Chapter 4...
"Your drinks are on me tonight Callaway," Rob, the bartender, announced, setting a beer down in front of Mark.
"Oh yeah?" Mark asked. "Why's that?"
"Well once you go back to work we wont see ya so much around here," Rob shrugged. "I figure I should give you a reason to come back when you're back in town."
"You know I will," Mark assured him. Mark spent many a night in this bar since he'd been off the road. It was like a second home. He hadn't become a drunk or anything but..when he needed to get out of the house, the bar was the first place that came to mind.
Rob was about to say something else but he stopped, his eyes going wide.
"What's with the fly trap?" Mark gestured to the bartender's open mouth.
"It's all for those two," Rob smiled, pointing at something over Mark's shoulder.
Mark turned around to see what the fuss was about. He saw John first and was about to wave to his friend when he saw what Rob was so enthralled with. John was accompanied by Jessica..and Cory. John and Jessica both smiled but Cory just stood there, staring. He could see even from across the room that she was practically trembling.
Mark was completely unmoved. Anger began flooding his senses and before he knew what was happening he was up off the barstool, walking toward them.
"What the hell is wrong with you Cena?" he asked angrily. "What were you thinkin' bringin' her here?"
She stepped forward, "Mark I-"
"I don't wanna hear a damn word you have to say," Mark turned on her, pointing in her face.
"But-"
"But nothing!" he pointed. "Listen to me little girl, your words mean nothing to me."
"Mark, back off," John said, trying to push Mark away from her.
"No you back off Cena," Mark pushed the shorter man away. Mark couldn't contain his anger as he looked at her and her pathetically timid expression. Maybe it was because this was one of the first times they'd been in the same room since he found out what she did. He felt a huge rush of anger and frustration and without thinking, he grabbed Cory's hand, "Hey everyone, look who's here!"
"Mark, stop it," Jessica ordered.
"This person was supposed to be my best friend," Mark said, his voice booming throughout the bar, holding Cory's arm up high. "I thought she would never lie to me. But when she found out the woman I loved was pregnant with my child..she didn't tell me! She didn't think I had a right to know. And now..I'm never gonna see her or my child."
Mark threw Cory's arm down, making her stumble back.
"I hope you're happy with yourself Cory," Mark pointed, trembling with fury. "Because it's your fault she's gone."
Cory's eyes were overflowing with tears by the time Mark was done. She was shaking like a leaf. The entire bar had stopped moving, everyone was staring back and forth between the two of them. John and Jessica were looking on, stunned.
Cory turned around as sobs began to rack her body and she ran toward the front door.
"You know what Mark," Jessica glared at him in disgust. "You make me sick."
With that, Jessica followed her sister outside and Mark felt his breathing slowly returning to normal As the door closed, he felt a hard shove to his chest and he stumbled over a chair. He had to grab onto a table to keep from hitting the ground.
"What the hell is wrong with you man?" John asked. "How could you do that to her?"
"How could you bring her here?" Mark asked.
"She's your friend," John pointed. "And all you've done since we found out about Dawn is treat her like shit."
"What the hell do you want me to do?" Mark yelled. "You think what she did was okay? You don't think I have a right to be pissed?"
"She wanted to tell you!" John insisted. "Don't you think she tried to get D to tell you herself? She was tearing herself up every day. You have no idea how guilty she felt. And now it's killing her that she doesn't have you in her life and you treat her like that. What the fuck is wrong with you?"
"You want me to feel bad for her?" Mark laughed. "She's not a victim Cena."
"I cant imagine how you feel," John said, lowering his voice. "I don't know what I would do if I was in your shoes. I don't know how I would handle losing someone I love like that…but you might wanna take a second to think about how Cory feels."
Mark shook his head, looking away.
"You once told me that girl was like a sister to you and if I hurt her, you'd kill my ass," John reminded him. "Well who's hurting her now?"
Mark felt his jaw tighten but he didn't say anything. He didn't even look at John.
"If she was ever really a sister to you..then you need to realize that this is a time when family needs each other. She needs you Mark, and from the way you look…you sure as hell need her."
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"Okay," Lianna took a deep breath as she and Matt reached the door to Viveca's room. "Just go in there and tell her what you told me."
"Wait," Matt turned to face her. "When did we decide that I have to tell her?"
"Why wouldn't you be the one to tell her?" Lianna asked. "You told me."
"I told you, her loving younger sister, so that you could tell her," Matt pointed. "She's less likely to hit you."
Viveca had a tendency to lash out at whoever was closest when she was angry and that was precisely why Lianna had no intention of being the one to tell her about Adam's lies.
"Not necessarily," Lianna shook her head. "Look, Jeff is your brother and you were friends with Adam…technically, you're closer to the situation than I am."
