“Camille? Hello!” I heard Stephanie’s voice coming from the front room. But I couldn’t get up, couldn’t call out to her. My head, my body, my heart was too heavy.
 
 “Oh there you are. Come on, get up,” she said, walking into the room. She looked around. “What the hell happened here?” I had ripped the sheets from the bed last night, unable to sleep where he had been, where traces of him were. The sheets on the ground were stained with blood from my head and mouth, as was the headboard and the pillows. The lamp was on the ground, in pieces, as were the wineglasses. Over the other side of the room, the stains down the wall seemed to point to where the puddle of wine had stained the rug a deep red and the floor round about was littered with pieces of the bottle. I lay on the bare mattress, wrapped only in a towel. My head wounds had reopened during the darkness of the morning where I had hung between consciousness and a frightening dream world where he ruled supreme, and the blood covered the mattress near my head. My ripped dress and underwear lay on the floor next to the bed.
 
 “Camille, oh my god, what happened?!” Stephanie’s voice became hysterical, and I tried to get up, to reassure her I was alright. But as I raised my head I became dizzy, and my eyes wouldn’t focus. This time it wasn’t alcohol but blood loss. A ghastly pain overcame me; my whole body ached, my head was ripped apart by a throbbing pain and nausea caused waves in my stomach.
 
 “Cam…what…. My god, Cam,” Stephanie crawled on to the bed next to me, cradling my head. She looked at her hands, and saw my blood on them. “I’m calling the police. An ambulance. Cam, what happened?” She seemed to calm, to become more rational. I knew I would have to tell her. Nothing else would explain the room, the destruction, my injuries. Shane must have known I would, sending her here. How dare he.
 
 “Shane…” I began, but could go no farther. I began to sob; I couldn’t face telling my best friend what, by now, we both knew.
 
 “Shane did this? He…he attacked you? He raped you, Cam?” Stephanie’s eyes narrowed in anger. “I can’t believe this! Bastard! I’m calling the police!”
 
 “No,” I argued weakly, but she listened. “Don’t get police involved. I couldn’t stand it. It would get to the paparazzi, it would be hell. For both of us.” It became hard to breathe, my breaths becoming shallower with each word.
 
 “I have to call an ambulance!” she said, realising I was struggling to breathe.
 
 “No,” I gasped. “They’ll see…this.” Stephanie nodded, looking around the damaged room. She walked to the phone. I closed my eyes, trying to regulate my breathing. I trusted her to do the right thing.
 
 “Andrew? Can you please come to 110 Newman Crescent, quickly. It’s around the corner from my house…yes, hurry. It’s an emergency – it’s Camille. No, don’t tell anyone else. No, please, just come!”
 
 “Steph…” I moaned. I wanted to tell her not to let Andrew tell Adam, but everything clouded, and I lost consciousness.
 
 “Adam?” I muttered vaguely as my eyes fluttered open momentarily and I found I was being carried in the arms of a tall, strong blonde. It had to be Adam…
 
 “What, honey? Cam?” I could just hear Stephanie’s voice, but she seemed so far away. “Cam, it’s ok. Andrew and I are…”
 
 “Adam…” I repeated, but no louder. It was useless, I thought, as I slipped away again.
 
 White was the first thought that came into my head. It was all white. I turned my head, and saw yellow. Yellow flowers. And blue. And pink. And orange. And white. All white. It was all white but the flowers. I turned my head the other way.
 
 “Cam, you’re awake. Do you feel okay?” Stephanie asked. I realised she was holding my hand, as she squeezed it when she talked.
 
 “I can’t feel much,” I smiled feebly. Steph smiled back, but I could see she was worried.
 
 “No one knows you’re here, except Andrew, Daddy and I. I’m sorry Cam, I had to tell Daddy. You’ve been in here for three days now,” she explained.
 
 “What did you tell him?”

 “I told him the truth. I had to Cam. Shane’s gone too far this time. I’d always suspected, but Dad confirmed it; Shane’s done this before. But not to such an extreme, most of the girls didn’t fight as hard as you obviously did. Finally Dad’s going to do something about it. He’s suspending Shane from the show for a month, and taking away his quarter of the company,” Steph told me happily.
 
 “That’s good,” I said.
 
 “It gets better Cam. Dad’s giving Shane’s share to you, until you see fit to give it back to him – or if he doesn’t earn it back within four months, then you can keep it, or give it to whoever you choose. Of course, Dad’s working it into an angle involving the Rock and Shane and all, but it’s real as well!” Stephanie sounded excited. I was astounded. I never thought Vince had held that much affection for me.
 
 “An angle?”
 
 “Yeah, don’t worry, it won’t have anything to do with what really happened. Dad isn’t that insensitive,” Stephanie assured me.
 
 “So when can I get out of here?” I asked.
 
 “It shouldn’t be long Cam. But you have twenty-seven stitches in the back of your head, you had extreme concussion, cuts all over your feet, bruises all over your body and a black eye. I’ll have to find you a pair of Jackie O sunglasses to hide that one,” Stephanie tried to make light of my injuries.
 
 “How did I get cuts on my feet?”
 
 “You must have walked through the broken glasses. But Camille, the doctor still has to check that you didn’t sustain any brain damage while you were in a coma,” Stephanie told me.
 
 “Where are we going next?” I asked Stephanie, ignoring her last statement.
 
 “The Federation has already gone, yesterday. They went to Boston. We’ll meet up with them in a few weeks in Toronto. Dad sent Shane down to Philadelphia for a month, so we have the house to ourselves, when you get out.”
 
 “Are you staying there by yourself now?”
 
 “No. I told Dad about Andrew. He’s happy for me. I’m so relieved, and I convinced him that it would be best if Andrew stayed with us for safety. Oh, Dad told the wrestlers that the reason you weren’t going with them at first was because you were assaulted, but he didn’t say by whom. It’s going to all get out when Shane gets back, Cam. Dad thought it would be better to tell everyone now rather than lie, and then tell them the truth later.”
 
 “Does the paparazzi know?” They had been the bane of my life for the past six months, following me around and reporting everything I did.
 
 “Not yet. I think we’ll be ok as long as we keep a low profile – you’re in here under the name of Kat Martin, by the way – if anyone asks. You’re Andrew’s sister for now.”
 
 “Ok,” I said, my eyes drifting shut. It was all too much to take in at once.
 
 “I have something else to tell you, but I’ll let you rest now,” Steph said, going to the door. As she opened it I heard a familiar voice outside.
 
 “Has she asked for me?”
 
 “No Adam. Come home and get some sleep, you’ve been out here for three days!”
 
 “Is she alright?”

 “I’m sending the doctor in now…” the door swung shut.
 
 “Adam…” my voice was barely a whisper. I wanted him to know I needed him, loved him – but he couldn’t hear me.