A/N: Here you go PhattyB I hope you enjoy it. Triggers for this chapter is a woman appearing to be attacked and somebody saves the day with a little violence. Not many graphic details are given. Other than that the chapter should be a read in a flash bad bad bad I know. Please forgive all my mistakes, I did write all of this in one night and tried to read over it later today before posting it.

Chapter Two

The girl sat on the neighboring crate and scooted it toward him. Sam ignored her, focusing on the scenario he was outlining. Mercy was right to say that he couldn't exactly execute a scene given the band's volume had been turned up to eleven, but he could plan for his next book.

"Ahem," the girl said.

His eyes flicked up and looked at her and hoped she would get the hint that he was busy.

"Hi."

"Hey." He glanced at the stage where Mercedes was thumping her bass guitar. Looked like she was still upset about Matt. Whenever he saw her attacking her guitar like that, it was usually because she had something she needed to work out.

"I'm Penny."

"Sam."

"I know." She scooted her crate close until her thigh nearly touched his. "I hope you don't mind but it's kind of hard to talk in here."

He forced a smile, wondering why she was bothering to carry a conversation if, by her own admission, this wasn't the time or place for it. Since his mother and Fran—Mercy's mom—had raised him to be polite, he said nothing.

"I actually have a confession." She swallowed, her brown eyes slightly embarrassed. "I've been going to that café by the library every day hoping that you would notice me."

His eyebrows hiked. "Really?"

Sam preferred working outside of his apartment since staying indoors all day drove him insane. Writing didn't offer much room for human contact and conversation, and he considered himself a sociable guy. Working at the café helped him scratch his itch and focus on his writing.

He backpedaled through his memories but he had no recollection of seeing Penny anywhere.

"I'm sorry." He rubbed his neck, a little flustered by her intense gaze. "I don't think I remember you."

"That's fine." She inhaled deeply and said, "I stopped by hoping I could set up something up with you through Mercedes, but I'm glad I got to talk to you in person."

He arched an eyebrow. "Is there something, in particular, you wanted to talk about?"

After the accident, journalists had hounded him like vultures to a tiny, terrified carcass. The details of his parents' downfalls foddered gossip for months and months. A prominent doctor's wife caught having an affair. An angry husband stabbing her to death in anger while their eleven-year-old child witnessed it. It was something that got continued to interest the press until this day.

It was a story more scandalous than fiction. Yet it was his life. His history. His background. One the press wanted to drag into the light for the money. Over and over again. There was no end. He'd grown used to the questions, both subtle and more overt. He was a walking talking freak show.

"Not really." She ducked her head and tucked her hair behind her ear. "Do you… I mean if you'd like, now that we know each other and all… would you have a cup of coffee with me one of these days? My treat."

He breathed a sigh of relief when she didn't ask about his family. "Yeah. That would be fine."

"Thank you so much." Her eyes brightened. "I have to get to work now. Should we exchange numbers?"

He gave her his cellphone and then accepted it back when she'd finished. Penny scooted her crate to the side and stood, waving to him and then to Tina as she left the building. With Penny gone, Sam focused on his work and got sucked into the story.

Just like music was Mercedes's escape, writing and graphic art were his. In a world of his own creation, he was in charge. He chose who lived and who died. He gave his characters tragic backstories and made them stronger for it. And then he gave them a romance for the ages. The kind he was too much of a coward to create for himself. He lived vicariously through his heroic characters.

The prince extended his hand. Took the princess's fingers. Lifted them to his lips.

He kissed them and saw in her eyes everything he'd been searching for.

"What are you doing?" Mercy's hands snaked around his shoulders. She bent her head into the crook of his neck, her brown eyes scanning the document. Sam jumped and slammed the lid of the laptop, embarrassed that she'd caught him in the middle of a romantic scene.

"Mercy!" He coughed and turned around so that he could look at her without winding his neck around like a pretzel. "Is the practice over?"

