“Don’t move,” JC said sternly as he stalked to the door.  Throwing it open, it banged against the wall. 

The bang startled Tom, who happened to be walking past the room at that moment.  “That man -,” JC pointed at Pete, “is fired.  He is to be removed immediately from the tour and I don’t want to ever set eyes on him again.  He’ll be lucky if I don’t prosecute him for what he did.”  With that JC, turned and slammed the door once more behind him. 

With softer steps now, he again knelt in front of Kate.  She had her head down again with her arms wrapped around her waist as she rocked back and forth.  Trying not to scare her, JC scrubbed his hand across his face as he considered what to do next. 

Kate’s chin was tucked against her chest as he reached out once to touch her then pulled his hand away.  Drawing a deep breath into his lungs, he reached out again with purpose. 

He reached to raise her head, but she jerked back from his touch.  This time he placed a firm, yet gentle hand on her shoulder, holding her place as he tried again.  This time, with his hand on her chin, he had his first full look at her face. 

One eye was almost completely swollen shut.  It was already bruising.  There was a long cut on her cheek which JC realized was from the ring on Pete’s finger.  She darted a quick look at JC before she immediately blinked and looked down at the carpet. 

“Oh, Kate, I’m sorry.”  He watched as a tear slid down her cheek.

Before, she could wipe the tear away, more poured down her cheeks and a sob burst out of her throat.  Her hands immediately went to hide her face from him as she bent back down so her hair covered her face.  JC didn’t know what to do so he stood and paced to the window.  He walked back and forth for a few minutes listening to her sobs but as they finally lessened, he paused at the window staring unseeingly into the night as he tried to figure out where to go from here. 

He heard the rustle of fabric and turned quickly back to the chair.  Kate was making her way, speeding, to the door.  Jumping into action, JC slammed the palm of his hand on the door above her head, causing her to jump in fright at both his appearance and the noise. 

***

Scared and nervous, Kate didn’t know what she would do next.  With her hand still on the door knob, she leaned her head on the door for a moment, trying not to panic.  What had she been thinking confronting JC?  She always knew her impulsiveness was going to get her into trouble someday, she had just never dreamed it would be like this.  With a shuddering exhale, Kate turned her head slightly to see JC still behind her, but just beyond him was the bathroom door.  Ducking under his arm, she ran into the bathroom and quickly shut and locked the door behind her. 

Avoiding the mirror for the moment she put the toilet seat down and shakily lowered herself down.  Here she was – locked in the bathroom of the celebrity she didn’t even like right now, at a hotel in an unfamiliar town, unsure of what her next step would be. 

Kate lifted a hand to her cheek to wipe away the tears, forgetting about the cut.  Stifling a scream at the pain that seared through her head, she took at deep breath hoping the pain would subside. 

The soft knock at the door surprised her.  “Are you alright?”  JC called softly through the door. 

“Yes,” she whispered. 

Kate wasn’t sure what to make of JC.  His mood had run from total anger to shock.  She wasn’t sure what his mood would be when he calmed down and had time to process everything.  Hopefully, she would be long gone and never have to see him again. 

“What was I thinking – coming here like that?”  She looked up in the mirror through her one good eye.  Gingerly, she felt around the swelling and bruising starting to appear.  The cut was long and deep, but she didn’t think she would need stitches.  Besides there was no way she would be going to a hospital like this.  Using a wash cloth, she carefully cleaned the cut, eyes stinging at the intrusion.  There were no other toiletries that she could use to prevent infection.  Perhaps when she was able to get away, she would be able to beg a band aid from the front desk. 

Letting the cold water run, she took a new wash cloth and soaked the material with the cool water.  Maybe this would grant her a small measure of relief.  She didn’t even have her purse with any headache medicine with her.  Wringing the cloth out, she tipped her head back and gently placed the cloth on her face, wincing at the pain. 

Kate had no idea how much time had passed as she sat on the bathroom counter and leaned up against the wall.  She might have dozed off at some point since the cloth was now warm. 

Mentally berating herself for allowing her to succumb to sleep, she tossed the wet cloth to the floor.  But with the sound of the hotel room door closing, she listened intently.  Hopefully, JC had given up his vigil and she could sneak out the door. 

Now was her chance…with her finger on the push button lock to stifle the sound, she slowly turned the door knob…