2020-05-06 - Poor Lost Puppy - Noelle, Jack, Susan, the APD and AFD

*****WARNING*****This blog post contains graphic violence. Reader discretion is advised.


Noelle Snow loved both of her jobs; waitressing at Zabats and delivering for Save The Dishes, but if she had to choose, she loved most the freedom of her delivery position ith Save The Dishes.  All she had to do was check her phone whenever she had time, select the job she wanted, if any, and pick up then deliver the food.  It also gave her something to do with the scooter she’d found and claimed during the Fog.  Officer Frank Sharp had helped her to make it nice and serviceable.  The officer had even made it so she could attach a car seat on the back to take Blaze for rides as well as a rack that held packages.  Now that rack held the meals that she delivered all around town.   It was great for extra income when she had extra time … like now.  Blaze was watching television before he went to bed and Chris was on the B shift today, so he worked until around midnight.  Then he would come over for a few hours … maybe even overnight.  It was even better that, now that they’d exchanged house keys, she could just wait for him in bed.  He’d wake her up if he had to … in the most delicious of ways, she knew.  But that was hours from now and she thought she could slip in a delivery or two for some extra cash.

Jack Rose waited until later in the day to move from his new hidey hole to the Forest.  He needed another victim.  The cops had found the shed he was hiding in, so he was forced to move around more.  But he needed someone … anyone to satisfy his need.  Secure in the Forest, he used his phone to access the Save The Dishes website and order from the pizza shop, using a throw-away address in the Bottoms.  It didn’t matter … the pizza would never be delivered, even if he had paid for it.  Order placed, he switched apps in his phone to the one that would play … his lure…

Noelle went through the employee app on her phone for Save The Dishes.  Lief Ried in the Bottoms had ordered a pizza from Fresh Pizza on Central for remote delivery.  That was an easy job.  She tapped the Accept icon and then sent Daisy a text, asking if she could watch Blaze for a few minutes hile she did a quick pick up and delivery.  Daisy replied immediately and Noelle smiled and looked up from her phone.  “Blaze baby .. would you like to go play with Olivia for a few minutes?”

Three minutes later, Noelle was on her scooter turning onto Water street.  All the way up and a left onto 2nd street she slowed a bit as she passed the cop shop, or even in the building at all .. she didn’t know.  But it didn’t matter.  She’d see him later after his shift.  At Central, she turned right, drove up the incline and stopped, parking her scooter just past the door of Fresh Pizza.

Jack was watching from the shadows between the Power plant and the Pizza shop.  He saw the scooter pull up and decided that must be the delivery person.  The timing for it was right.  He looked at his phone and tapped the play icon … and smirked as the sound came perfectly through the speakers as he began to back between the buildings towards the Forest.

Noelle got off of her scooter, took off her helmet and set it in the basket on the back.  As she was turning towards the door of Fresh Pizza, she heard a sound.  The sound of a puppy in pain.  She had a good heart and loved animals and the idea of an injured animal made her heart break.  Noelle could scoop it up and drop it off at the vet’s office, she thought.  It would only delay the pizza delivery for a minute, maybe more.  She listened and thought the sound was coming from between the buildings, and she followed it.

Jack was out of sight behind the building that houses the pizza place … the sound of the wounded pup .. a recording he had made himself … worked perfectly.  As soon as the girl walked past the corner of the building … he grabbed her, covered her mouth and dragged her further into the forest.

Chris Peterson was walking the beat with Frank. They had split a bit to cover an area from both sides. Chris turned down the sidewalk beside city hall heading for the graveyard. It was after hours at city hall so he didn’t expect much would be happening unless there were some teens loitering in the graveyard looking for mischief. There was random chatter buzzing on hsi radio but it was faint as he got further from Water Street. This was sometimes a bit of a dead zone, they joked about it relating to the graveyard.

Frank Sharp took a different route, walking in front of Sprouts and the pizza place then between the buildings to meet Chris on his path to the cemetery.  She noticed that Noelle Snow’s scooter was parked outside of Fresh Pizza and glanced in the window, pausing to look, because Noelle did not appear to be inside.

Noelle almost screamed when she was grabbed, but a hand immediately went over her mouth and she was being grabbed.  Frightened, she began to struggle when she was shoved face first into a tree.

