After calling the police in Oklahoma City, Nick drove to Kevin's house. In the living room, Kevin watched while Nick paced frantically. "Damnit Kevin, why haven't they called back yet?"

"Nick, calm down. I'm sure nothing's wrong and they just haven't gotten around to calling yet." Kevin tried to reassure the younger man so that he would stop creating a track in the carpet.

"The police chief told me he would call me back himself." Nick stopped pacing and looked at Kevin with tears in his eyes. "I can't take much more of this. I know something happened Kev, I can feel it. . ." He trailed off as he heard the phone ring.

Kevin picked up the receiver, "Hello?"

"Hey darlin', it's me," Jamie said.

"Hey you. . .where have you been all day?"

"I've been in court since early this morning, and I just got out for lunch. Why, what's up?"

"Well, we've been trying to get a hold of you, we may have a problem."

"We? Why, what happened?" Jamie's mind raced as she tried to guess what could be wrong.

Kevin calmly explained what had transpired and expressed Nick's fears to Jamie. She was worried as well, but still more reserved than Nick.

"Can I talk to Nick?" Jamie asked. Kevin looked over at him and saw that he was finally sitting down with his head buried in crossed arms.

"Jamie wants to talk to you," he said, handing the phone to Nick.

"Yeah. . ." He said trying to clear the sobs from his throat. "Jaim?" he said, sounding very much like a little boy.

His tone of voice nearly killed her so Jamie decided to try to lighten the mood. "Hey cutie, how's it goin'?"

"Well, I've, ummmm, I've been better." He choked out. "Jamie, I just. . .I need to know she's okay. . .this is all my fault."

"Okay sweetie, we're gonna find out what's up, okay? But for now, you need to stop thinking that anything is your fault, I don't wanna hear that."

"But it is Jamie, if something happens. . ."

"First things first, we don't know if anything has happened and second, blame Mike for everything, he's the one who started this whole thing," she said firmly, wishing she could be there to comfort him. And she needed to feel Kevin’s arms around her, comforting her as well.

"Yeah, I know, but. . ."

Jamie stopped him, "Just calm down. Let me try to call the house, Nicky, I'll call you right back, okay?"

Sensing he was about to go over the edge, Kevin got Nick a drink, something to calm his nerves as they waited for the two return phone calls. Suddenly, Nick's cell phone went off and he nervously punched the button to answer it.

"Hel – hello? Yes, this is him." He signaled to Kevin that it was the police in Oklahoma City.

Kevin watched as Nick's face paled, then saw the fear, anger and finally frustration well up in his eyes, Nick’s hand clutching the phone as if his life depended on it.

"And where is she now?" He paused to wait for a response. "Okay, St. Anthony's, got it. Yeah, we'll be there as soon as we can." Nick's voice calmed a bit but had an eerie edge to it that Kevin couldn't interpret and had never heard from him before. "Thank you again."

As Nick clicked off the phone he looked up at Kevin. "That son of a bitch. . .I'm gonna kill him."

"What happened, what did they say?"

"They said that they found her in her house, at the bottom of the stairs. . ." Fury emanated from voice as he spoke. "Unconscious, barely breathing, covered in bruises, maybe some broken bones. . .God knows what else."

Kevin didn't say anything, he just picked up the phone. Nick listened as Kevin made flight reservations for the both of them and Jamie. When he hung up with the airlines, he dialed Jamie's number.

Feeling the plane begin its descent into Oklahoma City, Jamie slowly opened her eyes. It wasn't that she had really been asleep. Jamie just wasn't the best flier, and since she flew often, it saved a great deal of embarrassment and air sickness bags if she attempted to sleep on planes.

She would be the first one to arrive in Oklahoma; Nick and Kevin wouldn't get in until the following morning. The flight had been the first time she sat still all day. After being in trial that morning and then speaking to Kevin, she had tried to call Taylor's house. She listened to the phone ring endlessly before the machine picked up. She had hung up knowing that it would be pointless to leave a message, and then she had received Kevin's call with flight information and Taylor's status. Once Jamie had that, she rushed around like a chicken with its head cut off.

Thankfully, she had gotten the trial continued so that co-counsel could take over for her. Calling her secretary from her cell while rushing from the courthouse to her Hyde Park apartment, she managed to get her schedule cleared for the rest of the week. Clothes and other necessities were tossed carelessly into a duffel bag, and then it was another mad rush into Northern Kentucky to get to the airport on time for her flight into Houston. She was now sitting on her connecting flight to Oklahoma, but the two hour layover in Texas was excruciating. Although she wanted to be there as quickly as possible, Jamie realized that there would be little she could do for Taylor when she arrived. Taylor probably wouldn't know she was there, but Jamie had to know what was going on, and the sooner it happened the better.

