To Unlock His Heart 4

I was pleased that Nikolai had gone out for the soccer team, even if by the time I got home Monday night he had fallen asleep in the bath. After getting him dried off and dressed in pajamas, I went to relax on the couch only to receive a call from Coach Moon. He wanted to have Nikolai join the soccer team, but he'd need a few things. One was a sports physical, which considering they were in the middle of tryouts, he would give me until next Monday to get. Another was cleats and shin guards, to which I readily agreed after seeing the nasty bruise on Nikolai's ankle. The last was a special diet for him.

As he put it, Nikolai had an exceptional ability to force his body to go longer and harder than it wanted, which was great for a soccer player. He just wanted to ensure that he would have the proper nutrition to support the muscle growth and energy expenditure that was going to go along with this. He gave me of foods that would help and I breathed a sigh of relief that I had already been feeding him the majority of it. I just needed to make sure that he got more carbohydrates into his system to use as energy later in the day. I assured him that I would make sure that Nikolai got the right diet and everything he needed before hanging up.

I ended up changing his breakfast to include a piece of fruit, which he'd looked at me oddly for until I explained the conversation with the coach. He just shrugged it off and ate it anyway.  I changed his lunch to include a protein supplement and made a mental note to get him some vitamins when I made the trip to see Alex for cleats and shin guards. Once at work, I called the doctor who was going to be taking out his stitches on Saturday and asked if he could do a sports physical while he was at it. He said it wasn't a problem and then double checked that Nikolai was taking care of them right. I assured him that he was before going back to my work.

The forensics from Nikolai's house had come back. His prints hadn't been found anywhere on the blood covered kitchen knife, but were all over the phone that had been used to call 911. Even more telling that he'd had nothing to do with his mother's death, was that all of the blood found had been his and not hers. I could still distinctly remember how much blood there had been and it made me wonder how long he'd laid there before calling for help. It was almost no surprise now that he'd gone into such a state of shock that he lost the use of his voice. I was still surprised that he hadn't bled out before he got to the hospital, but he definitely kept proving he was a resilient young man. We were still waiting on the autopsy report before declaring the case closed, but I imagined we'd have it by Wednesday at the latest.

I had mixed feelings about Nikolai getting a ride home from one of the soccer team's captain every night. For one, it actually relieved a bit of worry that something might happen to him on his way home. But I didn't know this Serj character at all and I didn't like trusting Nikolai's safety to someone I didn't know. I didn't think Nikolai would put his trust in someone that I likely couldn't trust, but it still didn't sit well with me. I would have to find an opportunity to meet this boy and find out more about him before I could relax.

The autopsy report had been waiting on my desk Wednesday morning and just as I had suspected, Nikolai had had nothing to do with her death. Her death had been caused by a ruptured blood vessel in her brain; an anurism. So officially the case was closed now, with Nikolai completely cleared of any charges at all. Strangely though, the information hadn't seemed to make him happy or even relieved. In fact, he seemed quieter that night that usual, if that was even possible. I tried to get him to tell me what was bothering him, but all I got was a shrug and a quick nothing written on his white board. That bugged me even more and I determined that I was going to meet this Serj guy and if nothing else, have an eye within the school to tell me if Nikolai was in trouble.

I left work early on Thursday and waited out in front of the apartment complex for Nikolai to get home from practice. I was surprised when a gold Mercedez-Benz pulled up in front of me and a tired looking Nikolai got out of the backseat. He nodded to the black haired driver before shutting the door and giving me a questioning look. I just smiled down at him, mussing his messy, sweat dampened hair and turned my attention back to the boy who I could only assume was Serj.

"You must be Serj," I said, offering a friendly smile as I took Nikolai's heavy bookbag from him. "If you've got some time, would you like to come upstairs for awhile?" His face brightened a bit at the offer, which only further fueled my need to know more about him before he got too close.

"I would like that, if it is okay with Nikolai," he said and we both turned our eyes to the blonde at my side. Seeming nervous about being put on the spot, his green eyes widened for a moment before he finally nodded his head. Serj jumped at the welcome and quickly turned the engine off before getting out of his car. Upstairs, Nikolai excused himself to take a quick shower, leaving me alone with this older teen. "So you're Nikolai's foster father?" he asked leaning against the counter.

"I'm Kyle Martin, yes," I replied. "Can I offer you something to drink? I've only got juice, water and milk though as I'm trying to get Nikolai's diet under control." He raised an eyebrow, but didn't say anything more than to ask for a glass of milk. "So you're the captain of the soccer team, right?" I asked and he shook his head.

"Co-captain," he corrected. "Skylar Fisher and I share the title since we are both sophomores." Now it was my turn to raise an eyebrow.

"What are you doing driving if you're only a sophomore?" I asked, crossing my arms over my chest. "Last time I checked, most sophomores didn't turn sixteen until after this point in the year." Serj chuckled softly and ran a hand through his hair.

