I glance toward the door and that is when I see her. She went shopping with Nicole yesterday for an outfit that I’ll have to thank her later for.
Maddy has on a black dress that ties around her neck. It dips into a low V at her breasts and comes to a stop just above her knees. She looks beautiful. I make my way over to her and pull her into me. She has heels on that make her almost my height so she doesn’t have to stand on her tiptoes to kiss me.
I am working so I really can’t do what I want to. “You look beautiful, baby.” I turn to look at Nicole, who also has on a short dress. Jason is standing behind her and I noticed he was staring at Nicole. Was Jason checking her out?
I need to talk to him later about this. “You did well with this dress, Nic.” She smiles at me. I am really glad Maddy has a friend like her. “You don’t look too bad yourself, either. Don’t you think so, J?”
He looks at me like he wants to kill me. “Yeah, she looks great.”
“I need to get back to work, babe, but I’ll see you at midnight, okay?”
She smiles at me. “I can’t wait, and this will be my first New Year’s kiss.”
“Well, Miss Stevens, you know how much I like giving you firsts, and kissing you. So, it will be my pleasure. I’ll see you later.” She gives me a quick kiss, then they walks off to the bar. I hate not being able to be by her side, and I am worried because there are already so many people here tonight.
Madison
I am having so much fun. Nicole and I are dancing, and I’ve had a couple of drinks already. I don’t want to drink too much, though, because of what happened last time. It is a quarter to twelve and I can’t wait to kiss Carter at midnight. I am feeling a little unsteady on my feet and I need to go to the bathroom. I tap Nicole on the shoulder. “Hey, I’m gonna go to the bathroom. I’ll be right back!”
“Want me to come with?”
“No, I’m fine, girl.”
I start to walk to the bathroom and begin to feel lightheaded. All of a sudden, I am no longer walking to the bathroom, but being pulled toward the exit. I hear a lot of yelling, but everything seems to be moving in slow motion.
“Time to start the countdown, everyone!”
The countdown? I need to go find Carter. I try to walk back to the dance floor to find him, but whoever is with me keeps pulling me.
“5!”
I need to get away.
“4!”
Who has my arm?
“3!”
The door just opened.
“2!”
Carter, where are you?
“1!”
I am taken through the alley door and look up at whoever has my arm. Who is he? I’ve never seen this guy before. A car pulls up at the end of the alley and the mystery man starts to drag me toward it. My head is so fuzzy but I know this is bad. I try to get away but it feels like my limbs are made of lead and I call out for help but there is no one else around. What the hell is going on? I need to get away. He pulls me up to the car and the back door opens. I looked inside…Chris.
“Happy New Year, Madison. I told you I’d be back for you.”
I start screaming or, at least, I am trying to. My body isn’t cooperating with me. I start hitting and kicking whatever I can get my hands on. The stranger punches me in the stomach and I double over. I fall to the ground, face first, and hit my head. I think I hear someone yell my name, but it is like I am in a tunnel.
Carter
I am patrolling the floor when, out of nowhere, some drunken assholes get into a fight. I go to help break it up but, with everyone drinking, what started as a pushing match was turning into an all-out brawl.
They start the countdown to the New Year and I know Maddy will be coming to find me. I look around for her and just barely see her leaving through the back door.
I figure maybe she and Nicole saw the fight then decided to go outside to get some air and stay away from it. My eyes scan the club, looking for more people to help with this fight when I see Nicole over by the bar talking to Jason and I start to panic. I have to go find Maddy, but I am in the middle of this fight and am simultaneously trying to hold two guys. My eyes find Jason’s. “Maddy just went out the back!”
He starts running toward the door. Meanwhile, the other bouncers and I escort all the troublemakers outside. I run back into the club, but Jason and Maddy aren’t back yet. I head for the back door, hoping they are just outside talking and everything is fine.
I get outside, look down the alley, and my heart stops. Maddy is lying on the ground and Jason is crouched over her, yelling into his phone. I run as fast as I can to them. “What the fuck happened?”
“I don’t know. I came out and saw some dude punch her and she fell. I screamed her name and started running. The guy hopped in the backseat of a car and took off. I can’t get her to wake up. I just called 911 and they said they’ll be right over.”
I hear sirens in the distance. “I’m staying with her. Let the club know what happened and make sure Nicole gets home.”
Just then the ambulance pulls up. “I will, dude. Let me know when you find out anything.”
I am pacing the waiting room and no one will tell me anything. I am ready to put my fist through a wall. Nicole and Jason are in the waiting room too and everyone is on edge waiting for news on Maddy. A doctor walks in and I jump up.
“Madison Stevens?”
“Yes! I’m here for her. What’s going on?”
The doctor looks me up and down. “Sir, how do you know Miss Stevens?”
Shit! If I don’t say I’m family, they aren’t going to tell me anything. “I’m her husband.” I hear Nicole choke on the water she is drinking.
“Okay, sir, please come with me.” He walks me back and takes me into Maddy’s room. She has an IV in her arm and is still unconscious. “Mr.…?”
“James. What happened to her?”
“We tested Miss Steven’s blood and found traces of Zolpidem in her system.” He sees my confused expression, so he elaborates. “It’s a date rape drug.” Oh my god. “We ran a rape kit on her and are waiting for the results.” Rape kit? Please God, no. my stomach lurches as a multitude of scenarios run through my head. She’s been through so much already. “She seems to have a bruised rib and a contusion on her head from when she fell. Other than that, she’s perfectly healthy.”
“Okay, thank you. Can I stay with her?”
“Yes, that’s fine. She may be out for a while, though. Right now, we’re just waiting for the drugs to work their way out of her system.”
He leaves me alone and I walk over to her bed and kiss her head. “You’re gonna be okay, baby. We’ll find who did this.” Although, I already have a pretty good idea. I walk into the waiting room to let Jason and Nicole know what happened. I ask Jason if he’d recognized the guy in the alley.
He seems to have known what I was asking. “It wasn’t Chris, Carter. I’ve never seen the guy before in my life.” I tell them I’ll let them know when she wakes up and they go home. When I get back to her room, the doctor comes in to let me know that the rape kit had come back negative. Thank God. I fall asleep holding Maddy’s hand and my head resting on her bed.
I feel a hand run through my hair and I snap my head up. Her hands falls weakly to the bed. “Maddy?” I jump up and yell to the nurse that she is awake. I walk back to her and give her a kiss. She seems surprised.
“Carter, what’s going on?” Her voice sounds strained.
“You don’t remember?” We have no idea who the guy that led her out is. I immediately thought it was Chris, but the cops say he has an alibi. If Maddy can’t remember, he’ll get away with it.