Thanks for everyone for reading and the review, I know it's a difficult story to read (it's difficult to write) so I really appreciate everyone taking the time to take a look at it.

Chapter 8

Katie slowly heaved herself out of bed. It was becoming harder and harder for her to move about, she couldn't just spring up like she used to. She couldn't do much like she used to. The baby inside her moved and she stared down, taking in the rippling movement visible through her tight nightgown. She sighed again. It felt so strange having something move inside her, and the movement made everything so confusing. She wanted to hate this baby, hate it because of how it was made, hate it because of how it was changing her body, but she couldn't. What she felt for the baby inside for her was a jumbled mess, but there were moments of love that she felt so clearly which made the jumbled mess inside her head get all the more jumbled.

She glanced back at her bed, toying with the idea that she should just climb back under the covers and sleep through this bad dream, however she knew she would have to get ready soon, if she didn't her mother would be in bubbling with false happiness, trying to keep her happy, while if she just got up and did things at the proper time, her mother acted normal.

Katie reached for her pale blue dress, one that Hank had made for her last month. She grunted as she struggled to pull the dress over her rounding abdomen. Realising defeat she pulled the dress back over her head and found the fastenings at the side to increase the girth. She frowned angry that she should be using the next button along, taking it to the centre button of the 5 button arrangement. The task completed she pulled the dress back over her head. It fit, but she couldn't help wondering for how long. Feeling defeated she padded out of the room barefoot and down the stairs to the lower floor of the house. Michaela stood in the kitchen, somewhat ominously surrounded by baking paraphernalia, the rest of the house empty.

'Where's Pa?" Katie asked glancing around the lower level of the house.

Michaela looked up from her baking and smiled "He's gone to check the traps'

"Oh" another reminder of things she couldn't do.

Michaela watched as Katie swayed over to one of the armchairs and slumped into it. "Katie?" she moved tentatively towards her daughter. "Sweetheart?"

"It's not fair" Katie mumbled.

Michaela sank onto the arm of the chair, and placed her arms around her daughter, her fingers gently stroking Katie's thin shoulder's trying to comfort her. "I know"

"I can't do anything" Katie threw her head backwards into the chair angrily "I hate this" she shrugged out of her mother's grip "I don't want to be fat anymore"

"You're not fat Katie" Michaela tried to soothe

"Yes I am, look" she positioned herself so that Michaela could see that she had had to move the button "It fit yesterday on the 2nd button"

"Well, in the 6th month most women experience a rapid period of growth" Michaela told her, her voice verging on the voice she used with her patients.

Katie gave her a look and pulled herself out of the chair. "Stop doing that" Michaela looked up at her puzzled, unsure at what Katie was reacting to "Stop doctoring me" Katie clarified.

"Well I am a doctor"

"No you're not, not anymore" Katie almost spat at her, her hormones raging through her like nothing she had ever felt before "You don't go to the hospital, you don't treat anyone, so you're not a doctor" Michaela frowned "All you do is stay here" Katie continued, her right hand flying wildly as her anger grew "All you do is babysit me. I don't need to be baby sat; I don't need to be watched. I'm not going to fall over, or burst or whatever it is you are a afraid of" Michaela opened her mouth to respond but Katie held her arm up, her finger raised indicating she did not want her mother to speak "No, No don't reason everything or rationalise everything. Not everything has a reason or a purpose; some things are just good and bad. Some things are very bad" her small hands came to rest on her growing abdomen and her young head sagged, tears slipping down her face "Not everything can be fixed" she took a step backwards, softly hitting the wall. Silence fell across the room, Michaela fighting her tears, unsure if Katie would accept the embrace that she so badly craved to give. After what felt like eternity Katie finally spoke, her voice small and shaking "Mommy, help me"

Michaela stood up and rushed towards Katie pulling her into her arms as tightly as she possibly could "I'm here, sweetheart"

"I feel like I'm going crazy, like I'm losing my mind" Katie whispered, Michaela struggled to answer; distracted by the movement she could feel against her slender torso from within Katie's bulging belly. "Please Ma, I need to get out of here, please ma, please"

Michaela eased the wagon to a halt and stared down the road anxiously, she was having second thoughts about what she was doing. For the life of her she couldn't even fathom why she was doing this, why her little girl's plaintive voice had been too much for her to resist, and now her worst fear was coming true. She had forgotten about the school, forgotten that it finished at 3pm and that the children would be rushing about. It was supposed to be a quick outing, just out to a lake where Katie could take a swim and ease some tension. Michaela cursed herself, with the weather so warm she hadn't even considered that the children would be heading out to cool off after a long day in the classroom.

