Episode 77 - Home Alone

"Hey, guys," Zara called out a greeting as Blaine and the children entered the house. "Did you have a good time?"

"The best," Doug answered excitedly. "Where's Mom?"

"She went to the grocery. She should be back soon."

As the kids took off their coats and boots, Blaine entered the dining room where Zara was seated on an easy chair with a newspaper in one hand and a pen in the other.

"Doing the crossword?"

"Looking for apartments," Zara replied. She had been at her new job a couple of months now and it was past time to stop crashing on her sister's couch and get her own space. She would have moved out much sooner if Cassie and the kids hadn't needed her in the aftermath of Blaine's accident.

"See anything good?" he asked, taking a seat on the sofa.

"Are you looking for a place?"

"I've been thinking about it," he admitted. "Now that I'm working again, it would be good to be in a place of my own instead of imposing on James and Chloe."

Zara looked across the room at Brooke, who was putting away her boots on the shelf, and tried to gauge her niece's reaction. Blaine's accident and his separation from Cassie had been as hard on Brooke as it had been on Cassie. She had been one of the main reasons Zara had stayed at her sister's house for so long.

"You will want something close to the neighborhood, won't you?" Zara said carefully. "I know even when I move into my own apartment, I will still be here a lot."

"Of course. The closer the better. I would want plenty of space so the kids could stay with me sometimes. Natalie included."

Biting her tongue, Brooke ducked around the corner and fought back angry tears. No apartment could be as close as being back home where they could be together all the time as a family, like they used to be.

She wanted to tell her father to move back home, but she knew what he would say. That wasn't possible right now. It wasn't an option. She wanted things to go back to the way they were before her father's accident and before he had another daughter.

When she heard the conversation turn back to Natalie, as it inevitably did, she wanted to scream. She'd had a nice afternoon with just her and Doug and their dad. Why did it have to end like this? Disgusted, she stormed off to her bedroom.

"Did Reese and Simon leave for their . . . trip this afternoon?" Blaine asked as he looked out the window towards Reese's house where he could see lights shining from the downstairs windows. He couldn't bring himself to say the word honeymoon.

"I think so," Zara said. "I've been keeping an eye out. No signs of fire or wild parties so far."

Even though all seemed well at Reese's house, Blaine wondered if he should stop by to see how Natalie was doing. The last time he had seen her was before her mother's wedding. He wondered how much she knew about their conversation and what she thought of him showing up unexpectedly before the ceremony. They were going to have to clear the air sometime, but he decided it might be better to wait until Reese was back in town.

Blaine said his goodbyes and was leaving the house just as Cassie was pulling into the driveway.

"Hey, let me help you," he offered as she started taking groceries out of the trunk.

"Thanks," she smiled as she handed him a bag.

Between the two of them, they were able to carry in most of the groceries in a single trip. When they returned to the car there was only one bag left.

"I can get the last one," Cassie insisted.

"Okay, well, I'll see you later."

"Blaine," Cassie called after him as he started to walk away. "Since we have a moment alone, can I ask you something?"

"Sure." He turned back towards her.

"Would you consider going out with me, like on a date?" She felt ridiculous being nervous to ask this question to a man she had spent the last fifteen years with, but his bewildered expression in response to her question showed she had a reason to have reservations.

"Cassie . . . you know I can't just pretend that everything is like it was before my accident."

"I'm not asking you to do that," Cassie insisted. "I didn't mean we should go on a date as a married couple, but it should be more like a first date. We could talk over dinner, get to know each other, see if we still like spending time together." The last point nearly made her choke up, but she composed herself. "There don't have to be any expectations for what happens next. It could just be one evening out together."

Blaine frowned, not sure this was a good idea. He knew he and Cassie weren't on the same page regarding their feelings towards each other and it would be impossible to pretend otherwise. "Are you sure you could do that? You could really put your feelings and our history aside? You won't be trying to make me remember?"

"I think it's worth a try. I'm willing to try. If we go out and . . .it doesn't work out, at least we'll know. I'll know . . ." she trailed off, unable to finish her thoughts out loud.