"She's your sister," he insisted.
"And your friend," she retorted.
"Why don't we just go get your brother?" Matt suggested. "He can tell her."
"I thought of that," Lianna sighed. "He's not here and we need to do it now."
"Rock, Paper, Scissors," Matt pointed.
"What?"
He gave her a look and she rolled her eyes, knowing he wasn't going to give up.
"Fine," she sighed..
"Rock, paper, scissors, shoot."
Lianna smiled triumphantly when she covered Matt's 'rock' with her 'paper'.
"Two out of three," Matt suggested.
Lianna rolled her eyes and was about to knock on the door when it opened and Viveca stood there looking annoyed, "What the hell are you two doing out here? I can hear you talking."
"Well," Li smiled. "Matt has something to tell you."
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John knocked on the door to Cory's room, hoping she answered. He'd called her ten times on his way back to the hotel and she wasn't answering his phone. He felt horrible for forcing her into that situation with Mark. He really hadn't expected that to happen. He never imagined Mark would humiliate and berate her in front of a bar full of people.
"Cory," he knocked again. "Please, open the door."
After a few seconds, the door opened but to John's surprise, Cory wasn't the one who opened it. John found himself face to face with a shirtless Hunter.
"Cory's in the bathroom," Hunter informed him.
"What are you doing here?" he asked, confused. He could feel himself getting angry and he took a deep breath, trying to wait until he heard an explanation. There had to be some explanation.
"My room's next door," Hunter explained, walking out into the hall with John, closing the door behind him. "I was getting ready to go to bed and I heard her crying."
"Where's Jessica?" John frowned, wondering why Hunter hadn't taken a second to put a shirt on before rushing to Cory's aide.
"In her room," Hunter answered. "Cory told her she wanted to be alone."
"And yet you're here," John pointed out.
"Like I said, I heard her crying," Hunter said, looking annoyed. "I wasn't gonna just go to bed. Somebody had to be here for her."
John knew a veiled shot at him when he saw it and he really wasn't in the mood. He and Hunter were friends but his fuse was pretty short after dealing with Mark.
"Is there a problem?" he asked.
"Yeah there's a problem," Hunter nodded. "What the hell were you thinking Cena?"
"What?"
"You know how Mark feels about Cory and you thought it was a good idea to ambush him in a bar, probably drunk off his ass?" Hunter asked. "Are you stupid?"
"Slow down Hunter," John pointed. "I was trying to help Cory. In case you've forgotten, I'm the one who get her back here. I-"
"You're not her only friend," Hunter reminded him. "And you shouldn't have put her in that situation. You should have known better."
"She loves Mark like family and she wants to make things right with him," John said. "She cant do it if they never talk."
"Look, I'm not gonna stand here and argue with you about this all night," Hunter put his hands up. "We're all tired. We can deal with it tomorrow."
"After I talk to Cory," John said, making it clear that he wasn't about to be dismissed.
"I don't know if that's a good idea," Hunter shook his head.
"It's really none of your business," John stepped around him, knocking on the door. He knew Hunter was pissed but he didn't really care. Cory was his concern, Hunter could be pissed all he wanted.
After a few seconds the door opened and John's heart lurched when he saw her. Her eyes were puffy and bright red and her nose looked like it had been rubbed raw.
"I'm so sorry," John said, walking into the room and pulling her into his arms. He closed the door behind him, momentarily forgetting Hunter's presence. He heard the doorknob turning but the door had automatically locked. Cory didn't seem to notice and so John didn't move to open it. She clutched his shirt, crying against his chest and John held her close, kissing the top of her head.
"This is my fault," he said. "I shouldn't have taken you there."
"It's not your fault," she cried. "It's mine…Mark was right, it's my fault Dawn's gone."
John pulled away from her, gripping her shoulders tightly, "Cory, listen to me…Mark said that because he was angry but he knows that's not true. And you need to know it too."
"But if I had told him-"
"We don't know what would have happened," John told her, making her look him in the eye. "This is not your fault."
She started sobbing and collapsed against him. John looked over his shoulder, seeing that Hunter had apparently given up and gone back to his room. John lifted Cory up into his arms and carried her over to the bed. He laid down, holding her against him.
"It's gonna be okay," he whispered to her, running his hands through her hair. "Everything's gonna be okay."
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Savannah flipped through the radio stations, rolling her eyes as every one sounded more muffled than the last. She never got any good stations near the cabin. She pressed the seek button, letting it go until something clear finally came through. When she heard a voice, she turned the volume up, grateful for the noise.
"Police are searching for a suspect in the death of Michael Farisse, a 20 year old man found dead in his apartment. Initially detectives thought the young man's death was the result of a suicide but after further investigation, the college student's death has officially been ruled a homicide…So far there are no leads."
