She had been living with Mr. Lynch for about a week now, and Rayne was actually starting to smile again. Mr. Lynch was so nice to her and kind and she was so happy he had found her. She had even started to hope her mother would come back to find her and meet Mr. Lynch and then they could get married so Mr Lynch would be her father!

That thought was the one that excited her most. The one thing she hoped for more than anything actually because she thought Mr. Lynch was so kind. Her mother would have to love him and want to be with him. And they could be a family.

It was with this happy thought that Rayne grinned on the swings now, swinging as high as she could take herself.

Mr. Lynch had brought her here, and they would be going back soon for dinner probably now that it was getting dark. But he'd gone to the bathroom he said and he'd be back in a bit so she was to stay on this little playground.

But of course, the swing occupied her for now, so she was just fine staying here.

Maybe... Maybe she should tell Mr. Lynch her idea? Maybe then... Then if she did tell him, he'd find her mother and would love her too.

But Rayne just sat there on the swing, her pace slowing slightly, but she was still smiling brightly with an eagerness that her idea gave her.

Ah, the playground. People trusted them. Like a church without the piety. Or the reverence. Hammer grinned, flicked his cigarette butt to the ground, watching the little girl on the swings. Maybe churches and playgrounds didn't have so much in common, he laughed to himself. Maybe he was being foolish again. Flights o fancy and what all.

But he knew he was right. People trusted playgrounds. Thought nothing could harm their precious little babies while they were on the swings and see-saws. Same way people thought nothing could happen in the house of God and all that. Wrong, he wanted to say, wrong wrong wrong. Silly people. Nothing different about playgrounds than dark alleyways.

Fool! Leaving some sweet little lass all on her lonesome - even for a minute. Hammer wagged his finger in the direction the man went. Shame on you. Don't you know - playgrounds aren't safe.

He studied the girl. Well now, she was a cutie weren't she? All skinny limbs and dark hair and gap-toothed grin. Hammer lit another cigarette when he felt the twinge. Little girls and boys, or big ones, he didn't discriminate. They were all so nice and warm and soft. Grinning he tapped his cigarette to knock off some ash.

And pretty little girls fetched pretty little pennies.

Getting to be a right busy-ness-man, weren't he? Tapping a blunt finger against his temple, Hammer took a final drag on his second cigarette before griding it out on the ground. Humming, he was in a right nice mood, he meandered his way out in the open, walking past the little girl before doing a double-take.

"Well, 'ello there, girly. Wha's you doin' out here?" he aksed with cocked eyebrow, his thick accent mangling his words slightly. He paused then smiled, like a conspirator. "You sneak away?"

Her swinging had slowed because she was getting a bit tired, and Mr Lynch had said they would be going home soon when he got back. He should be getting back soon right? Yeah.

But she stopped as she heard a strange voice and looked to see a man there. One she'd never seen before and one that quite frankly scared her.

She frowned slightly, her eyes slightly fearful. "S-sneak?" She shook her head. "N... No sir... My... My daddy, he just went to the bathroom. Over there." She pointed towards the small building off aways. "We... We were gonna be going home soon." She stammered slightly, not taking her eyes off of the man. She didn't like him, she didn't like him one bit because he was scary. He wasn't a nice man, she could tell that.

Sliding off of the swing she began to run towards the bathroom, afraid to be around him any longer.

"Awr, they always run away from me. Not nice a'tall," Hammer said to himself. It was easy to tell he wasn't really that disappointed - the big, nasty smile made that quite clear. Too bad she was such a litle thing, really, he thought to himself as he watched her dash off.

Made the chase less interesting. Ah, well, what could you do?

"Where ya goin' honey?" Hammer called, easily catching up with her in a couple of steps and nabbing her by the collar. "Now that wasn't polite a'tall," he admonished her. "Where's your daddy little girl? He needs to teach you some manners and fast at that."

Hammer grinned, saing, "Oh, tha's right. You said he was in the bathroom. Welln ow, how fast will he come ot iffin you scream?"

Trying to make it to the bathroom, Rayne ran as fast as her little legs could carry her. Sure Lynch wasn't her father, but he'd been the only man who'd ever shown her any form of kindness. She cared for him so much and loved being with him...

Rayne screamed as she felt someone grab her jacket and pull her full off of the ground. "NO! LET ME GO! LET ME GO!!" She screamed at the top of her lungs. "MR. LYNCH! HELP!!" She continued to scream as she flailed about to try and fend him off. But her fists and feet hit nothing but air as he held her.

Tears were flowing angrily now as she screamed for Lynch, as she screamed for her mommy and for the man to let her go.