"Okay. I'm willing to give it a shot," Blaine agreed with a shrug. He had nothing to lose from a night out with Cassie. With Reese married to Simon and on their honeymoon, there was nothing else for him to hold out hope for. At the very least, maybe he could give Cassie a chance at closure.

* * * * *

At home alone for the evening, Natalie danced around the kitchen, music blaring, as she fixed herself a snack. It had taken some convincing, but Reese had finally agreed to let her stay home by herself for the weekend, and Natalie was enjoying every minute of having the house to herself.

When the phone rang, she sighed as she turned down the music. No doubt it was her mom checking up on her. Before they had left the house, Reese had asked again if Natalie was sure that she didn't want to stay at a friend's house instead and to remind her that the neighbors were looking out for her and that their numbers were on fridge if she needed anything. She was prepared to hear it all again or some other warning or piece of advice her mom had forgotten to tell her, when she saw the caller wasn't her mother after all.

Pleasantly surprised, she answered the phone more cheerfully. "Hey, Maura."

"Natalie, I have this awesome idea I want to run by you," Maura said excitedly.

"Hold on a second," Natalie interrupted. She moved the phone away from her ear and listened. She thought she heard something.

As she strained to listen, she could make out a scratching, tapping sound coming from the living room. She followed the sound to the back window. Certain that it was just the wind blowing a branch against the window, she moved closer to get a better look. Instead, what she saw made her scream and jump back.

"Natalie? Natalie, what's wrong?" Maura cried out with concern on the other end of the line. "Are you there?"

"What happened?" Vince asked, catching the end of Maura's conversation and the urgency in his sister's voice

Maura shrugged and held the phone out so they could both listen.

"I'm here," Natalie answered in a quiet, shaky voice. She had ducked into the stairway, out of view of the windows and was hyperventilating. Between breaths, she managed to say. "There's someone outside."

"Who?" Maura asked.

"I don't know . . . there was a face . . . it was distorted and horrible," Natalie cried.

Vince took the phone from Maura. "Natalie, it's Vince. Are you safe? Are the doors locked?"

"Yes."

"I'm coming over."

"Don't-"

"I'll be there in two minutes," he said firmly before handing the phone back to Maura and slipping on his shoes. "Stay on the line with her. If anything goes wrong or I'm not back in ten minutes, call Mr. Varner and tell him what's going on."

Maura bit her lip with worry as she locked the door behind Vince and watched through the window until he was out of sight.

* * * * *

Vince jogged down the sidewalk, past the Varner's and the Kitteridge's, and around the corner towards Natalie's house. He kept his eyes open for anyone suspicious, but the street was quiet and still. Nothing stood out in the shadows beyond the glow of the streetlights. The neighbors were home with their lights on, but no one was outside.

As he neared Natalie's house, he slowed his pace and approached more cautiously. In the backyard, he thought he saw a shadow disappear into the bushes along the fence between Natalie's house and the neighbors. He paused, momentarily petrified, before forcing himself to move forward. Any possibility that the shadow had been imagined evaporated when he saw footprints around the windows at the back of the house and to the back of the property line.

Not wanting to disturb the scene further, Vince backed away from the footprints and made his way to the front of the house.

Natalie's hands were shaking as she hastily packed an overnight bag. Her phone was next to her bag on the bed with Maura chatting over the speaker, keeping Natalie company and trying unsuccessfully to calm her nerves.

When she heard a knock on the door, Natalie jumped. She grabbed the phone and took it off speaker, "I think Vince is here. I'm going to go check."

Natalie slung her bag over her shoulder and quickly tiptoed downstairs. She peered cautiously around the corner as she reached the bottom step and held her breath as she glanced at the window. She was afraid to look but only allowed herself to exhale when she saw that nothing was there.

She hurried to the front door, pausing for a moment to peek ahead to make sure the coast was clear. She was relieved to see Vince waiting on the other side of the door.

"It is him," she said to Maura. "I'll see you soon."

Natalie hung up the phone and fumbled to unlock the door. As soon as the door opened, she threw her arms around Vince. "Thank you so much for coming over."

Embarrassed at her unexpected display of affection, Vince awkwardly returned the hug. "No problem. Let's get out of here.

