Sorry for the wait. I hope you enjoy this chapter.

This was a hard chapter for me to write, so more than any chapter before this, I want to know what you think.

Special thanks to Kay R. Greyhelm again for letting me bounce ideas off of her.

PLEASE review…

Chapter 11 - A Broken Heart

The next day, classes couldn't go by fast enough for Serena. All she could think about was the night before and how much fun she had with the girls, and even with Darien. At lunch, the girls decided to all go to the dance that night, all except Amy. Serena tried to talk her into going many times, but figured that twice in one week was probably the most she was ever going to get from Amy when it came to taking a break from her studies.

After classes, Mina dropped Serena back off at the apartment saying that she would be by after she went into work for a couple hours to finish some things up for the week. Serena went into the lobby and smiled at Ken.

"Why, Hello Ms. Avery! How has the first week been for you?"

"Oh, it's been wonderful! I can't believe how quickly it has gone by though!"

Ken grinned, "Having fun will do that to a girl. My son told me you had a pool party last night?"

She blushed, "Yes… Sorry that the noise bothered the other tenants…"

Ken waved off her worries, "I didn't hear anything about it."

Serena raised an eyebrow. Sammy must have neglected to tell him that small detail, probably due to the fact that he was so taken with Mika and he didn't even think to say anything about it. Serena giggled softly. They really would make a cute couple.

Serena skipped up the stairs and into her apartment. She was greeted by Luna and collapsed onto the couch. She scooped Luna up to lay next to her as she thought back to yesterday. Everything with Darien seemed to have happened so quickly. She was certain that if she hadn't reacted the way she had in is office, he would have kissed her. Serena smiled up at the ceiling, absently petting Luna, as she thought about what might have happened in his office had she not stopped him. She was startled out of her reverie when there was a knock on the door. She went to open it to see a grinning Mina on the other side.

"Mina? What are you smiling about?"

Mina walked into the apartment and Serena noticed the bag she was holding behind her back. "I have something for you!"

Serena blinked, "Mina, you didn't have to get me anything!"

Mina nodded, "But you have to close your eyes!"

Serena rolled her eyes, "Seriously?"

"Seriously! Close your eyes!"

Serena giggled as she closed her eyes and then turned around at Mina's request. She couldn't help but smile as she waited in anticipation. When Mina finally let her turn back around, she opened her eyes and gasped.

On top of her mantel were picture frames and inside of those picture frames were various pictures that Mina had taken over the past week. Serena slowly made her way to stand beside Mina. The first picture was of the two of them on campus, when Mina took her for a tour. The second was of them at Raye's first concert, the third was from Tuesday night when they were all over for dinner and the others were from last night at the pool. In the middle, was the group picture that the girls had taken right before Darien had showed up.

Tears formed in Serena's eyes as she put a hand to cover her mouth and looked at Mina.

Even Mina had tears in her eyes but she tried to lighten the mood. "Now that you have us, there's no reason for your apartment to be without pictures anymore."

The tears finally fell down Serena's cheeks and she lunged herself into Mina's arms. Mina smiled and ran a hand gently down Serena's back as a few tears of her own escaped.

Finally, Serena stood and looked at the pictures again. She sniffed, "Mina… Thank you so much. This means more to me than you can ever realize." Mina simply grinned and stood by patiently while Serena stared at all of the pictures. Finally, she smiled brightly and turned towards her friend.

Mina reached forward and grabbed her arm gently, pulling her to the door. "Now, come on. We must get you ready for the dance!"

Serena laughed as she let herself be dragged out of her apartment and Luna followed them out into the hallway and over to Mina's. Mina took her straight into the bedroom to pick out clothes.

After a long 2 hours, both of the girls were finally ready. Mina wouldn't let Serena look into the mirror until she was finished and Serena was nervous about what Mina had done. However, when she finally looked into the mirror, she gasped. Mina had let most of her hair simply fall down her back and frame her face, except for the middle part on top which she brushed directly back and fastened with a barrette.