Jack held onto the silky soft hair of the woman in his grasp. He knew this one, not well but he had seen her and enjoyed seeing her. There were always so many options it had been hard to narrow it down. She was feisty. That could be fun. He undid his belt buckle with one hand while still gripping her hair “You like puppies pretty girl…...we’re gonna do it like  bitch” He started trying to steer her to face the tree more.

Chris was partway down the walkway when he heard a group of kids tear by on the street and turned back, taking a  few steps back the way he came. They were laughing and playing. Chris smiled. Just as kids should be. He turned to keep going the way he planned to.

Frank was distracted by kids running past, laughing.  She smiled, as she loved it when the kids were happy.  Once they passed she again looked in, realizing that enough time had passed so that Noelle should be out of the restroom, if she had been in it.  Looking perplexed, she opened the door.  “Dave.  Where’s Noelle?”  she asked.  He looked at her.  “I don’t know .. she should be here any second.  She’s picking up a delivery.”  Frank frowns, backing out of the door without a word and looking left and right along Central.  Noelle’s scooter … but no Noelle…

Noelle  felt the pain of having her face slammed into a tree.  Felt the hands on her.  Heard the words.  Joey had taken her like that … once.  She didn’t like not being able to see him … and now that quick memory was almost pleasant as, for all his flaws, Joey had not raped her .. and it sounded like this guy was ….  Panic gripped her and she opened her lips where the hand held her scream at bay.  Opening her jaws she felt his finger enter her mouth and she bit down hard.  If h e lets go, she will turn, fingers hooked to scratch even as she screams wordlessly as loud as she can.

Jack was surprised by the teeth sinking into him as hard and as fast as they did. He pulled back his hand and got scratched, leaving a long bloodly scratch on his cheek “You stupid fucking cunt!” He yelled loudly at her. Jack focussed on the size difference between he and the woman, pushing his weight onto her and grabbing at the waist of her pants as he did, trying to tug.

Chris stopped short, hearing the loud scream and ran back three steps to radio where he had signal “Dispatch calling for backup behind the Claremorris building, we have a woman screaming. I’m going into the woods to find her…” Chris didn’t wait. That scream cut through him in a way that terrified him. He broke into a sprint towards the sound and saw two figures in the trees, the larger looking like they were overpowering the smaller, who he guessed was the woman. It triggered his every fear about Jack Rose. He stopped short at the scene and gasped in horror. It was Jack Rose...and Noelle. “Noelle! Noelle run!” were the only words he said to her before grabbing Jack by the back of his jacket. The hair was longer but the jacket was the same as he’d been wearing since his last lock up here.Chris had committed it to memory. He pulled by the collar and by the back of the would be rapist’s greasy hair “You. Get. The. Fuck. Off. Her. Right. Fucking. Now.” He said with an eerie even measure to it.

Noelle didn’t know if she got the guy.  Her face hurt and she was desperate, especially feeling a tugging at the back of her jeans.  Then she heard a voice she thought was Chris’s yelling at her to run.  Whoever’s voice it was, she followed those orders, scrambling up and running back towards the gap between the buildings .. where she ran into another solid object that grabbed her.  She began to thrash out at this new attacker.

Frank had walked into the loading bay of the power plant, looking for Noelle when she heard the radio call from Chris.  It all clicked in her seasoned cop mind then and she ran between the buildings. Nearly colliding with Noelle, who was running out.  The younger woman began fighting blindly and Frank used her knowledge to hold onto Noells.  “It’s Frank.  Noelle.  It’s Frank,  You’re safe.”  she held the woman, speaking in a voice aimed to calm her, and turning her in her arms to put her in a sort of sitting hold until she could access the situation.

Noelle heard Frank's voice and immediately began to calm.  Sinking to the ground in the hold Frank put on her, she looked back the way she’d just come … seeing Chris .. and her attacker.

Frank can see Chris, but can’t completely see the attacker.  But it looked like Chris was handling it.  She watches, still securely holding Noelle, lest she panic, waiting for Chris to put the cuffs on.

Jack twists and turns letting his jacket fall but unable to get the hand off the back of his hair by shaking and twisting. He finally takes a run back with the man holding him behind him and rams him into a tree. The surprise loosened the grip and then he turns quickly and swings a full body punch down into the other man’s rib cage. It’s that cop...Peterson….Avery’s brother. This day couldn’t get any better. He stops after the punch to smile at him.

