Chapter 9

I'm finally home! The past two months have been just horrible. I been being blackmailed by the one family that wants to see my boyfriend suffer. Trust me the task have not been easy to do. I've had to lie to Zach about where Matilta actually was. I've had to meet Matilta all on my own on several occasions. I'm just glad that it's all finally over. They finally gave me Zach's phone. Zach doesn't know though that I have his phone. Now I get to see Zach for the first time in two months.

 

I got to school and saw him standing there by his mustang in the middle of the parking lot. He was leaning up against his car with his combat boots crossed over one another. His white, skinny jeans made his skin seem even paler than it actually was. He was wearing a black, muscle shirt that did show off his clear, defined muscles.

 

I couldn't wait any longer to be in his arms. I just ran right up toward him. He had the biggest smile on his face. He almost looked like he was about to laugh. Once I got to him, I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him. He lifted me up and spun me around. Unlike the last time I saw him we had to make sure that this didn't go too far because we were in the middle of a parking lot and not in a private hospital room.

 

I pulled my lips away from his just slightly. "I missed you soooo much!" I said. It was true. I can't even put into words how much I actually missed him. Of course I had the little issue with Matilta that I wish he was there for but oh well.

 

He smiled. "I missed you too."

 

I jumped back. I almost forgot about his phone. I could never forget about his phone. I worked my butt off to get it back for him. "Oh! I have a present for you!"

 

He rolled his eyes and laughed. "Oh God!"

 

I was jumping up and down. "Would you just close your eyes and put out your hand?" He laughed and did what I asked him to. I was hoping he wouldn't ask questions about how I got his phone back from Matilta. I really didn't want to risk him finding out about the note. I dropped his phone into his and he opened his eyes.

 

"My phone! Where did you get it?" He sounded excited but also sounded a little bit nervous to hear how I actually got his phone.

 

"Matilta mailed it to me." Please believe it, I kept repeating over and over in my head.

 

"Is there something you're not telling me, Katie?" He looked like he was on to me.

 

"No I'm not hiding anything from you. Why would I hide something from you Zach?" Alright that didn't sound very convincing at all.

 

He looked at me with the eyes that always made me want to tell him the truth. Not that I lied to him a lot. "Yes there is." He said.

 

I sighed. He just had to figure it out didn't he? I guess I had no other choice. I decided to keep the note that the Martins left me the first time they told me they were going to blackmail me. I had a feeling that it could be useful somehow. So I handed Zach the note.

 

As he was reading it his facial expression changed. I couldn't tell if he was getting angry or nervous about what kind of things they had me do. It wasn't too terribly horrible. "Why didn't you tell me about this before Katie?"

 

"I was scared! It said that if I told anyone they would kill you! What was I supposed to do?"

 

Just then, his expression changed to apologetic. I guess he didn't realize what was going through my head when I initially got the note. He just pulled me into him and gave me a biggest hug he's ever given me. "I understand. I just wish I was there to stop them from starting any of this"

 

"So what do we do now?"

 

"I don't know." Zach always knew what to do. This is how I stayed mostly calm throughout all of this. It was because he was my backbone. Now that he didn't know what to do, I knew that this kind of behavior was not normal for the Martins. It was a little unsettling.

 

Just then a random voice came up to me. It was Sarah. "Thanks for the heads up about you leaving for two months!" I totally forgot to let Sarah know that I was going to Spain! I felt like the worse best friend.

 

"Sorry, it was sort of short noticed." I said. I was hoping that she would just forgive me and move on. Zach and I really need to figure out we are going to do about Matilta and her family. I was just way too scared to worry about anything else right now.

 

"It's alright I just wished you would have told me somehow but I understand you were with your mom for two months." I seriously loved her. She didn't even care that I didn't even think about texting her that I left. We laughed at the fact that she was right about being with my mom for two months.

 

Just then I got a text. Oh no. It's from Matilta. YOU TOLD HIM!

 

"Oh no. Zach!"

 

He looked at me with a confused look. "What is it Katie?

 

I just handed him the phone. Sarah couldn't know what was going on. One, she would be too worried, and two, she couldn't know about vampires. This had to be just exchanged between Zach and I. He read the text. He seemed confused but he also looked like he was worried. I told him, "You see why I couldn't tell you about it?"

 

Just then Sarah but in. I really hated when she started to get nosy about things. I really wish that I could tell her to leave us alone for a minute but then she would think that I didn't want to hang out with her. I wasn't being a good best friend right now I know. "Tell him what?"

 

I shook my head. "Nothing." I was waiting for Zach's response to the text message. I couldn't do this on my own any more. I think I proved that over in Spain.

