Glass

Zack grumbled, trailing behind his four friends as they entered the airport terminal. The last time he was on a plane to Vegas, Violet was with him.

The guys hadn't given Zack much grief about going to Vegas, per Brian's orders. Despite how upset the rest of the band was at Brian for telling Zack about going to Vegas in the first place. Regardless, Zack remained silent the majority of the day.

"Hey," Matt stepped up beside his friend, "You okay?"

"Fine," Zack muttered and Matt sighed.

"Zack, I understand you're upset. We all are, okay? But I just don't want you to get your hopes up and have you come back worse than before."

"I said I'm fine," He repeated.

"But we all know you're not," Matt snapped, "And we all have seen that look on your face. What ever you're planning, get it out of your head right now."

"What do you know, Matt?" Zack shot back.

"I know that you probably already have some elaborate scheme to somehow find Violet, get her away from Craig, and drag her back to California without a second thought," Matt said.

"Who needs a second thought, Matt? It's the right fucking thing to do," Zack growled.

"I'm telling you, Zack. You bring Violet back and where does Craig go? He follows us back too. You're just pouring alcohol over an open wound."

Zack walked away, not able to say anything else. Deep down, he knew Matt was right. What good would it do him or Violet? He would just be making the situation worse. But he would rather have the situation worse if it meant she was back safe in his arms. Now that he knew everything, he'd be able to protect her from Craig.

Now he just needed to convince her that.

-

"You sure you're okay?" Matt questioned.

"I won't be if you keep asking me that," Zack snapped sharply and Matt sighed, taking a step back away from him.

Of all of his friends, it was Matt who Zack distanced himself away from the most. He knew that it wasn't exactly Matt's fault for what happened that day with Violet, but he was someone responsible. He knew his friend was just looking out for him. He often wondered what would have happened had Matt not barged into the house the way he did. Maybe then Violet would still be safe by his side.

"Listen," Matt caught a grip on his arm as the elevator started to move up from the lobby floor, "I know things have been rough this past year between us. Jesus, Zack," Matt breathed, "I don't know how else to tell you I'm sorry. Believe me when I say that I'm hurting too. I can't help but feel guilty for what happened."

"I know," Zack muttered, "But a part of me doesn't want to forgive you until Violet is back home," He confessed.

Matt glared darkly, his lips pressed into a firm line, "Then a part of you won't ever be able to forgive me."

Zack jerked his arm away, taking in Matt's words as the elevator opened on his floor, "I'll be ready for the promotion. I just want to be alone until then," Zack stated flatly before walking down the hallway to his room, slamming the door shut.

Zack sighed, walking across the room and tossing his bag on the bed. He pulled out his laptop, turning it on before setting it up on his desk. He breathed in deeply, opening a file he hadn't opened in a year.

His kept his eyes away from the picture of Violet he had in there and focused on the information kept on the PDF file. Violet Kennedy, 22, San Francisco. He quickly found Diana Andersen and the phone number listed beside her name.

He took in a deep breath, finding his phone and typing in the number quickly. He made sure his door was locked before dialing.

"Hello?" She answered.

"Ahem," He coughed, "Um, is this Diana Andersen?" He questioned.

"Yes, who is this?" She questioned. The woman had been suspicious of any phone calls ever since she heard her daughter was back living on Stevenson property.

"This is Zack Baker," He announced and there was a thick pause.

"Oh my God!" She cried, "You... You said you would get her back!" She exclaimed through tears and Zack winced.

"I know," He whispered, "I know, and I'm sorry, Miss Andersen," He apologized as she continued to cry, "But I plan to keep my promise."

"H-How?" She demanded, "She's locked up in that prison with him going through God knows what!"

"I know," He assured her, "I'm in Vegas and I have a plan... I just need to know some things."

Diana composed herself, breathing in deeply as she let Zack's words sink in, "Okay," She breathed, "What do you need to know?"

"What do you know about her and Craig? All I know is that she's in Caesar's Palace," He stated.

She sighed deeply, "She's in the penthouse suite. It takes up the entire top floor of the hotel and it's completely off limits to guests. There's security at the front desk and on the elevator. You need a key to get in."

"Okay, and what about him? He can't always be there, right?" He asked.

"He goes out to the club every night. I know he gets to the clubs at around eight and leaves at around midnight. But when he's gone he doubles security around her. So what ever you're planning," She sighed, "It won't work."

Zack ran a hand through his hair, "She never leaves?"

"Sometimes. There's a rumor that she'll be attending dinner and a club promotion tonight and tomorrow night," She explained.

"Okay," He sighed, "I... I'm going to think of something. I promise."

Diana took in a deep breath, "Before you do anything you should know how much she loved you."

"I know how much she loved me," Zack whispered.

"No," She growled, "You don't. She sacrificed everything for you, Zack. She could have run off again and disappeared. Craig wouldn't have been able to find her, she was prepared for that. But she purposely threw all of that away just so you would be happy. Her only regret was that she let you get hurt in the process," She explained.

Zack put his head in his hand as he shut his eyes, the tears threatening to fall, "I would have thrown away the band and my company if it meant keeping her with me. I couldn't promise she'd be away from Craig, or that she'd be safe, but she'd at least be with me... I wish more than anything that I had stopped her from going to Vegas. I shouldn't have pushed her away."

"I know. Good luck, Zack," Diana stated, "You're going to need it."