ISFNE Chapter 12

Allison POV

I woke what felt like mere seconds after the conversation ended but based on the fact that the entire apartment was dark I knew it couldn't be. I fumbled to find the light switch and checked the clock on the microwave. It was almost two in the morning, frick. I'd slept the rest of the day away and most of the night. I realized suddenly that I was starving. I looked over to the fridge and saw a small note from Eleanor telling me she hadn't wanted to wake me up that evening and that there were leftovers in the fridge for me. She was truly a godsend.

As I mindlessly put my plate in the microwave I turned the conversation I'd had with Eric over and over again in my mind. He'd certainly given me a lot to think about. I'd learned so much about my own motivations and some about his too and it scared me senseless. Was I really willing to die just to spite him? Did my hate really run that deep? And the deep-seated fears that had been revealed through that dream. Fears I didn't even recognize until they'd been played out so morbidly. What was I supposed to do? I couldn't pretend Eric's words hadn't shaken me up. Was this child really killing me slowly? Was I really in danger of dying? And if so, I was back at square one, wondering at the fact that I was supposedly willing to die rather than be found by him.

I took the plate out before the timer rang to keep my noise to a minimum, and sat back down on the couch to eat as I continued to stay lost in thought. I hadn't even started on the fact that he'd pieced together so much already. He'd found out about the child, he knew about my projection and why I was using it. If he already had that much he could be much closer than I believed to finding me again. I'd been so careful about paper trails though. I shouldn't have anything connecting me to the tickets Max had bought, or anything Faith Allison owned or did. Still I worried.

As I finished and cleaned up, fatigue quickly set in again and I wandered to my room to fall asleep more comfortably on the bed, the interaction still racing through my mind.

Eleanor POV

"Grams I want to take some shifts at the shop for you, I'm sorry it's taken this long to get around to it."

Simon hadn't been around much the past few weeks but had come to me today after I'd opened to ask to take some of my workload.

"I'm really sorry I've been busy and haven't helped out much at all but whenever you need me to take over I will," he said full of apology.

I was thrilled quite honestly. Allison had been a great help thus far picking up what Simon usually would have but now having Simon back would finally make life a bit easier for me.

"Well," I started, getting out the log book and opening it on the counter in front of me, "If you could take mornings for a bit it would be helpful for certain."

"So I'll open the store at nine per usual and go into the afternoon?" he asked.

"Oh, umm, maybe noon would be best," I said somewhat nervously looking at the log book at where Allison was currently helping out. She came down to help me out somewhere between eleven and noon and worked with me or alone into the late afternoon; it all depended on how much traffic we expected during the day. Regardless, I didn't know how I felt putting the two together considering Simon's disapproval and her skittishness. I was barely beginning to get Allison to warm up to me, it was going to definitely take more on both sides where Simon was concerned.

"Seriously, Grams, I can take on more than that. I haven't been in the bookstore for a long time," Simon said with a concerned look as he carefully took off and cleaned his glasses before replacing them.

"Maybe later in the day you could close up instead?" I suggested.

Now he knew something was up and his brows furrowed in confusion. He quickly pulled the log book across the counter to his side, turning it around to look and understanding and surprise dawning on his face. "Are you trying to make me avoid Allison?" he questioned.

"I figured you might want to," I stated, "You were so against her staying."

He shifted uncomfortably, something that definitely surprised me. Simon was usually stubborn as they came about his opinions and the fact that he didn't rush to defend or justify his viewpoint was strange.

"I judged quickly and harshly. In all honesty, I was hoping I could have some hours with her so I can try to get a better impression of her." And have her get a better impression of me seemed to be the unspoken second part of the sentence but I let it go. It was as much of an apology Simon was willing to give, and, for now, I was willing to take it. Wary as I still was of leaving the two together I acquiesced; he was my grandson after all.

"Well I suppose you can work into the afternoon then. But she'll be on her guard, Simon, don't expect her to warm up to you too quickly."

Eric POV

Xavier continued to dog Faith, even after I'd laid claim to her. For a while I believed it to be a mere plot to continue my misery but I quickly learned that she was shared and he was a potential when he tried to take her. I had forged two of the three necessary bonds but without our bond being complete she was still technically able to be stolen, something Xavier almost succeeded in doing. He snuck in and almost took Faith right under my nose. This whole incident, of course, had many repercussions. It reveled all of what I had tried to keep out of my relationship with Faith. It revealed his existence, the fact that I had competition, it revealed her importance, my history, and maybe most visibly, her power. As I wrestled with Xavier one of his lackeys tried to make off with Faith, something that pushed her over the edge.

