Hello, readers. I know it's been over a month since my last update, but I'm hoping that you will forgive me...However, school is over in two weeks, and I can get back into the groove of writing, at least for a month, until school starts back up again.

So, without further ado, here is the next chapter of "Destination: Beautiful." Enjoy!

Chapter 10

When time stands still

At the hotel...

Cody looked at his reflection in the bathroom and sighed. It had been a little over a week since the mirror incident and things seemed to be getting back to normal...as normal as it can be under the circumstances. Their mother had insisted that Zack speak to a counselor which, to Cody's surprise, he didn't refuse. He had only gone twice, but it was obviously working because Cody could swear he saw Zack smile today.

Drying his hands on a towel, Cody limped out of the bathroom and over to the grapes that Zack had taken out. He wasn't, however, expecting to find Zack looking horrified at a typed letter he was holding before him.

"Whoa, man, who died?" Cody asked jokingly, popping a couple of grapes into his mouth.

Zack looked up quickly and let out a short panicked breath. "Uh, n-nothing...just...a letter from one of those...you know, those annoying p-pen pals...he has horrible grammar..." Zack stuttered, wiping away a bead of sweat that was trailing down the side of his face.

Feeling a little unconvinced ("since when did Zack notice grammar?"), Cody asked, "Are those pictures? Can I see?"

"Oh...uh," Zack said, shrugging, "nah, I'm just gonna trash 'em." And with that, he grabbed the envelope and hurried off into their bedroom, shutting the door tightly behind him.

Cody bit his lower lip and took a small bunch of grapes over to the couch. Pulling out his science book, he began turning over, in his mind, the possible real reason why Zack was suddenly so jumpy.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the bedroom...

Zack was pacing back and forth, reading the letter over and over again.

"This can't be happening," he said out loud, running a clammy hand over his flushed face. Breathing harder, Zack carefully went over the letter again, trying to make sense of the paper he held in his hand.

dearest Zachary,

hey buddy! your pal Felix here. i bet you never expected to hear from me again huh? well i felt we made a real connection in our short time spent together at the hotel ya know? so now that we're the best of friends i need you to do me a little favor. go down to the pay phone behind the Tipton on monday the 14th and wait for my call. i call at 5 pm. oh and i wouldnt tell your little cop friend about this if i were you. see i know a lot of people Zack. you spill the beans and i off your brother got it? dont show monday and i just say the word and BANG! anyway you get the picture. and speaking of pictures i sent you a little incentive to go along with this nice letter. should help you keep your mouth shut. remember that i'm watching you.

much love,

Felix XOXO

Zack held the pictures before him and began to tremble. There was a photo of Cody at his locker, one at a restaurant, and one of him walking up the steps into the hotel. All three were taken at a distance, and Zack shuddered at the red targets that Felix had drawn around Cody's body. He knew that the madman was trying to tell him that he has a clear shot of his brother from any angle. Then it dawned on him; Felix was blackmailing him.

And Zack began to fear what he might be asked to do.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

At the police station...

"It's been over two weeks, Ed, and the trail is going cold! We need more man power. Where's Johnson and Lopez?" James asked forcefully. He was pacing feverishly in the Lieutenant's office.

"Johnson is on Tipton duty and Lopez is on Moseby duty," Lt. Brooks said without looking up from the papers he was signing.

James looked annoyed. "I thought Moseby didn't want protection?"

"Well," Brooks replied, tearing his eyes away from his paperwork, "He received a threatening letter the other day, and I sent Lopez over to keep an eye on him."

"What did it say? Was it from Felix?" James asked, halting his pacing and sitting down in front of the Lieutenant's desk.

"Well, we don't know, actually. But Felix would have just as much reason to come after Moseby as he would anyone else that was there that day." Brooks turned his head back to the paper in front of him, frowning. "Hey, James, would you excuse me? I need to check something out," Brooks said tentatively, rising from his chair. Still holding the paper, he grabbed his jacket and walked swiftly out of the room.

"Yeah, sure," James said to himself, with a wave of his hand. He glanced at his watch and sighed. Standing up, he put on his own jacket and left the station, heading towards Zack and Cody's school.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

At the school...

Zack stood by Cody's locker as his brother was putting his books into his schoolbag.

"Let's hurry up, Cody," Zack said, nervously looking around, then at his watch.

"What, you got a hot date or something?" Cody asked, shrugging off Zack's paranoia.

"What makes you think that?" Zack asked, laughing slightly.

"Well, you've been staring at your watch all day," Cody pointed out, slamming his locker shut and slinging his bag over his shoulder.

"Oh, no...I, uh...well, I don't want to be late for my shrink, that's all," Zack lied, wiping his hair from his face.

"That's not until 4:30, Zack, you're fine," Cody laughed, shaking his head and glancing at him. He looked concerned.

Zack knew he wasn't doing a good job lying, so he changed the subject. "What did you think of that English test today?"

"It was more of a vocabulary test than anything else," Cody said, shrugging. "I was expecting something a little more challenging."

"Yeah, I guess," Zack said, not paying much attention. He looked outside and saw James' car sitting in front of the school. "Oh, no, what's he doing here?" he thought, looking around to make sure no one was watching them.

"Hey, James," Cody said, walking up to the car and smiling.

"Where's mom?" Zack asked loudly, glancing over his shoulder.

"She asked if I wouldn't mind picking you up today. She had some errands to run," James said, unlocking the doors. Cody opened the door to the backseat and threw his schoolbag in the car.

Zack shut his eyes tightly and prayed that whoever was watching them (because he had a feeling that someone was) didn't think that Zack had told James about the letter.

"Zack, you ok?" James asked, tilting his head slightly.

"Yeah, fine," Zack said, opening the front door and slipping into the car. He looked at his watch and held his breath.

1 hour and 30 minutes to go.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Thanks for reading everyone! I hope you enjoyed the chapter. I'll have more up soon. I know you're all dying to know what Felix is going to make Zack do!