Chrissy walked behind her father with a fallen face. As the man didn't look pleased either. She was hoping to avoid suspension. But the girl was smart to keep her lips sealed knowing a single word from her mouth would have her old man blowing gasket. Without a word she and her sister aided him down the stairs. She wasn't looking forward to be living away from her family.

It was not the time and the place to give his daughter a good talking to. Perhaps the two weeks she was spending over at Colonel's house would prevent her from doing it again. If she was anything like him, she would be doing it again. "I expect you to behave for them," Jason told his daughter, "you hear me." Seeing her nod, he patted her shoulder.

Looking towards Travis and Jamie for a moment he wonder on how his own child would mingle or be treated. He just hoped that Jamie's hatred for them did not end up being aimed at Chrissy.  If it was aimed at him, he would take it, but if his children and wife were on the receiving end. The two of them would see the worst side of him. Giving her a hug, he made his way towards the car, after sitting too long standing on the painful knee was going to have him up all night.

Sitting in the passenger side, he sighed in relief, turned when Vanessa plopped her head to his side, pouting, "It's going to be boring without her, Daddy." Jason chuckled and nodded in agreement. He knew his mind would have no peace till she was back home to Vicki and him. Jason wanted little to no interaction with the teen who was coming with them. Best if Jason kept out the way.


Tag: Jamison "Jamie" Oxford , Travis Oxford , Victoria Oxford

Nathan was protesting and yelling at his mother the entire way to the cars. "You want me to go with the people who hurt you? Are you insane mother?" he was angry. The boy channeled a lot of his mother in some regards. No one put a hand on his mom and he wanted nothing to do with Victoria at all. Then there was Vanessa. Yeah this was not going to be a pleasant experience.

When Jamie grabbed him by the arm and pinned him to the wall outside she pointed a finger in his face. "You will behave, and if you don't then you will be answering to a military boarding school." She wasn't kidding.Perhaps Travis was right, maybe Nathan did need a boarding school to get him into shape. Jamie was worried that Nathan might start something.

Nathan gulped down his throat. "Yes Ma'am" he stated. Jamie was a little rougher with Nathan than she was with Daniel. That was mainly because Daniel didn't try to push her around. Jamie sometimes had to remind Nathan that she could still handle him so to speak. It was the personalities of the two. She didn't say anything to Bobby as Crissy got in the car. Though it would have been preferable if Jamie had stayed in the car, she chose against it.

It was Daniel who spoke up next. "Momma try and relax" he stated as he reached a hand onto her shoulder. Jamie leaned back in the passenger seat and looked to Travis. Now that this was happening, she was less sure and it showed on her face.

<Tag: Jason Robert Oxford, Travis Oxford, Victoria Oxford>

Nathan got into the car with Victoria and Bobby. His mother scared him, but this woman scared him more. The woman was former mafia and beaten his mother up. He had no trust for her either. Well he didn't exactly trust Bobby either. Grumbling he put his headphones in and ignored everyone around him.

Victoria didn't really know how to start this conversation and while she had been the one to want to go along with this idea, she didn't like the idea of feeling like she could screw something up. Usually Victoria knew how to handle things, but this kid had no interest in anything. "Perhaps we should go over the house rules" Victoria stated as Vanessa tugged his ear buds from his ears.

Victoria was driving since Bobby's knee injury. The redhead reached across and laced her husband's fingers with her own. "You worry too much." They might be distant family, but she knew them to be good people. It wasn't like they were sending Chrissy into the house of a serial killer. Vicki sighed after a moment. Why did she have to be the only one to parent her husband's ex's son? Right when things got hard it was Victoria who had step up and fight the battles.

<Tag: Travis Oxford, Jason Robert Oxford, Jamison "Jamie" Oxford>
<OOC: Don't forget about Travis>

Travis sighed as he kept the girls mini suitcase in the boot of the car and looked towards Jamie and Nathan. From his observation, the teen was starting to push his mother's buttons as well. Sighing, mostly from the stress all this was causing, he slammed the door as his eyes landed on Bobby giving his daughter a hug. When he had first met the twins his eyes had kept bouncing between the girls; trying to figure out which one which. Seeing Bobby coming down the steps his knee jerk reaction had been to aide his cousin out but stopped short when the twins helped. The limp and the cane raised more questions than they answered.

