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xp_logsTW: Gun Violence
Melody runs for her life after accidentally revealing her powers to the Cabots.
Mel had no idea how long she had been running for. The barren trees all blurred together, only the faint glow of the moon to guide her. Her legs ached something fierce and she could feel blood trickling down the side of her neck, sticky and warm.
Never had she known fear like this. Animalistic. Like a deer fleeing a pack of wolves. Mel could hear the Cabot’s somewhere behind her, crashing through the brush. How many were there? Hopefully the rocks had been enough to get Bobby John to come after her and not head her off at the house.
All she’d wanted was a nice night out with her friends. God, she really had.
She couldn’t do this alone.
Fumbling her phone and sending up a prayer that she had enough service, Mel dialed Sam’s number.
Sam frowned when he saw Mel’s number pop up on his phone. At this hour, it couldn’t mean anything good. He answered it quickly. “Melody, what’s wrong?”
“Sam. Thank the Lord. I’ve fucked up real bad Sammy. God, I’ve-“ A gunshot fired off. Shit, they were so much closer than she’d realized. Mel picked up her pace, trying not to hyperventilate.
Sam sat up straighter on the couch and felt all his muscles clench at the sound of the gunshot. “Melody, what’s happening? What’s wrong?”
His voice was carrying, volume rising along with his panic.
Mel tried to take a few deep breaths and failed. “The Cabot’s done found out I’m a mutant Sam. God, I didn't mean for this to happen- you have to believe I didn’t mean it!”
“Melody Grace. What. Happened.” Sam said in what was not quite a yell but was pretty close. He breathed heavily through his nose, trying to push down the panic rising in his chest. “Are you safe? What’s goin’ on?”
Paige heard Sam yelling through the wall and that was never a good sign. She quickly left her room and ran over to Sam’s, knocking on the door before letting herself in. “Sammy, what’s going on? Are you on the phone?”
Sam quickly put Mel on speaker and motioned for Paige to sit next to him. “Melody. What is happening?”
It all flooded out as Melody ran. “I was tryin’ so hard to be good Sam, I swear it. Wasn’t lookin’ for trouble. I was at a bonfire ‘cause Eliza invited me and Davey drove me over and- fuck- everythin’ was fine until motherfucking Bobby John Cabot showed up with all his kin in his stupid truck and Silas started talkin’ ‘bout Jay- an’ I just lost it. Next thing I know I’m layin’ into him an’ everyone’s fightin’ and Bobby John drags me offa Silas with his hands wrapped ‘round my neck.- an’ then I’m flying- I didn’t even mean to Sammy. God, I swear I didn’t it jus’ happened! Fuck- so I drove off with Davey an’ had him drop me closer to home an’ put a rock through Bobby John’s windshield ‘cause they were chasin’ us.”
She took a breather leaning on a tree and dared to glance behind her. Flashlights flickered among the trees. Fuck. Panting, she started up again. “An’ now I’m running through the woods.”
"Melody Grace," Sam sighed, reaching over and grabbing Paige's hand tightly to ground himself. He tried to bring his volume down, it wouldn't do Mel any good to get yelled at while she was tryin' to stay alive. "How many- fuck Melody, how many times have I told you to leave Bobby John alone no matter what the damn fool says? You ought've known better bein' outnumbered like that! Where are ya now?"
Paige squeezed Sam’s hand back. “Get home and let ‘em know who’s followin’ you. They should scare off when they realize they’re outnumbered.”
Tears were beginning to blur Mel’s vision. Why was she such an idiot? For once in her life she should’ve held back. God. She was going to die in the middle of the woods and it was her own damn fault.
“I’m so sorry Sam. God, I’m so sorry.” She could hear the rushing of the creek up ahead. “I’m ‘bout a mile out? I already called Lizzie so she knows. I just-“ Another gunshot went off and her veins turned to ice.
“Fuck, Mels,” Paige almost yelled. “Just fly, I don’t care who sees, it has to be faster. Just get home!”
Mel tried to get her powers to work, but her feet remained firmly on the ground. Just when she actually needed them they failed her. “I can’t. Oh my God oh my God. Shit!”
She kept running and the creek came into view. It was swollen from rain, wider than Mel had seen it in years. With a running start she tried to leap across. She would have made it too, had the soft bank not collapsed under her boot. Thrown into the mud, she scrambled up frantically trying to find purchase. “Fuck. I love y’all so much. I’m so sorry. If I don’ make-”
Mel heard the soft click of a safety behind her and froze.
