Misguided Truths: Part Two (Misjudged #4) (28 page)

“I followed every guideline set out,”
I mumble under my breath. “Everything she told me to—”
And, I think I’ve just said too much.
I risk a glance over in her direction, and wince when I see her crossing her arms over her chest while cocking her head to the side.
Yep, I think I’m in trouble now.

“A-hem, what?” She raises her eyebrows and comes over to stand beside me.

Oh, hell.
Well, at least she can’t blame me for how it turned out now, “Shit!” I laugh when I see the look of amusement in her eyes, and shake my head. “Alright, I’m busted.” I admit, and stand, closing my eyes and hanging my head down low. She got me. I lied. I didn’t do any of this.

“You didn’t cook all of this yourself?”
She asks accusingly, though I think both she and I know that I didn’t. I shake my head again, offer her a smile, and I see a small smile of her own now starting to play over her lips.

“I had some help, but my intentions were good, I promise!”
And, they were. You know this, I know this. Now all she has to do is know that I tried. She starts laughing at me, and grabs a hold of a cloth from off of the side before throwing it right at me.

“Who helped you?”
Yep, it’s time to fess up.

Is she gonna go weird when I tell her about Rach? Well, I guess I’m about to find out,
“Rachael, Holly’s sister,” I answer, and though I expected her face to fall some, it doesn’t. “She left just before you arrived. I kinda don’t do the whole cooking thing.”

“If it had have turned out, how would I say this …
less burnt
, would you have told me you’d gotten someone to come and cook the dinner for us?”
Huh.

“
It’s, er, it’s highly unlikely that I would have. So, um …
no
.” Well, would you have? No, I didn’t think so.

“I admire your honesty. W
ell, your eventual honesty anyway,” she smiles, and reaches over to grab her wine before taking a seat beside me.

She admires my honestly. So, while we’re sharing here, maybe I should tell her exactly what it is that I admire about her,
“And, I, Alexis, admire your … how would I put this …?” I snicker, and then let my eyes roam over her. Yep, this is an easy one. “Your boobies. Yep, I think I kinda fell in love with your boobies!” What? Well, what else did you expect me to say? She taps my arm playfully, and leans over to place a kiss on my cheek. I twist around, and grab her by the waist, pulling her over to me until she’s standing in-between my legs. “I’m so fucking happy that you’re here with me, Alexis.” I whisper, and she runs her fingers up through my hair, keeping her gaze aimed directly into mine. I could’ve lost her, but she’s here. You know what? I’m gonna marry this girl. Not yet, but one day. Yeah, I have no doubts on this. I’m never gonna let her go.

“You are?” She
asks, my hands wandering over her body and around to her back. Where is it? It’s gotta be around here somewher—
oh, there it is
. I need to show her how much she means to me. Words? Words aren’t merely enough. I slide the zipper in-between my fingers, and gently lower it down, her dress becoming looser from her body. “Time for dessert already?” She asks, but I think she already knows the answer to that question.

“Mos
t definitely time for dessert.” I stand up, turn her around, and lean in closer, smelling her hair. This woman right here? She’s perfection at its very finest. She lifts her arms, and I slide the dress over her head, swallowing hard when it slips through my fingers and down to the floor.

“Brandon, shouldn’t we go somewhere a little more private?” I
can hear her anxiety, but she really doesn’t have anything to worry about. Sure, back at the campus you need to make sure the doors are closed and the drapes are drawn closed, but out here is totally different to back there.

“Beautiful, there’s no one around for miles, and to be honest, I don’t think I can w
ait any longer to be inside you.” I speak lightly into her ear, brushing my fingers around her waist, lowering them until I can feel her special place in my hands. Damn, I feel like I’ve been waiting a lifetime to have her this close to me again.

I
slide my fingers over her, and when she lets out a moan, I dip one of them inside her, only the one time. It’s not my fingers that belong in there. They’re not gonna be able to tell her exactly what and how I feel about her. Oh, she’s ready for me, and feeling how wet she is already, I let out a growl and pull her up hard against me. I’ve just felt how excited she is for me, I think it’s only fair to return the favor.

