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Author's Chapter Notes:
First of all I apologize for waiting so long to update this one. My inner Kevin wasn't co-operating with me at all!! Don't you hate it when that happens? LOL Anyway thanks so much for sticking with me and this story. I appreciate all of you guys who are still reading this one! Thanks a lot! It means the world to me :O)
30



Adrenaline




Jack felt a surge of adrenaline course through his veins as he made his way back up towards Patty’s room. It was finally time to do this. He had tried to get Ariana to move quicker over the years, always trying to convince her that sometimes it wasn’t a good idea to wait too long before a plan was executed. Truth was he was growing less and less interested in her little schemes. This entire affair had gotten a little mundane for him and he was ready to move on.



He never really liked her plan to begin with, the thought of having a bratty teenager with them was never appealing but he also knew that in the end, he would get what he wanted which has always been Ariana all to himself.



He got as far as halfway up the steps when he realized he really had no plan once he got in there. He felt his pocket for his gun and thought about maybe just going in with it raised to them. Forcing that little bitch Patty to apologize to him for the way she treated him during the length of he and her mother’s courtship before finally blowing her brains out. Possibly showing her that her little boyfriend was in on it the entire time before the kid took her last breath.



Jack didn’t really enjoy killing people though. Some of his friends, his girlfriend included, really got a rise out of it, but for his part, it just made him queasy. He was more into the struggle, watching them squirm and beg for their lives. He would much rather leave the killing to someone else. Maybe that’s where that stupid kid would come in handy. He nodded at himself, happy with his decision as he finally made his way to Patty’s door. Standing there for a minute, he listened carefully to see if he could overhear anything being said, but when all he heard was breeze hitting the door he moved forward and opened it not at all pleased to find no one inside.





~*~*~*~*~*~




Nick carefully made his way out of the window, not allowing himself to look down at all. He almost slipped when it came to the slope of the roof but once he got to the tree it was easier than he thought it would be. In fact, if it wasn’t such a scary situation he might suggest they do it again. He was happy to feel the ground beneath his feet when he took that one final jump though. That’s when he allowed himself to look up just as Patty made her way to the tree.



She seemed like an old pro with the speed of which she descended down from branch to branch. Charlie made it down even faster taking one final jump and clapping his hands together. “Alright, we’re down. Now what?”



“Now we take a bus back to my house.” Nick said as he started down the driveway with Patty following close behind.



Charlie wasn’t sure why he allowed them to leave but now that he did he wanted to change his mind. Knowing it was a bad idea, he grabbed at his girlfriend’s sleeve, causing her to turn around. “What are you doing?”



“This is a mistake Patty.”



“We have to go before he figures out we left, Charlie.”



Nick had already made his way around the corner while the couple was standing still at the end of the driveway. He made himself stop running when he felt as if he was alone. Once again he found himself struggling with his instincts. The scared kid in him wanted nothing more than to just keep running. Let the two of them catch up, everything would be fine, but that wasn’t how he was raised. None of his siblings would ever do that, let alone his mother so he turned and ran back towards the house only to find he had made the wrong decision when he saw Jack standing there in-between Patty and Charlie.



“There you are, we were just going to come looking for you.” He said with a very sarcastic smile on his face. Charlie wore a frown while Patty’s lips were white and small from freight.



Nick looked at Patty unsure of what to do. He could run for it, but then it would definitely let Jack know something was up, so he played it cool, “Sorry.” Was all he said as he approached the man and the two teenagers.



“You kids are going to be in big trouble for that.” Jack said as he led all three of them back into the house, making sure no one was watching from the houses next door.



~*~*~*~*~*~




Kevin was unsure what to think as he sat listening back to the 911 tapes from when Ariana called for help. He didn’t want to believe it, what his brother and his own instincts were telling him but as he listened in on her humdrum, non anxious tone, he couldn’t help but become a little suspicious. She made it sound like she had other things to do that were far more important than making that call and that thought alone made the detective queasy.



“Did you find what you were looking for?” Startled Kevin looked up to see his father standing in the doorway of his office. “I feel like no one let’s me know anything anymore.”



“Hey dad…yeah I was just listening to the 911 tapes from Howie’s attack.”



“Why?”



“I just wanted to make sure we weren’t missing anything.”



“Are we?”



“What?”



“Missing anything?” Kevin got a close up look at his father. He had huge bags under his eyes as if he hadn’t slept in weeks. He looked troubled about something.



