A/N: Hey guys, sorry for the late update, I was a little busy this weekend, but I'll update later today, I promise! I hope you like the chap! It's a little intense, I think I'm gonna rate this chap T, it's not too graphic, but I don't wanna offend anyone, but here it is! Keep the reviews coming!

Chapter 9

Brooke slept like a baby. With Haley taking the early shift at the cafe, she indulged herself with a second cup of coffee. She still prized her privacy, but she'd discovered she liked having the company.

It was nice having her best friend living with her. It was like having a never ending sleepover.

Out of habit, she rinsed her coffee cup in the sink, set it on the drain. After a last glance around, she opened the door in the kitchen and headed down the stairs to open the shop for the day.

She'd barely turned the Open sign around, unlocked the door and moved behind the counter to unlock the register when Chris Keller walked in.

The quick spurt of alarm came first. Then she soothed it by reminding herself that he was here, and Haley wasn't.

He'd put on weight even in the three years she'd known him. There was muscle there still, but it was cushioned by too many six-packs. She imagined he'd been an attractive man once, before his face had bloated and his moody brown eyes had sunken behind bags.

With disgust, she remembered that he had tried, once or twice, to touch her. Had watched her, more than once or twice, with greedy eyes and a knowing smile.

Brooke hadn't even told Haley that. And never would.

She braced herself for the altercation, but he shut the door quietly and slowly walked towards her

"Brooke. I'm sorry to bother you."

The regretful sound of his voice and bowed head almost softened her. But she remembered the bruises on Haley's neck. "What do you want, Chris?"

"I heard Haley's staying with you."

"That's right."

"I guess you know about the trouble."

"Yes, I know. You beat her, and you were arrested."

"I was really drunk."

"The court may find that an excuse. I don't."

His eyes narrowed and flashed, but he kept his head down. "I feel terrible about it. All I've done is worry about her for days. Now they've fixed it so I can't even go near her to tell her so. I came to ask you a favor."

He lifted his head then, and his eyes were moist. "Haley really looks up to you"

She would not let the sight of a man's tears blur her judgment.

"I was hoping you'd talk to her for me. See that she gives me another chance. I can't ask her myself, long as there's that damn restraining order. But she'll listen to you."

"You're giving me credit for influence over Haley I don't have, Chris."

"No, she'll listen to you," he insisted. "She's always running off at the mouth about how smart you are. You tell her to come home, and she'll do it."

Very slowly, Brooke placed her palms on the counter top. "If she'd listened to me, she would have left you years ago."

His unshaven jaw tightened. "Now, you look. A man's got a right—"

"To beat his wife?" she snapped. "Not in my book, he doesn't, and not in the law's. No, I won't tell her to come back to you, Chris. And if that' s all you came in for, you'll have to leave."

His lips peeled back, showing clenched teeth, his eyes hardened like marbles. "Still all high-and-mighty. You think you're better than me."

"No, I don't. I know I'm better than you. Get out of my shop or I'll have the cops throw you in jail for harassment."

"A woman belongs to her husband." He crashed his fist on the counter, hard enough to have a crack splitting through the glass. "You tell her to get her skinny butt home, if she knows what's good for her. And what's good for you."

Fear trembled in Brooke's throat, and was swallowed, hard. "Is that a threat?" she asked coolly. "I don't believe your parole officer would approve. Shall I call him and ask?"

"Bitch. You're nothing but a frigid, dried-up bitch who can't get herself a real man." He wanted to hit her, to feel his fist pound into that ice-queen face. "You get between me and my wife and both of you'll find out what it's like. When I finish with her, I'll come after you. We'll see if you're so high and mighty when I'm finished."

He jammed his hat back on his head, spun to the door. "You tell her what I said. You tell her I'm waiting. She'd better have the cops and that bastard Scott tear up those papers and be home by suppertime."

The instant the door slammed behind him, Brooke slumped against the counter. Her hands were shaking, and she hated it, hated being afraid, hated being vulnerable. She grabbed the phone, had nearly followed through on her first instinct to call Lucas when she stopped herself.

