Colton felt like his lungs were burning, his legs felt like lead and his head was spinning as he ran through the parking lot. He almost ran smack bang into the sliding doors when they didn't open when he approached them. Dancing in front of them angrily he was through them the second they split open.
"Iris Hollister." He gasped breathlessly at the counter.
"And you are?"
"Her fiancé. CPD called and said she was here." Lola had always told them all that the quickest way to get information or access in hospital was to declare that you were engaged at a minimum and Colton had no qualms using it now. Apparently 'boyfriend' wasn't good enough.
He was told to wait which pissed him off and telling the poor person behind the counter what he thought about waiting didn't get him very far. When he was allowed through, the noise hit him, the amount of people milling around and the heat but he barely took anything in as he was led through to Iris's cubicle.
"Oh God Bug." He reached for her hand and squeezed it desperately. Leaning over to kiss her forehead he begged her to open her eyes.
Slowly Iris managed to respond but she couldn't speak. A lone tear escaped the corner of her eye and he wiped it away. "I'm here Bug. You're okay." He whispered. "You're okay." Her eyes closed again, almost involuntarily and Colton swallowed the lump of bile and terror in his throat.
Colton pulled up a chair close to the side of her bed and held her hand whilst not taking his eyes off her while she slept until the Doctor came in. "Is she okay?"
"She is, she is a lucky lady."
"What happened?"
"She has drugs in her system." The Doctor informed him, a little too bluntly for his liking. "Whether she took something willingly…"
Colton saw red and didn't let him finish. "She doesn't take drugs, someone drugged her." No one was going to blame Iris for this, she wouldn't do this, he knew her.
"It may be that her drink was spiked."
"Who? Do they know?"
"That's for PD to figure out, they will want to talk to her, probably tomorrow. She'll be out of it for a while yet." The Doctor talked to him calmly. "We are just waiting for the toxicology results and we've popped a drip in just to give her some fluids."
Colton's head was spinning, he had a million thoughts crashing through his mind and he didn't know which one to listen to. "Was she hurt, did like, anyone touch her, hurt her?"
"No, we don't think so, there is no evidence of recent sexual activity." Colton just about vomited. Suddenly he was grateful that they hadn't seen each other since he left for work that morning. If he'd been home tonight, before she went out that might have been a different story. It had been a couple of days since they'd had sex because Colton had worked late most nights this week.
Colton had been out at some work drinks when he got the call from the Cops. "Colton Webber?"
"Yes."
"It's Officer Rata from Chicago PD. Do you know Iris Hollister?" His heart was already racing.
"I do, she's my partner, where is she? Is she okay? Is she hurt?"
"She is on her way to Chicago Med, it appears she is under the influence of drugs." He was already out the door and running to his car. He was driving tonight because he was expecting to pick Iris up from the party she was at. It was a birthday party for one of her friends at College. They didn't live in each other's pockets and had their own friends that they often went out with without the other.
"What?" Colton stopped momentarily. "No, not Iris."
"Ms Hollister has overdosed on drugs and isn't conscious at the moment but she is stable and the paramedics are just loading her up now. Yours was the last message on her phone." Officer Rata was watching the paramedics deal with Iris. Things weren't adding up, it just didn't feel right. "So you aren't on your way to pick her up?"
"No, I wasn't. Where are they taking her? Chicago Med?"
"Yep."
"Is she hurt? Did someone attack her?"
"We haven't been able to establish that yet."
"She wouldn't take drugs, she's dead against it." He had to get them to understand. "That's not Iris. She's being stalked."
"What do you mean stalked?"
"Some guy is stalking her, freaking her out. Xavier Bolton, he did this."
"Okay, we are yet to establish details, we'll be in contact." It wasn't good enough for Colton but he couldn't focus on that right now, he needed to see Iris.
Now he was sitting beside her bed and he felt sick. Things had spiralled out of control so rapidly their heads were spinning. They didn't think it would come to this. Even talking to Gus they hadn't anticipated something like this happening. He didn't know what had gone on but he was pretty sure he knew what direction to point the cops in.
Colton had no idea what to do but he knew he had to call someone. Adam wasn't an option and he was torn between Lola, who was obviously a Doctor and could help explain things to him and make sure Iris got the best care but she was also five months pregnant and he knew what happened the last time she was pregnant and how Iris completely wigged out. He made sure they knew that Dr Hollister was Iris's sister though, it had to help. Mae had been through enough lately; she didn't need this right now. He had to call Gus at some point because he wanted to know what was going on with the cops. Alfie was home with Adam so that really wasn't an option either.
He called Gus. He at least knew that Iris was having issues with this Xavier guy and he had helped them deal with it lately. "What is it Colt?" He didn't even give him a chance to say anything. "Is Bug okay?" The lateness of the call was warning enough especially with what had been going on lately.
"I don't know Gus, we are in Med, the cops called me. She's been drugged."
