Beginning of the End

Allison runs towards her friend's voice without so much as a glance in Brian's direction as he struggles to keep up with her determined pace. Her feet hit the firm ground beneath her almost violently, sending small shocks of pain up her legs with every step. Irrational as it may be, she feels as though the house is much farther from them than it was on their trip out here. Lungs burning with exertion, Allison skids to a stop as she and Brian reach the house and her eyes land on Abigail's horrified expression.

"What happened to you?" Abigail asks, taking a catious step towards the duo, no doubt in shock to see blood on them, though it couldn't be all that surprising considering the things they've seen.

"What happened to us? Why were you out here screaming? Did something happen?" Allison's words fly out of her mouth so fast she can barely register them herself, but her heart is pounding so hard in her ears she's not sure how she managed to get them out at all.

"No, I'm okay," Abigail replies, her voice still sounding strained despite her declaration. She glances at Brian when she continues, "Rita's awake. I came out here to find you and then I heard gunshots. What's going on? Where did the blood come from?"

"We're fine. There was a man in the-"

"Rita's awake?" Brian interrupts the blonde's explanation of their encounter- a sort of thing that usually pisses Allison off, but she does understand his reaction under the circumstances - and he promptly stalks towards the house without waiting for a response.

"Brian," Abiail calls, grabbing his elbow in her small hand, tugging him back softly. "There's something you should know before you go in there."

Although Allison is concerned about the girl, she's quickly growing impatient after what just transpired. "We need to get inside before we attract anymore unwanted attention." The chances of another attack are low, but it's not a risk she's willing to take.

Off Abigail's nod, the three of them head back inside, Allison noting a curious tension on her friend's face.



Brian paces back and forth - something Allison notices that he does quite a bit - in the kitchen, his hands pressed firmly to his temples. "She doesn't remember anything?" he asks, looking at the petite young woman perched atop the cluttered counter.

"Just her name," Abigail answers, swinging her legs from side to side, a nervous habit she developed at a young age. "That's all she can give me, but she won't talk much." She glances at Allison, that same unfamiliar look in her eyes that the older woman returns, but doesn't comment on.

Abigail leans back on the dark wood cabinets over her head as she waits for a response, an expression that Allison can't quite decipher written across her face: is it worry, or something more along the lines of fear, distrust? An emotion that is more suited to Allison than the younger, easy-going redhead. Then, just when she's about to look away, Abigail locks eyes with her and she knows right then that something isn't right. There's something Abigail has left out, something she doesn't want to say in front of Brian.

The question is, what is it?

Allison raises an eyebrow, silently questioning the behavior. Abigail shakes her head and hops off the counter, a pensive smile forming as she looks back at Brian, who seems entirely oblivious to the women's exchange. "We can go talk to her," she tells him, but if he notices her exaggerating the 'we' in the suggestion, he doesn't say anything of it. Allison starts to, because it's strange and isn't like her, but she gets the feeling that she shouldn't.

Brian nods slowly, and follows them up the stairs. Up until now, Allison has felt somewhat confident that he wasn't a threat, but as he climbs the stairs just behind her- so close she can feel his breath in her hair, on her neck- she silently wishes she had a gun, that she hadn't left the axe outside by the door. She swallows the lump in her throat as they reach the top floor, and Allison unconsciously steps away from the man she hardly knows. Once again, he says nothing of the behavior, which she realizes she finds strange; shouldn't it bother him that they're acting this way all of a sudden? Even if he is the silent type, it's odd that he seems disinterested in their nervous reactions towards him.

"Rita," Abigail says, knocking lightly on the door before opening it slowly, "someone wants to talk to you."

They all slide into the room and Allison's eyes automatically land on Rita, whose own eyes are wide as she studies three of them from the bed, her back against the headboard. Though she's not nearly as sickly looking as she was yesterday, she still looks timid, restless and more than a little frightened. Which is understandable, Allison thinks, considering that the poor kid can't remember anything, and, as far as she is currently concerned, is in a house full of strangers.

"Hey, kid," Brian says, smiling softly and stepping a little closer. "You feeling okay?"

Rita stiffens, moving backwards and pressing herself firmly against the wall. "Who are you?" she responds, her voice rough from disuse.

"Abigail told me you can't remember anything," he answers, leaning back a little to give her a some more space.

"I remember enough to know that I don't know you," Rita snaps in a tone that startles Allison.

"Brian, maybe we should just give her a little more time. She just woke up," Allison suggests, her nerves now making her stomach turn. "Let's just-"

"She said you told them you're my uncle," Rita says, completely ignoring Allison's comment, "and I told her that I don't have an uncle."

Allison notices that Abigail is watching her intently, trying to gauge her reaction. She throws her a wary look and turns back to Brian, whose bright, worried eyes are flickering between the three females as they wait for his response, tension forming creases on his forehead as he clenches his jaw.

Allison expects that he will say it's just the girl's memory loss, that she doesn't know what she's saying because she simply can't remember. It'd be logical, she thinks, but he doesn't say anything of the sort. He simply confirms Rita's accusation with two simple words: "I know."