Silent Run

contact with you again. And for a while I couldn’t physically do it even if I wanted to. I was in Witness Protection. Then Victor sent Shane to kill me in the safe house. If he’d found me there, he could find me anywhere. I had to run. I had to stay in the shadows. I was afraid one wrong move would bring him straight to me, or to someone else I cared about."
    â€œYou told Andy. What did you think -- that his comic-book superhero could protect you?” Catherine asked.
    Sarah saw the pain in Catherine’s eyes. So many of her decisions had hurt the people she loved. “I needed a new identity. Andy was the only one who could do that for me. But he died for it."
    â€œHe died because of Victor,” Teresa put in again.
    â€œHe died because he helped me,” Sarah said, “and because Victor thought Andy knew where I was. So many people have been hurt because of me, including the guards in the safe house who were supposed to protect me. And then poor Mrs. Murphy got beaten up and Amanda got burned out of her apartment. I’m like a hurricane, bringing trouble in my wake."
    â€œYou could have brought it my way,” Catherine repeated. “I would have helped you."
    â€œYou finally had what you wanted, the art school scholarship, the glamorous life in New York. I didn’t want to take that away from you. After a while, when things settled down, I thought about calling you, but I figured by then the damage had been done and nothing could be gained. You had your life, and I had mine, such as it was."
    â€œShe didn’t call me either,” Teresa interjected. “Which also pisses me off. You waited eight years to get back in touch, Jessica. Way too long."
    â€œYou were my family. And you were safe away from me. I wanted to keep it that way."
    â€œBut you let Jake into your life,” Catherine pointed out. “You had to know it was a risk."
    â€œI did know it. In the beginning I told myself it was a fling, a temporary thing, but he was too great to let go,” she said with a helpless shrug. “I was being selfish hanging on to him. When I got pregnant -- oh, my God, I was terrified. It was a complete accident. I had never intended to get that involved with anyone. But I couldn’t get rid of my baby. I couldn’t walk away from Jake. That’s when I started telling myself lies -- like, It’s been five years and Victor has probably forgotten about you. And my other favorite -- Victor is in jail; he can’t hurt you now. I was an idiot. I never even considered that he could get out on parole after serving a third of his sentence.” She let out a sigh. “I don’t expect either of you to understand or forgive me."
    â€œI’m not judging you,” Catherine said. “I just wish I could have helped you, Jessica. I always thought of you like my little sister. And I never stopped worrying about you. I saw you in my dreams. For months I could hear your voice calling out to me. I could see you running down this street late at night, and all I could think about was how much you hated the dark."
    â€œThat was after I ran away from the safe house,” Sarah said slowly. She’d forgotten about Catherine’s visions. She had had no idea that Catherine would have spent so much time worrying about her. They hadn’t seen each other in over a year when she’d disappeared from Chicago. She’d just assumed that Catherine would go on with her life.
    â€œI knew you were in danger. I felt terrible that I couldn’t help,” Catherine added.
    â€œWell, you helped me today. If you hadn’t hit Rick over the head with that bat, we could all be dead now. Where did you get it, anyway?"
    â€œTeresa’s hall closet. I was going for an umbrella, but I found something better. Dylan had told me to stay put, to call the cops, but I knew he was walking into a volatile situation. I couldn’t stand by and do nothing."
    â€œI never thought you had that in you,” Teresa said, amazement in her voice. “You, Catherine, were always such a pacifist, peace, love, joy, harmony. What happened to that?"
    â€œI’m not a pacifist when it comes to people I care about. By the way, what’s with going back to your old name, Tracy?” she asked, turning her attention to Teresa. “You hated that name."
    â€œI’ve been trying it out, but I think I’m going to stick with Teresa."
    â€œYou two