A/N: Hello readers! I want to apologize for taking so long to update! The last couple of months at school were crazy, and then exams came along and I had no time for anything. Note for y'all: Do not take advanced curriculum. It's the worst. Also, I want to thank you guys so much for sticking by this story and for writing reviews every now and again: they all mean so much to me! Don't worry, Ty is going to be there for Amy and the rest of the family, cowboy justice will be served, and the Tim and Peter storyline will be developing! To my most recent Guest review: yes! I agree, there aren't enough stories of Lou on here. I love Lou so much and she is my favourite character, so I knew that I just had to write this story. And we will get insight to Jack's feelings and why he is acting this way.

Now I'm rambling. Guys, please review this chapter. It really helps when I see what you guys like, or want to see more of, because so far, it's made my story ten times better listening to your advice!

"Lou, why did you stay with him for so long? Why didn't you put an end to it when he first started hurting you?"

"Because the first time he hurt me was months ago, and it didn't even happen too often. I just thought...maybe it'll get better with time, maybe he's just had a hard day…"

In a moment of vulnerability, Lou had let slip that he'd begun hurting her all those months ago, whereas, initially she had told her it'd begun just under four weeks ago. What else was she hiding? "How often did he do it?"

Lou looked up. She shook her head, shrugging her shoulders. "I told you, not often."

Amy raised a brow, knowing well enough what that meant. "How many chances did you give him…?"

"One too many. I knew that staying made no sense. I knew that…I just—I stayed because I thought I deserved it. I wanted to be punished. I don't know for what…just that I wanted to be."

"And you still feel that way?"

"It's complicated. With Georgie and Katie around, no. With them, I remember I'm a mother, who has two daughters to live for...with them, all these stupid thoughts melt away. But when I'm alone…I don't know…"

"How could you think you deserved any of it?"

"I know it's insane, but I mean…that's really how I felt…how I feel. I hated myself for so long that I began to feel it was right the way he was treating me. The cuts, the punches, the burns…" Lou trailed off.

Burns? What the—?

Lou continued. "...physically, they hurt like hell, but I almost took pleasure in them. I liked that the marks were there. I liked that I was in constant pain, that he treated me like I was worthless—"

"Lou, stop it." Amy said hurriedly, unable to listen to Lou anymore.

The older sister sighed. "I thought I was going to die that night. There were so many times I thought my life was over. I felt myself slipping, I felt myself bleeding out, like the life inside of me was bleeding out. I was terrified, I thought I'd never see my kids again…never see you again." Lou looked to Amy. She looked unhinged, and there was a crazed look in her eye. "Amy...if something had happened to me—"

"Okay, that's enough."

"No, just hear me out…had something happened, you'd have taken care of Georgie and Katie as best you could, right? I mean, I know that Lisa is their godmother, but—"

"But I'm their aunt," Amy finished for her sister. "Of course I'd take care of them."

Lou nodded, content. "I just needed to hear that." Just in case.

"But this isn't something we need to be discussing, do you understand? Not now, and not ever."

Amy breathed in sharply and moved forward to hug Lou, her chin resting lightly on her shoulder. She couldn't get the image out of her mind that Lou had described; the one of her sister's life literally bleeding out of her.

Tim and Peter arrived at Heartland. It had been a tense and quiet ride home. Peter had worried Tim would snap at him sooner rather than later. He figured that Tim blamed him for all of this, and rightfully so, but he hadn't said a word about it. Maybe Tim wasn't his greatest enemy anymore. It seemed, miraculously, he hated Peter a little less now. It sort of made sense though, because now they all had one common enemy to fight against: Bennett.

"Should we tell her?" Peter asked, as they stepped into the kitchen.

"Well, she's going to realize sooner rather than later why the police haven't gotten back to her."

"Yeah, I guess—"

"Unless…" Tim was now hesitating.

"No, you know what…you're right. We should tell her. She probably already has a good idea. We shouldn't keep her in suspense."

Tim sighed tightly. "Fine, you're right. I'll go in and tell her."

Tim moved ahead and walked toward Lou's room. He knocked on the door and opened it. "Lou, honey?"

Lou and Amy seemed they were talking about something…something they didn't want anyone else hearing. They looked up when the door opened, quieting.

"Lou, Amy. Peter and I just got back from the police station."

Lou tensed up. She went cold all over. From the look on Tim's face, she could guess what he was about to say next.

Amy noticed, and immediately put a hand to her sister's arm. "Okay, so what's going on?" Amy asked for Lou.

"Well, their search in Jasper did not go so well. He, uh…well, Bennett—he escaped," answered Tim. "He's gone. There's nothing leading us to where he might have gone. He could have gone down to the States, he might've gone north…There's no way of knowing. Police said he's good at disappearing."

Amy immediately looked at Lou, worried she'd be unhinged. Lou seemed frozen, almost unresponsive.

"Lou, did you hear what I said?" Tim asked.

Lou nodded her head. "Yeah, I heard you…"

"And we know well enough that Hudson police can prove to be very incompetent at times," said Tim, flustered. His own experience with the local police had proven just that to him on more than one occasion.

