Hey! What's up! I know this is a very small fandom, but reviews are always appreciated. So, onto the chapter. Rowan takes Rhine, Gabriel, and Maddie back to the safehouse and learns a little more on how his sister got home. Enjoy! Disclaimer: I do not own The Chemical Garden series. I wish I was Lauren DeStefano.

It wasn't a long walk back to our safe house. I tried not to walk too fast, noticing the sheer exhaustion that radiated off of both my sister and Gabriel. Maddie rode on Gabriel's back, clinging tightly to his neck. I knocked on the door, waiting for someone to answer. Chris opened the door, his crossed eyes staring at me.

"Hey Joe," I said. "Anyone home?" Chris couldn't really talk, but he could basically communicate. He shook his head and moved so we could come in. Chris, instead of disappearing as usual, lingered. His eyes were firmly set on Maddie, who Gabriel was putting down. He took a step towards Maddie and extended his hand. Maddie watched him carefully for a moment before taking the hand. The two children ran off, probably to Chris's part of the house.

I watched this in shock, Gabriel in awe, but Rhine did not seem surprised. In fact, she was smiling. It was a smile that had not seen the light of day in a while. It looked somewhat out of place on her gaunt, pale face, but it still made both Gabriel and me grin.

I cleared my throat. "There's a bathroom upstairs to the right. I'll try to find you guys some clean clothes."

Rhine didn't say anything, only nodding and heading upstairs. Gabriel and I sat on the ratty couch, neither of us saying a word. Finally, I spoke up. "Do you want something to drink?" I wasn't sure what to say to this stranger my sister had brought home.

"Sure," he replied. I got up and headed into the kitchen, grabbing a glass and filling it with water. I went back into the other room and handed it to Gabriel.

"Thank you," he said. Gabriel gulped at it greedily. "I've missed drinking fresh water."

I laughed. "Keep missing it. Water in New York is half water, half chemicals."

He shrugged. "Better than the swill we've been drinking. This at least looks like water."

It was quiet for a moment. I could hear the shower running and Maddie and Joseph playing in another room. Neither of them were actually talking, but they were making small noises. "Where did you two come from?"

"Florida," Gabriel answered.

"Florida?" I repeated. I had always loved geography. Our father had had a huge map of how the United States used to look, all evenly divided up. I knew where Florida was, all the way on the other side of the country, deep into the South. "How did Rhine get all the way down there?"

Gabriel's calm look faded at the question. "Whoever Vaughn bought her from must've transported her there."

"Vaughn?" I asked. "Is that her husband?"

Gabriel shook his head. "No, Vaughn is her father-in-law. Linden's not the type of man who would buy a wife. He was madly in love with his first when Rhine arrived." He paused. "Rose took a liking to Rhine. None of us could figure out why. They could have been sisters they looked so alike. Vaughn probably bought her for that reason."

I didn't miss the hint. "She died?"

Gabriel nodded, taking another sip of his water. "She was twenty." I hate that this is our world, that you ask if someone dies and people say the person's age like that is a reasonable reason they should be dead before they even can get a chance to live. "Rhine became the first wife after that."

I was not surprised by this fact. My sister had always been considered very pretty, and she could be charming when she wanted to be. What I couldn't understand was why that position would appeal to her.

I didn't have to ask why. "The first wife gets to leave the house," Gabriel explained. "And she gets a key to the elevator."

I raised an eyebrow. "I'm sure Rhine took advantage of that."

Gabriel laughed, but it was not entirely happy. "She tried to escape during a hurricane."

I'm sure my jaw was on the floor. "A hurricane?" I repeated. "Why?"

He shrugged. I was about to ask another question when a familiar voice asked, "What about a hurricane?" Rhine stepped down the stars. Her wet hair was hanging down her back in a braid, and she had some pajamas I found of Sara's on. Her face was still too gaunt and pale, but at least she looked clean.

Gabriel smiled at her. "We're just talking about crazy people who run into hurricanes."

There was a smile at the corner of her lips. "Really? People do that?" Rhine looked Gabriel over. "Go take a shower," she commanded. Gabriel nods and hands upstairs. Rhine took his seat on the couch and leaned back.

I watched her carefully. She looked like she had been sick. Her eyes were closed, and I could practically see the veins in her eyelids. I wondered what her husband had been like, what the other wives had been like. I wondered why she had run away with Gabriel.

I was pushed out of my wonderings by the sound of footsteps. I tensed up, worried that the others were back from the rally. I wasn't looking forward to explaining why I had never activated the explosives. Fortunately, it was only Maddie. She approached the couch and stared at me. I didn't say anything, only moving over on the couch. Maddie jumped up and sat next to Rhine.

Rhine, knowing someone had jumped onto the couch, opened her eyes. she smile faintly at Maddie. "Are you hungry?" she asked. Maddie nodded faintly.

"There's some stuff in the pantry," I offered. "It's right by the sink. She should be able to reach it."

Rhine nodded, giving her consent to Maddie. We watched her scurry away and grab Chris's hand.

"Cute kid," I commented offhandedly. "Where'd you find her?" I was digging for information, and both of us knew it. I wasn't used to digging for the truth from my sister. I was used to being so finely attuned to her that I just knew what was wrong. I was used to her telling me on the rare occasion I couldn't figure it out.

"She lived with her mom in a red district Gabriel and I passed through," she answered. "When we escaped, she made us promise to take Maddie with us. The madam there wanted to kill her." I waited for more details, but they didn't come. "The less you know, the better," was all my sister had in way of explanation.

I tried to convince her otherwise. "It's just me, Rhine. There's no one else listening."

The look my sister fixed me with was so skeptical I felt nervous. "There is always someone listening," she said, getting up to go see if Maddie had found a snack in the kitchen.

It was clear to me now. Rhine was not the same girl who I had last seen, and I needed to learn more about what had happened to her in Florida and how exactly she had managed to come home.