"What the fuck? What happened?" He was already scrambling to get his keys and his wallet, indicating to Rhiannon that he had to go and he was out the door within a minute.
"I don't know, they called me said she's unconscious and been taken to Med. I'm here with her now."
"Colt? Is she okay?" Colton knew exactly what Gus was asking. He'd asked the same question.
"Not that I know, Bug's not awake but they are pretty sure she wasn't assaulted." Everyone knew the only reason these drugs were used was to target women and then assault them. "She opened her eyes briefly when I got here but I don't know…" Colton couldn't continue. The cops had told him it was his last message to her that they had used to contact him. All his message had said, was 'Call me when you need to be picked up. Love you Bug. Have fun.' Iris listed him as 'The Boyfriend' and the cops managed to get into her phone and call him.
Gus was already in his car. "Have you told anyone else?"
"Not yet." Colton's voice shook. "I don't want to worry them."
"Colt, I'm going to call Lola?"
"Okay?" He looked at Iris sadly. "I just want to sit here with Bug."
Gus called Lola and she was at the hospital before Gus arrived. "Colton? How is she?" Lola rubbed his back to let him know she was there. He was resting his head on Iris's hand and lifting his head slowly Lola was a little stunned by the utter devastation on Colt's face.
"Still out of it?"
"What did they say?" Lola grabbed her chart and took a quick look and checked her vitals on the monitor. The Doctor in her had kicked in, it was the only way she was staying calm right now. When Gus had called her she had flown into a panic, she wasn't even sure Riley knew why she was leaving. They were enjoying a night at home; Sam was asleep and Lola was being indulged by Riley. She almost didn't answer the phone but Colt rarely rang her.
"Not much, they are just waiting to see what drug she was given. Bug wouldn't take drugs so someone must have given it to her. You know her Lola, she wouldn't do this. Apparently she made it to the bathroom and gave someone my name or something. I'm not sure. The cops haven't been in yet. They will talk to her tomorrow I think." He was trying to remember everything they'd told him so far. "I don't know Lola. I don't know. I'm so fucking terrified." He put his head back down on Iris's hand and his chest heaved.
"Stay here. I'll go find out what's going on and try and get you out of here and upstairs."
Lola squeezed his shoulder and went to see what she could find out, getting a hold of her admitting Doctor she had a quick chat. She spied Gus banging on the front desk, which was unoccupied, he was trying to get someone's attention. Lola went and saved the poor desk clerk from her Uncle's wrath as she made her way back to her desk, unaware of what was waiting for her. "Where's Bug?"
"Just through there, she's still out of it." Lola scanned the tox screen and wasn't shocked to see the drug, but her levels were high which concerned her. "It's Rohypnol."
"A Roofie?"
"Yep." She nodded. "She's stable and her Obs are fine, she's sleeping it off. Colton is sitting with her right now."
Lola took Gus into see Iris and they informed Colton of the drugs in her system and the colour drained from his face. "A date rape drug."
"It is known as that, yes." Lola nodded and then quickly added. "There are no signs she was assaulted."
"But we don't know for sure?" He couldn't explain how he was feeling if he tried. His emotions were swirling and they were all clashing. Anger, Anguish, worry, heartache, he'd known for a while that this had moved way beyond that young 'love the one you are with' relationship, into something far, far deeper and they were both comfortable with that. He just wanted her to open her eyes and tell him she was okay. He wanted to tell her he loved her, just in case she'd forgotten.
"No, no we don't. They are going to take her upstairs in a few minutes. You can stay with her."
Gus assured him that he would follow up with the CPD as soon as he could and would be back first thing in the morning but he promised he wouldn't let up. "Do you think this Xavier guy has anything to do with it?"
"Who fucking else?" Colton spat at him. "I told the cops his name when they called me."
It was a name that Lola had never heard before but she knew that there was something she was missing and that day when Bug was sitting in the dark with Colton and they blew her off came rushing back. "Who's Xavier?"
"Some fucking piece of shit who has been stalking Bug."
Lola couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Why? What the fuck? Why am I just hearing about this now?"
"We've been handling it. Bug didn't want anyone to know." Colton was tired, he didn't want to hash this out right now, his only concern was Iris and she happened to be lying unconscious in a hospital bed.
"This is crazy." Lola was waving her arms around wildly. Colton just ignored her and kept watching Iris sleep. "Colton, she's lying in god damn hospital, drugged to the fucking eyeballs and nobody thought to tell us some guy has been stalking her." She seethed at him.
Gus stepped in. "Lola, Bug talked to me about it, and we have been dealing with it. She didn't want to make a big deal of it. We didn't think anything like this was possible."
"Un-fucking-believable." She couldn't stand there any longer, she had to leave before she said something she'd regret.
Gus rested his hand on Colton's shoulder. "She'll be okay, they both will. You take care of Bug, I'll deal with Lola and the rest of them."
"Bug didn't want to tell her because she was worried about the baby."
Gus completely understood why Iris had been reluctant to tell anyone about it, especially Lola. "I know Colt, just focus on Bug."