“I don’t know.”



“Where’s Nickolas?” The eldest Richardson asked as he took a seat next to his son and rubbed his eyes.



“I brought him to Patty’s house.”



“Do you think that’s wise?”



“Why not? It’s probably a good thing for him.”



“Her father kidnapped him Kevin! And besides, isn’t he not feeling well? I mean you came back from your camping trip early because he was sick.” He said angrily.



“Relax dad, he’s not going to be there long. I’ll probably drop by and pick him up after I’m done here.”



“Seems like he should have asked me if he wanted to go somewhere.” There was that familiar trace of resentment mixed with jealousy in his voice which made Kevin want to leave the room in a hurry. He wasn’t in the mood for this, not after starting to think his best friend’s wife isn’t all she’s cracked up to be. Why didn’t Ariana sound more upset about her husband being attacked?



“Is everything okay son?”



He looked up at his father and nodded, not ready to tell him the thoughts that lived inside his head, “Yeah…I guess maybe I’m a little tired myself.”



Both men just sat in silence at that point. There was so much they wanted to say to each other but neither made the first move. Both of them so consumed with their own anxiety about things going on around them, they were unwilling to ask for help from each other. When Kevin would look back on this day, he would remember it as the day he should have told his father what he was thinking. That conversation would have led to both of them sharing so much with each other. The dark secrets from the past that Kevin Richardson senior held on the inside wanted to come out that day, all it would have taken was an excuse to do it. The opportunity was lost on both men though and instead, after a few more minutes of silence, Kevin stood up and walked out of the room.



~*~*~*~*~*




“AJ, would you stop being so paranoid?”



“I’m sorry babe, that’s Nick’s fault not mine.”



“You really think she’s hiding something and that your brother knows what it is?” the couple was having a conversation as they sat at a corner booth at their favorite coffee shop, sipping on hot cocoa.



“I just have a feeling you know? I’ve always been able to read Nick and I can tell he knows something about her. And that stuff I found about poison…I don’t know Stace, something just isn’t right.”



“Don’t you think you should tell Howie then?”



“Right, I’m so sure that would work. Howie I think your wife may be evil but I’m not sure. I’m looking into it though. Yeah… That would go over real well.”



“Kevin then?”



“He said he’s looking into it which means he has his suspicions too.”



“You know what I think?” She reached over and grabbed the last bit of brownie from her fiancé’s plate, “I think I am marrying into the most paranoid family ever!”



“We aren’t paranoid honey…just cautious. You’d be too if you went through what we did.”



She felt bad about the way he responded to her, the coldness in his words as he moved his hand away from her own and started fiddling with his watch. Sometimes she allowed herself to forget about his past. She didn’t know him back then but the past still lived inside of him though.



“I’m sorry baby…I didn’t mean to downplay what happened to you back then.”



He smiled, instantly feeling sorry for letting his emotions get the better of him. How was she to know what it was like anyway? How sometimes in the middle of the night he sat up straight and felt for the wound on his chest. The wound that was nothing more than a scar these days but still hurt sometimes, especially when he was troubled.



“It’s coming up you know.”



“What is?”



“The day it all happened. It’s coming up soon.”



“You don’t really talk about it much.”



“There’s really not much to talk about.”



“Well, I’m here for you if you feel like you want to talk.”



He stopped playing with his watch and once again extended his hand, reaching out for her. This woman meant everything to him. He was very lucky to have her. “I know that…I love you.” Maybe he would tell her everything tonight. Tell her all the feelings he had living inside of him. Not be the tough guy for once.



She stood up to leave, “I’ll see you later tonight.” She moved in for a kiss which he gladly gave her and then he watched as she walked out the door.



He decided he would do something he vowed never to do. Search his little brother’s room looking for more clues. See if he was hiding anything else in his desk drawers or computer. He felt bad doing it, but at the same time he reminded himself as he once again felt his scar, that it needed to be done. If there was a chance that Nick was getting in over his head he had to be there to bail him out. Something he was unable to do all those years ago.



Knowing that his father wasn’t home or Nick for that matter gave him the perfect opportunity to go home and do some snooping, so, AJ paid the check and headed out the door.



~*~*~*~*~*~




“Brian, how much do I have to pay you to get rid of the maracas?” Howie asked as he flung a pillow at Brian’s head.



“What’s your deal Howard? How can you not like these things?”



