In honor of the release of the Red Eye DVD, I give you...chapter!

Chapter Ten

Jackson sat at the kitchen table, head in his hands, silently berating himself. How could he be so stupid? Emotions were for fools. And he, certainly, was no fool. He needed to get himself under control. That concept in and of itself gave him pause, never before had his iron clad control wavered. Never, and he had had far more difficult assignments and complicated dealings, but this...was different. She was different. No one had ever affected him like this. It was like...no. Shaking his head, he slammed his hand on the table, stood up and started pacing. He rounded the island in the center of the kitchen and made his way back to the table, only to repeat the path over and over. Jackson was like a caged animal, restless and volatile.

Deviating from the rut he was making in the floor, he went to the refrigerator and pulled out a Budweiser, the cool glass of the bottle soothing him somewhat. Popping the cap on the edge of the counter, he slammed the door shut and took a deep drink. The alcohol running smoothly down his throat. He savored the taste as he allowed himself this small indulgence, he was already batting a thousand, why not get drunk in the process? Though he never really would jeopardize everything just for the sake of getting shitfaced, as much as secretly wanted to. Jackson would not be beaten again by this woman.

Pacing resumed, he proceeded to try and come up with something, anything, that would tip the scales back in his favor. This woman had thrown him for a loop and if she didn't know it already, she would certainly figure it out soon. He certainly was not going to underestimate her a second time. As the saying went 'fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame you me', and it was never more true for him then.

Jackson smirked as he headed toward the stairs, plan forming in his head as he ascended them. He then made his way to his own bedroom, at the opposite end of the hall from Lisa. At first he was hesitant to place her so far away and had readily prepared one of the other rooms for her. Because, in a twisted way, he would always take care of her. From then on at least. But, then he realized that she had no way out of the house without him, and a few doors distance wouldn't really matter in the end. Shutting the door quietly behind, he started to plot. She would never guess what he would do next. Never see it coming. For he would no longer be the homicidal maniac. The would-be rapist (though, he knew that he would never stoop to such a level). The discreet stalker. Or the consummate lover. No, now he would take on a role that he had never ventured near before. Something that he had significantly less practice in, but nonetheless, he would master.

The caring suitor.

Oh, he never believed for one second that he would soften up. Nope, he would be as firm and demanding as ever. But, he was going to go about it in a different way. And he was certainly looking forward to it.

Lisa sat huddled against the headboard, shaking, blanket covering her as if it would somehow protect her from evil. She slammed her fist down against the bed as she told herself at least fifty different ways how angry she was at herself. She couldn't believe she had acted so...so...wantonly. What was she, some kind of whore? Throwing her body at any man that so much as gave her some iota of attention? No, she swallowed, she certainly wasn't that. It had to have been some kind of temporary insanity brought on by that dream of hers. Never would she in her right mind act in such a way. And with him! She couldn't believe how her mind and her body disconnected like that. There was no way that she should even be looking at a man in any such was. Not after that day in the parking thought.

She shivered as pictures from her dream became interlaced with that hateful memory. Except this time Jackson turned away in digust, not that she could blame him. She was dirty and damaged and so many more things of that nature. No man would ever want after knowing what happened to her. And Jackson did know and yet he still...no. She wouldn't think of it. Even though with some of the looks he had given her, they made her feel almost pretty. Almost like she was worth something to him. Otherwise, why would he go through such trouble to get at her? Shaking her head she dislodged such ludicrous thoughts. There was no way that Jackson Rippner made her feel anything other than hate...At least, that was what she was telling herself.

Pushing the memories back like she so often did, she concentrated on the very large problem at hand. Being locked in a house with a madman. A madman that knew the layout of this house like she had known the layout of hers. There was no way she could get the upperhand here. She was doomed. There really was no where for her to go, Jackson was right, as much as she hated to admit it.

She was helpless. Defensless. Lost...Scared.

Hearing footsteps in the halls, she huddled down farther in the blanket, using it as a downy shield. She cringed as the handle turned and the door opened. Gulping, she watched as a worried looking Jackson was revealed. He looked hesitant as he stepped into the room. "I, uh...just wanted to check that you were okay."

Lisa was stunned. Absolutely floored. He wanted to know if she was okay? At first she didn't know what to think. Okay? Okay! No she wasn't okay, she was scared out of her mind. But she wouldn't let him know that. She would show a brave face, as much as it killed her. And she very well knew that it might.

"F-fine," she stuttered. Cursing at herself as she realized that that didn't sound brave at all.

Smiling sheepishly he nodded. Knowingly, he replied, "I figured. Just let me know if there is anything you need." He barely repressed a cringe had he thought of how stupid he sounded, but he knew that this would be the thing that would mostly yield the result that he wanted, and as such he would see this plan through to the end.

"Please then, can't you just let me go? That's what I need. People will worry..." she pleaded, voice soft, eyes focused on anywhere but his face. She knew it was a lost cause, but she still had to try.

His reponse was quick and firm as his voice hardened momentarily, leaving no room for disagreement. "You're not going anywhere, Leese. You're mine, no matter what anyone says."

Hope you all enjoyed it! Please please PLEASE let me know what you think, and REVIEW! See? I did good and updated relatively quickly. Yay. I really wanted to get it in before get it in before I get back to school. And who knows, I think I'll try for another too, before Sunday.

So, I watched the DVD and I wrote this during/after viewing it the second time. God, I missed that movie and all the goodness that is Cillian Murphy as Jackson Rippner. Watching it again, and listening to the commentary and watching the behind the scenes stuff gave me mucho inspiration. I hope it paid off.

So please let me know. I do love those Review Alert emails. They make my day (or night) when I read them.

Hope you all have a good rest of the week!

Maeggy