Finally arriving home, she dumps her keys on the side table by the phone as she flicks the light on. "OMG," she slips in the blood as she rushes to her side, pulling her into her arms. "Oh god, please wake up," she says, placing her hand over the wound in a vain attempt to stop the bleeding. "What were you even doing here?"she cries as she rocks her pale and motionless body, a groan drawing her attention to the other figure lying nearby.
Police and ambulance lights flash in the night as the neighbours watch what seems an endless trail of police coming and going from the house, as two stretchers are wheeled out and into the awaiting ambulances, a paramedic working frantically to keep one of them alive as the ambulances speed off, their sirens screaming into the night.
She sits in shock, covered in her blood, not seeing anything but the pale motionless body that had been in her arms, oblivious to the nurse's attempts to get her into clean clothes as she waits anxiously for any news.
"You need to change," the nurse tries again, her face full of compassion as she holds the clean clothes out in front of her. "You shouldn't let others see you like this."
Looking down, she sees the blood on her hands, on her arms, all over her. "Oh god."
"You can shower and change down the corridor," the nurse says as she pulls the distraught woman to her feet and leads her down the corridor. The nurse's heart goes out to the woman who was trembling against her arm.
With the blast of the water on her, the memories of the night come flooding back. Leaning against the shower wall, she slides down, pulling her knees to her chest as her tears blend with the water.
She doesn't know how long she stayed there, sitting huddled under the rushing water, she doesn't know how long it would have been before she could have moved if it hadn't been for the nurse seeking her out. Turning the water off, the nurse grabs the towel and squats by her side, wrapping the towel around her shoulders. "The doctor's finished examining your friend."
"She wasn't supposed to be there," she whispers.
"She's going to be all right," the nurse assures her, not sure which woman she had meant. "They both will be." Helping her to her feet, she hesitates before leaving her to dry herself and change into the clean clothes.
An hour after arriving at the house, she surveys the scene one last time, shuddering at the amount of blood on the floor, doubting that they'd ever be able to get the stain out of the carpet. As she looks, she recalls the cold that had gripped her heart when she had gotten the call. Dropping the phone, she had rushed out of her house without even explaining to the others. The sight when she arrived had very nearly destroyed her, her usually strong friend sitting broken on the floor, holding the motionless body in her arms, whispering her love and support over and over as she rocked back and forth, the shocked looks on the faces of every officer there, the soft moans coming from their younger friend as she sat watching them helplessly through the blood that had streamed down her face from the nasty gash on her forehead and then the struggle they had to drag her friend away so the paramedics could work on her. Her. Unable to even say or think her name for fear that she'd join her friend and breakdown. Wanting nothing more than to jump into the back of the ambulance and go with them, she had found an inner strength she never knew she had, taking charge of the scene and assuring the women as they were taken away that she'd get the bastard who did this to them, even though she doubted any of them had heard or understood her.
And now, standing here, she doesn't even know if she's still alive.
"How can you be so calm?" He asks her, concerned at the lack of emotion on her face.
"Because if I let go now, I'll completely lose it and I need to be strong for them," one of them so close to her heart she feared she wouldn't be able to go on if she lost her.
He places his hand on her arm in a comforting gesture. "Everyone will be ok."
"God I hope you're right Giles." She squeezes her hands shut almost painfully as she tries to hold onto her control. "I want this guy."
He glances around the room, feeling guilty that while his family had been sitting down to their evening meal, this was happening. "I never thought he'd go after her," he says of the woman he didn't know that well but had respected.
"None of us ever expected this, but we should have." She shakes her head, "She fits the profile; she's married and her husband is elsewhere."
"We didn't see it, because she's just staying here, she doesn't live here."
"We don't really know how he selects them, other than they're married and they're husbands aren't around at the time."
"I'm still surprised he went after her."
"He was obviously confident that he could overpower her, despite her training, though I don't think he was expecting such a fight."
"Judging by how she was found, it looked like he was going to rape her here and not in the bedroom. He also hadn't restrained her in anyway."
