The clinic contacted the appropriate child-protection office and documented the concern that returning Leo to Hank would place him at risk. A supervising officer from a neighboring jurisdiction arranged to take an initial statement, rather than leaving the matter in Higgins's hands. Sully made a call to a Phoenix attorney he trusted, a woman named Rosa Becerra who had represented injured workers and helped young people navigate housing and employment disputes. She explained that the club could offer transportation and support, but that nobody should confuse a handshake with legal authority over a minor.
'He doesn't go back to the man who hurt him,' Sully said into the phone.
'Then we make the record clear,' Rosa replied. 'The injuries, the clinic report, his statements, the other children, and exactly where he can stay safely tonight. Do it properly, Jack. He deserves an outcome that doesn't collapse after one angry phone call.'
Sully glanced at Leo, who was sitting on an examination table studying the silver lighter in his hand. 'That's what I want.'
'Good. Then don't make it harder by acting like you own the road.'
Sully sighed. 'Teresa already said something like that.'
'I'm sure she did.'
Leo heard enough of the exchange to understand that the adults were discussing him, not simply making plans around him. When Rosa came on speakerphone, she asked whether he would be willing to speak with an advocate and whether he wanted help checking on the two children still in the Dawson house. Leo said yes to both questions.
His voice shook when he described Jaden and Mia. He told Rosa about the locked refrigerator, the extra jobs, and the nights when Hank's temper became frightening. He also told her he had left a note, and that Mia might still have it. Rosa wrote everything down. She did not promise an immediate rescue in dramatic terms; she promised to contact the correct office and to keep following the report until someone had checked on them.
At sunset, with a clinician having cleared Leo for travel and protective arrangements under review, Sully and a smaller group of riders set out toward Phoenix. The rest dispersed in groups to their own destinations. They had begun the day as a formidable gathering drawn together by trouble on the highway. They ended it with a sober understanding that one teenager had needed far more than their numbers or their noise.
The desert changed as evening came. The raw glare softened, and long shadows stretched across the roadside hills. Leo rode behind Sully, watching the Road King's newly repaired engine work smoothly beneath them. He could feel the confidence of a machine that no longer depended on an improvised plate holding back a leak.
They stopped once for food. Leo chose a hamburger, though when it arrived he discovered he could eat only half without feeling overwhelmed. Sully wrapped the rest and carried it with them. Nobody teased him for eating slowly. Nobody counted the food or told him he owed labor for it.
At the stop, an older rider named Ben Mercer asked Leo about the repair. 'Heard you got Sully's bike moving with junk from an old refrigerator.'
'Temporary repair,' Leo corrected. 'It would've failed if he kept riding it.'
Ben grinned. 'You sound like my old shop teacher.'
'My dad was particular.'
'Good mechanics usually are.'