She had done an incredible job with Serena's makeup and, although Serena felt uncomfortable with a lot of makeup, she couldn't help but admit that it made her look almost… seductive. The outfit Mina had picked out for her was a black skirt that went down to her mid-thighs and a soft brown shirt that tied around her neck and then again around her lower back, leaving the majority of her back open. Thankfully, the shirt came with a heavy cloth that covered her chest and hooked joined in with the fabric, so as not to leave her exposed and made Serena only slightly less uncomfortable wearing it.

Mina shook her head, "Lily, you're a knock out!"

Serena simply giggled and turned herself in the mirror before looking back at Mina, "Oh, but look at you!" Mina was truly a vision with her long blonde hair cascading down her back and over her shoulders. She was wearing a tight pink halter top that had black lace lining the sides and a black skirt that flowed out to her mid-thighs, matching Serena's.

Planning to meet the other girls at the dance, Mina and Serena both grinned at each other as they made their way down to the lobby.

They made it to the party and went to the entrance to see that the others waiting for them. Serena's mouth gaped slightly at how gorgeous Raye, Lita and Molly were. Raye was wearing a tight red silk top that parted slightly at the stomach, showing off her abs and a pair of tight black pants. Lita was wearing a pair of nice dark blue jeans and a hunter green top that fell off of her shoulders, fell loosely around her stomach, and hugged her hips tightly. Molly was wearing a purple dress that tied around her waist and hung to her knees. The purple against her auburn hair and pale skin made a breathtaking combination.

When the five of them walked into the dance room, everyone around them stopped and watched them. Serena blushed under the stares but Mina seemed to thrive on them. Serena had to admit, the four girls around her were drop-dead gorgeous and she felt awkward being around them, certain that she couldn't compare. It wasn't soon after they got there that Alan popped up next to them.

"I must say, ladies. You are the hottest girls here!"

They all blushed and Mina tried to hide her giggle. Raye glanced around, expecting to see the irritating brunette that was constantly at his side. "Where's Ann? Surely she wouldn't let your leash stretch this far without her."

Serena saw his jaw clench before he went back to his good-natured smile and rolled his eyes, "Ann is… sick. She unfortunately won't be able to make it, which means I'm free to make sure you ladies have a great time." He looked at Serena as he said those last words and was about to head towards her when another man slid up beside her and asked her to dance. Alan glared at the man, but instead asked Mina. It wasn't long after that men showed up to ask the other three girls.

The next few hours passed by in a blur for all five of them. They almost never had a break from the dance floor as men seemed to be waiting nearby for the previous song to end before snatching them away for the next song. Serena noticed Raye paying extra attention to Alan who was dancing with Mina. When Alan did try to dance with Serena, Raye had always pulled her away to take a short break and Serena could tell Alan was getting annoyed. However, it didn't seem to be long before Alan recoverd and was back on the floor dancing with Mina. Lita and Molly made their way over to Raye and Serena.

"Oh my gosh, this is too much fun!" Molly giggled as she fanned her flushed face with one of her hands.

Serena noticed that Alan was watching her when she glanced over at Mina. She smiled at him and she saw him pull Mina closer before smiling back. Serena looked at the surprised, but pleasant, look on Mina's face and giggled softly, turning back to the three girls next to her. Serena assumed that Alan had forgotten all about her, especially with how hot Mina looked tonight, and was happy that Mina was finally getting Alan's attention like she wanted.

Alan was getting pissed. That bitch with black hair hadn't allowed him to dance with Lily all night and she had even tried to prevent him from dancing with Mina. Mina was hot, but there was something about Lily that he just had to have. He watched her as she was talking to her friends and saw her look over. He pulled Mina closer to him and could swear he saw a jealous look flash across Lily's face before she turned away. He grinned because he now had a plan - The closer he got to Mina, the more jealous Lily would become and the more jealous she got, the quicker she would be his.