Sam tensed and squeezed Paige’s hand painfully tight. “Mel- hon? Ya gotta talk to me Mel- let me know yer alright.”
His throat felt tight and he struggled around his words, trying hard not to cry. He couldn’t put that added stress on either of his baby sisters right now.
Mel near inaudibly whispered “I love you” and ended the call. Neither of her siblings deserved to hear this.
She slowly got up and turned to face whoever was holding the gun on her.
Sam stood quickly nearly dragging Paige up with him as he redialed Mel’s number, pacing in front of the couch.
“I’m goin’ down there.” He said to no one in particular. “I’m goin’ down there an’ I’m gettin’ every last one of them sons of bitches an’ remindin’ them that they can’t fuck with my kin. Fuckin’ stupid- why would Melody do that?!”
“Because she’s takin’ after you.” Paige anxiously played with the ends of her hair. “What are we gonna do, Sammy? How can we get down there?” Much as she didn’t want Sam going anywhere near the Cabots right now, they had to do something to help Mel.
“I’m a terrible dad.” Sam whispered, putting his face in his hands as the call went to voicemail. “I’m a terrible fucking dad…… we’ll uh….. we’ll check out a car. I- flyin’ll prolly take the same time…..”
“Don’t move! Or I’ll- I’ll shoot!”
It was Cash Cabot. He was shaking like a leaf, gun trembling wildly in his hands. God, wasn’t he around Joelle’s age?
Mel raised her hands in a placating gesture. Her phone was buzzing violently. “Cash, please. You don’t wanna do this.”
His face was red with emotion. “Why- why shouldn’t I, huh? My sister is dead ‘cause of yer family!”
“I’m so sorry Cash. Believe me I am.” She could hear someone approaching, calling Cash’s name. Fuck. He might let her go, but Bobby John or Abraham Lee wouldn’t. “But killin’ me won’t bring her back. Ain’t we seen enough death in this town?”
Cash hesitated. Poor guy, he was just a kid.
“Please,” Mel begged.
Cash faltered and dropped his arm. “Don’t tell anyone about this.” He turned and ran towards the voice. Mel breathed a sigh of relief.
Fuck.
She began to run again. Wiping the mud off her phone screen, she dialed Sam back.
He picked up immediately. "Mel? Hon' are you okay? Are you safe? Are you home?"
“I’m fine Sammy. I can jus’ about see the house now.” The trees were beginning to thin as she approached the clearing. The lights were on downstairs and she prayed to God that all the little ones were still upstairs. “I’m gonna make a run for the door.”
Paige grabbed the phone from Sam. “Get inside and hunker down, don’t let them see you for the rest of the night, do you hear me?”
“Yes ma’am.” Mel spotted movement parallel to her in the tree-line. Those fuckers were not going to cut her off when she was so close. Taking a deep breath, she sprinted towards the house.
She pounded on the back door, now regretting that she had told Lizzie to lock it. “Mama! Lizzie! Let me in! Please!”
At the sound of her sister, Lizzie had lept to throw open the door, trying to grab Mel to pull her inside faster. Once the door was slammed shut, she looked to their mama pleadingly, unsure what to do. "Mama?" The lock flicked back into place as she remembered.
"What in th'Sam Hill is that racket for, Melody Grace?" Lucinda looked every bit of her age, run-down, hands on hips as she gave her daughter the stink eye. "I swear if you've been out there causin' trouble and done brought it home wit'ya..." she let the threat trail off, but her foot was tapping impatiently on the floor. "Well? Spit it out girl, we ain't got all night."
Mel felt the tears she’d been fighting back for so long well up in her eyes. “I didn’t mean for none of it to happen! I was out with Davey an’ Eliza an’ then Bobby John done showed up with all his kin lookin’ for a donnybrook- so I went an’ gave ‘em one! But then things went so wrong an’ now they now ‘bout my gift an-“ Adrenaline crashing, Mel rushed over to the kitchen sink and puked hard.
"Lizzie, watch for them fool Cabot boys. Careful like, they shoot inta this house I'ma raise somethin they ain't never gonna fergit." With that, Lucinda turned to Melody, pulling her hair out of her face. "Yer gonna need to go to th'fancy place up north what got your brothers then, I s'pose. Cain't have'em attackin the littlest o'er this, not Jo neither." She rubbed Mel's back for a second, then dropped her hair and stepped back. "Rinse yer mouth good once yer done makin sick."
