Notes and disclaimers in part one

Circle Unbroken

Part 6

He opened his eyes slowly, blinking against the early morning sunlight coming in through the windows, bringing one hand up to rub at his eyes in an effort to clear away the cobwebs. It took him a few seconds to remember where he was, a couple more after that to remember what had brought him there, and when that happened, a few more for him to fully quantify the sense of déjà vu that was sweeping over him. Only yesterday, he'd woken up in a different bedroom in a different state, and he'd woken up expecting to find her beside him, only to find himself alone. He was almost afraid to turn to his side, afraid that she'd be gone again.

Seeing her back was a welcome relief.

She was facing away from him, her breathing deep and even, and he knew from long experience that she was still asleep, and for the moment, he made no moves to wake her. It had taken her a long time to fall asleep, and just like the previous night, he'd given her plenty of space, making no moves to touch her. Unlike the previous night however, this time, she'd turned to him after a few minutes, pressing herself to his side, allowing him to put a cautious arm around her, allowing it to stay there. Somewhere in the night though, she'd moved away from him, and he wasn't quite sure how he felt about that.

He'd known, from the moment they'd got out of the car at Mike and Sally's that something was wrong with her, something more than what had been bothering her all day. She'd been more relaxed after her sleep that afternoon, he knew he hadn't been imagining that, but seeing the house, the sleeping boy in Mike's arms had done something to her, and she'd denied it, she'd tried to put a brave face on it, but he hadn't been fooled. The one thing he'd known for sure though was that this was Calleigh, that she'd be able to keep it together.

He'd thought that, right until she deposited baby Clara into his lap and run out of the house as if the hounds of hell were chasing her, and perhaps, Tim had realised too late, in her own mind, they were. He'd wanted to go after her, but he had a squalling child in his arms, and his first instinct was to try to calm her, even as his gaze had swung to Mike and Sally, who were looking at one another worriedly. "I should-" he'd begun, shifting in his seat, but Mike was already standing.

"Let me Tim," was all he'd said, in a tone that said he wasn't going to take no for an answer, and Tim had sat back, letting him walk outside, not taking his eyes away from the taller man. When he'd turned back to Sally, she was looking at him, not at her husband, and she shrugged.

"Mike'll talk to her," she'd said, voice calm and confident. "He always could."

"Really?" Tim had lifted an eyebrow, because he'd heard enough to know that there had been more between Mike and Calleigh than simple friendship. What he didn't know was just how much more, and when it had ended, and how.

Sally had smiled a small smile. "You didn't know about the two of them did you?"

Despite the seriousness of the whole situation, Tim had chuckled. "Sally, until today, I never realised how much about Calleigh I didn't know."

"There's a lot of that going around," she'd told him. "I didn't know the half of it myself until I started dating Mike; he's the one who told me. I mean, I knew who Calleigh was. Everyone knew who Calleigh was. And we knew that the family situation wasn't ideal, but you'd never know it to look at her. She was clever and pretty and she always looked a million bucks…and Mike adored her." She'd sighed, standing up and taking the baby from Tim. "I'm not sure she knew that, not for a long time. They went to prom together, junior and senior years, but they didn't begin to date until they were both at Tulane."

"Why did they break up?" Tim had asked, and Sally had shrugged.

"Mike decided that law - the legal side anyway - wasn't for him. Decided that he wanted to come home. Calleigh didn't come back with him."

"You make it sound so simple."

"Oh, it wasn't. Far from it. I mean, they didn't break up because they didn't love one another. And even after he came back, it wasn't completely over…there were some visits…" She'd broken off then, shaking her head. "Anyway, it ended…Calleigh moved to Miami, I moved back here and began dating Mike…the rest is history. But the two of them? They've got something that you can't get in between, I can't explain it any better than that. He'll talk to her. He'll help her."

Tim had sighed. "You're very calm about that," he'd observed, because he was more than a little jealous, and he didn't mind admitting it.

"Because there's nothing to be worried about. Calleigh and Mike are in the past. Besides," she'd concluded, running her finger along Clara's cheek. "It's pretty clear that Calleigh's heart lies elsewhere."

"I wish I could believe that."  Tim had barely been able to hear his own voice, but Sally had answered anyway.

"You should. It's true."

Tim had looked into her dark eyes, hoping to find reassurance, but he'd known that they were the wrong colour, the wrong eyes. The only way he could feel better about this was to go out to talk to Calleigh, so he'd stood, gesturing to the door. "I'm gonna-" Sally had just nodded, looking down at the baby in her arms.

