Chapter 51

Candice
It's been a week since Jared and I rekindled. He calls every day to ask how I am and to make sure I made it home alright. He hates the situation I'm in with Nicholas, but he knows it's a work in progress. He told me last night he was going to start therapy and I'm excited for him. I don't know the details behind him and Laynie's split, but I can tell it affected Jared pretty bad. I told mom about our relationship and surprisingly she couldn't be happier for me. Apparently Rodger knows his stuff.
"Earth to Candy." I hear a familiar voice coming from the doorway.
My shift just started at work and I am currently working on putting a patient list together for the girls. I look up from my screen and see Melissa standing at the hem of the door with her head sticking inside the room. I stand up and walk over to her. She looks awful. Her make up is all smeared around her face like she's been sleeping in it for days, her skin is pale, she looks weary and tired and her eyes are completely bloodshot.
"Where have you been Melissa? We have been trying to call you for a week straight. I had to turn your position into HR. I don't think they kept you on payroll." She immediately begins to look behind her then walks further into the room and shuts the door with force.
"I need your help Candy. Please, I've been sick, really sick and that's why I haven't been in. Today was the first day I thought I could come in, but I don't feel well right now, so I need you to take me home. Please." I pull her to my desk chair and make her sit, she looks like she is going to pass out.
"Melissa. You don't look well but I don't get it. If you have been feeling like this for so long why don't you just make an appointment with Ben. You probably have a virus." She is shaking he head as fast as I am telling her what I think it might be.
"I just need you to take me home. Please. I don't want Toring to see me like this. I uh, I have a crush on him, and I feel insecure like this." She likes Ben? Whoa, did not see that coming.
"Alright. But promise me that if you get any worse when you get home, you will make an appointment."
Once she agrees we head to my car. She leans on my shoulder the entire way there. If I didn't know any better I would say she was more hurt physically than sick. Once we reach my car I pull out the key FOB and unlock the doors. I help Melissa into the passenger seat and run around the front of the car to the driver's side. Once I slide inside I start up the engine and drive out of the parking garage.
Melissa is shaking uncontrollably as we get onto the road. I let her know there is a blanket in the backseat that she could warm up with. I don't mention the fact that it's back there because I had brought it with me to win Austin back. I thought it would be cool to drive out somewhere and cuddle with a blanket after he declared his underlying love for me. Austin was right. I am a sucker for romance.
Melissa declines the blanket and we continue on to her house. I've never been there before so I rely on her directions. I assume we get closer when she starts fidgeting. Guess she was pretty eager to get home. We pull up to a house that has definitely seen better days. The windows are all boarded up, the foundation or the house is cracking, the fence that divides the house to the neighbor's house has giant holes in it, and the grass is so overgrown it looks like it is at least knee high.
I park and look at Melissa. She looks like she is going to pass out. Sweat has built up around her forehead and her eyes look out of focus. I've never seen her this way. I battle whether or not to just take her back into the hospital. I'm just about to suggest that when my phone rings from my bag. I grab it out of my purse and see Lyla calling me. Before I can answer the call, Melissa grabs my phone from me and holds it at arm's length.
"Melissa, what are you doing? Give me back my phone?"
"I'm sorry Candy. This was the only way. I can't have anyone know you're here." She is literally shaking and rocking back and forth.
"Sweetheart, is there something you're on? I won't tell anyone, but you do know that I can't have you working at the hospital when your…"
"Shut up, just shut up Candice. You think you're so goddamn mighty? Just get out of the car okay? Get out of the car and walk up to my house, quietly."
I'm just about to go tell her where exactly she can shove her attitude, when she pulls out a gun. What the fuck? Why the hell does she have a gun? Why is it trained on me? I immediately put my hands in the air, confused as to what the hell is going on right now?
"That got your attention didn't it bitch. Now, give me your keys and get out of the car, slowly."
I do as Melisa says and when she meets me at the front of the car she grabs my arms roughly and pushes me in the direction of her house. I start looking around, hoping to find someone noticing that there is a hostage situation on their street but no such luck. The street we are on is nearly bare. Most of the houses are boarded up like this one. Melissa nudges the gun in my back and pushes me a little faster. Once I reach the door she walks up to it, gun still drawn on me, and knocks on the door in a pattern. Knock, pause, knock knock knock.
