Heartbreak

While Kellie and Nick were at Jessica's, Brian had received a phone call that Michelle was awake. He raced over to the hospital. "Can I see her now?" he asked the attending doctor.

"Yes, but she's a little disoriented and scared. Try not to say anything that may upset her."

Brian nodded and went into her room. Sarah turned when he came into the room. "Hi Brian," she said, giving him a small smile.

Brian sat down. "How are you feeling?"

"Like I've been asleep for a year. They told me that it's only been two days. I have two broken ribs. I guess I'm lucky to be alive."

"Sarah, what happened? Do you remember anything?"

Sarah looked at him, her eyes big and scared. She took a deep breath. "I decided to surprise you. I went to get my horse and I was almost at your place when some loony woman stopped me and accused me of trespassing."

"That would be Sally." Brian realized that she didn't know that Sally was her mother. "She's the one who called me to tell me that you had an accident."

Sarah raised an eyebrow, but didn't say anything. "Anyhow, I cut through the woods and all of sudden, I started having these premonitions. Except this time, they were images. Images of something terrible. Not only that, I had a dog with me and he dug up something."

"What?" Brian asked knowing he would regret asking.

"Human bones. It was a grave, Brian."

Brian's eyes registered shock. Sarah continued, "That's when the images got clearer. I knew that those bones belong to someone I once knew. I also knew that someone hurt me." She swallowed hard before going on. "Brian, I saw myself as a child being raped by a man." She let out a strangled sob.

Brian took her into his arms. "Oh God! Sarah, what else do you remember?"

Sarah sighed. "I don't know. Just vague images here and there...and Brian, I saw Grace, too. She was standing there." She shivered and looked at Brian. She noticed the odd expression on his face. "What is it?"

"Sarah, I think you should be hypnotized. Too see if you can remember everything about your past. Something as horrible as being raped is so traumatic that it can sometimes cause a mental block making you forget that it ever happened."

"What if I don't want to remember?"

"Know what?" An angry male voice said.

Brian turned around to find a very big, tall man standing there. "Who are you?" he said to Brian in a rude tone.

"Brian Littrell. Would you be Mr. Butler?"

Lorne Butler's eyes were hard and calculating. He stared Brian down. "What are you doing here?"

"Daddy, Brian's my boyfriend," Sarah said.

Lorne looked like he had been slapped in the face. "Boyfriend?" he repeated. "You never told me that you were seeing someone."

"If you were home more often or called me, maybe I would have," Sarah muttered angrily.

Lorne looked at her then back at Brian. He put on a fake smile. "I don't think Mr. Littrell here needs to hear about our little family squabbles. Why don't you run along now? I want to spend time with my daughter." He stared Brian down.

He's trying to see if I know anything, Brian thought.

He wasn't about to let Lorne figure out that he knew Sarah was actually Michelle. "Sure. I have some stuff to do anyway." He kissed Sarah on the forehead. "I'll see you later," he told her.

Sarah smiled. "Thanks honey.

Brian cringed. He gave Sarah a small smile and left the room.

Lorne turned to his daughter. "Now sweetheart, what do you say daddy makes up for everything and sends you off to Europe for a few months? How would you like that?"

**************************

Kellie opened her eyes to see Jessica standing over her. Thoughts of why she fainted entered her mind. She flew off the couch. "Where's Nick?" she cried out.

Jessica looked at her sadly. "He left."

"Left? What do you mean, left? He just left me here?" Kellie's lower lip trembled.

"He was quite upset."

"This is ALL YOUR FAULT!" Kellie screamed at Jessica. "Why did you sleep with Mr. Carter? Are you insane?" She was shaking. She felt sick to her stomach. Nick is my half-brother. I had sex with my own flesh and blood. That's incest. She clutched her stomach and tried to stop the bile that was threatening to spill out.

Jessica stared at her. "How was I to know that someday the daughter I gave away would fall for the son of the man I once slept with?"

"Don't EVER call me your daughter AGAIN! You're NOT my mother. A mother doesn't do what you did to me! All you are is someone who gave birth to me."

"Kellie, I'm so sorry." Jessica sobbed. "If I would have known then what I was doing, I wouldn't have done it. I was young, and..."

"Stop making excuses, Jessica! You're so pathetic you make me sick!" She got up and headed towards the door. Jessica stood in front of her. "Get the fuck out of my way!"

"Where are you going? Nick took off in his car."