Where was he? Where was Mr Lynch?

"LET ME GO! PLEASE!! DON'T HURT ME!" She sobbed. "MR. LYNCH! PLEASE HELP ME!"

Lynch wiped his mouth again, swallowing more ice-cold tap water in an attempt to wash out the sour taste of vomit in his mouth. Looking into the mirror, he could tell he was pale underneath the Brawny-Man beard and his eyes had scary-big hollows under them.

God, he hoped it wasn't the flu. A stomach bug, Lynch told himself. Just a stomach bug. The flue always always always put him down for the count for at least a week and usually more. He couldn't have the flu.

His stomach rolled makeng him debate whether he should rush back to the stall or not in case he was gonna puke again. But he didn't want to. Lynch knew he probably shouldn't have lft Rayne all alone out there, but he hadn't wanted her to see him barfing his guts out. Straightening he stood still for a moment and then felt another ominous pitch. Fuck it, he decided, turning for the stalls again.

Then he heard the screaming.

Laughing, and not in a nice way, Hammer lifted the little girl up by her puffy winter jacket and let her scream for a few seconds before slapping a hand over her mouth. "That oughta be 'nough, " he mumbled to himself. "Aaaand... right on cue," he added when the man came bursting out of the bathroom with wild eyes. "'Ello, Mr. Lynch!" Hammer said cheerfully. Easily sidestepping the man's bullrush Hammer lifted one ham-sized fist at the same time and caught Mr. Lynch square on the chin.

"Down he goes!" Hammer commented like a boxer announcer then blew on his knuckles. Down Lynch went indeed.

Rayne screamed and screamed, even as he covered her mouth. But she stopped and her eyes brightened as Lynch showed up and ran to help her. But as he fell to the ground unconscious her body went weak with fear.

No... No, he couldn't be down! He had to help her! He had to!

She bit down hard on the man's hand and screamed for Lynch to get up. Rayne screamed and cried as she started to struggle again against the man who held her.

Mr. Lynch was hurt! But he had to get up! He had to get her. He wouldn't just let the mean man take her would he.

But he wasn't moving. He wasn't moving at all and... And he...

No! He wasn't dead. He couldn't be. He was stronger than that. She was sobbing harder than ever as she tried to push herself away from him. But the little strength that was in her had left as Lynch lay still.

"None of that, little girly," Hammer ordered squeezing her cheeks a little. "Not like dear Mr. Lynch is dead or nothing. Nah, just had his bell pretty damn good, di'n't he?" Hammer nudged the man with his boot, then squeezed just a bit harder, adding, "An' that hurt, chickie."

"Mr. Lynch, Mr. Lynch. Do wake up. 'Tisn't any fun to beat you iffin you're asleep." Hammer tapped Lynch's face with his toe, prodding until the man's eyes fluttered and he gave a moan. "There we go. Not a glass jaw after all, are we? That was a damn good pop, iffin I do say so myself." Hammer looked awfully pleased with himself - Rayne all wrapped up with one arm and the other around the man's lapels to drag him back up.

The vampire grinned. "Hi," he said. When he let go, the unstable Lynch managed to keep his feet for all of the half second it took for Hammer to wind up and deliver another solid hit, this time to his midsection.

On another groan, Lynch went down again.

Rayne whimpered as he pinched her cheeks hard and fell silent. She was truly afraid of him now, afraid that he would hurt her and Mr Lynch more. But she was still crying, sobbing softly as the mean man nudged at Lynch. "No... leave him alone... Please..." She whimpered.

"Mr Lynch!" She gasped though as he began to stir. "Daddy..." She sobbed, crying out loud as the man punched him again as Lynch went down again.

"Please! Please let me go! Don't... Don't hurt me, please."

He... he wasn't getting back up. He wasn't moving again... He was down and he didn't look like he was going to be getting back up. And even if he did... The man wasn't going to let him get up was he?

She wasn't screaming anymore, but she was sobbing loudly, unable to hold it back as she stared at Lynch, waiting for him to get up and get her back from the man. He had to get up. He had to! He wouldn't leave her with this man, he wouldn't let this mean man hurt her would he?

Lynch staggered to his feet - somehow. The world spun around him like he was a top. How he managed to get back up was something of a mystery as it still felt like the wind that had been bulldozed out of him wasn't back yet. As a side benefit, he didn't feel like puking anymore.

Just curling up and passing out.

"Rayne," he slurred blinking rapidly and trying to clear his swimming vision. The other man was standing right in front of him. They were about the same height, Lynch and Hammer were, but Hammer had Lynch in breadth, bulk, speed, and oh yeah vampirism.

