Ch2

"Surprise," She whispered her eyes glassy with unshed tears. The bewilderment in Seth's face grew into wonder and joy as he raced down the concrete and threw his arms around her in an embrace, holding her tightly.

"I missed you so much," She sobbed into his shoulder, the tears she shed on his striped polo shirt darkening the fabric. His arms closed tighter, drawing her closer to him.

A cry of pain erupted from her throat, abruptly cut off as she closed her mouth tight.

Seth's expression was suspicious, his eyebrows knit as he asked her in all solemnity, "What's the matter?"

"Nothing, it's nothing," Tasha lied as she looked into the face of her closest friend, knowing he could see through all that, knowing he could see past it, and still she lied, still she tried to protect *him*, and she did it in vain.

Stepping back, Seth became at once serious and unrelenting. "Where?" he pulled up the sleeves of her sweater, and dark bruises marred her skin. Seth's mouth drew into a tight line, "what did he do?" he questioned thickly, and pulled up the bottom of her shirt, exposing her midriff. She wept, wept fiercely but allowed him to carry on with his relentless inspection, he wouldn't be satisfied if he didn't find it, but she'd be damned if she helped him.

Ryan gasped at her allowing Seth to take such liberties with her; most girls barely let him come two feet, at least the girls around here. Ryan was grasping for reasons to Seth's apparent insanity when he uttered in a thick gravely voice, "oh god. I'll kill him," Seth continued passionately.

Tasha wiped her eyes and hiccupped and said, "It was my fault. He came home, and the kitchen wasn't clean, I should have cleaned it as soon as I got in, but I didn't have time, I hadn't been home all day, and then Daddy walked in and he screamed at me because it wasn't done, and then I was so stupid, I was so stupid, oh Seth, I was so angry," She sobbed, clutching his arm through his shirt, willing him to understand. His dark eyes grew darker still, and sadder.

"I told him it wasn't my mess, and that he was a grown man and he should know how to take care of himself by now," She continued, sniffling and shaking. Ryan wondered if his initial impression of her was wrong, if she really was as strong and fearless as she seemed.

She paused, collecting herself, and drying her eyes, her voice growing disconnected. "He hit me then, and I fell against the wall. I was okay though, so I got up, and I belted him right on the side of the face. I thought he could taste a bit of his own medicine for once. Then he backhanded me.I hit the wall again, my head this time. I was so dazed I didn't move in time. He kicked me, hard, here," she pulled up her shirt, showing him the purple bruise on her side.

His dark eyes despaired as he looked upon her, and he pulled her to him, gently, and he stroked her hair, and whispered into it, "oh Tasha," she stayed there for a while, shaking and hiccupping and Ryan recalled his own beatings, and wanted to sooth her some how, but this was worse than he knew.

Tasha pulled away, pushing her thick hair behind her ears, and still she continued with the telling of her ordeal. "I pushed myself away long enough to get up and I threw down a chair and tried to run out of the house. I was almost through the door when I turned around, and he had this knife in his hands, and I was so scared. I screamed, and then I couldn't turn the door knob, and he jumped at me, he looked like he wanted to kill me. Not just hurt me. I just can't forget his eyes, they didn't look human. He looked like an animal. I was so afraid-and then I finally got the door open, and I ran. I didn't even feel anything for two blocks, until I noticed the blood, and I felt to see how bad it was, and the knife," again she paused, her eyes wide and her skin ashen, and she said, "the knife, it was still there. And I screamed again, and I ran to the first house I got to, and I don't remember anymore until the hospital. He missed my kidney by an inch. I couldn't go back, I couldn't go anywhere around him. And I had no one else. Not Mom, because he knew where she was, and I couldn't let him hurt her too. And there was no one else, I called Uncle Jimmy, and he wired the money, and I flew down." She trailed off, clutching onto Seth like a life- line, and he, carefully, set them both down on the side walk, and comforted her.

"It wasn't your fault." She breathed deep, and her body shook slightly, but her color was back, and she looked stronger than she had during her retelling. "You're safe now. And hey," he joked, "on top of it all, I'm here, right, and how much of a plus is that?"

her face was brightened by a grin and she hugged him fiercely. "I missed you,"

"I missed you too." He answered. "How long are you staying?"

"At least a year. Until the divorce is settled and the restraining order is through. Uncle Jimmy's gonna try to get Sandy to do it."

"Don't worry, Dad wont waste a minute getting it through." Seth commended. Ryan hunkered down next to them, and with little ceremony and not much forethought, said exactly the right thing.

"So, how many stitches?"