~ oOo ~
Thank you so much to everyone who has reviewed, pm'd, and added
this tale to your fav's or alerts! It really does mean a lot to me.
~ oOo ~
Summary: When two little girls were allowed to walk
home from school one bright spring day nobody could've
predicted the events that followed. The way two families
were torn apart by the vendetta of a deranged man.
Nearly twelve years on, we'll watch as the two girls stolen
away from their homes at eight years old fight to take
back their lives. If only it were as simple as escaping. AU
Pinky Promises
Chapter Two
By January seventh, the day the two new ranch hands arrived, Scarlett and Rosalie had analyzed their daily routine to a 't', making adjustments so that neither of them would have to be alone with the newbies for long, if at all.
Scarlett's nights had been wrought with angst-ridden dreams, worry clouding her every thought. They'd haughtily been informed that the new cook and cleaner was a woman called Lola, and she'd be helping in the house only, while the man was named Paul and would be working, for the most part, in the barn with Emmett.
What had Scarlett tied up in knots was the reminder that within the next few months there would be more arrivals like this one. More random people for them to contend with. They had pushed the thought from their minds until now. Until it couldn't be avoided. Every year it was the same.
In the spring, fresh workers arrived to help with the growing demands of the ranch as the snow melted away and the fields became workable once more. By the time the autumn rolled around they would slowly trickle away again until there were around ten men left to tide the place over through the slower winter.
This year, Scarlett hoped fervently, would see the last intake she, Rosalie, and Marley would have to greet.
~ oOo ~
On the morning Paul and Lola were due, Scarlett and Rosalie woke early to make sure their rooms were ready. Lola was getting the small single room on the opposite side of the house to the rest of the bedrooms. It had been renovated from a study into a tiny box room with a single, small round portal window to let room in. Paul would be joining the men in the group room, taking the last available bunk bed. For obvious reasons Scarlett and Rosalie couldn't just barge into the men's room to get it ready for Paul, so with Marley at their ankles they crossed the house. The decorating was lackluster at best with streaks in the pale peach paintwork and a lighter patch on the window wall.
Rosalie scowled while unrolling the bedding and making the bed, while Marley helped Scarlett with the dusting and polishing.
"And I thought our room was bad."
"You're not wrong, Rosalie. This room is horrible on a whole other level."
The girls shared an amused half-smile, continuing their task in peace.
"What do you think she's like?" Rosalie murmured as they walked arm-in-arm to the kitchen a short while later, Marley walking her bunny ahead of them.
Scarlett hummed. "Not sure. She must be nuts coming here voluntarily." Her words were wrapped carefully in manufactured cheer so as not to make Rosalie nervous. Scarlett knew her friend was worried about the newest arrivals, so she'd been doing her best to keep things normal.
As much as possible when everything was topsy turvy.
"Right, c'mon Rosalie. Let's get breakfast sorted."
Their sock-clad feet padded noiselessly through the bottom floor of the house, carrying them to the kitchen were they'd already set out the fixings for pancakes, bacon, and eggs. Waiting for them were Charlie and Violet, so Marley was given the task of pouring them a bowl of warm milk to share. She smiled gently and petted their soft bodies as they lapped it up with gusto.
Tugging her gray cocoon cardigan tighter around her white t-shirt, Rosalie got to work helping Scarlett with the breakfast. As was usual they worked in relative silence, only talking when it was necessary.
It wasn't until the front door banged open, pre-empting the muted thuds of three pairs of booted feet, that they shared a meaningful, misery-laden glance, the reality of the situation settling in.
This was two more people they had to keep the secret from.
On Scarlett's end, the glance was meant to reassure, whereas Rosalie's pleaded for something to cling onto. Just a bit of proof they'd be ok, that these two new people wouldn't mean trouble.
Marley was just scared. Scared of new people. Scared of the one pair of footsteps she did recognize. She darted across the room, scaring the cats into skittering away. Her tiny fists clenched the material of Scarlett's trouser-leg.
However much Scarlett wished she could, there wasn't anything she could say or do to quell Rosalie or Marley's nerves. She could only settle for scooping Marley into her arms so that she could hide her face while mouthing 'we're ok, it's ok' over her head to Rosalie.
A moment later a tall, gray-brown haired man stepped into the kitchen doorway. His presence swamped the room. Thin, shrewd hazel eyes glinted in warning.
"Scarlett, Rosalie, this is Paul and Lola. Paul, Lola…my daughters."
