A/N: An anonymous Ask on Tumblr inspired this fic. This takes place where season one left off. More chapters to come soon.

Heart of the Mountain

Sally Ann sat in the back of the police cruiser as the officer drove them back into town. She couldn't remember his name, even though she knew his face. Blackburg was small. They'd gone to high school together. He was two years older than her and fresh out of the academy, which was probably why he was given the thrilling job of driving her home while the others confronted the clan. She stared out the window, watching nature's light show in the sky. Rain came down in sheets. Part of her wished she was out there in it. She'd close her eyes and let the water wash away everything she was feeling, let the chill that came in with the storm make her body go numb.

"Sally Ann?" The tone of his voice signaled that it wasn't the first time he'd called her name.

She pulled her eyes away from the window and met a sympathetic pair in the rear-view mirror.

"You gonna be alright? You sure you don't want me to take ya over to the hospital? Or maybe at least over to Dr. Harris? Let him give ya a quick once over?"

"No. I just wanna go home, thanks." Just speaking those few words seemed to drain her of the the dregs of energy she had left. She rested her head against the seat and closed her eyes, but thought better of it when Hasil's face filled the darkness behind her lids. The last few sentences he'd spoken to her were circulating on repeat through her mind. She had to deal with that, but at least she could avoid the accompanying visuals for as long as she could stay awake. She had to. The combination of hearing him and seeing him caused a physical ache in her chest that even overpowered the hunger and thirst she felt from wandering lost on that mountain for so long.

The cruiser's brakes squeaked as it came to a halt outside of her house. The officer got out to open the car door for her, but she declined his offer to walk her to her front door. She murmured her thanks and took her time crossing the street, allowing the rain to drench her. James was home. His car was out front. Sally Ann was in no mood to speak to anyone. Her soaking wet clothes weighed down on her body, exaggerating her exhaustion. She put her key in the lock and waited a moment, sending a silent prayer that her brother would be asleep in his room, even though it was still light out. She turned the key and pushed open the door.

"Where the hell have you been?" James got up from his seat at the kitchen table so fast that he knocked his chair over. "Tell me where you been at Sally Ann. And don't even think about lying because I know the truth."

She wondered why he was asking if he already knew. She said nothing. She couldn't. There was nothing left for her say or do or give. She was completely spent.

"Speak up, little girl." He had his finger in face and he smelled bad, like liquor and stale sweat.

Sally Ann stared toward her bedroom door, willing the moment to pass, but he wasn't about to let it go.

"You know what they sayin' bout you? Huh? Runnin' 'round here with a wild ass Farrell doin' God knows what with that inbred piece of trash. Pastor King said he seen you both headin' up toward that mountain. What business you got up on that mountain, Sally Ann? That illiterate hillbilly mean more to you than your own blood?"

She knew anything she said would have been the wrong answer, so she chose again not to speak.

"Cat got your damn tongue? Answer me!" He grabbed her chin, hard, forcing her eyes to met his.

Sally Ann wasn't accustomed to hands grabbing at her face that way, like she was worthless. Not after Hasil. Every time Hasil's fingertips had made contact with her face, she was reminded of just how precious she truly was and James wasn't about to undo that. Sally Ann gripped her brother's forearm and pulled his grimy hand off of her. "Don't touch me. Don't ever put your hands on me again."

James was taken aback for a moment. He stared at her with his mouth hanging open. She hadn't shouted, in fact, she'd spoken quietly, but the look in her eyes said she was dead serious. "White boy got you a little fresh. Guess they don't know nothin' bout respect or honorin' a family name up there. Guess wild'n out like you ain't no sense is alright up there."

She thought he was so full of shit. As if she and her brother even had a family to honor. As if anything she had done was even the least bit disrespectful to anyone. As if Hasil and the entire Farrell clan weren't the definition of family loyalty. Obviously they were. That's why she was back down the mountain without him. Maybe that's what James needed to hear.

"None of it even matters anymore, James. It's over. Me and Hasil are done." She shrugged her shoulders and pleaded with her eyes for him to let her pass. To her surprise, he stepped aside, but not without mumbling out a, "Don't think we ain't gon' finish this conversation tomorrow." Without any hesitation she walked straight for her bedroom. She could feel his eyes boring into her, but she didn't turn to look at him. She walked straight into her room, closed the door, and slid down the wall to the floor where she sobbed until she fell asleep.

Sally Ann woke up on her bedroom floor, cold in her still damp clothes. It was dark out and her mouth was dry. The room spun when she tried to stand. She crawled over to her bedside table and downed the half bottle of water that sat there. It was almost like she could feel her cells rehydrating. Once her vertigo subsided, she walked over to her bedroom door and pressed her ear to it. The TV was playing quietly and she could hear distant, muffled snores. James was in his bedroom. She crept out of her room and went into the kitchen where she quickly downed another glass of water. In the fridge she found half a sandwich and some sliced pears in a Tupperware. She scarfed down the food, unable to shake the uneasy feeling she had from worrying that James would wake up and start berating her again. She decided there in the kitchen, as she swallowed a too-big bite of sandwich, that she wasn't going to live that way. She didn't want to leave her brother to fend for himself, but she couldn't live in fear either.

Sally Ann stood directly under the shower head and let the hot water scald her skin. She was desperately worried about Hasil and needed something to distract her. She stayed in the shower until the water ran cold, then busied herself with her hair. Once her hair was twisted and pinned back, she stared at herself in the mirror and let her thoughts flow naturally. Sally Ann had asked Hasil to leave the mountain with her. She understood why he couldn't say yes. If she were honest with herself, she even found it admirable, but that didn't stop it from hurting. That didn't stop it from feeling like a rejection, even though the logical part of her mind insisted it was far from one. He begged you to stay, she reminded herself. She choked herself up, hoping he understood why she couldn't before finally deciding that it didn't matter either way. He was up there and she was down here and she couldn't imagine any way for them to be together peacefully. Still, that night, she let herself reminisce on the fleeting moments of bliss they'd shared together at Naomi's house. She thought about the sound of his laugh, the earthy smell of clothes, the feel of his skin against hers, and the sweet taste of his mouth. She let herself drown in every second they'd shared together and she knew she loved him then. Her next big task was to figure out how in hell she was supposed to go on existing when Hasil Farrell had her heart way up on Shay Mountain.