A/N: I'm sorry for the long delay, but here is the next chapter. Like to thank my beta for helping out.

Chapter Twenty One

I Shall Believe

Twenty four hours had passed since anyone had last seen or heard from Brooke. The gang had tried every possible way to find her. They had called the police, put up flyers around town and interviewed people who could have interacted with Ian recently including students up at Duke University. However, no one had seen or heard from him since his arrest. Deb had also tried to call Cooper, but he wouldn't answer his phone. Eventually, it was turned off and went straight to voicemail.

When Keith and Karen heard that Brooke was missing, they wanted to hop on a plane back to Tree Hill to help with the search. However, Deb assured them that it wasn't necessary and they had the best people on the case. And since Cooper was involved, it might be best for them to stay away for awhile. They would call whenever they heard information about Brooke.

Haley was sound asleep when she was woken up by her cell-phone ringing. Hoping that it was someone with news about Brooke, she answered it without even checking to see who it was. To her annoyance, it was Taylor. "Haley, you need to get down to Charleston right away."

Haley frowned as she interrupted her sister. "Charleston? Why would you need me to drive down to South Carolina? Wait, what are you doing down there anyway? Are you in jail or something?"

"I found Brooke," Taylor blurted out. Haley was skeptical since she was known to lie. She was about to scold her for the cruel joke when her sister continued with her explanation. "I'm at this hospital in Charleston and I saw paramedics bring in victims from a car accident. And I swear one of them was Brooke."

Haley couldn't believe her ears. Was it really possible that they had finally found her? "Are you sure?"

"I'm positive," Taylor insisted. Haley could tell by the tone of her voice that she was being serious. "She was classified as a Jane Doe until I told the nurse that I knew who she was. They checked online and confirmed that their patient is indeed the missing Brooke Penelope Davis." Haley let out a relieved sigh. "I've tried to get more information about her and her condition, but you know how annoying these doctors are. They don't like to tell you anything unless it's a family member. I told them that I would call and get her mom down here."

"Thanks Taylor. I'll spread the word and we'll be there as soon as possible," Haley replied before Taylor told her which hospital she was in. They then said good-byes before she hung up and went to find the gang.

Everyone was elated to hear that Brooke had been found safe and sound. After a quick discussion, it was decided that Victoria, Haley and Lucas would drive to the hospital and find out more about Brooke's condition and the car accident. It was a quiet drive with everyone full of anxiety and worry. Haley tried to focus on the fact that Brooke had been found alive, but the news didn't comfort her. Ian had had her for a whole day. Who knew what he had done to her? Or even what had happened during the car accident? She just hoped that she was alright.

When they arrived at the hospital, they found Taylor sitting in the waiting room. Nobody was in the mood for introductions, but Haley did it anyway. They were then able to find the doctor who was working on Brooke. As he rattled off the list of her injuries, Lucas became more and more worried. It hit him hard when he had heard that she was in a coma. "Will she be okay?" he asked anxiously.

"There is a chance for her to make a full recovery, but she will have to wake up first," the doctor told them. There was silence before he spoke again. "Why don't I show you to her room?" he suggested. "I know it's pretty late, but I can let you see her for a few minutes." Lucas went first while Haley and Victoria went to talk to the police officers to discuss the car accident.

Arriving at Brooke's room, Lucas tried to stay strong as he saw all sorts of machines hooked up to her. She was bruised pretty badly, but it was certainly Brooke. He walked over to the bed and held her hand as he started talking to her. "Brooke, I hope you can hear me. This is all my fault. I should have told you about Lindsey in the first place, but I didn't want to make a bad first impression. But we all make mistakes and I've learned from mine. I won't keep anymore secrets from you. I promise. Just wake up, please." To Lucas's disappointment, there was no movement from Brooke. However, he held out hope that she was going to wake up.

Lucas heard footsteps and knew without looking that it was Haley. It was confirmed when she began to speak. "How is she?" she asked as she joined him by the bed. Lucas was silent. "According to the police, Ian was the one who caused the accident. It looks like he was drinking again."

Lucas shook his head in disgust. "He was probably celebrating that he had Brooke and didn't have to worry about us coming after her. Where is that son of a bitch?" he hissed. "I want to kill him for what he did to Brooke."

"He has been arrested and was transported back to Tree Hill," Haley replied. "He'll remain there until his trial for violating probation and kidnapping. Of course, I think he would be better off in a mental institution. It's not right to have an obsession with a person like that."

"As long as he is far away from us, I don't care where he ends up," Lucas said as he turned back to Brooke. "Did you hear that, Pretty Girl? Ian is going to be put away for good." Another thought crossed his mind. "What about Cooper? Was he with them?" Haley shook her head. "So he is still out there, waiting to make his move."