Unbeknownst to his new boss, as he'd wandered off towards the back of the house, Paul's calculating eyes caught the barely visible shudders that tore through the bodies of the girls he'd been told during the journey were non-identical twins. His eyes followed those of the darker-haired girl as she glanced towards the blonde's as though in need of encouragement. It gave him food for thought. Thinking back over the past few seconds, he wondered what their father could have said to garner such a reaction. He came up with nothing. Mr. Smith's introduction was entirely innocent – to unknowing ears, of course.
"Follow us. We'll show you to your rooms."
Paul's attention snapped to the girl Mr. Smith introduced as Scarlett as she gestured out of the kitchen, leading him and Lola out into the main living area. Only then did he notice the small child peeking out from her shoulder. "Well, hello, little one," he murmured with a soft smile.
Scarlett curled around Marley instinctively, but the little girl peeked out from behind the curtain of her dark hair. She wore it down that day, and it hung in loose waves around her shoulders.
"What's your name?"
"Marley," Rosalie finally murmured after a too-long pause.
Marley turned to look at her at the sound of her name, but she quickly returned to her position tucked into Scarlett's neck.
Paul glanced at Rosalie, then back to Marley. "Is she shy? I don't want to make her nervous."
"Yes, she's shy," Scarlett snapped, regretting it instantly. "Sorry. She's wary of strangers. We don't meet a lot of new people out here."
Paul smiled, nodding. "That's ok, I won't push her. She's a sweet little thing."
"She is! Is she your sister?" Lola piped up, a petite, chirpy woman.
Scarlett and Rosalie shared a heavy look.
"So this is where we eat all our meals. They're served at six, one, and seven. Don't be late."
Again, Paul noticed a strange look cross Rosalie's face. She almost looked, guilty? Perhaps she was often late to meals, he reasoned.
"There's a games room through there for when all the chores are done, and there's a smaller room up there for relaxing." Paul and Lola followed Scarlett's pointed hand upwards to the gallery, neither choosing to push the issue of who the little girl belonged to. From his angle they could only see the top of a bookcase and a stone fireplace.
"Lola, your room is up there so we'll show you to it in a minute."
The group walked up the stairs to a hallway of bedrooms, stopping at the second on the right where Scarlett knocked with a loose fist. After a few seconds the door opened to a reveal a sleepy-eyed José, a Spanish born man of around twenty. She asked in stilted Spanish if Paul could come in to get settled, smiling in thanks when he agreed and gestured for his new colleague to come inside before offering Lola a friendly, if tired, wave.
"Thanks, José."
"No worry. I bring him down at breakfast, Senorita."
Rosalie hid a smile against her shoulder. The man obviously adored Scarlett. The only time José didn't wear his signature scowl was when Scarlett happened to be around, talking in the few Spanish words she'd picked up from him in recent months.
With Paul dropped off at his new quarters the girls led Lola back through the house, up the stairs, through the small sitting room, and into her new bedroom.
Rosalie's hesitance in being far from Scarlett was clear to Lola, who watched them with curiosity from the corner of her eye. Just as they stepped to one side, letting her enter her new room, she saw Scarlett briefly clasp Rosalie's hand in her own before letting go. It was clearly a gesture meant to reassure, but she was sure it couldn't be her frightening the new boss's daughter? At an average height of five-feet-seven Lola had always believed herself to look fairly nondescript, certainly not scary like Rosalie's behavior indicated.
The pair, she decided, along with their stuffy father and apparently mute little sister, were a conundrum to be solved.
~ oOo ~
Paul was amongst the first group of four to arrive at the breakfast tables. Emmett, Jesse, Paul, and José sat at one of the two smaller tables nearest the kitchen, leaving the other five men and Lola to use the matching one beside it. Lola slid into her seat just a minute or two after Scarlett carried out the already-prepared breakfast, setting it out across the two tables. Then she returned, this time minus Marley clinging to her torso, with the coffee.
Once Lola had finished eating she insisted on helping Rosalie and Scarlett with the tidying up, trying to make conversation but giving up when she realized it was a fruitless venture. It was clearly going to take some time for them to trust her, which was understandable, she surmised. Instead of pressuring them to talk she told them all about herself. About her childhood in various foster homes, how she found the ad to be a housekeeper that led her to the ranch after an interview with Mr. Smith himself. She was twenty-three, Lola told them, having spent the past year sofa-surfing and trying to 'find herself'. Though Rosalie and Scarlett didn't openly look interested in her spiel Lola could tell they were at least listening.
It was a start, she conceded.