"We're going to have to deal with him on our own, aren't we?" Lou asked, her gaze unfocused. She seemed to be staring at the foot of her bed.

"What?"

"He'll be back here. I just know it, he'll be back to hurt my family…" Lou said, trailing off.

Tim looked to Amy. Their silent exchange spoke volumes.

"Well, if and when he is, we'll all be here. He can't harm anyone," Tim reassured.

"The police aren't going to be as involved anymore?" Amy asked.

"Looks like it. They found no leads at Eastwood Farm. They may say otherwise, but it looks like they're giving up."

Lou leaned her head back on the frame. Georgie had warned her about this. She had said that without any leads, the police would give up, and they did just that. Lou shut her eyes closed, suddenly light-headed. "Georgie told me to speak up, to tell the police where he was. I took too long to inform them, and now he's gotten away with it…Oh no…" Lou whimpered, covering her face with her hand. "I should've told the police right away…I gave him just enough time to get away."

"No, it'll be just fine. We're all here by your side, and if he comes back, we'll protect you and your girls. We're stronger than the entirety of the Hudson police," Amy consoled.

Lou laughed wryly. "Maybe."

Tim spoke up. "Okay, I'll be back in a bit. Amy, you stay with—with Lou. Don't leave her side."

"I won't."

Tim was about to head out, when Lou called out, "Dad, where's grandpa?"

Tim stopped and turned back. He swallowed hard. "Honey, I told you already. He's out."

"He's been out for an awfully long time. It's nearing four p.m. I need to see him."

"He'll be home soon. Don't worry."

"He doesn't want to see me, does he?" Lou asked, realizing by the way Tim answered that Jack should've been home hours ago.

No one said anything.

"Right. Of course he doesn't."

"It's not that he doesn't want to see you—"

"He saw me in the hospital, didn't he? What did he say? Did he say anything to you?" Lou asked, desperate for something, anything.

"He didn't say much."

Lou pursed her lips. She sucked in her breath. What must Jack be thinking? And why did he refuse to come see her? Not knowing was driving her crazy. "I need to see him," Lou said, on the verge of breaking.

"I know, honey. I'll let him know." With that, Tim went out the door, closing it shut behind him.

Almost twenty minutes later, Georgie and Katie returned home. Georgie dropped off her bag in the living room and then quickly headed to Lou's room.

Lou was up, and she was leaning back on the headboard of the bed. She seemed to have been resting her eyes a little, but Georgie thought right away something was off with Lou. She just didn't know what. "Mom?" Georgie said quietly.

Lou looked up at the sound of Georgie's voice. Her face immediately broke into a smile, her eyes lighting up. "Honey."

Georgie sat down on the bed and planted a kiss on Lou's cheek. Once closer, Georgie could see Lou's eyes were red. She'd been crying, hadn't she?

Lou put a hand lovingly on Georgie's face. "Hey. How was today?"

Georgie shrugged her shoulders. "It was alright. I'm just glad you're home." Georgie had waited for hours on end so she could see Lou again. She had been waiting for her mother's return from the hospital. Georgie was relieved, to say the least. Having her mother back home brought back a sense of security, a feeling of content, ridding her of the worry and anxiety she'd been feeling the night before.

"Oh...sweetie, me too. I missed you."

Georgie smiled at her mom, her dimples showing. "I missed you too."

"Honey, where's Katie?" Lou said, her voice quiet.

Georgie looked at Lou, realizing that she hadn't seen Katie in days. "She's in her room. Dad said he'll bring her to see you in a couple of minutes. She's just getting settled."

Lou nodded, unsure of what to say next.

Georgie felt she should say something, anything. Lou seemed she needed it right now. "She's been missing you like crazy."

Lou's eyes lit up for the second time that day. "Really?"

"Of course!" Georgie smiled, looking to her mother with a renewed sense of appreciation, and thankfulness that she was alive. Sometimes it took a scare like this to make you realize how much you love someone, and how much you need them. Because without them, you wouldn't know how to go on living your life. Georgie promised herself she'd take care of Lou as best she could because she wasn't about to lose her. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, of course. Why—why are you asking?"

"I don't know. You just seemed a little off when I came in. Everything's fine, right?"

Lou smiled gently. "Of course it is. You don't need to worry about a thing, do you understand? Georgie, look at me. Stop worrying. Everything is fine."

"Okay, I know, but—"

"No buts. Your mom is fine, there's nothing to worry about."

Georgie sighed. "Fine, if you say so."

"Okay, good."

Georgie wasn't entirely convinced, but Lou had said it with such conviction that Georgie was beginning to believe it. She gave not worrying a try. Besides, maybe Lou was fine, and it was all just her imagination.

Minutes later, Peter led Katie into Lou's room, holding her hand. "Come on, honey. Let's see mommy."

As soon as Katie saw Lou, she froze. She wouldn't move forward, despite Peter's attempts at bringing her forward. It was as if her feet were glued to the floorboards.

"Katie, let's go. Let's see mommy," he repeated.

Lou called out, and held her arm out. "Sweetie, come here. Come to mommy."

"No…" Katie said hesitantly.

"Katie, honey, come here. It's me. It's mommy," Lou said again, in despair.