Hammer cocked his head to study the other man. "Well, you're a right tough old bastard ain't ya?" He grinned, saying "I like that." It was nice having such a willing punching bag. Enjoying himself, he pulled back his fist again. Mr. Lynch tried to block it and get in a swing of his own, but the force of the blow still sent him sprawling. "Oh bollocks! It does not look good for our knight in white."

The man weakly tried to push himself up again but failed. Geting a bit bored now, Hammer decided to get it done. Walking slowly towards the fallen Mr. Lynch, he waited until the man's eyes flickered up at him before launching a heavy kick right into his face. Lynch's head snapped back and there was a crunching sound as his nose broke, blood pouring from it.

"Well, now, that was refreshing, weren't it?" Humming, Hammer tweaked the girl - Rayne, was it? - on the nose before strolling out of the park and towards his place.

Rayne gasped and gave a cry of joy as she saw Lynch once more stagger up to his feet. "Help me daddy..." She sobbed softly. "Please." She begged him. She knew the man was mean and she was so afraid of what he would do to her. She was so afraid of him that she was trembling. She was so afraid in fact, it was a good thing she didn't have to go to the bathroom.

But she began to sob again as he went down for a third time.

And this time the man moved closer, carrying her towards him. Rayne's arms reached down as far as they could, trying to grab on to him, to keep herself close to him. He... He couldn't give up! He would get up again wouldn't he? He'd get up just like he had before! He'd save her, he would.

But the mean man wouldn't let him get up again. Rayne screamed again as the vicious kick sent blood pouring down Lynch's face. "NO!!" She screamed, once more fighting as Lynch hit the ground in an awkward position.

But as he turned away and began to walk out of the park she began to scream even louder, the tweak on her nose not stopping her this time. Mr Lynch was hurt! He needed help and she needed him. She needed him to help her, to help her find her mother, and to become her real daddy.

"LET ME GO! PLEASE! I HAVE TO HELP DADDY!!" She screamed.

[[I know he's evil, but Hammer makes me grin. He's just having so much damn fun! *pats him and Rayne on the head*]]

"Daddy, help me! I gotta help my daddy!" Hammer crowed finding Rayne's screaming fairly funny. One minute it was all my daddy's in trouble and I gots to be helping him, the next it was save me from the bad man daddy. Still as amusing as it was, it was allso loud and he slapped his hand back over her mouth. This time he made sure she couldn't bite him.

As if reminded of that, he looked down at the hand she had nipped. The marks were still there, fading, but there. Little bitch, Hammer thought but wiht little heat. Then he grinned. He'd train her outta that, now wouldn't he? Damn straight he would.

Whistling now he continued onward, shifting his grip so that it looked more liek a father carrying his daughter than a man lugging an unwilling package around. As soon as he was sure there were no eyes to see, mortal or otherwise, Hammer turned the burners on, racing towards his place at a rate too fast for any eye to track anyway. It didn't take him long to reach it at that rate.

Floorboards squeaked as he walked through his front door. The house was pretty decrepit, but he didn't need much. Several of the rooms were soundproofed. It was owned under the fictitious, and unimaginative, name of Jack Smith, a music mixer. The houses to either side were unoccuppied - that and the soundproofing gave him good privacy.

Hammer unlocked his front door, noting the sagging frame. The thought occurred to him to spend a day or so swinging his namesake around enough that the door frame didn't fall completely apart. Grinning again, he walked towards the back of the house where one of his soundproofed rooms was. Typically it was used for punishing welchers, but he thought tonight it would see some different action.

It was cold inthe house, but he didn't pay it any mind, stripping away Rayne's puffy purple jacket and then each underlying layer. Hammer left her in the cold room, naked, with only a ratty blanket and a filthy mattress on the floor. Let her dwell and get a little chilled, he figured, heading into the kitchen to pour himself a whiskey.

She only screamed a few seconds more as he put his hand over her mouth, because Rayne had realized that there was no one around to hear her anyway...

Maybe... Maybe she would get to heavy for him eventually so he would put her down and she could try to run again! Maybe that was how she could get free. But... But Rayne couldn't think of anything else really... Maybe Mr Lynch would get up and... And would follow them to rescue her. Only time would tell.

Rayne gave a terrified scream though as he began to run faster than a car could drive, and she shut her eyes tight. The speed and sensations made her dizzy for some reason and she passed out, limp in his arms for some time.

In fact, it was only as he was tugging and pulling at her clothes did she begin to wake up, and she gave a soft little murmur at first, wondering if it was Mr Lynch simply dressing her for bed. But it was so cold....

