Oi vey. So I should forewarn you guys that this chapter is dark. And it gets darker. So if please be warned there's violence, lots of it.

Thank you for all your reviews on the last chapter, as I say every time, they mean the world to me. And I really hope you enjoy this chapter as much as you can given the themes within it, but I hope it at least gets you on the edge of your seat ;) I'll update Rise in the next few days and I promise you'll have the next part of this by the weekend because even I'm not that cruel that I'd leave it there haha.

Read, enjoy, review :) Love always, El xx

Pete Dunham could recall with frightening lucidity the moment he had become a father. He remembered that first scream, reverberating around the hospital room, her bright blue eyes opening, the smell of her head, the way her tiny chubby hand felt against his skin for the first time, the softness of it nonplussed by the roughness of his stubble, the drained look in his eyes from nights of coaxing her to sleep and sacrificing his own.

Every moment since then, her first word, her first steps, the first time she had read a book the whole way through on her own, cross legged nestling in the crook of his arm, her brow furrowed in concentration as she mouthed out the words to the BFG. The way she had then insisted she sleep with her window open in case he appeared in the night.

The tiny thing that had become his whole world, that had changed him, made him who he was, defined him as a man. He had promised her that he would keep her safe, that he would love her for infinity and never let her go.

He had failed her.

In the back seat of his car, he was aware of Harry saying something to him, his voice loud and panicked, a jumble of words whilst Bovver sat in the passenger seat not saying anything, his eyes dark and unreadable focused manically on the dashboard. Pete felt his breathing get more and more shallow with each passing moment and wanted nothing more than to pull over and throw up but he couldn't. He had to get to Allie.

Jerking the wheel harder than he perhaps should have, he peeled into the avenue that lead to St Hilary's school and without much consideration for his surroundings, pulled the car up onto the pavement not bothering to cut the engine as he threw himself from the vehicle and began sprinting up the road.

Ahead of him he could see the blue flashing lights of the police cars, the small gathering of concerned parents at the school gates, all faces he knew but none that he wanted to see. Scanning the road, the playground, the adjacent field, he clasped his hands behind his head, unable to see Allie.

"I've checked everywhere...I...I thought she might be in the playhouse around the back...she wouldn't run away, she didn't run away, someone took her,"

Pete closed his eyes for a moment and fought the urge to sob; the last time he had heard his wife sound so lost, so scared had been when Lara died. His body refused to move for a moment, his muscles tightening, his blood slowing, everything turning so silent that he could hear it swishing around in his veins, a feeble attempt to keep his heart beating. Hearing her sob, he quickly snapped back to life and turned, seeing her leaning against her car, her entire body trembling as she cradled what he recognised as his daughter's bunny rabbit key ring against her chest.

"I told you everything I know, why the fuck are you still here?" she screamed. "She's a little girl, she's five years old! You need to find her, you need to bring her back to me, I'm her mother and she's out there something with a stranger...she's scared, I know she will be...Oh god, please just go! Just go!"

The last word came out as a scream, one so bone chilling that even the hardened officers whom she was addressing stepped back, swallowing hard in an attempt to gain their composure. Unsure of how he had managed to get there, Pete found himself stood behind her, watching as she lifted her head, sensing him and meeting his eyes.

The ethereal shade of green was made all the more vivid in contrast to the red circles around her eyes, the tears spilling out of them in torrents, her breathing laboured as she held onto the side of her car, knowing that if she didn't, she would fall and never get up.

He ran to her, pulling her up and crushing her against him, trying to keep himself under control as she let go and screamed into his shoulder, her body going slack as she gave in to the fear that was sweeping through her.

"Baby, I'm sorry," Pete whimpered against her, his hand cupping the back of her head as he kissed her hair. "I'm so sorry,"

"He took our little girl," Allie wept, clutching at him. "I should have gotten here earlier. If he hurts her, its my fault, I..."

"No," Pete pulled back from her, her head locked between his hands as he stared at her hard, both of their faces streaked with tears that neither of them had the energy to wipe away. More would follow regardless. "This isn't your fault, do you hear me?"

Allie shook her head and sobbed hard, her chin dropping down to her chest as she felt the fight evaporate from her body .

"Allie, look at me," Pete half shouted at her. "We're going to find her and bring her home, alright? I'm not letting anything happen to either of you, but this isn't your fault."