That was wrong, she thought, carefully replacing the receiver. For so many reasons it was wrong. Wouldn't his first reaction be to hunt Chris down, to fight? He'd probably get hurt and certainly more fighting wasn't going to solve anything.

She straightened and drew a few calming breaths. Where was her pride, her sense of control? She had always handled herself and any situation that came her way. Her feelings for Lucas shouldn't—couldn't change that natural part of her. She wouldn't allow it. So, she would do what was right, what was practical, and what was necessary. Brooke picked up the phone and dialed 911.

x-x-x

"He was almost pitiful at first." The tea sloshed in her cup. With a grimace, Brooke set it down again. "I guess he spooked me more than I'd thought."

"Shake all you want," the lieutenant Skills told her, and frowned at the crack in her counter. It could have been worse, he thought grimly. A lot worse. "I have to say, I didn't think he was stupid enough to pull a stunt like this."

"I don't think he'd been drinking Skills." Brooke cleared her throat. "At least he wasn't drunk. He got steadily angrier, steadily more abusive." She reached for her tea again. "I don't have any witnesses. It was just him and me."

"You file charges, I'll go after him."

Her lips trembled upward. "It sounds like you're looking forward to it."

"You don't know the half of it."

"I'll file charges. Haley?"

"I had one of my deputies go to the cafe as soon as you called. He'll hang out there and get paid for drinking coffee and flirting with Erica.

"I'll lock up and go with you now, if that's all right."

"The sooner the better. Odds are he's at home, knocking back a bottle and waiting for her.''

Once the complaint was official, Brooke detoured to the market. She had a feeling both she and Haley were going to need a lift that evening. Comfort food was in order. Spaghetti and meatballs, she decided, and double-fudge brownies.

While she waited for her purchases to be bagged, she tried not to chuckle at the darting looks and whispers. The gossip brigade, she thought, was in full march.

Mrs. Durham, headed towards her "Why, Brooke Davis, I thought that was you."

"Hello, Mrs. Durham" Here, Brooke thought, was the gossip brigade's head scout.

"Surprised to see you in here this time of day."

"Business is slow." Brooke counted out bills for the groceries. "Everybody's hibernating."

"Know what you mean. Still, you got yourself some business doing that wardrobe for that young girl, don't you?"

Willing to play, Brooke set the bag on her hip. "Yes I do, she really deserves it"

"I'm sure she does. Never thought to see Lucas Scott doing something nice like that for someone." Her curious eyes brightened. "Guess he did pretty well for himself up North."

"Apparently."

"You can't tell about those Scott boys. They fool you every time. You know that Lucas crashed his daddy's mustang before he so much as had a license. That was right after Dan died, as I recall. He was wild as wild can be, that Lucas. Chasing girls, picking fights, flying around on the back roads on that noisy motorcycle of his. Time was, when you found trouble, there was always a Scott boy in the middle of it."

"Times change, I suppose."

"Not that much, they don't." Her chins wagged as she chuckled. "I've seen him around town. He's still got that look in his eye. Little bird told me he had that eye on you."

"Well, your little bird's right. And I've got mine right back on him."

Mrs. Durham laughed so hard she had to put down her box of Ho-Hoes to hold her belly. "With a boy like that, you'd better keep it there. He was a bad one, Brooke. Bad boys turn into dangerous men."

"I know." Brooke winked. "That's why I like him. You come in and browse real soon, Mrs. Durham."

"I'll do that." Chuckling to herself, she emptied her cart. "Stop gawking, boy," she snapped at the skinny clerk, who was still watching Brooke's retreat, "and ring me up here. You ain't ever going to be dangerous enough to reel in that kind of woman."

Amused by the encounter, Brooke strolled down the sidewalk. Shifting her bag, she circled around the side of the shop. Enjoy the moment, she reminded herself. Don't project into the future. Those were the rules; she'd stated them herself. All she had to do was follow them.

