Hey guys, sorry this chapter took so long to get out. I was about half way through the chapter when the device I was using to write stopped working on me and I lost the whole story. After a bit of trying to retype the chapter I really thought it was going off track and I didn't know what I was doing anymore so I kind of gave up, but I didn't say anything as I thought I might come back to it eventually, thought didn't expect it to be this long. I recently thought I might get back into it now that I have a fresh look at my story and see how far I get. Dont expect frequent uploads but ill try to do my best. Sadly no fun this time, but I will try to have some in an upcoming chapter. Any who, on with the chapter.

I wasn't sure how to react to what I had just heard. I knew that Ed was a asshole and that I hated him for what he did to Sophia and Carol, but the idea that he tried to rape Sophia was enough to make my blood boil. "He did what? Sophia why didn't you tell me?" I felt more sorry for her than ever before. If only I had known. I would have told someone and maybe Ed could have been stopped sooner. "I didn't say anything because I wanted to forget it happened. He was drunk, he must have thought I was my mom. When I realized what he was doing I tried to get him off but he just held me there and started to pull my clothes off. He didn't get to do much, but he did touch me. He was rough and instead of pleasure, I felt pain." She hugged her legs tighter, tears welling in her eyes. "Mom came in right after he started to pull his pants down and got him off me just before he could stick it in. He didn't touch me after that, but mom got a few slaps for pushing him off me. He passed out a few minutes later and didn't seem to remember a thing the next morning when mom told him to stay away from me. She normally doesn't defy him, but she tries when it's about me. It never ends well." She placed her head between her knees and started sobbing.

The thought of picturing how scared she must have been in that moment, it nearly broke me. I wanted to yell. I wanted to punch something. The anger that swelled inside me was almost too much to handle. But I had to keep it restrained. An outburst of anger would probably set off terrible memories of Ed that might trigger Sophia's fears. I shifted over and put my arms around her. "Sophia I… I wish I could have stopped him. I wish he never did any of that to you." Sophia lifted her head and placed it in the crook of my neck, the cold wetness of her tears rolling down to my chest. "There's nothing you could have done to stop him." "I could've told Shane, my mom, anybody at the camp. Somebody could have stopped it." My mom knew and she couldn't stop it. You did more than enough by just being there and standing up for me. Because of you he can't hurt me anymore, at least not physically. I still have to deal with the trauma he left me with."

Those words broke my heart to hear. Ed was gone and nothing was going to change that, but even in death Sophia wasn't free from him. A life of abuse and fear, a living hell, that was her entire existence for twelve years. The thought of anyone having to go through that was hard to imagine, but knowing that was what Sophia was living with felt far worse. I love her more than anything in this world. The knowledge that I can't take away that pain made me feel utterly helpless. To see her in this state felt like knives to my heart. And knowing the same day that she felt one of her greatest pleasures, she had the exact opposite experience with Ed made it even worse. I'm surprised that she even allowed me to touch her again. I would have expected the trauma would have been too...

Suddenly it occurred to me that I might have been reminding her of the event each time I touched her there. I could have been making her relive those moments. The guilt prompted me to ask. "Sophia, do you think about what happened whenever I touch you? Does it make you uncomfortable?" The way she looked up at me said more than she ever could. In that moment I could tell that the horror of that night never left her. I'm sure my face showed just how guilty I felt in that moment as Sophia placed her hands on either side of my face. "Yes, I think about what happened when you start touching me, but it fades. I've even had nightmares of reliving that moment, but when I sleep next to you they don't happen as often. You've given me pleasures beyond my imagination the last week. You've brought me more joy in a week than I've had all my life. I may never forget what happened, but you really make me think it's possible to not let it control me."

Sophia pulled me into a hug, her embrace feeling like she was reaching out with her soul to latch onto me as her crutch. A role I'm all too willing to take on. I'll do whatever it takes if it means Sophia is safe and happy. We sat there for another few minutes before I reached for her shirt. "We should probably get dressed. Don't wanna have someone walk in to see us like this." "Yeah, good idea." She took her shirt from me and slipped it on. Once we had our clothes back on, we got under the blanket and tried to fall asleep. Sophia curled up beside me as she had before, but now I saw it as her searching for comfort and security in me and all I wanted was to hold her close. I wasn't sure how long I was laying there before I fell asleep, but I was out before I knew it.

