‹ Prequel: Bound to You
Blanket of Fear
Chapter Two
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With Eliza
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“Baby, are you okay?” Zack asked me, worry lining his silky voice as he stepped into the sheeted-off area that had become our “bedroom.” He sat on the cot next to me, putting his hand over mine gently. I opened my eyes and looked at him, unable to keep the emotions out of my eyes. And even if I could, I knew he could read my thoughts anyway. I couldn’t hide anything from him. Sometimes I found that to be a blessing, but today I thought of it more as a curse. I didn’t want him worrying more than he had to, and I was probably just being paranoid.
“I’m fine.” I lied to him, closing my eyes and laying my head back down on the cot. I was getting tired of these uncomfortable substitution beds; I would never again take a normal one for granted. He sighed before pulling me up, holding my shoulders in his hands and studying my face carefully.
“No, you’re not. Something’s bothering you.” He frowned. “I thought we were past the point in our relationship where we hid things from one another.”
I sighed, knowing he was right. Was I wrong to keep my troubling thoughts from him? Or was I right? I hated seeing him worry, and I hated it even more to see him stressed out. But obviously me not telling him was doing both the very things I hated seeing him feel. I leaned my head against his chest and wrapped my arms loosely around his waist before speaking in a muted voice so that no one else would hear me.
“I have a bad feeling about this.” I admitted, moving so that he could see my eyes. “About Michelle, I mean. She’s still hiding something; it’s like I can feel it. Zack, something bad is going to happen.”
He pressed his lips against my forehead and then hugged me to his chest again, rocking me. “It’ll be okay, Eliza. We’ll figure everything out.”
It was only then that we both heard loud bangs and shouts coming from outside. We looked at one another before hopping off of the cots and running out into the main area. Nicole was huddled in the corner with Sparrow and Harlow.
“What’s going on?” Zack asked everyone. The sudden sound of children crying filled the room, and I walked over to Nicole to help her try and calm her kids down as loud, hollow-sounding thuds came from the other side of the Complex door.
“We’ve been fucking infiltrated.” Matt growled angrily. “Sean somehow fucking figured out where our base is.”
“How many does he have with him?” I heard Jacoby ask, his voice grim. Benji sighed, looking up from the computer screen with a worried look on his face.
“At least six or seven guys. With a group that small, though, he’s not planning on a massive slaughter right now. He’s taunting us.”
“Then let’s give him what he wants. Is Sean with them?” Zack asked, grabbing a gun out of the desk drawer and cocking it, putting a round of bullets into it from the desk drawer. Benji shook his head.
“He’s not in view of the camera, but that doesn’t mean anything. He could be above ground, or not even here. These could just be lackeys that he sent to toy with us.”
Eliza, Nic, get the kids and go into the Solitary room. Leana, Val, you go with them. Brian, are you going to be able to handle this with a cool head?” Zack asked, taking command of the situation as he looked over at me. For the first time since I’d known him, I saw a hint of fear in his green eyes, and it only made me feel even more frightened.
“I can fucking do this, Vengeance.” Brian spat at him angrily, grabbing his own gun out of the desk. I picked up Sparrow, and Nicole picked up Harlow as we made our way to the only barricaded area—the Solitary room, where Michelle was being held captive.
“Le!” Jimmy called over to her, causing all of us to stop going towards the room. I saw the tall man running towards her, and he leaned down to kiss her lips passionately before handing her a gun. “Shoot the bitch if she poses any danger. I love you.”
He kissed her again, and then ran over to the other guys, getting ready to open the Complex up to the enemies. Leana opened the Solitary room door, and then waited for all of us to get inside before she pulled the door closed again. It didn’t have a lock, but with Leana standing in front of it with a locked and loaded gun, all of us were more at ease.
“What the fuck are you doing in here?” Michelle’s voice snarled out when her eyes saw us. Nicole glared at her angrily, betrayal flashing in her eyes.
“We don’t have to explain diddlysquat to you.” She told the dark-haired woman angrily. “And as far as I’m concerned, you should be dead right now.”
“Nic, enough. Don’t egg her on.” Leana said quietly from the door, though she too was glaring angrily at Michelle. It was because of her that she’d almost died at Sean’s hands. The woman she’d thought was a friend had become her worst enemy literally overnight.
“Oh, I see what’s going on.” Michelle said, a smirk on her face. “Sean’s here, isn’t he? It took long enough for him to find us.”
“What are you talking about?” I hissed at her, crossing the short expanse of space. I slapped her as hard as I could, right before I punched her square in her mouth. “You set another fucking trap, didn’t you? Brian never deserved a traitor like you.”
I was beyond angry with this woman, whom I’d never met in my life. Avenged Sevenfold had become my family; I couldn’t imagine going through a single day without seeing any of them. Jimmy, Brian, and the others had become like brothers to me, their girlfriends like sisters. Jacoby and the rest of Papa Roach, and Good Charlotte, had become good friends of mine. How could this woman turn her back on a family with such open arms? How could she do this to them? They had taken her and her sister in, infused them into their lives. And this is what she gave them in return? If I had Leana’s gun, I was sure I’d shoot her myself.
“Eliza, back off.” Nicole called to me, her hand on my shoulder as she pulled me away. “Leana’s right. We’ll kill her if we have to, but unless that happens, the guys still need her alive for right now.”
I backed away from the woman, disgust on my face. I sincerely hoped that Brian would be able to kill her when it was all said and done. I wanted him to have the feeling of closure that her death would bring him. Because he was too damn good of a guy to have to go through the rest of his life knowing that he hadn’t been the one to kill her.
