He's Always Watching

Chapter Thirteen

Sorry for the long wait, my dears (;

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I silently closed the front door and pressed my back to its cool surface. A smile crept to my face and butterflies relentlessly tickled my stomach as my eyes slipped shut. Markus had left my head spinning and my heart beating ten times faster than normal. One night out with him and I'd almost forgotten that my stalker was coming for me. Almost.

Darkness greeted me when I opened my eyes, harsh and daunting. I sucked in a deep breath and tried to push away the feelings of doom that were starting to crash around me. No need to panic, it wasn't even time yet. I pushed away from the door and took a hesitant step forward.

Don't worry, I told myself, you still have time.

The floorboards creaked softly as I blindly made my way to the stairs. When hand met the smooth wooden banister, I gripped it for dear life. My parents were out, and all I wanted to do was take a hot bath then sleep for a very, very long time. All my exhaustion from the night's activities was finally starting to catch up with me as I dragged myself up the stairs. Markus barely gave me time to sit down once all night. We were either bowling, skating, or circling around the park three times to look at all the Christmas lights.

I finally stumbled into the bathroom and flipped the light switch up. My cheeks were still flushed from the cold, and my hair had suffered the wrath of the howling winter wind. I groaned and pushed a hand through the raven mass of not-so-straight hair. Giving up not even a minute later, I turned and started the water for my bath, making sure to add extra bubbles before I padded back out into my dark room for clothes.

A shadow flashed in the corner of my eye, sending a faint rush of panic through me, but I shook it off and kept going. I wasn't trying to get myself worked up over what was probably nothing but my overactive imagination. I scooped up a pair of pajama pants and a tank top and slipped back into the bathroom, closing the door behind me. I fluffed out my hair in one last vein attempt to make it even slightly manageable before shimmying out of my clothes and lowering my tensed body into the steaming, bubbly water. Goosebumps rose on my chilled flesh at the change in temperature, only to be smoothed out as the water lapped over them. A contented sigh escaped my lips as I sank down to my neck in lavender bubbles.

A crash outside the door broke me from my relaxed state, causing me to start. I whipped my head to look over at the thick wooden slab, separating me from whatever just made that noise. My heart pounded hard against my rib cage, and my breathing was hitched.  A shiver pranced down my spine, despite my attempts to push it away. I forced down my rising panic and told myself it was just the wind, nobody was in the house. I was letting the knowledge of my impending doom get the best of me. I squeezed my eyes shut and sank back down in the water, trying to forget about the letter, about my time limit.

An hour later, I emerged from the bathroom, steam rolling out behind me. I lingered in the doorway long enough to scan my room for any possible intruders, and finding nothing, proceeded to my bed. I dumped my dirty clothes in the floor and reached over to the nightstand to turn my lamp on. Light flooded the room, revealing a crisp white note laying on my pillow. A wave of dread crashed over me as I picked it up and scanned the red-ink scrawl.

Tick Tock, Tick Tock.

I balled the paper up in my fist and threw it hard against the wall. Like I needed a reminder.

No, but what I did need was a glass of milk. I prayed that they guy who left the note was long gone as I crept out of my room and down the stairs. My parents were at some work party, not to be back for another two hours. I was totally vulnerable, and for once, I was actually starting to get anxious. Nerves left a lead ball in the pit of my stomach, and my hands had started to shake. I knew time was winding down, and I knew there was nothing that could be done to stop my kidnapping, but a tiny part of me had begun to hope that this was all a big prank after all. Who's to say I didn't get all worked up for nothing this entire time? People are pretty creative with their practical jokes these days.

The urge to giggle hit me so quickly I began to question my sanity. Nothing about the situation was funny, but I couldn't stop the snort the escaped the back of my throat. I stopped at the base of the stairs and pressed my forehead to the banister. Maybe the pressure and stress of the past couple of weeks was finally getting to me, maybe I was finally cracking.

"Get yourself together, Cassie," I murmured to myself, "You're overreacting."

I took a deep breath and trudged the rest of the way to the kitchen. I placed my hand against the wall and traced the smooth surface with my fingers as I walked, feeling a small crater in the paint every now and then. I stepped through the threshold and flipped on the overhead light. I don't know what I was expecting to find, but when light poured over the bright walls, a breath I hadn't realized I'd been holding rushed out. I placed a hand to my chest and willed my heart to slow down. Maybe I should've gone to Jenny's. I wouldn't be so panicked if I wasn't alone.

My feet made shuffling noises as I treaded lightly over to the refrigerator. I could've sworn I heard a matching set of shuffling footsteps, but once again waved it off as my own paranoia. I mentally cursed myself for being so jumpy and yanked the fridge door open.

A Post-It was stuck on the milk. A Post-It with such familiar hand writing that the sight of it nearly made my heart stop. The words were rushed, the ink had dripped, looking like blood. The words written across the soft pink surface made my blood run cold.

Time's Up.

A  gloved hand covered my eyes, the other following suit onto my mouth just as I managed a muffled scream.

"If you don't struggle, I wont hurt you," a dangerous voice whispered roughly in my ear. I felt myself being dragged backwards and fought the urge to kick. A traitor tear slipped from my eye, accompanied by a panicked gasp. My heart thumped so hard I thought for sure I was having a heart attack. Pure panic seized me, even though I knew this was going to happen. I was terrified.

"I always keep my promises, Cupcake," He murmured sharply, his voice like razors cutting into me. It was the last thing I heard before blackness engulfed me.