The girls in short were his nieces as he closed the door behind Chrissy after the teen had gotten in. He started the car as he heard Daniel speak to Jamie after getting in. A part of him was more worried about what  trouble his son would create for Bobby. Yet that was the last thing he needed. The fun part would be try to explain it to his Uncle and Aunt who were due to Noel's stuff up. How the heck was he suppose to tell them that the girl who was staying with his family was their own grand-daughter. Sighing he pulled the car into the road, "There is a spare room ready for you," he told Chrissy as he took a quick look towards her from the review mirror who nodded wordlessly. The angle he had of her, she did look so much like her father.

"So," he tried to keep a conversation going, between them all, "How are you finding Winterley so far?" He looked at Jamie as he waited for a reply to come.

"Boring," a reply came softly and seemed less then interested in keeping a conversation going. Travis had to wonder if they had got the wrong twin. This was not a girl full of sass who had punched his son. He had been expecting a reply full of snark her father was known for. But the answer did raise his brows.

<<Tag: Jason Robert Oxford , Victoria Oxford and Jamison "Jamie" Oxford >>

He sighed as the journey begin. It was going to be very long two weeks as Jason noted earplugs going in the ear. If he had taken after Jamie, then it was going to be a challenge of its own. If he took after Travis, Jason knew how to handle that aspect of his cousin. Normally it had been easy to distract Travis with candy or other stuff. With his boy, it could be the same.

"House rules aren't a bad place to start," he agreed. It was never a bad place to start anything. House rules and its enforcing was fell on both, but mostly he knew Vicki enforced then while he did it when the mood struck. There were few he would stick with. "You clean up after yourself. Which means dishes in the washer, dirty laundry in the hamper basket. Beds are to be made before school. No electronics on dinner table and that includes, " Jason look at Nathan pointedly, "ipod."

When Vicki spoke, he chuckled weakly, "I know," he told her, "That girl will make me go gray before I turn 50." As the chord struck, he brushed the feeling away before it could take hold. The fact there were so many missed years was picking on him, like it would make a difference to everything. Other than Travis and Jamie's treatment, he feared his parent's reaction to the news of his daughter being in their nephew's house and his father's after he would about the teen. He wasn't sure how his old man would take it.

Kevin had been asserting Nathan since the drive started, "Do you like Spiderman or Batman?" The boy waved the figures in the air all while he kicked his legs, "Batman would win, but Spiderman would use his web shot and...." distracted again he began playing with the toys.

Nathan nodded at Bobby's words, but when the baby started talking, he wanted groan. This was a bad idea. What was his parents thinking? He was sure that by the end of the week would beg his parents to let him come back home. Or he was going ask Grandpa Bobby to order his nephew to do it for him.

<<Tag: Oxfords!>>

Victoria was mostly quiet the rest of the drive home. Quite honestly herself not in any mood to deal with Jamie's kid. There were still a lot of ill feelings towards Jamie. Most of it was Victoria's fault. How Jamie had such a disrespectful son, was beyond her. Though she didn't think to dredge up that question. This whole town had the red head depressed.

Bobby's depression wasn't helping her own day in and day out but she somehow kept pushing through it. There was no laughter to Bobby as they drove home. Throwing her bag on the floor when they got home she went into the kitchen to make dinner. Still not many words were coming from the red head's lips. She didn't see much point in wasting her breathe.

<Tag: Jamison "Jamie" Oxford, Jason Robert Oxford, Travis Oxford>

Quite honestly, Travis was much better at the whole conversation thing than she was right now. In Chrissy's eyes she was probably the woman who had screwed everything up and Jamie as colloquial as she was for work, felt lost. Laying her hand down on Travis' leg she took breathe. "Your dad, he dragged me out of Rayton a few times because I found this place boring as a teenager myself" Well if she could relate something to Bobby maybe she could get the girl to open up a bit. There was probably a lot of stories Jamie had about Bobby that Chrissy knew nothing about. Travis had to do the same thing at times with Jamie, drag her back from Rayton in the middle of the night. When she was younger and bit more wild side to her. Mainly because Fred let Jamie get away with quite a bit more than Debra could have.

Jamie let her hand rest on the back of Travis' neck, it was in the manner she always did when she wanted him to not worry about something. "Speaking about Rayton I'm going to be gone most of the day tomorrow. That child abduction case I got stuck with, I have to be up early to talk to her. Getting an 8 year old to testify is not exactly a cake walk. She's scared and honestly.. I don't know what to do. The Lieutenant whose being charged, he's also up on witness intimidation charges. So I'll be hung up at the court house. Can you handle things?" she probably gave him too much information but she was stressed about other things besides what was going on in he car. She wanted to know Travis could handle Chrissy and Daniel while she was at work.

