VALERIE BARELY GETS TO LAY DOWN BEFORE her phone rings in her pocket, "what do you want?" Valerie mumbles into her phone as soon as she sits on her bed.
"Where are you?"
Valerie realizes it's Allison as she lets out a sigh, "why?"
"Just tell me where you are," Allison snaps making Valerie roll her eyes, "I've been texting you the past 30 minutes," Allison explains making Valerie open her phone to find 20 texts from Allison and two texts from Joleen.
"I'm at home," Valerie begins to get confused, "why are you even calling me this late?"
"Okay, I'm coming to get you, be ready." Valerie looks at the ended call before letting out an exhausted sigh, her arms tired and mentally drained from everything that's happened in the last few hours.
"Be ready, she tells me," Valerie mocks as she gets up and changes, "no Valerie, how was your day? It's not like our fucking brother almost died or anything," Valerie puts in a hoodie before the thought of losing Klaus comes back in her mind and causes her to tear up.
Her phone dings on her bed and Valerie walks over to grab it, knowing Allison is outside. Valerie quietly walks through the hall, making a quick stop at Klaus room and peeking in to see him sleeping before gently going down the stairs to race out the door.
"Can you tell me what the fuck is going on now?" Valerie demands as she buckles up, "I've had the worst day believe it or not so this better be worth it."
"Remember Harold Jenkins?" Valerie tiredly nods while she leans back against the seat when Allison hands her a blue folder, "well, Leonard Peabody is Harold Jenkins."
Valerie sits up straight at her words and begins to look through the folder, "wait, you mean, the man we busted at Vanya's?" Valerie's heart races in her chest as she looks over at her sister.
Allison nods and tightens her hands over the wheel, "yeah, we found out when we went out to look and we're going to get her."
Valerie runs her hands through her hair, "Ali, I-I-- are you even sure she'll come with us?" The memory of earlier today comes to mind, "after today, I don't think she'll even want to be around us."
"We have to try, we can't just leave her with him and have him do something to her!"
"I know, okay? But Vanya won't just leave, who knows what he said to her or how close they are," Valerie snaps back before looking out her window and tries to calm herself down, "we need to think about this logically."
Allison nods and looks over at her sister, "okay, okay," she agrees before looking back at the road, "we'll figure it out but for now, sleep alright? It won't be for a while until we get there."
Valerie nods and gets comfortable, "why'd you even bring me? I mean thanks for this because I want Vanya safe but I just figured you'd want to do this alone." Valerie admits as she looks to her sister.
Allison lets out a sigh, "we're sisters and we made that toast remember?" she reminds with a smile, "we'll always be there for each other, even now."
Valerie smiles at the thought of the night at the bar and remembers Joleen which causes her to pull out her phone and open the texts:
So, I can't stop thinking about that kiss at the bar. Want a do over? Maybe during a date?
sent at 5:45pm
Unless you're too busy?
sent at 8:20pm
Valerie frowns to herself and goes to type a reply that she hopes isn't too late:
Sorry, I was super busy. Maybe tomorrow, if you're still up for it? :)
sent at 3:30am
The phone is turned off and Valerie stares at her tired, puffy eyes and messy hair that's peaking out from her hoodie before putting away her phone, trying to sleep:
It's pitch black before Valerie finds herself in an unknown house with a gun in her hand. Valerie is quick to drop it before trying to find Klaus or Luther, running into a kitchen where everything was thrown around.
"Klaus? Luther?" Valerie calls out the fear of her brother being dead crawls into her mind as she runs into the next room to find Klaus lying on the floor like he was in the club, "no, no, no, no, Klaus?" Valerie begs when she runs over and kneels beside him to find bullet wounds all over his chest.
Valerie places a hand over mouth as she cries into her brother's chest, "Valerie?" Someone calls out behind her making her look to find Luther holding a hand over his chest, "what's wrong with you Valerie? why'd you do this to us?" He grunts out removing his hand to reveal a gunshot wound in the center of his chest.
"Luther, no, no, I-I-- I wouldn't--" Valerie cries out when a gunshot rings out behind her brother making him fall over, "Luther!" The person behind him is shown, only to find herself standing over him with a crazy smile on her face as blood is splattered all over it.
