The house was quiet as they slept, still and warm. The refrigerator's hum was low and muffled behind the bedroom door, the wind sighed, the heater clicked as it turned on. Lyla laid on her side with her head tucked under Tim's chin, an arm slung over his waist, eyes reluctantly opening as a foreign sound rang through their peace.
"Is that my phone?" She felt his hum vibrate against the top of her head and she sighed deeply at his arm slipping from around her shoulders.
Tim watched her roll over and sit up, hearing her release a breath as she held a hand to the side she'd laid on. "Told you you'd regret it," he said pushing her the rest of the way up before he moved to grab her pants off the floor to hand her the phone; Ava "You sure that's a good idea?" he asked knowin' it wasn't, not when Bo wanted her dead.
Without regard to his warning, or her unhappiness at the prospect of leaving, she answered with a quiet hello.
Tim lay beside where she sat unable to make out the faint murmuring of Ava's voice. There were several things he didn't like about the current situation; that Lyla was probably gonna leave, cause while he knew she'd hurt he enjoyed the hell outta feelin' her against him. And then there was the overwhelming need to take the phone from her and hang up, knowin' she was digging herself into a bigger hole by helping Ava Crowder.
"Wouldn't call him mine, but yeah I'm with him," Lyla answered, hearing Ava's disheartened apology for ruinin' their night. "We were sleepin' you didn't ruin anything. Where are you?"
With a sigh Tim rolled off the bed and grabbed Lyla's pants. While he missed the sight, and feel, of her long legs he couldn't deny how well her ass filled a pair of sweatpants.
Lyla looked after him as he left the room, wonderin' what he was doing. "D'you really think I'd be at Mike's bar at midnight?" she asked Ava.
"I don't know," Ava said pitifully. "I certainly didn't expect to see Raylan's ex-wife leavin' his room."
Lyla sat not knowing how to respond to that. "I'm sorry," she said lamely with a shrug. She looked up to see Tim walking back around the bed with her shoes; they were technically slippers, and normally she wouldn't be caught dead outside the house in black slip ons and sweatpants and no bra but gettin' dressed proved difficult. "Give me ten minutes, you can follow me to Mack's house," she said, barely hearing Ava's words of thanks as Tim stared up at her from where he knelt on the floor. "Am I allowed to say I don't wanna go?" she asked after hanging up.
"Only if you're gonna stay," he answered knowin' she cared about Ava too much to leave her hanging. So he climbed to his feet and walked her to the door. "Drive safe, don't take another pill til your home."
She leaned against the doorframe looking at him feigning irritation. "Want me to call when I get there, so you know I'm safe?"
His smile was small as he gave a brief nod. "You're just not worth wakin' up at three in the morning," he said in return making her laugh.
She was reluctant in leaving, slowly stepping into the cool night air as Tim stood in the doorway seein' she got to her car. It was the strength of the pull she felt to go back to his bed that spurred her on, stealing her smile, quickening her pace fore she changed her mind; it was unnerving how used to him she was, how comfortable he made her. And she didn't like it, not a bit. She lit a cigarette to calm her shaken nerves, her first since her ribs were broken, and though it hurt like hell to breathe in she sighed at the relief of the nicotine feelin' herself unwind as she drove in the silent night.
She pulled into the parking lot of the bar and idled beside Ava, who sat lovely and sad in Bowman's old truck. "You sure you're alright?" she asked seein' Ava's reddened eyes.
"You sure you don't like your Marshal?" Ava asked in turn, neither woman wantin' to admit what the other knew.
Lyla shrugged throwing the remainder of her cig out of the window, watching the orange glow of the ashes before they burned out. "Guess I gotta try harder not to," she said with a wry grin, tryin' to fool herself into thinkin' it was that easy or that she had any control over it.
And with that she drove away, waitin' at the edge of the street for Ava to put her truck in drive and follow after. She kept her window down enjoyin' the biting breeze as it ruffled her hair and pierced her skin, enough cold to keep her awake for the next two and a half hours; the cold was also good to clear her mind, whisper sense in her ear. With her daddy alive and free there weren't a chance of gettin' attached to Tim - it was damn near a miracle she'd kept her daddy from killin' Jimmy all these years, and if Boyd hadn't taken Devil he'd surely be dead. Her daddy hated anything, 'specially anyone, who took his girl from him. Lord if he'd seen her tonight.
