Thank you all so much! I hope you continue to like this story. As always, special thanks to my muse lemacd! She always helps me talk through ideas and gives me suggestions to help bring these stories to life. :)

Chapter 4

Anna quickly snuck the paper from her neighbor's door mat and closed the door. Her neighbor worked odd hours and rarely read his paper. It would sit there for days and days, so over time, Anna found she could look it over and replace it before he needed it. Not that she was one to take from others, but she didn't see what it hurt to get a quick glance at the cartoons. They had always been her favorite as a kid.

However, when she opened the paper, she was shocked to find her picture in the bottom corner of the front page. She brought her eyes to the start of the article, while she wondered how on earth they had gotten her picture.

The Lucky One?

After a slew of women found sexually assaulted behind bars, the case may finally have a lead. Ms. Anna Smith might have been the sixth victim of this serial assaulter, but she was saved by the owner of Lucky's Bar before the mysterious man was able to escape with her drugged body. More information on page 14.

Anna began to search for page 14 to see what else had been written about her, when there came a knock at the door. She checked the clock on her wall. It was too early for Mary to be coming over to help her pack and she had already told her landlord that she would be leaving today. She hoped her landlord wasn't coming by to ask her for her money. It would be paid, but Anna didn't have it right this minute. All she could offer her was half of what was due.

Making her way to the door, she saw it was her neighbor. He just put his hand out and Anna handed his paper back to him, before he gave her a goofy grin.

"Thank you. I'll miss you stealing my papers, Anna." Her neighbor was kind and she was grateful for him. He always offered her eggs or a cup of sugar if she needed them. Anna had a sneaking suspicion that he had a small crush on her, but she did not reciprocate those feelings. So, she tried to make sure she wasn't giving him any indication that she might like him back. Thankfully, he never asked her out.

"Thanks Joe," Anna replied. He waved and walked away.

Once she closed the door, she pulled out her phone to check for more stories about herself. Typing in her name, Google was filled with articles calling her The Lucky One. A grumble left her lips and a sense of dread entered her figure. Everyone would now know what had happened to her. It wouldn't nor couldn't be a secret.

Anna clicked on the first article and scanned it. Her body grew weak as she read about the other, nameless, women who had been victimized by Alex Green, if that was his real name. Each of them had been found in a dark alley with their clothes torn and passed out, unaware of what had happened to them. One had even nearly died when the drugs given to her coincided negatively with a medication she was on.

It was frightening to think about where she could be at this very moment had John not stepped in when he did. The whole situation made her feel – unsafe. She had always hated that feeling. When she was a young child, she had always felt safe, especially when she was near her father. But then he had died and her mother remarried and she never felt completely safe again. Once she moved out and gained control over her life again, there was a sense of safety around her, but she was always on guard. And, of course, the one time she put her guard down, this had happened.

Anna forced herself to put her phone down. It did little good to dwell in any of this. She needed to pack. This afternoon she would be moving into her new studio apartment with John Bates across the hall. And that, well, it made her feel a bit safer.

-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-

A sound of disgust left Mary's lips, as she lifted the plates from the display. Checking her phone, she found that these were, indeed, the set Sybil wanted for her wedding. They were extremely colorful and loud. Not Mary's taste at all, though she did have to say they were very Sybil. Rolling her eyes, Mary walked over to ask for four place settings to order for her sister. She needed to get them soon, because her sister's wedding was in two weeks.

After she made her purchase, Mary turned down another aisle and stopped right in the middle of her tracks. Her stomach leapt and she could feel her body growing cold. But she forced a smile upon her lips and walked right up to Matthew and his new – friend.

"Hello," she all too brightly said, "Wasn't expecting to see you here. You must be Lavinia."

Matthew was not as good at playing as though everything was fine. His forced smile was obviously forced. Mary could read the sadness over his features and the way he still wished things were different. She had always been able to read him perfectly, where she was harder to read. As the eldest Crawley sister and heir to the Grantham name, it was important that she appeared a certain way in the public eye. Some might think her cold, but it was better that than emotional.

"Yes," Matthew broke in, clearing his throat. "This is Lavinia. Lavinia, this is Mary."

A look of recognition went over Lavinia's face at her name, but she covered it up quickly to give Mary a sincere smile. She was pretty, Mary mused.

"It's so nice to meet you," even her voice was sincere. Mary looked her over and quickly assessed that Lavinia was sweet. Inwardly cursing through her bright smile, Mary realized she couldn't hate this girl before her. That would have made this easier.

"I'm so happy to meet you," Mary lied through her teeth.

"We're finding Sybil and Tom a wedding gift," Matthew interrupted. Mary's face fell slightly then, cracking her mask, the mask she had worked so hard to perfect.

"Oh, you're coming to the wedding! How wonderful!" She pressed through.

