It was a little past 11 at night and the party Dana was at was going off without a hitch. She didn't know the owner of the house personally--Greg, she thought his name was? She only met him briefly on the way in with her friends. Though she doubted he was actually the owner--she was 19, and he only appeared to be a little older than her.
Anyway, she had kinda gotten separated from her friends throughout the night, with everyone intermingling with all. She was pretty shy around new people, but it wasn't so bad. No one was really bugging her tonight like they usually would. She was sitting on the couch with a few other people who were drinking. She wasn't too big on it, but her and her friends had done a few shots earlier just to get a buzz going. The effects had mostly worn off by now, and she was close to sober.
Anyway, this guy Justin who was totally hammered was going off about how much trouble he was gonna be in if he didn't get his brother's car home by a certain time, but no one really seemed to care. That's where Dana stepped in. She liked doing favors for people, and with the party seeming to get more and more crazy by the minute, she figured she could use the fresh air.
He gave her the address to his house and told her where to leave the keys and all. It was only a few miles away and she figured it wouldn't cost much to Uber back. She didn't even bother telling her friends she was leaving. It was one of those parties where you knew it was gonna go all hours of the night, so she figured she wouldn't be missed for long.
The roads were wet--on account that it had been raining earlier, and the streets were poorly lit while she was driving through the suburban neighborhood. She was on a particularly long stretch of road when she noticed a car following close behind her. She was just starting to make out the familiar shape of it when the red and blue lights came on. Instantly, her stomach sank.
She wasn't worried about the fact she was driving someone else's car--she had their permission, after all. She was worried that the cop might smell the alcohol on her breath. She wasnt anywhere near the level of illegal intoxication, but once they realized she was underage, that might pose a problem for her.
While waiting for the cop, she got out her license and looked through the glove compartment for the car's registration. She wasn't having any luck though. Any sort of documentation the car had seemed to be missing, and the rest of the vehicle was so trashed it would take hours to find what she needed.
Suddenly there was a knock at the window that made her jump out of her skin. She turned and saw the cop standing outside the door. He appeared to be tall with a muscular build.
She rolled down the window and was met with a flashlight in her eyes. All she could make out was the name D. Poulakis on his uniform.
"Good evening ma'am, do you know why I pulled you over?"
"No sir" she said, hoping there was only just a tail light out or something.
"I ran the vehicle's tags. This car was reported stolen four months ago."
She felt her mouth drop.
"No...I was just--"
"Step out of the car please, miss."
She did as she was told, trying to keep the racing thoughts from her mind as he turned her around and placed her in handcuffs.
"Please sir, I was only dropping off the car for someone."
"Would they be willing to verify that?"
She thought it over for a moment.
"I don't know sir, I only just met them and I don't have their number. I can only say where they wanted the car dropped off."
"Ok, well we can handle this all back at the station."
He went into the car and turned off the engine; taking the keys, her phone, and drivers license with him before leading her into the back of his squad car.
The black leather seats felt cool to the touch. She tried to ease her mind and relax, but she couldn't. She hated knowing that that guy was gonna get into trouble now, and she didn't know how this whole thing was gonna affect her. She had gotten into trouble with the law before--with only minor traffic violations, but nothing quite like this. She couldn't believe that she had been driving a stolen car.