The day that Jack Andrew Mercer's life changed forever occurred one late night in March of 1993. It was around 11 o'clock when Jack was brought to the hospital after suffering yet another brutal beating. The fresh cuts and bruises mixed with the old ones schocked nearly everyone, except Jack himself. He was more than used to it. He fought almost helplessly as doctors and nurses attempted to treat his wounds. If there was anything Jack hated more than hospitals, it was being touched. Eventually though, he gave up struggling and let them tend to his various injuries. After about 30 or so minutes, a man in his mid to late 40's came through the door to the hospital room that Jack was in, just as a nurse was finishing cleaning up another one of Jack's wounds.
"I'll be back in just a moment with some more saline", the nurse prompted, more towards Jack than the man seeing as she didn't want to further scare the timid ten-year-old. As the nurse left and Jack focused his attention on the man, he began to visibly shake. "Jack, I'm Officer Mahoney. I'm here to help you", the man, now known to Jack as Officer Mahoney, introduced himself before taking a few steps closer in order to sit beside Jack on the bed, but then changed course altogether after seeing Jack's frightened state. Instead, he chose the seat farthest away from the bed. Though of course, this action did nothing to slow the fast-paced beating of Jack;s heart. In times like this, his fear would always try to overtake him. Sometimes, it succeeded.
"Now, I know you're scared, but you've got to talk to me, Jack", the officer began, "I know you've dealt with abusive foster homes before, but I need to know the story on this one", as always, the boy remained silent. Mahoney sighed before continuing, "Alright. If you don't want to talk, that's fine. But I will need you to try and answer some questions. Okay?" he waited for a response, but knowing he wouldn't get one, began to ask questions.
"Is this the first time your current foster parents have hurt you like this?" he questioned, receiving a small shake of the head from Jack, "When was the first? After you got there four months ago?" a quick nod. Before anymore questions could be asked, the nurse stepped back in with more items in her hands than just saline.
"Okay, sweetheart. Time to finish fixing you up", she stated with a simple smile, placing several of the said items onto the side table.
"I'll be back. I just need to make a quick phone call", Mahoney announced before quickly stepping out of the room and letting the nurse finish her work. As soon as the door to the room was closed, Mahoney made his way to the nearest phone and dialed a number which he knew by heart. The line rang all but three times before a woman answered.
"Yes, Evelyn? It's John Mahoney", he began.
"Oh, hello John. Is there a problem? I'm just finishing up dinner with my boys", Miss Evelyn Mercer herself responded.
"Well, I have this young boy here down at Detroit City Hospital. I think it's something you need to see", Officer Mahoney explained. There was a short silence before Evelyn responded.
"I'll be there in about 5 or 10 minutes", she announced before saying goodbye and hanging up the phone.
Ten minutes later, just as she had said, Evelyn Mercer arrived at Detroit City Hospital. Just as she walked through the door, Officer Mahoney walked up to her and lead the way to Jack's room while he explained the situation to her.
"This boy's had it hard, Evelyn. Going from foster home to foster home; you can't even begin to imagine the things this kid has beent through", Mahoney explained to her.
"What exactly brought him here tonight?" she questioned.
"The neigbor of his current foster parents called in after hearing him screaming. When cops finally arrived, he was bleeding like crazy, multiple wounds just about everywhere visible. As far as we know, it was mostly from a belt. Although, there are plenty of scars and bruises from past beatings", Evelyn's face dropped slightly from this news, as it always did whenever she heard of harsh abuse cases such as this. As they stopped in front of the window to see inside of Jack's room, Evelyn was able to see him for the first time. What she saw nearly brought tears to her eyes.
"He's very quiet, hasn't said a single word since he got here. I tried asking him some questions earlier, but got nothing but a few nods", Evelyn was hardly listening as she watched the nurse wrap Jack's arm.
"What's his name?" Evelyn suddenly asked, almost in a whisper.
"Jack Andrew Marston"
"Jack..." the officer watched her for a moment, wondering if she were ever going to move from her spot in front of the window. "Can I see him?" she then wondered.
"Of course. Let me just tell him so that he won't get too scared. He's very skittish", was Mahoney's answer before he left her side to enter the room. As he entered the room and walked towards Jack, Evelyn noticed Jack flinch slightly. Seconds later, Mahoney came back out and told Evelyn that she could see Jack. As she entered the room, the nurse left and Evelyn made her way towards Jack, stopping a few steps short to avoid scaring the young boy anymore. The first thing she noticed almost immediately were the bright blue eyes that Jack had.