《GIRL IN THE MIST I》 ENCOUNTER Life is an unpredictable game at it''s best. Like a guessing game, not knowing what comes next. In this we don''t get instructions on how to play it. We don''t get training on how to live it but, we get lessons from it. We come into this world with nothing. No money, no passions, no experiences. We get taught to walk and talk and we get raised by people who we assume know better a than we do. Then we go to school. We learn to write and read and we learn new skills. We make friends and maybe an enemy or two. We get bullied and teased. Then we learn to perceive the world from a different point of view. We face conflict, jealousy, bitterness, greed, gluttony, lust, hate. We never get taught how to handle these situations and the destruction that sprout from them. Dr. Julian Pablo Rodriguez was the quintessence of successful trauma surgeons. Not only was he ruggedly handsome at 56 years of age, but had what many men his age would still dream of. He just finished a late night emergency operation and left the theatre to go and change out of his scrubs. He closed the door of the dressing room before he took them off and dumped them in the laundry. He then got dressed in his regular clothes before he walked over to the basin to stare at his balding reflection in the mirror. His piercing brown eyes, framed by a pair of dense dark eyebrows stared back at him as he opened the faucet to wash his hands, the sound of the running water breaking the eerie silence. He then left the room. Finally he could leave the clinical and dull confining walls of the hospital to go back to his wife and kids and the comfort of his home. Being a surgeon at the Providence Medical Center in Burbank, California was always challenging when trying to balance his work and personal life, trying not to let his gruelling 12 hour shifts every fortnight get the better of him. Many times he wished he could just pack it all in to spend more time with his family, but his career paid the bills, the home they lived in, his two girls'' education and everything else they could otherwise not afford. He was grateful to have a wife who understood the responsibilities that came with his work and he considered himself lucky that he was still happily married in a line of work where most of his colleagues were either single, divorced or not so happily married. Usually because there were always third parties, a wife or husband who got sick and tired of having to always wait on their late working spouses or just some who never really had the time for romance outside of those hospital walls. If only they could talk, the stories they would tell. Of backstabbing, cheating, lies and deceit. That was what life was about for a surgeon, but he didn''t allow himself to get sucked into that mess and rather distanced himself from situations that could potentially ruin his marriage, his life and his career. ? Julian walked down the florescent lit hallway of the first floor, where surgery was located, his footsteps echoing on the floor and passed the nurses'' station and the nurse on duty. Gina Bates was a short, brunette girl in her early twenties and slightly on the chubby side. She looked up at Julian as he walked past her and smiled. "Good night doctor." "Good night Gina," he replied in a deep and husky baritone voice and smiled. He always had a genuine friendly and beaming smile. Not forced like most of the other doctors around. And he was extraordinarily down to earth and friendly for a trauma surgeon. "Say hi to your wife for me Dr. Rodriguez." "I will." She watched as he casually passed by and disappeared around the corner. ***** One Month Earlier... Like any normal teenager Jolene Rodriguez, Julian''s oldest was in her bedroom on her laptop looking at pictures of celebrities and their latest fashion trends while talking to a friend of hers from school. "I so have to get myself the dress that Kylie Jenner wore to the Oscars." "Are you browsing clothes again? My gosh, your parents are spoiling you way to much. I wish mine would do that." "You''re not jealous are you?" Jolene asked smiling. "A little, I admit. You can wear it to my birthday party, Jolene. You have to be there." "You know I don''t have a car." "No excuses Jolene. Ask your mom if you can borrow her Mercedes."Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. "I don''t know if my mom would let me borrow her Mercedes." "Then ask your dad if you can borrow his car." "There''s no way he''ll let me borrow his car. His way too protective over that car. You would swear it''s a member of the household." "Come on Jo'' it won''t hurt asking. You have to be there. Please, please, please! I beg of you." "I''ll see what I can do." She rolled onto her back and sighed as she stared at the ceiling. "I''ll ask him, but I can''t promise anything." "If all else fails, ask either of them to drop you off here." Jolene dropped the call, got up and went downstairs to the study where her father was busy working on some admin. She knocked and he looked up, taking his black framed glasses off. "Jo''." "Daddy, I want to ask you a favor," she said as she walked up to his desk. "Go ahead." "A friend of mines birthday party is tomorrow and I was wondering if I could borrow your car." "You want to borrow my car?" "Or you or mom could drop me off and pick me up later." He ogled her and sighed. "Please, I promise I''ll be good. You know me." "Will there be drugs?" "No." "Will there be booze?" "Dad, no." "Will there be boys?" "Yes, dad, but you know me and..." She held up her hand to show him the little reminder. "I''ve maid a promise and I''m sticking to it." Julian hesitated for a moment, wondering if he had to have the birds and the bees talk with his daughter again or not and pierced his lips together. Jolene knew that that was mostly always followed by a firm no, and looked at him practically begging. "Well okay then, but if you do anything your mother and I don''t agree with you''re grounded, understood?" "Yes daddy." "I''ll drop you off tomorrow night." "Thanks daddy, you''re a star." She stood up and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "I knew you''d say yes." ***** Julian parked his car in front of Priscilla''s house the next evening and waited for Jolene and her to get out of the car. "Enjoy it you two." "We will," Priscilla replied. "I''ll pick you up at twelve baby girl. And please don''t do anything irresponsible." "Thanks dad. I won''t." They went inside the house where Jolene bumped into Claire Houston. The sound of one of her favourite songs filled the room. Claire looked at Jolene and smiled. "Wow hot stuff. You look gorgeous. Nice shoes. Are those Prada?" "Yup." "Punch? Don''t worry it''s non-alcoholic. Priscilla''s parents will never let us drink alcohol at our age." "Sure." Outside Josh McLaren''s BMW cabriolet came racing up to the curb with Kanye West blaring over the speakers. ? He was your typical Hollywood pretty boy. He got out of the car and walked up to Priscilla''s house. Just as he made his grand entrance Jolene and Claire turned to look at him. He walked up to Claire, threw his arm around her and kissed her. "How''s my chick doing?" Jolene felt slightly uncomfortable with the two who couldn''t keep their hands off each other. "Excuse me please." She left through the back door and went to sit on the pool lounger feeling lightheaded and queasy. A while later Claire went outside and sat down next to Jolene looking at her concerned. "Hey Jolene, are you okay?" "Yeah. I''m just a bit queasy that''s all." "Should I ask Josh to take you home?" "No my dad''s picking me up. Maybe I should call him an and ask him to come get me." "Where do you guys stay?" "We''re in Glen Oaks. Why?" "Would it be too much to ask to take a ride with you. I need to go in that direction." "Sure." A while later Jolene ran outside to see her father''s car pull up to the curb. "Hi dad." "Hi Jo''. You look a bit pale. Are you alright?" "Yeah. I''ll be fine." Jolene''s stomach turned as Julian pulled away and she opened the window for a bit of fresh air. He looked at her concerned. "Are you sure?" "Daddy pull the car over." "What''s wrong?" "Just pull the car over." Julian stopped and she quickly pushed the door open to throw up next to the car. "Have you been drinking Jolene? Don''t tell me you''ve been drinking." "No. I think it''s a hot dog I had for lunch. Relax dad. Besides, Priscilla''s parents would never let us have alcohol at our age." "Are you sure honey? You don''t look too well." "Yes daddy..." Julian held his hand against her forehead. "You''ve got a bit of a fever honey." ***** Jolene went upstairs to her bedroom as soon as they arrived home, got dressed in her pajamas, took some of the meds her father gave her and crawled into bed. As soon as she was about to doze off into dreamland he knocked on the door. "Come in." He opened the door and walked up to her bed before he sat down next to her. "Will you be okay sweetheart?" "Yes