"What if she's hurt?" Allie whispered, so brokenly that Pete swore he felt something tear inside himself. "What if she's scared, I'm not there to hug her...what if...what if she doesn't come back..."

Pete didn't answer her, he didn't trust his voice in that moment, his mind was plagued with images he knew he would never be able to wash away. Her blonde hair matted with blood, her tiny fingers crumpled and broken, her body, the one he had carried so many times, fought so hard to keep warm, now cold and grey in his arms.

"Mr Dunham?"

He looked up over Allie's head at the officer staring at him, his hazel eyes intense, his Adam's apple bobbing manically as he tried to keep his voice firm and controlled.

"We've got teams all over the area on the ground and in the air," the officer shook his head lightly. "The best thing you can do is go home,"

he nodded towards Allie and Pete knew what he was really saying.

Get her out of here before she sees something she doesn't want to, because we all know this isn't going to end well.

"I can send an officer with you if..."

"Nah," Pete shook his head, his voice trembling. "You lot do what you have to do, you just..." he met the man's eyes and felt the desperation pouring out of him. "You find her,"

The officer nodded and glanced down at the notepad he was holding, clearing his throat before speaking.

"This Eddie Hatcher," he jerked his chin up. "I know him. And if he has your daughter, I'll find him."

Pete stared at him for a long moment, pulling Allie tighter against him, anything he could think of to keep her body from shaking, but nothing seemed to help.

"I really hope you do," he nodded. "Because if I find him first, you'll be putting me in a cell by the end of the night, not him,"

The officer knew he should discourage that kind of mentality but seeing the look in the younger man's eyes, having read his history with the Hatcher's, he knew that as a father, he would be exactly the same. No matter what the risk, there was nothing a father wouldn't do for his little girl and staring at Pete Dunham, he knew that the man was anything but an exception to that rule.

The wind picked up around her, whistling violently as it poured through the small crack in the brick wall. It brought rain with it. Not rain, spittle picked up from the river. Behind her a frog hopped, hitting the wall repeatedly as it tried to find purchase on the window ledge.

Pushing herself up, she went to it, bending down and picking it up before placing it in front of the hole in the wall, giving it a gently nudge and watching as it bounded out into the cold. It was free.

"You know something's going to eat him, now don't you?"

Poppy Dunham stood straight and looked at the man across from her; the man who had said he was a friend of her mum and dad. But she didn't know his face, not like she knew any of her uncles or her grandpa. This man had a big scar down his face, but he was young, she could tell. His hair was messy, like a birds nest and she fought the urge to giggle every time he pulled at it, making it even messier without knowing it.

"He won't get eaten," she told him confidently. "Frogs always find their way back to the river,"

Eddie Hatcher glanced up at her front where he was shredding the label of his beer bottle in his frozen fingers and smirked; she was the exact image of her mother, all blonde waves and full lips. She would be a knock out when she was older. Shifting slightly, he felt the gun in his pocket dig into his hip and realised that no, in fact she wouldn't.

"How do you know my mummy and daddy?" she asked, pushing a stray piece of hair behind her ear.

Eddie snickered and rested his elbows on his knees, staring at her with pure venom in his eyes, but she didn't pick up on it. She was too young, too innocent, too unaware of the world she had been born into. See Pete Dunham could marry whoever he wanted, dress it up with all the money in the world but he would still be the same man he had been all those years ago.

And his children, his family were exactly the same. The blonde who had been stupid enough to open her legs, the baby boy who would probably walk his father's footsteps and the little girl before him who would be given ever opportunity in the world, not knowing that her family had caused an entire line of Hatcher men and now his aunt to fall to their knees. Buried, cold, leaving him all alone.

None of them deserved to live.

"How do I know your mummy and daddy?" he laughed, rubbing his chin and pointed at her. "Now that, sweetheart is a very, very good question,"

Standing up, he secured the gun inside his jacket, not wanting her to see it because he knew she'd start screaming and to give the kid credit, she'd been a good sport up until this point. He'd told her to get in the car and she had, he'd brought her here and told her she needed to be quiet and she had. Apparently money didn't buy brains.