"Cover up Katie" Michaela ordered her daughter.

"KATIE" a jubilant call sounded out and several of Katie's young friends started towards the wagon. Michaela stood up unsteadily on the wagon and turned towards the back where Katie sat. She pulled her shawl off and threw it at her daughter, giving Katie something to hide her belly with.

Before Katie had enough time to arrange the shawl properly the children were upon her, scrambling up the sides of the wagon like vultures around carrion

"Where you been?"

"You sick?"

"When are you coming back?"

Katie looked up at her mother nervous about how to answer their questions.

Before Michaela could even respond to the children's barrage of questions one of the younger boys narrowed his eyes "You're fat"

"No I'm not" Katie retorted quickly

"Yeah you are" the boy reached for the shawl, pulling at it, dislodging it from the good it was doing in hiding most of her belly, Katie gasped her eyes filling with tears staring up at her mother begging her to help.

"Come along now children" Michaela shooed them, nervously aware that their noise level was dropping.

"I know what that is" one of the smaller children screeched suddenly, "That's a baby" her small finger pointing almost accusingly at Katie's belly "Who did you get married to? Why didn't you invite us?"

"I'm, I, I" Katie mumbled shaking her head.

"Now, Come along" Michaela abruptly hit the reigns against the wagon, forcing the horse to move and dislodging some of the children. "We need to get going" she moved the wagon again and the remaining children moved back.

"Katie's a sinner" one of the children suddenly called out.

Michaela snapped the reigns again forcing the horse to turn and bring the wagon about. As the wooden vehicle slowly circled more of the children's barbed and harsh comments sounded out. Michaela did her best to close her ears off to their cruel words, and her daughter's persistent sobbing coming from the back of the wagon.

Sully slowed his horse as he approached the homestead, he quickly dismounted. His strong hands traced the wagon, left in front of the house, not even parked. Worried he jogged up the steps. Inside he found that items were strewn about the open plan living area, like they had been thrown. Katie sat still in the furthest armchair staring into the empty fire, her face red with tears long since spilled.

"Katie?" His brow creased as he took in her forlorn appearance, the way she was staring so blankly into space.

"Ma's in the barn" Katie whispered, not even raising her head to look up at him.

"Why is she in the barn?"

Katie shrugged dismissively

"Did you have an argument?" Sully asked, his eyes darting around the items on the floor,

"Ask her"

Sully puffed out his cheeks and exhaled slowly, he turned away from his daughter, knowing that with her sullen barren attitude he would get no results. He exited the house, his feet rattling down the steps.

He entered the barn, an almost mirror image of the house meeting him. Michaela sat in the straw her eyes staring blankly into space, exactly the same blank stare that Katie had been using.

"Michaela?" he asked gently, hoping that he could gain more about what was going on from his wife than he had his daughter. "Are you alright?" he got to his knees and reached forward, plucking a long piece of straw from her dress. "Michaela? Speak to me"

She broke her trance her tired, weary eyes gazing up at him and overflowing with emotion. "Oh Sully" she managed to mutter, her slender body slumping as she burst into tears. Sully took her into his arms, like he had done so many times before, his touch communicating his love for her.

The sat in the straw silence save for Michaela's sobs for what felt like hours, no words spoken, but every emotion felt; Every ounce of pain, confusion and sadness that they felt because of what was happening to Katie flowing between them. After a time Sully raised his head from Michaela's shoulder, his well trained ears picking out the sound of an approaching horse.

