They’re watching you!
Suddenly I was beginning to feel like this was more than just a badly planned practical joke. My gut told me this was real and that someone was trying to warn me. That was where my thoughts left me at a dead end. Who could this mystery vigilante be protecting me from? I did not have any enemies, unlike Lena, who created a new one every day by being her normal self and making everyone else feel like crap. I stayed to myself and avoided involvement with most people. Maybe that was it! What if one of Lena’s enemies had finally had enough and reached their breaking point? It made sense; if I thought about it, I could convince myself of this theory easily. Someone Lena had made mad somehow knew I lived with her.
Maybe they had planned on confronting her or even starting a fight with her. If they did not have a problem with me even though they hated Lena, they might be warning me so I could avoid getting caught up in a less-than-pleasant situation by being in the wrong place at the wrong time when they went for Lena. The more I thought about it, the more sense it made. I wondered if I should warn Lena that someone had it out for her.
The last time I did, though, she warned me to stay out of it and told me she could take care of herself. Of course, that was in gym class two years ago when I tried warning her that the person throwing the dodge ball said in the locker room that she was going to aim at Lena’s head. Sure enough, Lena ended up with a bloody nose and two black eyes. I had tried to warn her, but it had not made much of a difference then, just as it would not if I tried to warn her now. A small part of me knew she probably deserved whatever was coming her way.
After thinking it through, I decided that I would do the same thing with this little stalker note that I did with the other one. I was going to pretend as if I had never received it. I folded the note back up poking into my back pocket when Avan walked up and leaned against the locker next to mine.
“So this is where your locker is?”
“This is it!” I smiled as I answered, adoring how he still looked good even under fluorescent light bulbs that shined in abundance in the school.
“I guess I’ll know where to find you so I can walk you to class now, huh?”
“I guess you will.” I couldn’t help feeling flattered that he would want to walk me to class.
“Here, let me carry your bag,” he said taking it from my hand as I closed my locker.
“I can get it.” I wasn’t used to anyone being so mannerly.
“A pretty girl should never have to carry her own books or bag when there is a strapping young man around who is capable of doing it for her—unless it’s a purse, because I really can’t swing that way.” He laughed.
I could not help but giggle at the thought of him carrying my purse on his shoulder and strutting around looking like a cross-dresser. I was sure he failed to realize that the visual he had just given me made me laugh aloud as we walked down the hallway toward the staircase at the end.
“You seem a little distracted. Is everything okay?” Avan asked, looking at me as though he already knew I’d found the note.
“Yeah, I think somebody is mad at Lena. They left a note for her in my locker.”
“How do you know it’s for Lena? Did it specify that?’
“Not exactly, but I haven’t made anyone mad, and she does all the time. It has to be for her.” I hoped this was the case, even though in my mind I still questioned the situation.
“What did it say?” Avan seemed concerned.
“It said they are watching me,” I said as my mind drifted to thoughts of the first letter in my glove compartment.
“This isn’t the first one, is it?” Avan asked as if he already knew the answer.
“No.”
“I want you to be careful. As strange as it sounds, this may not be directed at Lena. You never know about what kinds of crazy and evil people are out there. You really could be in danger and being watched, Mattie.”
“How did you know about me getting a note before and what it said?” What seemed strange was that he had mentioned the first note with almost exact wording.
“Just a lucky guess,” Avan said as we reached the staircase. “I’ll race you to the car! The last one there is a rotten egg!”
After racing down the stairs and him letting me win, we ran across the parking lot, each trying not to be a rotten egg. Again, he let me win, leaving me completely out of breath. Making his way to the car about five paces behind me, he automatically came around to my side, opened the car door for me, lowered my bag onto the back seat, shut the door, and secured me inside before returning to the driver’s side and sliding behind the wheel. I was still amazed by all of the impressive gestures, finding it hard to believe the qualities still existed in any male under the age of sixty in this day and time. I was starting to like Avan even more with every second that passed.
Pulling up in front of Spirits, I realized I had not checked my cell phone since lunch; this was very unusual for me, since my phone was like an extension of my body most of the time. Being around Avan today had made me forget about it completely. It was kind of nice not to be so phone obsessed. I had forgotten what it was like to enjoy my day without looking at the screen every few minutes to check for texts, missed calls, or voicemail messages. Not that it would be a surprise who they were from anyway. Lena was the only one who ever really used my number, aside for the once-in-a-blue-moon call from Sharon needing an inconvenient favor or Damien calling to make sure all was well or Allen Hearsch calling to set up an appointment to go over financials.
I pulled the phone out of my purse to check to see if I had missed anything, a little curious as to why I still had not received a thing from Lena. It was inconceivable to think she would have forgotten her phone at the house this morning. She would not be able to survive without it.