By the time she pulled into Mack's driveway she was in the mind to stay away from Lexington, she'd talk her daddy back round her finger, stay away from Tim and Raylan and Boyd and Ava, she'd be the good girl he expected outta her; no one would die cause of her, 'least Tim wouldn't cause he was the only one in danger of that, and her daddy wouldn't hurt her again cause she'd be safely tucked away in his pocket.
"That's your thinkin' face," Ava said when she climbed out of the truck to see Lyla in the moonlight, her dark brows drawn together her full mouth frowning. "It's okay to like him," Ava tried assurin' her, having seen a similar look when she'd broken things off with Jimmy, and every time she rebuffed Devil's advances. Only Ava hadn't heard half the warmth in Lyla's voice with those boys as she had tonight over the phone, Lyla was quite fond of the Marshal.
But Lyla shook her head as she walked to the door, seein' a familiar truck parked across the street with a man inside who was on the phone with her daddy. She didn't think the night could've gotten worse. "As long as my daddy's here it ain't okay. It's a dangerous thing to be the object of my affection."
Several minutes later the two girls lay side by side in the bedroom bathed in the glow of the television through the open door, hearing the sound of a sitcom's laughing track and Mack occasionally give a wet cough. Lyla laid in the quiet feeling like she'd made a mistake leavin' Tim to bring Ava here. Boyd was plannin' something big enough he wanted Lyla outta Harlan, Raylan had stupidly told her daddy they were on speakin' terms, and now Lyla was helpin' Ava behind her daddy's back. Her life was a powder keg and time was a match. And somethin' was bound to blow in her face.
…
At seven thirty Bo woke to find a plate made, a casserole with eggs and ham and cheese, a cup of coffee and a note sayin' she'd gone to work early and took the rest of the casserole with her. Lyla had made the casserole at Mack's, fed Ava and herself, taken some to Bo and made it to the store by seven to set the pan in the heated display case. And for the next hour she answered, 'how much for the casserole' with it's on the house, or smiled as someone who'd been comin' there for years exclaimed that it'd been awhile since last she served her food. By eight the large pan was empty and she set it in the back to take home after work, checking her watch so often it seemed time had decided to slow just to spite her.
But ten finally came around and she left Jimmy, who'd insisted on bein' there everyday to make sure no one bothered her, to man the store while she stepped out back with a cigarette impatiently waitin' for her phone to ring. "Tell me you're still gettin' out next week," she said forgoin' hello.
Devil smiled as he leaned against the wall glad to hear her voice. "You still gonna pick me up or you gonna leave me like you did last weekend? You know I waited the whole damn day for 'em to call my name." He had half a mind to be pissed she hadn't visited, but she'd answered the phone soundin' all sorts of desperate.
"You'll get why I didn't come when you see me," she told him taking a small drag on her cig. "If you see me. Lord knows Boyd's doin' everything he can to get me killed; literally, the lord. I swear I'm the only who got any sense in this family."
"Yeah I was with him when he started that preachin' shit, guess he's still on it," he said though it wasn't Boyd on his mind. "How bad are things?"
She shrugged out of habit, taking a deeper drag not carin' that it made her chest tight. "I'll put it this way, I'm considering goin' to Raylan for protection."
"Shit, the cowboy Marshal," he muttered as he thought of what all that meant. "You gotta have a plan if you go to him, and not you wingin' it. Your daddy ain't takin' you back, it'll be his head or yours."
"I know," she told him with a heavy sigh, wondering when her life had come to this. She stood and walked around the building, smartly bein' paranoid her daddy had someone on her - there wasn't anyone there, but it still made her nervous. "I'll keep bein' subtle maybe something'll stick. My Marshal told me they got their sights set on him and a plan's in place."
"That's real vague," Devil said knowin' she was choosing her words carefully in case anyone happened to be listening.
