A/N: Well hello there, hi there, and howdy-dudy. What I bring to you today is a sequel to a previous story of mine, entitled The Balance of the Universe. If you have not read that, do so now! (Just click on my penname and scroll down until you see it). It sets up all of the background for this story, and this story will make very little sense otherwise.

A/N 2: This story is going to talk some about laws and legal processes and detective work. I am by no means an expert in these things. Everything I know I learned from Law and Order. For the purpose of this story, the statute of limitations on rape in Connecticut is 22 years. I have no idea if this is anywhere close to accurate. Deal with it.

Disclaimer: Near the end of the last story someone was accusing me of being Amy Sherman-Palladino in disguise. As much as I wish that were true, it is not. My name is Tanya. I am a nursing student from Minnesota with a good imagination and a typing speed of 70 WPM. I am NOT ASP, DR, or anyone else with any sort of legal connection to Gilmore Girls. Bottom line: Everything you recognize belongs to someone else. Detective White is mine, but I own nothing else. Please don't sue me.

Here we go! (He feelin' she feelin' we feelin'… never mind).

From The Balance of the Universe:

Luke took the luggage inside. Lorelai sat down on the porch. She was admiring the two rings on her left hand when something caught her eye.

On the front step there was an envelope that they had missed before because their hands were full. On the front there was nothing but the number "10," big and bold. Lorelai grabbed it, thinking that maybe it was some sort of late wedding card and that the ten was something witty and clever that would be explained inside.

Inside was a very small piece of paper, cut from a dictionary. It read:

statute of limitations (noun) : A statute setting a time limit on legal action in certain cases. If the statute of limitations runs out, the robber can spend his money freely without fear of penalty or incarceration.

Still thinking that it was some sort of joke that she would figure out later, Lorelai went inside. "Hey Luke, come look at this." She called, pausing by the desk in the hall. She glanced aimlessly at the "Hello Kitty" calendar. Today was December 29, 2006. January was on the same page as December, and her eyes fluttered over January 8th. She and Rory always went out on the eighth of every month to celebrate another month of Rory being alive. Lorelai hadn't told Rory this yet, but January eighth was also the date of her conception.

She counted the days. Ten. There were ten days between today and the day of her rape. Suddenly she understood the note. Luke came down the stairs in time to see Lorelai drop the envelope and gasp, covering her mouth with a shaking hand.

--

Chapter One: Paralyzing Fear

Luke took the remaining steps two at a time and rushed to her side in time to catch her as her knees gave out and she fell to the floor. He lowered her down gently and sat next to her, picking up the envelope she had dropped and opening it, reading the note with a confused look. "I don't get it," he stated.

"In ten days…January eighth…that's the day I, the day…the day Rory was conceived." Lorelai was shaking so badly she could hardly get the words out.

"Oh," Luke said, surprised. "So does this mean that the statute of limitations is going to run out?"

"I don't know."

The sound of the front door opening startled both of them. "Hello?" Rory's voice called from the foyer.

"In here." Luke answered.

Rory spoke while she hung up her coat, completely clueless about what was going on. "I know I promised I'd be here when you got home, but Logan surprised me last night. He doesn't get a lot of breaks with his new job in New York, so every chance I get to see him is a treat, and I actually had to bribe him with a month's worth of free foot massages to get him to let me leave at all this morning, and…" she rounded the corner and saw her mom and Luke and instantly shut up.

"I'm sorry…what was that?" Her mom asked, trying to pull herself out of whatever she was thinking about and focus on her daughter.

"Nothing. What's going on here?"

Luke handed her the note. She read it and looked confused for a minute. Lorelai and Luke stood up and moved into the living room, followed by Rory. "What does this mean?" she asked.

"We're not sure, but in ten days is January eighth, which is the day that you were, um, conceived." Lorelai started.

Rory breathed deeply and sat down on the couch next to her mom. "You know, this spring, when I learned about…all that…I did some research. One of the things I learned is that the statute of limitations on, um, on what happened that day, is twenty-two years. I didn't want to tell you because I thought it would just be upsetting, but whoever sent you this must know that too."

"But I never told anyone the exact date. The only other person who knew was…him."

"He knows where we live?" Luke asked.

Lorelai was hardly breathing. "Oh God, no!" she exclaimed.

"Mom, you have to go to the police!"

Lorelai couldn't answer. She was starting to hyperventilate. She covered her mouth with her hands, trying to get a grip on the paralyzing fear that had taken over her body. "Luke," she managed to breathe.

"I'm right here," he answered, wrapping his arm around her and placing his hand on her knee.

Rory ran into the kitchen and came back with a paper bag for her to breathe into. In a few minutes she was calm enough to speak again. "Call the police," was all she said.

--

The Stars Hollow police were there only three minutes before deciding that they needed to call in someone from Hartford. They were all a little surprised when the Hartford branch of the FBI sent agent Stephanie White. She sat down in the living room with Lorelai, Rory, and Luke. Lorelai told her the whole story. She took notes, nodding occasionally and asking a few questions. When she had all the information she needed she said, "I am very sorry to tell you this, ma'am, but I believe that you were the victim of a serial rapist. He raped at least five other women back in the eighties, and as each statute of limitations runs out this same thing happens to each of them. Expect to get another note each day until the eighth."

"Then what happens?"

"According to profilers that we have on this case, this guy gets off on hiding from the law, evading the police, and terrorizing his victims. Once the statute of limitations is up he no longer has to hide from the law or evade the police, so most of the thrill is gone. The first two women were raped again once the statute of limitations ran out. Since then the other three have elected to go into protective custody."

"What exactly does that mean?"

"They go into the witness protection program, change their identities, and move across the country. It's a hard choice to make, but we'd like to offer you that option as well."

"I don't want to do that. I have a life here, an inn to run, friends, family…what other choice do I have?"

"Honestly, unless we're able to catch him, I think that's your only option."

"No!"

"Lorelai, maybe you should consider…" Luke spoke up.

"NO!"

"Before you decide, you should probably know that those first two women weren't just raped once the statute was up. He murdered both of them."

--

A/N: My tradition of replying to every substantial review continues. So review now! I have a pretty good idea of where this story is going, but I would be open to suggestions, at least for now. I don't care if you love it or hate it, review!