“Maybe if you had any sense of rhythm at all, but man…you should be arrested for shaking those things.”



“Well, now I’m hurt. You have hurt my feelings Howie D.” Brian pretended to cry while Howie just rolled his eyes and shook his head.



“Shouldn’t you be working or something?” He asked lovingly after a few minutes.



“Is that your nice way of telling me you’d like me to leave?”



“I just haven’t had any alone time with my wife…” He said glancing over to Ariana who sat quietly in the corner of his room looking out the window as if she was in deep thought. When she heard her title, she made an attempt to smile at her husband but there were so many things racing through her mind all she wanted to do was leave. She stood up then and walked over to him. If she didn’t make an exit now, she’d be stuck in this room all day and there was no time for that anymore. Her plan was now moving forward and she hated the fact that while it was, she was stuck here with him. Truth was she didn’t entirely trust that her boyfriend could handle everything that needed to be done. She had to make sure that she was on top of things.



“Honey, I forgot that I had to drop some stuff off at work.”



“I can do that if you want.” Brian offered as he stood up to leave.



“No, it’s something I need to do. You know how I’m the only one who knows how to access all the servers. I forgot that I had a deadline to make today.”



“I’m sure that because of the circumstances…”



“Brian…you know my wife and if she has something to do than she needs to go do it.” Ariana smiled wide then, looking down at this person who she has shared so much of her life with. It seemed like such an anticlimactic way to see him for the last time. Maybe she would drop by once more. She could leave Nick in the car with Jack and run up and say goodbye. At least she was leaving him alive. One day, he’d just have to understand why she did the things she did. For now though, she bent down and kissed him on the lips, gently rubbing his cheek with the back of her hand as she moved away from him.



“I love you.” He said just as she started to walk out the door.



She sighed then, feeling a deep sense of sorrow, “I love you too.” She said, quickly leaving the room before she allowed the tears to fall from her eyes.



Brian sensing the disappointment in his friend, decided to sit back down and grab the sombrero from the end table nearest Howie’s bed. “Well my friend…looks like I’m staying for a little while longer now.”



Howie tried to act as if this was terrible news but he couldn’t hide the smile from his face, which made Brian glad. “Whoopee!” He said as he held up his finger in the air and twirled it around in a circular motion.



Unaware that after today, his life would never be the same.





~*~*~*~*~*




Nick bit on his bottom lip as he heard the door click behind them. He was in trouble, this much he knew. He only wished he could asses the level of trouble he was actually in. This Jack guy wasn’t really coming off as someone who was ready to kill them or anything else but there was just something in the way he said they were in trouble which made Nick really take those words to heart.



“Jack, it’s really no big deal. I take the bus all the time.” Patty argued, feeling embarrassed for being treated like a small child.



“I don’t care; sneaking out of your bedroom window was dangerous young lady.”



The older man motioned for the teenagers to take a seat on the couch to which all of them did, with Nick hesitating slightly. He had an idea, well not like a genius plan or anything but more like a way to see if there was more to him not letting them leave then met the eye. He was hoping he was wrong, that maybe his paranoia was just getting the better of him, but he still found himself hesitating before allowing himself to ask the question.



“If I could just use your phone for a minute then, I’ll call my brother and ask him to come over and pick us up. Would that be okay?”



“I’d love to let you, but the phone ain’t working right now. Stupid phone company was supposed to come out and fix the problem but they haven’t yet.” And that was the answer Nick was looking for. They were in a whole lot of trouble alright.



Nick stood up, “I need to use the bathroom,” He said as he slowly walked past the man who was watching him like a hawk. Once in the bathroom, he locked the door and then grabbed his phone from his jacket pocket.



A wave of nervousness coursed through him leaving a trail of goose bumps as he dialed his brother’s number. What would he say exactly? It’s not like he was being held against his will…yet anyway. Maybe he would just ask Kevin to come get him, not tell him anything else. Once he and Patty were safely with his brother, then he would finally divulge all the information he had. Once they were safe though, that was the biggest concern at the moment, their safety…even Charlie. Unfortunately for him though, all were moot points as no matter how many times he tried to dial the phone he couldn’t get a tone. There was no signal.



“Shit!” He muttered just as Jack knocked on the door.



“You okay in there son?”



“Uh…yeah, I’ll be right out.” Nick quickly answered as he placed his phone back into his pocket and hurried out the door. Jack was standing right there waiting for him with a worried look on his face.



