Chasing Daylight

Chapter Forty

Nothing lasts forever, but this is going to take me down

-Taylor Swift

Mason

"Thank you for being there when Maria needed you most," Mark said seriously when Maria disappeared to her room. "I can see Trent really did a number on her and I'm just thankful that someone was there to help her."

"Sir, I would do anything to protect Maria. She means so much to me and I'm doing my best to keep her safe," I said seriously.

"I feel the same way, sir. She is family to me and that's not something I take lightly."

"I'm glad she has found such a stable group of people to surround herself with."

Before we could say anything more Maria came back her eyes red and puffy and I knew she had just been crying. She held a folded piece of paper in her hand and I knew exactly what it was. No one else had seen it until now.

"Uncle Mark, I... I kept this from everyone because she asked me to. I'm sorry, but Kailey left me a note," she said holding out the piece of paper to her uncle. Her uncle just stared at her for a moment before his eyes fell on the note. He took it from Maria's shaking hand and examined it closely. I took Maria's wrist gently and pulled her to sit next to me.

"It's going to be okay," I whispered rubbing her back gently. We watched her uncle read the letter and tears slipped down his cheeks.

"I'm sorry Uncle Mark, I should have known something was wrong and-" Maria started while her eyes started to fill with tears.

"Maria, you know this is not your fault," her uncle said seriously. "What your sister chose to do and how she handled it was not because of you. You loved her so much and I know you would do anything for her. She knew that too. She left you this letter so you wouldn't blame yourself. I know it's hard, I find myself feeling guilty often, but it was her choice, not ours. Not only that, but Trent was the catalyst for the whole thing."

"That's why he hurt me because I knew and he knew I knew," Maria said her voice shaking. "He tried to do the same thing to me."

That snapped her uncle from whatever thoughts he was having and I saw the same anger that both Max and I had when we found out. "Oh my god," he said jaw clenched. "He better be thanking his lucky stars that he is in jail right now because if I could get ahold of him he would be dead. How dare he..."

"It's okay now," Maria said placing a calming hand on his arm and I wanted to cry. How was Maria the one who was being so calm about this whole thing?

"Are you okay? Did he hurt you? I'm really proud of you for handling all of this the way you have. I guess I understand why you left now."

"I'm alright, he didn't do any damage, just scared me. He was the reason I left, but now I just have so many reasons to stay here that even though he's gone, I don't think I'll come back."

"I'm not expecting you to come back, sweetheart. You've made a life for yourself here and it's time for you to have a life away from everything in Maine."

"Thank you," Maria said wrapping her Uncle in a hug. I felt myself give out my own sigh of relief. Deep down it had been a worry of mine that she would leave me, but it was refreshing to know that she wasn't planning on leaving anytime soon.

"Um if you're ready, dinner is done," Sophie said peeking her head out.

--

Maria

"I know today was hard. How are you feeling?" Mason asked as we sat on my bed that night.

"I'm okay," I sighed resting my head on his shoulder. "It actually felt good to tell him. I think he blamed himself for me leaving, so I'm glad I could finally give him a straight answer."

"I'm sure it was a lot for him to process but I think he probably feels the same way. I think it must have been really hard to lose both your sister and you in such a short amount of time with no explanation, so it was probably a relief to have some form of clarity."

"I'm glad he understands now and that he was able to meet you and Max. It's nice to know that he isn't going to fight me staying anymore. I just don't think I could ever go back to Maine after everything."

"Hearing you say that was a relief," Mason said stroking my hair gently. "The thought of losing you to Maine has always been a worry in the back of my mind. I'm really glad I don't have to worry much about that anymore."

"I'm not going anywhere. At least, not until I graduate," I grinned. Mason chuckled and placed a kiss on my forehead.

Do you know how long your uncle is planning to stay?" Mason asked running his fingers through my hair.

"I think he will stay through the trial or whatever at the very least," I explained. "He's never been one to leave me to my own devices."

"Good," Mason nodded. "I think it will be good to have someone with a bit more life experience on our side."

"Ideally he'll just plead guilty and we won't have to worry about ever going to trial," I sighed closing my eyes.

"I have a feeling your uncle will be able to convince him or his mom to do just that, but until then, let's get some sleep," Mason said squeezing my shoulder gently. "Love you."

"Goodnight, love you too," I said sliding down my covers.