With Eliza
-x-
“Baby, are you okay?” Zack asked me, worry lining his silky voice as he stepped into the sheeted-off area that had become our “bedroom.” He sat on the cot next to me, putting his hand over mine gently. I opened my eyes and looked at him, unable to keep the emotions out of my eyes. And even if I could, I knew he could read my thoughts anyway. I couldn’t hide anything from him. Sometimes I found that to be a blessing, but today I thought of it more as a curse. I didn’t want him worrying more than he had to, and I was probably just being paranoid.
“I’m fine.” I lied to him, closing my eyes and laying my head back down on the cot. I was getting tired of these uncomfortable substitution beds; I would never again take a normal one for granted. He sighed before pulling me up, holding my shoulders in his hands and studying my face carefully.
“No, you’re not. Something’s bothering you.” He frowned. “I thought we were past the point in our relationship where we hid things from one another.”
I sighed, knowing he was right. Was I wrong to keep my troubling thoughts from him? Or was I right? I hated seeing him worry, and I hated it even more to see him stressed out. But obviously me not telling him was doing both the very things I hated seeing him feel. I leaned my head against his chest and wrapped my arms loosely around his waist before speaking in a muted voice so that no one else would hear me.
“I have a bad feeling about this.” I admitted, moving so that he could see my eyes. “About Michelle, I mean. She’s still hiding something; it’s like I can feel it. Zack, something bad is going to happen.”
He pressed his lips against my forehead and then hugged me to his chest again, rocking me. “It’ll be okay, Eliza. We’ll figure everything out.”
It was only then that we both heard loud bangs and shouts coming from outside. We looked at one another before hopping off of the cots and running out into the main area. Nicole was huddled in the corner with Sparrow and Harlow.
“What’s going on?” Zack asked everyone. The sudden sound of children crying filled the room, and I walked over to Nicole to help her try and calm her kids down as loud, hollow-sounding thuds came from the other side of the Complex door.
“We’ve been fucking infiltrated.” Matt growled angrily. “Sean somehow fucking figured out where our base is.”
“How many does he have with him?” I heard Jacoby ask, his voice grim. Benji sighed, looking up from the computer screen with a worried look on his face.
“At least six or seven guys. With a group that small, though, he’s not planning on a massive slaughter right now. He’s taunting us.”
“Then let’s give him what he wants. Is Sean with them?” Zack asked, grabbing a gun out of the desk drawer and cocking it, putting a round of bullets into it from the desk drawer. Benji shook his head.
“He’s not in view of the camera, but that doesn’t mean anything. He could be above ground, or not even here. These could just be lackeys that he sent to toy with us.”
Eliza, Nic, get the kids and go into the Solitary room. Leana, Val, you go with them. Brian, are you going to be able to handle this with a cool head?” Zack asked, taking command of the situation as he looked over at me. For the first time since I’d known him, I saw a hint of fear in his green eyes, and it only made me feel even more frightened.
“I can fucking do this, Vengeance.” Brian spat at him angrily, grabbing his own gun out of the desk. I picked up Sparrow, and Nicole picked up Harlow as we made our way to the only barricaded area—the Solitary room, where Michelle was being held captive.
“Le!” Jimmy called over to her, causing all of us to stop going towards the room. I saw the tall man running towards her, and he leaned down to kiss her lips passionately before handing her a gun. “Shoot the bitch if she poses any danger. I love you.”
He kissed her again, and then ran over to the other guys, getting ready to open the Complex up to the enemies. Leana opened the Solitary room door, and then waited for all of us to get inside before she pulled the door closed again. It didn’t have a lock, but with Leana standing in front of it with a locked and loaded gun, all of us were more at ease.
“What the fuck are you doing in here?” Michelle’s voice snarled out when her eyes saw us. Nicole glared at her angrily, betrayal flashing in her eyes.
“We don’t have to explain diddlysquat to you.” She told the dark-haired woman angrily. “And as far as I’m concerned, you should be dead right now.”
“Nic, enough. Don’t egg her on.” Leana said quietly from the door, though she too was glaring angrily at Michelle. It was because of her that she’d almost died at Sean’s hands. The woman she’d thought was a friend had become her worst enemy literally overnight.
“Oh, I see what’s going on.” Michelle said, a smirk on her face. “Sean’s here, isn’t he? It took long enough for him to find us.”
“What are you talking about?” I hissed at her, crossing the short expanse of space. I slapped her as hard as I could, right before I punched her square in her mouth. “You set another fucking trap, didn’t you? Brian never deserved a traitor like you.”
I was beyond angry with this woman, whom I’d never met in my life. Avenged Sevenfold had become my family; I couldn’t imagine going through a single day without seeing any of them. Jimmy, Brian, and the others had become like brothers to me, their girlfriends like sisters. Jacoby and the rest of Papa Roach, and Good Charlotte, had become good friends of mine. How could this woman turn her back on a family with such open arms? How could she do this to them? They had taken her and her sister in, infused them into their lives. And this is what she gave them in return? If I had Leana’s gun, I was sure I’d shoot her myself.
“Eliza, back off.” Nicole called to me, her hand on my shoulder as she pulled me away. “Leana’s right. We’ll kill her if we have to, but unless that happens, the guys still need her alive for right now.”
I backed away from the woman, disgust on my face. I sincerely hoped that Brian would be able to kill her when it was all said and done. I wanted him to have the feeling of closure that her death would bring him. Because he was too damn good of a guy to have to go through the rest of his life knowing that he hadn’t been the one to kill her.