<tag: Jason Robert Oxford, Travis Oxford, Victoria Oxford>

He slowly got out of the car before going over to the back to get the teen's suitcase out. Two weeks of this behavior was going get him to pull out his behavior book. The kid needed some lessons in manners. Just because the boy was his former cousin's kid, he wasn't going to let the boy get away with talking badly. Heaving out the object Jason allowed the teen to handle it himself while he took Kevin out his seat. Quietly walking behind Vicki, as his wife was quite, Nessa picked up her mothers bag and held out to her father.

Taking it, "Can you show him the room we have set for him?" Jason asked his baby girl, "I would but.." They both knew the climbing up the stairs wasn't going to happen. It would also give him a time to check on his wife. She did seem to be upset or something and left the kids to their tasks and headed for the kitchen.

"Sure daddy," Nessa faced Nathan, "Come on, I'll show you." Without waiting she climbed the stairs. She wasn't happy he was here, but since both he and Chrissy screwed up.

"Why isn't he showing it to me?" Nathan asked as he climbed the stairs and struggled with the suitcase he had. He would bring his backpack up later once he knew where his room was.

Annoyed, Vanessa frowned as she turned to face him with her slender hand on her hips and stared at him, "You have to be blind not to notice that he has trouble walking and that cane, stairs are out of question." Since Chrissy wasn't here, Vanessa would need to do some defending for her dad. Huffing, she turned on her heels and marched up, not waiting for him. She directed him to the spare room in the are where all three had their bedrooms.

Shaking his head, he took a step when the baby arrived, Nate could only glare at him, and the boy was still playing the figures in hand, "I don't suppose you are going to add something," the teen commented.

 "Daddy has a bad knee," the boy told him, "Want me to help?"

"No," Nate brushed off the offer, saw the kindergarder shrug leaving him alone to get to the second story, once there he followed in the direction Kevin had gone in. Seeing Vanessa waiting for him outside a room, "That's mine?" All he got was a nod and pat, before the girl disappeared into what he assumed to be her room. Walking in Nate placed the suitcase in the nook near the wardrobe before flopping on the bed. He had to figure out how to survive them for the next two weeks.

Downstairs, Jason arrived in the kitchen, watching his wife cook away, sighed and ambled over, wrapping his arms around her from behind, "You okay?" he asked.

<<Tag: Jamison "Jamie" Oxford , Travis Oxford , Victoria Oxford >>

Chrissy had been untangling her phone buds when the Colonel had asked and she had replied, and was about to put them into her ear when Jamie spoke. For a moment she didn't make the connection as she placed them in her ear, allowing the music to blare into her ear when as the words rolled around in her head. Blinking she paused her music and pulled out the buds, looked towards Jamie in bafflement, "Wait," she spoke, "Are you talking about my dad? What are you; his ex-girlfriend or something?" Getting a reply from the woman, "Awkward." Was all she had on her. Her father's ex was married to the man who was suppose be her uncle. "Very awkward." It didn't lessen it either.

Travis gave his wife a look, "We won't be declaring a cold war for sure. We all will be alive and breathing." His reply had the girl give a soft gigglesnort that only lasted few seconds, at least that was something, "Such references drove your father batty," but noticed that the ear buds were back on and her head was bobbing to the music, that meant she had not heard a word he had said, "Danny, remind me to pull out some old home movies for her to watch."  Approaching the house he saw his uncle's car and almost whined. He wanted time to think on what to say to them. Parking it, he open the boot of the car and moved to get her stuff out, but the teen was ahead of him.

"Thanks anyway," she told him and looked at the house with un-certainness. If someone told her to go home, she would. She didn't want to be here, at all.

"You are with family Chrissy," he told her. He did not want a battle with the teen on his hands. It was not something he would handle well. Not being on the same wave length with Bobby wasn't sitting well.

Once she was on top of the stair, Chrissy took few down to be on the same eye level with the man, with a tilt of her head she pondered over his words, "Family by definition, Colonel," she told him flatly, "Not in meaning. Your parents?" she asked and saw him shook his head, she had seen the car, "Daddy's parents? Yes?" Saw a nod, "That does not make them my grandparents, other had being labled as such."