And as she opened her eyes, Rayne realized it all hadn't been a bad dream, that Mr Lynch actually was hurt and... "No! Stop it! Leave me alone!" She screamed as she tried to fight him to keep her clothing on. But she was only a little girl... He was much stronger than she was.

Rayne was sobbing again as she was finally naked, shivering in the room. As the mean man left she crawled over to the mattress and curled up tight with the blanket, trying to keep warm. It was so cold... And she was so afraid... Was Mr. Lynch okay? What was the man going to do with her here? She didn't know... And she was so scared...

It wasn't long really, so exhausted and tired was the poor girl, that she had cried herself to sleep on that cold and lonely mattress.

Hammer studied the filmy light play through his whiskey. As a born Brit, he preferred gin, but he had to admit he'd developed something of a taste for the sour mash. He slammed back another swallow, enjoying the way it sizzled all the way down his throat. It was cheap and roughly hard enough to tan hide - just the way he liked it.

Pouring another, he wondered if he should be happy or disappointed that it had become so hard to get drunk since he'd been changed. It meant he could drink anybody under the table and then some but also that he had to buy a lot more liquor when he wanted to get wasted. Ah ,well, waht could you do?

Hammer had gotten through the better part of the obttle and was just starting to feel the buzz. Felt good. Made everything seem so damn funny. He'd been in a fine mood before, but now it was a damn good one.

Humming, he headed back to the room where he'd left the kid. Pushing the door open so a crack of yellow light fell onto the dirty mattress in the otherwise pitch-black room, he grinned, though she wouldn't be able to tell, silhoutted as he was.

"Daddy's back. And he sees you, little girl," Hammer said in a sing-songy way as he pulled his belt from the loops on his jeans. "I hear you've been a bad little thing."

She turned slightly as the light fell across her face and gave a murmur. "Daddy?" She murmured, but as she remembered what was happening she gasped and gave a little cry.

She pulled the blanket around her tightly, trembling once more with fear. "N-nno. I haven't!" She whispered fearfully as she saw him pull his belt off in the light of the door. "Please... Do-Don't hurt me... I... I haven't done anything." She hiccuped with fear. What bad had she done? Was... Was it because...

"I... I'm sorry. I... I'm sorry I bit you! I won't do it again, I promise! I promise sir, I'll be good." She whimpered as she huddled in the corner, shaking from head to toe as tears began to well up in her eyes once more. "I... I'll be good. I promise..." Where was Mr. Lynch... He... He was looking for her right? He wouldn't just leave her would he? Not like her mother.

But she didn't have time to cry about that now... No, she had more terrible things to worry about. "Please... Don't hurt me..." She whimpered pleadingly.

Hammer grinned, nearly laughed out loud, as he watched her quiver and shake at the sight of him. Snapping the belt ominously, he nudged her with the toe of his boot, saying "Are you lying to me, girl? You better not lie to me." There was a sharp crack as he slapped her. Not hard enough to do any real damage, but plenty hard enough to hurt.

"Take that fuckin' blanket off," he snarled roughly, still fingering the thick leather belt. Hammer leaned down to get right into her face, his cold eyes burning into hers. "You're gonna do exactly what I say, little girl. Ahn't you? Every fucking thing, no matter how much it hurts or how it makes you feel. Otherwise your knew Papa here is gonna..." he trailed off and snapped the belt again.

He raised his hand as if to hit her, but didn't, shifting instead into a crouch. "Take that blanket off," Hammer repeated, the scar on his face distorting his features in the weak light so he looked almost deformed. "And then you lay down on your back and don't you move. You hearin' me? Don't you move a muscle - no matter what."

Rayne yelped in pain as the belt struck her sharply. "No!" She cried out in pain, her hand against her face, sobbing hard. "No! I'm not! I promise! I promise I'm not!" She whimpered.

As he got down in her face, she continued to shake but had stopped her whimpering.

"I.. It's cold..." She whimpered as he told her to take the blanket off. But she was scared. Too scared to even move as he ordered her to lay down with the blanket off. She wouldn't. She didn't want to. She didn't want to listen to him. Curling up in a ball she huddled there in the corner shaking.

She whimpered again and nearly cried out as he snapped the belt again.

"No..." Rayne whimpered through trembling lips. "I don't want to... It's cold."

"No? Did I hear you right, little girl? You tellin' your new papa no? Well then you are a liar, 'cause only bad little girls say 'no'," Hammer said viciously delighted at her reluctance. Angrily he snapped the belt as she curled up, the tip cracking hard against her back. The raggedy blanket offered little protection.