I awoke to the sound of a crow calling from a nearby tree. There was a little light coming through the silky curtains of the trailer, suggesting it was still early. I would have gone back to sleep, but I didn't seem to feel tired. I carefully got up trying not to wake Sophia and went to change into some of the new clothes we had found. The air seemed cool, but not as cold as it had in that tree. Sophia was still wrapped up in the blanket, Eliza's doll tucked under her arm. I sat down at the table in the middle of the trailer. The design of the trailer was not much different than Dale's R.V, aside from the lack of a bathroom. I guess the idea was if you needed to go, go outside. Thinking of this, I felt like I had to take a piss so I stepped out of the trailer.

Based on the lighting I would have guessed it to be around 6:00 to 6:30. I quietly stepped over to the truck and went to open the door. Locked. I guess it was a smart move for them to lock it when they were asleep but it made it tricky for me who needed to go out. I had a look under the truck to see if there was room to crawl under. It looked like they had piled up dirt under the truck making it pretty much impossible to crawl under without digging. Well at least that means a walker couldn't just crawl into the camp yard. With little choice, I just went in the grass near a corner hoping no one would come out and see me. Once I was finished, I went to go back inside the trailer.

As I was getting to the door, Mr. Kline stepped out of his trailer with a kettle and paper. He noticed me and was a bit surprised. "Oh morning Carl. I didn't think anyone else would be up yet. Care to help me with the fire?" He said gesturing to the fire pit. "Sure." I knelt down next to the fire pit and placed a few new pieces of wood on. Mr. Kline stuffed a few pieces of paper between the wood and lit them with a match. "Hand me some of those twigs." He pointed to a small pile of small twigs a few feet from me. I grabbed a handful of twigs and passed them to Mr. Kline. He placed several twigs in the fire and tended to the flames until the fire was burning strong. He pulled out a few chairs from his trailer. "Care to join me Carl? I was just about to put the kettle on and make some tea." "Sure. I doubt I'll be getting any more sleep."

We sat there a few minutes as Mr. Kline prepped a grill above the fire and set the kettle on it. "So, how are you and Sophia doing? Are you two settling in well?" "I think so. We're thankful that you took us in, but I really hope we can find our group soon. Maybe when we find them you can come with us?" "Well that would be a splendid idea, but that decision would have to be made by your group. Wouldn't want to intrude." "I guess you're right. But I'm sure our parents will be grateful that you all kept us safe." "True. I guess we'll have to wait and see. Either way, I'm just glad we were able to provide you with a safe place to stay in the meantime. I fear what might have happened to you two if Nicola didn't find you."

He prodded the fire a bit with a stick he used as a makeshift fire poker. Several embers sparked up and faded as they flew into the air. "Carl, could you grab a few more pieces of wood." "Yes." I got up and started to pick up several pieces. They were kind of heavy, but I was pretty sure I could carry a few. "I want to thank you for going out there with Nicola and Kyle yesterday. Without Dan we were down a man for scavenging. I would go out there myself, but..." As I was turning around I dropped a piece of wood and it landed on his right foot. I quickly reached down and picked it up as quickly as I could. "I'm so sorry! Are you ok?" I said looking up at him, though he didn't seem to be in any pain. He was actually starting to chuckle. "I'm quite alright son." He said lifting up his pants leg revealing a metal pipe sticking up out of his shoe. "Haven't felt anything in that foot in seven years." I was so shocked I just stared. Mr. Kline smirked and with a laugh said "It's just a prosthetic leg son. Nothing to be afraid of." He slipped his pants leg back down and helped me to my feet.

After placing the wood on the fire I was finally able to form words again. "What happened?" "Well some years back I became a soldier. I came from a poor family so when I heard that the military covered tuition costs for active soldiers I enlisted to pay for my schooling." "What did you take?" "I did a bachelors in music, and after that one in education. The school I was attending offered online classes, so it was easy to learn while I was serving. I was finishing up my education degree around the time my unit got deployed to Iraq when the fighting started up there in 2003. During a strike op, had my leg hit by a sniper who ranged his shot incorrectly. shredded my leg beyond repair so they had to remove it. Once I was patched up they shipped me home and my unit all pitched in for the prosthetic. Took me a few months to get used to walking on it though. In the end I was able to get my degree and started work as a music teacher a few years later."

"So you teach music then?" "Yep. Five years. Would be going on six if the dead didn't start walking. Nicola and Kyle were in my class during the spring. That girl is one of the best clarinet players I've seen at her age." "I didn't realize Nicola played music." "Yes in deed. Not top of the class in the written department but certainly in talent. We were off to attend a concert when everything started actually. School trip that got delayed due to an issue with the venue. Most of the students backed out as it was postponed to the start of the summer break, but Nicola, Kyle and a few others stayed on." He seemed to sadden after those words. "We lost most of the other students and their chaperones in the first days. The venue got overrun with the dead, only about half of us got back to the bus. When we got back to the hotel some left to take a plane home. The 11 of us that were left took the bus. On the way back a car swerved us off the road and into a river. We were able to get the roof hatch and back door open, but three didn't make it. We didn't have much choice but to camp there that night."

