Claire was sitting on the edge of her bed. Her body wracked with sobs as she impulsively bit her thumb while tears ran down her face. Her usual pristine appearance was replaced with a rugged, disheveled look, a look no one had ever seen before. Her long, dark red hair was slightly frizzed, and the loose curls at the ends were beginning to get matted. She didn't know if she was covered in dirt or bruises, or both. Her hand shook as she reached for her cell phone that was on her bed side table. She wiped away the tears and began dialing.

Ring. Ring. Ring.

Finally someone answered.

"Hello ?", a female voice said.

"Karen ?" , her voice sounding smaller than ever as she struggled to hold back her sobs.

"Hey, I was just about to call you. What's wrong ?" she asked concerned .

Claire tried to answer, but couldn't find her voice. All that came out was short whimper like cries that eventually turned into sobs.

"Claire ? Claire, are you okay ?"

She took a deep breath.

"Claire?"

"Karen something happened.." is all she managed to say before her breathing suddenly became labored and she felt like she didn't have any air.

"Claire, talk to me . What happened? Are you hurt?"

Claire could only manage to get short breaths in and was on the verge of hyperventilating.

"Karen I need you. Please, Can you -"

Her breaths continued to shorten, and her tears continued to fall.

"Calm down, calm down. I'm on my way. I'm gonna pack a few things and I'm coming. Okay? "

Claire nodded, even though she knew Karen couldn't see her. She managed to get out a faint okay.

CUT TO: KAREN AT HOME

Karen hung up the phone and stood there with worry and panic spread across her face. Her husband notices.

"You okay honey?" Scott said.

"Yeah, I just got off the phone with Claire." She said as she made her way to the closet grabbing her suitcase.

"And...? You're leaving ?"

"She said she needs me. Honey are you gonna be okay with the boys by yourself for a few days ? " she said now putting clothes in her suitcase.

"Yeah but what's wrong ? Is she alright?"

"I don't know. She was crying, all she said was she needed me. I mean I can't just not go"

"I'm not saying don't go, but if you don't even know what's wrong how can you be sure it's worth flying all the way down there? Is there any way you can find out from someone else?"

She paused for a second.

"You're right." She picked up her phone again and began dialing.

CUT TO: ZARA AT OFFICE PARTY

Zara is sitting by the bar sipping her drink , that no doubt a man had sent over to her. She scrolled through her emails , not paying attention to the chatter and loud music surrounding her.

The bartender came up to her .

"Can I get you anything else? Compliments of that gentleman over there" he said pointing.

Zara only briefly looked up.

"A scotch on the rocks with a twist please."

"You've got it"

She continued on her phone when it starts ringing. It was her bosses sister. That's odd. She's never called her directly before, she didn't even know she had her number. She was probably looking for Claire and couldn't reach her. Claire only left maybe half an hour ago. She sighed and answered.

"Hello ?" Her British accent echoed into the phone.

"Hi, is this Zara ?"

"Yes. Are you looking for Ms. Dearing ?" She asked confused.

"Uh, no, not exactly. This is her sister Karen."

"Yes I know who you are. "

"Great. Can you just tell me what's going on ? Is Claire okay? "

She got a confused look on her face as the bartender set her drink down in front of her. She mouthed the words Thank You and nodded.

"What do you mean is she okay? Why wouldn't she be ? I was just with her "

"She called me a few minutes ago and she's crying her eyes out but she didn't say what was wrong."

"I just saw her maybe 30 minutes ago. Our company's having there annual party tonight but she said she was tired and went home."

"Well, would you be able to stop by her place and check on her and let me know ? I could barely understand her she was crying so much. "

Zara took a long chug of her drink before responding.

"Absolutely. I'll go right now. " she said as she grabbed her purse and made her way to the door.

"Thank you so much. God I'm so worried, I'm like freaking out." She said, sounding slightly relieved.

"I'm sure she's fine. She had a few drinks , she's probably just feeling sick. I'll let you know after I talk to her , alright ?"

"God I hope so. Thanks again. "

"Mmhmm" she said as they both hung up.

Claires condo was only a 10 minute walk, if that. But after a few minutes Zara's feet started aching. Damn heels. But dressing nice was mandatory for events like this. She was dressed in a sheek black dress that fitted to her upper body, but flowey once it reached her hips. But she look like a slob compared to Claire. Claire had worn one of her dresses that was on the shorter side, which usually made her uncomfortable, but Zara didn't know why, she looked hot. Claire walked in the room and all eyes were on her, her long dark red hair flowed down her back flawlessly while her gold wedges matched her jewelry in a seamless way. Of course most of the men had to quickly look away and pretend to be interested in something else. That was there boss, they couldn't be staring at there boss like that. But Claire and Zara had been sitting at the bar for the better part of an hour before Claire had decided to leave. They had both had a few drinks and Claire had said she was tired. So Zara thought nothing of it.

