Disclaimer: I do not own One Tree Hill or any of its characters.
A/N: Here I am apologizing again for the long wait but I won't bore you with my excuses…lol. As always, thanks to all readers and reviewers. You all rock. Here's the next chapter.
…
Peyton's eyes slowly fluttered open and she found her parents on each side of her, smiling—no doubt relieved that she was all right—yet she noted their eyes were filled with concern.
"How you feeling, honey?" Larry asked quietly.
She didn't have the chance to respond before Ellie stood up and fled the room in search of a doctor.
As they waited, Peyton attempted to answer her father's question, but her throat was so dry she couldn't get the words out. Instead her eyes glanced around the room, clearly searching for someone in particular. "Nathan?" she managed to croak.
"He's ok," Larry assured her as he put the glass of water from her bedside table to her lips.
She took a few small gulps, the liquid feeling nice as it slid down her throat. She was glad to know that Nathan had made it out ok. She asked about Brooke and Rachel next.
"Everybody's fine," Larry said, not wanting her to worry about anything but her own recovery. "Every one of you made it out safe," he told her truthfully.
Memories of being in that room flooded her memory in that moment. So many people in that tiny space. So many lives threatened.
Her heart began to race as she recalled Damien's hands on her, his lips…She closed her eyes, willing the unwelcome memory away.
There had been a gunshot. Or had there been? Maybe she'd just dreamed that part, she reasoned, since she couldn't remember anything that happened surrounding it.
"Was someone shot?" she asked, just in case.
Larry nodded and revealed the shot to her leg, where the bullet still lay, waiting to be removed surgically.
That's why her leg hurt so badly.
It wasn't long before the doctor came in, followed by a nurse. After a quick check and several questions about her physical being, the doctor questioned her on her usual form of birth control.
"Our tests show that you're not on Depo or the patch or any kind of oral contraceptive," Dr. Green stated.
"That's right," Peyton replied after a quick, uncomfortable glance at her parents. Really, did they have to be here for this?
In reply, the doctor nodded to the nurse who, in turn, reached her hand out to Peyton, handing her two little white pills, along with a fresh glass of water.
"What's this?" Peyton asked, staring down at the pills.
"Emergency contraception," the nurse answered. "Also known as 'the morning after pill'."
Peyton's brows shot up. "Ok," she acknowledged. "And why do I have them? Am I pregnant?"
"Our tests indicate no prior pregnancy."
"No kidding, I've never been," Peyton replied dryly.
"However," the doctor went on. "Accurate results don't show up so soon after intercourse. What that means is you're not already pregnant, but a pregnancy may still develop and that wouldn't show up on a test for another week to ten days or so."
"Ok, but that doesn't explain why you gave me these," Peyton refuted.
"Most rape victims want them," came the reply. "Just in case."
"But I wasn't raped," Peyton said. "So I don't need them."
"You're certainly under no obligation to take them," the doctor began. "But I do recommend…"
"Look," Peyton returned patiently. Maybe a little too patiently. "On the off chance that I'm pregnant, or a pregnancy develops, or whatever, it would be my fiancé's child, and even though a baby is not anywhere in our plans for the near future, nor are we even close to being ready, if it did happen, I wouldn't be taking some…some…abortion pill to get rid of it."
"It's not an abortion pill," the doctor explained. "It's an emergency preventative…"
"Thanks, but if it's all the same to you, I'll pass. Maybe if I was raped, I'd consider it, but I wasn't so, no thank you."
"Peyton," Ellie began. "Think about this." Poor girl was in denial and wasn't thinking straight. "How would Nathan feel about this?" she asked, figuring he may be the only thing to change her mind. "If you got pregnant…"
"Then I would hope he'd support me in whatever decision I made," Peyton threw out with gritted teeth. "But if he couldn't do that, then…, well it wouldn't really matter, would it? It's my body, my decision."
"Like you said, he's your fiancé…" Larry started before Peyton cut him off.
"Really, Dad?" she scoffed. "So after over a year of dumping on him, now you want to play the fiancé card?"
"Peyton, no seventeen year old boy is going to want to raise a baby, much less one that isn't his."
"I just told you it would be his."
"I know you want to forget this horrible ordeal you went through," Ellie tried again. "But a baby would be a constant reminder of what happened to you. Can you live with that? And more than that, could you really be a loving mother to that child?"
"I wasn't raped," Peyton denied once again. "Listen, I know you guys mean well, but I'm sorry, if I'm pregnant it's Nathan's and we'll deal with it. Pretty sure Nathan would agree with me on that."
"Maybe, maybe not," Ellie stated reasonably. "You may want to discuss it with him first."
Peyton rolled her eyes but let them have that. "Fine," she muttered. "Send him in."
Larry and Ellie exchanged glances, neither of them wanting to say that her beloved fiancé was currently MIA.
"You need your rest," Larry said. "But think about this, sweetheart. Really think about it."
