Honor Student (15 page)

His finger ran across my
eyebrow as he studied my face.

“What?” I asked as his
brow creased.

“I just can’t believe how
lucky I am.” I smiled and pulled him into me for a kiss.

Chapter Twenty-Nine

The next morning I awoke
alone. I felt beside my and my fingers ran across a piece of paper
that crinkled under my fingers. I picked it up and held it in front
of my eyes.

I miss you.

Love, William

I smiled and pushed
myself off of the bed to get ready for school.

The last few days began
to run together. I spent all of my free time preparing for
graduation and getting ready for vacation. I slipped in a few hours
to hang out with Becka and Claire, knowing that I wouldn’t make it
to any of the graduation parties. William and I were leaving for
California the night of the ceremony.

I grabbed a bag and
made my way across town to William’s house. I was excited to show
him the new white bikini I had bought for our trip. I raced up the
stairs to his place and slipped the key he had made for me into the
lock. William was sitting on the couch with his head in his hands.
A small piece of paper hung from his fingers. He glanced up at me
as I walked in. I smiled but he didn’t return it.

“What’s wrong?” I asked,
throwing my things on the counter and hurrying to his side. I was
careful not to touch him. When he got upset he resorted to his old
self and became very distant. He took a deep breath, closing his
eyes and held out the piece of paper. I took it from him and opened
it to read the contents.

Before I kill you, I
want you to watch her die.

I dropped the note to the
floor and clasp my hands over my mouth.

“
Oh, my god.” I
whispered. William nodded but didn’t look my way. Instead, he
stared off in the distance.

“We have to call the
police.” I said, my voice shaking. He ran his hands through his
hair, debating on what to do next.

“I’ll take care of this.”
He pushed up from his seat and headed for the door. I jumped up,
blocking his path. I put my hand on his chest. His eyes glanced
down at my hand and back to me. I pulled it back, not wanting to
press my luck.

“You can’t go over there.
You are going to do something you regret!” I could feel the lump
forming in my throat and I had to blink several times to keep my
tears from falling.

“
I’m not going to
do anything to her. I just want to end this thing once and for
all.” His eyes burned into mine. I bit my lip and stepped out of
the way. “Lock the door. Do not let anyone in this fucking house. I
don’t care if they are on fire. Do you understand?” He yelled. I
nodded and followed him to the door. I watched him disappear down
the steps through the peephole. I turned my back to the door and
laid my head back against it as I slid to the floor and hugged my
knees to my chest.

It felt like an eternity
had passed since William left and I kept checking my phone to make
sure it wasn’t dead. He hadn’t called or texted me and I was going
out of my mind with worry. A rapid knock came at the door above my
head. I nearly jumped out of my skin and crawled across the floor a
few feet away from it. I turned around and watched as someone
wiggled the handle and pounded louder.

“
William?” Angela’s
frantic voice called from the other side of the doorway. My phone
vibrated on the counter and I jumped to grab it, afraid Angela
would hear it.

It’s not Abby! I’m on my
way!

I looked to the door and
back to the phone. I typed as quickly as my shaking fingers fingers
would allow.

Angela is here!!!!

Do NOT let her in!

I held the phone to my
chest as her voice grew louder and more hysterical.

“I can hear you in there!
Please, please let me in!” I bit my lip and walked towards the
peephole. If Angela was the one writing the notes than I had no
reason to pretend I wasn’t there. If I told her William wasn’t
home, maybe she would leave.

“He-he’s not here!” I
called out, my voice cracking. She grew silent for a moment then
pounded again.

“
Please, let me
in!I’m going to die!” She shrieked. I stepped back. That was
awfully dramatic, even for a woman scorn.

“
Go away!” I
yelled, trying not to sound scared. “I’m calling the police!” I
tried to keep my voice steady. She pounded, rapidly and screamed on
last time. After a moment the hallway was silent and I looked into
the hole to see if she had left. Suddenly, an eye appeared staring
back at me. It wasn’t Angela. I jumped back and put my hand over my
mouth to keep from screaming. I was breathing so hard I thought I
would pass out.