Being attached to her cell talking to Nick and Kevin during her layover hadn't helped her much either. While she was trying hard to be a rock for Nick, Kevin could tell she was just as close to breaking down as Nick was. Personal stress was something Jamie had trouble dealing with, and Kevin had already witnessed the results once before, with no real desire to do so again. He just hoped for everyone's sake that she pulled it together before they joined her in Oklahoma.

Once on the ground, Jamie took a taxi to the hospital. Inside St. Anthony's, she was directed to Taylor's room, and everything ground to a halt for her as she steeled herself for what she thought she would see once she opened the door.

Her imagination in some ways hadn't prepared her for what Mike had done to Taylor, but to some extent she had done too good of a job imagining. Taylor was sedated and asleep, but she looked far from peaceful. The entire left side of her face was swollen and discolored, and both eyes were blackened. The bruises were plainly visible on both of her arms where they weren't bandaged, and there was a splint wrapped around two of her fingers on her right hand. Peeking from underneath the blanket were more bandages around Taylor's chest. At some point during the day, Taylor had kicked part of the blanket away from her legs, and more bruises could be seen.

It was involuntary, but Jamie turned her head to the side, closed her tear-filled eyes, and swallowed hard. Setting her duffel bag off to one side, Jamie pulled a chair over to her friend's bedside, sat down, and cried softly. Regaining some control over herself several minutes later, she carefully wiped her eyes with her index fingers, then looked at Taylor. Jamie took a deep breath, then began talking to her. Jamie spoke randomly, not really making any logical sense, but carried on a one-sided conversation as best she could until finally she ran out of things to say.

Taylor hadn't woken up at all during Jamie's ramblings. At first she appeared agitated, moving restlessly in the bed, but once Jamie raised her voice slightly so that she could be heard better, Taylor calmed down. By the end of the conversation, although Taylor was still unconscious, she had apparently fallen into a peaceful sleep.

The same could not be said for Jamie. She didn't leave the room, and when a nurse tried to shoo her out, Jamie impassively turned to look at the woman before saying "No", then turned back to Taylor and resumed talking to her. The nurse watched them from the doorway for a minute, then turned and left, leaving word at the nurses station that Miss Brett's friend would be staying the night with her and not to try to remove her. The nurse returned with a pillow and blanket for Jamie, which she took and laid at her feet, not acknowledging the nurse in any other way. Jamie spent the rest of the night in an uncomfortable silence, watching over her friend.

Since their flight left at 5am the next morning, Kevin and Nick managed to get out of Orlando without much fanfare. That night had been difficult for Nick and without worrying about the consequences, Kevin had fed him enough booze to allow him to mercifully pass out. Jamie had called when she got to the hospital and told Kevin as much as she knew. The doctor had not been in to see Taylor since Jamie got there, so there really was no medical news. Jamie made a feeble attempt to describe what she saw but emotions got the best of her. Kevin understood and pondered the best way to prepare Nick for what they would find.

Knowing they could be gone several days, Kevin called the other guys to let them know, and each of them offered their support. Thankfully, Denise offered to talk to management and smooth things over. She told Kevin to take as much time as they needed. After what Jamie and Taylor had done for them, she said it was the least they could do.

By 6:30am, the guys had changed planes in Atlanta and were on their way to Oklahoma City.

Jamie felt a hand on her shoulder as she sat up and let her eyes adjust to the bright sunlight in the room.

"Ms. Saxon?" The older gentleman said softly.

"Umm, yeah, that's me," she replied, stretching a little, wincing from the soreness that set in while she slept at Taylor's side. Jamie looked up and saw a kind face, a fatherly type with salt and pepper hair and a gentle smile.

"I'm Dr. Leyland, Taylor's physician."

"Nice to meet you. So, how is she?"

"Well, why don't we go get some coffee and we can talk about it, you look like you could use some caffeine."

"But I don't. . ."

"Trust me, she'll be here when we get back." He smiled reassuringly at Jamie and she reluctantly agreed.

The two walked silently to the cafeteria and Jamie waited at a table while Dr. Leyland got coffee for them both. She inhaled deeply when he set the cup in front of her and after sipping some, breathed a small sigh of appreciation, "Thank you, I needed this."

