Hi, everyone! :D I really hope you enjoy this chapter! :D

Chapter 4: New Hope

The next day began much like the previous. Logan woke up feeling awful. He barely picked at his breakfast, which worried Kendall. What worried him more was after breakfast when Logan went out on the balcony and sat down alone. Kendall felt so helpless as he looked out the window and saw him sitting there on the lounge chair looking so sad. He just wanted to reach out and hold Logan and make all his hurts go away.

Kendall opened the door and stepped out onto the balcony, silently sitting down on the lounge chair beside Logan.

"Hey." he said softly, "You okay?"

Logan stayed silent, seeming to stare off into nowhere. Kendall reached over and placed a gentle hand to Logan's back.

"Baby, please talk to me." he whispered.

"I don't wanna talk about it right now." Logan said, not taking his eyes off the floor.

"That's okay." Kendall said, "We don't have to talk; we can just sit."

They sat there for several minutes in silence...before there was a knock at the front door.

Mrs. Knight answered the door and saw an average-height man with tan skin and dark brown hair standing there. She didn't recognize him from anywhere.

"Yes? May I help you?" she asked.

"Yes, ma'am. My name is Daniel Thompson. I'm part of a special investigative group called Males Organized Against Rape. We specialize in investigating cases for male rape victims." the man explained, "I'm here to see a Logan Mitchell. Does he live here?"

"Oh, yes. Please come in." Mrs. Knight said, stepping aside.

"Thank you." Daniel said, stepping inside.

"Wait here." Mrs. Knight said when they reached the dining table, "I'll go get Logan."

Daniel stood beside the table as Mrs. Knight crossed the room and poked her head out onto the balcony.

"Logan-honey, there's someone here to see you." she said.

"Who?" Logan asked, looking back to her.

"He says he's from an organization that specializes in male rape victims." Mrs. Knight explained, "He wants to talk to you."

Logan closed his eyes in dread. Please, not again. He took a deep breath and stood along with Kendall, and they all walked back into the living room. When Logan saw Daniel, there was something different about him. He didn't have the hard, judgemental look that the two officers had had. He looked...understanding.

"Logan Mitchell?" he asked as they approached.

"Yes." Logan said.

"I'm Daniel Thompson." he said, holding out his hand, "I'm here to help you."

Logan shook his hand.

"How did you know..." he asked.

"The commissioner of the Special Victims Unit sent me. When I heard about how you were treated by those other two officers, I was appalled." he explained.

"Yeah, well..." Logan said, casting his eyes downward.

"You have nothing to be ashamed of. I'm here to help you." Daniel said, "If we could just sit down, I have a few questions I would like to ask."

Logan nodded and they all sat down at the dining table.

"Now, from the officers' notes, I read that you were at a party that night? Could you start form there and tell me what happened?" Daniel asked.

Logan sighed as he began, "We were at the party and I was getting bored, so I went over and stood beside the refreshment table. And this guy came up to me and offered me a drink."

"Did he tell you his name?" Daniel asked.

"He said his name was Jason. He didn't tell me anything else." Logan said, "When he handed me the drink, I started drinking it and I started to feel woozy, like there was something in it."

"What happened next?" Daniel asked kindly, writing something down in his notebook.

"Everything went black." Logan said, "When I woke up, I was tied to a mattress in the next room."

Kendall could tell Logan was having a hard time with this.

"He came into the room..." Logan continued, "...and he ripped my shirt..."

Logan sniffled as he fought with tears. Kendall placed a hand on his shoulder, giving a gentle squeeze of comfort.

"It's okay." he whispered.

Logan sniffled and nodded.

"He pulled my pants off...and he raped me."

Logan felt a tear slide down his cheek as he recounted his horrific story.

"Did he say anything while all this was going on?" Daniel asked.

"He um...he s-said that he'd b-been watching me all night, a-and that he was gonna get what he wanted." Logan said shakily.

"You're doing very good." Daniel said, "Now, I have something I want to show you. Is that okay?"

Logan wiped away his tears and nodded. Daniel reached into the very back of his notepad and pulled out a piece of paper.

"Is this the man who raped you?" he asked, laying the paper on the table in front of Logan.

Logan's heart stilled for a split second and he felt his mouth go dry. His eyes widened as his rapist's face stared back at him from the picture on the table.

"Oh, my God..." he gasped, unable to tear his eyes away from it, "Th-that's him!"

"Are you absolutely sure?" Daniel asked.