“Are you going to come
out or do I have to find my way in?” His voice was menacing and it
sent a shiver down my spine. He moved the handle to the door and
slammed his body against it a few times, but the lock held. I
grabbed my phone and called for William.

“
H-he’s in the
building..I think h-he killed her..don’t come in here!” I stuttered
unable to keep from breaking down.

“
Emma, calm down.
Breathe. No one is here.” My heart lept into my throat. I slammed
myself against the door and looked out. William stood, searching
the area around the door, finding nothing out of place. Suddenly,
the lit space behind him darkened.

“
William!” I
screamed. William spun around and the man hit him hard across the
cheek. “No!” I yelled, helpless against the door. William recovered
and swung hard towards the man. His fist connected and sent him
stumbling backwards, but he caught himself just before falling down
the staircase. Something caught William’s attention out of view and
it was the perfect opportunity for the attacker to strike again. He
hit William hard in the stomach causing him to double over and make
a gut wrenching moan. William used his elbow to hit him in the
ribs. He grabbed him by the hair and pulled his face into his knee.
The man swung wildly, blood soaking his face. He connected a few
times but William wasn’t about to give up. He kicked out in front
of him, his foot landing square on the man’s chest, sending him
flying down the steps to the landing below.

“She’s alive!” William
yelled. I could hear him talking quietly off to the side by the
steps up to the next floor. I bit my lip as I watched their shadows
moving.

After a few moments, a
text vibrated my phone.

Go to the third floor
and wait for me. Don’t make a sound.

I grabbed my things
off the counter and stashed them in a cupboard down below. I rode
the elevator upstairs. I sat quietly alone in the dark as blue and
red lights flashed through the cracks between the windows and the
blackout curtains. After awhile, my eyes adjusted to the darkness
and I was able to make my way around the floor with out running
into anything. I came across some shelving in the very back of the
room. I ran my hands over the items, examining them. There were
whips and chains and a few items I had never seen before. I felt my
cheeks burn as I came across a long smooth object that was silver.
I twisted the bottom and it vibrated in my hands, causing me to
jump. I sat in back on the shelf and continued to look around as my
hand vibrated again. My heart nearly beat out of my
chest.

Come down, unless you
want me to come up.

I smiled. As
tempting as it was, ater the night we had I wanted to relax. I
hopped in the elevator. When the doors opened, I peaked around to
make sure we were alone. William stood alone in the center of his
living room. I ran to him, my feet unable to carry me quickly
enough to his arms. I wrapped my arms around his neck and he
squeezed me tightly, lifting me from the ground. Tears if relief
sprung to my eyes.

“
Shhh…” He
whispered as he stroked the back of my hair. “It’s over.” I pulled
back from him and cupped his face in my hands. “It’s over.” He
repeated, looking into my eyes. I rested my forehead against his
and closed my eyes.

“I was so worried.” I
whispered, shaking my head. His grip tightened.

“
It was Angela’s
husband. The cops took him away. They took it as nothing more than
a husband who suspected his wife of cheating. We’re safe now.” He
kissed my forehead, letting his lips linger.

“She knows” He shook his
head. “She doesn’t know who was in here. As far as she knows it was
a one night stand and you left before she woke up.” I took a deep
breath.

“How is she?”

“
they took her to
the hospital to do some scans, but she is going to be fine.” His
hand slid up and down my back to comfort me. I didn’t want to leave
his arms. He picked me up and carried me to his bed.

Chapter Thirty

My knees were shaking as
I stepped out in front of the crowd. I flipped my tassle to the
other side as my eyes met Williams. He smiled proudly at me and I
couldn’t help but grin back at him. My aunt sat just a few rows
away and I smiled and nodded in her direction.