Gus found Lola and she was pissed and barking orders into a phone at some poor sap in the admitting office. He tried to explain that to her that it was Iris's decision and she couldn't blame anyone, especially not Colton because he had done everything Iris wanted and also pushed her into getting help from him. Now Lola wanted to know everything that had happened right from the start and Gus told her as much as he thought she needed to know. He didn't get into the specifics but Lola got the gist of it.
A nurse came to notify them that they were taking Iris upstairs now. Her not so pleasant phonecall had done its job and she would take them up a coffee tomorrow to apologise, she didn't want to be that Doctor. "Is she awake?"
"Not yet."
Colton stayed with her, they couldn't get him away from her with a crowbar and he insisted that both Gus and Lola go home. He promised to let them know the moment she woke up. Lola tried to argue that she would stay and Colton reminded her this was exactly why Iris didn't want her to know. "She's worried about the baby. Please don't upset her."
"My baby is fine Colton. Let me worry about that."
"Lola, she was terrified that you would go into labour like you did with Sam, she didn't want that to happen. It was Iris's decision; I didn't agree with it but I had to support her."
"This was serious Colton; it could have been so much worse."
"We know. Don't you think I know that? I think this is bad enough, don't you?" His voice broke. "Do you think I wanted this to happen? Don't you think I wanted Iris to do more, I begged her to get help, I begged her to talk to Gus earlier. What else could I do?"
"Look, let's deal with that later." Lola agreed to go home, if she stayed much longer she probably would fight with Colton or say something she'd regret and Iris would probably sleep all night.
He slept in the chair beside her bed, dozing off occasionally but woke every time they came in to do some obs. He shot out of his chair when Iris vomited, trying to catch it. He was freaking out; this was a nightmare. He rang the bell and helped the nurse clean her up and change the sheets. Iris was still pretty out of it. "Colton." She muttered.
"I'm right here Bug."
"I'm sorry."
He grabbed a face cloth and washed her face gently. "It's okay Iris, It's not your fault. Just rest Baby." He kissed her forehead and felt her squeeze his hand.
Once she was settled and asleep again he sent a message to Lola, he had promised that if anything happened he would let her know. 'Bug just woke briefly, she vomited a couple of times, but didn't say much and is now asleep again. They say this is to be expected?'
He drifted off again after a brief conversation with Lola, who assured him that Iris vomiting wasn't unusual and checking if he wanted her to come back in. Colton begged her not to come, he didn't want to have to deal with Iris being angry with him because he let Lola stay. He woke again when Iris tried to get out of bed. "Whoa, where you going?"
"Bathroom." Her words were still a little slurred and she was wobbly on her feet. They had told him that if she wanted to get up to go to the bathroom she could but not to leave her alone. Colton held her up while her head stopped spinning and they walked slowly to the bathroom; she still had the IV in which would hopefully help counter the dehydration she'd feel. "Do you know why you are here?"
"Where am I?"
"Chicago Med."
"I was in the bathroom."
"You were drugged, do you remember who drugged you?"
"No."
"Was it Xavier?"
"I don't know, I don't remember." She was getting agitated and tried to push him away. "Stop."
"Okay." Colton kissed her forehead. "Okay. Let's get you back into bed."
He helped her back into bed and Iris closed her eyes but she refused to let him go. "Colton. Stay here." Colton climbed up on the bed and wrapped his arms around her. He didn't care if the nurses frowned at him. It was what Iris wanted and he just wanted to hold her and protect her. He hadn't done that; he'd let her go out alone and this happened. He knew he couldn't wrap her in cotton wool and spending all day everyday together wasn't how they worked but that didn't make him feel any less guilty.
"Just sleep Bug."
They both managed to get some sleep, Iris was restless though, she vomited again just before dawn but was a lot more alert this time round. Colton managed to scramble off the bed just in time to avoid being covered in it. "You hate this?"
"What, you spewing? Yes I do, but right now I am I have more important things to worry about."
"Such as?" He sat her down in the chair while the nurse came in and changed the sheets. Colton squatted down in front of her and held a bowl in case she spewed again.
"You. What happened last night?"
"I wish I could remember. I can't."
"Just one thing Bug, I need you to remember one thing." Iris sighed angrily but Colton looked so distraught she nodded. "Did anyone touch you? Did anyone try to touch you, to assault you?"
Iris stared at him blankly.
"Did someone try and rape you?" He was surprised at how blunt he sounded.
"No. No, I don't know. Did they say I did? I don't remember."
"Shhhh." Colton held her head in his hands. "They don't think so, I just wanted to know so I can help you. If you are hurt I want to help."
"You'd leave me then?"
"Oh god no, no Bug, I'm not going anywhere."
"I don't remember." She sounded in pain. "Oh God, oh god."
"It's okay Baby. We've got time. Don't worry about that now." He helped her back into bed and she slept again and Colton just sat next to her and got another hours sleep. Lola woke him when she arrived.