“I’m so sorry Mama. I didn’t mean- I’m so sorry,” Mel choked out, arms braced against the sink as tears streamed down her face. She was so stupid to think she could’ve had both, a regular life at home and a life at the mansion. Stupid. She always messed things up and now Lizzie was gonna have to help with the little ones all on her own and-
Mel leaned over and dry heaved.
Lizzie had taken over rubbing Mel’s back, worry and uncertainty clear on her face as she tried to force herself to smile when Mel briefly seemed to be looking up. Already she was trying to figure out what to do, what would happen. Was Mel gonna get sent off to New York too? She almost asked but the sound of new footsteps distracted her.
Joelle was rubbing sleep from her eyes as she peered at Mama and Lizzie and Mel, still heaving. “What’s goin on? Somethin happen?”
“Everything’s fine hun, nothin’ for you to fuss about,” Mel said very unconvincingly from the sink. Fuck, she hadn’t even told Elle about being a mutant yet. The time was just never right.
"Them thrice-cursed Cabots," Lucinda spat. "Chasin' yer sister through the woods, actin a fool with their guns an' money." Her lips were pursed tightly, brows furrowed. "Lizzie, Joelle. Yer sister's gonna head up North for a bit with th' others. You two, Jeb, and the twins're gonna keep yer heads down and yer mouths shut about them damn Cabots for awhile, ya hear? I'm not gonna have them workin even harder ta kill alluva us. Yer gunna keep yer behavior on the up, make sure people know they're the ones that keep tryin ta stoke the fires." It grated to have to say it, because Lord knew she hated the adult Cabots and the behaviors and meanness they'd been teachin their children. But she hated the idea of having to bury one of her children because of them more, hated the very idea of them smirkin through a funeral line like they ain't been the ones doin the killing. If that meant keepin their mouths shut for a bit, so be it.
Elle stared at Mel's back, face flushing though she said nothing, looking from her sisters to Mama, brows cinching together. Instinctively, she held her own arms. Realizing that Mama probably wanted a response, she cleared her throat. An attempt to respond only ended with her opening her mouth though nothing came out.
"Yes, Mama," Lizzie agreed with a short nod in affirmation, pausing in her reassurance of Mel to look if there was anything outside the kitchen window, before looking back to their mama. When nothing immediately jumped out at her she turned to their younger sister. "Elle, go to bed, and I'll tell Jeb, 'n' the twins in the mornin, Mama, promise."
"Listen to yer sister, Joelle. And you, Melody. Go on, get up there and brush yer teeth good, get some sleep. I'll keep watch." She'd make what plans she could, scrape the bank account for a bus ticket if needed. She'd have one of the girls text Sammy since the fool boy still wouldn't speak to her fer makin the hard decisions about Jay.
Turning on the faucet to wash everything down the drain, Mel wiped her face with her sleeve and made her way towards the stairs. “I’m so sorry, Mama. I didn’t mean all this trouble.”
"I know ya didn't, but it happened an' now we gotta live wit it. Text yer siblings tonight, it's late but they can reply in the mornin. Git ya a bus ticket or somethin, they gotta have the Greyhound up there too. We'll figger it out." Lucinda gave her a final pat on the shoulder and turned away, staring into the dimly lit night. Her hand smoothed over the top of her hair, stopping at the bun she'd hurriedly pulled it into before letting out a deep sigh and dropping her hand. No use thinking about coulda, shoulda, or woulda. She couldn't watch all the windows, but she could sit away from full visibility of any of 'em and keep her ears open, least til the sun came up.
Mel trudged up the stairs, stopping Liz and Joelle just outside of the room they all shared. “Lizzie I need ya to listen to me. You keep up on your schoolwork an’ softball, you hear me?” It sounded desperate to her ears, but she needed them to understand. “Colleges still need good grades this semester- you too ‘Elle. You have to promise me. Take care of yourselves ‘fore you mind the kids.. Especially Jeb, he’s old enough now.” God, she’d have to drill Jeb tomorrow about not going near the Cabot’s, maybe give Mr. Holder a call about it as well.
