Chapter 15
A gentle knock at the door interrupted Sam's pacing but she was in no mood to deal with anyone. Everything started caving in on her to the point she felt like collapsing in tears while simultaneously punching something.
"Sammy you need to open the door." Chance told her quietly through the door. She stopped dead at hearing his voice. Her insides felt like they were tearing her apart but she still opened the door to him.
"What?" She said to him roughly.
"Please don't freak out." He pleaded with her as he walked closer to her but she flinched away, her eyes narrowing at him.
"About what? The fact that your ex looks like a supermodel or that she is pregnant possibly with your child?" Her voice rose in hysteria.
"Sam please just calm down." He said soothingly.
"Don't ever tell me to calm down!" She shouted before pushing past him and rushing out of the house.
Brandy sniggered from her hiding spot under the stairs and high-fived a smug looking Beau. This was most definitely her best plan to date. She was enjoying watching her sister suffering, especially after what had happened at the auction yesterday.
Sam had whistled for Bill and was charging away as Chance got to the front door. He felt a piece of him snap as he knew he would never find her if she didn't want to be found. He stood and sadly watched her leave, wishing for just once that life wasn't this complicated.
Sam knew there were some fences needing mending that the workers were going to fix on Monday so she decided to get started on it. She desperately hoped that hard work would be enough to clear her mind of all that happened this morning, but she had a dreadful feeling that it would never work.
By the end of the day she was exhausted but still she was plagued by so many questions. Who was Beau? How did she know it was his baby? Why come to another country to prove a point when she could have called or e-mailed? How the hell did she even get here?
She had managed to calm down enough to return home as darkness began to descend on the land. Sweaty and smothered with dust she dragged herself through the front door only to be greeted by the one thing that would cause her brain to become muddled again.
Beau and Chance were kissing near the stairs and Sam just stood there her mouth dropping open in absolute shock. Without thought and pure fury driving her, she yanked Chance away from her. She had a tight grip on his arm and a deadly look in her eye.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" She shouted at him.
She quickly spun around and bolted up the stairs, by the time she had the door locked behind her she was sobbing her heart out. She leant back against the door and felt her world finally collapse around her. She heard an argument on the stairs but could barely make out the words; instead she curled into a ball and lost herself in her heartache.
"Sammy please listen to me. I didn't kiss her, I swear to you. She kissed me. Please Sammy you need to let me explain." She heard his voice through the door but it only made her cry harder.
"Go away." She told him through her tears "Just leave me alone."
"I'm not leaving here until you listen to me and believe me." He told her determinedly as he sat down against the door.
She lay there as her room gradually darkened, her tear streaked face and red blotchy eyes reflecting the abject misery she felt. She had finally started trusting someone again only to have them betray her was almost too much to bear.
"I'm still here Sam." She heard him say and for a brief second she almost got up to open the door but she forced herself not to.
"I'm going to tell you what happened and I swear to you that it's the truth." He said calmly "I told you I would never lie to you and that hasn't changed. She has been following me around all day. I wanted to go and look for you but I had no idea where to start searching. What happened was definitely not what it looked like."
"Yeah right." Sam snorted.
"She followed me down the stairs then tripped and started to fall. I caught her and was setting her upright when she kissed me. It was just bad timing that you walked through when you did. If you had come in a few seconds earlier you would've seen the truth of what I'm telling you."
"Then why weren't you pushing her away?" Sam demanded with a cry.
She was surprised when she heard him chuckle "Because I was comparing her cold passionless kiss with the firecracker that is you." He said warmly and she felt hope bloom deep in her heart.
"That's the truth?" She asked in a whisper.
"Yep! I can hear your family getting ready for dinner, so why don't you go have a shower and I'll bring some up for you."
"That still doesn't sort out the baby thing." Sam told him firmly.
"I'm pretty sure we can work that out." He said wryly, mostly due to the fact that he was sure the pregnancy was a fake. Beau had always wanted her body to be perfect, so there was no way she would have allowed herself to get pregnant.
"I don't understand." She murmured when she felt a thud on the stairs.
"Sam please don't do this again." She heard her father say sadly. She moved away from the door in distress that her father would think so little of her.
"I'm not Dad. I haven't and I wouldn't." She told him starkly.
"What are you guys talking about?" Chance asked interrupting right before the door he was leaning against opened. He quickly moved out of the way as Sam stormed over to her father.
"See!" She shouted at him while rolling up the sleeves of her shirt and flashing her wrists at him.
"Sam you didn't." Chance said in shock as he finally realised what they were talking about. She refused to look at him bowing her head.
"It was just after the incident with Luke. Everything seemed beyond my control and I couldn't take it anymore." She whispered her despair to him. Chance grabbed her hand and pulled her into the light of the stairwell. Two precise little scars were marked on her wrists and Chance felt his range at Luke increase tenfold.
"I'm going to kill him!" Chance said between his clenched teeth.
"No this was my doing. He was just a part of the circumstance leading up to it. This was why Dad started sending me to therapy." She explained quietly.
"Why didn't you tell me this?"
"I'm not proud of it. You and Dad are the only ones that know about it." She whispered and Chance felt his heart ache for her.