EARLIE THAT NIGHT:

"Can I buy you a drink ?" A young man asked Claire as she sat on the barstool with Zara. He had to have been at least 5 years younger that Claire and probably barely old enough to drink, but she was flattered by his confidence.

"No thank you , I'm working tomorrow" she smiled meekly . She almost had to shout over the music.

"Oh, bummer." He winked at her. "Someone as sexy as you shouldn't have to work." He smiled and walked away, giving her a devilish smile.

She looked at Zara . They both burst out into laughter simultaneously.

"Oh god, how old do you think he was?" Claire asked still laughing.

"I have no idea, but Claire I'm telling you you can't come to an office party, be the hottest woman in the room and refuse to throw back at least a few of the free drinks you know men are going to be buying you all night." She smirked as the bartender slid two shots in front of them.

"Courtesy of the gentlemen in blue ." He nodded to his right.

Zara smiled and held up her shot at him. Claire looked at him and back at Zara.

"How do you know these weren't meant for you ? " Claire asked.

"Because he's still waiting for you to acknowledge him. Come on Claire, a few won't hurt."

"I really shouldn't."

"You're going to make me drink all your free drinks by myself ?" She said.

Claire smirked at her before rolling her eyes and picking up her shot glass. She held it up to the man in blue, to which he smiled (now she knew they were defiantly for her) and clinked it with Zara's and they both tossed the shot back. The burn in Claires throat was all to obvious by the look on her face.

"What was that?" She said almost coughing.

"Patron maybe. I'm not sure, but whatever it is is going to help you relax."

"Yeah, or make me throw up and have an awful hangover."

"Good ! When was the last time you had a hangover ?"

Claire thought , oh god it's been years. Maybe senior year of college ?

"Exactly!" Zara said matter-of-factly in response to Claires silence.

After a few minutes of chit chatting and laughter Lowery came over and hung out with the two for a while before being dragged away by some of the other control room guys to play beer pong, and as if on que the bartender slid over more complimentary drinks. The Patron must have been kicking in because Claire didn't hesitate before picking up the margarita and sipping on it. But after her 4th drink her eyes were getting heavy and she just needed sleep. She had always had a low tolerance when it came to alcohol, especially tequila. So she wished Zara luck finishing all the drinks that were lined up and headed home.

CUT TO: CLAIRE

Claire had just hung up with Karen and felt a small sense of relief. Her sister was coming. Thank god. All her life she always looked up to Karen for advice, even as adults. Since she moved to Costa Rica their visits had become few and far between. But they talked on the phone all the time and they still had that sister bond, a bond where she could call her at 10:30pm and tell Karen she needed her and Karen jump right on a plane, no questions asked. And that's all she really needed right now. She needed her sister.

She set her phone down and began trying to calm herself down. She took some deep breaths. After a few minutes she was able to breath normally again, despite the tears still falling. Her head still felt fuzzy and she knew she was still semi-drunk as shot stood up. She slowly walked to the bathroom. The light seemed brighter than ever, but that wasn't as bad as her seeing herself in the mirror. She almost gasped as she took in her appearance. She was wearing a short, skin tight dark blue dress that now had stains all over it. Her makeup was not totally out of place, but it was messy either way. Her hair , which had been half up half down with loose curls at the ends was now starting to frizzed and was completely down . Her arms were scrapped and she could see a bruise was starting to form on her cheek, around a cut that was starting to sting. She opened the cabinet and get out cotton balls and alcohol. She dabbed the cut , trying to be as gentle as possible. It still hurt like a bitch, but she could live with it. She didn't want to change yet, she didn't know why. She was filthy, but something told her to wait. She slowly walked out of the bathroom and out into the kitchen. Opening a cabinet she grabbed an orange pill bottle labeled 'XANAX' and took one, washing it down with some water.

CUT TO: ZARA

Zara walked into the hotel where Claires condo was located and entered the code into the elevator to go up to the top floor and getting they key she had to Claires place out.

CUT TO: CLAIRE

Standing there for a second , she didn't know what to do now. Should she call someone else ? Should she take off work tomorrow ? But her thoughts were interrupted by a knock on her door. Jumping , she thought about not answering it. Whoever it is could call her and if it isn't that important it can wait until tomorrow. Yeah, she wasn't going to answer she decided as she turned back around ignoring it. After a minute the knocking stopped. She still stood there in the kitchen, gripping the counter. She didn't even notice more tears brimming in her eyes.

