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They started to talk and their hushed voices were drowned out by my own thoughts and concerns for Channing. I turned away from them and stood several feet away, my eyes staring down the door that Channing was behind. As I was watching it, willing for it
to open, I spotted one of the officers heading over towards me.
I turned to him and he nodded and tipped his hat. “Ma’am…we have some questions that I need to ask you. Will you give me ten minutes of your time?” I looked at his name badge, then up at him.
“Officer Prescott, I can appreciate that you need answers and that right now I’m the only one that can provide those answers. I am willing to help you out in any way I can, as long as they stay behind bars for a very long time. But I can’t do this right now. I need to focus on my prayers and direct only positive energy on Channing right now. I hope you can understand and respect that.”
He slowly nodded and stepped back away from me. I looked back at the door, thoughts plaguing my mind about how I just wanted to go to him and smother him with kisses, thanking him for saving my life. But I didn’t know what was waiting behind those doors. I didn’t know if he survived and I didn’t know if he would be a changed man, if he did survive. I just needed some answers.
***
I couldn’t sit still. Between standing and staring at the door and moving to sit closer to his mom and my parents, I just felt useless. It seemed like forever that he’d been in the hospital room being worked on, when finally the doors opened. The doctor walked out and I shot to my feet. I reached out and grabbed my mom’s hand as he got closer to me.
“We have him on some high medication, so he’s really drowsy right now, but he’s going to be fine.” The minute the words came out, I felt a sigh burst from within me. “He took the brunt of the damage to his shoulder and he lost a lot of blood. He’ll need some therapy, but we expect a full recovery.”
“Oh, thank God!” I said. I turned to my family, and we all started our celebration. It was a huge relief to know that Channing was going to be fine. I hugged Mrs. Holloway and she started sobbing against me, but the tears now were of relief and happiness. I pulled away from the embrace and turned to the doctor. “When can we see him?” I asked
“A nurse will come out once he’s settled in his room, but no more than two at a time.”
I nodded. “Understood. Thank you so much, doctor,” I said.
He smiled. “It’s my pleasure. He’s a lucky man.” He nodded and left us to continue our celebration. However, the celebration was short-lived, when no more than fifteen minutes later Officer Prescott was walking back our way.
“That’s very good news,” he said. I waited, knowing that he would soon inquire about the statement again and sure enough he did. “So, once I get this statement I’ll be gone and out of your hair. How about right now?”
My dad jumped to my defense. “My daughter has been through enough today. Surely your statement can wait a day,” he said.
I reached out and touched his arm. “No! Now that I know Channing is going to be okay…I’ll give you the statement that you want. I want to put them behind bars and that means going over this with you. So, have a seat.”
Officer Prescott sat down next to me and I started by telling him everything, realizing that my parents would hear it all too, but I couldn’t hold back.
“Channing’s father and brother have always held the belief that white people should only partner up with other whites and blacks were nothing but low-lifes that deserved nothing out of life, especially happiness. Channing, along with his dad, and brother belonged to this Neo-Nazi hate group that supported the killing of blacks.” Out of the corner of my eye, I saw my dad’s face get distorted as he grabbed my mom’s hand and they stared at us. I kept talking. “When they found out about me, they both would have done anything to keep me away from Channing.” I heaved a sigh, before continuing. “I came home to a note and I thought it was from Channing, so I went to find him. I got kidnapped by his brother and father and they took me to that building.”
I closed my eyes as the memory was so vivid. I felt like I was under a ton of weights. I continued to tell the officer what happened blow by blow, including how they tied me up, threatened to kill me and his father trying to kill me.
“If it wasn’t for Channing getting to me in time, then I know that they would have killed me. Those two men deserve to rot in jail for putting me through this and I believe that the group needs to be closed and the hate needs to be stopped once and for all.”
Office Prescott nodded, jotting down his notes. “And do you know where we can get ahold of this group?” he asked me, looking up.
“I’m sure I can assist in bringing them down,” I said. “But mostly…I just really want to keep Mr. Holloway and his son, Damon, behind bars, so they can’t hurt Channing anymore.”
“Of course,” Officer Prescott said. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a card. “Keep in touch, if you can think of anything else, but this statement should help to make sure they aren’t able to bother you or your boyfriend.”
“Thank you!” I said.
We stood up and I said goodbye to him. When I turned around, my dad stood up. “What in the hell do you mean that Channing belongs to a Neo-Nazi hate group? He put you in danger on purpose?”
“Dad…stop!” I went over to him. “Keep your voice down. Channing used to belong to this group. He stepped down and denounced the group, because he loves me. He got out of it for me and it was never something he wanted to do. His father forced it upon him,” I argued. I then pulled back, nearly forgetting that Mrs. Holloway was sitting there. “His mother saved me, by telling Channing what was happening. She is a good person, and I don’t want you to put down Channing, because he is the man I always thought he was.”
At that moment, Mrs. Holloway stood up. “I know that this comes as a shock. I’ll admit that my husband and son’s attitude is shocking. If I could have stopped it before it happened, then I would have. I never wanted Kemara or Channing to get hurt,” she said.
My dad and mom turned to her. The waiting room went still and Mrs. Holloway spoke again.
“You have a very special daughter. From the moment I met her, I knew that she would be the perfect partner to my son. I would have done anything to protect her from my husband. Through the years, he has hardened. I can’t even tell you when it happened, but he was a good man. His family has just come up with wrong theories on people, and I’m sorry that your daughter was caught in the middle. You have to believe me when I say that Channing truly loves her. He’s nothing like his father, and I’ve always known it.”
I watched her pour her heart out. I praised her silently for taking the stand. I turned to my parents. “My love for Channing is real and his love for me is too. Don’t blame him, because his father did this to him and he did it to Damon, Channing’s brother.”
“Excuse me!” Mrs. Holloway said.