Chris gets shoved back and his spine smacks into a tree unexpectedly then there’s a sudden fist colliding with his ribs and he feels and hears a crack and then there’s a burning pain. He can’t get a full breath right away but he looks up into the smiling face of Jack Rose. Now he couldn’t give a shit about the pain in his ribs. He pushes through it and simultaneously grabs at Jack’s throat and kicks him as hard as he can in the kneecap, hearing an even bigger crack than the one he felt on his ribs. Jack falls with a cry of agony. Chris could just arrest him now...he’s down. But Chris can’t just arrest him. Chris is taken over by a rage he didn’t know existed in himself and dives on Jack, kneeling on his chest and just begins to punch at his face over and over. “I’m going to fucking end you Jack Rose….” he screams. The blood starts to pour from Jack’s nose.

Michael Reinhardt is walking near the clinic with his partner Ryan Yamada.  It’s not so bad on the evening shift, although he will be getting home too late to help Tristan with his homework.  But he'd get some late night quality time with the wife, so it was a trade off.  Suddenly his radio goes off.  Chris is asking for backup and he and Ryan are right there.  He thumbs his shoulder mike.  “This is Reinhardt.  Yamada and I backing up Peterson.”.  He nods to Ryan and jogs behind the three flat at the end of Water street, vaulting up the embankment and heading for the scene.  He sees Peterson … on top of and beating on a suspect.  He runs to try and get Chris off the guy…

Noelle basically sits in Franks arms both restrained and comforted.  She watches as Chris starts beating on the man who attacked her .. and in her eyes Chris is elevated to deity.

Frank watches the scene and as soon as she realizes it is Jack Rose, Chris loses his shit and starts to pummel him.  “Fuck.”  she growls.  She can’t leave Noelle. Who is both hurt and nearly panicking.  And she remembers the last time Chris lost it around Jack Rose.  So seeing Michael and Ryan doesn’t comfort her too much.  She reaches for her own shoulder mike.  “This is Sharp.  Suspect identified as Jack Rose.  Repeat.  Jack Rose.”  she hopes her message reaches the right ears’

Josh Greene is in the Alexandra Fire Department talking to Hank Stanley about kids putting firecrackers in the dumpster at the gas station.  “Yea … I know Hank .. we’re back now they can get their hands on this shit.”  and then his radio squaks .. it’s Peterson … then a minute later Reinhardt and Yamada backing him up.  Good men.  And finally it’s Sharp’s voice.  He hears the name Jack Rose and leaves Hank’s office without a backward glance, sprinting across the street and up the incline…

Ryan runs just a little bit faster than Michael this time and makes it to Chris about 5 seconds before him. He’s totally freaked out to see a fellow officer beating a suspect. He knows Chris has a temper but Jesus!  Right as he reaches for Chris he hears Frank through the radio. Jack Rose. He looks almost incapacitated already and Chris is still punching. Ryan hears a crack on the next punch and grabs Chris by one arm “Peterson….Peterson stop…..”

Chris’s knickles are  a bloody mess and the last punch messed up the joint to his middle finger so bad it’s gone numb. Chris feels arms pulling him and vaguely hears Ryan talking. But he can’t stop now. He just can’t. He rounds on Ryan, twisting his knee into Jack’s balls without even meaning to and just punches Ryan with his left hand square in the nose. Blood pours.

Ryan staggers back “Ah fuck Chris.…..”

Jack groans in pain as his jaw breaks and then chokes out a scream from his blood filled mouth as Chris twists his balls. It’s his last sound before he passes out.

Michael gets to Chris just in time to hear Jack Rose’s name.  He is going to try and assist Ryan anyway in this odd reversal in their job description, but before he can get a grip on Chris the officer turns on Ryan like a snake and punches him.  Michael blinks and braces himself for the same when he sees movement out of the corner of his eye.  It’s the Chief … his gun drawn.

Noelle stares at the fight and sees Chris trying to kill this man.  She hears the name Jack Rose and understands.  She is of the same mind as Chris right now.  Two other officers come running and Chris hits one of them.  And then another comes … the Chief .. and his gun is drawn.

Frank sees things rapidly turn to shit and sighs, holding onto Noelle, lest she try and rush into the middle of this cluster fuck.  She sees Chief Green and holds her breath.

Josh draws his gun the second he turns into the Forest. He rushes up to Chris and Ryan, turning the gun around in his hand.  He hits Chris on the back of his head hard, hoping to fell him.

