The Gift of Resilience - Re-Vamped

by KNeu21

(RV2)S to 'TGoMisfortune'-Set during NM:RE-VAMPED VERSION! After waking up from a vision to find herself not only back to where she started, Leandra learns how to begin rebuilding the relationships she couldn't live without, and struggling to recall the details. While trying to avoid becoming the monster she fears she is destined to become. COMPLETE!

9. Chapter 9

Chapter Nine

"Leandra, honey, pay attention." Esme caught me before I could trip, stumbling over a board that stuck slightly out from the pile in front of me, "Watch out."

I'd been so busy looking up and around at this room, that I hadn't seen the obstacle in front of me.

"Sorry." I mumbled, sitting on the pile of boards, "I'm sorry."

"It's alright, sweetie." She assured me, "Just be careful."

Needless to say, I couldn't stay hidden under my blanket forever like I wanted to.

Esme had seemed perfectly fine letting me stay there, but Carlisle helped me come out. Carlisle had stayed home all day that day, and that was the only way I came out at all. He knew how scared I was, to act the way I did, and he knew how hard that was for me to hear. Though it was something I had expected, actually having it confirmed was something completely different.

I wound up coming out that same night, if only to eat, but I wound up sitting with Emmett. I was safe anywhere in the house, but I felt safest with him. Where I eventually fell asleep.

Sunday was spent in fear, yet again, and Monday, I had no choice but to go with Esme. As much as I didn't want to leave the house behind, or the safety it offered, I also desperately wanted a distraction. She was taking me to see the house today. There'd be nobody else there today, just us, so I could get some of the unwinding time I needed.

I knew Esme would protect me just as much as Emmett would, so I had nothing to worry about. I did worry, however, at first. Until I saw just how isolated this house was.

It really was a beautiful house.

Even without being redone yet, I could see why she liked it so much. The scenery around it was enough to make this old building seem twice as beautiful as it was. The exterior of the house was made of a light gray, painted brick and wood, but the paint was long passed the peeling stage. Weathered, and pretty old, it had a creepy sort of beauty about it.

The windows had no glass to them anymore, and it was at least two stories tall. It had definitely seen better days.

The second week in November was starting warm, but it was supposed to get colder next week. It was pretty chilly outside today, but still nice out with the sunlight falling in through the pane-less windows, and across the dusty floor.

"It's so quiet here." I pointed out quietly, looking around the vacant room. Aside from the chirping birds outside in the trees, there was no sound.

"That's one of its best features, don't you think?" Esme asked from across the room, beside the large, empty fireplace. I nodded lightly, "I thought you might like it."

It seemed like a very nice place to go to just space out for awhile. Away from everything else, and the many people in town, but somehow, it made me reflect on the major differences between home, and this place. Back home, in Forks, there really wasn't much I had to worry about. Here, there was so much more danger than there. Things I had to be wary of.

Back there was safe. Here, I didn't feel so safe. My stomach hurt just thinking about it.

"It's too bright here." I mumbled, my eyes finding the streaks of sunlight coming in through the windows, "I miss home." The dust particles playing a game of chase in the breeze, the sunlight illuminating each fleck individually.

"I know, honey." She replied, "I just wish you'd try to adjust."

"I am." I sighed, "And I guess it's not all bad, but I still miss home. I miss the sound of the rain." I stood back up, and slowly crossed the dusty floor to the window. Looking out over the vacant, overgrown property.

I figured this place was far enough out of the way that I didn't need to worry about anyone finding me that I didn't want to find me. I felt safer here, because it was so far from town.

"I'm going to go look around outside." I mumbled, and she smiled a little.

"Just be careful." Like she really needed to tell me.

This house was also on a hill, but not as large, or as steep of one. The trees, and underbrush were much different than what home had, but I was curious. I slowly stepped down the slight hilly slope, and crossed some groups of trees, to an embankment.

To my surprise, finding a small stream.

Almost big enough to be considered a river, but the slow flowing water took my attention, because it was clear. I could see the stones at the bottom. The water wasn't very deep at all, maybe a few inches, but certainly less than a foot.

The water flowed from left to right, carrying with it leaves and sometimes a stick or two. I squatted beside it, on the muddy leaves, balanced on my feet as I reached out. Touching the icy water as it flowed by. It felt nice to rinse my hands this way. Cooling me off and calming me down at the same time.

I was really starting to like it here. It reminded me more of home than where we lived. Probably because of the way the trees sheltered me, blocking a lot of the sun, and the earthy smell of the foliage around me and the stream in front of me. I could almost breathe out here.

I'd be out here every single day if we lived in a place like this. It was a little chilly, but not too bad. Warmth almost reached me, even in the shade. This would be perfect. I wouldn't mind this.

That calm was almost smashed moments later.

I stood up quickly as I listened to the sound of movement across the stream from me, in the underbrush as it rustled. I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw what it was.

Just a stupid cat.

A normal house-cat, with longer, matted fur. It was probably a stray, given how ragged it looked. Multicolored. Brown, tan and white. A little bit of gray mixed in with the tan patches. It saw me standing there, smelled my direction and continued on with what it was doing. Sniffing the ground a bit before padding forward and crouching by the stream to drink.

Since I didn't move, that must have told the feral animal that I was alright. It was jumpy, though, just like I always was. Easily startled, I noticed, as I squatted back down, and it jumped. Nearly bolting, but stayed where it was. Tail twitching.

"I'm not gonna bother you." I mumbled, and as if it knew English, it continued to drink. Wary now, it watched me. When it was done, it sniffed the air again, sneezed lightly, and walked off almost bored. Back in the direction it had come.

I couldn't stop thinking about that cat as I stayed there. Watching and listening to the water flow by. I sort of wished it would come back. I liked watching it, but it was probably long gone. Off doing cat things, like climbing trees and killing smaller animals.

Reaching down, I dug a stone from the soggy soil under the water, and rinsed it off. It was perfectly flat, and kind of oval. Smooth, and sort of a lighter tanish gray color. I liked it, and it reminded me of the cat, so I thought I'd keep it.

I stayed down by the stream for a little longer, following its path through the trees that only grew denser as I walked. It was clear that nobody had been out this way in a very long time. The sunlight filtered through the nearly completely brown and red leaves, making shadows across the narrow path beside the stream, and played off the water brightly. Reaching up, and pushing branches aside so I didn't have to walk through them.

Beside the stream up ahead, was a bigger boulder stuck partially out of the ground. Directly behind it was a mature tree, so I decided to sit there to rest for a minute before I had to turn around, and go back the other way.

Sitting there for a few minutes, I didn't even notice the bug that had made its way onto my shirt from the tree behind me. Until I did, and it startled me into jumping up with a loud yelp.

Thankfully, I didn't smash it, as when I calmed down, it was kind of cute.

It looked exactly like a thin, brown stick. But it moved. It walked around on four, very skinny legs, and I almost dropped it when I scooped it off my shirt with my hand, but it held on. Gripping the side and fingers of my hand so it didn't go flying. It was the weirdest looking little bug I'd ever seen.

Sighing, I let it walk back onto the tree. It seemed grateful to be on the tree again, as odd as it sounded. It seemed to be able to grip the bark better than it could grip my hand.

I watched it for a moment, it blending it quite well with the tree, before I turned. Heading back for the house. Dusting off my jeans and hands as I walked.

I found the cat again, though. It had crossed the stream, and was standing between where I stood and the house, so I stopped. I didn't want to scare it, so I wasn't sure what to do. I didn't feel like fighting my way through the thick underbrush and overgrown trees just to go around the cat.

I squatted down, and called it to me. Reaching my fingers out to it. To my immense surprise, it wandered closer with a purring meow. It seemed nice enough at first, and even let me pet it a little. Its fur definitely felt dirty, and I kept my right hand resting on my folded knee as I pet it with my left, so it didn't get nervous.

I let it sniff me until it had its smell, and it even purred a little more as it wandered around me. Sniffing plants, and snuggling its cheek up against a thick branch or two. I wondered briefly how long it'd been out here on its own.

But when I tried to pick it up, that was a whole different story.

With a growling hiss, it gave me a decent scratch diagonally across my right cheek, and I dropped it in response. From the bridge of my nose, almost to my jaw, I felt the burning sting in more than one spot. It landed on its feet, springing away in what was clearly a 'Hell no' reaction.

"Bastard!" I called after it as it scrambled further away, "Fuck you, too." It looked back at me, its tail furiously whipping back and forth. I reached up, touching the painfully stinging wounds, pulling back fingers lightly painted with blood.

