“Hannah, hold still!” I grumbled as I tried to place the bobby pins carefully in her hair. I was completely agitated. Not a week after New Year’s and already I was going crazy again. Zeke decided that he wanted to become a barber and had taken it upon himself to cut Hannah’s hair while everyone else was asleep. Of course Hannah was extremely upset when she awoke and found part of her long blond locks lying on her pillow. I was none too pleased either when I found the scissors in Zeke’s room.

Now it was time for Hannah to return to school, and she was completely mortified by what her brother had done to her hair, and I couldn’t blame her. I had taken her to see the lady who cut my hair, and she had tried her hardest to fix it best she could, but Hannah was upset nonetheless. I can honestly say that I wanted to cry as well because I had never cut Hannah’s hair before and it nearly reached her bottom, and now it was almost to her shoulders and their were some pieces on top that stuck up.

I smoothed the sides back as best I could and stuck a bobby pin in her hair to secure it from sticking up. And to top off my sudden stress, the evening before I got a call from the local high school about subbing for the music teacher the next day. I was thrilled about it but nervous nonetheless. I hadn’t been in a classroom since I had done my internship nearly six months earlier.

I looked over at Taylor questioningly. He glanced up from the newspaper and smiled at Hannah. “You look beautiful sweetheart,” he said to Hannah.

I peeked around to see the side of her face and was relieved to see a smile on her face. I patted her back and said, “Go get your book bag.”

Hannah quickly stood and hurried to get her book bag. I stood as well and took a deep breath.

“Ede, you’re going to do fine today,” Taylor said as he stood up and planted a kiss on my forehead.

“I hope so,” I sighed as I stuck the remaining bobby pins in my back pocket and went upstairs to get Saffie, who was still asleep. I had taken her to the doctor a few days before because she had been acting like she wasn’t feeling well, and it had turned out that she had an ear infection.

I quickly changed her diaper and pulled her coat on her over her pajamas. I decided not to even bother with getting her dressed. Angelina and Heaven had agreed to watch Zeke and Saffie while I was at the school. I gathered Saffie’s things and hurried down to the kitchen.

“Where’s Zeke?” I asked Taylor.

“I’m right here, mommy!” he exclaimed jumping out from behind the island counter at the center of the kitchen.

“Get your coat on,” I said.

“Okay,” Zeke nodded as he ran down the hall to get his from the living room as Hannah reentered the kitchen.

“I’m ready,” she announced.

“Good,” I smiled as I handed Saffie over to Taylor and grabbed my coat off the back of the chair at the table. “So am I. At least I hope I am.”

“Eden, you’re going to be fine,” Taylor smiled as he rocked Saffie who cried a little. “This is what you’ve been wanting to do, and now you’re getting to do it, so quit worrying.”

“Okay, okay,” I nodded. “So are you meeting me to see the PI at four?”

“Yes,” he nodded. “I will be there.”

“Okay,” I replied as Zeke ran back into the room with his coat on. I stooped down and zipped his coat up. “You better put your gloves on. It’s cold out.”

Zeke reached into his pockets and produced his bright red gloves. I cringed at the sight of them. I was assuming that Zeke was taking after his father in the fashion department because he had insisted that I buy him those hideous red gloves rather than the blue ones that would have matched his coat. He had even tried to get me to buy him a ridiculous scarf, which really confirmed my fear that he was taking after his father.

After I had Zeke bundled up, I stood up and took Saffie from Taylor. He quickly gave her a kiss on the cheek before he kissed me gently on the lips. “I love you guys,” he smiled. “And I’ll see you tonight.”

“You leaving for the studio soon?” I asked as I picked up Saffie’s diaper bag.

“Yeah,” he nodded.

“I’ll lock the front door then,” I said as I headed toward the front of the house with Hannah and Zeke in tow.

I quickly drove to Angelina, Heaven, and Allie’s apartment and took the kids upstairs.

“Hey, kids,” Angelina smiled as she greeted us at the door.

“Hey,” I sighed as we stepped inside. “Thanks for watching them,” I commented as I put Saffie’s diaper bag on the couch.

“No problem,” she shrugged as Allie wandered into the room groggily.

“Hey, Al,” I smiled.

“Hi,” she mumbled as she dragged her feet into the kitchen.

“She was at work until late,” Angelina laughed. “And she has an nine o’clock class.”

“Then she better get a move on it,” I laughed. “At that rate, it’s going to take her at least two hours to get to the campus. Where’s Heaven? Still fast asleep?”

“No, she left for class already,” she answered. “She’ll be back in a couple of hours. You’re so parental, Ede,” Angelina smiled.

“I know. That’s what happens when you have kids,” I nodded as I kissed Saffie gently on the forehead and unzipped her coat. “I love you, sweetie,” I whispered as I took her coat off of her and handed her over to Angelina. “Her medicine is in diaper bag. She needs to take it again around noon.”

“Okay,” Angelina nodded.

Then I went to Zeke and helped him out of his coat and sat it on the end of the couch. “Give your mom a hug,” I said with a smile.

