I never thought he would harm anyone else. That’s where I failed both him and you. I missed the signs.” He stopped and watched her for a moment as she considered all he said.
Tears filled her eyes. “I just don’t understand. He was my friend. That guy yesterday wasn’t my friend. I know he wasn’t the same person, but my friend died and I don’t know what to do with that loss. It seems wrong to mourn him when he hurt so many people—me included—but I just can’t see that man yesterday as the same man I knew. How am I supposed to make peace with that? I want to mourn him, but I don’t know how.”
“You’re allowed and need to mourn the Pete you knew before. That man was worthy of your grief. He did a lot of good in this world before the events a couple of months ago threw his mental stability off-kilter.”
As Julie considered Pete’s job as a police officer, something occurred to her. “He told me a few weeks ago that he became a cop because his best friend was murdered. He was talking about Jocelyn, wasn’t he?”
He nodded. “Yes. As with most fourteen year olds, she was the whole focus of his life at that point in time.”
“I just don’t understand how he could go from using her as the driving force for keeping criminals off the street, to then becoming one of those criminals.”
“I’ve gotten to read the police reports. From everything I know about what happened yesterday, somehow it all got twisted in his mind and he thought by hurting those girls he was actually saving them from their despair and sadness, which would in the end save Jocelyn. He was suicidal and obviously not thinking anymore as a sane person.”
He leaned forward. “But that’s something else to think about as you work through your grief. Pete wasn’t a sane person any longer. If he had lived, he would have spent the rest of his life in either an institution, or jail, or both. Even if it had been possible to fix his mind, his crimes were so horrific, he would have never been freed again. Hopefully, his death brought some peace to his soul.”
They talked for a while longer and Dr. Eckert helped her create coping mechanisms for the next few weeks. He told her that she’d probably have nightmares, but that it was very important that she talk it through with those around her, including Chris. He also mentioned that as his girlfriend, Chris would likely show some effects from the trauma of it, too, and how she could watch for that as well. He also offered to counsel him if he needed it.
As a result of the appointment, she felt much stronger than she had when she’d walked in the door a couple of hours before. When she came out of the office, Chris stood and she immediately went to give him a hug. “Thank you for waiting for me. I’m glad I came. Now let’s go see how Brian is doing, okay?”
Brian was the wounded person who belonged to all the extra blood at Pete’s. He’d arrived earlier in the day to confront Pete about what Colton and Chris had been told. Pete had panicked and shot him. Luckily, Pete shot him with intention to maim, not kill, so that Brian couldn’t interfere with the plans Pete had for Julie.
It was fortuitous for everyone that Julie and Toni arrived at the same time or else Pete probably would have gotten away with everything, including a murder/suicide for Julie and him. When he’d cuffed Toni, he took her to the room where Brian lay wounded and bleeding from a gunshot. It was actually Brian’s ankle pistol that Toni had used to kill Pete.
Chris had called the hospital this morning and they still had Brian listed in critical condition. He had surgery the day before to remove the bullet and his right kidney, which had been skimmed and damaged by the bullet.
When they arrived at the hospital, Julie was surprised to find Toni there, wearing the same clothes she had on the day before. Had she been here all night? Julie felt awful. She hadn’t even taken a moment to consider how traumatic the day before had been for Toni. She’d been dating Pete and had fired the bullet which killed him. Talk about mental trauma. Toni looked emotionally frazzled and exhausted sitting in Brian’s room. She glanced up at