Chapter 50: Spidery senses

POV: Gabby / Zac

Word Count: 3241

October 19, 2009

Shawn’s tattoo outline had come out perfectly. The guy even let me do a single line at Shawn’s request. I’d gotten out of the house and had been fine to sit there for hours and watch, they more than accommodated me. We had then gone shopping some mostly I needed groceries at the house and to pay a few things. I’d been sleeping better because he hadn’t sent anymore messages, maybe I had finally gotten through to him that I didn’t love him. I’d gone to bed kind of late and intended to sleep in today.

It wasn’t anyone that woke me up but it was something…I felt something in the bed with me moving. I opened my eyes but it was still fairly dark in the room. I laid there a moment, maybe I’d just moved wrong but no…there was something on me. Something was on my leg, something small but the familiar prickle feeling, the familiar movements. It wasn’t until I felt the same familiar feeling on my other leg that I screamed and flung covers everywhere. I didn’t think I could move that fast but I was out of the bedroom in just moments. I leaned against the wall but when I opened my eyes there was another one right there looking at me. Where the fuck the spider came from was beyond me. I went downstairs, as fast as I could but as carefully as possible.

“Sierra!” I yelled.

I could feel the overwhelming feeling of panic. I was sure the scream should have woken them up. I got to the foot of the steps but I was feeling a bit dizzy, yet there by the door were more spiders. They didn’t even look real but it really didn’t matter. I side stepped them and headed to the main room but there on the table in a cage was a huge tarantula.

“Sierra?” I called.

I put my back against the wall, all around the living room and counters were spiders. Thousands of them, but they didn’t seem to be moving and I was fading fairly fast, I could barely hear myself calling for Sierra, but then I heard footsteps on the stairs. Had she been up-stairs?

“Gabby…Gabby…Gabby...”

That wasn’t Sierra and it wasn’t Jack either. I tried to stall that panic attack that was threatening to take over.

“Closely guarded secrets, you hid this one very well. A overwhelming fear of spiders.”

I could hear footsteps on the floor and someone was there, all black and his face was covered in a plastic black mask. But he was holding a spider in his hand, tarantula or something. Petting it, but even he was getting fuzzy around the edges.

“Maxwell never mentioned this, but then again he was very mum on you. Told me a few times to leave you alone, that was before the sodomy and shit, by the time he died he was probably wishing he never met you.”

He was coming closer with that spider and while I was trying my best to focus on him, I couldn’t. I’d already slid down to the floor and my side was cramping badly. I was aware of him when he kneeled down, he was so fucking close to me but again the spider in his hand was so much closer.

“Simon didn’t know about this either, he squealed easily and especially after the foot came off. Spilled his guts like I’d sliced him open. No. It took locating a little family on a farm, visiting them and just asking about you. He told me all about the spiders and how you reacted, how he was sure it was a strong fear.”

He held the spider even closer to me and I could barely even say Sierra’s name. I couldn’t move to push him away and I could barely even think, to top the problems I could smell the musky scent. He held the spider a little closer.

“Go ahead Gabby, tell me how you won’t be with me. Tell me how your next child won’t be mine. Tell me how you hate my little gifts. Tell me how much you won’t be with me.”

I could feel the pain in my side but I couldn’t do anything about it or the paralyzing feeling I was experiencing. I couldn’t speak, I couldn’t even gather enough sense to try to move or do anything. The sound of breaking glass seemed to scare him as much as it did me, because the spider in his hand was dropped right in the center of the cleavage and I felt a sharp stinging pain. But I could feel the little feet, feel the prickly feeling. I heard commotion, heard voices, but by the time someone was moving my face they were just a blurry haze.

“Gabriella, hey! Come on, no no..Don’t.”

But the world was fading faster than I could stop it. I vaguely remember hearing sirens but it was several hours later before I came too in a hospital. I was in the room with three nurses and clearly there was a problem and it wasn’t long before I felt the sharp pain and that’s apparently when they realized I was awake. I mean, I’d know too if my patient screamed out like I had.

-Zac-

We’d been up since before dawn and were at the second of five radio interviews this morning. Not all cities had these types of press but we did put some in to start promoting the new album and to get buzz going. We were mostly through the interview when I felt my phone buzz, but I ignored it for the moment. Gabby knew we were here so she knew to expect me to call or message. Yet for a solid five minutes it kept going off. It was like the person was calling me over and over.

“Zac.” Taylor said.

I got my phone about the time it started to ring again and it was Shawn’s number, at the same time Chase send a message in all caps telling me to answer the fucking phone. It was very unusual for them both to be calling and texting me in that manner.

“It’s Shawn and Chase told me to answer, finish without me. Just tell them family emergency.”

I got up and walked out, who cared if I seemed rude or not, the fact that two were calling and the fact Shawn was calling meant I had to answer. Because well, it was probably related to Gabby.

“Hello?”

“Where the hell have you been?”

“Radio interview, why are you calling me? Is Gabby okay?”

“Gabby’s at the hospital.”

I felt that immediate sense of dread. “Why is she there? What happen? Put her on the phone.”

“I can’t put her on the phone, she hasn’t woken up yet. That sadistic little fucker put spiders all over the fucking house. Your cousin Chase came by the house about 7:30, he was going to hang out a bit or see if he could bribe her into breakfast out, get her out of the house. Anyway, he said he saw a strange ATV around back and went back to check, he came by the back window and saw her sitting in the foyer floor with a guy in front of her with a mask. He broke the back door to get inside, attacked this guy who fled.”

