Ignorance

I walked right past the Kirkwood Imo's Pizza on Sunday.

Monday, I hung out with my baby half-brother, Jacob, who is actually eleven. He lives in St. Louis, with my dad. 

Tuesday, I watched the news. A boy had been kidnapped from Union, MO. His name was Ben Ownby and he was twelve.  

Wednesday, I talked to my dad. Things were normal.  

Thursday, I went for a run. Things were normal. 

Friday, I watched the news and the manager from the Kirkwood Imo's, whom I had seen on Monday, adorned the screen. 

Saturday, my dad called me and asked if I had heard the story. He also asked if I had heard from my other brother, Jackson. 

Michael Devlin, the manager of the Kirkwood Imo's Pizza was taken into custody on Friday. On Monday, a boy named Ben Ownby had been kidnapped by a white truck from Union, MO. An identical white truck sat outside of Mike Devlins apartment and some neighbors thought it looked familiar to the vehicle the news declared was the captor of Ben Ownby. Police arrived at the house in southeast Kirkwood, two miles from my dad's house. Here, they found not only Ben Ownby, but another boy named Shawn Hornbeck. Hornbeck looked oddly familiar to a boy that had been kidnapped four years prior.  Indeed, it was the male from Richwoods, MO who had been kidnapped at age twelve. He was now sixteen. Hornbeck and Ownby were found at Michael Devlin's apartment in January 2007. Days later, Devlin would be accused. Months later, he would be sentenced to three life sentences for sodomy and kidnap and molestation. 

Saturday, my dad had watched the news with my little brother Jacob. Due to the age similarity between Ownby and my brother, my father ignorantly said, "Jacob, if anyone ever touched you, I hope you would feel comfortable enough to tell me. Okay?" Jacob looked away. My dad said, "Son...you know I love you. You can tell me anything." And Jacob cried. He broke down when my dad asked him who had touched him. And my dad became furious. 

The following day, Sunday, my dad drove to my mom's house, a mile away, where my brother Jackson lived. He lost it at the door and told my mother to let him in. When my mother asked what was wrong, my dad said that he was going to murder Jackson, his own son. 

"Jackson is at a friends house," my mom said, "And Rob, it's the Lord's day."