Chapter 30

It was her first day of college and Lena hadn't been looking forward to it at all. Sure, college came with a different kind of freedom on its own, it was obvious she'd grown accustomed to living under her parents’ wings. It was scary, she had to admit. Being in a different environment, different state, with different faces and a different sway. Making friends had never been hard for her; it was keeping them that proved difficult.

That was until she met Caroline. Caroline Robyn had been a bit of everything. Popular yet meek. Social yet extroverted. Their friendship which began in Marketing class blossomed overtime into something neither of them ever imagined. They got closer, even moved in together at a time. They'd fought every war together, graduated from Uni together.

Lena couldn't imagine a college memory without Caroline in it. She'd met her first college boyfriend alongside Care, gotten her first A with her too. The day she'd first had sex, Care had been the first to know. They spent every Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner together with family. They'd been friends even before Gabe came into the picture.

Life had been easier with her best friend by her side. When her parents died, Care and Gabe had been there for her. And as much as she'd tried to push them away, they just wouldn't budge. Care hadn't really been close to her parents, and the divorce hadn't really shaken her. Even when her mom had remarried, it still hadn't made a difference. She and Gabe had been the only family Care had ever known.

Which was exactly why Lena felt like dying. No! She couldn't believe what was going on. Not another one, she sobbed. The wound of her parents’ death was still fresh. This was like rubbing salt on injury Why? Why did this have to happen?

Her legs gave way and she fell. Damon was at her side instantly, aiding her. “Lena. Lena, just calm down, alright?”

Streaks of water ran down her face in a rush. “No. No. No.” Eyes wide, she started into space, clutching his arm firmly. “You're lying. You have to be.

“Calm down, Lena. We need to know what happened first. Just take a deep breath,” George cooed, taking the sight of her in and wishing she wouldn't look so defeated.

“Damon, what else did he say?” his father asked him warily.

“Not much. Only that he got to the house and found her naked in the bathtub with a bullet in her head.”

Lena whimpered.

“Where is he now?” Claire asked impatiently.

Damon shrugged, holding Lena tight. God, it was everything he could do to get her to calm down. Her entire body tensed in his arms, as rigid as ice and his heart wrenched realizing she'd lost one of her best friends. Jesus. He didn't know what he'd do if he lost any of his.

“It was him,” she breathed heavily, venom dripping from each word. “It was that bastard Jackson. God, I'm going to kill him, I swear. I'll make him wish he'd never been born.”

How it happened, nobody knew. They certainly weren't expecting it. Lena pushed herself off Damon, and with a speed that matched that of a cheetah, grabbed the closet car key to her, turned around and ran out the door.

The entire family started after her.

She pressed a key and heard a beeping sound. Her legs carried her to the vehicle she'd unlocked. It was like she wasn't in control of her anymore. No one had ever seen her this angry. The engine revved up, the headlights throwing light into the darkness.

From somewhere behind her, she heard a voice roar, “Somebody get me my keys!”

Lena didn't care anymore. First, the bastard had tried to kill her then he'd gone and murdered her best friend, the most innocent person she knew. No matter what, his problem was with her—even if she was yet to know what it was—not Caroline. No matter what, she didn't deserve to die.

She sped out the driveway, her feet stamping on the accelerator as the speed increased. She'd never been one to be impulsive. Quite the contrary. She considered herself a very practical and calm person. Impulse didn't control her. But it seemed control had left her. She had no idea. Anger was the only thing she had left.

With the Google map on the screen in front of her, she located the address. It wasn't far, she decided as she stomped on the accelerator again, dashing forward.

Behind her, Damon groaned. Lena was well on the way of getting herself killed. And with a speed like that, it would probably be before she got to Jackson's house. The car she'd jumped in was EJ's. He already figured that locating the address wouldn't be a problem.

A woman with a mission was a scary thing.

But if she really wanted Jackson to pay for what she'd thought he'd done, this was not the way to do it. More than about ten years ago, he'd pulled the same stunt, doing things on a whim and he'd ended up with a bullet in his back. Hell, he wasn't even sure it was Jackson who'd killed Caroline.

As the name popped up in his head, his brows furrowed into a tight frown. Alright, so maybe he could understand why she was so bent on revenge. Years ago, when he'd confronted Jackson, it'd been because of his friends and family. Sure, it hadn't exactly gone the way he'd planned but still, he'd somehow achieve what he'd set out to get. He'd left him alone. At least, until now.

“Damn,” he muttered as Lena dash forward so quickly he almost lost her. There was no way to reach her all the way from here. No phone, nothing. He sighed, defeated. She was going to get herself killed and there was absolutely nothing he could do about it.

****

With a killer instinct, she got out of the car and slammed the door.

“Jackson!” she yelled at the mansion standing in front of her. Maybe, on a really good day, if she wasn't deadly angry that her best friend had just been murdered, she might've liked to admire the beauty the mansion was. But not now. “Jackson, I dare you to come out. Come out and tell me to my face that you're a sick bastard!”