Chris sees Ryan jump back and swear at him and is aware of Micheal coming up behind him. He desperately wants to get back to business with Jack when a blur catches his eye and he sees his chief Jesh Green coming at him with his piece drawn. Chris’s jaw drops at the idea of being shot and what happens next goes so fast he can’t even think before Josh flips the gun and the world goes black.

Ryan is holding his nose and already as freaked out as he thinks he can get when Micheal come up behind and then beside him and then the chief comes in and points a gun at Chris. Had everyone gone fucking insane? Just as he’s about to scream Josh flips the gun and knocks Chris right out  Ryan’s hands go up in front of him and he forgets all protocol “Jesus fucking god damned christ Green……..” As soon as it’s out of his mouth he processes what the chief did and looks suddenly humble “Oh god…..I’m sorry Sir. Please don’t fire me. Or shoot me….”

Michael, who is known to be rather UNDER reactionary, takes a step back with wide eyes as the Chief knocks Chris out.  He blows out a breath of relief and begins to relax, looking at the two unconscious men at his feet.

Noelle was silently rooting for Chris until the CHief of Police hits him with his gun.  Then she screams and tries to get to Chris, thinking that Chief Green has killed him.

Frank watches the whole scene rather calmly .. her prayer was answered.  Green had heard and come, literally, running.  When he knocks Chris out, she is suddenly struggling with Noelle again.  The poor girl.

Josh Green watched Chris fall in a heap, holsters his weapon and straightens to his full six foot one inch height.  He takes in all four of his officers, even the unconscious Chris,  and bellows like he hasn’t in years, his voice coming close to the full volume of their new receptionist.  “I will NOT have one of you kids throw their life and career away over THIS piece of shit!”  he inhales, exhales and thumbs his mike, his voice becoming, once again, professionally calm.  “Chief Green to AFD.  EMT’s needed at our location, behind the Claremorris building.  Officer down and four victims in need of medical care.  Dispatch, inform the Clinic of four incoming.”  he releases the mike and looks around, his eyes finally landing on Noelle.  “He’ll be … alright.”  he doesn’t say fine, because Chris is possibly in a heap of trouble.

Noelle stares at the Chief, growing silent the moment he starts yelling.  She simply begins to nod.

Gareth Dunham wheels the gurney with the unconscious form of Jack Rose. He’s got him on oxygen and an iv and he shifts him down aways from the others, understanding there has been a  crime between the patients and separation is ideal.

Susan McKinney saw her three patients wheeled in.  One, Ryan Yamada had refused treatment.  Suan was fine with that.  He only had a bloody nose, after all.  As they are wheeled in, she points to Dunham who is wheeling Rose.  “Upstairs, Room 5.”  she looks at Logan, who is pushing a unconscious Chris.  “Room 1.”  and he looks at Frank and Noelle.  “You go into room 2.” s he looks around and spots Milo.  “Get her a mild sedative and prepare a suture kid.  That cut looks bad.”  Then she turns to Joah with her brows raised.  “Don’t bite my head off, but I’m going to take care of Rose first.  I won’t be long.”  and she is indeed gone upstairs.

Noelle is crying and crying hard. She’s had a horrible evening .. the worst of her life.  And she was worried about Chris.  But she had to admit .. her face hurt like hell.  She goes with the male nurse and sits on the exam table, looking around, wanting news.

Frank looks at Josh, curiously.

Josh tightens his jaw, but says nothing to Susan.  He nods to Frank.  “Guard Rose.  Handcuff him to the bed as soon as possible.”  he tightens his jaw.  “I’ll get statements.”  the two had talked and Frank had told what little she knew … because she’d seen so little.  He goes into Room 1 with Chris.

Milo looks kindly at the crying patient “We’re going to fix you up ok? Let me give you something to help calm you...it’ll also help the pain. Then I’ll work on the wound…” He washes, gloves up and gets a syringe prepared. He’s also already started a chart. “If you have ID on you I can fill some of this in while the sedative kicks in. My name is Milo. What’s yours?” His voice is naturally quite soft.

Gareth heads to room 5 upstairs. He knew of Jack Rose and was almost tempted to just push him down a stairwell and walk away. He understood Chris. Brayden Kim was Michelle’s son and he was Michelle’s roommate and best friend. Brayden was family. Jack had raped Brayden. He stayed professional though and wheeled him, waiting for one of the police to join them or a doctor. It was his duty to save and protect lives. But this was hard today.

