Chapter 2

Eric was awakened early the

next morning by the rain that had, by now, soaked him to the bone.

The pain in his dislocated shoulder was immense, coupled with the bruises on his face. But that didn’t prevent him from picking himself up to try to find Nicole.

Mr. Miller was outside, picking up tree limbs and other debris that were strewn about from the storm. That’s when he caught sight of young Eric slowly walking towards his car. He

thought, “Why on earth is that young man still here. He and his girlfriend should have left hours ago.”

He decided to investigate. As he approached the young fellow, he realized that he was hurt.

“Eric? What the dickens happened to you, son? You look to be in a world of hurt!” Eric answered, “Nicole’s father must’ve followed us here. He saw us together ... he attacked me. He literally picked me up and threw me. He was in a rage ... dislocated my shoulder, I

think ... Can’t find her! Can’t find Nicole ... must’ve took her ... gotta find her...”

Mr. Miller said, “Son, you’re in rough shape. You need an ambulance.” Eric seemed agitated. “No time ... gotta find Nicole!” Miller responded,” Okay, son. Rest easy. But you can’t drive like that. You come with me. I’ll take you wherever you need to go. But after we check on your girl, we need to see to those injuries that you’re sporting. Deal?” He responded, “Okay...” Then he said, “Blanket!

Help me gather Nicole’s blanket! Gotta put it in my car!”

After checking in with his wife, Miller eased Eric into his old pickup and started down the road. Eric asked him to first take him to the high school, to see if her car was still there.

After only a few miles, they came upon several sheriff’s cruisers, a fire truck, two ambulances as well as a tow truck. They were being signaled to stop.

They were approached by a deputy. Miller rolled his window

down to ask what happened. The deputy said, “A car evidently lost control sometime during last night’s storm. Went through the guard rail and ended up several yards down the embankment and rammed into a tree. As far as we can tell, two occupants. An older man and what looks like a teenage girl. We’re getting ready to pull what’s left of the car back up on the road.”

Eric was beside himself with worry. “Who was it? An older man and a teenage girl?” The deputy answered,” We haven’t

been able to make any I.Ds yet. Poor girl got thrown through the windshield, looks like...”

Eric went ballistic. “NICOLE?! NICOLE ... PLEASE GOD! NOT MY NICOLE!...” He started to exit the truck, but Mr. Miller stopped him. “Eric, you’re in no shape to go running off. Sit tight, son, and let the experts handle this.” Then, Miller turned to the deputy and said, “A word, officer?” The deputy nodded. He got out of his truck, telling Eric to sit tight.

“Officer, between you and me ... how bad is it? Young Eric

here was beaten half to death sometime during last evening. He said that his girlfriend’s father did it. His shoulder is dislocated, and his face looks like it was used for a punching bag. If that happens to be his girlfriend and her dad, this boy needs to know.” The deputy led him away from his truck several feet, then spoke in low tones. “Like I already said, we haven’t made any positive identifications yet, but I can tell you this; the young woman, she ... she didn’t make it. Near as we can tell, she

probably died instantly. ‘Least I hope so. Poor girl laid there a while...” Then he whispered the rest. “She was cold. Now, I shouldn’t be telling anyone this next part, but I think I can trust you. Just don’t spread it around. See, the part we can’t figure ... she’s wearing a prom dress, and ... the top part was sort of ... peeled down, and her bra was open. You know, one of them fancy kind of bras, that opens in the front. Anyway, her ... her breasts were exposed. Why would a teenage girl be

riding with ... I guess ... her dad, with her breasts exposed?”

Miller shook his head in disbelief.

After conversing privately with the deputy, Miller finally said, “I think I’d best get young Eric away from here, before you guys get the car back up on the road. Wouldn’t want him to possibly recognize it.” The deputy nodded in agreement.

Once they were past the accident scene, they drove on towards the high school. Finally reaching their destination, Eric

spotted Nicole’s car.

“She never made it back to her car! Mr. Miller! Her car is still here! Oh my God! That must’ve been them that went through the guard rail! You gotta take me back there! PLEASE TAKE ME BACK THERE! I HAVE TO SEE THAT SHE’S OKAY!”

Miller tried to calm Eric down. He said, “Eric, I need to get you to the hospital. You’re in bad shape, son. Let’s get you checked out, then we’ll see about Nicole. Okay?” Through tears, the young man finally agreed.

Miller waited until Eric was settled in at the emergency room, then asked him for his parents’ phone number.

He called and informed them of their son’s injuries and briefly about what happened. After hearing that they were on their way, he told Eric that he needed to get back to his wife.

Soon, Eric’s parents arrived. They were sent back to where their son was, where they met with the attending physician.

After his shoulder was painfully