Episode 87

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Episode 87

Scene 1:

"The first time I saw you Piper, I fell in love. You were so beautiful, innocent, and vulnerable. Not like girls today. Not vulgar and flirty. That's why I don't like your friends. I don't want them to ruin you..."

Piper half-listened to Chase's chatter. "You're crazy," she mumbled.

"Crazy about you."

"Crazy...insane...same damn thing."

"Now, Piper, I warned you."

Piper grimaced at the condescending tone as Chase's grip tightened threateningly. Why did she deny this for so long? If she got out of this alive, she was investing in a therapist. If?

"Have you ever read the Great Gatsby?" She suddenly asked. She wasn't going down without a fight.

"...yes," he answered at her strange question.

"You remember Tom, Daisy's husband?"

"Piper what are you getting at?"

"I'm getting at that you're just like him," Piper spat. Not the best attack, but good enough.

"Piper, I think you need a drink," Chase growled and chunked Piper down onto an antique chair in the corner of the ballroom. "Don't move." He laughed, "not that you can."

Piper had never hated anyone in her life, but she now felt such an intensity burning inside her that it erased all rationality. Throwing herself out of the chair and onto the hard floor, Piper barely noticed as some of her nails gave under the pressure. Maura the Noble. Jillie the Charmer. And Piper the Idiot. The impact knocked the wind out of her, but she was pulling herself across the ballroom floor towards the balcony. The numbness was disappearing in her legs and she was able to use her feet to propel her forward.

Covering the small space like a soldier at war, she used the balcony to pull herself to her feet. She gulped at the long fall, glancing over her shoulder when she heard the door rattle. Piper pushed herself back and stumbled towards one side of the balcony, hiding from Chase's view.

"Piper?" Chase called, anger etching his brow. "I guess I underestimated your cleverness," he said sharply, eyes darting about the room.

Damn right you did, Piper bitterly thought. She wasn't that stupid.

"You think you can get away, Pip? You're far too weak," Chase said, eyes falling on the balcony. What if she? She would too. Running forward he stopped and looked over. No signs of...

Piper used what little energy she had and rammed her shoulder into Chase's back. He pitched forward falling the two stories to the ground.

Piper had a feeling that didn't kill him, but he wasn't moving. Get out! She told herself. Piper stumbled forward, pushing herself up when she nearly fell forward. She wasn't going to make it out alive at the rate she was going. Tears finally began to spill down her cheeks. She was too weak physically. The exertion she made running across the ballroom caused her legs to tremble and the hall to move as she stepped out into the dimly lit area. Piper somehow found her way to the long staircase. She groaned at the prospect of trying to get down them in her current state. With slow, trembling steps she managed to make it down the stairs safely. The door out was so close, Piper rushed at it, falling a couple times, but nonetheless making it.

The cold night air hit her bare shoulders hard, but it was a welcome relief from the stuffiness of the old mansion. Chase's BMW Roadster waited in the front of the house. Looking over her shoulder, Piper wondered if Chase was still gone enough that she could steal his keys. In every single horror movie the killer always woke up and that was what this felt like to Piper. A horror movie and she was the dumb blonde victim. If she drove in this state she would probably kill herself anyway. Stumbling down the steps of the mansion and falling on the last one, Piper lifted up the green skirts and pried the dangerously high heels off her feet. She chunked them across the manicured, night lit lawn. Hatred boiled inside her. She didn't know who she hated more, her or Chase. Peering into the car, Piper's eyes lit up at the sight of Chase's cell phone. Noah! She could call Noah! Piper grabbed the door handle with eagerness, but it didn't budge.

"Shit!" Piper screamed, viciously kicking the car. She yelped at the pain in her foot. At least she had the strength to kick something. Piper lifted up the thick taffeta from the bottom of her skirt and wrapped it around her arm. With a deep breath she drove her hand through the glass, wincing as she felt some of the fabric give way and the blood begin to pool on her arms. She didn't care. She grabbed Chase's cell phone and took off for the woods. If she stayed close to the main road it was her safest bet.

Scene 2:

"Hey Dusty...has Piper called?" Noah dropped his textbooks on the couch and reached for the phone. Dusty shook her head, brushing out the last of a tangle.

"Nope. No one's called. And I have to go, so I can't be your phone operator tonight. You'll have to answer your own calls," she said dropping her brush into her purse.

"Where you going?"

"Work...I got offered some overtime and I'm taking it. I'm trying to save money for a trip to the Caribbean later this year." She smiled and patted his arm affectionately. "Study hard, brother dear. And don't let Piper distract you." Noah rolled his eyes and dialed the Conlan's number. After three rings, Mr. Conlan answered.

"Noah...no. Piper isn't here. I'm sure she's at her new home," Kevin replied in a curt tone. "Or hasn't she told you about it?"

"No...well, thank you Mr. Conlan. I'll just talk to her tomorrow at work." There was a long moment of silence on the line. "Mr. Conlan? Is everything okay?"

