Chapter Seven

"Amy, baby, where are you?" Marcus' voice is verging on panic.

Amy is immediately panicked, she hadn't actually thought far enough ahead as to what she was going to say when she got on the phone with Marcus. "We're fine, me and Emily."

"Good, where are you?" Marcus asks again.

"We're...we're fine, I just wanted to call and tell you that we're okay, I can't tell you where I am..."

"Dammit Amy, where the hell are you?" As Marcus' anger blazes Amy can't help but jump a little.

"I...I...I...I..." Amy stutters, suddenly realizes that she had made a mistake in calling Marcus in the first place, at least until she saw a lawyer.

"Amy baby," Marcus' voice goes back to the soothing tone that Amy had fallen in love with in the first place. "Please, I'm just worried about you, let me come and get you and we'll work this out. Maybe see a marriage councilor, work things out, I just need you and Emily with me."

"Marcus, really?" Amy asks.

"Of course..." Amy can't hear the rest of Marcus' words because Harold barges into the bathroom causes Amy to screech as her father pulls the phone out of her hands.

"You stay the hell away from Amy," Harold barks into the phone before slamming it shut.

Rose is drawn upstairs by the sound and walks into the bathroom to see Harold staring at Amy and Amy pale faced and looking like she is going to cry. "What's going on in here?" Rose asks, "Harold? Amy?"

"That ass of a husband of hers had the nerve to call her," Harold states.

"Oh Amy, dear, are you alright?" Rose questions.

"He didn't call me," Amy confesses, "I call him."

"You did what?" Harold stares stunned at his daughter.

"Oh Amy," Rose sighs.

"I just," Amy takes a slowly breath in and lets it out slowly, hoping to stop her shaking. "I just thought it wasn't right for him to not know where I am, where Emily is, I was just calling to tell him that we were okay. But then he started saying things he wants me back and he's willing to get some help..."

"Of course that's what he said, that's the way these cretins work. I thought we'd decided that you wouldn't contact him, once we found a divorce lawyer we would let him to the talking."

"No Dad," Amy exclaims, "that's what you decided about my life. It's my life, and he's my husband..."

"Who beats you!" Harold interrupts, "I'm sorry if I was trying to protect my daughter from her abusive husband when she can't think straight."

"It's not your job to protect me!"

"Well if you're just going to go back to him despite the fact that you realize him hitting you is wrong who's to say you can stop it when he decides to start hitting Emily."

"I would never let him hurt her."

"That's what you say now, but two nights ago you also said that you'd never go back to him and a short phone call and you've changed your mind. He says all the right things and you're willing to just take him back like the bruises that you hide everyday mean nothing, like he can just stop doing it. Like this time is different from all of the other times, like you've scared him straight. Well that's exactly what he wants you to think, and he'll go into those counseling sessions and get some help but that's not going to change him."

"Mommy?" Emily appears behind Rose looking terrified.

"Come on Emy-Lou," Amy takes her daughter into her arms and pulls her tightly to her, "we're leaving."

"Amy please," Rose begs. "Don't leave now, get some sleep. You and your father need to just calm down."

"No," Amy shakes her head, grabbing her keys from the bedside table, "I can't stay here tonight."

Once Amy has gotten Emily bucked into her car seat and she is behind the wheel Amy breaks into silent sobs, she had no where to go, she'd left her purse and wallet in the house. But she couldn't go back in there, "Mommy?" Emily asks softly unaware that her mother is crying.

"Yeah baby?" Amy asks forcing her voice to remain normal.

"Are we leaving Everwood?" Emily asks.

"Not tonight," Amy responds.

"Where are we going to sleep?" Emily asks.

"I'm not sure yet sweetie, but I'll figure it out." The idea of staying with Bright crossed Amy's mind but she knew her brother well enough to know that he would ask questions, demand answers and then when she told him he would take her father's side and just get another lecture from him. She had no contact with anyone in town except Ephram, but even then Amy didn't want to go there. Flashback to high school anyone? Ephram was going through his own thing she couldn't just show up at his house asking him to help her pick up the pieces of her once again screwed up life.

"We're staying with Antonia?" Emily's voice brings Amy out of her thoughts and Amy's heart begins to pound, she hadn't even realize she was driving let alone had a direction in mind.

She didn't want to burden Ephram but she also couldn't put Emily through the experience of sleeping in the car, "yeah, I guess so." Amy unbuckles Emily and lifts her onto her hip, Emily was obviously exhausted and even the thought of seeing her friend didn't wake her up.

Amy shifts uncomfortably after knocking on the door and Nina's the one who pulls the door open for them, "Amy, come in."

"I'm sorry to just show up like this, but could we stay here tonight? Anywhere is fine, I just..."

"You don't have to explain Amy," Nina shakes her head. "Of course you can stay here, if you want I can take Emily up to the room Antonia and Alyssa are sharing."

Amy looks at her daughter, "does that sound good?" Emily nods and allows Nina to take her, "thank you so much Nina."

Nina nods, "Ephram's in the music room."

Amy bites her lip, "thanks, really Nina, thank you."

Amy slips into Ephram studio quietly not wanting to alert him to her presence, completely content to listen to Ephram play and try to clear her thoughts. But Ephram doesn't give her anytime alone because the music suddenly ends and he states, "go to bed, it's past your bedtime."

"But Daddy, five more minutes," Amy can't resist and her words make Ephram jump up quickly, knocking his bench backwards.

"Amy?"

"Hey," Amy offers a half smile.

"What's going on?" Ephram questions.

"We're crashing here for the night," Amy states, "I had a fight with my dad and couldn't stand to be there."

"That's it," Ephram rights his bench and then moves toward the couch. "We're having a long talk."

"Ephram..."

"No," Ephram shakes his head, "once upon a time I used to know everything about you. And right now I know exactly what you're doing, you're about to meltdown and you won't talk to me cause you're afraid you'll burden me."

"Ephram..."

"The thing is, I would give anything to get my mind off my own damn problems. So talk to me Amy, please."