A/N: Sorry this chapter took me so long, I've been extremely busy with school and all. I also kind of wrote my myself into a corner in that last chapter so I spent most of the extra time figuring out how to fix it. Well, enough excuses, here's chapter 13.
Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans.
Chapter Thirteen: No Where to Go
Summer was slowly coming to an end and the evening air had become chilly once again as autumn began to creep up. It took him a moment to realize that he was only wearing a hospital gown and the green boxers with the little red hearts on them that he was glad they hadn't taken from him. He had left his clothes back in his hospital room, but it was too late to turn back now so he continued to run barefoot down the sidewalks. The other people using the sidewalk would clear out of his path and stare at him as if he were mad as he passed by.
Every so often a cool wind would cause him to shiver as it rushed past his bare legs and arms. "I hate hospitals," he grumbled as he ran. Gar's pace began to slow as he felt himself getting lightheaded again. "Damn it." Then, he came to a complete halt and leaned against the wall of the nearest building.
Dragging himself into a nearby alley, Jump City seemed to have a lot scattered around, Gar felt his legs become weak. All he wanted to do was sleep. Finally, his legs gave out from under him and he fell flat on his face on the cold, hard asphalt. He had no energy to pick himself back up with. Now that he was no longer running he realized just how fast his heart was pumping and how he was gasping for air. Everything began to spin around him and he struggled to get back up to his feet, he had to help Raven. It was a fruitless struggle. After another minute, his body finally went limp as he fell asleep in the foreign alleyway.
Finally, she managed to stop the strong flow of tears. She knew her father probably wanted her to cry, but it was so difficult not to. Sitting up from her place on the bed, Raven scanned the room once more with watery eyes, although she knew there was no way out. Then, her eyes settled on her huge full-length windows on the wall to her left.
Gracefully, she stood from the bed and walked over to the glass. Placing her hand on the cold surface, she stared out longingly. Her room had always had a beautiful view of the beach. After all her father had paid a little under six million dollars for the mansion, and that was before it had been furnished.
The sun was about to set, which meant it was the late afternoon. Pressing her forehead up to the window, a shiver went down her back from the sudden cold, but she didn't pull away. Watching as the sun began to sink down into the ocean, Raven fantasized about walking on the beach with a certain boy. She probably wouldn't admit it to his face, but she really liked Gar. A small smile graced her lips.
The sky was painted a brilliant purplish-pink as the sun slipped below the horizon. Raven was almost angered by how beautiful it was, today should have been a rainy, depressing day. Why did the sunset get to be so beautiful while her life always ended up so ugly?
With a sigh she closed her eyes tightly as the last ray of sunlight disappeared. Forcing the tears back that threatened to escape.
"What's wrong, Raven?" That voice was familiar, but unlike her father it was soft and concerned.
"It's nothing, mother," Raven insisted as she faced her mother with just a hint of a smile which was forced. Yes, she was glad to see her mother, but her other problems weighed too heavy on her mind for Raven act even close to cheerful.
"Aren't you happy to be home?" Angela asked.
"It's not that..." Raven knew what she said was a total lie. In fact, that was exactly what why she wasn't happy.
"I was so worried about you." A normal mother and daughter would probably hug at a moment like this, but the Roth family had never been normal and physical contact was rare at best.
Glancing back outside, Raven saw the reflection of the moon on the glassy ocean water. "You didn't need to be," Raven said with a sigh as she broke her gaze away from the water.
"Are you sure nothing is wrong, Raven?" Angela took another step forward, but there were still several feet between them. Raven just stared at her feet silently. "I was so happy when your father told me that you were finally cured." Raven clenched her fist, but knew it was futile to tell her mother that she wasn't the one who needed curing, her father was the insane one. That poor, naive woman believed anything that beast she called her husband told her.
"Yes, mother." Whenever Raven spoke to her parents it always felt so formal and unattached, and she hated it. The dark girl wished she could just collapse on the floor and have a complete breakdown, but she couldn't, especially not in this house.
There was a long moment of awkward silence, then Angela turned to leave. Hesitating in front of the door, Angela called over her shoulder, "I'm glad to have you back home, Raven... but I just want you to be happy." She hurried out the door, and Raven wanted to call out to her, but she was already gone.