"Ow.." I muttered. After a few swipes, it was done bleeding, so I knew it wasn't bad. Probably just a warning. Thinking about it, I was just glad the stupid thing hadn't managed to scratch my eye. The cat watched me do this. Though I felt bad for yelling at it, it wouldn't come near me again and I was just fine with that.

I sighed, knowing Esme was going to be worried about it.

I rinsed off the scratch with the stream water, making sure there wasn't any residual blood, and the water felt nice on it. I hadn't even noticed until then how the cat's back claws got my forearm as well. Four good gashes in a row, until they bent in another direction where it had pushed off. Much deeper, and I hoped the ones on my face weren't as bad. I hadn't been able to see those ones yet.

Wandering back inside, I found Esme easily, and just as I figured, she wasn't happy.

"What happened?" She asked, moving forward to look over my face.

"Some stupid cat." I answered, "I guess it didn't want to be picked up."

"Did it bite you?" She asked, and I frowned a little. Bite? Wasn't scratching bad enough?

"No." I said, "It just scratched me." That seemed to ease her a little, but she sighed.

With a quick call to Carlisle, he said all that needed to be done was to just clean the wounds before they closed too much. He couldn't leave the hospital, as it was busy there, but Esme assured him it was fine. She could handle taking care of me.

"Naturally." Emmett commented as soon as he saw me once we got home, "You find the closest wild animal to maul you."

"Shut up." I grumbled as Esme led me toward the bathroom.

It didn't take long to do, and it didn't hurt too bad to clean the deeper wounds on my arm, or even the ones on my face. Just a slight sting, really. She covered the scratches on my arm with gauze taped into place, since they were too big for a bandage, but the ones on my face would be difficult to cover.

Once that was done, I asked if we were going back.

"Not today, honey." Esme answered, "We can't keep going out during the day. It's far too risky."

"I'm sorry." I felt bad, for ruining her day there.

"It's not your fault." She laughed a little, "I'm just glad you're okay."

It had been awhile, so I decided then to type out an e-mail to Josh.

To my surprise, however, instead of only the reply to my reply, there was another e-mail from him in my inbox. Asking for my address again, since he lost the paper he'd written it down on before deleting the e-mail. He said it should have been right on the desk where he always kept it, and an admittance that he hadn't seen it for awhile.

I sat there, thinking for a moment. Biting my lip as I twirled a little in the chair. That bothered me, but I couldn't figure out why.

"What's wrong, shorty?" Emmett stepped in, seeing my expression.

"Josh can't find the paper with our address written on it." I replied quietly.

"Yeah," Emmett snorted, "His grandfather has it now." The way he said that made it suddenly clear. He was right. How else could he possibly have known my exact location so easily? Any other time, it would have taken him quite a bit longer than just a few weeks to find me.

Sitting forward, I started on my reply to Josh. I didn't mind Emmett standing behind me. I wasn't exactly trying to hide anything.

I asked Josh if he'd seen Ken lately, in an undemanding tone. Whatever tone text could have.

"You really think I'm right?" Emmett asked me.

"I guess it doesn't really make a difference how they found out where I was, but it should have taken them a lot longer to find me than it did." I muttered, sending the e-mail, "I've been freaking out since before we left, and it all started pretty much as soon as Carlisle tried to make me go to school there."

"Go on." He seemed interested.

"Jack's known where I was for a long time." I continued, "He has ways. Strings he can pull wherever he goes. Like I'm supposed to believe I was safe at that school. I don't know when I'm going to stop being surprised when my instincts are warning me, but I'm sick of it." I stood up, taking a breath, "Fuck!"

I whined, covering my face briefly. I felt too much stress, and I wasn't doing a very good job hiding it. I was one more straw away from crumbling. Emmett, watching me with what looked to be concern, spoke up.

"That cat got you good." He muttered, reaching forward.

"Don't touch it." I said, "My face will fall off." He paused for a second, surprised until he laughed and let his hand drop.

"What a creepy, and very disturbing thing for you to say." He replied with another chuckle, but I wasn't finding the humor.

"I try."

"How'd you make it do that?" He asked, leaning against the door frame beside me.

"I tried to pick it up." I muttered bitterly, "It didn't like that."

"Well, wouldn't you scratch some strange person who tried to pick you up?" He asked, and I thought. Waking up to Mikah picking me up, and the warning I gave him.

"Yeah." I admitted, "I would."

"I'd like to think you wouldn't go quietly." He said, "If I know you, you'd give that bastard one hell of a fight." He sighed as I stepped passed him to leave the room. Turning to follow me, "You should have told Josh to send a picture of him."

"Ken?" I asked and he nodded, "They've been around, but you don't know what they look like?"

"We know they're around, only because Alice has mentioned it once or twice." He answered, "We haven't been able to find them yet." That made sense, "We just don't know who we're looking for. That makes it a hell of a lot harder."

"Just follow their scent." I suggested, "Can't you find them that way?"

"Alice's visions don't give scents." Emmett shook his head a little, "She only knows what they look like."

"Mine did." I argued, "I remember that much."

"Yours are probably more realistic to you, because you're from a newer generation." Alice's reply took my attention. I looked over as Alice and Jasper descended the stairs. They stopped, hesitating by the stairs, and I knew why. The scratch across my face was a little bigger than a paper cut, and still pretty fresh. Although I had to admit. I was almost tempted to beg Jasper to kill me.

"Mine are real in the fact that I can see what they're going to do." Alice added, "You actually experience everything in the vision. Sight, touch, smell, even if it doesn't involve you."

"Mine always involve me." I corrected quietly, "I've never had one that doesn't."

"Maybe your gift is centered only around you?" She frowned a little, "Like a defensive ability? That could be why yours are so much more real to you. That could be your limitation."

"That doesn't help me now, does it?" I mumbled, sitting down, "That's actually more of a pain in the ass."

"I can definitely see how that will be a problem the more she develops her gift." Jasper spoke up, "Especially if she crosses a vision with a less than.. Pleasant outcome."

"Yeah, tell me about it." I grumbled. Too late for that one, wasn't it?

"That also explains why she's having such a hard time." Esme spoke up from where she now stood behind the couch. I hadn't even seen her enter the room, "The memory of the vision is just as real, and she's trying so hard to remember."

"I don't have enough room in my head." I mumbled, "And I don't know what to do to fix that. Well," I corrected as an afterthought, "I do, but I'm not going to even mention that, because that's definitely not an option. The last thing we need right now is for Aro to show up early. I could go the rest of my life without seeing him."

I sighed, looking back down. Whimpering as I ran my fingers into my hair and held on.

I had too much on my shoulders now. There was Alyssa, and her entire situation. Trying to decide whether or not to betray her trust by telling someone about her bruises before they faded. There was trying to figure out why her mother would treat her children that way. There was trying to figure out what, if anything, I could do to make it easier on her.

There was facing school tomorrow, but I didn't feel any more up to it than I had on Sunday. With knowing how many people would be asking about my new scratches, and now there were the two psychos intent on getting a hold of me.

Ithaca was a huge city.

Even if they did search for them, my family or the police, it'd take forever to find them with as many humans as there were in this city. Especially with my family having to live their lives around the position of the sun.

I couldn't take this much stress for very long.

"Don't worry so much, shorty." Emmett noticed, "You're still a kid."

"It doesn't feel that way to me." I replied quietly, "It really doesn't. I just.. I don't know what to do."

"I know it seems like a lot, but it's really not." Alice told me, and I looked her way.

"It really is a lot." I corrected her.

"What I mean is that you have all of us committed to keeping you safe." She explained, "Without physically going to that school, and pulling you out, they can't get to you. And the first fit you throw, they'll know something's not right."

"Doesn't mean they'll do anything." I muttered, "And who knows? They might not even care. Pay enough money, anybody will look the other way."

"Surely not." Esme murmured, surprised, "Not when it comes to children."

"It's true." I replied, "It happens all the time. I know Jack, and he'll find a way around anything. He's very good at getting away with whatever he wants, and he changes the rules of the game at any time. This is all just a game to him. One I have no idea how to win."

It was quiet for a moment, and I looked down with a heavy sigh. I hated the truth of my own statement. I had the worst feeling that they were still not getting it.

Jack was someone determined and angry. Driven to find me, and make me pay for ruining his life. They weren't getting it. They just didn't know what I'd done by running, much less confessing to everything he did.

"Fuck!" I shouted again, kicking the coffee table in front of me at the same time.

"Leandra," Alice spoke up, "Just breathe. Calm down."

"I'm running out of time." I looked to her, "You have no idea."

"No you're not." She replied, "He's never getting anywhere near you." I sobbed miserably, folding forward and hiding my face. The space beside me became occupied, and by the smooth of my hair, I knew it was Esme.

