Song That Saved My Life - Unfinished (Read 2,199 times)

[feelinway2damngood]

Author's Note: The author apologizes that this story is unfinished, at least for the time being.

Summary: Sami has always had her uncle Bo at her side, through good times and bad, but his past threatens to destroy their entire relationship. Complete AU. Neither E.J. DiMera nor Carrie Brady exist in this story.

Thought you had

All the answers

To rest your heart on

But something happens

You don't see it coming, no

You can't stop yourself


Bo Brady woke out of a dead sleep to the sound of the telephone screaming at his bedside. He snatched it up before he was fully awake, rubbing his cinnamon eyes and stifling back a yawn as he waited for the caller to identify himself. After a forty-eight hour shift, he had foolishly thought the town of Salem could survive without him, at least long enough for him to get a good night's sleep.

The clock read four-fifteen a.m. Absentmindedly, he wondered what the emergency was this time. Had a pair of thugs been wrestling with a loaded gun and now one of them was dead? Had another fire broken out at the mental hospital, sending several of the facility's patients on the run? But then, if either of those were the case, why had the caller dialed his private line? The station didn't have this number; only a select few did. He had the number put in after his mother, Caroline, collapsed last year from a block in her heart. He hated to think of her in their childhood home alone, but she refused to sell it and become a burden to her children.

"Bo, it's Lexi." Bo and Lexi had been friends since the first grade when he defended her honor against a bigger boy who threatened to cut off one of her nutmeg-brown braids. They had been inseparable ever since, sharing both victories (Bo's recent promotion to detective; Lexi's marriage to Eddie Kramer) and unexpected revelations (Victor being Bo's biological father; Lexi finding out she was a DiMera).

"Lexi, what is it?" Bo hadn't realized he had left the bed and started to pace until he unintentionally banged his left knee into the dresser. Biting back his anger and doing his best to ignore the pain, he listened intently as Lexi finally explained why she was calling so late. She said only three words: Ella's in trouble.

Ella? Now there was a name he would sooner forget, he thought anxiously. They had met on Bo's first official day working for the Salem PD. She had been on her way to class when, in her haste, she accidentally rear-ended Bo's sage-green, fully restored Firebird. It seemed like, from then on, they were always running into each other-though rarely in a literal sense. If he went to the Brady Pub, she was there finishing a school assignment; if she visited the Salem Speedway, he was just about to break a speed record with one of his race cars. This went on for the next two years until her father found got wind of their friendship and threatened Ella's inheritance. Though she didn't care much for it, she worried for Bo's safety-or so she said-and accepted her father's offer to finish her schooling overseas.

Despite himself, Bo asked, "What kind of trouble?" He pulled on the jeans he had discarded a few hours ago and the shirt closest to hand. He combed his too-long chestnut hair with his fingers and shook his head in disgust at his flustered state.

"The kind that requires medical attention," Lexi clarified with an impatient sigh. "But of course she won't let me take her to the hospital." Lexi was a first-year med student, so if she wasn't able to administer normal first-aid, the situation must be grave indeed.

"Why not?" Bo demanded, silently cursing the phone cord for being so short. How was he supposed to pace when the cord barely reached the end of his bed? It had been a long time since Bo had even spoken to Ella. Why should he even care?

"She'll only go if you come with us." Lexi clicked her tongue, totally at a loss.

Why me? Bo wondered silently. "Are you at home?" He hoped she said no. The very last thing he wanted was to swing by the DiMera mansion, especially in the middle of the night. The guards might shoot first and ask questions later.

"We're at the Pub." Lexi replied, offering no explanation as to how she had gotten into his family's diner without a key or why no one had reported the break-in. Sometimes, it was easier to just accept what she was telling him without asking too many questions.

"I'll be right there."

