Page 1 of Bodyguard Crush
1
ABBY
“Mom, I’m fine. I promise,” I say into the phone as I sit in the lounge chair, watching the staff as they desperately try to patch up the window that was just busted from the outside.
“You’ve contacted the police, right?” she asks in her concerned voice.
“Yes, they’ve been made aware of every occurrence. There’s just nothing they can do. By the time they get here, whoever is doing this is long gone,” I tell her, making eye contact with Sofia, the maid, as she makes her way up to me with a note in her hand.
“This was taped to the brick, ma’am.” She hands over the note. I unfold it and skim over the sloppy handwriting.
I told you I’d find you. You can’t run from me, Abby.
Love,
You know who.
My blood turns to ice water as my heart begins to race. My lungs suddenly feel deflated. Like no matter how hard I try, I can’t get in enough oxygen. My hands begin to shake as I read the words over and over.
“Mom, it’s him,” I manage to get out. The amount of fear in my voice alarms even myself.
“Are you sure?” she asks, low into the phone.
I nod, knowing she can’t see me. “There’s…there’s a note.”
“See, I told you running out to the middle of nowhere wouldn’t do any good. All you’ve achieved now is distancing yourself from the rest of the family. Now we can’t keep an eye on you. We won’t know when you are in trouble. And when you are in trouble, it’ll take us too long to get to you. I’m calling in a bodyguard, Abby. I know you don’t like the idea and you want your privacy. But you are my daughter, and I want to make sure you’re safe. Understand?”
There’s no use in arguing anymore. “Yes,” I agree.
“I believe your brother said he has a military friend out there. I’ll give him a call and set up an interview.”
“Okay. Thanks, Mom.”
It takes her a moment to respond. She’s probably too surprised. “You’re welcome. In the meantime, stay inside with the staff. God knows how easy it would be to grab you when you’re out at those stables all alone.”
I smile. She knows me too well. “I love you, Mom.”
“I love you too. You’ll hear from me soon.”
“Bye,” I say, hanging up the phone. My eyes fall back to the note in my hand, and then I glance over to the busted window, watching the staff cover the hole with a piece of cardboard and tape until the window repairman can get here to replace the whole window.
I’ve only lived here for a few short weeks. I can’t believe this is starting up again.
My family has always been the center of attention. My mother and father are both famous actors from the early nineties. They met, fell in love, and became one of Hollywood’s hottest celebrity couples. Even with the odds stacked against them, they managed to make things work with as few scandals as possible. They’re still married to this day, having brought not only myself into the world but also my older twin brother and sister, Sam and Janissa. We’re a close-knit family, but we’re all very different. Sam joined the Army the moment he was old enough. He wanted away from Hollywood and the limelight after getting into some trouble in his teen years. Janissa was always very shy, quiet, and super smart. She went to NYU and got her degree in fashion. She spends most of her time in London, Milan, Paris, and New York running her fashion empire, only returning home for big holidays. And me, well, I’m the baby of the family. With siblings so much older than me, Mom turned a lot of her focus on me growing up. She’s the one who got me into modeling as a child and then into acting when I was old enough to read and remember lines.
My siblings were in the limelight because of our parents, but I’m in the public eye because my life isn’t my own. I’ve worked in major motion pictures and done smaller stuff like guest appearances on popular sitcoms. My face is splashed all over magazine covers, and up until I left California, I was stalked by the paparazzi. The past year of my life has been spent stalked by someone else, and it’s just my luck that even though I kept my move and the building of this house a secret, he’s found me and followed me here. I did have a few months of rest and relaxation, though.
“The police are on their way to get our statements,” Sofia says. “Is there anything I can get you while we wait?”
Letting out a long breath, I shake my head as I lean back in my chair, getting comfy as I know I’m going to be here for a while. I’m not saying that the police around here aren’t doing their jobs, but every time they’re called, I get the feeling they’re here just to stare at me instead of getting to the bottom of what’s really happening.
They can’t figure out what’s going on any better than we can. Eight-foot brick walls surround the whole property, and a ten-foot iron gate out front blocks the drive. I’ve even considered the idea that maybe we gated this guy in during the build. The property is rather large with almost two hundred acres, but that means he’s basically been living out in the wilderness, and I find that hard to believe, considering how long I’ve lived here.
“The police are here, ma’am,” Sophia says.
I hand her the letter to give to the police, and she rushes toward the door to greet them. I stand and give my reflection a once-over. Each time the police are here, a different officer is with the chief. It’s like they’re all taking turns getting a look at me and the way I live.
I have a stray hair that’s almost in my eyes, so I comb it back in place with my fingertips. My long dark hair is falling into its natural curls today, hanging low on my back. My blue eyes are big with alarm, and they’re sparkling with unshed tears. My cheeks seem a little more hollow than usual, but with everything going on, I haven’t had much of an appetite. In fact, my jeans are fitting a little looser today as well. I should count my lucky stars that my mother is just sending over a bodyguard and not coming herself. She’d take one look at me and see how badly of a job I’m doing at taking care of myself and maintaining my image, something that comes before all else to her.
