Prom Queen ~ Tyler Hernandez || **PART TWO**

Word Count: 1241

***TW: Mentions of murder

Layla pressed her hand against the window. It was too dark to see much inside of the dusty house, but so far she hadn't seen anything too unusual. The sun was pretty much set by now, and the moon started to peek out behind pink and orange clouds. 

She started opening the door when she heard a voice behind her.

"Stop!"

It sounded like an older woman, and her hands quickly shot up from sides to raise them in the air. 

"Turn around," she instructed Layla.

She slowly start turning, looking down at the ground, but she could get a glimpse of her figure.

The woman looked older, probably in her late 30's or low 40's, a lean and a toned body. She also held a rifle, looking down at Layla with suspicion.

Fear glazed her eyes as she stood before the woman. "What is your name?" She asked the cowering girl. "L-Layla.." she responded. 

She hadn't felt fear like this since her mother had taken her away, not even last night when she had been searching for her and that man showed up. What was this woman going to do to her? Would she sent her back? Hurt her? 

Layla's hands quivered and shook in panic. Her bruised legs shivered, waiting in anticipation for the woman to say something.

"Look at me," She told her. Complying, Layla lifted her eyes and a piercing blue gaze met her's. The woman's gaze softened as she saw her fear-laced expression. "You can put your hands down." She told her, and Layla noticed that her hands were still above her head.

"Where are you from?" The stranger asked her. Layla thought about it. Should she say her mother's house? No, then she might return her.

"Georgia," She responded. The woman jerked back slightly, startled by her answer. "Georgia? What are you doing all the way out here in Texas?"

It was Layla's turn to look like she took a slap to the face.

Texas?

She had been running in the wrong direction the entire time?

Had it really been that long? Then again, how long did it take to get from Arkansas to Texas? She must have been very close to the border, but then again, she had been running almost nonstop for the past two and a half days, probably more if you included the hours spent in the phantom dimension.

"M-my mother lives in Arkansas-" Layla tried to explain, but she was interrupted. "And why are you so hurt? Everywhere I look you either have a nasty scratch or a bruise." The woman pointed out.

"Here, come with me and I'll get you all fixed up." She turned to walk back to a grey truck, not looking back to see if she was following. Layla warily followed her. The woman gestured to the passenger side door. 

Swallowing hard, she climbed into the truck. The woman introduced herself as Mary, explaining that she was checking up on a friend's ranch house when she came across Layla trying to break in. She winced at the words "break in."

"So what's a young girl like you doing out in the Texas countryside, battered up and alone?" Mary asked her.

Not tearing her gaze from the window. "It's... a long story." Layla avoided the question. "It's a long drive." Mary stated bluntly.

She pursed her lips together. "I came here with my mother and I wanted to get out so I just.. ran for a bit. I guess I didn't realize how far I'd gone."

Mary scoffed at my weak attempt to cover my real story. "Its at least a hundred and fifty miles to the border. And any decent living area in the outskirts of Arkansas is at least another hundred. Thats at minimum two hundred fifty miles. Now tell me, what does a girl like you need to escape so desperately to run away from her home for at least three days, break into houses, and look half-starved to death for?"

I look up at her, wonder how she could decipher so much about her in the fifteen minuted since they met. She slowed at a stop sign, then stopped in front of it, putting the car in park and turning to Layla, getting as comfortable in the truck as she could. 

"And we're not leaving this spot until you tell me the truth."

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The rest of the ride was silent. Mary had listened to her, and hadn't uttered a word until she had finished. Then all she did was nod with the same stone solid blue eyes. Though, they looked softer than when they had first met.

Layla's cheeks were still wet from when she had broken down in front of Mary.

"And then... she said she was going to kill me, and I.. I..."

Layla cracked, slumping down into her hands and sobbing.

A warm hand brushed her shoulder, and Mary's encouraging gaze gave her the strength to finish the story.

"And then I just ran, I ran away from that horrible place and now I've just been trying to scavenge from what I find.." she trailed off, finally getting to the end.

Mary nodded but said nothing, giving Layla a reassuring look. Putting the truck in drive again, they continued the journey to Mary's place.

The bushed rushed past them as she spotted a nice looking house in the distance. It was made from white stones, and was a decent size. A bit farther out, there was what looked like a barn. Horses grazed in pastures on the left of the road leading down to the house.

Horses had always been a bit scary to her, with their big build and snorting noses. A brown horses's tail swished and picked up its head as it let out a high pitched noise, to which another horse, a yellow one, responded to.

She would never understand horses.

Mary pulled into the driveway, accompanied by two other cars and one of those trailer-things that you could put horses in and take them around. Bringing the truck to a stop, Mary got out and Layla followed suit. 

Unlocking the front door, she stepped into a very nice house. There was a pretty chandelier hanging from the tall celling. The confused face of a man popped out from the side of the hallway. "Home already?" He called, teasing, though confused. 

Layla quickly hid behind Mary out of instinct. "Found a straggler." She took her hand and gently led her into a modern kitchen. The man's face turned into surprise when he saw her.

"This is Layla. She's a fresh wound, so don't bother her right now." Sitting me down at the large island, she put a fresh handful of blueberries in front of me. "It's not much but it was the fastest thing I could grab. Eat up." Mary told me, getting a plastic cup from a cabinet. 

Layla gently took a blueberry from the paper towel, looking around warily. Mary put the cup in front of her. Putting the berry in her mouth, it exploded with sweet flavor. She took a sip of the water, and it washed it down. 

"You'll need a room to stay in. You're going to be sleeping upstairs in the guest bedroom, if that's okay with you?" Mary said without looking up from a paper hanging on the refrigerator. "Y-yes." 

She said timidly, barely more than a whisper.

"Good. Hadley can help you set up. Hadley! Come down! There's someone you need to meet!"

...

Hadley?

I brought her back yall :D Im so happy with the way i did it too ^^