Saving Jane

Chapter Six: "She's Not Going Anywhere."

A/N: Okay, so, I'm really sorry about the really long wait for this but my life is kinda hell right now. And to everyone waiting for a Dance With The Devil update… Please forgive me but I had to update this first! I missed writing it! Don't hate me!

This chapter is dedicated to Ihtayt, the most recent reviewer for this story and the person that reminded me that this story even existed. Thanks for the great review!

XOXO

~ Jane

Jane-G

They stared at her in silence for so long that Jane wanted very much to just break out into tears and run back upstairs; she knew she was ugly but the pity in their eyes was too much. She didn't run though and she fought back the tears with a will of iron, lifting her chin defiantly at them all. Dom seemed to get the hint because he moved forward and took her hand, the look in his eyes significantly different from the look of pity in the eyes of the others.

"You must be hungry, Janie," he said quietly, almost as though he was afraid to scare her off. "Why don't we rustle you up some food and we can talk while you eat."

The others seemed spurred into action by the Hulk's words, and before Jane knew it she was surrounded by everyone, being spoken to by half a dozen people at once so that she didn't know who to answer first.

"How are you feeling?" the one called Vince asked. "You're not dizzy, are you, kid?"

"How hungry are you?" Mia asked, not giving her a chance to answer Vince. "I made a ton of food, so you'll have your pick of what you want to eat. I even made pies. Do you like apple?"

"Better watch out," Leon whispered conspiratorially. "Anything Mia cooks might kill ya."

"I heard that, Leon!"

"Hey," the young one – Jesse, she thought – said while Mia and Leon argued a little in the background. "K- kinda noisy aren't they? You'll get used to it - eventually."

The others all started over each other until Jane couldn't even hear herself think. She began feeling a little ill when she heard a sharp whistle. Everyone's heads shot in Dom's direction.

"Give Janie a little air before you all suffocate her," Dom said, gently pulling Jane out from the crowd surrounding her by her wrist. Everyone stopped and looked on as Dom led Janie into the kitchen, a single glare at them all stopping them from following.

Jane walked to the table and laid her hand down on it to steady herself. She felt outnumbered and powerless, even if the people outnumbering her did mean well. She took a shaky breath to calm herself before turning around to look at Dom. She was going to thank him for rescuing her but the words died in her throat when she saw the expression on his face. It was dark, almost angry, and it made her shrink back a little inside. Her gut clenched and she knew what was coming next would be difficult.

"Who did this to you?" he asked, his voice like ice, chilling her to the bone.

"Did what?" she asked, her chin lifted in defiance.

"Cut the shit," he snapped. She flinched at the word and the tone he used to say them. It made him soften a little. "You don't have to be afraid of me, Janie," he almost whispered, taking a few steps toward her. When she backed herself into the table to keep distance between them he stopped.

"I know," she said, refusing to look at him. "But I am; I'm afraid of everyone and everything right now. And I should be with things the way they are. I don't know you, Dom. I don't know what kind of man you are. I should be afraid of you."

"Trust me, kid-"

"Trust is earned, Mr. Toretto," Jane said tightly, finally meeting his eyes. "I don't hand it out to just anybody. You let me stay the night and I appreciate it. But for all I know you could be a psycho murderer looking for your next victim, so it'll take a bit more than feeding me, letting me stay the night and borrow your sister's and your clothes for me to wanna give you a hug. Besides, I'll be leaving soon anyway so you won't really have time for the whole trust-earning thing."

"You're not going anywhere right now, and sure as hell not looking the way you do!" Dom nearly shouted.

Jane's jaw tightened but she wisely dropped the matter. Instead she looked around the kitchen to see piles and piles of food that had been cooked. Her eyes widened in surprise and she looked questioningly at Dom.

"All in your honor, Janie," he said with a smile. "Hope you're hungry."

Jane smirked at him a little, though her eyes were shining with unshed tears of gratitude. These were good people.

"I could eat a horse," she said.

Dom laughed a little at the expression and walked over to the counter piled with food.

