"LIVIN' YOUNG AND WILD AND FREE!" Oh I absolutely love that song. That's the song currently playing right now :D

Anyway, here's the next chapter.

Feel free to enjoy it!

James, Carlos, and Logan sat on the couch, worried about Katie. Ever since she returned from the hospital, Katie was practically locked in her room, blaming herself.

"That's it," Carlos said as he shot up from the couch. "We gotta talk to Katie. It's not her fault!"

"We've tried talking to her," Logan reminded him. "She's not gonna listen to us."

"Maybe we should still try," James said. "We have to let her know that we're here for her."

Carlos and Logan looked at each other before nodding in agreement. The three boys slowly walked towards Katie's room. James knocked on her door. "Katie," he called out. No response. "Katie!" he tries again. "Okay that's it, we're coming in." James barged in and Logan and Carlos followed. "Oh Katie," James sighed out.

Katie laid in the bed, crying her heart out. "I don't wanna talk to anybody," she said between sobs. James took that as an invitation to sit down next to her. Katie sat up. "I said I don't wanna talk!" Her face and eyes were red and puffy.

"Then, can we just stay with you?" Carlos asked. "Maybe we'll do all the talking and you just...listen."

Katie didn't answer. They all sat in silence, thinking of what to say. But for the first time, the boys were speechless.

James pulled Katie into a hug. "If Kendall could tell us one thing right now," he started saying. "What would he say?"

"He'd tell us to be strong," Logan said, his eyes glued to the floor.

"That everything will work out in the end if we stick together," Carlos added.

James nodded. "It's not your fault, Katie. None of this is. We'll get Kendall back."

Katie snuggled closer. 'H-he promised everything would be alright," she said as she cried into James' chest. She hated how she sounded like a naive five year old.

"Everything WILL be alright," Logan reassured.

"I'll never forgive myself if Kendall d-dies," Katie cried.

"He's not gonna die!" James yelled, causing everyone in the room to jump. "He's not gonna die," he repeated softly.

The four of them sat in a comfortable silence. The only thought on their minds was Kendall.

Katie didn't remember falling asleep, but Jennifer came in and woke her up. A frantic look was on her face. "Katie...come to the living room. Now," she commanded.

Katie rose from the bed groggily. "What's wrong?" she asked, still in a daze.

"H-he's on the phone," she sobbed out.

"Kendall?" Katie asked, getting somewhat excited. Jennifer shook her head. That could only mean one other person. Gavin. She got out of bed and headed to the living room.

The Gracias, Brooke, Joanna, James, Carlos, and Logan were waiting for them. The were sitting on the orange couch, Jennifer's phone on the table.

"Okay Gavin," Jennifer said. "K-Katie's here."

"Good," Gavin's voice could be heard over speakerphone. "Someone here wants to say hi."

They heard shuffling, curiosity demanded that they know what was going on. Then, they heard a voice. "H-hello?"

Kendall. They all gasped at the fear they heard in his voice. "Sweetie, it's Mom."

"Mom," Kendall sighed out in relief. They all heard a shred of happiness in his voice after hearing his mother speak. "Mom. Are you and Katie okay?"

"I'm here, Kendall," Katie said, hoping it would get her brother to calm down a bit.

"Sweetie, do you know where you are?" Jennifer asked.

"I-I don't kn-know," Kendall stuttered. "I'm in a dark room and-" Kendall's words were interrupted with a grunt and whimper.

"Time's up," Gavin announced.

"What did you do to him?" Jennifer demanded.

"He'll be fine...He reminds me so much of William," Gavin responded. "I was put in jail for eight years for William's death... you know...before being let go for good behavior. Eight days for eight years. That's how it'll work." The line went dead before anybody could say something.

"W-we didn't get to talk to him," Carlos said sadly as Jennifer stared at the phone in her hands. "I want him here!" Carlos and Katie held each other.

Logan sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "What would Kendall do?"

Mr. Garcia stood up and grabbed his phone, ready to dial Officer Sloan's number. "Eight days for eight years." He put the phone to his ear. "That means we have eight days to find Kendall."

Kendall's jaw hurt so much, but he needed to be tough. He couldn't give Gavin the satisfaction of breaking down.

Kendall gasped when the door opened. What did Gavin want now? Kendall couldn't even imagine.

"Hello, Kendall," the man said. Wait. That wasn't Gavin's voice. The light turned on, revealing who walked into the room. Kendall instantly knew who it was. The picture was still fresh in his mind.

"What do you want, Martin?" Kendall spat.

Martin approached him and took a seat next to him. "I wanna be there for you."

Kendall scoffed. "I don't know you like that." He looked away from Martin. "If you really wanted to be there for me, you wouldn't have come after any of us in the first place."

Martin put his hand on Kendall's shoulder, who quickly shrugged it off. He sighed and pulled out his phone. "Look," He said as he handed Kendall the phone.

Kendall raised an eyebrow in confusion. What he saw was a picture of a biracial girl, who looked like she was in middle school. "Who is this?"

Martin smiled. "Diana. My daughter." Martin looked at the picture again before putting the phone in his pocket. "She's my world."

"She looks around Katie's age," Kendall pointed out, hoping he had pulled some heart strings. "Where's...Diana?"

"Back in Minnesota," Martin answered. "I had to leave her there with her aunt for the time being."

"One question," Kendall asked. "Why not her mom?" He scoffed again and rolled his eyes. "What? Your wife leave you? You leave her? How'd your daughter get stuck with a guy like you?"

Martin's nostrils flared a little. "She's dead."

Kendall's eyebrows rose. "Wait. What?"

"My wife. Janet. She's dead!" Martin repeated. "Before I married her, I was caught up in some really bad business, involved with Gavin. No surprise there. Sh-she paid for my mistake. That's something I can never forgive myself for."

Kendall saw tears forming in Martin's eyes and actually felt sorry for him. "I'm so sorry." There was silence for a while. "Why didn't you leave Gavin's...business?"

Martin chuckled. "The funny thing is, I did." He shook his head. "But when you guys came up, he forced me into it, threatening my daughter's life. If I said no, he woulda shot her. I can't lose Diana to him too."

"But Diana can't lose another parent to Gavin either!" Kendall reasoned. "My...my mom can't lose someone else to Gavin. We can escape from him!"

"Ya know," Martin replied. "I thought it was easy too." He stood up. "I gotta go, kid." He looked into Kendall's eyes. "Don't upset Gavin too much, okay?"

Kendall slowly nodded. He didn't see the point of listening to Martin's warning. Gavin planned on killing him anyway.

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