Appetite for Destruction

Oh Brother, Where Art Thou?

There were coyotes howling outside.

My throat felt tight and my stomach ached as I stared out of the Camaro's window. I'd no longer felt safe in the office building, not with Peter knowing I was there, so I packed my things and took Derek's car. He'd left the keys behind along with the rest of his things, and though it was ridiculous I felt a lot safer in the car that still had Derek's scent inside. 

It was a lot warmer too.

Parked at the edge of the preserve, hidden out of sight of the road so the police and the Hunters wouldn't kill me in my sleep, I felt terribly lonely. I hadn't quite believed it when Scott had told me, it hadn't sunk in, but seeing Derek standing beside the man who had killed out sister had cracked the veneer of my anger and landed a direct hit on the raw places exposed underneath.

With shaking fingers I pulled out my phone and, taking a deep unsteady breath, typed in the number I had memorized. I bit my lip and pressed the call button.

For weeks I'd meant to do this. I'd wanted to, but I couldn't. Hadn't had the courage. But if anything could keep me sane, keep me on track when all I wanted to do was go after Derek and drag him back on the right path, it was this.

"This is Laura," The voice was crackling through the shitty phone speaker, but it didn't diminish the feeling like I just got punched in the stomach. I was intimately familiar with the feeling, sudden and sick and painful. "I'm busy right now, so leave a message. And if this is Derek, I'm fine. Don't get your panties in a twist."

I grit my teeth against the tears that had formed in my eyes at hearing that voice again, stubbornly refusing to cry.

"Hey, Laura..." My voice was cracking and I took a deep breath, hand clenched so tightly around the phone I had to consciously remind myself not to break it. "I... I know this is stupid; you'll never hear this message, never call me back, but I thought... you were always the one who knew what to do when things went to shit, and things have seriously gone to shit. Derek's... He's with Peter now." I dug the fingernails of my free hand into my palm. "I just - I don't even know why I thought this would help, but I guess... I guess I wanted to say I'm sorry. I'm sorry that we didn't get to you in time, didn't stop Peter from - from doing what he did and... I miss you."

I ended the call and slowly removed the phone from my ear, fingers clenching hard around the device.

It took everything I had not to call her back and hear her voice again, but I was scared that I'd be sitting here calling her over and over again, begging her to help me because I was scared and alone, but I couldn't. I'd be stuck listening to the echo of my sister, pretending she was alive.

For all that I was self-reliant, I'd never been alone before. I'd had Laura, and then Derek, but now I was alone and I didn't know what to do. Swallowing my tears with some finality, I put all my feelings about Laura in a locked box in the far corner of my mind. I'd open that box when Peter was dead and buried.

My palm had blood on it when I slowly, painfully uncurled my fingers. The need to scream rose in my throat.

When my phone rang I jumped violently, heart leaping into my throat and I looked at the screen, terrified and disgustingly hopeful because for a second I thought it was Laura - and when I saw Scott's name on the screen I thought about ignoring the call, or maybe crushing the phone. Instead I answered it. "What?" I snapped.

"I need your help." 

My irritation immediately vanished at Scott's frantic plea. "What's happening?" I demanded as I climbed out of the car, ready to start running in whatever direction I was needed.