He wrapped his arms around my neck and I patted his back gently. “I love you, little guy,” I said as I stood up. I looked at Hannah. “You ready?”

“Yeah,” she nodded.

“Okay, let’s go,” I said motioning toward the door. I glanced over my shoulder and said, “I’ll be back around five to get them, okay?”

“Sure,” she nodded as she rocked Saffie in her arms gently. “See ya at noon, Hannah.”

“Bye,” Hannah said as we headed out to the car.

I glanced at the clock on the dashboard as I started the car. I had forty-five minutes until I was supposed to be at the school, so I headed toward Hannah’s school. I hoped that they wouldn’t mind that I was dropping her off early. Once at her school, I took her inside and was relieved to find her teacher in the classroom, so I quickly said goodbye to her,

“I love you, sweetie,” I said as I kissed her on the top of the head. “Aunt Angie will pick you up, okay?”

“Okay,” she nodded before I hurried back out to the car. As I was starting it back up, my cell phone rang. I sighed loudly and pulled it from my purse.

“Hello?” I said.

“Ede, it’s Ang,” she began. “Are you sure you put Saffie’s medicine in her diaper bag?”

“I’m pretty sure I did,” I replied. “Why?”

“I am not finding it anywhere,” Angelina said.

“Shit,” I groaned rubbing my temples. “Well, I’ll swing by the house and pick it up if you can come by the school during my lunch break and pick it up.”

“Okay,” Angelina agreed.

“Okay, I’ll call when I go on my lunch break,” I said.

“Kay, talk to you later,” she replied before I snapped the phone shut and pulled out of the parking lot heading back to the house. Luckily, it wasn’t too far out of the way, and I still had half an hour before I was due at the school.

I headed back to the house with thoughts of what was on the agenda for me. After my day at the school, Taylor and I were supposed to meet with the private investigator. He had called a couple of days before and told me that he thought he had found some information about Halley, Fallynn, and Seth, and we had scheduled a meeting. I hoped that whatever he had to tell Taylor and I would be something useful.

As I pulled into the driveway, I noticed Taylor’s car was still in the driveway. I wondered what he was still doing home. He had said that he would be leaving soon and that was nearly forty-five minutes earlier. I shrugged it off as I turned off the car and headed into the house.

I walked up to the front door with my keys in my hand. I went to put the key in the door but found that it was already unlocked. I looked back out into the driveway and saw Taylor’s car sitting in the same place it had been before I had left. I wondered why he was even still at home, but I shrugged it off.

I walked into the house and down the hallway. I went into the kitchen and looked around for Saffie’s medicine. I looked all over the kitchen but didn’t see the container anywhere. Then I heard a noise coming from upstairs causing my heart to beat a little bit faster.

I cautiously went up the stairs. I knew that Taylor was there, but each step I took and the closer I got to the second floor of the house, the more convinced I was that there was something wrong. I don’t know why I didn’t just turn and run right then, but I just couldn’t. I had to know where Taylor was.

I tiptoed down the hallway making sure not to make a noise as I approached the door to mine and Taylor’s bedroom. When I reached the door, I put my ear up against the door and tried to listen for any sounds.

I could hear some muffled noises from within the room. I bit my lip nervously. I didn’t know what to do. Should I open the door? I was scared of what I would find on the other side of the door. What if Taylor was in there with another woman? I had no reason to believe that Taylor was seeing anyone else, but the thought of finding him with another woman almost seemed more comforting than the alternative – Taylor was in the bedroom with Audrey’s brother and sisters!

Either way I had to know what was going on in the bedroom, so I took a deep breath and slowly reached down and put my hand on the doorknob. I held my breath as I turned the knob and pushed the door open slowly. I cautiously peeked inside and found Taylor on the floor at the end of the bed tied up.

Instinctively I flung the door open and rushed over to him. His eyes were closed and a piece of tape covered his mouth.

“Tay?” I said urgently as I lifted his head into my lap and tried to wake him up. “Taylor?”

“Oh, he’s gonna be out for a while,” I heard from behind me. I slowly turned and found Seth standing behind the door. He pushed the door closed with his left hand and looked at me with an evil grin spreading across his face. In his right hand, he held a gun.

“Wh-what are you doing here?” I said just above a whisper. My body immediately began to shake. I hadn’t seen Seth since the night he raped me, but as soon as I saw his face, it felt as if I were being raped all over again. Tears began to burn my eyes. I stared at the gun in his hand and wondered what he planned to do.

“Well, since you haven’t come to see me at the gym since the night we spent together, I decided that maybe I should just come to you,” Seth replied.

I shuddered and swallowed hard. I looked down at Taylor whose head was lying on my lap. “What did you do to him?” I asked.

“Oh, don’t worry your pretty little head. I just knocked him out,” Seth grinned. “I haven’t even begun my fun yet.”

I could feel my heart pounding as I watched Seth pace around the room with that smug grin on his face. I wondered what he had in store for us and how Taylor and I were ever going to get away. I closed my eyes briefly and felt my eyes begin to burn. I was so scared. I just wanted to get away from there. I wished that I would have turned and ran from the house as soon as I heard noises coming from the room.

