The cool blue water looks deep and inviting. Small waves lap at the sandy beach. Young children squeal in delight as the water rushes over their toes. The lake appears to glisten from the reflection of the sun.

Alexandra stands on the old worn dock that stretches out over the water. Her brunette hair waves in the light breeze. Rotten planks creak under her bare feet, and a few break loose tumbling into the water below.

A soft singing voice fills the air, and Alexandra freezes. Spinning around, she searches for the source of the voice, and her eyes come to rest on the water. A face looks up at her smiling sadly. Alexandra cries out and rushes to the edge, but the face dissolves. Not a trace remains to suggest it had been there in the first place.

She screams in outrage arousing the attention of the few people around. "You cannot hide her from me forever!" Alexandra says.

"Oh, but I can," comes the reply. "You have no power over me." The voice is feminine and tantalizing. Alexandra will not fall for its trap again.

"I will not let you fool me," Alexandra says her voice shaking slightly. "I know what you've done."

"She misses you Alexandra. She wants to come home," the voice says. "You know the price." Alexandra begins to cry, letting the hot tears run down her face.

"You ask too much," she says trying to put force into her words.

"Do I?" the voice replies. "It's a fair deal. An eye for an eye, as some would say. Isn't your own mother worth paying for?"

"I will not let you take another from me," Alexandra says turning around and rushing back to the safety of her home.

Slamming the screen door, she collapses onto the leather couch staring up at the picture hanging above the mantel. "Mom," she whispers. The woman in the picture smiles looking happy and content. Alexandra cries until her tears dry up, and she falls asleep.

A couple houses away, two men watch as their newborn children watch the water in amazement. The woman from the dock has not gone unnoticed, though both men choose to ignore it. To act on it would only make matters worse.

The smaller child cries suddenly when the water laps at his feet. "Jack, you have to take her to a doctor," his friend says as he rocks the child in his arms comforting it. Jack's blue eyes fill with sadness as he brushes his fingers through his daughter's sparse blonde curls absently.

"I can't," Jack says quietly. "You know that. You know where they'll take her. I promised her I'd take care of her." He runs a hand through his hair, which has specks of grey already starting to form. The stress on his family has him aging way too fast.

"She's a danger to your daughter," the friend says. "You can't keep living the way you are. It's not good for any of you." Jack smiles sadly knowing his friend speaks the truth, but unwilling to carry out the actions.

Night falls enveloping the town in darkness. Mothers herd their children back to the safety of their homes where dinner waits. The night stands still, and the only sound comes from the quiet whistle of the wind.

At the edge of the lake, the smallest house lies in darkness. No lights can be seen, the curtains drawn, the shutters closed. A dark aura surrounds the run down place. In the soft moonlight, the peeling blue paint and tattered roof can barely be seen.

A splitting cry sounds from the house followed by a loud crash. A light flicks on in one of the rooms and shadows are seen inside. The silhouette of a young woman claws desperately at the glass on the window. No one bothers to make sure she's okay. The residents expect the occasional odd occurrence coming from the Anderson place.

Curses fly through the night as the helpless woman tries desperately to fight the madness that engulfs her. The window shatters as a large object flies through the air. The object lands in the lake where it floats for a few moments before slowly sinking into the darkness. Her words end in dry sobs as she collapses onto the ground and begins to shake violently.

From across the room, Jack looks on helplessly. He desperately wants to help her, but there's nothing he can do. Her episodes only get worse and worse each night. Instead, he stays pressed against the faded blue wallpaper in an attempt to stay unnoticed. A tiny wail from across the hall sends the man into the next room where a tiny child is crying for attention.

Jack picks the child up and rocks her back and forth trying to calm her down. A homemade tape plays a lullaby, Alexandra's voice soft and sweet. Eventually, the child's cries dissolve into whimpers, and she falls asleep. As Jack stands there, holding his newborn baby girl, he makes a decision. They can't go on like this. No child should be brought up in a house like this.

He creeps back into the bedroom with the child in his arms. Alexandra still lies on the floor shaking uncontrollably muttering about the 'lady in the lake.' Her sobs fill the dark, cold room. "I'm sorry Alexa." Jack whispers, but his words only seem to fuel her rage.

She viciously grabs for the child, causing Jack to stumble back in surprise. "Give her to me!" Alexandra screams. "I need her!"

"I have to take her away," Jack says, tears threatening to overpower him. "I'm sorry, but I won't let you kill our daughter."

"You don't understand!" Alexandra cries. "My mother! I can get her back!"

"For the price of your only daughter; I know," Jack says. "Alexandra these visions, this monster in the lake, none of it's real."

"Of course it is!" Alexandra snaps. "I have to make the trade. I have to get her back." She made a move to snatch the child, but Jack stepped back evasively.

"I won't let you," he says backing towards the door. Alexandra falls back, smacking her head on one of the posts of the large king size bed before collapsing onto the ground, her breaths getting shallower as the madness threatens to kill her.

Almost five years later, midnight, a loud wail erupts from the old Anderson house. No different than any other night, the woman, trapped inside her own mind, threatens everyone she can think of, cursing her husband, the man who ruined her life.

Across the lake, a small light flickers on. Jack tears back the dark brown curtains and throws the cracked window open shuddering at the banshee like screams filling the air. He runs a hand through his grey hair sighing. "Alexandra, you have to stop this madness. You have to fight it," he whispers.

A creak on the steps indicates Lily is up. Jack turns around to find his daughter, now five years old, behind him. She keeps one hand placed firmly on the railing, as if by letting go she will be sucked into the nighttime. Her long blonde curls cover her bright green eyes. Her angelic face has been tainted by worry. "Daddy?" she whispers. "Why is that woman screaming?"

"A sad woman with a terrible past," Jack says gently, picking her up. For a moment, they both watch from the window as the woman continues to rant and rave. Lily lays her head on her father's shoulder.

"Tell me about my mother," she says. Jack looks at Lily, then back to the window. "I dreamed about her again."

"The same dream?" Jack asks. Lily nods.

"The one with the yellow room and the music playing. It's my mother singing isn't it?" Lily asks. Jack closes his eyes and nods.

"She loves you very much Lily," he says. "And I've never stopped loving her."