Hi guys!

Hope everyone is well, it's coming into Winter here in AU and man, it's starting to get cold! We get both extremes where we live, it was one of the hottest and driest summer's on record (luckily the drought has broken for us now. For the first time in four years there is water in our dam.) and now we're going to get a cold winter lol. More time to curl up infront of the fire with my cats and write since its so cold.

Thank you everyone who's reviewed, things are going to get interesting over the next few chapters. Buckle up your seatbelts guys!

Enjoy!

Chapter 23.0

The sound of footsteps coming up behind Jessie interrupted her from her work and she glanced around to see who it was. 'Oh, Ty, you scared me.'

'Hey Jessie.' He greeted as he came over and sat down beside her, wondering what on earth she was doing as he looked down at the things she had out. 'Jack wanted me to come find you.'

'I guessed as much.' She sighed, shivering slightly as a breeze blew past. 'Why?'

'He wants you to go inside. You've been out here for ages and its getting colder.'

'I don't care. I can put up with the cold.'

'Jessie-'

'Don't you get it?' She snapped, her eyes crackling angrily. 'When I go in there I'm going to have to pretend I'm something that I'm not. I'd much rather stay out here by myself then go inside and pretend that everything is lartyda with me.'

'You mean, be happy when Cindy's leaving?'

'Yeah.' She replied quietly as she looked down at her hands, going back to stitching up the jacket she was making. 'I know I'm supposed to be happy for her but-' Her voice trailed off.

'You can't help but feel like you've been cheated. That she has something you want.' Ty finished her sentence for her. 'I know how you feel Jessie, that's how I felt when I saw other foster kids going home to their parents. I know what you're going through, seeing Cindy reunited with her Grandmother, her leaving. It's tough.'

'It is.' Jessie nodded, yelping softly as she pricked herself with the needle and she stuck her finger in her mouth. 'Ouch.'

'Needle attack you?' He tried to joke to lighten the mood but the girl wasn't having any of it. 'Sorry Jessie.'

'Look Ty, I know that you're trying to cheer me up but it's not going to work.' Her finger hurting less slightly she started back on her project. 'The way I feel at the moment I'm just no in the mood for it.'

'Sorry.' He apologised again, trying to think of what to say. He looked at Jessie, the girl's eyes blank as she carried on with what she was doing. 'What's that you're making?'

'A buckskin jacket.' She replied, finishing sewing up the cuff of the arm. 'Lisa's jacket was a write-off after Cindy spilt milk all over it and since it was my fault she did I thought I should replace it for her. Besides, it gives me something to do. If I'm occupied I don't have to think.'

'Can I have a look at it?'

'Sure.' She handed it to him, turning back to the rest of the skin as she grabbed her knife. 'I'm going to put some fringe on the front, add some decoration to it.'

'You've done quite well on it.' He complimented, admiring her work. 'Sewing wasn't my strongest skill in school but you've done a good job.'

'Lillian taught me how to make my own clothes and Robert taught me to work with leather so I guess it was a win-win.' Carefully she began to cut a length of leather into fringe to put on the jacket. She paused for a moment to look up at him as he placed the jacket back down. 'Don't tell anyone what I'm working on, I want to give it to Lisa as a surprise.'

'I won't say anything.'

'Thanks. You can go tell Jack I'll head in soon, when I feel like it.' She started on the fringe again as she spoke. 'No sense you freezing your bottom off just to keep me company.'

Ty got the hint that she wanted to be alone again and stood up. 'Try not to be out too much longer, okay? It's pretty cold.'

'I'll just finish this then I'll go in, promise.'

'Good girl.'

She rolled her eyes as he walked away, turning her attention back to the task at hand. She had almost managed to get the coat finished, all she had to do was finish adding the decorative fringe and she would be finished. Forcing herself to remain fully focused on what she was doing she managed to get the remainder of the work done on the jacket before the sun showed three o'clock. She nodded with satisfaction as she inspected the jacket. It was probably one of the best pieces she had done and one of the fastest too. She folded it up carefully and wrapped it up in some brown paper then tucked it away in her saddlebag. She'd give Lisa the jacket before she left.

