*Nate*

It was Kendall, the youngest of the Gallo girls, who opened the door, Kendall who called me in tears needing to show us something and Kendall who is now on her way to my apartment.

James is with Casey at yet another neurologist appointment to run tests, Trisha and Paul are out running errands and Julia, well, Julia is detoxing at The Avalon. It's just me and Jonah home this morning when the elevator opens.

Kendall steps out of the elevator and into my apartment, clearly distraught. How she even drove here safely is beyond me but both Jonah and I stand up from the couch when we see the sight of her. She's shaking, crying and holding a piece of mail in her hands. She tried to tell me over the phone, but it was hard to understand what she was saying so I told her to swing by.

"What's going on?" Jonah eyes the girl then takes the paper out of her hand. He unfolds the document and looks up at me with a stunned expression on his face. "Nate sit down."

"What? What is it? Did something fall through with the mortgage? I paid it in full for him." I know I did. Trisha and I sat down and did it together.

"Nate. Sit down." Jonah repeats in a more demanding way. Kendall is bawling her eyes out now. I step closer and look over the nurse's shoulder to read the letter.

"Give me that." I squint my eyes and pull the paper out of his hands, slowly sitting down on the couch, now feeling lightheaded. My hand automatically covers my mouth as I read the notice. Oh my God.

James is being convicted for reckless driving.

*****

Malcolm Jones.

A name that will stick in our heads forever. The name of my driver who was killed on impact in the collision.

At the time the police were unable to locate next of kin. Next of kin would be the person responsible to make the decision on whether or not to press charges. After two years the case would expire and be closed.

It has been less than nine months.

A court summons is an official notice of a lawsuit that gets sent to a person who is being sued or charged with a crime. It's a certified legal document that informs a person that they are required to be in court. The charges in the description?

Reckless Driving.

The document is then signed by the clerk. A case number assigned to the case, and the court's seal. A summons for a criminal charge is then sent to the defendant.

In this case, it was a Sherriff who knocked on Carol Gallo's residence after three failed attempts of reaching James at his house. Because he is always at mine.

And it was Kendall who answered the door.

*****

"I don't understand! It's been months since the accident! Why would someone go after James now?!" Kendall cries out. Jonah sits her down to try and calm her with no luck.

"Wait. Does this mean...?" I stare at the letter. My brain is refusing to process this information. None of us know anything about how this works so Jonah grabs his laptop and returns to the couch. He starts the research process for the state of California and begins to read out loud.

"It says here that if a car accident kills someone, the case stays open for two years. The at fault driver can face criminal charges like vehicular manslaughter, depending on the circumstances of the accident." Jonah looks up at me before finishing the sentence. All the color has drained from the man's face. He swallows hard and clears his throat before continuing. "Um. which could include jail time."

Kendall gasps hearing this.

"Additionally, the deceased person's family can file a civil lawsuit against the driver for wrongful death, seeking compensation for medical expenses, funeral costs, lost wages and emotional distress. If a person loses their life in a car accident, the law allows the victim's surviving family members to file a "wrongful death" lawsuit."

"Let me see this." I grab the laptop right from Jonah in a frantic way and read it out loud. "Factors that may influence the severity of the charges include.... driver's actions. Whether or not the driver was speeding, driving under the influence, distracted or...disregarding traffic laws. Oh my God." My British accent spews out and tears sting my eyes. This can't be happening. "Falling asleep at the wheel is widely considered a form of gross negligence and manslaughter."

I hand Jonah the laptop and sit down, now feeling lightheaded.

"I don't know what to do!" Kendall sobs in her hands and Jonah comforts her to the best of his abilities.

James could be convicted of manslaughter. If convicted he could very well be serving time in jail.

James.

James Gallo.

The man who would never do anything wrong. Would give the shirt off his back for you. All because some distant niece in Arizona spoke up and is now suing him? Yes, she lost her uncle. But I can tell you right now, Malcolm was my driver for over ten years and not once mentioned a niece in Arizona. And why the hell did she wait months to file this lawsuit?

"Jonah. Call Trisha for me. Please." I take a gulp of my water. "Tell her to get her ass back here. I need to get a lawyer for James."

"We don't have money for that stuff, Nate! You know we don't!" Kendall is in hysterics. Full blown hysterics.

"Don't worry about that, ok? But you need to tell your sisters. James can't be the one. And we need to stay calm for him. The stress of this..." I wince in pain.

"You good?" Jonah looks back at me while dialing Trisha's number.

"We need to figure this shit out. He can't go to jail." I get up and head to the balcony for air.