Click.

Her door opened and she spun around shocked and frightened. It was her assistant, Zara. She looked concerned , annoyed , and upset all at the same time. She was still dressed up too and was holding her phone in her hand along with keys.

"Claire, what's going on ? Your sister just called me freaking the hell out and -"

She took in Claires appearance.

"Oh my god. What happened ?"

Claire sniffles before responding "This isn't a good time Zara." Her voice was shaky. She tried to turn away so Zara wouldn't see her face.

She walked over to Claire and gasped as she looked her over.

"Claire, your earlobe is torn ! "

"What?" She asked confused. She brought her hand up and felt her ear, it was bloody and indeed torn. "Oh god"

"My god, you're covered in bruises!"

Claire still didn't say anything. She was still looking at her hand, now bloody from her earlobe. She didn't know what to say.

"We're you mugged ? Do you need me to take you to the hospital ?" She said very concerned

"No. I'm fine. Karen's on her way." She said calm.

"On her way ? On her way from Wisconsin? Right now ?"

Claire nodded. Zara sighed, Karen never mentioned she was on her way, only that she was concerned. Now she knew why. Claire looked like hell.

"You really expect me to believe you're fine ?"

Zara gave her a bewildered look. Before responding.

"Well I'm staying until she gets here."

Claire felt like her voice was too weak to argue, but she tried anyway. She didn't sound convincing , but she tried.

"You don't have to-" She couldn't even finish her sentence. She felt dazed and lightheaded.

"Woah, come on- Let's sit you down." Zara led her over to the couch where they both sat down. Claire sat down easy, obviously in pain, which did not go unnoticed by Zara. She defiantly didn't end up like this just from a few drinks. Something happened.

"Can I get you anything ?"

"No. I'm just gonna wait for Karen." She said, her eyes still red and puffy. Tears threatening to fall.

Zara let out a sympathetic sigh.

"Well do you want to change ? You must be chilly."

"I will."

My god. Her voice was so light , Zara didn't know what to do. What could she do ? This wasn't the same Claire she had been doing shots with less than an hour ago.

"Let me get you a blanket then. Maybe you lay down for a bit until she gets here ? " She said, making it more of a statement that a question. Before Claire could respond Zara had hopped up and opened the closet door pulling out a neatly folded blanket. She started unfolding it and walking towards her when she noticed that Claire had shifted slightly on the couch , Zara was pretty sure she was zoned out. She didn't seem to notice Zara stopped walking and was staring at her. Her mouth slowly started to open and one hand covered her mouth. When Claire moved , her legs had shifted and part of her dress had come up, not a lot, but just enough for Zara to see bruises and an almost shiny fluid on Claires inner thighs. The realization crashed over her and she had to keep herself from panicking.

"Oh Jesus Claire" slipped out of her mouth.

Tears weld in her eyes as Claires face fell into her hands as she began sobbing again. Zara removed her hand from her mouth and slowly walked over to her fragile boss. She wasn't sure what to do. She knew she shouldn't touch her, so she placed the blanket around Claire and sat down a few inches away from her. Claire ran her hands through her hair and tried to catch her breath. She should take another XANAX, she thought. Her sobs were becoming almost uncontrollable. She wasn't hysterical, but she was upset enough that she could easily start to have another panic attack if she didn't calm down. Before she knew it Zara had gotten up and went into the kitchen and was walking over to her and handed her a glass of water.

"Here, try and drink something."

Claire took the water and took a few sips. She started calming down. Her sobs were beginning to lessen. After a few minutes she had calmed down a decent amount. She was still crying , but it was under control. It had been a while since either of them had said anything. Zara broke the silence.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

Claire sat there for a minute, not even looking up before slowly shaking her head.

"No." Her voice sounding congested as tears continued running down her face.

"You have to go to the hospital. You need to be looked at"

Claire thought for a second and then shook her head no. "I just need to think" she sounded upset now. She rested her hands on the sides of her head and was using her knees to support her arms.

"Well what do you want to do then ? You have injuries that need to be treated. " Zara insisted.

"And I'll deal with them when Karen gets here. " she said sternly.

"Okay." Zara said, obviously not agreeing with her.

Claire laid down on the couch and covered herself with the blanket.

"When she gets off the ferry can you make sure theres a car to bring her here ?"

Claire asked.

"Absolutely. Don't worry about it, I'll take care of everything. I'll go call right now." Zara said as she dialed a number while walking into the other room.

She held the phone up to her ear and listened to the rings before someone finally picked up. She quickly looked to make sure Claire couldn't hear her.