"I don't want to. I want to go!" Katie shouted. She made a face and buried her face in Peter's shirt. "I wanna go," she cried. "I wanna go."

"Katie, honey, look at me. It's me, it's mommy under all this. Don't be scared," Lou said desperately, her eyes welling up. "Katie?"

Against Peter's torso, Katie violently shook her head. "No!" Tearing herself free from Peter's grasp, Katie ran out of the room.

Peter went after her. "Katie…! Katie, honey…!" Peter called out. "Sweetheart!"

At the same time Peter and Katie were in to see Lou, Georgie made her way downstairs from putting her stuff away in her room.

Someone's phone chimed suddenly. Georgie started, thinking it was hers, but when she brought it out, she saw there were no notifications, that the screen was dark. Her eye then caught Peter's phone resting on the table. She moved ahead, and just before the screen went dark, Georgie saw a familiar name on the screen: Sylvia.

A feeling of helplessness and anger resurfaced. The last time her mother had faced this woman, it was because of Georgie's mistake. Georgie knew she could not let her mother feel the brunt of this again.

And her dad…? Was he serious right now? After everything that happened, he was still—she didn't know what exactly he was doing, but there had to have been a reason this woman was texting her father. Or more than texting…she didn't know.

Had they kept in touch? They must have…Georgie couldn't believe her father. Dad, what are you doing?

Georgie suddenly became aware of Katie's shouts, and Peter trying to call out to her. It brought Georgie back to the present. She turned, and as she did, she saw Katie running away from the direction of Lou's room, and the young girl ran to Georgie, her body colliding against her sister's. Katie wrapped her little arms around her sister, burying her face in Georgie's torso. Georgie brought her arms to cradle Katie's head, the way she'd seen Lou do a thousand times for her and her sister. "What's wrong!? Katie, what is it?"

Peter came forward. "Georgie, honey…could you take Katie out in the yard, maybe go for some fresh air? She saw Lou, and now she won't stop crying."

Forgetting about Sylvia instantly, Georgie immediately focused her attention on her baby sister. She leaned down and planted a kiss on Katie's head. "Yeah. Katie, hey…let's go out. We can even see your pony." She led Katie to the door. "We'll be back in a bit," she called out to Peter. "I'll text you when we're coming in."

Looking down at herself, Lou scowled. She was angry, upset and torn all at once. She threw the blanket down on the floor, along with her pillow. She wanted to rip off her bandages and scream and cry out. She obsessively brought her arms to her throat and chest, pressing her collarbones, almost clawing at them, trying to find some space to breath. She sobbed out, angrily. She whimpered, slamming her fists to the bed beside her. Lou leaned back, crying at her harsh reality: her daughter refused to look at her. What did she look like to her? Did she look monstrous? Diseased? What was it that made Katie refuse to even glance at her?

Lou remembered waking up after her surgery, weak and tired. But she had been so shocked and afraid, uncertain of what the future held. Her tears had flowed, quickly and non-stop. She was alone. She hoped for somebody to show up, but nobody did. And when they finally did arrive, it was too late, and she had already gone through hell and back. Today, she faced the same dilemma. He'd won, again. This time, it wasn't her sense of self he'd taken away…this time he'd taken Katie away from her.

What must be going through her young mind? She must've been so scared, so confused. The thing that broke Lou was that she was the thing Katie was afraid of, and she couldn't even go and comfort her daughter. That would only make it worse, and that broke her heart.

Lou suddenly felt her heart racing, she was out of breath and she felt like she was being choked. She looked around, but her vision was blurred and she felt extremely dizzy, so she turned back and closed her eyes, terrified and in pain.

Lou could barely breathe. She felt the way she did that night, when Warren had walked over to her and grabbed her from where she lay still. He shook her and threw her against the wall, where she'd cut her forehead open.

Lou gasped suddenly. In her disoriented state, she was able to understand that this was a new memory that just came to her, that she hadn't been able to recall earlier. This terrified her even further. What other things had happened to her that night that she couldn't remember? That she wasn't aware of? She suddenly gasped, putting her head up, trying to open her airway.

Minutes later, Amy found her way to Lou's room. "Oh my god, Lou!? Lou!" She made her way to Lou's bed, and sat beside her. "What's going on? Talk to me."

Lou was vaguely aware of Amy sitting by her, trying to get her to talk to her. "Lou! Lou, just breathe!"

But that was just it: she couldn't. She wanted to tell her sister that her heart was racing, that she felt the sensation of Warren choking her. She needed Amy to know she could barely hear her and see her, but she was unable to convey any of that to her.

Amy's eyes widened. "Lou!? What is going on—tell me now!" Her voice rose. Why wouldn't Lou say anything? Why wouldn't she respond? Was Lou having a heart attack? Amy observed Lou pressing a hand to her chest, and she was shaking and trembling, as if she were in some sort of physical discomfort. It suddenly hit her.

Lou was having a panic attack, and Amy genuinely didn't know what to do. She worried she'd only make it worse. She needed someone else to come in.

Amy screamed for help. "PETER! PETER! DAD, GRANDPA! SOMEBODY HELP! IT'S LOU!"