Chapter 2
Jason was out for his usual jog just like every morning. But this morning was different. He spotted a figure lying in the back parking lot of the bar. Probably just another drunk. As he got closer, he saw that it was a woman. He ran over, then saw the blood. His cell phone was out before he even reached her. He gave the 911 operator the location and knelt down to Juliet. He found her pulse, and tried to get her to wake up.
"Hey, hey, what happened to you, are you okay?"
"I…unhhh." Juliet moaned.
"Alright, alright, never mind, don't try to talk. Help is on the way."
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Juliet woke up with bright lights surrounding her, feeling like they might suffocate her. Nurses hustled around her, saying this and that and pointing to various parts of her body. The first pain that hit was her head. It was a dull ache, but the kind that if you think about it, it can become unbearable. The next pain was quite familiar to Juliet. Broken ribs. Then a stinging soreness in her arm, and stinging on her stomach, and last, a deep-inside pain in her belly.
"She's awake." She heard someone say. A woman not wearing scrubs came over. "Can you tell us what happened?"
"Uhn, there were two people…"
"Two people attacked you?" the woman asked. "Let her finish!" Another woman shushed her.
"yeah, two people."
"Do you know who they were?"
"Casey and Allison."
The woman shot off some commands to other people. "Do you know why they did this to you?"
"Th-they called me a dyke." Juliet felt a few tears.
The woman turned to face everyone else. "Call the police. This is a hate crime."
"No!" Juliet called. "No, don't call the police. I'm an officer, and I know everyone there, I don't want them to know what happened."
"Well, we have to contact the police, but because of patient confidentiality, we don't have to say your name, okay?
Juliet felt a little better. "Okay." She sighed with relief.
"We're going to need an official statement. DO you remember everything?"
"Mostly, yeah."
"Would you like to give your statement now?"
Juliet told them everything that she could remember, then slept for the rest of the day.
5 DAYS LATER at Juliet's apartment
Juliet cradled her phone close to her, nervous. She wanted to call her brother, but she also was afraid to bother him.
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Nick O'Hara sat in his living room, playing Twister with his two young sons. His wife was on the couch with their one-year-old daughter on her lap, spinning the spinner and calling out hands, feet, and colors. The phone rang. "Daddy, will you get that?" His wife teased. Nick fell over and rolled off the mat.
"Hello?"
"Nick, how are you?" Juliet's voice wavered, and Nick could immediately tell something was wrong.
"Juliet, are you okay?" Nick left the room to go somewhere more private, getting concerned glances from his family. "Mommy, is Aunt Juliet okay?" "Yes, honey." Nick stepped into the sunroom and shut the door behind him.
"Nick, I-I need you here."
"Juliet, you know I can't fly across the country right now, what's going on? Is it about Eric?"
"It's more than that. It's just, I just really need you here, Nick." Juliet knew she sounded selfish.
"Jules, I can't help you if I don't know what's going on."
"My partner went on a homophobic rant the day before the 18th, and then I went to a bar and I was beaten in the parking lot."
"What! Why would anyone beat you? This is why I didn't want you to be a cop-"
"No, Nick, it had nothing to do with my job."
"Then what?"
Juliet sighed. "It was a hate crime. They beat me because of who I am, or, how I am, well, you know."
Nick let out a deep breath. Then it finally sank in and he went into protective big-brother mode."Are you okay? Did they catch the guy?"
"I'm fine, more or less. IT was two people, they gave me their first names but I'm pretty sure they're fake."
"What do you mean, "more or less"?"
"I'm not okay, Nick, and I don't really want to talk about it over the phone. Can you please come? I really need someone but I'm too scared to tell anyone here."
"Where are you now?"
"I'm at my apartment. I've barely moved from the couch in three days, Nick, I'm so scared."
Nick sighed. "I'll see what I can do about coming, but for now, I'm going to send my friend Marty to drive by and check on you, okay?"
"But Marty lives down in Los Angeles."
"I'm sure he wouldn't mind making sure you're okay. Hang on one second." Nick searched the flights to Santa Barbara on his phone. "Okay, there's one that leaves at 11:30 tonight, with a 3 hour layover in Austin. I'll talk to my wife about it and I'll text you when I know, Okay?"
"Okay."
"But even if I take this flight, I won't be there until morning, will you be okay?"
Juliet lied. "Yes." She was terrified.
"Alright, I'm going to go talk to Mary right now. Bye."
"Bye."
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Nick re-entered the living room. "Hey honey, can I talk to you for a sec?" Mary saw the concerned look in her husband's eyes. "Sure." She set her daughter on the floor and told the boys to behave. They stepped out into the sunroom. "What's going on with Juliet? Is she okay?"
Nick sighed. "Well, not exactly."
"What do you mean?"
"She…there's a lot going on, some problems at work, a lot of personal issues…She's injured and scared and she needs my help."
"Is it serious?"
"She was beaten, and from what she told me, she didn't tell me much but I do think it's bad."
Mary sighed. Nick got a look in his eyes. "What?" Mary asked.
"She wants me to come to Santa Barbara."
Mary let out a long breath. "You should go."
"Are you sure you'll be okay here with the kids?"
"I have my parents to help out. I'll be fine. Juliet needs you."
Nick gave her a quick kiss. "Thank you. There's a flight that leaves tonight, in 4 and a half hours." He said, in sort of an asking way.
"You better get packing." Mary agreed.
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Review please! Next chapter up tomorrow