Blue by Jesilyn Holdridge Page A

in a few minutes, just take care of my baby, please.”
    “Trust me, I will.”
    “Thank you.”
    “Yeah,” then they hung up the phone.
    “Mom!” yelled Johnny.
    “What Johnny?”
    “Can Meganlynn stay here for a little while?”
    “What?”
    Johnny walked to his parents’ room.
    “Something happened to Meganlynn, and her mother just called and said she was on her way back here because she had to run away from her band camp for something.”
    “Yeah, she can stay for as long as she needs to.”
    “Okay, thanks.” Then the door bell rung. There she is , he thought to himself. “I got it!” screamed Johnny as she ran down the stairs.
    “Johnny,” Meganlynn said coughing. She coughed up some more blood.
    “Oh no,” Johnny gasped.
    “What?” she asked.
    “I’ll be right back down. Stay here.”
    “Okay?”
    “Mom, Dad!”
    Johnny ran back up the stairs and into his room to grab a pair of jeans, his keys, wallet, and shirt off of the floor.
    “What Johnny?”
    “I have to take Meganlynn to the hospital!”
    “Why?”
    “She just coughed up a little bit of blood. I got to take her.”
    “Okay.” Then they went to the hospital.
    “What happened to you? You look horrible.”
    “I know, Justin and Blue really did one over on me this time, didn’t they?”
    “Yeah, I’d say so.”
    “Why did they do this to me?”
    “What did they do to you?”
    “They raped me and beat me.”
    “Oh, well, make sure you tell the doctor that.”
    “Yeah, I will.”
    “Okay. So, are you okay?”
    They turned into the hospital parking lot.
    “Yeah, but I mean, I could barely move this morning.”
    “Okay, well stay there.” He got out and came around to Meganlynn’s door. He picked her up and carried her inside to the ER. “Nurse,” he said.
    “What’s going on with her?”
    “She’s been raped and beaten today.”
    “Okay, I’ll get the doctor straight away.”
    “I don’t know if I can go in there with you, Meganlynn.”
    “Okay,” she nodded her head along with her words. He hugged her close. “Ow!” she said.
    “Does that hurt?”
    “Yeah.”
    “Oh, I’m sorry.”
    “It’s okay.”
    “The doctor will see you now. You can come back too.”
    “Okay.” Then Johnny carried Meganlynn into the room and laid her out in the bed. They then wheeled her down to another room. He was allowed in here with her until the doctor got there.
    “Okay, so what happened here?”
    “She was raped and beaten.”
    “Okay, the police are going to want to talk to you, young lady.”
    “Doctor,” Johnny started.
    “Yes?”
    “She also hurts when you hug her around her waist.”
    “Really?” he felt the area around her rib cage.
    “Is she okay?”
    “Are you down here on vacation or do you live here?”
    “She’s down here for band camp.”
    “Why can’t she answer these questions?”
    “She can barely talk, let alone move.”
    “Oh. Well the person that raped and beat her surely did a number on her then, didn’t they?”
    “Yeah, they did.”
    “Okay, well we won’t have to get her into surgery to fix anything, and she’ll be able to stay here to give her statement.”
    “Can I stay with her?”
    “Are you the one that brought her in?” Johnny nodded his head. “Are her parents down here?” Johnny shook his head. “Then, yeah, you can stay.”
    “Thank you, Doctor.”
    “No problem.”
    “Do you want to call the police, Meg?” he asked her with pleading eyes, hoping that she would tell about the terrible beating that she had gone through.
    “No,” Meganlynn answered, even though she really wanted to. “I just want to go home.”
    “Why not?”
    “I just want to go home, even though I have evidence against them. Maybe I’ll take care of it when I get back in Michigan, but not down here.”
    “Meganlynn, this is what I say, get a lawyer and file charges. You know that you want to.”
    “Maybe, yes, Johnny, maybe I do, but maybe I don’t want to do that to Justin.”
    “I