She was reminding him of far too much of Bobby. She was mini-Bobby for certain and that was weird on it's own, "Sure it does," he tired to defend his words, he had never won an argument against Bobby, and he was trying to win it against his kid.

"Wrong," she picked up her stuff as she heard the footsteps coming towards the door, "They don't even know I exist. As far I know my grandparents are dead." She was using the line she knew since childhood. Her father's cover story. Turned to see the door swing open and saw the woman who was suppose to be her grandmother. She could see her father in her.

"Well," Sarah smiled at Chrissy, all while motioning everyone inside, "Who do we have here?"

Chrissy gulped, as she looked at her. This was the woman she had been named after, "I'm Chrissy. I have been send down here as a punishment for decking your grandson. If there are no objecions, I did like to see the room I will be staying in, please."

"Ah," the elder Oxford nodded as she gave Danny hug and looked at Travis. Expression on his face was unreadable. Walking over she placed a hand on his arm, "Travis?" she looked a little concerned for a moment.

Travis shook his head, "I'm good," he told her as he patted her arm in affection, then faced his son, "Danny, can you please show her the room?" The boy nodded and tugged Chrissy arm before taking the stairs. Without another word the teen followed, "I'll bring the suitcase up." He wasn't going to voice that her words about her grandparents being dead sliced him. What had Bobby told the kids?

<<Tag: Jamison "Jamie" Oxford , Victoria Oxford , Jason Robert Oxford >>

Victoria continued to be quiet, taking her bags from Vanessa she gave her an appreciative kiss on the cheek. Once inside she could hear the teens arguing all the way up the stairs. Oh it was going to be a long week. She just braced herself for whatever they had happening. She started dinner and paid no one else a mind in the house. This was becoming more and more of a bad idea.

Miss can’t hide anything was upset that Nathan was already treating Vanessa and Kevin poorly. With an attitude like that.. there was no denying he was the son of Jamie. That didn’t make her feel any better about the situation. The kids had all retreated to their rooms. That was unlike them this time of the day. Victoria liked things just so, in an order. She was OCD and things just weren’t normal right now and it was messing with her head.

“You have been on that leg too much today Jason” she told him fairly bluntly. Not because she was irritated at him; but because she wanted him off his leg. But her arms said different as she stopped what she was doing and just let him hold her. Was she okay? Not really, but this wasn’t about her. This was about her own children and worry and everything else that came along with it. Quite frankly her family lived in hell. Still homesick she thought about everything that had happened. How had they gotten here? She knew and she hated it.

The fighter in Victoria didn’t stop because she was tired, it didn’t stop because she was upset or feeling down on herself. No it always caused her to fight harder, for better results. “You already know the answer to that” she decided to not answer it; because she really didnt want to express things right now. She took her hands back but she leaned against him as she started chopping a potato in half, there was a slight pause in between each slice she made. Someone needed to keep her from taking Nathan by the shoulder and giving him a dose of protective mother, because that is what the woman felt like doing right now.

Well so much for trying to talk. Jamie just decided to go silent at her husband’s look. What point was there in getting into this mess? The teen however was soon going to learn manners if it killed Jamie. It figured, Bobby’s kid having no manners. Though she knew Victoria better than that. Surely she had instilled some into her children. Clearly respect was an issue. Jamie noted that. Part of her was sort of glad she had court. Taking a breathe she got out of the car and wondered why the hell Sarah and Robert were here. Just who she didn’t want to see right now.

Jamie listened to the exchange between Travis and Chrissy. Family, by blood maybe. Is this really what Travis wanted? To fix things? If this was fixing things.. there was a small sigh. Travis was trying to be unreadable again and Jamie hated it. This had to be the worst time for Sarah and Robert to be here. The absolute worst. ‘Just keep your mouth shut Jamie’ she thought as she disappeared into the kitchen. Jamie wasn’t the biggest fan of the kitchen but she never complained. It was just the necessary evil of being a woman with a family to take care of. Not that she minded the taking care of her family part, it was the domestic stuff that drove her mad.

There was a crashing sound as she had been trying to reach for a dish that ended up smashing to the floor. Followed by a lot of colorful sailor words she managed to get off the stool she was on and started cleaning it up. Jamie was still angry at the whole fight earlier in the week; but at least her minor bruises were starting to heal. Yeah.. maybe if she was lucky no one would ask why it looked like her face had gotten in a fight with a tiger (as Travis had put it). Once she cleaned up the glass pan she had broken, she could be heard forcibly making sure it went in the trashcan. The anger caused a fire to start in the trashcan. Nothing that didn’t happen every once in a while. The angrier she got the more likely she would catch something on fire. Spraying it out with the extinguisher she sighed. A quiet Jamie was usually like a loaded gun waiting to go off.