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"Sami! Sami, look at Mama!" Marlena Evans-Black prompted from behind a massive camera. Her blond hair kept flying in front of her face, but she ignored it, having expected this sort of thing when her husband John suggested hosting their twins' birthday party in their backyard. She had to give John credit: it was truly a glorious day. The sun was shining, the birds were singing, and the backyard was filled with screaming kids armed with water pistols. The best part was that their youngest, Belle, was currently napping at her father's feet in her flower-print car bed. She had finally started sleeping through the night and Marlena said a prayer of thanks that there would be no more babies after her.

"No pictures Mama!" A four-year-old Samantha Jean Black informed her mother, tossing her shoulder-length blond hair back and placing her hands high on her hips. "I want to play!" At this, Sami pointed toward the other children as they set off on a new game of Hide and Seek.

"She does have a point." John spoke up, tying a pink balloon to the table leg and giving his wife a teasing wink. He had a hard time keeping his face passive enough to blow up the next balloon when Marlena stuck her tongue out at him.

"I don't want to forget anything about today. That's all." Marlena defended herself. She unconsciously brushed invisible dirt off the hem of Sami's ruffled white dress.

"I don't see that happening," Bo said, coming up behind Sami's chair with an armful of presents. "We stopped drinking the Kool-Aid years ago. Memory loss is pretty unlikely." His eyes were the same startling brown they had always been, but his hair had long-since been cut. This didn't stop Marlena from admonishing him about it daily.

"Bo!" Sami greeted him by throwing her spindly arms around his leg. He managed to carefully set them on the table next to the untouched cake and reach down to pick her up. Ever since being named Sami's godfather four years ago, he hadn't missed a single family event. Her blue eyes went wide when she glanced over at the presents. "Are all those presents for me?"

"No, they're for my other goddaughter." Bo taunted, watching Sami's bottom lip tremble. He knew she was three seconds away from bursting into tears; it was a tactic she had spent the last four years perfecting. "Some are for you and some are for your brother."

"Eric doesn't want them." Sami was quick to assure him, making sure her twin wasn't within earshot. "So I can just keep them."

"Now Sami, this is Eric's birthday too. Don't you want him to have presents?"

He watched Sami contemplate this for a moment. She then said, "No." It was all he could do to not laugh out loud. At least she was honest.

"You want to make your brother cry?" Marlena lightly scolded her. "Because that's what'll happen if you take his presents."

Worried she might just go ahead and cry, Bo made a quick decision and tickled Sami's sides, causing her to squeal in delight. "I heard something about a dog today."

"A dog?" Sami repeated, her eyes growing wider at the thought of a pet. She knew John was allergic and that was why they didn't have one. Knowing this, she still pointed to every dog she saw.

"Yeah. What was his name? Oh it was Bingo. B-I-N-G-O."

Sami smiled at him. "That's a song."

"Yeah, do you know it?"

"I sure do."

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Well-meaning family and friends surrounded Sami Black and yet she had never felt so alone in her life. She forced her bottom lip to stop quivering before she would allow herself to enter the church because, after all, she wasn't a baby. She spotted Belle and their oldest brother, Brady, at the front of the church with Lexi and Abe. Sami started at the sight of Abe, remembering a week ago when he showed up at their house with news of their parents' accident. At thirteen, Brady had been able to convince his three younger siblings to leave with Abe and his partner, promising he would make sure they never got separated. From the looks of it, seven-year-old Belle would be content just living with the Carvers. Desperately, Sami scanned the small church for Eric. She had seen him at the Brady breakfast table and knew he had been in the car on the way over. So where was he now?

The music began but Sami paid it no attention. She didn't care if the funeral was starting. All she wanted was to find her brother, to prove that he hadn't been an accident like Mama and Daddy. Sami sniffed back tears as she searched the hallway and moved toward the adjoining rooms. Much to her displeasure, both doors were locked. It was just as well, she mused. She didn't want to find dead bodies behind those doors and that's probably where they were kept. A new wave of despair washed over her when she thought of her parents as bodies.