Her face clouded with the thought of the foster home, for a few minutes while doing the jacket she had been able to forget absolutely everything. Cindy leaving, foster care, her nightmares. For a few moments she was able to enjoy doing something she loved. Everything was coming back though, almost overwhelming her. She forced it back though, she wouldn't let herself break, yet.

Jessie packed everything back away into her saddlebags and headed back to the barn quietly. Ty was right, it was getting colder. She shivered as the dying grass crunched under her footsteps. She hadn't realised just how cold it had gotten. She was almost chilled through. She quickened her steps, glad once she entered the barn that she was out of the wind.

'Where you been?' Caleb asked, untacking Shorty as she entered. She looked up at him and he raised his eyebrows. 'Woah, someone's not in a great mood.'

'Ain't that the truth.' She sighed, placing her saddlebags down with Warrior's tack. 'It just- It hasn't been a good day.'

'Ah we all have those days.' He patted Shorty as he turned to her. 'Chin up, it'll get better. It always does.'

'One can only hope.' She sighed, heading over to Warrior. He nudged her with his nose, his whiskers ticking her cheek. 'Hey boy.' She patted him, scratching behind his ears. 'I'll see if I can bring you a carrot later, alright?' The stallion blew softly on her hands as she made a half-hearted smile. 'I take that as a yes.'

She left the barn after giving Warrior another couple of pats, heading back out into the chilly afternoon. She put her hands in her pockets as she shivered, the wind driving straight through her thin coat. When had staying out in this seem like a good idea? She put her head down, forcing herself to run to the house. Jack was right. It was too cold to be out, especially when she wasn't wearing the right clothes for the conditions.

Quietly she entered the house, stopping at the coat rack to take off her jacket. She was freezing, shivering almost uncontrollably. She hadn't noticed just how cold it had been getting when she was working on Lisa's jacket but now she realised just how stupid she had been to be out there. She fumbled with her buttons, trying to get her stubbornly numb hands to cooperate with her.

'There you are.' Lisa exclaimed as she walked in, having heard the girls footsteps on the porch. She watched as the girl tried to get her coat off, she appeared to be struggling slightly. 'Need some help?'

'Yes, thanks.'She replied, her cheeks red with embarrassment as she gave up trying to undo the buttons. Lisa worked quickly, helping her out of the coat and hanging it up. She shivered again, holding her arms against her as she tried to warm up. 'Thank you.'

'Look at you honey.' She motioned at her as she watched her shiver. 'Your freezing. Where on earth have you been? What were you doing?'

'I needed time by myself.' Jessie explained as the woman grabbed the picnic blanket off the chair and wrapped it around her. 'I lost track of the time and I didn't realise how cold it was getting.'

She shook her head in disbelief. 'Your chilled through. Come on, you can go warm up in bed and I'll bring you some hot to drink.'

'But-'

'No buts. Go do as your told. You don't need to catch pneumonia, trust me.'

'Fine.' She glanced towards the living room as Cindy's loud laughter rang out. 'What's she like?'

'Who? Eleanor? Oh, she's alright.' Lisa replied, walking into the kitchen with Jessie following her. 'Cindy adores her and she her. You won't have to worry about Cindy, she's a good person.'

It wasn't Cindy's care that she was upset about. From what the girl had told her she already knew that she was going to be well looked after. She nodded slowly at Lisa. 'That's good.'

Lisa looked at her for a moment, a slightly confused look on her face that disappeared as quickly as it had come. She turned back to the coffee, still wondering a little at Jessie's unusual behaviour. 'Go change out of those clothes and get yourself warmed up. I'll bring you this once the kettle finishes boiling.'

'Alright.' She sighed, taking a deep breath then walked quietly into the living room, trying to be as inconspicuous as possible. It didn't work.

'Jessie.' Cindy's face lit up as she jumped off the couch and ran to her. 'Where have you been?'