She nodded, straight hair swaying. "It's been over for over ten minutes, but you looked like you were in the zone. I didn't want to disturb you."

"Wow. I didn't even hear the music end when you all finished and started packing up."

"What were you so focused on anyway?" she asked, her hand going to lift the top of the laptop.

"Nothing!" He slammed the lid back in place and gathered it up, tossing it into the black case.

Mercy narrowed her eyes. "You're acting sketchy. Was it a bedroom scene? Are you writing smut?" She gasped. "Let me see!"

"It wasn't a bedroom scene or smut," he said, holding the case out of reach.

"I don't believe you." Mercy stood on her tiptoes and arched over him, struggling to reach the case. Sam easily held it over her head. He stood a little over six feet and had several inches on Mercy. She gave it her best shot anyway, pawing his shoulder and chest in an attempt to grab the bag.

"Ehem."

Both Mercy and Sam froze when they heard the voice. Mercy fixed her shirt and returned to the flat of her feet while Sam hooked the strap of his case over his head and settled it on his shoulders. His eyes landed on Matt's and the smile on his face disappeared like smoke.

"Something I can help you with?" he asked in a hard voice. Mercy slapped a hand to his side and gave him a look that said, 'behave'. Sam wasn't making any promises, but he kept quiet while Matt and Mercy spoke.

"Great practice, Dimples," Mercy said in that slightly breathless voice she used around the guitar player. Sam did his best not to show his displeasure. Even if he wasn't a guy, he would never understand what Mercy saw in Matt.

It was clear as day that he was a two-timer. He reeled Mercedes in and treated her with the same affection and attention he would his girlfriend. Mercy was a never-ending well of love and responded to Matt as if they were dating. It was a relationship thinly disguised behind the label of 'best friends'.

He had to hand it to the man, Matt had the science of playing with two women down to a tee. Just when Mercy thought she had a chance, Matt would spring his relationship with April on her and leave Mercy brokenhearted.

It was a cycle he couldn't stand to see, but Mercy seemed content to get caught up in it. He'd tried talking to her, but she only insisted that Matt was her 'best friend' and that it wasn't his fault she'd caught feelings for him. Sam had given up on getting through to her.

But he still placed all the blame at Matt's feet.

"Sam," Matt said, brown eyes cold.

"Matt."

"Would you two cut it out?" Mercy threw her hands in the air. "If you've got an issue, talk it out and get over it. I'm tired of refereeing."

"There's no problem here." Matt forced a smile. "I just came to find out what your brother thought of our sound."

"For the one-thousandth time, I'm not her brother." Sam gritted his teeth. "And to be honest, the guitar sounded off. Way off. You should probably put in a little more time on your instrument since it was obvious you weren't prepared today. "

Matt's face darkened, but he said pleasantly, "Nothing wrong with a little constructive criticism. Any brother of Cedes is a brother of mine."

"We're not related." He stepped forward. Matt squared his shoulders and stood his ground. Sam's fist burned, begging for him to sink it so far into Matt's face that he shattered bones.

"Sam!" Mercy spun and shot her arm out, barring him from moving nearer. Her eyes changed from belligerent to disappointed. She'd read his thoughts again. He hated when she did that. He could never keep anything private from her. "Don't you dare," she whispered.

His anger climbing to a boiling point, Sam realized it was better for him to walk away. He grabbed his keys and his phone from the table and headed for the door. Mercy followed him soon after, her steps thudding against the pavement.

"What was that about?" she hissed.

"I told you to keep that guy away from me."

"Were you really going to hit him?"

He looked away.

Mercy sighed. "You should head home. Cool your head. I'll call you later."

Sam looked up in surprise. "Aren't you coming with me?"

She pointed to a tiny red car a little down the street. "I'll ride with Matt." She started jogging and called over her shoulder, "Get home safe!"