Savannah nearly lost control of the car but she held the wheel tightly, straightening it out.
"Oh my God," she whispered to herself. "Oh my God."
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Chris yawned as he dragged his bags into his hotel room. He was exhausted and he wanted nothing more than to fall onto his bed and sleep until noon the next day. He'd taken a flight to Detroit right after Raw. He hadn't been able to visit Taylor the week before and he'd promised her that he would be at the hospital bright and early Tuesday morning. He didn't bother turning the TV or any of the lights on, he just dropped his bags and flopped down on the bed. He could feel his eyelids drooping and he was about to give in to sleep when he remembered his phone in his pocket. He'd turned it off before he got on the plane and forgot to turn it back on. He turned it on and was about to toss it away when it started beeping, signaling a message. He sighed, dialing his voicemail and pressing the phone to his ear.
"Chris, it's Jonah…You need to get to the hospital as soon as you can…Something's happened with Taylor."
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Adam opened his door, surprised to see Viveca standing in front of him in a black silk robe. This was certainly a surprise. A very pleasant one.
"Viveca," he smiled. "What are you doing here?"
She was smiling at him. That was a good sign. The scent of her perfume and the tiny peek he could see of her red bra was having a dangerous effect on him.
"Well.." she smiled. "I couldn't sleep..I kept thinking about our last conversation and..I don't thinkI treated you fairly."
"You were angry," Adam shrugged. "I understand."
"You do?" she looked hopeful.
"Of course," he nodded.
"Good," she smiled. "I still feel guilty though…I feel like I should do something to..make it up to you."
Adam tried to keep a straight face although he wanted to grin from ear to ear, "What did you have in mind?"
She smiled, reaching up, her soft hand touching the back of his neck, "Something like this."
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Viveca smiled, pulling Adam's face closer to hers. He closed his eyes, anticipating the kiss and just before their lips touched, she brought her knee up as hard as she could, connecting hard with his groin.
He cried out, stumbling back, his hands gingerly cupping himself.
"You son of a bitch," she pointed. "You told Jeff I was sleeping with you?"
He seemed to be in too much pain to even hear what she was saying.
"Not even in your dreams Adam," she glared. "You are nothing compared to Jeff. And if I find out about you telling him any more lies, I will make sure you never have sex again. Understand?"
She didn't wait for a response, instead she tightened the belt on her robe and turned, walking back toward her room.
She smiled over her shoulder. He could barely stand.
"Nighty night Adam."
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Dawn was in the woods. She could feel branches scratching at her arms and legs and she was sure the bottoms of her feet were bleeding. She really hadn't known what to expect when she escaped the house but she'd been hoping for a busy road or another home, something, some way to insure her safety. Instead, she found nothing but trees. Her legs were feeling closer to normal and she raced as fast as she could muster, branches whipping her face and legs. Her lungs were on fire and she desperately wanted to stop and rest for a minute but she couldn't. She had to keep going. She had to keep running. She was running for her baby's life.
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"Carmen, you've gotta be more careful," Tamara said, cleaning the scratches on the back of the inmate's arm. She'd gotten a panicked call from one of the guards that Carmen was freaking out again and she'd hurt herself. Fortunately, she just had a few bad scratches but Tamara was starting to wonder if Carmen would ever get better. She always seemed so..troubled.
"Tami, I have to give you something," Carmen whispered.
"Carmen-"
The young woman hopped down off of her bed and reached under her mattress, pulling out a folded up piece of paper.
Carmen's hand shook as she placed the paper on the bed in front of Tamara.
"What is this?" Tami asked, confused.
Carmen didn't answer and Tami unfolded the paper, frowning in confusion when she saw the drawing. Carmen had given her quite a few drawings since she started working at the facility but this one was different. Usually her drawings were of flowers or beaches, things of that nature. This was a man's face. A man Tamara didn't recognize.
"Who is this?" she asked.
Carmen's eyes widened nervously and she gulped before she spoke, "He..He's the one..the one who killed Nancy."
"What?" Tami stared.
"I saw him, Jenks brought him..she said he was a doctor,"Carmen stammered. "But he's the one who killed her..Jenks knows. She doesn't want you to know."
"Carmen, you don't know what you're talking ab-"
"Please don't tell on me Tami," Carmen whispered. "Jenks she..she doesn't want anyone to know. Keep it..and if something happens..do what you need to do with it."
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"Don't touch me! I want Chris! Where is he?"
"Taylor!" Chris rushed past the nurse's station toward Taylor's room.
"Chris!"
