The dreams tore her from her sleep as she knew they would. Sleeping had become an exercise if not in futility, at least not as easy as she remembered. She'd always been able to fall asleep anywhere, whether it was in the finest hotel or under the stars in the Outback, even on her feet if necessary but back then the dreams had been worth finding. Now all they did was bring her back to that night she'd been at the mercy of those two men.

One of whom now was in Paradise and knew she bore their secret. He'd tried to kill her as soon as he discovered they were in the same place because he thought she'd tell on him. Bring him more trouble than he needed or wanted. So in his mind she had to die.

But what did she want for him? She knew she wanted him gone so she wouldn't have to risk running to him and have it all flashing back to her in an instant. The emotions that she fought so hard to keep at bay were beyond her control. She'd almost fallen when she'd first seen him, her legs suddenly too weak to hold her. The fear that raced through her…made her heart pound and the sound like rushing water in her ears. She'd woken up in a sweat feeling like that, her skin still immersed in the sensation of their hands on her.

She felt like vomiting, her throat too parched. So she got up to go fetch some water to drink. The cup shaky in her hand as she gulped it down, still trying to breathe through it…so she drank it down to the bottom. Sometime it worked but most of the time she didn't know what was happening to her. Why her body reacted like this to something that happened months ago as if it were happening again. What was wrong with her? She felt warm all of a sudden so she opened her door and stepped outside onto the porch to sit on the steps, the night still holding more than a hint of the heat of summer.

Morning still waited hours away and she knew she should get back to sleep. But she had to settle down first and until then she just felt restless. As if she should run or fight and there was nothing there in front of her, just shadows.

"Hey you still up?"

She glanced over to see Bella walking out of the barn towards her.

"I couldn't sleep…"

"Couldn't get to sleep or stay asleep?"

Amelia didn't answer just looking down at her hands. Bella sat down next to her.

"Dreams…?"

Amelia nodded.

"More like nightmares," she said, "I'd hoped they'd go away."

"They will…it'll just take time," Bella said, "The memories are never lost but they do dim."

Amelia didn't know that she believed that, she just knew that she'd hoped that they would fade and yet she knew that it probably take a long time. She'd never had this kind of experience before where something bad happened and remained with her as if she'd never be rid of it. She'd always been resilient, inheriting that trait from her parents. But this had really changed all that.

"I hope so," she said, "but seeing him here, it just brings it all back. Just when I thought I was starting to move forward."

Bella touched her shoulder.

"You will, you'll see," she said, "You have a fine man there to move forward with…"

Amelia smiled slightly.

"I know but what is he getting himself into here? Everything's changed…"

"Not everything Amelia," Bella said, "Not everything that matters…including how two people feel about each other."

Amelia fell quiet thinking about that and whether she'd ever feel comfortable in her skin again or have a man elicit sensations with his touch that were pleasurable.

"I love him but I don't know if that's enough," she said, "I lost a part of myself and I think it's part of what attracted him to me."

"Did he tell you that?"

Amelia shook her head.

"No, but when I think what it was like…to…"

Bella smiled.

"I think I know…"

Amelia felt relieved to not have to explain it to her friend.

"Does that scare you?"

Amelia just looked at her so many feelings inside her conflicting. She didn't know which one dominated.

"I don't know…I'm just afraid that if we…try to go back to the way things were…I don't know how I'll feel about that."

Bella sighed.

"Did you tell Ethan?"

Amelia just looked at her.

"I don't know how to do that," she said, "It's hard to put it into words…I'm not good at this kind of thing."

Bella arched her eyes.

"Good…at telling the man you love what makes you feel good? No one can take that away from you Amelia. I think you just need to take a few deep breaths and just say it."

Amelia looked down at her hands.

"I hope he'll understand."

"Of course he will," Bella said, "He loves you and a man like Ethan…he doesn't fall in love easily…trust me on that."

Amelia smiled. She knew that he hadn't been a man who trusted easily either but he had told her that he trusted her. The earnestness in his voice that laced the simplicity of his words then had moved her and she hadn't known what to say. It had been so unexpected but then he'd surprised her more than once.

"I know…"

Ethan woke up in the morning to the sounds of the children getting up and doing their chores while Claire prepared the breakfast. He'd be riding into town to discuss the security plans for Founder's Day which Darrin wanted to discuss yet again. Ethan knew that some of the security men including Burke might be there and he didn't trust him at all.

He didn't know why, mostly a gut feeling but he already knew that Burke and Trevor had been responsible for Walton's death and that it tied into the fact that all of the men had been in San Francisco at the same time.

Amelia had been in his dreams as she often visited but now at least when he woke up, he knew that she'd not been an unknown number of miles away but on a ranch not too far away from this one. He also knew that they were slowly working their way towards each other again.

Nothing else mattered to him as much as family and she was an integral part of it. He rode out to town later on and hooked up with Dakota in the restaurant. Scotty had made his chorizo and Dakota and Charlie were digging into it.

"Darrin wants to see you later," Charlie said, "He's upset that you've been giving his men a hard time."

"You mean the two that killed Walton."

Dakota and Charlie looked at each other.

"We've got no proof Ethan," Charlie said, "We need to have that before and there's nothing."

Ethan remained unmoved.

"I know they did it and I'm going to prove it," he said, "I sent wires to other cities including San Francisco."

Dakota nodded.

"They might be tied to a death there," he said, "that man Warrick who was killed according to that reporter."

Amelia had witnessed that murder but she hadn't named the man who did it. She might not have known a name. But Ethan wondered if it might have been Burke. If so, wouldn't she have told him that? He had his suspicions that there might be a tie in between Burke and what had happened in San Francisco

And maybe she hadn't told him everything. He knew that she hadn't suffered an accident on her horse by the river. Someone must have chased her out there to get her alone to kill her. If someone had been willing to go that far, there must be a reason why. Yet she'd been silent on anything like that insisting that she'd just fallen.

"How do you know that," Charlie said, "based on what that reporter said?"

Dakota shrugged.

"It's just odd that so many folks from San Francisco wound up in our little town."

Ethan knew that included Bella and Amelia. Charlie went up to go get some more chorizo from Mary. Dakota just looked over at Ethan.

"You think Bella and Amelia are telling us everything?"

Ethan sighed not knowing how to answer that.

"Maybe this Daggett did kill that young man there," Dakota said, "and none of these security men had anything to do with it."

"I think that both Warrick and Walton were likely killed by the same person."

Ethan truly believed that in his gut and he knew that if that were true, then Amelia knew and that Burke would know that on sight. He had to figure out what to do next.

Just then he heard a familiar voice and saw her walk inside the restaurant.