"I am a year older than I should be for my grade level," he replied. "Sort of the curse of being foreign born. Things are just different here." Now that made sense and explained why I thought I was hearing an accent on his words. I looked up at the sound of Nikolai's slight shuffling and smiled at him. I poured him a glass of milk and watched as he and Serj made their way over to the couch, noting that Nikolai seemed slightly more stiff.

"Would you like to stay for dinner, Serj?" I asked after a few moments. Nikolai's head turned swiftly in my direction, but I just smiled reassuringly at him. He was keen enough to know that I was a bit out of character, but it truly was in his best interest. Serj seemed a bit surprised at first, but then a slight smile slipped across his face.

"Ya, that sounds really nice," he said, nodding slightly. "I should probably call my mother first though." I nodded in agreement, not wanting to upset his parents in my quest to find out more about the only person I had heard of getting close to Nikolai. I tried to listen in on his phone call, noticing him wince slightly at a loud voice that seemed to not be speaking English. "She says it is fine with her," he said as he closed his cell phone.

"Well good, I hope you're hungry," I said as I pulled dinner from the fridge. "How do you like your steak?"

"Medium rare," he replied and looked nervous for a moment. "Do you need any help?" I smiled at the offer but waved him off.

"No, no, I'm fine," I assured him. "But you and Nikolai can set the table for me." He nodded and followed Nikolai into the kitchen, reaching to pull down the plates that the small teenager couldn't reach. It bothered me a bit that Nikolai didn't seem comfortable with Serj here, even still Serj kept trying to talk with him. I caught the one question that Nikolai did ask after giving so many simple, non-committed answers. If I was right, Serj seemed slightly disappointed in Nikolai's discomfort, but made no mention of it so I wasn't absolutely sure.

"Were you born in Russia, Serj?" I asked as I sliced a potato in half and slid the smaller portion onto Nikolai's plate. He nodded a bit and swallowed his mouthful of food before answering.

"Ya, we came over when I was eight," he supplied. "My brother was too young to remember Russia though. He was only three when we moved." I nodded a bit, finishing up with Nikolai's plate, though he didn't immediately move to eat anything.

"So, how does America compare to Russia?" I asked, attempting to smile at him but only getting about half of one up with my concern over Nikolai's lack of appetite. Serj shrugged a bit at my question.

"They are two different places," he replied. "I do remember being confused when we first moved because I was not very good at speaking English yet. And I was older than all the kids in my class suddenly. Things were just... different," he tried to explain.

"Did you play soccer in Russia too?" I asked, being very careful not to make it seem like I was interrogating him. I didn't know if Nikolai had told him what my profession was, but I still had a habit of getting aggressive in my questioning of new people I met.

"No. I wasn't really into sports when I was little," he said, shaking his head. Nikolai suddenly took interest in the conversation, looking over at Serj curiously.

"What were you into?" I asked, drawing the black haired teen's attention back to me.

"Uh, honestly... I can not remember. I do not think I was into much of anything," he said glancing at the ceiling as he thought about it. "I remember spending a lot of time with my grandfather's dogs though. He had a lot of them for awhile. I think he bred them or something like that. Lots of hunting hounds. Mother didn't like them though. I think she thought they would maul me or something." I nodded and decided to ease the feel of my questions a bit by telling a bit of my childhood. I'd always loved dogs, but my mother was allergic to animal dander so I never had any of my own.

Throughout I watched as Nikolai sat silently, listening to Serj and I talk as he pushed his food around on his plate. It bothered me that he wasn't eating and I wasn't sure if it was because Serj was here or if there was something else eating at him, but I let it go so as to not upset our guest. He hadn't seemed to miss anything about Nikolai's eating habits either, but he also left the subject alone. When I got into the subject of school and Serj's most and least favourite subjects, I finally noticed emotion cross Nikolai's face. Apparently they both liked math, but when Serj said he hated sciences, Nikolai smirked ever so slightly.

By the time we had finished eating, I was pretty much out of basic questions and was trying to keep myself from digging any deeper into the boy's life. I was satisfied that he was a good kid and probably would be a good influence on Nikolai, especially after he offered to help clear the table. I waved him off as he stood up, but his eyes caught the time on the microwave's clock. Even Nikolai paused when he frowned slightly at the time.

"Ah, it is getting late," he said, almost seeming depressed. "I should go." I smiled a bit, setting the dishes I had in my hands in the sink.

"Well, it was nice meeting you, Serj. You're welcome to visit any time," I said, extending my hand to him. He shook as Nikolai gave a half nod of agreement, still pushing his food around his plate.

"Thank you. I shall remember that," he said, grabbing his coat and slipping it on. "I shall see you tomorrow, Nikolai." Again Nikolai nodded and Serj gave him a smile before slipping out of the door.

"Alright, Nikolai, what's bugging you?" I asked, almost immediately turning on my young charge. The blonde looked away, shrugging slightly. "Come on. You know you can talk to me." As soon as I started to push him to open up, he bolted for his room, shutting the door politely but I still heard the lock click. I sighed deeply and wrapped up his leftovers in case he got hungry later. It still seemed that Nikolai had his walls built high and I hadn't gotten to the point where he'd let me in yet. It was frustrating, but I hoped it was nothing that I needed to be concerned about.