'Out for a walk.' She glanced down. 'I was busy.'

'I'm glad you're back, I was going to go look for you.' Jack exclaimed, trying to read the girls emotions but Jessie was doing a very good job hiding them behind blank eyes, making his job harder. 'Why were you out for so long?'

'Lost track of the time.' She shrugged, picking up the suitcase with her clothes in it from under her stretcher. 'If you'll excuse me I need to get out of these damp clothes.'

'So that's Jessie?' She heard the woman ask as she walked down the hallway to the bathroom. 'She seems like a nice girl.'

Jessie didn't bother sticking around to hear either reply, closing the door quickly behind her. She didn't want to know what they were saying about her. She placed her suitcase down and grabbed a different shirt and clean pair of jeans out, tossing her other clothes aside to be washed as she quickly changed. She shivered as she did her buttons up her still slightly frozen fingers not taking to cooperating well. She managed to get them done up after a time then grabbed a towel and wiped her hair dry. It had been sleeting slightly outside, her dampened hair helped in chilling her to the bone. She dried it as best she could then threw it up into a high ponytail, gathered her things and put them away then headed back out. She could hear Cindy's laughter floating up the hallway as she left the bathroom, a surge of jealousy rushing through her. Why couldn't she be happy like Cindy? Why was she destined to never belong anywhere instead of having a home with people that loved her?

'Good timing Jessie, I just finished your drink.' Lisa exclaimed as the girl and her headed into the living room. 'Hot chocolate with one sugar and milk, just the way you like it.'

'Thanks Lisa.' She took the drink and headed to her stretcher, sliding her suitcase under then climbing on and wrapped the blankets around her. The warm mug began to warm her hands as she took a sip, still shivering slightly from the cold.

'Are you warm enough?' She asked, putting another blanket around her shoulders. She touched the girls forehead, her skin cold and clammy. I hope you're not getting sick. The thought quickly crossed her mind. 'Your frozen honey.'

'I'm fine Lisa, honest.'

Cindy schoched up next to her as Lisa headed back to the kitchen, cuddling up close to her. 'I've been telling Grandma all about you.'

'Have you?' Her eyes dropped to the ground to avoid Eleanor and Jack's gaze. She blushed slightly. 'What have you been saying?'

'Only good things, I can assure you.' Eleanor spoke up as she put her cup of tea back onto the coffee table. 'I must thank you Jessie for looking out for my Granddaughter while I was unable to take care of her.'

'Your welcome, Mrs-'

'You can just call me Eleanor. Being called by my last name makes me feel so ancient.'She looked at Cindy. 'Cinds, why don't you go heat up some more of those cookies you made me? I'm sure Jessie would like some.'

'Okay Grandma.'

The woman turned her attention back to Jessie after her Granddaughter left, trying to read the girl. She seemed distracted, uncomfortable and she could see it wasn't from being cold. She was good at reading people and just by watching her body language she could see something that gave her the idea she had a rough past. Jessie had her eyes fixed on the ground, trying to obviously avoid confrontation. 'So Jessie, tell me about yourself.'

Jessie looked down at her hands as the greyhairded woman tried to make conversation with her. 'Um. I'm twelve.' She replied softly, still not looking at her. 'I love animals and I like cooking.'

'I can see why then my Granddaughter gets along with you so well then. She loves animals too. We have a couple of dogs and cats back home, she absolutely adores them. She was telling me that she's been learning to ride too.'

'I've been teaching her.' She nodded. 'She's getting there, riding isn't a skill you can learn overnight.'

The woman chuckled. 'Yes, I can't argue with that I'm afraid. I used to ride quite a bit in my younger years, then when I got married I sort of stopped you know. Life got busy. I still love horses though and I'm glad Cindy has been able to get to enjoy them too. I was watching the horse you were leading when I drove up. Quite an impressive horse I must say.'

'That's Warrior, he's my horse.' She glanced up for a moment as Jack quietly slipped out of the room leaving her alone with the woman. She shuddered a little though she didn't know why. 'He's got the tendency to be a bit spirited but I like that in a horse. I'd much rather have a horse with a bit of spirit then a robot.'

