Quote of the day: happiness they say is free, you don't have to go a thousand miles to find it, it might be just right under your nose.

     Ashley stared at what was on her bed in horror, feeling her whole being drooping down. She fell down on the floor, gripping her knees close to her chest, tears spiraling down her cheeks.

   She looked closely at what was on her bed, she didn't need to go far with searching to know who did it. Her whole bed was scattered, her blue bedspread was torn into tiny pieces, and her white mattress had blood stains all over it, written on it boldly with blood was the sentence...

     I WILL GET BACK AT YOU SLUT.
                                                       H.W

   Ashley knew the H.W staring back at her was her father's initials; Hunt Wells. Her feeling of dread had been right when she saw her father at Spain. The man always found something to obsess with, and it was only natural that his next target would be her, he never liked her from the very day she was brought to this world.

     How on earth did he manage to find her in the first place? If he could find her, then she didn't need lectures on what he could do to her when he finally gets his hand on her.

   This was it, she had brought a whole new length of trouble upon herself, upon Greg, and maybe his sister, and father, definitely Chloe...

    Ohh Chloe!

   She scrambled to her feet and ran to Chloe's room, she didn't know why she hadn't thought of it before when she noticed the door was wide open, Chloe was careless sometimes, but not so careless.

   Getting to Chloe's room she met the door opened, it was wide open, she ran inside.

    "Chloe!"

   There was fear written all over her, she was ready to take anything but she definitely couldn't bare the loss of Chloe. She wouldn't be able to forgive herself, No!

    "Chloe!" Ashley called again, fear resounding in her voice, but still there was no answer. She went to check her in the bathroom but she wasn't there, at that point she broke down in her bathroom, she knelt there crying her eyes out.

      "Oh no, Chloe!"

She knew what her father was capable of first hand, although he never for once abused her physically but she knew what he did to other people, but she never thought her father would take Chloe away, the man knew that Chloe was her only source of happiness.

   So it shouldn't be a surprise to her that he would abduct Chloe first, he needed ways to torture her, and she must say he had succeeded.

   Ashley knelt there unmoving thinking of ways to get Chloe back when she heard the front door banging close. Her heart jumped out of her chest, Chloe was the only one who bangs the door this way, but she knew her father already kidnapped Chloe so who was it? Her father.

    She stayed where she was, still visibly shaken. She was scared of her father finding her, but she needed to see him, she needed him to let Chloe go. It didn't take long before she heard Chloe's room door banging close, she gripped her chest with fear, expecting to hear heavy footsteps anytime from now, but instead she heard soft ones.

       "What are you doing?" She heard an inquisitive voice asking. The voice sounded all too familiar, it sounded like the usual shrieking voice of Chloe, she looked up instantly to see Chloe staring down at her with confusion.

     Ashley screamed with joy and stood up immediately pulling Chloe into a hug. She sobbed into Chloe's green mini gown, and soon she felt Chloe's hand going around her.

     "Ashley, what is going on?" Chloe asked with concern, running her hand through her auburn hair.

    "I... I... I thought... I lost you," she stuttered quietly between sobs.

    "Lost me? Believe me Ashley you aren't getting rid of me that fast. Not until you have given me atleast two Marshall God children," Chloe said with sarcasm and Ashley couldn't help but feel a little relieved. She pulled out of Chloe's embrace and stared into her grey orbs. "What happened Ashley?"

     "Where were you?" Ashley asked.

    "That is actually a little confusing," Chloe said walking into her room. Ashley followed suit leaving the bathroom, she sat on the bed along with Chloe who had confusion written all over her face. "I got a call from an unknown number saying that  a package had been left for me close to the church. I left the house immediately thinking it was my parent again, I had wanted to give them a piece of my mind... But..."

      "But what!"

    "There was nothing there, and when I called the number again it wasn't going through, so..."

     "Oh no!" Ashley said with fear. She could tell it was her father who pulled that stupid prank just to get Chloe out of the house while he did what he came for.

      "Ashley what is wrong? why the little display in the bathroom? When did you get back? And why are you so scared?"

     "My...my father is back," she said with a graven voice.

      "What!"