And if she found an excuse to slip by his house later, steal an hour with him, so much the better.

Cheered by the idea, she took her keys from her pocket. She jingled them as she climbed the stairs with her groceries.

If she'd been paying attention, if she hadn't been thinking about Lucas, maybe she would have noticed sooner. But her hand was already reaching for the door when she saw that it wasn't on its hinges, but was propped there.

Her mind stayed blank for an instant too long.

Even as she spun around to run, Chris hauled the door aside. The crash dragged a shriek from her. It was choked off to a gurgle when his arm jerked around her neck.

"Wondered which one of you'd come first. This is good." His breath panted out, sour with whiskey and excitement. "Been wanting to get my hands on you for a long time."

He pressed his mouth to her ear, excited by the way she tried to curl away from him. "I'm going to show you what a real man's all about. Going to get you out of those prim and proper clothes and show you real good."

He panted as his free hand came around to squeeze hard on her breast. Her skin crawled, and for one hideous moment the fear was so bright it blinded her eyes, and her reason.

"I'm going to get me some of what I hear that bastard Lucas Scott's been getting. Then I'm going to fix your face so nobody thinks it's so pretty anymore."

As he started to drag her over the broken door and inside, the horror of what he would do flashed through her. She swung back. Groceries flew, smashing into the little alley below. Her heels skidded back over the door.

"When Haley gets here, I'm going to give her the same. But first I'm going to enjoy taking you down a few pegs.'' With his free hand, he yanked her hair, darkly pleased when she whimpered.

Then she remembered the keys that were still gripped in her frozen fist. With prayers screaming in her head, she flung her hand back, hacking with the point she'd pushed between her clenched fingers.

He howled like a wild dog, and the vicious grip released. Dragging in air, she flew down the steps, certain he would be on her again in an instant. At the bottom, she stumbled, went down hard on her hands and knees. Prepared to scream, she looked back.

And saw him crumpled on the landing, holding a hand to his face; while blood dripped through his fingers, she rose to her feet, put one foot slowly in front of the other until she reached the cafe. The buzzing in her ears warned her to take deep, careful breaths.

She stepped inside, closed the door behind her, unaware that her coat was hanging by one sleeve and the knees of her slacks were torn and bloody.

Haley dropped the tray she was holding, shattering dishes. "Brooke! My God!"

"I think you should call the police," Brooke said, testing each word as she spoke it. "Chris is on the landing of my apartment. I think I hurt him." When the room revolved, she braced a hand on the back of a booth. "I have to sit down now."

"Go call 911," Erica snapped, and rushed over to ease Brooke into a booth. "Head down." In a quick movement, she had Brooke's head between her knees. "Long, deep breaths, that's a girl." Eyes sharp, she scanned the room, where a half a dozen customers sat staring. "Well, what are you waiting for? One of you big strong men get on over there and hold that son of a bitch for the police. You, Fergie, get up off your butt and get this girl a glass of water."

Erica's rasped orders had everyone moving at once. Satisfied, she eased Brooke up again. "Got a little color back," she declared, and sat back on her haunches. She took a cigarette from the pack in her apron pocket, lit it with a wooden match. After one long drag, she smiled. "I hope you hurt him bad, honey. Real bad."

x-x-x

Sitting in Skills' office, with the coffee he had poured for her warming her hands, Brooke was sure she was over the worst of it. Everything had happened too fast for anything but pure emotion. But the fear had passed now, and she could think.

Beside her, Haley sat saying nothing. At his desk, Skills coolly filled out a report.

"I'm sorry to ask you to go through it again, Brooke," he began. "The clearer your statement, the easier it'll be to close it all up."

"That's all right. I'm fine now, really." Absently she picked at her torn slacks. The knees beneath still burned. As much, she thought, from Erica's liberal application of antiseptic as from their abrupt meeting with asphalt. "I'd like to get it over with. I can—"

She broke off when the door burst open. For an instant, she saw nothing but Lucas's face—pale, hard as rock, lit with eyes blue enough, sharp enough, to murder in one vicious slice.