"Exactly what happened with Luke? And why does Chance know about it?" Jim asked seriously.
"Crap!" Sam said then quickly put a hand over Chances mouth "Don't tell him anything"
"Samantha what happened?" Jim demanded a determined expression on his face and Sam sighed wondering how to explain it to him so he wouldn't freak out too much.
"Do you remember the last time Luke was injured?" Sam asked him and Jim scratched his head.
"Ah the black eye and the puffy nose a few weeks ago?"
"Think further back Dad."
"The broken nose and ribs?" He asked and Sam winced but nodded "You did that Sam?" She nodded again and he looked incredibly worried "What did he do to deserve that?" It was then Sam's panic hit her and she knew that she couldn't tell him.
"I can't do this right now Dad so just let it be." She told him before racing back in her room and leaning back against the door with her heart pounding in anxiety.
Jim turned to Chance almost pleading with his eyes "You have to tell me."
"I can't go against her wishes." He shook his head and Jim sighed.
"You don't understand what it's like. I found her in the bathroom and there was blood everywhere. I thought my little girl was dead." Jim's voice broke with the force of the emotion overwhelming him and his face was swarmed with the nightmarish visage.
Chance was completely lost for words "I didn't know." He finally muttered.
"I just don't want it happening again." Jim said frankly.
"I promise I'll look after her. The best thing we can do right now is to get Beau out of here before she causes more trouble." Chance told him and he saw Jim snap out of his disturbing memories.
"Fine lad but you have to give me something to work with."
"If you can get hold of her phone and get her parents number, also look for her Nonna's number. She is absolutely terrified of her grandmother." Chance explained.
"I'll sort it out then. You make sure Sam is alright and I'll....You're the first person to get through to her for a long time, she's actually been happy. I need you to take care of her." He told Chance gruffly, gripping his shoulder firmly.
"I will." He promised and Jim headed back downstairs.
Silence was all that came through the locked door and Chance was at first worried until he heard the running water and knew she was having a shower. He sat there in the semi-darkness and pondered about Sam. She was so very vulnerable on the inside even though the entire world seemed to see her as someone completely different. He heard her footsteps padding toward him and he hoped she would open the door.
"I will be fine Chance; you should go have some dinner." She said to him quietly through the door.
"I'm not moving until you talk to me Sam." He said sternly.
"I just need to be alone right now. I promise not to do anything drastic."
"You swear?" He persisted.
"Yes! Now get your cute arse out of here." She yelled in exasperation through the door.
Grudgingly he got up and went downstairs. Sam stood on the other side looking at her wrists. It was the one thing she had kept from him and now he knew. She had been so devastated with Tony's death and after the debacle with Luke she just hid from everyone. Once Rodney's family started harassing her she had sunk into a deep depression where life had no meaning anymore.
The one thing that truly took away her last vestige of hope had been Brandy. They had started the long walk up the driveway one day after school, when Brandy started telling her how useless she was and how she should put herself out of her misery. She persisted the whole way home until Sam was convinced that she was right.
She shivered now thinking about it. She deliberately turned her mind away but that only lead her to thoughts of Beau. Everything was churning with no solution and she paced anxiously as she tried to sort things out. Eventually many hours later her frustration got the better of her and she knew she had to get out of the house.
She quickly got changed, grabbed her sleeping bag and made up an overnight bag. She wrenched open the door and her heart collapsed in a bunch of flutters. Chance was sleeping on the floor outside her door.
She smiled fondly as she stepped over him and dropped her bundles on the floor. She settled down next to him, watching him at rest. She wasn't mad at him anymore; in fact he had been completely forgiven. She brushed his hair back off his face and her smile deepened as he blinked up at her.
"I did tell you to go didn't I?" She asked sarcastically.
"Yeah but you forgot to say do not return." He said sleepily.
"C'mon you can't possibly sleep here all night." She told him putting out a hand to help him up.
"I'll sleep wherever you sleep." He said getting to his feet.
"Not tonight. Just sleep in yours. I want to lock this door because I don't trust Brandy." She explained. As she locked it Chance noticed all the stuff she had dropped and raised his eyebrows at her "I need open space around me. I won't be far so don't worry."
"Does your Dad know?"
"It's where I always go. If I stay here I may end up punching a pregnant person and that just wouldn't be good." She told him grimly.
She tugged on his hand after gathering her stuff and he trundled along after her through the dark house. Sam took a deep breath taking in his woodsy scent and let it relax her as she pushed the door open to her old room. She cringed just looking toward the bathroom but Chance caught it.
"It happened in here? No wonder you didn't want to be in this room anymore." He said soberly.
"Normally it doesn't worry me but just having to talk about it today..." She trailed off and he gathered her in for a hug "I have to go. I promise you I will be back in the morning."
"Alright." He said unhappily.
She scurried out of the room before she felt like cuddling into his warmth and staying there. She was thankful for the sliver of moon to see while she rode Bill away from the house. He unerringly knew the way and Sam just let him go.
The stars sparkled like brilliant jewels in the sky and Sam finally sighed in relief. Out here where the air was clear but balmy she could finally think freely. She could accept the many things that the claustrophobic house wouldn't let her.