I reach down and unfasten my pants, brushing my dick against her sweet ass as I take a hold of her waist, turning her around until she’s resting her hands on the counter in front of us. I trace my fingers lightly over her spine with one hand, and grip her shoulder with the other, sliding myself along her wetness a couple of times before pushing myself inside.
Fuck.

“Damn you feel
so fucking good, beautiful,” I groan, pushing myself deeper inside, with one hand still gripping at her shoulder, while clutching her waist tightly with the other.

When she stands a little straighter, I move my hand from her shoulder, wrapping it around her neck while plunging harder and deeper inside with each thrust, “Brandon.” I hear her moan, and run my other hand over her waist until I have her brea
st in my hand. She lets out another moan, and I thrust again, and again, over and over when I hear her screaming my name, her legs trembling as she finds her release. There’s no better sound than this. Hearing her come because of the pleasure I’ve caused her to feel.

As she tightens around me, I grip my hands on her waist ag
ain, not once slowing down when I feel my dick swell, and then I explode inside her, “Fuck Alexis!” I growl, finally slowly my movements as I rest my body over hers.

We’re both struggling to gain control over our breathing, and
I trail soft kisses over her neck and shoulders, making the most of having her back in my arms. “Brandon!” She shouts, wriggling against me until she’s no longer beneath me. “Brandon there’s someone out there!”

“What?” I lift my
head, my eyebrows furrowing when I see the expression over her face. Her grin was wide just a second ago, but now she’s looking completely freaked out over something.

“There’s someone out ther
e!” She reaches for her dress, and then I hear her. I snap my head toward the window, and then grab my pants, fastening them back up as I head down the hallway and outside the front door. She wouldn’t have freaked out the way she just did if she wasn’t being serious.

I’ve walked around the whole place, but I don’t see anybody out here. It’s dark, I know this, but I would’ve at least heard footsteps or something. But, nothing. I’ve been out here for about twenty minutes already, and I’ve checked the garage, all around the outside of the cabin, and I even walked to the end of the track
.

Alexis is standing on the top step of the porch, holding her cell phone in her hand, her arms wrapped firmly around herself. I shake my head, and notice her eyes dart around before I usher her back inside and toward the kitchen.

“Here,” I say, offering her another glass of wine. “Alexis, I looked everywhere.” I say again, but even me telling her this hasn’t helped to calm her down any.

“Brand
on, I saw someone out there! When I turned around, I saw someone standing by the window and looking right in!” My eyebrows knit tightly together, and I try and think about this for a second. I take a hold of her drink when she almost spills it down herself. Yeah, that’s how bad her hands are still shaking, but she’s refusing to hand it back to me.

“I just don’t understand
why someone would be out there. I mean, yes, our sex is fucking hot, no one needs to tell me that, I experience it first hand, trust me, I know! But, they have this kinda thing on cable, or at a rental store. Why don’t they just go and buy a copy?”

“Why can’t
you take this more seriously?” Yeah, alright, she’s not appreciating the way I’m trying to make light of the situation so much, I get that from the scowl she’s just thrown my way, and from hearing the sound of her wine glass hitting the counter as she just slammed it down. “You do understand why we’re even here, don’t you?”

“But nobo
dy knows we’re here, Alexis!” I follow her out the room, and she stops abruptly before turning back around.

“Where did you put my case?”

“It’s in our room,” I tell her, and wrap my arm around her shoulder while directing her toward the bedroom we’ll be sleeping in. It’s the one at the back of the cabin. The view of the lake from there is amazing. I thought she might appreciate seeing it when she opens her eyes in the morning. “Alexis, come on, please?” I don’t want our night to be ruined just because she thinks she saw something. She stops by the door, and I hear her letting out a sigh.