Hammer hit her with it again, harder. "You listen to me. I'm your Papa now, you hearin' me, little girly? And when your Papa tells you to do somethin' you better fuckin' do it. You don't wanna make your new Daddy unhappy." Kneeling Hammer fisted his hand in her hair, methodically slapping each side of her face several times before letting go, his breath quickening with perverted excitement.

"Understand me?" he asked, stroking the belt between his hands. "You better say, 'yes Papa, I understand' and then you better do what I said. You hearn' me? Papa don't care that it's cold, bad girl. Now you be good."

She yelped again as the belt struck her back. "NO! Stop it!" She sobbed.

Rayne cried out as he grabbed her hair, tears flowing down her face again. "Daddy wouldn't hurt me!" She cried out between sobs. "He wouldn't hurt me!"

No, he wasn't her daddy. He wasn't even like Mr Lynch.

She didn't though. She didn't understand. She didn't know why he was hurting her. She hadn't done anything. She was a good girl, she was. Mr Lynch had told her that she was. He had said so.

She didn't do anything though or say a word. He... he was so so mean... He was so cruel that Rayne could only sob there curled up on the floor. Why did he want to hurt her? What had she done? She didn't understand. She wasn't a bad girl was she? He... He had hurt Mr Lynch... He took her hear and took her clothes. And now he was hurting her. She hadn't done anything to him. She hadn't.

"Please... Do-" She hiccuped with a sob. "Don't hurt me... I am a good girl... Mr Lynch said I was... I-" She hiccuped again. "You're not my daddy!" She sobbed heavily, as if she had only stop to speak. And she really had, for she began to sob harder than ever now.

"Di'n't you hear me? I ain't your daddy of old, little chick. You just got yourself a brand new daddy," Hammer said drilling a finger into her chest. "A brand. New. Daddy," he repeated, punctuating each word with another poke. "Brand new. And that new daddy is mad, little girl, because you keep on bein' bad bad bad."

Hammer stood, slowly putting his belt back on. "That makes your new Daddy mad. And he's gonna punish you now, my girl." He dragged the ragged blanket off of her, bundling it under his arm. "You're gonna sleep in the cold until you start being a good little girl and do what your daddy tells you, you understand me now?"

With that, he left again, locking the door behind him. Smiling, he dropped the tattered blanket on the floor next to the door. Such a confused little girl. She'd get used to the new order of things quickly enough. Her old life was over.

He wasn't her daddy... He wasn't.

Her body shook with little sobs as he poked at her chest, as she wiped at her tears, but they wouldn't stop coming. "You're not... You're not daddy..." She said defiantly. "You're not!"

But she cried out as he pulled the blanket from her and she huddled completely bare in the corner now. When she recovered her wits he was heading to the door and she ran after him. But the door closed all too soon and the banged on it with her little fists, crying for the blanket back.

But he didn't come back and she retreated to the mattress again, shivering with cold again.

She'd been cold... She'd been colder than this... But the time at Mr Lynch's house had gotten her used to the warmth again. But then again, she'd also had clothing.

The room was so dark... So dark that no light even came from the door. So she couldn't tell if there was anything else in the room or not. But... But what did it matter if there was. Sniffling and trying to hold back her tears, she curled up into a little ball on the mattress, to scared to sleep now. Her back and her face hurt from where he had hit her... But... But she led herself feel the pain. It was the only way it would go away.

Dawn was just coming as Hammer walked away from the door. Leaving the blanket where he ahd dropped it, he walked to his own bedroom - a modified bathroom with no windows - where he stripped and settled into bed.

He'd let her spend the night cold and uncomfortable. After all, it wasn't cold enough to make her freeze to death or anything. Just make it a bitch to sleep.

When the night fell, he shrugged into some jeans but stayed barefoot and barechested. The waning sunlight lit the scars that crept across his muscular torso as he silently walked down the hall.

Picking up the blanket, Hammer unlocked the door and opened it. "Are you ready to be a good girl for your new daddy yet?"

But when he opened the door Rayne was fast asleep.

She'd been too scared to sleep for most of the day, and had tried to see what else was in the room or how big it was... But there was nothing else in it... And it was probably about as big as Mr Lynch's bedroom or so... She couldn't really remember.

Even when she'd laid down, Rayne still had been unable to sleep. It was too cold... And she eventually fell asleep, her body exhausted from shivering.

But that was maybe three hours ago when she finally drifted off.

So even his voice didn't wake the sleeping girl, and the way she was sleeping on the mattress, or rather curled up on the floor next to it, the light only fell on her bare and bruised back. Her body from the shoulders up was still in shadow.

Hammer hung back in the doorway until the sun finished it's fall beneath the horizon. Closing the drapes, he took a moment to stdy the striping on her back, the blue marks on her cheeks. They'd fade.