"There's a horse" he rose, his left knee cracking painlessly. The lack of response from Michaela pained him, in a normal situation she would have fussed over him, assessed his knee to determine the source of the noise, but she just remained still, almost as if she couldn't tell the difference between him being there and her sitting by herself.

He exited the barn quickly crossing the paddock to where Grace was dismounting from her horse. "Grace?"

"Sully" she nodded at him, "I hate to do this, but a meeting of the town council's been called, about what happened today. A lot of the parents are demanding answers, Robert E didn't really have a choice" she sighed and cast a look up at the house "Now I'll stay with Katie, make sure she gets a good meal"

Sully shook his head

"Well if she's not hungry I won't force her, but I'm sure she'll want some of my special pecan pie" Grace forced a smile.

Sully shook his head again and looked up at the house "No, I mean what happened today?"

Grace looked at him shocked "You mean you don't know! Sully everyone knows"

"Knows"

"About Katie" Grace clarified "They know about the baby"

Before Sully had a chance to respond Michaela's voice filtered across the paddock to them."It was my fault" Sully turned to face her, his face contorted with anger and incomprehension "Katie wanted to go out" Michaela whispered, leaning against the wooden wall "I forgot the children would head out to the lake. I, I..."

Sully rushed forward to her, crossing the paddock in only a few giant steps, catching her as she collapsed under the force of her emotions. "It's not your fault" he told her, gently kissing her straw littered hair. Slowly he half dragged her towards the wagon, knowing they had to go and face the town, but terrified Michaela would not withstand what was coming.

"Now hold on" Robert E struck the gavel against the table, calling the packed Church to order. The parents of the town mostly in uproar at the thought of a girl who had just turned 13 years old about to have a baby. He stared at the other council desk at the three empty seats, the meeting hadn't even started and it was spinning out of control. "You don't understand"

"We understand what a Jezebel she is" one angry father yelled "She should be sent away"

"Yeah" another parent called "The only thing that girl is fit for is working in Hank's saloon"

"Kid too good for my saloon" Hank drawled as he marched into the church, his cigar hanging listlessly from his mouth. "What's all this rubbish about?" he sat in his seat, immediately raising his foot to push the chair onto it's back two legs and holding him in a balanced position.

"What was I supposed to do?" Robert E asked him flustered "Everyone has got so..." he struggled to find the right word and instead indicated the angry crowd.

Hank flipped his chair straight, the two feet clattering to the floor loudly. "The way I see it they're just yammering coz they feel guilty either that or they want to get one up on Dr Mike and Sully"

"What's that supposed to mean?" one of the parents near the front questioned

"For doing nothing" Hank took a long drag on his cigar "All this moanin' and mankin' makes you feel better, because you want to feel better than Dr Mike for once. But let me tell you. Same thing that happened to the Tattler kid happened to Katie. Yeah you heard me. You all know what happened to her" he smiled almost triumphantly as the assembled crowd recoiled in disbelief and horror "What happened to Katie, happened when Dr Mike and Sully were away in Boston. Sully wasn't here to protect his kid. We were. Ain't her fault, ain't their fault"

"Exactly" Robert E took the falling quiet as an opportunity "Some of you rode out with us when Katie went missing. That was when it happened. Now you all know what happened to Dorothy, to Jake. That man did it to her, he raped her" the room fell deathly quiet. The silence echoed for a long time, neither Hank nor Robert E sure how to proceed now that the truth had been spoken.

"She was really...you know" one of the mother's asked not able to say the despicable word.

"Yes she was" Sully said entering the church, supporting Michaela as they slowly walked towards the table ready to hear what the town had to say.

"Oh the poor thing" the mother burst into tears and sat back down tightly gripping her two daughters close to her. Many of the others who had brought their children with them were also clutching them tightly, as if afraid that the same fate would befall them.

Robert E rose from his seat his eyes quickly darting over Michaela, fear flashing through his dark eyes at her appearance. "It ain't Katie who's at fault" he nodded at Sully "It's the town. We weren't there to protect her. We failed her, not the other way round. This is the town's burden, not just Sully and Dr Mike's and certainly not Katie"