"No problem," he said quietly. "You know it's strange, I feel like I know you. Taylor talks about you constantly.

"Oh really?" Jamie asked. "So you're her regular doctor?"

"Yes. I just happened to be on call when they brought her in yesterday."

Jamie noticed his demeanor and became curious. "You seem pretty calm about this, I'm going to assume that this didn't come as too great a shock to you."

"Honestly, no it didn't," he paused for a moment. "I mean, I've never seen it this severe before, but to answer the question you didn't ask, yes I know about the abuse."

"Has she ever told you about it? Or did you just figure it out?"

"A little of both. I think Taylor looks at me like a medical doctor and her secret psychiatrist; we tend to have long chats when she comes to see me."

"Which is probably pretty often," Jamie said with a sad yet sarcastic tone.

"Unfortunately, yes. In the past year and a half or so I've probably seen her at least two dozen times." He stopped when he saw the shock on Jamie's face. "Mostly office visits for sprains and bruises, certainly nothing like this."

"I see. So what about this time, is she going to be okay?"

"Physically, nothing is wrong that won't heal with time. But her emotional state is very fragile right now." He opened the folder on the table and looked through some notes he had made. "She has several broken ribs, two broken fingers, the obvious cuts and bruises, and a pretty bad concussion. Nothing life threatening, but I'm a little worried that she hasn't regained consciousness."

"So you think that emotionally she's afraid, or that she doesn't want to wake up?"

"Possibly. But there is something else that you should know and since I know how close you are, I feel comfortable telling you." Jamie peered at him curiously over her coffee cup. "Taylor was pregnant."

Not sure how to react, Jamie just put her coffee cup down and sighed. "She was pregnant," taking on a biting tone, "until yesterday."

"Yes, she miscarried shortly after they brought her in."

"Does she know?"

"Not that I'm aware of. She was only eight weeks along and probably hadn't considered it as a possibility."

"So what do we do now?" Jamie asked.

"Well, we're going to watch her closely but all we can really do is wait. She'll decide when it's time to wake up." He sensed frustration from Jamie, "She's pretty strong and as long as she has people that care about her, I'm sure she'll come out it."

The doctor excused himself and promised to check on Taylor that afternoon. Jamie glanced at her watch, two hours until the guys got there. She decided to try and find a shower and to change clothes.

As they neared Oklahoma City, Kevin thought it would be best to tell Nick exactly what Jamie had told him the previous night, including the physical description of what Taylor looked like. He was a little worried about the younger man's reaction, but it couldn't be helped. Nick was going to find out anyway, and a little preparation could go a long way.

At first he wasn't sure Nick heard him since Nick was somewhere between being slightly drunk and having the beginnings of a hangover. His blue eyes were glassy, but Kevin couldn't tell if it was due to the alcohol or if it was from unshed tears. When Kevin finished, Nick simply slipped a pair of dark sunglasses on his face, and turned towards the window, staring outside. Knowing how Nick hated to fly, his calm demeanor surprised Kevin, and at that point he realized just how much agony Nick was in. He put a hand on Nick's shoulder and gave him a reassuring squeeze, but then withdrew and left Nick to his troubled thoughts.

Arriving at the hospital, Kevin again tried to assess Nick's mental state, but Nick shrugged him off, saying he was fine, he just needed to see her for himself. Again, Kevin dropped the subject, but made sure that Nick knew he and Jamie would be there to help him through this.

Jamie was waiting for them outside Taylor's room. When they reached her, Jamie held out one arm, and Nick allowed her to give him a hug. She held him for a while, not saying a word, but just running one hand along the line of his shoulders. She looked over his shoulder at Kevin, giving him a weak and troubled smile. Kevin nodded solemnly, instinctively understanding that there was more bad news waiting for them.

Nick finally stood back up, forcing Jamie to release him. He looked down at her and asked about Taylor. Jamie closed her eyes for a moment, then quietly repeated everything the doctor had said, including about the miscarriage. Nick was momentarily shocked, but then his face became blank. He calmly asked to be allowed into the room to see Taylor. Jamie moved to one side of the doorway and Nick walked past her into the room.

As he closed the door, he saw that Kevin had crossed over to Jamie, enveloping her in his embrace and rocking her gently. Nick turned and walked over to the chair by Taylor's bedside. Sitting down, he reached for her unbroken hand and cradled it tenderly in his own. Tears streaming down his face, he whispered, "Taylor, this is all my fault. . . I'm so sorry. . ."