daddy. Stop worrying so much." Julian cupped his hand over the top of her head and rubbed her hair with his thumb. "I''m just looking out for you baby girl. I''ll never stop worrying about you." "I remember how you always used to do this when I was a little girl and I was afraid of the monsters under my bed. Then you''ll rub my hair and sing until I fell asleep." "You''re still my little girl sweetheart." He tucked her in and gave her a kiss on her forehead. ***** Two Weeks Later... Claire Houston screamed as she struggled to get loose from the grip of the man who was dragging her to the band-saw in the basement. She knew what was coming. He was going to kill her, just like he did with the others before her. He pushed her against the machine and in an endeavor to fight him, she suffered several cuts all over her body, stinging like a thousand stabbing knives. She kicked him in the stomach and managed to escape, fleeing up the stairs and into the night. Eventually the road turned into the freeway. She ran up the incline of the on-ramp and carried on along the tunnel before she turned onto a footpath that lead to the houses close by. Soon she sat down on the ground near a tree feeling dazed and disorientated. She winced as she turned her head to look at the city lights in the distance and started crying. CLAIRE It was a breezy and sunny California morning with clear blue skies and perfect summer weather. Detective Bradley Mitchell arrived at the crime scene with several police cars and yellow tape blocking off the area. Deputy Lara Yates was waiting for him outside the yellow police tape, her arms crossed over her chest. He parked his Suburban behind one of the police cars, got out of the car and walked up to her. "Detective Mitchell." "What have we got here deputy?" he asked as he walked up to her. "Teenager... Assault victim. A man walking his dogs came upon her this morning and alerted the police. It''s not pretty," she warned him. Bradley him and noticed the man in his forties with his two Alsatians on their leashes, talking to another police officer who was busy taking down the details of his testimony. He climbed through the police line and looked at the lifeless girl lying on the ground. He knelt down beside her and looked around for every bit of detail he could find. The first thing he noticed was the bruises and cuts all over her arms as well as the deep cut on the left side of her waist, just below her ribcage. "She put up a struggle and it looked like she was cut with something like a knife....or..." He stood up and looked around the area and noticed the dragging footprints in the dirt leading to he lifeless body. "She was still alive when she got here. Whoever tried to kill her must be living nearby." "You''re sure about that?" "I don''t know..." "Does that look like it was done with an ordinary blade to you?" Bradley squinted as he looked at the cuts. "We''ll let Edward figure it out. He''s the expert in this." Later... Bradley just arrived back from the coroner''s office when Lara Yates called him into her office. "We have another victim." "You''ve got to be kidding me." "I''m not. She''s in my office." "She''s here?" Bradley stepped into Lara''s office to find a terrified girl sitting by the desk. "Hi, I''m Bradley, and you are?" "Jenna." Bradley sat down on the other side of the desk and took out his note book. "Is this the same person who killed Claire who did this to you?" "I guess so." "Do you know where he lives?" "No. He kept me at a warehouse." She started sobbing. "Can you at least describe what he looks like?" "His old. I guess in his fifties. I''m not sure if he is white or Latino." "What color hair does he have?" "I don''t know. He''s completely bald and quite tall." Bradley started drawing up a sketch. "Bald...Beard or no beard?" "He had slight stubble, but his face was clear. And he has bushy eyebrows." "Do you remember the color of his eyes?" "He had brown eyes, a broad nose...Full lips." Bradley completed the sketch and gave it to the girl to look at. "Is this what he looks like?" "Yes, that''s him." "Anything else distinguishable?" "He smelled like cigarette smoke and alcohol." "So he''s a smoker and a drinker." "I guess so." Afternoon... Bradley had he dead girl''s mother called in to come in and identify her body. She looked at her daughter and sobbed. "That''s her yes." She burst out in tears and turned around. "Ma''am I am sorry about your loss. Deputy Yates would like to ask you some