Summary: What if Nathan didn't die, the shooting never took place. The father died and the monster rose, knowing only two things. Keep Shilo near and safe from the world, and Make Rotti pay.

Let the Monster Rise

Chapter Two: Hideout

Nathan followed the Grave Robber through the underground pipes until they reached a small village. The Grave Robber pushed into one of the homes and Nathan followed. Nathan followed him upstairs and laid Shilo down on the bed in a spare room. Nathan put the duffel under the bed and followed the Grave Robber downstairs. As he walked into the living room, he took off the layers of the Repo Man. He put the clothes into a pile and the Grave Robber put them in a bag and tied the top. Nathan took the bag hesitantly.

"I'm afraid that I'll need that in the future, I'm not sure why, but I have a feeling." The Grave Robber nodded and took a slow breath.

"You can stay in this house for about a day and then I'll move you somewhere you'll be able to stay for a while. I'll be back tomorrow night to transport you and the girl." Nathan nodded and shook his old friend's hand. The Grave Robber was Marni's older brother, who turned to stealing and dealing Zydrate after Marni's death.

'Because of me.' Nathan winced as his brother-in-law stepped out of the house. When Nathan saw the Grave Robber, he had already knew that the man would help him without any questions, because he was still family. He was all that was left of Marni's family since they were young and he took care of her. He was five years older than Nathan. The Grave Robber was the only person that Nathan told of Shilo's existence to. He didn't tell Magdalene because he knew she'd try to take Shilo away, while his brother-in-law wouldn't. He swore not to tell Mag also, although he really wanted to.

Nathan sat on the couch with his head in his hands as he first heard it, movement upstairs. He felt the tears course down his cheeks as he thought of how he failed Shilo, how he failed Marni.

"I tried, I tried to protect her. How did everything get like this?" He sighed.

"The years roll be without you, Marni, 17 have come and gone. I raised our Shilo with the best intentions…" He quietly sung despondently. He shook his head that was still wet from his recent shower. He heard footsteps on the stairs.

"Yes you tried, but daddy really, did you think that you could actually, keep on lying straight to my face?" Nathan cringed and she saw it.

"I'm a monster, I'm the villain-" Nathan sobbed.

"You're unwilling, you were lied to, keen incisions, you delivered-" Shilo sang sadly.

"I am finished, I swear no longer!" Nathan begged as he fell to his knees on the floor. Shilo went to kneel next to him with her hand on his arm.

"You have no choice, it's in your blood. Dad I love you, Dad I'm sorry!" She sobbed and hugged him. He was shocked she was still next to him, after what he did to her. His arms, in themselves, wrapped around her slight form and held her against him as they cried. Nathan thought of all who died because of him. Marni, his beloved, their best friend Blind Mag, Magdalene Defoe, one he started developing feelings for after seeing her again at his house the night before, all of the temporary owners of organs he repossessed. He shut his eyes tight to hide the flow of tears. Shilo was the first to pull away, wiping away tears. Nathan looked at his daughter who looked so much like her mother. Nathan sighed then led her to the kitchen where the duffel was. He pulled out her medicine and put it on the counter, watching as she eyed it distastefully. Nathan sighed and grabbed a loaf of bread. He leaned against the counter as he broke it in two and gave Shilo a half. They were munching on their bread when Nathan grabbed Shilo's medicine and went over to the sink and poured some water into an empty cup. He put two drops into the cup and put it next to Shilo. He closed his eyes when she didn't touch it. He pulled the poison out of his pocket and showed it to her.

"I didn't put this into it. That there is pure medicine in that cup of water." Shilo's eyes narrowed delicately as she looked at the bottle in his hand.

"And what is that?" Her voice was soft and dangerous. Nathan knew he had to be careful, he couldn't lose her. He knew he shouldn't've told her but he knew he had to. Nathan put his hand over his eyes.

"I've been poisoning you, Shi." He mumbled, scared of her reaction. He felt a small hand on his, pulling it off his face.

"I know." She said simply, her eyes sad. Nathan was confused.

"How did you-?" He croaked and she smiled sadly.

"Rotti said so on the stage before you came out. All I want to know is why?" She gulped and watched as Nathan slid to the floor, his face in his hands. Shilo sat next to him.