When the door slowly opens to a slit, then opens all the way, I fully understand why I have a gun drawn on me. Psych stands on the other side of the door with a deadly smile plastered on his face. Guess I know who the traitor is for the warriors now. He reaches out, grasping my shirt in his fist and brings me inside with one pull. I fall to the ground on my side and immediately get up. I know in these situations that if I'm on the ground I'm at a disadvantage.
I look around at my surroundings as Melissa walks in and shuts the door. The room I am in is completely bare, only a mattress lay on the floor next to a small lamp. The house is as disgusting inside as it is out. The paint is chipping all around, I can see a ton of holes, as if someone where driving their fist through the wall, and there is rust and cobwebs all around. If this house isn't already condemned, it's on the list to be.
I look back over to Psych and Melissa and she is looking down as he is whispering in her ear. Her shaking hasn't gotten any better and she looks even more petrified than when she was waving the gun at me. My body tenses when I see Psych grab Melissa's hair in a tight grasp. Her hands go to his chest and her face contorts with pain as she pleads with him to let her go. When he finally does, she hands him the gun then scampers towards the filthy kitchen.
Psych stalks towards me and I glance at the gun in his hand. My body shaking with the idea of trying to get the gun away from him. I look between Psych, the gun, then the bed. I can only assume he has been staying here. I don't want to entertain any other reason behind a mattress being here.
"Don't worry darlin. We gonna get along just fine." Psych says. His accent a little deeper than usual.
"I don't understand what's happening right now Psych. You're with the Nightmare Warriors. Why are you doing this?" I am trying to stay as calm as I can. Austin once told me that Psych was named that for a reason and I don't want to test out the reason while he has me cornered.
"Know it don't make much sense right now but it will in about another hour or so. Me and my girl are going to finally get what we want."
"Melissa and you are together?" Wow, she never talked about being in a relationship before. Granted we never really spoke to each other in a personal way, Melissa wasn't always the easiest person in the room to befriend. Guess now I know why.
"I ain't with that bitch. She's my fucking sister. My girl is on her way here. And she can't wait to get started with you."
Melissa is his sister? I'm trying to focus on that part of his rant rather than someone looking forward to doing something to me. My car is still outside and it's a cherry red. I don't know if he realized it, but I don't plan on pointing it out to him. That may be the one thing to help me.
Psych's phone goes off and narrows his eyes to me as a warning to shut my mouth. Yeah, he can dream on with that request. As soon as he answers it, I scream the words help me but immediately get cut off when his fist connects with my mouth. I fall to the ground and hold my mouth with both my hands. I have never been in this kind of pain in my life. Even when those guys came into my home and attacked me, the pain was nothing in comparison to this. I glance over my shoulder and see Psych laughing while looking at me. He really is a crazy bastard.
"Yeah? no, the stupid bitch tried to fucking scream, so I shut her up. Yeah, what time you getting here. Fucking perfect, see ya soon baby."
He hangs up, smile still plastered to his face. I pull my hands away from my mouth and can see crimson red on my hands and my mouth tastes of copper. I swallow largely of what I'm sure is blood and saliva and roll over to my knees to try and get up, but feel a boot against my back stopping me from doing so. I look back to Psych and he is smiling again. There is a knock at the door that tapped the same way Melissa did. Knock. Pause. Knock, knock, knock. A few seconds later someone walks into the house with her hands full.
She is carrying a video recorder and some sort of tripod. When she closes the door and locks it she turns around and I see the face I knew not to trust. The same face the started all of this by me opening my door one dark night. Jesse places the equipment down, walks over to us and puts her hand on Psych's chest. He takes his foot off of me to embrace her and they both look back at me. I should have told Austin about my worry about her, about my thoughts on her damn jeep, but I was too afraid I was pulling at lose strings.
"You ready baby?" Jesse coos at Psych. When he smiles at her I know that I am doomed.