questions if that''s okay with you." "Okay." Lauralee stepped into Lara''s office and sat down. "Mrs. Houston you reported your daughter missing two weeks ago. Where was the last time you saw her?" "I dropped her off at a friend''s house in Pasadena. Claire called me and told me she was taking a ride with a friend to go look after a house in Glen Oaks and that she was taking a cab from there. "Do you know who this friend is?" "Jolene Rodriguez. My late husband used to know her father quite well." Lara took out the sketch of the man who attacked Jenna. "Do you maybe recognize this man?" She put it on the table or Lauralee to look at. "That''s him." "Who?" "That''s Dr. Julian Rodriguez. Jolene''s father." "Are you sure?" "I''m positively sure." "Do you know where he works? Where he lives?" "No. All I know is that he''s a trauma surgeon." As soon as Lauralee left, Lara got up and stepped into Bradley''s office. "So now we find out there is a chain smoking, alcoholic and psycho trauma surgeon on the lose." A Day Later... Jolene was seated next to Priscilla in the South Pasadena High School hall. All the students were gathered together. Priscilla looked at Jolene worried. "I haven''t seen Josh around for a while." "Maybe he''s home sick or something." "Maybe. I wonder what it is the principal wants to address so urgently." "I have no idea." Jolene toyed with a string of her hair. The principal walked into the stage and took his place behind the microphone. He tapped on the microphone and cleared his throat to get the attention of the students. "Good morning students. It is with great sadness that I have to inform you that one of our students was found dead in Pasadena yesterday morning." Jolene frowned and looked at Priscilla alarmed. "Oh hell no... Don''t tell me it''s Josh." Just then he seated himself next to Jolene and gave her a fright. "Josh. Where have you been? We thought you were dead." Josh shook his head. "It''s a long story." The principal paused briefly and continued. "They have found Miss Houston close to Foothill freeway. The police did not go into detail, but it is believed someone attempted to cut her up alive. I urge all of you to be on the lookout for any suspicious looking persons in the Pasadena area. Do not strike up conversations with strangers and do not under any circumstances get into cars with strangers. If you do come across any suspicious looking persons, please report them at the nearest police station or any other authorities."If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. ***** Jolene met Josh in the library after school and put her books down on the table before she pulled out a chair and sat down across from him. "Hey..." Josh pretended to be busy reading something from the book in front of him and didn''t look up at her. "Hey." "I''m sorry about your girlfriend," she hesitantly replied. "I still can''t believe what happened to her." "Yeah, me too," he answered back presumptuously. He seemed indifferent yet somewhat nervous. Jolene frowned and ogled Josh, sensing that something bothered him. "Okay, what''s with the attitude?" ? "She''s dead, who cares?" Josh callously remarked. His heartless reply shocked Jolene. "I care Josh. She was my friend too. Have a heart. She loved you Josh McLaren. Did you ever love her? Did you?" Josh kept his nose buried in the book in front of him. "Look at me when I''m talking to you." He still continued ignoring her. "Look at me Josh!" "I''m going. This conversation is over." He stood up and left the library. Jolene followed on his heels, running after him. "No it''s not." Josh threw his backpack over his shoulder and turned around to look at her. "Jolene, please just leave me alone." ***** ? Jolene walked up to Sonya who stood on the sidewalk and watched as their father''s car pulled up to the pavement. It came to a complete stop and she opened the door and got in. "Hi dad." Sonya opened the rear door and got in too. "Hello daddy." "How was school?" Julian started the car and drove off. "Okay I guess," Jolene replied in a slightly disappointed tone. Julian frowned and looked at his daughter concerned. "Just okay?" "One of the girls in my class disappeared. They found her dead yesterday, full of cuts and bruises. Apparently someone tried to cut her up alive." ? Julian shook his head and looked at Jolene shocked. "What? Alive? Just like the Pasadena ripper case many years back. I hope that psycho is not on the lose again." ****** Later in the afternoon Jolene walked