"The pills are most effective within 72 hours of unprotected sex," the doctor explained, "So if you change your mind…"
"You'll be the first to know," she cut in snidely, resisting the urge to scream that she hadn't had unprotected sex, that she and Nathan, as they always did, used a condom. She had no intention of changing her mind but if it got everybody off her back for the time being, it was worth it.
Brooke and Rachel were in next—apparently only two visitors at a time were permitted.
"We called dibs," Brooke said.
"I'm so glad you're both ok," Peyton told them honestly, though she would have expected Nathan to be next. Maybe he wanted to go last so he could spend more time with her without cutting off his time to allow for the other visitors waiting in line.
"You too," Rachel said. "We were worried about you. How's your leg?"
"Throbbing, actually," Peyton replied.
"Are they giving you anything for pain?" Brooke wanted to know.
Peyton nodded. "Yeah, it was worse a little while ago so I guess it's working."
"Good," Brooke answered. "You know," she went on. "If you wanted to get out of cheer practice, all you had to do was tell me. No need to go get yourself shot."
Peyton smiled at her best friend. "Figured this was safer," she jested.
"Haha, very funny, P. Sawyer. But seriously, how are you?"
"I'm fine, I guess. How's Nate doing with all this?"
"Oh, he's umm, fine too," Brooke answered quickly. "Right, Rach?"
"Yeah, for sure. He's doing great," the redhead added.
"Yeah," Brooke agreed.
"Ok, what's going on?" Peyton wondered aloud.
"What do you mean?" Brooke questioned innocently.
"My parents acted really weird when I mentioned Nathan, which isn't a big deal coming from them, but you guys too?"
"We're not acting weird," Brooke denied. "Why would we be?"
"That's what I want to know," Peyton responded blithely. "What's going on?"
"I honestly have no idea what you're talking about. Nathan is just fine."
"Promise?"
"Yes, she promises," Rachel supplied. "And now we should get going."
"So soon?" Peyton asked dejectedly. "You just got here."
"Well, you do need your rest."
"I'm not tired."
"You will be once everyone out there waiting to see you gets a turn."
Peyton sighed. "That many?"
"Waiting room's packed with people who care about you."
Again Peyton sighed. Not that she didn't love her friends, but she really only wanted to see Nathan right now.
Unfortunately, that wasn't to happen. Two by two her friends came in, and every time they left she hoped the next one to enter would be him.
But it never was, and she was starting to worry, no matter how many people assured her he was fine.
….
"Lucas!" Haley huffed as he continued to tease her despite her several attempts to make him stop. "It's not funny. I'm really worried about you. Geez, Luke, you had a heart attack."
"And, as you can see, I survived it," he threw out lightly.
"This time," she returned. "What about next time?"
"Assuming there is a next time?"
"Aren't you even a little bit scared of what those tests are going to show?"
"Of course, Hales," he admitted. Who wouldn't be? "But not half as scared as I was seeing that gun pointed at you."
"Luke…"
"I'm serious, Haley. I have never been more terrified in my life. I thought I was gonna lose you."
"You should be so lucky," she joked.
"Look who can't be serious now."
"Well, as you can see, I survived it," she mocked him.
He looked over at her from his hospital bed and smiled affectionately. "How are you always so amazing?"
She shook her head in denial. "Stop. I'm not amazing. Unless you count amazingly stupid."
"Hales, how can you say that? What you did yesterday in that boiler room took guts. Sure, I'm not thrilled that you risked your life like that, but you did it to save Peyton. You're a good friend."
Haley let out a bitter chuckle at Luke's words. "It's the least I could do considering she wouldn't have needed saving if it weren't for me."
"What are you talking about? Damien…"
"Would have been in prison if I hadn't pointed a finger at Nathan instead. If I'd blamed the right guy, then none of this would have happened."
"Haley, you don't know that. Damien could have been let off as well as Nathan was, especially since he didn't rape you."
"Well, neither did Nathan, did he?"
He wasn't sure how to answer that. "Not intentionally, no," he went with. He certainly couldn't claim that she wasn't raped. "But there was no way for you to know that," he added, wanting to quash her unwarranted feelings of guilt.
"No way? Really?" she scoffed. "I knew Damien gave me a drink…"
"As did I," he reasoned. "And Skills, and whoever else. It doesn't mean…"
"And I knew Katie was lying in court by saying Nathan handed me a soda when he first came up. I even mentioned that at the café. Remember?"
"Yes, but…"
"And yet somehow I let myself be convinced that it was just a coincidence, that Katie witnessed another part of the night…"
"You mean you let me convince you of that," he countered, recalling the conversation clearly. He'd put it down at the time as her doubts about pushing the matter to trial.
She shook her head, refusing to allow him any part of her guilt. "You were gone with Peyton, but I was there. God, Luke, I remember that part of the night. Nathan didn't have anything in his hands when he came up to me, not even his own drink. He grabbed a beer on our way outside."