* * * * *

Maura paced the living room, phone in hand, ready in case Natalie or Vince called her back. She moved from window to window trying to get the best vantage point to see Vince and Natalie as soon as they came into view. The minutes seemed to drag on before they finally appeared. As soon as they were in sight, Maura hurried to the front door. She waited until they were just a few feet away before unlocking the door. She threw it open quickly and ushered them inside.

"I'm so glad you're back. Did you see anyone?"

"I think I saw a shadow," Vince admitted hesitantly. He tried to sound casual, not wanting to frighten the girls further. "And definitely some footprints."

"Oh my god," Natalie said as she dropped her scarf and bag and sank down on to the sofa. Her hands were still shaking. "I knew I didn't imagine it, but I was hoping."

Vince sat on one side of her and placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder while Maura took a seat on Natalie's other side.

"And you didn't recognize the face?" Maura asked.

"No, it didn't even look human," Natalie said, her mind going back to that horrifying moment. "It looked like it was deformed or a mask." She shuddered. "I don't want to think about it."

"Then, let's not," Maura agreed. She was creeped out enough just hearing about the face and could only imagine how terrified Natalie must have felt actually seeing it through the window. It was enough to make her want to close all of the blinds in the house immediately.

"You'll be safe here with us," Vince promised.

"And our mom will be home from work soon too," Maura added.

"Do we have to tell her what happened?" Natalie asked. When Vince and Maura looked confused, she explained, "I made a big deal to my mom about wanting to stay home alone. If she knew what happened tonight, she would never agree to let me stay home by myself again."

"If you're sure," Maura reluctantly agreed. "We can tell them I convinced you to come over to help me plan for my big idea."

"What big idea?" Natalie asked.

"It's the reason I called you, but it seems unimportant right now."

"I wouldn't mind a distraction," Natalie admitted. She was already starting to feel calmer and more normal again.

"Okay. Well, before Christmas when we were decorating the neighborhood everyone was talking about Lance Arrendale's birthday party and how awesome it was, and I was thinking our birthdays are coming up. Since they're only a few weeks apart and we have the same friends, we should pair up and throw an epic double sweet sixteen party. What do you think?"

Natalie was taken aback by the idea. It was only a month away, but her birthday was the last thing on her mind. She definitely hadn't given any thoughts to a party. "What did you have in mind?"

"I'm thinking we set the scene with really cool decorations and music for dancing. We can get dressed up and do our hair and makeup and invite all of our friends. We should just throw this huge, fun bash."

"That would be cool," Natalie agreed as she started to warm to the idea.

"So, you're in?"

"Yeah, count me in."

"Great!" Maura jumped up, clapping her hands together. "Let me go get a notepad and let's start writing down ideas!"

As Maura bounded up the stairs, Natalie and Vince were left alone in the quiet living room. They smiled at each other awkwardly.

"You can count on my sister to brighten the mood," Vince remarked.

"Yes, and it seems like I can count on you when I need rescuing. Thank you for coming to get me."

"Anytime."

"How many times is it now that you've been there when I needed you? Three?"

"I'm not sure the first one counts," Vince said with a frown. He hated getting credit for helping Natalie and Blaine escape the burning law office when he never should have been there in the first place.

"That was the most important one of all," Natalie insisted. "But these last two. I still can't figure out who sent me that text on Christmas or why they were trying to lure me to the park or why someone would be prowling around my house tonight. Why would someone be targeting me?"

Vince shook his head. "I don't know. I'm sure it's not you."

"But it has to be. The mystery text called me by name, and someone was peeking in through my window. They knew I had been decorating at the park, and they probably knew I was home alone tonight."

She was starting to panic again, so Vince set his hand on hers to reassure her. "I've never seen you be unkind to anyone. Why would any target you?"

"I don't know, but it feels like they are."

As Maura came downstairs, she grinned at seeing Vince and Natalie looking so close, especially when they both instinctively leaned away from each other as she came down the stairs. She set her pens and notebook down on the coffee table and made an excuse to give them a moment alone. "I'm going to make some popcorn. Maybe after the party planning, we can all watch a movie together."