By the time the girls finished cleaning the breakfast things away, the men had all marched off into the snow. For the next few hours Scarlett and Rosalie explained their day-to-day jobs with Marley hovering nearby, not wanting to be alone, but not wanting to get too close to the stranger, either. The trio talked little, but grew gradually more used to each other's presence. Scarlett and Rosalie were still wary, but less so than at the beginning of the day. Scarlett sensed there was nothing threatening about Lola, but remained unwilling to let her guard down completely. The wary girl promised herself that she'd bide her time before falling into any traps they may have been set. It flummoxed and frustrated Scarlett to have two new people there at once, because she couldn't keep an eye on Paul, whom she'd become increasingly suspicious of throughout the day, as well as Rosalie, Marley, and Lola. It just wasn't possible for her to be in two places at once.
It was a problem she quickly realized she needed to find a solution to, and soon, for the sake of her mind as well as Rosalie's.
~ oOo ~
Over the next couple of weeks the girls' saving grace came in the unexpected form of a twenty-four year old stable hand with a worn cowboy hat, a Texan accent, and irresistible grin. On the twenty-first of January, two weeks two weeks after the arrival of the newest recruits, Scarlett found herself in the barn for the morning while Rosalie helped Emmett shine the horses' tack. There wasn't a great distance between the pair, but they were further apart than usual. Marley was having a particularly clingy day, and had been settled on a bucket in the corner of Bear's stall behind Scarlett.
She listened to Emmett's booming chuckle intermittently cradling Rosalie's softer tone, marveling at the separation they'd allowed. When the 'yes' popped out of Rosalie's mouth earlier in reply to Emmett's invitation to help with the tack in the tack room, it had surprised all of them. It took a few long seconds for them to realize that the idea didn't scare Rosalie as much as it once might have.
A violent storm had ripped through the area during the past couple of weeks, tearing up everything it its path only to leave a trail of devastation in its wake like a toddler throwing a tantrum. The boss and his wife were stranded in New York, so most of the ranch hands had taken the opportunity to spend more time in the house. Including Emmett. He'd taken every chance possible to make the girls smile, enjoying their uncharacteristic happiness as they slowly opened up more and more.
That was how Emmett and Rosalie found themselves holed up with a mountain of tack and only the morning to make the worn leather and metal look brand new.
Rosalie's distraction with Emmett gave Scarlett the opportunity to watch Paul without having to worry her feelings were showing. Rosalie didn't need to know about the handful of odd conversations she'd overheard between Paul and whoever he spoke to on the phone every few days. At least not until Scarlett could decide whether they were important. So far all she'd only heard strangely worded chats with somebody called 'Lawrence', but she was certain he didn't know about her eavesdropping and that was the way she intended to keep it.
Experience had taught her that men didn't like to be listened in on.
If it weren't for the fact that he hung around an awful lot, watching the interactions between her, Rosalie, and particularly Marley, she wouldn't have paid him any more mind than the other ranch hands. As it was though, he made her nervous with his guarded eyes. Scarlett made her mind up that she'd keep observing him. If he was hiding something, she'd find out eventually.
"C'mon Rosalie, time to head in for lunch!" Scarlett smiled gently, holding out a hand to Marley. The little girl scampered off her stool, through the straw, and climbed Scarlett's body. With her spindly arms and legs wrapped around her torso, Scarlett kissed Marley's head before heading towards the tack room. "Are you ready?"
"Uh-huh, let me just…" Rosalie sighed, rising to rinse her hands of saddle soap in the rusty sink. Emmett chuckled from his spot, cross-legged on the floor, an old blanket folded beneath him. "Thanks for letting me help, Emmett."
"You're more than welcome, Missy. Any time. It's nice to have the company, especially when it's as pretty as you."
Scarlett hid her grin in Marley's hair when Emmett's wink brought out a rosy tint to Rosalie's face. "See you in a bit, Emmett," she told him softly, looping her arm through Rosalie's once she joined her in the doorway.
Neither girl chose to mention the ease with which Rosalie had been interacting with Emmett as of late, brushing it to the back of their minds as they trudged through the snow to the house. Scarlett was positive the other girl was harboring a crush on the older man, and she'd have put money on him returning said crush.
Back in the kitchen, Lola had already started on the mountain of toasted sandwiches for the men. She, Scarlett, and Rosalie had prepared the fillings earlier in the morning, so it was just a matter of assembling them once the latter two girls arrived. Marley even got in on it, sitting atop the counter where she could assist in layering the fillings and bread.
"What shall we put in these ones, princess?" Lola asked.
Marley tipped her head to one side, eyebrows crinkled.