Raven didn't understand what Angela had meant. For a split second after she said that Raven thought that Angela knew everything, but she quickly dismissed that thought. It was impossible. Switching her gaze back to the sea, Raven watched the dark waves crash against the sharp rocks on the shore.
Dragging her long, pale fingers across the chilled glass of the window, Raven began to think about possible escape plans. The glass of the window was thick, but could be shattered with a few blows from a heavy object. Breaking the window wasn't her top concern, the real problem was the thirty foot drop onto the jagged rocks below. If she fell in just the right way the drop might not be fatal, but there was a high chance that if she did happen to live through it that she would be severely injured or paralyzed. No matter what it was a jump to her death, so she decided to leave that option as her absolute last resort. If she was patient she would have another chance to escape sometime in the next thirty years.
"I can't believe you! You can be so inconsiderate sometimes, Mark!" Marie yelled at her husband.
"Come on, Marie. I just told him the truth, what else was I supposed to say?" They had been searching over an hour for their son, but hadn't had any luck in finding him.
"The truth! Neither of us have any clue as to what happened. You just assumed it was Raven. I wish you could have more faith in people."
"I do have faith in people, just not dangerous or insane people."
"Sometimes I forget why I ever fell in love with you," Marie grumbled as she turned back to look out of the car window.
Mark gave an exasperated sigh, "I just wish Gar wasn't always making so many stupid mistakes."
"Garfield isn't a little boy anymore, honey. He's almost an adult, and you need to learn to treat him like one. You can't protect him forever, even if that means letting him make some mistakes."
"I know..." Setting a hand on his shoulder with a small smile, Marie was about to say something when she thought she saw something in one of the alleyways across the street. After searching for so long, Marie refused to dismiss anything that she might normally.
"Mark, stop the car." Sure enough there in the dark alley lie their half naked son face down on the asphalt. "Garfield!"
They were happy to find that he was merely sleeping. He was shivering in his sleep and his skin felt cold. Assisting the teen back to their car, Gar was too disoriented to have any idea what was going on. Once he was sitting in the back seat of the car covered by a blanket he drifted off into a deep sleep again.
The escape plans she did manage to create had far too many holes in them to work. Currently the best idea she had was just running out her door when someone came in or out, which would only cause her to be chased around the mansion a few times before being caught or killed by one of her father's trigger-happy bodyguards. One last glance outside, Raven went to bed and forced herself to sleep. Although she new the nightmare lingered close, the rest was needed if she was ever going to come up with a good plan.
Awakening to the sound of Marie's gentle voice, Gar stirred in the back seat of the car. He just wanted to sleep a little bit longer, but a hand patting his leg kept him from drifting off again.
"Garfield, wake up, we're home,"Marie spoke softly. Groaning, Gar shut his eyes again.
All of the sudden something clicked in his mind, and he then remembered his rescue mission. He sat up quickly and his eyes shot open. Fumbling with the handle on the car door, he finally got it open although he was still half asleep. Stumbling into the house, he raced into his room and put on some clothes before grabbing his car keys. However he was stopped on his way out. In front of the door Mark stood with his arms folded across his chest.
"Where are you going?"
"I have to go get her, no matter what you say," Gar growled.
"It's too dangerous. Do you plan on just running into the home of the owner of one of the biggest corporations in the world. Not to mention that he's probably the biggest crime lord in the U.S. He's sure to have fully armed bodyguards all over. You'll be killed the moment you get there. If you even manage to find the house. I won't let you leave." Mark wasn't yelling, he didn't even sound angry, in fact his tone sounded almost sympathetic.
"You can't stop me, dad!"
"I don't plan to stop you." The expression on Gar's face was priceless, he looked completely dumbfounded. "But I won't let you leave until we come up with a good plan."
"What?"
"Well, we better get to work if we ever want to rescue her." If Mark didn't look so serious Gar would have thought this was all just some sick joke.
It was very early in the morning, but the nightmare had woken her up once again. She felt a familiar presence in her room, and sure enough there her father stood by her window. Doesn't he ever sleep?
"I remember when you were a newborn, you were so small and vulnerable. That was so long ago, now you're almost an adult. You grew up so fast. Where did all of those years go?"