"Wakey wakey, little chick," he said roughly nudging her with his bare foot. Her skin, cold as it was, was warm compared to his. "Wakey wakey, eggs and bakey," he muttered, wondering where he'd heard the stupid little rhyme.

Dangling the blanket from one hand, he loomed over her like a man with a treat, saying, "If you're a good little girl for Papa, you'll get your blanket back. And if you keep being good, I'll give you something to eat. Your new Papa will set you up right, he will, but only if you do what he says."

She shivered as the foot nudged her, murmuring softly.

Rayne didn't feel good at all. Her stomach was all knotted up and tight and she felt sick... "I... I d-don't feel good..." She whimpered softly. She wasn't hungry... She'd eaten just before they went to the park... But it was... Was like her stomach was all gurgly.

"C... Can I go to the bathroom please?" She mumbled, afraid if she opened her mouth too wide that something would come out.

She began to tremble slightly, afraid that if she did throw up... He would only beat her again... She had... She had to keep from getting sick.... But if... If she could go to the bathroom..

"Please Mister? I... I really... really don't feel good." She pleaded.

What had happened so fast? The cold wouldn't have make her stomach queezy... And it wasn't even nerves. No... it was that little stomach bug that Lynch had picked up, and it wasn't going to treat her any better than it had him.

Hammer frowned, nudging her again with his foot. "Bloody hell," he muttered. "Look at me, little girl," he said, roughly siezing her by the chin to look in her eyes, feel her pulse.

"Fucking hell. Got myself a little sick kid, do I?" Shrugging a little, he dropped the blanket on her. Hammer left the room again, muttering, "Not with the bloody trouble, is it? All it would take is a leetle twist and no trouble atall."

But, instead of giving her that little twist, he went and grabbed a bucket, which he dropped in front of her when he got back. "Whatever you got that needs comin' out, it goes in the bucket. You hearin' me? Not a fucking way am I mopping up puke, little girl."

Her body was colder than it should have been, but her face was red and blushed, her eyes were dull as she looked up at him. "I... I'm sorry Sir..." She murmured.

But as he dropped the blanket she smiled ever so slightly and pulled it around her. At least... At least he wasn't going to beat her now... He... He at least wasn't being mean to her. Or not as mean anyway... Mr. Lynch, he would have tucked her in a nice warm bed and stay close to her... Well Maybe. That was what her mother always did.

"Thank you..." She murmured again as he brought the bucket. At least it was something better than a floor. "I'm sorry... I... I didn't mean to get sick..." She whimpered then, looking up at him almost fearfully. In truth she had been expecting some... retribution.

As she sat up her stomach suddenly clenched and she leaned forwards towards the bucket, throwing up and then coughing and spitting as she tried to get the taste out of her mouth. But it wasn't a flu or cold... Anything that was caused by her one night in the room.

"I... I'm sor-" She had started to apologize again, but then threw up once more, whimpering as she spat, trying to get rid of the horrible taste in her mouth.

The vomiting had wiped her of the little energy she had and she fell asleep not to long after, the taste in her mouth still lingering but not enough to keep her awake.

After a few hours nap she felt much better, but then again, it could have been because her stomach was empty. But in any case she felt better. She made her way to where the door was, but... It was locked. She had wanted to tell the man that she was better but she couldn't open the door. "Um... Mister?" She knocked on the door, hopefully he would hear her. "Mister... Are you there?" She called out as she pulled the blanket tighter against the chill in the room.

Hammer watched disintereestdly as she threw up into the bucket before leaving. There were more interesting things to do than watch the little thing barf into a bucket. Like find something pretty to eat.

As she was calling out to him, Hammer grunted as his hips collided one last time with the pretty little thing he'd fond to drink from. When his fingers loosened from where they were clenched around the back of her neck, she fell to the floor with the slightest of whimpers, sounding a bit like the little niblet upstairs, actually.

He lifted her by the hair, a little disappointed, actually. It hadn't been as good as he'd wanted it too. Too fast, too little resistance. Too something. Her fault, of course. Hammer broke her neck without a second thought. She'd been mostly drained anyway.

Hitching his pants back on, he grabbed a can of juice as he headed back upstairs. Puking caused dehydration and dehydration was another headache he didn't want to deal with.

"All better?" he asked boredly, tossing her the can as he opened the door.

It was a while before he answered, but he opened the door and she flinched as he threw something at her. But it was just a can of juice... Huh?

Well, he knew she needed to eat and drink... And he at least didn't want her dead... And that in itself was a comforting feeling really. She picked up the can and snapped the top. Oh. Apple! Her favorite too!

