In the end...

The remnants of Hurricane Aurore, dubbed by the locals to be Aurore
the Black, thanks to all the damage she had caused all up the eastern
coast, washed over the Schodic Peninsula. Huge swells made the lobster
boats in the inlets that made Bunker's Point a point bob up and down
like toys in the bathtub. I can't see why they call it just "the
remnants" , the storm was bad enough to have just struck land for the
first time.

All the locals were holed up in their little houses or trailers, with
only a few brave souls venturing out to watch the swells crash into the
coast near The Donut Hole. I was the only car on the road, and I could
barely see out my windshield, the wind was blowing me all over the
road, and the road itself was under a few inches of water. Not ideal
driving conditions, but I had to see Grant. He had to know before they
got me, or him. Just in case. He had to know.

His dirt driveway was a lake, at least six inches deep in places. I
parked carefully and got out of my truck, shielding my face from the
stinging rain drops. A blue tarp flew by and landed in some trees. I
thought I could hear Lola barking through the wind and crashing water.
A mile inland and I could still hear the ocean. The sound, previously
soothing, I now found to be unnerving and scary. I pushed my way
through the puddles and up his front steps. I banged on his door and
shouted. He didn't answer. Lola still barked, and scratched at the
door. Good enough for me. I turned the cheap knob and the door slowly
opened. It was dark inside, no lights on at all. No sound, either, but
the sound outside and my and Lola's heavy breathing. I bent and
scratched her ears, and she wagged her tail.

Slowly, I unzipped my nice leather boots, just like Terry's, which were
now probably ruined. I placed them next to the door. My eyes adjusted
to the darkness just as I saw somebody move.

"Grant?" I asked. There was no answer. I asked again. Still nothing.
Then I heard the back door open and close. The nerve of him, leaving
right now! Why, a body could get himself hurt out there, driving the
roads at a time like this! And all when all I wanted to do was tell him
I loved him. Certainly it wasn't very nice of him to just leave without
seeing what I wanted. He'd hear about it though. You just wait Grant, I
thought, you just wait.

It was about then when I noticed the room. His beer clock was smashed
on the kitchen floor, not 6 feet away from me. His sofa and TV were
overturned, and his coffee table was broken in half. His keys and
wallet were flung aside from their usual resting spot on his book
shelf, and all of his old Farmer's Almanacs lie on the floor, torn.
Other books and magazines were everywhere, and muddy footprints lead to
the bedroom, then back to the back door. I heard and engine start.
Quickly, I turned and looked out the window. I saw the back of a car
driving away. I couldn't tell much except that it was a dark car, and
it was going too fast.

I picked up the phone. Tritely, there was no dial tone. I ran to the
bedroom. It too was in shambles. But where was Grant? Oh God, where the
hell was he? A part of me hoped he and Terry had just had a passionate
session of horizontal polka the decimated the trailer. But I doubted it
very much. There was blood on the cheap tan carpet, and some more on
the quilt his mother had just made for him. My eyes searched the room.
The dresser was overturned, his clothing strewn about the room. The tee
shirt he wore when I first saw him was hanging on the ceiling fan, and
his boots were neatly in the corner. The bathroom door was closed. I
got closer to it, and put my ear to the door. Through the sound of the
storm, I could hear the sound of running water, and the clanging of his
pipes. The shower was on.

This time I did not bother to knock. I went right in, knowing surely
what I would most likely find. The room was filled with steam, and the
shower curtain was drawn. Suddenly, it was flung back, and I was face
to face with Grant. My eyes went wide, and I lept towards him, hugging
him, sobbing.

"Oh thank god! Thank god you're alright! I was so?I love you so much! I
love you! Thank god! I was so afraid?"

"What the hell?" he muttered as he extricated himself from my grasp and
wrapped himself in a towel. "Shadow" he said calmly "What the hell are
you doing here? Why the fuck did you attack me when I was in the
shower? What the hell were you thinking?" I looked up at him, tears
still streaming down my face. He cussed in front of me. He never cussed
in front of ladies. Perhaps he didn't see me as a lady anymore.

"I was so?daddy. Its my daddy. I was afraid?I had to tell you?Your
house?he wants to kill us" I whispered between sobs. "I love you" I
added, nearly inaudibly. He blinked a few times.

"What the hell are you talking about Shadow? I really think that you
are nuts. You need help." He pushed past me into his bedroom. One step,
two steps, three steps in, he stopped. "What the fuck?Did you do this?"
he turned and faced me, his face angry and hurt.

"Thank god you're ok" was all I could say. He knelt next to me and
looked me in the eye. His hand was warm on my shoulder. I was sopping
wet, and I didn't care. I hid my face with my hands. I couldn't stand
him looking at me like that, the pain in his eyes, the hatred. He
really did hate me. And he thought I was the enemy. He would never
believe me, and they would kill him. And it was all my fault. A new
wave of tears came. He pried my hands away and looked at me
again.

"Tell me what happened" he ordered, as if I were a disobedient child. I
took several breaths and tried to make the tears go away. They
wouldn't. His hand stayed on my shoulder.

"Daddy is alive. He did it. They killed him, then Myrna, then the
others. They all knew me. He just wanted to get me. Just me. Nobody
else. He wanted to play first though, make me go crazy. It worked. Then
he came here to kill you. I think. Somebody left when I got here. I
think it was him. I'm so sorry. Its all my fault.
Everything?everything?my fault." I closed my eyes and leaned my head
against his chest. I could feel his heart beat. I knew I should sit up,
put some distance between me and him, but I couldn't.

I jumped when he put his arm around me. He pulled away and went into
the other room to assess the damage, leaving me crying next to his
bathtub.

"Shadow" he said when he came in again. God, how I loved the way that
word sounded coming off his tongue. "Did you drive in this weather?" I
numbly nodded. "Are you crazy" I nodded again. "What did you say
before?you love me?" he sat down next to me, and he was very close. I
could smell his soap and shampoo. I didn't nod, I just looked at
him.

"Y-yes. I did say that."

"Did you mean it?" his voice was a whisper, and mine probably was too.
I reverted back to the safety of nodding. "Shadow?" Suddenly, we heard
the front door burst open, and the storm come in the trailer with
whoever had kicked in the door. We both shot up to our feet. I had just
noticed that Grant was now fully dressed. Cautiously, we both tiptoed
out of the tiny bathroom. He made sure I was behind him, and I had one
of my hands fisted in his shirt, the other holding one of his. He
squeezed it, and I squeezed back. Terry burst into the room looking
like a cold, wet cat. Angry, hissing, pathetic. She held something in
her hands, and swung it. Grant fell to the ground and brought me with
him. He was out. It was just me and Terry.

I shifted out from under his dead weight and lunged for her, catching
her at her knees. She tore at my hair, clawed at my face. But I didn't
care. We were both on the ground, wrestling in the mud and blood. My
fist connected, and I heard her nose break. She screamed and
immediately stopped pummeling me. I stood up, proud of myself. I turned
to go tend to Grant, and then it all went black.