A/N: SO SORRY for the long updating time! MY OLD COMPUTER CRASHED! So this is my new laptop. Luckily, I have all the stuff from my old laptop saved on this one now. But I'm still sad. But this computer is good! ANYWAY! Also, I've been completely bogged down by work at University (STRESSED is not the word) so yeah... plus I'm feeling ridiculously writer's-blockish. Joy, joy. But I'm hoping that this chapter will be good! Thanks for the reviews:)
I woke up with a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach. It was Monday. The fateful Monday that I was going to go see the psychopath who had been torturing me and my friends and family.
I rolled over in my bed and wrapped the pillow around my ears to block out the morning sounds that I could hear drifting upwards from the kitchen. My father was bustling about, making coffee for himself from the smell of it. I knew that he was probably trying to forget about the frightening experience that would be happening later today.
I tried to go back to sleep, but my heart was racing too wildly. My hands were trembling as I got out of bed. I grabbed a towel and then took a quick shower. When I was finished dressing, I went downstairs, grabbing a hairbrush along the way.
"Good morning, Darlin'," my father said hoarsely when he saw me. He rushed over, kissed me tenderly on the forehead, and then sat me gently in a chair. "Would you like something to eat, Baby?" he questioned. "I've got bacon frying. Cereal? Toast? Pancakes?"
"Daddy!" I protested. waving him away as I tugged the brush through my wet hair. "Don't fuss over me!"
"I love you, Miley," he said. "I just want you to know that. You know, it's not too late to call the police. Honey, they can handle this better than you can. You know, they could just ambush him ... "
"Dad," I said patiently. "That's what the police are going to do! But I have to be there to meet him first, if only for a little bit! If he sees the police there, he won't be stupid enough to just march on over with them. And if he gets there before they show up, then he probably won't wait around for me. He'll go off and do something worse then he already did!"
It was hard to imagine that life could be worse than it had been the past few days, but I knew that realistically it could, if he killed anyone else. But still. The loss of Oliver had caused such a gaping hole in me. It fueled my anger and hatred towards this evil man.
Oliver's funeral had been yesterday, Sunday. There hadn't been a dry eye in the church as various people had given eulogies about him, and what a good person he had been. The most heart-rending for me had been Lilly's, as it was awful to see my best girl friend - wait, best friend period, now, I thought with a pang - break down into such a mess. To make matters worse, I had had to deliver my eulogy right after Lilly's, so my sobbing and sniffling as I read it aloud was just about as bad as hers had been.
I never knew that I would miss my donut so very much.
I was brought back to the present with my father's words. "I know, Miles," he admitted softly. "But I still don't like it. Let's ... let's just try to forget about it for now though, alright?"
"Okay," I said. But there was no way either of us could forget; nor could Jackson, when he awoke and joined us in the kitchen.
Lilly came over at about one o'clock. Her face was streaked with mascara. I knew that she had been crying about Oliver again. I had been as well, off and on, that whole morning.
"Oh, Miley," Lilly moaned, collapsing in a heap in my arms. "I don't want him to kill you too, Miley. Please don't go. Please. For me?" She looked at me, and her eyes were so pleading that I wanted to make her happy, and tell her that I wouldn't go. But I couldn't, because I had to, and she, and everyone else, knew it too, though they didn't want to admit it.
I just shook my head, and we cried on each other's shoulders.
That whole day was very uncomfortable. All of us - Dad, Jackson, Lilly, and I - tried to laugh and make conversation, but we all had red-rimmed eyes throughout the entire day. We were alternating between missing Oliver, and worrying about the event that had yet to take place.
Lilly stayed at our house that night for 'supper', if you could call it that. Though my father had been so adamant on making food earlier, as seven o'clock drew closer, he became more and more nervous, and consequently, could not cook anything. So, the four of us ended up sitting around eating turkey sandwiches at 5:30.
By 6:00, everything was cleared away and we were ready and waiting. We sat in the living room, a sombre bunch - my father pacing back and forth and Lilly, Jackson, and I on the couch.
My father was practically wearing a hole in the floor from walking back and forther over the same spot.
Jackson was staring into space, biting his nails - something he only did when extremely nervous.
Lilly was staring at her hands, tears threatening to spill once again.
And my hands were trembling so fiercely that I had to sit on them to make them stop.
Finally, 6:30 arrived, and my father and I stood up to leave. My father was insistent upon the fact that he would not let me go by myself. He would stop walking with me not too far from the alley, and hide in an inconspicous place across from it, where he could see. From there he would call the police as soon as he saw the man approaching.
I was very worried. I didn't want my daddy to get hurt himself - what if he ran over and the guy ended up shooting him? I couldn't live without my dad; I just couldn't.
Lilly wrapped me in the tightest hug that I had ever recieved. "Be careful, Miley," she whispered in my ear in a quivering voice. With one final squeeze, she released me, and turned away, collapsing on to the couch and turning away.
Jackson stood shakily on his crutches and I walked over to him. Jackson's eyes were wet with tears too. It was so weird to see Jackson look at me without him making some kind of teasing remark!
He grabbed me and held me to him. He kissed me on the top of the head and said softly, "Miles, I love you. Stay safe, little sister."
As we were walking out the door, I blew them both a kiss and waved a little. "I'll be fine!" I tried to sound happy, but I was trying to convince myself so much as them.
When my father and I reached the alley, which wasn't all that far from my house, he looked into my eyes and said, "You be careful now, Miley. I'm watching, and if he so much as lays a hand on you, I'm over there, and you know it!"
I opened my mouth to protest, but knew that it would do no good. Instead, I simply nodded and went into the alleyway, while my father went to the park on the other side of the road. He bent down behind some bushes. I was relieved that I couldn't see him at all from my point of view - I just hoped that the man wouldn't, either.
I stood in the dark alleyway for what seemed like an eternity, until I glanced at my wristwatch and realized that only three minutes had gone by. It was now 7:01.
Suddenly, I saw him, looming in the entrance, cutting off the twilight and blinking into the darkness of the alleyway.
"Hannah Montana?" he growled.
I nodded, and handed him the suitcase. He lifted it and began muttering to himself. "Hmm, feels like it's full of money," he stated. "But I ought to make sure that it is."
I felt my heart drop. Please, don't check, please, please! I prayed in my head.
He bent down, still blocking the entrance, and opened the suitcase. He grabbed a fistful of the Monopoly money and held it up to the dimming twilight. Then he glared at me.
"THIS ISN'T MONEY!" he bellowed. He began advancing towards me, and I cowered in fear. He pulled out a revolver and leveled it right at my chest.
I slid to the ground and cowered in a ball, waiting for the impact, and the inevitable end to come.
A/N: Sorry for the cliffy ending! I hope this chapter didn't suck too bad, if you think it did pleaseee let me know! I want to write good chapters for you guys. So review! I will TRY my darnedst that the next chapter doesn't take so long to be written! Hopefully in a couple days I'll have it done. So review! XD
PS: Oh yeah! I hope this whole idea isn't too ridiculous - I suppose it could happen, though as one anonymous reviewer pointed out, it would have been so much easier for him to just kidnap Miley. I guess our villain is kinda dumb, and didn't think of that lol. Oh well. Anywho.. review pour moi [-: