Chapter 57

Chapter 57

He gathered her close to him and as he held her in his trembling arms, he could feel her heart beating very faintly. He leaned back so he could see her face and he could faintly feel the air coming out of her nose, indicating she was still breathing. “Oh thank God! She’s alive! But barely, her pulse is faint.” Troy cried out, rocking her back and forth.

Troy saw the blood pooling around her abdomen, so he grabbed one of Sid’s t-shirts and tied it around her, trying to stop the bleeding. Her skin was cool to his touch, so he wrapped her in the sheet and cradled her in his arms.

Trina had managed to get Vero untied and they rushed to him. Trina picked up her phone and dialed 911. She gave the responder the location of the hotel and told them to hurry. Troy, Trina, and Vero huddled around Lauren until the paramedics arrived.

“Who did this?” Troy asked Vero, his voice cracking.

“That Jimmy guy.” Troy and Trina’s eyes flew to her in horror and shock.

Troy clenched his fists, still holding Lauren in his arms. “Bastard.”

Ten minutes later, the paramedics and the police arrived and immediately put Lauren on a stretcher. They wrapped her in some blankets and a paramedic held Vero’s waist as he helped her walk. They all agreed they couldn’t take Lauren out the front door – some of the media would still be lingering around. They took the elevator down to the second floor and then carried the stretcher down the back stairwell. One of the paramedics had gone ahead and pulled the ambulance around to the back. They put Lauren in the ambulance and sped away. Troy, Trina, and Vero followed in the Crosby’s car.

The police remained behind to investigate the hotel room, which was now a crime scene.

When they got to the hospital, they immediately took Vero and Lauren back to be examined, and the Crosby’s were left in the waiting room.

“We should call Sidney. He needs to know.” Trina said, crying. They had left Taylor in Mario’s care when they left the arena.

“No, he’s still playing right now. We’d just get his voicemail anyways.” Troy replied, and Trina nodded her head in agreement.

“He’s going to be devastated. He was going to propose tonight.” Trina said, choking back another sob.

Troy put his arm across her shoulders and pulled her close. “I know, dear. We’ll get him through this. We’ll all get through this together. I’m going to go back to the rink and pick him up. I don’t want him finding out from anyone else.” Trina nodded her head. He kissed her forehead and headed back towards the parking lot.

By the time Troy arrived back at the rink, the game had ended and Sidney was talking with the media when he walked into the locker room. When Sidney saw Troy, he quickly waved the media away and practically ran over to Troy. “Dad, have you seen Lauren? She was supposed to meet me before the game and she didn’t, but I figured her and Vero were just running late. And then I didn’t see her at the game, and now she’s nowhere to be seen. I’m afraid someone spilled the beans and she got cold feet or something.” Sidney said breathlessly, covertly pulling the ring box from his pocket and running his fingers over the black velvet.

Troy sighed and put his hand on Sidney’s arm. “Sid, we need to go.”

Sidney’s eyes widened with fear and worry. “Why? What’s wrong? Where is she?”

“Please son, we just need to go. I’ll explain on the way there. Not here, not with all these people.”

“No, dad. I’m not leaving until you tell me where she is.” By now, Marc had spotted them and approached them.

“Where are they? I’ve tried Vero’s cell phone a dozen times. I’m worried about them.” He asked, looking back and forth between Sidney and Troy, panic evident in his voice.

“They’ve been taken to the hospital.” Marc and Sidney both tensed up immediately. “Vero’s going to be fine, just a couple of bruises. She’s pretty shook up though.”

“What about Lauren, dad?” Sidney’s voice cracked, and an even bigger lump formed in his throat.

“She’s not in good shape right now, Sidney.” He sighed again before continuing, his voice barely audible.

“Dad, what happened?” Sidney asked quietly, gritting his teeth.

“Sidney, she was, well, she was, son, she was raped.” Troy managed to get out, anger and sadness running his emotions. “And the son of a bitch stabbed her.”

Sidney’s knees went weak and Troy grabbed his arm, holding him up. “Come on.” Troy led Sidney out of the dressing room, and Marc followed behind in a dazed state.

As Troy drove to the hospital, Sidney stared out the window, gripping the arm rests so hard his knuckles turned white. Troy filled the two younger men in on what few details he had.

Sidney slammed his fists against the dashboard. “This is my fault.” He cried.

“Sidney, this is not your fault.” Troy replied adamantly.

“Yes it is, Dad. Jimmy was my teammate. If it weren’t for me, she wouldn’t even know who he is. And she always said he creeped her out – I should have taken it more seriously. I should have protected her from him. I should have been there.”

“Sidney, this is not your fault. There’s no way you could have known he would do something like this.” Troy replied, placing his hand protectively over his son’s.

“Dad, is she going to be okay?” Sidney asked quietly, tears in his eyes and his lip quivering.

“She will be. We’re going to get through this…together.” Troy said.

When they got to the hospital, Sidney rushed over to his mother, who was still in the waiting room. “Mom!” he cried as she stood and embraced him. “Any news?”