"Is she okay?"
"Yep, she was awake a little while ago and had another spew but talked a little, she doesn't remember much."
"What did she say?"
"I can hear you." Iris muttered without opening her eyes.
Colton moved a little so that Lola could talk to her sister. "How are you?" She touched her face. "You scared me."
"Sorry."
"How you feeling?"
"Like shit." Lola wasn't surprised. It was apparently like a having a massive hangover. "Are you okay?"
"I am, we are both fine. We are both okay," Lola grabbed her hand and rested it on her little belly and leant in and whispered in her "My little bug, I love you so much."
Colton helped her into the shower; Lola had bought some clothes in for her to wear home rather than the clothes she went out in last night.
They wanted her to eat something and see how she handled that before she could be discharged. Iris wanted Lola to go and tell Adam and Mae but she didn't want to leave until CPD had been in and Colton wasn't going anywhere. It took a lot of effort to get him to agree to go down to the café and get a coffee. He needed it; he hadn't left her side the whole night.
"Bug, what's going on?"
"Well Lola, someone spiked my drink."
"Really? Huh? I didn't know." Lola answered sarcastically. "Who the fuck is Xavier?"
"Can we not talk about it right now?"
"No, it's time to talk about it. You are in a bloody hospital Bug, drugged with Rohypnol and I find out that someone asshole is stalking you."
"And we were handling it."
"So fucking well that I get a call in the middle of the night to find out you are unconscious."
"Back off Charlotte." Iris didn't need a lecture right now. "For fucks sake, don't start. It was just a little annoying. I have no idea if he had anything to do with this." Iris was stressed, she was worried about the baby and didn't want Lola to get upset.
"What did he do?"
"Just posted shit on Instagram and Facebook, he was always trying to buy me coffee." Iris left out the turning up at the house when only Pops was at home, the breaking into her car and sending her flowers, the fake profile and how bad some of the comments were. She had begged Adam not to say anything, playing the 'let's not upset Lola and the baby' card. Lola knew it was much more than that, but she wasn't going to push her just yet.
"Come on Iris, this was serious."
"We talked to Gus about it, I just tried to ignore him. Colt never replied to his messages on Insta, I never accepted his follow request. Colton thought the best thing was to not engage with him and Gus and Alfie agreed. I made sure I was never caught alone with him at College. We did everything we could." Iris was getting upset. "We thought we were doing the right thing."
"You should have told me. This was serious Bug."
Iris had a thumping headache and the more she talked the more it throbbed. She didn't want to talk about it right now and she didn't appreciate being interrogated by Lola. "Back the fuck off." She snapped just as Colton came back.
While he hated getting in between Iris and her family right now he felt he needed to step in. They were both getting upset. She still had to go through it with CPD and then they had the rest of the family to deal with and he could see all the colour drain from Iris's face and she was breathing heavy like she was about to vomit again. "Lola, can we drop it for now please."
"Drop it? She was fucking drugged by a stalker. I will not drop it."
"Please Lola." He begged her.
"Don't you dare tell me to drop it. She's my sister. It's your fault she's here. Who the fuck do you think you are?" Lola pushed Iris's last button by having a go at Colton who was just doing his best.
"Lola, please." Colton begged her to stop.
"Get out." Iris whispered. "Get the fuck out Charlotte. Just leave us alone. I just want to be left alone. I don't need you here." She reached for Colton's hand.
Lola tried to argue back but Iris wasn't listening, she just wanted Colton.
He wasn't judging her, and it felt like her sister was. Blaming Colton wasn't going to wash either, none of this was Colton's fault. He did everything she asked him too.
"Charlotte didn't mean it." She tried to talk Colton down, he was furious. He knew they were going to be fiercely protective of Iris, he'd been warned about this from the moment they started dating but seeing it in full flight was a force to be reckoned with.
"Yep." Was all he said, she knew he was pissed but obviously wouldn't talk about it.
"I'm sorry." Iris couldn't stop the tears.
"Wombat, it's okay."
Iris sent Lola a message. 'I love you so much Lola Bear, I'm glad you were here. We are just trying to get our head around all this, it's been a really tough few weeks. Colton is taking care of me, like he always does. It's not his fault. He's what I need right now and I know he won't let me down.'
Lola could understand, it was just hard to let go of their little bug. She would always be their little sister. A little girl who didn't understand what had happened to them, that they grew up protecting and now she was turning to someone else for comfort, someone who loved her just as much as they did.
Lola knew how much this had upset him, it was etched on his face and he was struggling and his only concern was Iris and that was a good thing. As hard as it was she had to take a step back and trust him and she needed to focus on the family, on Adam. That's how she could help Iris right now.
"You are here early?" Alfie was up when Lola stopped by, she'd cooled off a little by the time she got there, the message from Iris helped. "Where's Sam?"
"At home with Riley, he's on a day off."