She turned at the sound of her name and saw Eric sitting beneath a small table at the front of the foyer. Brushing back tears with an impatient sweep of her hands, she crouched down in front of him, her cloudy blue eyes meeting his leaf-green ones. "Why are you hiding?" she asked timidly.

"I'm not hiding!" Eric snapped angrily. "I'm detecting."

"What are you detecting?" Sami wanted to detect stuff too.

"Those people. I don't trust them." Eric confirmed darkly.

"They're family." Sami pointed out.

"I don't trust them." Eric repeated firmly. "They're going to split us up."

"No." Sami argued with a fervent shake of her head. "No, Brady said-"

"I don't care what Brady said. We're orphans and you know what that means?"

"No. We're not orphans." Sami wouldn't listen to him! What did he know anyway? Brady had promised! He had promised! Eric was wrong. He was just scared, that's all. He was just saying mean things to scare her too. Well, she wasn't going to fall for it.

"Face it. We're pound puppies. Sooner or later, they'll choose which of us they want and which ones are going back to the pound."

"Shut up!" Sami grabbed Eric by his shirt collar and dragged him out from under the table. "You don't know anything!" She insisted, shaking him furiously. He would have fought back if he wasn't so surprised.

"Mom and Dad are dead, Sami." Eric said matter-of-factly. "No one's going to take in four kids. It's just not going to happen."

"What do you know anyway?" she challenged, releasing her grip and pushing him backwards. She lifted her chin and walked back inside the church, spotting Bo and Caroline and sitting herself between them.

Caroline wrapped her arms around Sami's small frame and held her close. "Where is that brother of yours?"

"I don't know and I don't care." Sami grumbled as Caroline's familiar lemon scent tickled her nose.

"Did you get into a fight?" Good ole Caroline. She always knew what was going on.

"He said nobody was going to want us." Sami confessed quietly.

"Not want you? What are you talking about?"

"He said we're orphans and we're going to get separated." Sami explained. "And he said no one was going to want all of us. Is that going to happen?"

"No." Caroline shook her head.

"How do you know?" Sami whimpered.

It was Bo who answered her, "Because the four of you are coming to live with me."

Author's Notes: Song credit goes to Bill York for "In The Deep."

[Kpatch]

Wow, what an emotional story. I love the sensory descriptions you included to make the images so vivid, where Bo bumps into a piece of furniture and his phone cord is too short; the color of his car, his eyes, Lexie's hair, Caroline's lemon scent.

Thank you for posting your story here, FW2DG! (Sorry, I tend to find abbreviations for everything.) Looking forward to reading more.

[fluffysmom]

I really enjoyed this emotional first chapter. I like the idea of Sami and her siblings being kids. I am looking forward to reading more. Thanks for sharing your story with us!

[feelinway2damngood]

I've been calling, for years and years and years and years

And you never left me no messages

You never sent me no letters

You got some kind of nerve taking all I want!

Bo rested his head against the door frame and contemplated falling asleep. Two weeks had passed since Marlena and John's double funeral and, since then, his mother had been watching the kids for him while he worked. He needed to go inside and let her know he was home, but he found himself stalling just a bit. After all, once he passed through the door, the kids were his responsibility for the rest of the night.

He hadn't realized, when he'd discussed this particular contingency plan with their parents, just what he was signing himself up for.

Belle was an angel, a rarity in the group, and so much like his mother it hurt Bo's heart a little bit. Not a day went by that Bo didn't receive a call from Brady's school. He was a troublemaker, but Bo had a feeling this was mostly caused by boredom. He would finish his work in class and then have to find a way to amuse himself, often at the expense of his teachers and classmates.

He knew from John that Sami had night terrors, but he had underestimated just how bad they were. Every night since she had come to live with him, she would go to sleep as soon as her head hit the pillow and, for a few hours, be perfectly content. Usually about the time Bo started to think that maybe tonight would be the exception, an inhuman shriek would come from Sami's room and he would trip over his feet trying to get to her.