"Sybil invited us," Matthew quietly added.

"Of course, she did," Mary's voice was getting too high pitched. There was something about Matthew that made it harder for her to be the perfect Mary who never showed any real emotions. "I am so glad." Mary glanced at her clock. "Well, I cannot wait to see you there. I must be going. Anna is moving and I am going to help her pack."

Without another word, Mary turned and rushed down the next aisle, hoping to make it to her car before the tears would come.

-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-

Anna filled her third box and peered around the corner to find Mary sitting on the couch, sorting through the same pile of magazines that she had been for the past half-hour. She laughed at herself, wondering why she had thought Mary would be the best help for her.

Closing the box, she grabbed it, placed it on the coffee table, and sat down next to Mary. The two hadn't spoken much since her arrival, because Anna had been deep in her closet and asked Mary just to figure out what in the living room area needed to be saved and what needed to be tossed. Which Anna now realized was too vague of a request. Of course, if it were up to Mary, Anna would start completely fresh in her new home. Mary's standards and Anna's standards were not the same. Mary had been absolutely horrified when Anna told her where she would be moving, requesting she move in with her instead. Anna, though, had only laughed. Mary would be appalled if she knew where she had lived before they first met nearly twenty years ago. John's studio apartment above the bar was a paradise in comparison.

"I'm in the news," Anna stated, as she slid her phone out of her pocket. At that, Mary looked up.

"What?"

"Apparently my story has been leaked and I wasn't his first victim." Anna pulled up one of the articles on her phone and handed it to her friend. Mary's lips drew into a pensive line, reading over the article.

"How did they get this information? Your picture?"

"I don't know."

"We should call Ma…" Mary quickly changed her wording, "a lawyer. This can't be legal."

"It's out now," Anna shrugged her shoulders. "We can't force it back. It will spread before we can do anything about it."

"I still don't like it," Mary stated. She then handed Anna back her phone and then sat back against the cushions of the couch. Anna eyed her carefully, the words she wanted to say at the back of her throat.

"Mary, that morning, did you feel…shaky? Extremely sick?" Anna's questions made Mary shoot up from the couch and begin to pick up random objects, throwing them into a box. Anna just stood as well and followed behind Mary. "It was like a bad hangover, but you hadn't had much to drink?"

"I'm not talking about this, Anna," Mary nearly bit. Anna didn't let Mary's words deter her. Since she had time to think over what had happened to her the other night, she couldn't stop thinking of Mary's own experience, an experience that Mary refused to speak to anyone about.

"Mary, I think if you would just listen to what it was like for me that maybe…." Mary spun around then, her face flushed with anger.

"It is not the same, Anna. You were drugged; I made a horrible, horrible choice."

"But I don't believe you did," Anna strongly stated. She had been trying to tell Mary this for six months now. Ever since Mary admitted to Anna what had happened, Anna felt none of it added up. It seemed as though there had been an element Mary missed. Yet, somehow, no matter what Anna said, Mary had convinced herself that she had made bad decisions even though she couldn't remember much from that night.

"You need to talk to Matthew. You love him, Mary. He loves you. If you tell him exactly what you told me, I am sure he will come to the exact same conclusion that I did," Anna tried.

Mary's head only shook, as thick, hot tears began to spill from her eyes.

"No," Mary said. "You are wrong. And…it…well, it doesn't matter anyway. Matthew has finally moved on. He has a girlfriend."

"Since…since when?"

"The other night. Matthew texted me to tell me and I met her today, out and about. I hadn't had a chance to tell you yet with everything that had happened. So, it's all over now, alright? Can we just drop it, please? I really only want to move forward."

Anna sighed, heartbroken for her friend.

"Mary, I still think…"

"It doesn't matter what you think, Anna. I'm fine. It…it's going to be alright. I'm glad Matthew has moved on."

Anna wanted to cry for her best friend and pull her into a tight hug. But Mary shoved an empty box into her hand and pointed to the kitchen.

"Go and start the dishes," Mary commanded, showing she wasn't going to speak any more on this today. "You promised your landlord you would be out of here before five. We need to hurry."

Not wanting to upset Mary any further, Anna did as she was told. And Mary was right, they did need to finish this soon. So she began to pull out the few cups, plates, and bowls that she had to place into the box.

"Oh," Mary called from the other side of the room. "You need to bring a date to Sybil's wedding. I know I said we would be each other's date, but now Matthew will be there with a date, so I will have to have a date, also."

"Who will be your date?"

Mary shrugged. "Not sure, yet. But get one, alright? I want to look as though I am completely happy and moved on."

"What does me having a date have to do with that?" Anna teased, earning an eye roll from Mary.

"Just do it," Mary flippantly replied. "You could invite Bates or something."

Anna twisted to face Mary at that. "Bates?"

"Yes, why not? You know he's a gentleman. Think on it."