 

"Katie, I want you to text her back and tell her we will meet her tonight behind the school."

 

I shook my head. By this time, Sarah had left for class. "No! We both know what happened the last time we did that." I kept flashing back to the first time I met Matilta. It was not a pleasant experience.

 

He walked up to me and kissed me on the forehead. "I promise, Katie, I won't let it happen again. I will be completely on guard." I nodded. There was no trying to compromise with Zach when he's made up his mind. So I texted Matilta the message.

 

 

Zach and I were at lunch. He was trying to convince me why he wanted to meet Matilta. I still was not totally sold on the whole thought of going to meet her because of the last time that we did so. "Katie, we need to find out what her and her family are planning. Maybe we can make a truce and this whole thing can be over." He was soothing yet firm. I knew there was no changing his mind on the idea of meeting her.

 

Just then Mark came up to us. He was wearing his Leatherman jacket and jeans. He looked like a total prep boy. "Where have you been Miss. Smith?" He asked.

 

I didn't have the time or the patience for his crap right now. I just rolled my eyes. "It's none of your business where I've been Mark!" I continued to not look at him. I didn't want to deal with him right now and he wasn't getting the hint.

 

"I think I recall that the last time you told me that, things didn't turn out so great for you. Remember that? Or do you have short term memory loss?"

 

I froze. Thinking back to Homecoming night when Zach was away and Mark had a gun pointed at me. "Yes Mark." I tried to say with a steady voice, "I do remember that. But Zach is here now. So you can't do it again."

 

I was hoping that I would be right. I was hoping that he wouldn't even try to do it again while Zach was here. I mean Trent already knocked him out before. "Don't be so sure, Cutie." Was he trying to make up nicknames for me now?

 

I turned to him and he had a smile on his face. This wasn't the normal, Mark being an a*s, smile. This smile was different. It had a feeling of, this isn't safe. Zach stood up and got into protected boyfriend mode. It was kind of cute. "If you do anything Mark. I. Will. Kill. You." Zach said and for a few split seconds, I was scared of what Zach would do.

 

Mark continued to smile. I stood up and grabbed Zach's arm. I was getting a little nervous. "How are you Zach?" Mark asked, "I heard that a chick knocked you out." He was laughing. I know he was talking about the first time that I met Matilta.

 

When Mark said that, I lost it. I got so angry. "Shut up, Mark!" I said.

 

"Make me!" He was still laughing. I couldn't stand it any longer.

 

"I will. Don't try and test me." Why was I saying this stuff? I know that Mark could physically squash me like a pancake, yet I was still threatening him.

 

Zach grabbed my arm. I knew that he knew I would do something really stupid and get myself hurt. "Katie, don't. He's not even worth it."

 

"No. He is worth it. He's too much of an a*s and I hate it."

 

"I know." Just then while Zach had his back toward Mark, Mark pulled out a gun and pointed right at us. I just froze. Flash backs from Homecoming night were running through my head. I couldn't process anything that was happening for a little while. Just then, out of nowhere, I felt safe. I felt that nothing in the world could hurt me. I felt this way because Zach put his arms around me to protect me.

 

"Mark, put that thing down!" Everyone in the school was under a table trying to protect themselves from the gun that obviously wasn't pointed at anyone but myself. Zach was trying to stay calm, but I could feel his heart racing underneath his chest. I could tell that on the inside, he was freaking out just as much as I was.

 

"Just give me Katie and no one will get hurt." Mark said. What did he want with me? Why was I such a prize to everyone lately?

 

"Really Mark? You must think I'm incredibly stupid to just hand her over to you." Zach's grip got tighter around me. Just as his heart started to beat faster.

 

"Actually I do. I think you are incredibly stupid."

 

"Well, I'm not. I'm not that stupid." Mark nodded. For a second, it seemed like he was going to give up.

 

Just then, out of nowhere, Mark yanks me out of Zach's arms. Zach stumbled but couldn't get to me before Mark tossed me over to his buddies. I could tell by the grip of the buddies, that these were not just ordinary high school football players. These were vampires in disguise. Then, Mark pulled of a mask from the look of it.

 

"Luke! I should have known it was you." Zach said. Who the hell is Luke? Just then I remembered where I have seen the face of Luke. He was with Matilta and her family at the restaurant when I got the note.

 

"Well you didn't." Luke said, "And now I just proved to everyone here how stupid you really are. Your girlfriend is mine now Zach. And I'm going to have so much fun with her."

 

"Luke, if you hurt her-"

 

"You'll what? Kill me? Face it Zach, my family and I have always had the upper hand on you. There is no way that you can get out of this one." Just then Luke turned around and nodded to his buddies.

 

Next thing I knew, the world was black as night.