"Your daddy and my cousin grew up together," he nodded, catching the light in her eyes, her interest peaking. "And then one day my cousin, he got hurt. Really hurt by some bigger boys...who should've known better. And he died, you see. So I didn't get to see him every again, his mummy and daddy then didn't get to hug him ever again, he never got to grow up like your daddy did,"

"Did he go to heaven?" Poppy asked him, her eyes sympathetic. "My auntie Lara went there when she got hurt and couldn't come back,"

"Heaven?" Eddie smirked at her. "Yeah, I guess he did,"

"Maybe they're friends," she offered him a slightly toothless smile.

"Maybe," he smiled sickly. "Maybe,"

"What happened to the big boys who hurt him?"

"They grew up," Eddie spoke, his voice low. "They forgot what they did, they moved on, got jobs, got married, lived happily ever after,"

"That's not very fair," Poppy shook her head.

"No, its not, is it?" he ground his teeth together painfully. "You see I don't have a family anymore, I'm all alone. I spent my whole life being told how important it was to have family around you, how they would always have your back, never let you fall down. And now they're gone. I don't have anyone,"

"I could be your friend,"

The little girl spoke and it shook him to the core; his eyes met hers, seeing the honesty there, the genuine sympathy. Her red pea coat and black buckle shoes pronouncing her youth even more so as she smiled at him warmly. He glanced past her and smirked, pointing and watching as her bright blue eyes followed his direction.

"I thought you said they always find their way back to the river," he watched as she turned and stared at the frog, cocking her head to one side in confusion.

"This one must be silly," she giggled, looking up at him as he came to stand beside her. "Or maybe just lost,"

Eddie nodded, feeling tears sting his eyes and looking up at the ceiling of the old building, feeling the ghosts that haunted this place wrapping themselves around him. His stomach lurched, the empathy evaporating from his blood as he took a step forward and looked the little girl dead in the eye.

"Silly frog," he whispered. "Shouldn't have come back here,"

With that, he lifted his foot and stamped on the poor creature, ignoring the sickening squelch of tissue, the cracking of bone as his trainer was coated in blood and mucus. The girl's eyes widened and she screamed, taking a fumbled step back, already sobbing as she watched the animal twitch uncontrollably before falling perfectly still, her scream stifled as the strange man's hand came over her mouth and he pulled her backwards into the darkness. Away from the river.

Allie Dunham turned the taps on full blast, washing the last of the vomit down the drain, meeting her own gaze in the mirror and almost gasping at the stranger she saw staring back at her. Taking a deep breath, she reached for the mouthwash, gulping it down and spitting it out, ignoring the burning sensation in her throat as she did so.

Bending down, she shoved her feet into her all stars and grabbed her keys, shoving them into her jeans as she jogged down the hallway, not letting herself stop for even a second to glance into her daughters bedroom, knowing that it would be the end of her.

Reaching the large landing, she glanced over the banister into the foyer and saw Pete, his head in his hands as he sat cradling one of Poppy's cardigans, his whole body shaking as the boys stood scattered about the expansive hallway, none of them speaking.

"Allie,"

She turned and looked at Natalie Dunham, her face even paler than usual as she stared at the desperate looking woman before her, her dark denim shirt tucked into her black skinny jeans making her look even smaller then usual, her hands, pale and shaking clutching at the gold pendant around her neck, the one Poppy had been fascinated by ever since she was a new born, her tiny chubby hands grabbing at it every time she was lifted into her mothers arms.

Natalie watched the colour drain from her usually stunning features and ran forward, grabbing her before she fell to the floor, hugging the older woman to her as tightly as she could, feeling the sobs, the silent screams wracking through her body like earthquakes.

"Its ok," Natalie told her quietly. "We're going to find her, I promise."

Tears filled her own eyes and she leaned her head back, urging them back. As shaky as her start living here had been, she adored Poppy and Alex, even Allie. They were her family and they were broken, all because of one man. In her back pocket her phone began to ring and she ignored it, instead taking Allie's hand and leading her downstairs, watching as her feet barely found purchase on the wooden steps.

By the time they reached the bottom, Pete was there, shooting her a grateful look as he pulled Allie into his own arms, her face unmoving, her gaze set. She was numb, aware of her husbands lips against her neck, his words in her ear, his own tears falling onto her shoulder but she didn't feel any of it.

"I'm scared," she whispered to him, her hand cradling the back of his head. He held her tighter but didn't speak. He couldn't.