up to her father who was sitting in the family family room by the kitchen reading his afternoon newspaper while her mother was busy making dinner. "Daddy..." She sat down on the sofa opposite of him and he took of his glasses to look at her. "Yes honey?" "Daddy is it okay if Priscilla and I go out tonight? We''ll be at Eric''s house playing board games. She asked really nicely." Julian scrutinized her for a few moments. "With the girl in your school that was found dead? I don''t think so." "Really dad?" "Will Eric''s parents be there?" "Yes. His mom baked some cup cakes for us to have." Julian sighed and looked at Lorena who paid attention to him. "Honey, it''s okay, you can give her some slack. It''s weekend after all." "Okay, but I don''t want you kids going to places that''s off limits again." "We won''t. Promise." "Should I drop you off?" "Eric will pick me up." The door bell rang and Jolene turned to look down the hallway. "Speaking of which, that must be him." "At least I get to meet the boy." Jolene got up and rushed up to the front door to find Eric standing outside. "Hi, you''re early." "I know. I figured I''ll drop by now since I was in the hood." "Come on inside." Eric followed Jolene to the living room and walked up to the couch. "Dr. Rodriguez, pleased to meet you." Julian stood up and walked over to the boy who held out his hand to greet him. "You''re welcome Eric. I think I''ve met you before, haven''t I?" Eric pondered for a while. "Maybe?" "What does your father do for a living?" "He''s a plastic surgeon. Dr. Gregory Slater. I think you''ve heard of him." "Oh yes, I know your father. We were colleagues at Huntington Memorial. Didn''t he recently move over to a hospital in Hollywood Hills?" "Yes, he did." "Well, at least I know Jolene will be in good hands tonight." "Always Dr. Rodriguez." Eric looked at Jolene and smiled. "Do you wanna go now or do you still want to hang over here for a while?" "I guess we can go now and get some extra snacks on the way to your place." "Sure." Julian accompanied Jolene and Eric outside to a flashy little Volkswagen Eos convertible that stood in the driveway. "I see you''re a Volkswagen fan too. Nice little car." "I think that''s all I''ll drive until the day I die. I''ll have Jolene back by ten if that''s okay with you Dr. Rodriguez." "I''m good. Send my regards to your parents." "I will." Julian watched as Eric drove off and went back into the house. ****** Back at Eric''s house Priscilla and Jolene sat in his room together with his sister Amber talking about ghost stories and how their home was haunted. Priscilla listened tentatively. "I don''t really believe in ghosts." "You Jolene?" "I don''t know. Our previous home had some weird things going on and it freaked my mom out a few times, but I haven''t seen a ghost yet." "They say the old meat packing plant is haunted. Have you guys ever been there?" Eric asked. Both Priscilla and Jolene shook their heads. "No." "We can go there tonight if you want. Apparently it''s haunted by the ghost of a creepy old butcher with a bald head wearing a white apron." Priscilla chuckled. "Sounds like Jolene''s dad." "Shut up," Jolene snapped at Priscilla. "What do you find so creepy about my dad anyway?" "I don''t know. The bald head I think. And those eyebrows." Eric continued. "It is said that he owned the plant and got angry and killed all his workers and then killed himself with one of the band-saws and if you walk past it, it turns on by itself." "Yeah right..." Jolene replied somewhat skeptical. "It''s true." Eric grinned. "You guys wanna go and check it out?" "I don''t know..." Jolene replied not wanting to do anything that could get her into trouble. "I say let''s do it," Priscilla replied and Amber gave an agreeing nod. "Let''s do it." ****** Eric parked his car in front of the building and and looked up at it. "This is it guys. Let''s go exploring." They all got out of the car and entered the building. A sickening smell overwhelmed them but they headed further into the building regardless. "Smells like something died in here," Jolene replied. "Boy am I glad this is not an abandoned hospital with the ghost of a creepy old doctor hiding somewhere in a dark corner," Priscilla teased working on Jolene''s nerves. "News flash, my dad is a doctor," Jolene replied. "So is mine," Eric said chuckling. "I guess we now know who doesn''t like doctors." "It''s not that I like them, I just don''t trust them." "I think the medical profession is one