"Are you, Beau Hawkins?"

"Ah..." He shook his head as if ridding a swarm of flies. "Yeah... I am."

"He raped my daughter! I want the bastard arrested! He fucking abducted and raped her!" Findlay thrust his finger through the air.

Fin sat on the ground huddled against the truck, her arms wrapped around her legs. Tears mingled with mud. "I tried to stop them but couldn't," she whispered.

Roy crouched in front of her. Her face was red. The shirt she wore had ridden up and exposed her outer thigh where dark bruises showed. "Are you all right, Fin?" When she didn't answer him, he touched her arm. "Fin. Is it true? Did Mr Hawkins rape you?"

She lifted her eyes, looked at Sergeant Hadley and then focused on Cody. He stared at her. His eyes were no longer blank. They were full of pain and sadness. He was Cody again but he'd said his name wasn't Cody.

Another tear spilt over her eyelashes and onto her cheek. Sergeant Hadley had called him Mr Hawkins and Constable Stone had said Beau. Beau Hawkins. He was Beau Hawkins. Fin searched his face. No matter what his name was. He was there. The man she knew was looking over at her as blood dripped from his nose and lips.

Not once had he defended himself against her father. He had just knelt there and let Findlay punch him in the face. He'd lifted his arm as Constable Stone jumped out of the car but Fin knew it wasn't to hit her father. It was to wipe the blood away as he had done after every punch Findlay had thrown.

"Fin, has this man raped you?"

"No."

"Ah... for fuck's sake, Fin! Tell them the truth!" Findlay ran his hand through his hair and shook his head.

"I raped her," Beau said. "Findlay's telling the truth."

Roy looked from one to the other and sighed. "She's gotta say it. Fin? He says he raped you. Your father says the same. I need you to tell me the truth."

She dropped her head and shook it. "He didn't rape me. He's never raped me. I let him."

A loud growl made them all turn and look at Beau Hawkins. He stood and stepped forward. "Jesus, Fin! Tell them the truth." He took another step, took Fin by the wrist and pulled her to her feet before anyone could move. "Just look at her would you!" He spun her around and lifted her shirt. Fin's backside and thighs were bruised. Her ankles were red and swollen where he had taken hold of her. "If you swab her, you'll find me all over her."

Fin let out a sob. She jerked herself from his hold and tugged the shirt down. "He didn't," she said and crossed her arms. She pushed her face forward with conviction and said, " I don't know why he's saying he did, because he didn't."

Roy shook his head. The evidence looked real to him. The bastard had even admitted it. "Fin...?"

"He didn't!" She pinned each of them with her eyes and glared at them.

"Fin. I need you to come to the hospital." Roy held his hand out to her. "We'll get you taken care of then we'll sort this out, okay?"

"I don't need to be taken care of!" she spat. "I can look after myself!"

"You're hurt. Your knees are bleeding. There's... shit..." Roy ran his hand down his face.

"I tripped." Fin lifted her hand and pointed. She could only think of him as Cody. "He's the one who's hurt. You need to take him to the hospital, not me."

"Fin?" Roy said in a gentle tone. "He's admitted to raping you."

She put her hands on her waist and thrust her head forward once more. "He didn't! I already told you that! I don't know why Cody's saying that because he didn't rape me! It wasn't him!"

Roy frowned. "So, someone else raped you? Is that what you're saying, Fin?"

"Yes...! No..!" She shook her head. Tears blurred her vision. Fin wiped them away. "Cody wouldn't do that! He wouldn't hurt me! He didn't rape me. He took care of me. It was the Gallos. They raped me and attacked me again. Cody saved me!"

"Fin. I'm not the man you think I am. I'm not Cody." Beau cupped the side of her head. "Just tell them the truth, honey. Please. So, we can finish this."

She scowled and pushed his hand away. "I am telling the truth! You didn't rape me! It wasn't you! I don't know why you're saying you did. Now leave me alone!" She turned and headed towards the house.

Beau made to go after her but Findlay stepped in front of him and Ben grabbed his arm.

"You need to come with us, Mr Hawkins. We've got a lot of questions to ask you."

Beau looked at the officer, nodded, and followed Fin with his eyes. She strode towards the house with stubborn determination. He couldn't help but smile. She was so tough. The smile left him. What had he done? Why was she protecting him? He'd raped her, hadn't he? Something had happened, he was sure. His mind was hazy with images of her in bed and him, taking hold of her legs. Him naked. He'd hurt her. He knew it and she knew. Why was she protecting him? To clear the fog in his brain Beau focused on her father. "Can you please tell her I'm sorry?"

"Fuck off! I'm not telling her anything. I wish I had killed you, you bastard. I hope they throw the book at you! You abducted my little girl and you raped her! The last man who did that nearly lost his leg. I won't make the same mistake again! Next time I won't miss the fucking target!"

"Findlay! You better shut your mouth because that sounds like a threat to me and I can't have that on my watch. You hear me?" Roy growled.

Findlay sneered and jerked his head. "Whatever."

Roy blew out his breath in exasperation and took hold of Beau's upper arm. "Can you turn around, Mr Hawkins?" He held out his hand. "Ben. Give me your handcuffs."

Beau moved toward the police vehicle, his wrists in cuffs, and got into the back seat while Ben climbed behind the wheel.

Beau looked at the house. He saw Fin peering out through the curtains of her bedroom.

"Ben, you take him into the station and give the doc a call," Roy said as he leaned in through the passenger side window. "We need to get his face looked at. I'm gonna have another chat with Fin."

"How are you gonna get back into town?"

"I'll take Mr Hawkins' car. We'll have to search it." Roy looked at Beau. "I'm assuming the keys are in it."

"Yeah." Beau nodded. "Keys are in it."

"Okay." Roy stood and tapped the roof of the car as it drove off. He headed towards the house.

"I want a restraining order against that bastard," Findlay said as he followed Roy. "I don't want him near Fin again."

"You'll have to go into the station Findlay to do the paperwork but if she doesn't want one, I'll be able to make it so he can't come onto your property."

"Shit, Hadley. You can do what you want. You're the senior officer in this town. What you say goes."

"I don't screw the system to suit myself, Findlay. If Fin wants an order I'll do it, but I'm not doing it to satisfy you. She's not a child anymore and has the right to make her own decisions." Roy raised his eyebrows. The corners of his mouth lifted a fraction. "And from what I can see no matter what Hawkins might have done to her, he's taught her to stick to her guns and not be swayed by anyone else. A good thing I reckon. I've never seen her so determined."

Fin watched through the crack in her curtains as they handcuffed Cody and put him in the police car. Constable Stone got behind the wheel as Sergeant Hadley leaned in and spoke to him. She caught Cody looking in her direction. Fin sighed. Not Cody. Beau. His name was Beau.

When she saw Sergeant Hadley and her father heading towards the house, she grabbed a pair of trousers and a shirt, then bolted into the bathroom. There was no way she'd let them take swabs, or whatever, that Cody... Beau had said they could take to find him all over her. She didn't understand why he was saying he raped her. He'd scared her, yes. He'd dragged her across the ground and made her scrape her knees but he hadn't raped her.

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