Damon pulled up in a haste behind her, desperate for heavenly help. Lord Jesus. He didn't think he'd ever met someone as stupid as Lena. Getting out, he made some quick steps, grabbing her arm and swinging her around to face him.

“What in God's name do you think you're doing?” he breathed slowly, dangerously. But when he stared into her eyes, he saw what he'd been scared he'd find. Pain. Hurt. And at the back of his mind, something, somewhere, nudged him, reminding him that he was the cause of all her problems. Her life had been peaceful before he'd stumbled into it. And now, he wasn't sure she was ever going to be the same again.

“What do you think I'm doing?” she screamed. “I want to hear him say it. I want to hear him say that he murdered her!”

She swung around. “Jackson!” she continued at the top of her lungs. “Don't be a fucking coward. I'm not leaving until you come out!”

When she turned back to face him, her eyes were clouded with tears. Painful tears that rolled down her face eagerly, every drop squeezing that life out of him. She wasn't taking this well, Damon thought. She wasn't taking it well at all.

“Tesoro mio,” he cooed softly, “you need to calm down, let's go home and talk this over.”

“What's there to talk about?” she inquired, her beautiful face turning down in a frown. “Jackson killed her. He's a murderer.” Her voice increased several notches here, and she turned back to the mansion. “And he killed Caroline.”

At that moment, Jackson chose to stroll casually out the front door. Lena fumed. He looked like he was strolling out to greet some longtime friends, with that stupid smile on his face.

“Well, well, who do we have here?” His brows lifted slightly, the corners of his lips curled up into a small smile but as Lena stared into his gray eyes, she saw nothing of the warmth he displayed on his features. They were pale, and cold as ice. She shivered just by looking into them. This man was merciless and he had the reputation to prove it. “You have to learn some manners, little child. You don't walk into people's compounds and make false accusations.”

Lena's mouth was bitter. “Fuck you and your false accusations.” She yanked her arm free of Damon's, walking towards him. “Say it to my face. Admit it. You killed her! You're a murderer!”

Damon watched in silence. There was no stopping her now. His gaze to flew to Jackson. The older man's expression remained impassive. Not a muscle twitched. The only thing that showed his irritation were his eyes. They'd become colder, if possible. God, how was he going to stop her from getting hurt?

“Why?” she cried, her legs carrying her forward. “Why'd you have do that? Care did nothing to you. Why did you have to be so wicked? So heartless?”

Damon's breathed hitched. It all happened so fast. One minute she was standing there bawling and then the next, Jackson's strong hand was around her neck, choking her.

Fuck.

Damon dashed forward. If Jackson killed her, he'd die. He couldn't bear the thought.

“Hold him!”

The order was directed to the guards that suddenly came out of nowhere, three of them. They restrained Damon; two holding his hands and the other with his arm around Damon's neck, choking him. For a minute, as his vision blurred, he'd thought he was going to pass out until he realized it was tears. Hot tears that threatened to blow up his entire being.

He'd never, in all his life, felt this helpless. His struggle for freedom was futile; the men were strong and there were three of them. Desperately, he prayed that something, someone would come to their rescue. Lord please.

“Jackson! Don't hurt her! I beg you,” still struggling, he yelled out. The tears were now streaming down his face, his eyes a bright red. “We'll go. Anything you want. Just don't hurt her. Please!”

A loud laugh erupted from Jackson's throat. “Pathetic. I have to say, I'm disappointed in you, Damon. I never thought I'd see the day you cry and beg for a woman.”

Anger resurfaced. Damon thrashed but there was nothing he could do. The men pressed him down, bringing him to his knees. Then, he sighed in defeat. “Please.”

“You know, I was thinking of the best way to send a message. I'd figured killing one family member but then I thought, why not go for the easiest catch?” Jackson teased, his hold on Lena's neck tightening. “And you just happened to cross my mind, sweetheart.”

Lena choked, opening her mouth for any amount of oxygen. Her small, frail hands pulled at his strong ones, and in vain she tried to claw them off her.

“Your friend was there, small and frightened. Oh, you should have seen the look on her face when she saw a stranger in her bathroom.” His laughter came roaring, loud in her ears.

He'd admitted it, Lena sobbed. He'd really killed Caroline.

“Don't mind me. I'm just recalling what I was told. Of course, I didn't do it myself.” Then his gaze moved to Damon's. “Give me back what you stole, or I'll kill every member of your family, one by one, staring from that pretty thing you call mother.”

Damon roared, his face a mask of anger. The guards' grip on him tightened, pushing him down to the ground. His captured hands were now in the air behind him, as the third guard pressed his head to the ground.

Carelessly, Jackson threw Lena to the ground and she landed on her stomach.

Pain hit every nerve but she didn't care. Then his foot came crashing into her stomach.

She screamed in pain, her body forming a ball on the ground. “No! No! Stop!” she cried. “My baby!”

He hit her again, then stopped as the words registered.

Lena gripped her stomach, crying. “My baby!”

It felt like his world had been stripped from beneath his feet. Damon's head jerked up, and he watched as Lena screamed for help, holding her stomach, chanting the words my baby.

Lena was pregnant?

THE END