By the time Saturday rolled around, Nikolai wouldn't even look at me. It was bothering me considerably since besides not having a voice with which to complain with, he also apparently internalized everything. I for sure now that something was eating at him, but if he wouldn't tell me, there was little I could do. He seemed more nervous than usual as we headed for the doctor's office, figeting with the gauze that he still wrapped around the bandages on his arms. I knew he was happy to be getting the stitches out, but perhaps he was starting to grow self conscious at the idea of the scars they'd leave.

I waited in the office for almost an hour while Nikolai was in the back, flipping through various magazines to keep myself from going insane. I had just about had my fill of who was dating who in the celebrity world when the doctor came and asked me to follow him. I was confused and a bit anxious as to what he could need to talk to me about. Surely everything was fine with Nikolai's wounds. I knew he'd taken good care to keep them clean over the last nine days.

"Mr. Martin," the doctor started after closing the door to his office. "I want to talk to you about your foster son." I nodded, even though the statement was quite obvious. I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for Nikolai. "I have to ask, as a professional... Have you been abusing Nikolai?" The question hit me like a ton of bricks and I could do little more than stare at the doctor in absolute shock. Me, abuse Nikolai? It was completely preposterous!

"I'm sorry," I said. "I must have been hearing things. I could have sworn you just asked if I had put my hands on Nikolai in a violent manner." He sighed and ran a hand through his hair as he took off his glasses.

"Look, I'm sorry," he said in exasperation. "Nikolai denied it too, but he wouldn't tell me who had hit him. He's got fresh bruising on his side, back and shoulders. And I know this was for a sports physical, but he's playing soccer not rugby, so the amount of bruising is unsettling and uncalled for." I clenched my fists in my lap as I ground my teeth together. I knew what he was saying. I'd dealt with child abuse cases a lot over the last ten years that I'd been with the special victim's unit, but I had never been accused of being violent.

"I'd never lay a hand on that boy," I said slowly, trying to keep my anger in check. "I already know he suffered enough abuse at the hands of his mother to make him afraid of women in general. I would never do anything to make things worse for him." The doctor nodded and sighed again, slipping his glasses back on.

"Then it's likely he's found himself a bully at school," he said. "The fact that he won't and apparently hasn't mentioned anything about it makes me want to believe it might not just be simple physical violence though. Or that there is more than just one." I shook my head a bit.

"He's afraid," I said. "He doesn't like to feel as if he's a burden on anyone who shows care for him, so he is probably worried that he'll become a burden on me if he told me about it." I didn't want him to feel that way, but I had noticed his reactions the weekend prior as I made sure that all of his needs were completely met.

"Maybe you will have better luck getting him to open up to you, but I suggest you do it soon," he said. "You probably want to do it soon though. Violence, however small it may seem, has a tendency to escalate if is not handled appropriately and in a timely manner." I nodded. I didn't need to be told this. It was my job to know the cycle of violence.

"Is he ready to go?" I asked softly. I wanted to get out of there and talk with Nikolai. I seriously did not like the fact that this was probably what had been bothering him through the latter part of the week. We needed to have a serious discussion about trust and sharing information that needed to be shared. Being so bruised was something that needed to be talked about and not internalized.

"Yeah, just... Next time you know I'm obligated to file a police report about this, right?" he asked and I nodded.

"Yeah, I know," I replied and pulled out my badge. "Only I'm the person who investigates child abuse cases that you report. So trust me when I say that I would never hurt Nikolai. I've seen far too many children like him in my time." He seemed stunned for a moment and then shook his head with a slight chuckle. He apologized again for the accusation and led me to Nikolai's room. It was a little strange to see Nikolai without the white gauze covering his arms, but it was nice too. It was just a small stepping stone to recovery to have all of the stitches finally out and the wounds closed up.

"Hold it," I said, catching Nikolai by the shoulder as he tried to escape to his room. "You and I need to talk." He frowned and seemed like he wanted to bolt, but I held a firm grip on his shoulder until they slumped in silent defeat. I led him over to couch, sitting beside him. "So tell me what's going on," I said, not as a request, but neither as a demand. He stared at his board for a long moment before he slowly began to write. He didn't tell me much, only that he was getting bullied a bit. However, it didn't seem to just be in school. It was happening on the soccer field during practice as well and that bothered me. I had a feeling that if Serj had known about it, he would have put an end to it by now.

By the time Nikolai finally stopped writing, tears were in his eyes. He didn't like being bullied, but as he put it, this was the level of bullying he could live with. He was afraid of it getting worse, like it had at his old school. But the rumours running around the school now weren't that he was gay, but that his mother had killed herself to escape having a freak for a son. I sighed, wrapping an arm around his shoulders to offer him some measure of comfort. I knew something would need to be done before things got too far out of hand and someone seriously hurt Nikolai or he hurt himself. But right that moment, I didn't really have the answers.