Her pulse pounded in her throat. Before she could get to her feet, he was on her, dragging her up, crushing her in an embrace that bruised ribs.

"You're all right? Are you hurt?" His voice was raw, brittle as broken glass. He couldn't think. There'd been nothing inside him but bright terror from the moment he got word of the attack. His body was ice, enveloping hers as he buried his face in her hair.

Perhaps that was why she began to tremble helplessly. "I'm okay. Really, I'm—" But her voice shuddered off. If she could have burrowed inside him, she would have.

"Did he hurt you?'' With a hand he was fighting to steady, he stroked her hair, eased her face back so that he could see for himself. "Did he touch you?"

She could only shake her head and press her face against his shoulder.

With his arms tight, as possessive as they were protective, he stared at Skills over Brooke's head. His eyes fired like torches. "Where is he?"

"He's in custody."

Lucas's gaze whipped toward the cells in the back.

"He's not here, Lucas." Though his voice was calm, Skills was braced for the attack. "You're not going to be able to get to him."

"You think you can stop me?"

From behind, where he'd stood since he'd followed Lucas in, Jake laid a hand on his brother's shoulder. "Why don't you sit down?"

With a snarl humming in his throat, Lucas jerked the restraining hand aside. "Back off."

"This is the law's problem now," Skills told him, rising slowly.

"The hell with the law, and you with it. I want to know where he is, don't get in my way, Skills."

"I'm in your way. Now sit down, or I'll throw your ass in a cell."

He moved so fast, Brooke had time only to squeak while Lucas lunged over the desk and had Skills by the shirtfront. There was no doubt in her mind that blood would flow any moment.

"Stop it," she said, but the order was shaky and weak under the vicious words hurling through the room. "I said stop it," she repeated, hugging herself. Something crashed behind her, and shot her pulse to critical. "Stop it this minute!" she bellowed.

The surprising power in her voice halted Lucas's fist and put a stop to the shoving match behind her. Three hard-eyed men stared at her.

"You're acting like children. Worse than children. What good is it going to do anyone for the three of you to punch each other out? It's just typical," she said, more disgusted now than frightened. "Just the sort of typical behavior I'd expect from a bunch of bone-headed baboons. Real heroes." With a sniff, she grabbed her coat. "Well, I'm certainly not going to stand here and watch the three of you beat one another to a pulp."

"Sit down, Brooke." When she continued toward the door, Lucas swore and went after her. "Sit down," he repeated, holding back his rage and turning her gently. "God, look at your hands."

Shaken all over again, he gathered them carefully in his, pressed his lips to her palms.

"What do you expect me to do?" The rest of the anger drained and left him helpless. "What do you expect me to feel?"

"I don't know." She no longer knew exactly what she was feeling herself, not with those eyes so concentrated on her face. "I just want to get this over with, Luke. Please, let me tell Skills what he needs to know, so I can get this over with."

"Fine." He let her go, stepped back. "Do what you have to do."

She walked back to her chair, accepted the fresh mug Jake offered. Skills questioned, she answered. Lucas listened. Then he left, without a word.

She tried not to be hurt by it, tried to understand it. "Skills, can you tell me what to expect now?"

"My deputy will call in once they're finished with Chris at the hospital. He'll be transferred. He broke parole, and the restraining order, so he'll serve his full time on the earlier charges."

It was a small satisfaction, Skills thought with a quick look at Haley. She hadn't moved or spoken in thirty minutes.

"Now he'll face additional charges," Skills went on. "Breaking and entering, assault, attempted rape. We'll toss in the property damage. There may be a trial, and you'd have to testify."

"I'm prepared for that."

"Under the circumstances, his lawyer may advise him to deal and plead guilty.''

"Well, then." Brooke drew in a deep breath. "It's done. Haley and I can go home now?"

"Sure. I'll be in touch."

"I can't go home with you." For the first time since she'd come into the office, Haley tried her voice. It was small and rusty.