"The blood smears on the window showed that's how he left and most likely came in but that window isn't all that sheltered from prying eyes." She sighs in frustration, "Everything about this suggests that he took a huge risk coming here and not just because of who he attacked. None of them worked regular hours so he had no idea when someone else could turn up."
Giles thinks about that for a moment, "Maybe he just couldn't hold off any longer and when she fought back, it probably turned him on even more which would explain why he hadn't taken her to the bedroom."
"This is the second time he's left DNA behind and even though we still have nothing to compare it to, it worries me because he seems to be becoming more daring and dangerous."
When he hears her sigh again, he asks if she was really ok.
"No, I'm not," her voice starting to quaver. "I don't know how much longer I'm going to be able to keep this up."
"Go to the hospital, there's not much more to be done here."
She shakes her head, brushing away the tears that were threatening to fall, "I need to keep busy." She starts to turn away when her eye catches something sparkling in the light. Frowning, she walks over to the small phone table and squats down. Thankful she still had the gloves on, she reaches under and picks up the sparkling object. Holding the ring and neck chain in her hand, she wracks her brain as she tries to recall why it seemed so familiar. "It must have come off in the struggle."
"What is it?" Giles asks as he moves to her side.
"OMG," she gasps when she reads the inscription on the inside of the ring. "I know who the rapist is."
Unable to stop her shivering, she listens to the doctor as he fills her in on their conditions.
"She's still in surgery. It looks like the knife missed hitting anything vital, but she's lost a lot of blood and is in shock. She's critical but stable for the moment."
Swallowing hard, "When will you know for sure?"
"She will be in surgery for some time yet, but she's a strong, healthy woman, I'm confident that she will pull through and make a quick recovery."
She nods her head, grateful for his confident assurances.
"Your friend Penelope is an extremely lucky young woman, if she had hit her head against the table any harder, she would have fractured her skull."
"She's ok though, right?"
"She has a severe concussion and she's feeling very dazed and frightened at the moment. She has bruising and scratches on her breasts and her throat is badly bruised from the pressure his forearm exerted on her, so she's having a little difficulty in talking at the moment. Has her family been notified?"
"Her husband will be here as soon as he can be." She takes a deep breath, trying to calm her nerves and stop the shivering.
"Would you like a jacket or something?"
"I'm not cold."
Realising why she was shivering, he urges her to stay positive, that she was going to pull through the surgery and recover. "Why don't you sit with Penelope and I'll let you know as soon as the surgery is over."
"Thank you doctor."
Walking hesitantly into the room, her friend looking very small as she lay huddled on the bed, the bruise on her neck standing out against her pale skin. Without any words spoken, she rushes to her side and they hold onto each other as the wait for news.
Sitting by her bedside, holding her pale hand while she sleeps, she starts when hands are placed on her shoulders. "Jesus!"
"Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you."
Checking to see that her friend was still sleeping, she stands up, "Let's talk outside."
Glancing back into the room at the sleeping woman, she asks how she is.
"She finally fell asleep about an hour ago."
"What about," she stops, unable to even finish.
She shakes her head as the tears threaten to fall again. "I'm still waiting for news."
She pushes her fears back down again, "I would have been here sooner, but we found out who he was."
"What!" She says in disbelief. "Who did this to them?" She demands.
In answer, she hands her the evidence bag. Recognising the ring almost immediately, she shakes with anger, "I want to go with you to get this bastard."
"It's too late for that." She pauses for a moment, still unable to believe what they had found at his house. "He's dead."
"He's dead?" She says in confusion.
"He had overdosed."
"He's dead?" Her mind still not really grasping things at the moment.
"I don't know if he killed himself because he realised that once the ring was found it was only a matter of time before we came after him, or..." she pauses again.
"Or what?"
"There was no trace that he had ever had a wife; no photos, none of her clothes, absolutely nothing of hers remained."
She looks down at the bag still in her hand, "Then this ring was all that he had left of her."
"You know what, I really don't care why he killed himself because if he is our rapist, then the women of Summer Bay are safe again."