"Haley…"
"He even offered me one," she continued as her mind went back over that night. "Made some lame joke about getting a better buzz from beer than soda…"
"Hales," Luke once more attempted to interrupt.
"All of this I remember, and yet I didn't figure out that Damien spiked my drink. He was mad when Nathan sent him on a beer run, and me, supposedly the smart girl, couldn't put two and two together and realize that I was meant for Damien that night, and Nathan had no idea what he'd walked into."
"Haley, you can't think this way, ok?" Lucas said, finally getting a word in. "It's not just you who didn't figure it out. None of us did, not even Nathan. I'm sure he remembers Damien being there."
"That's different," Haley argued. "He thought Damien was his friend. No one would suspect that a friend would do that do them."
"My point is, Haley, that all of this is on Damien, and Katie too, but no one else. Not me, not Nathan, and not you. You hear me?"
"Nathan asked me to stop accusing him. At the police station, he asked me why I was doing that to him and he asked me to stop."
"I know."
"I was so sure he was just trying to intimidate me, but his lawyer was right; he really just wanted to know why. And all his outbursts in court, God, who can blame him for those? No wonder he was so angry. He must think I'm a really horrible person. Everything he went through because of me."
"Because of Damien," Luke corrected.
But Haley was not to be dissuaded. "He could have been sent to a state prison for years," she lamented. "As it is, he spent weeks in the holding cell. And I was glad for that. And the ankle bracelet he had to wear when he was out," she went on. "And the restraining order. Did you know that he couldn't even go in the cafeteria to get food because I was in there?" she asked, recalling Nathan's words to her in the tutor centre where he'd confronted her prior to the incident in the boiler room. She'd been so terrified that he was going to rape her again; meanwhile, he hadn't even raped her in the first place.
"Haley…"
"I really messed up his life big time," she said. "And why? Because I was too blind, or too stupid, to open my eyes and see the truth."
"Like I said, Haley, we all were," Luke responded. "We all thought he did it, Hales. The DNA…"
"Ah yes, the reliable DNA," she scoffed. "Didn't show that I actually slept with him willingly though, did it?"
"Hey," Luke countered harshly. "You didn't willingly sleep with anyone. You were still drugged, regardless of who's responsible for that."
"But as far as Nathan knew, I was willing, and he almost went to jail for it. How fair is that?"
"It's not," Luke replied. "None of this has been fair on him or you. And Damien's gonna pay for everything's he's done."
"I hope so."
"He will," Luke insisted. "If not with prison time, then some other way. I'll make sure of it. Pretty sure Nathan's with me on that too."
Despite the situation, Haley chuckled softly at his comment. "Who'd have thought you two would ever share a common goal besides excelling in basketball and winning over Peyton Sawyer? But take it easy, ok. Don't want you having another heart attack."
"Haley."
"Lucas."
"I love you."
She gave him a small smile. "I know, Luke."
"No, I mean I'm in love with you."
"Lucas…"
"I know you think I'm just confused and unsure, or feel obligated to say it back because you said it to me," he told her, throwing out all the things she'd said to him when he'd tried to tell her how he felt before. "But Haley, it's not like that," he denied. "When we were in that room, I was never more scared than when you stood up to Damien, and then when he pointed that gun at you…" He shook his head, taking a moment to gather his thoughts. "For a split second I imagined my life without you in it. I couldn't bear it if anything happened to you, Hales. So please hear me when I say I am not confused, and, in fact, have never been more sure of anything in my life. I love you, and if you still love me…?"
"If?" she scoffed. "A girl confesses to being in love with you her whole life? Yeah, not likely that would have changed in a few months."
He took a deep breath, glad to hear her feelings remained the same. "Then I think we owe it to ourselves to give us a chance," he said, hoping she didn't rebuff the idea yet again.
"And Peyton?" she asked, much to his dismay.
"We've talked about this," he said. "Haley, Peyton was a childhood/teenage crush, a fantasy. I know that now more than ever."
"I think she was a little more than that, Lucas," Haley argued. "You still have feelings for her."
"Friendship feelings," he told her. "Like what you have for Skills and the other guys. Haley," he said with a sigh, desperate to make her understand. He was usually so good with words so why did he have to stumble on them every time he tried to tell her how he felt? "You've always been my number one. There's a reason for that. A reason I can't breathe at the thought of losing you. I'm in love with you, and I want to be with you. If you're still not ready, I get it, but…"
"Ok, ok, stop," she cut him off, making him sigh in dismay at what he assumed would be another rejection.
To his surprise she pressed her lips to his instead, putting years worth of love in that single kiss. It was better than either of them could have imagined.
It was the words she'd longed to hear from him for so long, and though he had said it prior to now, it hadn't been with so much conviction or so heartfelt. She could see the truth in his eyes now, hear it in his tone. Whether that was because he only now meant it or she only now saw it, she wasn't sure. But it didn't matter. He'd said it and there was no taking it back.
