TW: Mentions of Physical and Sexual Abuse.


Sam stared at Mercedes as she slept. It had been a rough forty-eight hours. After giving their statements, he thought they should get to the hospital. However, Mercedes didn't want to go, so they compromised. Sam had a friend of his come in and check on Mercedes. Shannon Beast was a nurse who had gone through a tough time.

Should she come and see something to be worried about, they would go to the hospital. However, if it seemed like she was okay, then Sam would be okay with her being treated at home.

Once she arrived, Shannon was able to put Mercedes at ease as she examined her. Sam sat with her the whole time, holding her hand and making sure she knew Sam wasn't going anywhere.

He was so worried that Mercedes wouldn't want anything to do with him after what happened, but she didn't want him to leave her side. And he didn't want to; seeing her like that changed something in him. He was always protective of Mercedes, but he knew she could take care of herself. Now, it was engraved in him to protect her. Period.

Mercedes ended up with a few bruised ribs, there is bruising over her body, and some scars would heal, and others that Sam knew wouldn't easily be healed. Shannon had to give her some sleeping pills to allow her to get some rest because Mercedes couldn't fall asleep.

Because of what happened, and since it was an open investigation, they couldn't head home right away, so Sam called in a favor and sent for her parents, who should be arriving soon.

Grabbing his phone, he called Quinn, needing to talk to someone about what had happened. She answered on the third ring, and judging by her tone, he knew that she had heard what had happened.

"How is Mercedes?" Quinn asked solemnly.

"She's…fuck Quinn, she's horrible…Shannon had to give her sleeping pills because she couldn't bear to close her eyes. I saw how she looked coming out of that bathroom, and I could've killed that bastard." Sam growled.

"Sam…from what I heard and saw, Mercedes handled him on her own."

"She did." Sam said proudly, looking at Mercedes. "Detective Sylvester read over the list of injuries, and that woman couldn't stop smiling, asking Mercedes if getting her revenge felt liberating...it was disturbing. Like, I know I messed up his face, but Mercedes, that woman fought tooth and nail against a man twice her size and literally stabbed him with her heel."

"Now you see why I wear heels? It's like a weapon I can carry at all times." Quinn sighed. "Tell me the truth, Sam. How are you?"

"This is my fault, Q. I knew Cooter was a bastard, but I didn't think he'd try to… I didn't know he'd…"

"Sam, this is not your fault! Cooter has always been an asshole who thinks he is untouchable. Well, he messed with the wrong one, and if Mercedes needs any help, then you need to let me know, and I can be there to help."

Sam exhaled. "The Detectives said that a few women who were at the party saw what happened and came forward, giving statements of assault, rape, and harassment. She made him…she..." Sam cleared his throat, trying not to tear up.

"Sam, everything is going to be okay. Mercedes is one of the strongest women I know. She is smart, and she has you."

Sam scoffed. "Ha, as if she would want me after I did this to her. She probably hates me, but I'm familiar, so she doesn't want me to leave. I called her parents and sent a plane for them. We have a few unmarked police cars just in case Cooter's sons have something to say. We shouldn't be here longer than a week, but who knows?"

"The media hasn't really said much; it's just that she was in an incident that was being handled. Some rumors sounded already, and they are close enough to the truth saying she was attacked and is taking time to heal."

Sam groaned, remembering his conversation with Santana. "Yeah, her Publicist/Manager had a lot to say. She cussed me the hell out in Spanish, then told me to stand by. Then she said I better be lucky and hung up. But it could be worse."

Sam's phone beeped, and he looked at the text he had been sent. "Well, shit."

"What? Sam? What's going on?" Quinn asked.

"It just got worse. My mother is here." Sam groaned, running his hands through his hair.

"What do you mean?"

Sam texted and sighed, "Security just sent me a message telling me that she is at the main gate. I could turn her away…"

"But you know mother won't go silently into the night…Yeah, I don't envy you…"

"Yeah, and with her parents arriving soon… I don't know how to handle this." Sam admitted.