Brady's resistance to Bo had more to do with his age, but Eric's was something much more severe. When Eric came to live with him, he had thought it was strange how he wouldn't unpack his suitcase, but he figured he just needed time to settle in and fall into a comfortable routine-that is, until he realized Eric was only biding his time. He, Brady, and Sami all walked to school together, but more often than not, only two of them returned. As founders of this particular town, the Brady's tended to stand out. This used to bother Bo, but now he was thankful for it. It was the townspeople, more than Bo, that kept Eric from following through with his plan to escape. They found him at bus stations, train stations, and the like. He never said a word when Bo came to get him and usually spent the rest of the day brooding in his room.

A car pulled up in front of the house and Bo knew who it was before he opened his eyes. Despite the paternity test that named Victor as his father, Bo felt almost no allegiance to the man in front of him. Twenty minutes as a Kiriakis didn't erase the twenty years he had spent as a Brady.

Victor noticed his agitation as he came closer, but didn't bother acknowledging it. Bo watched him signal the driver with a nod of his head and felt his arms automatically folding even before Victor turned to face him. "Bo, so nice to see you."

"I'm sure." Bo replied, fighting the urge to run inside and throw the deadbolt. He didn't know why the man in front of him made him uncomfortable, but he did. Perhaps it was the business persona he wore constantly that caused Bo to bite his tongue around him. Everything about him screamed self-confidence. "What are you doing here, Victor?"

"I can't visit my son?" Victor asked calmly, but the challenge was clear in his nutmeg-brown eyes. When he saw his question wasn't going to be met with anything but sarcasm, he went on. "I wanted to check on the kids."

"Check on Brady, you mean." Bo corrected, remembering the half-dozen phone calls Victor had made to him once the news of his taking in the kids had caught his attention.

"I'd think you would want your nephew to know his grandfather." Victor stated matter-of-factly. "After all he's lost…"

"I know all about what he's lost." Bo assured him, fighting the urge to poke Victor in the chest as he had done to more punks than he could count. When he was at work, he wasn't afraid of anything-not that he was afraid of Victor, just cautious. "He's not the only one."

"Are you truly going to compare your loss to his? You lost your best friends, but he lost his father and the only mother he's ever truly known." Victor reminded him, though no reminder was necessary.

"That's the nicest thing you've ever said about Marlena. Who knew all she'd have to do to receive a kind word from Victor Kiriakis was die."

"Watch your tone, Bo. Now I didn't come here to fight with you." Victor snapped angrily.

"Then why are you here?" Bo wanted to know. If he were a better host, he might have led Victor into the house and offered him something to drink. Since the mere sight of the old man caused his right eye to tick furiously, he figured it'd be in everyone's best interest if they continued this discussion on the front step.

"I wanted to see how Brady liked his new present. That's all." Victor's words sounded innocent enough, but Bo knew better. Victor was never one to play fair. He would do whatever he had to do to have Brady on his side, even if that included bribing him for his affection and loyalty.

"What present?" Bo heard himself ask, inwardly berating himself for taking the bait the old man had tossed in his direction.

For the first time since he'd stopped by, Victor smiled. "A set of drums."

"Drums?" Bo was taken aback. Just what every angry thirteen-year-old boy needed: drums.

"Yes, drums. You know, it's a musical instrument?" he added sardonically. "I didn't even know he liked them until we walked past a music store-"

"And when was this?" Bo couldn't recall a moment during the last two weeks that Brady had been anywhere but home or school.

"I don't remember. Thursday or Friday, I think." His calm explanation made Bo's blood boil.

"You took Brady without asking me."

"I am his grandfather. You act as though I'm some kind of stranger." Victor played the card so well. It wasn't his fault the world refused to accept the way he was, the way he had always been. He was Victor Kiriakis and that meant he had a certain image to uphold. If the rest of the world couldn't handle it, then tough beans.