It didn't matter either if she was ready or not. She knew he would never push her into anything she didn't want to do.
"Tell me that was a yes," he said hopefully when she pulled back.
She nodded happily. Despite the turmoil of the past while and her overwhelming shame for what she'd put Nathan through, she'd waited a long time for this moment and she couldn't help the joy that consumed her. "Yes," she said giddily. "As long as you don't mind being with a girl who pinned a rape on your brother."
He shook his head, hating that she felt so responsible. But he understood it.
He too harbored some of those feelings. After all, he'd believed it of his brother too, and it had been he who'd discouraged Haley's doubts when they'd come up.
But unlike her, he knew there was nothing else he could have done. What was anyone supposed to believe when it was Nathan's DNA that had been found? "We're gonna get through this, Hales," he promised her. "All of us," he added, and by all he also meant Nathan.
Truth be told, he was glad for what they'd discovered about Damien. Okay, maybe glad was the wrong word. But it was certainly easier to see Damien as the monster than his own brother, as he had for a while. Even if said brother was guilty of numerous crimes against him in the past.
And, as he pulled Haley down for another earth shattering kiss, he knew that even if he and Nathan never ever bonded as brothers, he would always be grateful to him for acting in the moment and stretching his legs out to trip the psychopath who'd been ready to shoot his precious Haley on the spot.
No matter his past grievances against him, Haley was alive because of Nathan. He'd thought fast and reacted faster to save a girl he was understandably furious with, thus saving Lucas from a lifetime without his love.
That wasn't something Lucas would ever forget.
….
"The broken bones will heal in time," Dr. Weaver said to Damien and his parents, who'd rushed in last night when they'd learned their son had been hospitalized.
"And the burns?" Mrs. West asked.
"There will be some scarring," the doctor answered. "But they will also fade with time."
"What about Nathan?" Damien asked.
"As far as I know the police are still investigating and, I'm sure, will make an arrest when they're ready."
"I should hope so," Mrs. West huffed in disgust. "I want those boys behind bars for what they did." For the life of her she couldn't understand how someone could do this. Lord knew Nathan had a violent streak, but Damien was his friend. He'd had him at the house several times over the last few years. She'd liked the kid—had always found him polite and charming. Could she have been more wrong?
"No, I mean," Damien clarified. "Will Nathan's burns scar too?"
It was an odd question for the doctor—not one usually asked by a victim. "I'm afraid I don't know much about your friend's condition, but…"
"Clearly he's not my friend if he can do this to me," Damien said snidely.
"Like I told you yesterday," Weaver began. "I have nothing to do with that. You'll have to tell your side to the police."
"Trust me, I have," he bit back. "And I didn't ask you about that," he added condescendingly. "I asked if Nathan's gonna scar too."
"He wasn't my patient," Weaver informed him. "I didn't take care of him."
"Well don't you docs talk to each other?" he asked next.
The doctor sighed deeply. This kid was a pain in the ass and definitely rubbed her the wrong way. She knew she shouldn't say anything, but she just had to, if just to crush the sick fantasy that clearly ran through his mind. "As far as I know he's been treated and released."
"Released?" Damien shouted. "Let me guess, he got the best doctor in this stinking hospital?"
"He got the next available doctor in order of priority," she seethed. "Just like anyone else."
"Yeah, right," he scoffed. "That's why he's been released while I'm still stuck here? What's taking so long with my treatment?"
"Mr. West," the doctor began with an attempt at patience. "Your burns extend far fast your forearms. More treatment and observation is necessary in your case."
Damien nodded, finally seeming to understand. "Yeah," he said with a sneer. "Those two are crazy. I thought they were gonna kill me," he went on as his mind drifted back.
Flashback
He wasn't sure which one was kicking him anymore. Maybe both. It certainly felt like it was coming from both sides, but it was hard to tell when all he could feel was agonizing pain all around.
He couldn't think straight. He knew he couldn't take much more and begged them to stop.
They didn't. He was pretty sure they laughed at him too.
He cursed under his breath, angry that Nathan was winning again. Angry that Lucas had double-crossed him. That Haley had tricked him into thinking she wanted him. Just angry period.
He'd wanted so badly for Nathan to witness him scoring with his girl. Damn it, he'd been so close.
All thoughts escaped him as he was yanked from the floor and shoved against the boiler plate. He cried out, trying to get away, but he was pinned in place, the thin fabric of his shirt doing little to protect his skin from the radiating heat of the plate.
"How do you like it?" he vaguely heard. It was Lucas.
He tried again to get away, but couldn't move. "Nice try," he heard again. Nathan.
He pleaded again, to the others this time, asking them to make them stop.
But they were all around Peyton, not caring what happened to him.
Just when he thought he would pass out from the pain, he was viciously turned around and again pressed to the boiler plate.
