"Bethany, wake up." Damon's voice pulled her from her nap, her eyes opening as she gulped for air. "Hey ... it's okay. We're here."

She sat forward, brushing her fingers through her hair and trying to make sense of the scene. Several cop cars sat around the parking lot. People milled about everywhere.

"Oh my God. You don't think something has happened to Jake, do you?" She pointed to a spot nearest the action, not really wanting an answer from Damon. "Park over there."

"I don't know what's going on, but don't rush into it, please. I don't want anyone manhandling you. I'm possessive if you haven't noticed, and I've had very little sleep. This wouldn't be good for anyone if a cop thought to overstep his boundaries."

She didn't pay him any attention but reached for her phone that sat silent between the two of them.

"How can I have a zillion text messages from Jake and now nothing? He and Krista both know that I'm worried." Her voice was pinched as fear worked to consume her.

Damon parked the car and got out, moving to her side. Opening the door, she reached for his hand, and he helped her out. He wrapped an arm around her waist as they walked toward the commotion. There had to be at least four hundred or more students loitering around Jake's apartment, the complex one of the largest on campus.

"What are the odds that this is all related to Jake? I mean it could easily have been someone else. People overdose on drugs and shit all the time," she mumbled to herself.

"Excuse me, guys. You can't go any farther than this." A cop stepped toward them, holding up his hand and speaking loudly as if they weren't right in front of him.

"What's going on? My girlfriend has a good friend of hers that lives in this building."

Damon's reference to her being his girlfriend wasn't lost on her, but she tucked away for a celebration later when it was more appropriate. She looked around to see if she could spot anyone she knew. Someone had to know what was going on, and it wasn't like the cop was going to give them any information.

"I'm not at liberty to discuss it." He glanced at Bethany as she turned back to pull Damon away. "Just text your buddy. I'm sure he or she's fine."

"Yeah, thanks." She rolled her eyes, unable to help the wave of sarcasm that rushed from her lips.

Damon slipped his hand into hers as they walked along the edge of the police tape. He stopped quickly, releasing her hand and moving forward as she looked up from her phone.

"Kendal. What the hell are you up to, man?" Damon's voice was filled with warmth. The two men hugged and patted each other on the back, the scene before Bethany a little shocking.

"Man ... this fucking life won't give me a break." Kendal turned his back to her and pointed to the building. "I'm the campus adviser for these boys, and damn if they aren't always getting into trouble."

"Yeah. We need to know what's going on, but first." Damon pulled at Kendal's arm to force him to turn. "This is my girlfriend, Bethany. I hear you've already met."

Kendal turned, his face showing plainly the shock he was in. He extended his hand as a smile lifted his lips. "This is the best-looking guy in Dallas? Quite the plot twist if I say so myself."

Bethany let out a forced laugh as Damon put a tight arm around her shoulders. "I guess you could say so, Dr. Tarrington."

"Please, Kendal outside of class." He glanced at Damon. "This girl is half your age, you dirty old bastard. What are you thinking?"

"She keeps me on my toes, and she's only a few years younger than me." Damon laughed before glancing down at Bethany, his smile fading. "We'll catch up another time. She's worried about a good friend of hers. What's going on?"

"I honestly don't know yet. I was told to wait here, and the minute they finished swabbing the place I would be brought forward to answer questions."

"Who was hurt? Was it an overdose or what?"

"I don't know, but I'll be the one to call the boy’s parents. I know the police were called about an hour ago, so whatever happened most likely just happened."

"Is someone dead?"

"No. They would have mentioned that. I know one of our students has been taken to the hospital via the ambulance, but who or why ... no clue." Kendal shrugged and ran his fingers through his brown hair as he looked back toward the complex.

"I'm almost surprised you’re teaching still." Damon reached out and squeezed the other man's shoulder, Bethany a little shocked by the warmth between them. When Damon had referred to Kendal as a good friend, she thought he was using the term loosely.

"Yeah, well, I love it. Can't let a couple of scandals rip your dreams from you." Kendal shrugged and kept his gaze on Damon.

"They ever prove your innocence?"

"Yeah. The girls finally relented, but you know how that goes. They watch me like a fucking hawk now. I had to give Bethany here the same speech I give everyone. I would never date a student, and yet ...” He shrugged and let out a long sigh.