"Yes, Noah, of course it is. Good bye now." Noah replaced the phone. Piper had mentioned moving out and how hard it would be to tell her father. It must have been harder than she imagined. It was for the best though. Piper needed to get out from under Maura and Jillie's shadow and living at home wouldn't help her there. Of course, Maura would try to tie her down to Connie's for as long as possible. He picked up the phone again and dialed the number to Connie's, getting a flustered Joanie on the fourth ring.

"What? Piper? Oh my God, Noah. You really need to get your head out of your textbooks. Piper doesn't work here anymore! Oh crap, can I put you on hold?" Without waiting for an answer, she put him on hold, forcing him to listen to Celtic music. St. Patrick's day, he remembered. What was Mr. Conlan doing at home on St. Patrick's, he wondered. And what was she talking about Piper not working there anymore? The Conlans had all worked in the diner through college. At least that was what Maura had told him with Jory backing her up.

He started to think she had forgotten him just as she came back online. "It is a madhouse here. I can't believe you got the day off. I hate you," she pouted.

"No you don't. What did you mean Piper doesn't work there anymore?" He asked. He could almost hear her roll her eyes on the other end.

"God, Noah! Doesn't she call you or anything? Mr. Conlan fired Piper yesterday. No one knows why...I guess it happened right after close. Maura won't talk about it either...though I did see her go into her office with Jude Fontaine. Think they're back together again?"

"Who knows?" Noah replied, not wanting to gossip with Joanie. "Have you seen Piper today then?"

"Not that I remember...but I did see her creep boyfriend. He might be cute, but he is one seriously weird..."

"If you see Piper, tell her to call me okay?" Noah said cutting her off. No one had to tell him Chase Garrett was trouble. Joanie agreed and hung up quickly. He thought he heard a crash in the background and thanked whatever waiter gods there were that he wasn't there.

Piper was probably with Jewel, he told himself. If Mr. Conlan fired her, then she wouldn't have gone home. Yep, she was at Jewel's and she would call him later. That was easy to tell himself and easy enough to believe. But his gut told him something was wrong, though what he had no idea. He tried to shake off the bad feeling by picking up one of his books and opening it to the chapter they were on in class. Nothing like a little human anatomy to get his mind off Piper, he decided and settled down to study.

Scene 3:

John grabbed Dinah by the elbow and hauled her into the hallway, thoroughly angry this time. He had specifically told her not to see that boy again and she continued to defy him. He glared at her heavily, his brows drawing together in a deep scowl. She stared back at him defiantly with a look that dared him to scold her in front of the new nurse who was receiving hateful glares as well from his youngest daughter.

"Georgia, I think it's time to record Mr. Jones' vitals. Would you mind taking care of that for me?" He asked, his eyes never leaving Dinah's face. Georgia nodded and disappeared into Tyler's room, the door swinging behind her.

"Getting rid of the witness?" Dinah asked sarcastically. John tightened his grip on her arm, pulling her out of the way of the other nurses going by. "You are hurting me..."

"If that's the only way to make you understand me, then fine," John returned. "I've told you how many times that Tyler Jones is off limits?"

"Why is he off limits?" Dinah demanded in return. She never was one to back down, he thought. He and Barbara had cultivated independence in their daughters but this was too much.

"Because I said so and I am the Chief of Staff of this hospital not to mention your father!" John snapped.

"Then give me a good reason why I can't see him! So far, all I have is because you say so," Dinah volleyed back.

John stared amazed at her audacity. "What is so important about that boy that you find it necessary to sneak in to see him when I expressly forbid you not to? You don't even know him."

"Daddy, I saved his life! He died in my arms and I brought him back. Isn't that enough?"

"No, it isn't...not when it comes to him," John insisted.

"When you have a patient, you care about what happens to him. You care about how he's feeling," Dinah said switching gears. He'd seen this tactic from her before but he had been ready for it. "Well, I care about Tyler and what happens to him. He crashed his bike on purpose Daddy...hasn't anyone told you that? Hasn't he? He told me and I don't think it's right to just ignore that because you don't like him for whatever twisted reason you might have!"

"First of all," John began, his temper simmering just below the boiling point. "You are not a doctor. You have no idea what it takes to be one," he added harshly. "Second, you were lucky saving his life. That's all it was. That kid in there did an awful thing, I don't doubt he tried to kill himself if that's really what he was trying to do. If you ask me, I think his luck just ran out that night. You're right though, I don't like him. I think what he did was abominable and I don't want you near him, Dinah. Do you understand me?"

"What did he do?" Dinah cried, stamping her foot in a tantrum. "I don't have to do what you say, you know. I am 18 and an adult..."

"An adult who lives in my house," John pointed out. They were beginning to draw attention to themselves with their heated conversations. He lowered his voice, "and until you move out after your graduation from college, you will do as I say."

"If I move out then I don't have to do what you say? Fine, I'll move out then!" She flared back defiantly.

"No, you won't. I let Kelly do that and look what happened to her. I won't allow you to follow in your sister's footsteps."

Dinah threw her hands up at the mention of her missing sibling. "What did happen to Kelly, Dad? You won't tell me that either! I'm not some little girl who can't be told things! Just tell me why I can't see him. That's all I want."