Oh, the agony. Pain shot through him like none other. Damn, his zipper was still open. These guys were seriously insane. He thought he heard them laughing again.
He had to escape somehow, but his strength had left him.
It felt like hours later, though it was only seconds, when he heard Brooke's voice cry out Nathan's name in a panic, telling him that Peyton was bleeding.
Instantly he was dropped to the floor as the two Scotts went over to her.
For a second he thought this was his chance to get away now that they were distracted, but it wasn't to be. Not only could he barely move, but the other Rivercourt guys surrounded him in place of the Scotts.
It was only then that he heard the demanding bangs on the door, ordering it opened. Police. Yeah, nice timing.
It didn't escape him either how everyone conveniently stepped away from him before Rachel ran to the door.
Damn them. Damn them all. They were gonna pay for this. Every last one of them.
End of Flashback
….
"He made me tie Nathan up," Luke said to the young officer who came to question him later that day. "Hold his arm up to the boiler plate."
Karen put a comforting hand on her son's arm. He was close to tears as he relayed what he'd been forced to do in that room. But he was also angry and that anger shone through as well.
"He made me do that four times," he continued, closing his eyes in anguish as he recalled the incident. "I didn't want to, but I had to make Damien think I was on his side. I couldn't see any other way out."
"Could we maybe finish this another time?" Karen asked, concerned for her son's medical condition.
"It's alright, Ma," he said evenly. "The sooner they get their evidence, the sooner they can arrest that son of a bitch."
She didn't rebuke him for his language. Rather, she agreed with him.
"And then," he continued. "He was going to rape Peyton, who was unconscious by that time, sick bastard." He swallowed the bile that threatened to rise before going on. "My job was to…to make sure Nathan watched it happen."
"And did it?" the rookie asked, not surprised when Luke said it hadn't and continued his story as all the others had told. He went on to question Lucas on Damien's injuries. "None of the others can seem to recall how he got hurt," he said, giving the teenager the heads up that nobody had talked. "Maybe you can shed some light on that?"
Lucas pondered that a moment before glancing up at the cop in wonder. Was he saying what he thought he was saying? That nobody had revealed how Damien had been injured? Well, if no one else was talking, he certainly wasn't going to either. "Not really," he said. "By that point everything started going blurry, you know? I vaguely remember you guys showing up before I blacked out." At least that part was true. The cops had just barely gotten there before the pain in his chest had started. After that all he remembered was waking up in the hospital.
"Ok, thank you for your time," the cop said as he stood up.
"That's it?" Lucas asked. If so, that had been too easy.
"That's it," the other confirmed. "Unless you have more to add."
Lucas shook his head. "No, nothing."
"Well, alrighty then, I'll add this to my report and we'll be in touch," the policeman said before leaving the room.
If Lucas thought that was the end of an easy interrogation, he had another thing coming.
"I see you learned nothing from the last time you lied to the police," Karen said sternly, despite her concern for her son's health. If there was one thing she knew by now, it was when her son was lying.
Lucas glanced at her but didn't respond, figuring it was better to find out what she knew first before making any grand confessions.
"I hope it's not to protect Nathan again," she said, softly this time.
"Not really," he said, shaking his head. Not entirely anyway. Still, he didn't want to admit anything.
"What does that mean, not really?"
He sighed but again didn't reply.
"What is it you think you're protecting him from?" she asked.
No response.
"Luke, you have to tell the police the truth."
He shook his head. "I can't," he said. "I won't."
"Lucas…"
"Nathan already has a criminal record, Ma," he said. No point telling her Nathan wasn't involved when she clearly believed he was. "He can't get another charge on him."
"That's for the police to sort out," she told him. "I'm sure they'll take self-defense into consideration."
"And if they don't?"
"It's not up to you to shield him, Luke. If he…"
"He saved Haley's life," Luke argued. "Damien was gonna shoot her, and Nathan stopped him."
Karen smiled and nodded knowingly. Haley had already told her that, just as she'd also told her that Nathan had had a hand in convincing Dan to sign the authorization form for Luke's surgery. So she definitely understood her son's feelings of gratitude toward him. She, herself, could never thank him enough, no matter what he'd done in the past. "So you feel like you owe him?" she questioned.
"Of course," he answered. "Wouldn't anyone?"
"Yes," she said softly. "But that doesn't mean you can lie to the police for him."
"Ma, can you just let this go?" he requested. "Please."
She sighed once more. Her son meant well; she knew that. "I'm sorry, my boy," she said regretfully. "But I can't do that. I raised you to be honest at all costs, and you're not going to ignore that because the price is too high. I'm grateful to Nathan too, but I can't allow you to do this for him."
He swallowed hard, knowing now was the time to tell the truth. He didn't want to tell her, didn't want to let her down, but neither could he let Nathan get in trouble for this. At least not alone. "It's not just for him," he told her, barely able to look her in the eye. When she was silent, he went on. "Nathan didn't do it by himself," he admitted. "I helped him."