He hadn't been sure what to expect once he'd gone out on to the front porch, but seeing Mike and Calleigh sitting side by side, close enough to touch but not quite. "Everything ok out here?" he'd asked quietly

It had been Mike who'd replied, Calleigh not turning around. "We're fine man," he'd said, dropping a hand on to Calleigh's shoulder as he'd stood, beginning to walk back towards the front door. "I'll leave you guys to it."

Calleigh had only turned when Mike walked away, something that Tim had tried very hard not to dwell on, but any residual jealousy or discomfort on his part had vanished when he saw the strain on Calleigh's face. "I really am ok you know," she'd said, and he hadn't believed that for a moment.

"Doesn't look like it," he'd said, finding some comfort in the fact that she held her hand out to him, motioning him over.

"Sit down here." A faint smile had lit up her face, disappearing quickly, and he'd come over to her, taking her hand and sitting down in the place that Mike had just vacated. As he'd done ever since he'd heard the news about her father, he gave her her space, didn't crowd her, hoping that it wasn't too obvious that his heart had lifted as she shuffled closer towards him. "I guess I just freaked out for a few minutes in there," breathed. "Being back here…seeing everyone again…"

He'd been amazed that she was apologising to him. "Calleigh, relax. After the day you've had, I'm surprised you lasted this long."

"Why are you so good to me?" she whispered, all but collapsing into him, closing her eyes as her head landed on his shoulder. He closed his own eyes too, savouring how close to normal the moment felt, letting his own head rest on top of hers.

There were any number of answers that he could have given her for that question. He settled for the simplest. "Because," was all he'd said and she'd held her tongue for a long moment, and he'd known in his heart that she'd understood.

They'd sat there in silence for a few precious minutes, Calleigh apparently lost in thought, Tim partly thinking about her, another part of his brain absently noting how quiet it was out here, without the lights and sounds of any nearby city. The silence had been shattered by Calleigh's voice. "Tim, will you do something for me?"

She'd sounded hesitant, unsure, but at the same time there was steel underneath, as if whatever she was asking was something that she really wanted to do, and he'd known in an instant that he couldn't refuse her. "Anything," he'd replied. "You know that."

She hadn't blinked, just stared at him. "Will you drive me to Shreveport tomorrow?"

The answer of course was going to be yes, so he'd nodded, but he hadn't understood what was so important to her, which is why he'd asked, "What's in Shreveport?"

Her answer had surprised him. "My mother," she'd said simply, and if he was honest, his first instinct had been to try to talk her out of it, try to delay it. He'd wanted to tell her that she'd been through enough for the moment, that she should give herself some time to come to terms with what had happened. He'd even opened his mouth to do just that, but looking into her eyes, he hadn't been able to bring himself to say any of that. Instead, he'd just nodded again.

"OK."

They hadn't spoken for another long moment after that, and she'd returned her head to his shoulder, sighing softly. Eventually, he'd nudged her knee with his, jerking his head in the direction of the front door. "We should get back in," he'd suggested, though that was the last thing that he wanted to do. He wanted to take her somewhere where they could be alone, where he could talk to her, where he could just hold her and they could pretend that all of this was just a bad dream. He could see from the look on her face that she felt the same way, but she'd nodded silently, standing, reaching out for his hand and leading him inside.

They hadn't stayed long after that, Calleigh blaming a long day's travelling for her tiredness, and no-one in the room had called her on the lie. And maybe it hadn't been that much of a lie, because she'd dozed off in the car on their way back to town, and he'd had to shake her lightly when they pulled up outside the hotel. She'd leaned against him heavily on the way in, and while Violet had looked like she was going to call them over, once she'd seen Calleigh, and the warning look that Tim had shot her, she'd let them go by without a word. Despite Tim's earlier wish, they hadn't talked once they got into the room, they'd just gone to bed, and much to Tim's surprise, Calleigh had slept right through the night.

She turned on to her back now, her face screwing up, then shifted again, stretching a little. A throaty moan escaped her, and Tim had to fight back a smile at this most familiar of sights; Calleigh, fighting the morning for a few precious seconds. "Morning," he murmured, rolling onto his side so that he could face her, waiting for her to open her eyes.

"Thank you for leaving good out of that sentiment," she grumbled, eyes opening just a little, her arm then going over them.

"I know how you get in the mornings," he teased, and she'd chuckled at that. Then it was as if a cloud passed over her features, her arm falling away, and he knew that she'd remembered where they were going that day, what their plans were. She drew in a deep breath, her green eyes meeting his brown ones, and he could see the uncertainty there, the fear. "You don't have to do this," he told her softly.

She set her jaw, looking up at him resolutely. "Yes I do." Her voice was just as soft, but just as firm, and he sighed, accepting her decision.

