I'd just like to thank everyone for their reviews :) I've enjoyed reading them and knowing people like this story.

Stage Three: "Bargaining"

Hannah slammed her bedroom door shut in an attempt to block the sound of the still raised voices that drifted up the stairs and flung herself onto the bed, her small body shaking with sobs. She groped for the stuffed brown rabbit her mother had given her a few months ago and clutched it to her chest, curling around it as she continued to cry. The voices continued to drift upwards, the content muffled even though the emotions were clear.

Raising wet eyes, completely ignoring the tears still running down her cheeks, she looked at the old-fashioning pink-and-gold cross that was placed on the wall above her window. The cross was a keepsake from her mother's childhood, something that had watched over her when she was young and now watched over Hannah in the same way. It normally brought Hannah a sense of peace and contentment, of safeness and stability. Today all of that was gone.

"Why?" she asked angrily as she stared at the symbol of faith and of God. "She wasn't supposed to die!"

She was silent for a few heartbeats, not entirely sure of whether she was waiting for an answer or simply catching her breath.

"If you bring her back, Cliff and Taylor'll stop fighting," she promised, never taking her eyes off the cross. "And I'll be good; I promise!"

Hannah abruptly reached out for the pad of paper she kept by her bed so that she could write herself notes and threw it, pages spinning as it flew through the air and impacted the wall with a thud before falling in a heap onto the carpeted floor.

"We still need her!" she shouted before lowering her voice having had enough raised voices to last a lifetime and continued, though it remained accusing. "You know everything. You should know that!"

The yelling downstairs stopped abruptly and soon after feet could be heard pounding up the stairs as a door downstairs slammed shut. It was instantly echoed by the sound of another, closer door closing with a bang. It was immediately followed loud music being turned on, the pulsing beat easily being heard.

Hannah curled up in a tighter ball around the stuffed rabbit, one thumb automatically finding its' way to her mouth. It was something she had done as a baby but had stopped years ago. Taking her eyes off the cross that was nailed to the wall, she closed them and rested her head heavier on the pillow that was already damp with tears.

"Give her back…please" was said quietly, the last thing before sobs shook her body once more.

There was a quiet knock at the door before it opened, bright light from the hallway spilling into the dim room along with more of the blasting music. "Hannah?"

The little girl shifted at Jeannie's voice, at once both grateful for and resenting the woman's intrusion into her space and grief. She was aware of Jeannie coming further into the room, sitting down on the side of the bed and putting one hand on Hannah's shoulder, the warmth seeping through the thin nightgown she wore.

"Hannah, I'm sorry if what happened downstairs upset you. It shouldn't have happened."

Hannah sniffed and shifted again. "It's not your fault," she assured the older woman. "It's all that stupid Taylor's fault," she condemned her older sister's actions.

"She's upset and she's taking it out on the closest convenient scapegoat," Jeannie soothed quietly. "You do know that it's not really Cliff's fault, right?" She asked the question hesitantly, unsure what she'd do if the little girl followed in her sister's footsteps and accused the growing boy.

Hannah nodded, silent for a moment, before she used one hand to brush the tears off her face. "The officer said it was Mommy's fault."

Jeannie said nothing, unable to dispute the fact that the officer had informed them that, according to witnesses, the accident, and therefore her death, was Sue's fault. The hand on Hannah's shoulder moved up, combing through soft brown hair in a gesture of comfort.

Hannah looked up at Jeannie for the first time since the older woman had invaded her bedroom. "Doesn't Mommy want to live with us anymore? Want to love us?"

"Oh, honey, of course she does," Jeannie said softly as she continued to stroke Hannah's hair. "But she can't; it was her time to go. That doesn't mean that she stopped loving you. She'll never stop loving you."

"But what's going to happen to us, Jeannie? Where are we going to live? Who's going to take care of us?" Hannah sat up quickly, looking at the older woman. "Will you?"

"I'll always be here for you, sweetie, but no, I'm not going to be the one taking care of you. Your mother wanted your aunt to take care of you if anything happened to her. We talked about it a few times."

"Aunt Zoe?" Hannah looked over to where a collection of postcards was pinned to a bulletin board, all of them from her travel-loving aunt. "She lives in Vegas! Will we have to move to Vegas?" Hannah thought about it, the city her mother and aunt had told her about but that she'd never visited; they were actually supposed to go on a family vacation there this summer. She shook her head. "I don't think I want to live in Vegas, Jeannie."

"I'm sure Las Vegas is a wonderful city to live in," Jeannie told her, not wanting to promise the little girl that she wouldn't have to move; there was no telling where the family would end up. "And your Aunt Zoe will do what's right for all of you."

"But what if she thinks moving is right? I don't want to move, Jeannie!" She started crying again, the thought of moving the one shock too many that had hit her system that night.

Jeannie gathered Hannah's body into her arms and began rocking her as she had her own children and grandchild. "Shh," she said repeatedly as she continued stroking Hannah's long hair in a soothing caress. "Everything's going to be all right,' she promised quietly. "In the end, everything is going to be all right."

"How can everything be all right? Nothing's ever going to be all right again!" Hannah struggled to pull away from Jeannie, the older woman not loosening her grip and Hannah eventually falling back into the embrace, completely boneless. "Mommy's gone and Taylor hates us and now we have to leave our home and our friends and move to a whole new place in a whole 'nother state!"

Unable to reassure the little girl that she wasn't going to have to move, Jeannie simply continued to rock, murmuring soothingly nonsensical sayings against the top of her head as the girl clutched tightly to both Jeannie and the rabbit. After a long while, Hannah began to tire, the shocks of the day catching up to her, and Jeannie gently maneuvered her so that she was lying down on the bed with her head on the pillow. "You should try to get some sleep, Hannah."

"I don't want to sleep!" Hannah struggled to sit up before accepting the gentle push and resting back on the bed. "Jeannie," she tried, quieting when the older woman put a finger to her lips in a time-honored gesture for silence.

"You need to sleep, Hannah. Staying awake isn't going to change anything," Jeannie told her quietly, knowing that it may be harsh but that it was honest. One thing she had never done was lie to a child.

"Is Cliff home yet?" The worry and anxiety that Hannah felt for her brother was clear in her voice.

"I didn't hear him come in, but I'll check. If he isn't, I'll wait and make sure he's home safe and have him come tell you, okay?"

Hannah nodded, her glance sliding away from Jeannie.

Jeannie reached out and touched her chin, making the girl look at her. "I want you to try to sleep, okay?"

Hannah sighed and nodded, shifting to get more comfortable in her bed.

"Will you call Aunt Zoe?"

Jeannie smiled and nodded, once again stroking her soft hair. "I'll call her and explain everything. I promise."

Hannah nodded and shifted again. She was asleep before Jeannie even reached the doorway, her slow breathing only interrupted by the occasional hiccup or hitch.

TBC in Stage 4: Depression