I reach the mall and park my car. As soon as I get out, I start getting a bad feeling. I try to call Jess again but her phone is unreachable. I try calling Ciara but she is not picking up. I hope they are fine. I keep trying to call Jess but to no avail.
I dial the bodyguards's numbers and alarm bells start ringing in my head when they don't pick the call either. What is going on?
Cara's words echoes in my mind as I made my way towards the entry but before I can reach there, I notice Leo and Ciara looking around frantically. They seems to be searching for someone.
"Jess", I murmur in realization dawns upon me.
"Ciara", I call out and walk towards her but as soon as I reach her, Leo throws a hard punch across my face. I clench my jaw, knowing I deserve it as my face turns to the side.
"What the fuck are you doing here now?! Are you following Jess?", he snaps angrily and takes a menacing step closer.
"Leo", my sister gasps and holds his arm. "No"
I wipe the blood from the corner of my lips and look at him. He looks ready to tear me apart and why not. I have hurt his best friend so deeply and him being mad at me is totally justified.
"Listen Leo", I start saying in a calm voice. "I don't mean no harm but where is she? Where is Jess?"
Another punch and I end up staggering a little bit behind.
"Why the fuck should I tell you?! Do you want to hurt her again? Huh. Crush her heart to million pieces again? Humiliate her for loving an asshole like you?!"
"Listen man", I say seriously. "I really need to know where is she. We can have this conversation later."
"You are not getting any close to her", he shoves me roughly back.
"Stefan she is missing", Ciara declares at the same time. "We told her to wait for us either inside or here but she is nowhere to be found."
"What?!"
"Get the fuck out of here Black!", Leo says acidly. "I can look for my best friend and don't pretend to be so worried for her when you and your bitch Cara recorded her naked!"
"I didn't do it!", I almost shout and take a deep breathe. "I had to pretend that I liked Cara so that I can get the videos and destroy it! I was trying to protect her all along"
"I don't believe you", he adds with a glare. "You had quite a reputation in the past and you might be playing with Jess as well....."
"I LOVE HER DAMMIT!", I shout causing him to snap his mouth shut instantly.
"I did all this to protect her and even if you don't believe me, I love Jess to death. I had to do something as stupid as to behave like an asshole with her so that Cara doesn't post her pictures on the internet. I know how she feels about herself and I didn't want to make it any worse!"
"You made it worse by your words Stefan", he concludes furiously.
"My words were not true and I will keep proving it to her even if it takes a lifetime but if the pictures had went viral, that would have been much worst."
"Why you didn't told her then?", he questions. "You could clearly told her. Atleast she would have been aware of the situation"
"I didn't told her because I didn't want to take any risk", I explain. "If Cara would have even got an inkling that Jess's knows, she would not have waste a single minute to harm her and that's why I need you to tell me where is she?"
"Did Cara do something?", he inquires alarmingly.
"She threatened to hurt her", I state and look around in hope that I will catch her sight.
"I am going at my place to check and Ciara, go check at your place", Leo's responce is instant. "And if she is not present at both place, we have to find her as soon as possible."
Ciara nods, "I can check on my mobile right now. I have cameras everywhere."
"Oh dang it! My phone is with her", she exclaims, seconds later.
"Go home and check", Leo tells her.
I dial the number of the bodyguards but at the same time, I hear Ciara calling me.
"Stefan, there's blood here", she utters causing Leo to stop dead on his tracks.
I walk closer quickly and it looks like fresh blood which has just stained the floor. My heart starts thudding anxiously in my chest. I send a silent prayer for her in my heart.
Please God, keep her safe.
"Go and see if she's at your place", I urge her and she gives me a quick nod before getting in her car.
"We can go check at your place", I suggest and gets a glare in return.
"My instinct is already telling me that she might be in danger because of you but I am trying to stay positive for her sake", he says heatedly.
"I understand your feelings Leo", I utter calmly. "But we have to find her......"
My voice gets stuck in my throat when I see an ambulance and people carrying out two men outside. It's the bodyguards! What the hell has happened to them?!
I move quickly towards them and find them unconcious and looking white as sheets on the stretchers.
"What happened to them?", I ask one of the nurse.
"Someone must have chloroformed them Sir", she states while checking their pulse. "High doses. Their pulses are slow and irregular."
"They found the guys on the floor", I hear another man saying from behind."
The ambulance whisks them away and I'm left reeling with worry behind.
"What is going on here?", Leo questions.
"They were the bodyguards that I hired for Jess", I explain and removing my phone, I dial Cara's number immediately.
She is not picking up. Damn it!
"Get in the car Leo", I order already marching towards my car.