Chris finally started to come to as his gurney breaks halted him in the room. Everything was a haze. He opened his eyes and saw a blur of white and light which confused him. Wasn’t it still evening? Wasn’t he outside? Suddenly a flood of events came back to him and he tried to sit up suddenly to a world of pain “Noelle!!” He yelled and then fell back down.

Susan took a deep breath and walked upstairs to see Jack Rose.  She knew more of him, but that was enough.  But she was a professional.  She noticed that Frank was in the doorway with her hand on the butt of her gun a she began to examine Rose.  It was only a few seconds before she looked at Frank.  “Relas.  Looks like his kneecap is broken … and ..”  she keeps up the initial exam.  “Yea his jaw and nose.  I’m going to have Kitty come up and do a full set of x-rays.  Just to make sure.”  she blows out a breath.  “Go ahead and cuff him.  I know procedure.”  she looks at Gareth.  You can go.  Thank you, Gareth and thank Logan for me.”

Gareth looks grateful to leave and also about the cuffing. He gives both Susan and Frank a grave nod and heads off “Goodnight . I’ll thank Logan….” and he walks away without his usual swagger or quips.

Frank nods and, as soon as she can, she handcuffs Rose to the bed.  Then she goes to the doorway and stands just inside of it, at ease.  In a minute Kitty arrives with a portable xray machine and starts working, silently.

Noelle feels a bit calmer with the voice.  “I’m .. Noelle.” she goes into the back pocket of her jeans and pulls out her wallet .. a man's wallet but it works for her.  She pulls out her ID and hands it over.  Like most, it is Pre-Earthquake.  “I live at #4 1st street Second floor.”  she tells him, as the ID has another Aleandra address entirely.  She hears Chris and turns her head quickly.  “Can I see him?”

Josh watches Chris come to and fall down before he was forced to push him down.  Josh was worried, but also annoyed at Chris’s inability to control his temper.  However … he had to admit he understood the man's rage and he thought any man in his position would have probably at least thought of doing the same thing.  “You’re at the clinic, Chris.  Noelle’s next door .. she’s physically fine .. I think she might need stitches, is all.”  he tries to assure the man, all the time on his guard in case Chris decided to hunt Rose.

Milo jots a few things down quickly and then gently takes Noelle’s arm “Very shortly.” His voice is even softer when he’s being intentionally calming. He pushes up her sleeve “If you need to look away when I do this enjoy my orchid over by the window. It’s just bloomed again.” Unless she seems very nervous with needles he’ll just do it quickly and then give her a minute before the sticky sutures.

Chris rolls his head curiously from side to side and then winces and groans a little as he rolls on the bump at the back. He slowly looks at Josh and nods “I thought you were going to shoot me Chief…..” He tries to inhale and the pain in his ribs stops him from taking a  full breath. He goes to hold them with his right hand and his hand feels suddenly all wrong to him. He looks at it in front of his face thoughtfully.

Susan jogs downstairs and breezes first into Noelle’s room, as Milo is applying the stitches.  She looks at her chart.  “It looks like that's the worst of it.”  she announces.  “Minor cuts and bruises.”  she sighs.  “I’m afraid however .. you’re going to have a scar…”  she waits to see how she is feeling.  “I can’t let you see Chris yet.  I haven’t examined him, yet.”

Noelle doesn't move her face while Milo works on her, but looks at the Doctor as she tells her she can’t see Chris and that she will have a scar.  That scares her … would it be ugly?  That could affect her job as a waitress …. And maybe … more.

Susan smiles at her.  “WHen he is done, I want you to lay down.”  she orders.  “If you’re still awake when you can see Chris I will make sure you see him, alright?”

Noelle just blinks, staying perfectly still as Susan leaves the room.

Susan walks into Room 1 and pauses, looking at Josh.  “I suspect that mr Rose has a broken kneecap, jaw and nose.  Kitty is getting his x-Rays now, then she will be down here.” she looks at Chris.  “I understand you might have a broken hand or fingers and perhaps ribs?”  she moves forward and looks at him.  “And I want to check you for a concussion.”  she looks at him and then at Josh, exasperated then back at Chris.  “For you .. same ol same ol.”  she quips.

Josh looks at Chris when he comes to and speaks.  “No, son … I wasn’t going to shoot you if I could knock you out.”  he sighs.  “I heard your voice, followed by Rose’s name and I came running.”  he licks his lips.  “Just earning my Chief pay.”  he pauses and looks at Susan.  “How is Noelle?”