No one else around them spoke until Natalie's phone began to ring again, the shrill sound breaking through the heavy silence around them. Yanking it from her pocket she squinted at the screen and gritted her teeth. Jogging into the kitchen, she slid her thumb across the screen and held it to her ear, not speaking, not wanting to.

"Nat,"

Daniel Courden was something of a lesson learned; his associations with the firms, his fascination with Pete had all been too much when they had attempted their version of a relationship months ago and recently his interest seemed to have piqued again, leaving her less than happy.

"What the fuck do you want?" she hissed. "Now is far from being a good time, alright?"

"Nat please," there was a bang; something metal, hard, echoing down the phone. "I didn't...I didn't think he would do it,"

She frowned, turning her back to the door and lowering her voice, worried the others might hear her, the last thing she wanted was them worrying about something other than finding Poppy.

"Eddie..." his voice cracked. "I thought he was all fucking talk until I got here...there's so much blood, Nat,"

"What..." Natalie swallowed hard, ignoring the rich taste of bile. "What the fuck are you talking about?"

"Poppy, the little girl, Dunham's kid," he breathed. "She's here,"

Adrenaline began searing through her body and she fell back against the wall, unsure of what to do, whether to scream, cry, laugh.

"Where?"

"Trinity Wharf," Daniel shook his head, his body trembling as he stared down at the blood on the floor. "I can't find them but her coat...her school bag...its all here,"

Natalie hung up the phone and ran into the hallway, wrenching through the protective wall the boys had going around Pete and Allie, losing her footing and grabbing onto Harry who turned to snap at her until he saw the look on her face.

"Trinity Wharf," she shouted, cursing her lack of breath.

They all turned to stare at her and she met Pete's eyes, then Allie's, hoping to God they weren't too late.

"That's where he has her, she's at Trinity Wharf,"

Pete and Allie moved like lightening, none of the rest having a chance to keep up with them as they ran full pelt out onto the drive and into Allie's car, knowing that it would get them there faster. The boys piled into Harry's jeep, Natalie just about squeezing in the back, half of her weight on Swill's lap. He held her in, preventing her forehead from slamming against the glass as Harry peeled out of the driveway, keeping up with the Porsche swerving through traffic and various red lights in front of them.

The city scape became less built up until finally, they reached the docks, all of them launching themselves out onto the sickly combination of sand and mud, staring at the grey sky, the black river before them.

"Nat..." Allie turned to her with a shrug, her eyes wild. "Where?"

"I don't..."

Natalie trailed off, her breath catching in her throat as she stared out at the water. Her hand came up to her mouth, but the strangled cry still came out as she watched the water, waves lapping gently, the sunlight glittering on it, giving it life. And Daniel Courden's body floating in it.

She could see blood pouring through his denim jacket, face down, there was no way he was alive.

"Fuck," Pete whispered, running towards the edge of the water, knowing Allie was right behind him. The closer he got, the more he could see and his stomach lurched. The young man's head was caved in, a mess of hair, bone and brain. Turning, he grabbed Allie before she reached him and pulled her to his chest.

"Don't." he whispered to her, pulling back enough to tilt her face up to his. "We find our girl, that's all we're here for,"

Behind his wife, he could see Natalie bent over, clutching her stomach as she sobbed, her cries getting lost in the sharp wind building up around them. Pete panted, the anger seeping through him taking over, a madness he had only ever known once before years earlier when Mikey Mullins had attacked Allie as a means of getting to him, sweeping through his worn and tired body.

It was then he saw it, out of the corner of his eye. The silhouette that he knew he had seen outside of his house all those weeks ago.

Eddie Hatcher watched from the window as Pete glanced up and met his eyes, a smile pulling at his lips as he waved back, wiping the blood stained crow bar on her red coat, so small, still warm from her body.

He should have known Daniel wouldn't keep his mouth shut, true he had helped orchestrate this; he knew Dunham's cousin and so had all the inside knowledge, he knew where to find the girl, he knew when they were out, when they weren't. But he didn't have the bottle to follow it through. Shrugging, Eddie pulled the gun from his pocket and sat on one of the empty crates, licking his thumb and trying to rub the blood from his trainers.

Hearing their footsteps on the wooden floors, he smirked and sat back, waiting for them to appear. Waiting for the end to come.