Shadows of Resentment Ch. 03

The twins took one look at their sister's disheveled appearance and with a loud roar Darius became enraged and attacked Cameron. This bastard hurt his sister. How could Cameron hurt Sierra? Darius thought.

"Wait, Dar..." Cameron tried to explain, but Darius attacked. Cameron was rendered unconscious as Darius proceeded to dive on top of him and deliver a series of extremely hard punches to his face.

Derrick rushed over to Sierra to see if she was going to be alright. Several people jumped in to pull Darius off of Cameron's prone body. Cameron, who was bleeding from his nose and mouth, was not moving.

Derrick took his eyes off of Sierra for a second and witnessed Darius' brutal assault on Cameron. At this point Deidre had made it over to him.

"Deidre," Derrick commanded, "Stay with Sierra. I've got to stop Darius."

He immediately left his sister and her friend to try and stop his brother. He could tell from the way Cameron was lying on the floor that he was badly injured. He grabbed Darius from behind by the waist, and with the help of his friends, wrestled him to the ground. "Darius, Darius!" Derrick yelled in his ear, "Stop It! You're killing him. Stop it. Cameron didn't do this! Stop it!"

Darius was oblivious to his brother's pleadings because his mind was completely focused on hurting someone. He tried to brushed him off and continued his assault. Derrick held on to his brother tightly and wouldn't let him go. Finally two more guys from their football team came in and help hold him down, as two of the teachers worked diligently and tried to stop Cameron from bleeding. It was at this point the police and ambulances arrived.

Deidre sat with her friend and held her until the paramedics arrived on the scene. Deidre was crying uncontrollably. Witnessing the way Darius brutally assaulted Cameron terrified her, even as she yelled for Darius to stop. But he kept kicking and hitting Cameron, until some guys were able to pull him off and hold him down. Deidre cried to herself as she held her friend. He's too volatile, and I can't have that around my baby. I'm not going to tell him.

No one thought about Jake, nor did anyone realize that Jake was unconscious outside in the parking lot at this time. When the police arrived, they found his body lying sprawled out in the parking lot. It was clearly visible that he had been assaulted.

They immediately called for an ambulance to pick him up. It was obvious that he had been assaulted and being the mayor's son, they knew they had to get to the bottom of his assault quickly.

Meanwhile, other officers had arrived and were questioning people inside the gym. Darius was taken into custody.

The Aftermath

Marge and Marvin Granger headed to the hospital to see their daughter. Sierra regained consciousness at the school, but was disoriented and could not recall what happened. Deidre rode in the ambulance with Sierra, so she wouldn't be alone.

Nick Richards was with Rosa when he got a call that Cameron had been hurt. He grabbed Rosa and quickly rushed to the hospital. When he entered the emergency room, he was waylaid by Mayor Smythe accusing Cameron of attempted murder and rape.

Nick immediately walked to the nurse's desk and demanded to be taken to his son. Cameron was in surgery and it was obvious that he had suffered severe head trauma.

Nick and Rosa were escorted to the OR waiting room to wait on any news on the condition of his son.

Meanwhile, Sierra was undergoing an examination in the ER and being processed for rape. However, the doctor doing the rape kit stated that whoever attacked her was not successful in the rape attempt. Her hymen was still intact.

When the police tried to question Sierra about what happened, she could not remember anything.

Jake's sister, Hannah, returned to the prom after the facts and was told about the attack. She left the school and rushed to the hospital to be with her brother.

This is all that bitch's fault. Hanna thought as she arrived at the hospital. She immediately went to her brother's room. The police was there asking him what happened.

"Son, can you tell us how you ended up in the parking lot beaten?" Deputy Henson asked.

"Well," Jake said softly, "I was-"

"It's obvious what has happened here," Roared Mayor Smythe loudly. "That out of control Richard's kid did this. He obviously attacked the girl and when my son tried to defend the little Granger slut, he viciously attacked him. I want him locked up and brought up on charges of attempted murder."

Hannah stood beside her father. She knew that Cameron probably did beat Jake up, but not for the reasons her father was suggesting. She knew what Jake had in mind for Sierra even before they left home, but it was not any of her business. She wouldn't say anything to anyone and would keep her brother's little secret. She just hoped he would soon let go of his obsession with Sierra Granger, because his obsession could get him into major trouble.

