Chapter 60

Chapter 60

“The police are here.” He said quietly. “They need to get your statement.”

Lauren nodded slowly. “Okay.” She said quietly.

“Are you sure? Because I can make them come back tomorrow.”

“No, I need to do this.” She said, taking a deep breath.

“Okay, then. I’m going to be right by your side the whole time. And Marc and Vero are going to be there too. Unless,” he hesitated for a minute. “Unless you don’t want me there.” He added quietly.

“No. I need you to be there, Sid.” She responded, squeezing his hand tightly.

Sidney helped her down the hall to a conference room, dragging her IV pole behind her. They were still giving her some pain medicine and stuff to help the swelling stay down.

They took a seat and one of the officers began. “Vero, we’re going to ask you to recall your story first, since you were conscious the whole time. It’s important that you tell us every detail you can, any little thing you’re able to remember. Okay?”

Vero nodded her head. “You can begin whenever you’re ready, then. And take your time.” The officer said, giving her a reassuring smile.

Marc squeezed her hand reassuringly and she started recalling the previous night’s events. It didn’t take long before she broke down in tears, but she kept going. It was hard for all of them to hear what happened, and at one point, Marc left the room to get some air and collect himself. It was hard for Lauren too. Hearing the story from Vero was forcing her to relive the events. Sidney remained faithfully at her side the whole time, holding her close against his body. He was crying, and the air in the room seemed to be suffocating him, but he knew that Lauren needed him to be there, so he stayed.

When Vero was done, the officer looked around the room. “Why don’t we take a few minutes?” she suggested.

Marc stood up and paced the room, clenching and unclenching his fists as tears continued to spill out of his eyes. Sidney brought Lauren some water. “Thanks.” She said meekly.

“I’m going to be right here. He’s not here, and he’s not going to hurt you ever again. You need to remember that.” Sidney said, putting his arm protectively around her shoulder.

When everyone took their seats again a few minutes later, Lauren began to talk. She recalled every detail of the previous night, starting from when they stepped into the hotel room.

When she got to the part where Jimmy told her that Sidney had taken something from him, Sidney let out a long sigh.

“Sidney, I didn’t know what he was talking about.”

“I do.” Sidney said through gritted teeth. “When we played together, I checked him into the boards once during a scrimmage. The check was clean, but it knocked his shoulder out of place. He had to have surgery to fix it, and after that, he never got his full game back. I felt really terrible about it. I never meant to hurt him, much less end his hockey days. But I didn’t do it on purpose, so after a while, I just kind of moved on with my life. I thought he had too.” The officers scurried to make a note of this, even though the tape recorder was still running.

She remembered every detail up until she passed out, and she even remembered trying to stay conscious because she knew Vero would think she was dead. She held on as long as she could, but eventually she gave into the dizziness and pain and could feel herself passing out.

When she was finished, the officer spoke gently. “Thank you, Lauren. I know this is not easy, but your statement has been very helpful.”

The officers exited the room, leaving Lauren, Sidney, Marc, and Vero alone in the room. For a few moments, they sat in silence, processing everything that had just gone on.

“Why don’t we get you back to your room so you can rest for a while?” Sidney finally said. Lauren nodded her head gratefully and he helped her back down the hall.

When they got back to their room, Vero hugged her tightly. “You did good today, Lauren.” She said, tears still filling her eyes.

“No, we did good.” Vero nodded before her and Marc left.

Sidney slid onto the bed next to her and she leaned into his chest. “You are amazing.” He whispered, his voice still hoarse.

“Thanks for staying with me today. I know it wasn’t easy for you to hear all of that.”

“Babe, you survived all of that – and for that, you are my miracle. The least I could do was be a man and listen to you talk about it.” He said, holding her close.

A few minutes later, Sidney’s family arrived. Lauren greeted them with a smile and laughed as Taylor plopped down right on Sidney’s lap on the bed.

“Hey kiddo.” He said, laughing. Lauren noticed that it was good to hear Sidney’s laugh again – it was just another sign that everything was going to be okay.

“Lauren, you look good today.” Trina said.

Lauren smiled. “Thanks. I’m sure my face probably still looks pretty scary, but that’s nice of you to say.”

“No really, it’s looking better.” Trina insisted.

“You still look pretty.” Taylor agreed.

Lauren laughed. “I bet your big brother paid you to say that, but thanks, Tay.”

Sidney threw his hands up in defense. “I don’t have to pay her. She’s smart.”

“Well, we just wanted to stop by and check in with you guys. We should probably let you get some rest. Do you need us to bring you anything?” Trina asked.

“No. Thanks, though. All I really need now is to go home.”

“Well, we’ll be back in the morning to get you. We’ll see you then, sweetie.” Trina said, hugging her.

“Okay, see you tomorrow.” As Sidney’s family turned to leave, Lauren stopped them.

“Wait. Troy, could I talk with you for a moment? Alone?” she said, looking over at Sid. He smiled and kissed her forehead.

“I’ll be right back.” He whispered.

When they were alone, Lauren looked at Troy thoughtfully. “Troy, I just wanted to thank you. You saved my life.” She whispered, maintaining eye contact with him.

“You’re welcome, Lauren. I would have given my own life to save you if I had to. It’s what my son would have done.” He said, his voice shaking.

