STOAATROTS8

Her wrist was throbbing and her cheek was beginning to swell. Why did Jess hit her? She knew deep down it was because she had tried to refuse to do what he wanted her to do but shouldn't it be her decision? But then again, he had helped her with food and rent while she was unemployed. What would she have done if he hadn't come through for her? Probably ended up on the streets, she knew. Then the irony of that thought hit her. How was this any different? Here she was in a tent in the middle of who-knows-where about to have sexual intercourse for the first time…..with a stranger who had actually paid money for her virginity. She was no different than those girls who hung out near the bus stop when she was working the night shift. She saw how men looked at them; some looked lustfully and some looked disgustedly. No, she was no different than them. She was trash; nothing more than street trash….bought, about to be used then tossed away.

She sat down on the sleeping bag with her legs curled into a "c" beneath her. She slipped off her shoes and set them near the edge of the tent wall. She tried to use her left hand but her wrist hurt too much so she began to fumble with the buttons on the blouse she didn't recognize using only her right hand. She had managed to open the top two buttons when the dark haired man entered the tent followed now by a second stranger….two of them? Oh no, no please no….not two at the same time? She quickly turned her head away not wanting to look them in the eyes. She knew that they didn't even consider her to be human; just nothing…..and nobody….and she was filled with shame. Her fingers moved down to the third button hoping that these two men didn't want anything violent. Maybe just straight sex; each man having a turn with her.

"Hey, Sarah….." the dark haired man spoke as he kneeled down in front of her. She held her breath waiting for him to do something but not quite sure what it would be.

"No, no, no….sweetie, don't do that. That's not why you're here." He looked up at Roy with eyes pleading for help. Then he reached toward her and began to refasten the buttons.

"Why don't we take a look at that wrist ok?" Roy said kneeling down beside Johnny. He eased his fingers beneath her upturned wrist and noted how she recoiled at his touch. Her lips were a straight thin line as they were being pressed together tighter and tighter. "I'm not gonna hurt you, Sarah, but you might have a broken wrist. I can see it's starting to swell," Roy offered sympathetically. She made no comment but instead continued to sit in stunned silence.

"I'll check her pupils, Roy. She took quite a blow to her right cheek." Johnny reached into his shirt pocket and pulled out his pen light. He touched her chin gently; tilting her head back ever so slightly. He could feel her trembling and longed to console her. She was absolutely terrified and he knew it. While Roy slowly turned her wrist from side to side checking it out, John explained to her how and why he was going to check her pupils. No response to his explanation. He clicked the pen light on and began sweeping it across her swollen eye. Repeating this action in her left eye, he announced, "Equal and reactive, Roy." Breathing a sigh of relief, he said "That's a good sign, Sarah." Again, no response and still no eye contact.

Roy had moved from her lower arm to her fingers in his examination. "Sarah, can you squeeze my hand? I need to know if it hurts when you move your fingers." He explained in his softest and kindest voice. A slight squeeze was all he felt but John noticed the definite wince in her face indicating that the movement was in fact painful. "Whoa, whao, Roy…that hurt didn't it, Sarah?"

She barely shook her head in affirmation. It was enough for the attentive paramedics to notice.

"Ok, Sarah…we know that you are scared to death right now but we aren't going to hurt you. I know what you heard out there and I know you probably don't believe us but it's the truth." Roy was trying to soothe her shakiness and ease her tension. "Johnny, this wrist needs a splint and some ice on it. Not sure if it's broken or just a bad sprain. You got anything we can brace it with so I can splint it?"

Johnny thought a minute, "uh, yea…. actually I think I might. Let me see if that stuff is still in the back of the Rover. Be back in a sec." He left Roy with the girl and ran to his vehicle. After scrounging around in the back for a minute he found a paint stirring stick that he had never used. It was perfect. He rushed back into the tent and saw Roy with her injured wrist lying in his open hand while he was using his other arm to ease her down onto the sleeping bag. "Hey Johnny, can you straighten out her legs and let's elevate them a little. She's feeling faint."