"You have been a stranger, though." Bo pointed out, dragging his hand through his hair in frustration. "Until a few years, you wanted nothing to do with him."

"That's not true!" Victor argued. "I have always wanted to see my grandson!"

"Then why haven't you made the effort before now?" Bo asked. "Why wait until he's nearly grown to-?"

"To what, Bo? What is it you think I'm going to do to Brady?"

"What you do to everyone who shares your DNA." Bo muttered. Why hadn't he seen this coming? Of course there was only one reason Victor would pay Brady any attention. "You've realized you're not as young as you used to be and you're looking for someone you can groom to take over Titan."

"That's absurd!" Victor shouted with a wave of his hands. "I want only to spend time with the boy."

"Yeah, so you can make him just like you." Bo shook his head, turning to go inside.

"If you try to bar me access to my grandson, I will take you to court." Victor's words hit Bo hard. Though he knew the kids had other options, other willing family members, he doubted any of them would take all four of them. He wasn't going to break the first promise to Sami he had ever made. Damn Victor Kiriakis and his threats

"I'm not barring you access. You are his grandfather and I will let you see him."

"Let me." Victor scoffed in disbelief.

"John and Marlena named me in their will, not you. I will do whatever I have to do to protect these kids. That said, I will let you visit Brady. Just so we're clear, Victor, this means you can visit him here, or you can take him on a field trip, just as long as he's home by dinner. My word is final, not yours." Bo paused to take a breath. "Oh and by the way. If you ever take him without my permission again, I'll arrest you for kidnapping. Any questions?"

Author's Notes: Song credit goes to The Fray's "You Found Me."

[ghoulgirl]

Wow this is a great story so far! Looking forward to much, much more! Thanks for sharing it with us feelingway2damngood!

[sportsgirl]

This is really well-written...Thanks for sharing this with us!

[fluffysmom]

I liked the tense conversation between Bo and Victor. I look forward to reading more.

[Kpatch]

Very good story FW2DG. I love how you get into the characters' minds and thoughts. And what is going on with those kids is just so heartbreaking and feels so realistic. Looking forward to the next chapter.

[Trey]

Echoing the sentiments of an excellent story...

[feelinway2damngood]

I can't help that I'm growing older
I can't reset this game
I've never had a crying shoulder
And I need someone to blame

“Just admit it,” Philip Kiriakis boasted, punching a scattered series of buttons on the Nintendo controller. His smile was so vibrant, it showed in his gray eyes and made the finely chiseled cheekbones he had inherited from his mother, Kate stand out. Only a year younger than Brady, he figured he had chosen his opponent well. Neither Eric nor Sami had wanted to play and Belle was too young to master Super Mario Brothers.

“Admit what?” Brady practically barked back at him. His hair was frosted-blond, instead of caramel-blond like Philip’s, but they had each inherited gray eyes. This may have been a Kiriakis trait, but Brady somehow doubted it. After all, his father had had gray eyes and Belle did as well. He wasn’t even sure what had started this competition in the first place. Philip had asked to come to the house, but no one knew why. It wasn’t like he had ever wanted to spend time with them before today.

“That you can’t beat me.” Philip clarified with an arrogant wink. This was so much better than being at home with father, he thought to himself. While the old man was quickly mastering these games, playing with him wasn’t nearly as fun as playing with someone his own age. Besides, Victor had his hands full with Titan and Philip often felt guilty for pulling his father away from his work just to play with him.

“In your dreams, Kiriakis.” Brady shook his head and smiled for the first time since Philip had followed them home. Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad, he mused silently. His siblings were getting better at these games, but they had never served as equal adversaries, a role Philip seemed to wear very well indeed. With Philip, he could just be a kid, instead of the leader of the group. He could just have fun. “I’m about to show you some moves you could only wish to keep up with.”

“Brady, did you take Mrs. Toley?” Belle wanted to know. Her shoulder-length, straw-blond hair kept falling in front of her fog-gray eyes, leaving her with no other option but to keep pushing it back. The overcast look in her eyes proved she had been crying while in hot pursuit of her beloved doll.

