"Leo?" I called out in tears as we walked in.
After a minute, he came out from the bedroom rubbing his face. He must've been sleeping.
"What's wrong?" he asked, seeing both of our faces stained with tears.
"Show him," I whispered to Paige, folding my arms.
After a moment of hesitating, I whispered to her again.
"It's okay. Show him."
Paige slowly rolled up the sleeve on her left arm, revealing a bruise that covered her shoulder and half her upper arm.
"That's where mom pushed her into a wall," I whispered.
Next she turned around and lifted her hair, showing five small bruises covering the back of her neck.
"This," I whispered, pointing to the cluster of bruises, "is where mom grabbed her and threw her on the ground."
Leo put a hand over his mouth.
"And," I said, pulling up her shirt revealing her back, which had six diagonal lines of purple and blue, "this is where she used a belt."
He looked Paige in the eyes.
"Your mother did this to you?" he asked, shocked.
Paige nodded slowly.
"Leo, she's a drunk, she's an alcoholic. She get's drunk and beats Paige."
"What are we going to do?" he whispered to me.
"Paige," I said softly. "How about you put a movie in and try to calm down? I'm just going to talk to Leo for a minute, then I'll make us some dinner."
She nodded and walked to the couch while Leo and I went in the bedroom.
I lost it, as soon as he shut the door, the tears overwhelmed my eyes.
"How could she do that? She was never like that..." I sobbed.
"Shhh," Leo comforted me, holding my head to his chest with one hand and wrapping his other arm around my waist. Then he let go, looked into my eyes. "The only thing that matters is that she is safe, with us, now."
I nodded and tried to stop crying and calm down.
"What do we do? She's staying tonight, bu I can't just send her back home when it's time for school on Monday," I said.
"Listen, she'll stay here for as long as we need to figure this out," said Leo. "But we need to talk to her, see what she wants."
"Well, she could live with Prue, but I'd rather her be here, away from where mom can get to her..."
"Whoa. Uh, wait," he said. "I want to help her, too. But we are hardly in the right situation to take in a thirteen year old girl... feed her, clothe her, accept all responsibility for her. We're not even completely settled dealing with our own lives, how can we be responsible for hers to?"
I knew he did care about her, and he was right. We definitely weren't making enough money to have another person living here. But I couldn't turn her away.
"Leo...she's my baby sister. I'll do what I have to do, get another job, work more hours, move to a bigger place, whatever it takes. If she wants to stay with me, I won't turn her away," I said. "I know you get a say in this, but I want you to know, this is important to me."
I knew saying that would remind him of me supporting his choice to become a police officer. And I knew he couldn't refuse.
"Okay," he said. We left the room after a hug and kiss, and I went to make dinner.
I made spagetti because I knew Paige liked it. We all sat down at the table together.
"Paige, Leo and I were talking..."
"I know," she interupted, "I know you can't keep me here with you."
"Well," said Leo, putting his hand on mine, "we want to know what you want. You have options."
"Yes," I said, "you can stay here, with us, but you will have to switch schools."
"Or," said Leo, "we can ask Prue if you can live with her, because she lives near your school."
"Or I can just go home," she said.
"No. Sorry, Paige," I said. "I do plan to talk to mom, but you aren't going back there as long as she's there."
"But," she began to protest.
"NO."
"She can't find out that I told you," she whispered.
"Paige, I won't let her near you. Don't worry about her reaction, okay?" I said.
"She doesn't mean to do it!" she yelled suddenly.
Leo jumped in.
"Paige, calm down. We understand that you want to defend her. She is your mother, and you love her. We get it," he said softly.
"But you can't defend what she's done to you," I said.
"You shouldn't feel bad," said Leo. "It's not your fault. She has a problem. A very, very serious problem. As long as she has this problem, we can't let you be around her. It isn't safe."
"Why can't I just stay with Prue until her problem goes away?" she pleaded.
I looked at Leo in desperation.
"Problems like hers," he said, "they take time. First the person has to want to get help. That isn't a guarentee, especially if they think they don't have a problem. After they accept it, and accept help, then there is a very long healing process. After that, after the person is really healed, they may still have some problems putting their life back together. That all takes a very long time. Years even."
"So, you will have to pick another place to live," I said. "That's just the way it is."
"Then...I guess I'm switching schools," she sighed.
*********
Seeing her tears and the bruises on her small body, it enraged me. That rage pumped through me as I burst through the front door of the manor.
"Mom?" I called. It wasn't long before she was stumbling down the stairs, bottle in hand. "We need to talk," I said angrily.
"What is it, Piper?" she asked cheerfully.
I wanted to smack that smile off of her face.
"I found the bruises," I snapped, my voice cold and full of hate.
Her smile fell. Then it returned.
"I haven't the foggiest what you're talking about!" she laughed.
I stepped forward and ripped the bottle from her hand.
"Maybe it's time you stop living life foggy, and own up to what you did to Paige," I yelled.
"Paige? I don't know what lies she has been telling you, but..."
"I saw the bruises, don't stand there and lie to me," I said harshly.
She began to cry.
"I didn't mean to," she sobbed.
I had no sympathy for her, whatsoever.
"You need help," I countered.
I walked out and went to Paige's room to get her clothes. It wasn't long till mom came to the doorway while I was packing Paige's clothes.
"So, you're just going to take the only daughter I have left?" she pleaded.
"You did this," I said coldly. "Not me."
"Piper, she's all I have left," she begged. "Please don't take her. She's my baby girl. I love her so much."
I stopped packing and walked over to her. I was less than a foot away.
"Did you love her that much, when you slammed her into a wall?" I whispered angrily, then raised my voice. "How about when you throttled her neck, then threw her to the ground?"
She said nothing.
"Tell me mom, how much did you love her when she was lying on the ground, and you STRUCK her with a belt OVER AND OVER AGAIN. HOW MUCH DID YOU LOVE HER THEN?" I felt the hatred bursting in my voice.
She began to walk away. I grabbed her arm.
"Answer me," I screamed. "What the hell was going on in your mind, when you took your problems out on a little girl? How did you feel the day after you beat her? How the hell did you go about your day, as your baby girl was struggling with the pain of her mother's abuse, and the marks on her skin as constant reminders?"
"I'm sorry," she whined.
"Does 'sorry' take the bruises away? Does 'sorry' change the fact that she'll be haunted with the memories? No, it doesn't," I remarked. "Listen, you need help. Whether you get it or not, Paige is staying with me. I will find a way to support her. I'll find a way to help her through this. I'm leaving here today with her belongings, and I do expect you to be cooperative with this. If you try to stop me, I'll bring child abuse charges. Simple as that."
I walked out of the manor with as many of Paige's things that would fit in my car. I left my mother crying on the couch, with yet another bottle in her hand.
