Chapter Sixteen

*TICK TOCK. TICK TOCK*

The strange sound filled Michael's ears causing him to frown. It felt as if his eyes were nailed shut as he struggled to open them. After several moment he realized it was useless and ceased his struggle. Instead, Michael used his other senses to take in his surroundings.

In addition to the strange sound he could hear, the attic smelled different as well. He couldn't smell the dust and the dirt that he'd grown accustomed to smelling. The bed felt softer--a lot softer.

There was only one thing that seemed familiar and that was the body curled up against him and the head resting on his chest. Without opening his eyes he knew it was Allie. But why was his body hurting so badly? His face ached, his head throbbed and every time he took a breath the pain in his ribs was nearly unbearable.

"Michael," Allie's angelic voice filled his ears, "I can tell you're waking up but please don't open your eyes yet. I need to explain something to you..."

As if her words were what his struggling eyes had been waiting on they flew open and Michael felt his heart seize with fear.

Where was he? This wasn't his attic. The walls around him were all pinks and greens and the furniture was polished and shining. Where was he and why wasn't he in his attic?

Michael tried to raise up but the pain in his body and Allie's gentle but firm hands upon his shoulders held him down to the bed. Michael looked up at her frantically, staring into her soft brown eyes, "I n...need to b..be in the attic!" he pleaded. "Ma'am... will be angry."

Allie shook her hand and Michael felt his panic mounting. Didn't she understand? Didn't she know how angry Ma'am would be? How scared he was? This wasn't his attic and that thought alone terrified him. The attic was home and all he'd known for his entire life.

The amount of fear welling up inside his heart began to overwhelm him. Michael began to fight against Allie, desperate to slip out of her hold and go back to his home. The pain in his body was intense but his terror outweighed it. He was blinded to all else other than the undeniable, all-consuming need to get back to the attic.

"Michael!" Allie exclaimed as she fought to hold him down on the bed. "Michael, stop this! Ma'am is not here. She's gone, the whole family is. You're safe, Michael! I won't let those people do anything else to you, I swear it."

Michael was past reasoning. He cried out, yelled, kicked and tried desperately to pull away. Suddenly Allie's lips were on his brow and Michael froze.

His body reacted to her lips on his skin in a way that surprised and confused him. He knew a little about desire and what happened between a man and a woman thanks to books but he had never imagined he'd feel that heat they talked about. He felt it now.....

Allie pulled away and Michael found himself trapped in her eyes, "Michael, you're scaring Amelia, you must calm down. Will you stop fighting and listen to me now?"

Michael nodded slowly. He had already stopped fighting and was simply staring at her with wonder. He had already known that she was special but now... His Allie, his angel, was his one love just like the poets wrote about.

Michael nearly laughed out loud at his own foolish thoughts. A woman like Allie would never fall in love with a man like him. No woman would fall in love with a man like him. He was ugly, deformed; a monster. He was weak and pathetic enough that two boys with sticks had bested him. He remembered now. He remembered the pain, the fear, the humiliation when Theodore had scorned him.

"Michael, are you listening?" Allie asked gently.

Michael snapped from his thoughts and saw that she had moved and was sitting sideways on the edge of the bed and watching him with concern, "Yes, I'm listening," he whispered. "But Ma'am will b..be mad. The attic..."

"Is not your home anymore."

Michael turned his head from where he still lay upon the bed and saw Amelia sitting up on a makeshift bed upon the floor. Her freckled face was pale and her brown eyes were wide. He had scared her when he'd been panicking with fear and he was sorry for that.

"The attic is h..home," he countered.

"No it's not," Allie's tone let him know that she was growing impatient and angry. He frowned because he never wanted her to be angry at him. "That attic is not fit to be anyone's home, Michael, and you'll not go back there."

"But Ma'am will..."

"Stop calling her that. She doesn't deserve the respect that comes with that name," Allie warned. Michael nodded and Allie smoothed out her ruffled brown hair and took his hand in hers gently, "They are gone on a trip for two weeks. Theodore, Mrs. Treadwell, Mr. Treadwell, Jacob, Peter, they are all gone from the house."

Michael winced at the mention of Jacob and Peter and it was clear that Allie noticed, "Amelia, can you go to the kitchen and see if there is anything for breakfast? I'm sure Michael is hungry and so am I."

"But Allie..." Amelia whimpered.

"Now, please. You'll have plenty of time to talk to Michael later."

Amelia rolled her eyes but stood up and left the room to do her sister's bidding. Allie turned her gaze back to Michael as he struggled to sit up despite his pain, "Who did this to you?" she questioned sadly.

"That's not im...important," Michael quickly replied, wincing as he tried to sit up again and the pain nearly overwhelmed him. His stomach rolled and he worried he would soil the fancy bedding... he could only imagine the way Ma'am would punish him for that.

"It's important to me," Allie countered as she stood up. She helped Michael to sit up and lean against the headboard and he noticed that she winced every time he did almost as if she could feel his pain. He wished she would kiss him again. He had enjoyed that. "Tell me, Michael. Who did this to you?"

"I was pathetic," Michael replied quietly, turning his gaze away from her. He didn't want Allie to see him like this. How many times had she seen him hit and scolded and never defending himself?

"Are you going to answer me or must I get mad?" Allie asked, her brown eyes sparkling with that goodness that seemed to always shine out of them.