Johnny looked at her face and noticed it had gotten very pale and she was diaphoretic. He shoved an ice chest toward her feet. Carefully, he unfolded her legs out from under her and lifted them onto the ice chest. He then took a light blanket and covered her with it. Roy eased her wrist down, "I need to find some cloth to wrap your wrist with ok?" He wasn't asking permission. He knew that she needed to feel like nothing was going to be done without her permission; she needed to feel like her body was indeed hers and not his and John's. "Johnny, you got your hunting knife or anything I can cut up a -shirt with? I need strips to secure the splint."

Johnny removed his hunting knife from his backpack and handed it to Roy. His action did not go unnoticed by their victim and they both heard her gasp. "Oh, sweetie, take it easy, take it easy. It's ok." Her breathing was rapidly increasing and John knew he had to slow her down. "Slowly, Sarah, breathe slowly or you'll hyperventilate." He tried to get her to look at him but she refused. She was watching Roy cut up the t-shirt. "Easy now," Johnny repeated. He's just gonna wrap your wrist," he soothed.

"Do you feel sick to your stomach" asked Roy, thinking she might vomit. She shook her head negatively as Johnny began to bathe her face with the cold damp rag from earlier. This seemed to help her somewhat and her breathing began to slow down.

"Alright, you're starting to pink up a little, Sarah," Johnny said with a slight grin. In a few more minutes, I'm going to lower your legs back down level with your heart ok?" he asked knowing he'd get no answer. Roy tied off the splint and then John wrapped the blanket underneath her bare legs and used his foot to push the ice chest out from underneath them. He then laid them down gently making sure she was completely covered.

"Do you think you could take a few sips of water? We've got plenty of food, juice, water…..you are welcome to all of it. But I know you need some fluids ok?" explained Johnny.

She closed her eyes. How long had it been since she ate or drank anything? The park, maybe? How long ago was that? She nodded her answer 'yes.' Her emotions were swirling again. What she was experiencing was not what she had anticipated …neither from Jess a little while ago, nor from these two now. She felt a hand beneath her head lifting it slightly while a cup made contact with her parched lips. "Here you go, Sarah, just a couple of sips, ok?" The voice belonged to Johnny, she thought. She swallowed the cool liquid feeling her dry throat being quenched. "Atta girl" she heard him say. "More?" she heard him ask but simply nodded negatively and felt her head eased back to its original resting place. Confusion swept through her brain leaving a fog in its wake. She was sleepy again but too afraid to sleep; and too tired not to. She felt herself drifting into that state of consciousness that is neither sleep not wakefulness. She lay perfectly still willing herself to listen to the conversation taking place above her as the two men contemplated their next move.

Jess continued driving down the winding road. This place had one way in and one way out. He made it to the final stop sign before pulling out onto the highway without noticing that he was being followed. Tim Johnson's grey Ford Bronco was just a couple hundred yards behind the rust colored sedan. He would see to it that Karl Jessup paid for his crimes both past and present. He'd also make sure that he never again stole the future from a young college student whose life had only begun.

"Sarah, you still with us?" asked Roy before looking up at his partner and commenting, "I think she's sleeping. She's had quite an emotional experience."

"Yea, so have we….. " came John's response. He watched as her chest began to rise and fall in a rhythmic manner. "What should we do now?"

"You're asking me?" Roy retorted.

John let out a long sigh while sitting beside the sleeping girl. He looked up at Roy knowing he had a lot of explaining to do. "Roy, I don't know where to start."

"Well, the beginning is usually a pretty good spot," Roy chided – only half kidding.

"Huh, well…..it's a long story but I'll try to give you the Cliff's notes version, ok?" said Gage.

"Partner, right now I'll take any version I can get…..just so it's true." With that, Roy stretched out his legs and leaned back on one elbow. He was determined to find out how his junior partner had weasled him into this mess.

"Well, several years ago when I first moved to L.A…" started Johnny remembering the first time he'd ever even heard the term sex slaves.