Like the fact she loved Chance. Wait, she loved him? Like love, loved him? She sat back in shock and Bill stopped and turned his head to look curiously at her. She had thought before that her emotions for him were strong but now she realised that what she felt for him was almost too wonderful to describe. She was in love with Chance Carpenter.
"Crap!" She said aloud.
"It can't be that bad surely?" A voice said and Sam sat up clutching her heart as she noticed Tony standing translucent before her.
"Don't do that!" She screamed at him "You almost gave me a heart attack."
"Sorry, you're my second visitor tonight. Dad's worried about you." Tony stated and she grimaced "So you had better tell me what's going on."
Sam got down off Bill and set him free. She quickly organised her sleeping bag into a comfortable hollow in the clearing outside his cottage while he watched her in amusement. She finally let everything inside her vent and he listened without interrupting.
It was close to dawn when she finally concluded and he was able to offer some sage advice. Before long she found herself dozing restfully under the watchful eye of her brother and the stunning canopy of stars that surrounded her.
Tony looked lovingly at his sister until he too noticed the scars on her wrists. He now understood the reason he returned a few years ago, it was all for the protection of his sister. At least until another turned up to take care of her. He had a funny feeling that maybe she had found her protector all on her own.
Chance rolled over in the bed at Sam's normal waking time and felt something was wrong. The smell was wrong, the feel was wrong, so he cracked one eye open to find an icy blue pair staring at him. He clambered back from Beau and off the bed, trying desperately to remember if he'd done something he shouldn't have.
"Never knew you just wore boxers to bed." She said eyeing him up and down appreciatively.
"That's because you never hung around long enough to find out." He told her as he threw his jeans on "What are you doing here?"
"Just teasing your little girlfriend." She said with a malicious laugh and Chance just closed his eyes feeling his anger building but glad for once that Sam was nowhere near here.
"Well she's not here. She left last night because she didn't want to punch a pregnant individual who is conveniently not pregnant anymore." He said through clenched teeth as he noticed her skinny body. He saw her flinch though he didn't know if it was about the punch or the pregnancy.
He looked at her in her expensive satin negligee and felt nothing. Any other guy would be jumping at the chance to have Beau lounging on their bed suggestively but it just left him cold. He wanted Sam in his bed, even though she woke him up so early. He wanted his shy but demanding Sammy next to him. He missed her.
"Well I'm here." Beau purred at him, reaching out to touch him.
"Yeah been there done that and sure as hell don't need to do it again." He told her firmly, while pulling on a shirt and stepping away from her.
"What is your problem?" She yelled angrily and he just smiled.
"Not used to rejection are you Beau? If you were the last person on earth I still wouldn't go anywhere near you." He said determinedly.
"Wait you're telling me that girl is better than me? What do you see in her that I don't have then?" Beau stood up and flaunted herself around the room at him but he just laughed.
"Everything. Now get out of my room." He ordered.
"Make me!" She told him fiercely.
"Right there will be no more of that nonsense." A deep voice interrupted as Jim pushed the door open "You young lady go and put some clothes on. Get Brandy up and I want to see you all in the den before the suns up." Beau quickly scurried away and Chance nodded at Jim.
After so much persistent arguing Chance had a headache but he determinedly marched both girls up to the den. Jim sat in his beaten up old leather chair with a grim look on his face as a sleepy Brandy wandered in as well as Beau and Chance.
"Sit." He told them and they obediently followed his order "Where do I start?" Jim kneaded his forehead as the girls started to say something but he raised a finger at them for silence.
"Is Sam okay?" Chance asked quietly and Jim nodded before turning to the girls.
"You two are in the deepest amount of crap that I have no idea how you are going to dig yourselves out." Jim eyed the two girls who looked surprisingly guilty "Let's start with you Brandy. I have warned you time and again not to press your sister. This is my last warning, if you end up with nothing you will have no one to blame but yourself." He told her severely.
"What do you mean?" Brandy asked but trailed off as Jim stared her down.
"Now Beau, your parents are not terribly impressed that you are in another country causing trouble when you are supposed to be in boarding school. They are also a might mad about that you are...were pregnant.
"But your Nonna is truly ropable. I had words with her last night and if you think I'm not happy then just wait until you talk to your grandmother." The look of horror on Beau's face was almost laughable "You both owe Sam an apology and if she decides you need a good knock down then I'm not saying anything against it." They looked at each other in fear and trepidation causing Chance to grin.
"Paybacks a bitch isn't it." Chance said snidely while Jim tried to stop himself from smiling.
"You go saddle Peggy and she'll take you to where Sam is. Make sure you get back in time for school and tell Sam I'll do the chores" Jim said turning to him.
Chance left the room while Jim kept on scolding the girls. He felt his heart lighten knowing he was going to see Sam. It was while tightening the girth around Peggy's middle that he realised how much he had learnt since coming here.
He could now saddle a horse competently and ride it. He could shovel hay and herd cattle. But most of all he had finally found a deep love inside of him for someone as truly special as Sam and he relished it like nothing else in his life.
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