"Okay, so I don't know if you all know this, but Mina's birthday is next Friday and I want to plan something really special for her. Will you all be able to help me?" Molly glanced around the group. All of the girls grinned and nodded excitedly, but before Molly could continue, the song ended and they saw Mina walking over towards them with Alan. "Meet me at Crown's tomorrow morning at 9 and we'll talk about it there."

Mina walked over to them and Serena glanced down at Alan's hand that was placed firmly on her waist. She looked up into his smiling face and wondered briefly what role Ann was going to play in this.

Raye glared at Alan's hand on her waist and took Mina's hand, "We're leaving."

"Oh!" Mina turned around as she kept walking, "Bye Alan! See you next week!"

Serena glanced behind her and saw Alan smile and wave at Mina before looking at her and winking. Serena just simply couldn't understand what was going on and shrugged as she followed the girls outside.

The others went on their way, but Mina and Serena decided to stop into Crown's. Mina claimed it was for ice cream, but Serena knew it was to let Andrew see how she looked.

~*.*~

"So why aren't you doing your paperwork on campus, again?" Andrew placed another cup of coffee down next to Darien's laptop.

Darien groaned, "The dance, remember? I try to stay as far away from the campus on Friday nights as I can. I remember how it was before I left, and I doubt it has changed much. The last thing I need is a bunch of girls following me around everywhere, wanting me to come to the dance."

Andrew chuckled as he went back to wiping the counter. The bell on the door rang and he looked up as two giggling girls walked in. His mouth dropped.

Darien looked up with an annoyed expression on his face when he heard the giggles and saw Andrew's face. "Rita wouldn't be too happy with you if she saw you drooling at college girls, you know." When he didn't get a response from Andrew, he glanced over his shoulder and realized why. He saw Lily and forgot how to breathe.

Mina smiled at both of them, "Hi, Andrew! Hi, Darien!"

Darien heard Andrew's mouth snap shut, "Hey! Girls…, want your usual?" Darien looked over to see a blush creep across Andrew's cheeks. At their nod, he went into the kitchen to make their order. His eyes followed Lily as she came and sat down next to him.

"Hey, Darien. What are you working on?"

Serena's breathing quickened. Darien was looking at her again, just like he had in his office the day before.

Darien gave her a slow lop-sided smile, "Oh, nothing too important, Meatball Head."

They were interrupted when Andrew brought their shakes. "So, did you two girls go to that dance on campus?"

They smiled up at Andrew and nodded. "Yeah, it was a BLAST! There were so many guys there and I don't think either of us had any breaks all night." Mina grinned at him, also paying attention to Darien's reaction.

Andrew stole an amusing glance at Darien. Darien was sure he wanted to say 'Bet you wish you had gone to the dance now, huh?' but he was thankful Andrew kept his mouth shut. Although he couldn't help but feel extremely jealous at the fact Serena had been in the arms of countless men for the past few hours and he hadn't been there. Especially with her dressed like that. He would make sure that didn't happen again next Friday.

Andrew broke through the silence by clearing his throat, "Sounds like you two had fun then! Wished I could have been there. Darien, here, was upset that he couldn't go tonight, but I think he was planning to go next Friday, right?"

Darien's head snapped up to meet his friend's amused gaze, wondering if he had heard his thoughts. "Uh, yeah… Yeah, there was just too much paperwork for me to go tonight."

Serena grinned, "Awesome! Well, I'm absolutely exhausted. C'mon, Mina."

Mina waved at both of them as they headed out. The second they were outside, Mina glanced over at Serena, "Did you see how he was looking at you? I swear he was about to throw you down on that counter and take you right there! Even in front of us!"

Serena blushed furiously, "Mina!" She couldn't help but smile, however, as they made their way back to the apartment.

The next morning, Serena regretted agreeing to meet the girls at Crown's. After being up so late, and with it being a Saturday, she wished she could have slept in at least one more hour. She slugged out of bed and spent five minutes getting ready before heading to Crown's.