Avan came around to my door, held it open, and handed me my bag. I turned and took a few steps toward my car when he asked if I was coming in. I told him I had better get home so I could get my homework knocked out, even though I had none. The reality was that if I did stay at Spirits I would end up staying until they closed, staring at him and ending up embarrassed. He smiled and told me he understood and he would see me in the morning, adding that he would pick me up at home.
I agreed, not thinking much about the fact that I had not given him my address. Being that I lived with Lena in the biggest house in Oceanview, I was aware that everyone knew where it was, so it never crossed my mind to hear that people knew where I lived. Watching him walk into work while I started my car and put it in reverse, I was a little taken back when the feeling hit me that I was already starting to miss him a little.
I pulled into the driveway, parking my car near the wrought iron fence. When I got out and got my bag walking to the doorway, it seemed a little heavier this afternoon, being that I had not carried it as much today. As I walked inside, I smelled something amazing that made my mouth water at the scent of seasonings that Lorenzo was using to make some culinary masterpiece for dinner, as usual. I loved anything Lorenzo made. I think he could probably cook garbage and make it taste out of this world. Passing up the staircase, I opted for the cushy living room downstairs, where I lay my bag down and propped my feet up to relax.
Daydreaming of Avan, I almost did not even hear Lorenzo tell me it was time to eat. I went to the bathroom, washed my hands, and grabbed for a hand towel when I noticed my reflection in the mirror. At that moment I noticed I was still wearing Avan’s jacket. I had completely forgotten to give it back to him before getting into my car at Spirits, and he must have been so concentrated on getting into work that he forgot to ask for it back. I took the jacket off and laid it by my bag on the couch before I walked to the dining room and slid into a chair across from Lorenzo at the enormous table.
Looking down at my plate, my mouth started watering to the point where you would have thought I had not eaten in three weeks. Lorenzo had made T-bone steaks seasoned with a blend of his own special concoction of spices, grilled veg
gies, loaded baked potatoes, and crème brulee for dessert, all topped with a refreshing glass of peach tea.
After dinner, I thanked Lorenzo for the amazing food by giving him a bear hug and a kiss on the cheek before telling him good night. I grabbed my things off the couch, along with Avan’s jacket, and headed up the stairs toward my room. Topping the stairs, I noticed that my bedroom door was ajar and a light in my room was on. Pushing the door open, I saw a pink sheet of paper weighted down with a small teddy bear by my lamp on the bedside table. On the outside, my name had been written in what I could tell was Lena’s handwriting. I picked up the little pink piece of paper which was folded in half setting the little teddy bear on my bed and unfolded it.
Mattie,
I’m so sorry I’m leaving you a note instead of calling, but I accidently dropped my phone in the toilet this morning and I have to go get a replacement. I’m going to work on Daddy’s movie set for two weeks. They need some extras for the movie, and it’s rumored I might even get a line! I’m so excited. I will get in touch as soon as I go get a new phone. I’m headed to the airport and will see you in a few weeks.
Lena
So Lena was with Damien—that was one mystery solved. I wondered if she might have been feeling threatened by whoever was leaving notes of caution for me and decided to skip town for a couple of weeks until things cooled down a little and blew over. If I had the option and knew someone wanted to use me as a punching bag, I would do it. I’d probably stay gone for a month. Either way, I was going to be free of Lena drama for an entire two weeks.
Sometimes getting a slight break from the usual was nice, so I was going to enjoy this one as much as I could, with Avan as much as possible. I slipped into my night clothes when I found the note in the pocket of my jeans that I’d forgotten I’d put there from my locker. I tucked it into my bag so I could put it in my glove compartment later. For now it was time to watch a movie and fall asleep.
CHAPTER 5
The next two weeks flew by as I spent every waking moment I could with Avan. It made it so easy not having anyone to answer to or trying to get me to do something else instead. It gave us time to talk about the more serious issues of my life as I explained to Avan what had happened to my parents unexpectedly.
He was sympathetic and let me talk about how I really felt about the situation without trying to speculate why I felt that way. I explained how the circumstances of their death made no sense to me and how I could never have seen my dad committing that kind of a crime, as he had loved my mother more than anything.
Avan just looked into my eyes as the words and emotions poured from deep within my soul. It had been so long since I had mentioned my parents’ death it felt like a release of pressure had built up to the point it was painful. Once I got it out, it was as though the weight of the world lifted from my shoulders.
Even though Avan was the greatest listener I had ever met, for some strange reason he never elaborated on why he was not happy about my living situation. I explained it was a million times better than living with Sharon Mumford, my legal guardian. When I mentioned her name, Avan got an intense look on his face and asked me to tell him more about Sharon. I had launched into an explanation of that whole situation, letting him in on the fact that Damien Montgomery had agreed to pay her a monthly salary to convince her to allow me to stay at his and Lena’s house instead.
He was almost steaming to hear that the local police had not done more research on Sharon and her relationship with my parents before turning me over to her. Though he knew my only other choice was living at the Montgomery home, he was still against the idea. Since Lena had left town I had received several calls and text messages from Ian Bentley, trying to convince me to go out with him again. I did not want to, and more importantly, I was more interested in Avan. At first, I used excuses of being busy with school, blaming my teachers for assigning too much homework. Then I used the excuse of having a huge research paper due, but soon I started running out of excuses.