Susan is examining Chris’s head.  “She has a gash on her cheek that is getting stitches.  She’ll have a scar but physically she’ll be fine.  “She wasn’t actually raped, but I will suggest she speak to a therapist anyway.”  she is curious to hear what happened, but .. in a way .. she doesn’t want to know.

Kitty comes into the room wheeling the XRay machine. “I’ll just be a minute…”  she assures them, removes Chris’s belt, wallet, phone and pocket change and then  makes quick work of the x rays and quickly bows out.

Milo finishes up the sutures and looks at Noelle “That won’t be big and it will fade quickly.  Once had a scar that was a perfect silhouette of a horse. I was sad to see it run off. We age, our bodies change. Would you like a glass of water before you rest Noelle?”

Chris looked relieved about Noelle “Just a scar….thank goodness.” After what he’d watched his sister go through just a scar seemed like a dream. As Susan had stated, Neoelle wasn’t actually raped. He had heard Jack’s injuries and he knew that might come back to him. He holds up his hand to Susan “This one feels like a break...numb in the air but then…” He pushes on it “There it is….” He winces and stops self diagnosing when Kitty comes around but he knows broken bones well. He looks between Josh and Susan “Can you call my dad? I need my parents to know that Avery is safe now….my mom’s out at the farm with her...has been since we knew he was back….my dad can tell them….” He starts to reach for his phone but can’t get his hand to cooperate. “Just call the business line at Peterson Memorials...it’s his cell…”

Noelle nods slowly as the job is finished.  “No .. thank you…”  she almost whispers.  She moves to lay down.  “He saved my life, you know.  Fought for me….”  and she is asleep. The day taking its toll on her.

Susan nods at his self diagnosis and waves her hand at him.  “I’ll read the xray myself.”  she chides.  “You had your chance to become a doctor.  You became a cop instead ..'' She looks between he and Josh.  “Who doesn't use his weapon.”  her voice is neutral and it will be hard to say if she is glad he didn’t shoot Rose … or if she isn't.  Then she nods.  “I’ll call him now.  We do business together sometimes, remember?  Let me give you some pain killer first.”  which she does and then heads out the door towards the hallway.

Josh says nothing until Suan leaves the room.  Then he looks at Chris.  “I want you to know I’m proud of you, Chris.”  he says, simply.  “You didn’t shoot Rose.  I honestly more than half expected to hear the shot while I was running to the scene.”  but his face is still deadly serious.

Chris takes the pain killer, smiles at Susan and then and looks at Josh after she goes  “I thought about it...maybe for a second...I don’t know it was all a blur….I just had to put him down. I know it’s wrong morally. Maybe on some level I’m not much better than him...but after what my sister has gone through….and then he was trying to do the same thing to the woman i love…..I just had to…” He looks down at his police belt and badge on the table where Kitty placed them before she did the xray “Do you want my badge and gun now?” Chris is clearly assuming he might be fired. “And can I see Noelle?” He looks most stressed about that request, more than the job worry even.

Josh nods, listening.  “So you went a little crazy …”  he emphasises the word ‘crazy’.  “I can understand that.”  he nods and looks evenly at him.  “No.  I don’t want your badge or gun.  You may be forced to give it up, but I don’t want it.”  he takes in a deep breath then lets it out.  “You are hereby suspended with pay pending an investigation into the use of excessive force.”  he tells him.  “I’d rather level the charges than see Rose do it.”  he looks at Chris.  “You will be visited by the town attorney .. probably tomorrow or the next day.  Fred Sewid.”  he offers half a grin.  “He’s actually a damn fine lawyer.”  he glances at the door.  “Susan’s taking care of her, son.  Trust her.  I’ve known the woman for 20 years and she's never fumbled the ball yet.”  he assures him.  “Focus on you, OK.”

Chris accepts the suspension with humility and appreciates Josh’s position in the situation. He’s being more than fair, kind even. “Yes Sir. Thank you Sir.” He nods about the lawyer “Mr. Sewid is the best of the best I’ve heard. Never needed a lawyer before…” What an odd turn his life was taking. He took comfort in Josh’s endorsement of Dr. McKinney. He trusted her of course but what his chief said gave that even more gravity. 20 years and no fumbles. He held onto that 20 years as a foundation that would protect his love. Finally given some comfort Chris’s eyes start to droop and he naturally eases into the pillow and drifts off to sleep.