10:25AM, A Week After the Dinner
"Mr.Hemmings, you are arrested for sexual assault and neglect," The police officer grabbed Luke's hands, pulling them behind his back and cuffing his wrists.
WAIT! Let me (the author) rewind back into time a little bit.
X*X*X*X
7:08PM, The Night Before
"H-he pushed me aga-ainst the wall and start-ted taking my clothes o-off," The woman cried, each word of her sentence breaking down into louder sobs.
"Ms.Greenwood, I want you to tell us who this man is and where he lives," The police officer asked with the notepad still in his hand. The two were sitting in an interview room at the police station, and the woman cried even harder, burying her face in her palms. "It's okay, Ms.Greenwood, take your time."
"I-I'm sc-ared," She stuttered, wiping the incredibly thick amount of liquid mascara out of the way of visible sight. "I don't want it to happen again."
"It's not going to happen again. It's okay."
"H-His name is Luke H-Hemm..Mings and he lives i-in F-forty-seven C in the a-partment building in the east."
NOW let's get back to the story.
X*X*X*X
"Mr.Hemmings, you are arrested for sexual assault and neglect," The police officer grabbed Luke's hands, pulling them behind his back and cuffing his wrists.
"WHAT?! WHA-HOW?!" Luke screamed as he was being dragged out of his apartment by three cops. He had no idea what was going on - well, he usually never really what happens everyday; he would ask Katianna - and to have police officers tell him what was happening made his heart beat faster.
"Dad!" Kat ran out of the bathroom, just done her shower and 'casual Saturday' look. She ran out the door, slamming it closed and making sure that Cloud wouldn't go on adventures during the day. Some people from next-door apartments opened their doors and peeked outside to see what was happening.
Some were gasping. Some were murmuring to their family members, and some simply slammed their doors closed in pure fear.
"Sir..Officers," Kat called, still running barefoot.
"Please leave," One cop ordered, and she stopped, only to see her dad's bare feet struggling to keep up with the pace of the officers.
- - - -
- Luke's Point of View -
As I was being driven to wherever the police officers were taking me, the skin on my wrist began pinching against the tough metal of the handcuffs. I still had no idea what was going on. Sexual assault, I remembered the officer saying. Sexual assault? Neglect? I would never do that! Not to anyone!
"I am very disappointed in you," The officer driving muttered. Was he talking to me? "Sexual assault. You look like a good guy, but I guess today is the day that's proven wrong."
"What?" I asked. "I-I don-I didn't do anything!"
"That's what they all say," The officer sitting in the passenger's seat rolled his eyes. "You'll have an interview tonight, by the way."
"I don't even know what I did!" I raised my voice. What horrible thing could I have done to make someone call the police on me? "A-And I don't even need a judge! What did I even do??"
"I'm pretty sure you would remember raping Miranda Greenwood AFTER you left her for 18 years."
The feeling of disbelief took over just rushed through my body. Miranda? Why would she do that? "But, sir! I didn't leave her! She left me!"
"Always trying to turn the spotlight on the innocent person, huh."
- - - - -
All of the Hemmings' sat in the waiting room of the police department, none of them knowing what was going on. Liz and Kat were the most worried of what was going to happen to Luke.
While Luke was sitting in a chair in the dull interview room, the restraints on his handcuffs pinched at his skin even more and he thought that his wrists were about to bleed.
As Luke was staring down at the cold metal table infront of him, the slam of a door almost startled the daylights out of him.
"Luke Hemmings, International Equestrian Rider," A man with a police uniform began, walking past the table slowly. "I am disappointed and surprised."
"I didn't even do anything," Luke repeated for the hundredth time, scratching his beard and letting his hands fall down slowly as he wanted to take it easy on the wrists.
The police officer sat down in a chair across from Luke. "Tell me your story with Ms.Greenwood," He muttered. "And I want you to be honest about it. It is crucial for you to do so."
Luke still couldn't believe that Miranda called the cops. What made her do so? His life was turning upside down. "Sir, can you just tell me what she told you?"
"Answer my question."
"Fine," Luke grunted. "So, 18 years ago, when Miranda and I were about 19, we had sex, simple as that, and she wasn't happy with me. She wanted an abortion, but I didn't. We were never happy with each other, even after her labour, but anyways.." Luke took a deep breath, continuing.
"After our daughter turned a year old, we decided that it would be better for one of us to leave, and that one of us was Miranda. So I had my daughter in my own hands and that's basically it."
"Ms.Greenwood said you sexually abused her a week ago."
"I walked out of a dinner that she planned! I didn't even want to be in the same room as her!" Luke raised his voice, intimidating the officer and making him back up in his chair a bit. "What makes you think I would ever..Do her again?"
"Are you sure you didn't sexually assault her 18 years ago?"
"She was into it, so I was like, okay, let's see what happens," Luke confessed. "Like I said, I didn't do anything wrong!" The officer whispered something in his walkie talkie, and in less than a minute, Kat walked in with a police officer behind her.
"What's your name, miss?" The officer who was assigned to 'interrogate' Luke asked with a small smile.
"Katianna," She answered, looking at the man and at her dad with worried eyes.
"Katianna," The man nodded. "I am officer Bourdain, and all I want you to do is be honest with me, okay?"
"You know she's not a 7 year old, right?" Luke rolled his eyes. Officer Bourdain ignored him, asking Kat, "Do you know if your dad ever had intercourse with anyone?"
"18 years ago is all I know," She shrugged.
"Are you being honest? Because it seems like you're just another version of him repeating the same thing."
"I'm being honest."
"She never lies," Luke collaborated, making the police officer shush him. After Officer Bourdain thought to himself with his chin in his hand for about 5 minutes, he stood up from the chair.
"I think I know the story now," He announced. "So, what I think happened was; Ms.Greenwood accused you of assaulting her because she hates you for some reason."
"That must've happened," Kat mumbled, making the cop take out a chain full of keys.
"I'm letting you go," He said as Luke raised his hands up, so he could be taken out of the wrist restraints faster. Once Luke broke free of the weapons that surrounded his hands, he and Kat followed the officer out the interview room and into the waiting room where their whole family sat.
"Now, Ms.Greenwood is being fined for doing such a thing to you, and that practically means you're off the bat."
"Thank you sir, thank you," Luke replied, slowly shaking the man's hand and leaving with his family; Kat by his side.
"I'm glad you made it through," Liz smiled, turning to her son. "But, I just want to know...What happened?"
"For some reason, Miranda accused me of sexually assaulting her, even though I never even touched her."
"Huh." Was all Mrs.Hemmings said.
- -
As Kat parked in the lot, she turned to her dad who was sitting in the passenger seat, a small smile on his face as he saw his daughter just..Looking at him.
"Dad," She muttered, feeling a little drop in her heart. "I'm scared of University."
"I know I didn't finish high school.." Luke laughed to himself. "But here's what I know; work as hard as you can and don't change your motive of everything. And Kat? It's always gonna be just the two of us together, right?"
"Of course."
"Because I can't imagine my life without you in it."