"I- I got this, Mel," Lizzie only stumbled on her words the once, trying to smile reassuringly. She was sure she could handle helping around the house and looking after the littles, Sam and Jay had been able to, and she was damn sure she could too. "'Sides, you know I get the best grades around here," with that her smile was more convincing, trying to make her sisters' moods lighten some.
Joelle's eyes flicked to Mel, face unreadable, distant, though she made an affirmative sound. Her hand turned the knob to slip back into their room and curl up with the covers pulled over her head.
“I know you do. Y’all go an’ get some sleep, I’ll be in soon.” Mel patted Lizzie on the shoulder. She would’ve hugged both of them, but reckoned they didn’t want mud or blood on their clothes.
While Elle turned to give Mel a strained smile, opening the door so she could pretend to go back to sleep, Lizzie leaned into their sister's touch. There was a beat where she tried to say something before she decided to ignore the mess. She wrapped her arms around her, squeezing her as she held her, took a deep breath, then released her. "It's gonna be okay, Mel."
“I hope so. I love y’all.” Mel pressed a kiss to Lizzie’s temple and gave Elle a soft smile. Turning, she went into the bathroom across the hall and closed the door.
She gave a deep sigh. In the mirror she was a mess. A deep cut on her forehead from Silas and bruises blooming around her neck from Bobby John. Hair and eyes wild. She took the time to rinse everything off, wincing occasionally, and found some band-aids. It probably wouldn’t be enough but it was something.
What she needed was a shower, but Mel didn’t want to wake up the twins so instead she popped an ibuprofen and gazed out the window. She wasn’t going to be able to sleep tonight.
Through everything she’d forgotten her phone still on call in her pocket.
Throughout the conversation, Sam had been trying to talk to his sister. Apparently it was rather hard to be heard over a phone when you weren't on speaker and multiple people were talking. He sighed and then yelled into his phone's microphone. "MELODY GRACE! CAN YOU HEAR ME!"
To say he was worried was an understatement. He and Paige had already started packing bags for their trip down to Kentucky, and as soon as he was off the phone he was going to wake Jay and drag him south with them as well. Absolutely no way was his baby sister traveling all that way herself after getting cast out from home.
The faint tin of Sam’s voice snapped Mel from her thoughts. She fished her phone out of her jacket pocket. “Shit, sorry Sammy. I forgot y’all were still on. I’m okay now.” She paused. “So y’all.. heard all that?… I was jus’ about to look at the bus schedule for a ticket.” Did she have enough set aside to buy her own? Hopefully. She didn’t want to be any more of a burden.
“Bus ticket?” Paige reinterred the room, dropping her packed bag on the floor near the door. “Melody, we’re comin’ down and pickin’ you up ourselves. Don’t buy no bus ticket.”
“What? The hell you are!” Mel whispered, an edge of panic returning to her voice. “You’ve got work an’ classes! I can manage jus’ fine on the bus.” She’d already caused enough trouble as it was with this whole mess.
“I can do my readin‘ in the car and I can borrow someone’s notes when I get back. It won’t take too long to get back, so I’m not really missin’ much.” Paige tried to sound a lot calmer than she was. How could Mel think they weren’t going to come and get her?
"Don't be a goddamn fool Mel, of course we're comin' down to get you." Sam said. "I done texted my boss and Paigey can take a day if she needs to and I'll be drivin'....we-we ain't gonna let you make that trek alone hon. We love you too much for that."
Mel wanted to argue, to say that she was grown enough to make the trip on her own, but her hand was shaking as she held onto the phone. Really, selfishly, she wanted to hide away in Paige or Sam’s arms and let them deal with things, like they always seemed to do. She wanted to feel small and safe for a few hours and then maybe the gunshots would stop ringing in her ears. “Okay, yeah. I’ll um.. I’ll try an’ get packed then.”
"We'll see you soon hon." Sam said, much more gently. "I'm glad yer alright, and we'll see ya in a couple-a hours. Try an get some rest Mel. We love you."
“We’ll see you in a bit.” Paige shouldered her bag again. It was going to be another long night of worrying about her sibling.
“I love you too,” Mel whispered before switching off the call. Her gaze made its way out the window again, drinking in her last view of the Kentucky moon.
Melody runs for her life after accidentally revealing her powers to the Cabots.
Mel had no idea how long she had been running for. The barren trees all blurred together, only the faint glow of the moon to guide her. Her legs ached something fierce and she could feel blood trickling down the side of her neck, sticky and warm.