"Fine, you want to know? That boy in there raped Melissa Cravens. Are you satisfied?" John's voice was suddenly louder than he had intended. "Raped her and ran when he was caught. As soon as he's well enough, he's going to be arrested and formally charged."

"I don't believe you..." The color drained from her face and she looked five years old once more. "How do you know that?"

"The police were here the day after he was brought in," John continued, his tone softening at the haunted look on her face. "He's guilty, Dinah." Her eyes widened and he could see the defiant attitude taking over once more.

"You don't know that for sure do you? You're just going with what the police are telling you!" She announced, jerking free of his grasp at last. "I know Melissa Cravens. Piper and I used to try and catch her in lies all the time, Daddy. She's pathological. She'd say anything to get attention."

"The police don't think so..."

"What do the police know?"

He reached his breaking point. John hadn't wanted to agree to the Don Cravens request to post a guard outside Tyler's door, but it seemed that Dinah was giving him no choice. If only she weren't so headstrong...

"Dinah, starting tomorrow there will be a guard outside this door. You will not be able to see your," he paused looking for the right word to call him. He settled on, "patient. No one but myself and Detective McCormick will be allowed in to see him. Do you understand me?"

"Absolutely." She leveled a gaze at him that reminded him of her mother. "You can't keep running my life like you tried to run Kelly's. It didn't work with her and it won't work on me. Put a guard there. I'll find a way around it. Just watch." She wiggled out of the corner, her head held high, and disappeared down the corridor. He was certain she would find a way at that.

Scene 4:

Tyler let the nurse take his blood pressure while he strained to hear what was being said in the hallway. Dinah may have continued to butt into his life, but so far, she was the only person who didn't seem to know what had happened prior to his accident. And that was okay with him. He could hear her demanding answers from her father and the stonewalling tone he gave back to her. It didn't sound like it was going too well.

"You shouldn't encourage that girl to break hospital rules," the nurse scolded. He looked up at her, frowning in response to her scolding. "She got another nurse fired for her shenanigans."

"So? I'm not encouraging her," he answered stiffly, pulling his arm from her as she took off the arm band. "She just shows up. In fact, I told her not to come."

"Sure you did." The nurse rolled her eyes and wrote his blood pressure down on his chart. "All right, I'll be back in five minutes to give you your medication." She turned and opened the swinging door just long enough to hear Dinah's words float back to him.

"Just tell me why I can't see him. That's all I want."

"Fine, you want to know? That boy in there raped Melissa Cravens. Are you satisfied? Raped her and ran when he was caught. As soon as he's well enough, he's going to be arrested and formally charged."

He felt his stomach drop a million miles at the doctor's harsh words. Arrested? Not if he could help it. Carefully, he pulled the IV from his hand, throwing it away from him. He pulled at all the little wires attached to him, until they all came off. He stood quickly, grabbing his clothes from the closet. He wasn't 100% yet, but he could walk and think. All he had to do was get away from the hospital and find someplace to hide out until he felt better. Thank god, he hadn't broken any bones, he thought, pulling the door open a ways to see what was going on in the hall.

Dinah was fleeing down the hallway and her father was glowering at the staff going by. A few minutes of a clear hallway was all he needed. Dr. Stafford turned on his heel and cornered the new nurse. With his back turned and blocking the nurse's view, Tyler made a move towards the stairway door nearby. Please don't look back, he thought as he crossed the hall quietly. At the door, he pulled it open and closed it again, taking one last look through the glass at Dr. Stafford. He was still talking to the nurse and hadn't noticed anything. All that was left was to get out of the building unnoticed.

He began his descent down the stairs, pausing to rest for a brief second at the bottom of each flight. He passed no one, thankfully, and made his way to the parking garage. The only idea he had was to find an unlocked car and steal it. Not the best idea in the world, but he could do it. He had before after all. Starting at the closest row, he tried the first car. Locked. He moved on, careful not to touch any with alarms. At last, one opened.

"What are you doing?" He stopped cold and turned, meeting Dinah's surprised eyes. How, he wondered, had he beat her down here? "Tyler? What are you doing down here?" She asked, her expression of surprise changing to wonder.

"I heard what your father said," he began. She waved the comment off, reaching for her keys.

"My father is overprotective," she shrugged. "How did you get out?"

"I snuck out. Look, I don't think I have a whole lot of time before they come looking for me and I don't think I can make it much further. Will you help me?" He asked, realizing she might be the only one in the world willing to do so. Dinah's mouth fell open, startled at his request. Of course, she couldn't help him. He was a rapist. "Please?"

"Yes, I'll help you," she said quickly. "Get in." She helped him into the back seat, instructing him to lie down. She moved to the trunk, pulling out an old blanket and covering him with it. "Just fyi, I went to high school with Missy Cravens and she's a liar. I don't buy her story for a minute." He smiled at her, relieved to hear it. "All right, get under that blanket and don't come out until I say so, Okay?" He nodded again, ducking under the cover, praying he had made a good decision in trusting her.