“You did not just say that.”
“Yes, Blake, I did. You can’t race when you’re like this. So go and fucking chill!”
Blake glared at Hayden like he was going to pounce on him any moment and take me down with him in the process. I was on tenterhooks about what would happen to me if Blake left us alone, feeling the dangerous heat that radiated from Hayden’s body. In a painfully long moment, Blake’s steely gaze was fixed on me, the promise of violence in them all too clear, and it took everything in me not to hunch in fear.
Surprisingly, Blake backed off, raising his hands as in surrender, and threw one last look at Hayden. “All right. As the princess wishes.” He marched away, pissed off.
I thought Hayden was finally going to blow his top and attack Blake from behind, but he did nothing to prevent him from leaving. Instead, he directed his attention to me.
“Why did she drive you back home?”
“The last time I checked, you weren’t my father. I don’t have to give you a report.”
I snatched my arm away from him, dashing toward my house, but as soon as I crossed the road, he grabbed me and trapped me against his body. He encircled one arm around my waist and placed his other hand below my neck, keeping me in place. I thrashed against him in hopes of setting myself free, but he was too strong for me, and fear greeted me. I braced myself for anything he might do.
“You became really bitchy these last few days.” He started tapping his fingers on my belly, creating a pleasant, fluttery feeling in the pit of my stomach. My chest tightened, confusion triumphing over me.
No, I was sure that was not pleasure. That was fear.
“You get on my nerves more than ever. Do you want my attention that much?”
“Let me go.”
His chuckle sounded punishing in my ear. He enjoyed this. His warm fingers moved to my neck and brushed my skin, creating shivers, and I didn’t know what made me more sick—him playing me like this, or my own body that was sending me these confusing signals.
“I think you do. Your pulse sped up like crazy just now and you’re breathing faster.”
“That’s because I’m afraid of you.”
“I don’t think so. Besides, I haven’t done anything yet, babe.”
Babe? What the hell was going on here? This wasn’t the Hayden I knew. He never kept me this close to him or called me like that. What was his tactic now?
Not being able to recognize his intentions made me even more wary of him. One thing was certain. What looked like a lovers’ embrace was actually Hayden’s cruel game. A game in which I always lost.
“You didn’t do anything? You were strangling me just one week ago, Hayden! Go to hell!”
I wriggled against him, trying to set myself free, but it was useless. He only increased his hold around my waist, pulling me into his body, and I could feel his heart pounding fast. His own breathing increased, and a new fear emerged in me. Not the fear of Hayden, but the fear of this —this sensation that filled me and enclosed me, making me want to stay right where I was. This... This wasn’t normal .
I let my eyes close for a couple of seconds, my mind going blank as an unknown emotion twirled inside my chest. His lips touched my earlobe briefly, planting a feathery kiss, and I shuddered. “Hell is where you are, babe, and I’m glad to pay you unpleasant visits,” he whispered and let me go.
I was brought back to harsh reality, the haze in my mind clearing immediately. I couldn’t even look at him, feeling I could choke on my embarrassment.
Without looking back, I rushed into my house and closed the door behind me with a bang. I took two stairs at a time, rushing to shut myself in my room and stay there forever.
Stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid.
How could you relax? How could you let him know even for a second you enjoyed that?
Enjoy?
What the hell, Sarah? After everything he had done, you would fall that low to let him manipulate you that easily?
I reached my bed, and the hot tears had surged out, my breathing accelerating...
Take a deep breath, Sarah.
The tingling started in the back of my head.
Breathe slowly, Sarah. Calm down.
I couldn’t! I was so stupid! I—
My phone beeped with a text message, and I flinched, taken by surprise.
I took my phone out of my backpack and entered the password. The hair stood up on the back of my neck when I unlocked it. Instead of seeing the caller ID, I saw two words. Hidden Number.
My thumb turned sweaty as it hovered above the message icon, waiting for me to gather the courage to open the message. I swallowed the lump in my throat and tapped on the icon.
The first thing I spotted through the crack on my screen was the photo of my slashed tire in my driveway, but it was different from the one circulating on Twitter because it was altered in Photoshop. This picture showed dark blood trickling down the tire and spreading on the pavement.
The scream lodged in my throat when I read the text beneath the picture, everything in me turning into ice.
“ This is nothing compared to what I’ll do to you. Get ready because I’ll slash your face soon.”
Chapter 21
“I FOLLOW YOU WHEREVER you go.”
I deleted another message from the hidden number, just like I’d done with the previous two. The message I received last night was a dire picture of a dog that had been run over and lying in his own blood, with a text that said, “I’ll run you over too.”
I could barely sleep the last two nights. These threats scared the living hell out of me, and for the first time, I couldn’t find the strength to go outside and work, panic holding me captive in my house. I called in sick and spent the whole day locked in my room, crying until all that was left was overpowering dejection. I didn’t see the point in getting out of my room and continuing to live my life.
The only distractions Sunday provided were Melissa’s and Jessica’s messages. Jessica kept apologizing for leaving me alone with Hayden and Blake despite her earlier promise not to be a coward anymore. I did feel a bit hurt because of that, but I understood she couldn’t just stay with me, right?
What would I do if I was in her place? Would I stay or leave?
You would stay, Sarah, because deep down you would do anything for the people you love.
Yeah, but it had been so long since I cared for someone that I’d forgotten how it felt to be there for others.
Soon after Jessica’s first message, I received a text from Melissa. She mentioned that Mateo didn’t come to the retirement home this morning, which wasn’t surprising after how I treated him on Saturday. If his confession was real, I kind of blew my chances with him when I reacted the way I did, not that I was ready for dating when I had to deal with these disturbing messages.
I just knew it was Hayden who had sent them, and it was appalling. He wanted me to be terrified. He wanted me to be paranoid and too scared to get out of my shell. This was the first time he’d sent such an explicit warning, but the worst thing was that I was afraid he would really fulfill his threats.
Was it because I disobeyed him and stayed friends with Jessica, or was it because of Kayden’s death?
I didn’t have a clue what had gotten into him this time, but I knew Monday awfulness had just reached a whole new level. I didn’t want to go to school, dragging myself around the house all small and hopeless. I got the guts to get outside eventually, but I was already too late for my first class.