"You were never around unless you wanted something."
"Oh, come now daughter, that's not true. I'm often busy, but I always made time to see you." Raven almost wanted to laugh at that comment. Technically he wasn't lying, he had made time to see her, but they were never very pleasant visits, even their civil meetings were far less than desirable.
The large man merely smirked as she glared at him. "Your eighteenth birthday is just around the corner, isn't it?"
She didn't know what he was trying to do, but she was done with these games. "What do you want from me? Why can't you just leave me alone?"
"I don't know what you're talking about." He was an excellent liar when it came to business, yet when it came to acting innocent he failed miserably.
"I'm done playing your games! Just let me go, and I'll never come back, I'm sure you'll be much better off without me anyway."
"Quite the contrary daughter, you're actually very useful to me." Narrowing her eyes, Raven's glare became even more severe which made his smirk even wider. Standing from her bed she slowly approached him and he just watched with amusement. Finally, she stopped only a few feet away from him. He towered above her, probably over a foot taller than her. Most would be intimidated by his height, which worked excellently in some business situations, but Raven wasn't some weak executive.
"Go to hell," Raven spat. She could have easily said it from her place on the bed, but this seemed more offensive, and it showed that she wasn't scared by him.
Everyone who knew her father knew of his anger issues, some had learned the hard way, and Raven probably knew the best of his tendency to fly off the handle. Sure enough, his massive hand smacked her on the side of her face. Although she managed to brace herself a split second before the blow she was still flung against the window beside her. Hitting the hard surface, Raven fell onto the ground beside the window and leaned against the glass. Standing over her, Tristan breathed heavily as he clenched his fist.
The strike hurt, but she knew he could have done a lot worse. When she looked up he noticed the small smile on her lips. "It appears you haven't changed, father."
His perfect plan had been spoiled by the petty insult of a girl, he couldn't believe how easily he had been fooled. Yet, all was not lost, he hadn't told her anything, this slip proved nothing. Suddenly, he began to laugh which Raven was startled by.
"Cunning. You definitely are a Roth." As quickly it has started his chuckle stopped. "Do not insult me again, daughter or else I will be forced to teach you how to respect your elders." It was almost frightening how quickly his tone had changed from playful to grave. She just stared up at him with a blank expression, not moving a muscle until he had left her room.
Rubbing the side of her face, Raven could feel that the bruise was already forming on her cheek. She was even more confused than before. The thing that was really bothering her was how he had said she would be useful to him, whatever that meant she knew it couldn't be good. Hopefully, these morning visits wouldn't become routine because she had a feeling they would be getting much more violent.
It almost seemed that Tristan Roth wanted them to find him. Everything they needed could be found on one website.
"I guess the internet isn't just for porn," Mark said as he looked over Gar's shoulder at the computer screen. They both laughed, then got to work formulating a plan.
"I'm sorry, sir, but I still don't understand."
"It's a brilliant plan. Who else would they suspect besides my greatest rival? Obviously they won't suspect the poor, grief-stricken father for killing his one and only daughter. The best part is, not only will I be destroying my competition, I'll be getting rid of that burden of a daughter and it'll keep her from running to the tabloids about how she was 'abused'."
"Brilliant in deed, Mr. Roth." The pitiful man was disgusted that Tristan was cold-hearted enough to want his own daughter dead, but he was too terrified by his hulking boss to tell him so. Instead, he just forced a smile and prided Tristan on his plan as Tristan smiled sinisterly at his own ingenuity.
A/N: Ugh, I hate this chapter, and it probably wasn't worth the longer wait, but oh well... Please tell me what you thought, especially if you thought this chapter sucked. Review if you want to. Later!