I tried to stay calm by reminding myself that the school would wonder where I was when I didn’t show up, and Angelina would know that something was wrong when I didn’t call her. And Isaac and Zac would come looking for Taylor when he didn’t make it to the studio. ‘Everything is going to be okay.’ I told myself as I opened my eyes and looked up at Seth.

“So, what do you want?” I asked.

“I want to know how you are,” Seth said with an innocent smile. “How’s our baby doing?”

I felt like I was going to be sick when he referred to the baby growing inside me as ‘our baby.’

“My baby is fine,” I replied coldly.

“Oh, now, Ede, don’t be selfish,” Seth said. “You know that you wouldn’t be having that baby without me.”

“You make that sound like that would be a bad thing,” I mumbled under my breath.

“What was that?” he asked looking at me pointedly.

“Nothing,” I sighed as I looked down at Taylor. I could see a knot beginning to grow on his head. “So, what are you planning to do with us?” I asked. “Hold us hostage?”

“You’ll see soon enough,” Seth replied as we walked over to the window and looked out through the blinds.

‘Oh, I can’t wait.’ I thought sarcastically. I don’t know why, but for some reason, even though I was scared out of my mind, I felt the need to keep a strong will. I wasn’t going to let Seth know that he scared me. I had to stay strong. I had to believe that I was going to get out of this situation alive and well along with Taylor. I’d made it through the ordeal with Audrey, and I told myself that I would get through this too. I had to.

Seth turned from the window and looked at me with a smile on his face. I couldn’t understand why he was smiling about this. How could people take pleasure in hurting other people?

He pulled something from his back pocket and said, “Hold out your hands.”

“Why?” I asked slowly.

He brought his left hand out in front of him and dangled a set of handcuffs before me. I swallowed hard. “What are those for?” I asked.

“To make sure that you don’t go running off,” he grinned. “Now hold out your hands.”

“No,” I whispered shaking my head rapidly.

“Now, Eden, we can do this the easy way or the hard way,” Seth said. “It doesn’t matter to me, but I’d hate to hurt you since you’re in such delicate condition.”

I let out a ragged breath before carefully moving Taylor’s head from my lap and placing it gently on the floor before standing up and holding my hands out in front of me.

“That’s a girl,” Seth said. I glared at his as he grabbed my right hand and pulled it behind me and snapped the handcuffs on and grabbed my left hand and snapped the shackle around the other wrist. “Now sit,” he instructed as he grabbed my shoulders and pushed me back down to the floor beside Taylor.

“Now don’t go anywhere,” Seth said smugly as he walked over to the door. “I’ll be right back,” he said before he opened the door and walked out shutting the door behind him.

“Asshole,” I mumbled after he was gone. I turned to Taylor and nudged him gently with my knee. “Taylor,” I said softly. “Taylor, wake up.”

I was really worried about Taylor. I hoped that Seth hadn’t hurt him too badly. I decided that it was useless to try to wake him. He was out cold.

As I was sitting there, I thought I heard a noise outside. It sounded like a car door shutting. I knew that it couldn’t have been Seth because I hadn’t seen any other cars in our driveway, so I was hoping that it was someone else – someone that could help. I looked toward the window and strained to hear, but my head and mind snapped back to the door when I heard the doorknob turn.

Seth reentered the room holding a can of pop and eating a candy bar. I was convinced then that he really was crazy. He had broken into mine and Taylor’s house and was holding us hostage, and he was eating! And sadly enough, I was actually hungry. I cursed myself and pregnancy cravings.

“You know, this is the same kind of candy bar your little girl ate that almost killed her,” Seth commented when he noticed me eyeing his candy bar.

“How the hell do you know that?” I asked.

“Well, you didn’t actually think that it was an accident that she ate that candy bar and got sick, did you?” Seth grinned.

“But you weren’t here when she ate …” I began as the door creaked open behind Seth. At first I wanted to jump with excitement. I thought that help had arrived, but realization hit me when I saw Autumn standing there … She was supposed to be out of town … and she had been there the day that Hannah had gotten sick … She just stared at me with an evil grin.

I closed my eyes and felt tears sting my eyes. All along it had been someone close to me that was plotting against me. I had hoped and prayed that it wasn’t someone that I had known and trusted. I wanted it to be a stranger, but now that I knew that Autumn was one of Audrey’s sisters, I wondered if the other sister was someone that I knew as well.

“So, who are you?” I asked shakily. “Halley or Fallynn?”

“Fallynn,” she replied.

“So, where’s Halley?” I asked.

“Don’t worry she’ll be meeting with us soon,” Autumn replied.

“Right now, we’ve got to get you two ready to go,” Seth grinned.

“Go?” I asked. “Where are we going?”

“Now if we told you, it wouldn’t be a surprise, silly,” Autumn answered as she dug around in her purse before finally producing a syringe.