Rayne sipped greedily for a few moments, the juice refreshing her and appearing to give her a bit of life again. "Yeah... I... I think so anyway..." She nodded as he asked if she was better. She wasn't sure of course, but she felt a lot better than before.

"But... Um... Mister? Why can't I go home? Why are you keeping me here?" She asked in a soft mumble, looking down at the ground as she clutched the drink in her hands. "I miss Mr Lynch... And... He's probably so worried about me. Please... Can't... Can't I call him?"

Hammer watched as she guzzled juice, tapping his fingers on his jeans in boredom. "Good," he said with a shrug when she said she felt better. If she was still sick, well, he'd probably just kill her too and be done with it. Wasn't worth anything much to him unless she brought in some coin.

As she kept speaking, his hawkish brows drew together and he wondered what to say. It didn't really matter, did it? She was staying s'long as he had a mind to keep her. Wasn't up to her now was it?

"Mr. Lynch called me," Hammer said at last, betting that a five year old wasn't going to know he was lying. Even if she did, he had plenty of time to tell her otherwise. "He wasn't too happy at first, but you know what he told me?"

Hammer crouched down to her level. "He said thanks for taking you offa his hands. Said he was getting a little tired of taking care of a bad girl like you. Figured I could teach you to be good."

She looked up at him as he was apparently thinking. She was hoping that he would say she could go home, or at the very least call Mr. Lynch.

But Rayne stepped back as he spoke, Shaking her head quickly. "N... No! He... he'd never say that 'bout me! He... He thought I was already good! He wouldn't..." She nearly sobbed. He had to be lying, he had to. Mr Lynch took such good care of her, he'd... He'd never say such mean things.

"Please! Let me call him... I wanna talk to him!" If he had said those things to the man... If he really meant them he'd tell her too right?

She gave a loud hiccup and turned to run back into the darkness of the room, curling up in the corner. He was lying... Mr. Lynch was probably looking for her now! He'd come and find her... He had to.... He cared about her, she knew that. He didn't think she was bad, he couldn't have.

"You want to believe me, don't you? That's why you're so scared, because you know it's true. Mr. Lynch doesn't love you and he never did. Nobody ever has and nobody ever will!" Hammer said his voice rising fervently as he jabbed a finger at her.

Grabbing her as she raced away, he held her by the shoulders and forced her to look at him. "Don't you get it, little girl? He doesn't want to tal k to you. He took care of yuo because he had to and now that he's got rid of ya, well, he don't want you back."

It took work to keep from grinning.

"So he asked me to take you offa his hands. And I did. Di'n't I say I was your new papa now? Di'n't I say that? You were too bad for Mr. Lynch to handle and he was glad that I took ya," the harsh, grim lines of Hammer's face were set angrily as he shook her again. "An' I'm 'clined to b'lieve him too, after seeing how you are. You are a bad girl. Han't done anything I've said so far."

She cried out as he grabbed her shoulder and spun her around. Tears were flooding her face now and she couldn't even see Hammer's face in front of her. He... He didn't have to take care of her... He didn't. He could have walked on by and she wouldn't have ever known... He'd cared about her hadn't he?

Rayne was sobbing so hard as she heard his words that she couldn't even argue back like before. Why would he have said that? She'd been good. She helped him with chores... She didn't make messes...

But... But if she wasn't bad, why had her mommy left her? Rayne was afraid she had been bad and when she told Mr. Lynch... He had said that no... It hadn't been her fault. She hadn't done anything wrong.

But... What if she had? What if she'd done something so horrible that no one had told her about and...

Rayne's knees were weak from fear and she fell to the ground in a little heap, sobbing harder than ever. She hadn't meant to be bad! She never did! She wanted Mr Lynch to love her and wanted him to find her mommy so they could be a family... And... She'd never meant to be bad! Never.

She didn't even know what she could have done to be so bad that Mr Lynch and her mommy would both hate her. But... But she always did everything they told her to! But yet she'd still been bad? How? How was that so?

Rayne was crying so hard now that she was gasping for breath between sobs, and her chest was hurting because of that. And her only comfort was her blanket... Her stuffed bunny was at home now, and Mr Lynch probably threw it away...

Hammer closed his eyes as she sobbed, opening himself to his power. At once, a jumble of confusing images flooded his mind: a dingy kitchen floor with flour scattered over it, the bearded man saying something, a woman with tired eyes, and another man with mean ones.

He touched her, shaking her again as she fell into ferocious weeping. "Stop taht! Stop it!," Hammer ordered her his hard hands unsympathetically wiping the tears and, eww, snot away.