Sam watched her go, dark hair bouncing against her shoulders, legs kicking up dust. She climbed into Matt's car and leaned over to say something. His heart sank in his chest when the engine fired up and carried her out of sight.

Mercedes stared at Sam's truck until it became a blip in the side mirror. Her heart thumped strangely as if she'd run a marathon instead of walked a couple of yards. She closed her eyes, recalling Sammy's expression when she told him she was accepting a ride from Matt.

He's not happy about this.

"Cedes?" Matt drew her attention. She glanced at him, her heart fluttering in a different way. The setting sun cast an orange sheen on his light brown skin, highlighting the smoothness of his face and the sculpted set of his cheekbones.

Mercedes shook the effects of her crush off and folded her arms over her chest. "You shouldn't have goaded him, Matt. My family never legally adopted Sam or signed any papers to foster him. His dad is still alive too. You should know better."

"I'm sorry. It was just a joke, Cedes. I figured it was common knowledge that you two are more like siblings than friends." Matt's hand tightened on the wheel. "Why else would you treat him the way you do?"

"What are you talking about?" she asked, her voice thick with exasperation. Knowing Sam was displeased with her filled her entire mind and stained even this moment with Matt. "I'm too tired to read between the lines so just get to the point."

"Don't you find it weird the way he hangs around you?"

An eyebrow popped up. "Why would that be weird?"

"He's a grown man."

"So are you." She pointed out. "And he's the same age as us. He was only able to graduate early because he is just so freaking smart. Anyway, April is a lot older than all of us."

Matt decided to ignore the dig about April answered honestly as he could."It's clear the guy has it out for me. Did you hear what he said about my guitar?"

"You were playing the wrong chords sometimes," Mercy said.

"Forget it." The muscles in Matt's jaw worked as he stepped on the gas.

Mercedes' hand curled around her seatbelt. Matt's temper tantrum couldn't have come at a more inconvenient time. Why were her favorite guys acting up together? Had they made a pact to gang up on her today?

She was used to Matt's mood swings. He had a big heart but a very fragile ego. Mercedes had stuck around this long because she knew how to soothe his ruffled feathers. But Sam rarely got mad at her. She hated knowing he was upset.

Frustration mounted the longer she sat there. Even the littlest thing could set her off right now and Matt jumping on Sam's case wasn't helping.

Matt broke the silence. "Is he still writing those nerdy picture books?" He smirked. "And does he actually make money off them?"

"Is this why you insisted on taking me home tonight? So you could badmouth Sam?" She undid her seatbelt. "Let me out."

"What?" Matt's furrowed brow smoothed. "Cedes, don't be like that. It's just a guy thing. I really don't care about Sam—"

"Stop the car or I'm going to jump."

Matt's nose flared but he clicked his bSammyer and pulled to the side of the road. His chest heaved and he glared at her. "Tell me the truth. Is there something going on between you two? Something you're not telling me."

"Oh, you mean the same way you didn't tell me about you and April?"

Matt's eyes rolled toward the roof. "Is that what you're upset about? April may be my girlfriend, but that doesn't change us." His hand tiptoed over the center console to rest on hers, however, Mercedes snatched her arm back.

"I'm not upset. It's cool that you're back with your older ex. Just like it's totally cool if I treat Sam like I would a sibling or a friend. Just because we grew up in the same house together and we're like brother and sister but that doesn't actually make us brother and sister. If I want to start something with him, I can."

"Yeah, but…" Matt scrunched his nose. "That would be gross."

"Why would it be gross?" Mercedes had no idea why she was still sitting in the car entertaining Matt. "Would it be any more disturbing than you lying to me for weeks?"

"I never lied to you."

"You said you and April were over for good."

His eyes slid away from her. "Things changed."

"I'm sure they didn't change yesterday or the day before that. Things probably 'changed' a few weeks ago or a month ago. Maybe you and April started talking again the day after you told me you'd broken up."