“I was scared, Brandon.
What if it was the one who’s after you?” You see, and this is exactly why I wanted to change the conversation to something else about fifteen minutes ago. Do I think that it could be the people who are after me? I have no idea, but all I know is that whatever or whoever was out there, have completely fucked our night. One. Can we not have just one night when things just go, I dunno, right?

I lean forward
, and kiss her on the temple before placing her case down on the floor so I can push the door open, and then grab a hold of it again before carrying it over to the bed. Am I worried that they’re here, watching us? Yeah, all the time. But, there’s no way I wanna worry her, and they don’t know that I’m here, so the only times I’m concerned about this is when I go and visit her at campus. But, I’m always careful when I go there because the last thing I wanna do is put Alexis in any more danger.

“Beautiful, we’re safer here than anywhere else, just trust me, alright?” Her gaze drops to the floor, and I know that whatever I say to her right now isn’t gonna make her feel any better. “Come on, let’s get some sleep.”

This week has dragged like no other. Sure we’ve talked every day over the phone, but it’s not the same. I’ve gotta tell you; Saturday can’t get here soon enough. I’m bored out of my mind, and it’s been way too long since I’ve held her in my arms, or tasted her supple, agonizingly sweet lips on mine. Alexis went back to campus on Sunday night, and to tell you that I’ve been missing her like crazy wouldn’t be far from the truth.

To say that the week Alexis stayed with me went well wouldn’t necessary be how I would describe it. In fact, we figured out a lot of things, mainly on the day after she arrived here. We decided to go for a picnic, so we could make the most of the warm sunshine, but like the last time, it was cut short. We now know why her father’s house
was broken into back in Salem.

We were talking about things. Things that didn’t really seem relevant to anything at the time. She asked me about my music, general things like
when I started to play the guitar, that kinda stuff. Then we got onto talking about the bands I used to play in. It was then, when I told her about my band The Vultures, that the day turned out completely different to how we’d intended it.

Alexis started to space out on me, and when I asked her what was wrong, she told me that she remembered reading about us. Well, obviously I thought she was getting mixed up with some
other band, I mean, we weren’t huge or anything, you and I both know that. But, then she told me about a diary she found at her father’s house when they were sorting through her moms things. And, then? Well, then it started to all make sense. They must’ve somehow found out that they never disposed of her moms belongings, why else would they’ve broken into the place?

We headed to Salem that same day. Her father and Diane were still in Seattle, so Alexis called them and told them
about what she thought she saw. Did we find it? Nope. We searched through all the boxes, but we found nada.
Zilch.

She kept apologizing, telling me how sorry she was, but how could she have known that it was Holly’s? I mean, it’s not likely that there would be anything in there to help me out
anyways, and Alexis said she couldn’t remember anything else that was written in there. After all, she said she only read one or two pages.

Am I disappointed? Well, it would’ve been kinda nice to know what was written in there. Maybe to see if Holls had written anything
else about me, apart from the band. But, it wasn’t there, and it’s not likely we’re gonna be able to find it now, either.

It’s just turned midday, and even though I’m desperate to call her, I know that I can’t. Her last class doesn’t finish until four on a Thursday. Zach and Rach headed back to Olympia after they stopped by for a little while yesterday afternoon, and I’m not expecting them to drop by again until later on this evening.

Rach has work until five, and Zach told me that he was gonna head out of town for a few hours to catch up with some of his old buddies from high school. Honestly, there’s no point them hanging out here all the time anyways. Especially now that things have gotten a hell of a lot quieter since me and Alexis got back from her father’s place.

We were so close.
So fucking close
. One thing that’s been playing on my mind, other than how much I’ve been missing Alexis, is why? What was in Holly’s diary that made them feel the need to take it? What didn’t they want us to see? There’s one thing that I’m pretty sure of now, though. She must’ve known something. If they were so desperate to get a hold of her diary and break into Alexis’ father’s house, she must’ve known them. She had to have known the person or persons who did this to her.

