Exposed

Chapter Twenty-Six

It's getting dark. Amelia can see the outline of the full moon just above the car. It's strange how comforting it is. Especially since she knows what's out there. Werewolves, ghouls, blood drinking old men who want to kill her family and harvest her blood.

Sickening, really.

A lot has happened in the few days that she's been in Beacon Hills. It doesn't even feel like only a few days. More like months. Her stay has changed her. She can feel it deep within her bones. With each murder, she was brought closer and closer to the towns dark, supernatural secrets, and discovered that her very own secret was part of it.

Four women died to revel these secrets. Amanda, Alice, Alaina, and Ariel. Women she has never met with the exception of Ariel. Women she shares one very important connection with. The shield of electricity that hums just under her skin, awakened since her stroll through the woods the night before, reminds her that she is no longer merely human.

"Earth to Amelia," Karen says in a loud sing-song voice. Amelia, who had taken to staring out the window, turns her attention to the front. Both women are taking turns glancing at their daughter and she wonders how long they have been talking to her.

"Sorry," Amelia says. "What did you say?"

"I said it's really pretty out here," Karen repeats.

Stephenie laughs. "Yeah, if any of us did nature."

Karen joins her in what has obviously been a light hearted conversation. It's one that doesn't match the weight of the thoughts on Amelia's mind casting her outside of their little bubble, but still, she laughs along anyways. She perfected the art of fake laughing many years ago. No one-- not even the two women who helped shape her into the adult she is today-- can tell the difference.

It doesn't take long for their conversation to become idle background noise. They don't call her back into it either. Both know when the twenty-two year old woman needs to be left to her own thoughts and this is clearly one of those times. It's why they feel they can speak freely in the front seat.

"I'm worried for her," Stephenie says quietly. She chances a glance back to see the side of Amelia's face as she resumes staring out the window. "A story has never affected her this way."

Karen sighs. "She broke her one rule. She got too close to the people she knew she might have to write about."

"I wish we had, had more time to be her parents." It's not the first time either woman had wished it. They wonder who Amelia might have been. Would she still be the woman with guarded heart?

"Whatever happened here, she will get past it."

Stephenie frowns even deeper. "Should she though?" At the sight of Karen's confused stare she continues. "Clearly she feels something for that deputy that came by the B&B. She saw him off twice. Are we really going to encourage her to run away from that?"

"I don't think that's why she's leaving," Karen replies. It's her turn to answer a confused stare. "She was scared this morning. Something weighs heavy on her soul and I doubt it's the feelings she has for the deputy."

"You think somethings happened? Something bad?"

"I overheard something about a serial killer when we were at the police station. Maybe she saw something she wasn't supposed to see."

"It's not like her to run away from something like that," Stephenie says, unconvinced. Then, as though it were the most obvious thing in the world, she realizes why they are speeding away from Beacon Hills. "It's not herself she's concerned about."

Karen sighs again. "It's us."

They both glance at the back again to find Amelia staring straight ahead. At first Stephenie fears she listened into the entire conversation but it's not anger in the young woman's eyes. It's fear.