When she got there, she saw the girls sitting at a booth and they waved at her. She went and sat down, dropping her head onto the table. Andrew made his way over to them.

"Hey, Lily! Want some coffee?"

Serena picked her head up suddenly, "YES! Coffee!"

Andrew's eyes went wide as he backed up slightly.

Serena calmed down, "Sorry… I just wasn't able to make coffee this morning because otherwise it would have woken Mina up."

Andrew chuckled, knowing the girls were discussing Mina's birthday, and he went to get Lily her coffee. They spent half an hour talking about what they would get her and how they would hide the party from her for the whole week. Andrew suggested her party be held here, in Crown's, and the girls loved that idea. They would celebrate here and then head onto the dance. It was perfect.

Finally, Serena left the group and headed back to her apartment. She crashed on the couch and, despite all of the coffee she had downed at Crown's, immediately fell back asleep. She woke up to a knock on her door and sat up, rubbing her eyes. She made her way and opened it to find a sleepy Mina. Serena yawned, "What time is it?"

"A little after Noon." Mina came in, followed by Artemis, and pushed a cup into Serena's hands. "I figured if you make coffee on the weekdays, I can at least make coffee for you on the weekends." Serena giggled as she took a sip. "Why are you dressed already?"

Serena paused, "Uh, well… I woke up earlier and started to get ready but I guess I fell back asleep on my couch." She sighed thankfully when Mina just nodded.

"What do you want to do today?"

Serena thought about it for a moment, "Absolutely nothing. I don't think I have the energy for anything, today."

Mina laughed and headed to Serena's couch, "I totally agree with you on that one. How about some TV?"

Serena walked over and nodded, sitting next to her, "Sounds excellent."

They flipped through the TV for the next couple hours, laughing as the cats occasionally chased each other around the apartment, before there was a knock on the door.

"Who is that?"

Serena shrugged, "I don't know. I wasn't expecting anybody." She got up and opened the door. "Amara!"

"Hey, Se-" She stopped when she saw Mina's head pop up from behind Serena's, "Lily…"

Serena turned back to the drooling Mina and giggled.

"Mina, this is Amara," she placed a heavy emphasis on the last 'a' of her name, causing Mina's mouth to snap shut, "and Amara, this is Mina."

Amara simply nodded at Mina and Serena frowned slightly, wondering why she wasn't trying to flirt like usual.

"Lily, I need to speak with you. Privately."

Mina took the hint, "I'll go and get ready. Come over and get me when you're done! Artemis!" A white cat popped its head around the corner and Mina motioned for him to follow. She smiled again at Amara and quickly headed down the hallway.

Serena stepped back, allowing Amara to come in, and shut the door. "Amara, what's wrong? Is everything all right?" Serena led them into the living room and Amara sank down in the chair while Serena took a place on the couch beside it.

Amara sighed and looked over at her, "Serena… I wish there was a way I didn't have to involve you… but it's the only way we can get this guy."

Serena frowned, "What are you talking about?"

Amara took a deep breath and started over, "I know it happened over a year ago, and I'm sorry to have to bring it up now, but we caught him Serena. His DNA matched the blood from underneath your fingernails and the only way we can connect him with Chase and... everything else… is if you come and testify against him."

Serena's heart stopped. Breathing was impossible. Her eyes closed tightly as the memories came flooding back.

~*.*~

Serena walked into the living room and smiled down at the little girl playing innocently with her favorite stuffed bear. She was about to suggest a trip to the park, but she was cut short when her cell phone rang. Frowning, Serena made her way to the table where her purse was and pulled out the phone.

"Hello?"

"SERENA! Thank GOD! Get out of there!"

"Michelle? What are yo-"

"GET OUT!"

