Ax

Axel moves his fingers to curl around Jess' hand, stopping her from rubbing for a moment. "Jess..." He shakes his head. "No one is going to make you stay at a hotel. If you try, you're going to insult this family..."

He can't help a small smile. "...and me."

His eyes roam to the stairs, his nightly habit kicking in. "You wouldn't want to go for a walk, would you?"


Dan opens the door slowly, the look on his face one of caution. But hearing who this man is, a small smile forms. "Hi, Nate, nice to finally meet you. We've heard a lot about you. Yes, Laura's here, please come in." He opens the door wider for Nate to enter.

A few of the grandkids are in the living room watching a movie before their parents come to pick them up, and they turn around to eye Nate curiously, but none get up.

Dan leads Nate through to the kitchen where Paula is washing dishes. She turns around, a warm smile coming to her face. "Well, you must be Nate." She dries her hands and approaches to offer her own handshake. "Welcome."

Dan gives his wife a nod. "He'd like to see Laura."

Paula's eyes fill with a sadness. "She's been out back for several hours now." She looks to Nate with sympathy. "She wouldn't eat supper... said she wanted to blow off some steam, so she went for the wood pile. You can find her out there." She gestures to the back door.

Dan gives Nate a look of approval. "If you need anything, let us know." He opens the back door for him.


Laura takes another swing, the ax coming down hard into its target, splitting the piece of wood in half. The loud chop echoes through the dim yard. She only pauses a moment to wipe her brow with the leather glove on her hand before aiming and swinging again.

Her hair is sweaty, hanging down the sides of her face after escaping the rubber band that was meant to hold it back. One of Dan's flannel shirts hangs loosely over her t-shirt, the sleeves having long since been rolled up as the task had made her warm.

Another swing. Another small log split. Another frustrated yell. The muscles in her arms ache, but she doesn't stop. Anger glistens in her eyes.

The evening was darkening slowly, the sky clear and hanging onto the last light of dusk. A cool misty haze envelopes the yard, hiding most anything else from view. Laura didn't mind. She felt more alone this way. And that's why she'd come out here.

Her back to the house, she doesn't see the door open, and doesn't hear anyone approaching.

An angry yell comes forth along with another swing. The log doesn't split. Another chop follows, and another and another until the stubborn wood finally breaks in half. Laura stops to catch her breath, bending over as her heart raced from the exercise. Her jeans were damp and dirty, proving she'd been out here for hours already. She was tired... so tired. But she didn't want to sleep. She wanted to kill this terror inside of her. She wanted to destroy the weakness she felt.

Another log. Another chop. The ax's blade is driven down into the wood fibers.