What followed I believe I must describe in some detail because it was such a singular and unprecedented event. As the man approached her, Faith's fear was apparent, but something came over her, a calm unlike any I'd ever seen in her. She found her refuge in her faith and began to cry out to her God for deliverance her words growing stronger and her power awakening as she began to feel a sense of control. Her faith evoked something in her as she began to glow with a burning energy from both her recitation of Scripture and her awakening power. It enveloped her, making Xavier and me alike want to hiss and avert our eyes but we both watched completely entranced as suddenly it all focused in on the man approaching my bride. He was there one second and gone the next. There was no time for him to scream, no ashes left to sweep away. He was completely obliterated. This, of course, drew back Xavier to his followers to regroup and change tactics and left me to deal with the fallout of this occurrence.

Emotions ran high for both of us. She was obviously shaken to her core and scared senseless about everything that had happened and I was in much the same state for very different reasons. She was quick to lash out, castigating me for the pain I'd inflicted on her myself and cast the blame for everything that had passed, including Xavier's attempt, at my feet. I was quick to go on the defensive, to try to make her see reason but there were things she said I couldn't deny. She was, in a way, right. My history with Xavier had put her in the crossfire for so much pain, but how much would she be in if I hadn't been the one to cause it? If I'd played by the rules and lost her to him or the myriad of other potentials, her life with me would comparably be an absolute heaven. Yes, I'd hurt her, but I'd saved her from the horrors Xavier was capable of. But of course, I couldn't let her know this. She would think me a villain no matter what; explanations would only sound like excuses. I couldn't ask her to justify what I'd done to her and what I'd forced her to endure; I couldn't allow her to carry the burden of her position all at once. I took away her choice for fear of her choosing wrongly, and, yes, I write wrongly with confidence for any other that I came upon would not have a second thought for her wellbeing, least of all Xavier. I may have selfish intentions of my own but they align with Faith's interests, or what will be her interests.

Tentative amends were briefly made afterward. I sent her away for safekeeping as I prepared to face Xavier a final time. I promised her the answers she wished for upon her return, many of which concerned Xavier and then, by default, the entirety of what I've tried so hard to keep from falling on her shoulders. She didn't come back for them, and I'm afraid she never will.

Allison POV

I threw my hair up in a ponytail as I raced to get ready, tossing my bangs slightly to keep them from lying flat. I was late and though I knew Eleanor would be easily forgiving I hated to take advantage of that. Yes, I had spent a good portion of the morning heaving by the toilet and generally feeling exhausted even after hours of sleep, but I wasn't letting that serve as an excuse. I'd been late a few times in the past two weeks and felt awful about it. Ever since that appointment though I'd started to feel fatigued easier and had begun sleeping in very strange patterns. Thankfully none of them had resulted in any dreams or nightmares including Eric, though this past night I had had a strange one about working in the bookstore.

"Sorry I'm late, Eleanor!" I called out as I started down the stairs as quickly as I could manage. "I overslept again, and I'm really sorry! I had the weirdest dream though that I-" I stopped short as I reached the bottom of the stair and turned the corner to be faced with Simon instead of Eleanor, "Oh! Umm, good morning or, well, afternoon, Mr. Timmons," I quickly composed myself. "Where's Eleanor?"

"I'm picking up some shifts to help her out, but she'll be back to close up later," he responded. "Are you okay? You look a little peaky," he said with a concerned frown as he looked me over quickly.

"Oh, yes, well, I mean…I'm fine, nothing out of the ordinary, just routine fatigue, morning sickness, and whatnot," I stammered, "thank you."

"Is it getting worse?" he inquired. "I never got to talk to you afterward but the Doctor warned that it might be because of the extra toll."

"No, Mr. Timmons, honestly, I'm fine it's…" I paused as I fully took in his comment, "Wait, what extra toll?"

"You were supposed to have a follow-up to confirm, I thought you knew," he said with confusion.

