"Hey, Adam? Are you alright?" Jason asked, still holding Adam down.

"Yeah. Why?" Adam said, not understanding why he was still being held down.

"I thought you were having a seizure or something because you just went wild. Then you fell off of the bed and started screaming for me to help you," Jason said, very confused himself about his brother's behavior. "Thank goodness you didn't wake Dad up."

Adam just looked back at him in bewilderment.

"Then you yelled out "You can't hurt me" and that is when you went off the bed," Jason said, easing up his grip. He truly did think that his brother was having a seizure. Dr. Coykendall said it was possible that Adam could experience seizures because of his brain injury, but so far he did not show any signs of having any.

Adam remembered his dream after Jason mentioned the last part. He knew that he had to think up some excuse and fast.

"Well, I didn't have a seizure. I just must have had a bad dream," Adam said trying to downplay the situation. He tried to get up because the floor was really hard on his back, but Jason was still on top of him.

"Well, who was trying to hurt you?" Jason asked suspiciously. Jason knew that his brother was not being his usual self for a few days and he was going to figure out what was going on.

Adam at first drew a blank. He did not want to reveal anything to his brother, even though he truly wanted to sit down and tell his brother everything. But he feared rejection and he could not deal with rejection from his brother.

"I must have been dreaming about the accident again," Adam quickly responded after he found a believable excuse. "I am fine."

"Adam, if there is anything bothering you, just talk to me," Jason replied looking down at his younger brother. Adam had really not talked much about the accident and Jason thought that maybe that was what was bothering him. It had to be terrifying to know that you were going over the side of a mountain in the dark, not to mention having to learn things in a different way.

"I am fine, but I do have one problem," Adam said.

"What, I will help you with whatever it is," Jason said, waiting to hear from his brother.

"Could you please get off of me? I can't hardly breathe," Adam said, referring to the fact that Jason was still sitting on top of him.

"Sorry," Jason said, realizing that he still had Adam pinned to the floor. He got up and helped his brother to his feet. "Well, we might as well get a little more sleep. It is 4:30 in the morning and we don't have to get up for another two hours."

"I think I am going to go on ahead and get up. I am not very tired," Adam said. Jason reached over and felt his forehead.

"I barely get you up at seven. I have to check to make sure that you don't have a fever!" Jason said with a chuckle.

"Funny, I sometimes get up before you," Adam said in a sarcastic tone.

"Yeah, when we are going on vacation or if there is a car involved," Jason quipped back. "I usually have to haul you out of bed before mom throws water on you. The next time I am going to let her drown you with the coldest water she can find."

"I'll just go down and watch TV," Adam said as he grabbed a pair of jeans and a T-shirt.

"Suit yourself. Don't blame me if you fall asleep in Miss Meade's class," Jason said. He stretched out across the bed that he now had to himself. He was used to waking up with bruises after having to share tents and the back of the van with Adam when they were investigating cases. It felt nice to have the space.

Adam got dressed and by the time he left his room, Jason was fast asleep. He crept pass the other bedrooms and down to the first floor. He was going to watch television, but he feared waking up his uncle. He wanted to avoid him as much as possible. He did not know if his stomach could handle seeing his face at this point. So he went outside to work on his car. He turned on his cage light that ran off of an extension cord and hung off of a place on his hood. The car just needed some last minute tightening and checking. He planned to drive the car today after school for the first time. Adam also thought that the car would give him a chance to stay away from the house while Bill was there. So he was very anxious to get it running. Working on the car in the calm of the early morning gave Adam some time to really think about things. He wanted to tell Jason about what had happened, but he came back to those haunting words. Plus he also thought about another fear. He feared that Jason and his parents would lose respect for him for not doing the right thing ten years ago. But Adam really did not understand exactly what did happen until the next morning when he was able to talk to his cousin. It was the last time he ever saw Maria. That is until yesterday. He would never forget that as he looked over to the old clubhouse that still stood near the back corner of the Kramer's backyard. It was there that he learned about exactly what he had saw and experienced that night. When he found out that his uncle was not wrestling with Maria, but doing something far more sinister and revolting. Even though his parents thought that he learned about the "circle of life" in those sixth grade films, Maria was the one who actually told him about the "right way" things were to be done. Actually, Adam was quite disturbed by the films and opted to play sick to not have to watch them. They brought back too many memories. Adam was lucky because usually when students opted to not watch the films, they were sent to the school counselor to be questioned. But Adam was sent straight to the office to call home. Adam thought it was funny that no one suspected that something like this would have happened in the Kramer family, especially with Mr. Kramer working as an investigator for the state. That thought hit him too. How would his father take it knowing what happened at the hands of his brother in his own home? How would he take it knowing that he was able to protect other children that were sexually and physically abused, but he did not protect his own son and niece from his brother? Then there was his mother who often encountered abused children through the university's program to aid abused and neglected children. She would often volunteer her time to the crisis center that was ran by senior medical students in the fields of medicine as well as social workers. There were even some people who volunteered that were just victims of abuse themselves. How would she feel knowing that those bruises that she observed on her son when Bill visited was not from the various accidents that she was told that happened by both Bill and Adam? However, it was known that Adam was far more accident prone than Jason, so that added to the believability of the stories. Jason never had a mark though and reported wonderful experiences.