Deputy Henson hated Mayor Smythe, he was a pompous jerk. If his son was indeed beaten up by that Richards kid, the boy must have had a reason to attack him. But he was the mayor and it could cost him his job, but still he would try to reason with him.

"Mayor Smythe, I know you're upset. But let the law handle this. I promise you we will investigate this completely." Deputy Henson assured him.

Mayor Smythe glared at the deputy, "As long as that punk goes to jail at the end. Carry on with your investigation."

Mayor Smythe grabbed Hanna by the arm and then stormed out of room.

The deputy continued to interview Jake.

Meanwhile Deputy Hunter Michaels attempted to interview Sierra. He was the officer responsible for processing her brother Darius earlier, and he was almost overwhelmed by this situation.

The Grangers were like family to him and they didn't deserve to have to go through something like this. He made a silent vow to himself that he would make sure that the person who caused all of their pain paid for their transgression.

Since Sierra couldn't remember what happened, the police took Jake's account of the events and place an armed guard at Cameron's door. Jake was released from the hospital and no charges were brought against him.

Nick knew things weren't right, that the stories didn't add up. But his hands were tied as long as Cameron was still unconscious from the severe head trauma he received from the beating Darius gave him.

Monday morning, Mayor Smythe's first course of business was to terminate Nick Richards. He cited excessive absences as the reason for his termination. No one said anything, but everyone knew that Mayor Smythe was vengeful and vindictive and felt justified in punishing Nick because of what happened to Jake. Nick was furious, but right now he had to take care of his kids. Everyone knew the mayor was wrong, however, no one was willing to go against him. So not only did Cameron have to fight for his life, he had to face possible criminal charges as well.

Mayor Smythe, in an attempt to appear to be a generous and concerned political leader, arranged for Darius to be released and made sure no charges were brought against him. He assured the city that his son was recovering from this horrendous ordeal and Cameron Richards would pay for what he had done. He even offered Marge Granger a position in his office which she promptly turned down.

At the end of May, Cameron's medical bills were insurmountable. With the loss of his job, Nick lost his medical coverage. Marge and Marvin talked. Neither of them believed that Cameron attacked Sierra, but Sierra couldn't remember what happened so, Cameron was the immediate scapegoat.

The Granger's started fundraisers to help Nick meet Cameron's medical bills. People from all over the community who knew Cameron and his father gave them their full support. The community raised thousands of dollars to help the family. Derrick, who now had a part-time job, gave half of his weekly paycheck to the funds to help pay Cameron's medical bills, so did Sierra and Deidre.

The hospital social worker was searching for supplemental coverage to cover Cameron's stay.

The Nightmare Ends

Nick Richards stopped by the Granger's home one day when he was on his way home from the hospital to pick up Rosa. They invited him in and he sat at the kitchen table.

"Marv and Marge," Nick started, "I know you don't have to help me. But I want you to know I appreciate it." Nick looked Marv Granger in the eye and said, "I don't know what happened, but I know my boy. He'd die before he hurt that girl or anyone of your kids."

"When my boy wakes up," Nick continued sobbing softly, "the truth will come out. The mayor's boy, Jake, he's lying; I can feel it in my bones! Anyway just wanted to say thanks." He stood up to leave.

"Nick, wait" said Marvin, "I practically raised that boy. I know he didn't hurt her. I'm sorry Darius attacked him like he did. He truly regrets what he has done"

Marge gave Nick a hug and a kiss on the cheek, "Cam is strong and he will be fine. We will get through this."

Nick left the Granger's and walked home to wait for Rosa's bus to drop her off. Rosa came home and gave her Dad a big hug.

"Daddy," said Rosa, "You're getting skinny."

Nick smiled, hugged his little girl tightly, and kissed her on the head.

Since Cameron had gotten hurt back in April, Nick realized he had to come out of his depression. His children needed him and he was determined to be there for them. Because he was so worried about Cameron, Nick stopped eating and managed to lose thirty-five pounds. Because of his weight loss, the doctor's reduced the amount of medicines he had to take.

If he managed to lose twenty-five more pounds, there was a chance could stop taking some of the medications altogether. He still had to go to dialysis, but he was now at the top of the organ transplant list. He felt better too and was able to get around better.

He was on a new lower dosage of his high blood pressure medication. "Yea, my angel," he smiled at her and said, "I have to be here to take care of you and you brother."

