Chapter 15
Jubilee hadn't left Frankie's side since they brought her back to the warehouse two days ago. When Frankie didn't wake up the next day, she tried to contact her again through the link. That is when she discovered the link was closed on Frankie's side. That meant, until Frankie opened back up, there was no way for Jubilee to contact her. She was really starting to worry about the other woman. Jubilee didn't know what caused the backlash and Frankie's retreat into her own mind.
Finally, after trying to convince her to get something to eat, Kitty had talked Jubilee into leaving the bedroom for a few minutes. Unfortunately, that is when Frankie woke up. When that happened, Jubilee suddenly felt an intense fear coming from her. She ran back to the bedroom to find Frankie curled up in a ball in the far corner of the room. Slowly Jubilee walked over to her to find out what was wrong. When she got there, Frankie just curled up tighter and started crying.
"What's wrong, John-John?"
"Please, no more. I'll be good. Please no more."
"Frankie, no more what?"
"Please don't hit me anymore. I'll be good, Jan. Please stop."
That is when Jubilee realized Frankie didn't know where she was. She thought she was still with Jan. She slowly reached out and tried to soothe her.
"Shhh. It's ok, Frankie. Jan isn't here. That's over now. Come here, hun. I'll help you."
That is when Frankie looked up. When she saw Jubilee, she was confused.
"Jae, I thought you were in Massechusets in school. What are you doing in Texas?"
'Oh man, how do I handle this one?' Jubilee thought. Then she sent a message telepathically to Bishop.
~Bish, we have a problem here. Frankie woke up. Only problem is, she thinks she is still in Texas with Jan. What do I do?~
~Don't do anything, I'll be right there.~
Jubilee looked over to Frankie, and instead of answering the question, she tried to get her out of the corner.
"Why don't you come back over to the bed? It's got to be cold there on the floor."
"I can't. Can't feel my legs. I think she went too far this time, Jae."
"No, she went to far the first time she layed a hand on you, but you wouldn't let me go after her. If I ever get my hands on her, she is going to wish she never layed a hand on you to begin with."
"No, Jae. She will just hurt you too. Besides, I deserved it. I didn't do what I was supposed to do. Oh Jae, what am I going to do?"
By this time, Bishop had made it into the bedroom. When he noticed Jubilee and Frankie in the corner, he knew what day Frankie was reliving. It was the day Jan had taken a bat to her, because she dared to fight back. To not take the abuse anymore. It broke his heart to see the pain on her face again. It took so long for him to get her to open up again. He then knew the tests for Jubilee and Frankie had started. That meant, the only person who could help Frankie come back to the present was Jubilee. Now he had to convince her of that.
~Jubilee, you are the only one that can help her. Can you reach her through your link?~
~I haven't tried. Been too afraid of hurting her worse. Plus it is taking everything in me, not to go after the bitch that did this to her and returning the favor.~
~Jubilee, Frankie needs you more right now. You need to see if you can reach her.~
~I'll try.~
Jubilee then reached out and pulled Frankie into her lap. She then looked down and tried to open the link they shared.
~Frankie? Can you hear me?~
~Jae? I'm scared. What's going on?~
~You seem to be stuck in the past. Can you come back to me?~
~The past? Huh? I'm confused.~
~You're reliving the last time Jan beat you. You know you are safe now, right? That happened 8 years ago. You have nothing to be scared of anymore. I won't let anything happen to you.~
Frankie then looked up into Jubilee's eyes. When she did that, the years flooded back to her, bringing her into the present. "Jae? What happened? How did I get back here?"
"I don't know what happened. I found you passed out about two blocks from here. Do you remember what happened before that?"
"Last thing I remember is trying to find you, but you had closed the link, so I tried using my empathy. Guess it's stronger than I thought. I felt the emotions of everyone in the city."
"We need to work on your shields. Then on controlling it. I don't think I could handle finding you link that again."
