Ok, this one is rather long, do you mind? Haha, read on, please...
Disclaimer-Don't own them. Sorry. I do own Leanna though...Leanna and all of her escapades...
Chapter V-The Truth Hurts
*-*Next Morning*-*
Rafe and I went to Evelyn's place after we left the bar, we assumed that she would be home sometime during the night, so I slept on the couch so I'd be there when she got home, that's why I found it strange when I woke up to heavy footsteps running down the stairs, the first thing that hit me was the light, bright sunlight streaming in from the window opposite of me, it was morning, then I rolled over to see who was running down the stairs, I didn't have to see his face, because his voice sounded across the room in a worried tone
"Danny, she's not here" Rafe said
For some reason I had momentarily forgotten about my little sister and her escapade at the bar the night before, but when the thought hit me again, I blinked, unable to comprehend it all, I didn't remember waking up when she came in, and had Rafe said she wasn't here? She'd never come home last night? I blinked again and then my eyes went wide, I sat up straight
"What?!"
I meant to yell, but it only came out as a squeak, my throat was tight and I couldn't breath, a lump formed in my throat as I jumped up and grabbed for my pants, pulling them up around my waist and not worrying about anything else but the keys to the car, I searched my pockets for them over and over, not finding them, I looked to Rafe, who had just pulled the keys out of his own pockets,
"Let's go"
I put a hand on the doorknob, but before I could turn it, a lone figure appeared at the top of the steps, it was Evelyn dressed in a long white robe, obviously all the commotion had woken her up
"Rafe? What's going on?" she asked
Rafe forced a smile and instantly began to act calm, as not to scare Evelyn
"Leanna didn't come home last night, we're gonna go find her"
Evelyn's features immediately shifted to a knowing look, almost saying 'I told you that girl was trouble', without waiting for her word of protest, Rafe spoke
"We'll be home soon"
And without a second glance, he looked to me to open the door, which I did, we walked out and jumped into the car without even opening the door, not bothering that we had left our calm and collective attitudes inside the house as I sighed impatiently as Rafe tried to stick the keys into the ignition
"God, Rafe, where could she be?" I asked, popping my fingers, my nervous habit
"The bar closed at 2 this morning, maybe she's outside there, couldn't find a ride, maybe she's even walking home" Rafe rambled nervously
"This is so unlike her, what was wrong with her?"
"It's been 2 years, Danny, people change, maybe Leanna changed too"
I couldn't bear to answer, I suddenly knew, it was my father's abuse when we were little, he had broken her, I always knew it would catch up with us, the holding it in, I mean, I rolled my head back on my shoulders and rested it against the seat, closing my eyes, hoping this was all a dream, but when I reopened my eyes and saw the familiar sight of the bar in front of me, I knew it was all to real, we pulled into the parking lot and drove in a large circle, scanning the terrain for any sign of my baby sister, seeing none, we pulled into a parking space behind the bar
Rafe shut the ignition off and leaned his forehead against the steering wheel, I rubbed my eyes with a sigh
"She isn't here, Rafe"
Rafe sighed, "Where else could she be?" he asked
I looked up, scanning the beach and ocean directly in front of us, thinking of my answer, when something caught my eye, it was very tiny, easily dismissible as a small piece of metal except for the small rainbow-glimmers that shone all around it, and the glimmer from the sun reflecting off of some sort of metal, but something hit my mind, like lightning
I threw open the door and rushed over to the metal laying in the sand, it was a bracelet with small stones set into the gold band, I grabbed it up along with a handful of sand and examined it carefully, looking at the inside to see what confirmed my fears, the letters LCW were engraved in it, I looked back at Rafe, who was now standing a mere 3 feet behind me
"It's hers, see, Leanna Celeste Walker"
I now recognized it as the one that me and Rafe had gotten her for her 16th birthday, just before we left, I shoved it into my pocket and with a backwards glace to Rafe, broke into a jog along the beach, looking everywhere for a sign, anyone who could maybe tell me of the woman with elegant brown curls and haunted green eyes that we both longed to see
I was overjoyed when I caught the glimpse of something laying on the sand, as I drew closer, I realized it was a beige blanket with a body on top of it
I broke into a full run when I realized it was a woman, and stopped dead in my tracks at the edge of the blanket, looking down in both disgust and relief, if it's possible, at the mass of matted brown curls covering a delicate face, I panted from the exertion of running down the beach as I fell to my knees beside her, looking at Rafe before I brushed the curls away, revealing my baby sister's face
"Beautiful?"
