CHAPTER EIGHT

Six weeks later

"I know it was your fault they found the money!"

"No, D. I swear, I was careful. We-

"Bullshit!"

"Look, look, don't worry." Ian stammered. "Me and Melissa have a plan. We'll get you your money with interest. Just trust me."

"You better." Wilden threatened before ending the call.

Across town at the house of Hastings, the girls with Toby and Caleb were together again. This time they were also joined by Maya and the girls' parents. They all stared at the huge flat screen in the media room enthralled as the events of the last few weeks were laid out in a special news report.

"Residents of the small affluent town of Rosewood thought the murder of teenage beauty Allison DiLaurentis was an aberration. A senseless tragedy that rocked that town but would no doubt end with a conventional explanation such as a jealous boyfriend or a criminal outsider who she unluckily crossed paths with one night. No one was prepared for how deeply entangled the murder of Allison DiLaurentis was in the fabric of this community. The police department, the schools, members of Rosewood's most upscale families all had a hand in a scandal so insidious that Allison DiLaurentis' murder may be the least shocking part."

The beautiful dark-skinned news reporter paused, and the screen then burst into opening credits.

Wayne Fields was able to get the ball rolling on a full-scale investigation based on the information they were able to uncover about the videos being uploaded to the dark web for profit.

Investigators were able to trace the money. When viewers clicked on the videos from the website the money, they paid went into one account. They were able to see that Ian Thomas was a frequent withdrawer, but they also turned up a surprise in learning that Eric Kahn, Noel's brother, also had access to the account. There was still one more account holder that the FBI had not been able to identify yet and the girls assumed that must be the cop still working in Rosewood P.D.

In addition to the authors of the site, those not savvy enough to use prepaid debit cards to purchase the ability to watch child pornography were also arrested. An elementary school teacher, a boy scout troop leader, a pastor was among the lowlifes from Rosewood who paid to watch. The FBI was also able to arrest people in surrounding states from all walks of life.

As the program played on, everyone in the media room became more apprehensive of what this would mean for the rest of their lives. The show never mentioned their names because they were minors, but it did name Allison and Ian and anyone paying the slightest attention in Rosewood would know that the four of them were the girls in the videos.

And sure enough before the show was half over, their phones started ringing.

"Look, you bottom feeding vultures go prey on someone else!" Peter Hastings yelled into the phone. It was the twelfth call, and everyone was tired of saying no comment. The program had long been abandoned.

In an attempt to get everyone talking about something else, Ella sparked up a debate about what they should do for dinner. The plan worked and between answering phones, everyone else was weighing in on their meal preference. Spencer excused herself before offering a choice knowing she probably wouldn't eat much of anything. Toby found her in her bedroom almost an hour later staring out the window.

"You okay, Spencer?" He asked quietly. Spencer jumped and then took a deep breath before turning to face him.

"I will be." She answered.

"Of course, you will." Toby smiled and approached her. She was so strong. He knew she'd be okay eventually. He was amazed at how well she had been handling things. Not only had she been violently raped, but she and her friends had been violated long before that. As if that wasn't enough, powerful people were trying to either kill them or frame them for murder. They were just kids for Pete sake. But not only did she go through all of that, she put a stop to it by exposing the sick bastards behind it all. She was amazing. He knew beyond a shadow of the doubt that he would not have been able to handle what they'd been through like Spencer had.

Before she was blinded, the sight of Jenna made him sick. He didn't like her when his dad introduced her and her mother. He just had a bad feeling and then he witnessed how manipulative she was.

That first time had been one big manipulation and he still felt so stupid and ashamed for falling for it.

He had been missing his mom especially when Jenna walked in on him crying. She was so sympathetic. She said she knew just the thing to take his mind off of it. She came back with a box of wine she said she stole from her mom. Their parents were out so they sat in his room and drank almost the whole thing. It was the first time he had ever been drunk. When she started touching him, he didn't say no. The next morning he regretted what happened immediately and told Jenna it could never happen again. She didn't agree and just like he knew from the first time he met her, she gets what she wants. He felt so powerless all the time and he figured people saw that in him. It's why they treated him like crap even before they blamed him for Jenna's accident. But when she was hurt, he did feel sorry for her. She kept a brave front to the outside world but he had been there many times to watch her curled up and crying because her life had been so drastically changed. He wished he was strong enough to tell Jenna off for good and never come running whenever she needed help. He wished he had the strength he witnessed in Spencer.

Alas, little did Toby know that Spencer had a secret weapon for how she was able to "handle" things. When she answered that she will be okay, she really meant she will be as soon as the two pills she just swallowed kicked in. They helped her not feel. They helped her not dream. They helped her get out of bed and face each day since that night.

But she knew taking them made her weak. And Toby was the last person in the world she wanted to know how weak she was. Toby was so strong. He had been raped too. Not only had he survived but he still maintained such compassion even towards the person who violated him. He was amazing. She couldn't deal with Toby knowing how pathetic and weak she really was on top of everything else.

"Sorry felt too cramped in there." Spencer muttered.

"Hey why don't we volunteer to get the food so we can get out of here for a little while." Toby suggested.

"Let me just freshen up and I'll be down in a second." She beamed before heading to the bathroom to curl up in a corner and panic at the thought of being on the outside where anyone could get to her.

But she wouldn't be in there long. The pills would work their magic soon enough.