"Did you wet the bed?" Alfie ran his hands over her small belly. Lola couldn't stop him if she tried. "Hey little cricket." They had no idea why they called this one cricket but Alfie had nicknamed it and it had stuck. Sam had other ideas though, he didn't like 'crickets', and always told Alfie off for calling his bubba a cricket.
"No." Lola asked for a cup of camomile tea, right now she needed something calming. "Where's Pops?"
"He's sleeping in."
Lola couldn't hold it in any longer. "What do you know about this Xavier guy?"
"Why?"
"What do you know Alfred?"
"Whoa, why are you pissed at me?" He hated being called Alfred and they only did it to annoy him or when they were pissed, like Lola obviously was now. Lola just glared at him. "He was a guy from Bug's college that was being a dick for a while but she hasn't seen or heard from him for a few weeks I think. Why?"
"I've just come from Med, Iris's drink was spiked at a bar and she's been there since late last night. Everyone seems to think this Xavier is involved."
"Why the fuck didn't you call me?" He threw the coffee down the sink. "What the fuck Lola."
"Bug's going to be okay." Lola pinched the bridge of her nose. She was desperate for this tea to kick in with its calming effect because she felt anything but calm.
"Are you fucking serious? What are the cops doing? How's Bug?" Alfie asked a million questions and gave her no chance to answer. "Does Colton know?"
"Does Colton know what?" They hadn't heard Adam come down and both Lola and Alfie just stared at him. "Know what?"
"Pops, Bug's in hospital." Lola helped him sit down. "She's going to be fine but she had her drink spiked last night. Colton has been with her all night. CPD called him."
"Oh my god." He started shaking. "Bug?"
"Bug's fine Pops. She's fine, a bit of a headache and she'll be home soon. They are just waiting for the Doctors to come in and CPD will want to talk to her. Gus is all over it."
"Take me to see her Alfred." Pops struggled up out of his seat. Now Pops was pissed with Alfie too. "I want to see Bug."
"Pops, they'll be home soon. She sent me a message a little while ago and they are just waiting for the Police to talk to Bug and Gus is with them."
"They've been alone all night." Adam was angry. "If you won't take me, I will walk." Lola was adamant that he wasn't going to the hospital and she accepted the gobful of abuse she got from Pops.
Alfie had been pacing. "What happened?"
"We aren't really sure. Bug doesn't remember a lot; she remembers trying to get to the bathroom and apparently a couple of girls helped her out. Colton had messaged Iris just before she passed out and the cops were able to use that to contact him. That's pretty much all I know."
"Um, Lola…" Alfie leant over and whispered while Adam held his head with his hands. "…is she like, okay? Not hurt?"
"Alfie, she's okay. Nobody touched her." Lola answered quietly.
"What are you talking about? What aren't you telling me?" Adam could see them whispering.
"Nothing Pops. Alfie just wanted to know if it was just the drugs."
"So this asshole didn't rape her?" When everyone was skirting around the issue Adam didn't have much of a filter anymore. Alfie hoped he didn't ask Iris like that when she got home.
"No Pops. Just the drink spiking."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes Pops, the Doctors are sure. Bug is sure."
"Is it the guy that came here?"
"What?" Lola screeched. "He was here? What the fuck?" She swung around and glared at her brother. Everyone had neglected to tell her that. "Fucking hell Alfred."
Alfie tried to calm her down but it was nigh on impossible. "Charlotte, back off. You didn't need to know, lets just focus on what's happening now." It was pointless getting upset about that, nothing would come of it.
"This is fucking insane. All this shit is going on and nobody bothers to tell me that this guy stalked her all the way to this house. Did we fucking learn nothing from all Mae's fucking drama with Rick and with George's Dad, who also just turned up? Remember?"
"We all remember. Look, we dealt with it." Alfie exploded. "So back the fucking truck up Charlotte."
"Both of you just stop it. Stop it." Adam cried angrily. "It's not about you, it's about Iris, your little sister."
Colton held her hand and was surprised at how tightly she was gripping it when CPD came in. Gus had come in earlier and talked Iris through what they might ask and to tell them whatever she could remember, no matter how insignificant she thought it might be and he stayed with them throughout the interview.
Officer Rata had been taken aback when he was contacted by Sgt Ruzek. He knew him, obviously from his time at the academy, which wasn't that long ago and he was also aware that his Dad had led Intelligence for a long time. What he had to do with this case and how he knew about it though, he had no idea.
"She's my niece." Gus was pissed that he was being questioned by a junior officer, although he was just doing what he was trained to do. "This is not being swept under the carpet. I've looked out for her her whole life, my old man, you know him Adam Ruzek, will not be happy. So let's get this done because if you don't, I will." Gus made himself very clear, there was no misunderstanding.
"What do you remember?" Rata did feel a little on edge having to talk to Iris with her Uncle watching. He didn't want to stuff up and he was trying to remember everything he needed to do and ask.
