Chapter 3

After resting for five minutes Tara felt re-energized. Standing she set off at a run for the town.

"Connor did you see what I did?" Tara asked with a huge smile as Connor materialized beside her.

"Yeah I did." he replied.

"You must have been a good fighter when you were alive." Tara commented as they ran into the city.

"Yeah maybe... but I also noticed something you did on your own."

"What's that?" Tara asked.

"You're not stuttering." Tara beamed at him at that and the two walked into the dollar store. As they bought the ingredients they needed, they walked back to Tara's house.

After she finished setting up everything, she needed she suddenly remembered something. She had forgotten to put the book back into her father's dresser. As a young child he had always told her to leave that book alone. 'Now if he see's it out of place he'll probably beat me.' she thought to herself.

As she made it to his room she saw the book in question lying on the floor. As she was about to put the book into her father's dresser draw, Conner suddenly stumbles into the room clutching his chest.

"Tara there's something wrong." Connor says as his image started to fade in and out.

"Connor!" Tara yells out. They make eye contact one final time and then Connor's image fades completely. Tara just sat on her father's bed for a few minutes and wept. She had finally made a real friend and now he was gone.

Realizing that maybe he got his wish of crossing over to the other side, she stops her tears. As she looked down at the book in her hands she starts to read it. After skimming through a few passages she finally skips to the last entry her mother wrote.

Journal entry August 5, 1993

I'm sitting here on my death bed. The only thing I can really think about is my little girl Tara. The Doctors don't know what's wrong with me and I seem to be getting sicker and sicker. One thing I can say about this experience is that it finally opened my eyes.

It had to be a lie that the women in my family are demons. If we really were demons then how could I be dying so easily? I mean I've never heard of a demon getting sick before.

Tara I'm sorry I couldn't be there for you to watch you grow up. But something unavoidable is happening to me. I wish I could be strong for you. I love your brother to but it seems that he will grow up to be just as hateful as your father. Tara if this is my last day on earth and if you ever see this, I want you to know that I love you. I have to go now, Jed is bringing me some soup.

That was the last entry of the diary. Tara read it three more times and she saw that, that was the same day her mother died. As she started to cry, her tears fell on the book. After a moment the words on the page changed to something different.

To my loving daughter Tara,

Tara I pray that one day you will get a hold of this diary. I put a spell on the pages so that if you ever cried on it that you would get a special message from me. Tara I love you always remember that. And I know that your father is trying to kill me. That's why I want you to run away Tara.

Save as much money as you can and run away. You have an aunt named Megan Lennox who lives in Santa fe. Her address is listed in the phone book. Go live with her if you can. I know I'm asking alot of you baby, but I knew that when you were born that you would be special. And I know that you have a very special destiny that you have to fulfill. Being here with your father isn't going to let you fulfill that destiny. Always remember that I love you baby.

Forever and always

Elizabeth Maclay

Holding in her unshed tears she stood and was about to drop the book in the dresser draw. That was until the door to her father's room opened. Turning she saw the hateful face of her father.

"Tara, what the hell are you doing!?" Tara's father yelled. As he saw the book in her hand he immediately walked up to her and took it out of her hands. Before she could so much as get out a word, he backhanded her across the face.

As she hit the floor her father immediately took off his belt.

"I'll show ye to go through my stuff." A second after he said this Tara's screams echoed throughout the house.

Five Hours later

Connor finally rematerialized and now stood in Tara's bedroom. He spent the last five hours just floating around in a dimensional limbo. Clearing his mind of those negative thoughts he takes in the still form of Tara's body in her dark room.

With a smile on his face he walks up her and nearly faints as he see's all of the bruises and cuts on her body. Her cute little face even had bruises on it. She had her eyes closed, but he could tell that she wasn't asleep.

"What the hell happened to you?" he asked as he sat beside her. Tara was so out of it that she couldn't even lift up her head. As she opened her eyes she saw Connor looking down at her.

