Chapter 8- First Plan

*Kendall's POV*

It began. I kept wheeling over the day's events in my head. When Andrew arrived, I made my way towards the opposite direction, where my plan had to start off. Making my usual scans around the areas I walked through, I made my way toward the security building where Shailene's father worked. He was my first target into making this life devastation for Andrew, come to life.

Just wait and see, I indirectly said to Andrew in my mind.

But, just before I did, my really outdated and battered GSM Touch phone, vibrated in my pocket. Skipping backwards to lean on a nearby tree, I looked around, then took it out of my pocket to check the caller id.

My father.... I answered.

He spoke before I could greet him. Straight to the point.

'Did you find him?'

'Yes I did. Also I-' He cut me off.

'I asked nothing more. Did you deliver the message?'

'Yes sir.'

'Do what you have to do. Do not make a mess. Get the girl. Understand? It really takes a lot of energy to punish you boys. ' Suddenly I had a flashback to when Andrew had gotten his punishment for not being a 'man', for writing poetry. I remember how much I regretted showing Jared when I found it. I could have saved Andrew all this trouble, that is, if he didn't have intentions of wanting to leave eventually.

Remembering that he said I could do what I have to do and get the girl, I realized that the plan I had already devised was brilliant enough to pull through. 'Yes I will.' He hung up. I suddenly felt a rush of excitement in this. Getting that girl.... there are so many creative ways.

Typical Jared Broker. Impatient man, but we have no choice but to deal with him. He demanded that we call him Jared and not 'dad' because it was more of a family of business, not a real family.

I remember when I got the assignment to find Andrew...to deliver the message and persist until he obeys. I was reluctant at first because you know, I didn't talk to him since the punishment.

The punishment. We were never allowed to speak of it unless we wanted to end up like those victims that Jared dragged into the torture chamber alive...and dragged out dead, leaving no trace whatsoever.

No trace, that's what we're taught in training. What was the right name for it? Stalker training? Seems accurate.

Andrew though. He thought sending some kind of soft feminine letter would let him off that easily from our business/family. He knew this wasn't the end. I resented Andrew for leaving me alone there. I hated the fact that because of him, I was not allowed to have undercover jobs like he did because he decided to quit. He had the soft looks, the innocent one. That's why they always chose him over me. Jared Broker was not afraid to send me because I he maybe thought that I might have done the same, because he was just too calm when he received the letter. It just didn't make any sense.

I knew Jared wasn't going to end things well with him. I knew this wasn't the end of his other son's story. I was going to assist him in making Andrew pay for defeating the family's history of being the most highly skilled stalkers to our knowledge. He didn't think he could get away....did he? With such a lack of skill?

I took a look clockwise once again, then approached Shailene's father's XLT Ford and dropped my apartment key at his tyre. Stooping low to pick it up, I slid the laser pen out my pocket and burned a hole into the front left tyre. Just as I made sure the coast was clear, I spotted her father, just leaving his security post, signing out at the counter, and into his vehicle. I jogged back to the trees where I stood talking to my father before. It was time to do this.

Surprisingly, it was the first thing he had noticed. The fury overtook his innocence of an old man and he looked around. Then, he did just as I expected. He took the tyre out of the back seat. Yep, I did my snooping around last night and so far, everything is going as expected.

That was my mental cue.

I chuckled quietly to myself, then went up to him. 'Good day sir. Would you like help with that?' I smiled slightly, I hope it seemed like a friendly smile and not one of mockery where he would bluff and say he doesn't need any help.

'Oh yes son. I would thank you very much.' He thrust the tyre over to me. He handed over to me wrench and I began to undo the lug nuts of the scarred wheel and then decided to pick up the pace with Mr. Haynesworth a bit.

'Sir, how did this happen? It seems like a really big hole in this.' I lifted the wheel up to him. Strength training prepped me for the worst obstacles, lifting a Ford's tyre was nothing much.

'I have no idea. Whoever did this will pay!' His voice just raised a bit. He didn't seem as angry when he saw me chuckling.

'Not much people pay for what they have done sir. That's how the world works these days. Complicated life we live.'

'That's true.' He seemed to ponder on this a bit. Just when I finished tightening the last nut and stood up, he spoke.

'So son, where do you live?'

I was cautious enough not to say that I lived two houses down, you know...just stalking his family, and his darling son-in-law that he hasn't discovered as yet. Speaking of which, I should put 'revealing their relationship to Mr. Haynesworth' into my plan somewhere. 'Oh, I live close-by.' I hope he got an idea that I preferred to not disclose my information to him. I liked this old man. He seemed chill.

Just when I was about to tell him goodbye, and about to move on to step two of the plot, he did what I didn't really plan for...which turned out to help me skip a few steps in this plan.