During the ride, I keep calling Cara and Leo keeps trying Jess's phone while cursing me. At one point, he is about to punch me again but when I tell him that we may die if he does, he throws me a disgusted glare.
We reach his place but the door is locked. No one is here. She is not here.
"Where the fuck is she Stefan!", Leo growls. "Didn't your bitch Cara told you anything? You pretended to be with her to know about her plans right? Where is my best friend?"
"I don't know", I murmur breathlessly. I can't even track her. Her mobile must be off.
"How can you not know?!", his voice drips with anger. "All of this has happened because of you!"
I see an incoming call on my phone and it's Ciara. Ignoring Leo, I pick it up, hoping to God that Jess is there.
"She is not here Stef", she declares shakily. "I'm so worried now. Where is she? She just disappeared out of nowhere."
"I will find her", I claim, and make a promise to myself internally.
Jess pov
An intense pain shoots across my whole body when I open my eyes and find myself in a dark room. My left cheek is throbbing with pain and I feel a slit on my lower lip. Memories from getting slapped surface in my head and I gasp. I have been freaking kidnapped!
My hands are tied behind my back. I struggle to free them but fail. The door bursts open and a man enters inside.
"Ahh I see you are awake", he chuckles.
"Who are you?! And why the hell am I here?!", I fire instantly.
As he gets more closer, I notice his features more clearly. He has a model type face with a slit on his eyebrow. He looks innocent and like a nice person. How come a face like his is doing this?
"I just got instructed to get you here darling", he shrugs and bends to my eye level. "I'm getting paid for it. But you are such a beauty, aren't you? Such a waste, you will gone in a few more hours."
"What do you mean?", my heart leaps in my chest at his words.
"I am going to kill you darling", he drawls slowly and touches a tendril of my hair which is laying on my face.
"Why do you want to kill me?", I murmur, too scare to move suddenly. There's a gun and a knife in his pockets.
"Money", he chuckles.
"Who is giving you money?", I question further, but deep inside my head, I feel like I already know who it might be.
"Curious little thing you are", he cocks his head to one side, and smirks evily. "Let's just say Stefan won't ever find you."
At the mention of Stefan, my heartrate increases. He must find me. I don't want to die without seeing him or Liam. I can't die.
"He will find me!", I state firmly. "And when he does, you and your two bitches are going to ever regret messing with us!"
His eyes darkens and without wasting a second, he slaps me hard across my face. "He won't find you! And even if he does find you, I will make sure his dead body will leave from here"
I glare at him but he just smiles back at me like a psychopath. How the hell does he knows Stefan?
"I can see your mind churning with questions", he claims and takes a seat infront of me with the knife out. "You see darling, Stefan and I know each other since way back and due to his pretty face, he was always top at everything he did while me on the other side, would struggle despite my efforts."
"He would always get everything", he adds bitterly and frowns at the recollection. "Girls, fashion shows, money, fame. He had everything. That fucker!"
"Don't you wanna know who he was to me?", he fixes his eyes on me, in a calculative way.
"He was my best friend", he elaborates after a few beats when I don't say anything. "But seeing how fast he rose to fame didn't set well with me. He didn't even cared to take me up with him! He was just another selfish bastard who thought only about himself!"
"So you are mad because he didn't made you famous like him?", I finally enquire.
"Yes", he nods. "I was his bestfriend for God's sake! And he just left me to struggle. I was poor but he has always helped me financially. He took care of my mother and sister but I wanted to be famous too but he took the spotlight for himself!"
He is contradicting his own words. He just called Stefan selfish yet he helped his family financially. It sounds jealousy to me.
"Did you told him you wanted the same thing as him?", I probe.
"Of course not!", he snaps. "I didn't want to sound desperate. As my best friend, he should have known!"
"I wanted it all for myself! But he got it!"
"You are just a pathetic little bitch who is jealous of him and his success!", I drawl. "He helped your family yet you are calling him selfish and that is not very kind of you...."
"Shut the fuck up!", his voice booms as he gets up and grabs my jaw in a deathly grip. "Better keep your pretty little mouth shut if you don't want to die tonight!"
"Playing with her Jer?", a familiar female voice speaks and I move my eyeballs to get a better look of her.
"Yes babe", he lets go of my jaw in a careless way and smiles brightly at Ana. He kisses her and I almost gag when she moans loudly. That's disgusting.
"Hey Jessica. Long time no see", Ana says afterwards. "How are you? Oh...I can see how perfectly fine you look here all tight up. Did you take her phone Jeremy?"
"Already destroyed it", he smirks and looks at me. "We don't want Stefan tracking her knowing how tight the security has been around her now, do we?"
"What?"