"I was looking at him the whole time. That's him!" Logan said.

Daniel quickly pulled away the picture, not wanting to trigger a possible flashback.

"You've done so well, Logan. Thank you for answering my questions." he said, tucking the picture back into his notepad.

"Wh-where'd you get that picture?" Logan asked.

"It's from one of our case files." Daniel explained, "This guy is a serial rapist. He's twenty-five years old and he's been raping and murdering boys for four years. We've never been able to catch him."

"Wait. Did you say 'murdering'?" Kendall said.

"Unfortunately, yes. Aside from Logan, there is one known victim that has survived." Daniel said.

They heard a soft gasp and their eyes instantly went to Logan. Tears came to his eyes and he broke down. He just let the tears fall, not caring who saw him.

"It's okay, baby." Kendall said wrapping an arm around Logan's shoulders, "It's gonna be okay."

"You don't know that!" Logan cried.

Looking in sympathy upon Logan, Daniel reached out and gently held Logan's hand.

"He's right, Logan. It's gonna be okay." he said, "I know exactly what you're going through."

"Y-you do?" Logan asked, raising his head to look at him.

"Yes. I do." Daniel said, "About ten years ago, I was raped. No one believed me when I told them because I'm a guy. But this group I work with- they believed me and with their help, we brought the man who did it to justice."

"Really?" Logan asked.

"Yes. It was the best decision I ever made to pursue it with this group." Daniel said, "And I promise you that we will do everything we can to catch this guy."

"Th-thank you...thank you so much for believing me." Logan said.

"It's okay." Daniel said, "I promise we're gonna catch him."

Logan nodded and felt more tears form in his eyes.

"That's all I need for now. Thank you very much for everything you've told me." Daniel said.

Logan nodded again as Daniel stood. A moment later, he felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked up and saw Daniel standing there.

"I promise everything is gonna be okay." he said understandingly.

"Thank you." Logan said softly through his tears.

Daniel smiled and nodded. Kendall stood and motioned for Daniel to follow him over to the door; he needed to talk to him. Daniel did so and they were out of ear-shot of Logan.

"Are there any questions you have?" Daniel asked.

"Just one." Kendall said, "How can I protect him? If this guy is murdering his victims, I need some way to protect him because over my dead body is anything else gonna happen to him."

"Well, the main way is to be observant. Keep an eye out for anything suspicious around you." Daniel said.

Kendall nodded, and opened the door for Daniel.

"Before you go..." he said as Daniel stepped out, "...I just want to say thanks. Thank you for believing him. Thanks for everything."

Daniel smiled and nodded, "Well, I really care about finding this guy. I know exactly what he's going through. Oh, and..."

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small piece of paper.

"Here's my card. It's got my name and number. Give it to Logan and tell him that if he remembers anything else or if he needs anything, just call me; day or night." he explained.

"Okay. Thanks." Kendall said, taking the card.

With that, Daniel smiled and walked off down the hallway.

Later on that night, Mrs. Knight, Katie, James, and Carlos all went out to a movie to give Logan some space. Kendall stayed with him so he wouldn't have to be alone and to protect him. They sat in the living room and watched a movie, then went to bed around 10:00. Logan's sleep was mostly peaceful until he was suddenly awakened by a loud clap of thunder. There was a huge storm raging outside and he could hear the large raindrops beating on the window. But that's not what scared him. He'd been in the middle of a nightmare about being raped and he could almost feel Jason's strong hands squeezing around his throat.

Logan lay paralyzed in fear in his bed, whimpering. He flinched every time he heard it thunder. He'd always hated thunder storms. The room was suddenly illuminated for a split second by a bright flash of lightening. He looked over and could barely make out the outline of Kendall laying asleep in his bed just a couple feet away.

"K-Kendall?" he asked in a small, scared voice.

He heard Kendall moan, but there was no other response.

"Kendall?" Logan said a little louder.

"What?" he heard Kendall say, obviously not fully awake.

"W-will you turn on the l-light...please." Logan said.

"Why?" Kendall moaned.

"Please...I'm scared." Logan said.

At these words, Kendall was fully awake in a second. He looked over just as a flash of lightening illuminated the room. For a split second, he saw the terrified look on Logan's face. He knew better than anyone that Logan hated thunder storms and the dark. He waisted no time in getting out of bed and stumbling over to the light switch. He flipped it, but nothing happened. He flipped it several more times, but nothing happened.

