Notes: Sorry that this took so long to post. I’ve been working on other things, I went to Florida for a week and then Belgium for a month, though I was there for like four days longer than planned because of Hurricane Rita. And then I was writer’s blocked on this story. But thankfully I managed to push myself to finish this chapter. Be happy everyone!!!
Chapter 11

Just before lunch the next day Sharri sat back in her chair, letting the pen fall from her fingers. She had been working on her schoolwork since nine that morning and it was time for a break. She stretched out her arms above her head and then sank back into her chair, listening to the music coming from the stereo that had appeared in her room the night before when she had been in the shower.

She didn’t know who had put it in there, but it wasn’t the one she had seen in Luke’s room, of that she was sure. She had also been delighted when she also found a small stack of music next to it. The music was a mixture of classical, soft rock, a little of Evanescence, and just a tiny bit of rock. She was extremely curious who knew what she liked to listen to, but as the saying “don’t look a gift horse in the mouth” goes, she wouldn’t ask.

At the moment she had soft rock softly blaring from the stereo, something that she could work well with. Rising from her chair she went to turn it off and finished stretching her body. With one final glance around her room, she silently walked out, heading down to the kitchen. Her stomach was definitely glad that she was taking a break for food.

Only Jason was in the house, most likely in the den or the kitchen. The others were wherever they disappeared to the day before, so she could wander through the house without any worries of coming in contact with the others before she was ready.

Jason was already in the kitchen heating up what appeared to be leftover lasagna. She came in and tapped on the doorframe to let him know she was there; having surprised him and Luke the night before and earlier this morning with her unnatural silence when she moved. He turned to her, a warm smile on his face. She inquired about lunch, prompting him to say,

“Well with as much lasagna as Trey made last night we had quite a bit of leftovers. Even with Seth’s appetite we had much to save.” He looked mildly amused at the thought of his friend’s ability to consume so much.

Sharri could feel her own smile form and walked deeper into the room.

“Healthy appetite, your Seth has?” she signed with a grin, silently giggling.

Jason thought he heard feminine giggles, but said nothing of it. “Healthy? Well, not so much, but large? Oh yes, definitely.” He said, returning the grin with amusement.

Sharri silently giggled again, something Jason heard yet again, but still said nothing of it. The girl slid into a chair at the table and then asked, “So Trey likes to cook?”

Jason’s smile widened and he nodded, “Yes. If I’m not already in the kitchen Trey comes in and starts something. He loves to cook or bake and does so whenever he gets the chance.” He said.

Sharri tilted her head slightly to the side, signing, “My mother taught me quite a bit of Chinese cuisine and I have numerous recipes at home.” At that she grew sad at by those thoughts and had to wipe at her eyes, lest she cry.

Jason was silent, knowing that if said or did anything it’d set her off and she probably didn’t want that. He bustled around the kitchen, pulling out plates, silverware and cups, setting them on the table. He started whistling a random tune as he pulled out the leftover salad Sharri had made for the night before and set that on the table in the center.

Sharri quickly calmed and helped Jason by putting ice and tea in their glasses. She set them back on the table, in front of their plates. The blond himself took out the lasagna with pot holders and set it on the table beside the salad.

The front door opened and then closed swiftly enough before footsteps could be heard.

The two in the kitchen looked at each other, but recognized the footsteps.

“Luke.” Sharri signed the same time Jason voiced it. They exchanged smiles and then looked up in time to see Luke walk in.

“I guess we need another place set.” Jason said as he watched his friend take a seat at the table, putting himself in the middle.

Sharri collected the needed eating ware before the blond could do anything and set them before Luke. He met her gaze briefly, but still remained silent.

In a few moments Jason was finished, everything they needed on the table. The two sat and lunch was eaten with a polite conversation, mainly Jason speaking with a few single replies from Luke and silent ones from Sharri. They finished shortly, Sharri avoiding clean up for once by giving the excuse of homework. Jason just smiled and sent her to her room. Luke remained and assisted the blond in cleaning up and was silent until they were practically done.

“I’ve arranged an appointment for Sharri at the doctor’s. I’ve also had you excused from the office this afternoon, but I need to return.” Luke said.

Jason nodded and asked, “What time is her appointment?”

“One thirty.”

“Very well.” Jason nodded and then watched as Luke silently left. He heard keys jingling and then the front door opening and shutting.

Shaking his head with a smile he finished tidying up. Then he went into the study, just across from the den and took a seat at the desk.