"She doesn't know what 'princess' means," Rosalie supplied when it became obvious Lola didn't know what had confused Marley.
"What do you mean? Surely she knows what a princess is. Hasn't she seen any on TV? In cartoons or something?"
Scarlett scoffed, drawing Lola's attention. "Have you seen any cartoons on around here?"
Lola frowned.
Marley made a small sound of protest at being forgotten, reaching for Rosalie. Safe in her arms, she frowned and patted Rosalie's cheek gently.
"'Princess' is just a nickname, Marley. Like 'Marley moo' or 'Mars', right?"
This seemed to be enough of an explanation for Marley. She nodded decisively, then wriggled towards the counter so Rosalie would know what she wanted. Back atop the counter she continued making sandwiches, giggling silently into her hands when Lola snuck her a slice of cheese. She didn't eat the morsel, instead clutching it in her fist while she used her free hand to place slices of cheese and ham between slices of bread. Lola watched from the corner of her eye, but the little girl never ate the cheese while they were in the kitchen. She didn't see what she did with it, though.
A short while later, when they had prepared an enormous array of toasted sandwiches and had stacked them in the oven to warm, Lola cheered, "it's stopped snowing!"
Rosalie offered her a wry smile. "That doesn't mean much out here. It could just start up again in a few hours."
"She's right. If it's anything like last year we'll have snow on and off 'til April."
"April? You're kidding? Really?"
Scarlett, Rosalie, and Marley all smiled at the scrunched-up expression Lola pulled. They'd been getting used to each other slowly, becoming more used to the new woman's mannerisms and expressions over time. They had started to come further from their shells with each passing day, their jobs much easier if they communicated more. More often than not they split up after their breakfast duties, spreading out to get the household chores done, but it hadn't taken as long as they'd expected for Scarlett and Rosalie to feel comfortable having Lola around. It was a plus for all three of them, really. They all felt less lonely, and they got their work done quicker.
Begrudgingly, Scarlett had already admitted to Rosalie that she was beginning to appreciate Lola's company. After years of being the only young women it was surprisingly nice to have another around, even if they weren't best of friends and their camaraderie was built on years upon years of lies.
Just then, they heard the first men arriving for lunch, so they gathered up the warmed platters to carry them into the dining area, setting them out on one of the long tables just as Jesse and José appeared. Ten minutes later all thirteen occupants of the ranch were seated, tucking into the feast the girls had prepared. Grunts and murmurs of appreciation were banded about, as well as the odd slice of fruit. It became clear early on that the men weren't nearly as keen on the fruit as they were of the greasy toasted sandwiches. The ham in particular were proving popular, so Rosalie sacrificed hers for a plain cheese, smiling when Emmett offered her his trademark grin. Her cheeks flushed light pink despite her wishing they wouldn't, which pleased him if the widening of his smile was anything to go by.
Something about Emmett just set off all sorts of bells and whistles in Rosalie's stomach. The cheeky, boyish smile on his stubble-framed face frequently sent butterflies erupting. What confused her the most was that he didn't make her anywhere near as uncomfortable as the other men did. Of all of them he was the loudest, most jovial, and cheery. The biggest personality. They were all qualities she didn't like to see, knowing they'd only remind her of a similar young man she missed terribly. The only thing she could think of to explain away her ease in his presence was the fact that he'd been on the ranch for the longest. Going on ten years this coming summer, she realized. Forgetting herself, Rosalie smiled nostalgically at the memory of the goofy, floppy-haired seventeen year old he was when he arrived.
If it weren't for Scarlett's sharp, pointed cough Rosalie might've spent the whole afternoon pondering the conundrum that was her reaction to Emmett McCarty. Instead, she refocused on the breakfast table, helping Lola and Scarlett with the cleaning while Marley clung to the latter's back, the men manfully chugging the last of their drinks before trudging back out into the cold, thankful of the warm food in their stomachs to keep them tided over until dinner time. It would doubtlessly feel far longer than the five or so hours they'd have to wait.
By the time all of the household chores had been completed Scarlett and Rosalie were exhausted, and Marley was fighting her nap, hard. Watching Lola wander in the direction of her room, they followed suit and got comfy on their bed with Marley fast asleep in the middle of them. Charlie was curled up on Scarlett's pillow, eager amber eyes irresistibly pleading for a cuddle. She sat with him, while Rosalie moved to make herself comfortable on an old chair by the window. She gazed out between the chipped window frame through troubled eyes, the weak light turning them gray-blue. For a while, her gaze was unseeing, only snapping into focus when Emmett, Jesse, and Paul appeared in the entrance to the barn for a smoke break. Rosalie's expression turned wistful as she watched them laughing, joking, shoving like teenagers. The normality of their behavior hit her in the gut like a sledgehammer, reminding her of how abnormal she was. The reminder, however innocent the men were in their banter, hurt.