"Don't you wanna be a good little girl? Or do you just wanna be a bad, weepy, little girl? Huh?" he punctuated his question with another shake. "'Cause if you wanna be good, you can do that for me. But if you just wanna be bad..." Hammer trailed off leaving his unspoken threat hanging.

She was trying to stop. She was.

Sniffling and hiccuping Rayne whipped at her eyes fiercely, trying to stop crying.

"I... I'm a- a good girl" She defended herself between hiccups and strangled sobs, trying to hold them all back. But it was just too many for her and several kept escaping here and there, even as Hammer shook her.

"I... I never... never meant to be... bad." She sniffled loudly. "No one-one told me. I wouldn't- wouldn't have be-been bad... Never..."

Her loud sobs were meager sniffles now, and her body wasn't shaking like before, just little hiccups.

"Why didn't any-one tell me?" She murmured softly as a hiccup shook her small body. Why hadn't anyone told her she'd been bad? She... She always thought she'd been good, always thought she'd been a good girl. No one had ever scolded her for anything, no one had told her she'd been bad. She would have apologize, she would have made herself better... But they hadn't told her. Why?

"Well you were," Hammer said letting her go now that he seemed satisfied that she wasn't going to keep wailing her little head off. "Dos'n' matter if you never meant to be, you just were."

He mentally gaev himself a pat on the back. Good thinking in the clutch, eh?

Shrugging as she kept talking Hammer said, "I don' know, do I? Maybe they were afraid you'd just act worse if they told ya and they tried to be more subtle about it. Yeah, that's prob'ly it."

Hammer crouched, his hard blue eyes meeting hers again. "You wanna start being a good girl? If you do what I say, you'll get to take a bath and get all clean, yeah? And if you keep being good I'll let you sleep on a bed with a clean blanket. Might even get you a present if you're really, really good."

But she wouldn't have! Her mommy should have known that! She should have known. If... If her mommy had told her she'd been bad, she would have stopped right away and done what she could to make it right. She would have.

As he looked into her dull green eyes she nodded silently.

Rayne had never wanted to be bad... She had always wanted to be a good girl... Always wanted to make her mommy happy. And she had tried to make Mr. Lynch happy. "An... And maybe... If I promise to be good... D-Do ya think Mr. Lynch would take me back?" She asked, hopeful that he would.

If she was a good girl... Maybe he would want her back and then her mommy would be happy again too. Maybe that was why she'd been crying so much before she left her in the park...

"I... I want to be good..." She mumbled. "But I dunno how... I thought I'd been good... But..." But she had been wrong. So what did she have to do?

"Well, you'll learn how to be good now," Hammer said as he stood and began to unbuckle his jeans. Pausing, he crouched again, stroking a finger down her tearstained cheek. "I promise you, do what your new Daddy tells you and he'll think you're a very good girl."

He frowned as she asked him if she thought the man would take her back. "I don' know..." Hammer said hesitantly, "he thought you were pretty bad. You're gonna have a lot o work to do to get good enough to change his mind."

Standing again, he stepped out of his jeans and tossed them aside before kneeling back down to her level. Taking one of her small hands, he placed it on his manhood and said, "Just stroke it up and down, little girl, and gently."

Rayne began to tremble as he unbuckled his pants, though she wasn't sure why. He didn't have a belt, so he couldn't beat her like he had last night. But she gasped though as he put her hand against his private part. She wasn't supposed to touch! No one was supposed to touch anyone's private parts.

It was wrong, that was what the police officer said who came to her class. If someone touched her in a bad place, she was supposed to tell. It was a bad place, it made people sad if you touched them there. Bad. That was why she was supposed to tell.

So how could she be good by touching a bad place?

She pulled her hand away slowly and looked almost fearfully up at him. "I'm not supposed to touch your private place... I don't want to make you sad Mister... It's not a good place to touch. The police officer said it was bad to touch someone's private place... She said... Said it makes them sad." She said hesitantly. After all, a police officer knew what was good and bad right? They locked up people for being bad, so they knew.

Hammer only grinned as she pulled her hand away, gently taking it to pull it back. "Don't worry, little girl, it's all right between you and your new Daddy. If your Daddy says it's good, it is." He said it quietly, his rough stone-grinding voice almost gentle and comforting. And perfectly reasonable.

He studied her face closely. "Don't you wanna be good for your new Daddy? Or do you think you know better than he does?" Hammer asked, his voice tensing slightly as he spoke. "Is that it? You think you're smarter than your new Papa, don't you?"

"This is what your Daddy wants," he continued, his voice still low and - nearly - soothing.