With a smile she dropped the cigarette and crushed it under the toe of her boot. "He might've been breakin' the law tellin' me that much." She sighed at thought of Tim, having successfully shoved all inkling of him far in the back of her mind outta reach; now there he was front and center. "Tell me I'm an idiot."
Without pause Devil replied; "you're an idiot for thinkin' of falling for him." It was the god honest truth, and he graciously left out the rest of it - the Marshal wouldn't let himself fall for her, the cloth he was cut from was too good. And she knew that, Devil heard it in her voice. "Babe I know you want more. He ain't all that's out there."
She stood quietly holding the phone to her ear wishin' things were different, wishin' she hadn't been so foolish with Tim. "That was real deep," she said hearing the breath of his laugh and also knowing his mouth quickly fell in a straight line cause he was serious, and she now feelin' pressure swell behind her eyes. "Well I won't waste anymore of your minutes," she said as though she didn't know he paid only to call her. "And I miss you greatly, Derek Lennox." With that she hung up, not having the energy to deal with feeling anything else. She cleared her throat squared her shoulders and walked back into the store to finish for the day before goin' home to make dinner.
…
Bo left Johnny's bar with the specific intent on talkin' to his daughter, who he was comin' precariously close to bein' suspicious of. Her cooking didn't soften him, her pretty smile and her kiss to his cheek did nothin' for him; she could fool the devil if need be, make him believe what he knew to be true was a lie. "How many times have I told you to stay away from that girl?" he demanded quietly as he stood against the counter, seein' the moment her spine stiffened. "For the life of me I can't understand why you insist on disobeyin' me."
"She needed a place to stay, daddy. That's all." Her voice died in her throat when he raised his hand to silence her, hating more than anything his silent rage and she was seein' now he was so very angry.
With a rueful smile he shook his head. "Darlin, I wish I could believe you," he told her carving regret into his voice to drive home the words he'd say; she'd long past the time to talk her way back to good graces. "But you've done just about everything in your power to make it so I can't. Boyd ain't gonna save you, Ava don't understand the hot water she's put you in, and Raylan is usin' you to get me and your brother behind bars. For twenty-six years I've been protectin' you, and you tossed me aside for people who don't love you as I do. You know how this ends," he told her with a serious morbidity. "Baby you know everything I've done, you know I can't let you walk away. Not when you'd use my transgressions to your own benefit."
She stared up at him finding it hard to catch her breath, knowing he was gonna leave her a choice. The problem wasn't her loyalty, she'd been fakin' it for thirteen years. The problem was Boyd; he wasn't in the right mind to see everything he did fell back on her. And she knew he was planning something big, big enough he suggested goin' to Raylan. She could convince her daddy she was wholeheartedly his but the moment Boyd's planned came through her daddy would be back at her throat; there was no way for her to win. She wasn't talkin' her way outta this.
He stepped closer reaching his hands to cup her face, seeing her flinch in the way she blinked; he hated when she was afraid of him, she used to think the world of him, but it was the only thing that worked with her. "You got til tomorrow night to convince me I can trust you, or to get yourself outta Harlan. Now, what's for dinner?"
…
Raylan returned to his motel tired and upset. He was not only workin' with his daddy but he'd ruined any chance he had with Ava and she'd sent him on his way without a kind word. He wanted a drink and he wanted to go to bed, and yet the day just kept dragging on. "How are you, Lyla Jo?" he sighed sittin' beside her on the curb outside his room.
She looked at the bottle in his hand before turning her eyes to his. "Bout as good as you seem to be doin."
He gave a bitter smile before taking a long swig and passing it, knowing exactly how they looked sittin in the dark past eleven drinkin' bourbon from the bottle. "Is that my fault?" he asked brushing his hand against her bruised cheek.
"So's this," she said pulling the left sleeve of her shirt back to show him the scabbed bruise on her shoulder. "And my ribs but I don't feel like goin' there right now."
With a nod he took the bottle back, grimacing as he swallowed. "I see why Tim was so short with me a few days ago. I don't know if you've realized, but he's grown quite fond of you."
She stared at the stars for several quiet moments, watching their twinkling dance feeling so temporary. "I don't see that sticking," she said causing him to turn to her with brows furrowed in wondering.
