Holding On

Chapter 48 - Beautiful Things

Hunter's POV

It's been three days since we got Courtney back, but it's also been three days since I last saw her. We've talked over the phone a bit, she using Lindsey's home phone and me using my cell phone, but most of my news comes through Lindsey and John. I had recently found her new cell phone under my bed, no doubt having been pushed beneath in the struggle of her being taken. However, I hadn't been able to get over there to give it back to her.

While having it, I decided to look through her phone. I wasn't trying to be the jealous, sneaky boyfriend who kept tabs on his girl by checking her texts and calls, but before she was taken, I would catch her sneaking pictures every now and then. I was curious to see what she had gotten.

While looking for her pictures, I stumbled upon her contacts. There were only four: me, John, Alex, and a Vanessa. I figured this might be that grandmother she had once spoke of, but there had been no calls to this number. I guess it's just for emergencies.

Upon finding her pictures, I smirked at the first one I saw. It was of me and Alex. I had him in a head lock, rubbing my knuckles on top of his head, and his face was all twisted. I laughed slightly and moved on, finding one of me asleep on the couch. I rolled my eyes and scanned through some of the others. There were ones of John and Alex with pizza, Alex making some strange faces, some selfies she had taken while I was unsuspecting in the background, but there was one that I found that really stood out to me.

It was of me and her, one that I actually remember taking.

We were sitting on the couch, my legs stretched out and her seating between them. My arms were wrapped around her waist and my chin on her shoulder. One of her hands rested on my arms and the other held out the phone ahead of us. I couldn't help but just stare at her in the picture, locked on how happy she looked. The title of this picture: "We look good together."

I sighed lightly and then quickly sent the picture to my own phone through text message before shutting off her phone and putting it on the table. I couldn't stop thinking about Courtney. Everyday in the quiet of Alex's apartment, and every night when I lay in bed alone, she filled my mind and I couldn't wait to have her back home with me.

According to Lindsey, she was doing really well. John informed me that Lindsey had given her a lot of baby items and has been teaching her some cooking tips and recipes on the side. However, Lindsey had also told us about how she sometimes hears Courtney crying at night and at one point heard her scream from a nightmare. I had no doubt that it was because of Michael.

It was really hard to just leave her there with Lindsey that day. Hearing her say that it was her fault, watching her become so shaken up like that, and then hearing what Michael had done had made it all very hard to leave her. I wanted, and still want, nothing more than to be there at her side to help carry the weight of what she was feeling.

The memory of her shaking as she held the gun in her grasp is still fresh in my mind. She was so scared. She had literally held her greatest fear in her hands and a man was killed because of it. I understood why she felt the way she did. Even though I had seen my fair share of killings, I know that Courtney is too innocent to accept that sometimes these things just happen.

As I have forced myself to stay away from Courtney, things haven't been much better. At least three times a day for the past three days, a car that belongs to Michael has been parked outside my house when we go to check on it. It is obviously his guys scoping out their next target.

The last time I called, I was honest with Courtney and told her about everything that was going on. She and I both agreed that it just wasn't time to bring her home yet, but John doesn't think they'll stop. The only reason they haven't come after us is because they can't find us. With us being all split up, they couldn't pinpoint our positions. But I know that we can't live the rest of our lives like this.