Mercy

Duane pulls up a chair and sits down beside his brother's hospital bed. "What am I supposed to do little brother?" he asks, looking over at Leland laying there helpless. "You love her, I love her...and she's engaged. You knew I sent those flowers, why did you have to go to her house?"

He turns around as the nurse and doctor tap lightly on the door. "We need to check on a few things if you'll excuse us, please."

"Sure." He says, taking one last look at his brother before walking out of the room. He sees Nikki standing in the empty waiting room talking on her cell phone, obviously arguing with someone. He laughed to himself as she gestured her arms around, she was always very animated. Pulling his own phone out of his back pocket, he decided to try Stacy one last time. He sighed, flipping his phone shut, still no answer.

"I just saw your dad, Beth and some other woman walking down the hall." Nikki tells him as he walks into the waiting room.

His family had been in Colorado when the accident happened and were unable to get a flight out right away. He leaned around Nikki trying to see who this other woman was.

"It's my mom." He says smiling. 'Bet that was an awkward flight.' He thinks to himself as he runs toward his mother.

"Momma!" He says throwing his arms around her, giving her a tight hug. His mother immediately starts to cry, asking him a thousand questions about Leland. He answered all her questions as they went in to see his brother. Nikki sat in the waiting room, as Leland's family took turns visiting with him. She stands up when Duane and his mother walk back into the room.

"Momma, I want to introduce you to Nikki." He says looking between his mother and Nikki.

"Nikki, this is my - our mother, LaFonda."

"So this is Nikki." LaFonda says with a smile. "I've heard so much about you from my two boys."

Nikki smiles shyly at her, not knowing what to say to that. "I'm sorry we have to meet under these circumstances. But it is very nice to meet you."

They continued to make small talk until Leland's father had returned from his visit. Duane Lee took him aside, explaining that no one had been able to get in touch with Stacy.

"So where is my grandbaby?" LaFonda asks everyone and no one in particular. And...whats her name... Stacy?"

An awkward silence filled the large waiting room, no one spoke as she looked from face to face only to be met with blank stares.

"Duane Lee's been trying to call her for hours, but she's not answering." Nikki finally says speaking up.

"Don't you think you should look for her, son? I need to know that Bailee is alright." Duane's mother says looking at him from across the room.

"That's a great idea, Duane Lee... I'll go with you." Nikki says, standing up and pulling him by the hand and out the door.

"I had to get out of there...the tension was just a little unbearable." Nikki says with a sad laugh as they drove toward Leland's house.

"Yeah, I don't think my parents have been in the same room together since I was a teenager...can you imagine what that plane trip was like this morning."

When they pulled into the driveway there were no cars there. But the front door was cracked.

"Stay here." Duane Lee says, pulling a gun from his underneath his seat.

"I will not! And when did you get a gun?" Nikki asks, surprised.

"I've always had one, just never had to use it before. Please stay here!" He begs her, getting out of the car.

"You should know by now that I don't follow orders very well."

He sighs, rolling his eyes. "Just stay behind me then." He says as they approach the door. Opening it slowly, Duane Lee walks through, looking left and right every few feet. His gun pointed straight in front of him, ready to shoot anyone or anything that might cross his path.

A noise from the hallway catches their attention as he swings around, pointing the gun at the bedroom door. He gasps lightly as he finds Bailee sitting on her bed, a bowl of dry Cheerios in front of her.

"Oh my God!" Nikki says, rushing to Bailee. "Hey baby, are you okay?" she asks picking the toddler up.

"I'll be back, stay put." Duane Lee says, as he leaves to search the rest of the house. A few minutes later he comes back into the room tucking the pistol in his back pocket. "No one else is here. Stacy's clothes are gone...she left this on her bed." He says, handing Nikki a note.

I know when you find Bailee you'll think I'm a horrible person, but I just can't handle this anymore Leland. I had to leave town, do not look for me; do not try to find me because I won't come home. Take care of our daughter; I know that you are a better parent that I could ever be to her. Tell her that her mommy loves her always.

~ Stacy"

"I can't believe this. She left Bailee here, by herself for God knows how long and just left... like it was no big deal! She should be shot." Nikki says, pulling Bailee's dirty clothes off.

"What if we didn't go looking for her Duane... what then...the front door was open; she could have wondered into the street and gotten run over by a car!" Nikki says, swiping at the tears that ran down her cheeks. "If something happened to Bailee I would have died." She says crying harder.

Duane Lee wraps his arms around her, holding her as close as he could, letting her cry it out. She had been so strong since Leland's accident. He didn't even remember seeing her cry as the doctor told them the outcome of Leland's surgery.

"The most important thing is that we have her and she's safe now. Calm down." He says, wiping her cheeks off. "Lets take her back to the hospital and my mom can watch her. You need to go home and get some sleep, because you have fiancé that I'm sure is worried about you."