"You don't know what he'll do." I whimpered, shaking my head, "You have no idea how bad it can get. They know right where I am, without a scent for you to look for. I might as well just go jump in front of the nearest bus."

"Don't start that." Jasper corrected sharply.

"It'd be a lot faster and a lot less painful than letting them catch me." I replied, still not bothering to look up.

"You're just freaking yourself out, shorty." Emmett told me, "That seems to be a habit of yours."

"I was right to be afraid of school." I muttered, "You know that, because I told you why."

"But you don't have to be afraid here." He pointed out, "We'll figure this out. Until then, try not to fall apart."

"A little late for that." I whimpered, finally looking up. I looked over, though, as the front door opened. Carlisle stepping inside.

"I came as soon as I could." He sighed, his gaze finding the scratches immediately. He was suddenly beside me, looking over my face.

"They don't hurt anymore." I told him, "Esme took care of them. You didn't have to come back."

"Leandra, I'm sorry." He murmured, "I know I've been gone so often lately."

"It's okay." I replied. Why should he have to apologize?

"But it's not." He corrected, "I suppose I've been attempting to bury myself under as much work as much as possible. I'm not used to being needed so much."

"It's okay." I repeated, frowning a little, "I didn't get that hurt."

"But if you had?" He asked, "I wouldn't have been there." I winced a little, looking down. He did have a point. What would have happened if it'd been a badger, or raccoon or something instead of a cat? We were pretty far out there. I hadn't even thought of that.

"I'll be around more often." He finally said.

"You don't have to do that." I immediately replied, "I'll just.. Stay away from cats. Or at least not try to pick them up like a dummy." I wouldn't mind the thought of Carlisle being around more often. Not one bit, but I didn't want to be the reason he stopped doing the things he wanted to do.

"Carlisle?" Alice spoke up in the silence that followed.

"I left a message." He answered her, despite her not having really asked, "I wouldn't doubt she's pretty busy." I wanted to ask who they were talking about, but I kept quiet. If they'd wanted me to know, they'd have told me.

I didn't even ask to stay home. I felt bad enough for getting so much in the way, so the next morning, I was right back at school. I doubted asking to stay home would have worked anyway. I would have just been told that I didn't have anything to worry about, with very little to say in the matter. That, or Alice used the time I was out of the way to look for Jack.

Outside the school, I stood there for a moment. Looking around for Alyssa. It wasn't often that I actually had to look for her, as she was normally always right where I could find her. Behind me, I vaguely noticed from the corner of my eye when Carlisle drove away.

"Alex." I spotted him. He turned from where he stood talking with a couple of his friends, looking to me. Smiling a little as I approached, "Where's Alyssa?"

He gave his own glance around, "I don't know. She's not over there?"

"No." I replied, puzzled.

It took climbing up onto a trash can and a few more glances around for me to find her. She stood there on the sidewalk at the very end of the drop-off area talking to someone in a car. It seemed like she was just wrapping up whatever conversation she was having, as she stepped back and the car drove away. She didn't seem upset, so I wasn't that worried.

I hopped down from my perch on the trash can, and started her direction.

"Hey." I called her attention, and she looked up.

"Hey." She greeted in return, "Where were you yesterday?"

"Sorry." I muttered, finally reaching her side and turning to follow her, "Long story."

"What happened to your face?" She wondered, and I forced a small laugh. I had a feeling I'd be getting asked this question a lot today.

"Cat." I answered. Glancing back, the car was long gone, "Who was that?"

"Who was what?" She asked.

"Who were you just talking to?" I clarified, "In the car?"

"Nobody." She replied, shaking her head. That bugged me, but I didn't say anything. Peering over, she laughed, "What'd you do to the cat to make it scratch you like that?"

"Tried to pick it up."

"Oh, was it wild?" She asked, and I nodded, "Lucky it didn't bite you. You could have gotten rabies or something." That explained Esme's concern about the same thing.

"Nope." I replied, "It didn't bite me. Just got pissed I tried to pick it up." I lifted my sleeve, showing her the bandaged area of my arm.

"Hey, Leandra." It was Brianna, "What happened?" She gestured to my face.

"I wrestled a bear." I answered, "You should have seen it."

"If it had been a bear, you'd be in ribbons." She laughed a little.

As the day wore on, I got more creative with my stories. Anything from aliens, to various animals, to skydiving, to jumping through a window of a burning bus to save a little stray puppy from cooking to death.

It was nice to have a distraction from my thoughts today. I'd have to get hurt more often. By having a bit of my own fun was the only way I managed to make it through all the questions. I was far more tolerant than I would have been if I hadn't. I knew better than to lie to the teacher, though, when he asked. Besides Alyssa, he was the only one I answered truthfully.

As usual, we sat outside after eating lunch. What wasn't usual, was the way that Alyssa seemed really, really distracted the entire time. In a hurry to eat, and get outside. Hardly focusing on anything I said, until she jumped up from beside me. Puzzled, I looked up at her. She never went anywhere without me, and as far as I knew, she had nowhere to be.

"Stay." She told me, "I'll be right back." I watched after her, completely confused. She ran across the grass, to the far side of the area and to the fence separating the field from the street. What the hell was going on with her?

"Leandra?" Alex found me. It surprised me, because normally, he followed around a couple of other boys during lunch. I stood up, watching him approach.

"Hey." I greeted him.

"I think there's something wrong with my sister." He told me, and I frowned, "She's acting really weird." I'd noticed the same thing.

"Weird how?" I asked, though I was pretty sure I had an idea.

"She runs off." He replied, "Like the last two days, she just runs off. Won't tell any of us where she's going, or what she's doing. Gone for hours, and whenever I ask about it, she tells me nothing."

"Huh." I muttered, frowning again. I looked back, toward Alyssa still standing by the fence. Except there was a car there now. The same car I'd seen her talking to that morning. Emmett's warnings about strangers started to crawl through my mind, and I was suddenly so sure she was falling for it. Just like on the movie. I definitely wasn't standing around, waiting for that to happen to her.

"Alyssa." I called, but I wasn't close enough. I looked to Alex, "Hold on. Stay here." He nodded a little. I started across the grass, her direction. I didn't get more than five steps before their conversation closed, and she stepped back.

"Hey." I wasn't pleased this time. She turned to look at me as the car drove off, "Who was that, Alyssa?"

"Nobody." She replied again, but I took her arm as she tried to walk passed me.

"Who was that?"

"Nobody." She repeated, sighing, "Don't worry about it."

"You don't know them, do you?" I demanded, "Don't you remember the movie?"

"That was just a movie." She rolled her eyes, "Just because it scared you-"

"But that stuff happens." I countered, ignoring her sharp reply.

"It's no big deal-"

"Then what do they want?" I asked, "What's their name?"

"None of your business." She was getting defensive, and my tone probably didn't help that any.

"Don't be stupid." I snapped, "Whatever they want, it's nothing good."

"I'm not stupid." She crossed her arms, "Just because you want to hide away all the time doesn't mean I have to."

"Well, fine then." I frowned, "Don't come crying to me when you get picked up and never come back." I moved to walk away.

"How could I cry to you if I never came back?" She countered, and I shook my head.

"It's not funny!" Now I understood how frustrating it was for someone to be sarcastic when arguing with them. I promised myself not to do that anymore.

"Come on," She said, "It was a little funny. I don't know what you're getting so worked up about. They're nice to me."

"They're probably some psycho."

"Leandra." She muttered, "Do you really think I'm that stupid? I know what I'm doing."

"No, you don't." I shook my head, "You have no idea what you're doing."

She sighed, giving me a look, "I don't want to fight with you."

I crossed my arms, looking down with a sigh of my own, "Just.. Be careful. Be careful who you suddenly start talking to. There are some.. Not so good people hanging around here."

"Don't even worry about it." She repeated, shaking her head. I didn't like it, but I stopped arguing with her. I didn't want to be mad at her.

I wasn't eased, but after lunch, I never got the chance to ask her about it. Almost immediately after getting back into class, I was reminded what day it was. I whined to myself as the school's guidance counselor, Mrs. Haynes, stepped into the room.

"Leandra." Mr. Kline called for me, knowing why she was here, and I stood up with a deep sigh. I never had to bring any of my stuff with me, so I just kicked my backpack over to Alyssa to keep watch of. I doubted anyone would mess with it, but I liked to be careful.

"Have fun." Alyssa offered.

"Oh yeah." I grumbled, "I can hardly wait."

Mrs. Haynes gave me a smile as she took my shoulder in her hand, leading me from the room. I always hated this. Everything about this, but mostly the coming by to collect me thing, but she also knew I wouldn't show up on my own.

