Oh, My Sister

"How did Valerie get that scar?"

It's a question that makes Leon sigh heavily as their horses trudge through the snow. They had searched all night for his sister, braving the plummeting temperatures in favor of finding her. The cabins on Jake's map had all been empty so far, and a knot of worry and regret had formed in Leon's stomach. A fear that he would never find her, that he had failed his little sister so utterly.

He should have checked in on her more often. Should have braved his father and swallowed his own distaste and shame. He'd tried to get her out, get her to go with him, but she just wouldn't go.

Happy in the twisted reality their own parent had created for them.

Or at least for her.

"She did it to herself." He answers through his teeth, his gloved hands tightly clutching the reins.

Isabella makes a small noise to his side. Something like surprise, or shock.

"W.. why?" she asks, half shivering, half utterly confused.

Leon bows his head. "After our Mother died, Father became obsessed with.. bringing her back." He chances a look to his side at his cold companion, so often their story repelled people. "It's what started all this. The experiments, the crazyness. His so called science had always been a little out there but he just.. he was so convinced.." puffing his cheeks, he blows on his gloved hands as wind whips past their faces.

Slivers of dawn crept over the horizon, he hoped sun would bring them a little respite at least.

"Anyway.." he shrugs off tales of his fathers madness, "Valerie decided she wanted to help him. I'm not entirely sure what she was trying to do, but I found her with a knife and.. well.."

Isabella studies him as they ride, her brow furrowed in a deep frown. "Jesus." She mutters eventually.

"She ain't well." Leon concludes. "My father never wanted a daughter, he'd been hoping for another son. He was always decent to me but ever since she was born.. he just.. raised her as though she were a lab rat. She's used to it. Sick as that is. I tried to get her away but she just wouldn't leave. I haven't seen her in so long."

Guilt. He felt weighed down by it.

"I should have done more." He murmurs.

Isabella looks at him with sympathy. "Sometimes we can't save them from themselves." She concludes. "My sister fell in love with a dangerous outlaw. We all warned her. Tried to talk her away.. but Jake.. he's.."

"An asshole?" Leon asks.

Isabella simply chuckles quietly. "He's a good guy, actually. But the people he ran with were not. It's a long story.. they ended up burning her alive."

Leon blinks, staring at her. "Shit, I'm sorry."

Isabella just swallows. "Every day I think there's more I could have done. Instead I was just.."

She trails off, and Leon nudges her to go on as the sun breaks over the mountains, warm rays cutting through the icy fog. But Isabella simply shakes her head, and he knew better than to push someone that didn't want to talk.

"I guess we all have our crosses to bear." He concludes after a few moments silence.

Pushing on, they drive their tired horses through the snow drifts, checking for the landmarks sketched on the map to make sure they were on the right path. His stomach turned with hunger and worry, he wasn't sure which one of those things was making him more nauseous. The sight of a quaint ranch spread sprawling up ahead of them brings a wave of relief. But if she wasn't here, then there were no more options left.

Save for howling her name in to the sky. Which they had been doing all night anyway.

"The hell are they farmin' all the way out here?" Isabella asks as they ride closer to the ranch.

Leon just shrugs. "Ice?"

It makes her laugh softly, and he can't help but smile at her. A lingering look that perhaps lasts a little too long. He's snapped out of it though, as the door to the main ranch house swings open as they reach it, and they're greeted by the double barrel of a shotgun.

As their feet hit the snow, their hands reach for the sky.

"You got about thirty seconds to explain what you're doin' here before I start shootin', ain't got no more time for robbers left in me." A woman snarls at them in a heavy accent, and leaves them wide eyed.

Leon responds quickly. "I'm lookin' for my sister, maam. She's lost out here. Checkin' all the marked cabins on the map, that's all."

"Sister?" The woman asks, her grip on the gun relaxing a little.

"Yes maam." He nods, hands still raised. "She's barely eighteen, white hair, names Valerie.."

The shotgun lowers, and tucks to her side as she studies them cautiously. Then a moment later, she calls over her shoulder. "Valerie honey, this man says he's your brother."

He holds his breath, and despite the lowering of the gun they both keep their hands raised, just in case.

The woman steps aside, and a smiling Valerie appears in the doorway clutching an apple in her hand with a bite taken out of it.

"Leon?" She asks, wide eyed.

He lowers his hands and lets out a breath of relief, hurrying forward to greet her. She springs in to his arms like an Easter Bunny and he clutches her to him. The woman simply holds the door and smiles at them both.

"Ya'll look like shit." She muses, "come inside out of the cold, have some breakfast and warm yourselves up."

Setting Valerie down, Leon looks back to Isabella and motions for her to join them. Heading inside, the woman with the shotgun sets it down and stokes the fire.

"My names Sadie, Sadie Adler. That there's my husband Jake." She introduces herself, and Leon shakes her hand gratefully.

Valerie hugs Isabella like they were old friends that hadn't seen each other in years. But then, his sister always was dramatic.

"We found Miss Valerie here wanderin' outside of Colter when we was on a supply run. She's lucky we did, she was just about to head up Spider Gorge. Doubt she'd have found her way off that damn glacier alone." Sadie explains, plating them up food. "She's been a ray of sunshine round here the last day or so, be sad to see her go."

Valerie pouts her bottom lip like a child.

It's the best breakfast Leon can remember having, in a very long time.