Pay the Price

Disclaimer: I own nothing

A/N:


Chapter 20 (Strength means Surviving)

Seated in Tori's hospital room, Trina had her elbows bent on her knees and her chin perched onto folded hands. Her eyes focused on her sister's form and she watched every slow breath.

Doctors said the night before that Tori had become responsive. For Trina, it was emotional, happy news, but she didn't know how to explain all that had gone on. She wasn't even sure what to say when the girl woke up. Chances were likely Tori would want to know where her friends were, she'd want to know where their parents were and everything that transpired.

When Trina arrived, the sun had been glaring through the window, so she closed the curtains to shield a little of the light as she strangely wanted Tori to have her sleep. Even now, she didn't want Tori to wake up and see the tears streaming down her face, it was almost too much

Beside her, Jason was asleep as well, having been up most of the night with her. She'd been unable to sleep, her thoughts too focused on everything that happened and with her aunt and uncle flying in to see them.

It was difficult to feel like a hero, knowing that all Tori's friends still suffered and would continue to suffer. Even more, how could she feel heroic knowing that when she left for Texas, she'd have to take Tori with her?

The door opened slowly and Trina looked up to see a man and a woman entering. The man was tall, had wavy brown hair parted on the left while the woman stood at his shoulders with straight brown hair whose tips kissed the very top of her shoulders.

"Hey dude," The man said, trying to lift her spirits with the joking greeting he'd always used with her growing up. "How's she holding up?" He pointed to Tori. His voice was soft and had a slight tremble, concern was clear in his eyes as well as his wife.

"She's sleeping, Uncle Ted." Trina crossed her arms and closed her eyes. "The doctor said she started to respond and wake up last night." Ted smiled gently and nodded to her.

"How are you holding up?"

"I've been better." She swept her fingers across her forehead and let out a heavy sigh. "Not sure how much worse things could be." She tried to be optimistic about things, but at this point optimism was proving difficult.

Yes, Tori was responsive. Yes, all of her friends made it out. There were still a lot of things that were negative weighing her down, and some things were scarier than others. "Part of me doesn't want to take her away from her friends, but the other part of me realizes that she can't stay here."

"You wouldn't want her to be alone," the woman replied. Trina chuckled and shook her head.

"You're right." Her shoulders rose, then fell. "And I would want her with me, too. What do you think I should do, Aunt Brad? I know she loves animals and would love to be on your ranch, but there's only so much before she starts missing her friends."

"She'll always have the opportunity to communicate with them online, and certainly you two can always visit"

"True."

She heard a groan and looked up swiftly to see Tori starting to move her hand. She flew out of her chair, knocking Jason's head up and waking him up, then rushed over to Tori's side with a gasping cry.

Tears filled her eyes as she took Tori's hand and watched her sister's eyelids slide open. The girl looked confused for a brief period before her gaze connected with Trina's. "Trina?" Her voice was broken and raspy.

"Hey sis," Trina stammered out. Jason walked over to her side and gently placed an arm around her shoulders. "Long time no see."

Tori looked around the room until she spotted her aunt and uncle. "Uncle Ted? Aunt Bradley? What are you guys doing here? Where am I anyway?"

"Hospital room in downtown LA," Aunt Bradley said with a soft tone. "You're safe now."

"Safe…" Tori closed her eyes and breathed in. "I remember dreaming that I saw Mom and Dad, Dad was telling me that I was safe and needed to wake up." Trina lowered her gaze and sniffed as her tears slowly dripped from her chin. "Momma kept saying I couldn't go with her, I really wanted to go wherever she was going but she wouldn't let me."

"You dreamt about mom and dad?" Trina tried to crack a smile, but her heart was steadily breaking as she knew she had to be the one to tell her. Likely she wasn't remembering everything right now. "Do you remember anything about it?"

"It was so vivid. We were all at home, well Mom and Dad and me…They started to say it was time to go, they had to leave somewhere." Her knees began to buckle and she placed her head gently on Jason's shoulder, trying not to break down in a fit of tears. "I asked if I could go with them and they said no. I wanted to be with them and they said I couldn't join them where they were going, not yet."

"Oh Tori."