"Hello ?" he said

"Lowery, are you busy ?"

"Uh, no. I'm just leaving the office now. This party's still in full swing. Where'd you go ? You were here 10 minutes ago and then I look up and you were gone ."

"I'm with Claire. I need you to do me a favor and it has to stay between us, okay ?"

"Yeah Okay. What is it ?"

"I need you to go to the control room and get the security footage of Claire leaving the party."

"Uh, that's kind of shady but I guess I could do it. Can I ask why ? "

She paused for a minute before vaguely answering. "I'm Just looking for something. But it's really important and I need it tonight. Can you drop it off ?"

"Uh, yeah. Give me like half an hour"

"That's fine. And hey ?"

"Yeah?" He said

"Please don't watch it. If what I think is on there is on there I don't want anyone else seeing. Okay? "

"This is sounding shadier and shadier every second. What's on there that's so terrible ?"

"That's what I'm saying , I don't know yet. That's why I need to look"

"Okay. I'll be there soon."

"Thank you"

She hung up and quickly organized for Karen's pick up from the ferry. She should be here by morning.

She walked back into the room to see Claire on the couch, still awake but her eyes were droopy. Zara had never seen her boss like this. She's worked for Claire for years, she knew almost everything about her and Claire knew almost everything about Zara. She'd met her fiancé multiple times, they'd gone out to Margaritaville more that a few times, they've gone on countless business trips together and stayed in the same hotel room, they've exchanges stories about their families. Zara had met Claires sister twice , but never her nephews. She knew her and her sister talked at least once a week on the phone, sometimes for hours laughing and reminiscing. But this Claire, this broken Claire was something she'd never seen. The saddest she had ever seen Claire was after she got a phone call from her mother explaining the doctors thought she might have cancer. She was distraught for weeks after that phone call. But Zara had never seen Claire cry. Even after watching horribly sad movies, Zara cried her eyes out during every single one of those sad movies that often played at the theater. Not once did Claire cry. Claire and her went to the movies a few times a month as a break for the two of them. But being on an island they couldn't get new movies, so the park played older ones. She almost believed Claire was part robot because of her lack of emotions. But now, she knows she was wrong. Claire always have off a peppy vibe, always smiling , always made he best of a bad situation.

Zara didn't know what to do. It had been almost half an hour. Claire had drifted to sleep a few minutes ago.

Dammit , she was supposed to call Karen. She got up and quietly walked into the other room, Claires bedroom and dialed Karen's number.

"Hello ?" She said

"Hi, Karen. " she said , her tone of voice obviously revealed something was wrong.

"Hi" she answered, sounding like se was in a hurry. " I'm at the airport now. My flight leaves in 20 minutes. Did you see Claire? " she asks concerned.

Zara paused for a second.

"I'm here with her now. She just fell asleep." Zara said trying to avoid the question she knew was coming.

"Well is she okay? Did she say what was wrong?"

"She didn't say...but I think I know. And I don't think I should say until we know for sure." She said , sounding apologetic.

"What do you mean ? Was she attacked ?" She asked impatiently.

Zara signed, not knowing what to say.

"I- I think she was..assaulted." She felt sick just thinking of the real word.

Karen was quiet for a second. Whatever she was doing she had stopped and Zara now had her complete attention.

"Assaulted? Like sexually assaulted ? You think she was raped ? " Karen asked now sounding like she was about to cry.

"I think so, but she wouldn't say."

She could now hear Karen crying through the phone.

"Oh god. Is she okay ? She needs to go to the hospital."

"That's what I told her but she said she's not doing anything until you get here." Zara said sympathetically.

Karen sighed and tried to collect herself.

"Do you know who would do this ?" She said through sniffles.

"Don't worry, I have a friend bringing over security camera footage and we're gonna figure it out. It'll be fine." She said trying to give Karen some sense of relief.

"I just- I don't even know what to think . I mean, she's my baby sister. What do you even say to someone who's been raped ?" She asked

"Hey, remember we're not even 100% sure about that. When we find out we'll go from there. Okay? But for right now we just need to focus on you getting here to see Claire."

"It's a 5 hour flight. I should be there by 5:00am. "

"I've already got everything set up. Just fly safe and I'll see you in a bit."

"Okay , thanks." She said, still sounding like she was crying.

Zara hung up and stood there for a second before walking back out to the living room. Claire was still asleep on the couch. Good, she was gonna try and keep it that way. She sat down in the chair across from the sofa she was asleep on. Now all she had to do was wait for Karen.

This was going to be the longest, most upsetting 5 hours.