Chapter Eleven

"I'm sorry for scaring you...it's just that I'm scared too" Maya maintained.

As she seen how worried Noah and Jacob looked, she was trying to undo some of the damage. The sky was now grey and it had began to rain, the raindrops being the only sound heard. Maya removed the bobble from her hair, trying to look a bit more like her old herself. Though it was too late.

"I'm sorry Jacob" Maya told him.

"You really hurt me...I felt like how you made dad feel"

Noah looked between them, he was frozen still. Though he felt like the worse has been done. She was finally acting like a teacher again but he has seen her true colours now. So it was too late for him to look at her the same way. Jacob though seemed like he was under some spell.

"Come here...let me make you feel better" Maya suggested.

With little hesitation, Jacob returned to her side, he felt her wrap her arms around him for a hug. While that was going on, Noah leaned down to look at the phone she broke. There was no way it would work now. He now really wanted to go for it was almost half 9, his mum will definitely be worried.

"Can I go now?" Noah asked; looking towards his old teacher.

"Yeah" Maya told him.

"Don't tell anyone where you been...if you do, I will never talk to you ever again" Jacob promised him.

It was like the last few hours didn't happen, Noah just gave his friend a nod. Despite what his mate has said, Noah had already decided his next cause of action. He would be telling people about this, he was willing to lose a friendship over it. Unlike Jacob, he could see what she was.

...

After going back the way he came, he made his way back up the hill; his trousers and shoes all muddy. He could see the village lights as he got closer, he had only the slightest doubt when he got to the pub. He braced himself for the worried look on his mother's face, he opened the door. Faith Dingle was behind the bar, she looked over at him with a look of relief. She quickly called Charity over.

"Noah...where have you been?!" Charity demanded to know.

Giving him a hug (which she never usually does). She was almost in tears as she just held tighter onto him. Vanessa looking equally glad as she stood by the side, they were just glad he was back home safe. After everything that happened, they were relieved to see he was okay.

"Where have you been?" Charity repeated.

He promised himself he would tell the whole truth on his way here. He almost wanted to lie, thinking it wasn't worth the hassle. Though for Jacob's sake, he felt he had no choice because if he wasn't going to come home; people would have to go to him.

"I was with Jacob" Noah admitted with a gulp.

"Just Jacob?" Charity questioned nervously.

"And Miss Stepney"

His response made Charity do a long heave. Knowing what that woman was, she was disgusted. A part of her felt angry, why would Noah even go there? He knows everything yet he still went there.

"Did she force you to meet up?" Charity asked him.

"No...Jacob asked me to come and I did"

"Really? Because if you she has ever done anything to you...then you tell me right now, did she do anything to you?"

"She just gave me a hug" Noah reassured her.

Though that wasn't exactly reassuring, even the thought of him hugging him made Charity want to slap her. Noah was even younger then Jacob, he wasn't even 16 yet. Though if it was just a hug, that was a bullet dodged. She had to believe he was telling her the truth, it was only a hug.

"Just a hug?" Charity questioned.

"Yeah...the worse thing she did was smash my phone but she let me go"

"She smashed your phone? It explains why you were not answering my calls" Charity paused slightly...telling Noah "You're going to take me to them"

Vanessa was actually ready to go the moment she said it. The lad just nodded, he wasn't going to protect her or him. He was willing to take his mother to where they were (he hoped they haven't gone). Charity got her coat, telling Faith to look after the pub, telling her...

"We have a bitch to hunt"

"If only you had a shotgun" Faith replied.

"All she needs is me...believe me"

...

Vanessa was the one doing the driving, Noah was leading them up to where he met up with them. They stopped at the same bridge, getting out the car and quietly walking across the ground. Noah leading them down that same hill, only the slightest creak could be overheard. The darkness covering everything else, Maya and Jacob were currently packing up when they heard the slightest sound of footsteps. Making them move back themselves, they knew that Noah must have told somebody.

"Come here" Maya whispered; taking a scared Jacob by the hand.

Leading him behind a huge tree as the three dark figures got closer and closer. The so-called hunting had began. Unlike Leyla, Charity knew what she was doing when it came to chasing down fugitives. She was a Dingle after all and nobody messed with the Dingle family, she knew exactly why she lured her young son to her.

"We know you're not far!" Charity shouted across the woods.

Maya felt like she having deja vu right now, she was being chased once again in the woods. Though she had company this time. Jacob looked generally terrified as he gripped tighter onto her hand.

"Run" Maya quietly instructed him.

She no longer could hear them and it made her nervous. Though this would turn out to be a mistake. Charity looked right towards the tree just as they decided to make a run for it. Pulling Noah along, they began chase. Vanessa was so not dressed for this she thought but she ran nonetheless.

"You can't run forever!" Charity reminded her.

A panicked Jacob held tightly onto her coat like his life depended on it. He refused to be left behind. Maya tried everything to loose them, she rushed behind trees; ran through bushes and sprinted across small creeks. Charity was hot on her trail though. Noah slipped during this, getting pulled back up by Vanessa.

"Let Jacob go Maya...it will only get worse if you don't!" Vanessa told her.

She was a friend of Tracy's and knew everything what went on. The chase kept going and going though, everyone was getting tired. Maya kept running up and up though, only falling occasionally. The chase reached it's climax when they reached the top of the hill and could run no more. It was a long way down...

"Okay...just let Jacob go" Vanessa advised.

Though she wouldn't and he wasn't trying to get away. Maya purposefully kept herself and him near the edge, so they wouldn't try anything. Noah fell down again, he was exhausted as he sat on the floor; trying to get his breath back again. His mother and his mother's girlfriend were not done though.

"Leave us alone" Maya begged with false tears.

"You don't tell us what to do, right?! It might work with young boys but it doesn't work with us!" Charity hissed.

"She's done nothing wrong!" Jacob yelled.

"Come on mate...she's not worth this" Noah spoke up.

Though he wasn't listening to sense. Even when she wasn't talking, she was in his ear. Telling him that they loved each other and the world just didn't understand. The world was the problem. Maya just gripped tighter onto Jacob's hand and wouldn't let go.

"I hate you!" Jacob snapped at his friend.

"Go and phone the police...we will keep her here, you know your way back, don't you?" Charity asked her son.

"Yeah"

"Take my phone"

Noah took his mother's phone and ran back down the way they came. He would ring the police the moment he got signal.

...

TBC