Sharri heard when Luke left, but her attention was mainly on the schoolwork before her. She didn’t want to fall behind in anything; she couldn’t afford to seeing as she would most likely not be returning to school for a long while. She had finished half of her Japanese work the night before after Luke had helped her, so she set the rest of it aside. Now she was working on history. With Celtic music in the background her head bobbed occasionally to the tune while her pen ran across the current page underneath her hand.

All too soon she felt Jason’s presence in the doorway. Looking up from her work she turned her gaze to the blond.

“Something wrong?” she signed to him.

“You have a doctor’s appointment to go to. I came to let you know that we’re leaving in twenty minutes. Your appointment is at one thirty.” He said slowly, hoping that the girl wouldn’t object.

She blinked and then moments later nodded her head slowly. “Very well. I’ll be down shortly.” She signed.

Jason bowed his head and then quietly disappeared.

Sharri sighed mentally, her shoulders sagging. She didn’t particularly wish to go anywhere, especially where she would come in contact with other people. But she also wanted to know if she was physically okay. She especially wanted to know when she would be able to use her voice. Not that she minded using sign language, she loved it, but she was beginning to tire of it.

Grabbing her brush she ran it through her hair before pulling it back in a french braid. Socks came from the top drawer of her dresser and her shoes sat next to her desk.

Jason didn’t have to wait long; barely ten minutes passed when Sharri silently came down.

An hour and a half went by while Sharri was with the doctor, female of course. Jason waited patiently, reading a book he had though to bring along. Luckily when Luke had made the arrangements for appointment he had also specifically found a doctor that could also use sign language, as well as being female, so Jason was not needed for interpretations.

So even engrossed with the novel as he was, when he was softly tapped on the shoulder he wasn’t startled. Blinking he immediately looked up to find the doctor standing there. He raised an eyebrow when he didn’t see his charge.

“She’s fine Mr. Straem. She requested a few moments alone before she came back out.” The doctor said with a warm smile.

He nodded and asked, “Is everything okay then?”

The doctor nodded, “She will be fine. Rest and quietude is what she needs in order to heal. There’s no permanent damage, though it will take some time for her voice to heal, as well as her fear of people. But I am no psychiatrist. This is just what I have come up with on my own.” She said.

Jason nodded, a slight frown creasing his forehead. “Thank you, but I must ask: Does she need to visit a psychiatrist?”

She was a little surprised at the question, but she shook her head, “No. Whatever she is doing now seems to be working, both mentally and emotionally.” Then she added, “Just what is she doing right now…or should I say you?” the doctor gave the young man a knowing smile.

Jason could feel a slight flush creep into his fair cheeks and had to glance away from the older woman. “I and a few friends are keeping an eye on her, as well as making sure she has a place to stay. We’ve also spoken to her school and have taken steps so she doesn’t fall behind in her studies.” He replied, looking back at her.

She nodded, “I see. So you are basically keeping her from withdrawing away from everything.”

Jason was refrained from having to say anything as Sharri came through the door. He turned a warm smile to her, who returned it shyly. She gazed around, her movements a bit timid as she walked to stand by his side.

“Can we go now?” she signed, keeping her arms and hands as close to her body as she could and still sign clearly.

Jason tilted his head towards her, though his green gaze was on the doctor.

“Go on, get her out of here. But I’ll want to do a follow up in a couple of weeks.” The doctor said.

“Of course.” Jason replied as he and Sharri turned to leave. He led her to the front desk to schedule the next appointment and then they headed out to his truck, which was smaller than Luke’s.

As they climbed in and settled themselves Jason asked, “Is there anything I can get you while we’re out and about?”

She looked over at him and then signed, “No, not really, but I would like to have my laptop.” She tried not to look too hopeful; she didn’t really need it, but she wanted to send emails to a few of her friends to let them know how she was doing.

Jason was the tiniest bit surprised at the slight reluctance in her request, but gave a smile, “Of course. I’m assuming it’s at your house?” he asked.

She nodded and gave him the address before he even asked.

“Oh good. It’s not too far away.” He said cheerfully as he started the engine and pulled the vehicle out of the parking space.

When they arrived at her house, she asked the blond to remain out in the truck. He agreed and then settled with his book as she slipped from the truck. Walking up to the door she dug out the key, which she carried with her most times. Letting herself in she pocketed the key again then made her way to her bedroom. As she entered she closed her eyes, letting the familiar scent and sense of her room engulf her.

Minutes passed before she opened her eyes again.

Gazing around her room her eyes settled on the laptop sitting atop a desk in the far corner, the corner closest to her bathroom. Going to it she unplugged it from the wall and began winding up the cords. The carrier came from her closet across the room and in the laptop and cords went. When they were secure she gazed around the room again in case there was something else she wanted. There was.

A few floppy disks were slipped into a side pocket of the carrier, which was now slung over a shoulder.

She also snagged three books from her bookshelf, two from Mercedes Lackey’s Valdemar series and a favorite romance by Kathleen E. Woodiwiss. With those in her arms she made her way back out and locked the front door behind her. For a couple of moments she stood silently in front of the door, but then made her way back to Jason’s waiting truck and slowly climbed in, minding the fragile machine she carried.

Jason slightly raised an eyebrow at the books, but nodded, “Novels are good to have, especially with winter coming up.”

For some reason Sharri could not comprehend why she was pleased at his approval. Mentally shrugging she just nodded to him and soon they were on their way again.

The drive back to where she now stayed was silent Jason not starting up any kind of conversation.

Going into the house she swiftly went up to her room, shutting herself in. She glanced at her desk, but seeing it completely covered with her schoolwork she decided that for right now her laptop would be set up on her bed. Setting the books on the nightstand she climbed slowly onto the bed, moving the bag in front of her so she wouldn’t accidentally hit it.

A few minutes passed and soon her laptop was set up, running smoothly and her carry bag on the floor out of the way. Sitting up against the wall, laptop in her lap she settled herself and worked on sending out a couple of emails. After that she spent some time reading online, but after awhile she became restless.

Glancing out of the window she noticed that the screen still had not been replaced; she smiled a little at that. Deciding to head out into the tree, she put the programs she had open down and then carefully set the laptop to the side.

Easing off the bed she walked to the window, a hand reaching out to slide it open; she never locked it, being on the second floor. Within moments she was in the tree’s branches, silently and gracefully climbing through them until she reached the little nook she had sat in before. Wedging herself comfortably in it she turned her eyes towards the park she always loved to watch, noticing that the ducks were all out on the water, some with trailing ducklings behind them. Smiling to herself she settled to watch them for awhile, knowing that she could let her mind wander and not worry about anything.

Very relaxed and comfortable for being in a tree for a couple of hours, she did notice when the men arrived home. Luke was home first, but the other three soon followed after, the one she knew for Seth arriving on a motorcycle. She had to smile at that. One of her friends a year ago had a motorcycle, that is, until his father drove it one night and crashed it, though luckily he survived. She watched them all go in the house, none of them noticing that she had been in the tree, which could be seen for the most part from the driveway.

She sensed that they were all gathering in the den, where Jason was and then knew that they were talking for a while. It wasn’t until she caught her name spoken a couple of times that she turned her attention to the five men inside the house. It seemed that they hadn’t gotten that far into the conversation as she heard the next words:

“It’s not our jurisdiction Seth and you know it,” Luke said firmly.

Sharri may have been outside in her usual perch, but she could hear them as if she was in the room with them. She still didn’t know why that happened, but it was very useful, especially at times like now. She always found out information she wouldn’t otherwise have been told.

Seth and the one named Trey had just returned from wherever they disappeared to most days and had called the rest of their companions into the den. It had caught her attention, and though she missed the very first few exchanges, she had a very vague idea what they were discussing. And Seth’s reply drew her attention back in.

“Luke, you know as well as everyone else, if not more, that Sharri becomes very restless in her dreams anytime she sleeps alone. You always have to wake her up and then you or Jason remain in the same room when it happens.” Seth carefully worded his thoughts. “What if she knows that the men who did this to her are dealt with? It’s plausible that she will begin to subconsciously calm down.”

“But searching for the men on our own oversteps the proper authorities.” Luke said.

“But we may be able to find them faster than the police. Besides, it’s been three days since you’ve spoken with them, five days since Sharri was assaulted.” Trey’s voice was calm, but he was on Seth’s side of the argument.

Jason seemed to step in and his voice could be heard, soft but firm, “That may be true, but Luke is also right. This is clearly not our jurisdiction. We can do nothing but care for Sharri and cooperate with the authorities.”

“And you are not being a hypocrite yourself Luke?” Chen’s voice came out firm and clear.

Sharri could just imagine a couple of the others shifting to look at the Chinese. She knew from casual watching at a distance that Chen tended to stand apart from the others, still a friend, but never truly together with the other four.

“What do you mean Chen?” Jason asked, his voice a little puzzled.

“Ask Luke,” Chen replied.

Silence followed for a couple of minutes and then Luke’s deep voice could be heard, “I have looked into the matter myself, but thus far have found nothing worth my while.” He said blandly.

“Luke!” Jason’s voice was still soft, but admonishing.