"Don't sell yourself short," Raylan told her brushing the hair out of her face. "You're still a good kid."
Her mouth might've smiled but her eyes were heavily weighted by a painful truth. "You were the only one who ever thought that," she told him solemnly, watching him look away as he took another drink. "I'm a liar, a manipulator, a murderer," she watched him nearly wince, "tell me those aren't the reasons you want Boyd in prison." She waited for him to deny it, he turned to her like he wanted to but he shook his head and looked away. "I know what I'm worth, Raylan. You and Tim'll both see it."
"Why are you tellin' me this?" he asked finally speaking. "What in god's name could you possibly be hoping to get out of it? You have to know I'm now gonna start lookin' for evidence against you."
"Stop actin' like this was unexpected," she said raising her voice to match his.
"How is this my fault?" he asked hearing blame in her voice.
She laughed bitterly. "It ain't a surprise, Raylan. You knew exactly what life I was bein' raised into."
He took a drink as she spoke and before he replied he took another, and it was clouding his now aching head. "I can assure you I haven't the slightest idea what you're talkin' about."
Several moments she stared at him seein' the anger and stubbornness in his eye. "You left me," she yelled, her voice ripping through the otherwise quiet night leaving them both stunned. At the sight of his pained face she took the bottle from him and drank like she'd gone days without water.
She was right, he didn't like admitting that but she was right. He knew twenty years ago what he was leavin' her to, knew it enough he'd considered goin' back for her; but he kept driving. She was now angry and hateful, all mostly at herself. And that's why she ruined every good thing that came her way. He'd left her to become him. "What d'you want?" He might've given her anything in that moment, but she shrugged suddenly feelin' so exhausted.
"I don't want this particular life but there ain't nothin' you can do about it now," she said watchin' him nod in understanding. "Guess I just wanna place to stay. My daddy kicked me outta Harlan."
"Is it that bad?" he asked knowin' it had to be if she wasn't allowed back home, or that she'd come to him.
"He knows my only loyalty's to Boyd," she said and Raylan nodded knowin' that was true. "He also knows the only person in the world who'd make me question that loyalty is you." The corner of her mouth curled at the height his brows rose to. "And then you decided to tell him we were on speakin' terms, so now I'm not only bein' blamed for Boyd's actions I'm takin' the fall for yours as well."
He sat uncomfortably staring at the gravel with her being right, again. He hadn't given much thought to puttin' her danger; hadn't honestly thought it'd come to that, she was Bo's favorite. Raylan hadn't considered that bein' the problem, any betrayal from Lyla was the absolute worst and Bo had made sure to hurt her as much she'd hurt him. With a sigh Raylan stood pullin' her up with him, standing with a hand around her back staring down at her pretty face. "One foot wrong and I'll be buildin' a file on you too," he warned watchin' a wry smile curl on her mouth.
"My daddy don't want me anymore, I got no need for trouble."
He appraised her serious face looking for any sign her words had a double edge, that she was tryin' to fool him in some way. And whether Art was right in his bein' blind when it came to her or he simply believed she was sincere, he nodded and said; "Come on, I won't make you sleep outside."
She followed him into the room, brushed his hands away when he tried to see the damage 'neath her shirt, and convinced him to lay next to her on the bed rather than on the floor. She wasn't off the hook, it wouldn't be that easy. She was smart enough to know Raylan would be watchin' her closer now, depending of course on her daddy bein' dealt with fore he killed her.
So I'm almost done with season 1, this was the end of episode 12 and now I'm onto the finale. It took longer than I'd anticipated to flesh Lyla out and show her preexisting relationships as well as her new ones, which I hope didn't drag on as much as I felt like it did. I'm hoping season 2 doesn't take as much time, I have it mapped out by episode and she won't be in all of them, and there's really only a few scenes that' take a whole chapter to enact - but most of it will probably be her and Tim getting to the point of 'where is this going, and do I want it to go there.' I'll also be delving into Tim's PTSD a bit, so if anyone has suggestions about how they think he would be (since the show's given us next to nothing) I'd be much obliged for the advice.