All of these thoughts haunted Adam as he went through the morning motions and even on his trip to school. He briefly saw Bill at the breakfast table. Adam was able to eat his cereal very quickly so he could take his medicine. He did not want to be around Bill. For what he did see of him though, his uncle had definitely aged. He had gray hair that reached to his shoulders. It looked really ragged and he had a worn face. His blue eyes still looked evil to Adam. His uncle was still a big man, reaching a height of about six foot two and still maintaining a strong feature. Not a word was spoken while Adam was at the table. But this quietness was not unusual for Adam in the morning because he was not a morning person. He got up to gather his things and to sit on the deck to wait for Jason to be ready to go to school. He could hear his father, brother, and uncle conversing at the table, but he just wanted to keep his distance.

The brothers did arrive at school and went to their classes. It was nice to see the gang, but Adam just had too many things on his mind. By fourth period, he was not in the greatest of moods when he entered Miss Meade's history class. As usual, Chuck was behind him. He could hear him occasionally nibble on one of his Butterfinger candy bars that he faithful brought everyday. Today, Miss Meade was talking about Thomas Jefferson and how he had several children outside of his marriage. Adam never really paid much attention in her class, but one thing that she did say did stick with him.

"It is important that we learn from historical events so we do not repeat the same mistakes. That is why people documented events of their lives in diaries and journals. That is how some of the Biblical stories were brought down to us. Sometimes it helps people to deal with awful and joyful events to write them down. It can free their minds," Miss Meade elaborated. She continued on with her lesson as Adam thought about that awful event. He could not see why writing would help because he hated writing, but he did see the point in that by writing events down when they are fresh in their mind made the writing more accurate. It was then that he remembered the one notebook that he had hidden in his closet a long time ago. The notebook that contained his detailed accounts of what happened that night along with his relations with his uncle. It was the most that he had ever written in his life. The entry was about sixty pages long. At the time it made him forget about that part of his life. When he "buried" it in his closet, he also buried those memories, or so he thought. It was the lunch bell that woke him out of his trance. He usually went with his brother, Kara, Alyssa, Chuck and Craig for lunch, but Kara and Jason were going to lunch alone to study for a physics test. Adam, Craig and Chuck decided that they would eat in the cafeteria since it was pizza day. School pizza always tasted great; it was just everything else that did not have the same reputation. That is why is why a rare thing that they even ate in the cafeteria. So the boys each put there stuff down at a table and walked across the room to wait in line. They were just nearing the line when Adam heard a voice behind him spout, "Well if it isn't the Peanut Gang? I thought that the cafeteria wasn't good enough for the famous Peanut Gang."

It was Eric Peterson and his usual gang consisting of Jamie Dalton and Buddy Smith. They were rivals of the Kramer boys and their friends and had been rivals ever since third grade when the Peterson Family first moved to Emerald Beach. His father worked as an executive with Pillsbury, a major food plant. Jamie and Buddy's fathers also worked as executives at the same plant. The Peterson family was the richest family in town, but divorce and scandals had split the family apart. Eric, a senior with brown hair and lanky build, had not taken the changes very well and often took his frustrations out on everyone else, especially Adam. It was so bad at one point they had to put them in separate classes. Jamie and Buddy were also not very big boys themselves, but they often followed Eric's lead. It was rumored that they were involved with drugs, but it was never proven.

Adam just ignored the comment. He was definitely not in the mood for Eric's crap that day and he did not want any trouble. But then Eric tapped on his shoulder, "What is the matter superjock? Can't you hear? Or has that brain of yours really quit working?" Eric quipped again. Adam could hear Jamie and Buddy laugh along with Eric. Chuck turned, "Adam, just ignore them."