of the most trustworthy ones there is," Jolene replied on Priscilla''s remark. They entered a room full of band-saws and stood staring at it for a while. "No way," Priscilla gasped. "For real?" "Yup, who wants to go in first?" Eric asked with a snicker. "You go in first." Priscilla gave him a nudge from behind. "Guys, I don''t normally get creeped out that easily, but this looks scary." "I told you." Just at that moment Jolene''s phone rang and startled her. "Shit, it''s my dad!" She answered the call, but her cell phone kept breaking up. ****** Julian frowned when Jolene called him just before Eric was supposed to bring her back home in a panicky voice. "Jolene...honey..." She kept breaking up, but all that he could make out was her saying that they were having car problems and that they were stuck at the meat packing plant. "You have to come and help us daddy." "What are you kids doing at the meat packing plant? Does Eric''s parents know where you are?" His cell phone cut out suddenly and he got up and went upstairs to Lorena who was in the nursery hushing Luke to sleep. "I''m going to get Jolene and the kids. They''re having car problems and they''re stuck at the meat packing plant." Lorena frowned. "What are they doing at the meat packing plant?" "I don''t know, but she''s grounded, that''s for sure." ****** "That''s just weird, my dad called me and then my phone cut off," Jolene said somewhat terrified. "Hush..." Eric held his finger to his lips. "Did you guys hear that?" "Yeah, I heard that," Priscilla replied nervously. Just as suddenly the band-saw left of Jolene turned on by itself and off again just as suddenly. "That didn''t just happen." Eric looked at the three girls startled. "So it''s true." "Yeah, and what are you gonna do if we really do run into that butcher?" Priscilla asked with a trembling voice. "I don''t know about you guys, but maybe we should head back to my car." "Maybe that''s a good idea," the three girls replied simultaneously. They all ran outside as quick as they could and got into Eric''s Volkswagen. Eric turned the key in the ignition only for the car to be as dead as the butcher who''s ghost was said to haunt the meat packing plant. "You''ve got to be kidding me." "What the hell?" Amber replied worried. "My car''s battery is dead. Seriously? Guess Mr. Creepy butcher doesn''t want us to leave." "What now?" Eric looked at his sister alarmed. "You know dad''s gonna flip if he knows we are here." "Well so is mine," Jolene replied. "And my folks are out of town for the weekend," Priscilla replied. "I guess I don''t have a choice. I''ll have to call dad to come and jump start us." Eric took his phone from his pocket and sighed. "Just when you think it cannot get worse. I don''t have signal. Any of you?" Jolene, Priscilla and Amber both looked on their phones and shook their heads. "This is weird, my dad called me when we were in the area with all the band-saws and then my phone just cut off." They all sat there for a while trying to think of a plan to get out of there when Eric noticed headlights in the distance. "Oh no. I hope it''s not the police." "At least it''s help Eric," his sister replied. "Yes, and we''ll get busted for trespassing." "How do they know we were in there." "I don''t know." Jolene turned her head to look and then turned as pale as a ghost. "It''s not the police, it''s my dad." "Did you tell him we were here?" "No..." Julian parked the Touareg next to Eric''s Eos, got out of the car and walked up to them. "What are you kids doing out here? Jolene called me and told me you had car problems." "I didn''t call you." "Well, I didn''t call you either Jolene." She frowned and turned even paler than before. "You didn''t call me? How?" "If only you kids know the stories about this place, you won''t even seat foot on these premises. What''s wrong with your car Eric?" "I think the battery died." "Pop the hood." Eric did as Jolene''s dad said and he proceeded to examine the battery connections. DADDYS GIRL Jolene got into her father''s car and he pulled away without saying a word. "Does Eric''s parents know you kids came here?" "No." "Do you even know the stories about that place?" "What stories?" "About that crazy old butcher who killed all those people and himself in there?" "So it''s true then?" "It was all over the news even before I met your mother. The plant didn''t last long after that because of all the accidents that kept happening so the authorities closed it down because of the safety issue. I never want to hear that you and your friends came to one of these places again, is that clear?" "Yes dad," Jolene mumbled. "I think I should ground you for this." "I didn''t want to come along in the first place. It was Eric and Priscilla''s idea. I just tagged along because I couldn''t stay at their place alone." "You could have asked Eric to drop you off at home." "Sorry." "Yeah." ****** The next morning early at the Pasadena police station Bradley, Lara and a few detectives sat around a table in the boardroom discussing the latest case of the Pasadena ripper. A behavioural analysist stood at a white board with pictures talking about their sub. "In the nineties Pasadena was shocked with the first series of murders by the Pasadena butcher, better known as the Pasadena ripper. Back then the victims were young, in their late teens or early twenties. He was eventually caught and put in a high security facility. Now we either have a copycat at large or our ripper was released and went on a new killing spree." A reporter raised her hand. "Yes, you have a question." "Why do serial killers kill?" "Most serial killers kill because they are motivated by a fear of rejection, perfection or power. The feel insecure about themselves. They are terrified of being abandoned or exposed. Killing their victims gives them a sense of power or control over the victim. They believe the only power that matters is the power to destroy, cause pain or kill. They often focus on an specific category of people. They continue to kill because they get addicted to the feelings they get when they do." "So how do you define them?" "They have no less than four victims. Normally the victim is a stranger with no connections. They have a need to brutally kill their victims. Their motives are rarely materialistic, mostly psychological. They prey on vulnerable victims. Statistically they are mostly Caucasian, of a lower middle class status, between the ages of early twenties to thirties, had a history of suffering emotional and physical abuse from parents or foster homes. ***** Julian, his wife and daughters had dinner as a family in the dining room. Julian first said a dinner prayer and then dished up some food on his plate. "How was school today baby?" Lorena asked Jolene as she was busy filling her glass with orange juice. "It was okay, sort of." "Sort of? And you Sonya?" Lorena asked smiling. "It was good." "Julian?" Lorena asked following on Sonya''s reply. He smiled. "The usual. You know trauma surgery never goes without some sort of drama." "What happened?" "A kid fell of a swing face first. He was terrified of me so he gave me a difficult time to have a look at him."This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience. Jolene snickered. "I don''t blame him dad. I would be terrified of you too if I was a kid." "Oh Jolene, you''re so mean," Sonya replied on her sister''s remark. Julian looked at Jolene and smiled crookedly. "Really, do I look that scary?" ? "Really, but I still love you dad." "We''ll that''s comforting to know." After dinner they gathered in the TV room to watch some TV. Julian was sitting on the sofa with his wife and Jolene sat on the adjacent chair curled up underneath a light polar fleece blanket. Sonya was sitting on the floor in front of her father. Lorena was holding the two month old Luke, feeding him his bottle while Julian channel hopped on the remote to take a peek of what was on TV and Jolene fiddled with a pack of horse cards. Julian curiously looked at Jolene. "Where did you get those?" "Mom got them for me at the tack store yesterday." "What did you get at the tack store this time?" Julian looked at Lorena with a puckered brow. He was too well aware of her propensity to spoil the girls every now wand then. "Mom got me some new gear for your horse." "Your mother is spoiling you too much. Let me see." Jolene handed her father the pack of cards to have a look at. "They have all the breeds, and heights, weights etcetera." Julian smiled. "Almost like the baseball cards I had as a boy." Julian packed them back in the box and stood up taking Jolene by her hands. "Come on sweetheart. Bedtime for you. It''s still school tomorrow." He pulled her up from the armchair. "Night mom. Night dad." Jolene left the TV room and sprinted up the stairs to her bedroom. "Come on Sonya, you too." Julian took hold of her hands and pulled her up from the floor. "Good night daddy." She gave him a bear hug and then ran up the stairs