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Here is Chapter 4

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"That's for you and you only, don't give it to him, don't tell him you've got it. It's for emergencies, yeah?"

"Yeah," Casey breathed stunned.

"Don't get too excited, it's only 500 but it'll at least get accommodation for a night if you need it and it will help you get in contact with Heath or me."

"You think he's gonna do a runner."

"For your sake I hope he doesn't," Brax finished with a pat on Casey's shoulder.

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"Make sure you got a bag packed by this afternoon, boy," Danny ordered after he returned with a car.

"Are we leaving this afternoon?"

"Looks like it, Darryl doesn't want any time wasted."

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"You do the first driving shift, we'll change around midnight," Danny commented as he opened the passenger seat door.

"Ok, where are we headed?"

"You'll see?"

Casey didn't let Danny's vagueness bother him.

"When will we get to wherever it is we're going?

"I reckon by lunchtime tomorrow."

"That soon?"

"Yep, won't take long at all."

"So, uh, Brax was right. You have a plan?"

"Of course I have a plan."

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"Oi, wake up," Danny ordered gruffly pushing at Casey's shoulder.

Sleeping in the passenger seat wasn't that comfortable but as soon as they had swapped driving shifts, Casey has slept soundly.

"Where are we?" He yawned as he tried to stretch out his legs.

"We're here, that's her isn't it?"

Casey pulled himself up so he was sitting in the seat properly.

Even from the distance they were at, Casey could tell it was Charlie. She looked the exact same the only difference was the absence of her smile. She wore her long brown hair up in a high ponytail and cleaned the tops of the tables outside an old cafe. She worked with such automatic movements Casey could tell she had been here for a while.

"Oh my god!"

"Mmm, thought so. Let's go get her shall we?" Danny grumbled.

"Wait, just like that?"

"Just like that, come on, your brother's waiting."

Casey followed his father toward the small cafe. He noticed nothing out of the ordinary. If anything the cafe was very similar to the Summer Bay Diner. Casey thought that was probably why Charlie chose this, some resemblance of home was better than none.

By the time they had reached the café, Charlie has disappeared inside.

The door of the cafe chimed signalling its opening and Danny held the door for Casey allowing him to enter first.

"Can I he- Oh my god! What are you doing here?" Charlie asked wide eyed and before Casey had a chance to reply she continued.

"You need to leave, you need to get out of here," Charlie demanded frantically, she tried to push Casey back out the door.

Thankfully, no one was sitting inside to watch the scene unfold.

"It's alright darling, no one's going to come near you with me around," a rough voice attempted to calm her but its' affect on Charlie was anything but comforting.

"Who are you?" Charlie asked steadily and instantly her old police instinct kicked in and she made a move to pull Casey behind her protectively.

"Oh, sharp tack like you, I would have thought you'd have realised by now."

Charlie froze, as crazy as it seemed she had no doubt that the mad standing in front of her was the Braxton patriarch.

"Charlie, it's okay," Casey tried. "We're here to take you home."

"Don't call me… that," Charlie said, her heart hurting at hearing someone call her by her name.

Casey lifted his hands as if to calm her but the move did nothing to reassure Charlie.

Charlie started shocked at the two men. There was so much wrong with what she was seeing and hearing she didn't know where to start. Thank goodness the cafe was empty but for how long was anyone's guess.

"Home?" Charlie asked stunned. "I can't go home, Casey and you can't stay here. You need to go."

"Charlie?" Casey asked, shocked and what she said and unsure of what else to call her.

"Leave," Charlie said sternly and she blinked rapidly in order to dispel the tears that had begun to form.

"Come on mate, let's not make a scene," Danny told Casey, not taking his eyes off Charlie.

Charlie watched them walk to their car, Casey turned around a few times and Charlie knew if it wasn't for the older man, Casey wouldn't have left her at all.

Only once they had driven off did she begin to breathe again, her heart on the other hand, broke all over again at the reminder of home and who she was missing most.

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"I thought I told you to go home?"

Charlie watched Casey enter the cafe at closing time that night.

"You did, I didn't listen," Casey answered. There was no edge to Charlie's voice like there was earlier that afternoon, if anything, Charlie sounded tired.

"I wonder where you get that from." Charlie replied. She looked out the window of the car Casey had parked in the small parking lot and didn't hide the relief at finding it empty.

"He's not here, just me. You didn't look like you appreciated his company."

"I didn't."

"You don't trust him," Casey stated.

"I don't trust anyone, Casey. When did your dad get out of jail?"

"What do you know about dad?"

"I know enough."

"Only what Brax told you."

"And that's enough for me, Casey."

"You don't trust me?" Casey realised.

"Casey it's not just you, I can't trust anyone at the moment."

