[b]Lauren - Haywood - Katie[/b]

It had gotten late, somehow. Lauren had evidently fallen asleep after her altercation with that girl. She didn't remember much of the last few hours, though she was relieved her dreams had been quiet. She knew- she just [i]knew[/i]- that Bull would find himself into her dreams sooner or later. His big stupid hairy grin would be plastered on his face and he take her into his big stupid hairy arms. The thought alone made her want to throw up.

But it also made her angry.

She had awoken to an empty living room with Katie at her side. The little girl was nudging her, looking excited despite the day's gruesome events. Despite all odds, Katie was such a strong girl. Tyler at least did something right raising her. When the little girl mentioned Bull, a lump formed in Lauren's throat. She found herself unable to swallow and her body wracked with pain all over again. She was going to have to tell Katie all over again that someone close to her had died and Lauren didn't even have Bull to help this time.

"Katie... Katie." Lauren reached out and gently took Katie's hands. She rubbed at them softly in attempt to calm the girl down. "This place is dangerous. These people aren't good people. I-I..." She found herself choking up. This was beyond difficult; It was something Lauren had never experience before. Not even with her parents, who she believed were long gone at this point. They had been getting old as of late, having given birth to Lauren late in life after choosing to go without children for many years. Then her father had been diagnosed with cancer only a few years ago and his life had been steadily draining away ever since. Lauren had been prepared for the death of her father and, to a lesser extent, her mother.

But Bull... She hadn't been prepared for that. She loved that man... [i]Had[/i] loved that man. More than anyone else she had ever been with. Bull hadn't always been the greatest, but he had been [i]hers[/i].

"Bull is dead, Katie. These people killed him... It's just us now." The words were blunt, she knew, but Lauren couldn't think of another way to put it. She wanted to cry and bawl all over again, but she couldn't afford to. She needed to be angry, not sad. She needed to take Katie far far away from these people. Maybe take her away from the living entirely while she was at it.