Blueyedgirl: Haha, I won't stop writing or running. Aw, thanks. Hopefully I wasn't too late. :D
Kaos Kraze: Yeah, all schools are cheap. Well, they don't have to meet up again, she could be killed and he could continue looking for her because he doesn't know she is. Hm, that gave me a great idea, maybe I'll use that instead of my other ending... I'll have to think about that one. :D
XX.xXx.AchillezWiplash.xXx.XX: Haha, well if you have anyone you want me to... take care of just tell me. Thank you. I'll make sure you don't end up in a straight jacket, I just hope this wasn't too late. Anyway, if you do end up there I'll bust in with my pinky and get you out. :D
deadinside72: Yeah, I wanted that to be confusing. Raven isn't really crazy, her father is just tricking to make her think that. Hope I cleared that up for you. :D
Malaya21: Well, her father is a businessman. Haha:D
warprince2000: Thanks! I hope this was quick enough. :D
Snea: Haha! Thank you, I'm glad you liked that. :D
chittychittybangbang16: Yeah, none of the good stories have been updating. There haven't been any good stories to read lately, what's up with that? Thanks!
Luna Forest: I had forgotten about a window, so since you reminded me I tried to add it into this one. I'm glad you thought that was good nightmare because I wasn't too sure about it when I wrote it. :D
Lilliesofthevalley: Yes! Mission accomplished! Haha. That was the reaction I was looking for. Thank you. I'm super happy that you liked it!
Mrs. Peacock: Thank you so much! I am really happy to hear that. :D
talim9: Oh come on, I couldn't keep him out of the story, after all he's the main antagonist. That's all part of his master plan. Don't worry, things will be explained soon. :D
addicted2danny: Haha, you can have all of the cookies you want! Thanks:D
pinkparis: I know! It's all part of his master plan, which will be revealed very soon. Aw, thank you. I will not make you regret it:D
K.C. Raven: I've already lost a lot of blood, and I feel pretty dizzy, but I'll try to stay alive as long as possible. Thanks to the various blood transfusions I'm still living, but I can already feel the life being drained from me. If I never finish the story will I be able to live forever...? Ugh, so weak, vision fading... :D
World of Nightmares: Hahahaha. Thank you so much. You're far too nice. You have no idea how much that means to me! Hahaha, I think you're now my biggest fan. Well, flattery will get you everything. I won't let you down:D
AureliusXsoul: Yeah, it could have been a lot more original, but I was just completely out of ideas. Haha, yeah I really wanted to do that demon thing, so I'm glad you liked that. No, it had been stitched up, but he did run away after he just lost about a pint of blood which isn't much better. He's just being a teenager, he's storming off even though he really has no where to go, and yes he may faint. I'll try to make the next one a little longer. :D
Red Raven101: Aw, thank you. Truthfully, most of my ideas come to me at the last minute while I'm in the middle of typing it. Haha. :D
Agent of the Divine: Sorry about the mistakes, I'm the worst about proofreading, I really should reread it. Yes! Thank you! You have no idea how much that means to me:D
Overactive Mind: Thank you. Well, you all of that should be revealed very soon. :D
MusicFan10: Haha! Thanks! There's plenty more to come. :D
Hide-because-it's-me: Hahaha. It's fine, really, although... That policeman does sound pretty tasty. I'll think twice before pulling over you over, and I think thrice before running out in front of your car. You should start carrying a gun, then you can be like a zombie gangster. You wouldn't need an army of the living dead, you would already be lethal alone. Thank you. Yeah, I figured Richard was had already been humiliated enough. I'm really glad that you liked the nightmare, I wasn't too sure about it. Mm, that policeman should give the extra burst I need to get back on top in my battle! I'll finish writing up that list soon and give it to you. Aw, you're too kind, especially for a zombie. I'm the one who should be honored. :D
ELLIEdangerous: Hahaha! Probably. Yay, we're not stalkers! Haha, yeah I would probably put Trigon up there too, I mean he's practically Satan. :D
Linwe Ancalimon: Hey, thanks! How could I say no to that? Haha. :D
Mothman X: Thanks! Damn it! No, I hadn't meant to do that. Haha, well thank you for bringing it to my attention, I'll be extra careful not to do that next chapter. I really don't mind responding to every review. I actually kind of enjoy it, it gives me a chance see what my readers want, and I have few things better to do. Haha! I personally can't believe that I've been getting so many reviews, I'm so honored! You'll have to wait and see if karma really does exist. :D
Coeus: Thanks. Yeah, I tend to get pretty lazy when it comes to proofreading, so sorry about the mistakes, but I'm glad it's not too bad. I won't let you down!