Never had she known fear like this. Animalistic. Like a deer fleeing a pack of wolves. Mel could hear the Cabot’s somewhere behind her, crashing through the brush. How many were there? Hopefully the rocks had been enough to get Bobby John to come after her and not head her off at the house.
All she’d wanted was a nice night out with her friends. God, she really had.
She couldn’t do this alone.
Fumbling her phone and sending up a prayer that she had enough service, Mel dialed Sam’s number.
Sam frowned when he saw Mel’s number pop up on his phone. At this hour, it couldn’t mean anything good. He answered it quickly. “Melody, what’s wrong?”
“Sam. Thank the Lord. I’ve fucked up real bad Sammy. God, I’ve-“ A gunshot fired off. Shit, they were so much closer than she’d realized. Mel picked up her pace, trying not to hyperventilate.
Sam sat up straighter on the couch and felt all his muscles clench at the sound of the gunshot. “Melody, what’s happening? What’s wrong?”
His voice was carrying, volume rising along with his panic.
Mel tried to take a few deep breaths and failed. “The Cabot’s done found out I’m a mutant Sam. God, I didn't mean for this to happen- you have to believe I didn’t mean it!”
“Melody Grace. What. Happened.” Sam said in what was not quite a yell but was pretty close. He breathed heavily through his nose, trying to push down the panic rising in his chest. “Are you safe? What’s goin’ on?”
Paige heard Sam yelling through the wall and that was never a good sign. She quickly left her room and ran over to Sam’s, knocking on the door before letting herself in. “Sammy, what’s going on? Are you on the phone?”
Sam quickly put Mel on speaker and motioned for Paige to sit next to him. “Melody. What is happening?”
It all flooded out as Melody ran. “I was tryin’ so hard to be good Sam, I swear it. Wasn’t lookin’ for trouble. I was at a bonfire ‘cause Eliza invited me and Davey drove me over and- fuck- everythin’ was fine until motherfucking Bobby John Cabot showed up with all his kin in his stupid truck and Silas started talkin’ ‘bout Jay- an’ I just lost it. Next thing I know I’m layin’ into him an’ everyone’s fightin’ and Bobby John drags me offa Silas with his hands wrapped ‘round my neck.- an’ then I’m flying- I didn’t even mean to Sammy. God, I swear I didn’t it jus’ happened! Fuck- so I drove off with Davey an’ had him drop me closer to home an’ put a rock through Bobby John’s windshield ‘cause they were chasin’ us.”
She took a breather leaning on a tree and dared to glance behind her. Flashlights flickered among the trees. Fuck. Panting, she started up again. “An’ now I’m running through the woods.”
"Melody Grace," Sam sighed, reaching over and grabbing Paige's hand tightly to ground himself. He tried to bring his volume down, it wouldn't do Mel any good to get yelled at while she was tryin' to stay alive. "How many- fuck Melody, how many times have I told you to leave Bobby John alone no matter what the damn fool says? You ought've known better bein' outnumbered like that! Where are ya now?"
Paige squeezed Sam’s hand back. “Get home and let ‘em know who’s followin’ you. They should scare off when they realize they’re outnumbered.”
Tears were beginning to blur Mel’s vision. Why was she such an idiot? For once in her life she should’ve held back. God. She was going to die in the middle of the woods and it was her own damn fault.
“I’m so sorry Sam. God, I’m so sorry.” She could hear the rushing of the creek up ahead. “I’m ‘bout a mile out? I already called Lizzie so she knows. I just-“ Another gunshot went off and her veins turned to ice.
“Fuck, Mels,” Paige almost yelled. “Just fly, I don’t care who sees, it has to be faster. Just get home!”
Mel tried to get her powers to work, but her feet remained firmly on the ground. Just when she actually needed them they failed her. “I can’t. Oh my God oh my God. Shit!”
She kept running and the creek came into view. It was swollen from rain, wider than Mel had seen it in years. With a running start she tried to leap across. She would have made it too, had the soft bank not collapsed under her boot. Thrown into the mud, she scrambled up frantically trying to find purchase. “Fuck. I love y’all so much. I’m so sorry. If I don’ make-”
Mel heard the soft click of a safety behind her and froze.
Sam tensed and squeezed Paige’s hand painfully tight. “Mel- hon? Ya gotta talk to me Mel- let me know yer alright.”