Trish will know what to do, right? She always knows what to do. But I don't think she does. Not for this. This is bigger than us. Her boyfriend may get sent to prison. All for getting behind the wheel after working too many hours.

"They're on their way back." Jonah joins me out on the balcony about ten minutes later. I'm still gripping the letter in my hand. "I didn't tell them over the phone. Last thing we need is another car accident. Kendall left to go tell her sisters. She doesn't want to be here when we tell James. Nate..."

The nurse looks at me with concern.

"Nate. Breathe."

I stare at him, shaking my head. "Th-this can't be for real. How the hell can this be for real."

"Ok, c'mon back inside. You need to sit down." Jonah can tell I'm on the verge of a panic attack and forces me to sit back down on the living room couch.

Another fifteen minutes go by before Paul and Trisha come home. We don't have a lot of time before Casey and James come back from his appointment. I want Trisha to know ahead of time so she's not shocked when we tell Gallo. The moment Trisha and Paul come into the living room and see my face, they know something is wrong.

"Guys, sit down. You'll need to sit down for this." The nurse in Jonah comes out, trying to keep everyone calm.

"Okay.... what did you do now, Nate?" Trisha squints her eyes at me while they sit down. "Please tell me you didn't do something stupid."

"Trish.... shut up." I hand Paul the letter. He glances at it and then stands up so Trisha can't see it.

"Fuck." The bodyguard grumbles. He paces back and forth while reading the document in his head. "FUCK! Where did you get this?"

"Can someone please tell me what the hell is going on? What is that?" Trisha glares at Paul who looks down at her with sympathetic eyes.

"Kendall came over this morning. The sheriff hand delivered it to her." Jonah begins.

"The Sherrif...?" Trisha bolts up but Paul turns away, still reading the letter, trying to process it.

"Sit down." He says sternly.

"Fuck off. Let me see the letter." She grabs it from him and Paul's shoulders drop. He is the protector. He wants to protect Trisha from anything that would harm her. This is going to harm her.

Trisha stares down at the paper for a moment before furrowing her brows. I can tell the second she sees the words "Charged with Reckless Driving" by the way her face contorts.

"WHAT?!" She shrieks this ungodly shrill before dropping the paper and running to the bathroom to get sick.

"Shit." Jonah is the one to follow her.

Paul picks the paper up off the floor and puts it on the coffee table in front of us.

"Does Gallo know yet?" He asks. I can only shake my head no. "Does Julia know?"

"No."

Paul closes his eyes and drops his head in his hands.

******

*Julia*

It's been almost a full week since anyone has visited me here at The Avalon. I'm deep into my detox so maybe that's why. Or maybe it's just because they are getting ready for tour in a few days. But it still hurts. Especially because I was there for Nate when he went through withdrawals. Hell, I was there for James throughout his recovery from his car accident. The last time I saw James was during the Avalon lock down. Nate on Christmas day. Paul was the one to spend New Years Eve with me which I thought was really nice of the bodyguard to do.

Nate rang in the New Year in the Emergency Room, and I know has been trying to rest as much as possible. Coming to the Avalon is stressful. I'm stressful.

"Knock knock. How are we doing in here?" Jeremy brings my breakfast to me because I am too weak to get to the cafeteria.

"I'm so cold. And my bones hurt. Everything hurts so bad. Why is this lasting so long??" Tears well up in my eyes but not from the physical pain I'm feeling but from the loneliness of my village ditching me. Jeremy gives me a slight nod and look of sympathy.

"Sounds like you and Michael are on the same track. I just came from his room. He complained of the same things."

"I don't think I can do this, Jeremy. I'm so tired. I've been in and out of detox mode for months."

"You CAN do this. C'mon. Try and eat a little for me." Jeremy places the tray of food right on my bed and sits on the chair next to me with my chart, ready to document my food.

I know I need to eat. I will feel better once I get something in my system. I just can't seem to do it.

"Julia. Let's go." Jeremy has no patience for my stalling when it comes to eating. I take a bite of my toast. Then another. And another. My body tells me I'm hungry and I begin to eat my breakfast. "Good..."

He pulls out his phone to start scrolling waiting for me to finish but freezes. Whatever he is reading on his phone isn't good. He looks about as green as me right now.

"Keep eating. I'll be right back." Jeremy says with his eyes glued to his phone. He jets out of the room.

Something is up. I can just feel it in my bones. And it's not from my detox.