He gave her a quick hug and a kiss on the head again. "Go do your homework. I'm going to go fix supper. We'll head over to the hospital and sit with your brother for a while after supper, alright?"

"Ok, daddy," Rosa replied as she hugged her Dad tightly before heading to the kitchen table.

After they finished dinner, the phone rang. It was the hospital. Cameron had woken up. Nick told Rosa to grab her jacket and they rushed over to the hospital. After weeks of waiting, the truth would finally come out.

Even though several weeks had passed, Sierra was still having nightmares about what happened to her and she was frustrated because she couldn't remember.

While sitting in her living room watching reruns of "The Flavor of Love" on MTV, Sierra heard a knock at the front door. Her dad answered the door and the person did not wait for an invitation they just barged in.

Sierra looked at Jake with much surprise on her face and then looked at her dad. It was clear to Marvin that his daughter wasn't feeling comfortable, but she was putting up a brave face. Giving her the benefit of the doubt, he left the two youngsters alone and retreated to the kitchen, only a few feet away from them.

"Sierra," said Jake, "I'm glad you're OK. I'm sorry about what Cam did to you. I tried to fight him off but he was too strong," Jake continued in a placating tone.

"I want you to know that I don't blame you for what happened, and I'm still willing to date you, but we can't tell anyone we're together. My reputation, you know what I mean?" he winked while speaking in a low tone.

Sierra was so stunned by his audacity that she froze. How dare this pompous jerk show up at my house like he's doing me a favor? she thought angrily.

When Jake leaned forward to kiss her it felt like she was thrown back in time. Back to the parking lot and what happened to her. It wasn't Cameron that had attacked her. It was Jake! Relief ran through her for a mere second, only to turn into absolute fear when Jake kept trying to kiss her, just to shut her up.

Sierra screamed, "Get off me. It was you! You tried to rape me! Cameron never touched me!" Sierra began to punch and hit Jake anywhere where she could reach him.

Derrick had just arrived home when his sister screamed. He rushed behind his Dad into the living room to find Jake Smythe being beaten by Sierra. Derrick was furious. It seems his sister was remembering and as he thought it wasn't Cameron who had assaulted her but Jake. That little piece of shit put the blame on Cameron just to cover his own sorry ass! He was going to pay now!

Derrick charged into the room and viciously attacked Jake. He hit, punched, and fought him with everything in him. Sierra was also attacking Jake.

Marvin, on the other hand, was trying to pull his two kids off of the young man. It wasn't that he was protecting Jake, but he just didn't want his kids to end up in jail for murder. He managed to get Derrick off of the boy, leaving Sierra to throw in a few more punches towards Jake.

"No, son,'' he whispered in Derrick's ear as he held him down, "That's not the way. Marge!" He screamed, "Call the police!"

Derrick still frustrated and angry, realized the error he almost made, he broke down and sobbed in agony.

While Mr. Granger was restraining Derrick, Jake took this as an opportunity to escape. He shoved Sierra off of him on to the sofa, making her tumble towards the floor, got up and ran out of the door.

Marvin wanted to chase him, but he could not let go of Derrick. Sierra was balled up in a fetal position sobbing next to the sofa. He wanted to hold her too but Derrick was so close to losing control that he could not let him go.

Guilt assuaged Derrick. He knew that Darius beat up the wrong guy. Cameron did not deserve what that had happened to him. Derrick thought angrily. The no good son of bitch that just ran out of his family's living room caused all of this. He was going to make him pay for this.

Marge rushed into the room, gathered Sierra into her arms and held her tightly against her chest.

Deputy Michaels arrived first and called in Deputy Henson. The Grangers gave a detailed description of what happened from the time Jake Smythe entered their home until he ran away.

Deputy Henson smiled and raised an imaginary hand in victory because he knew they had him. No amount of manipulating and maneuvering by the Mayor would get this kid off this time. He asked the family if anyone required medical attention, ordered Deputy Michaels to finish taking statements from everyone and headed back to the precinct.

In the meantime Jake ran home, hoping to find his Dad there, only to be greeted by his sister, Hannah. She knew right away things had escalated and told her brother to go to the library, that she would call their Dad and tells him to come. She only had to take one guess as to what her brother had tried to do, the smug look on his face the past few days, had been a big enough clue. He'll never learn and this time he was in deep shit.

