Cara stared into space as the therapist tried to make sense of her nightmares. She knew what they were: pain and suffering she had suppressed to spare herself more. She ignored his monotonous voice as he repeated the same spiel he demanded every month.
"You have to confront him or you could become progressively worse." He stated. Cara shook her head.
"I won't see that man until he is in an orange jumpsuit with a plate of glass between us." Cara repeated her own demand. She refused to see her father unless he was in prison and there was inch thick glass between them.
"Well, then there is nothing I can do if you refuse to solve the problem. His abuse isn't going to fade with time. You must confront him to achieve any sense of normality in your life." He babbled on. Cara tuned him out. She watched the clock hands tick away the last few minutes of their session. When the hand struck ten, she stood and started walking towards the door. "Miss Frost. I sincerely hope you will consider speaking to him. A median would help you if there is no other way." Cara ignored him. She wouldn't speak to him while he could still get to her .She stepped lightly down the steps of the office, climbing in her car and driving to the airport.
"Stupid blighter," Cara mumbled. She couldn't wait to get back on the road, back to her normal routines. She slumped in her plane seat, just wanting to be on the move again. The plane took off and Cara tried to sleep, knowing she wouldn't get any tonight.
"Look what I have here, Cara. Do you know what this is?" his sardonic voice echoed. Cara shook her head, holding back a scream of terror for what was to come. "It's a search warrant from the police. They get to look around here and they can take anything they want. Do you know what this means?"
"No, I don't." Cara tried to keep her voice calmer than how she really was.
"It means you told them something. They couldn't have gotten this unless somebody told them they needed to look here. And you are the only one who I know they have talked to." He growled, grabbing her by her brown hair.
"Please, I didn't tell them anything. And I saw them talking to the neighbors while you were on your business trip." Cara pleaded, trying to divert the pain from her.
"Really? Good girl, Cara, always observant. Now tell me: which of the neighbors did they talk to?" He released her hair, letting her fall to the floor.
"The next door neighbors and the ones across the street; I didn't see anyone else." She started crying. He looked down on her, masked anger in his face.
"Good girl." He stormed out of the house and slammed the door behind him. Cara took her chance. She ran to her small bedroom, pulling out the light suitcase and climbed out the back window. She threw the case over the back fence and climbed over herself. He would kill her when he found out she had lied to him. She dropped on the other side of the wood fence, ignoring the shooting pain in her ankle. She grabbed the suitcase and ran to her one sanctuary: her tree. It was a big tall oak, and she had spent many years up in this tree when the world got too rough to handle. She managed to climb up with the case; she sat on a wide branch and shivered as a wind blew past. Cara was free. She could go to the police and tell them everything. She could demand protection for herself. But she had to get to the station first. Three miles was a long way and there weren't many places to hide in this city.
Cara shot awake; she pinched the bridge of her nose. She could only be glad for one thing about her nightmares: she didn't cry out, she just woke up. Sleep was out of the question for the rest of the flight but she couldn't help but try. She lay in a resting doze, not quite out enough to sleep, but enough to lose notice of everything around her.
When the plane finally landed, Cara grabbed her luggage fast and bolted from the airport. She wanted to be back among the monotony of WWE Smackdown. It was easier to forget what had been when she looked at what was happening now. She loaded things into her rental car and drove to her hotel. She was tired but she would have to catch small naps between the madness of the days ahead. Cara laid the suitcase in the corner and crawled onto the bed. She needed more sleep to get through the day; her eyes drifted shut and she fell into a light doze.
The light suitcase thudded behind as Cara ran through the rain-soaked streets. She ducked under a bus stop overhang. She glanced around at the dim street signs. Two more blocks and she would be at the police station. A car's headlights passed and she sat huddled on the bench. When the street was dim again, Cara walked hurriedly in the rain and crossed the street. Her ankle was throbbing harshly; she brushed wet, dark lochs from her face.
"Just two blocks. Just two more blocks." Cara thought to herself. She reached another stoplight and hurriedly pressed the button to cross. Once the light changed, she ran as fast as her throbbing leg would. "One more block." She thought again. Another car's headlights appeared ahead and Cara ducked into an alley. Her heart beat in fear as the car sped by. She ran again once it had passed enough; the sign of the police station glowed softly in the rain. She renewed her effort and pressed on despite the renewing pain. She reached the door and pushed the heavy glass, her wet fingers barely able to grip the handle. She stumbled into the lobby like a drowned rat.