"Isn't that such a weird dream?" Tori looked around again, blinking twice. "Where are mom and dad anyway?" Ted and Bradley bowed their heads and Trina started to sigh. Realization flashed in Tori's eyes and the girl's lips parted as the shock hovered within her breath. "Dad. H-He got shot; but Momma?"

"They're gone, Tori." Tears welled up in Tori's eyes and she slowly shook her head. "I-I'm sorry. I couldn't save them, I'm sorry I couldn't be there to help all of you that night."

"No, you didn't know." Tori began panting, her every breath quick and shallow. "They're really gone?" Trina gently squeezed Tori's hand and tried to speak with a calm, reassuring voice.

"It's going to be okay. We'll have to move onto Uncle Ted's ranch for a while."

"Oh…"

"I want you to know, I love you very much." Tori sniffled as Trina reached over to sweep the girl's hair away from her face. "I'm sorry we fought that night, things were said that were wrong to say. I don't know what I would do if I ever lost you."

Her sister smiled a small amount and took another deep breath. "I love you too Trina. I thought you'd run away to Texas and never speak to me again. I just-my friends, I didn't know what to do."

"They're your friends even if they pick on your sister. If it were me, I know I'd defend you to the ends of the world and back." Tori chuckled warily and looked to Jason.

"Yeah but Jason, Lindsay and Travis would never make fun of me like that. I know they wouldn't." Trina laughed once, wishing that Lindsay could be there right now to make a quip. She and Travis were exhausted though, and Jason being there was enough support for her. "But they also wouldn't be pissed off with you if you told them to knock it off."

"Neither would your friends," Jason remarked. Tori pursed her lips and he furrowed his brow at her. "Friendship is about trust and respect, and being able, when someone oversteps, to say 'knock it off'. Your friends will realize it if you say you don't want them demeaning Trina." He paused for a moment. "And in all honestly, I would be much happier if they didn't either. You've never seen one of Trina's venting when she comes over. It's not pretty."

Trina crossed her arms and closed her eyes. "Most girls want chocolate and flowers. I love both; but both are not enough to appease me."

Tori cried out and began looking around. "Oh my god, Jade and the others, where are they? They were taken too. Are they safe? Are they okay?"

She waited for her sister to grow quiet, unsure just what to say regarding the group. To say they were 'okay' would be far from the truth. "They're safe. They're all in the hospital recovery rooms. Most of them. Robbie's undergoing surgeries."

"Huh?"

Trina exhaled. "Mom and all of your friends' parents knew each other a long time ago and they picked on this one person." Tori sank into her bed, her eyebrows curling together in the center of her forehead as her eyes started to quiver. "Mr. Shapiro did something really bad to this person, she tried to retaliate and went to jail for a long time. As a result, she went after the kids…"

"So, everything we went through was because of our parents?"

"Yes."

"I…I don't understand."

Trina slowly rubbed Tori's forearm and shook her head. "You don't need to know it all right now."

"I'm still very tired."

"I know." The doctor explained that coma recoveries were gradual, so it may take several days before Tori was truly out of this state. She was fortunate Tori was at least able to recognize her and to recognize their aunt and uncle while also structuring these words; but in truth it had been a long time since she was even responsive.

Several days passed before Tori was fully recovering from her coma, and even before Robbie or Cat were even coming close to being released from the hospital. Because of their injuries, they were kept under observation. Some of the nurses weren't even sure they would survive the wounds, but the doctors did their best.

No one in the group had really seen each other, those who were released from the hospital were more focused on spending time with their families. Even Trina was getting everything ready for a move. The family house had been sold and all assets written within the parents wills had been received.

Uncle Ted and Aunt Bradley were busy trying to transport everything from California to Texas, using a large rented U-Haul to do so.

Finally, when Tori was ready to start moving around, Trina was delighted to help her do so. Her first day off the bed was spent in a wheelchair, but that wasn't to say she wouldn't be able to walk. It was going to take time for her body to fully recover, and their Uncle had already contacted the best doctors in the Fort Worth area to help with extended recovery and mobility. They were going to make sure Tori had the best medical treatment possible.