"Can you trust Brax?"

Just hearing his name made Charlie break eye contact and look to the floor. She tried her hardest to keep her composure.

"He's not here, Casey. It's not safe for him or me or even you and Heath. That's why I'm here."

"How about you tell me what's going on."

"How about you tell me how you found me?"

"You first."

"Casey, I don't have time for games."

"I'm not playing games, Charlie?"

"Casey, tell me how you found me?"

"Once you tell me how you got here?"

"That doesn't matter," Charlie screeched before taking a deep breath to calm down.

"Casey if you can find me than that means that they can," Charlie tried.

"There's no they anymore, Charlie. That's why I'm here, to take you back."

"Take me back?" Charlie repeated. "Casey that's not even an option."

"Come back to our hotel, I can explain everything."

"This is getting us nowhere, Casey. There's nothing to explain. Go home."

"I can't. What am I meant to tell Brax?"

Charlie paused and Casey could see she was beginning to get upset.

"I can't go home Casey, not now or tomorrow. It's too dangerous for me and for everyone I love. I won't be responsible for them being hurt.

Charlie shrugged her shoulders dejectedly. "Go home, Casey," Charlie ordered turning her back on the youngest Braxton.

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"Where is she?" Danny asked back at the motel.

"She's not coming anywhere with us, I can tell you that right now. I've tried talking to her."

"Looks like our only option would be to kidnap her but I doubt she'd go down without a fight."

"Is that supposed to be a joke? She'd fight for sure but it's not our only option."

"What do you have in mind?" Danny asked, he knew what Casey would suggest.

"Brax is the only person she'd feel safe enough with. If everything you said was true, he's the only one who she will trust."

"He won't come up here. He doesn't believe me as it is."

"For Charlie he will."

"He's a bit soft your brother isn't he?"

Casey began to laugh but then stopped not wanting to upset his father, "only when it comes to Charlie."

"Is that your way of giving me a warning?" Danny asked his son, his voice dangerously low and for a moment Casey's heart raced.

"No, I was just telling you, Brax is only soft when it comes to Charlie, he'd do anything for her."

"Hmmm, good to know," Danny commented.

"It goes both ways though, when they were together and in fact even when they weren't, Charlie would do anything for Brax."

"Hmmm, let's ring that brother of yours shall we? It seems like the sooner we get back to Summer Bay the sooner all the fun will start."

Casey nodded and pulled out his phone. He wasn't sure what his father meant, he hardly knew the man but his tone didn't seem right.

"Casey?" Brax answered on the first ring.

"Nope, he's beside me. Jake was telling the truth. Your woman is alive," Danny said down the phone, taking sick satisfaction in the pain his eldest was going through.

"That didn't take long. How do I know this isn't a set up?"

"You don't, but, like I said before, all of this is up to you. Is she worth it? That's all you gotta keep asking yourself, mate," Danny's gruff voice answered.

"Put her on the phone?" Brax asked. His voice remained strong and he still doubted Danny's credibility but the possibility of Charlie being alive was too much to bare.

"Can't, for some reason that woman won't talk to me, not after she realised who I was."

"I can't say that I'm not surprised about that Dad."

"She talks to Casey though,"

"Casey's seen her?"

"Yep," Danny answered, knowing what was his eldest was going to say next.

"Put him on the phone?

Danny smirked down the phone and threw the phone to Casey.

"Casey?" Brax asked.

"Hey Brax, you in the car yet?" Casey joked.

"Nup, nowhere close."

"Brax, she's alive."

"Yeah?" Brax asked. He was holding back and Casey could hear the restraint in his voice.

"Yeah, I've seen her, talked to her."

"She ok?"

"Yeah, looks fine, wasn't the happiest to see me. Says it isn't safe."

"She know you're calling me?"

"Nope, she kicked us out, said it was too dangerous."

"Mmmm," Brax answered unsure of what to say next.

"Brax, you are coming right? It's Charlie we found her," Casey told his eldest brother.

"You better not be playing me, Casey?"

"What? I wouldn't do that."

But Casey's response was pointless, Brax didn't respond.

"Msg me where you are, I'll see you soon," Brax ended the conversation and Casey found it hard to ignore the pang of hurt he felt at Brax's cold response.

"He coming?" Danny grunted.

"Yeah," Casey answered.

"What?"

"Nothing,"

"He still doesn't believe me and now he doesn't believe you, he's got some nerve that boy, after everything I've done for him!"

Casey was only half listening; he briefly wanted to call Brax back but thought better of it.

Instead he quickly typed Heath a message.

Let me know when Brax leaves.

The reply was almost immediate.

Already left! I hope you know what you're doing.

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Thank-you so much for reading.

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xoxox