Haven
Chapter One
1983
This story will vary some from the series. One big difference is Nathan and Audrey. If you can't see them with anyone else, do not read this story. While their love story was supposed to be a love of ages, I never got that vibe seeing the actors together. They lacked (in my opinion) passionate chemistry. Hell, she showed more chemistry kissing Duke than Nathan. And, as I do with all my stories, I add my own characters. So, things will not always unfold as they did in the series because new characters can influence old ones. Not every trouble is going to show up here, as many were just filler and did not add, as a whole, to the main plot. If you do not mind change, read on, because you may just find yourself liking the story.
-February-
You would think the void would be empty of all things, but you would be wrong. She had been trapped here for so long, she could not remember any other life. She knew she was not born here. She knew her name, Loranna Crosset-Tyrna, and she knew she was eight years old, but only because she'd reminded herself every day once she realized her memories were slipping away from her. She could no longer remember her parents, hadn't for a great deal of time, but every time she thought of them it sent cold chills down her spine. Were they bad people or did something bad happen to them? She couldn't say. That, like so many, many things, was gone from her life…from her memory.
One thing she did know for sure - something was in here with her. Something that felt hungry and cold. She could feel its presence when it got close enough. And she felt it now. The predator was hunting her. At times she wondered if it wasn't playing with her. The evil and hatred that rolled off of it was almost more than she could bear. Sometime later, it changed. She couldn't say when, time was different here. There were no defining days or yearly seasons. Time was a nothingness. But in that nothingness, she was not alone. It still hunted her, but the evil was tempered with something she couldn't understand. She felt its hunger, confusion, and anger. And she ran, using her mind to throw everything in her path at it. She'd even blasted it away from her a few times, but that was a last resort. The energy it took to push back an energy being drained her to the point of exhaustion.
The ring on the necklace that she wore bounced against her clothing and hit her in the cheek as she ran. She lifted her hand to grasp the ring and tucked it underneath her shirt, where it sat warm against her skin. The warm sensation felt burning hot in the cool of the void, so she usually kept the ring outside of her clothing. But right now, she feared losing it more than she feared the heat against her skin. She wasn't sure why the thought of losing the ring terrified her. Maybe because it was the only piece of her past that she had. Or perhaps someone had once told her of its importance. The why of it no longer mattered, she only knew she had to protect it.
A moment after the ring touched her skin, a faint odd light appeared in the distance. Fear and anger overwhelmed her, but the emotions weren't hers. Was the predator afraid of the light or angry that it appeared at all? She'd avoided the rare appearance of the light in the past, thinking it to be the creature's nest. But now that she sensed its fear, she pushed her legs harder to reach it.
The closer she got to the light, the brighter it grew, until she had to lift an arm in front of her eyes to keep from being blinded. She pushed through a cold, misty substance and fell forward into the aching brightness, her eyes tightly squeezed shut. Would the light blind her if she opened her eyes? She no longer felt the predator, but she didn't know where she was or if she was still alive.
That was when she felt the cold-wet beneath her. She turned her face into the cold-wet and opened her eyes. It was dark, face down in the cold-wet, but she could see the light shining through around the edges of her vision. She slowly pulled her face up from the cold-wet, allowing her eyes to get used to the brighter light gradually. When she felt comfortable that she wouldn't be blinded, she pushed herself up from the cold-wet and onto her hands and knees.
When she heard a shrill scream, she turned her head to see a boy on a sled heading straight towards her; before she could think to move, he angled his body away from her and slammed into a tree a couple of feet away. She grimaced at the crunch noise and saw white flakes falling down around the both of them. Then a glob of cold-wet landed on her head. Her arms gave out under the weight and she dropped back into the cold-wet blanket.
She shivered as the cold started to leech into her and pushed herself back out of the frozen substance and onto her numb legs. Laughter drew her attention back to the boy who was walking towards her.
That had been exhilarating to Nathan. The girl coming out of nowhere, crashing into a tree, and the tree getting revenge by dropping a giant glob of snow on the girl's head. It wouldn't have been near as funny if the tree had taken its revenge out on him. "That was amazing! You appeared in a shimmer of light right in front of me! How did you do that?"
