Chapter 2: Drugged

A deputy arrived a little while after Cassie came into the waiting room after she parked her car. No one had come out to tell her anything, except that they were running some tests.

They couldn't even tell her what all tests they were performing, but Cassie suggested they do a rape test, which she received a suspicious eyebrow raise from Dr. Barnes for.

"She had bruises on her arms and a lot of other parts of her body that I could see, so I wouldn't be surprised." Cassie had told her.

The doctor had nodded before walking away; Cassie had been sitting in the same chair ever since.

Deputy Evens walked into the waiting room looking as though he hadn't been asleep at all, which was surprising, to say the least seeing as though it was now well past midnight. He smiled when his eyes landed on Cassie.

"Back less than 3 hours and you're already in the hospital. That had to be a new record, Robinson." He said when he was within earshot of the light skinned girl.

Cassie rolled her eyes with a huff, "What can I say? Trouble seems to find me wherever I go." They both laughed openly at that as Cassie stood up to give the deputy a friendly reunion hug.

The two had been friends since they were little, though Gabriel Evens was two and a half years older than her; they were like siblings.

When Cassie was younger, she was a bit of a daredevil. Always getting into something that caused her to go the hospital practically every other week. She went well with Gabriel because he was quite the trickster.

He constantly played jokes on people, leaving behind candy wrappers in his wake as his calling card. Their parents thought they were a terrible team, but the two were so close, it didn't really matter.

It was hard for the two of them to adjust after Cassie left for college and Gabriel began training to be a deputy, but whenever she was back in town, the dynamic duo was at it once more.

"So you hit a naked girl in the middle of the highway, in the rain? Normally you're the only one hurt during one of your little escapades." The two sat back down in the two corner chairs Cassie had previously been occupying.

"Ha ha, very funny," Cassie's sarcasm was a bit more bitter than she intended it to be, but if Gabriel noticed, he didn't let it show. "I made a stop in Maddison to visit a friend and left later than I intended which was why I was coming in so late. I was driving in, about to turn onto route 66 when this girl literally came out of nowhere. I looked down for a second, then she was in the middle of the street." Cassie throws her hands in the air in exasperation, causing Gabriel to have to pull back slightly back so to avoid a fist to the nose.

"I take it you didn't see which direction she came from." It was more of a statement that a question.

"I'm more worried about 'what' she was running from than where." Cassie lowered her voice, leaning slightly towards her friend. She spoke in a lowered tone, her voice worried and serious. "She looked so scared Gabe. I mean she couldn't have been older than me, actually, I'm pretty sure she was younger. She had blood and bruises all over her and–"

Cassie would never forget the fearful expression on the girl's face, no matter how brief it might have been before the girl nearly passed out. She has never seen fear like that, not even on tv.

Gabriel took Cassie's hands in his own, the raven haired girl not even realizing she had begun to shake.

"It's okay Cas. We'll help her." Cassie nodded numbly but otherwise didn't say anything. "Did she say anything before she passed out? The nurse said she was passed out when you got here." Gabriel spoke cautiously as to not set off his friend.

"She said 'don't let them get me'; when I asked who, she didn't get to finish before she passed out, but it sounded like she was gonna say 'boyfriends'."

"Boyfriends plural?" Gabriel asked in confusion.

"Polygamy isn't uncommon in America or any other country for that matter, Gabe. In some countries, both polygamy and incest are extremely common." Cassie stated offhandedly. "And she said 'they', so I only assume she meant more than one."

"No– I mean I know that, but if there is more than one suspect, then we should be looking out for a pair instead of a single perp. That narrows it down some." The last part was said a bit quieter, and Cassie knew the deputy was making a mental note.

Just as Cassie was about to comment more, Dr. Barnes walked into the waiting room, looking tired and ready to go home.

Gabriel noticed her walk in and immediately stood to meet her in the space where the hallways leading to other parts of the hospital met.

"You're looking pretty tired Pam. Long day?" The deputy asked with a playful smile.

"Long week," Pamela let out a tired huff of air. "And getting longer. The Jane Doe that was brought in was apparently pumped full of Rohypnol– more than strictly necessary– which explains her episode when she came in."

"She was roofied?" It came out as more of a question than the statement that Gabriel intended it to be.

"Yeah, and with the dosage, she was given, she shouldn't have been conscious for as long as she was, let alone have been able to stand or even be alive," Pamela said in astonishment.

"Did you do the test?" Cassie spoke up, needing to know how intense the girl's injuries were. She wouldn't be surprised if she had been raped; the roofies just furthered her curiosity.

Dr. Barnes looked over at Cassie, eyes sad but earnest. "I brought up one of the hospital SANE's; they did find two separate sets of DNA in her. I can give them to you Deputy so you can run them at the station."

Cassie held her breath, not even listening to Gabriel's reply or the rest of the conversation. She couldn't even begin to imagine what that girl might have gone through. How would she handle her recovery; would she even get to that stage where she could recover?

"I got her pumped in time that nothing else severe will happen, but we're gonna keep her overnight just in case."

Cassie pulled Gabriel close to her to whisper in his ear, "If she really is running from someone, and they knew she was injured, the first place they would look is a hospital."

"Doctors and nurses will check in on her hourly, plus there are no visitors allowed in the ICU even if it is visiting hours." Dr. Barnes piped in, obviously hearing the conversation. "She'll be fine until morning. Even then, you can send a deputy over before visiting hours just in case."

Cassie felt a little better hearing that. As long as the girl wasn't unguarded and vulnerable. But it wasn't enough to put the light skinned girl completely at ease.

"She won't wake up until daybreak at the earliest and I can have the security guards keep an eye out on her room." The doctor added when she noticed Cassie was still tense.

"O-okay." She relaxed a bit more; Gabriel squeezed her shoulder in a comforting gesture.

"I will be back by seven because I need at least 4 hours of sleep in my own bed in order to maintain my hospital regulated bedside manner."

Gabriel nodded in understanding, having come face to face with an overworked Pamela Barnes one too many times in the past.

"I will bring the sheriff by in the morning to talk to her. Have a goodnight Doc." Gabriel said giving the doctor a warm smile, who returned it, though slightly tired, and made her way back down the hall.

Once the doctor was out of sight, Gabriel turned back to Cassie, who was still looking down the hallway Dr. Barnes left down.

"Cas," He took her shoulders in his hands in order to get her attention. She turned to look at him, her eyes slightly lethargic. "You should go home too. You've been driving practically all day and you're exhausted after everything that has happened tonight."

"I can't–" She started, but Gabriel cut her off.

"I'll watch the kid tonight and call the sheriff in the morning. I have the graveyard shift anyway. Might as well spend it doing something meaningful."

Cassie really didn't want to leave the girl. She felt a strange urge to protect her with everything she had, but she didn't know why. Maybe she felt obligated to because she found the girl. But it felt deeper than mere obligation.

Something about her just felt…familiar.

"Alright," She relented with a tired sigh, "but I'll be back in the morning."

"I wouldn't expect it any other way." Gabriel bowed dramatically. "Sleep well,"

Cassie hugged her friend one more time before heading back out to the parking lot.