“No Belle.” Brady muttered. “Why am I always the first one you ask?” His harsh tone caused Belle to flinch in response.

“I thought you might have seen her.” Belle hurried to explain.

“Have you asked Eric or Sami?” Brady challenged, his focus on the video game.

“Not yet.” Belle admitted sheepishly. “Are you sure you haven’t seen her?”

“I haven‘t seen your stupid doll.” Brady assured her. “Now go bug somebody else.”

“You’re mean.” Belle accused before hurrying up the stairs.

“‘You’re mean.’” Philip quoted mockingly. “You sure made her mad…not that it seems to take much.”

Brady chuckled in response. “Sisters.” He explained, tossing the controller over to Philip. “Best two out of three?”

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“Oh yeah, I saw her.” Eric told Belle, a smile tugging his lips. As Sami’s twin, one would have thought they would share at least one similar trait, even with them being fraternal twins. His hair was a direct blend of his mother and father’s hair, blond with strands of brown thrown in. Sami’s, though, was champagne-blond and her eyes were sea-blue instead of chocolate-brown. “I fed her to the Johnson’s dog.”

Belle missed the teasing glint in his eyes and started to cry harder. She made such a fuss, she could be heard from several rooms away. Sami came running in, half-expecting Belle to have busted her head open. “What is going on?” she demanded, folding her arms across her chest as she waited for one of them to explain.

“Eric fed Mrs. Toley to the Johnson’s dog!” Belle whimpered, pointing to Eric with an accusatory finger.

“Oh did he?” Sami whispered and her eyes locked on Eric’s. She had long ago realized she could stare him down if the situation called for it.

“It was just a joke.” Eric defended himself, but some of the amusement had left his voice. “I didn’t think she would--”

“That’s right: you didn’t think.” Sami finished for him. She reached out to stroke Belle’s wayward hair. It was a touch of comfort, one each of them had received from their mother when life got to be too much to deal with. She turned to Belle. “I think I saw Mrs. Toley on the patio.”

Belle’s eyes lit up at the good news. “Is she alright?” Without waiting for an answer, she ran for the stairs.

“If she falls, it’s on you.” Eric assured Sami. He had enough problems as it was. As it stood, he was the fall guy for everything, whether he actually committed the crime or not. It made sense for Belle to come to him when he found such contentment with making her cry. Maybe it was jealousy--her being the youngest--or maybe it was something else. He decided not to delve into the details just yet.

“Why do you have to do that?” Sami had been in the middle of her homework when Belle sounded the alarm. Mr. Coffey was, quite possibly, the worst teacher at Salem Junior High. He was always assigning homework, even on weekends and over holidays. Sami already hated science, so having to put up with Mr. Coffey’s insane lesson plan was becoming far too much to take.

“Do what?” Eric asked innocently. “I just wanted to have a little fun.”

“Well congratulations. You made her cry. Good job.”

“Hey, lay off. I wasn’t hurting anybody.”

“When are you going to stop acting like this?” Sami’s question must have surprised him because it took him a minute to answer.

“Like what?”

“Do you remember what you told me at the funeral?”

“I don’t want to talk about that.” Though he hadn’t left his place, Sami could see the retreat in his eyes.

“You said Mom and Dad weren’t coming back.”

“I remember what I said, okay?”

“Then stop waiting for them to. This is our home now.”

“This will never be home.” Eric stalked off to his room just as Bo came through the front door.

“Who’s hungry?” he asked, holding out a bag of takeout from The Brady Pub. He had stopped by after work, knowing it would be safer than continuing on in his cooking venture. The kids had yet to eat even a single meal he had ever made for them, and really he couldn’t blame them. He was a cop, not Betty Crocker. Thankfully for them, their great-uncle Shawn was one hell of a cook.

“Alright!” Philip tossed the controller onto the coffee table and leapt forward. “What is it?”

