For Better or Worse

~~~~~Chapter 18~~~~


"Jessica?'

Kevin pushed the front door open and called out for Nick's girlfriend. She had sounded terrified on the phone. Terrified and in pain. Kevin pushed through the mess of clothes and beer bottles scattered around the front room calling out to Jessica every few minutes. He couldn't believe how filthy the house was, even by Nick's standards. "Must have been a wild party." he muttered to himself. "What have you done this time, Nick?" Kevin went to take a step over a pile of clothes and blankets, when he heard a small sound. "Jessica?" Kevin pulled the blanket down just a bit to reveal the unconscious, battered woman. Jessica had wrapped herself as best she could in the blanket before she had passed out again. Kevin picked her up tenderly, holding her tightly in his arms. "You are not coming back here again." he vowed, as they made their way back to the front door. "If I have to kill him myself for it to happen, you are never seeing him again."

Jessica stirred inside the blanket. "Kevin? Is that you, Kevin?" she mumbled. "He's coming back...no more..please no more!" Jessica moaned and started to shake in Kevin's arms.

"It's alright." he soothed. They were outside now. Kevin placed her in the backseat of his truck, laying her down and securing the seatbelt around her as best he could. He made sure she was wrapped with the blanket before climbing into the front seat. "We're going to the hospital, get you fixed up." Kevin shoved the keys in the ignition and noticed his own hands shaking on the steering wheel. "Damn bastard." he whispered as he started the engine. "I'll kill him."

Kevin drove as quickly as he could to the hospital, carried Jessica in and demanded a doctor for her.

"What happened, sir?" A nurse inquired as Jessica was placed on a stretcher and wheeled into an examination room.

"I'm not sure." Kevin told her quietly. "She called me...I found her at a friend's house..I couldn't wait, she needed help."

The nurse nodded and began to peel back the blanket that covered Jessica. Kevin gasped as her battered body was revealed.

"Oh my God." he moaned. "Oh Jessica."

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"I'm afraid she's quite severely injured." The doctor sitting across from Kevin folded his hands and glared at him.

"I shouldn't have moved her, should I?" Kevin fretted. "I was so worried though. I didn't want him to come back and hurt her again."

"Has her boyfriend done this to her before?"

Kevin nodded. "Yes." he admitted quietly. "Yes, he has. Last time she miscarried their child."

The doctor made some notations on his pad. "I saw the old bruises. This happened not too long ago then?"

Kevin nodded again.

"She needs to press charges and get this brute behind bars, you know that?"

"I do now. How badly is she hurt?" Kevin looked at the doctor intently.

"She has broken ribs, several burns on her legs and arms, a broken collarbone, black eyes, a fractured skull..."

"Stop!" Kevin insisted, not wanting to hear anymore. "How could he do this to her? She loves him so much. How could he?"

"I would say if there is a pattern of this type of behavior then your friend needs help. There must be something bringing on his anger to her, possibly other women as well."

"I have no idea, I never thought...Nick has never been like this." Kevin said.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kevin head left the hospital to get something to eat. The doctor had given him some more information and he had checked on Jessica before he had left. She was sleeping, not peacefully, but at least she was getting some rest. His cellphone buzzed as he waited in the drive-thru line and he clicked it on impatiently.

"Hello?"

"Can't you keep out of my damn life?" Nick's drunk, angry voice roared over the line.

"Maybe you should think about getting your damn life looked into." Kevin shot back.

"Where is she?"

"Pardon?"

"You know what I mean! You took her. We want her back, we weren't done with her yet!"

Kevin heard a couple other voices in the background, laughing and yelling, "bring the bitch back!"

"Go to hell, Nick." Kevin struggled to keep his voice calm and then shut the phone off.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"How are you?"

Kevin peeked his head around the hospital door and smiled at Jessica.

"I've been better." She tried to smile and winced as the pain restricted her movements.

"I'm so sorry, Jessica. I should never have let you go back to him." Kevin took her hand in his and held it gently.

"It's not your fault. He was being really good. We were doing so well together, I don't know what I..." Her voice faltered and teardrops fell down her cheeks.

"It is not your fault. You didn't do anything. Nick needs help. He can't do this to people."

"I know...I...Heather told me..."

"He did this to Heather too?" Kevin questioned.

"Just not as bad." Jessica nodded her head in confirmation.

"Shit. You need to press charges against him."

"I can't Kevin, the group..."

"Screw the group! He can't keep doing this!"

"You don't mean that." Jessica answered quietly. "I'm not going back to him. I can assure you that. I don't know where I'm going to go, I can't go home looking like this." She let out a small laugh. "I'm a sight."

"You can stay with me."

"Kevin, I would still be around Nick."

"I won't let him near you, I swear. I'll kill him otherwise." Kevin vowed.

"I don't know." Jessica looked into Kevin's startling green eyes. He had been so supportive of her, right from the start. She was sure he wouldn't take advantage of her. But she couldn't get it out of her head that she would still be too close to the problem. Nick.

"I'll take care of you Jessica. He will never hurt you again."

She studied his face again. She knew every word he said was true. "Okay Kevin, I'll go with you."


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