“Wh-what is that?” I asked as she started walking toward me, and I tried to scoot back away from her.

“Oh, it’s just something that will help you sleep,” Autumn replied as Seth walked over to me and grabbed my shoulders. I tried to kick at him, but he was far too strong and he finally pinned me down on the floor as Autumn came over to me and stuck the needle into my arm.

Immediately my muscles began to relax and my eyes grew heavy. I tried to keep them open, but it was no use. I was out cold within minutes.

My head was pounding as I tried to open my eyes some time later. My eyelids felt like they were weighed down by a ton of bricks, but I forced them open. My head was throbbing as I looked at my surroundings. I was on the floor of a poorly lit room. Taylor was my side, lying on the floor. From the looks of things, wherever we were had been vacant for quite some time. Not only was it run down, there was also no heat.

I rested my head on the wall behind me. It felt so heavy. It was such a struggle just to keep my eyes opened. I wondered what Autumn had injected into me. I hoped that it was nothing that would hurt the baby. I knew whatever it was had to be pretty strong because Taylor was still out cold. I was really beginning to worry about him. He hadn’t once even begun to wake up. My wrists ached from the handcuffs rubbing against them. I felt like crying, but I didn’t even have the energy to do so.

I felt like throwing a temper tantrum like Zeke and whining asking ‘why me?” I couldn’t for the life of me understand why this kind of thing kept happening to me. It was like the nightmare with Audrey was happening all over again, but this time it was worse. I wasn’t the only one in danger. Taylor and the baby growing inside of me were in danger as well. My mind also drifted to the kids. I hoped that they were safe. They were with Angelina and Heaven. I knew that they would never let anything –anything that they could control anyway - happened to them. But when Hannah had the allergic reaction, that hadn’t really been their fault. I only recently found that out, so I couldn’t help but worry. I still didn’t know where or who Halley was.

I also wondered where Seth and Autumn were. It hurt far too much to move, so I couldn’t even try to look around or even find a way to escape. I let out a sigh of frustration. I felt like screaming, but again, all of my energy was gone, so I settled for listening. I tried to see if I could hear any voices or movements nearby. I let my eyes fall shut and let my ears do all the work. I could hear the faint sound of voices on the other side of the wall, but I couldn’t make out if they were from Seth and Autumn or if they were coming from the television.

My eyes snapped open when I heard the creaking noising drawing closer. It took all of my energy to lift my head and look around the room some more. I saw a door to my right – the same direction the creaking was coming from. My heart began to pound faster and harder. I was afraid that it was going to come busting out of my chest it was beating so fast. As the creaking got closer, the more scared I got. I knew I had tried to tell myself before that I had to stay strong, but I felt so weak, so helpless.

Suddenly the door creaked open and Seth walked into the room followed by Autumn. “Oh, you’re awake,” Autumn said with a smirk. “Good, because you’re just the girl we wanted to talk to.”

I glared at Autumn. “What do you want to talk to me about?” I asked with my voice nearly giving out. I coughed. My mouth felt so dry.

“Well, we have some stuff to discuss with you,” Autumn replied. “By the way, how are you feeling?”

“Like shit,” I replied bluntly. “What the hell did you do to me?”

“We just gave you a little something to help you relax,” Autumn replied.

“Relax? I would have guessed that you were trying to kill me,” I glared.

“Oh, we’re not ready to do that yet,” Autumn said. “What fun would it be if we just killed you right away?”

My heart began to pound hard once again. So they really were planning on killing me. I had been holding onto a glint of hope that maybe they weren’t going to really kill me. After all, I was pregnant with a child that possibly belonged to Seth. I felt my eyes begin to burn.

“Oh, quit your crying,” Seth said as he pulled up a chair and sat on it. “We have some stuff to talk about.”

“What?” I croaked. “What do you want to talk to me about?”

“Ya know, Eden, there’s a lot you don’t know about Taylor,” Autumn began.

“What?” I asked making a face. “What the hell does that have to do with anything?”

“Well, you didn’t actually think that all this was about you, did you?” Autumn said sardonically. “How selfish of you. Ya know, not everything is about you.”

“Then what is this really about?” I asked.

Autumn shook her head with disapproval. “You and Taylor – the way I see things, you’re almost completely perfect for each other in a sense. You’re both selfish, disgraces that have no regard for others.

You and Taylor have everything that a normal person could ever want, but neither of you really appreciate it. You with you’re moping around – whining about how much everything sucks for you, and how life isn’t fair. And Taylor – who has this nice little family that most people would die for, but he doesn’t appreciate any of it. I mean, for God’s sake he probably doesn’t even really know his own children since he’s always out in that stupid studio. But maybe that’s because he knows that your whole marriage is a sham.

You may have fooled some people, Eden, but we know that you were pregnant with Hannah before you and Taylor got married,” Autumn said. “And Audrey knew it too.”

“How do you know what Audrey knew?” I asked. “You hadn’t seen her in at least 15 years!”

“Eden, we did our homework,” Autumn replied. “Especially after we found out that she died because of you and your stupid husband.”

