shows? Please, quit it and let me eat before I lose my appetite."

Tracy lashed at her husband, and Emmanuel nods. 

"Okay."

~~~~~

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"Ronin, what is wrong, have you been crying?"

Dr Linda called, walking down the stairs of their modern mansion to the sight of Ronin walking through the front doors with tears in his eyes. 

"Mom, they are evil and heartless."

Ronin sobbed, walking to his mom, who had her hands opened for her son.

"I told you not to go, what were you expecting? It's been three weeks and they haven't even filed for a missing person's report, that shows they never cared for him."

Dr Linda says, patting her sons back to comfort him. 

"But he was their son, how can they just forget about him like that? They even have the appetite for food."

"I don't know what to tell you son, I know you're still going through the pain of what happened to him, but there is nothing we can do at this point. We just have to leave the rest to God."

Dr Linda says, and Ronin pulls away from his mom with pain in his eyes.

"How can we just leave everything to God, mom, will he come down to avenge Riley? Are we just going to sit back and watch them live through each day with smiles? You saw the note Riley left in his bag, you saw his body. The bruises they did that to him and they don't care. Not when he was with them, not now that he is no more and you want us to leave everything to God?"

Ronin lashed at his mother, stepping away from her like she had a knife in hand to harm him. 

"I understand your agitation, sweetie, but this is beyond us at this point. You just need to calm down."

Dr Linda says, and Ronin shakes his head, backing out of his mother's presence. 

"I can't believe you would say this, I thought you cared about him, about me."

Ronin shouts at his mom before rushing up the stairs to his room, and Dr Linda sighs. Today was her day off, she hoped for a maximum hour of rest, yet the doctor can't even have that now because seeing her only child in pain breaks her heart. 

 With a heavy and concerned heart, Dr Linda climbs up the stairs, turning the corner to her room, and she pulls her laptop to her lap as she settles on the bed to Skype her wife. 

[Hello love, why do you look so gloomy?]

Judge Wellington asks from the other end of the video call as her wife's face came into view and Dr Linda sighs.

[You know how I get when your son is unhappy, how was your day?]

Dr Linda responds, smiling at her wife. 

[It was good, I only had one case preside over, but I had a meeting with some prosecutors. What is the problem with Ronin again?]

Judge Wellington says, not forgetting to ask about her child. 

[He went over to that boy's house today, he is sad and mad because the parents don't seem to care about the disappearance of their child.]

Dr Linda informs sighing. 

[The pregnant boy you told me about? The one Ronin found that night?]

Judge Wellington questions and her wife nods. 

[So the parents haven't filed a missing person's reports? It's been three weeks.]

Judge Wellington points out and Dr Linda nods. 

[They don't seem to care, I told you there were signs of abuse on his body when I checked it, Ronin wants them to pay but there is not much I can do if the victim isn't available.]

Dr Linda informs, just as the door to her room pushes open and Ronin steps in.

"Is that mama?"

Ronin asks, walking over to his mom's bed.

"Yes, do you want to speak with her?"

Dr Linda questions, and Ronin nods as he settles himself on the bed.

[Mama.]

Ronin calls timidly, as the face of his second mother appears on the screen.

[Big baby, your mom tells me you're unhappy about your friend. I am glad that you feel responsible for him, but you know how your mom gets whenever you're sad.]

Judge Wellington says and Ronin pouts.

[I'm sorry mama, I just think what happened to him is unfair, and he is not even here to fight for his justice.]

Ronin responds and his mother's sigh.

[Okay, what do you need me to do?]

The question has Ronin sitting up straight as hope flood through his system.

[I want justice for Riley mama, he didn't deserve what happened to him; he was my friend. I liked him.]

Ronin says, casting his head down and the mother nods.

[Since the victim is not available to Sue the parents, I can get the government prosecutor to do that, but we will some evidence. Do you have anything that can start up the prosecution process?]

Ronin looks to his mom, sitting beside him, and they nod collectively/.

[I have Xray pictures of his fractured rib, pictures of the bruises on his body and the cut in his head. Also, there was a mark on his neck, it look like they strangled him. Also, there was a note in his bag that Ronin collected from the lake.]

Dr Linda responds, giving her wife the little information they had and the judge nods. 

[That should be enough to start the prosecution, I would make a few calls and have a friend issue their arrest warrant. If the prosecution finds them guilty enough, we can have them arraigned for court. Are you happy now, big baby?]

Judge Wellington asks and Ronin nods, smiling shyly at his mother. 

[Thank you mama. Thank you mom.]

With a kiss to his mom's cheek and a simple apology for raising his voice earlier, he exits the room. 

And the parents spend the rest of the evening catching up.