The smile slipped from his lips when he noticed she was shaking and her teeth were chattering. Why did her parents let her come out and play without a coat on? He leaned his sled against his leg, took off his hat and pulled it down over her head. He then untied his scarf and wrapped it around her neck. Lastly, he pulled off his mittens and pushed them onto her icy hands. "I'm Nathan. What's your name?"
"Lor…Lor…" but her teeth chattered too hard to be able to say more. It was colder here than in the cold and dark. Her clothing clung to her, wet and stiff and the light breeze burned against her skin.
"You are cold, Lor. I need to take you to an adult." He took the handle of the sled in one hand and gripped her hand with the other and led her slowly back up the hill. He glanced over at her, worried about how hard it was for her to put one foot in front of the other and how blue her lips were turning. He saw a little girl ahead of them, making her way back up the hill. "Lisa!" he yelled over and over until the little girl turned around. "Lisa – Lor needs help! Get a grownup!"
When Lisa saw the trail of blood and the bone sticking out of Nathan's arm, she began to scream.
Before he could say anything more to Lisa, Lor fell to her knees. He dropped his sled, unzipped his coat and pulled her against him, using his arms to wrap his coat as far around her as he could. One of his arms seemed to be acting funny, not wanting to do what he wanted it to do. But that was the least of his concerns. He knew the girl could die if she got too cold.
Her arms circled around him and she buried herself in his warmth. She heard him murmur words at her and she heard the screaming, but it was all just fuzzy noise to her. A boy she didn't know had become an anchor to her. If she let go, she knew she would be lost forever. Swallowed up in the void. "Don't let go…" She had forced the words past stiff lips, but she wasn't sure if she'd spoken them loud enough to be heard.
Following the screaming, Duke found the two kids huddled together. One he knew, one he did not. "Nice job on the arm," he said to Nathan. "Who's she?" All he could make out was that she was blonde.
Nathan peered up. Great. Duke. They'd been friends once. But Duke had changed. "Lor. She's freezing."
He nodded. "Let me take her. You two need to get to the hospital."
Nathan shook his head. He'd never trust Duke to take care of her.
"Don't be an idiot, Nathan!"
Nathan shook his head no again. "I promised her."
"You promised her you'd let her die?" Duke scoffed.
"No. I promised her I wouldn't let go." He frowned at the bigger boy. "I don't trust you, Duke!"
Duke had to admit that hurt, but he wouldn't let Nathan know that. "Fine. See if I care if you die," he growled. But he did care. As soon as he was out of Nathan's sight, he ran to the closest adult.
Nathan held tight to Lor, wrapping himself closer around her shivering body. He murmured over and over that he wouldn't let go. And he didn't. Not until Mrs. Valyne reached them.
"You both need help, son. You need to let her go. I won't let anything happen to her. I promise," Deb assured him. Still, he wouldn't release the girl. "Look at your arm, son. It's broken. You need to let her go so we can get her warmed up and get you both to the hospital."
He looked at his arm in disbelief only to see it bloody and mangled. He released the girl, who was then wrapped in Mrs. Valyne's coat, and looked more closely at his arm. Was that really his bone? It sure looked like it. But if it was, why didn't he feel it? Was he just too cold to feel it? That had to be it. Lor's body had leached the warmth out of him, but it was worth it. She'd needed him and he'd helped her.
He ignored the people gathering around. The whispers…the talking. He even ignored being carried like a baby. He was too stiff to care. Oddly, he no longer felt the cold, hadn't since he'd let the girl go, but his arms and legs were stiff and difficult to move. He probably would have ended up on his face if he'd tried to walk to the road. No doubt Duke and the others would tease him about it later, but it didn't concern him right now. What concerned him now was Lor. She was still and pale, her eyes were closed and her lips were still blue. Blue lips weren't normal. Was she even still alive?
He looked up at Mr. Valyne, a policeman like his mom's friend, Mr. Wuornos, who was carrying him, "Is Lor okay?"
He looked down at the Hansen boy, who was completely unfazed by his broken arm. Hell, if he'd broken his arm, he'd probably be crying like a baby. But all the boy was concerned about was the girl. "She'll be okay, son. I don't recognize her. Is she a friend of yours?"
Nathan nodded. "Yes, sir."
