Thank you once again to everyone who reviewed! Kandy4eva- this story will probably end up being around 15 chapters-is that too many/little? It might be more or less.
I also just realised that anonymous reviews for this story had been disabled (I know, how slow am I?) and I have just enabled it. So now there is no excuse for any of you not to review! LOL
The nightmare grew worse and more vivid that night. Forgotten details of Richard's attack were added to it-details Kirsten thought she had erased. The nightmare conveyed everything: from the feel of his breath on her to the stinging pain his hands caused on her face. Except in the nightmare, there was no Sandy to rescue her as Richard attacked her, showing no mercy.
Kirsten woke up with a start. Light was filtering in through the windows and looking across, she saw Sandy looking at her, resting a hand on her arm.
"Are you okay?" Sandy asked. "You seemed pretty disturbed, so I woke you up. Sorry."
"I'm fine," Kirsten said quickly.
"You are?" Sandy asked critically.
"For God's sake, Sandy, would you just lay off and let me take care of myself?" Kirsten retorted, sharply. Kirsten stood up and made her way to the bathroom, wanting to get away before she confided in Sandy and told him about last night.
Sandy, surprised at Kirsten's comment and anger, jumped up and followed her. Something was wrong, he knew it. She'd been tense and worried for the past few weeks and Sandy didn't like seeing her like that. He was determined to get the truth from her.
"Kirsten, stop," Sandy commanded, catching up to her and holding her arm. "What's going on with you? Talk to me."
Kirsten tried not to look at him. It was the same thing every time: she'd try not to tell him how she felt but her eyes always found themselves drawn up to his, it was like a magnetic pull. As soon as she'd look in those blue eyes, she couldn't hide anything. This time was no different.
"I saw someone last night," Kirsten begun slowly, hating herself for the concern she was about to cause Sandy. "While I was grocery shopping… It was Richard."
"What?" Sandy asked, surprise flickering on his face. He thought that Richard had been after Charlotte-not Kirsten. "Honey, are you sure it was him? It could have just been-"
"It was him, Sandy," Kirsten interrupted. "He saw me-he was looking me straight in the eye for…forever, and he looked like he'd been caught. And that nightmare I had last night-I've been having it for awhile. Ever since I began to feel like I was being watched."
"You were being what?" Sandy asked, each sentence taking him more and more by surprise.
"And I tried to tell myself it was all in my mind," Kirsten babbled, unable to stop the flow of words. "I tried to tell myself I was still just affected by what happened at Charlotte's. I told myself that when I heard footsteps following me back to my car one night, I told myself that every time I felt like I was being watched and found no one around me, but I can't lie to myself anymore. I can't. Not after last night."
Sandy tried to process all of this information as he hugged Kirsten. The only thing going through his mind was the fact that he hadn't asked her what was wrong sooner. He'd known something wasn't right with her for weeks. Maybe, if he had of asked her sooner, he could have put an end to it.
"I just want it all to stop," Kirsten said in an exhausted voice.
"Stay home today," Sandy pleaded with her. "We'll figure out what to do-we'll call the police or something."
"What evidence do I have?" Kirsten asked, her heart sinking at Sandy's reaction. This was precisely why she hadn't wanted to tell him: he'd try to protect her too much, and she'd loose her independence. "What can they do? I don't want to have a bodyguard."
"So you're going to go to work?" Sandy asked, anger growing inside him at Kirsten's need for independence. For God's sake; it wasn't just her she had to protect anymore-she had two babies she had to protect, too.
"I can't stop living," Kirsten told him. "And if I stay home, then it will be harder to leave the house and continue living. I'll become paranoid."
"This isn't just about you!" Sandy told her, his frustration rising. "What about our babies, whose safety depends on you? You're not putting only yourself in danger, here. Have you even thought of them?"
"What do you take me for?" Kirsten exclaimed. "Of course I have! But work has security cameras and we all leave at about the same time."
"But then that night-"
"I was working back late," Kirsten explained. "Which, you'll notice, I haven't done since."
Sandy watched helplessly as Kirsten gave him one last glare and stalked into the bathroom. He couldn't stop her from going to work, but he could do something to try to get to the bottom of the story. He had an important phone call to make.
Sandy looked down at the number he'd copied from Kirsten's address book, fighting a guilty conscience. This was to help Kirsten and the twins. Her being so adamant about going to work had left him no other choice if he wanted to protect her. Dialling the number, Sandy prayed they would cooperate. Canada was a long way to travel.
"Hello?" answered an unfamiliar voice.
"Hi, that's not Charlotte, is it?" Sandy asked.
"No, this is her sister Laura," Laura replied. "I'll go get her for you. May I ask who this is?"
"Sandy Cohen," Sandy told her. "I'm Charlotte's friend's-Kirsten's-husband."
"Hold on," Laura said.
Sandy looked around his office, his mind full of thoughts of Kirsten. He was worried-very worried-about her. Kirsten and Sandy had always had this uncanny knack for knowing how the other was feeling or if something was about to happen to them. Sandy knew that Richard was bad news; someone that needed to be kept away from Kirsten at all costs.
He also knew that time was running out. Every second, basically, was spent worrying about Kirsten's safety. Sandy had even called her that morning to apologise for their fight earlier-despite the fact that he sucked at apologies and didn't think that this fight had been his fault-just so he could hear Kirsten's voice and know that she was okay.