"Oh, Lucas," she whispered, instantly knowing he spoke truthfully now.
"And I'm not sorry either," he said. "Not after what he did. He would have killed us all if he had the chance. I don't doubt that for a second."
"Then why not tell the police that?" she persisted. "Why lie when it was clearly self-defense?"
"Yeah, that's how it started anyway," he said, letting her know, without coming out and saying it, that it had become more about revenge than self-defense. Finally he looked at her. "Still want me to be honest with the cops?" he asked, leaving her to question herself now that she knew her own son was involved.
…..
What Karen didn't know was that she wouldn't end up with a decision to make, for Officers Thompson and Corbin were already going through all the kids' testimonies and making their own decisions.
"The whole lot of them are bullshitting," Thompson said. "What the hell did Emery learn in the academy?" he wondered aloud of the young rookie. "Sure as hell wasn't interrogation methods."
"Looks like we're going to have to question the kids again," Corbin said. "Every one of them."
Thompson nodded agreeably. "You read my mind. Otherwise, with all these contradicting stories, good luck getting a conviction. Kid'll walk before we can even slap the cuffs on him, even with Katie Sanders' statement."
"Yep," Corbin agreed. "And the sad thing is, these kids actually think they're helping by lying and covering up," he said as they headed out the police station.
Much to many parents' opposition, they spent the rest of the day and half of the next re-questioning the teens who'd been present in the boiler room. It took some doing but they were finally able to get to the bottom of what happened following the events that they all already agreed on—more precisely, how Damien had been hurt.
"Looks like West was telling the truth," Thompson said as they left Brooke's house, the last of the teens to be re-interrogated. "About that part anyway."
"Yeah. The Scotts," Corbin mused. "You surprised?"
"For one of them, yeah," Thompson replied. "The other, not so much."
"Took the words right out of my mouth."
...
After the police left, Brooke got herself ready to go to the hospital to see Peyton. She'd left late last night after the blonde had fallen asleep and visiting hours were over. Chase had stayed with her because, well truthfully, because she was still too freaked out to sleep alone. She couldn't help thinking that everybody should have a Chase.
However, she was now feeling uneasy about what the police had forced her to reveal—that Nathan and Lucas had given Damien his complete beat down. Damn it, Damien deserved every bit of that beating and more, and she hated to think that Nathan would be punished for it. Or even Lucas, for that matter. She may not know him very well, but that didn't mean she couldn't sympathize with him and understand his actions.
She took a deep breath and put on a brave front before opening the door to Peyton's room, however, it disappeared when she found her best friend standing by the bed and attempting to walk. She ran over just on time to catch her fall and sat her back on the safety of the mattress.
"P. Sawyer," she rebuked in a harsh tone. "What are you doing? You are supposed to be staying still. Hello, you have a bullet in your leg."
"I know that, Brooke!" Peyton hollered in aggravation, already frustrated with her lack of mobility before this. Two more days before the damn thing could be taken out. She couldn't wait that long.
"Then I repeat, what are you doing? Peyton, what were you thinking?"
"That I need to go find Nathan," Peyton answered.
"Nathan?" Brooke gasped.
Peyton nodded and tears suddenly flooded her eyes. "What's wrong with him, Brooke?" she asked, taking the brunette by surprise. "Is he hurt? Dead? What?"
"No," Brooke responded. "What makes you think…?"
"I'm not an idiot. I've been here two days and he hasn't visited or even called. I tried to call him, but no one's picking up at his house or the beach house, and when I call his cell I keep getting this other kid who tells me it's not Nathan's phone anymore."
"Uh, yeah," Brooke replied calmly. "Nate gave his phone away on Thursday morning to avoid Katie."
"He didn't tell me that," Peyton returned. "Explains why he was late to the boiler room," she said next. "I texted him, but I guess if he didn't have his phone, he wouldn't have gotten it."
Brooke nodded. "Yeah."
"But he's not answering at home either," Peyton resumed. "And why hasn't he come to see me?"
"I don't know, hon."
"There's something wrong, isn't there? Did Damien hurt him? Cuz he really wanted to…"
"No. Peyton, can you stop worrying about Nathan right now? You need to concentrate on yourself. On getting better."
"Ugh, why does everyone keep doing that?" Peyton screamed.
"Doing what?"
"Dodging the subject when I ask about Nate," the blonde answered miserably. "Can't you see that only makes me worry more? I'm going crazy here, Brooke. Please tell me what's going on. Even if it's bad, I need to know. I can handle it."
Pursing her lips together, Brooke nodded. "Ok," she conceded. She'd thought keeping quiet was the best for Peyton, but that was obviously only making things worse for her. "First of all, I promise he's ok," Brooke started with, noting the sigh of relief that came from Peyton. "He was hurt but not enough to keep him here. He was up and walking just fine."
