A Mistaken Truth
Chapter 1
Avery
“31-113”
“31-113, go ahead.”
“912 for a suspected 491 at University Medical.”
“10-17”
The nurse nods her head at me as she enters the room that I am currently situated outside of at University Medical for a hospital follow-up on an open sexual assault case. A recent graduate of the Southern Arizona Law Enforcement Training Center and the newest member of the Tucson Police Department, I am sitting outside the room of the victim in my first solo case. I am nervous, this is my opportunity to earn the trust and respect of my community and co-workers. Although I graduated from the training center with high marks and received positive feedback from my ride along the first few weeks, this is the first call I am handling by myself. I have been waiting for what seems like an eternity for the opportunity to speak with the victim.
“Damn”, I mutter under my breath, “I would have one of the worst headaches of my life today!” I am regretting that I had gone out the night before with friends, celebrating officially completing training with the department, my headache being an obvious reminder of this. As the nurse exits the room again, I interrupt her, “Excuse me, nurse. Could you please bring me some ibuprofen, aspirin, anything for a headache?”
“Certainly, Officer.” The nurse heads down the brightly lit hallway, that seems to be magnified by the glossy paint on the walls, or it’s my head; considering how I spent my night, it is more than likely my head. While she is gone, I gather my things together, taking inventory of everything I will need while questioning the victim. I certainly do not want to walk into my first case without a pen. The nurse returns with a small cup containing two ibuprofen and a cup of water. I toss the pills into my mouth, gulping the water to wash them down, as the nurse disappears into the victim’s room again. I hear muffled voices, then the nurse appears again at the door, “Officer, she will see you now.”
I stand, my body aches due to the length of time I have been sitting in the world’s most uncomfortable chair. I stretch, trying to ease some of my discomfort, before straightening and entering the room. I scan the room, it’s a replicate of any other hospital room, nothing special, until my eyes fall on her. The first thing I notice about her is her eyes, they are such an intense shade of bright blue, reminding me of the clearest pool of water. She has a few tendrils of her dark brown hair hanging in her face. Looking over her frame, she looks so frail compared to my muscular, athletic build, but her eyes, which I am drawn back to, tell a completely different story. They look defiant, yet strong, and completely beautiful. I swallow hard, “Ma’am, I’m Officer Avery Maulden with the Tucson Police Department. I know you have been through quite an ordeal, and the last thing you want to do is talk about what happened. I know it will be very trying, and hard to relive. However, it is important that we discuss it, so that I can catch the perpetrator and ensure that it doesn’t happen again.” Pride filling my chest, confident that I came off sounding empathetic, yet professional. At least I am hoping that I did.
“Where is she!” A shrill voice comes echoing down the corridor of the hospital, along with the sound of footsteps, running up the hall. “Which room is she in?” A tall, lean blonde comes busting through the door, heading immediately over to the young woman lying before me. She throws her arms around her neck, “Oh my God, Katie, I am so sorry. I should have been there; this wouldn’t have happened!” as they embrace, they both begin to sob. I cannot help but look at this intruder in amazement, she came busting in the door, no regard to either myself or hospital staff. I huff impatiently, I certainly do not have time for this, I need to get a statement from the victim, and solve this case so I can make a name for myself.
“Excuse me, ma’am?” The intruder ignores me, lifting herself out of the embrace, and taking her friend’s face in her hands, searching deep in her eyes.
“Are you okay? What happened?”
“That is what I am trying to find out, Miss?”
“Oh, no Miss, just Hayley”, she chuckles, as she turns to shake my hand, “I’m Katie’s best friend.” As she grips my hand with more force than necessary, she pulls me closer, her voice taking on a more serious tone, “Now what do you plan to do about this?”
Clearing my throat, suddenly feeling uncomfortable with how close her face is to mine, “Well, Miss Hayley, I need to get a statement from your friend –“
“Katie, her name is Katie Stiles.”
“Well, I need to get a statement from Miss Stiles regarding what happened, then I can get to work finding this perp and send him to jail.” I pull out my notebook, settling into the chair closest to Katie, then with as much sympathy as I can muster, I ask, “Miss Stiles, are you ready to try to recall the events of last night?”