Kurt woke up to a strange fuzziness in his head and the sound of his phone ringing wildly beside his head. He jumped, grabbed it, only to see his father's face light up his phone screen. He sighed and answered the call, "Hello?"
"Why didn't you tell me some psycho was calling you?"
Kurt sucked in a deep breath, "Who told you - "
"Don't you try lying to me, Kurt! Right now I'm standing in a police station listening to a message your friend Blaine left on Sheriff Dew's phone."
Kurt jerked his whole body around to the sound of water running in the bathroom. As soon as Blaine got out of the shower, he was going to kill him; hadn't Blaine realized that he'd ruined everything? "Dad, I can explain..."
"He called you last night, Blaine answered the phone. The kid's really shaken up, the guy told him all kinds of things he's been telling you to do. He's the reason you were standing out in the cold nearly freezing to death, the reason you've been keeping your phone glued to your side... Goll, Kurt, I never thought you would do something like this, put yourself in danger like this."
"He threatened to kill you," Kurt said, "He threatened to kill you and Carole and everyone if I told."
"That's all the more reason you should have told somebody, Kurt."
"He's going to try and kill you now!" Kurt shouted. The sound of the shower going faltered then continued; that coward. "I did what I did because I had to protect you, and now that that idiot has gone and told, you are all in danger!"
Dad was silent for a long moment. His voice, when he finally spoke again, was choked with emotion.
"You are just like your mother." It was the thing his father said when he couldn't think of a higher compliment, and Kurt sighed with relief that he was forgiven. "You don't have to protect us, Kurt. I wish you could understand that. Listen to me, kiddo, no one is in danger anymore. Sheriff Dew's been putting patrols on everyone until we catch this guy. There are some officers headed to Dalton right now. Just sit tight and you'll be safe, kid."
Kurt sat at the phone, staring forward numbly. Could it really be over? Was Blaine telling the police really going to end everything. "I'm safe?"
"You're safe, Kurt. Everyone is safe. He lost, and we're going to find that son of a bitch, okay?"
Kurt slumped over on his bed, the reality filling him with strength, like a weight being lifted from his shoulders. He was safe. Everyone was safe. It was over. It was at that moment that Kurt's phone buzzed in his hand. "That's him, Dad, he's calling."
"You tell that bastard what a Hummel's made of."
Kurt couldn't wait to follow his dad's advice.
"Hello, Kurtie."
"Don't call me that," Kurt growled, "In fact, don't call me ever again!"
"... Well, well, well. What inspired this change of attitude?"
"You shouldn't have talked to Blaine. He figured out everything, and he told the police and now-"
"I know what that idiot boy has done."
"Don't you call Blaine an idiot!" Kurt said, despite having called Blaine that himself moments ago, "Blaine isn't stupid, he's brave. Braver than you'll ever be. He's the one who taught me about courage, and he beat you. He told the police and now you're never going to be able to hurt anyone ever again."
"I know that the police have been told. That's not why I'm calling. I'm calling to tell you my new rules."
"No," Kurt said firmly. "There won't be any more rules." But the light, confident tone in Karofsky's voice was putting a slight puncture in his joy.
"I told you the rules have changed. I'm here to outline my new expectations. Here's how it goes; I am going to call you. You won't know when or where the call is coming from, but you will answer that call. You're still mine. And if you fail to answer my calls even one more time, I'll kill him."
Kurt's body jerked reflexively, terrified by the promise behind the words, but he wasn't scared, he refused to be scared...
"The police are on to you," Kurt said. "They're going to catch you. You won't be able to kill anyone else, they're guarding every place you could sneak into..."
"I don't have to sneak anywhere, Kurt. I have the boy I plan to kill right next to me."
The words were soft, so polite and conversational that they're meaning didn't hit Kurt until long after Karofsky had spoken. Kurt could hardly breath once they did. All the people Karofsky could hurt flashed in front of him. Finn, Puck, Eric, Trent, David... "Who did you take?" Kurt said.
But then the door to the bathroom flew open and David stepped out of the bathroom and cold crashed over Kurt's body; he knew exactly who Karofsky had.
"Do you want to talk to him?" Karofsky chuckled darkly, and Kurt listened as a phone was shuffled. A new voice sounded, a pained groan in the background, and Kurt's heart jumped. He knew that voice, but it couldn't possibly be... there was no way...
"Kurt," The voice whispered, and Kurt's world crashed around him.
"Blaine?"