"I'll walk if I have to. Now, get the hell out of my way before I become violent."

Jessica moved aside and Kellie opened the door. She turned around, "Oh, and by the way, thank you!" she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

"For what?" Jessica asked, still sobbing.

"FOR RUINING MY LIFE, YOU BITCH!!!" She walked out, slamming the door so hard the house shook.

Jessica started sobbing uncontrollably. Oh God! What have I done?

**************************

Nick had managed to make it home in one piece. He was lucky he hadn't been killed with the way he had been driving. Brian was just pulling up when Nick got out of the car. Brian got out of his car and ran over to Nick. "Hey, I stopped by the drugstore and picked up the pictures from the Prom," he said. "I figured you and Kel would be excited to see them. They look..." he stopped as he noticed the look on Nick's face. He took a closer look. "Nick, you've been crying. What happened? Where's Kellie?"

Nick didn't say anything. He grabbed the envelope from Brian's hands and started flipping through the pictures. He came across one of him and Kellie wrapped in one another's arms. He looked at Brian. "Bet the person who took this would have never guessed that we're related." His voice was flat. Emotionless.

Brian started laughing. "What the hell are you talking about, Frack?"

"Laugh all you want. I laughed when I found out that you were dating your cousin. I guess it's even funnier that I was having sex with my own sister."

"Nick, stop fucking with me!" Brian shouted, growing irritated.

Nick turned to him, his face contorted in pain. "DO I LOOK LIKE I'M JOKING? Would I joke about something like this? Kellie is MY SISTER, Brian! Yes, get that horrified look off your face, it's true. I slept with my blood. Do you know what I feel like right now? I feel like SHIT, Brian! Absolute, fuckin' SHIT!!!"

Brian had gone pale. "B..b..but, how is that possible?" he stammered.

"Kellie's mother had an affair with my father when she was in school in Upstate, NY."

"Nick, did you call your parents about this?"

"No, but I'm about to." He stomped into the house, Brian right behind him.

Bob Carter was sitting out by his pool in his home in a quiet suburb of Los Angeles when the phone rang. "Hello?"

"Dad, it's me." Nick said.

"Nick, how are you? I was just thinking about you. Your sisters and I were talking about..."

Nick cut him off. "Funny that you mention sisters. How many of those do I have, exactly? Would that be three and one half-sister or is that two half-sisters?"

"What are you talking about?" Bob asked, puzzled.

"Dad, just answer me a few questions here. Try not to lie to me."

"Nick, you know I wouldn't lie to you."

"Did you ever have an affair when you were teaching at that boarding school in Buffalo?"

Bob gasped. "How do you know about that?"

"So it's true then," Nick stated, never feeling hatred for his father until now. "Who was she dad?"

"She was a student..."

Nick cut him off again. "Yes, I know! I know ALL about it dad! How could you do this to me?" He started crying.

"Nick, let me explain."

"NO! I don't want to hear it! I've heard enough excuses today to make me sick! You sicken me father!" He slammed down the phone.

Brian went over to his friend. "Nick, I'm so sorry," he said, attempting to hug him.

"Don't touch me! This is YOUR FAULT, too! If you wouldn't have coerced me into coming here, I wouldn't have met Kellie and I wouldn't be feeling the need to die right now!"

"Nick, I know you're upset, but don't talk like that!"

Nick glared at Brian. He ran out the door and started running in the direction if the lake. Brian ran after him. "Nick, please come back!"

"LEAVE ME THE HELL ALONE!" He ran and ran. Stumbling. Falling down. But he got back up and just kept running. He got to the lake and stopped. Wiping the tears from his eyes, he realized that he was still holding the picture of him and Kellie. It was slightly crumpled. He straightened it out and stared at it. Then he ripped it to shreds and tossed it into the lake. "Goodbye!" he shouted aloud. He fell to his knees, his body wracked with sobs. "WHY?! WHY KELLIE?" he shouted, looking towards the heavens. "I loved her so much! She was my everything. Why could you do this to me, God? Why? Haven't I been through enough these past few years. All I ever wanted was for someone to love me. Then I find someone and you rip her out of my arms. Out of my heart. You could have just killed me. At least I wouldn't be suffering like I am now." He sobbed, wishing the pain in his heart would stop.

Brian stood a few feet away, watching his friend crying. Oh God. What happened to us? This was supposed to be a vacation. What went wrong?