   "He trashed my room, and I think he was the one who called you so as to get you out of the house."

    "Wait what..." Chloe said standing up. Chloe headed out of her room with Ashley following closely behind. Chloe gasped loudly when she stepped foot into her room.

        Ashley got in a little too slowly, she wasn't ready to see the state of art her room was again. Chloe turned on her heels grabbing hold of her hand, she lead them both out of the sickening room into the sitting room. Chloe sat her down and began to pace about, it was beginning to worry her.

        "There are a lot of questions Ashley, why would your father be after you?" Chloe asked once she stopped her pacing.

     "I can't say..." She answered truthfully. She really couldn't tell why her father was after her.

      "What does he mean by him getting back at you?" Chloe asked again and her answer still remained the same, she doesn't know. But she sure as hell knew that her father had meant it when he said he would get back at her, and there was nothing anyone can do about it. "For all I can remember you should be the one getting back at him, not the other way round."

      Chloe continued with her pacing, this only increased the speed of her panicking heart. Ashley tried to figure out reasons why her father would be after her and she came up with none. The only thing her father had ever been interested in was Cassandra, the only force that drove him was Cassandra, everything he did had to do with Cassandra one way or the other.

     So she could come up with nothing,  except that...

     Oh no!

  Ashley knew what her father wants, it was revenge, she knew nemesis would catch up with her one way or the other, but she didn't know it would be this fast, her life was coming to an end fast... Every thing was crashing before her very eyes in a flash.

      "Ashley, is there anything you are not telling me?" Chloe came closer to her sitting beside her on the couch.

      "I think I know the reason my father is after me."

      "What is it Ashley?" Chloe asked cupping her face with her two hands.  Ashley tried hard to stop the tears that was threatening to spill out but she couldn't, Chloe wiped the tears clean with her hands, pulling her into a hug. "You can't tell me right, its okay Ashley. I know there are things you are hiding from me, but just know I'll be here when you need a listening ear."

       "I know Chloe, I know, and I appreciate you a lot, but I just can't tell you now, I can't, its hard Chloe it is," she said sniffing.

     "Ohh," Chloe pulled out of the hug and stared at her with an eureka look in her eyes. "You have to let Greg know Ashley."

      "No!" Ashley screamed out of fear. She couldn't involve Greg in this, it was more complicated than it seems.

     "Why Ashley? Greg is a lot more involved in this. You said your father saw him with you at Spain, so why not let him know. I won't be surprised if your father tries to involve him in this again, why not tell him"

    Chloe was right, but she couldn't involve Greg, involving him would mean him finding out that she was the girl from that night because her father would definitely spill. She couldn't afford that now, but things are beginning to get more complicated with her father's reappearance, it seemed she had little to no time to leave again.

      "Ashley please don't zone out on me now, I believe things are more dangerous than you make it look, why not let Greg know." Chloe's voice and eyes were pleading.

     "Chloe it is a lot more complicated than you think, and even more dangerous than what you see now...I think you should maybe leave this place for the main time. At least till my father is off the radar," she said quietly staring off into space.

      "Leave this place, and leave you alone!" Chloe said with a bewildered look on her beautiful face. "you know that is very impossible Ashley. If you have decided to face this alone then we are doing it together, I'm going nowhere baby... No where!"

     "Chloe, you don't understand, it is too dangerous my father..."

    "Whatever it is Ashley, I'm going nowhere and that is final!" She said standing up, she walked out of the sitting room. "I'm going to clean up that room, and you can sleep with me and my babies from now on, because I'm definitely not allowing to sleep in that creepy room."

    "Okay," Ashley said watching her friend leave. She sat where she was for  a while thinking of what to do, she should have left a long time ago when she found out she was working for the Marshalls, but her stupid self didn't listen.

    Now everyone was in trouble because of her, she pulled her auburn hair with fury, things were getting out of hand faster than she had expected.

   She had to find her father and make a truce with him, she needed to do it now, before her father did something worse than this. And once she finds her father the next thing for her to do, is to leave New york altogether.

   She had to get out of Greg's life, and she had to do it now.

 
  Chapter thirty two.
Mary Aden.