"Sam, all you can do is be there for Mercedes, and if your mother tries to hurt her, then you need to handle it. Sam, if you care about Mercedes, you will not let Mary upset her."

"I know, and I won't. Let me go handle my mother. I will call you later." Sam hung up as the front door opened.


He took a deep breath and walked towards the living room, groaning when Mary stood there with her hand on her hip. "Mom, I see you have arrived."

"What the hell did you do? Forty years of partnership down the drain! You will apologize and get Cooter out of jail!" Mary warned.

Sam shook his head. "Mary, that's-"

"No, Sam, I mean it! I am on the board, and I will fire your ass." Mary spat.

"MARY BELLE EVANS!" Sam yelled. "If you are staying here, you will stop talking now!"

"If?" Mary asked, deadly calm.

"This is my home; I bought it with my own money, and those security guards answer to me. So you can stay and keep your ignorant thoughts to yourself, or you can go. You are not my priority right now, and I don't have the energy to deal with you."

Mary opened her mouth to speak but thought better of it. "You know what? It was a long flight, and it's obvious you are in your feelings right now. So, I am going to get some rest, and we will discuss this in the morning."

Sam didn't want to argue, so instead of answering, he turned and went to his bedroom, shutting the door and locking it.

Looking over to the bed, Sam sighed, seeing Mercedes stirring before she shot up, tears forming as she looked around.

Within an instant, Sam was beside her, taking her hand in his. "Mercedes, it's okay. You are okay."

Mercedes took a breath as she looked at Sam. "I'm sorry." She said tearfully.

Sam shook his head. "No, this is not on you. Come on, baby, let's get you back to sleep, " he said, moving to lay with her and pulling her down to him.

Snuggling to Sam, she exhaled. "Thank you, Sam; I wouldn't feel safe if you weren't here."

"I am always going to be here if that's what you ask of me."

Mercedes nodded, closing her eyes. As Sam held her close, he knew she had gone through a lot, and he could only pray that his mother wouldn't give her a hard time in the morning.


Sam wasn't sure what time he fell asleep, but he awoke to his phone ringing; untangling himself from Mercedes, he grabbed his phone, scratching his beard as he answered.

"Hello?"

"Sir, I have Mr. and Mrs. Jones here; they will be arriving at the house in twenty minutes."

Sam nodded, sitting up. "Thank you. Please alert Security to let them in as soon as they arrive."

Hanging up his phone, Sam kissed Mercedes's forehead and walked towards the bathroom.

"Sam?"

He turned to see Mercedes looking at him, sadness still filling her eyes.

"Hey, are you okay?" He asked, moving closer to her.

"Yeah, I am just in pain." She said softly. Where are you headed?"

"I was going to take a quick shower and then have the chef make breakfast. We are expecting a few guests."

Mercedes closed her eyes. "Sam… I don't want to talk to the police anymore."

"No, it's not them. I will tell you now that my mother showed up last night, unwelcome. But the two coming are invited, and I think they will make you smile."

Mercedes chewed her bottom lip, really not wanting to deal with his mother. "I don't know about that. I wish I could go home, but I know we have to stay here."

Sam kissed her forehead again. "Rest okay? You don't have to do anything but stay here."

Mercedes shook her head. "Shannon said today I should try to get up. Can you help me shower?"

Normally, Sam would jump at the chance to touch her and love her, but he knew that she was going through a lot. Then he looked at her and knew he couldn't tell her no. "Sure."

Helping her out of bed, Sam moved her to the bathroom, sitting her on the vanity bench and turning on the shower. Though there was a bench in the shower, he wanted to make sure the water was perfect before she got in.

After gently removing her clothes, he guided her to the shower, but she held his hand. Sam sighed, removed everything but his boxers, and sat on the bench, then sat her on his lap.

Grabbing the lavender soap, he gently rubbed it on her body, allowing the rain shower to wash it off. "Do you want me to wash your hair?"

