Song: Grenade by Bruno Mars

Chapter Seventy-one: Zane whatever-your-middle-name-is Rivers

>>>>Zane's POV<<<<

My phone started ringing. I ignored it. It cut and then the person started calling back.

Rule number 1. I can't answer calls when I'm exercising. It's distracting.

Well, except when it's my Cherry. I turned off the treadmill and grabbed my towel from the handle. I wiped my sweat off as I came off it and headed for my duffel bag.

One of these days, I'd drag her lazy ass to this gym room and make her exercise. Not because she needed it, but because I needed to spend more time with her. Goddammit. How could I have been so lucky?

I went to my room and had a quick shower to wash off all the sweat. Cherry was probably calling to tell me she wouldn't be able to make it, so I got ready to go to her house instead. As I entered the car and settled down, I finally picked up my phone. I looked at all the missed calls.

Remember how I said that I'm not going to pick calls when I'm exercising, except if it's my Cherry. Well, if it's her scary younger sister, I might reconsider.

I picked the call.

"Well it's about time Bruny." 

"What?"

"Don't you what me? Why isn't Char picking my calls?"

"I don't know. Ask her."

"Well, if she'd pick my calls, I would be able to!"

Why was she yelling at me? What did I do now? It's too early for her to say I've caused any trouble.

I rolled my eyes. "Are you that lazy that you can't walk to her room to call her? I mean, she's directly opposite you, isn't she?"

"Huh?"

"She promised she'd come over this morning before she went to your old house and she isn't here and now you're calling me to ask of her. Is this is a prank? Did she put you up to this?"

I heard some rustling in the background, then I heard her mother screaming at me. "Zane Rivers! If you do not put my daughter on the phone this instant, I'm grounding you and her for life. She knows we have guests coming over, and we have to stop by the old house before they get here, and she still slept over at your house. If you want me to ground the both of you, I promise you I'll do it!"

"Sorry, but what are you even talking about?"

Rev was back on. "I'm trying to calm Mum down, but she's pressured because the guests that were meant to come over last night had their flight delayed, so they'll all be here this morning. Charvi needs to come home now."

"Cherry is not here!"

"What do you mean she's not there? Has she left already? I don't think there's traffic, is there?"

My brows creased. "She wasn't at my house."

"But she left with you last night."

"No she didn't. She went to pick up- Oh shit, shit, shit. I'm on my way right now!"

I cut the call and started the car. Cherry did not go home last night. Where could she be? Did she go with her cousin? Maybe she slept at his house. But she would have called, wouldn't she? 

With all the thoughts running through my head, I had a bad feeling about this.

**********************

I knocked on the door and it was opened by her mother immediately. She pushed me aside and let her eyes search the driveway until they landed on me again.

She's quite scary. Probably where Rev gets it from.

She stomped back into the house and I went after her. She stopped in the foyer where everyone seemed to be waiting for Cherry. "Zane whatever-your-middle-name-is Rivers! I do not know what kind of game my daughter got you to play, but now is not the time. The moving van is already waiting at the house. We have to go now."

"Mrs. Rivers, I am not with your daughter. She did not go home with me last night."

She faltered. "Tell me you are joking."

"I'm not. She isn't with me. She went to pick up her cousin last night."

Shane's brows furrowed. "Cousin?"

"Yes your cousin. Darien."

"What do you mean she went to pick up Darien?" Shay's brows furrowed. "Darien is in a boarding school in Alabama."

"What?" I exclaimed as it finally sunk in. "It can't be." I started pacing back and forth. "She said there's no more Jaxon shit." Panic gripped my chest. "This is all my fault. I should have gone with her. I shouldn't have let her persuade me."

Rev moved forward with a horrified look on her face. "Don't tell me Jaxon took her."

I turned to her. "You know about him?"

"Who the hell is Jaxon? And why would he have my little sister?!" Shane exclaimed.

I turned to their mum. She seemed to be having a panic attack. "My daughter is gone. She's been kidnapped. Shay! Call 911!"

Shay reached into her pocket and dialed 911, but I had already stomped out the room. I didn't know where I was going, but I knew I had to get my Cherry back. She was the best thing that had ever happened to me and I am not going to lose her because of some dipshit.

I heard footsteps running after me. Rev caught up to me. "I am going with you."

"I don't even know where I'm going."

"We can meet up with the guys. Ask if she told them anything about Darien. We have to do something."

I nodded as I entered my car. Rev entered the passenger's seat and I started driving towards Xander's house.

*****************

"What do you mean she's missing?!" Xander exclaimed as he stood up and started pacing around.

We were at Xander's house. I had called the rest of them to meet Rev and I here. They weren't too happy about me calling them without a reason to meet up on Thanksgiving morning.

"I mean exactly that." Rev explained.

"I have a plan. Somehow." I started. "So Jaxon pretended to be Darien-"

I was cut off by Leyla. "I don't know any of the people you just mentioned."

"She didn't tell you about Jaxon?"

"Well the name sounds familiar." Leyla pointed out.

Zahra snapped her fingers. "I think he's the brother of that hot turtleneck boy."

"Ohhh. Those brothers. There was one who had photos of her and one who told her his brother had photos of her." Leyla clapped as she recalled.

"I'm confused." Kai said.

So was I. Sort of.