to her bedroom. Julian sat down on the couch again and admired his baby son who was now sleeping. "How''s my little guy." "Daddy, he''s doing fine. He''s a real little angel." "And beautiful too." Lorena smiled and pulled at the collar of Julian''s shirt. "He''s so handsome. Just like his daddy. Shall we pack it in for the night?" "Yeah. I had a hard day at the hospital." Julian sighed. "Sometimes it''s killing me. I wish I could spend more time with you and the kids. I spend so much time at the hospital that I forgot what it''s like to take the car and go somewhere for a weekend and take the girls to the beach and take you out to the movies and for dinner. It feels like I''m neglecting you all." ? "But you love your job honey. I''m proud of you. I thank God every day for sending you my way." Lorena''s parents weren''t so enthusiastic about Julian when their daughter met him. They wanted to marry her off to a very wealthy oil tycoon and a rancher from Dallas and tried everything in their power to try and split them apart, but Julian was was head over heals in love with her, so much that their efforts did not put a damper on his pursuit of Lorena. She was as much in love too and saw something in Julian her parents failed to notice, and she was convinced that he was the one that she wanted to spend the rest of her life with and grow old with. Almost two decades later, they still felt the same about each other as they did then. "I''m going upstairs so long." She gave him a peck on the cheek. Julian went upstairs later and stopped at Jolene''s bedroom. The door was halfway open and he peeked inside to look at her. "Goodnight sweetheart." "Goodnight dad." "Sleep tight." "You too." ***** Present... Julian walked up to his Volkswagen Touareg that stood deserted in the hospital parking lot, turned off the alarm, got in and relaxed for a moment before he started the car and drove off. He drove along a suburban road and then turned onto the on-ramp that led up to Foothill freeway. A dense fog eerily hung over the road like a thick blanket causing visibility on the road to be very limited. He was just about to enter one of the tunnels on the freeway when he noticed the florescent lights along the top sides flickering on and off eerily. Having the radio on and listening to a CD while singing along, the radio suddenly started to malfunction. ? It switched onto some random radio station, tuning in and out erratically with static on the speakers. Julian looked down at the radio baffled when all of a sudden it sounded like a female voice was screaming for help from underneath the static on the speakers. "What the hell?" He wasn''t sure if his ears were deceiving him and frowned as he tried to get his music back on while still keeping an eye on the road. To his relief the CD started playing again, but abruptly out of nowhere as he was about to leave the tunnel, a young blonde girl in her teens popped up in the road right in front of his car, with her back towards the car and gave him a fright. "Shit!" He closed his eyes for a moment, waiting for impact, slammed on the brakes and the Volkswagen skid forwards moving right through her, slithering from side to side and almost spinning out of control. To his relief he didn''t hear the expected thumping noise. Still gripping onto the steering wheel and somewhat startled, he opened his eyes as soon as the car came to a complete standstill and took a few moments to gain back his composure. "Dammit, that was close." Rattled, he looked into the rear-view mirror and saw her still standing in the middle of the freeway. He couldn''t comprehend how he managed to not hit her on impact. She was so close when he saw her, she practically could have popped up from underneath the hood of the car. He got out of the car and walked up to her. ? "Hey, are you okay?" She didn''t react to his question and just stood there crying. Either his eyes were busy deceiving him or she was real. When he gathered enough courage, he continued walking towards her and when he got close enough he noticed she was exceptionally pale and trembling. He noticed the massive cut on her left side with blood seeping out of the wound. There was a sudden nip in the air that made the hair on his neck and arms stand on end, and when he touched her she was cold as ice. "Sweetheart you''re freezing." He took off his jacket and threw it over her shoulders before he almost protectively guided her towards the car and opened the door for her to get in.