"Then we'd better get on the road," he said simply. "We've got a long drive ahead." He'd been turning away from her, halfway to being out of bed when her hand closed on his wrist, her fingers cold against his warm skin, and he'd glanced back over his shoulder at her, wondering if she was all right. "Calleigh?" he asked when she didn't say anything, just looked up at him with flushed cheeks and huge eyes.

"Just…thank you."

He hadn't said anything to that because there was nothing he could say, so he just smiled at her. She smiled back, dropping her hand, and they'd gone about their morning rituals as they always did, with very little talk. They had a minor disagreement over breakfast, Calleigh wanting to get on the road, Tim insisting that they partake of Violet's cooking. He'd known that part of her reason for not wanting to eat there was that she didn't want to face Violet, and he couldn't say that he blamed her. He'd put his foot down though, reminding her that she'd hardly eaten at all yesterday, and that he wasn't going to let her make herself sick, not while he had anything to say about it. She tried to argue with him, but not very hard, and there was a look on her face that told him that she wasn't upset with him for arguing with her on this; that in fact, she found it rather sweet.

Breakfast for the two of them could usually be either a long, leisurely affair, where they took their time, enjoying one another's company, or very rushed, the result of having lingered too long in bed, not leaving themselves enough time to get ready for work. Today, it fell somewhere in between, both of them made uncomfortable by Violet's constant hovering, her rather obvious attempts to garner any morsel of gossip she could.

Not for the first time in the last twenty-four hours, Tim wondered how on earth Calleigh could have grown up in a town like this, and understood anew her need to get away from here, her lack of any desire to go back. Once they finished their meal, went outside to the car, he could almost feel the tension leaving her body, and the further from Darnell they got, the more relaxed she appeared.

Until, that is, they began to see signs for Shreveport.

That's when she began to drum her fingers against her knees, not in time to the radio, but to some rhythm that only she could hear. She rolled down the car window when they were entering the city, as if she couldn't get enough fresh air into her lungs, and by the time he pulled up in the parking lot of the hospital, she was taking deep breaths, her face chalk white. He didn't speak when he turned off the engine, just looked over at her, and it was she who broke the silence, though she didn't look at him. "Please don't tell me that I don't have to do this." Her voice was like iron, but he could hear the slight tremor that she was trying to keep back.

"Wouldn't dream of it," he said calmly, not making any moves towards her, waiting to follow her lead.

She took another deep breath, then another, before throwing her head back, straightening her shoulders and looking over at him. "Let's go."

He followed her into the hospital, waited beside her as she asked about her mother at the reception desk, waited while they realised that she was who she said she was, waited while they found her mother's doctor. When Doctor Jones came out, he was very polite to them, very kind, but it was obvious to Tim that he was reluctant to let them see her. "We had to put her on some medication, as I'm sure you understand…Miss Hayes, you may not want to see her like this."

Calleigh set her jaw, arms crossed over her chest. "First of all, it's Duquesne. Secondly, I've seen my mother…" She swallowed hard, looking down, unable to complete the thought. "It would not be the first time."

The doctor considered it for a moment, looking from Calleigh to Tim, then back again. "I apologise Mrs Duquesne, offending you was not my intention. I merely meant…"

"Doctor, I understand." Calleigh interrupted him, but much to Tim's surprise, didn't correct the doctor's mistake. "But I've come a long way. And I'd like to see my mother." There was a softness to her voice that Tim had rarely heard, and he was sure that he could hear tears in her throat when she whispered, "Please."

The doctor looked at her for a long moment, and Tim stepped closer to her, wanting to be there to support her, also wanting to show a united front to the doctor. He noticed the other man's eyes flick over to him before settling back on Calleigh again, and then he nodded. "Follow me."

Even though her back was to him, Tim hear Calleigh breathing in, saw the almost violent rise and fall of her shoulders. He took that as a measure of how ill at ease she felt, her slow walk, rather than her usual confident, assured gait, further confirmed that. He stayed as close behind her as he could without touching her, not saying anything, just following her.

The room was small, the bed neatly made, a chair by the window, another chair facing it. A woman sat, staring out, her hands joined in her lap, and she didn't stir when the doctor opened the door, didn't look around. Nor did she move when Calleigh spoke, her voice soft, trembling with tears. "Momma?"

When there was no response, not even a delayed one, Calleigh took another deep breath, taking a few tentative steps towards the woman, Tim as ever at her back. At first, he could only see the back of the woman's head, could see the long blonde hair cascading down her back, the twin of Calleigh's hair. Once he got closer, once they came around to face her, Calleigh gasped in surprise, and Tim was hard pressed to keep back his own exclamation of shock.

He'd known of course, having seen the photograph Calleigh had been holding only two nights and several lifetimes ago, that Calleigh was very like her mother. How alike though, he hadn't been prepared for. Same long blonde hair, same green eyes, same facial features, and not as old as he'd been expecting either; she couldn't have been more than twenty when Calleigh was born he thought. It was quite a surreal experience for him, but that wasn't all that shocked him, and it certainly wasn't what made Calleigh gasp.

