// Haunted by my Past

[LYLA MARIE BAILY]

Life was actually great for Lyla Baily. Everything in it seemed to be falling into place. School was so much easier for her now that all her electives were out of the way and she could just paint in all her classes. And with her new website up and running, all of her paintings were automatically ready to sell and be displayed. It was wonderful. People had already begun to take an interest in her work and she'd made multiple sales since the website had been put up. And because of the extra cash from her work, and also Sebastian retiring, she knew that soon she could finally quit her job at the cafe and focus full time on school and her art work.

All of this, with Sebastian at her side was like heaven. Living with him and their two cute pups almost felt like a real family. She felt at home with him, and she couldn't have been any happier. Even her mom seemed to be doing better. Lyla loved her mother with all her heart. Best friends since birth, the two had always been extremely close. No secrets ever fell between them, and the two trusted each other with their lives. Lyla knew she wouldn't be the woman she is today without the perfect counsel from her mom. She owed her so much. Lyla had thought that moving out of her mom's house would only trigger more panic attacks, but it seemed that seeing her daughter so happy and free was helping her a lot. It took a lot of worry off her shoulders, and as a result, less attacks hit her. Knowing that her mom was happy took a lot of weight off Lyla's shoulders as well. Life was just finally looking up, and it was about time.

Cleaning around her studio at home, Lyla's face lit up with a smile as she saw her mom's picture pop up on the caller ID to her cell phone. She talked to her mom every day, but usually it was a little earlier in the day. She'd just assumed her mother must've slept in. "Hey mom," answer Lyla happily. When she heard her mother's voice on the other end though, the smile disappeared. "L-Lyla.. he's here. I don't know how he found me. But it's him. He's here!" Her mother's voice was an urgent whisper, hushed from fear, and Lyla's face went pale. Her mother had experienced panic attacks before where she thought her husband had returned, but because she'd been doing so well lately, Lyla just knew without a doubt. This was no panic attack. "I'm coming mom, lock the door and hide. Do NOT let him see you," she ordered urgently, already grabbing her keys and a baseball bat, and heading into her car that Seb had gotten for her. "Mom, I'm going to call Seb. I'll call you right back I promise," she said quickly, and she could hear her mother's small whimper of agreement before she hung up.

Lyla was driving just like her Sebastian, with speed and accuracy as she raced toward her old home. She called Seb's cell but there was no answer. He was usually training at the time and didn't have his phone on him. "Shit," she cursed, and quickly tried his phone again. But every second she knew her mother was waiting for her return call, and she couldn't wait any longer. She dialed 911 as her final call and told them to send someone to the address. When they told her they were on their way she immediately redialed her mom's phone.... No answer. Lyla's heart was racing. Why wouldn't she pick up? Had he found her?

Meanwhile, her mother Beth had been waiting, curled up on her bed with her bedroom door locked, her phone in hand as she waited her daughter to call her back. She could hear Clark on the other side of the door, obviously drunk just as he'd always been. "Open the door Beth! Or I'll trash this whole place. Fifteen grand, that's all I ask," he yelled through the door. "I don't HAVE fifteen grand!" she shouted back. "Leave me alone Clark! Just go!" Clark growled and pounded on the door. "Bitch you OWE me!" he shouted. "I don't owe you a thing!" Clark pounded on the door again. "I left like you asked, and I deserve this. Give me the fucking money!" With that, Clark began to kick at the door, until it finally snapped and broke open, causing Beth to scream in fear and back into the corner of the room.

Lyla rushed into the home, "Mom?!" she shouted, baseball bat in hand before she heard the door snap down the hall and her mother's scream. She sprinted down the hall and into the bedroom where she saw her father for the first time in over a decade, pressing her mother up against the wall and shouting at her before smacking her across the face hard. Lyla screamed with fury and charged, swinging the bat hard into the back of the man's ribs, causing him to release Beth and buckle over. Beth caught herself on the bedside table, but Clark on the other hand was already recovering and turning on Lyla. "You ruined my life!" he shouted at her, "You were never supposed to happen!" The words caused Lyla's heart to shrivel and shrink with pain, hurting even more than the fist that soon landed on her cheek, sending her straight to the ground.

"Stay down! And don't fucking but into where you don't belong girl," he hissed, before kicking Lyla in the back hard. Lyla curled in pain but she could still hear her mother scream and she opened her eyes just in time to see her charge Clark from behind, only to have him back hand her hard, sending her back, her head knocking the bedside table with a loud thump on the way down. Lyla gasped at the site and tried to get up, but Clark stood staring at the limp figure that used to be his wife for a few moments, before going through the room, grabbing what valuables he could, including most of her mother's antique jewelry and some of her hidden cash. Then without another word he fled the home.

Lyla watched him go with hateful eyes until she was able to crawl over to her mother's body. She could smell the blood, and already, it was pooling in a small puddle beneath her sweet mother's head. "M.. Mom?" she whispered carefully, reaching out slowly to touch her cheek. Her mother wasn't moving.. not even breathing.. and Lyla knew it was too late. "Mom..." she said again, her voice cracking as she started to cry, "Please mom... don't go," she pleaded, her hand cupping her mother's cheek as her other arm cradled her into her lap, "Mom wake up... please wake up," she cried, then just buckled over her mother, held her body close, and wept.