Shilo felt her world come crashing down suddenly. The weight of the secrets he'd kept from her felt as if they were crushing her from the inside out.
Crying, she threw the files down and ran up the stairs, feeling herself growing sick.
She ran into Graverobber.
"Shi-" he began, knowing she found out.
"Don't. Don't even!" Shilo cried, pushing him away from her.
"I was going to tell you. Tonight, I was going to tell you," he said, following her up the stairs.
"Bullshit," Shilo laughed ruefully, turning to face him.
"You're a liar. You're no better than the people you condemn for Repos. No better. Heh. I actually thought you were the -one- decent person in this hellhole. Wrong, as usual. I'm an idiot. This…whatever this was- was a beautiful lie. Lemme guess- show the poor little girl some kindness, get her guard down, work your way under her skin and fuck her. Just to hide your secret," she said.
Graverobber's eyes darkened with rage.
"You honestly believe that? That I'd do something like that, Shilo?" he asked, his voice deadly.
Shilo scoffed and walked down the stairs, face to face with him.
Eyes swimming with unshed tears, she drew her hand back and slapped him with all her strength.
The sound of her palm connecting with his face triggered the tears to fall for Shilo- tears of anger and sadness. All the lies- everyone protecting her with lies.
She began to hit him again, over and over, crying and screaming.
"GET OUT!" she screamed, hitting and pushing him to the door. His pleas for her to listen were lost in her screams and the sounds of her fists on his chest.
She had pushed him out of the door and locked it, falling down and sobbing.
He pounded on the door, screaming her name and begging her to listen.
He heart nothing but the sound of her tears.
Graverobber sighed heavily, a lump forming in his throat. He fought his own tears as he simply stared at the door.
When the first tear had fallen, he simply walked away. He'd had the world in his hands and threw it away to cover up a past he never wanted to remember.
As he walked through the streets, not really knowing or caring where he was going, he could hear Amber's voice singing:
"Graverobber. Graverobber. I think I found out why I ever bothered."
Naomi flopped down on the bed, face down. She'd been exhausted. Amber seemed to have gone into overdrive with the Repo's and it didn't bode well. She knew Amber had a plan of something.
After hours of talking to her contacts in GeneCo, she'd gotten somewhere. But not where she wanted.
Groaning as she heard the chimes, she rose and went to answer the door.
"I got it, love. You just relax," Tarja called, running to the door.
Tarja opened the door and saw Graverobber- more accurately, the look on his face.
"Oh, God," Tarja sighed, hugging him. She knew from the look on his face what had happened and didn't press him any further.
Graverobber broke away from the hug and sat on the couch, his face in his hands.
Naomi walked out of the bedroom and saw Graverobber. She cast a questioning look at Tarja. Tarja shook her head and she understood.
"Amber beat me to it," he said after sitting in an hour of silence.
"What! How?" Tarja asked, shocked.
"She kept paper files. That's what the big meeting was. He wanted to give Shilo those fucking files so Shilo would be able to get into Nathan's safe."
"That fucking bitch," Tarja said, standing up and beginning to pace the room. This had been yet another betrayal by Amb- Carmela. All she knew was betrayal.
"Tarja, calm down," Naomi said. She'd known Tarja long enough to know when she would begin to explode.
Tarja stopped, leaning against the wall, clenching her fists. She hated seeing Graverobber hurt like this. She hated seeing Naomi frustrated with not knowing what to do. And Shilo- a little girl who was all alone right now- not when she should be.
"I'm going to go talk to Shilo," Tarja said.
"Don't. Please. It'll…I don't know. I just-" Graverobber started.
Tarja interrupted. "Too bad. She may be stubborn, but I can test the patience of angels. I'll be back later."
Tarja had listened to Graverobber's directions. She was slightly startled how close Shilo lived to her old home. It had always been an area of sadness for her- Genterns and SurGens tended to live in this area, along with the doctors on GeneCo's staff. Then again, knowing Nathan, it made perfect sense for him to live here.
She walked quickly up the steps, knocking on the door.
"Shilo? It's Tarja. Are you home?" she called through the door.