"Maybe we'll get lucky and Ian will tell the police where he is," Haley suggested. "It doesn't matter anyway. Brooke needs us right now." Lucas knew she was right. He and Haley continued talking to her softly as Victoria entered the room.

"Could I talk to you two in the hallway for a moment?" she asked. Neither wanted to leave Brooke, but Victoria was persistent. They then reluctantly followed her out into the hallway and listened to what she had to say. "I would like to thank you for your company, but I think it's time for you guys to return home. Taylor's waiting for you downstairs."

"I'm not leaving Brooke," Lucas protested. "I want to be there when she wakes up."

Victoria tried to calm him down. "I know you do, but you can't be by her side all the time. You have school and your extracurricular activities to focus on, not to mention your little sister. I've already talked to your parents and they have agreed that you should go home and come back later." Lucas wanted to object, but she was firm. "I promise I will call if I hear an update about her condition including if she wakes up, okay?" Lucas finally agreed before he followed Haley through the corridor.

Haley waited until they were in the car before she spoke. "Do I even want to know what you were doing here in Charleston?" she asked her sister. Taylor didn't answer as she backed the car out of the parking space. "You know what? It doesn't matter. Thank you for letting us know about Brooke."

Taylor gave her younger sister a smile. "Just because we don't get along doesn't mean I don't care about you or your friends. I'm glad she is going to be okay."

"I wouldn't call it that," Lucas snapped. "After all, she has a couple of broken ribs and a concussion. And she is in a coma and we don't know how long she will be in it. It could be days or weeks or even years. She might never wake up." And that was scared him the most.

"She will wake up," Haley insisted. "The doctors are very confident that she will get out of this. We just need to keep the faith." She refused to believe that Brooke won't come out of the coma. She had to. She needed her best friend.

When they arrived back to the Scott house, Nathan was the only one there. After Haley had notified the gang on Brooke's condition, Deb had encouraged them to go home and get some well earned sleep. They would hear more about Brooke in the morning. Dan had left without his family and turned himself over to the police for being an accessory to kidnapping.

Lucas was happy when he heard that news. "Good. That bastard deserves to go to prison for betraying his family like that," he said angrily. He didn't let anyone respond as he went to his room and slammed the door.

Nathan gave a questionable look to Haley. "You're going to have to forgive your brother. I think he is just pissed off that Victoria kicked him out of Brooke's room. I don't blame him though. I really didn't want to leave her either." She then noticed how quiet it was. "Where's Lily?"

"She is still at Aunt Deb's house," Nathan replied. Haley was surprised to hear that since all the Scotts from that household were helping search for Brooke. "Skills was with her while everyone else was here. She's going to spend one last night over there. Then someone will bring her back here after school."

"I can do it," Haley offered. "I don't have to do any tutoring yet. And it would be a great distraction for me."

"She's all yours," Nathan agreed. "That way, I can work on Lucas. I don't want Coach Whitey to punish the team for Lucas's bad attitude. Unfortunately, I don't think it will get any better until we hear good news about Brooke."

Several hours later, the gang was eating lunch out on the quad including Millie and Alex, who were now students at Tree Hill High School. Everyone tried to be cheerful since they knew that Brooke was now safe. The conversations were interrupted by a ringing cell-phone. Haley recognized the number as Victoria's and hoped that it was the news that they have been waiting for.

Excusing herself, she left the table and went as far away from the gang as she could. Listening to what Victoria had to say, her spirits were lifted up before they were crushed again. It was hard to find her voice as she said her final words. "Is there hope?" To her relief, Victoria assured her that there was. "Thanks for telling me."

Haley took her time walking back to the table, trying to find the right words to tell her friends what had happened to Brooke. As she looked at their concerned faces, she knew that this wouldn't be easy. She took a deep breath before she began speaking. "Well, I have good news and bad news. The good news is Brooke has woken up from her coma." There were relieved sighs everywhere. However, they wondered what possibly could be the bad news. "It looks like Brooke is suffering from amnesia."

The concerned faces turned to shock, surprise and upset. Lucas was the first one to speak. "How much does she not remember?" he asked. Haley didn't answer. Lucas gaped at her. "She doesn't even remember who she is?"

Haley shook her head sadly. "No, but the doctor believes it's just temporary. Memory loss is common with head traumas."

"Is there anything we can do to help her get her memory back?" Millie asked.

"Yeah, we just have to be patient with her and surround her with familiar things."

Alex made a face. "Won't it be confusing for her to find out that she moved out of her mansion to live with Lucas and Nathan?"

"Everything will seem confusing to her at first," Nathan reminded her. "But it will all make sense to her when she gets her memory back. When does she come home?"

"If everything goes well, she'll be home tomorrow or the next day. It would be nice if we could throw her a welcome home party. But it might be a little much for her. So we'll have the party after she gets her memory back." Haley then turned to Lucas. "And her memory will return. I know it."