Her eyes fluttered open and then she squinted against the light, covering her face with her eyes and rolling over
"Go aw-away" she sighed
I stood up and examined my sister, with her clothes hastily placed on her body, ruffled and worn, her hair just a mass of brown that covered her entire head and face, her shoes weren't there, who knows where they were, it was obvious what she had been up to last night, I couldn't stand to see her like that, hung over and broken
"Leanna, get up" I said, louder and sterner than before
She weakly lifted her hand and motioned for me to leave, groaning as she did, at this, I stooped down and grabbing her at the midsection, lifting her and slinging her over my back gingerly, I turned to face Rafe
"C'mon, she needs to get home" I said, beginning the long trek back to the car with my 17 year old sister slung over my shoulder
"Danny, put me down" she tried to yell, but it only hurt her head more, and she was too weak to fight me like she did the night before
After a few moments, I heard heaving from behind my back and felt her body contract and then straighten
"Uh, Danny, maybe you should put her down" Rafe suggested, but I didn't stop
I kept walking until we got to the car, and then opened the back door and lay her gently in the back seat, and she didn't move, she just blinked her teary bloodshot green eyes and wiped the excess vomit from the corners of her mouth as I walked around and got in the driver's seat, seeing that Rafe was already in
I started the car and drove away, we rode in silence through the empty streets until we came to where I wanted to be, another beach, I drove the car into the sand, over to me and Rafe's usual spot and threw it into park, turning off the car and turning around to face me sister, who had forced herself into a sitting position and was now trying to tame the wild curls that flew in her face
"Leanna? What's wrong?" I asked, locking eyes with her
She sighed
"What does it look like, Danny? I'm hungover" she said matter-of-factly
"No, I mean what's wrong with you, you've changed, and I want to know why" I said
She rubbed her throbbing head and looked back at me then switching her gaze to Rafe as if she was searching for words, Leanna had always had a way with words, never needing to think before she thought, this, combined with her abnormal behavior, made me wonder if I could really handle what she had to say, with a deep sigh, she opened her mouth...
"Do you think I've changed?" she asked to Rafe
"Leave Rafe out of this" I said
"She's my sister too, Danny" Rafe spoke for the first time
I rolled my eyes heavenward and sighed, even if not by blood, Rafe WAS Leanna's brother too,
"Ok"
I agreed to let Rafe voice his opinion, almost knowing that his was the same as mine
"Beautiful, something is wrong, this is so unlike you, first being so rude to me and Danny, and then getting drunk, screwing some guy, and falling asleep on the beach, what happened to the responsible, demure-yet-fiery Beautiful we left in Tennessee?" Rafe asked, never being much for words, this was the most poetic thing I'd heard from him in years
"She's still in Tennessee" Leanna mumbled, too low for either of us to hear
"Beautiful, you've never hidden anything from us, just tell us, why are you here?" I asked
Leanna thought, and then spoke
"I ran away" she whispered
"What?" I asked, not hearing her, she sighed and looked up at us through stray curls
"I ran away" she said, this time loud enough for us to hear
"You ran away? Why?" Rafe spoke first
Leanna looked at me
"Dad got out" she said, her eyes dropping
"He what?" I stammered, fully hearing her this time, but not believing
"Is something wrong with your ears? Our.father.got.out.of.jail." she said
My heart stopped and I instantly knew, he had come back, and he had hurt her, and I wasn't there, the same thought echoed through my head again and again, 'you weren't there, you weren't there to protect her, you weren't there, you weren't there'
"Did he hurt you?" Rafe asked the obvious
Leanna looked at us, tear brimming her eyes
she nodded
That was all I could take, I crawled into the back seat and embraced her against my strong chest, and felt Rafe do the same, the same thought echoing through my head...
you weren't there, you broke your promise, you didn't protect her, you weren't there
"I'm so sorry, Beautiful, I'm so sorry I couldn't protect you" I said, now crying too
I knew Rafe was saying the same thing, this was the key to her destructive lifestyle, my father, I was suddenly overcome by a wave of anger and hate for this man who had broken my Beautiful baby sister, she would never be the same, and it was all his fault...
A/N: Ok, this was abnormally long, but I didn't know where to cut it at so what you see is what you get...or...something...reviews are greatly appreciated!
Scottish lass-I've been called a lot of things, but I don't think sadistic is one of them, hehe, but I guess that's good, because sadistic is kinda the angle I'm going for...
Kekelina-Yeah, I'm sure that Danny and Rafe would have stopped her, I think I came across the wrong way in the last chapter, I was trying to imply that they didn't know what to do anymore and they thought that if she thought they had turned their back on her, she would leave too...or something...
Preview for next chapter: Rafe gets a letter and has a decision to make