This had more or less been her dad’s idea and she had convinced Travis it would be alright. She couldn’t exactly go back on what she had said now. Maybe Robert knew something she didn’t when it came to trying to tame a wild teen. Or her own dad would. Jamie hadn’t exactly been miss goody two shoes growing up. Always getting into fights and the like. Much like Chrissy. Quite honestly if anyone was going to understand the girl it was Jamie. But Jamie hadn’t raised girls, she had boys and they were easy going most of the time. She glanced up at the stairs. She knew at any given point any Military officer in the house would call her out on respect the hardway. Jamie could see that doing things the hardway for Chrissy wasn’t going to work. She was hurting not troubled. Defensive and probably feeling cornered.

With that in mind, Jamie pushed passed the others. She tapped on the door politely but loud enough to hear if the girl had her headphones in. “Chrissy” she called lightly before waiting a respectful moment before coming up. She had a bowl of cherries in her hand. Victoria and her had exchanged a small yet civil conversation about their children’s likes and dislikes. Victoria had mentioned they were Chrissy’s favorite. Setting the bowl down on the night stand she stayed a respectful distance.

“Look, Chrissy. I know things are awkward and confusing and everything else right now. I also know that probably everything I am about to say won’t even be acknowledged. I know that one from experience. Yes.. things did get awkward for a long time between your dad and I. When he left here the last thing on his mind was starting a family with your mother. Then he had you and your sister. And from as many years as I knew him before then. He’s alot like you, and I. Headstrong, stubborn, and doesn’t want to talk about things. That’s okay. No one is asking you to come out and talk about this mess. It affects you, Vanessa, and your little brother just as much as it affects everyone else in the family.

I thought I raised my son better than to bully others. Don’t think he’s ever been off the hook for it. Your mom and I used to be best friends. Inseperable even. She’s a remarkable woman and from what I can see.. underneath everything, you are just protecting your sister. That’s okay. She’s your sister, I’ve never met a set of twins until I met you; but you have a bond that no one else can take away. I’m protective of my sister too and she’s older than me. Ask your dad how many black eyes I had in school because I got in a fight over something someone said to my sister.”

Jamie leaned on the wall. “No one wants to make you feel like you have to be locked away for two weeks. We want to get to know you, not because anyone said we have to. Because we want to Chrissy, not because we have to. I am sure you are an amazing young lady. I think you deserve the opportunity to show it.” She waited to see if the teen was going to respond at all. Jamie was by no means a miracle worker but someone had to extend an olive branch.

Travis followed into the dinning room that was in the same space as the kitchen, guiding his aunt as well. There was no way he could explain why Nate was bullying the girls without telling her that her son was back in town, whether he wanted to be or not. The woman had put up a good front in presences of everyone of them, every time. There was no doubt in his mind that she would for one day wanted to be with him. Sighing he took a seat after she did, "He got into an disagreement that got out of control into him bullying two sisters," he told her, "I don't know why. They recently moved here." He cringed as Jamie almost had the kitchen and house on fire. Getting in her way was out of question. Seeing her go he get out another sigh.

"Did you speak with her parents?" she asked, "But the fact she punched him is quite amusing." It was something along the lines that would be done by Bobby.

"Her father isn't happy about the bullying nor her getting into a physical fight." He doubted Bobby would have been. But now he called himself Jason.

~*~

When Jamie entered after knocking, Chrissy sighed as she pulled out her ear bud and paused her ipod. Without making it obvios she tucked her family's photo under the pillow, and curled up on the bed she had sitting on, looked at Jamie and then eyed the bowl of cherries. A part of her wanted to ignore them and another wanted to eat them. But focused on what the woman was saying. Her awkward comment had nothing to do with her father and this woman. It was more on the fact that her 'uncle' was married to her father's ex. The man just happened to be her father's cousin. Giving into the temptation she picked on cherry and nursed in her hand, "I'm nothing like Daddy," she corrected, not knowing how much of pain her father had been, "Daddy's boring as they come. I mean real boring." She knew nothing about her father's life before she and her sister came along. The only cool thing about her father was that he was in the armed forces. "What mess? This one? No one picks on my sister and gets away. I don't care who they are."