"Good afternoon, Leandra." She smiled, closing the door behind us and starting up the hall. I kept my eyes down, "I missed you yesterday. How was your weekend?"

I kept my silence as we rounded the corner, straight into her office.

"I thought I wasn't supposed to come here anymore?" I asked, looking up at her as she closed her office door.

"She speaks." Mrs. Haynes laughed a little.

"Only when I want to." I replied, "Why do I still have to come here?"

"Yes," She sat down in her seat behind her desk, "Your father did request that we make these visits a little less frequent, but they're not stopped altogether."

No biggie. I'd just keep ignoring her. I shrugged, choosing one of the two plush chairs off to the side and flopped down.

"How was your weekend?" She asked again, "Do anything fun?" Nothing. I knew the routine by then. At least she had plenty of interesting things around her office to look at. Posters or pictures hanging on the walls. Or the window beside me, the blinds always open gave a good view of this part of the city.

"What happened?" She seemed concerned, but I doubted her concern deeply. I looked to her, and realized she'd noticed the scratches. I shouldn't have been surprised, as everyone else had noticed them already, but dammit, she found one question I had to answer.

"Cat." I mumbled, but that was all she needed to know.

"I see." She nodded a little, "Why did a cat scratch you?" I wanted to have a little fun with her, and tell her that it scratched me because I was trying to kill it, but I really didn't think she'd find the humor. I looked back out the window instead.

Eventually, after enough silence, she sighed.

"I'm trying to help you." She told me quietly, "You don't have to be afraid." Nothing. I didn't even look at her. I listened to the tick of the clock on the wall, watching the birds in the small tree outside and to the right of the window.

She sighed again, "Tell me about your old school." I glanced to her, frowning a little, "What happened there?" She'd never asked about this before. This was completely new. Normally, she tried a lot harder to get me to talk about stupid stuff like class and the other kids.

"Which one?" I cursed myself silently. Replying only made her think I'd talk.

"The one you never actually got to go to." She replied, "What happened there?"

"Nothing." I muttered, looking back out the window.

"Attacking other students is nothing?"

"Yup." I replied, "Why do they have a record of that if I never went there? They shouldn't even know my name if I never actually went there."

"Why'd you do it, Leandra?" She asked, and I shut up again. I knew better than to talk to her. I didn't need to talk to her. I was just fine without talking to her, but if I talked to her, there was a good chance I wouldn't be fine anymore.

"It seems to be a pattern of yours, doesn't it?" She asked, again gaining my glance, "Attacking others."

"I haven't done it since that day." I grumbled.

"Have you wanted to?"

"Yes."

Dammit!

"Look." I said before she could speak, "I don't like you. Can I go back to class now?"

"Look." She repeated, and I waited, "I'm going to be frank with you, since you finally decided to grace me with your responses. I'm noticing a definite pattern here."

"Yeah?" I grumbled back, "I'm really happy for you, but that doesn't make me like you."

"What is your life like at home, Leandra?" She rested her hands on her desk, obviously interested in that answer. I just blinked in surprise.

"What?" I asked, unable to really understand. Why would she ask about that?

"Tell me about your home life." She requested, "How are you treated there?" She had to be out of her mind. I understood what she was getting at, and I didn't like it one bit.

"Is that a joke?" I couldn't help my sharp tone.

"Not at all." Her tone was less sharp, but far more serious. My eyes narrowed so she sighed and turned to her computer, opening a file and scrolling through it. I was about to get pissed when she spoke again, "Not a single problem between Kindergarten and fourth grade. Not an issue in sight. Maybe a few lower grades, but nothing serious." She was looking through my record.

"You're pulled out toward the end of fourth grade, and placed in a new home." She pointed out, "Back in September, an attempt is made to enroll you in Forks Elementary, and suddenly, you're attacking people. You're enrolled here, and your second day of school didn't even have a chance to start before you're doing the same thing. You've made almost no progress with social interaction, you refuse to talk to Mr. Kline or myself, and as I understand it, have created some.. Fairly terrifying works of art in his class. Do you see my concern?"

"Fuck off." I snapped, standing up, "You don't know what you're talking about."

"Your record doesn't lie, Leandra." She told me before I could leave the room, "I need an answer, I'm afraid."

"Or what?" I rounded, glaring at her from behind the chair.

"Why are you such an angry person so suddenly?" She asked, "Leandra, if you're being mistreated there, I can do something about that." I took a deep breath, hating this woman more than I'd ever hated her before.

"The entire time I've known my family," I started, my tone a forced even, "I've never, ever been treated better by anyone in my life. They're the most amazing thing that's ever happened to me, and you're telling me I'm not being treated right by them? I think I know the goddamn difference!"

"I'm not saying that at all." She clearly didn't believe me. She smiled a little at me, probably in an attempt to calm me down, but I couldn't believe her nerve. How dare she? She had no clue what the hell she was talking about, and she needed to be careful what she said to me, or she was getting something sharp thrown at her. Somehow, I got the impression that that was exactly what she wanted.

She spoke again, "I only see what your record is telling me-"

"What is wrong with you?" I snapped, "If people like you had looked closer to begin with, I might not be as fucked up as I am. If you're looking for some abused kid, you won't find her anymore. If you're looking for someone who abuses kids anywhere in that family, you're looking in the wrong place, lady."

"People like me?"

"Teachers." I clarified, "Someone in charge that is supposed to pay attention when there's something wrong with someone like me. I've been overlooked more times than some pebble on the ground, so don't you go telling me you-"

"I'm just trying to do my job." She said, and she smiled again at my silence, "I'm not so sure I like what I'm seeing, to be honest. I'm quite concerned." She didn't seem concerned. Not in the least. She seemed interested, but not concerned. She was smiling, for crying out loud.

"Please," She said, "Sit back down so we can keep talking."

I didn't know what to say to that. I spluttered for a moment, unable to find a curse word strong enough to cover the way I felt toward her, before I settled on a growl and turned. Storming toward the door. I heard her sigh, but she didn't try to make me stay.

I had more important things to worry about than some smug school counselor poking her big, fat nose in where it didn't belong. Who the fuck did she think she was to even hint at accusing them that way?

I winced a little as her office door closed quite a bit harder behind me than I meant for it to, and the sound echoed for a few seconds in the empty hallway around me.

I returned to class a lot angrier than I had been when I left it. Enough to silence Mr. Kline in whatever he was talking about as I found my desk again and sat in a fit of fury.

Nobody asked, but Alyssa watched me as Mr. Kline continued.

"What happened?" She asked in a whisper.

"Just tell me who it is." I couldn't help bringing it up. She seemed surprised, probably not expecting that subject to come up again. I was more adamant this time. Almost demanding the answer to that.

"I can't tell you." She whispered in return.

"Why not?" I asked.

I felt even less okay with this now, which I didn't know was possible. The fact that she thought she couldn't tell me about them was a really bad sign. Anybody knew that. That was common fucking sense. She never even told her family about them.

Did they tell her not to tell, or did she just convince herself that she couldn't? Was that their rule, or hers? Either way, it didn't smell right to me, and it made me very edgy.

"I just can't." She muttered.

"I have to know." I insisted. I just wasn't accepting that as an answer.

"Leandra." Mr. Kline chuckled from the front, "Now's not the time for chit-chat."

"I know, but she just won't stop talking to me." I replied, looking pointedly at Alyssa. Her surprised expression was pretty amusing, but now she knew I meant business.

"Both of you, please pay attention."

"Sorry, Mr. Kline." Alyssa muttered. He turned back to the whiteboard, continuing on with whatever stupid math problem he was explaining. The second he started talking again, I looked to Alyssa.

"Tell me." I hissed, and she glared at me.

"I already said I can't." She whispered, "Leave me alone about it."

"Tell me." I repeated, "I have to know who it is."

"Stop it."

"If you don't tell me, I'm going to Mikah." I warned, and she turned so quick, I jumped. Quickly recovering, I added an explanation, "I think he deserves to know some psycho has made friends with his sister."

"They're not a psycho!" She was getting pissed, her heated whisper a little too loud. More mad than I'd ever seen her.

"Alyssa." Mr. Kline spoke right to her this time, "Do I need to move you?"

"Don't bother." She grumbled, gathering her stuff, "I'll move myself."

"I'll do it." I warned in a whisper before she could fully stand up and walk away. She just glared at me again, and I had to admit. She was pretty unnerving when she wanted to be, but I just glared right back at her. She found an empty desk in the back where she remained.

I didn't get a chance to talk to her again, and by the time school was done for the day, I was even more tense. It was too much of a coincidence. Too much. There were no coincidences when it came to Jack.

"Why can't you tell me?" I demanded outside the school.