“I just can’t tell you how much I owe you, how grateful I am.” She said.

“You don’t owe me anything. I can’t imagine our family without you in it. You light up my son’s world.” He said, grinning.

“Thanks Troy.”

“You just worry about getting some rest right now. I know you had a difficult morning, with the police and all. I’ll come by the hospital tomorrow with Trina and Taylor to get you.” He leaned down to hug her and kissed her cheek.

After Troy left, Sidney reappeared a moment later. “Why don’t you try and sleep for a while?” he suggested, pulling her back into his arms.

“Okay, but only if you promise to try and sleep too. You need to rest. You have a game tomorrow.”

“Well, the team has a game tomorrow.” Sidney said carefully.

“Yes, and you are the captain of that team. Sidney, what are you saying?”

“I think I need to be with you right now. The team will understand if I miss the game.”

“No, Sidney!” Lauren said assertively, raising her voice.

He seemed taken aback by her response. “But Lauren, this is just-”

“No buts, Sidney. Don’t you see it? If you skip the game tomorrow, you’re letting him win. You can’t do that.” She pleaded.

“Lauren, it’s just one game.” Sidney tried to explain.

“No, Sidney. You have to play. If you don’t play, you’re letting him get to you, and then he’s won. I want you to play tomorrow.”

“I see your point. But I don’t want to leave you right now.” Sidney said sadly.

“I don’t want to be away from you either.” She admitted quietly. “But your mom and Taylor are going to be with me, and your dad’s going to stay with you. Just go to the game, kick some major ass for me, and then come home to me, where I’ll be waiting for you.” Lauren said.

“Are you sure?” Sidney asked, swallowing hard.

“Yes. I mean, I’m not sure of much of anything anymore, but I don’t want him to win. If you give up hockey, even if it’s just one game, then he’s gotten what he wants.”

“Okay, but I’ll leave my phone with a trainer. All you have to do is say the word and I swear, I’ll leave the ice immediately and come home to you.”

Lauren laughed. “I know you would. And I love you for it. I love you more than anything. But I’ll be okay. And you’ll be okay too. Just hurry home as soon as the game is over.”

“I will, baby.” He said as he leaned his head back against the pillow. They both slept for a while until the nurse came in to check on her and Sidney took that time to step outside and check his messages.

When he came back in, he looked even more exhausted. “How bad was it?” Lauren asked, knowing his mailbox was probably full.

“Oh, it was as bad as we thought it would be. I didn’t even listen through all the messages. Pat wants me to release a statement.”

“Well, I’m okay with that. They’re going to find out soon enough, anyways. I’d rather people find out what happened from you.”

“Okay, I’ll call him back and set it up.” He picked up the phone in her room and quickly dialed Pat’s number. A few minutes later, he hung up. “He wants me to meet him over at the rink in an hour. They’re calling a press conference.”

“Okay.”

“Listen, I’m going to call Vero to come be here with you. Maybe Staalsy too.” He said with a grin, knowing Jordan always made her laugh.

About 20 minutes later, Vero and Jordan arrived within a few minutes of each other, each armed with some snacks and magazines. Sidney kissed her goodbye and quickly left for the rink.

When Sidney arrived at the rink, his family had already arrived and were talking with Pat.

“Ray and I already put together a script that he’s going to read. And we’ve only approved a very small list of questions. We’re going to get you guys up and out of there as soon as possible.” Pat assured him as he handed him a paper. Sidney read through it and nodded his head in agreement.

A few minutes later, Sidney took his seat at the table, Ray on one side of him and Marc on the other. Ray adjusted his microphone and began to speak.

“Good afternoon, everyone. Thank you for being here. As you may already be aware, a great tragedy has struck within the Pittsburgh Penguins organization. At approximately 7:00pm last night, a woman who is very much a part of our Penguins family, Lauren Somers, was brutally attacked and raped in her hotel room here in Montreal. She sustained minor stab wounds and is currently being kept for observation at a local hospital. She will be released in the morning and will return to Pittsburgh to be near her loved ones in this traumatic time. Another of our loved ones, Veronique LaRosee, was with her, and sustained minor injuries. Miss LaRosee was released from the hospital last night and has been recovering at home under the care of her family. We are very thankful for your concern and your thoughts and prayers. At this time, Sidney and Marc have agreed to answer a few brief questions.”

Reporters began to shout questions. “Sidney, is it true her assailant is a former teammate of yours?”

“Yes, we played together several years ago.” Sidney responded.

“Are you both still going to play in tomorrow’s game?”

Marc nodded his head and Sidney replied, “Yes, I will be playing in tomorrow’s game, but will return to Pittsburgh immediately afterwards.”

“How is she handling this? Is Lauren going to be okay?”

“We are all in a state of shock right now. But in time, I think we will get through this. She has an amazing amount of strength.”

“Okay, everyone. That will be all for today. Thank you for your concern and for being so respectful of their privacy during this time.” Ray announced before quickly ushering Sidney and Marc off the stage and into the next room.

“You did well, guys.” Ray said simply.

Sidney let out a sigh of relief – he was glad to be done with that press conference, even though it wasn’t even that long. He quickly returned to the hospital.