“It is not my fault that your sister was crazy!” I replied, my voice growing full of anger. “I am so sick of people blaming me for Audrey’s death. She was sick. I was her friend. I trusted her and loved her! Do you really think that I wanted to see her die?”

“Yes, in fact, I do think you wanted to see her dead!” Autumn replied angrily. “Because I think you knew that if Audrey was still around, there was always a chance that Taylor would leave you for her!”

“Oh, whatever,” I said rolling my eyes. “That’s a crock of shit! Taylor and Audrey both told me that they were never together! You probably planted that letter in the house!”

“What letter?” Seth asked looking at me as though I were crazy.

“Don’t look at me like that,” I said. “I know that one of you planted a letter in the house and made it look like Taylor and Audrey had slept together!”

Seth and Autumn glanced at each other and shrugged. “Sorry to disappoint you, but we don’t have a clue what you’re talking about,” Seth said.

I eyed them both suspiciously. I had no reason to believe that Taylor would lie about sleeping with Audrey even though I had had my doubts in the beginning, and seeing as Autumn, Seth, and Halley –whoever she was- had been terrorizing me even before I knew they were doing it, I had every reason the believe that they were behind the letter as well.

“Whatever,” I said rolling my eyes tiredly.

Autumn glared at me. “Believe whatever you want, Eden, but you know that since we’re on the subject of Taylor and Audrey,” Autumn said with a slight smirk. “Do you know where we are?”

“Hell?” I said with a hint of sarcasm – even though at that moment, I felt like I was in hell. Or maybe it was purgatory. Maybe all of this was like my own personal season of purgatory – a time to cleanse myself of all my sins - and after it was all over, maybe I would finally be able to be happy. I wasn’t sure anymore. I was far too tired to even care at the moment.

“No, you haven’t even begun to see hell,” Autumn answered. “Anyway, smart aleck, this very apartment is one of the places that your dear husband used my sister as his one of his little fuck toys.”

“Oh, really?” I replied. “How do you know this?”

“Like we said, Eden, we did our homework,” Seth commented. “Audrey kept really good, detailed journal entries.”

“And we read every single one of them,” Autumn said. “Read a lot of really interesting things about your husband.”

“Oh, please enlighten me,” I said glaring at Autumn. I wasn’t so sure I really wanted to hear all the things they had to say about Taylor, but I really had no reason to believe them.

Seth stood up and walked over to a desk in the corner and opened a drawer and pulled out a thick book. He opened it and sifted through a few pages as he walked back over and sat down. He cleared his throat as he began to read.

“I took Eden out to a club with me tonight. I thought she needed to have some fun. She really is a sweet girl. I’ve only known her a few weeks now, but I have a feeling that we’ll be really good friends.

Taylor showed up at the club. He just got back in town yesterday or maybe it was the day before. It was really great to see him again. Sometimes I can’t get over how gorgeous he is. We danced for a little bit and talked as we both threw back a few too many beers.

I introduced him to Eden, and I knew the second that he saw her that he would want to hook up with her. I guess I can’t blame him. She is cute. He’s always had a thing for the young, naïve ones. He flirted with her and danced with her. I guess I was a little jealous, but I didn’t let it show because I know that nothing’s ever gonna come from it. She slipped him her number, and I have no doubt that he’ll call her when he needs a good lay. That’s what he always does. And after he gets it, he’ll be through with her.

I almost feel sorry for Eden. She probably won’t have a clue what he’s after until it’s too late. Oh, well, she’ll get over it. They always do.”

Seth glanced up at me. “Sound familiar?”

I swallowed. “Yeah, so?”

“Oh, we haven’t got to the good stuff yet,” Autumn grinned as Seth flipped through the pages and began to read some more.

“I was right. I was so right that it isn’t even funny. Eden and I were hanging out by the pool this afternoon and she asked me about Taylor. She admitted that she had slept with him. I almost pity the poor girl. I bet it was her first one night stand. The realization that Taylor was just using her is probably just now sinking in.

It’s always hard to believe that someone as beautiful and incredible as Taylor can be so cruel, but I’m used to it. In fact, it’s partly why I love him so much. We’re so much alike.

Eden asked if Taylor and I had ever slept together. I felt so sorry for the poor thing that I told her no. But if she only knew. It would probably break her heart to know that the day Taylor left he came over and we fucked all afternoon. I just couldn’t tell her though. I didn’t want to break her little heart anymore than Taylor already had. He’s so good at doing that. He doesn’t even blink an eye.

Sometimes I hate it that he’s always off fucking other girls. Sometimes I wish that I was the only one, but I know that Taylor isn’t ready to settle down yet. I wrote him that letter nearly a month ago, and I think it really freaked him out. He told me that he needed time to think. I don’t blame him. Going so long without being tied down to any sort of a commitment is so much easier than admitting how you really feel about someone. With a one night stand, you don’t have to worry about the excess baggage of falling in love and then getting your heart broken, but I have a feeling that Taylor will come around. He knows that I’ll always care for him no matter what, and I think deep down he knows how perfect we really are for each other. He’s said before that we would make a perfect couple if we could both just settle down, but we’re too stuck in our ways. Well, I’m ready and willing to change my ways. Now I’ve just got to wait for him.”

