“Worth exploring. Her physical therapist made it seem like it was permanent,” Diane says.
“Because her doctor is apparently pushing narcotics,” Jovian says. “She said they were, but she was avoiding it.”
“Yeah. She refused meds as soon as she was able to make those decisions,” Ray says.
“Cops here?” I ask.
“Yeah. They’re processing her room. They will want to talk to her before they go,” Ray says. “Is she naked?”
“No. We helped her change into one of my shirts, so no one has to mess with her room. She was trying to do it alone, but we heard her crying in pain, so we helped,” Jovian says.
“Ah. Okay. Well, she has horrible nightmares, so be gentle when you wake her,” Ray says. “Connor is ordering pizza, since no one knows how long the chicken has been sitting out.”
“Okay,” I say.
“And, boys?”
“Hmm?” I ask.
“If you like her, tell her. Don’t beat around the bush. She is a blunt woman, and she likes that in return,” he says. “I saw it with Jenny, and I see it now. Accept sharing her, or everyone should leave her alone. If she picks one, so be it. It’s her choice.”
“Interesting take.” Jovian laughs.
“I want her to be happy, even if she is happy alone,” Ray says. “There is no telling that girl what to do, though. She will do the opposite.”
“We’ve got it,” I say. “Tell the others the same. Kip is practically in love already.”
“I will," he laughs.
Chapter Six
Arianna
Six months ago
“Thanks for letting usknow,” Coach Sutter says.
“If the police need a statement or anything, I…”
“We will talk to the boys. Just finish up with inventory, and you can go,” Coach Landry says.
“Okay…” I say slowly. They just stare at me, so I turn and leave Sutter’s office. I go to mine and grab my clipboard before going to the supply closet. I hate counting inventory. We have the same number of shit we had last week.
I can’t get my mind off that girl, though. I walked into the locker room, thinking it was empty, and there they were. Conrad was taking her ass while Ethan throat-fucked her. She was sobbing, and Conrad had a hold of her wrists as she tried to pull away. That was rape. I am questioning now if I should have just called the cops instead. I assumed that Sutter would. Maybe I should call now.
I finish what I am doing before leaving the supply closet. As I am walking back to my office, I hear footsteps behind me. No one should be in this building this late, so who is it? I try to ignore it and just go to my office. A knock at my door has me immediately on edge. When I open it and see both Conrad and Ethan, fear starts to creep into my mind.
“Hey. What’s up?” I ask.
“Oh, nothing. Just saw you were still here. Can we talk?” Conrad asks.
“Uh. Yeah. I’m just finishing up inventory,” I say hesitantly. I go back to my desk and sit, but Ethan goes to the water cooler. “What’s up?”
“We just wanted to talk to you about what you walked in on,” Conrad says. “Water?”
“Uh… sure… Sorry about that. I didn’t know anyone was here,” I say.
“We just don’t want you to get the wrong impression,” Ethan says, setting a cup of water in front of me.