Serena's heart started to race. She didn't have to be told a third time. She grabbed her purse and rushed over to the girl. "Ally, come on. We're going on a trip!" She kneeled down and scooped the girl up before rushing out of the apartment towards the closest flight of stairs. It took all of the strength she had in order to remain calm, trying not to panic the girl in her arms.

"Serena, I'm on my way. I will meet you at the exit on the south side."

Serena nodded absently to Michelle over the phone, "We're on our wa-" Her stomach lurched as she skidded to an abrupt halt. The door to the staircase opened to reveal two of Chase's men that Serena knew all too well. There was a momentary stand-off before Serena turned and ran. She held the girl close to her as she fled to the North staircase. "Michelle, they're here!"

She flung open the door to the staircase, but was unable to juggle the girl in her arms, the door, and the phone pressed between her shoulder and her ear. She watched as the phone fell down the two flights of stairs and only had time to yell 'North staircase!' before the phone shattered into pieces on the cement.

Without wasting anymore time, she flew down the stairs, hoping Michelle had heard her. She burst through the door at the bottom of the staircase and looked around for any sight of Michelle. Hearing the footsteps of the two men behind her, she took off down the sidewalk. Tears that streamed down her cheeks went unnoticed by Serena as she tried to think of a place to hide.

She breezed around the corner only to come face-to-face with Chase and Mark. She stopped dead in her tracks, holding the girl's head tightly to her shoulder. She started to turn around and run the other way but the other men had caught up to her.

Chase sighed, and Serena couldn't help but note the irritated expression on his face. "If you come with us quietly, no harm will come to her." She saw him motion to the girl in her arms.

Serena glared at him through her tears, "Would you honestly hurt your own daughter?"

Chase blinked slowly and looked at her through narrowed eyes, "That's really up to you, isn't it?"

Serena briefly glanced down at the confused girl, thankful that she was too young to truly understand the words that were being spoken. She held the girl tighter as she tried to think of a way out. She and Chase stared at each other for what seemed like an eternity. The look in his eyes told her that he was daring her to try and run. Finally, seeing that she wasn't going to run, he pointed at the car that was parked on the street next to them and one of the men went to open the back door.

She took a quick glance around again, looking for an escape, but realized that they had formed a tight circle around her. She had no choice. She hesitantly climbed into the car in front of her. Her heart broke at the thought of the girl in her arms being in the hands of this monster. She had to find a way to get out - If not for her sake, then for her daughter's.

She lost track of how long they were driving. Chase was seated next to her and failed to start a conversation with her many times. He finally reached over and brushed some hair out of her face that had stuck to her dry tears. She jerked and glared at him, but she saw him look down at the girl in her arms and then look back up at her with a devilish smile plastered onto his face. She knew all too well what that look meant: 'Resist and suffer the consequences.' And what consequences would be greater than hurting her child?

They finally arrived at their destination and Chase took her roughly by the arm as he pulled her out of the car. She stumbled and her grip tightened on her daughter as she was about to fall. Before she could hit the ground, however, two arms encircled her gently and set her back on her feet. She looked up into Mark's eyes as he smiled at her.

Serena couldn't help but feel relieved by Mark's presence. Mark put his face in front of Ally's and started making funny faces, causing her to giggle. Serena smiled, despite her situation.

Mark smiled at Serena. "Well, fortunately for her, she got her looks from you."

Chase, however, was less than amused and shoved Mark aside as he grabbed onto Serena's arm again and pulled her along into the house. Well, house wasn't exactly what Serena would call it, as it was more like a large cabin. She looked around and noticed they were quite literally out in the middle of nowhere. She only hoped that the tracer she carried in her purse, hidden as an innocent pen, allowed Michelle to find her quickly. Serena knew that Chase wasn't going to waste any time trying to get her back like he did last time.

Now, his mission was to simply kill her in order to prevent her from testifying against him. He had promised her as much last time. Serena didn't care what happened to her as long as she knew her daughter was safe and she knew that wouldn't be possible until she got Ally as far away from Chase as possible. She took a deep breath, ready to hold on as long as she could until she found a way out. She HAD to find a way out. It wasn't only her life at risk now.