She nodded. Because of the bruising, she hadn't been able to shower, and so there was still a little bit of blood in her hair from that night. Sam worked her scalp, gently bringing the conditioner to a lather, then gently combing through it as he had seen her do a few times before rinsing it off.

Mercedes turned to Sam, staring at him before wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him deeply. Taken by surprise at first, Sam gave in and kissed her back, hands running up and down her back,

A soft moan left Mercedes's lips as she grabbed his shaft through his boxers. "Take these off."

The feeling awoke Sam, and he frowned, taking her hands in his. "Mercedes?"

"Sam, please…" She begged, looking at him. "Please…I wanna forget." She said, pulling him to her and kissing him before kissing his neck. "I don't want to feel his hands on me; I wanna feel yours."

It took everything he had to pull away from her. "Mercedes, you don't want to do this."

She pulled back, staring at him. "What? I just told you I did."

Sam shook his head, turned off the water, and wrapped her in a towel before wrapping himself up. "I want to be with you so much, but right now, it's best if we don't."

Mercedes stared at him, hurt. "Oh, so because Cooter touched me, you no longer want me, is that right?"

"What? No! That's not-"

"Yes, it is! I'm no longer attractive, right? You just don't want me!" She turned and stormed out of the bathroom.

"Mercedes…please don't do this."

"YOU DID THIS! YOU DID THIS TO ME! IF I WAS HOME I-" She stopped, and Sam frowned.

"Say it! Say it, Mercedes. If you were home, this wouldn't have happened. I brought you here, " he said tearfully.

Mercedes shook her head. "No…I didn't mean…Sam, I am so…"

Sam grabbed his clothes and took a breath. "I am going to get dressed down the hall. When you are up for it, come on down."

Before Mercedes could say anything else, Sam walked out of the room, and Mercedes sat on the bed, tears falling from her eyes.


The moment Jonah and Kerry heard about what happened to their daughter, all they could see was red. Kerry tried to get into Jonah's gun locker, but he was smart enough not to let her near it. If Sam hadn't offered them a plane, they still would have found a way to get to her. She may have been an adult, but she was their baby girl.

Pulling into the Mansion that was Sam Evans's home, Kerry practically jumped out of the car and into his house. The guards must have seen the look on her face because they did not hesitate to open the double doors for her.

Jonah thanked them as they stepped inside the foyer, met by Mary, who was coming down the stairs.

"Who the hell are you, and why are you in my son's home?" Mary spat.

"Excuse me?" Kerry said, straightening her shoulders. "Is she talking to me, Jonah? Cause you know I don't do disrespectful Karens."

Jonah placed his hand on her shoulder. "We are the Joneses. Where is our daughter?"

"Ha, should have guessed that homewrecker would belong to you. Do you know the damage she has caused by opening her legs?"

Kerry tried to step closer to Mary, but Jonah held her back. "Do you know the damage I am about to cause if you don't keep my daughter out of your mouth?"

"Are you threatening me? How dare you! I could have you arrested!" Mary held her chest as if she were scared.

"Okay, I see you are one of those hard-headed heifers," Kerry said as Sam walked down the stairs.

"Mr. and Mrs. Jones, I am so sorry you had to come for this reason, but I am glad you made it safely."

"You invited these…people here?" Mary said angrily.

Kerry opened her mouth, but Sam stood in front of them. "Yes, unlike you, they are actually welcome here." Sam turned towards them. "Please excuse her; she is…well, an embarrassment, let me show you to your room."

"Can we see Mercedes first?" Jonah asked as Kerry balled her fist, looking at Mary.

"Of course." Sam turned to his mother. "Mary, you and I will talk after I show them to my room." With that, he walked away, guiding Mercedes' parents down the hall.

Mary watched her son and her parents disappear down the hallway, seething that her son still was choosing Mercedes over her and his business.

"Well, I see I'm going to need to nip this in the bud, " she muttered before walking back to her room to retrieve her phone and make a call.