But nothing more could be said, being interrupted by the ringing of the phone. The girl heard one of them mumble and then steps in the direction of the kitchen. Unfortunately she couldn’t hear that conversation, even if it was going to be one-sided.

Taking a deep breath she blinked and then realized one of her legs had fallen asleep or partway at least.

“Urg.” She thought, “Just what I need. Now how am I going to wake it up to jump back through the window?” she mentally grumbled. She eased her legs out before her, still well balanced where she had wedged herself. Her feet were braced against another branch.

Thunder boomed nearby, making her jerk her gaze up at the sky through the branches. The sky had darkened considerably since she had first come out and knew it would be storming that night. She knew that she should get inside before it started to rain and she got drenched. Sagging her shoulders and a mental sigh she braced herself to begin her descent to the ground. There was just no way she’d be able to jump back through her window while her legs were asleep. That was one risk she did not particularly care to take.

So as she carefully and slowly eased her small body down through the branches, hugging the trunk in a couple of places, her mind went to the conversation she just overheard. She was completely and utterly astonished that they would wish to find the rapists/murderers. They didn’t know her or her parents. Why would they go through the lengths to find them? Did they feel like they were obligated to do this because she was female? She shook her head at that thought. No, maybe they didn’t feel obligated, but they certainly wouldn’t mind taking revenge if they were able.

They were soldiers, she recalled belatedly. It was in their nature to defend the weak and helpless. So it was natural that they would wish to seek out the offenders.

Just as she was stepping down onto the last branch before the short jump down, she was startled out of her thoughts by a masculine voice.

“Sharri, you need to come inside. I have some news for you.”

But Sharri lost her concentration, losing her grip and fell. Before the male could react though, she twisted around and fell to the ground in a roll, coming up gracefully to her feet. She blinked and found Luke standing before her. Luck had her rise to her feet just inches away from him.

She was privately pleased that he looked a little surprised at her feat. But before she could get a clearer look at his expression it was back to the usual impassive look.

“You wanted--” she started to sign before being interrupted by a loud clap of thunder, accompanied by a dagger of lightning. In turn it heralded the rain that began to pour in sheets seconds later.

“Come on!” Luke yelled over the noise and the two sprinted for the front door.

Entering he called out, “Jason, Sharri did not use her usual means of reentering the house and is standing here with me.”

The blond poked his head out of the den and said, “I anticipated that and already sent the others into the kitchen. Trey has taken over the preparing of dinner and has already taken command over Seth and Chen as helpers.” He smiled at that.

Luke nodded as Sharri pulled the door closed behind her. Despite that they were only exposed to the rain for a few seconds, they were dripping, but not completely soaked. Jason noticed this quick enough and then firmly added,

“And you two better dry off and change within the next few minutes.” He gave a little frown before disappearing.

Luke gave the girl an amused smirk and preceded her to the staircase. Sharri followed at a moderate distance behind him and silently went into her room when she reached the top, closing the door behind her.

The sound of rain drew her attention to her window. Hurrying to it she pulled it closed before much more water could get inside. Already the windowsill had water pooling and streaming down onto the floor, seeping into the carpet.

Luckily she kept a spare towel in her room, which she quickly used on herself, changed into some warm clothes and then used the towel to sop up the water at the window.

She was seated on her bed rebraiding her hair when a soft tap came from the door. She looked up as it opened a couple of inches.

“Sharri,” came Luke’s voice. He peered in, spotted her and said, “You need to put some shoes on and grab a jacket. We need to go some place.”

“Why? Where?” she signed quickly.

His eyes flicked from her hands to her face and he replied, “We are going to have a chat with the police. They have some information for us to hear.”

She blinked and nodded, her fingers nimbly finishing the braid. Luke left her, closing the door behind him.

Minutes later she was cautiously descending the stairs, shoes on her feet and jacket in her arms. Luke was waiting near the door, already wearing his own jacket and keys in hand.

“Ready?” he asked as she stepped down the last step. She nodded and followed him the few feet to the door.

“We’ll be back as soon as we can Jason.” He called over his shoulder.

“Till then.” Jason’s voice came back through the bottom story of the house.

Luke was out of the door, leaving Sharri to follow. With one final glance around she went after Luke, quickly slipping into her jacket and bundling into it against the rain. The older boy led her to a large truck, quickly climbing in. Sharri followed suit and buckled herself in silently as he started the engine.

NOTES: Well, I was proud that I got this chpater out, but I’m having trouble with the next one, so I don’t know when I would be able to get that one posted…….sorry guys.