"Miss, are you ok?" the receptionist asked.
"I want to speak to Sergeant Williams. I will only speak to Sergeant Williams." Cara breathed.
"Ok, hang on a moment." The woman hurried off down a hall. Cara dropped the suitcase and shivered as the water dripped off her.
"Cara! Did you walk here in the rain?" Sergeant Williams wrapped his arm around her shoulders and led her to his office. "Mary, get me some towels and some fresh clothes." The receptionist scampered off and he sat Cara in a chair. "What are you doing here?"
"I want to confess everything he has done. I ran away from him but I want to be placed somewhere safe from him. Please." Cara pleaded.
"Ok Cara. Let's not worry about anything else until we get you some fresh clothes." Sergeant Williams assured her. Mary appeared with some clothes and several towels. "Mary, take her into the bathroom and help her get cleaned up." Mary wrapped her arms around the young Cara and led her from the room. Another officer stepped into the room.
"Is that the girl?" he asked. Sergeant Williams nodded. "Is she going to confess?" He nodded again. "Poor thing; only seventeen and she must turn in the one man she has for family."
"Well, it's not bad enough for her already. She already admitted to three attempts of suicide. This is the closest she can get to salvation." Sergeant Williams ran a hand through his short hair.
"Yeah, is there any chance for foster care for her?" the officer asked.
"We'll get her a good family, arrange a job, and set up therapy. There is no way she could walk away from this unscathed." Sergeant Williams began scribbling some notes on a pad.
Cara woke slowly. She didn't feel shaken from the memory this time. For once she woke up with only a sad sense of remembrance. It was only the dream of Sergeant Williams that didn't wake her with fear. She sat up and rubbed her eyes. The clock said she had been sleeping for almost three hours.
"Longest nap I've gotten in a long time." Cara stretched and walked to the bathroom. She washed her face and combed her hair before she grabbed a jacket and left. As she walked into the management office, Josephine stood from her desk.
"Cara, I need you to do me a few favors. Deliver these to the locker rooms but you have to hand deliver them to each person. Each thing is different and they have to receive them." Josephine put a tall stack of papers in her arms. Everything has their name on the front so just make sure the right person gets it." Josephine quickly had her on her way to the locker room. Cara knocked clumsily on the door.
"Delivery! Everyone decent?" she called. The door opened and she quickly began passing out the papers. "Shannon Moore?" she held the script up, not seeing him. "Jamie," she gave him the next script. "Mordetzky, Alvin, and David F." She passed the last of the scripts out. "Is Shannon not here yet?" she asked.
"He's in the shower. Just leave it for now." Jamie stood next to her.
"This is time-sensitive and I was told to hand deliver it to him." Cara objected. Chris stood and came closer to her.
"Don't worry. I'll give it to him the moment he gets out." Chris tried to pull the script from her hand.
"I cannot ignore what I've been ordered to do. If he is not available now, I will deliver it after I finish my delivery to the Divas locker room." Cara placed the script behind her back and pulled the door open. Jamie slammed the door shut.
"Don't worry about it. The Divas never need a script anyway. You can stay here until Shannon gets out." Jamie sneered. Cara glanced nervously among the faces.
"Please, just let me go." Cara's voice shook. Jamie shook his head, grabbing her shoulders.
"I don't think so. How about you show us that pretty little face?" Jamie drawled, threading his fingers through her hair and gripping tightly.
"No. Let me go!" Cara pushed away, earning a slap from Jamie.
"Time for some fun!" Jamie grinned maliciously. He ripped the sleeve of her sweater, grinning again at the pale skin he saw.
"GET OFF HER!!" an angry voice yelled and the sound of bodies hitting walls and floors echoed. Cara felt firm but friendly hands take her arms and pull her out the door. Cara fell against a crate, breathing heavily. "Are you ok? Did they hurt you at all?" Cara nodded, cradling her arm. "Did they hurt you?" a gentle hand touched her shoulder but Cara jumped.
"Don't!" she exclaimed, hiding her arm behind her. Shannon stood with a concerned face. His wet hair left water droplets running down his face around his green eyes.
"Come on; let me take you to Josephine's office." Shannon offered, gently touching her shoulder. Cara shied slightly but followed him anyway. Shannon opened the door and Josephine jumped up from a table as she saw Cara.