Valerie flinches herself awake to find themselves driving through some woods, "you okay?" Allison asks making Valerie dart her eyes over to her sister as her heart beats wildly in her chest, "we're almost there."
"I'm fine," she mumbles out when her heart begins to calm down and they continue their drive.
"I got us some water," Allison mentions as she leans over and grabs a water bottle from Valerie's feet.
Valerie nods and grabs the bottle, chugging it quickly, "thanks," Valerie lets out breathlessly.
The two drive for a while before pulling into the driveway of a cabin, "nice place," Valerie mumbles to herself.
Allison grabs a blue folder and looks it over before motioning Valerie to follow her.
"What if he's with her?" Valerie questions as she closes the door and they begin to make their way under the porch.
Allison looks over at her sister and shrugs, "let's just hope he's not with her then," Allison peaks out over the ledge then quickly moves over to a window where the two peak inside to see if Lenoard or Vanya are inside only to see Vanya's violin case.
They start to head back to the car when a bird flies out and causes the two to jump, "holy fuck," Valerie whispers out as she calms herself down, "you okay?"
Allison lets out a sigh before nodding.
VALERIE AND ALLISON SIT IN HER CAR, WAITING for the traffic to move forward, "wonder where they went?"
Allison shakes her head as she holds a hand over her mouth before looking off to the side to see police cars and tape making her get out, "wait here alright?"
Valerie sits up, "why what's going on? What if the line moves?" Allison rolls her eyes and puts on her glasses.
"Just move over to my side and just wait here, I'll be right back alright?"
Valerie lets out a grumble of words under her breath as she moves over to the driver's side, "fine," Valerie watches as Allison walk and grab a scarf hanging on the sign before walking over and going under the tape, "what the fuck are you doing?" Valerie questions under her breath as she watches her sister begin to follow the cop, "what the actual fuck, Allison?"
Valerie sits back and lets out a huff before covering her face with her hands, "I'm so fucking done with this family."
A ping sounds out from her pocket making Valerie pull it out to see a new text from Allison:
We're going to the hospital. Meet me there.
sent at 9:45am
"Oh my fu--" Valerie groans out as she waits for the car in front of her to go ahead:
Be there in a jiffy.
sent at 9:45am
As it sends, Valerie hopes it gives off the amount of snark she wants.
It's not even 30 minutes later when Allison calls Valerie, "what happened? Did you find anything?" Valerie asks Allison as she waits in the car, still on the road.
"They were there last night, one of the guys that were hurt said some guy paid them off to beat him up in front of his girlfriend," Allison explains quietly making Valerie try to connect the dots, "he also said that he paid pretty good and when they went to beat him up, all hell broke loose."
Valerie bites her lip in thought that maybe Leonard was the guy, "so, it's gotta be them, right?"
Allison lets out a sigh, "yeah, I'm waiting for the guy to be let out so I can question him but if you move, just come over to the hospital," Allison hangs up before Valerie can get another word out.
"Yup, I totally know where that is," Valerie mumbles out as she continues to wait for the line to move.
VALERIE AND ALLISON PULL BACK UP TO THE CABIN at nightfall, "What if he's home?" Valerie asks as they step out, her body feeling shaky at what could happen.
"Valerie, it'll be okay, we'll figure out," Allison assures as they walk up the steps when Valerie hears Vanya playing the violin as the lights and windchimes shake.
Valerie feels her heart pound in her chest at the scene in front of her, "Vanya, is that you?" Allison calls out making Valerie shake her head in case Leonard could be there.
Valerie stays close to Allison as she opens the door and they walk in to find Vanya playing, "Vanya, there you are" Allison calls out in relief while Valerie looks around for Leonard, "what's going on?"
"What are you guys doing here?" Vanya questions turning to look at her sisters.
Allison and Valerie stand by the door, "we came to find you, are you okay?"
"Yeah."
Allison and Valerie look around as things begin to settle, "there's something... weird going on, what's causing it?"
Vanya prepares herself, "me."