Trina had taken her out to the hospital garden since Tori was itching to go outside. So she was sitting on a bench with a book beside her, her intentions were to read but she was too focused on Tori and enjoying the girl's reaction to actually being able to be outside.

Tori had the widest grin on her face and her eyes were closed as the wind blew through her long hair and the birds sang from the shimmering treetops above. Nearby, in a small pond, fish splashed and zipped across the water, and elsewhere tiny squirrels were playing in the grass.

It was a beautiful, serene sight, and one that brought the first true moment of peace in Trina's life since all of this chaos begun.

Hearing familiar voices from behind, Trina twisted around to see Jason guiding Jade, Andre and Beck outside. Beck's hair was finally growing back, though nowhere near as long or well groomed as it used to be. He was sporting some new facial hair in the form of a stubbly moustache and chin beard.

"Nice facial hair there, Beck." Trina smirked and Beck shrugged his shoulders.

"I'm trying to go for the rugged look. If I have to wear an eye patch, I may as well."

Tori's eyes flew open and she quickly twisted to look over her chair. "Guys!" She gasped in delight and began to turn her wheelchair around. There was a moment of fear when she saw them for the first time, but it passed and tears sprouted from her eyes. "I am so glad to see you."

"So are we," Andre replied. He was finally up and walking, though he did have to use a cane for now as his legs were still weak. "Good to see you awake and moving." Tori smiled at them and moved towards them.

"You won't like seeing the other two," Beck remarked sadly, "Well, you'll be glad to see them like we are but they're not in as good of a shape as we are." Tori frowned, her eyebrows closing together as she looked to Trina worriedly and then glanced back.

"Just seeing you guys worries me enough, how bad are they?"

The others bowed their heads and Jade spoke first, soft and quiet. "Robbie will likely never walk again, and he's lost his entire right arm." Tori threw her hands over her mouth, gasping into them. "He'll have to learn to use his left, but he's not taking things very well. Cat's scarred everywhere, her voice is damaged and her left hand became infected so they had to amputate it."

It was terrible news to hear, Trina was sure Tori would take it hard. "The important thing to remember is they are alive," she said while trying to remind them to look towards the brighter side. "Even when things look grim, just keep pushing forward and try to remain optimistic."

The others nodded and Tori seemed to hesitate, looking between her and Jade as if expecting someone to tell Trina to be quiet. It would have happened in the past, usually someone would bark that they didn't care about her opinion on things. Trina smiled at her sister, catching the glances.

As if they understood it themselves, Jade was the one to speak up. "Trina saved all of us, she's a hero." Tori's eyes lit up with amazement and she turned to Trina.

"Really? You saved them? How did you even find them?"

"I had the best team." Trina tried to flash a toothy grin, but merely smiled while turning her eyes towards Jason. He seemed to grow bright with pride. "I wasn't going to give up, and I wasn't going to take things sitting down either." Though she likely wouldn't have gotten very far if not for that one guy staying behind at the house to wait for her.

"That's great." Tori looked to her friends and sucked in a deep breath. "I'm ready to see Cat and Robbie. Where are they?"

Andre poked a thumb over his shoulder, clearing his throat loudly. "Last we heard, Cat was visiting Robbie in his room. They're probably still in there."

Trina grabbed her book and purse and rose from the bench. "I'll get you over there."

Once they finally made it to Robbie's room, they found Cat in a wheelchair of her own, with Regina seated somewhere near her. Mrs. Shapiro was also in the room, she had a long expression and dim eyes.

Trina knew the woman was going through a rough time, even going so far as to pull out of the Mayoral race that she'd been so involved in. Gary was at the point that he wasn't sure what to do with the woman, because he recognized the suicide note from Thomas had been written in her handwriting, not his. Chances were, she discovered the truth for herself and felt she needed to end his life.

Gary said for now, he wasn't going to do a damn thing. Robbie had enough hell to deal with without losing his mother too. Yes, justice should be served, but in a way, it already was.

Cat's entire body was covered by long pants and a hooded sweater, scars could be seen on her neck and on her face however. Her once long vibrant red hair had been cut short and her brown roots were starting to grow out. Her right hand was still bandaged up and her left arm was resting on the arm of the wheelchair.