The inside was a little more hospitable than Serena thought it would be and she did her best to keep her feet underneath her as Chase dragged her along to a room in the middle of the cabin – She quickly noticed that there were no windows. Her hopes sank when she saw that the only way out of this room was the door and knew it was likely to have someone guarding it.

He shoved her in and she turned on the balls of her feet quickly so that she was the one that collided with the wall and not her daughter. Ally started crying by the sudden movement and Serena did what she could to quiet her.

Chase smiled at the little girl before looking to Mark, "Would you take care of my beautiful Alyson for a moment? Her mother and I need to… speak privately."

Serena's gut clenched and she locked her arms around Alyson's body. She was not going to let her baby out of her sight. Mark went to get her but Serena rotated her body so that he wouldn't get a good angle. "No! She's not leaving me!"

Chase calmly came over and kneeled next to her, running his hands through Alyson's strawberry blonde hair. "Now, Serena. You don't really want our little baby girl to witness your punishment do you?"

Serena glared at him, "Punishment? We both know you plan to kill me, Chase. You said so yourself."

Chase glanced back at Mark,"Nonsense. I only want to show you how much I have missed you." He took her arm and lifted her up. She resisted, but Mark was finally able to pry the girl from Serena's grasp.

"No, Alyson!" Serena went to lunge for her daughter but Chase wrapped a strong arm around her waist to prevent her from doing so.

"Don't worry, I'll make sure no harm comes to her." Mark tried to reassure her.

Serena snickered, "Just like you're making sure no harm comes to me!"

Mark looked ashamed for almost a minute before he backed out of the room and closed the door.

Serena tried to get away from Chase but his arm was firmly planted, preventing her from doing so. She rotated in his grasp to look up at him, tears welling up in her eyes. He was smiling down at her, almost lovingly. "You can do all you want to me, but Mark won't let you kill me."

Chase smirked, "Mark won't 'let'? My dear, dear Serena… Mark can't prevent me from doing anything." He pushed her onto the bed and kneeled down next to her on the mattress. "Don't worry, you won't die just yet." He put his hand on her leg and slowly slid it underneath her skirt. "I have missed you…"

Serena grunted in disgust and pushed his hand away only to have the back of his hand meet with her cheek. She let out a cry and put her hand up to cover her soon-to-be bruised skin as she looked back up at him.

"Remember what will happen if you refuse...?" Serena heard the innocent giggles of her little girl drift through the closed door.

If she didn't give in, he was implying that harm would come to her daughter. Whether or not he really would do anything to Alyson, she didn't know. What she did know, however, was that she couldn't risk her daughter on a 'maybe'. She put her hand back down to her side and turned her head towards the wall, "Get it over with."

She could see Chase grin and she flinched as he reached up to run the back of his fingers along the side of her cheek and down her neck. A tear slipped down her cheek as his other hand slipped under her skirt.

Serena didn't know how much time had passed, but when Chase was finally finished with her she found herself on the floor next to the bed, shirtless with her skirt pushed up to her waist. Her panties lay across the floor and her entire body felt like she had been hit by a train. She pulled her knees slowly to her chest, wincing at the pain in her hips.

Chase smiled down at her while he put his own clothes back on. When he was finished, he kneeled down and gently put a hand to her bare and bruised leg. "Now, I'll bring Alyson back in for you to say goodbye. Mark and I will be back for her just as soon as… well, as soon as you're taken care of."

She looked up at him for the first time, not caring if he saw her tear-stained face. "You would let her watch me be killed?"

Chase grinned, "What other way to come back in and be the savior? She's old enough to know good from bad. Don't worry, I will take care of her and love her."

Serena almost laughed, "Like you loved me?"