Silence.
Tarja waited, tapping her boot against the steps. She felt something was wrong. She knew Shilo was a bit of a homebody, but still. She tried the door, only to find it locked.
Tarja sighed.
"Ah. Well, Tabbi. Looks like you're coming out of retirement," Tarja said as she gathered her lock pick kit from her bag.
It took her a few tries, having not used her kit in ages. But it was like riding a bike- you never forget.
The door opened and Tarja was struck by how…cold the environment seemed. It seemed dominated by the past- Shilo's past.
She walked in, calling Shilo's name as she closed the door.
Tarja noticed the book of poetry she had given Graverobber on a coffee table. She smiled. She figured he'd given it to Shilo. Probably the closest thing he ever had to him and he found courage to give it to another.
"Shilo? It's Tarja. Where are you?" she called again. Tarja noticed a small line of light from a room upstairs. Tarja walked up the stairs to the door.
"Shilo?" she asked, gently knocking on the door.
After minutes of no response, she opened the door.
Tarja, felt a scream build up in her, but held it back.
Shilo's arms were covered in blood and cuts, some still bleeding.
"Oh my God..." Tarja whispered.
She ran over to Shilo, grabbing th scalpel from her hand and throwing it across the room.
"Shilo. Shilo, wake up," Tarja said, her voice filling with tears as she shook Shilo. She put her head to Shilo's chest, slightly relieved with the beat of the young girl's heart.
She grabbed her wrist phone and called Naomi. Tarja knew she couldn't leave Shilo here, but she didn't have the strength to carry her to the safehouse.
"Hey. Is she okay?" Naomi asked.
"No. I need Graverobber here now. She's hurt. Badly," Tarja said.
"I'll be there in ten minutes," Graverobber spoke into the phone.
Tarja looked at the wounds on Shilo's arms, crying. She gently put her down and went to the bathroom to find something to bind her arms.
"Shilo," Tarja whispered. "What happened, honey?"
Shilo's eyes fluttered open.
"He lied. Everyone lies," she whispered.
"Sweetie...everyone does lie. I know. But sometimes it's to protect who we love," Tarja said, wrapping Shilo's arms with the bandages.
"It doesn't matter," Shilo whispered before sleeping. Tarja's tears fell freely, waiting for Graverobber to help.
She was weightless. She was a ghost and a shadow and nothing at all. There was no pain here. There were no lies.
But it was cold. It was dark and light. Everything and nothing. This must've been what Hell was like.
She heard voices. Tarja's and Graverobber's. Shilo felt Graverobber lift her over his shoulders as if she weighed nothing.
But the lies...they weighed her down. It seemed the only way for her to be free of them was to bleed them out, one by one. Cut by cut.
She felt herself being placed gently on a bed, a hand holding hers. It had to be Graverobber's- she'd come to know the feel of it.
Shilo whimpered as the bandages were taken off, exposing her scarred and bloody arms to the air. The pain hit her in the bottom of her heart as she felt Graverobber squeeze her hand. Shilo could hear him choke back tears.
"Shilo?" a voice said.
"Hm?" She had no strength to reply in words.
"It's Naomi. Tarja found you at home and brought you back here. You're cut up badly, and I'm going to give you stitches. You're going to feel some pokes because I'm going to numb it, all right?" Naomi said softly.
Shilo laughed softly.
"It can't be numbed," she said softly.
"Graverobber, I need you to keep her awake, okay? I don't know how much blood she's lost and she needs to stay conscious for as long as she can," Naomi said.
Graverobber nodded, his sadness being replaced with a deep stoicism.
"I don't want him here," Shilo said.
"Shilo-" Graverobber began.
"I don't want you here," she enunciated, taking her hand away from his, wincing as her cuts shifted in the air.
Tarja looked at Graverobber, nodding slowly.
"We're not done here, Shilo. Not done at all," Graverobber said as he left the room, slamming the door.
Amber smiled in her office, leaning back in her chair with her feet on the table.
It was coming together as she'd plan.
Looking to the secret room with the remains of her parents, she smiled broadly.
"It's coming together, Momma. Soon."