*****

*Nate*

"Trisha, you need to pull it together before James and Casey come home. They are on their way." Paul is at the bathroom door while Jonah is inside with Trisha. I'm back to pacing now that I know James is on his way back. The letter remains on the coffee table.

How the hell do we break the news to Gallo?

Right as I think that Casey buzzes in and the elevator doors open. They both have smiles on their faces before Maggie starts barking. She stands right in front of James and continues barking at him, not letting him out of the elevator. The dog could sense the tension in the air right away and is trying to protect her owner.

"Mags, move, you big baby. I can't get by." James laughs.

He laughs and I realize it may be the last time we hear him laugh for a while. When he looks up at me his smile fades.

"Seriously, Maggie. Go. C'mon.... " He fumbles but manages to clap his hands twice and the golden retriever reluctantly exits the elevator with her tail no longer wagging. "What's gotten into you today?"

"What's wrong?" Casey asks.

"Why don't we wait for Jonah, ok?" My voice cracks accidentally, setting the scene. Both James and Casey sit down, and Paul walks over to snatch the letter before they can get to it. Maggie jumps up on the couch and rests her head on Gallo's lap.

"God, you're needy today." He smirks down at his dog and scruffs up her ears. Trisha finally comes out of the bathroom with her make up washed off her face and her hair throw back in a ponytail.

"Are you feeling ok??" Casey sees Trisha's watery eyes and puffy lips. She doesn't respond but rushes to James and throws her arms around him.

"Ok. um. Hi." He laughs but Trisha starts crying again. Shit. She's just as bad as Kendall was.

"You know what? I'm going to take her in the other room." Paul hands Jonah the piece of mail. He grabs Trisha's arm and pulls her gently, walking towards my room, the furthest down the hall.

"Guys, what's happening??" James is no longer laughing. He will no longer laugh for a very long time.

"Your sister came by this morning." I start, making James sit up straighter.

"Which one? Is my mom fine? Katie?" He begins to talk faster now concerned for his family. I glance over at Jonah who sits next to James and pats his shoulder.

"You need to read this certified letter, James." Jonah knows James will struggle with holding the paper, so he holds it out for him. I have to look away when I see James begin to read it. Casey is right next to him reading it as well.

When James looks up at me, what I see in his eyes is something I've never seen before. Not only do they fill up with tears faster than I've ever seen in someone, but the emotion behind the tears puts a lump in my throat. The emotion in his eyes can only be described as how I would imagine he looked when he found out his son had cancer. Or when he found out his mom was ill. It's a look words can't describe. But it's a look that makes you fall apart instantly.

I, once again, have to look away, unable to handle seeing another man cry.

This is devasting news.

******

*Julia*

I decide to gulp down my orange juice to give me a little sugar so I don't pass out and gingerly get out of bed.

We are back to being fully staffed now that the holidays are over, so the hallways of the Avalon are busy again. Two whispering nurses pass by me, making eye contact with me and then picking up their pace. This happens two or three times with different staff members.

Something is going on. Did Nate make media news again? What now? I head out to the hallway, but it is Mike that stands in my way.

"Excuse me." I try to move to the side to get out of my room, but he shakes his head. I furrow my brows and move to the other side. "Mike... move."

"Julia. Why don't you sit down. You don't look so hot."

"Speak for yourself. You look like shit. What's going on out there?" I look to the side of Mike's body to see nurses gathering in the rec room down the hall.

"Mike... move!"

"Listen, Julia. Wait-" He begins but I push him out of the way. He is just as fragile as me right now in the same timeline of detox. I walk into the rec room and see what everyone is focused on.

The Television. Specifically, the news.

All of our faces are displayed for the world to see. Mine, Nate's. Trisha's. James. And Nate's driver, Malcolm who didn't survive the car accident. Pictures of the destruction I've never in my life seen before. The two SUV's both tipped over and on fire. My hand flies to my mouth seeing this damage for the first time.

And then I realize what's happening. The news reporter starts speaking.

"Again. The car accident that injured superstar Nate Hollan and America's Voice winner Julia Moretti is now under further investigation. Driver James Gallo currently faces possible charges of vehicular manslaughter for reckless driving that resulted in the death of Malcolm Jones. Mr. Jones was Nate Hollan's personal driver for over ten years. His niece, who resides in Phoenix, Arizona, has come forward pressing charges against 37-year-old Gallo.

"No." I drop to my knees hard or the linoleum floor. "NO!" The shriek that comes out of me is something I have never heard before. I gain attention from everyone in the room with my shrill as eyes of sympathy stare at me.

"They've got it all wrong!!"

******