** What She Doesn’t Know.. Vol. 1

Ashley murmured in her sleep. Angel stared at her while she slept. She was glowing in the dark. Her beauty radiated off her face and arms into the dark room. Angel reached out an arm and gently shook her. Soft locks of brown hair fell over her eyes as she opened them. She stared at angel questioningly. Wondering why he woke her up.

As if to answer her question, angel leaned over and kissed her soft lips. A kiss so soft that it was barely felt. Ashley reached her hand out and pressed angels face closer to hers. Breathing heavily angel aroused out of the fluffy comforter. He wished for an air conditioner. It was way to hot in their apartment. Minutes ticked by, and the phone began to ring. Neither made a move to answer it. They let it ring. They thought that was the end when it started ringing again.

Angle reached towards the phone but Ashley pulled him back.

"Just let it ring"

Ashley rolled off the bed and wandered over to the window. Something told her not to answer the phone but to instead look out the window. That’s when she saw it. A car. A guy. Looking up at the high rise apartment. Like he was taking note of what it looked like. Ashley decided not to tell angel. She didn’t want him to worry about something that may be nothing. Ashley wandered back to bed and just lay there wondering what was taking angel so long.

When angel came back he was shaking. Alarmed, Ashley sat up and angel sat on the edge of the bed.

"Baby what’s the matter?" Ashley asked moving behind angel and massaged his shoulders slowly.

"The less you know the better. All I know is we’re in deep trouble."

"What do you mean?" Ashley asked slowly moving her hands down his arms, smoothing his tense muscles.

"The less you know the better, alright?" angel turned around and kissed Ashley again and again and again until she lost track of how many. Angel leaned in on Ashley who couldn’t support their weight so they went tumbling down on to the comforter. Once again involved in their own affairs.

**********

Leona and Elaina sat lazily on the side of the pool, soaking up as much as the suns rays as possible.

"Hey." C.j wandered up to Leona and kissed her softly and lifted her up on to his lap. He squeezed her gently and hugged her close.

"Where’s Jesse?" Elaina asked rolling over to tan her back.

"He had to make an important phone call."

Leona looked questioningly at C.J. what kind of important phone call could he be making. He doesn’t know anyone important. He doesn’t even have a job. Something seemed really wrong.

"I’m going inside for a while…I think I had enough of the sun for a day." She was going to find out what was going on.

**********

Ashley couldn’t let it go. She had to know what was making angel so mad. Last night after angel fell asleep she had gotten up to check to see if that guy was still there. He wasn’t. But she still felt strange about it.

"What do you mean we’re in trouble? How are we in trouble?" Ashley asked getting on the topic once again.

"The less you know the better." The same answer she always got.

Angel’s muscles glistened in the sun light. His biceps quivered, inching to smash something. Ashley was disappointed that he wasn’t talking. She knew he was upset and she knew what he could do when he was upset. She also knew how to calm him down.

She slowly walked over to angel and stared into his flaring eyes.

"Stop. I don’t want you to get hurt. You know how my temp…" he never got to finish the sentence. Ashley grabbed his face; still looking into his eyes she kissed him softly but firmly. She could feel his anger slowly slipping out if his body. He melted into her. He couldn’t help it. She had that kind of effect on him. Not that he minded. He liked when she took his pain away.

**********

Elaina walked over to Jesse. She could feel his anger radiating off him. "What’s wrong?" she asked C.j and Leona had disappeared somewhere in the house and probably wouldn’t emerge until later. So that left Elaina with Jesse. "Nothing you need to know about right now. If I told you, that would put you in danger and I wouldn’t be able to handle that."

Elaina walked out of the kitchen to find Leona. She needed to ask her if she knew what the boys were up to.

"Leona?" She called out. Getting no answer she ran up the stairs to their room. She only found C.j sleeping like a baby on Leona’s jacket. Elaina smiled.

Elaina sighed and went back downstairs. She felt so left out. Everyone else was doing something and she had nothing to do.