"Can you tell me who Lor's parents are and where she lives so I can I can send a unit to their house?"
"I don't know where she lives or who her parents are," Nathan admitted.
"But she's your friend?" Mason queried.
"Yes," Nathan proclaimed emphatically.
"How long have you known her?" Mason asked as he settled the boy into the front seat of his car. "The Blakely's will bring our nephew back later," he told his wife after she'd settled in the backseat with the girl. He hoped the car would warm up soon. He flipped lights and siren on and took off as fast as he dared to go on slick roads.
"Since today. She just appeared from nowhere. I would have hit her if I hadn't moved. Hit a tree instead. The tree dropped snow on her head. Thought it was funny until I saw how cold she was. I didn't think it was funny after that. I tried to warm her up. Did I help her good?" he asked the policeman.
"You did, son." He glanced down at the scarf he'd tied around the boy's arm, wet with blood. "You yelled for help and kept her as warm as you could. You're a hero in my books," he winked at the boy. "Your mom would be so proud of you."
He nodded. But his dad wouldn't be. His dad was never around anymore and that was good. When his dad had been home, he'd try to find reasons to leave or just stay up in his room. His dad liked to drink and yell and say mean things. He was glad he wasn't around much anymore. His mom's friend, Mr. Wuornos was more of a dad than his father had ever been. "I wished my dad was like Mr. Wuornos, then my dad would be proud of me too."
He felt for the boy, he did. Max Hansen was trouble. Beth and Nathan were better off without him in their lives. "Your mom and Garland are both going to be proud, son. You did a good thing – helping that little girl." Now, if they could only find out who she was and why she was out in the cold without a coat.
Mason radioed the hospital and the station to let them know what happened. Medics rushed out the back door with two gurneys when he pulled up to the rear entrance. The children were whisked inside and he and Deb found a seat in the waiting room. Lor was not his wife's responsibility, but until her parents were found, Deb had refused to leave the hospital.
They didn't have to wait too long before Beth and Garland arrived. Beth was waved to the desk to fill out paperwork, so Garland joined them in the waiting room.
Garland leaned back in the chair and raked a hand through his thick, dark hair. "The guys are trying to find out what they can about the girl's parents. But why don't you fill me in on what happened?"
"Lor never woke up. All we have is what Nathan was able to tell us: The girl, Lor, appeared out of nowhere with a flash of light, he swerved his sled at the last moment to avoid hitting her and slammed into a tree. He gave her his hat, scarf and mittens and tried to get her uphill to one of the adults. When she stumbled and went down, he yelled for help, unbuttoned his coat and shared his body heat with her. Remarkably quick thinking for a seven-year-old."
Garland nodded. "It is. He's already a better man than his dad." He rose, grabbed a cup of black coffee and a straw. Hospitals didn't much care for folks that smoked inside. Straws and toothpicks helped some, in a pinch. He settled back in his chair. "He never felt his arm break?" That concerned him. Twenty-seven years ago, Leonard Hansen, Nathan's grandfather, got into numerous fights when he stopped feeling things. At least, that's what he remembered overhearing as a small boy at the station.
Mason shook his head. "It was the damnedest thing. It had to have hurt like a son of a bitch, with the bone sticking out and all, but he didn't even know that it was broken. Maybe the cold had numbed it," he said with a shrug.
"Maybe…" Garland agreed with a sigh. But he knew it was more than that. All the odd little things that had happened over the last couple of years all pointed to the Troubles. They were back.
Over the next couple of hours, Beth alternated between pacing and leaning on Garland for his strength. She knew she shouldn't lean on him. But he was the one that had made himself a presence in her life ever since he returned to Haven and joined the police force. He was always there when she needed someone to talk to or needed help with something. No, in truth, he'd been there for her when they were young too. She'd turned away from him when bad boy Max stepped into the picture. Garland had tried to warn her, but she hadn't listened. And it was a choice she would regret for the rest of her life.
She jerked her head off his shoulder when shouts and commotion down the hall drew her attention. She saw her son, dragging along an IV stand, with his full moon flashing down the hall as the gown flapped against his thighs. Nurses were in pursuit, but he didn't stop until he saw the door he wanted and pushed his way into it. Deb jumped up and ran after her son. By the time she caught up to him, he was seated in a chair next to a little girl's bed, his jaw set hard and stubborn, just like his father's. No…no, Nathan was nothing like his father, stubborn jaw aside.