She shook her head sadly. “They’re still in there with her.” She turned to Marc. “Vero is fine. Well, physically, anyways. She just has a couple of bruises, but they’re releasing her soon. She’s pretty shaken up.”

Marc seemed a little relieved, but put his hand on Sidney’s arm when he saw his pained expression. “Sidney, let’s sit down.”

Trina went and got them all some coffee from the cafeteria. Sidney’s hands were shaking so bad he couldn’t hold the cup, so he put it down on the plastic end table in the waiting room and paced the linoleum floor.

About fifteen minutes later, a nurse came around the corner pushing Vero in a wheelchair. Her parents had arrived at the hospital a little while earlier and were following behind them. Marc flew out of his chair and was immediately at her side. She stood up and he took her in his arms. “Oh, God! Are you okay?” he cried, looking her up and down.

She cried into his chest. “Oh Marc, it was terrible. He, he, he…” she sobbed, unable to form the words.

“Shh. I know. We’ll get through this. I love you.” He whispered, kissing the top of her head as his own tears fell into her hair.

After a moment, Vero pulled away and looked past him at Sidney. He was watching them intently. Vero couldn’t stand the sadness in his eyes. She walked towards him and he stood up to hug her. “Oh Sidney.” She whispered, gripping him tightly.

“How bad is it?” Sidney asked quietly.

Vero looked up into his sad eyes. “It’s pretty bad. But she’s alive. She’s a fighter.”

Sidney nodded as Marc took her and pulled her back into his arms.

Troy returned from the nurses’ station. “They won’t tell us anything. We’re not family.” He explained.

Vero looked at Sidney. “Sidney, they’ve been trying to reach her parents, but they haven’t been answering.”

“They’re in Alaska.” He replied with a heavy sigh. “They left a few days ago and won’t be back for two weeks. They’re on a cruise, and they don’t have cell reception. I should call Leanna, though.” Sidney said, reaching for his phone.

He found Leanna’s number in his phone and hesitated before pressing ‘send’. “Hello? Sidney?” she answered groggily. After all, it was after two in the morning and she had been sleeping.

“Leanna, something happened. It’s pretty bad. Oh, God, it’s terrible!” he cried.

“Sidney, slow down and take a deep breath. What happened?” Leanna said, keeping her voice calm.

“Lauren was…Le, I don’t even know how to say this. How could anyone do this? She was…raped. And he stabbed her. And she lost a lot of blood. And now we’re at the hospital and they’re not telling us anything.” He cried, choking back a sob that was forming in his throat. Trina wrapped her arm around him, rubbing his back like she used to do when he was little.

“Oh my god.” He heard Leanna scream before Jeff came on the phone.

“Sidney? Let me talk with them – see what I can find out.” Jeff requested.

Sidney handed his phone to one of the nurses. “Here. Please talk to him.” Sidney demanded, in French, hoping that might help them take him more seriously. The nurse nodded and took the phone from his hands and walked away so he couldn’t hear what she was saying.

He let out a frustrated huff and returned to where he had been sitting in the waiting room. A moment later, the nurse returned with his phone and a doctor at her side. Sidney stood up again, and Trina stood next to him, keeping a firm grip on his arm.

“I spoke with her sister, Leanna, and she consented for us to release information about Lauren.” The nurse explained before handing Sidney his phone. “I know who you are, and who she is, but laws are laws. I’m sorry I couldn’t tell you anything before.” She said apologetically.

Sidney nodded, but kept his eyes concentrated on the doctor.

“She lost a lot of blood between the small laceration on her arm, and a stab wound on her abdomen. We gave her a blood transfusion and stitched the wounds closed. They’re still completing the rape kit now.”

“When can I see her?” Sidney demanded.

“Hopefully soon. They’re almost finished gathering evidence. I’ll let you know as soon as I can.” The doctor said. Sidney cringed at those words and watched the doctor retreat back behind the emergency room doors. As he turned around, he could see a news crew standing outside, and the hospital security guards feverishly trying to get them to leave. He sighed, hating that the media had already caught wind of this.

When the nurse returned about thirty minutes later, Sidney had been pacing the waiting room and stopped in his tracks.

“Mr. Crosby, we’ve finished the rape kit and the other tests. We’re going to keep her here tonight to keep an eye on her wounds. She’s been asking for you.” She turned on her feet and signaled for him to follow her. Sidney remained right on her heels until she stopped outside a room. “Mr. Crosby, I just want to warn you. She will look very different from the last time you saw her. She’s pretty battered, but we’ve given her something for the pain and also something that will help minimize the swelling and bruising. I just want you to know that.”

He nodded in understanding, and she continued talking. “I also want to warn you about her emotional state. Rape is very traumatic, and she may be very apprehensive towards males for a while. She may need you to keep your physical distance, and even though I know you will want to hug her and comfort her, she may not want that right now. Do you understand?” she asked, looking in his eyes for confirmation.

“Yes, I understand. I just need to see her.” The nurse nodded and pushed the door open so he could enter.