"You have doubts?"
"None at all, but I just want to allay everyone's fears by being absolutely certain, so I'm having his DNA run against the DNA found at the last two scenes."
"I take it you found other evidence then."
"We should talk about this later, just be happy that we got the bastard."
Feeling her knees buckling, she practically falls onto one of the nearby seats. "Are you ok?" she asks her friend.
"It's just been a long night, I'm still waiting for news and I don't know if I can even go home." She shudders, "All I will ever see is her lying there in all that blood, so lifeless."
"Hey," she sits next to her friend, her arm around her, fighting her own emotions as she comforts her friend. "Come home with me."
"I can't just yet, not until I know."
"I want to stay here with you, but I left in kind of a rush."
"It's ok, there's nothing you can do here except wait."
"I can be here for you."
"It won't be long until she's out of surgery and then I'll be with her." She smiles sadly at her, "I'll be fine."
"You don't have to be so strong."
"You're a good one to talk. If I didn't know how much you cared for her, I'd think you didn't care at all judging by your demeanour."
"It's been so hard, but I just needed to keep it together until we got him."
"Well you got him."
"Yeah we did, now I'm afraid if I let it out, I won't be able to stop."
"Then go home, be with them, they're probably worried out of their minds."
"It doesn't feel right leaving you here alone."
"I'm just going to go back into the room and sit with her while I wait for the doctor to come."
"Will you call me?"
"As soon as she's out of surgery."
"Are you sure?"
"No offence, but I'm barely holding it together myself and I don't think I'm up to dealing with you if you lose it too."
She hugs her, "Whatever the time, just call me, even if you just need to talk."
"I will."
Walking in the front door, the concern on their faces is too much, all the emotions she had kept in come flooding out. They listen in shock as she tells them what had happened, holding her afterwards as she cried herself to sleep.
Resting her head on the bed, she seeks comfort in the rise and fall of her chest, the gentle motion letting her know that she still breathes, despite her stillness. Hearing a noise behind her, she lifts her head, staring in surprise at the figure standing there. She rushes into the arms that have held her so many times before, those same arms holding her while she cries.
"Is she going to be ok?"
"She hasn't been out of surgery for long, but the doctor says she's doing well, though she's not out of danger just yet."
"She's a fighter."
"Yeah, she is," she says as steps back, afraid she wouldn't be able to let go if she stayed there. "What are you doing here?"
"I just needed to see." Caressing her face, "I wish I could stay."
"It's ok, I know you can't."
"I love you."
"I love you too," her voice breaking with emotion.
"Hey, everything's going to be fine," holding her again.
"There's something that I need to tell you, but I can't, not until this is all over."
"It's ok, it won't be long now."
"I just hate not being able to be with you like this all the time."
"I hate it too." Leaning down, capturing her lips in a passionate kiss that leaves them both gasping.
"You should go before you're seen," she says regretfully.
"I know." Stepping away and leaning over the woman in the bed, brushing the hair from her forehead, whispering, "I love you, please be ok," before kissing her forehead tenderly. "You'll let me know when she wakes?"
"Yes, now go." Savouring their last kiss goodbye, she turns her attention back to the bed.
Despite the lack of sleep and the emotions of the previous night, she walks along the hospital corridor with her heart buoyed by the news that she was doing much better, though she still hadn't regained consciousness. Pausing by the door to her room, she takes a moment to smell the flowers in her hand as she works up the courage to take those final couple of steps. With a deep breath, she steps into the room, smiling a little at the uncomfortable way Watson had fallen asleep in the chair beside her sister's bed, her heart sinks when she notices two people on the other side of the bed. Recognising the little girl from the photo, she realises from her resemblance to the man holding her, that he must be her father and therefore, Joey's husband. Not wanting to intrude on the family at this tense time, Charlie backs out of the room, dumping the flowers at the nurse's station as she rushes from the hospital.
Next Chapter: How will Charlie react when she finally learns the truth about Joey?
The identity of the rapist is revealed.