"It wasn't the day after—"

"I don't even care." She opened the door and slid out. "I'll walk home. Let's talk another time."

"Fine." Matt barely waited until she'd closed the door before he took off, his car squealing as it turned a corner.

Mercedes gripped her bag and stumbled down the street. For someone who was not in a relationship, she and Matt definitely fought like a couple. Sometimes, she wondered if he knew how she felt and intentionally got back with April just to keep her in her place.

"Nah, he wouldn't," she mumbled.

It wasn't Matt's fault that she kept falling for him. Her own stupidity landed her here—not here walking alone at night, but here struggling to let go of the feelings she harbored for a taken man. He'd treated her like a queen and she'd gotten suckered into the fantasy.

"I'm an idiot." She kicked a rock and it skittered into a dark alley. The sound of rustling clothes and muted grunts reached her ears. Mercedes realized she'd stumbled on a couple's private moment and turned to scurry down the street.

"Stop!" A voice hissed. "Let me go."

The words snapped through her and poured lead into her shoes. She couldn't leave now even if she wanted to. "Is someone there?" Mercedes took small steps toward the alley, moving cautiously in case she'd misunderstood and was, indeed, infringing on a couple in the middle of a passionate embrace.

"I said… get off!"

Okay… that did not sound like consent.

Mercedes sprung into action and raced down the alley. Her eyes zipped back and forth, assessing the situation in three seconds. A woman struggled against a tall, thin man. He held her arms on either side of her head and had her backed against the wall.

A roar of outrage tore from Mercedes's lips. She grabbed the man by his shoulders, using her momentum to catapult him over her head. He landed with a thud, half his face catching the light—round cheeks, brown hair, brown eyes, scruffy jaw.

She didn't linger on his face long. Moving while he was still down, she swung her leg in a roundhouse kick. His chin pointed straight toward the sky before he landed on his back again. She heard something crack. It wasn't her leg.

The victim's screams pierced her ears and Mercedes chose to calm her down instead of restraining the perp. "Hey," she said, "it's okay. You don't have to be afraid. We'll call the police and—"

"He's getting away!" The girl pointed.

Mercedes spun and found the man escaping into the night. She sighed and turned back around, reaching out to lead the woman out of the shadows. "My name is Mercedes. Are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere? Do you need—?" Her voice faltered. "Penny?"

"Hey," Penny said, wincing hard. "Thank you for coming to my rescue."

Struck dumb for a moment, Mercedes only nodded.

Penny ran thick fingers through her hair in an attempt to lay the strands flat and fixed her shirt. "This is… embarrassing."

"No." Mercedes shook free from her surprise and shifted into recovery mode. "You have done nothing wrong, Penny. When a man tries to take advantage of a woman, he is the one who should be humiliated and ashamed. Not you. Do you understand?"

Penny swallowed. Her voice shook. "I-I guess your right. I just feel stupid for putting myself in a vulnerable position like that."

"I get it," Mercedes said, thinking back to her own discomfort with being on the street alone at night. She hooked a thumb to the mouth of the alley. "Did you know that guy?"

Penny shook her head. "I was walking home from work when he dragged me and started groping me. I called for help but no one was around…"

"Yeah, you're still in the warehouse district. There aren't many people who hang around these buildings. Except us when we practice." She soothed Penny's shoulder. The girl was shaking like a tree limb in a hurricane. "Let's take a minute and then find the nearest police station. We've got to report this."

"P-police?" Penny's eyes widened. "Is it that serious? You saved me. I'm fine."

"It's important to catch this guy before he tries to harm another girl. Maybe the next woman he attacks won't have anyone around to hear her cries."

Penny fidgeted with the hem of her shirt. "I guess you have a point."

"Give me a minute. Let me call S—" The name froze in her throat. She'd scorned Sammy when she chose to accept a ride from Matt instead. It was best she didn't bother him. "A cab." She smiled for Penny's sake. "I'll call a cab."