Why didn’t she tell me if there was something wrong? I mean, I know we didn’t exactly have the best week before it happened, but she could’ve come to me. She could’ve told me anything.

My cell phone vibrating over on the windowsill by the TV brings me away from my thoughts, and when I go over to pick it up, I’m surprised to see who’s messaging me. Not because she shouldn’t be me, that’s not it. She’s just early, that’s all.

A: Are you busy?

Me: Where’s my kiss? ;) X

A: I want to come over.

Me: Now? But what about your classes?

A: The professor’s sick. The weekend is starting early!

Me: Zach isn’t here.

A: I’ll grab a cab.

Me: I’d rather you waited until he got back.

A: Are you on your own?

Me: Yeah. Why?

A: I’ve got a surprise planned.

Me: Beautiful, what’s going on?

A: Do you trust me?

Me: Of course I trust you. I’ll call Zach and ask when he’s gonna be back in town. I’ll message you when he’s gonna pick you up.

A: Too late. I’ve already waved down a cab. See you in a few ;)

Well, that was weird.

I scratch my forehead and smile at the screen. Alexis is coming over a couple of d
ays earlier than we’d planned, and this is making me feel extremely happy.

I place my cell back down, and then head through to the kitchen to start clearing a few of the dishes away. Yeah, I guess you could say that I’ve been a little lazy since Zach and Rach haven’t been hanging out with me here so much. Once I’ve wiped the counter, I check the refrigerator to make sure there’s something in for us to eat. Rach was gonna grab some groceries and bring them over later this evening, but I’m gonna need to rustle something up before then.

I close the door when I don’t see anything inside, and then my nerves kick in when I remember something. Rach and Alexis haven’t officially met yet. I take a seat over at the breakfast bar, but then figure I shouldn’t really be worrying about this. Rach is gonna love her. I know she is. What’s not to love about Alexis?
Exactly.

I jog
back through to the living room and pick up my cell when I hear my ringtone again, and see another message from her.

A: I’m close. Did you unlock the door?

She’s close? Oh, she’s gonna be close when I grab her inside and drag her through to the bedroom. She needs to know the extent of my torture and what I have to go through when I haven’t seen her for the best part of a week.

I head over and turn the key in the lock while sending her my reply. I notice on the display that it’s now a little after one o’clock, and decide to go and grab a quick shower before she arrives.
Knock! Knock!
Or, maybe I won’t.

Huh.
She wanted me to leave the door unlocked, so why is she knocking? Wait. Who cares? She’s here, and that’s all that matters. I stride over to the door and pull it open.

“Brandon Taylor?” Unless Alexis has turned into a six foot five male with blonde hair and a large scar under her right eye, then it’s not her I’m opening the door up to. “It’s good to see you again.”

My eyebrows furrow because this guy knows my name, but nobody is supposed to know that I’m here. I take an immediate step back while trying to close the door, but he takes a step forward, resting his hand on the inside wall while opening the door up wider with his foot, a smirk appearing wide over his mouth. He looks familiar. “I know you, don’t I?” I ask. I recognize him, but I can’t remember where I’ve seen him before.

“Yes,” he answers me
, his smile growing even wider now. “Yes, you know me.”

My gut’s telling me that something’s not right here, and I do the first thing that comes to mind,
“Zach, can you come through here, bro?” I call out behind me. Yeah, I know he’s not here, but this guy doesn’t. He sure as hell doesn’t look like he’s come here for a coffee and a slice of cake.

“Good thinking. I like your style,” he starts to laugh. “But
, you and I both know that your cousin isn’t around to help you out this time.”
Shit. Double shit. Motherfucking shit.
How does he even know this?

He steps closer, and I back away, trying to reach for my cell that’s in the back pocket of my pants. I bump into something behind me, but there shouldn’t be anything there. The hallway runs right down to the back of the cabin.
Shit.
This isn’t good.
This isn’t good at all.