Seth looked up from the journal. “Is the letter she’s referring to the same one you’re talking about?” he asked.

I lowered my eyes to the floor and stared at the dingy carpet and let what Seth has just read sink in. Was it true? Had Taylor really lied to me about fucking Audrey? I felt so torn. I didn’t know what to believe.

I heard a soft groan come from Taylor’s direction. I looked over at him as his eyes began to flutter open slightly before closing again. He turned his head from side to side and groaned once again. Then he forced his eyes open once again and looked at his surroundings. Then his eyes caught mine. He cleared his throat and asked hoarsely, “Eden, what’s going on? What are we doing here?”

“Do you know where we are?” I asked shakily.

Taylor groaned and looked around the room some more. “Yeah, me and some of my friends used to party here,” he said pulling at his hands not quite understanding why he couldn’t move. Finally he spotted Seth sitting and Autumn standing before us. “Eden, what’s going on?” he asked in confusion as he looked at me.

Seth grinned and looked at Taylor. “I’m the one that knocked up your pretty little wife.”

Taylor clenched his jaw and gathered all of his strength and sat up. I could see the anger and hatred in his eyes as he stared at Seth. “What the hell is going on?” he demanded. “Autumn, what are you doing with him?”

“Her name isn’t Autumn,” I choked as tears formed in my eyes once again.

“What?” Taylor asked looking at me, still confused.

“Her name is Fallynn,” I said softly. “She’s one of Audrey’s sisters.”

Taylor narrowed his eyes and looked at Autumn. “What?” he said. “Is that true?”

Autumn nodded with a smirk as she crossed her arms across her chest.

“Why?” Taylor asked.

“Why what?” Autumn asked as she paced the room slowly – not out of nervousness, but satisfaction.

“Why are you doing this?” he asked.

"Sweet is the taste of revenge,” Seth grinned.

“I wasn’t talking to you, asshole,” Taylor glared at Seth causing him to jump out of his seat and come towards Taylor only to have Autumn grab his arm and say, “Sit down.”

“I’m not gonna take him back talking to me,” Seth growled.

“There will be plenty of time for setting him straight later,” Autumn said with her eyes boring into his. Seth looked reluctant but returned to his seat and glared at Taylor.

Autumn let out an overdramatic sigh and continued pacing the room.

“So, are you going to answer me?” Taylor asked none too politely. “Why are you doing this?” he repeated.

“For shits and giggles, my dear Taylor,” Autumn replied rolling her eyes dramatically as she stopped pacing the room and turned to look at Taylor. “Why do you think I’m doing this? After bouncing from foster home to foster home, I decided to find my siblings. The ones I was separated from when I was no more than three-years-old. I found two of them without any problem, but then it came time to find my oldest sister. The one that had been the strong one. The one that had taken care of us when our mother was drunk off her ass and forgot to feed us or had gone into one of her crazy rages and took a beating for us. Audrey was the one who kept us alive while we were still with our mother, and when we finally located her to meet her and thank her, we find out that she’s dead. And why? Because of you two. Now there’s not a chance in hell I’m going to let the two of you get away with destroying my sister. No way. You two have to pay.”

“You know what, your little sob story almost makes me feel sorry for you, but I think you’re just as crazy as your mother,” Taylor spat. “Audrey was too. It must have been a family problem.”

“Oh, well, cheating must be your family’s problem,” Autumn replied.

“Fuck you,” Taylor glared. “What are you talking about?”

“Oh, we’ve already read some of Audrey’s journal to Eden,” Seth answered. “She knows all about you and your little sexual escapades with our sister. I can’t believe you lied to your own wife about it.”

“I never slept with Audrey,” Taylor replied glaring at Seth and Autumn and then looking at me. “NEVER.”

I turned away from him. I couldn’t even look at him. It hurt. I was so confused. Seth had read directly from Audrey’s journal, and everything he read sounded just like her. The way it was written. The things she said. I didn’t know what to believe. I wanted to believe that Taylor wasn’t lying to me. He had no reason to, but I couldn’t help but have my doubts. My head still throbbed and it was hard to think straight. I just wanted to lie down and fall asleep, and never wake up. I just felt like giving up.

“Keep telling yourself that, Mr. Manwhore,” Seth smirked as he stood up and followed Autumn to the door. He shut the door behind him leaving Taylor and I alone in the silence.

“Are you okay?” he asked turning to me.

My eyes burned as I stared at the floor before me. A piece of torn and worn carpet suddenly seemed incredibly interesting.

“I’m fine,” I mumbled.

“They didn’t hurt you?” he asked.

“I just have a headache,” I replied. “They drugged us with something at the house.”

“Do you think the baby’s okay?” he asked with concern in his voice.

“I hope so,” I sniffled trying not to burst into tears as I so longed to do.

