"So how'd your parents' counseling go?" Darien asked as he bit into his sandwich.

Serena stared at the tray of uneaten food in front of her. "Not well. All they did was fight all night."

Darien noticed the faint shadow under her eyes. "Didn't get much sleep, huh?"

Serena sighed. "Not much. It wasn't really because of their fighting, though. I was just afraid he would hurt my mom again." She moved the vegetables on her plate around with her spoon. "I don't know what to do, Darien."

He looked into her eyes but knew that he could give her no answers. His heart ached with the tender, unspoiled love of an eighteen-year-old boy- man. His love was genuine and pure. Serena made him feel invincible and he would do anything for her. He felt so helpless now. She needed him and he couldn't help her. "Have you asked your mom to leave him?"

"Yeah, but she doesn't have any money. Just our child support. There's no way we could make it." Tears sparkled in her eyes. "There's got to be a way, Darien."

"Did he do anything to you last night?"

"No, he was too busy grounding Lita for getting into trouble at school."

"He didn't hit her, did he?" he asked angrily. "I know I tease Lita a lot, but I really do care about her."

Serena put her hands over his. "I'm just thankful that I have you to lean on, Darien." She squeezed his hands. "He didn't touch Lita, but he would have if my mom hadn't stopped him. As it was, he grounded her for a ridiculous length of time and took away TV and stereo privileges. And she can't see Heather any more."

"What a jerk." He shook his head. "I just hope your mom can think of something to get you guys out of there."

"Me, too, Darien. Me, too."



"What happened after I left?" Heather asked as she flipped open her math book.

"He took away my TV, stereo, phone--everything."

"That's stupid. For how long?"

"A month." She turned around and noticed that Miss Cole hadn't entered the room yet. She returned her attention to Heather. "There's one more thing," she said quietly.

"What?"

Lita frowned. "I'm not supposed to see you any more. Alexander thinks you're a bad influence."

"So, the Evil One doesn't like me, huh?"

Lita saw through her friend's sarcasm and right to the hurt she knew Heather must be feeling. Heather always had a knack for hiding her true feelings behind a mask of sarcasm. Only those who knew her well knew how insecure she really was.

"We can still get together after school and stuff," Lita said.

"I thought you were grounded."

"Yeah, but I'll blow that off. Besides, I think my mom is planning something."

"What do you mean?"

Lita smiled. "I think she's getting ready to leave Alexander. They didn't have any luck with their counseling."

"I like your mom, Lita, and I really hope that you guys dump the evil one and the little twerp."

Lita laughed. "Stephan is such a wimp. The way he cries to Daddy all the time." She made a face. Out of the corner of her eye she spotted Miss Cole entering the room. "I'll talk to you later," she whispered.



Irene rested on her knees as she pulled a few weeds from her garden with her good arm.

"Hi, Irene."

She glanced up into the warm, friendly eyes of Amy Madison. "Hi," she answered returning the smile.

"How's the arm doing?"

Irene stood up. "Not too bad, but it sure is inconvenient. It's frustrating trying to get things done."

"Do you need any help?" Amy offered.

"Oh, no, thank you," Irene quickly replied. "The kids and Alexander are doing a great job. In fact, I'm kind of enjoying being pampered." She laughed.

"Can I talk to you for a few minutes? It's personal."

Irene became uneasy with Amy's penetrating eyes. She knows the truth, she thought.

"I . . . uh . . . sure, I guess," she finally muttered.

Amy put a friendly hand on Irene's shoulder. "Come to my apartment for a cold glass of lemonade."

Irene nervously looked around herself as though she expected to see Alexander's cold, threatening eyes warning her not to get too friendly. Irene slowly followed the woman past the rows of gardens and into the building. Before she knew it, she found herself seated on the sofa in Amy Madison's living room with a tall, cold glass of lemonade clutched tightly in her hands.

"I'm pleased that you've finally agreed to visit me." Amy sat in a chair facing Irene. She set her glass of lemonade on a coaster on top of the coffee table. "I want to be your friend, Irene, but you don't seem to want to get close to anyone. I've watched you ever since you've moved in here and you spend all your time alone." Her voice was soft.

Irene rapidly blinked her eyes, fighting the tears that threatened to fall. She knew if she didn't collect herself immediately, she would end up pouring her heart out to Amy Madison.

If she did, Alexander might find out and she didn't know how she would deal with him. But then, her mind tried to reason, why should she care? She already told him he would never hurt her again. After all the lies he told about her to everyone, she had the right to let one person know the hell she was living. And she so desperately needed a friend. Amy was more than a friend; she was a mother image. Irene needed a mother since her own mother had passed away a couple of years earlier.

She remembered the pain Alexander had caused her at her mother's funeral. He had ignored her and the girls. He had refused to meet any of her relatives; it was as though he were jealous of her mother. He wouldn't bring Stephan to the services and no one from his family came to offer their condolences. She felt so alone. When she had needed him the most to lean on, he had pulled away. His rudeness toward the mourners embarrassed her and she tried to make excuses for him, but his lack of friendliness toward her family only led them to further their negative opinion of him. Especially since several months before her mother's death, her grandmother had passed away and Alexander had refused to attend the funeral with her. He said he had to pick up a specially designed gift for Stephan and there was no other time he could schedule to get it.

As Irene thought about all the painful memories with Alexander, her eyes flooded with tears and were soon pouring down her cheeks. Her grief consumed her, and she temporarily forgot that she was sitting in Amy Madison's living room.