Chris's heart raced as he ran toward her room. Jonah had alerted the staff that he was coming regardless of visiting hours so, fortunately, he didn't have any crazed security guards to deal with. She sounded so panicked when she called his name that his heart nearly beat out of his chest. When he got to the door, he could see Taylor in a corner, trying her best to fend off a doctor, Jonah, and another nurse. She was breathing heavily, her hair looked like she'd been pulling at it and her eyes were wide with fear.
"Taylor," he called out to her and she turned, running toward him.
He caught her, nearly falling backward.
"I'm so glad you're here," she clutched him tightly. She pressed her face against his shoulder and he quickly felt tears begin to soak his t-shirt.
"What happened?" he asked, smoothing her hair. He looked up at Jonah, "What the hell happened?"
"He was here," Taylor cried. "He was in my room."
"She says her father was here," Jonah explained.
"Taylor that isn't possible," the doctor said calmly.
"He was!" Taylor insisted. She pulled away, looking up at Chris, her eyes pleading with him to believe her. "He talked to me. I swear."
"What?" Chris stared, confused.
"He came in here, he was dressed like a doctor," Taylor cried. "He said that it's not time for me yet..he said he's gonna get them first. Chris he was in here! They don't believe me but I swear he was here."
She collapsed against him again and he held her tightly, anger flooding through him. This didn't seem like some delusion. Taylor truly believed someone had come into her room and if he had, the hospital allowed it to happen.
"I wanna know everyone whose been allowed in this room other than me," he demanded.
"Chris, I checked the logs, you're the only man that's come to see her," Jonah insisted. "You and Dr. Tolliver."
"He was here," Taylor said, shaking violently. "He was in this room."
"I need to talk to security," Chris insisted, determined to get to the bottom of this. "Can you stay here with her?"
"Of course," Jonah nodded. He was the only person in the hospital that Taylor always seemed to trust. Chris felt comfortable leaving Taylor in his care.
"Please don't go," Taylor clutched his shirt.
"I'll be right back, I promise," Chris smoothed her hair again. "Just stay with Jonah. I'll be right back."
Taylor reluctantly let him go and Chris walked out of the room. He wasn't going to leave until he found out who the hell had come into her room.
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Jonah sat down next to Taylor, putting an arm around her shoulders. He wasn't supposed to have that kind of physical contact with patients but Taylor was different. He felt protective of her, like an older brother. She was obviously terrified of something and he couldn't help but wonder. Taylor wasn't a paranoid schizophrenic. Her doctors weren't treating her for hallucinations. He'd been away from the desk and the other nurse, Kate, admitted that she had no idea who walked b y during the time that Taylor said the man came into her room. There was a possibility that this wasn't her imagination. Dr. Tolliver had convinced her to take a sedative to calm her down. He'd given her a shot and now she was sitting on the bed, her arms wrapped tightly around her. Jonah wished that there was something, anything, he could do to help her.
"Jonah, can you make sure the windows are locked?" Taylor asked quietly.
"Of course," Jonah nodded, even though he'd already done that three times. He got up, dutifully checking the window locks.
"He was here Jonah, I'm not crazy," Taylor insisted.
Jonah turned to face her, "Who was he talking about?"
She looked surprised that he seemed to believe her.
"You said he's gonna get them first…Who?"
"My sisters," Taylor explained. "He said he would get them first."
"I didn't know you had sisters," Jonah said, confused. As far as he was aware, the only family she had was her deceased parents.
"I've never met them, I don't even know their names," Taylor said. "My father always said I wasn't good enough to know them."
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Dawn ran although her legs were burning. She felt like she'd been moving forever. She was bleeding and she ached all over. Her stomach hurt and she wanted to throw up. She was so tired she thought she might pass out. Finally she stopped. Never in her life had she run this much and she needed to catch her breath. Tears began filling her eyes again as she looked around. All she could see was more trees. Where the hell was she going? How was she going to get help in the middle of nowhere? She felt a pain in her stomach and she put a hand over it, gritting her teeth. Once she felt like she could run again, she took off. She just had to keep going, the woods couldn't go on forever. Eventually she would make it to a road and flag someone down. After a few minutes, she spotted two bright lights. Headlights. She felt a burst of energy and she ran faster and harder. When she got close enough to see the outline of the car, she started waving her arms.
"HELP!" she screamed frantically. As she got closer she could see the road and she continued screaming despite the intense pain in her cheek, "HELP ME!!PLEASE!"
The car came toward her and Dawn stumbled, falling to her knees. Tears welled in her eyes as the car stopped in front of her. The lights were so bright she couldn't see the driver as they got out of the car.
Then she heard the voice and her heart stopped.
"Hello Dawn."
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"Security cant find out anything," Chris said, as he approached Jonah. "What are you doing out here? Why aren't you wi-"
"She's asleep," Jonah cut him off, standing up. "We need to talk."
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