“Hey, Ede, it’s okay,” he whispered using all of his strength to scoot closer to me. “We’re gonna get out of here. We’re gonna be okay.”

Part of me wanted to scoot away from him when I felt his hot breath and the heat from his skin radiating on mine. While the other part wanted to fall into his arms and let him comfort me. Yet I still couldn’t help but doubt him. I knew how he had been. He was willing to sleep with anyone, so why not Audrey? Why was she different? I decided not to worry about it right then. There were more pressing issues to worry about.

“What happened at the house?” I asked. “How did Seth get in?”

“I have no idea,” Taylor shrugged. “I was getting ready to leave for the studio, and the last thing I remember was getting ready to walk out the back door. He must have hit me over the head with something because I have a pounding headache. What about you? You were supposed to be at the school today …”

“Yeah, I know,” I nodded. “I dropped the kids off with Angelina, and as I was dropping Hannah off at school, Ang called and said that Saffie’s medicine wasn’t in her bag. I told her I’d go by and pick it up. I saw your car in the drive, and I thought it was weird. I don’t know why I went inside,” I said shaking my head. “I am so stupid.”

“No, you’re not,” Taylor said gently. “You were probably wondering what I was up to, weren’t you? Wanting to check up on me?” His voice had a bit of humor in it. I knew what he was trying to do. He was trying to cheer me up, but he had no idea how right he was. Now I wished that I had caught him with another woman. I probably could have handled that better than my current situation.

I turned my head toward the door when I heard noises coming from the hallway. Seth and Autumn had been rather quiet before, but now I could hear another voice in the next room.

“Do you hear that?” I whispered.

“What?” Taylor replied in a whisper.

“Someone else is out there,” I replied softly trying to see if I could recognize the new voice.

A woman asked. “Why did you want me to meet you here?”

The voice didn’t sound familiar. I glanced at Taylor and noticed he was clenching his jaw.

“Do you recognize that voice?” I asked watching him carefully.

He swallowed hard and nodded. Slowly as the door swung open, a pretty young girl with blond hair entered the room with Seth following her. She looked surprised to see Taylor and I sitting there on the floor, and from the look on Taylor’s face, I could see that he recognized her.

“Lila?” he croaked.

There she was – the infamous Lila. The woman my husband had spent late nights working with. The woman who I thought my husband was having an affair with. Seeing her now didn’t do much to make me believe that Taylor had never had an affair with her. She was beautiful. Long blond hair – something Taylor had always been attracted to – and big bright blue eyes and flawless skin. She was wearing a tight pink three quarter sleeve cashmere sweater and a short black skirt with a pair of boots that zipped up to the middle of her calves.

“What’s going on?” she asked. I noticed for the first time that she had a slight British accent. She looked at Seth and then back to Taylor and I.

Seth reached out and ran his fingers through her hair. “Don’t worry, Lila,” he said softly. “It’ll all be over soon.”

“What the bloody hell are you talking about?” she asked furrowing her brow.

“Close your eyes for a second,” he said softly.

“Why?” she asked slowly as she looked around nervously.

Of course by this time, I was wondering what the hell was going on as well. When Lila had first walked through the door, I had thought that she was Halley, but by the look of pure confusion and fright on her face, I knew that she had no idea what was going on either. My only question was why had they invited her to come over?

“Adam, what is going on?” Lila asked.

I glanced at Taylor and he looked back me. “Adam?” he mouthed.

I shrugged. I had no idea why she was calling him Adam. Unless he had had been like Autumn and been using a fake name, and Halley was probably using a fake name as well.

“Lila, just trust me and close your eyes,” Seth said.

“No, not until you tell me why you have Taylor and his wife tied up in this old apartment complex!” Lila said slightly stomping her foot.

“Lila, I wanted to do this the nice way, but I have no choice if you’re not going to cooperate,” Seth said before calling over his shoulder. “Fal!”

I watched as Lila swallowed hard and began to back away from Seth. “What are you going to do?” she asked as Autumn entered the room. Her hands were behind her back, but I could tell she was holding something.

I bit my lip as I watched her walk toward Lila. Lila continued to step backwards until her back was against the wall. My breath caught in my throat when I saw what Autumn was holding – a baseball bat. She lifted it up and Lila’s eyes got big as Autumn swung at her. I felt frozen as I watched Lila run around the room begging Autumn to stop and pleading with Seth not to let her do this. I couldn’t open my mouth. I couldn’t do anything. Then I felt as though I had been punched in the stomach as I watched Autumn bring the bat up and hit Lila in the head.

A gasp escaped from my mouth as the bat came into contact with the side of Lila’s head, producing a horrible crunching sound. I watched in horror as Lila’s body fell to the floor with a thud.

“STOP! Stop it! Leave her alone!” Taylor yelled as I fell over into his shoulder and cried as Autumn raised the bat up and hit her again and again. Was she going to beat her to death with a baseball bat? I couldn’t bring myself to look.