His throat felt tight and he struggled around his words, trying hard not to cry. He couldn’t put that added stress on either of his baby sisters right now.
Mel near inaudibly whispered “I love you” and ended the call. Neither of her siblings deserved to hear this.
She slowly got up and turned to face whoever was holding the gun on her.
Sam stood quickly nearly dragging Paige up with him as he redialed Mel’s number, pacing in front of the couch.
“I’m goin’ down there.” He said to no one in particular. “I’m goin’ down there an’ I’m gettin’ every last one of them sons of bitches an’ remindin’ them that they can’t fuck with my kin. Fuckin’ stupid- why would Melody do that?!”
“Because she’s takin’ after you.” Paige anxiously played with the ends of her hair. “What are we gonna do, Sammy? How can we get down there?” Much as she didn’t want Sam going anywhere near the Cabots right now, they had to do something to help Mel.
“I’m a terrible dad.” Sam whispered, putting his face in his hands as the call went to voicemail. “I’m a terrible fucking dad…… we’ll uh….. we’ll check out a car. I- flyin’ll prolly take the same time…..”
“Don’t move! Or I’ll- I’ll shoot!”
It was Cash Cabot. He was shaking like a leaf, gun trembling wildly in his hands. God, wasn’t he around Joelle’s age?
Mel raised her hands in a placating gesture. Her phone was buzzing violently. “Cash, please. You don’t wanna do this.”
His face was red with emotion. “Why- why shouldn’t I, huh? My sister is dead ‘cause of yer family!”
“I’m so sorry Cash. Believe me I am.” She could hear someone approaching, calling Cash’s name. Fuck. He might let her go, but Bobby John or Abraham Lee wouldn’t. “But killin’ me won’t bring her back. Ain’t we seen enough death in this town?”
Cash hesitated. Poor guy, he was just a kid.
“Please,” Mel begged.
Cash faltered and dropped his arm. “Don’t tell anyone about this.” He turned and ran towards the voice. Mel breathed a sigh of relief.
Fuck.
She began to run again. Wiping the mud off her phone screen, she dialed Sam back.
He picked up immediately. "Mel? Hon' are you okay? Are you safe? Are you home?"
“I’m fine Sammy. I can jus’ about see the house now.” The trees were beginning to thin as she approached the clearing. The lights were on downstairs and she prayed to God that all the little ones were still upstairs. “I’m gonna make a run for the door.”
Paige grabbed the phone from Sam. “Get inside and hunker down, don’t let them see you for the rest of the night, do you hear me?”
“Yes ma’am.” Mel spotted movement parallel to her in the tree-line. Those fuckers were not going to cut her off when she was so close. Taking a deep breath, she sprinted towards the house.
She pounded on the back door, now regretting that she had told Lizzie to lock it. “Mama! Lizzie! Let me in! Please!”
At the sound of her sister, Lizzie had lept to throw open the door, trying to grab Mel to pull her inside faster. Once the door was slammed shut, she looked to their mama pleadingly, unsure what to do. "Mama?" The lock flicked back into place as she remembered.
"What in th'Sam Hill is that racket for, Melody Grace?" Lucinda looked every bit of her age, run-down, hands on hips as she gave her daughter the stink eye. "I swear if you've been out there causin' trouble and done brought it home wit'ya..." she let the threat trail off, but her foot was tapping impatiently on the floor. "Well? Spit it out girl, we ain't got all night."
Mel felt the tears she’d been fighting back for so long well up in her eyes. “I didn’t mean for none of it to happen! I was out with Davey an’ Eliza an’ then Bobby John done showed up with all his kin lookin’ for a donnybrook- so I went an’ gave ‘em one! But then things went so wrong an’ now they now ‘bout my gift an-“ Adrenaline crashing, Mel rushed over to the kitchen sink and puked hard.
"Lizzie, watch for them fool Cabot boys. Careful like, they shoot inta this house I'ma raise somethin they ain't never gonna fergit." With that, Lucinda turned to Melody, pulling her hair out of her face. "Yer gonna need to go to th'fancy place up north what got your brothers then, I s'pose. Cain't have'em attackin the littlest o'er this, not Jo neither." She rubbed Mel's back for a second, then dropped her hair and stepped back. "Rinse yer mouth good once yer done makin sick."