"Leandra, I just can't." She sighed, "Why do you care so much?"

"It's important, okay?" I muttered, "Just tell me."

"Are you two fighting?" Alex mused from the side.

"Shut up, Alex." We both snapped at the same time. I hadn't meant to snap at him like that, but this had been a really bad afternoon. He grew a small grin, gave a nervous laugh, and backed up.

"O-Kay." He murmured, "I'll just.. Be.. Over here." He turned, heading a few more steps away. Alyssa and I looked to each other again.

"I meant what I said." I told her, "I will go to Mikah. If I have to wait at that store every day until I find him, I will."

"Just.." She was pissed again, "Don't. Don't do that."

"Why not?" I asked sharply, "Keeping things from him now, too?"

"It's not like that."

"I think I've proven by now that you can tell me anything." I reminded her firmly, "I haven't told a single person a single thing, and you know how much I hate lying to my family. They deserve better than that from me."

"It's not about that." She replied, "I just can't."

"Fine then." I muttered, "All bets are off." Rounding on the spot, I stepped from the curb.

"Leandra." She called after me, but I continued on. I clearly heard her growl of frustration, and I barely suppressed my own. How infuriating could she possibly be?

Carlisle seemed puzzled, but I couldn't explain it yet. I hadn't been this pissed coming from school in a long while, so his curiosity was warranted.

"What happened, Leandra?" Carlisle asked me once we were securely in the car.

"She won't tell me." I reported incredulously, "I think by now I've proven that she can trust me. She should feel lucky I didn't hit her, just for being so damn stupid."

"What won't she tell you?" He asked.

"She won't tell me the name of the person in the car she's running off to see all the time." I grumbled, and he looked over, surprised as I continued, "She won't. She just tells me that she can't or not to worry about it. They were there this morning, before school started and during lunch."

"What does the car look like, Leandra?" He asked me.

"Shiny dark, dark blue." I answered, "Smaller than this one, but not really by much. I couldn't really see anything else, because I can't get close enough."

"Do you know what this person looks like?"

"No." I replied, "That's the problem. I've never seen them. If I could just see who it is, I wouldn't care so much, but both times, they've left before I could see anything about them. Alex says she's been running off whenever she can the last two days. She spends hours with them, and she won't even tell him about what she's doing while she's gone. With working and school, Mikah can't know about it on his own, either."

He was silent now, obviously thinking. I didn't want to interrupt him, but telling him about it made me feel better myself. I'd even say I felt a lot less pressure, and felt less like I was about to explode in frustration.

I was actually relieved when we got home. He'd know what to do about this, which was a relief since I sure didn't. I didn't want to bother Mikah with this, but if she wouldn't tell, he needed to know that she was up to something she shouldn't be. If I couldn't be a tattler about her mom, I had no choice but to be one about this. This seemed a lot more dangerous of a situation currently.

All she had to do was tell me who it was. That wasn't so damn hard. I was fuming, irritated beyond belief. She was up to something, that was for sure.

Before I could even get fully into the house, however, Carlisle finally spoke up.

"You're not going back there." He told me, and surprised, I looked up at him.

"What?" I asked, "Back where?"

"You're not going back to school." He replied.

"Like.. Ever?" I asked, even more surprised. Where did that come from?

"Until further notice, no."

This was such a huge change of events. I hadn't even requested to stay home, even though I knew how dangerous it was. I figured that was where I had to be, no matter what was wrong with it.

"You're staying home." He told me, "You're not going back." That gained everyone else's attention as well. They hadn't been expecting that any more than I had been.

"Carlisle?" Alice asked, shocked as she stood up from beside Jasper.

"Really?" I asked in disbelief, "B-But what about-"

"We'll deal with that when it comes up." He replied, "I'm not putting you in danger anymore. I won't sit around and wait for the day that you don't come back."

I couldn't help turning and hugging him. Even if it was the least of my worries, it was still a part of one of the biggest of my worries, and he just cleared that up. I almost couldn't believe it. It left me stunned, but amazed that I didn't have to leave anymore.

"Thank you." I whimpered, "Thank you."

"Carlisle." Alice spoke up again, and he glanced to her, "A word?" Carlisle sighed, but gave me a confident smile as I stepped back. I watched Alice and Esme lead him into the kitchen.

I couldn't help being nervous. Would she really try to change his mind?

"That was surprising." Jasper spoke up, taking my attention before I could worry too much, "Alice didn't even see that coming."

"I wonder why he would suddenly change his mind?" I mumbled.

"He sees as well as we all do what this tension is doing to you." Jasper replied, "If that's what it takes to ease at least a bit of worry for you, I'd have done the same thing."

"Then why is Alice so worried?"

"She's concerned about the possible consequences of such a rash decision." He answered, "That's all."

"What consequences?" I asked, unable to help it.

"She's concerned that pulling you out of school will teach you the wrong message." He explained, "How keeping up a fit for so long will always get you your way."

"That's not it at all." I mumbled, glancing toward the kitchen, before looking back to him, "I know fits don't always get me my way. I haven't even been throwing a fit anymore." I sighed, "I think it had something to do with what happened today."

"What happened?" Jasper asked.

"Alyssa made friends with someone." I muttered, "All I've ever seen is their car, never who's inside it. They were there this morning, and during lunch, but she won't tell me who it is." I sighed, "That reminds me. I have to talk to Mikah."

"What did the car look like?" Jasper asked, and I knew what he was thinking, because I was thinking the same thing.

"Could Alice see the car they're using?" I asked, "Does she know what it looks like? All I could see was that it looks a little smaller than Carlisle's car, but dark blue." Apparently, that meant something, because he sighed.

"It's them?" I whimpered.

"I don't know." Jasper answered, "Just hold on." He turned, heading for the kitchen as well. I knew the routine by now. They wanted to talk, so I laid my bag down beside the coffee table and sat down on the couch with a heavy sigh.

Emmett hadn't said a word yet, but I knew he was watching me.

"I know fits don't get me my way," I muttered, "So Alice doesn't need to worry about that. I wasn't even trying to stay home this time. I just thought Carlisle should know." Frowning, I gave a glance around, "Where's Esme?"

"She and Rose are at the other house." Emmett replied. Oh, right. I almost forgot about that place. Now that everyone had projects, it was a bit hard to keep up.

We sat there for several minutes while the others probably argued in the kitchen. I couldn't help really hoping that Carlisle stood by what he told me. It'd be really mean not to. Telling me that, getting my hopes up, before saying 'never mind'.

"Alright." Jasper eventually led the others back into the living room. I immediately rounded in my seat to watch him, "You'll be staying home until further notice. Until we know for sure whether or not it's safe for you there." I nodded a little, "As you stated, you weren't even expecting to stay home because of this." I shook my head, honestly surprised, "So Alice can be assured this won't become a habit."

"It won't." I replied, "I'd even still go if I had to."

"Boy, what a difference." Emmett chuckled a little, "Compared to when you first had to go?"

"I hate it there." I mumbled, "But you guys are way more stubborn than I am, so I just suffer through it."

"You seem to have made a friend there, shorty." Emmett offered and I looked down.

"Alyssa is just.. She's like me." I replied quietly, "We're not so different."

"What do you mean by that?" Jasper asked, catching on. Probably not completely, but I should have shut my mouth anyway.

"Well," I mumbled, "There's them, and there's us. We just get each other, I guess. We think the same way. I never knew before this passed weekend just how alike we were."

"On how many levels?" Jasper asked, studying me.

"Plenty." I answered, studying him right back. He seemed suspicious now, and I could see how he wasn't going to let it go, so I continued, "I promised I wouldn't say anything."

"Okay." He said, still suspicious, "But if it was something important, you'd let us know, wouldn't you?" I hesitated. This was pretty important, so I didn't know how to answer.

"Shorty?" Emmett prompted, and I looked down.

"Leandra?" Jasper took my attention again, "Please tell me you didn't tell her anything?"

"What? No." I said instantly, shaking my head as I looked to him, "No. I would never tell anybody anything. I swear." That seemed to ease him, "That.. That's always safe. No reason would ever be good enough to let that secret out. I know how important it is for me to keep it."

He nodded, and I sighed a little.

"Then what is it that makes you so nervous?" He asked.

"It's a secret of hers." I finally said, "Not yours." I sighed, looking down again, "One I promised to keep before I knew how bad it was." My tone reflected just how much this was bothering me. I knew that. I couldn't help it.

I had to think about it, though. If I were in her position, would I rather be safe? Or would I rather be stuck in the same, painful situation just because I was scared? I shook it off, though.

"I'm not even that worried about me over this whole unknown person thing." I mumbled, "I'm more worried about her. I don't want her to get hurt."