"Not much. I vaguely remember feeling dizzy and really hot. I went to the bathroom, and not much else." Iris still felt fuzzy, like her head was in a bucket of water. "I remember someone grabbing me or asking me if I was okay, but I don't remember who."
"Male or female?"
"Female I think, the voice, I think I remember the voice a little. They were laughing I think, I don't really remember." The harder she thought the harder it was to hang on to the little threads that popped into her head.
"Do you remember anything about before then? Who bought your drink?"
"I bought it. I don't think I left it anywhere, I can't really remember."
Both of the Officers were taking notes, Gus just sat and listened. "What about people around? Anyone looking suspicious, anyone try and talk to you that you didn't know? Any bad hits off anyone? Anything at all? Someone you know or have had trouble with?"
"No, nothing, not that I can recall."
Colton jumped in and asked if they had any idea what happened. "We've talked to the two girls you asked for help, they said they didn't know you." Iris still couldn't really remember them or what they looked like; everything was just foggy. "You told them not to let anyone touch you and call the cops."
"I don't remember that."
"At all?" Iris shook her head. "They called security who called an Ambulance and us. Now I want to talk you through what happened next. As you were being loaded into the Ambulance we were approached by a man who claimed to be your boyfriend and he wanted to take you home or travel with you to the hospital. We asked for ID, I just had a hunch and he didn't have any. Said his name was Colton Webber. We called the number of the last message you received, from 'The Boyfriend' and obviously his phone didn't ring. He took off as soon as he realised we had your phone. Do you know who that might be?"
Gus was relieved that these two cops seemed to be smart, things didn't add up and they went with their gut. It was what they always wanted cops to do but many of them needed years on the job to learn to trust their instincts. He was grateful that these two did and would make sure their Sargeant knew it.
"Xavier Bolton." Colton answered for her. Iris was struggling to comprehend what she'd just been told. "He's been stalking her for a while." They asked for a general description and Iris managed to give them one and Colton added what he knew. He'd never seen the guy apart from photos online. It matched the guy who approached them.
"What kind of stalking?"
Gus ran through all the things had been going on. Iris added a few things here and there but let Gus and Colton do all the talking.
Colton scratched his head. This was insane. "I don't understand how he knew she'd been drugged. Surely it's not a coincidence that he just happened to turn up at the party she was at after she'd been drugged to try and take her home?"
"I wouldn't have thought so, no." The cops and Gus agreed and that was like a kick in the guts. Knowing that he had taken it this far, that he was trying to abduct Iris and most likely assault her was horrifying. It was the terrifying reality they were now facing, that the small hope that this was a random attack had evaporated. This wasn't an innocent little crush that Xavier had on Iris either, this was a full blown stalking case with criminal intentions. It had crossed the line from annoying to dangerous.
"So you'll arrest him?"
"We will look into it."
"Look into it?" Colton exploded. He wanted them to do more than look into it. "Imagine if he had taken her home, what would have happened?" He heard Iris gasp. She just sat and stared straight ahead as the reality of what they were talking about sunk in.
Gus stood up; he didn't want to keep going down the 'what if' path. He put his arm on Colton's shoulder to stop him. "We need to talk to a few more people, Bug are you sure he wasn't at the party?"
"No, I didn't see him."
"Okay, so he had someone do it and then let him know you'd been drugged. We need to find that person." There was no way Gus was letting this go, he'd be like a dog with a bone.
Officer Rata nodded. "The bar has CCTV and we took it last night but haven't looked at it all yet. It might take a couple of hours."
Gus took them home. Adam was waiting for them by the front door and was out of the house the moment his car pulled up and Iris headed straight for him. He opened his arms wide for his youngest granddaughter. "Come here Bug." What the fuck had these kids ever done to the universe to deserve all this shit? Mae was assaulted, twice, Iris was stalked and drugged. They were beautiful children who had done nothing wrong, they were smart, friendly, well-liked kids who had grown into well-adjusted and adored adults who never hurt anyone. They'd been to hell and back and it was never ending. It wasn't fair.
"I'm okay Pops."
"I'm not."
Iris looped her arm through his, it disappointed her how shaky they both were. "Pops, it's okay. I am fine, a day at home resting with you fussing over me is all I need."
"You got plenty of that coming up my girl."
"Just what I need."
"And your boy?"
"He could do with some TLC as well; you'd be proud of him Pops."
Alfie had a million questions for Colton and Gus while Lola and Pops fussed over Iris. They hadn't told Mae yet, that was next on Lola's list now that Iris was home. Pops wasn't going to move very far today; Colton wouldn't leave either.
Gus could see Colton flagging. He'd been awake most of the night, with just a few naps here and there so they convinced him to have a shower and sleep while Iris was resting. She was asleep on the couch with her head resting on a pillow right near Adam. He was stroking her hair like he'd done when she was a little girl and she looked peaceful. It had been a very rough night for her and Colton didn't really care about himself at this point. Before he went upstairs he stood and watched Adam with her for a bit, his hands in his pocket to stop anyone seeing how much they were shaking, he took a deep breath because he felt the tears stinging behind his eyes.