“Dinner.” Bo explained as he made his way over to the table even though he knew no one would eat there. They would take their plates to their rooms or eat in the living room. The old dining table had yet to do more than hold empty takeout containers and discarded mail. He went to the kitchen to get six plates, six sets of silverware, and had to come back to retrieve the glasses. “Where is everybody?” he asked Brady.

“Upstairs I think.” Brady answered noncommittally. “Did you get extra pickles?” He searched through the containers until he found the Styrofoam container labeled “Brady”

“Don’t I always?” Bo laughed lightly. “I wasn’t sure what you wanted.” He said to Philip and handed him his own container. While he had allowed Philip to come over and play, he knew almost nothing about his little brother.

Philip opened his container and stared down at the quarter-pound cheeseburger. “I’m a vegetarian.” He replied. “Did you get any salad?”

Bo blew out a breath of relief. “Yeah. Third container from the top.” Next time, he was taking the kids to the Pub, he decided. He didn’t want to think what would have happened if he had brought Philip the wrong food. If he was anything like Victor, he would probably stand in the middle of the room and stomp up and down until he got his way.

“Dig in, kids. I’m gonna go round up the rest of the cavalry.” Bo found Belle on the second step from the top. Her head was down and her face was buried in a very dirty-looking rag. “Hey munchkin. What have you got there?”

Belle was slow to lift her head and meet his eyes. When she did, he saw fresh tears there. “Mrs. Toley.” She clarified, holding out the doll for him to see. A small slit had been torn in the left side of the doll and that must have been why the cotton was missing. She was as flat as pancake. Her face was devoid of the black buttons that had served as her eyes.

“What happened?”

“She was targeted.” Belle told him through trembling lips.

Bo pulled a blank notepad from his shirt pocket and a pen, waiting for her to continue. He had a feeling he already knew who the culprit was, but he decided to humor her. “Do you know who did it?”

“Eric.”

“Are you sure? Do you have any proof?”

“I know he took her, Uncle Bo. I just know it.”

How do you know?”

“He said the dog got her.”

“The dog? What dog?”

“Next door. He said the dog got her, but I know I left her on my bed and that dog lives in his backyard. Eric was lying.”

“I’ll talk to him after dinner.” Bo promised, tucking the notepad and pen in his pocket. “Are you hungry?”

“I guess.” Belle’s eyes returned to the battered doll in her hands.

“I’ll tell you what,” Bo bargained. “How about tomorrow I take Mrs. Toley to my mom and see if she can fix her up.”

“Is she a doctor?” Belle asked wide-eyed. She wouldn’t trust her doll to an amateur.

“She’s a doll doctor.” Bo confessed quietly.

“Okay.” Belle wiped tears away and headed for the stairs.

“I got the potato soup you like.” He called after her.

“Thanks Uncle Bo.”

Author’s Notes: Song credit goes to Scott Clifton’s “Seen.”

[sportsgirl]

I guess this really can be called The Brady Bunch!

Sounds like Eric holds a bunch of resentment to his little sister.

Very well-written as usual!! Look forward to more chapters!

[Kpatch]

It's funny that you said Brady Bunch, SG. I was thinking of the old TV show "Family Affair," where the Uncle ended up raising the kids after the parents died and there were twins named Buffy and Jody, and an older sister named Cissy. I'm picturing Belle looking like Buffy because Buffy had a little doll named Mrs. Beasley.

Would the Johnson's next door be Steve and Kayla?

This is a great story, FW2DG! I love that Philip is in it and he's a vegetarian. How funny. Such well drawn characters, all. And I love the intriguing title of the story. Looking forward to more.

[ghoulgirl]

I am looking forward to more too! Very well written story. I miss Eric and wish they would bring him back

[Minako98]

Loving this story!!!

[fluffysmom]

Great story! It's interesting to see them as kids including Philip since they were all SORAS'd on the show. I look forward to reading the next chapters.