Eleanor smiled as she chuckled again. 'That's how I liked my horses too. One of the horses I owned when I was about your age was a chocolate chestnut named Spirit. I never knew what trick he had next up his sleeve. I used to spend more time on my bottom then actually riding him.' She paused for a moment, then continued. 'Jessie, Clint and the other case worker explained what happened to Cindy while she was in foster care.' She saw the girl tense up at the word, it was a trigger for her obviously. 'Cindy wouldn't have been able to be where she is now if it wasn't for you. They told me how you and her escaped and how you protected her from that man. I wanted to thank you from the bottom of my heart for your sacrifice to keep her safe.'

'Cindy means a lot to me.' She sniffed softly. 'I'd do anything for her. She's the closest thing to family I've ever had.' She looked up at the woman, her eyes watery. 'Would it be okay if I keep in contact with her?'

'Of course it is honey.' She smiled kindly. She could see how much Cindy meant to her. 'Your more than welcome to. You can come visit us anytime you like as well, we've got an extra room and I'm sure Cindy would love to have you visit.'

'Thank you so much.'

'It's the least I can do. I'm glad Cindy had a person looking out for her when I couldn't and I'm glad she's found a friend in you.'

'You'll be taking Cindy back to Calgary now I guess?'

Eleanor shook her head. 'Jack has invited me to stay the night so you girls could have a bit more time together. We'll be leaving tomorrow morning though as planned.'

'I hope you're hungry Jessie.' Cindy exclaimed as she walked back in, the smell of the warm cookies drifting around the room. She placed them down, helping herself to one of them then snuggled up beside the older girl. 'You might be lucky if Grandma and I leave you a couple.'

'I guess I had better have one now then before they all go.' Jessie played along, taking a cookie off the plate. Gingerly she nibbled at it, nibbling away little crumbs just like her thoughts ate up her mind. Cindy and her Grandma were laughing again at some little joke between the two of them and she never felt more out of place anywhere then she did at that moment. Cindy didn't need her anymore now that she had her Grandma. She glanced up as Lisa and Jack walked back in, Lisa seating herself on the couch and Jack tending to the fire.

'Are you okay? You warm enough honey?' Lisa asked, looking over at her. 'I can get you some more hot chocolate if you want and something else to eat.'

'No, I'm fine.' She faked a smile. 'I'm not really hungry.'

'You skipped breakfast, lunch-'

'Lisa.' Jessie replied, slightly stronger then before. She looked at her, hoping that Lisa got the impression to not press her further. She was trying to be diplomatic and not be rude but if Lisa asked if she was okay one more time- 'I'm fine. Honestly.' The woman nodded, her expression sobering as their eyes met. She sighed inwardly. Lisa was only trying to show her that she cared. 'Thank you for asking.'

'If you want me to get you anything, just ask.' She replied, chastising herself for being so pushy. Anything to do with Jessie the last couple of days was like walking on egg-shells. The girl could be fine one moment and lash out the next. It wasn't her fault, she knew that. Jessie was dealing with a lot, however it did make her trying to take care of her much harder. She didn't know where she stood with her anymore. She turned to Cindy as Jack sat down beside her. 'Cindy, why don't you go get the chess board and I'll have a game with you.'

'Sure.' Cindy's face lit up as she hopped off the stretcher then looked at her Grandma. 'Do you want to play?'

'Maybe later sweetheart.' Eleanor replied with a smile.

'What about you Jessie? You want to have a game with me?'

'I'll see. You play with Lisa first and maybe once my fingers thaw out a little I'll be able to hold the chess pieces.'

'Okay then.'

Jessie finished eating, curling up in her blanket as the girl headed down the hallway to the cupboard where the games were. Her eyelids were drooping, and she laid her head down, trying to fight the overwhelming urge to sleep. She lost, closing her eyes as her body relaxed into the stretcher and she drifted off to sleep…