His grin only widened as he got up, "Get dressed. You don't want her to see you like that, do you?" He walked towards the fireplace and threw the used condom in the fire with the others before he left the room. After the door shut, Serena crawled towards her shirt and panties, despite every part of her body screaming at her not to move. After putting her clothes back on, she looked up to see Mark come in the room, carrying Alyson.

Serena let out a cry and reached for her, accepting Alyson into her arms and holding onto her tightly. She couldn't prevent the tears any longer and her back racked with quiet sobs.

Mark knelt down next to her, "Are you all right?" When she didn't respond, he sighed. "Look, Chase is just angry. You and your daughter will be fine so long as you cooperate." When she still remained unresponsive he got up, "I'll bring you both some food." He returned a few moments later, but quickly left again and shut the door.

When she was finally alone, Serena forced herself up, using the bed as support. She moved slowly to retrieve the bed cover that had been discarded onto the floor and put it back on the bed, covering up the evidence of what had happened. She gently laid Alyson down on the bed and brought the food over. Although she didn't feel like eating, she knew the only way she would be any use to her daughter is by staying strong.

Mark had brought bread, soup, and water for her and rice cereal for Alyson. She saw her daughter's violet-blue eyes light up at the sight of food and a grin spread across her face as she clapped her hands. After receiving the first round of cereal, Serena couldn't help but smile as she watched her daughter wiggle back and forth in anticipation for the next spoonful.

Only after Alyson was taken care of did she look after herself. Once she finished eating, Serena put the dishes to the side and took Alyson into her arms once again, kissing her forehead. Alyson reached up and gently stroked the newly formed bruise on Serena's cheek. Serena started to cry as Alyson extended her neck and placed a soft kiss on the bruise, copying what Serena did for her when she was hurt. Serena smiled down at her and realized that kissing it really did make the pain go away.

Her thoughts were interrupted by her daughters yawn, and Serena sniffed as she adjusted herself down on the bed and snuggled Alyson against her stomach. Although Serena would never be able to sleep herself, she gently hummed a soft melody and listened as Alyson's breathing evened out and she drifted peacefully to sleep.

Every time there was a sound outside of the door, Serena's body tensed. She didn't know how much time had passed before the door finally opened again. Chase, Mark, and a third man stepped into the room. Serena forced herself up, wincing at her body's resistance. She let Alyson remain sleeping on the bed as she faced the intruders.

Chase leaned down until his face was inches from hers, "Mark and I are going out for a bit…" He stole a glance at the third man standing against the wall and turned back to Serena, "He'll make sure you're… safe."

Serena internally screamed, knowing that Mark couldn't stop anything from happening if he wasn't nearby.

Chase brought his lips closer to her ears and whispered privately. "Don't worry, I will be back for her. And when she's all grown up, I'll make sure to tell her how wonderful her mother was." Chase smiled at her as he backed away, turning to look at the man leaning against the wall. "Make sure 'nothing' happens to her while we're gone."

Her heart was racing as she watched Mark and Chase leave the room. Serena suddenly rushed off the bed and towards the door, "MARK! Don't-" but her words were cut off as the man clamped a hand on her mouth and the door shut. The commotion caused Alyson to wake up and she started crying, upset that her nap had been interrupted.

The man threw Serena back towards the bed and she collected her crying daughter into her arms. She quickly retreated to the back of the room. The man simply watched her for a long time, probably waiting for Chase and Mark to get far enough away. Finally, after what seemed like forever, he started walking towards her. She held onto her daughter tightly as the man tried to rip her from Serena's arms, but in the end he succeeded and Serena cried out as she was taken from her. In the absence of her mother's arms, Alyson again started to cry.

She watched, holding her breath to make sure Alyson wasn't harmed. The second the man set her down in the large chair Serena jumped onto his back, clawing at his face. The man screamed and reached up to grab her arms as he was knocked off balance and they both went crashing to the floor. Serena did her best to ignore the pain that the fall caused on her already injured body and got to her feet quickly, smirking when she realized that she left four large, bleeding scratch marks on each side of the man's face.