"What do you want to eat? We've got some pot pies, soup, stew, roast beef…"

Jane ate quite a lot considering her stomach was about the size of her thumbnail, and she felt exhausted afterwards. Dom had waited on her hand and foot while she ate, though she heartily protested that she wasn't a cripple. He wisely didn't ask any more questions about her past, but simply let her enjoy her meal in peace. Jane was more grateful for it than she could say.

Dom-T

Although Dom disliked waiting he found himself patiently waiting on Janie all the time. For her to wake up, finish her food, talk about her past, for her to trust him… Yet it didn't bother him the way it did when he waited for anyone else. She was too sweet natured to be considered an irritation to him, or to anyone really.

He realized though that she was stubborn when she didn't pursue the subject of her leaving. She simply intended to do it on the sly when she thought he wasn't looking. Well if that was the case then he'd make sure he was looking all the time, 'cause she sure as hell wasn't leaving. She was sick, homeless, alone, and very obviously abused. He'd seen glimpses of scars whenever she moved in that shirt of his, as well as the remnants of broken bones and bruises that were yellowing. Her face had also taken a beating sometime within the last month because there was still some slight swelling, though with as thin as she was it was difficult to tell. He'd find out who did it and make sure they never did it again, even if it was the last thing he ever did. He didn't know why but something in Jane made him want to protect her like crazy, made him want to kill anyone who wanted to hurt her. It was insane really. He hadn't known her long and he shouldn't care the way he did but he couldn't help himself. There was just something about her.

Once she had eaten her fill he led her into the living room to get better acquainted with the guys and Mia. He reintroduced them and they all said hello politely, not quite as eager as the last time for fear of what Dom would do to them if they upset her. Vince was especially polite, earning a sweet smile from Janie, something that rubbed Dom the wrong way for reasons he couldn't even begin to understand. Jesse earned a smile from Janie as well, though it was very sisterly and didn't bother Dom as much. He began to wonder if he wasn't a little jealous of the attention she gave them but the thought was quickly swatted away like an annoying fly rather than dwelt on.

When the reintroductions were finished Jesse dragged Janie away to look at his Nintendo 360 gaming system and the new racing game he'd just gotten. He watched her leave with him, a slight twinge of irritation in the pit of his stomach.

"What'd you get out of her?" Vince asked in a low voice right after she had left the room.

"What?" Dom asked absently, turning his attention to his best friend.

"What did she tell you about herself?" Vince asked again impatiently.

"Nothing," Dom said quietly. "She wouldn't give. She's a stubborn little thing; said she'd be leaving soon."

"Like hell!" Vince said louder than he ought to have.

"Shh!" Mia whispered intensely. "Do you want her to hear you, you big idiot?"

"Like hell!" Vince whispered to satisfy Mia.

"That's what I told her," Dom said. "She didn't say anything about it after that; just dropped the subject. She's not gonna give up that easily though, I can tell you that. I could see it in her eyes. She doesn't like people telling her what to do, and I figure she'll try to sneak out while no one's looking."

"We can take turns sleeping in front of her door at night so she can't get out that way," Leon said, speaking for the first time since Janie left the room. "We can bolt her window shut too."

"We can't let her leave, Dom," Vince said. "Whoever did this to her is probably looking for her, sure as hell if she's a runaway like I think she is."

"Vince is right, Dom," Mia said, making Vince smile a little. "She's probably in danger from whatever nut-job hurt her. It takes a really long time to look like that, Dom. A really long time. My guess is that she's been starved for most of her life, and physically abused to boot; maybe even sexually abused." Mia's last words were spoken in a horrified whisper and all eyes landed on the doorframe that Janie had exited with Jesse. Dom's hands clenched into tight fists and he began to feel the same way he had when he took that tire iron to the man responsible for his father's death. He felt sick inside, beyond furious and enraged. There were no words for it, but it was a little like falling into a black hole and trying to crawl your way out; there was a sense of absolutely no control whatsoever, and he knew that if he ever came face to face with the person or persons responsible for hurting his Janie he'd kill them.

"She's not going anywhere," he said darkly.