As I stepped off the
stage I couldn’t wait to leave. I wanted to run to the closest
airport and get as far away from this place as possible. After all
that had happened with Angela and her husband, we were due some
time to wind down.

I hugged my friends and
stood around having idle chit chat while the man I secretly loved
walked by. I couldn’t consentrate on the conversation as he moved
behind me, his hand brushing against my bottom.

“Are you feeling
alright?” Claire asked. I glanced up at her, wide eyed. “Are you
alright?” she repeated. I laughed nervously.

“
Yea, I guess I’m
just in shock that we finally graduated!” My friend’s shrieked
around me.

I mingled with the crowd,
making my way to my aunt.

“I still can’t believe
you are going to California with your friends!” Judy rubbed my arm
and for a moment she looked sad. I glanced over my shoulder to make
sure my friends were still out of earshot. The coast was clear.

“Yea, We are going to
have a great time!” I smiled. She grinned back and pulled me in for
a hug. I hesistated before putting my arms around her. I wasn’t
sure if she was happy I graduated or happy to be getting rid of me
for a few weeks.

I couldn’t get out
of the parking lot fast enough. I drove a few blocks away and
pulled into the Pizza Palace parking lot. After about ten minutes,
William’s black car pulled in beside me. I beamed from ear to ear
as I waited for him. He got out of his car and slipped into the
passenger seat of my car. He wrapped his hand in my hair and kissed
me hard.

“
God, I love you”
He smiled, his forehead against mine. “Are you ready?” I nodded. I
couldn’t wait to get away from this place. He smiled and kissed me
quickly on the forehead before getting out of the car and
retrieving my bags. I got out, locking my doors as I looked around.
No one was in sight and I jumped into the passenger side of his
car. He smiled, slipping his hand over mine and lacing our fingers
together before heading to the airport.

We arrived in the
early afternoon at LAX. I held William’s hand as he pulled me to
the baggage claim to collect our belongings. He wrapped his arm
around me and pulled me against him. It was so freeing not having
to hide from anyone. After the incident with Angela, he was much
more kind. He grabbed our things and we made our way anonymously
through the crowd. The only stares we got were from woman shooting
William a flirty smile or two.

As we stepped out into
the sun a row of cars lined the street with men holding up signs
for their passengers. William ran his hands through his hair and
let out a sigh. I followed his eyes to a car sign that read
‘Honor’.

“
Come on” He
smiled, pulling me by my hand behind him. The man wearing a black
suit smiled and opened my door for me. I politely thanked him and
slid inside. The car smelled of leather and made me think of the
third floor in at William’s place. I couldn’t help but
grin.

“
What?” He asked
with a half smile.

“Nothing.” He squeezed my
hand tighter as we made our way through the busy streets. I
couldn’t take my eyes off the million dollar scenery. Huge gates
lined the road where mansions set back in from the streets.
Tourists stood out front snapping pictures. Everything here was
larger than life. “Have you been here before?” I asked, not taking
my eyes off the people outside.

“
A lot.” He said
with laughter in his voice. I shot him a quick smile as he pulled
me into his side. I wrapped my arm around his waist and hugged him
tightly. He was in an amazing mood and I was going to take full
advantage. There was also something else there. He seemed nervous,
which was adorable coming from a man who was so in control. Our car
veered off the main road and made a few turns before pulling up to
a gate. The driver reached out of his window and punched in a code
on the keypad, causing the gate to slide open.

“
Where are we?” I
sat up, trying to get a better look but William playfully held me
against him. The car circled a huge fountain and came to a stop
just outside of a large building. My door opened and I looked to
William. “Go ahead.” He kissed me on the forehead and released me.
I stepped out into the balmy air, taking in the view of the
spectacular house.

“
This is amazing.”
I said in awe as William joined my side. Huge pillars lined the
white porch that was covered in beautiful flowers.

“Come on” He smiled,
taking my hand and pulling me to the door.

“Our stuff” I motioned
back to the car. He made a face at me.