Safe

Ty parked his truck in front of the barn.

"Sarah can you wait in the truck? I'll be back in a bit," asked Ty as he got out.

"Yeah sure no problem," responded Sarah.

Ty walked towards the house. He wanted to tell Amy everything, but was afraid of the consequences. Having Sarah at his trailer was risky as it was for him and if Amy or anyone else he cared about knew what was going they would be in danger too and he couldn't risk that. He needed to talk to Jack to figure out what to do.

Ty opened the door and walked in.

"Hey Jack," said Ty as he entered the kitchen.

"Ty. How are you doing? Do you want a cup of coffee? I just made a fresh pot," asked Jack as he poured himself a cup.

"I'm okay thanks," said Ty as he sat down.

"So about yesterday. Do you still need to talk to me because I'm all ears," said Jack as he sat down.

"Actually that's why I'm here. I can't tell you all the details, so I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't ask me to tell you more than I can," said Ty as he nervously played with his hands.

"Okay. I won't," responded Jack as he looked at Ty with concern.

"Okay well I have a friend from when I was a kid. We were real close and we sort of grew up together. Anyway she's in a little trouble right now, and I'm helping her out. And I can't really tell Amy what's going on. I don't want Amy to think I don't trust her, but it's just… it's better if she doesn't know. I just don't know what to do," said Ty.

"Keeping secrets from the people we love never ends well Ty, but if you have a good reason for thinking its better she not know then go with your gut. I know you love her and you would never put her in a dangerous situation. But maybe you should just tell her what you told me. She seemed pretty upset last night at dinner and I'm betting it had something to do with you," said Jack.

Ty looked down at his hands unsure of what to do. He never wanted to upset Amy. "Maybe letting her in a little bit would help her understand," Ty thought to himself.

"Is Amy in her room?" asked Ty.

"Yeah I think she's still sleeping," responded Jack as he took a sip of his coffee.

Ty decided he would talk to Amy and got up.

"Ty. Whatever trouble your friends in … just be careful. You've worked hard to get where you are. I'd hate to see it all go away," said Jack.

Ty smiled "Thanks Jack."

He walked towards Amy room and slowly opened the door. As he watched Amy sleep it felt like all his problems went away, and it was just him and Amy in this crazy world. He sat down on the side of the bed and gently rubbed her cheek with the back of his hand.

Amy felt something warm and soft on her face. She slowly opened her eyes to Ty's smile, the one he saved only for her.

"Hey," said Amy with a smile.

"Hey sleepyhead," responded Ty.

"What time is it?" asked Amy.

"It's early. I have to head to the clinic soon, but I wanted to talk to you first," said Ty.

Amy sat up on her bed. The previous days feeling of distress came rushing back to her as she waited for Ty to explain himself.

"I'm sorry for how I reacted yesterday at Maggies," began Ty.

"Does that mean you can tell me what's going on?" asked Amy sternly.

"I really wish I could. I do. I hate keeping you in the dark," said Ty.

"Then don't Ty. Just tell me," said Amy as she began to feel annoyed at Ty refusing to tell her what was going on.

"Amy. I need you to understand something. Sarah has been my friend since we were kids. I used to spend a lot of time at her house when things got rough at mine. Her and her family gave me the few good memories I have of my childhood, and I'll always be grateful for that. We haven't seen each other since I went to jail, but she's in trouble right now and I have to help her. I don't know for how long, but I can't tell you any more than that," said Ty.

"But why can't you tell me more?" asked Amy.

"It's just better if you don't know," said Ty as he looked into Amy's beautiful blue eyes.

Ty could tell Amy wasn't satisfied with his answer, so he took Amy's hands and put them in his.

"Amy I need you to trust me. Can you do that?" asked Ty.

Amy looked into Ty's green eyes. She could see that it was hurting Ty to not be able to tell her.

"Okay Ty," said Amy.

Ty kissed Amy on the forehead, as he got up.

"Um Amy can I ask you a favor?" asked Ty.

"Sure," responded Amy.

"I have to go to the clinic and it's just better for Sarah to not be alone right now. Do you think she can stay here? Just until I'm done with my shift," asked Ty.

"Yeah of course. I'd love to hear embarrassing childhood stories about you," said Amy with a laugh.

"Oh no. Maybe I should just bring her with me," said Ty playfully.

"No she's staying here. She can help me work with the horses," said Amy with a smile.

"Okay. If um anything happens call me right away. I can leave in the middle of my shift," said Ty firmly.

"Okay. We'll be fine. Tell her to meet me in the kitchen. I'll be out soon," said Amy.

"Okay. Thank you Amy," said Ty as he left.

Amy watched as Ty shut the door to her room. She lied back down and stared up at the ceiling. She knew she had to trust Ty, but she had a bad feeling. "Why was he so scared of something going wrong?" she asked herself. She was scared that helping Sarah was putting Ty at risk, and that was something she was not okay with. She knew there was no talking Ty out of helping Sarah, but she just wish she knew the whole story so she wouldn't be left with her imagination playing out all the worst case scenarios. Amy got up to get ready for the day.

Ty walked out to his truck and got in.

"Okay, so you can stay here while I go to work," said Ty as he looked at Sarah.

"Are you sure Ty?" asked Sarah.

"Yeah. You'll be safe here," said Ty.

"I don't want to put Amy or her family at risk though," said Sarah.

"Everything should be fine, but just in case don't hesitate to call me," said Ty.

"Okay. Thank you Ty for doing this for me," said Sarah as she got out of the truck.

"No problem. Amy should be in the kitchen. Oh yeah and one more thing," said Ty.

"What?" asked Sarah.

"I hope you like horses."