"Thank God," Peyton whispered, almost breaking into happy tears at that news alone. With the intense hatred Damien harbored for him, she wasn't sure, despite everyone's reassurances the day before. "Then where is he?" she asked next.
"I'm guessing home."
"No, I just told you he's not picking up neither at home nor the beach house."
"Yeah well, I'm thinking he's probably not ready to talk right now."
"Why?" Peyton pushed. "Is he mad at me?" That was the only reason she could come up with why he wouldn't want to talk to her.
"At you? No. At himself."
"I don't understand."
"He feels guilty, Peyton," Brooke stated knowingly.
"For what? Because Damien beat him to the boiler room?" she guessed.
"That and for what happened because of that."
"What do you mean?"
"Hon, he knows," Brooke revealed. "We all do."
"Ok, mind enlightening me, cuz I seriously have no clue what you're talking about. Oh wait, is this about the rape thing? If it is, you can all just calm down because I wasn't raped. Honestly," she added when the brunette didn't respond.
"Peyton…"
"Did you see it happen?" she asked, suddenly wary. Had he done it in front of Nathan like he'd threatened to? In front of everyone?
"No. He was going to but luckily Haley's a quick thinker and got you out of it."
Peyton took a deep breath of relief. "Ok," she said. "Well then, I wasn't raped."
"How can you be so sure? Peyton, you were drugged."
"I'm aware of that," Peyton replied, remembering all too well the spiked water Damien had handed her to drink. "But Brooke, I remember you all coming in, so if it didn't happen after that, and it didn't happen before that, then it didn't happen at all."
"P., just because you remember bits and pieces doesn't mean your memory's not hazy."
"I think I'd remember if I were raped, Brooke," the blonde returned harshly.
"Not necessarily. Not everyone does," Brooke reasoned.
"Wow," Peyton fumed. "You almost sound like you want it to be true."
Brooke's jaw dropped at Peyton's snide comment. "Is that what you think?"
"I don't know what I think."
"Trust me, Peyton, I'd do anything to know that you're right, but unfortunately your memory may be compromised by the drugs. You were already pretty loopy by the time we got there and Damien bragged about how he'd had you earlier…"
"Oh, it must be true then if Damien said so," Peyton said sarcastically. "Cuz we all know he'd never lie."
"Then there's also the sperm they found," Brooke said.
"What sperm? When?"
"The sperm they found inside you when they did the rape exam," Brooke answered.
For a moment she was floored, not knowing how to respond to that, but then she shrugged. "Well so? Nathan and I have going at it pretty hard ever since he got out of jail," she admitted reasonably. "Including the morning of."
"But you use condoms," Brooke reminded her.
"Condoms break, don't they?"
"Did it?"
"I don't know. Maybe. It's possible, isn't it?"
"Without either of you noticing?"
"Would we really notice a tiny pinhole?"
Brooke sighed in defeat. "I guess not," she said, not wanting Peyton to accuse her of wanting it to be true again.
"Then do me a favor?"
"Anything."
"Get in touch with Nathan and tell him it didn't happen. That he doesn't have to feel guilty for that."
"Peyton…"
"Brooke, please."
"I'll try to talk to him," Brooke said.
"Thank you. Make sure he knows he's still the only one I've been with."
"Sure."
"And then tell him to get his ass down here because I miss him like crazy."
"I'll let him know."
"Thanks, Brooke."
"Yeah," Brooke replied quietly. "Anytime."
…..
"She seems to be taking this all in stride," Ellie remarked wondrously to Sheila, the rape counselor called by the hospital. "Is it normal for her to be taking it so well?" she asked. "I mean, she seems more concerned about her boyfriend's absence than the fact she was raped."
"It's very difficult to say what is normal and not normal," the therapist said. "Sexual assault victims react in different ways. However, not many breeze right through it, so if it seems like she is, I'd guess it's more of a delayed reaction than anything else."
"What do you mean?"
"It could be her mind's not ready to process what happened to her yet so she focuses her attention on other things. Or it could be that her concern for her boyfriend is just that overwhelming and powerful that she can't wrap her head around anything else until she hears from him," Sheila said. "It could be any number of things, none of which I'll know for sure until I've had a few sessions with her. So far all I can get out of her is that she wasn't raped."
"Us too," Larry responded. "Is it possible that she's right? Correct me if I'm wrong, but condoms are not foolproof."
"That's true," Sheila said. "And we've taken that into consideration. We've already sent the semen for DNA analysis," she added. "They took a cheek swab from Mr. West and I understand the police already had Nathan's DNA on file. We'll find out which one matches in a couple of days."
"Good," Larry said. "Then we'll know for sure."
"Not necessarily a good thing," Ellie said sullenly. "So let's say the test comes back and she was raped. What happens then?"
"Then I continue having sessions with her until she's capable of dealing with it on her own."