In the bed, Robbie was sitting up, staring down at his body while slowly shaking his head.

Cat looked up to them as they entered the room, but did not smile and almost shied away. "Hey guys." Her voice was raspy, slow and strained. "Sorry, I can barely talk. It's good to see you." Robbie looked up, appearing as though he'd rather be dead than alive and in the bed.

"I guess I was the only one not conscious enough to say thank you," he said grimly, "But thanks Trina. I guess I owe you." A long sigh left his lips and Trina slowly shook his head.

"I know it's hard right now," she replied, "and the words 'it will get better', I know more than anything aren't going to be of any comfort but…just try to stay strong, okay?"

"Strong? Strong?" Robbie looked at his body again and scoffed. "Because my father sexually assaulted a woman twenty five years ago and she failed to actually kill his ass or any of his friends, she kidnaps all of us and destroys every inch of my body. I lost my arm, I lost my ability to walk, and I'm pretty fucking sure I'm never going to have kids-" he paled. "Don't ask."

"I know. I wasn't-"

"You're hurting too, I get it. Not gonna sit here and say I got it worse or anything." He turned his head towards her, giving her an inquisitive look. "But why did you save us?" She raised an eyebrow to him. "Why? I know how horrible we treated you, I know you probably hated us and wanted nothing to do with us…so why, when the police got called off, did you waste time and risk your life to save us?"

Trina shrugged. "I missed the misery?" A Halestorm reference in a time she would like to lighten the mood, but she understood the seriousness of his question and why he would ask. "But in all honesty, I did it because it was the right thing to do. Erin forced the police to a freeze and I wasn't going to leave all of you to die."

Tori motioned to her. "She is trying to become a police officer."

Jade walked over, raising her hand a bit as asking to speak. It was a bit surprising to see how quiet she was being, but Trina understood this as well. "I don't think we should question it, we're alive because she chose to do the right thing. We're together, and we'll be here for each other. So, yeah it's hard on all of us, but maybe we can help each other to get through."

Trina started to smile, inspired by what she saw in Jade taking steps to address the situation. Perhaps this group would be okay, they could make it. "She's right." Trina looked back at them, seeing Beck and Andre nodding in understanding. Cat's lips were pressed thinly together while Robbie closed his hand up and looked ahead at the wall in front of him. "You've got hell to go through, Tori and I do too, make no mistake about that. You can make it, though. When things seem impossible, you find a way to make it possible."

She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. "Several times I thought I wouldn't make it, sometimes I thought there was no way forward. I was scared, and if I didn't have Jason or my friends to lean on, I don't think I would have gotten very far."

Pausing for a moment, she took in the silence in the air and slowly turned to Jade. "Can I talk to you for a second?" Jade curled her eyebrows together and nodded, following her outside.

"What's up?"

Trina leaned back against the wall to the right of the door, she planted her left foot on the wall and crossed her arms. "I need to tell you something before we tell the others." She looked sideways and breathed out. "I think you can help those guys in there, you're strong right now despite the hell you went through. I can see that."

Jade looked down. "I don't know." She rubbed her arm and her gaze flickered sideways. "I don't think I'm going to be able to be strong." The girl bit her lip and tears started to well up in her eyes. She quickly shook her head and wiped away the tears before they could fall. "I don't know how to do that anymore."

"Being strong doesn't mean you're invincible. It doesn't mean you're fearless or that you can't cry or hurt. It means not letting the motherfucker that hurt you win, rising above it all. Turn to your friends, show your emotions and cry, let it out and let them be there for you. In turn, you're there for them. You show that yes, you're vulnerable, but it's okay."

Jade sniffed, her shoulders bouncing a bit. "It's hard though. I-"

"Look, I know. I get it." She lowered her voice and dropped her arms to her sides. Jade raised her gaze towards hers and she softened her expression a bit. "Between me and you, I've been there." Jade's eyes grew wide and her lips parted. Trina's stomach turned over and her throat started to burn. She swallowed the feeling down with a growl. "When I was fourteen…I had a guy I was dating at the time, he wanted something I wasn't ready for." She sighed heavily, shaking away the memory and focusing on Jade, standing before her. "He forced me, I couldn't fight him off. I swore I'd never let anyone be able to overpower me again, but…" Her chest tightened and she grit her teeth. "I couldn't understand someone like Erin, someone who got hurt like that and decided to take it out on that person's kid-I would never go that far, no matter how much hate I feel for that person."