"If it is them, how would they know to approach her?" Alice wondered, "Of course, it could just be a coincidence, because I saw nothing related to her."

"You wouldn't if my mom was there too." I muttered, and she she looked down.

"This is frustrating." She finally admitted, and I nodded a little. I agreed with her.

"I think a visit should be paid to her house." Carlisle sighed, "I need to speak with her parents about this."

"Mikah." I corrected, shaking my head, "Talk to Mikah about it. I just want her to be safe, not.." I stumbled a little over the last word, falling quickly silent. Had I just really been about to let that slip? Shit.

"What?" Jasper asked, and thankfully, he seemed cautiously confused.

"Her parents are pretty strict." I mumbled, "And Mikah could get the answer from her easier, anyway."

"Leandra?" He wasn't falling for it, and I knew why. Not only because of the little mention earlier, but I'd said the same thing about Jack as I said about her parents. They were strict.

"Just trust me." I shook my head again.

"Is he working today?" Carlisle asked, and knowing he was referring to Mikah, I sighed, slightly relieved.

"I don't know." I replied honestly, "But it's worth a look."

"I'd like to try speaking with Alyssa directly first." He told me, "Perhaps she can be persuaded into talking about it." That was probably a good idea. If I could keep from bothering Mikah with this, I'd like to.

"Okay." I sighed, shrugging, "But she probably won't tell you anything more than she told me."

"Leandra, about this secret.." Jasper wasn't letting it go, "This really worries you."

"It makes me nervous, because I don't know what to do." I admitted sadly, keeping my eyes down.

"If you promised before you knew, then how does that still obligate you to keep such a secret?" Emmett asked, concerned as well. They could tell.

"Because I re-promised." I mumbled, "I shouldn't have." I clenched my teeth, shaking my head. I was letting too much slip. My foot bounced nervously, and I hardly noticed.

"If it's that big of a secret, shorty, you need to say something." Emmett told me, "If it's bothering you this much-"

"It's not about me, though." I said, "It's not my job to tell anyone anything. It's hers. Can we just drop it?" I wanted to drop it, because I was telling them too many familiar things. It's her secret, not mine, was exactly what Alice said about mine to them. How were they not picking up the hints? Unless they were, and they just weren't letting me know.

"I'll get it out of you one of these days." Emmett challenged, and I appreciated his attempts to make a joke.

"I'm good at keeping secrets." I replied quietly, sadly looking back down, "It's what I do." Given the way his expression saddened, he understood what I was referring to. If only he knew how closely related Alyssa's secret was to the one I had the year before.

Sure, I could tell my close friend wasn't going through half of what I went through, given her nearly unshakable positive outlook on things, and her oblivious nature of how bad things could get, but I wasn't about to let that ease my worry any. I wasn't about comfort myself with the thought that it wasn't that bad, because it was still bad.

What she went through, sure wasn't exactly the same as what I'd gone through, but it was still bad. It wasn't supposed to happen. Kids weren't meant to be beaten, or yelled at, or forced into the position that Mikah had been forced into. They weren't meant to be left on their own, trying to find a way to keep their siblings alive.

However, her confiding in me put me into a position where no matter what, I felt like a horrible person. I had no right moves. Tell, and let her be mad at me for betraying her trust? Or keep my mouth shut, and let her suffer? I couldn't help thinking that this must have been the way Alice had felt. Knowing for sure, even without me saying anything, that something was wrong, but me completely unwilling to say a word about it. If she felt anything like the way I felt, I couldn't help feeling bad for putting her through that.

This was tough. I could tell it would get a whole lot harder to stay quiet if something were to happen.

"Leandra?" I looked back up at Carlisle's voice, "Would you like to come along?" I sighed, grateful for the escape from my own thoughts.

"We're kind of mad at each other." I replied, "She might not say much if I'm there."

"All the more reason to come along." He pointed out, "It'll give you a chance to apologize."

"She's the one being stupid." I muttered, "I don't see why I should have to say I'm sorry."

"Humor me?" He asked, and I sighed, but stood up.

Alice was coming along too, probably hoping she'd feel better about talking to her, so I was stuck in the back seat. It was going to be a lot longer of a trip by car, as we had to go the opposite direction and come back around.

"Carlisle?" I spoke up not long after we left home, and he glanced to me in the back seat, "That stupid counselor has it in for me, I think." He frowned.

"I thought I requested those visits to stop?"

"That's not what she said." I replied, "I had to see her again today."

"Odd." Carlisle muttered.

"She asked me how I was treated at home." I said, and that got his attention.

"Why?" He asked, "What exactly did she say?"

"She said that she's concerned, because the whole time I was living with Jack, I had no problems at school." I replied, "But ever since I lived with you, I had problems with school. How I'm such an angry person now."

I could tell by both Carlisle and Alice's silence that this wasn't good.

"What exactly did you say in reply?" He asked after a moment.

"It's hard to remember, because I was a little pissed off," I admitted, "But I told her that she had no reason to worry about you guys, and that.. Well, I told her the truth. That I'd never been treated better by anyone than I had with you. That you all were the most amazing thing that's ever happened to me." He stayed quiet with a nod. Alice looked to Carlisle, and I got the hint of worry in her eyes, so I spoke up again, "She can't do anything, can she?"

"Don't worry, Leandra." He replied, "I'm sure she was just looking too far into it."

"I told you I didn't like that bitch."

"Leandra." Alice corrected me, and I bit my lip.

"I'm glad I didn't hit her." I muttered, "I almost did, but I didn't. I left before I could."

"I'm also glad you didn't hit her." Carlisle admitted, "That probably wouldn't have helped the situation any."

"She deserved it." I replied, "I think she's just trying to give you a bad name. It's not fair."

"Deserved it or not, it wouldn't have helped." He replied, "Violence isn't always the answer, but I can say that I'm far more convinced pulling you out of that school is a good move."

"Me too, if I don't have to see her again." I replied. I knew it also couldn't hurt to let him know about that visit with Mrs. Haynes today. Just in case she did try to push her point. I hated to think about that possibility, but I was happy to give him a heads up.

From there, it was silent. Just thinking about Mrs. Haynes and her smile made me so mad. It grated on my nerves in an intense way.

Coming from another direction, I almost got a little lost, until I found the street and pointed it out. To my surprise, both Alex and Alyssa were out front when we pulled up. The evening pretty dim as it was, but they were both working on raking leaves around the front yard.

Carlisle stepped out first, and Alice next. She seemed confused, but not upset at their visit. Until I rolled down my window, and the second she saw me, she glared.

"You rat." She told me.

"I told you." I snapped in return, "I thought this would be easier than going to Mikah first."

She groaned, "Fine, I'll tell you. God, you're so pushy!" She rounded, looking to Alex, "Go inside."

"No." He laughed. She reached for the rake, and he immediately got moving, "Geez! I'm going, I'm going. Psycho." Darting up the steps, he jumped into the house and shut the door quickly behind him.

"I thought it'd be a good idea to explain our side of this." Carlisle spoke up, and by the way she looked at him, she was listening. He paused for a moment before speaking again, "Leandra is only worried about you."

"I know." She muttered, looking down.

"What you don't know, is that currently, someone is after her." He added, "Our concern, is that this person may be using you to try to get to her." Wow. Who would have ever thought telling her the truth might be a good way to go?

"Is that true?" She asked me, and hesitantly, I nodded. She sighed, "Well, you don't have to worry about that. I've known this person for a long time now." I frowned, so she went on.

"Last year, Sammy's then girlfriend and I became friends." She muttered, "Since Sunday, I've been helping her mom and dad work around their shop for a few hours every night to earn a little extra money. Her dad pays me twenty-five for what I do, and I put every cent into the grocery money box. Do you know how far an extra twenty-five bucks goes for food? Much less, fifty like so far.

"I couldn't tell you that before, because they could get into trouble for letting me work. I couldn't tell Alex anything, because he'd blab to Mikah, and Mikah wouldn't let me keep working. He'd say that I'm too young. Are you happy now?"

"Oh God." I sighed, leaning back. The relief was intense, and everything she said made perfect sense. She wouldn't lie about something like this anyway.

"Her mom came by this morning to tell me when she'll need me, and again during lunch to tell me never mind, to come tomorrow because she had deliveries today.

"I just do things like empty boxes, sort things, clean up a little and put stuff away for them." She explained, "Odd jobs that they get too busy to do sometimes. Please don't get them in trouble."

"I assure you, no one is going to get into trouble." Carlisle told her, and it was her turn to sigh.