"Ok, but she doesn't remember," Ellie countered. "Wouldn't it be easier on her if we just let her believe what she wants to believe?"
"And let the son of a bitch get away with it?" Larry scoffed.
"I'm talking about her well being," Ellie argued.
"It's hard to say," Sheila answered. "She could remember everything tomorrow or next week or next month. But you're also right that, because of the drugs, there is a possibility that she'll never remember."
"Then I'd say that's an option to consider," Ellie said to Larry.
"That's a decision you'll have to make depending on the results," Sheila acknowledged. "But know, also, that even if she wasn't raped in the full sense, meaning penetrated, she was still sexually assaulted. Groped at gunpoint by a person she didn't want touching her. She does remember some of that and it will have an effect on her once she's ready to deal with it."
….
"Think we got enough to make an arrest?" Thompson asked.
"I think we have more than enough," Corbin replied.
"Ok, let's move. Grab Emery too. I have a feeling he's gonna like this."
…
"Good news, Mr. West," Sam, the nurse, said as she came into his room. "You're being released today."
"Thank God," he said, pushing away his uneaten breakfast tray. "Maybe now I can get me some real food."
"You can get yourself ready and Dr. Weaver will be in shortly to sign you out," Sam said, ignoring his comment about the food. She'd heard it too many times now that it just went in one ear and out the other.
He was all too happy to do as she suggested, anxious to be out of there despite still being in severe pain. Surely they'd give him a prescription for pain meds. It was nearly an hour before the doctor came strolling in and he was getting very agitated, figuring she was doing it on purpose. "Longest few minutes of my life," he said on his way out the door.
"Not as long as the next twenty years to life are gonna be," he heard when she stepped out, bag in hand.
"What's this?" he asked of Thompson and Corbin waiting outside his room with handcuffs.
"Turn around, please," one of them said.
When he balked at the order, he was physically turned, made to drop his bags and cuffed on the spot.
"Damien West, you're under arrest for attempted murder…"
"No, this is a mistake! That bitch is lying!" Damn it, he should have killed her while he'd had the chance. He should have known he couldn't trust a little tart like Katie.
"… attempted rape…"
"You can't do this!"
"… and eleven counts of unlawful restraint," Corbin continued as Damien continued to rant.
His mother, who'd come in to pick him up, came in then, also demanding to know what was going on, why her son was being arrested.
"Ma'am, if you'll follow us to the police station, we'll explain everything there," Thompson told her, noticing they'd already drawn an audience, including Karen, Dan, and both Peyton's parents.
Meanwhile, Corbin read Damien his Miranda rights before handing him over to young Emery to lead him outside to the squad car, nobody noticing the satisfied smile on the rookie's face, nor the mumbled comment from the nurse wondering how he was going to like prison food.
"What about Nathan and Lucas?" they could hear Damien holler. "Those assholes tried to kill me!"
Thompson and Corbin made to leave as well but were again confronted by Mrs. West. "Yes, what about those two boys?" she demanded to know. "I assume they're being arrested too?"
"After a thorough investigation," Thompson answered, "we won't be filing charges against any of the hostages."
The comment, as they expected, came with some hostile words and threats to have their badge. They paid no heed to it, simply repeated to the distraught woman to meet them at the police station. She stormed out as any parent would do upon learning their child had grown into a monster but wasn't ready to hear it. Could any parent ever really be prepared for that?
Before leaving, they were approached by Karen and Dan, followed by Larry and Ellie.
"Did I just hear right?" Dan asked. "Nathan and Lucas won't be charged?"
Corbin and Thompson exchanged glances before Thompson replied. "All those kids should consider themselves lucky we're not bringing them in for false police reports," he said. "The Scott boys included."
"And the other thing?" Karen asked reluctantly, confident they'd know she meant the beating of Damien.
"I think we can all agree that they acted reasonably under extreme circumstances, possibly saving the lives of every kid in there," Corbin said before turning back to Dan. "We won't be charging your sons, Mr. Scott. Neither one of them."
Noticing the look of complete shock on Dan's face, Thompson added. "Believe it or not, we're not the bad guys. We're not out to persecute undeserving kids. We follow our leads, sometimes they pan out, sometimes they don't. And every now and then we get it wrong," he said, knowing Dan would understand he referred to Nathan's rape charge on Haley.
He'd been angry when he'd first learned the judge had overturned the jury's guilty verdict, but since they'd heard Katie Sander's statement—her true statement—he was glad for it. Kid may be guilty of previous offences but nobody should have to do time for a crime they didn't commit.
"So, how 'bout an apology?" Dan requested, thinking the police at least owed them that.
But Thompson disagreed and he shook his head. "The evidence was there," he said. "I'm not going to apologize for doing my job."
A/N: To let you all know, I'm already halfway done writing the next chapter so it won't be as long of a wait this time. I'll try to finish it up within the next few days. Hope you enjoyed this one.