Page 25

Sandy Point

AXEL

9am.

What time is it in Paris? Very early morning. These guys used to be party animals, but I think they’ve slowed down a bit since they got married. Regardless, I’ll still call. For something like this, they won’t mind. In fact, they’d be mad if I didn’t.

The phone answers on the fifth ring. I’m sitting on a park bench overlooking the water, a couple of blocks away from home. The park is near the ferry wharf that services the local offshore communities, and not far from the local shops. There’s no-one nearby to overhear me – it’s a bit early for the kids to come out and play on a cold winter morning. I’ve come here for privacy. I’m not sure how closely I’m going to be surveilled or whether they’ll watch the house, but I’m taking as few chances as I can. I’m not a PI, and I’m not a fan of crime shows so I don’t really know what is possible or likely in terms of surveillance. I figure the more distance I put between Justin and myself, the safer he’ll be, but I’m worried about his mental state. He might be safer without me, but he needs me.

“Hey,” says a sleepy voice at the end of the phone.

“Hey, Shannon. It’s Axel,” I reply. “Sounds like I woke you. Sorry.”

“Hey, Axel! That’s okay. Something up or did you just forget the time difference?” asks Shannon, yawning loudly into the phone.

“I need a favor,” I reply, and I fill him in on our situation.

“Jeez. That’s fucked up. But wait, isn’t conversion therapy banned now?”

“Not in all states. And yes, it’s totally fucked up. The cops were at my house this morning looking for him.”

“They gonna make him go back?”

“I guess, if his parents get their hands on him. He's still in school, so he's dependent on them.”

“Shit. That sucks. More than sucks actually.”

“Yeah. He’s only been there a couple of months and it’s already fucked with his head.”

“So, how can I help?’

“He needs a place to hide out until school ends next month. He wants to try and graduate. As long as he keeps turning in his assignments, he'll still be allowed to sit exams. He needs somewhere not connected to me or anyone he knows. I thought you guys might know someone in Melbourne. Conversion therapy is banned there, so probably better there than here.

There’s silence as Shannon thinks.

“I wasn’t in Melbourne long enough to make those sorts of connections, but let me ask Max.”

In the background, I hear the sound of someone grumbling, and Shannon’s voice.

“Wake up, babe, Axel’s on the phone. He needs our help.”

There’s more grumbling and then I hear Shannon explain the situation to Max, followed by a few moments of outraged ranting by Max. Shannon calms him down. There’s a moment of quiet discussion where I can’t hear what’s said, and then Shannon gets back on the phone.

“Max might have someone. What time is it there now?”

“9.15 in the morning.”

“Okay. Max is gonna make a call and I’ll ring you back.”

“Thanks, man. And I don’t need to tell you but…”

“Yeah, I can guess. Keep it on the down low. I get it. I’ll get back to you soon.”

We say goodbye and end the call.