Mayor Smythe was upset with his son, but he knew his son couldn't handle being in jail. Deciding to be proactive, he called the DA and tried to make a deal. After restraining some harsh remarks they agreed that Jake would turn himself in and confess attacking Sierra on prom night.

Because of his confession and family connections he was sentenced to six months in jail and six months at a treatment facility. He was emitted to jail immediately, with his father requesting special provisions for him which were denied by the judge.

After Jake's confession, all charges against Cameron were dropped, pending on the actions of the District Attorney.

Mayor Smythe was furious that his son would lose a year of his life, until his lawyer reminded him that Jake already has a juvenile record for attacking a girl. The DA could have charged him and he'd be looking at a seriously hard time. After giving it some thought the mayor agreed and decided to go with the deal they had made.

The Secret Is Out

It was the beginning of summer, the girls sat in the den of Deidre's home watching a video. The truth was out and Jake had been sent away. Sierra knew that the events from a few months ago had hurt so many people. For a moment, she felt regret. Maybe if she had canceled that date, like she really wanted to in the first place, none of this all wouldn't have happened. She would be fine, Cameron wouldn't have been in the hospital.

She decided to try and not think about it too much and focus on something more important.

"Hey, how is my nephew or niece doing?" asked Sierra, smiling.

Deidre had decided to keep the baby after talking things over with her Mom. She was now four months pregnant and starting to show. She still hadn't told Darius about the baby because she was having a difficult time dealing with the fact that he put a guy in the hospital because he couldn't control his temper.

"He or she is fine. I'm having a sonogram tomorrow. Maybe they can tell if it's a girl or boy." Dee rubbed her baby bump and smiled, "Do you want to come with me?"

"Yes," Sierra squealed, "I can't wait to see our baby." She grabbed Deidre in a big hug.

The two girls spent the day together gossiping, doing each other's hair, and simply enjoying each other's company. After hanging out for a few hours, Deidre drove Sierra home.

"I'll be by to pick you up at nine thirty because my appointment is at ten. Don't forget to be looking for me." Deidre said as she dropped Sierra off.

Darius walked into the yard as Deidre pulled up. He waved and she waved back. He realized that Deidre never got out of the car when she came over. She usually just picked Sierra up or just dropped her off, but she never got out of the car.

Somehow he knew he was to blame for her behavior. To some extent he couldn't blame her for not wanting to be around him. He did beat a guy, a former best friend even, into hospital. Yet he wanted to find out if there was even a remote chance he could get back into her good books. The way he felt when she was near just had him in an emotional knot, something he wasn't used to.

"Sierra, what's up with Deidre?" Darius asked. He nodded towards Deidre in her car, "She knows she can come in, right? I won't hurt her."

"That's not why she doesn't come over anymore." Sierra stated.

Darius cut her off, "Tell me I'm not the reason she doesn't come inside anymore. You go over there all the time. When she does come over, it's like this. She won't even get out of the car. I know I've got a bit of a temper, but I would never hurt her. Please Sierra, tell her I said that?"

"She's just busy. Like tonight, she had to fix dinner before her Mom goes to work." Sierra tried reason with her brother.

Darius looked at his sister and knew something was off. "You're not telling me everything. What's up with you? And Deidre?" he asked in a low tone.

Sierra audibly sighed, "Darius, I'm not hiding anyth..."

"Uh uh," Darius hissed, cutting her off abruptly. "You blinked. You always blink when you're lying. Is she seeing someone? Who is he?" Darius demanded.

"What are you, her boyfriend? Jeez, Darius calm down." Sierra tried to joke, hiding her concern with being found out to attempt to lie so easily.

"Wait, she's seeing someone. Who?" Darius became visibly upset at the thought of Deidre seeing another man, so Sierra tried her best to diffuse the situation.

"Darius, she is not dating anyone, alright," Sierra said softly. "That's not it. It's up to her to tell you why she's avoiding you. It's not my place."

"Wait, is something wrong with her?" Darius queried. "If something's wrong with her, Sierra, you have got to tell me." "Darius, what's gotten into you? Why would you even care how my best friend feels like." Sierra decided to give him a thorough once over. He really had looked concerned earlier. The gaze in his eyes as he looked outside to Deidre waiting in the car, it suddenly hit her. "Oh my god, that I didn't see this sooner. You like her, don't you? Like a really lot, I'd dare say you even love her. No way! You wouldn't be this adamant about this unless... Oh my God!"