I felt sick to my stomach. I kept my eyes clenched shut as I cried into Taylor’s shoulder. I could feel his heart beating quickly, and when I opened my eyes and looked at his face, I could see that he too was crying. Finally Autumn dropped the baseball bat and looked at Seth.

“I need a drink,” she said breathlessly.

Seth went over and bent over Lila’s battered body. He felt around her neck for a pulse. “Is she dead?” I asked just above a whisper.

Seth glanced at me and nodded with a slight grin on her face. How could he grin like that when his sister had just beat a girl to death? What was wrong with them? Why would they do something so terrible?

“Why?” I asked as fresh set of tears fell from my eyes. “Why did you do that?”

“Why don’t you ask your husband about it?” Seth answered. “And don’t cry, Eden. You’ll thank us for this later.”

He scooped Lila’s limp and bloody body up off of the floor. I had to look away when I saw blood dripping from her mouth. “We’ll be back to talk to you in a little bit,” he commented as he walked out of the room.

I sat up slowly and stared at the puddle of blood on the floor. I wondered why Seth would ever think that I would thank him for killing Lila. He had to be crazy. I looked at Taylor and found him just staring straight ahead. I wondered what was running through his mind. He had actually known Lila - worked with her – wrote songs with her – spent late nights in the studio … Late nights in the studio … alone …

I cleared my throat. What Seth meant suddenly hit me. “Did you have an affair with her?” I asked just above a whisper.

Taylor turned his head quickly and stared at me like I was crazy. He didn’t open his mouth. He just stared me for a long time.

“Did you?”

“No, Eden, I didn’t,” he finally snapped. “I can’t believe you,” he mumbled. “I just watched that crazy bitch kill one of my friends and you’re worried about whether or not I had an affair with her. Does your paranoia ever end? I don’t get you, Eden! Why is it that you’re always paranoid about the wrong things? Why weren’t you questioning Seth before you decided to get buddy buddy with him?”

I tore my eyes from his and let my head fall in shame. He was right. I was always suspicious of the wrong people. And what difference did it make whether Taylor had slept with Lila or not? I didn’t want her dead. I wasn’t that kind of a person. I just wanted us to get out of this whole ordeal alive.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered as a fresh set of tears flooded my eyes.

The door swung open and Autumn entered the room sipping a wine cooler. There were beads of sweat along her hairline, and she looked tired, but she smiled anyway. “So, how are you two doing?” she asked.

I just looked at her with a blank stare. “Are you okay, Eden?” she asked. “You look like you could use a drink. Want a wine cooler?”

“No,” I replied. “I’m pregnant. I can’t drink.”

“Oh, one little drink won’t hurt the baby,” Autumn said rolling her eyes as she brought the wine cooler close to my mouth. “Are you sure you don’t want a drink? Or at least a little sip?”

“No, thank you,” I spat as I turned my face away from her and the bottle.

“Suit yourself,” she shrugged before turning to Taylor. “You want a drink?”

Taylor glared at her. “You’re not going to get away with this,” he said.

“Oh, I’m not?” she grinned.

“No, you’re not,” Taylor replied. “We’ve got people that are expecting us, and when we don’t show up, they’re gonna come looking for us.”

“Well, that’s fine, Taylor, but I’m gonna be long gone by the time they find you,” she said moving her face closer and closer to his as she spoke until is she just a whisper away.

“What are you going to do to us?” Taylor asked without blinking an eye. “Are you going to beat us to death like Lila?”

“Oh, Taylor, we’ve got bigger and better plans for you and Eden,” Autumn said.

“Like what?”

“If I told you, it wouldn’t be a surprise,” Autumn grinned.

“You’re a fucking psycho,” Taylor said calmly.

“Aw, Taylor, your brother wouldn’t be very happy if he knew you were calling his girlfriend names.”

“My brother wouldn’t be very happy to know that his girlfriend is crazy ass lying, murdering cunt either,” Taylor replied spitefully.

“Taylor, I think you’re still a little upset about Lila,” Autumn said as she stood up and sipped on her wine cooler. “I imagine that it was probably pretty hard watching your little fling die right before your eyes.”

“My little fling?” Taylor said. “You are fucking crazy! Lila was my friend! I never slept with her.”

“Taylor, don’t bother trying to save yourself on this,” Autumn said. “Eden knows how you are. She already knows that you were fucking Audrey. And I’m sure she had her suspicions about Lila as well - as she should have been.”

“Fallynn, what are you telling them?” Seth asked appearing at the door.

“Oh, I was just offering them a drink,” Autumn replied.

“Eden, you didn’t drink anything, did you?” Seth asked walking over to me. “You know that could hurt the baby. And I don’t want anything to be wrong with our baby.”

I closed my eyes. I hated how he kept referring to the baby as ‘ours.’ I hoped with every ounce of my being that the baby was not his. I didn’t think I could handle knowing that this psycho was the father of my child. People like Seth and Autumn should have been banned from reproducing. If their mother had been banned from having children, then there were would be four less psychos in the world, and my life would have be a hell of a lot easier. But as it was, I was stuck in this awful situation and didn’t have a clue how to get out of it.