"I didn't know."

"Why would you? Even Tori doesn't know." Trina pushed herself away from the wall and swallowed the lump swelling in her throat. "That's part of why I love Halestorm so much, her music is what helped me through that period of time. Lindsay did everything she could not to hunt the bastard down and beat the shit out of him, which I'm glad because I would never want anyone getting in trouble or doing something because of me, you know?"

Jade nodded and dipped her chin downwards.

"The hardest thing for me to overcome was learning that I could be okay in a relationship again." Jade raised her head back up, gasping softly. "Being with Jason, yes we're sexually active, but that first time…the first time was not easy. I had him continue talking to me, acknowledging himself and, I had to be willing to let myself experience that and to know that it wasn't a bad thing."

"You think Beck and I will ever be okay with each other again?"

Trina smiled at her, giving a swift nod. "You will if you take time to be honest with each other and allow yourselves to be vulnerable to one another. It's going to be hard at first. When you feel his touch and you flinch or pull away, remind him that it's not because of him. When you're scared and having those flashbacks, tell him it's okay for him to hold your hand, to talk to you and remind you that you're safe."

"I-I'll try."

Trina walked towards her and extended her arms. "Can I give you a hug?" Jade nodded and leaned into her, letting her wrap her arms around her. The girl buried her face into her chest, letting her tears run down her cheeks. "You're a strong woman Jade." Her voice was a whisper now, her eyes grew misty. "Erin can't beat you, she can't beat any of you. She's lost, you won. Hector cannot harm you ever again, those men and women that hurt you will never be able to hurt you again. You're the phoenix, you can and will rise above. I know you will."

"Thank you." Jade pulled away, sniffing and wiping away her tears. "I get why Jason seemed outraged when Hector made that remark to you."

"You'd never know it by looking at him, but Jason is protective. Not over-protective, but there are some triggers. It's not his fault, only natural especially against people like that. You might find Beck doing the same thing if some guy or girl makes a remark to you, just remind him that you're okay."

"I will…"

"Now, those guys in there have been hurt in a lot of different ways, you know that. They've got a lot of things that are never going to go away. I want you to stay strong and be there for them, but allow them to see you cry so they know it's okay to cry."

Jade nodded slowly. "But what about you? What about Tori? Why are you asking me to do that?" Trina sighed and closed her eyes.

"Because of what we're about to have to tell them. I'm still going to have to go to Texas, my aunt and uncle live there. Now that mom and dad are gone-"

"Tori has to go too." Jade frowned and looked down, her hands closed up and she started to shake a bit. "I see. Not like I can fight you on that, but I don't think Tori will mind it so much either. She was always upset because she didn't want to be separated from you, I think that was her big gripe with you leaving."

"Yeah well, now she won't have that problem. But, I hope she'll still be able to communicate with you guys."

"Shouldn't be a problem. I mean, we have computers and phones."

"Exactly." Trina pat Jade on the shoulder and motioned her head to the door. "Ready to go back in?"

"Yeah, I guess we have to break the news to the others, huh?" Jade cleared her throat and Trina thought she saw a flicker of admiration in the girl's eyes. "I'm going to try, you know, to be strong. For them, for you, for myself…"

"Being strong for yourself comes first. It'll take time, but every day you move forward is another day that the pain becomes easier. Because you're not just being strong, you're surviving. When you show that you can survive and be strong, the others will see they can make it too. Like I keep saying, let them be there for you and you be there for them."

Jade gave one last nod before walking back into the hospital room with the others. Trina was confident that Jade would be the one to lead this group out of the ashes. They would have their share of difficulties and that was no mistake, but they could pull through.


Tori's finally awake, the group is all together again. Of course, they won't be happy to see Tori leave them, but it's the facts of life. They can still communicate, and like their aunt and uncle said, they can always visit once in a while. Trina may be right that Jade would be the one to help the others start to heal. What are your thoughts on it all?