"I just wanted to help out around here." She gestured lightly to the house behind her, "I'm plenty old enough to do odd jobs like that, and just for a few hours. Not like all day or anything like that. I didn't know it'd be such a big deal."

"You could have just said it was a friend's parents." I muttered.

"And would you have believed me?" She asked, "You made such a big deal out of it right from the start, I don't think you would have believed anything except a full answer."

She did have a point, and I looked down.

She sighed, "See you at school tomorrow?"

"Well, I.." I really didn't know. Was Carlisle still going to keep me home?

"Not for awhile." Carlisle answered her for me, "I'm concerned about her safety there."

"This person that's after her.." Alyssa mumbled, "Is it Jack?" I kept my gaze down. When nobody replied, she took that as an answer and spoke again, "It's bad, isn't it?"

"It's not good." Alice replied.

"Maybe I can help somehow." Alyssa suggested, "I don't know how, but I want to help."

"That's generous," Alice smiled a little, "But you don't need to worry. We'll take care of it. We just want you to be careful when you're going places."

"I'm always careful now." She admitted, "I won't be that stupid again."

Behind her, the front door opened. I recognized Jon instantly, but he didn't seem too pleased.

"Alyssa." He called as she turned to look at him, "Get inside. You're grounded, remember?" How was she working for a few hours every day if she was grounded? Maybe she got her work done while everyone important was at work themselves.

"You won't say anything, will you?" She asked me quietly. I wasn't sure what she meant. About her parents, or about her working?

"No." I replied anyway, "You either?"

"About why you're not in school anymore?" She asked and I nodded, "I won't. Nobody else needs to know anyway. Everyone who asks can just stuff it."

"Alyssa." Jon called again.

"Sorry I got you in trouble." I told her.

"It's okay." She mumbled, talking quickly now, "I'm grounded until next weekend. Not this coming Sunday, but next one. Come back over then, okay?" I nodded a little, and she nodded as well. She probably got grounded for two weeks because of the little nighttime field trip we'd taken.

"Bye." She told us, running off toward the front door.

I closed my eyes, just letting the relief register for a minute. So she hadn't been making friends with Ken or Jack. That was a huge weight off of me.

The drive back home was almost entirely silent, until I broke that silence.

"You're still not making me go back to school?" I asked, just now catching onto that, "Even though it wasn't them?"

"You'll still be staying home." Carlisle replied, "I stand by what I said. It's too dangerous right now." I nodded a little. Not that I was complaining, but wasn't that exactly what I'd been saying this whole time?

Esme and Rose were home when we got back. Esme worked on putting dinner together for me, nervously awaiting an explanation. Finally, we could give her good news. It wasn't them. It was very comforting to know they weren't closing in yet. I still had some room to breathe, and I didn't have to suffocate yet.

I sat in my room close to a week later, staring at the four long scratches across my arm I'd gotten from the cat. They'd healed to faded pink lines, but still clearly visible.

As odd as it was to admit to myself, it was so strange not to be going to school anymore. The routine I'd found was just about obliterated by one change.

Once more, I found myself thinking about Alyssa. My thoughts drifting back to that night, the night she came over. I was glad we weren't really mad at each other anymore, but I still had more on my mind. I was relieved to understand her activities, but there was still some things I couldn't let go of. One thing in particular.

I just didn't know how to go about helping her. I was lost. Stuck.

It was probably the stupidest thing I've ever done, but I had to solve this. I needed to talk to someone, but I couldn't do that without going to see the one person I could ask. I had to go alone if I wanted it to stay a secret.

Rose and Emmett were once again locked away in their room. Jasper and Alice hiding away as well. Esme was downstairs, probably working on things having to do with the other house, so I did have an opening.

I would have to be quick, both in my escape and getting there.

I left my room like nothing in the world was up. Like I was just going downstairs for some water or something. Trying to sneak by would have given them reasons to wonder.

Down the stairs, through the kitchen. Surprisingly, Esme wasn't in here. Making this even easier.

I paused to think about what I was doing. I knew it was dangerous to go anywhere on my own, but this would bug me until I figured it out. I needed to figure this out before mentioning anything more about it to my family. If I didn't figure this out soon, I'd go nuts.

"Leandra?" Alice had gotten suspicious anyway. Calling from up the stairs.

Taking a breath, I moved. Slipping out the back door.

Leaving the house, I raced over the grass in the back yard, scrambled over the wall, and using the trick Alyssa taught me, I tumbled down the hill as fast as I could. I was very dizzy when I finally reached the bottom, barely missing a tree before I stopped. I was very dizzy, but I couldn't help laughing. She was right. I'd have to do that more often.

"Leandra, dammit." She'd followed me as far as the edge of the wall, "Come back. Whatever you're doing, it's not funny." Damn right about that. It wasn't funny, and not meant to be funny.

I'd be in so much trouble when I got back, it being late afternoon with no chance of the sun setting yet. Nobody was allowed to follow me yet.

I just kept going. Acting like I never heard her. I heard her enough to hear her irritated growl, but I wouldn't let that keep me back. I needed to do this. I'd put it off for way too long, leaving it too much to chance.

I was paranoid the entire way through town. I didn't see anything out of place, nobody even noticed I was there, but I knew better than to believe that meant I was fine. I walked quickly across the two streets, and practically jumped through the door into the store.

"Leandra?" Mikah seemed surprised to see me, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah." I panted, "I'm fine, um.." I took a minute to catch my breath. Slowly approaching the counter, the store was empty aside from us.

Why was I about to bother him with this? He watched me, concerned as I caught my breath. How was I supposed to bring it up, anyway? Just be blunt about it? I didn't know what to say. Before I could say anything, though, an older woman came through the door. I'd have to wait until she left before bringing it up. I didn't mind waiting. It gave me time to think about what I needed to say.

As she was buying her loaf of bread, she smiled over at me. She seemed friendly, so I returned it. After a moment, though, I felt a little shy, and pretended to poke through the rack of magazines a few steps away.

"She's a darling." The woman mentioned to Mikah.

"Isn't she?" He asked in return, smiling over at me, and I laughed a little, shaking my head.

"I assume she doesn't work here?" She asked.

"No." Mikah laughed, "She's a friend of the family." Essentially, it was true.

"Well, she's precious." She smiled again, taking her bag, "Just precious. Have a wonderful day, Mikah dear."

"You too, Ms. Price." I gathered that this woman was a regular customer. Looking over, I watched her leave. My cheeks warm. I liked her. I was pretty embarrassed, but I didn't mind her.

"So." Mikah spoke once the door closed behind her, "What brings you by, Leandra?"

I took a breath, my smile fading. No doubt this was going to be a tough discussion.

"Come on." He urged, "It can't be that bad, can it?" I looked down. Briefly biting my lip, I thought hard about where to start. There was one good place to start, but it was difficult.

"Mikah," I finally muttered, "You need to do something." That confused him.

"What do you mean?" He asked.

"About your parents." I replied, "You need to fix it." He seemed to catch on, looking down. Just like I thought, it was hard on him. Obviously a very sensitive subject.

"I don't know how you-"

"Don't give me that." I told him, "Mikah, my family is getting suspicious. I'm just one kid. I can't keep a secret like that. I know, because I've tried. You seem like the only one that would be willing to do anything."

"Leandra, if anything could be done, don't you think I'd have done something by now?" He asked, "Now, how'd you find out?"

"Alyssa and I talk about a lot of things." I admitted, and he sighed, shaking his head, "Don't be mad at her. She gets the worst of it."

"You really think that?" He asked, surprised. I looked back up, confused, "You really think I'd let her get the worst of it? She only gets whatever I don't get. When I'm not home."

Surprised even more, I gasped, "Your mom hits you too?"

"Shh." He whispered urgently, giving a glance around, "Yes."

"But you're big enough to knock her out." I muttered, "Why don't you hit her back?"

"That's a very complicated answer, Leandra." He sighed, but I wasn't letting it go. I waited, looking at him expectantly for an explanation, so he sighed again and spoke.

"When I was little," He started, "Before Sammy was born, I watched my dad roughing up my mom one day. I shouldn't be able to remember that, but I do." I winced a little, "It went on for years before it started becoming a real issue for us kids, and soon enough, I got old enough to understand what had been going on. Since then, I promised myself that I'd never hit a female. Whether she deserved it or not."

I could understand that. He seemed embarrassed about that, but I could see he felt strongly about it.

"You're a lot tougher than I am." I mumbled, and he looked to me, "I remember wishing all the time that I was big enough to fight back. I'd kill him."

It was at that point, I thought, that he figured everything out. He knew and understood from previous conversations that I'd been through as much as he had. At least. He knew why it mattered so much to me.