"You know, when I heard about the accident I really felt sorry for you. I will admit that," Eric continued to say. Adam just turned and looked at him quizzically. "But when they said that you had a damaged brain, I wasn't concerned at all. You see you have to have actually use it to really have lost it!"

"Eric, just drop it. Now is not the time," Adam said to Eric in a clam tone.

"Yeah, he doesn't have his brother here to help take up for him," Buddy chimed in. Jason had always held Adam back from playground fights with the boys.

"I don't need Jason to deal with you," Adam said, still using a strong, but calm tone.

"Whatever. But I think the best part is that he is going with that cripple. Together they would make the perfect couple because he has the legs and she has the brains," Eric spouted back. Adam could not contain his temper any longer. Dealing with Bill, the memories, and the accident had taken their toll on Adam. Without even thinking, he spun around and struck Eric with his fist right in the face. The force of the blow knocked him to the floor. But that was not enough for Adam, He savagely started to beat Eric with all of his might. He could feel the tears of anger coming down his face and the hands of Chuck and Craig trying to pull him off of Eric. Adam was in a total rage and it took one male teacher and the football coach plus Craig and Chuck to pull him off of Eric. Before Adam really got a grip on himself he was sitting in the office waiting to see the principal, Mrs. Blake. Chuck and Craig were dismissed to their classes even though they wanted to stay with Adam. When Chuck last saw his best friend, he was still breathing heavily and still had the look of vengeance in his eyes. He had never seen Adam that angry. When Adam made it into the principal's office, she had already spoken to Eric and to the teachers on duty. Adam still had blood from busting Eric's nose on his hands. He just sat there and shook with anger as the principal relayed her findings.

"Is this all true?" She finally asked Adam. Adam nodded in agreement. Adam may have gotten in trouble more than Jason did, but he was always honest.

"Thank you for your honesty. I know what he said was wrong and that with the accident, you have had problems adjusting. However, you can not go around beating people up. You know that through your investigations," Mrs. Blake said lowering her glasses to look him straight in the eye. She was a younger principal who had children in college. So not only was she a principal, but a mother as well. Adam had dealt with her a lot in his mischievous activities, but never under this type of circumstance. "Is there something I can help you with? This is not like you and I am shocked at the brutality of this confrontation. I really want to help you."

Adam just sat there, not saying a word. How could he tell when he could not even tell his own family!

"I really hate to do this, but I do have to stick to my rules. I really think that something is really troubling you for you to be so angry. Anyway, there is an automatic three-day suspension for fighting. Since this is your first offense for fighting, I will allow for you to be able to make your work and any tests. This suspension will not go on your record; however, the incident will be documented in your permanent file. I want for you to take this time to get yourself straightened out. Now we have to contact your parents. Where is your mother?" She asked reaching for the phone.

"She is in Arizona on a dig," Adam replied. "Dad is working." He did not want to tell her that he was working on a case involving Bill.

"Well, I will have to contact him," She said, looking over Adam's emergency contact form.

"Why can't Jason just take me home? You know that I will tell my Dad," Adam said, getting agitated. He just wanted out of there.

"I am sorry, but Jason can't sign you out this time," She answered again. "Please step outside my office and I will talk to your father and discuss things."

Adam got up and sat down in the chairs outside the office. The secretary did allow him to go to the bathroom to wash off, but other than that he sat in the office. It was a good twenty minutes that he sat there, wondering what was going on in the office. He knew his father was going to kill him when he got his hands on him, but Adam really did not seem to care. He felt like his life could not get any worse until he saw his Uncle Bill walk into the office. The secretary buzzed Mrs. Blake, who then came out of her office to greet Bill.

"You must be Bill Kramer. I do thank you for coming to pick up Adam in Mr. Kramer's absence. I think he just needs some more time. He really is a good kid," she said as she shook his hand and greeted him.

Adam was mortified. He was going to have to go home with Bill alone.

"Where is Dad?" Adam asked out of almost desperation.

"He went to meet with James about some papers. He was unable to come so he sent me over from James' office. I am to take him home where his father is going to meet us. I am truly sorry about my beloved nephew's behavior. Mr. Kramer assures it will not happen again and that he will talk to Adam upon his arrival home," Bill said to Mrs. Blake.

"I have to let Jason know that I am going or he will be looking for me," Adam said, trying to find a way to not have to get in the car with Bill.

"No, I will sent for him myself," Mrs. Blake replied.