Anna chuckled, "Alright."

-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-

Mary honestly tried her best to hide her dislike of Anna's new dwelling. It was tiny, old, and needed more than a simple paint job to make it look decent. Almost everything was in the one small room: from a table, to a small sink, tiny refrigerator, and a twin bed in the corner. When Mary had asked how Anna would use the loo, John pointed down the hallway.

"She has to leave her apartment when she has to go?" Mary was horrified.

"It's wonderful, really," Anna broke in, taking the keys from John's hand.

"The kitchen is open from noon to midnight, so you can eat anything available during those hours for free," John went on to explain to Anna. But Mary couldn't stop looking at the small space her friend would be living in. There had to be a way to convince Anna to move in with her. Certainly this was not the place for her.

However, Mary did know Anna. While Anna called her stubborn, Mary knew the same thing to be true about her. She'd known Anna for over half her life now and Anna never took any sort of help, unless she worked for it in some way or another. It was something that Mary admired about her friend, but also irritated her. Why couldn't she just move in with Mary or let her loan her the money she needed (or even give it to her)? But Mary knew she couldn't completely understand it. She hadn't had a bad childhood. She hadn't had to work for everything she had just to survive. She never had to deal with a man standing in her doorway at when she was twelve years old and pray that he didn't come into her bedroom. No, Anna was much stronger than she could ever be.

"There is paint in the closet down the hallway," John added. "You can decorate it however you'd like."

"Well, thank god for that," Mary stated, sarcastically. "I'm sure some paint will really spruce up the place."

"Don't listen to her," Anna told John. "Thank you." She closed the door and grabbed the box from Mary's hand, setting it down on the small island.

"Are you sure you have to live here?"

"Yes, what's wrong with it?"

Mary inhaled sharply. "It's….quaint."

"It's free," Anna said. "Free food, too. Well, not free, really. It comes with the job."

"I can help you out, Anna."

"Mary, this is what I need to do. It's a steady job, decent pay, and I will be able to save up to move to a nicer flat."

"Alright. If you insist."

"I do."

Mary laughed then. "You really are the stubborn one."

To which Anna just giggled and shook her head in disagreement, "No, that would be you."

-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-

John lightly tapped on Anna's door, only to have her open it a minute later with a smudge of light blue paint on her cheek. He lifted the small tray of food that he had brought up for her and she smiled, widening the door to let him inside.

As he entered, he could hear the cars zooming by outside and feel the breeze from the opened window. Though, even with the window being opened, it still smelled strongly of paint. Anna sat down her paintbrush and went to wash her hands, telling John to take a seat in the small stool by the island.

Anna then joined him, gratefully taking a slice of the sandwich he had brought her.

"Thank you," Anna said. "This was kind of you."

"Well, you've been working all evening."

"I figured I need to get used to my new schedule. You said work starts for me at 4?"

"Yes."

"Right, yep, adjusting will need to happen."

John took his own sandwich in his hands and looked at the work Anna had done. Nearly one wall was finished and it did make the room feel a little brighter. Then he turned back to her.

"Might I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"How did you and Mary become friends? I just…you don't seem like her type."

Anna looked offended then, her lips curling to one side. So John quickly went on to explain himself, "I mean, you are so easy going and she's…well, stuck up. I would never have pegged the two of you to be friends, I guess."

"Mary is not stuck up," Anna replied, then she chuckled, "Well, maybe a little. And we aren't just friends, we are the best of friends. We met when we were teenagers at Downton Abbey. That was actually where my first job was. I was able to secure a job there that had a small room I could stay in. I worked as a housecleaner."

"And you met Mary there?"

"Yes, she totaled her brand new car. Robert thought Mary needed to learn the value of money, so he made her work to pay him back." Anna began to laugh and John could see in her eyes that she was reliving this memory. "Well, she started working with me, but Mary didn't know how to do anything. I taught her it all. But, well, really I did most of the work. I found that it took less time that way. Instead, Mary more became my listening ear. She would listen to why I was working there, about my past, and eventually she and I would just talk about all sorts of things. We had a lot of fun. Then when her time was up, I assumed I would never see her again. But she still stopped by every week to chat and invited me over to stay at her house. She never looked at me like I was less than her; once we were friends that was all I was."

John leaned forward, thoughtful. "Ah, that's quite nice. Makes me see her a bit differently."

"Well, that is Mary for you. She's a lot warmer than she puts off, but she hides away her true self to most of the world. If you are special to her, then you get to see the real her."

"I can see why you would be her friend then, you are special."

Anna blushed, ducking her head and tucking her hair behind her ear.

"I am sorry this place isn't much. I plan on…"

"Oh, no, I love it, really. It is a little small, but I don't need much. I ought to get back to painting. Would you like to help?"

John smiled.

"Sure."

To be continued...