"No you wouldn't." He replied quietly, "You're too sweet. You shouldn't even think about things like that. You have your new family, right?"

"For now." I muttered, looking down. I took a breath, continuing on, "Okay, so if you can't hit her back, then what are you supposed to do?"

"I can't go to the cops." He told me, "I'd lose them all." The same reason Alyssa wouldn't.

"What about.." I trailed off, "Hmm.."

"What?" He asked, confused.

"I can't say much, because I've never met your mom, but maybe just being looked at would be enough to make her stop?" I suggested, "Someone can say something, and they'll look into it, but as long as none of the kids are obviously abused, they can't do anything. They have shelter, they're fed every day. They seem happy, and aren't locked in the basement for most of the day."

"We don't have a basement." He muttered, "But I get what you're saying. I know just the threat of losing his kids would settle my dad right down." He sighed, "That's really dangerous, though. Emily isn't the best at keeping secrets. She can be tricked into saying almost anything. I'm not worried about the other two being able to pull it off, and Sammy wouldn't give a crap either way. I can't lose them, Leandra."

"I know." I replied, "But it's the only chance you have. Just talk to Emily. I know she looks up to you just as much as Alyssa does. Alyssa told me."

"I'm really not sure." He sighed, "But I'll give it some thought."

"That doesn't help me, though." I pointed out, "If something happens to them, I won't be able to keep quiet about it anymore. If I could have done something to help, I wouldn't forgive myself."

"Nothing's going to happen." He assured me, "I understand where you're coming from, but I promise. They'll be alright. They've made it this far without it, right?" That did seem to help, "Look, I know some of those bruises are bad. I won't excuse them, because nobody should have them, but she's never taken it passed that point. The kids know to avoid her." I nodded a little, "They know to stay out of her way, okay? If they avoid her, she normally avoids them."

He paused, hesitating for a moment. Studying me a bit before speaking up again, "You sure know a lot about this." I didn't bother replying to that. Glancing up at him, and I knew he instantly read my expression.

"I've had some experience with it." I did eventually say, "I know the ins and outs."

The door jingled behind me, signaling the arrival of another customer, effectively ending our conversation as I looked down, irritated. I focused on the counter instead, waiting for this person to leave so I could keep trying to convince him.

"Afternoon." Mikah greeted the new customer, "You look lost."

"Diaper emergency." The customer's reply behind me was firm, with a laugh, "Can you point me the right direction?" I couldn't breathe. My stomach tumbled, and I could feel the color clear from my face. I could recognize that voice from anywhere.

Oh, fuck. I couldn't even think for a moment. Everything just stopped as panic rushed through me in an almost painful way. I just froze, and it took me several seconds to thaw.

I'd known it was a possibility the entire time, but the fact that Jack could be there right then was the most difficult thing to comprehend. Like being unable to believe what I knew I had heard. Like my mind was stuck in denial. My entire body was locked and numb for a minute, and a panic like I'd felt so often before knotted my stomach painfully.

"Sure." Mikah chuckled, before he glanced back down to me, "You okay?"

"I have to go." I whimpered. Preferably before I threw up all over the floor, "Just.. Think about it." I didn't wait for him to reply. I rounded, taking the five steps to the door in three, throwing open the door roughly.

I ran from the store as fast as I could.

It was very daring of him to try this at a very busy time of day, but then again, nobody here knew who he was. Nobody but me would recognize him.

I knew if I were to run, he wouldn't follow me. That'd just be stupid. He wasn't after me yet, anyway. He'd let me go. I knew him, and I knew he was playing a game. He wanted this reaction. He wanted to know I still feared him. He was trying to scare me.

Well, it worked! I hadn't even had to see him to be scared of him.

Nobody followed me as I ran. Pushing, shoving people out of my way, I raced back up the sidewalk. My heart beating a thousand miles a minute, I couldn't even breathe enough to cry yet.

Teaching me a very hard lesson. I'd heard the proof right there behind me. At very least Jack was a very real threat to me again, and I wouldn't be stupid again. Never again.

Clawing my way up the hill, scratching myself up in my scramble back over the wall, I came flying in the back door, slamming it closed behind me. Thumping back against it, I finally started to sob heavily, sliding into a violently trembling ball in front of it. I wouldn't open my eyes, even when I sensed someone stepping forward. Kneeling in front of me.

I had to be losing my mind. There's no way he could have been there. No way.

"Leandra?" It was Esme in front of me, "Look at me, honey."

I only curled my arms over my head, hiding behind them.

"Which one was it?" She asked quietly, and I knew she understood. I couldn't stop crying long enough to answer her, so she tried again, "Honey, who was it?"

If she didn't know, that meant Alice didn't know, and that meant my mom had to have been with him somewhere. That thought only fueled more cries, and with a soft sigh, Esme lifted me.

"This is why we want you to be safe." She said, "I hate seeing you this way."

How had he even known I'd be in there? Was it a coincidence? That didn't seem likely with Jack. It was more likely that he'd followed me in there. He had to have known I was in there.

With her holding me this way, I had little choice but to calm down. Just like before.

She had such an ability to calm me down without even trying. She usually chose not to use it, but this was an exception. I wouldn't call it an ability, not like Jasper's, but a way about her that made it impossible to stay afraid. She kept a hold of me, eventually walking with me into the living room. Where the others stood. My chin rested on her shoulder, my arms around her neck. Staring behind her at the wall.

Despite how I didn't want to, I calmed down, but I could feel everyone's gaze on me. The unspoken scolds that just waited to come out.

Feeling my trembles die down, and my sobs fade, Esme asked me again.

"Who was it, sweetheart?" I stayed quiet. Sniffling, sitting straighter in her arms and falling to my feet.

"Leandra." Jasper's voice behind me told me he wasn't going to let this go.

Anyone else, being this scared by sneaking out would have been enough of a punishment, but not to him. Or Emmett beside him. Not to Alice, either. She wasn't going to stand up for me this time.

The fact that I had a very brief run-in with one of them only made it worse. I knew that, and I could understand their point of view, but I'd rather have avoided what I knew wouldn't be avoided.

"I know." I mumbled, "I know."

"No." Jasper corrected sharply, "No. You obviously don't."

"Please." I started to cry again, looking up at him, "I don't want to fight. I know what I did was stupid." He fell quiet for a moment, but eventually took a breath and sighed it out.

"Who was it, Leandra?" He asked me instead.

"Jack." I answered, keeping my gaze down, "I don't even know if he knew it was me." Lie.

"Why did you run off?" He asked, "Leandra, you knew how dangerous it was."

"I needed to talk to Mikah." I whimpered through emotion, "It was important."

"Important enough to risk your own safety like that?" He asked, and I nodded. He didn't understand what I was trying to do.

"I couldn't.." I paused, hesitating, "I couldn't talk to him with anyone else around. It had to be alone, and I knew even if whoever came with me said they wouldn't listen, they'd still hear."

"Does this have anything to do with Alyssa's secret?" He asked, and his calmer tone helped me. I nodded again.

"I needed to get his take on it." I mumbled, "To help me decide what to do, because I'm so lost."

"Leandra, you know you can talk to us." Alice murmured.

"Not about this." I replied, shaking my head, "Not yet." I took a breath, "I went there to talk to him about what he can do to make it better. That's all I wanted. I knew if I would have asked, you wouldn't have let me go."

They understood now. They knew I wasn't just running off for no reason. I was definitely seeing some perks of being as honest as I could, as calmly as I could. They weren't mad anymore, but still disappointed, and I couldn't blame them for that.

"I'm sorry." I added.

"This is important to you." Jasper sighed, "We understand that, but you have to be more careful. You can't forget about your own welfare while trying to help someone else. It doesn't work like that." I nodded a little, "Next time you want to go there, let one of us know to be on the lookout for you. If you don't want us to listen in, we won't listen in. We'd rather you be safe than snoop around in whatever you're doing. It doesn't bother me for you to go see Mikah. He's a nice enough kid. I just don't want anything to happen to you on the way."

I nodded again, taking a deep breath.

I was still a little skeptical. I really didn't want to risk them overhearing anyway, but then I thought about it. They'd been able to give me enough privacy for Alyssa to tell me all about it without them knowing a thing. They had no idea, which was plainly obvious by then. They could choose not to listen if they wanted to.

This could work.

A/N: Well, poop. That was her own stupid fault, but at least she had a reason, right? Right? Eh. On the plus side, I'm always glad when she's able to avoid an argument. :D
THANK YOU to those kind enough to review last chapter! :D HEARTS to you all! HEART HEART HEART HEART!
Chapter ten needs more editing than this one did, so bear with me please if it takes a few days. :)
Until Ten, my beautiful readers! :D