"Hey, what's wrong?"
As always, Scarlett immediately noticed there was something eating at Rosalie. She moved carefully, so that she wouldn't wake Marley, and began playing with Rosalie's loose hair hanging over her slender shoulders. It was a little longer than she usually wore it, but both girls liked it this way.
"Will we ever be like that?"
Scarlett's eyes followed Rosalie's out into the settled snow, landing on the trio of men roughhousing. Jesse had Emmett in a headlock while Paul was doubled over laughing nearby. "You mean immature? I hope not."
Breathing out an amused sigh, Rosalie peeked up at Scarlett, so confident and brave despite everything. Even in that moment, with the last of the bruises from the last punishment barely visible, a yellowing tinge on her cheek, she looked strong. Stronger than Rosalie had any hope to ever be. Just once she'd like to be able to stand up for herself when it really mattered.
"You know what I mean. They're normal, and we're…not."
Shoving aside her own feelings, Scarlett focused on Rosalie's, leaning down so her chin rested upon wavy red-blonde locks. She huffed a gentle sigh. "Who cares about being normal? Normal's not so great. I'd rather be unique."
The words lingered in the air between them, the subject shelved for the moment, but neither girl believed them. What Scarlett and Rosalie wouldn't give to be normal, just for one day.
~ oOo ~
January thirtieth rolled around, as it did every year. Also like every year, it brought a tense blanket that shrouded the entire ranch.
The men, and Lola, couldn't miss the negative vibes emanating from Scarlett and Rosalie. They did their best to avoid them and keep their rowdiness to a minimum. Lola offered to deal with breakfast the night before, the girls having come to an agreement that every now and then they'd do alternate shifts to give each other extra rest time. With the boss and his wife having been away for business the ranch hands were more relaxed with their work, not quite as regimented with the times they popped back into the house for a hot drink or to use decent plumbing. They unknowingly made the girls more edgy by taking away their security blanket – the schedule.
When the second-to-last day of January arrived there were two empty seats at the breakfast table. While Lola served up waffles and toaster pastries to the men the girls laid silently on their bed, Marley between them confused but knowing not to question the hushed sobs escaping Scarlett and Rosalie every now and then. For hours before the dawn they had lain beneath the covers waiting for the day to get underway already. However, once it arrived, they didn't know what to do with themselves. They weren't sure whether to try to push the torrents of tears away or embrace them along with the crushing sorrow they represented. It was the same dilemma they faced multiple times a year, but they never felt different – except perhaps increasingly resentful.
"It's ok, Rosie, it's gonna be ok," Scarlett murmured eventually into Rosalie's hair, tangled and un-brushed on the damp pillow between their tear-stained, heartbreakingly sad faces. When Rosalie lifted her eyes a moment later they shared a resolute look of determination. Determination to get up and get on with their day now that the melancholy mood had been pushed aside enough for them to function.
"Lola will be done with breakfast by now, but we can help with the other stuff."
Rosalie nodded her head after a quick sigh, running her fingers gently through Marley's hair. It hadn't been brushed either, and would doubtlessly be a nightmare to comb. She knew as well as Scarlett that if they stayed in bed all day wallowing it wouldn't make a blind bit of difference. They'd only feel worse for wasting the day when they could have been using their chores as welcome distractions from the meaning of this day.
With a heavy, drawn-out breath Scarlett pushed herself up before stretching out her achy muscles, scooping Marley into her arms, and padding into the en-suite bathroom, Rosalie's resigned footsteps not far behind. The trio washed and dressed in silence, leaving their room in morose, somber colours that matched their moods – both in faded white, almost gray, scoop-neck tanks and cropped gray joggers. Rosalie donned a floral gray hoodie and Scarlett, a navy knitted wrap. Marley insisted upon wearing the same as Scarlett, and so they were twinning as the trio stepped out into the now-quiet dining area.
Hopelessly oblivious to what this day represented, Marley used her two index fingers to coax Rosalie's lips up into a smile, not realizing just how painful a gesture it was for the older girl.
For Rosalie, the birthday of her long-dead mother was not a day she could celebrate and it hadn't been for many years.
It was, however, the first day in many that the girls allowed themselves to think of their true parentage, the families they'd left behind, even just in their minds. It didn't bring them anything but the despair they'd grown so used to.