"Uhhh...Logan? The lights are out." Kendall said.

He heard Logan tighten his grip on his blankets.

"I'm gonna go see if I can find a flashlight." Kendall said, opening the door.

"Please don't take too long." Logan said.

Kendall shuffled out of the room, leaving Logan laying there alone in silence. Logan turned over on his side, facing the door, and he pulled his covers tighter around him. He was beginning to feel claustrophobic. He could almost feel the walls and the darkness pushing in on him, smothering him. A moment later, he heard the door creek open. Glancing up, he saw a dark figure standing there. He couldn't make out any features, just the outline of a human form.

"Kendall?" he asked, almost shaking.

There was no answer. The figure just stood there for a moment before turning and disappearing into the hall. Logan mustered up all his courage and he got out of bed, crossing the room slowly. Stepping out into the hallway, he looked both ways. Nothing. He didn't even see Kendall.

"Kendall?" he called.

No answer. Gulping in fear, Logan cautiously proceeded down the hallway towards the other two bedrooms. He stopped dead in his tracks when he stood outside the bedroom James and Carlos shared. The door was open and he could see the dark figure standing there, unmoving. Logan's heart was racing a million miles an hour in fear. His throat felt tight and he stood rooted to his spot. A sudden flash of lightening illuminated the room and Logan found himself staring face-to-face with Jason.

Everything came rushing back and it hit Logan like a ton of bricks. He could feel everything. He could feel the stinging on his cheek from where Jason had slapped him, he could feel his hands around his wrists in a deathgrip, and most of all he could feel the sensation of being filled and violated.

"KENDALL!" his voice tore from his voice so loudly that it hurt.

The second he screamed, Jason turned and ran out onto the balcony, jumping over and climbing down the edge. Kendall came rushing down the hall, flashlight in hand. He found Logan backed against the wall, tears spilling down his cheeks. He was crying hard and he looked absolutely terrified.

"Logan!" Kendall gasped, "Logan, what's wrong?"

"HE WAS HERE!" Logan cried.

"Who? Who was here?" Kendall asked, holding Logan by his shoulders, trying to figure out what was going on.

"JASON! HE WAS THERE!" Logan cried, pointing into the bedroom.

Kendall turned and saw no one there.

"There's nobody there." he said, "Are you sure you weren't dreaming?"

"NO! HE WAS THERE!" Logan cried, "I'M TELLING YOU! HE WAS THERE!"

"Okay, okay. Calm down. Calm down." Kendall tried to comfort him.

Logan cried and sank to the floor, pulling his knees up to his chest. Kendall sat down beside him and set the flashlight down on the floor, pointing down the hall towards them so Logan didn't have to sit there in the dark. Kendall pulled him gently into his arms and held him as he cried.

"It's okay." he whispered, "It's okay."

"N-no, it's not! I saw him and he was here in the apartment!" Logan cried, his voice muffled slightly by being pressed into Kendall's shoulder.

"Shhh, shhh." Kendall cooed gently, rubbing his hand soothingly along Logan's trembling back.

"Why is this happening?" Logan cried, "What did I do?"

"You didn't do anything, baby. You didn't. It's not your fault." Kendall comforted.

They sat there for several more minutes with Kendall comforting a hysteric Logan. Finally, Logan's cries died down and he pulled away from Kendall, wiping at his tears.

"You wanna go back to our room and lay down?" Kendall asked gently.

Logan nodded, and Kendall carefully helped him to his feet. The two of them made their way the short distance down the hall to the room they shared. They walked over to Logan's bed and sat down on the edge.

"Will you stay with me?" Logan asked, "I'm scared."

"Of course." Kendall said, "Nobody's gonna hurt you as long as I'm here."

"Thank you." Logan said.

Kendall set the flashlight down on the bedside table to it was in easy access if they needed it. After he did that, he and Logan both lay down underneath the cozy covers on Logan's bed. Logan instantly wrapped his arms around Kendall and rested his head on his shoulder. Kendall could feel Logan's small form trembling against him in fear.

"It's okay, baby. I'm here." Kendall said softly, enveloping Logan in his arms.

When he held Logan against him, he felt the trembling stop and he relaxed. They lay there in silence, the only sound filling the room being the pounding rain outside. Logan slowly let his eyes drift closed against Kendall's shoulder. He was safe now.

A/N: Well, there it is! I am SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO happy with how this chapter turned out, and I REALLY hope you enjoy it! :D PLEASE R&R! :D