"She doesn't knows Jer", Ana claims with a grin and starts approaching me. "Stefan had two bodyguards twenty four seven around you since you left the Black Estate but seems like chloroform is much more stronger than them. Let's just hope they don't die from the high doses"
"What do you want?", I demand her.
"Remember this?", she glares and slaps me suddenly, my face turning sideway with my hair covering my face like a veil.
"The slap you gave me for taking Liam? My own son!"
"Don't call him your son!", I snap. "He doesn't deserves a pathetic mother like you!"
Another slap!
"I should have let him die too", she snarls as she digs her pointy fingernails into my cheeks. "Stefan made me ruined my body for a little monster like him!"
"Stefan didn't do anything!", I argue vehemently. "You did this willingly when he gave you money so don't blame him when you were greedy for money in the first place!"
"You don't know anything!", she spits. "I didn't want to be a mother but Stefan always wanted kids."
"Then you shouldn't have took his money! Because taking it meant you did a deal with him where you accepted money in exchange of Liam. He did not forced you! You could have easily left and do anything you wanted"
"Don't act like a saint as if you wouldn't took the money", she shrugs in a mocking voice. "It was really good."
"Then why are you back?"
"Isn't it obvious?", she smiles. "For Stefan and his money."
Jeremy looks uncomfortable and hurt beside Ana. Then it dawns upon me. He seems to actually has feelings for her.
"And for that to happen, you need to get out of my way", she elaborates distastefully. "I had given Cara one job and she couldn't do it as well!"
"What are you talking about?"
"She's talking about the fucking tapes!", I hear Cara's voice this time.
She looks different as if something has possessed her. There's a look of madness on her face. She approaches me and grip my hair tightly in her fist, pulling my face up.
"Stefan was playing with me all along!", she snarls vehemently and tugs my hair. "What is so special about you huh?! You have nothing! I have everything. Me and Stefan could have our life together but he still chose you!"
"What?", my voice comes out in a pain whisper.
"Don't worry Cara", Ana grins. "She won't last long."
Leaving my hair harshly, Cara takes a step back. "You better hurry up Ana because Stefan is going out of his mind for her. He is looking for her like crazy."
"He will find me and you will all regret it!", I shout.
Cara turns to glare at me and slaps me within a second. "I wouldn't speak like that if I were you. Give me the knife Jeremy."
"Give it", Ana rolls her eyes at Jeremy who looks concern and walks out of the room.
I watch as he hands over the knife to her and walks out as well.
"Now where were we?", she examines the knife intently while speaking. "I want to hurt you so bad Jessica. I really do. What do you have that I don't? Tell me."
Tears start running down from her eyes again and she takes a deep breathe to calm herself. "God it hurts so bad! And this is all because of you."
"How come? It's not really my fault that you love an emotional unavailable man!"
"You wanna how how it's your fault?", she demands and points the knife towards my left eye. "You were not supposed to be in the picture at all! After Ana left, that was my only chance to be with him but you ruined it! I have been there for Liam and Stefan from the beginning yet he chose you. WHY?!"
"Cara", I say gently, hoping she calms down. "Stefan has always seen you as a good friend. He can't choose whom to love. It just happens."
"He loves you", she declares in almost a whisper. "He really do. I saw it in his eyes. He did all that pretence with me only for you. So that I don't expose the tapes and he wanted to destroy them which he succesfully did. But you know something....."
She bends down to my eye level and press the tip of the knife on my throat, puncturing my skin slightly.
"If Stefan can't be mine, he can't be yours either. I'll kill you before he can have you."
"You don't love him", I claim and try my best not to wince when she presses the knife further into my skin. "You are obssess with him. Because when you love someone, you will always want them to be happy even if it's not with you."
"You don't know shit about my feelings!", she snaps furiously and drags the knife across my skin sharply. I gasp when I feel blood dripping down my chest.
"I have waited all those years for him. Do you even know how it feels to see the person you love kissing someone else?! Do you know how heartbreaking it is! You don't. So don't talk too much."
"How I wish I can just drive this into your chest", she stares with her gaze full of hatred for me. "But what's the fun in that. I am going to torture you so much you are going to wish that you were dead."
She leaves the room, banging the room behind her and I heave a sigh. With the way she has dragged the knife over my skin, I'm surprise that I'm still breathing. The neckline of my blouse has turned completely red. I really hope Stefan finds me.
"Please let him find me God", I whisper as tears start running down my face.
He tolerated Cara for me. A part of me feels happy that he did all this because he loves me but at the same time, I'm so pissed at him. He could have told me. No wonder he had only packed a few clothes and flowers for me in the bag. He was going to come back for me.
But now how is he going to find me? I have to do something. I struggle against the tight rope, praying to God that my wrists become free. Tears of frustration starts to pour from my eyes from my fail attempt. Is this how I am going to die?