Disclaimer: All still apply.

SOMETHING TO PROVE

(PART EIGHT)

"Mark, what was all that about?" Amanda asked, a short while later.

By sheer coincidence, she had been one of those people in the corridor when Melissa had made her dramatic exit. Now, she was seated in the chair that the girl had so recently vacated, looking at her old friend concernedly.

Mark was barely even aware of her presence. He was silently berating himself for not taking steps to prevent what had just happened. Only the previous evening, he had chided Jesse for spending time alone with Melissa and then he'd gone and done exactly the same thing.

There were no witnesses to their conversation, it was going to be a matter of taking one person's word over another's. Again.

"Mark?" Amanda prompted, as the silence stretched.

"That child..." Mark looked at her, anger at both himself and Melissa clearly evident in his usually benign features.

"She said something about you threatening her," Amanda said, though her tone suggested that she didn't believe it for a minute.

Mark suddenly and completely knew exactly how Jesse was feeling, facing up to a wild accusation, with only his word as his defence.

"I need to call Steve, something's seriously wrong here." the older doctor said. "Then I suppose I'd better call Jesse."

Amanda leaned forward and stopped his hand, even as he reached for the telephone.

"Don't you think that Jesse's got enough to worry about at the moment?" she asked him, gently. "He really doesn't need this on top of everything else."

"No, I suppose you're right." Mark sighed heavily. "But I am going to have to tell him eventually. Tell him that I've just made things about a thousand times worse."

*****

"But dad, I've already talked to the police in Delaware." Steve couldn't keep the frustration out of his voice. "They couldn't help us."

"Then you have to try again," Mark insisted.

The detective sighed heavily. It wasn't that he didn't want to help Jesse, that was at the top of his list of priorities, but he didn't see what good it would do to keep raking over old ground.

"Steve, there is something just not right about this whole situation," Mark continued into the ensuing silence. "Talk to the school, their neighbours, anyone who might have known them. I'm sure people will remember them, even if it is nearly two years since they moved here."

"Dad, it's going to be difficult to get that information. This isn't even an official investigation."

"I know, Steve, but you have to try." Mark injected urgency into his tone. He was convinced that the answers he craved lay in Melissa's past. "And hurry, son. We might be running out of time."

"Why, what's happened?" Steve demanded.

Mark went on to bring his son up to date on the latest developments, including Melissa's little 'performance' that morning. Steve frowned thoughtfully as he listened.

"You know, this is starting to look like one Hell of a scam," he said, when his dad had finished. "You think maybe they've done something like this before?"

"It wouldn't surprise me. It seems so easy to get compensation these days and for just about anything. I think you're right, Steve. I think that the Flynn's are just looking to make a fast buck."

"But if it's only about money, then why insist on Jesse being fired?" the detective wondered. "And where did Melissa's bruises come from?"

"I honestly don't know who's been hurting Melissa and that worries me more than anything else," Mark confessed. "As for wanting Jesse to be fired, well, I just think that they're trying to add credibility to their claim. If Jesse had really done what he's been accused of, then Eric Flynn would want to see him punished."

"Okay, dad, leave it with me. I'll make some calls, see what I can find out." Steve didn't sound overly optimistic.

"Please, Steve. I can't tell you how important this is. When the Board finds out about my meeting with Melissa, there's no telling what they'll do. I might find myself suspended right alongside Jesse."

"Surely they won't take her word over yours," his son protested.

"I never thought they'd take her word over Jesse's," Mark answered, sadly. "And look where that's got us."

*****

"Amanda!"

Jesse was genuinely surprised to see the young pathologist at his door. When he'd answered it, he'd fully expected to see Mark standing there.

"What? Has something happened?" He looked past her, out into the corridor, wondering why his mentor hadn't so much as been in touch with him that day.

"No, Jesse," Amanda smiled. "I just thought you might want some company."

Jesse scrubbed a hand over his unshaven face. Left alone all day, with nothing to do but contemplate his situation, Jesse had began to succumb to depression. He hadn't even dressed properly that morning, but simply dragged on some sweat-pants and a tee-shirt. His feet were bare.

Now, seeing Amanda, as elegant as ever, standing in his doorway, he realised what a state he must look. He stepped back to allow her entry anyway.

"Um, sorry," he mumbled, looking around at the habitual clutter that was his home. "I haven't, um..."

He trailed off. He had been about to say that he hadn't had time for a clean-up, but that would have been patently ridiculous. For the past two days, he'd had nothing but time.

"Jesse, this is me you're talking to," Amanda said, sympathetically. "You know you don't have to stand on ceremony. And you certainly don't have to apologise. You do have coffee though, don't you?"

"Oh, yeah, sure." In spite of her assurances, Jesse's tone was still apologetic.

Amanda sat and watched Jesse, as he busied himself in the kitchen. Seeing the lethargy in his movements and the slump to his shoulders, she knew that she had done the right thing by stopping Mark from telling him about the events of that morning. One more shock might just be one too many for her young colleague to take.

*****

"So, how are you holding up?" Amanda asked, as Jesse placed a drink in front of her. "Really?"

"Oh, you know me." Jesse attempted a laugh. "Making the most of my time off. I think I might even go..."

Amanda saw the breakdown coming a moment before it happened. Jesse's words trailed off on a sob of anguish and he covered his eyes with his hands, not wanting her to see his tears.

"Oh, Jesse."

Moving to sit on the arm of the chair he'd collapsed into, Amanda put her arm around his trembling shoulders.

"Why is this happening to me?" He looked up at her through red-rimmed eyes. "Amanda, what if Mark doesn't... can't..?"

"Don't even think that way," his friend scolded him gently. "Hey, he's even got Steve running around trying to sort this out. It's going to be fine, Jess."

Jesse bowed his head.

"I didn't mean to cause so much trouble for everyone," he murmured.

"Jesse, you're no trouble. None of this is your fault."

"Then why hasn't Mark so much as called?" the distraught young doctor protested. "I mean, something must be happening. Why won't he let me know what's going on? It's not... It's not bad news, is it?"

Amanda suddenly found that she could no longer meet his pleading gaze. She couldn't be the one to tell him about what had happened that morning, not when he was already so upset. But she couldn't blatantly lie to him either.

"Mark and Steve are doing everything that they can to get to the bottom of this," she said, evading his question. "And you trust them, don't you? It will be alright, Jesse. Hey, we've got out of worse trouble than this before."

Jesse nodded shakily, but still looked far from convinced. He leaned into her sisterly embrace.

"I can't go on like this, Amanda," he whispered. "I'm so scared."

"I know," Amanda soothed, pulling him even closer to her and gently rubbing his arm.

She didn't want to admit it, but she was seriously worried about her friend. His depression was deepening and now he was even beginning to blame himself for events that were totally beyond his control. Amanda was scared too, scared of what would happen to Jesse, if Mark couldn't find a way out of this mess.

TO BE CONTINUED...