"Connor." she manages to get out as she faints. With a scowl on his face, he touches Tara on the forehead, and then vanishes.

Jed Maclay and his son Donny sat in the living room watching the TV. Actually Donny was watching TV and his father had his Wifes diary in his hand.

'Do you see what your stupidity has caused you Elizabeth?' he thinks to himself. 'I didn't want to do that to Tara.' As he was about to throw the book into the roaring fire of the fireplace, he hears footsteps coming from the hallway. Looking up he see's Tara coming out of the darkness.

"I see ye need another beating, Tara." he said as he stood and took his belt off again. "I told you to stay in your room." As he swings the belt at her she catches it with one hand, and with the other she picks him up off of the floor by the scruff of his shirt.

"I don't think I need to listen to you anymore." she stated coldly as she flung him five feet into the air making him fall onto his reading chair. Sensing someone approaching her from behind, she spun around and backhanded her brother across the face. The force of the blow sent him spinning in the air until he crashed in a heap against the wall.

"Tara what the hell are ye doing?" her fathered demanded, although he was to afraid to stand back up. Tara glanced at him as if he were nothing and she walked slowly up to him.

"I'm leaving you daddy." she replied simply as she snatched the book out of his trembling hands. Returning to the darkness of the hallway she gathers her suitcase and heads out of the door.

As Tara ran out of the house with her bag in hand she made a mad dash for the town. Before she even got a full yard away from the house she heard her father's truck starting up.

Tara could feel the heat of the trucks headlights as it slowly started to barrel down on her. Through a pure act of a miracle, Tara began to run faster then the truck. As they began to reach the city, Tara began to feel the effects of her running so fast.

Panting, legs burning, and out of breath, Tara finally gives out and falls to the ground. Seeing her prone figure lying on the ground, Jed stops his truck and gets out with a sledge hammer in hand.

"See I told you, you were a demon." he accuses as he smacked the sledge hammer against his open palm and strolled up to where Tara lay on the ground, fighting desperately to stay conscious and get up.

"I'm sorry it had to be like this Tara." he said as he lifts the sledge hammer over his head. "But you should have listened to me." as he was about to bring the hammer down on his daughter, a shotgun blast sounded out.

Looking up he see's a tall white man wearing a black shirt with priest's collar. Holding up a smoking twelve gauge shotgun, the man slowly walks up to them.

"Get away from that gurl!" the man shouted with his southern drawl. Jed looked from him to Tara, then he reluctantly stepped back.

"Sweet pea if you can hear me, get up and get in my truck." the man said to Tara, never taking his eyes or shotgun off of Jed. Slowly Tara stood and started to walk slowly to the man's truck.

"Tara you get back here!" her father shouted out at her. Weakly Tara turned around and flashed him, her mothers diary. It was a silent threat that if he messed with her again, that she would give the diary to the police. With her testimony and her mom's diary he would get locked up for a long time.

With that threat delivered, Tara turned back around and got into the strangers beatup pickup truck. As the stranger heard the trucks door close, he walked with his gun held high, up to Jed.

"Listen buddy that's my daughter and...." Jed was cut off as the stranger cocked his shotgun.

"No you listen to me." the man stated clearly agitated."What I saw was a bruised and frightened young girl about to be killed by her so called father. Now I'm a good friend of the sheriff in this town and I think he'll be glad to take you to jail for what you've done." the man stated as he began to walk backwards to his truck.

As he opened the door he lowered his gun and got fully inside of the truck. With a scowl on his face, Jed could only watch as the preacher took off with Tara, into the city.

-

As the two drove towards the sheriff's office in town, the stranger looks over at Tara.

"You're dirty." he says taking his eyes off the road for a second.

"What?" Tara asked wide eyed.

"Your clothes I mean." he specified.

"Oh." she said as she looked down at herself.

"By the way sweetpea, I never got your name." the preacher said as he looked over at the blonde girl.

"M...My name is Tara." she stuttered.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Tara, my name is Caleb."

tbc...