"The next morning a grieving mother saw her daughter's body floating by the shore. She had turned and bit her mother's arm. We were able to get away and started walking towards town, but the mother didn't make it. We survived on the outskirts of town at a trailer lot for a few weeks, found some weapons and supplies, but things were getting too dangerous. We got the idea to hot wire a few trucks and take some trailers out here into the forest. The first trip went smoothly and we found this clearing just off a quad bike trail. We came back for the second trip, but we only got one truck out. The dead swarmed the other truck with the remaining student and parent. The student, Vince, panicked and jumped out of the truck. Dead took him in seconds. His father seemed to give up right there as the dead started to climb in the truck." There was a bleak expression on his face, clearly the events had left its mark on him.

He looked back at me. I must have had a very scared look on my face as he instantly shifted to being concerned. "I'm sorry. I got carried away there. A child like you shouldn't have heard a story like that." I really didn't know what to say. Mr. Kline definitely was still taking that whole ordeal pretty hard. "No it's ok. Our camp was attacked a few days ago. We lost several people too. I didn't know some of them well, but they were nice people. Except for Ed. He deserved what happened to him." Mr. Kline was surprised by my words. "This Ed, was he a bad person?" "Yes. He was Sophia's dad." "I see. I'm going to assume that wasn't the first time he hit her was it?" "No. And her mom too. I hope he's rotting in hell now for what he did." "No man should ever treat their family that way. I'm sure God will make him pay for all he did."

The steam from the kettle started to come out with a loud whistle startling us a bit. "Seems like the waters boiled. There's some cups and a basket on the counter in my trailer. Could you please bring them out?" "Yes Sir." I got up and brought them out to him. He poured some water into the cups and took a box of tea bags from the basket. He placed a bag in each cup. "We'll just let that steep for a bit." The other trailer door slowly creaked open as a very tired looking Nicola stepped out. "Whats going on?" "Just making some tea. Care for a cup?" "Sure why not." Mr. Kline poured another cup and placed a tea bag in it. "Didn't mean to wake you so early. Normally I catch it before it goes off, but Carl and I were talking and I missed the warning signs." "All good Mr. K. Got a long day ahead so an early start should help with that." "Did Kyle not want to join us?" "He's still out cold. The boy could sleep through anything undisturbed." We all laughed as Mr. Kline pulled a box out of the basket. "Who takes sugar?" He asked. Me and Nicola both raised our hands. "Just tell me when." He said as he started to pour a small amount at a time in each cup. I had him put a bit more in mine as I like it sweet.

"Carl?" I heard from behind me. Standing in the doorway was Sophia, wrapped in a blanket, eyes barely open. "You're up." "I heard a noise and you weren't there when I woke up. I heard talkin so I came out here." I patted the space next to me on the chair. She came and sat beside me resting her head in the crook of my neck. "Want some tea?" I asked holding my cup up to her. She took a sip. She smiled when she got a taste. "It's sweet." "Yes, Carl wanted a fair bit of sugar. Hope that's not a problem?" "Not at all." She said, taking another big sip. I doubted I was getting that tea back. Mr. Kline seemed to realize the same thing and made another cup for me. I took the cup and waited for it to steep as Sophia continued to sip away at the tea.

After it got brighter out, Nicola stood up and stretched. "Well Carl, we should get going if we're going to find that highway." Sophia grabbed my sleeve. "You're leaving already?" I kissed her on the forehead. "Yes, but if we're lucky we'll find the others." "Ok. Please don't be gone long." "We'll be back as soon as we can." I walked Sophia back into the trailer as Nicola prepared to leave. "Make sure you take your medicine and get plenty of rest." "I will." I kissed her goodbye and went to meet Nicola. "Ready?" She asked. "Yeah, let's get going." We exited the camp and Nicola led me in the direction she was sure the highway was. "For your sake, I hope your group is still in the area." Even though I doubted they would leave us behind, we had been gone for days. Maybe they thought we were dead. If they had given up searching they might have left the area. I had to hope they were still out there. "Yeah, I do too."

Well I hope you guys enjoyed that chapter. I know that it might not have been what you guys waited for but I promise you'll get what you want soon.