"I'm lost, Mr. Timmons-"

"It's Simon," he cut in, "and, well, I don't want to scare you for something that might not be true, but he said you might be carrying multiples. It would account for the stress and toll it's taking on you lately."

"M-multiples?" I queried somewhat fearfully, "Like…twins?" What was I supposed to do? It was bad enough to think I was going to bear one child of Eric's. More than that was never even something I'd considered, seeing as I categorized any relations with him as past and never to be repeated. What was this going to mean? I could end up bringing two or more small 'Erics' into the world, and more importantly, into my life. I could feel all the blood draining from my face and the fear trembling through my limbs. Simon seemed to see it as well.

"Hey, hey, wooah," he said grabbing my arm and gently guiding me to sit down behind the counter, "Breathe. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said anything. The doctor said it was merely an educated guess. It could be nothing." He said trying to bring some color back to my complexion. "I seem to have a knack for making you stress out, Alice," he said apologetically.

"It's not your fault," I said faintly. "Excuse me, I just need a moment," I continued, getting up slowly and walking back to the storage room, "I'll work on taking inventory."

He nodded his head cautiously, looking like he wished to say more. "Allison?" he called after me. I turned back to look at him. "I really mean it, I'm sorry about the stress I've made you undergo." he said, feelings of guilt plainly written in his features.

I smiled reassuringly, "I told you it's not your fault. I took on this burden, and I knew it was going to be difficult and even traumatic. But thank you for your concern."

Simon POV

It took another few days to get any conversation out of her again. Most of our time passed in awkward silence and a few stabs at conversation that never quite panned out. But though there was little conversation I could see her slowly getting more comfortable. She'd greet me with a chipper, "Good morning" and was quick to take on small tasks like inventory or restocking. When she wasn't doing those things and business was slow she'd either work on a book or browse for a new one and read behind the counter. She was doing so when a shipment arrived to move into the storage room.

"Do you need any help with those?" She asked as I carried in the two boxes.

"No, I got this one, Alice, go back to your book," I said dismissively as I disappeared into the back room to put down the boxes and then came back out behind the counter to grab the list to check we'd gotten everything.

"Why do you keep calling me that?" she asked looking up.

I turned in surprise, she was making conversation. That was a good step. "Calling you what?"

"Alice. You do know that's not my name, right? My name is Allison." she stated with a bit of worry.

I laughed and leaned against the counter crossing my arms, "It's just a shortened version of Allison. Three syllables take too much energy."

"Alice isn't a shortened version of Allison, it's like a completely different name!" she said with a shy smile. What was this? She was smiling at me and keeping up a conversation, two things that were rare alone but together, was completely unprecedented. And if I wasn't mistaken she was bantering with me. Who was this girl and what had she done with Allison? I preceded carefully, pretending as if this was something that happened every day.

"What? It totally is! You can't say 'Allison' without saying 'Alice' therefore, it's a nickname."

"People named 'Alice' aren't short for 'Allison' though. So my name is Allison not Alice. They're spelled differently and everything." She reasoned.

""Well, if we're being picky your name isn't Allison either," I teased, "Maybe you chose Allison because your real name is Alice and they sound enough alike that it wouldn't throw you off as much," I speculated. She giggled.

"Or it sounds like it maybe?" I continued, "Starts with the same letter? Addison? Abigail? Alyssa?" I guessed.

She rolled her eyes playfully and turned back to her book, "Very funny."

I continued while walking into the back room again. "Alaina? Agatha?" I called out.

"Agatha, who's named that anymore?" she said with mock offense.

"So I can rule that one out. How about Bridget? Bethany?"

"Giving up on the A's already? Presumptuous much," she quipped back not looking up.

"Who said I was going alphabetically? Though maybe I should rule out A's."

"I'm not giving you anything, Mr. Timmons," she said.

"Come on you have to rule out a few letter for my sake! And how many times do I have to say that it's Simon. You can just call me Simon, Alice."

She looked up and blushed slightly, "Well you haven't guessed it yet. And maybe I'll consider ruling some out. Like Q, V, X, Y, Z-"

"Oh come on! Those are throw-aways! Give me a good one!" I pretended to complain.

"You're impossible," she said rolling her eyes playfully and going back to her book. I took my cue, "Whatever you say, Christine," I called back as I retreated to the back room with a smile.

"Nope," she responded.

I'd finally found my in.