"Of course you can."

"How can I?" She stated at the lovely smoke gray slacks Brooke wore, at the nasty tears in the soft material. "How could you even want me after what he's done to you?"

"What he's done," Brooke said quietly. "Not you, Hales. You're not responsible."

"Of course I am." It cost Haley to lift her head, to look into Brooke's eyes. "I know what he might have done to you if you hadn't been strong enough to stop him. Done to you to get to me, Brooke. You're the best friend I've ever had."

"Then let me keep being your friend."

"I want that, and I know you've already forgiven me."

"Haley, there's nothing to forgive. Don't take this on," Brooke murmured, covering Haley's hands with hers.

"I have to, because I have to start figuring out how to forgive myself now. I need to start taking care of myself and them. I need to do that."

"In a few more days," Brooke protested.

"No, now." She closed her eyes, steadied herself, then pulled out her cell phone "I'll call Nathan to help me" She looked at Brooke "I'm going to file for divorce. Today"

Haley rose and walked to the door, her phone pressed tightly to her ear "Nathan, I need your help" she said closing the door behind her

Brooke rose, surprised she wasn't as steady as she'd believed. "That was hard for her. It's going to be hard for her to follow through."

"She wouldn't have done it if he hadn't hurt somebody else," Jake mumbled. "That's the kind of thing it would take for her."

"Then I'm glad he did. And I'm glad I hurt him right back." Brooke took a deep breath, then asked the question that had been hovering in a corner of her mind. "His eye, Skills?"

"I can let you know when I find out. If you want me to."

"I think I have to know." She held out a hand for his, not to shake, but to hold. "You've been wonderful. I know Luke was upset, but he was wrong in the things he said to you. You did everything you could. You did everything right."

"If I'd done everything right, it wouldn't have happened."

"You know better than that." She squeezed, then winced as her hand throbbed. "I'm going home, take a bottle of aspirin, and crawl into bed for a few hours. Please call when you hear anything."

"I will. Jake?"

"Ahead of you, like always." He already had Brooke's coat, and he helped her into it. "I'll drive you home and fix that door for you."

"Thanks." With a smile, she kissed his cheek. "Baboons or not, the Scott brothers aren't half-bad."

"Baby—" he put an arm around her waist to lead her out "—we're all bad. Later, Skills." When he'd helped her into his truck, he paused. "Lucas'll come around. He just needs to go punch something."

"That's the answer?"

"Hey, it works." He slammed her door, then circled the truck to climb behind the wheel.

"You'd have gone with him. After Chris."

"We'd have all gone with him." Jake glanced in the rearview, then whipped the truck into a quick and illegal U-turn. "Skills and Nathan would have spouted off for a while about law and order. We'd have shoved each other around. Then we'd have gone with him." With some regret, he shook his head. "It would've been fun."

"Fun." She could almost laugh as she let her head sink back on the seat.

"Nobody messes with a Scott woman."

"Oh, really? And is that my status at this point?"

He caught the tone, and then, with a wary glance, the martial look in her eyes. "I just meant...seeing as you and Lucas... That is, the way he's..." Even a Scott knew the value of retreat. "I ain't touching this one."

He pulled up at the base of her stairs and looked up to study the door. "Looks like somebody beat me to it."

"What?" She was still simmering.

"I'll check it, but it looks from here like it's already been fixed." He got out of the truck, climbed the stairs. "Yep. Few nicks and scratches, but its back on its hinges." As a precaution, he tried the lock, gave it a good shove. "Solid. Lucas probably took care of it."

"I see." It did nothing to appease her. "I'll have to be sure to thank him, won't I?"

"Yeah." Jake retreated again, backing down the stairs. "Are you going to be all right? Want me to get you anything, or hang around?"

"No, no, I'm fine. Just fine." It wasn't pleasant to take out her keys, but she did it, turned the lock. "I appreciate the ride."

"No problem." As he hurried back to his truck, Jake decided Lucas had a problem. A big one. It gave him a reason to smile all the way through town.