"Cara! What happened sweetie?" Josephine pulled Cara into a soft hug, holding her while she cried. "Shannon what happened?" she looked at him while soothing Cara.
"She was delivering stuff to the locker room when they started feeling a little horny. Jamie Noble is the one who tore her sleeve off." Shannon stood by the door, unsure whether to come closer or to stay back.
"Who all was involved?" Josephine asked, still holding Cara.
"Noble, Mordetzky, and Alvin," Shannon listed off. "Everyone else just stood there."
"Thank you, Shannon. I'll take care of those three. Tell them to come here immediately." Josephine took Cara by her shoulders. "Go in there and clean up. I'll get you a jacket or something to cover up that." She nodded at the younger woman and she walked into the bathroom.
"Is she alright? She was awfully jumpy when I got her into the hall." Shannon watched the bathroom door.
"Cara has her own issues; it's nothing you need to worry about, Shannon. Just tell those three hooligans to get here now." Josephine composed herself as he left. She heard Cara crying in the bathroom and she walked to the door to speak with the young woman. "Cara, I'm going to close the door so I can speak to those idiots. I'll open the door when they're gone so just stay in here; clean up a little bit and I'll be in here in a minute." Josephine closed the door as Alvin, Chris and Jamie walked in, looking innocent. "I hope you three have ways to live if you weren't here." Josephine started.
"Josephine," Jamie began, "we didn't do anything. Shannon is picking a fight with us."
"Who said Shannon told me about this issue?" she glared pointedly at them.
"Ok," Chris shrugged.
"You three assaulted one of my assistants. Because of it, all three of you are suspended for a month." Josephine grabbed three papers from her desk and began filling them in.
"Josephine," Alvin objected. "You can't suspend us because of this!" She shook her head.
"I can, Alvin, because I am the stage manager. You three could face serious charges if Cara decides to press them. Now, pack your bags and get out of the arena. Your suspension will be without pay." Josephine turned her back on them and waited until they left. Cara came out once the door slammed shut; she wrapped her arms around her waist. "Are you ok, Cara?" She nodded mutely.
"Can I borrow a jacket? I'd like to go home." Cara asked softly.
"I can give you a jacket but I can't let you leave. I'll have you transferred to my personal assistant. From now on, you work in here for me." Josephine handed her a sweater. Cara nodded almost dumbly and sat at the table.
"I am going to finish your deliveries. Stay here and I'll be back in a moment." Josephine told her. She closed the door and Cara sat, huddling in her chair. Everything around her felt cold and unfriendly. A knock on the door made Cara jump; Shannon Moore poked his head in.
"Josephine asked me to come keep an eye on you." He explained, leaning against the back of the door.
"I'm fine, really," she said quietly. She pulled the jacket closer to her. Shannon didn't reply, just leaning against the door. She shivered slightly, shifting in the chair. The room was quiet until someone tried to open the door while Shannon leaned against it. The person outside tried again and Shannon face-planted on the carpet.
"That was fun." He groaned and rubbed his nose as he stood. Cara giggled, covering her smile with a sleeve of the jacket. Josephine stepped in, rolling her eyes at Shannon, and she saw Cara giggling.
"Shannon, I think we now know how to make Cara feel better: hurt you somehow." Josephine smiled.
"Sounds fun. Can it just not involve doing more face-plants?" Shannon kept rubbing his nose. Cara kept giggling from the chair. He glanced up to see a beautiful smile on Cara's face. "Or I could do more if she has such a pretty smile." She blushed and Shannon grinned.
"Good boy, Shannon. Head back to the locker room and I'll call you when you are needed to do more face-plants." Josephine laughed. He mock-saluted the stage manager and trotted out of the door. "It's good to see you smile, Cara." The young woman smiled a little more. "Why don't you head back to the hotel? I've changed my mind. You shouldn't work right now." Cara nodded slightly and grabbed her purse from the desk. Josephine led Cara to her car, placing a small kiss to her cheek before Cara drove away.
MY GOODNESS! How many reviews could I get for one chapter? Wow. Ok, thanks to everyone:
lknights91--I know. That's why I did this to him. And just wait until the Russian gets a hold of him...
Twinjodi--of course it doesn't. Still don't remember why I picked it...
tiana ()--I'm glad you like it.
rory21--of course it will get better. How can she not be happy with Shannon running around?
SBMFanatic--thank you and I'm glad you enjoy it
Priincess Cena--Thank you for your lovely compliment.