A/N I'm sorry for not updating in a while! I've just been so busy with school starting again, and stuff. Also, I never realised how short this chapter is. Its v.short, and I'm sorry! I hope the content makes up for the lack of, like, 500 words! Chapter 30 will be better, I promise... it just may be a while because I haven't wrote it yet... (looks at furious people) I'm sorry, OK? I'll get it up soon! (Runs away. Faaaaast!) Also, I made a mistake that xoxdefygravityxox spotted - nice one, I never saw it - that I've corrected with this new re-post. Thanks!

Chapter 29

"Get. Off!" I hissed, struggling and kicking, trying to shrug off whoever was behind me. "Get offa me!"

I felt a sturdy (and hairy) arm close around my neck, and a lump appeared in my throat that I couldn't swallow.

"Jesse!" I gasped. "I - can't- breathe!"

Jessse looked horrified, but he wasted no time in trying to prise the guy's arm off me.

"Come on, Diego," he growled harshly. "As they say, pick on someone your own size."

"Diego" guffawed. He didn't sound like the sharpest tool in the shed, if you get what I mean. But he let go of me anyway.

I fell to the floor and tried to catch my breath. The lump in my throat had gone, but another was rising, probably caused by hysteria. I mean, I was just nearly killed by the guy that killed Jesse.

Oh my God.

He hadn't killed Jesse yet.

Could I really watch history repeat itself? Could I watch Jesse get murdered by such a monster?

"Jesse!" I shrieked, as Diego was approaching him cautiously. "Behind you!" Jesse turned around and dealt Diego with a hard sucker-punch in the gut.

The truth was, I couldn't let the man I love get murdered again. I mean, that was like pushing Gina into a monster truck pit, or feeding my Mom poison. It couldn't be done, out of morals.

"Lizzie!" cried Jesse, while ducking from what could only be described as Diego having a nervous spasm. "Get out! Keep yourself safe!"

"No!" I protested. "This guy is gonna kill you!"

Diego spun around angrily. Beneath his nose was some sort of hairy-bug thing.

Oh, wait.

"Ew," I said disgustedly. "Nobody has a moustache like that anymore."

Diego let out a mighty roar, and started running towards me.

"Lizzie!" yelled Jesse. "Run! Now!"

But I was frozen to the spot. I mean, a giant, hairy guy was charging towards me. Its not exactly what you see everyday.

He reached me and knocked me down in an instant. I groaned, winded.

"Lizzie!" Jesse cried, and he ran to my side.

"No so fast, De Silva," growled Diego, turning to face us. "Don't think you are not getting killed today."

I saw something in Jesse's face that I had never seen there before - fear. Jesse was afraid of Felix Diego. Not that he was going to verbally or physically going to express it. But I could tell. He was scared.

He reached into his boot (it had spurs! Really, it did!) for something. As he drew it out, I saw the silver catch the light off the lantern.

It was a knife.

But before Jesse could act, Felix came at him with a punch that threw him into the air. The knife was dropped by my side.

But Diego hadn't noticed. He'd drawn his own out from his pants, and was aproaching Jesse, ready to fight.

Only Jesse was weak. Blood was trickling from his head, where he had hit the wood of the barn. And he didn't appear to be breathing evenly.

"Jesse," I breathed, horrified.

"Well, well, well," cackled Diego, leaning down, and slitting Jesse's cheek with his knife. Blood poured from the open wound. "Looks like somebody won't ever be marrying little Miss Maria."

He stood poised, ready to drive his knife into Jesse's chest, when he gasped in agony.

That was because, I was possessed with an urge to take Jesse's knife from my side, and plunge it into Diego's back.

He sank to the floor.

Dead.