"You don't have to."

"Don't be scared. The person responsible for this won't get away with it. I promise." She held Penny's arm and led her out of the darkness.

Sam crashed through the doors of the downtown police station, his black and white sneakers skating against the polished floors. Adrenaline pounded through his veins, grabbing his heart like a rag doll and tossing it around.

Mercy. Where's Mercy?

"Sam!" A deep voice echoed, slicing through his fear. He glanced up, gaze locking on a tall, broad-shouldered officer with dark brown skin and brown eyes.

"Detective." Sam jogged over to stand beside the man who'd raised him when his family broke apart. "Mercy. Is she hurt? Where is she?" He skimmed the length of the room, eyes jumping past ringing telephones, towering stacks of paperwork, full jail cells, and empty chairs.

No Mercy.

"Mercedes is fine. She escorted the victim to the bathroom. We've finished taking their statement and they're ready to head home now. I was hoping you could give them a ride. Make sure they reach safely. The girl is pretty shaken up."

"Yes. Of course." Sam stopped to gather his thoughts. Relief poured through his veins when he realized that Mercy was not in danger. At last, he could breathe peacefully. "What happened? What did she come to report?"

"Mercedes witnessed a sexual assault. The stubborn girl that she is, she stepped in and took the perp down. He got away, but not before she caught a glimpse of his face. We called a sketch artist. He's finishing up and then we're going to print some wanted posters."

Sam grumbled, "Why would she get involved when she could have just called the cops?"

"I know right?" Patrick frowned so severely that lines bunched under his scruffy cheeks. "I should never have taught her kickboxing when she was a kid. She thinks she's Don the Dragon Wilson now." He paused and stared at Sam. "On a separate note… are you two having a fight?"

"Why would you say that?"

Patrick folded the sleeves of his white button-down shirt and plucked at his suspenders. After nearly a decade of living with him, Sam knew his tells. Patrick was trying to figure out a nice way to ask something he didn't think was any of his business.

"Mercedes and the victim arrived in a cab. I asked her why she didn't call you and she made up a flimsy excuse about not wanting to bother you. She was planning to take a taxi home too." He placed a brown hand on Sam's shoulder. "What happened, son?"

"Nothing." He shook his head. "I mean, nothing bad enough to keep her from calling if she needed me."

"Whatever it is, you two better figure it out soon. Fran's planning a family barbeque this Sunday and it's no fun if you and Mercedes are butting heads." Patrick and Sam noticed the two girls emerging from the bathroom and fell silent.

Sam recognized the shorter, rounder woman bouncing at Mercy's side. His eyes bugged. "Is that… Penny?"

Patrick glanced between him and the girls. "You know the victim?"

"We just met today," he said, moving forward in a haze.

Penny and Mercy trotted toward him. Mercy saw him first. She froze, her jaw dropping. Her brown eyes zipped from her father to Sam before she frowned. Sam didn't care if she was unhappy to see him. He strode ahead and grabbed her shoulders, shaking her lightly.

"You should have called me."

Her eyes dipped to the left. "I handled it."

"Why were you walking alone at night? Where was Matt?"

"I wanted some fresh air."

He narrowed his eyes. "You should have called me."

"It wasn't important."

"Why did you catch a cab here?"

Her lips twitched. "Dad told you?"

He lifted her chin so that she was looking at him. "You should have called me."

"I will next time."

"Promise?"

She nodded.

"Good." He let her go and turned to Penny. She stared at him as if she wanted to squirm and hide in a corner. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." She pointed to Mercy. "Thanks to her."

Patrick swaggered up to them. "Thank you for being brave and coming in to give your statement, Penny. We'll do all we can to catch that guy. You can count on it."

"Thank you, Detective Jones." Penny dipped her head. "I'm not worried at all with someone as capable as you on the case."

Patrick's chest swelled. "Well, now, that's a very kind thing to say, young lady."