Valerie looks at her sister with shock, "you're doing this?" She questions with a small smile on her face, "ho--"
"What do you mean, 'me'?" Allison interrogates and walks closer over to Vanya.
Vanya looks over at Valerie who can't stop but feel eager at the fact her sister was doing all that, "I mean... I made those things happen," she repeats while looking back at Allison, "with my powers."
Allison looks around with a blank expression, "Van, that's amazing, I-I didn't know you could do that," Valerie lets out a breathless laugh at what her sister could do.
Vanya looks between her two sisters, "turns out I've had them all this time," Valerie's smiles falter as she begins to feel confused that Vanya had them all this time, "it's weird, huh?"
Valerie notices Vanya's tone until Allison lets out a scoff, "it's in-- incredible."
"But?" Vanya urges Allison to finish her sentence as she continues to look over at Valerie who stands behind Allison in confusion.
"Ca-- can we do this in the car?" Allison gently pleads making Valerie remember the whole reason they're here.
"Why?"
Allison stops herself knowing Vanya won't believe them, "you're not gonna want to hear it."
Vanya looks at Valerie who gives her a pleading look, "well, that's never stopped you before."
"Vanya, ple--"
Valerie gets cut off when Allison speaks up, "Leonard Peabody? His real name is Harold Jenkins."
"Allison," Valerie growls out to Allison who walks over to Vanya making Valerie follow her and stand beside her, "don't."
Allison ignores her, "remember when I couldn't find anything in the library about Leonard? It's because Leonard Peabody doesn't exist," Valerie watches Vanya's reaction before walking a little closer to her, "Harold Jenkins does, he was in prison for 12 years, he murdered his father when he was 13."
"Vanya, this will all make sense--"
Vanya stops Valerie from continuing, "this is... insane," she starts, "his dad was an engineer--"
"I have the police report in my car, Vanya," Allison reveals as she motions toward her car outside, "I can show you it."
Valerie stands off to the side in between them, "we're telling the truth, Vanya," she mumbles out while Vanya stares her down.
"I don't... I don't understand," she questions as she looks over at Allison.
"Leonard, Harold, I-- I know it doesn't make any sense," Allison admits as she goes to stand in front of Vanya, "and I know it sounds crazy but we were in his house. He has pictures of all of us with our eyes gouged out."
Valerie looks over at Allison not knowing that this happened and feels freaked out at the idea when Vanya tries to put down her violin with an unconvinced expression on her face, "I promise we will tell you in the car but it is not safe," Allison grabs Vanya and moves her towards the door with Valerie following them.
"No, stop, "Vanya pleads as she pulls away from Allison and sits down, startled by the news.
Allison stops and kneels down in front of Vanya while Valerie doesn't feel calm at the fact Leonard could be back any moment, "look, um... I can't imagine how hard this is for you to hear this... how you feel right now, but I... I-- we love you, and I-- I just... I wanna be here for you, as your sister."
Vanya shakes her head, "there's no way," she mumbles out, "I love him."
Valerie frowns at the reveal of Vanya's feelings, "Van, this guy isn't who you thought he was..."
"This doesn't make any sense," Vanya continues to question as she puts her head in her hands, "and this power... I-- I don't know, I don't know what's going on... I don't know what to do."
Valerie walks over beside Vanya and places a reassuring hand on her shoulder, "I know but we'll figure it out together, we just need to leave."
"I understand now," Allison whispers out as she looks down making Vanya and Valerie look towards her, "Dad told us you were sick, you had to be isolated," She explains making Valerie scrunch up her eyes in confusion, "we were so young, none of us knew to question it."
"But he asked me to do something I never understood... until now," Allison continues making Valerie not understand how she never heard about it, "he made me an accomplice and it wasn't just for you... It was for Valerie too."
"What? H--how?"
Valerie feels more and more confused and scared at Allison's words, "I remember doing the same thing with you":
Valerie sits on her bed and watches as Allison, her dad, Pogo and her mom walk in, "go on, Number Three," Allison hears her dad say, "you know what you have to do."
Allison walks over to Valerie who fiddles with her skirt before Allison stands in front of her, "I heard a rumor... that you forgot what you saw... Vanya is just ordinary," Valerie's eyes go white as looks up at her sister.