'I like you son. Would you like to come over to my house for lunch now? It would be my treat to thank you for helping this old man out.'

YES. 'Yes, sir that would be great.'

'Please, call me Mr. Haynesworth.'

___

The ride to his home, the route I had studied more carefully than my jump kick theory, was not boring. With the N-Sync playing slowly on the background and the windows rolled down, I had gotten to know more about him. And by that I meant sporting preferences. Just as I was about to put in a point on my view of football in, he pulled behind Andrew's Volvo.

Ohhhhh things were about to go down.

'I wonder whose car is that?' He muttered to himself.

But, there was one problem. I didn't want them to get caught so easily. I had a better plan in mind for that part. I strategized quickly. We both got out of the vehicle, him in front, opening the front door. I knew what we now seeing was going to set the old man off, but I wanted to devise a better way for this, so I decided to help them out, just this one time, only because I wanted these things to run my way.

So, while Andrew shoved Shailene from his halfway embrace, I signaled them from behind her father to run. Andrew watched me, obviously comprehending, but Shailene was just standing there, obviously surprised to see me again. I couldn't help if I was that attractive. Ah well.

When I saw that Andrew registered what I had signaled, even though his face was dead blank, I did what I had to do to be in control. I roughly grabbed Mr. Haynesworth by his arm and pulled him out of the doorway slightly and spun him to my direction, out of his shock or anger or whatever he felt. I saw the emotions flicker across his face. I searched his palm to shake furiously and I put my acting skills to use. Softened my voice a bit.

'Sir I am reeeealllly sorry I can't have lunch. My mom is called me, she's really strict. I'm truly sorry for not being able to accept your invitation for lunch.' I could see Andrew and Shailene running towards the back door in the kitchen.

He seem to shake his inner conflict off for the moment, then he said 'Another time you could come over, whenever you like, just pass by, it'll be a pleasure to have your company.'

And with that, he smiled and I stalked off to my apartment where I have to make a few changes to my plan.

*Shailene's POV*

I was surprised to see Kendall, an acquaintance I made earlier, was right behind my father, then I saw him do this weird flip thing with his hand, I sneaked a peek at Andrew and saw his expression deadpan. Then, Kendall pulled my father away from our direction. Andrew grabbed my hand and we ran out the back door.

Despite the situation, Andrew tried to humor it a bit.

I was freaking out. 'Andrew do you have any idea what just happened?' I asked slightly exasperated. And no, it was definitely not a rhetorical question.

He was laughing. He was laughing. He was crazy.'That was so thrilling. Now here's what you need to do.' 
He unbuttoned the first button of my shirt to let the rim of my inner vest, which was a lighter shade of blue, show, and pulled my hair loose, shaking it up a bit all too fast, making it look like how it usually does. 'Now, go to the front of the house and pretend you were doing something all along. The vehicle belongs to Veronica okay?' He gave me the keys.
'Remember, you were never in the house when he got home. Got it?'

'Yeah, wait.' Before I could speak any further, he just jumped the short wooden back fence with no effort whatsoever, onto the next block.

I tucked my hair behind my ear, pulled it to one side, and inhaled deeply. I took some of the top soil in my hand and passed it over my knees and arms. Smart. Then I picked up the trowel from the side of the wooden trough bed and skipped to the front of the house. There, I saw no sign of Kendall. Mysterious boy. Why was he talking to my dad? Creep.

My father stood in the doorway scanning the inside of the house carefully. Then, it was my time to play with his emotions.

'Dad?'

He turned around, stunned. 'Shay? I thought I--Where were you?' Yep, he was gonna think that he was crazy.

'In the backyard, I was going to replant the daisies into the trough, then Veronica came by and left her Volvo here because she wanted to take a walk in the town with her mom, and she's afraid they get wrecked so I told her why not. Is it okay? She left the keys if you wanna move it.'

He stepped into the house and beconed me inside. 'Oh! No, no problem, it's just that...I just saw...anyways. Veronica's a nice girl, she's the one with the mom who looks like a model right?'

'Yep, the one and the same. Uhh...dad are you okay? I mean, we clearly had a misunderstanding the other day and-'

'That's okay Shay, it's all good. I hope you understand that if I said anything out of hand, I'm really sorry. I know I should try to be there for you more often honey I am so sorry.'

I'm not sure of two things.

Firstly, how easily I lied.

Secondly, if my dad was about to cry.

'Are you--oh no daddy please don't cry! It's okay I promise. I try to understand that you want to numb the pain.' I tried to engulf as much of him as I could in my bear hug. 
We stood in the living room, and I let his sobs shake me as well. I was currently hugging the reason I am alive, and keeping his sanity in line.