The arguing went back and forth until Beth was tired of it all. "Enough! Does it really matter if he's in this room or another? Does it?" she demanded a second time.
Nancy looked at the other nurses and frowned. "No ma'am, I suppose it doesn't, provided the girl's parents do not object. But your son requires bedrest or he risks further injury."
Nathan agreed to get into bed, provided the curtain remained open between their beds. He remained in the hospital for several weeks for testing and recovering from the internal injuries he'd sustained from the accident. Lor had remained unresponsive for several days, though the doctors believed that to be brought on by severe exhaustion. She was also being treated for dehydration. She would have left after those first couple of weeks, but her parents had still not been found. The Valyne's footed her hospital bill and since beds were not needed at the moment, they allowed her to stay. She was the only one Nathan was willing to remain in bed for.
After a week, Mason and Garland returned to question Lor about who she was and why she was on that hill.
"I don't know very much," she told the two policemen. "I was somewhere dark and cold. I don't know how long I was there, but my memories disappeared. I know my name 'cause I repeated it over and over. My name is Loranna Crosset-Tyrna. I am eight years old. That is all I remember...except the light. He was chasing me. He was afraid of the light, so I ran to it. Then I was in the cold-wet and saw Nathan," she explained.
Mason looked at his partner. What she was saying sounded crazy, but she didn't seem crazy. "Run the name," he told Garland. "I'll see what else I can get out of her." When Garland rose to make the call, he returned his attention to the little girl that was sitting beside Nathan, holding his hand. "You said, 'he was chasing you', who is 'he'?"
She shook her head, her light blonde curls flipping over her shoulder. "I don't know who he is, only that he was hunting me as far back as I can remember."
Hunting her? "Can you tell me what he looked like?"
"No," she said with another shake of her head. "I ran…I hid…I never let him get that close to me. And I never hunted him. I felt that if I ever looked at him - if he ever found me, I would die. I didn't want to die in the cold and dark."
He wasn't getting too far in finding out who the perp was. "Of course not, honey. I wouldn't want to die there either. Can you tell me what the cold and dark is?"
"The void," she said simply.
"The void? Can you tell me where this void is?" he asked gently. Had she been held underground somewhere? If so, how did she get to the hill? There had been too many footprints due to all the traffic from everyone that was sledding that day to see where she might have come from.
"No," she said in a strained voice, a shiver dancing down her spine. She tightened her grip on Nathan's hand. "I don't want to go back there. You aren't going to make me go back, are you?"
"Of course not, honey," he assured her. "We're only trying to figure out what happened. Your parents have to be worried sick about you. If you were my daughter and you went missing, my heart would be broken."
"If my parents cared so much, how did I end up in the void? No…I don't have parents. I don't have a home. And I don't want to return to the cold and dark."
Later that day, Deb and Beth returned to spend time with the children. This they did on a daily basis. Beth never asked Deb why she came, for which Deb was thankful. Though, she suspected the other woman knew. Deb had told everyone that she came because she was the first to get to the girl and she felt responsible for looking after her wellbeing until the girl's parents could be found. But in truth, that was only part of the reason. She'd had an empty place in her heart ever since their three-year-old son, Mikey, died two years ago. Right or wrong, Lor helped to fill that ache.
Every evening, they tucked the kids in and left when visiting hours were over. Every evening, Garland drove by Beth's house to make sure she was safe before returning home. Some nights he stayed for a while. After Garland had come back to Haven, she'd filed for a contested divorce. She had no way of finding Max and she feared Max would do more than just try to stop the divorce. She feared he might try to kill her. Since there was a child involved, she knew it would take longer but she was determined to be free of him once and for all. For Nathan's sake more than her own.
Toward the end of their hospital stay, the nurses were whispering to each other about how adorable young love was. The two children were all but inseparable and they'd noticed Nathan took every opportunity he had just to touch her. What they didn't realize was he was touching her because she was the only thing he could feel.
Tests had been run on Nathan, but no one could explain why he'd developed a lack of tactile sensation. They called this disorder idiopathic neuropathy. It had a name, but not an answer and not a cure.