***

It’s dark in here. Wherever here is. I have no clue. None whatsoever. The place smells damp and old. There’s a slight light shining through a small window on the other side of the room, but it’s not enough to help me try and figure out my location.

The last thing I remember is being hit hard across the back of the head. I don’t know how many of them
were there in the end. The first guy punched me hard in the face while the other held my arms behind my back. I couldn’t move. I tried to fight back, but I was being restrained. Then I heard the front door open again, and another unfamiliar voice sounded behind me. And another, and then another. I was turned around before I even had a chance to get a look at their faces, and then I was slammed hard against the hallway wall. One of them grabbed at my hair and smashed my face right against it. They laughed. I could hear them. But, I couldn’t do anything. I felt sudden déjà vu right then. It reminded me of the time back in the alleyway, when I went to meet with the guy who said he could help me.

A few kicks to my lower back, the sound of their snarls, and more punches to both my right and left sides later, it all went dark. I don’t know how long I was out for. I’m not at the cabin, this I’m completely sure of. Sharp pains shoot right the way through my arm before spreading throughout the rest of my entire body.

Alexis.

Shit!
She was on her way over. She was— “Where is she?” I grind out, wincing from the newfound tightness that’s closing in on my chest and all around me. “What did you do to her?”

I hear a faint chuckling sound travel over from the corner of the room, before I see a shadowed figure walking toward me, “Who? The little brunette? I have no idea what you’re talking about,” his words are snarled, and he’s laughing now, mockingly.

“What the fuck did you do to her?” I bark out while attempting to get on my feet, but the pain’s too intolerable, and I slouch back against the hard wall behind me. “If you’ve touched a single hair on her head then I swear to fucking God I’m gonna—” He slaps me hard across the cheek when he goes to walk by me, his cell phone chiming loud.

This pain, t
he sting across my face, and the burning agony through my shoulder, I can handle, but not knowing where Alexis is or if she’s okay is killing me.

“All went to plan.” I hear him speak into his cell. All went to plan? “Let me know.” I see him stuff his phone inside his jacket, a smile creeping over his lips. “She’s very pretty, that girlfriend of yours.”

No. Please tell me he hasn’t touched her
.
Shit. Damn this fucking asshol
e! I clench my eyes closed when I grip my arm with my other hand, hoping that somehow it’s just gonna snap back into place so I can kill this motherfucker, “If you’ve laid even one finger on her then I’ll—!”

“You’ll do what?” he asks casually while kneeling down right ahead of me. If I could summon up enough energy to take a swipe at him, then I would. But, he’s just out of reach for me to be able to get to him. I struggle to sit up straighter. “You don’t look in any fit state to do anything.” He shrugs his shoulders
, and shakes his head as he backs away, just as a brighter light filters into the room.
Someone else is here.
The light’s coming through from the open door, and I squint as I try to get a closer look. It looks like …
Neil?
“Neil! Neil you’ve gotta go find Alexis!” The light fades and I hear the door fully close.

“Brandon?” H
is voice is quiet, calm even as he takes a step closer.

“No! Go and find her! You need to get the hell outta here and get her! She was heading to the cabin and—”

“No, buddy. No. She wasn’t,” he interrupts me, and I notice a wry smile displaying over his mouth now. “It seems you managed to redeem yourself.” I hear him say, but he’s not speaking to me. He’s already turned away and is talking directly to—
what?
Why isn’t he leaving? Wait a second. Why is he talking to—? “I’ll take it from here.”

“Neil?” I shuffle around some more and …
wait a second
. Why is he shaking that guy’s hand? No. I’ve gotta be imagining this. Yeah. Yeah, this isn’t happening. I’m still out cold, and I’ll wake up at any second, back at the cabin, but this time with Alexis’s arms firmly wrapped around me.
Come on, wake up
. I close my eyes and count to three.
One. Two. Three.
But, the pain is still present, and when I reopen my eyes, I see a pair of dark ones staring directly into mine, and only a couple of inches away. Neil’s eyes. “What is this?”