“I’m so sorry Mama. I didn’t mean- I’m so sorry,” Mel choked out, arms braced against the sink as tears streamed down her face. She was so stupid to think she could’ve had both, a regular life at home and a life at the mansion. Stupid. She always messed things up and now Lizzie was gonna have to help with the little ones all on her own and-
Mel leaned over and dry heaved.
Lizzie had taken over rubbing Mel’s back, worry and uncertainty clear on her face as she tried to force herself to smile when Mel briefly seemed to be looking up. Already she was trying to figure out what to do, what would happen. Was Mel gonna get sent off to New York too? She almost asked but the sound of new footsteps distracted her.
Joelle was rubbing sleep from her eyes as she peered at Mama and Lizzie and Mel, still heaving. “What’s goin on? Somethin happen?”
“Everything’s fine hun, nothin’ for you to fuss about,” Mel said very unconvincingly from the sink. Fuck, she hadn’t even told Elle about being a mutant yet. The time was just never right.
"Them thrice-cursed Cabots," Lucinda spat. "Chasin' yer sister through the woods, actin a fool with their guns an' money." Her lips were pursed tightly, brows furrowed. "Lizzie, Joelle. Yer sister's gonna head up North for a bit with th' others. You two, Jeb, and the twins're gonna keep yer heads down and yer mouths shut about them damn Cabots for awhile, ya hear? I'm not gonna have them workin even harder ta kill alluva us. Yer gunna keep yer behavior on the up, make sure people know they're the ones that keep tryin ta stoke the fires." It grated to have to say it, because Lord knew she hated the adult Cabots and the behaviors and meanness they'd been teachin their children. But she hated the idea of having to bury one of her children because of them more, hated the very idea of them smirkin through a funeral line like they ain't been the ones doin the killing. If that meant keepin their mouths shut for a bit, so be it.
Elle stared at Mel's back, face flushing though she said nothing, looking from her sisters to Mama, brows cinching together. Instinctively, she held her own arms. Realizing that Mama probably wanted a response, she cleared her throat. An attempt to respond only ended with her opening her mouth though nothing came out.
"Yes, Mama," Lizzie agreed with a short nod in affirmation, pausing in her reassurance of Mel to look if there was anything outside the kitchen window, before looking back to their mama. When nothing immediately jumped out at her she turned to their younger sister. "Elle, go to bed, and I'll tell Jeb, 'n' the twins in the mornin, Mama, promise."
"Listen to yer sister, Joelle. And you, Melody. Go on, get up there and brush yer teeth good, get some sleep. I'll keep watch." She'd make what plans she could, scrape the bank account for a bus ticket if needed. She'd have one of the girls text Sammy since the fool boy still wouldn't speak to her fer makin the hard decisions about Jay.
Turning on the faucet to wash everything down the drain, Mel wiped her face with her sleeve and made her way towards the stairs. “I’m so sorry, Mama. I didn’t mean all this trouble.”
"I know ya didn't, but it happened an' now we gotta live wit it. Text yer siblings tonight, it's late but they can reply in the mornin. Git ya a bus ticket or somethin, they gotta have the Greyhound up there too. We'll figger it out." Lucinda gave her a final pat on the shoulder and turned away, staring into the dimly lit night. Her hand smoothed over the top of her hair, stopping at the bun she'd hurriedly pulled it into before letting out a deep sigh and dropping her hand. No use thinking about coulda, shoulda, or woulda. She couldn't watch all the windows, but she could sit away from full visibility of any of 'em and keep her ears open, least til the sun came up.
Mel trudged up the stairs, stopping Liz and Joelle just outside of the room they all shared. “Lizzie I need ya to listen to me. You keep up on your schoolwork an’ softball, you hear me?” It sounded desperate to her ears, but she needed them to understand. “Colleges still need good grades this semester- you too ‘Elle. You have to promise me. Take care of yourselves ‘fore you mind the kids.. Especially Jeb, he’s old enough now.” God, she’d have to drill Jeb tomorrow about not going near the Cabot’s, maybe give Mr. Holder a call about it as well.
"I- I got this, Mel," Lizzie only stumbled on her words the once, trying to smile reassuringly. She was sure she could handle helping around the house and looking after the littles, Sam and Jay had been able to, and she was damn sure she could too. "'Sides, you know I get the best grades around here," with that her smile was more convincing, trying to make her sisters' moods lighten some.