"I'll just explain. We all know she was Avery. And when she was a waitress at Tate's, she met a guy who became obsessed with her. That's Jaxon. He tried to kidnap her once, but I was there."

"Yeah. That is where I know up to." Rev said.

"He started stalking her and had people watch her where she went to."

"I knew it!" Xander exclaimed. "And she denied it when I asked her about it."

"He took her phone that time. And used that to get Darien's identity. Darien is her cousin."

Kai's brows creased. "Shouldn't we know him?"

"Dicky." Rev expatiated. "That was the nickname Zahra gave him and you guys stuck to."

"Oh little Dicky."

"That is besides the point guys. This is serious." Xander reminded them.

"Why didn't you guys call the police?" Leyla asked.

"Because she said we had no proof and that he had friends on the police force."

"How did she know that?"

"Because she was friends with his brother."

"She was friends with the brother of her stalker?"

"It's complicated. Anyways, Jayden told her that Jaxon was no longer interested in her. That's why I let her go pick Darien up herself."

"Why did she need to pick Darien up?"

"Because Jaxon made up some lie that Darien was by himself on thanksgiving-"

"And as the selfless person she is, she invited him and fell into his trap." Zahra completed for me.

"Exactly."

"So Jayden was actually a snake?" Kai asked.

My brows creased. "What do you mean?" 

"Well, I mean he lied to Char that Jaxon wasn't interested in her anymore because he knew she'd tell you and that you'd let her go pick Darien by herself."

Realization struck me as I stood up from my seat. "I knew it! I warned her! That jerk! When I see him, I'll rip him apart. Limb by limb."

"Do you know where we'll find him?"

"No, but I may know where we'll find Cherry. She showed me the location she was headed to pick up Darien."

"Tell the police." Kai said.

"Were you not listening to me? There are two things wrong with that. Firstly, her mum has already called the police. And once that has happened, the report of a missing girl would be all over the news. If I told them where she last went, it'd be on the news too. And he'd see it and move her from there. And two, if Jayden said that Jaxon had friends on the police force-"

I was cut off by Rev. "If he lied about Jaxon not being interested in her, he might have lied about Jaxon having friends on the police force."

"True, but should we really take our chances?"

"No." Kai said. "Let's go there."

********************

"Hello?" Rev knocked on the door.

We were in front of a convenience store at a deserted gas station. We had been driving for about an hour, but I assume it's afternoon already. It was Rev, Xander and I. Kai, Zahra and Leyla went to look around the area, but it was mostly trees for miles. 

The light was on in the store, and it had the open sign on it, but for some reason the door was locked.

Rev knocked again, but no reply. 

"Should we just leave?" Xander asked.

"No. Char and I learnt how to pick locks at camp. I can do it." She reached into her hair for a hairpin, but there was no point because the door was opened just then.

A big, burly guy was standing on the other side with an annoyed face. "What do you want?"

"Well it's a convenience store and it says open." Rev pointed out.

He seemed to notice because he stepped aside and opened the door for us to enter. We walked into the store and looked around. Apart from the unwelcoming store owner, it looked like a normal store. With normal food. I looked around before my eyes turned to a metal door. I started heading towards it, but the man stopped me. "Where do you think you're going?"

Well, I'm looking for my girlfriend and she might be here.

Instead I said, "What is down there?"

"The basement, where I live."

"Can I check it out?"

That was a stupid question, but I was trying my luck.

"He wants to make his own house under his store." Xander supported.

"He has a store?"

"Yes."

"You kids should leave. I am closing up."

"It's the middle of the day. Why close up now?"

"As you can see there are no customers."

'We're customers." Rev pointed out.

"No. You're nosy kids. Leave before I call the cops."

"We need to see what's behind that door."

"Out now!"

"Do you know who he is?" Rev pushed me forward. "He is a well-known billionaire's son."

I rolled my eyes at her. Did she really expect that to work?

"So? Do you know who I am? I am the owner of this store. I am the boss here. And I would call the cops for trespassing."

Rev shrugged. "His parents would just bail us out."

"I didn't want to have to do this, but you left me no choice." He lifted Rev up. 

"Whoa! Whoa! Put her down!"

She kicked and thrashed but he was too burly for it to have any effect.

"I will." He walked to the door. "Outside!"

"You could be arrested for that." Xander pointed out. 

"No proof."

My eyes darted around the store and I noticed there were CCTV cameras everywhere, but the CCTV monitor wasn't up here. Someone else must be watching us. I nudged Xander and pointed at the cameras. He seemed to understand.

"Fine. We'll leave."

"We will?" Rev asked.

"Yes we will."

Xander and I walked out the door and the man dropped Rev. "I promise you'll pay for that." He just ignored her and closed the door and shut the store blinds.

We started towards the car when Rev asked why we left. Xander and I explained it to her. We called Kai to come back with the girls. They said they hadn't seen anything and they didn't want to go too deep into the woods.

"If you think she might be in there, why not go after her?" Rev asked.

"Because we are being watched if we make a move, it could affect her. We have to try a different strategy." I expatiated.

They all agreed and we headed back to Cherry's house. 

*******************

I know that a Zane POV should have come sooner, and when she's kidnapped might not be the best time to put it, but I'm okay with the time I put it. I felt like the chapter was too scattered, but I hope you guys didn't mind it. So, how did you find the update?

Please vote, comment and share. Thanks and Toodles ;)