When she heard that her mother and Jamie were friends, "It doesn't make it any less awkward. I mean I know about love triangles, but a square? You and dad, then dad and mom, dad and....I don't wanna know. " She shook her head to clear the confusion away, "I just want to go home."

Anger rose as Jamie talked about not feeling like being locked away, "Easy for you to say, you aren't the one living with complete strangers for two weeks. Regardless what the Colonel says. I hardly know any one of you." Getting of the bed she looked out of the window, "Do you?" she asked then was followed by a scoff, "Do they?" she placed emphasis on the word, and was refereeing to the elder Oxfords, and shook her head, "Then where the hell was everyone over the last 16 years or so? Where was everyone when my father almost died? You can't convince me that everyone cares or convince me of anything else." The curling of her fist only had the fruit in her hand to ooze out juice.


<<Tag: Jamison "Jamie" Oxford and Oxford!>>

At least world war 20 wasn't started yet. If it was going, it was going to be hellva of a week or two. His already thin patients would either go thinner or Jason would snap. If it was the latter, it was not going to be pretty sight to behold. While he hadn't lost his temper in years, being here and now dealing with his former yet so called family was testing that. He knew Vicki had seen him lose his cool during the early years of their marriage. But the teen will learn that he wasn't the only one to lose his cool very easily. Yet, Jason was surprised that Nathan didn't inherit Travis's cool facade he was known for, but Jamie's temperament. If further genes were in play, he was sure that some amount of Oxford temper was in the boy as well.

"hmm?" he sounded, "And that is a issue?" He knew it would be since the last thing he wanted was a sleepless night over pulsing pain, on the other hand with Chrissy over at Colonel's house, he wasn't going to be getting any sleep. "I'll be alright." He assured her. And held her when her arms came around him, and inhaled her scent. They would get through this, if it took at his willpower. He would see his family through, even if he had to fight every single Oxford; he knew. Married into the family or related to him by blood. The latter left a bitter thoughts in his mind, bitter feelings in his heart and bitter taste in his mouth. Being back here was not and hadn't been the right choice. The town reminded him too much of everything. Every time he went past the house he had lived in, images of his stuff being thrown out; would keep flashing and more memories as he roamed around town center.

"I might," he admitted, "But I want to hear from you. I want to hear the good, bad and the ugly." He knew a bit of the ugly, or so he thought he knew. If not all of it, but bits. He didn't leave her side as she went back to chopping and working away. He stood there standing with her leaning on him.

Yep, his knee was not going to let him sleep.

Tag: Victoria Oxford

Jamie chuckled when she mentioned Bobby being a bit boring. "Yes I guess sometimes he is, isn't he?" she agreed with the young girl. "But that's most adults. My dad was boring too." Then she corrected herself but at a whisper like she would get told on if she was heard. "He still is" she cracked a bit of a smile. "No one said you were the one in trouble here Chrissy. I know what happened. I know you aren't at fault. Travis knows you aren't at fault." she tried to reassure her. It was all Jamie could do right now.

"We were all close at one point." She tried to fight back the memories of everything that had happened. Explaining her side of things would only upset Chrissy. Jamie knew what it was like to be that age and just want what was familiar. She could relate. Taking a step closer but not touching her she bent down on the floor where she could talk to her face to face. "I know the feeling. Keep your chin up. You aren't in any trouble" she tried to make her feel better but it was clearly failing. Jamie didnt know what else to do.

"When I was a little younger than you are now. I set fire to a barn. My dad sent me to live at a boarding school for the summer. Two months of living with strangers who cared very little for my feelings. When I say I understand Christina, I am not saying it because it sounds good. It's okay to feel that way. Because yes, right now we are strangers but I'd like to fix that." She watched as the girl went to the window. "I spent the last 16 years in the military, being that I'm JAG, I got lucky and got to stay stationed over in Rayton. Even if Travis and your dad were talking to each other over the years. Your parents left for New York because that's where the military sent him. The military tears so many families apart. My sister hates it. Hates the military but respects those who serve. It takes strong people to go through it. You'll make it through this Chrissy. I know it's a different town and who you should be able to call family is distant to you. It's hard to start over. Even harder when you don't think you can turn to anyone. I know because I started over here in Rayton when I was little. We came overseas from France. I didn't know anyone in this town. You know who my first friend here was? It was your mom." she explained.