He felt the man’s hand on his back as he was led into the living room. “I was beginning to worry,” Patty said, despite the objection shown on her boyfriend’s face. “Are you feeling okay?”



“Yeah, but I really should be getting back home. Are you sure you don’t have a phone I could use?”



As if it was the worst timing in the world a shrill ringing was heard that cut through the house, almost making Jack jump. He went for his phone which was in his pocket and moved to the hallway. “You have horrible timing.” He whispered once he was sure no one would hear him.



“Why?”



“Because your stupid brother was asking me if he could use the phone and I just got through telling him I didn’t have one that worked. Now what do you propose I do?”



She grit her teeth in frustration just as she got out of her car at her first stop. “Why is he asking you questions? Why didn’t you just do what I told you to do?”



“It’s a little more complicated then that.”



“How so?” She knew she should have never left this job to him. He was sure to mangle it up.



“Because there are three kids here and I don’t know what to do…” He suddenly felt an urgent need to get off the phone. While he was talking they could have easily escaped again. He wasn’t about to tell her they tried it once and almost succeeded.



“Just take care of the other two. I don’t give a rat’s ass about them. Get Nick to our rendezvous point. I’ll be there in an hour.”



“Okay.” Was all he said, anxious to be off the phone. Play time was over, now was the time to take action.



Ariana clicked off the phone and shook her head at her boyfriend’s incompetence, now sure that on top of everything else she was going to have to deal with the other two brats as well. “Well I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it, for now it’s go time.” She said as she carefully looked around her father’s house making sure no one was watching. Once she was certain it was safe, she moved to the front door and let herself in.





~*~*~*~*~*~




Once Jack left the room, Nick wasted no time in grabbing for his own phone again. If Jack was able to get a signal out here, he would be too, and sure enough the bars on his phone lit up as he speed dialed his brother’s number. “Hurry Nick!” Patty whispered, hearing Jack’s voice not too far from where they were standing.



“Come on…pick up!” He urged the phone as he paced back and forth.



“Nick, hurry the hell up!” This time it was Charlie who sounded urgent.



“He’s not picking up!” He said just as it went to Kevin’s voice mail message. He fidgeted when he heard Jack’s footsteps slowly moving back towards them. “Kevin, it’s me…you need to come pick me up at Patty’s as soon as you get this. I think there’s trouble.” He clicked his phone off and placed it in his pocket just as Jack turned the corner and made his way back into the room.



“Hey kids, we are going to go for a little ride.” The detached way he said that, made Nick’s heart drop.



“Where are we going?” Charlie asked, actually falling over his own words as he did. He sounded like a scared, child.



“Well, we’re going to drop you off at Nick’s house.”



All three teenagers looked at each other, knowing he was lying. “You know…on second thought…maybe I’ll just walk home. I don’t live too far from here.” Charlie said as he made his way to the front door. Jack was quick to move in front of him and block it.



“Oh no, I insist. It’s not a bother at all.”



Nick running out of ideas almost made a huge mistake. He actually had to stop himself from saying his brother was on his way. The truth was, he couldn’t let this guy know he had a phone with him. So running out of options he had no choice but to stay quiet. “I’ll give you directions.” He said in as steady a voice as he could muster. Trying his best to just pretend he was a player in a very unique video game. He’d outsmart this guy and get his friend’s out of this safely.



“Let’s go then…times a wasting!” Jack said as he ushered the kids out of the house, feeling his jacket for the gun he had and making sure the silencer was on there as well.





~*~*~*~*~*~*~






Ariana made her way into the house and up the steps to her brother’s room. She knew she had always planned on making this stop right before she took him for good. Make him feel as comfortable as possible, just like last time. Bring him things from his home that he would love to have. So, she took the duffel bag she had brought with her and began looking for items that seemed like things the kid would want to bring to his knew home with her and her boyfriend.



She should just kill him, that would have been the easiest scenario, but there was always something about Nick. Maybe the one thing that she felt she could hold onto that would make her part of a real family, as sick as that may sound.



She expected his room to be a mess, just like all teenage boys. She was surprised to find it pretty clean. Even the bed was made. What she wasn’t expecting was to see AJ sitting there at Nick’s computer with a shocked look on his face. “What are you doing here?” He asked as he looked down at the duffel bag.



Ariana just stood there, adrenaline pumping through her veins, not sure of what to do next.