Chapter 3

They were about still several minutes away from their final destination, and neither had spoken a word. Tommy had switched on the radio earlier, and it was currently playing one of Jude's favorite songs, "Nothing to Lose" by Billy Talent. Tommy knew from experience that when it came on the radio, Jude usually rocked out to it and sang along. Tonight, she barely even acknowledged that it was playing. Jude's behavior wasn't completely unexpected, but it still worried Tommy.

Meanwhile, Jude was staring out, watching the trees, buildings, and whatever else was there fly by. The words from the mystery man on the phone, Officer Steele, kept replaying in her head.

"Hello, I'm Officer Steele. Is this Jude Harrison?"

"Yes...but I'm confused as to how you got this number and why you're calling."

"That's understandable, and I'll explain in a minute. Are you sitting down right now, Ms. Harrison?"

"Yes, I am," she answered, although still in an utterly confused voice, but growing more worried by the second. Why do I need to be sitting down? she wondered.

"Ok. There was an accident this evening involving a Victoria and Sadie Harrison. I'm assuming they're relatives of yours?"

"My mother and sister. What happened? Are they alright?"

"I think it'd be better if you came down to the hospital so the doctors and I can explain everything in person..." That was when she dropped the phone, not wanting to know any more.

Tommy chanced a glance at Jude as they reached a stop sign, wondering what was going through her mind. But he knew better than to pry, she'd tell him when she was ready. After a moment he checked the other roads, and finding them clear he began to pull forward.

Out of nowhere a car came speeding from the road on the right, and it was obvious that he didn't plan on stopping at the octagonal red sign. The Cobra was pulled out about halfway as the car grew nearer and nearer, a collision seeming inevitable. By now Jude had heard the sound of the approaching car and looked up, right into the blare of the oncoming headlights.

Tommy wasn't sure whether he should slam on the brakes or the gas. This was the first time his instincts had failed, with a car of all things. His brain appeared to have shut down when he saw Jude illuminated in the headlights. That car was going way too fast now, it wouldn't have time to stop, and Jude was on the right side, directly in its path. She would be the one to take the force of the impact. The Cobra...it was a nice, fast, flashy car, but it definitely wasn't ranked very high for safety, and it was a convertible for goodness' sake! All Tommy could see was Jude...and the car that was heading straight for her.

The reckless driver of the car seemed to have reached the same conclusion as Tommy, that there wasn't enough time to slam on the brakes and stop before hitting the Cobra. He needed to come up with something, and fast.

Tommy watched helpless as the car grew even nearer to Jude. He wanted to do something, anything, to stop this from happening, but he knew there was nothing he could do now except brace himself for the impact.

There might have been nothing Tommy could do, but the driver wasn't giving up just yet. He saw the stricken face of a young, pretty brunette girl in the passenger's side of the car, and knew what he had to do. It might not work, but he at least had to try, for all of their sakes. If he rolled his car and got hurt, or worse, so be it, he was the one that had caused this situation after all. Anger and hurt and betrayal were no excuse for reckless driving and endangering the lives of innocent people.

Without a second thought, the driver turned the wheel, hoping there was still enough distance between the two cars for his plan to work.

Jude squeezed her eyes shut, waiting for the hit she knew was coming. After a moment, though, she opened her eyes. There were no headlights in front of her. There was no car in front of her. Just a dark, deserted road.

At the sound of a crash, instinct told her to turn around and look. But she didn't. Instead, she followed the five-year-old inside of her and pulled her knees up to her chest and her legs in as tight as they could go. Shivering, but not from the cold, she just sat there cradling her head in her hands, telling herself to just breath.

Releasing an unconscious breath, Tommy snapped back to the real world as fresh air entered his lungs. Looking over, he saw that Jude was still sitting there, unharmed. She was safe. He whipped around when he heard a crash and saw the rear end of the previously oncoming car smash into a tree off the road.

Without thinking, Tommy quickly jumped out of the Viper and ran towards the vehicle. Even if the driver was a moron and had almost gotten them all killed, they weren't dead now and his car was currently smushed against a tree with him still in it. Tommy still had no idea how this guy had managed to not flip his car over when he swerved to avoid the Cobra, but somehow he had.

Reaching the car, which he now recognized as a BMW 6 Series Convertible, Tommy jogged over to the driver's seat and peered through the windshield, unsure of what he would find.

Mitch felt like he had just been hit by a sledgehammer. In actuality, he realized, it was the steering wheel. As Mitch was trying to gain his bearings, he felt something warm trickle down his face. Reaching up to his forehead, he realized that his head was cut and that he was bleeding. Great, what a perfect way to end the perfect day, he thought sarcastically. A movement outside of the car refocused his attention. But apparently it's not over yet.

A face appeared in the window, and Mitch recognized its owner as the one and only Little Tommy Q, thanks to his little sister's obsession several years ago. You've gotta be kidding me... Mitch raised his arm and waved, letting the ex-boybander know that he was fine.

With a sigh, Mitch grabbed the door handle and exited his now worthless BMW. Seeing the damage, he clenched his teeth and managed to keep the many expletives that came to mind to himself.

"You ok?" An oddly familiar voice spoke.

"Yeah, fine, thanks. Too bad I can't say the same about my car."

Tommy grimaced as he looked at the car, or at least what was left of it. He'd been there and done that a few years before, actually right before he'd met Jude, so he could share this guy's pain. Of course, since that event Tommy was a much more cautious driver, especially with passengers, particularly ones with brown hair and amazing voices. The darkness had engulfed everything, so Tommy walked a little closer to this guy that had just endangered Jude's life, wondering what he'd find.

The guy looked to Tommy to be in his very early twenties with short, dark brown hair, similar to his own. He was a couple of inches taller than Tommy, but other than that they were pretty similar physically. The mystery guy walked towards Tommy and extended his hand.

"I'm Mitch Graye."

Taking his hand, Tommy replied, "Tom Quincy."

"Are you guys ok?" Hearing Mitch's question, Tommy didn't understand why he wasn't broiling with anger. This guy had practically crashed into them! He could've seriously hurt Jude! Mitch Graye was a reckless idiot...so why wasn't Tommy royally pissed right now?

"Fine, I think. You did scare the shit out of us, though, but physically we're fine. But I think that cut on your head is worse than you think; it looks like it could use some stitches. We're on our way to the hospital, if you want a ride." And now he was offering the guy a ride? Apparently when Jude was going through something, calm and sympathy were key parts of Tommy's demeanor.

Mitch turned and looked at his car. "What about my car? I can't just leave it, isn't that like leaving the scene of a crime or something?"

"It's ok, you can leave if you have to take care of an injury. We just have to call it in."

Mitch shot Tommy a questioning glance.

"Let's just say I did this a few years ago and have some experience." Mitch nodded, accepting his answer. "So do you want to come?"

"Yeah, if it's no problem for you." Actually, the cut on Mitch's forehead was starting to sting and his head was ready to explode, so he was completely ready to accept a ride to the hospital in order to get some painkillers.

"Ok, then. You need anything from your car?" Tommy asked as he whipped out his cell phone to call the Mounties.

"Nah, I'm good."

"All right, just let me finish this call and we'll get going," Tommy said as he held the phone up to his ear.