The guilt hit when she asked where everyone had been. "No one knew because no one talked, it's really hard to be there for people you care about when you lose touch." Jamie's eyes didn't give the hurt away, at least not to anyone who didn't recognize her mannerisms. "When everyone lived here, it was all a bunch of high school drama. A lot of people got hurt and there is no one real reason for any of it. Is it fair for you and your siblings to be caught in the middle of it? Absolutely not. The grudge has to end somewhere and if it's with me so be it. I won't lie. I had my part in it to. Before your dad left I said some really hurtful things, because at the time I was upset. I never got the chance to tell him I shouldn't have said them. But we can't live our lives regretting what we said or did. We can only try to fix it, make it better. I still regret things I said to your mom though. I pushed her away. I did it on purpose because I was hurting. It was the wrong thing to do to her over something so stupid. It took me years to realize it. By then it was too late. Your mom and dad had already moved to New York and lost touch. No way to contact them. They didn't exactly look back when they left here." she pointed out. "Give it time and the adults we will work this all out. Your father's parents. They are wonderful people, his dad can just well hold a grudge a little longer than he should too. He's the worst of the lot when it comes to that. Even I try and avoid him at times." she pointed out. "His mom.. she misses your dad. I used to get phone calls to see if I had heard from your dad. She thought about sneaking up to New York once. I'm the only one she ever told about that. So yes Chrissy, these people do care; but are a little misguided. Even myself." With that she glanced at the door and turned to go but stopped in case Chrissy wanted or needed anything. The mother in her couldn't stand to see the girl so broken. Jamie wanted to reach out and hug her but decided it was best to not push things.

Inside Jamie was breaking but had that military face on, the one that refused to show how much she really hurt. Though it was easy to tell she wasn't lying in anything she was telling Chrissy. Just Jamie refused to cry. That was just in her nature. She glanced over at the stairs in the hall. No she was going to stay and see this conversation through. It was likely the Navy lawyer wouldn't get much sleep that night. No, she had gone into a motherly worried mode now about Chrissy.

Tag: Chrissy Oxford

Nathan wasn't as hot headed as he was leading his Uncle to believe. Victoria could sense the emotions of those around her. She wasn't liking the hostility. It made her restless. Then there was her husband, whom was being a smart ass. There was a small sigh. She leaned against his shoulder as he wrapped his arms around her in return.

"Did you really just ask me that?" she chided lightly and teasingly punched him in the side of the shoulder. Not hard but enough to get his attention. Usually, in this position in the past she would have hip checked him but she hadn't done that with his leg in the condition he was in. She was very conscious of how her movements would affect him. When he said he would be alright she just nodded. Yeah well he could put up the man front all he wanted. She would be watching him. Just right now she was trying to avoid an argument.

Vicki knew she had to be the one to push, the one to stand up, the one he could count on through all of this. Not to say that it wasn't tearing her up a little piece at a time but she wouldn't admit it. No, when called out on it she pushed back and fought the point more. Though her fall out from this, she knew could end badly for her. Though she wouldn't admit it to her husband because she was more worried about everything he was going through and she didn't need to add to his burden.

She straightened up to keep weight off his leg as she chopped up the potatoes again. Making food from scratch was always something that kept her mind off of everything and had vast become a habit over the years. One could tell her demeanor by how she was preparing. Whether she was furiously chopping because she was anger, or if she was carefully cutting because she was worried, and many other little tell tale signs. "There is little to tell. I'm rundown, scared, frustrated, hurting, any other plethora of words. I don't like leaving the house." No, the house was a safety net for her and earlier it had been invaded by someone looking to hurt her family. "I keep telling myself a move to Rayton wouldn't help.. then other times I think it would solve a lot of things."

New York was home to her: the streets, the blending in, and the ability to not run into your next door neighbor if you really didn't feel like it. She put the knife down and started laying the potato slices down on her oiled glass cooking pan. Even her manner of laying things down was... purposeful. Victoria heard a doorslam upstairs and could feel her daughter upset. It was harder when the kids were upstairs but knowing the little things helped. Washing her hands she kissed her husband on the side of the face.

Heading upstairs she ran a hand through her daughter's hair after she entered into the room. Vanessa was upset. Victoria could sense it. "I want dad" crept the teen. Victoria understood, and she never pushed her children. The girls loved both parents but ran for Bobby when things weren't going well. Vicki sent a text down to his phone as she comforted Vanessa in the meantime.

Tag: Jason Robert Oxford