He growled angrily and stormed towards her. Serena chucked the dishes at him, but he managed to dodge them, causing the dishes to shatter on the wall behind him instead. Serena tried to search out for other objects to throw, but she was finding it hard to focus when she desperately wanted to go console her crying daughter. She tried to swerve around him, but he grabbed her hair and shoved her against the wall.

His face was inches from hers, "The boss said to get rid of you, but he won't return for awhile… There's nothing stopping me from getting a little more pleasure out of this situation…"

Her eyes went wide as he grabbed her breast with his large hand and squeezed. With all of her strength she pushed against him, forcing him away from her and brought her knee up into his crotch. He backed away from her suddenly and bent over, shouting curses. Before she could get too far, however, he was back up and reaching for her. He grabbed her around the waist and threw her hard into the bookshelf.

Serena watched in horror as the bookshelf toppled over and rotated as it hit the back of the chair and landed directly on top of it. Her daughter's cries stopped immediately.

"NOO!" She choked a sob as she reached for the nearby lamp and swung it at the man's head, pulling the plug from the socket roughly and knocking the man off of his feet. Serena ran to the chair. With all of the strength she had left, she hoisted the bookshelf up and pulled the limp body of her daughter out.

She started crying out of relief when she realized her daughter was still breathing, Serena stole a glance at the man groaning on the floor before she ran to the door. The rest of the cabin was empty and she dashed to the front door when she heard cars drive towards the cabin. She looked out the window and saw Michelle get out of a car and run towards the house. She noticed the other cars in the driveway as well, but then Serena saw the only thing that gave her any hope.

Serena cried loudly as she fled the house and ran towards the ambulance.

"Serena! We tracked you through the-" Michelle called out, but she went ignored as Serena ran past her.

"My baby! Please, my baby!" Serena could barely get the words out between her tears as two paramedics rushed forward and took Alyson from her arms. They placed her on the stretcher and Michelle started to look after Serena's wounds.

"Are you all right?"

Serena didn't respond, however. All she could do was watch the paramedics as they rushed around trying to rescue her daughter.

She saw one of the paramedics shoulders sag as he stopped the efforts of the other and looked towards Michelle and sighed. He then looked Serena in the eyes and she stared at him, shaking her head. "No, no, no, no, no…" She backed away from Michelle's grasp and into the side of one of the parked cars. One arm went around her stomach while the other went to her chest, over her breaking heart. Her knees buckled and she screamed as she sank to the ground, never taking her eyes off of her daughter's lifeless body.

~*.*~

Serena didn't know how long she had been sitting there, staring at nothing, but she stirred when Amara put her hand on her leg. She blinked and realized she had been crying.

"Serena, I'm so sorry for bringing this up… but you need to come with me tomorrow so that we can be in court for the hearing first thing Monday."

She looked over at Amara and nodded slowly.

"Are you going to be okay…?"

Serena tried to blink back more tears that were threatening to fall as she stood. "I'll be fine. I just want to be alone right now."

Amara watched her for a moment longer before nodding and walking to the door. She turned back and reached out to take Serena in her arms. "I'll be back tomorrow around Noon to take you to the airport."

Serena sniffed and nodded as she watched Amara leave. She shut the door and locked it, leaning against it for support as she sobbed quietly. After a moment, she walked towards the bedroom and dropped to her knees next to the bed. She leaned forward and grabbed at the box she had hidden underneath, her fingernails clawing to pull it out. She finally succeeded and opened it.

Inside of this box is where she kept the things from her past that she couldn't part with. On top of everything lay her daughter's stuffed bear. She picked it up, holding it tightly as she let out a hopeless wail and collapsed onto the floor. For a year she had tried to be strong and bottle up the pain she was feeling. She couldn't hold back the tears any longer.

Can I cry about my own story?

Please review… Remember that Emotions Law I've been mentioning?

I desperately want to know what you all thought.