The scene inside the hospital room was one D.B. had experienced countless times yet tonight it had a different feel an flavor, and he liked neither. He was used to these psychos going after cops but families, no that was out of bounds. "Hey Andra. How's it going?" D.B. asked the young woman, trying to make a little small talk.
She didn't answer him, she just narrowed her eyes and glared at him as if to say 'Are you fucking kidding me? How do you think it's going?' She was sitting up curled up in her bed with Nick still holding her protectively and rubbing her back.
"Right sorry, stupid question."
"They took my ring." She finally said, her voice was tired sounding and almost detached, she was looking far off across the room.
"Who took it?" D.B. questioned, was she attacked for her engagement ring? She did wear a lot of nice jewelry.
"The police. They took my engagement ring." She took her left hand out from beneath her blanket where she had been hiding it and showed Nick and D.B. "They said there was evidence on it. I want it back D.B." Her voice began to shake and she wiped at her eyes.
"We'll get your ring back dear. We need to process it as evidence and hold onto it for a little while first but I promise you'll get it back." He reassured her as best he could.
She nodded. "Thanks,"
Nick took her bare left hand in his, "Don't worry about the ring, you're more important than the ring."
She just snuggled in closer. "They took my clothes, and my necklaces, and my nose ring, and my shoes, they dug under my fingernails for evidence, and took cheek swabs, they asked me all kinds of questions and they looked everywhere for evidence, everywhere..." She trailed off, still fixated on the invisible spot across the room, her voice void of all emotion.
D.B. just nodded knowing not much could be said. "Is there anything we can get you or do for you?" He wasn't even sure she had heard him because she looked so far off.
"Can you get my cell phone, I left it back at the hotel. I want to call my No-No." No-No is what Andra and her siblings called their grandmother on their mom's side. No-No was Andra's safe person and secret keeper, she needed No-No right now! "No-No always knows what to do."
D.B. shook his head, "It's evidence."
"What about my work cell phone?" This was about to get futile.
"Was it in your purse?"
She nodded 'Yes'
"It's evidence."
"So my purse is evidence is what you're saying." Andra was annoyed.
"Pretty much. They said it had a lot of blood on it and some inside."
"I reached inside for my stun gun. I got him with my stun gun," She said with an almost etheral tone like she was remembering a fairytale.
Nick had been a CSI long enough, and had been with Andra long enough to know something was off, her tone and behavior were too inconsistent for her, she was about to snap.
"Yeah that's evidence too."
"At least I got to use it. So my Tory Burch is now blood covered evidence, along with everything inside." She said sarcastically. "Awesome." She rolled her eyes to punctuate her annoyance.
"What's a Tory Burch?" D.B. asked.
"A purse." Nick said off handedly.
D.B. put it together, he remembered once Nick complaining about Andra's shopping, something about a pair of $100 yoga pants and $300 heels. D.B. reminded Nick that women required maintenance the same way cars did so he needed to just give up that fight.
"We can't get you anything from the hotel until they're done processing it. But we can get you stuff from home."
She nodded sadly, she understood how this worked and she wasn't going to see her stuff for a long time, "Yeah, I need clothes, there's no way I'm staying in this gown tonight."
"I'll stay here with you, D.B. do you mind running to the house? Or I can call Greg."
"Honey no offense" Andra interrupted, "I love Greg and all but he is already way too comfortable and all and today is not the day to have him touching my underwear." There was an incident recently with Greg house/dog sitting for them and using their jacuzzi tub.
D.B. smiled, "I'll make the trip I don't mind."
They were interrupted briefly by the nurse, an older woman, late 40's, short, hispanic with short hair and a faint accent. "Time for your meds my dear."
"What this time Carla?" She asked as she looked down into the small plastic cup containing her latest round of meds. At least one looked like valium. "Is that valium?"
The nurse nodded 'yes,' "We have valium to help you relax and sleep and the PlanB you requested."
Nick's heart sank further knowing why she needed the PlanB, he knew it existed, he knew why it existed, he knew it was helpful for cases like this, he just never knew it would intersect with his life, not here, not now.
She shook her head 'no' and began to rock in her bed with her arms wrapped around her legs out of anger, frustration and anxiety. "I don't want to sleep, I can't sleep, no sleep for me." She protested. "I can't sleep, I can't close my eyes, I see bad things, I feel bad things."
"Take the pill." The nurse tried to reason with her, "It will make you feel better."
Still rocking. "I'm a psychologist, I have a PhD, I know mental health code and medical laws, I can refuse the valium." She was anxious and irritable and looking for a way to control the situation and doing a really bad job of hiding it. "I'm not sleeping!" Her eyes started to dart around the room manically like she was looking for a way out, she was trapped on all sides.
The nurse remained calm and soothing. "Dearie, you need to sleep. You've been through a lot tonight, be fair to your body and your mind, let them both rest.
Nick leaned down and whispered in her ear. "I'll be right here with you all night. Nothing's going to happen, I promise."
She gave up her fight, she was tired and beaten in so many ways. "Fine." She said through gritted teeth, she screwed her eyes shut as a tear slid down her cheek, she knew Carla was right and she knew Nick was being supportive and she knew she was being unreasonable and anxious but she just wanted everyone to shut the hell up and to go home, whenever the hell that was. "Can I have Gatorade, not water?" She asked the nurse.
"Red again?" The nurse asked.
"Yes please." She was still rocking and shaking.
The nurse quickly went about filling a cup with Gatorade and handed it to Andra.
Andra quickly threw back the pills and followed up with the Gatorade and swallowed both without thinking.
"Mouth check." The nurse prompted due to the valium Andra had just taken.
Andra mechanically opened her mouth and moved her tongue so the nurse could see she had in fact swallowed the pills.
"I'll leave you the rest of the bottle." The nurse gave Andra a smile as she left.
"Thanks Carla."
D.B. soon left in order to retrieve Andra her things for her overnight stay as a patient, they were keeping her for observation of her head wound, possible concussion, and the vast amount of medications they had to give her after being raped. She was not pleased, she was tired, and beaten up, and mentally and physically defeated and violated in all sorts of ways, and she just wanted to go home.
Nick stayed back with Andra while D.B. was gone. He sat in bed with her and held her while her Valium was supposed to be kicking in but he feared it wasn't because she was still rocking and holding onto herself and not noticing or talking to him at all. She was checked out and he did not blame her. It took over an hour and a needle full of thorazine for Andra to finally fall asleep, and the only reason they gave her that was because she started crying loudly and scratching at herself and ripped out an IV, there was blood everywhere. Nick called the nurses and they came running in and strapped her down, which agitated her more until they gave her the thorazine. Then she passed out.
Nick only had one thought on his mind, he was going to find whomever did this and he was going to kill them.