Adam didn't even look at him but knew he was there. "I'll look after her for you."
"Thanks Pops."
His legs felt heavy as he dragged himself up the stairs. The shower felt good, he just leant his head against the cold tiles and let the hot water soothe him. He tried to focus on just that, just the water washing away the smell of his own body odour, the faint waft of hospital and vomit and his weariness.
How the fuck had it come to this? It was all he had thought about, what he should have done to put a stop to this earlier. He knew Iris didn't blame him but he blamed himself and knowing it was stupid didn't make it any easier. Until they found out who did this it wasn't over, and it would take a lot to convince him it wasn't Xavier.
Iris didn't get as much sleep as she needed because as soon as Lola called Mae, she was over along with Poppy. Sam squealed when he saw his little cousin. He just adored her and Poppy loved him just as much. He would make her giggle and it was the cutest sound listening to the both of them. Rhiannon also came over and Iris got a little overwhelmed when it was all anyone wanted to talk about. She slipped upstairs and woke Colton by stretching out on top of him. Instinctively he just wrapped his arms around her. "You okay?"
"I am now."
"Bug…"
She cut him off. "Colton, it's not your fault."
"I was going to say I love you."
"Well of course you do and that's not your fault either."
"How do you figure that?"
"I made myself irresistible, I am hard not to love."
"Obviously." He closed his eyes again and Iris knew he was finding it a little hard to cope with what had happened and this wasn't the first time he had been confronted with her family in full protective flight, it was a force to be reckoned with but this was the first time it was focussed on him. He wasn't around when Mae had her issues with Rick and although he was here when Mae and Pops were assaulted by George's father but he was a little bit removed from that, he supported Iris through it but stayed out of the family whirlpool, it seemed like it was the wisest choice but they were relentless, he knew that much. He figured it was like trying to hold back the tide and that's what he was feeling right now. There was no getting out of this vortex.
"Hey, don't do this. This is not your fault, it's not my fault but it happened and we need to get past it. I am okay, nothing happened to me."
"Well…."
"Baby, I'm going to be okay. I've got a whole mob downstairs plotting revenge and fussing over me."
"They are good at that."
"More than that, I know I am going to be okay, because I have you." He nodded his head and grabbed the back of her neck and pulled her head down towards his so he could kiss her softly. "So let them fuss and I'll get my hugs and cuddles and kisses and love from you."
"I'd give you some love right now if it wasn't for the full house downstairs who are quite likely to come storming in at any time. I really don't want that on my record."
Iris gave him one more kiss. "Thank you for being my rock, my everything and my only thing."
It would have been nice to hide in their room forever but hardly practical. Colton waited while Iris had a shower. She still wasn't completely back to normal and he was worried she would faint in the shower especially when she got up off the bed and reached for his arm to steady herself as her head swam.
He stood by the shower door and Iris did exactly what he had done, rested her head on the cool tiles and just let the water wash over her. The water felt nice, it was relaxing and she did sway a little when she lifted her head. Colton was in there in a flash, clothes and all to catch her just as her knees buckled. The hot water and steam had made her dizzy and the dizziness made her vomit, all down the front of Colton. "You've spewed on me a lot today." He tried to laugh it off as he washed the remnants off his chest.
"Sorry."
"You are the only person I'd let spew on me."
"Ahh, that's true love. Can we not say anything?" She didn't want Pops to worry any more than he already was.
Adam, unfortunately had no filter anymore. "Shower sex?" He commented as soon as they both came down with wet hair. Iris was used to it by now but Colton still struggled sometimes. "I remember when Gus got so drunk he had alcohol poisoning and ended up in hospital. Your Dad stayed here with your Mom and we got home and they both had wet hair, I'm sure they had been at it like rabbits. She never admitted to it though."
"Well we weren't 'at it like rabbits', Pops." Iris added the air quotes. Colton just walked outside; he knew that sometimes rather than get dragged down into the gutter it was better to just walk away. "I had a shower, the hot water made me a little dizzy, Colton being the panic merchant that he is jumped in to help me, fully clothed I will add. That's all…there was no rabbiting going on."
"Good to know. If you are anything like your mother."
Iris winked which made Adam chuckle. "How good would that be?"
Lola insisted that she take Iris's blood pressure. This was precisely why they didn't want to say anything. Pops sat beside her and held her hand, she could feel him shaking so she leant on his shoulder. "Hey Pops, I feel good. It was just a little too much hot water."
Colton had grabbed his phone and headed outside so Alfie followed him. "How you doing?"
He ran his hand over his face wearily. "I'm okay."
"Thanks for taking care of Bug."
"Great fucking job I did."
"Hey…" Alfie put his hand on his arm. "…you did. You did all that you could. This is not on you, not any of it."
"I know, but you know I keep thinking if I had pushed Bug harder, made her report him earlier. Maybe if I said something, told him to back off. I don't know."