Sam and Mercy exchanged smiles. He broke eye contact first and gestured to the door. "It's getting late. Are you ready to leave?"

"Yes, please." Mercedes strolled to her father's side and placed a kiss on his cheek. Patrick beamed happily, leaning over so she didn't have to reach far to get to his face. "Thanks, Dad. I'll spend a few hours at Sammy's and then come home."

"Don't keep him up too long," Patrick cautioned. "You know he's on a deadline."

"Got it." Mercedes returned to his side and hooked her arm around his elbow the way she liked to do. "I'm hungry."

"Of course you are." He bumped her lightly and then bent his head past Mercy to look at Penny. "What about you, Penny? If you're not too shaken up, would you like to have dinner with us? Or I can take you home first. Whatever works."

"I probably won't be good company, but if you two don't mind…"

"Of course we don't mind." Mercedes took her free arm and hooked it around Penny's shoulders as if she'd known her forever. But that was just Mercy. She'd never met a stranger. "What happened tonight was terrible, but we can make new, better memories to replace those scary ones."

He led them outside to his truck and held the door open. Sam didn't always hold the door, but Patrick had taught him to do so when he could and he enjoyed doing little things like that for Mercedes. Though she had become so accustomed to it that it wasn't a big deal anymore.

Penny, on the other hand, looked at him as if he'd sprouted fur and started howling at the moon. His eyes darted from the open door to her frightened expression. "It's okay," he said. "Insides a little dirty, but it's not as bad as it smells."

"T-thank you." She scurried inside and he slammed the door behind her.

When he climbed into the driver's seat, he caught Mercy holding his phone. He swiped it from her and set it underneath his thigh. "No. You're banned from being the DJ after what happened last time. Don't even think about it."

Penny stuck her head close to the front and asked, "What happened last time?"

"We were driving down the highway and we stopped at a light. Mercy was playing one of those explicit rap songs. You know the ones that drop the N-word like sprinkles?" He put his forefinger and thumb together, indicating the motion. "I turned around and there were two huge black guys in the car next to mine, glaring at me."

"They weren't glaring," Mercy said, smiling mischievously. "But they were very concerned."

"I thought they were going to tail us and beat me up."

"Because you're white?" Penny guessed.

"Because they thought he was singing along, but it was actually me." Mercy pressed a hand to her chest and slanted him a look. "I apologized for that. It was a simple misunderstanding. Here." She dug under his thigh until he let up his leg and released the phone. "I'll play your white people music if you want."

He held out a hand. "Don't you dare disrespect country music or my indie bands. Their obscurity makes their music even sweeter."

"Mm-hm." Mercy glanced over her shoulder and arched an eyebrow at Penny. "Ignore him. He has so much to learn."

"You guys are really close, aren't you?" Penny's words held a tinge of sadness. "I have other brothers and sisters, but they're for my mom's second and third husbands and they don't really have much in common with me."

"We're both the 'only child' of our families so having someone around all the time to play with was a dream come true. At least it was for me."

Sam nodded and glanced at Penny in the rearview mirror. "You sound like you don't live with your mom right now. Did you move here recently?"

"I did."

She didn't seem to want to share more, but the writer in him longed for details. "Can I ask what you moved here for?"

Penny slid back into her seat and glanced out the window. "I'm looking for someone."

"Looking for… ouch!" Sam jumped when he felt a sharp twinge on his arm where Mercy had pinched him.

She widened her eyes and mouthed, "Leave her alone."

Nursing the spot where Mercy and her claws had tortured his skin, Sam apologized. "I didn't mean to pry, Penny. I hope I didn't make you too uncomfortable."

"It's fine," she said and this time she even managed to smile. "The truth is I'm here because of my father."

Their eyes locked and held. Sam felt uneasy for some reason. He shook the sensation away and focused on the road. "Well, wherever he is, I hope you find him."