The two sisters look at Allison who's frowning at the memories of what she's done, Valerie's mind feels like it was put in a washing machine at the information and can't seem to believe that she knew, all this time.
"You did this to me," Vanya snaps as she looks up at Allison while Valerie tries to comprehend what she's feeling with the new information.
"I... I didn't realize."
Vanya doesn't believe Allison's words, "you knew this whole time? That I had powers?" The screaming is dulled to Valerie's ears as she looks up at her sisters.
"No, no! I didn't really understand until I came today, until I saw it," Allison pleads to Vanya as the two stand up.
Valerie feels betrayed at the fact it happened, "what about me? Ho-how come-- why'd you do it to me?" Allison looks back at her with regret.
"I don't know, okay? I didn't understand why he did it to you."
Valerie shrinks into herself, "well, now it all makes sense," Vanya concludes, "this is why you never wanted me around."
"What? No."
"You couldn't risk me threatening your place in the house, your-- your dominance, that's probably why Valerie left too, isn't it?"
Valerie looks up at Vanya with shock and insecurity before she shakes her head, "that's not true," Allison denies.
"You couldn't handle the fact that dad might find me special!"
"You are special, with or without powers," Allison agrees as she pleads to Vanya.
Valerie watches Vanya get angrier, "don't-- don't say that!"
"We have a chance to start over," Allison tries to reason out making Valerie wonder if she can even start over after everything that she's admitted but Valerie pushes her feelings aside and walks closer to Vanya.
"You destroyed my life!"
Valerie lets out an uneasy sigh, "Vanya, we need to calm down, we shouldn't be fighting like this," Allison lets out a scoff.
"Oh, please, Vanya. everything is out in the open, we can move on."
"Allison, you guys," Valerie tries to calm them both down enough to talk through this, "we need to calm down."
"Oh, I'm moving on but not with you, with Leonard," Valerie can't help but have the knot in her stomach tighten at the idea.
"With Harold, you mean."
"With Leonard, the only person who has ever loved me for me," Valerie feels a pinch in her chest at the fact Vanya doesn't believe she doesn't love her.
"Vanya--"
"Look me in the eye and tell me you're not threatened now," Vanya asks as her face falls into a glare as the wind begins to pick up making the windchimes clatter.
Valerie feels her heart pick up, "I don't want to argue with you," Allison explains as she looks around her.
"Then go!"
"We're only trying to help you!" Allison tries to reason out only making Vanya yell out.
"I don't want your help!"
Valerie looks between her sister, "Vanya, please!"
"Vanya, I love you!" Allison cries out only for the wind to pick up even more as Vanya continues to get angry.
"Stop saying that!"
Valerie watches as Allison begins to notice the soundwaves move around them before looking back at Vanya, "are you... are you okay?"
Vanya only screams in return, "I said go!" The lights above them shatter causing Valerie to cover her face.
"Please don"t make me do this," Allison pleads as she looks at Vanya.
Valerie shakes her head, "Allison, don't!" Allison doesn't listen as she continues while Valerie screams out for her to stop.
"I heard a rumor..." before Allison or Valerie can get another word out, Vanya slashes her violin bow to cut Allison's throat as she does the same towards Valerie with her other hand, Valerie gets thrown from the force of the blow of Vanya's powers and everything goes black.
"Valerie! Valerie! Valerie, are you okay!" Valerie lets out a weak cry as someone picks her up, "Valerie, what happened?"
"Allison... V--Vanya..." Valerie mumbles out with a cry, "where's Allison?" Valerie tries to look around but her head pounds and the bright light makes her vision blurry before she tries to close her eyes again.
"Valerie, you have to stay awake! You hit your head, I think you have a concussion," Valerie realizes it's Diego before she looks up at her brother and smiles, smacking his cheek lightly.
"Aw, you care about me," Valerie's head feels hazy as she hears cries around her making her try and sit up before Diego gently lays her back into his arms.
"Allison..." she mumbles out trying to find her sister, "where's Allison? Is— is she okay?" Diego hushes her and tries to stop her head from bleeding while keeping her awake.
author's note:
chapter eight.
thoughts?