"We did what we thought was best, Gus agreed. We did what Bug wanted. I know right now it seems pretty fucked. I've done nothing but think about it too. If I'd said something when those Insta messages first started."
"I just didn't think it would come to this. I mean, he turned up outside the bar telling the cops he was me, wanting to take her home. You know what that means? He would have raped her." He couldn't get that out of his head and the more he said the angrier he got.
"Hey, slow down. We can't do the should've, could've, would've game." It had certainly consumed Alfie's thoughts as well but Gus had told him that Colton was struggling with that and they needed to talk him off the ledge. "It serves no purpose. Bug is safe here with us and I have faith in Gus and CPD that they will get this guy. He's not that smart."
"Isn't he?"
"No, because he picked on the wrong fucking family." Alfie made a deal with Colton. "You take care of Bug, let Gus and I take care of this dick."
"Do I want to know?"
"No, no you don't. Take care of my sister Colt, please." Colton was surprised that Alfie's voice caught in his throat. "She means the world to me."
"I know. Just keep me in the loop okay?" Alfie promised him that he would.
Lola found him and apologised for her behaviour earlier. "I was just scared Colt, that's my little Bug and for so long I've taken care of her and I feel I let her down."
"You didn't Lola, you know why she did it?" He never agreed with Iris's decision but he knew if he broke her trust he may never get it back and he never wanted her not to trust him.
"I do, and that's really sweet. The baby is fine, make sure she knows that."
"I think you'll need to keep sending her messages for the next few days letting her know you aren't in labour. She'll like that."
"You are a good guy, I'm glad Bug has you."
It was a relief when everyone finally left and Adam wouldn't go to bed until Iris had. Colton sat and waited for Adam, he knew he had something to say, Colton had poured them both a glass of Bourbon as a nightcap. "I am worried about her Colt."
"I know Pops, I was too and I still am but you know how strong she is, she is an amazing woman and I think that is due to you and MiMi and the whole family. She's incredible, you should be proud of her."
"I am, I am proud of all of them. I miss her Mom and I miss MiMi." He wiped the tears from his eyes angrily. "MiMi would know how to take care of her right now."
"I know you do, they all do. I wish I had met them both and her Dad but I am glad I know you."
"Please don't break my little Bug's heart."
Colton leant back a little and took a deep breath. "Adam, you know when I first met Iris I was thinking this is great, she's great and I did fall in love with her but when you are young you don't think too far ahead. We were having fun, getting to know each other, growing up and I thought this is cool. Now, it feels different somehow I now see next year, five years, ten years down the track and Iris is still there…" he touched his chest. "…she's still here. And you know what, it feels great. When I got that call last night my heart stopped beating, literally. I think she is it for me and I really, really love that feeling."
"It's overwhelming when that happens isn't it? I remember when I thought that about her grandmother. I'd been engaged a few times before, because I was always in a rush towards something but then I met Kim and something changed. I had sixty years with her and I think I loved her more every day."
"I can't wait for sixty years of Iris."
Colton helped him up to bed. He was a little unsteady today, whether it was because he was stressed and not eating much or tired because he was usually well and truly in bed by now they weren't sure but they were worried about him today, he just didn't stop.
Colton crept into the bedroom and tried not to make too much noise or turn a light on. Iris needed to sleep, she always woke up when he came in though. For the first time today she lost it, he felt her tears on his chest as she snuggled into him. "It's okay Bug." He kissed and stroked her hair. "It's okay."
"I feel so stupid."
"Why?"
"Just everything. All of it." He tried to reassure her but at the end of the day he had to let her cry it out, as much as it hurt him to listen to.
"Can you touch me?"
"I am Baby."
"No I want you to touch me."
"Where?"
"Everywhere." He pushed her back into the mattress and started to touch and kiss her all over. He whispered to her constantly and responded to her movements. He knew what she liked and didn't like and her breathing got slower and deeper the longer he went on.
"What do you want Bug?"
"You." So he gave it to her, slow and steady, pushing himself deep into her, cradling and shielding her body from the outside world. Loving her, feeling her warmth and strength and passion. "I love you so much." He felt her hot breath tickling his neck and her tears. He couldn't stop his own and he buried his head into her neck. Iris held the back of his head with one hand while the other gripped the back of his thigh as she arched her back so that every part of them was connected. It was intense and left them both a little rattled and breathless.
"God Bug. Where did that come from?" He gasped.
"I don't know." She was struggling to catch her breath, he had literally taken it away. "I didn't want it to stop."
"Me either. I'm still buzzing." He pushed against her a little. More than happy to stay where he was for now.
"That is all I am going to remember about this day. How incredible that just was."
Colton pushed himself up on his elbows and looked down at his beautiful Bug, he kissed her slowly, his tongue pushing on her lips until she let him in. "I can't let you go."
"You are stuck with me now."
"How does that make you feel?"
"Safe and content." Iris placed one hand on his cheek and when he leaned into it, she ran her thumb over his lips. "You make me content."