She figured if Leona was out there was one place she could be. The mall. The mall had everything in it. Brianna grabbed her coat and made a mad dash for the door.

"Where are you going? Jesse had followed her.

"Why do you care?" she asked. They had a weird love, hate relationship. One minute they were lovey dovy and the next they were enemies. Brianna guessed that now was when he wanted to be lovey dovy.

Jesse grabbed Elaina, rough but gentle at the same time.

"I haven’t seen you in a long time." He said, pulling her into a half hug. He loved the way she smelled. Like sweet apples.

He kissed her softly. "I missed you." he whispered.

"Stay with me." He said tugging her away from the door.

Elaina smiled. She could always find Leona later.

**********

Angel sank down into a chair. He couldn’t believe his past had caught up with him. The past that he never told Ashley about. He had been too afraid that she would break up with him if he did tell her. Angel held his head in his hands. He didn’t know what to do. He wouldn’t know what he’d do if she broke up with him. That would hurt him way to much.

**********

Leona wandered aimlessly about the lounge. She couldn’t think correctly. Something was happening. Something that she couldn’t quite put her finger on. What was that ‘important’ phone call that was being made while she was outside? Leona was no dummy. She knew when the boys were up to something. She just hoped that she wouldn’t have to bail them out when it was done.

**********

Ashley moaned. Her head ached. Something had happened. Something important. Ashley tried to move but she couldn’t. She soon found that her hands were tied. She was in a basement of some sort. Ashley began to scream. She was scared and didn’t know what was going on. The last thing she remembered was walking up the steps to the room that she shared with angel. Then it was lights out. Ashley continued to scream.

**********

Brianna jumped. She had heard screaming in the house. Jesse looked back up to her questioningly.

"What’s the matter?" he asked, trying to bring her back.

They were in the living room. They sat on the black leather couches. The glass table was dusty and over crowded.

"I heard something. Like screaming." She replied starting to make her way towards the sound.

Jesse froze.

"Wait here. Just stay in here and don’t go anywhere. I’m gonna go check some….things."

Jesse jumped up and ran. He tuned and ran backwards to make sure that Brianna stayed where he put her. He couldn’t let her find out. Not like that.

**********

C.j awoke with a start. The sheets were rumpled beneath him and were twisted and tied around his legs. He quickly untied himself and made his way downstairs. Brianna sat in the living room looking nervous.

"Have you seen Jesse?" she asked. C.j ignored the question and grabbed his coat.

"Where’s Leona?" he asked as he made his was to the door.

Brianna looked at him. Where else? That’s what her eyes said.

Cjs hopped down the stairs and into his car. He quickly started the car up and roared down the street.

He ran lights and went through stop signs without noticing.

It wasn’t until he felt a sudden shudder under his car that he pulled to a complete stop.

C.j got out of the car and checked to see what he had hit. That’s when he saw the girl. She just lay there. Her head was twisted and her neck gleamed with the blood and bones that spilled out of it.

The guy that was with her stared at the girl then stared at C.J. C.j looked at him closely. He could see the tattoo on his arm clearly. He was someone who killed for a living. Someone who could blow your head off and not even think about it. And it seemed that C.j had just killed his girlfriend.

C.j backed up slowly. He jumped in his car and roared down the street. He had to find Leona before the cops picked him up.

C.j pulled into the malls parking lot. He carelessly parked his car and entered the mall in a hurry.

He found Leona in her favorite spot in barns n noble. She sat in a corner in an over stuffed chair. She was thinking furiously, trying to figure something out.

"Leona….." He said. All the shock and anger finally sinking in.

"What’s the matter?" she asked alarm in her voice.

C.j turned and punched the wall over and over again. Leona jumped up and pulled him away. She pushed him up against a wall and held his face in her hands. Gentle but stern. She pushed his tears away.

"Tell me what’s the matter I can’t help you if I don’t know what’s wrong." She said softly.

C.j couldn’t speak. Everything was wrong. His life was messed up from the beginning.

**********