What made Calleigh gasp was the livid red bruising covering the entire right side of her mother's face, the fading yellow bruises around her neck. She wore a short sleeved night gown, more bruises of various shapes and hues along her arms, a thick bandage encasing her right wrist. Tim could only guess at the bruises that weren't visible, but they weren't the worst thing. The worst thing was the look in her eyes - empty, soulless, completely defeated.

When he was able to tear his eyes away from her to look at Calleigh, he could see that she was visibly shaking from head to foot. "Momma?" she whispered again, and perhaps it was her proximity to the other woman, but the word seemed to reach her and she turned large unfocussed eyes on them.

"Hello," she said, and her voice matched Calleigh's, but was more accented. "Who are you?"

Tim winced at the simple words, and Calleigh emitted a hastily stifled sob, sinking down on the chair across from her mother. "I'm Calleigh," she managed to say, and how she was keeping her voice level, Tim didn't know. "And this is Tim."

"I'm Stella," came the reply, then she blinked, looking at Calleigh owlishly. "I have a little girl called Calleigh you know."

Calleigh looked around at Tim briefly, then back to her mother. "Really?"

Her mother nodded. "Oh yes…pretty as a picture she is, my little girl. You look a lot like her as a matter of fact. Smart as a whip too; she's gonna have the world at her feet, my girl. Not like me."

"Like you?" Calleigh's voice was very small.

"My parents never wanted me to marry her daddy you know. Said that I was too young, that he was no good, that I could do better. But I loved him you see. Thought he hung the moon and stars. We had to run away to get married…my little girl's not ever gonna have to run away from anything."

Calleigh ducked her head, breathing deeply, and Tim took a step closer to her, wanting to touch her, but not quite daring to. "You should see her…all long blonde hair and big green eyes…and she just loves it when I sing to her…" Her eyes slid from Calleigh over to the window, and she began to sing in a low whisper, "Will the circle be unbroken, by and by Lord, by and by…" She paused then, frowning. "I forget the rest."

The room was silent for a moment before Calleigh's whisper filled it. "There's a better home a-waiting…"

She hadn't looked up, but Stella's face brightened, and she joined in with the last few words, their two voices blending together, sending shivers up and down Tim's spine. "…In the sky Lord, in the sky."

"You know that song too?" she asked Calleigh. 

Calleigh nodded, finally lifting her head. Her face was pale, her eyes, while dry, were bright red, a sure sign that she was concealing her emotions, with little effect.  "My momma used to sing it to me," she whispered.

If Stella noticed anything unusual in that, she showed no sign of it. "She did?"

"Every night when she tucked me into bed," Calleigh told her. "She would tell me stories about her family, and about fairy princesses and handsome princes, and happily ever after… "

"Those sound like nice stories," Stella said when Calleigh's voice trailed off, lost in yesterdays.

"They were." Calleigh's voice sounded very young, and very far away. "I always knew that she loved me when she'd sing me that song."

"I bet she loved you very much." Stella leaned forward, touching Calleigh's hand, and Calleigh's head, which had turned to stare out the window, whipped back around, staring into green eyes that were so much like her own.

"She did," Calleigh whispered, and this time, there were tears in her eyes. "And I love her too."  Her hand closed over Stella's, patting it gently, then she stood. "I need to go now."

Stella's face registered dismay. "So soon?"

"Yeah…we have a long way to go…"

"Will you come back soon?" Her expression was that of a child, and Calleigh nodded.

"Yeah…we'll come back soon." Bending down, she pressed a kiss to her mother's forehead before she literally stumbled out of the room, and Tim had no choice but to follow her.

He found her just on the other side of the door, slightly hunched over, gulping down huge breaths of air, one hand braced against the wall for support. He walked around to stand in front of her, and she straightened up, shaking her head, her other hand going to her chest. "I'm ok," she told him, but he could see that she wasn't, and he shook his head, not willing to let her away with that, not any more, not now, not when she was barely hanging on by a thread.

"Calleigh," was all he said, hand outstretched, aiming for her shoulder, and she shook her head, trying to back away from him.

"Tim…" That was as far as she got in her protests, because a second later, sobs overtook her body, and he saw the first tear that he'd seen her cry since all this had begun make its way down her cheek. Instead of waiting for her to touch him, this time, he reached out and pulled her into his arms, holding her there despite her initial struggles, stroking her hair, letting her know with his touch, if not by words, that he was there for her.

After a few seconds, she stopped struggling, just wrapped her arms around his waist tightly, crying as if she was never going to stop.