By all accounts, Grace Trevelyan Grey is a bright, educated and astute woman who cares more than anything in this world for her children. So for the life of me I can't imagine how she remains so clueless about the monster she is introducing me to. I am grabbing the sheets to fight off the urge to lunge at her and wipe the smile from her face.

She extends a hand and I ignore it. Wanting so badly to immediately ask Christian's mother if she has any idea that her "dear, dear friend" was ducking her fifteen year old son. For six years. I bite my lip so hard it might breathe and force a pleasantry. Grace had been through enough today. I can't let her world completely unravel the way mine is. Not yet.

"Christian has told me a lot about you." I hiss through gritted teeth and she raises an eyebrow.

"I'm sure he has." Her voice is cool and collected, almost sing songy. It aggravates me further. She looks over my shoulder at Christian as she reaches at the pearls around her neck. She looks genuinely concerned. I'm sure. Wouldn't want anything to happen to her most prized possession. She holds her hand over her mouth.

"Oh, Christian. What have you done?" She whispers as she approaches the foot of the bed.

"Don't touch him."

I bark at her in a voice that impresses me. And she stops in her tracks.

"Don't you dare touch him."

I'm seething now and she reads my emotions with her back to Grace.

"Anastasia...honey..." Grace attempts to soothe me from the door. Elena takes a step back.

"No, she's right. I don't want to cause him any harm."

She is glaring at me as she speaks, annoyed by my claiming him as territory I'm sure.

"Any more harm. Don't you mean you don't want to cause him any MORE harm?" I move to stand beside the bed as I'm speaking and Grace steps further into the room.

"Ana..."

I turn to look at her and I can tell she is shocked and probably embarrassed. I fumble with my fingers.

"I'm so sorry. I'm just...I'm tired...I haven't slept..."

I'm searching for words as I look from Grace to Elena.

"No. I'm sure you haven't." She smiles cooly and looks to speak again but we both turn to face Grace as her pager buzzes.

"Carrick. If you two will excuse me. I won't be long."

I can tell she is unsure about leaving but she hurries to do so anyway. I'm sure she wants to be the one to fill her husband in on Christian's condition.

Elena and I stare at each other for what feels like hours.

"I think you need to leave."

She studies me, playing at her pearls again.

"I know you do. But I don't think that is your call to make." She glances at Christian again and frowns. She studies him and seems to forget I'm even there.

"Let me try this again. Leave." I'm louder now. Direct. This is not a request.

"I have as much right to be here as anyone. Christian told me you don't understand what happened between us and I don't expect you to. But if anyone is going to throw me out, it will be Christian. Not you."

She seems almost sympathetic. In fact as she studies him her eyes glass over. I can't help but watch her. But as I do I start to imagine her. Fucking him. Hurting him. Ruining him. And I see red again. She steps closer to the bed and rests her hand on his. She's testing me.

"You feel guilty..." She asks with a hint of questioning. Trying to turn this into some female bonding. She knows nothing about how I feel. I just stare blankly at her.

"Multiply that by a million. That's how I feel."

I just stare. I know that if I let myself I will get riled up and cause a scene. And right now I just want her away from Christian. Today. Forever. She feels obligated by my silence to continue.

"You won't believe me and I have to live with that. But all I wanted to do was help Christian. I went about it wrong. I couldn't help him. I let him down."

Why is she telling me this? So I'll let her stay? Does she think he can hear her? I'm not buying it. She inhales deeply and wipes a tear from her eye.

"I failed him. And now I guess that's one more thing we have in common."

Her words are like a knife into my gut. I have failed him. She's right. I couldn't save him either. But not helping and intentionally hurting are two very different things.

"We have nothing in common."

She smirks slowly.

"Really...you don't love him then?"

The knife she inserted earlier? She twisting it over and over and I might as well just bleed out. She loves him. She. Loves. Him. And still does. I knew it. And how do I compete with that. I close my eyes to her words and I remember Christian the night before...whispering his love for me in his sleep. I remember him begging me not to leave. I remember him turning his world upside down to accommodate me. I remember I'm different.

"Fine. Stay. And when Grace and Carrick come back...either you tell them what you did to their son, or I will. You sad, sick bitch."

I move to the side of Christian's bed across from her.

"And I said don't touch him. Don't ever fucking touch him again."

She backs away from the bed with a hazy "oh shit" look on her face as Christian stirs in the bed between us.

Just a short little chapter, I know! Now come on...doesn't anyone out there ever feel sorry for Elena? :)