"It was the boys," Michael finally admitted. He could trust Allie with the truth. He believed that she wouldn't laugh at him for being so weak.

"The boys?" Allie questioned, her voice tight.

"Peter and Jacob. W..why did they? I had never m..met them."

"You didn't do anything to deserve this, I promise you," Allie assured him as her eyes became rimmed with red. She stood up and walked to the door, "You stay here and rest, Michael. I'll go see what's taking Amelia so long and see about getting you a proper bath."

Before Michael could reply Allie was gone and she closed the door behind her. Michael stared around the unfamiliar room and swallowed hard. He grabbed the blanket and pulled it over himself, leaving only his nose and eyes and uncovered. He sat there trembling and simply hoping that Allie or Amelia would come back soon.

***

Allie took a few steps down the hall before wrapping her arms around herself, pressing her back to the wall and allowing the tears she'd been fighting to fall from her eyes. To see Michael so scared, weak, hurt, sad and confused was more than she could take without falling apart a little herself.

Why did those boys hurt him? What would make two children who, according to Michael, had never met him, suddenly go into the attic and beat him so mercilessly? And why in the world hadn't Michael done anything to protect himself?

"Allie, what's wrong?" Amelia's voice broke through her tears, "Is something wrong with Michael?"

"He's okay," Allie assured the wide-eyed girl as she swiped her hands over her tear stained cheeks.

"Why are you crying?" Amelia questioned sadly. "You don't ever cry."

Allie felt guilty for letting Amelia see her tears. She didn't need to add any stress or worry to the girl's life, "I just hate seeing Michael in so much pain, that's all."

"Me too," Amelia agreed. She held up a sack, "There wasn't much for breakfast but I did find some muffins left over from yesterdays breakfast."

Allie dried up the last of her tears and smiled at her sister, "Those will work just fine. Why don't you go in there and eat some with Michael while I see to getting him some water for a bath?"

"Okay... Allie, are you sure you're okay? You can be not okay if you need to be," Amelia assured her.

Allie laid a gentle hand on Amelia's freckled cheek, "I'm okay, I promise."

Amelia nodded and Allie waited until she was in the room before she continued down the hall. She made her way down the stairs to the first floor and walked into the kitchen to collect two water buckets only to find Tessa preparing eggs.

"Good morning, child," Tessa greeted.

"Good morning," Allie forced herself to reply.

Concern filled Tessa's brown eyes, "Are ya okay, suga'? Ya look like you've been cryin'."

"I'm just fine. I'm going to get some water and fill our tub upstairs for a bath."

"Might as well do all the relaxin' ya can," Tessa agreed. "Two weeks without them home will turn us lazy I have a feelin'."

Allie nodded in response, grabbed the buckets and left the kitchen, slipping out the back door and heading toward the water spigot. She pumped several times and then the water bubbled within the pipe and came out with a gurgling splash.

She filled both buckets and then carried them inside and up to the room before repeating the process with two more buckets. She was on her way to the bedroom with the third and fourth bucket of water when she saw Tessa at the attic steps with the slop bucket in her hand.

Anger filled Allie, coursing through her veins like a fiery venom, "What are you doing?" she snapped.

Tessa nearly fell as she let out a cry of fear and spun around, covering her heart with her hand, "Ya scared me, suga'."

"Answer me," Allie insisted. "Where are you going with the pig slop?"

"I'm just doing what Mrs. Treadwell told me to do," Tessa replied tightly, "It ain't no concern of yours."

"Yes it is. Michael is very much a concern of mine."

Tessa's dark skin paled slightly. Her eyes widened. Her mouth opened and closed several times, "How do you know that name?"

Allie took several steps closer to the other woman, water sloshing over the edges of her buckets and splashing against the floor, "The man locked in the attic told me himself that that is his name. Tell me, Tessa, have you always know that the boy didn't die or did you discover him for yourself later?"

"You'll hush, child!" Tessa scolded, fear evident in her voice, "You do not know of what you speak! Mrs. Treadwell will not be pleased..."

Allie laughed harshly, "Let me tell you something, Tessa," she said, her voice low and cold. "I am no more afraid of that woman than I am of you. Michael is no longer in that attic and soon he will no longer be in this house. I am getting him away from here and away from the monsters that have trapped him and locked him away for far too long."

"You can't do that," Tessa warned. "You don't understand..."

"No, you don't understand," Allie snapped, shaking Tessa's hand off of her arm when the woman tried to grab her. "No one deserves what they did to him and as far as I'm concerned you are no better than they are. Me, my sister and Michael will be gone from here before the Treadwell's return and you would do well to stay out of my way and not try to stop me."

"Mrs. Treadwell will not be happy...." Tessa whispered, clutching at her apron.

"I care not for her happiness," Allie replied. "My only concern is Michael. And I will tell you this, I am not as weak as I seem. I have killed before to protect those I love and I will do it again if necessary. Bare that in mind before you attempt to get in my way."

Tessa took several staggering steps back and shook her head. Allie waited for her to speak but she remained silent and simply stared at Allie with shock. With a roll of her eyes, Allie swept past Tessa and continued to her room with the water, eager to allow Michael to wash the dirt, dust and blood away. It would be the first step to getting his new life started.