Santana was drunk. And crying. The events of the past few days finally hit her with their full force and she was overwhelmed. Her mind was overrun with hatred for Jesse, mixed feelings for Claire, and overall confusion. The only thing keeping her from hunting down Jesse and shooting him in the middle of the night was knowing she needed to stay at the house with Claire, especially while she was thinking over everything Santana had said.

Claire allowed Rachel to help her sit up, groaning as she did so. The pain in her back was excruciating, but not as terrible as it was before. Rachel shook her head as she noticed the other girl's look of pain.

"Mike, Tina, Mercedes, and I have been talking. We're going to help you get out of here." The shorter of the two said quietly, even though they both knew Santana was the whole way in the house and nowhere near the cabin. Claire looked towards her in surprise.

"I don't think I'm in any position to try escaping." Claire replied.

"I mean when you're healed." Rachel said as she gently wiped at the wounds on Claire's back with a wet cloth. The girl whimpered in pain at the contact and her hands gripped the sheets beneath her.

"I think she's sorry." Claire mentioned quietly. Rachel frowned as she continued to clean the deep lashes.

"I doubt it. Miss Santana isn't exactly the most caring of people." Rachel said, wringing out the cloth she was using and wetting it again.

"She came out to see me." Claire found herself saying. Rachel's eyebrow rose and she shook her head.

"Probably just to make sure you hadn't died and she didn't need to run out and buy another slave." Rachel replied bitterly. Claire fell silent and didn't say anything else.

Santana waited until sundown to venture back out to the cabin. Once again, her other slaves gave her wary eyes as they made way for her. She sighed before entering the cabin with a glass of water and a plate of food in hand.

"Thanks." Claire said quietly as Santana set her dinner down beside her. She couldn't bring herself to make eye contact with the Latina.

"You're welcome. I wanted to ask you something." Claire felt her heart speed up as the other girl said this and she attempted to hide it by taking a bite of her food.

"While you're healing, I was wondering if you would stay in the house? It'll be easier for me to make sure you're alright and you won't have to worry about getting dirt in the wounds." Santana suggested carefully. Quinn had said it would be hard for Claire to just up and change her lifestyle and this seemed like a good way to ease her into it.

"Alright." Claire nodded, finally looking up at Santana. The Latina felt her heart skip a beat as they made eye contact and Claire's vibrant eyes bore into her's.

Santana waited for Claire to finish her meal before wrapping an arm around her and helping her to stand. She shivered at the contact as she escorted the girl across the lawn, towards her estate. The other slaves watched them quizzically as they made their way into the house.

Claire felt memories rush back into her head as Santana helped her through the kitchen. She couldn't help but remember the way Santana had come up behind her and the way her hands felt when they rested on her's. Claire shook the memories from her head as they came to the staircase and pain ripped through her back when they started to ascend the steps.

Santana felt her stomach lurch when Claire whimpered in pain. She secured her grip on the other girl and practically carried her to the top of the staircase. When she reached the landing, Claire was panting her face was contorted with pain. Santana gently led her into one of her guest rooms and helped her to sit down on the freshly made bed.

"Are you alright?" Santana asked, noticing that Claire was still breathing pretty heavily.

"I'll be fine." Claire answered, running her fingers through her dark hair. Santana nodded and started towards the door.

"Well…let me know if you need anything." The Latina said as she started to close the door behind her.

"Thank you for this." Claire said just as Santana had nearly shut the door. The other girl nodded at her and gave her a sort of half smile before leaving.

So….my life has been kind of upside down lately. I'm reallyyyyy sorry for not updating sooner. Reviews?