When Ian kept calling and texting, I just started ignoring them. He kept trying to convince me getting together again would be a great idea and that the least I could do was talk to him. It got to a point where I started leaving my phone at home rather than taking it with me every day. The thought kept crawling through my mind that he had gotten me drunk purposely, thinking I would give into him and let him have his way with me. The more I considered the facts Avan had pointed out the first time he’d heard about my date with Ian, the more I felt like it was all true.
The longer I went without returning the calls, the more often Ian would leave hasty voice messages telling me that he knew I was the girl he was going to be with and he wasn’t just going to go away. It started creeping me out to know I was at home alone all night in the Montgomerys’ massive house. Then the thought hit me that maybe the anonymous letters I had gotten recently were from him. What if Ian was stalking me? If that was the case, I really could be in danger.
Would Ian actually hurt me if I refused to see him? Maybe I could talk to Lena when she got back in town and have her talk to him for me. After all, Ian was her friend, right? If she had not set us up on that stupid blind date, none of this would be happening in the first place.
Deciding that the irritating and excessive calls and text messages from Ian could not continue, I would have to tell Lena about it soon, even if that meant I had to tell her over the phone before she got home. The only time I felt like Ian couldn’t get to me was when I was with Avan. Avan and I were not a couple, but he made me feel safe, and I knew he would not let anything hurt me. I came to the conclusion that if Ian so much as showed up at the house, I would immediately call the police. I knew if he did start showing up and following me, I could always get a restraining order, but I did not want to have to resort to doing so.
For some reason, even though I had not talked to Avan about how crazy Ian had gotten lately, I knew I could call him anytime day or night if I needed to. I still had an uneasy feeling brewing inside of me about staying at home alone, but Lena would be home on Sunday night. If I could just hold out for one more day, she could help me by letting him know I was not interested, once I had a chance to fill her in on what was going on. Based on my avoiding him, he ought to have figured out by now that I did not want to go out with him ever again on his own, but obviously, he needed to be informed more bluntly.
It was Saturday afternoon, and I did not have any plans yet. Wanting to get out and about, I had to come up with something to do since staying at home when I was furious never turned out well. Lena had called a few hours before to let me know she was going to catch an earlier flight in order to get back in the morning rather than tomorrow night. As it turned out, she got two lines playing the part of an extra in a movie about aliens invading the planet.
It sounded like nothing I would take an interest in, but I knew she would end up making me watch it, even if it put me to sleep. Not to mention, we would end up going on a huge shopping trip to find a dress for her to wear when she and Damien would be invited to the movie premiere. Luckily, the movie was still in the early filming stages and had several months to a year of filming and special effects before it would be complete.
As always I put on my best “that is so cool” phone voice, expressing my happiness for her on her minute baby step to stardom. Chances were that before it made it to the final cut she would be clipped right out of the movie altogether. Damien was an awesome special effects engineer, but when it came to the bottom line, the director and producers had the final say so of what stayed and what went.
If her two tiny lines made it into the movie, it would only cause her head to swell even more. It certainly would not help her attitude toward everyone else in society. I mentioned how Ian had turned slightly obsessed, and Lena reacted completely opposite of how I expected her to.
She told me I just needed to give him another chance and agree to go out with him again. According to her, Ian was one of those who liked to move fast w
hen it came to relationships. I guess that would have been okay if I actually liked him and we were in a relationship, but we had only had one date. One blind date did not constitute as being a relationship.
Lena told me she thought I needed to go out with him a few more times to get more of a feel of his personality because he was a really great guy. If that was not enough to make me mad, she kept going on and on about how I should feel lucky and flattered that he liked me so much and that any other girl would kill to have a chance to be with a guy like Ian Bentley. I disliked her answer and felt flustered and angry the more she talked.
She even had the audacity to tell me that having the chance to lose my virginity to a guy like Ian would give me what she called “total pimp points,” making every girl in Oceanview jealous. I could feel my temper heating up as my blood started to boil. I knew what would happen if I let the conversation continue, so I interrupted and cut Lena off in the middle of her rant, telling her something came up and I had to go, hanging up the phone.
After slamming the phone down on Lena and having no better, or more entertaining options to calm me down, I decided to go to the mall. Avan had texted me earlier asking if I was coming tonight for the concert and open mic night. I texted back saying I wasn’t sure since I had some things to take care of.
I went into the kitchen to find Lorenzo going through the spices and making a list of the ones that were outdated and needing to be replaced as he discarded the old bottles.
I told him my plans for going to the mall, letting him know I would be back in time to have dinner with him, and planted a kiss on his cheek. Before walking out the door, I asked if he would like me to pick up the spices he had listed, and he told me that would be great.
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