Joelle's eyes flicked to Mel, face unreadable, distant, though she made an affirmative sound. Her hand turned the knob to slip back into their room and curl up with the covers pulled over her head.
“I know you do. Y’all go an’ get some sleep, I’ll be in soon.” Mel patted Lizzie on the shoulder. She would’ve hugged both of them, but reckoned they didn’t want mud or blood on their clothes.
While Elle turned to give Mel a strained smile, opening the door so she could pretend to go back to sleep, Lizzie leaned into their sister's touch. There was a beat where she tried to say something before she decided to ignore the mess. She wrapped her arms around her, squeezing her as she held her, took a deep breath, then released her. "It's gonna be okay, Mel."
“I hope so. I love y’all.” Mel pressed a kiss to Lizzie’s temple and gave Elle a soft smile. Turning, she went into the bathroom across the hall and closed the door.
She gave a deep sigh. In the mirror she was a mess. A deep cut on her forehead from Silas and bruises blooming around her neck from Bobby John. Hair and eyes wild. She took the time to rinse everything off, wincing occasionally, and found some band-aids. It probably wouldn’t be enough but it was something.
What she needed was a shower, but Mel didn’t want to wake up the twins so instead she popped an ibuprofen and gazed out the window. She wasn’t going to be able to sleep tonight.
Through everything she’d forgotten her phone still on call in her pocket.
Throughout the conversation, Sam had been trying to talk to his sister. Apparently it was rather hard to be heard over a phone when you weren't on speaker and multiple people were talking. He sighed and then yelled into his phone's microphone. "MELODY GRACE! CAN YOU HEAR ME!"
To say he was worried was an understatement. He and Paige had already started packing bags for their trip down to Kentucky, and as soon as he was off the phone he was going to wake Jay and drag him south with them as well. Absolutely no way was his baby sister traveling all that way herself after getting cast out from home.
The faint tin of Sam’s voice snapped Mel from her thoughts. She fished her phone out of her jacket pocket. “Shit, sorry Sammy. I forgot y’all were still on. I’m okay now.” She paused. “So y’all.. heard all that?… I was jus’ about to look at the bus schedule for a ticket.” Did she have enough set aside to buy her own? Hopefully. She didn’t want to be any more of a burden.
“Bus ticket?” Paige reinterred the room, dropping her packed bag on the floor near the door. “Melody, we’re comin’ down and pickin’ you up ourselves. Don’t buy no bus ticket.”
“What? The hell you are!” Mel whispered, an edge of panic returning to her voice. “You’ve got work an’ classes! I can manage jus’ fine on the bus.” She’d already caused enough trouble as it was with this whole mess.
“I can do my readin‘ in the car and I can borrow someone’s notes when I get back. It won’t take too long to get back, so I’m not really missin’ much.” Paige tried to sound a lot calmer than she was. How could Mel think they weren’t going to come and get her?
"Don't be a goddamn fool Mel, of course we're comin' down to get you." Sam said. "I done texted my boss and Paigey can take a day if she needs to and I'll be drivin'....we-we ain't gonna let you make that trek alone hon. We love you too much for that."
Mel wanted to argue, to say that she was grown enough to make the trip on her own, but her hand was shaking as she held onto the phone. Really, selfishly, she wanted to hide away in Paige or Sam’s arms and let them deal with things, like they always seemed to do. She wanted to feel small and safe for a few hours and then maybe the gunshots would stop ringing in her ears. “Okay, yeah. I’ll um.. I’ll try an’ get packed then.”
"We'll see you soon hon." Sam said, much more gently. "I'm glad yer alright, and we'll see ya in a couple-a hours. Try an get some rest Mel. We love you."
“We’ll see you in a bit.” Paige shouldered her bag again. It was going to be another long night of worrying about her sibling.
“I love you too,” Mel whispered before switching off the call. Her gaze made its way out the window again, drinking in her last view of the Kentucky moon.
no subject
Date: 2024-02-11 12:35 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2024-02-16 04:26 pm (UTC)“Because she’s takin’ after you.”
Exactly what I was thinking. At least Mel didn't get into a fistfight at a funeral. Poor Mel.
Fun detail: Cash is one of the few who didn't misgender his sister. I liked that touch.
Lucinda is really disgorging children at a record pace, isn't she . . . at this rate she'll be an empty nester by August.