"Sandy?" came Charlotte's voice on the other end of the phone, making him jump. "Sandy, are you there?"
"Sorry," Sandy said, coming out of his trance.
"Is Kirsten okay?" Charlotte asked, sounding concerned.
"Well, that depends," Sandy told her.
"On what?" Charlotte asked.
"On whether or not you tell me what your involvement is with Richard," Sandy replied. "And everything you know about him."
"What's happening with Richard and Kirsten?" Charlotte asked quietly.
"I thought you'd be able to tell me," Sandy commented. There was a pause, and Sandy realised that extracting information from Charlotte might be a case of give and take. "Kirsten's had someone following her recently and yesterday, when she got the feeling she was being watched, she turned around and saw Richard."
"Why are you asking me for information?" Charlotte asked, a scared edge in her voice.
"Richard just happened to turn up the one day you were out of the house," Sandy explained. "Then, as soon as you find out, you move states. It just doesn't add up. I thought Richard must have been after you but I was wrong. So now, I've decided that you knew Richard's plan. You were liaising with him."
"Well, you're wrong," Charlotte declared, a little too firmly. "I don't appreciate you accusing me, but I'm sorry I can't help Kirsten. Goodbye."
Sandy listened as Charlotte hung up. He'd wear her down eventually. She knew, Sandy was sure of it, and he'd get the truth from her even if it meant flying to Canada.
Kirsten breathed a sigh of relief as she stepped into her car at the end of the day. She'd expected to hear footsteps tracing her route back to the car or experience that prickling sensation on the back of her neck as she'd walked across the road to get some lunch, but not one thing had happened.
She couldn't continue living like this, Kirsten decided, pulling out of the car park, surprised at the darkness of the night. She couldn't continue living every day in fear, with the idea of being alone making her uneasy.
Sandy had been right, Kirsten admitted. She had to think more about the twins safety-it wasn't just her now. She had two people-half her, half Sandy-inside her who were defenceless. Much as Kirsten hated to admit it, maybe she did need to take a break from work and tell the police what was happening.
Kirsten smiled, turning on to a dark, narrow street, remembering Sandy's call shortly before lunch to apologise for their fight that morning. Kirsten had seen right through it, she knew that Sandy was doing it just to give him a reason to check up on her. As much as she disliked her independence being invaded, she couldn't help but find it sweet-and the babies did give Sandy a good reason to do so.
The sound of her phone ringing brought Kirsten back to earth. Kirsten pulled over to the side of the road, remembering what had happened the last time she'd talked on the phone while driving. Another car accident was not high on her list of things to do.
"Hello?" Kirsten answered, oblivious to the car behind her turning off its headlights and stopping a good few car lengths away from her.
"Kirsten Cohen?" a man's voice asked.
"Who is this?" Kirsten asked, feeling as though she'd had a bucket of ice tipped over her at the sound of the unfamiliar voice.
"This is Patrick Ross, from Riviera magazine," Patrick introduced himself.
"Oh, Mr Ross," Kirsten sighed, relief rushing over her as she recognised the name. Patrick was one of Riviera's top journalists. "How can I help you?"
"To begin with, I'm very sorry for the loss of your father," Patrick apologised. "Mr Nichol was an integral part of Newport."
"Thank you," Kirsten said, leaning over to lock the car doors.
"I tried calling you about a month ago, but your husband told me you were out of town," Patrick explained. "I understand you've taken over Mr Nichol's role at the Newport Group?"
"Yes, I have," Kirsten replied, growing uneasy as she looked out at the tree lined, practically deserted street.
"Congratulations," Patrick offered. "I was hoping that you would agree to us running a story on your take-over of the group, maybe going over the loss of your father?"
Kirsten reluctantly agreed-publicity being her least favorite part of her job and her relation to Caleb-growing anxious as the minutes ticked away while she organised a meeting with Patrick.
At last she and Patrick hung up. Kirsten couldn't wait to get off the road-it was so deserted, so quiet. About to change gears, a sound from the dashboard distracted Kirsten. Her eyes shifted over to the petrol gage and her heart flipped. This morning it had been half-full; now it was practically empty.
How the hell did that happen? Kirsten thought, fear rising in her as she watched the gage slip to empty. She couldn't get home on that.
Despite knowing that it was a wrong move, Kirsten grabbed a torch from the back and slipped out of the car. She walked to the petrol tank, her footsteps echoing into the silent night.
Kirsten crouched down and flicked on the torch, her senses fully alert. Every sound seemed to be magnified, she swore she could hear her heart beating underneath her quick, unsteady breaths. Kirsten examined the petrol tank, crouching under the car to get a good look underneath.
"Oh, God," Kirsten whispered. She was no expert when it came to cars, but it hardly took a genius to recognise a punctured petrol tank.
Kirsten slid out quickly from underneath the car, her mind only on calling Sandy.
Taking a step back, Kirsten jumped and let out a small scream as a sweaty hand clamped over her mouth and a metal object pushed against her head.
"Hello, Princess," a cold voice whispered in Kirsten's ear.
So, there's the new chapter. Let me know what you think! And I promise you that it will have a happy ending, even though it may not be pointing that way for awhile.