Run on for a Long Time

Eliza woke up early the next morning. Murphy was already awake and getting dressed. He would be leaving with Paul and Connor soon. He turned around and seen her awake, he smiled and she smiled back. "Promise me you'll come back," she said.

"Nothing in the world can stop me from coming back to you." He walked over to the bed and sat down next to her. She sat up and he pulled her into his lap. "Everything will be okay. I swear." Eliza smiled and Murphy pressed his lips to hers. She wrapped her arms around him and held him close. When he pulled away, she was sad. "I'll see you in just a few days. Don't worry."

"I'll do my best."

He kissed her again. "I have to go now."

Eliza nodded and climbed back under the blanket, curling up in a ball to go to sleep. Murphy kissed her forehead and stood up. "I love you," she told him.

"I love you too."

She smiled and watched Murphy walk over to the lamp sitting on the dresser. He turned it off and walked out the door. Eliza closed her eyes and fell back to sleep.

When she woke up again, sunlight was streaming through the windows. She got up and went downstairs. She could hear Eunice and Romeo in the kitchen. She walked into the room and seen Eunice standing at the stove cooking and Romeo sitting at the bar. "What are you making?" Eliza asked.

"Eggs."

Eliza started to reply, but didn't as she started to feel sick.

"Are you okay?" Eunice asked.

Eliza nodded, but then she felt it again. She turned around and ran up the stairs to the bathroom.

"Romeo, make sure the eggs don't burn," Eunice said, handing him the spatula. She ran up the stairs after Eliza. The bathroom door was open and Eliza was sitting on the floor in front of the toilet. Eunice walked over to her and sat down beside her. As she pulled Eliza's hair back she asked, "Are you sure you're okay?"

Eliza nodded, "Yeah, but I think it's safe to say that I am pregnant."

Eunice smiled and rubbed Eliza's back.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kaitlyn had been in distress since she received Eliza's letter. She wanted to write back to her daughter, but she didn't have an address to send the letter to. She wanted to hear her daughter's voice and see her face, but she couldn't. She took a deep breath and turned the water off before wrapping her towel around herself and stepping out of the shower. She brushed her long, curly, strawberry blonde hair before walking to her closet to get out some clothes to wear.

As she pulled on her jeans she heard someone knock on her door. "Just a minute!" she called. She grabbed a white T-shirt and pulled it on. She pulled her hair out from under the collar when she heard the person knock again. "I said just a minute!" she called again, irritated. She turned the lights off and walked out of her bedroom. She peeked out of the small hole in the door and could see three men standing on the otherside. She could tell the one in the middle was older, and he looked slightly familiar. The other two didn't look familiar at all.

She opened the door, and her eyes widened as she realized who was standing in front of her. "Paul Smecker," she whispered.

"Kaitlyn, how nice to see you."

"What are you doing here? Where's Eliza? Is she okay?"

"She's perfectly fine, she's somewhere safe. Um...we need to talk to you, do you mind if we come in?"

Wordlessly, Kaitlyn stepped out of the way and allowed the three men into her home. She shut the door behind them. "Would you like some tea or anything?"

"Tea would be nice," Paul said.

Kaitlyn led them into the kitchen where they sat at the table while she poured each person a glass of tea.

"Where's your girlfriend? Antonia, right?"

"Yes, that's her name. She's at work, she'll be home in about two more hours. What is it you need to talk to me about?"

"How much do you know about why Eliza left?"

"Nothing, really. Just what I've heard on the news. Her letter didn't actually explain anything other than that she was okay, and that she was with you. She left rather...abruptly. I know she had gotten Tommy into some trouble a few days before. Tommy is-"

"We know who Tommy is," Connor cut her off.

Kaitlyn stared at Connor, I wonder if he's Murphy, she thought before glancing at Murphy. No, it's probably him. He looks more like someone Lizzy would be interested in. "Who are you?" she asked.

"Connor. And this," he gestured at Murphy, "Is my brother, Murphy."

"Eliza wrote about you in her letter," she said, looking at Murphy. He smiled and she turned her attention back to Paul. "So what's going on? Why did Eliza leave? And why are you here?"

"Tommy was going to kill her. That's why she left. When she stopped by his house to get whatever it was for Antonia, she found three girls tied up in his basement, so he was going to kill her. She went to Boston to find me, and a....friend of ours told her where I was. Tommy figured out where she was, and sent someone after her. He kidnapped her, but we were able to get her back. And, well...a long story short, Tommy's dead now, and Antonia hired an assassin to kill Eliza for revenge."

Kaitlyn dropped the glass she was holding. It shattered as it hit the floor, tea and ice splattered everywhere. "I don't believe you."

"What reason would I have to lie to you?"

Kaitlyn was at a loss for words. Why would they make something up like that? It had to be true, right?

Paul stood up and put his arm around Kaitlyn's shoulders in an attempt to comfort her, "I promise it's the truth." He pulled out his cell phone and called Eunice.

"What are you doing?" Kaitlyn asked.

"Calling someone who can tell you what I just told you is true."

He held the phone up to his ear and listened as it rang. Eunice answered, "Is everything okay? What's happened?"

"Everything's fine at the moment. Nothing has actually happened yet. I need you to put Eliza on the phone."

Kaitlyn's heart started beating twice as fast when she heard her daughter's name. There was a pause while she assumed whoever Paul had been talking to went to get Eliza.

Finally Paul spoke again, "Murphy is fine. We're all fine. There's someone I want you to talk to; tell them why you left Orlando to come find me."

He handed the phone to Kaitlyn, "Lizzy?"

"Mom!"