"I lost Marni, your mother; I can't lose you, Shi. You're my only reason of living. You're all I have. What do I do if you leave?" He sobbed. He heard a throat clearing and both Shilo and Nathan looked up to see the Grave Robber at the door, unsmiling as he surveyed the scene. Nathan wiped his eyes and replaced his glasses.

"I have a place you guys can stay in." The Grave Robber said and walked into the Living Room and Nathan realized his next question would make or break his relationship with Shilo. He didn't look at her as he asked,

"Are you planning to go, or stay with me?" He held his breath as he could practically hear the gears working in Shilo's head. Then he felt her arms wrap around him as she hugged him.

"I wanna go with you, Daddy." She said quietly and Nathan was shocked. He turned to look at her.

"Even after what I did to you?" He asked ashamed. She nodded, smiling sadly.

"I love you, Daddy. No matter what, no matter what you've done, you're still my daddy." Nathan felt his eyes dampen and he hugged Shilo. Nathan sighed and stood up awkwardly and she followed. Nathan picked the bottle of poison up and stuffed it into a duffel pocket. Shilo took the glass of water with her medicine and gulped it down. Nathan smiled at her. She smiled back briefly before trying to take the duffel. Nathan took it out of her hands and hung it over his shoulder. They walked into the Living Room and saw the Grave Robber standing at the door. Nathan took a breath.

"Shilo, this is your Uncle." Shilo looked at the Grave Robber strange then back to her father.

"What? My Uncle?" Nathan nodded and the Grave Robber coughed.

"He's your mother's older brother." Shilo gave him a cunning smile.

"Uncle G?" Shilo asked innocently as the Grave Robber blushed. She smiled again.

"So what is your real name then, Uncle?" She asked, curious as to the name of her late mother's brother. The Grave Robber muttered something that Shilo couldn't catch.

"Sorry?" She asked delightfully. Nathan couldn't help but reveal a grin.

"His name is Kabos, he said." Kabos scowled at Nathan who grinned back. Kabos coughed.

"So are we going or not?" He looked tired and impatient. Nathan looked at Shilo and she nodded. They walked out of the door after Kabos.

Nathan stood beside Kabos as he and Shilo looked upon the empty house before them. They were aboveground again, and Nathan was worried of discovery. Kabos quickly opened the gate with a key which he gave to Nathan, then led the two across the yard and unlocked the door. He handed the house key to Nathan and Nathan grabbed Kabos' arm before he turned to leave them.

"Whose house does this belong to?" Kabos' eyes shifted and he pulled his arm free.

"They said they wanted you to stay here." He said somberly and Nathan cast him a questioning gaze. Without a second pause, he tousled Shilo's hair and left, shutting the gate behind himself. Nathan unlocked the door and ushered Shilo inside first. The house was a lot in structure similar to the Wallace home. It was chillingly familiar to Nathan. He watched as Shilo went up the stairs to find herself a bedroom. Nathan saw a coffee table in the living room with picture frames. He crossed the room to pick one up. He almost dropped it, he was in complete shock when he saw a younger picture of Marni and Mag. His heart froze when he saw all of the pictures had one person in common. Shilo ran down the stairs two at a time with a picture in her hand. She raced to stand next to her shocked father whose back was frozen. She breathed heavy as she thrust the picture at her father.

"Dad, what does this mean?" She gasped when she saw the other pictures. Nathan took the offered picture of him, Marni, and Mag seventeen years ago, the day after his and Marni's marriage. He took a shuttering breath.

"This means we're in Mag's house right now."

(A/N Ooh, cliffie…. So I did update quicker than I thought…. Hah I'm good…. Unfortunately I haven't started chapter 3 yet, so I'll start it tomorrow or Wednesday, when I finish a Research Paper for PC Support 2/Level 2…..god I hate the stupid class, i learn absolutely nothing i don't already know…. I'll update as soon as I can)

(A/N Umm, I had noticed that most of the main character names, (Nathan, Marni, Shilo, and Magdalene), are based in Hebrew, so i chose the Grave Robber's name accordingly. Kabos means: Swindler. I thought it oddly appropriate. name courtesy of babynamenetwork dot com)

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