Hey, so sorry for the massive delay! I'm already on the next chapter so that shouldn't happen again! Please, read on...
'A cupboard? Seriously?' Jared drawled leaning against the doorframe with effortless elegance. I gaped at him; Amber beside me did the same. I knew what she was thinking: How had he gotten out, unless her parents had come home...
'Oh. Not even one sarcastic come-back?' He asked sounding genuinely disappointed. Amber's hand found mine and she gripped it so tight I had to fight back a wince. The dog's soft growling never ceased, and only served to reflect the grim atmosphere, like the strange wind before a tornado.
'Where's Alex?' She said in barely a whisper. Her eyes never left his and the bloody gash on her forehead seemed to almost glow in stark contrast to her pale face. A smug smile played across his lips and he shrugged off the question.
'I just repaid the favour. Got any cupboards 'round here?' He asked, chuckling at his own joke. The palm of my hand was clammy with sweat but I didn't let go of Amber.
'Joking!' Jared muttered, holding his hands up in the universal sign of surrender. Oh, very funny.
'What do you want?' I asked, trying to sound braver then I felt. Going by the slight furrowing of his brows I assume I failed.
'Don't be scared of me. Please don't. I know I've done some real bad stuff but I honestly didn't mean for anyone to get hurt!' The sudden sincerity in Jared's voice rang clear. It was at this moment that I realised just how good of an actor he really was, switching from deranged psychopath to the face of innocence in mere seconds. The sudden change in his mood unnerved me. He was unpredictable and that made him just that bit more dangerous.
Nobody spoke. We were all locked in our positions, Amber and I sat on the foot of the stair-case, our hands clasped tightly together. Jared, cross-armed in the doorway, tall and confident and intimidating. Even the purple-ish bruise forming around his right eye added to the effect. I couldn't help but feel a stab of savage pleasure that Jared was obviously feeling at least some repercussions of his actions tonight, judging by the size of that shiner he'd have a black eye for weeks.
Finally Jared sighed, slumping back against the doorframe in a defeated way. He brushed his hair from his eyes and frowned at the floor.
'Why don't you believe me?' He asked softly, even though he looked at neither of us I had a feeling that the question was meant for me.
'You cannot be serious.' Amber muttered incredulously. I gripped her hand tighter (if that was possible) and nudged her in the ribs, praying she'd get the message and shut up as soon as humanly possible.
'You're supposed to believe me,' Jared continued, thankfully having ignored Amber. Without warning he slammed the back of his head into the doorframe with such force I let out a squeak of surprise.
'Why? Why? Why?' Jared yelled, punctuating each shout with another head-slam. Amber had her eyes tight shut and was shaking her head, whether in denial or in trying to block out the scene in front of her I didn't know but it seemed like a good idea. I wanted to shut my eyes and drown out his yells and pretend none of this was real. I wanted to, but I couldn't. I had to face the reality of the situation, and so did Amber. There must be something I could say, something I could do. Without conscious thought I waited for his yells to subside into soft murmurs and stood up, ignoring Amber's restricting hand tugging, pleading with me to sit back down.
'Stop it,' I said to Jared, keeping my tone light and a careful mask of neutrality on my face. He stared incredulously at me, for the moment all traces of anger drained from his handsome face. He looked almost...normal.
