Our Own House | Closed.

Artemis walked to her brother’s room, stopping at the door and looked at Matt. “You don’t have to stay if you want to check on Zack.”

“Zack will be fine,” Matt insisted. “He knows if he needs me, he can call me.”

“He’ll probably be pissed that you’re here with me,” Artemis mumbled.

“I can handle him,” Matt said.

“I don’t want you two to fight because of me.”

“We’ll be okay, I promise,” Matt insisted. “Zack and I have been friends since we were in diapers. Nothing is going to change that.”

“Alright,” Artemis mumbled.

Matt walked into her brother’s hospital room with her, frowning when he saw just how bad the other boy looked. “How long had he been missing for?” he asked quietly.

“Almost three months,” Artemis mumbled.

“Poor guy,” Matt mumbled. “Don’t tell anyone I said this, but I really hope they put Zack’s parents behind bars. I have no doubt they’re behind this. And I want them to be put away before they taint Zack beyond repair.”

“Why don’t you like his parents,” Artemis asked.

“They’re really shady,” Matt said. “And I can’t count the times they’ve disappointed him. Not showing up to games, forgetting his birthday, favoring his little brother over him and his sister. Zack has a really good heart, and he doesn’t want to believe that his parents could be bad people. That’s why he blindly follows them.”

Artemis frowned. “I heard the cops say something about a cult when they came to get my brother’s testimony,” she mumbled. “It terrifies me to think what else they could have done to my brother if they really were.”

“Honestly, it wouldn’t surprise me,” Matt mumbled. “I want to support Zack no matter what, because he’s my best friend, but I just can’t put up with the shit his parents do.”

“Do you think he’ll ever forgive me for what happened,” she asked.

“Forgive you?” Matt questioned. “For what? You didn’t do anything wrong.”

“I took his parents away from him,” Artemis mumbled. “Or at least I’m sure that’s the way he sees it right now.”

“I’m sure they would have been caught doing something bad at some point anyway,” Matt said.

“Hopefully he’ll see it that way now that he’s finally away from them.”

“I hope it’s a wake up call for him,” Matt said with a nod. He looked over when he heard Apollo stirring in his sleep. “Do you want me to leave? I’m sure you two have a lot to catch up on.”