She wanted to ask questions, but it wasn't her business, and honestly, it would just leave things too familiar between them. She liked knowing that she would be working for someone on campus that respected Damon, but being friends with him herself didn't seem like a good idea. They needed to keep things very professional to make sure no one in administration questioned him where she was concerned. She would never want that.

"Fuck them. I'd be shocked if there was ever a girl that could melt your resolve where the rules are concerned." Damon scowled.

"I've not found one yet, that's for sure."

A cop walked toward them, and Kendal moved forward.

"Which of you is Dr. Tarrington?"

"That would be me." Kendal raised his hand as the cop motioned him forward. "If you could come with us. We've got a few questions for you and needed to fill you in on what to tell the boy's parents."

"Good guy," Damon spoke, his eyes moving along the crowd. He turned and pulled Bethany into a warm hug, kissing the top of her head. "You okay?"

"Yeah, just too much lately. I pray nothing happened to Jake. I should have turned my phone up louder or something. If anything happened to him ..."

"I doubt it's him, Beth. Let's just wait until we find out before we move into full-blown panic." He kissed her hair as she looked around the crowd.

"I just wish I could find someone I know that we could talk to. Someone that could give us information quickly. Like now." She pulled from Damon's hold, her stomach in knots. Surely if it wasn't Jake, he would either be walking around or would have responded to seeing the missed calls from her on his phone.

The sun was barely breaking over the edge of the sky when Kendal walked back with the cop, stopping in front of Bethany.

"Hey. They have Jake's phone, and they're saying that for some reason, he was texting you before the accident."

"Oh shit." She clasped her hand over her mouth, her knees going weak at the fact that it was Jake. "What happened? Is he okay? Shit. I knew something was wrong."

Damon moved in, offering his arms to keep her standing. Bethany choked on a sob as tears began rolling down her face. She tried to rein them in, not wanting to appear weak or become useless to them in any way.

"Yeah, they aren't letting us talk about it, but I will tell you that he's in critical condition in the hospital. It's looking good, but anything more than that is off limits. I need to call his parents, but the cop is going to want to question you and what your relationship is with him."

"I got her," Damon spoke, taking Kendal's attention and assuring both him and the cop that they would do whatever necessary to help.

"I'll be back in a few minutes. Don't go anywhere, okay, kiddo?" The cop nodded, turning his attention to Damon. "Keep the phone with you too. We're going to want to look over her text messages."

Damon nodded as Bethany turned toward him, her lip trembling as she tried to pull herself together. "I hate it when people call me kiddo. Do I look like a kid?"

"No, baby, but he's an old man. We're both kids to him." He reached out and ran his fingers down her hair. "It's going to be okay. Let's finish this shit, and we'll go find where your friend is at the hospital."

Bethany nodded as her phone buzzed in her hand, scaring her. She lifted it toward her face, the number a private one.

"I need to take this." She moved from Damon as he let her go. The sun busted through the dense fog of early morning and warmed her skin. She let out a long breath and answered the call.

"Hello?"

"Bethany. It's Krista."

"Oh my God. Where the fuck have you been? Jake has been in an accident, and I have messages on my fucking phone that implicate you in whate—" Krista cut her off.

"Shut up. I need your help. I'm at the police station, and you're my one call. I need you to call my dad and tell him I need his lawyer."

"What? Why? What the fuck is going on?"

"Look, you're my only friend. Just make the damned call, please?"

"Why didn't you call him?"

"He won't talk to me. My number is blocked from his phone."

"What the fuck am I supposed to say?"

"Tell him to send his lawyer to the Dallas police station downtown. Tell him I'm being charged with either attempted murder or first-degree manslaughter. It depends on whether Jake pulls through or not."

"Oh my God. Did you... Did you..."

Damon's arms wrapped around her from behind as the earth shifted beneath her. Was this shit for real? Krista tried to kill Jake? Why? No way this was happening.

"I'm on a tapped line. Just call my father."

The phone went dead, and Bethany turned, her senses dulled, her body numbed to all external factors. She glanced up at Damon, his mouth moving, but she couldn't make out a word he said.

Was love so powerful that when denied it could rear its ugly head and leave violence as its only outlet?

What kind of person was capable of that type of malevolence?

The kind of person that loves for the very first time and loses that light; the darkness their last reprieve, their only option.