“Where the fuck was everyone else? She’s not suppose to be alone.”

“Heather and Sierra went to the city, Heather’s father had a heart attack and she called Jack. He didn’t realize they were leaving right then, he arrived as the ambulance was leaving. He and Chase are here, Chase called me when he left the house and I met them here. She’s unconscious and she has a bite on her chest, Chase is sure it was a spider bite, he recalls one falling.”

“Fuck! This is why I told her she needed to just come with me! She probably passed out, she did the last time one was near her.”

“They put a monitor on her, she’s having contractions Zac.”

“WHAT?!” I yelled.

Everyone in the hallway stopped and turned to me, confused and unsure on what was going on. I must have gotten very loud before Taylor and Isaac poked their head out.

“They’re not consistent, but they are giving her something to stop them. She’s not dilating or anything like that. It could just be stress related. They are going to monitor her for a long time, especially after she wakes up.”

“Zac?” Ike asked.

“I’m coming home.”

“You don’t have too Zac.”

“You just fucking told me she was in the hospital and having contractions, you expect me to stay here?”

Taylor and Isaac both looked stunned and Ike closed the door.

“Zac, odds are they will stop.”

He was trying to tell me that but then I heard her and apparently he did too, I heard something about call back and then he was gone. She had screamed out in pain and he expected me to just be fine!

“What the hell Zac?”

“The son of a bitch broke in and put spiders all over the place. Chase came over and broke a window to get inside and attacked the guy. She apparently got bitten too. The hospital said she’s having contractions that aren’t steady.”

“The interview is done, we’ll cancel the rest. Let him call you back and make sure. If you need to go we’ll just cancel.”

Isaac handled canceling the remaining interviews and I went ahead and found out when flights left and when I would need to leave. It was about an hour and a half before he called back.

“I have a flight picked out already, what is going on?”

“She’s awake, the bite is minor just a little red. Her heart rate and breathing are back to normal, her blood pressure has stabilized.”

“The contractions?”

“They’re losing intensity and already starting to get farther apart. Her doctor is here and thinks the stress from the spiders being there just caused some major pain. She’s fine.”

“Put her on the phone Shawn.”

“There checking her right now Zac, I’m not in the room. They wanted to make sure that she’s not dilating. I did not want to be part of that.”

“Does she have her phone?”

“No. It’s at the house.”

I waited very impatiently before he said he was going back in. The call hung up but then a video call request came in so I answered. She really didn’t look comfortable or fine to me.

“Do I need to come home?”

“No. I’m fine. She’s fine. They are doing a sonogram just to make sure where she is.”

When they started she turned the phone toward the machine, there was the familiar whoop whoop sounds of the heartbeat. Which sounded strong and stable. I’d never feel more relief hearing that.

“She’s head down, this is her feet here.”

“Is that normal?” Gabby asked.

“Yes. After about 28 weeks and definitely before 36. Here is her thigh here and she is definitely a she.”

Even I could tell because she wasn’t moving, I couldn’t deny it anymore. We weren’t having a son, we were having a daughter. I just needed to accept that. It was hard thought because I swear I saw what I did, swear this baby was a boy. But, evidently I didn’t see things clearly.

“No pain?”

“No ma’am.” She said.

“I see nothing wrong and her heartbeat is steady and strong. I’m going to keep you for tonight though, mostly just to monitor and make sure those contractions don’t come back. I’m thinking they were stress related and could be Braxton Hicks too.”

“Do I need to come home doctor?” I asked.

She must have realized I was there then, looked a bit worried and Gabby had to explain.

“I don’t believe you will need to come home for this. If they start back you should have time but I am pretty confident they won’t come back. She’ll be here until tomorrow morning at least and the mucus plug is still intact showed no signs of moving, she isn’t dilating at all. I think she’s going to be just fine.”

She handed the phone to Shawn while they got her comfortable, he stepped out into the hallway because they’d be moving her around.

“I’m staying with her, I’m off tonight anyway. Once she is in a room the detective will talk to her, they are at the house now and Chase is there too, he had the doctor do something and then took it back to them. Also, he needed to explain what he saw.”

“Thank you for calling.”

“You’re her husband Zac, of course I’ll call. Give her a few hours and I’ll have her call you back.”

“Okay.”

I let Taylor and Isaac know and waited. The several hours made me just want to be home. I fretted, toyed with going home anyway, played games and lost and eventually broke down and cried. I felt so fucking helpless being this far away. I couldn’t put my arms around her and tell her she’s fine, I couldn’t stomp this fucker’s ass into the ground. I couldn’t do anything and that bothered me so much.

Gabriella called me a few hours later, it came from her phone number so obviously someone brought her phone to the hospital.

“Did they get you settled?”

“Yeah, my own room for the night. Chase is here right now and Shawn went to get himself a bag. Chase brought mine. You got a little bit of time?”

“I’m not doing anything until I am sure I don’t need to be there with you.”

“I am okay Zac. The baby is okay. The pain has stopped and unless it starts again they see no reason to be concerned. I’m here only as a precaution because of the pain. Which if that’s what labor feels like, fuck that.”

I giggled. “You’ll be fine.”

“Speak for yourself.”

“So, what happen?”

“I woke up because I felt something on me, realized it was a creepy crawly and freaked out. There was another one in the hallway and when I got downstairs there were hundreds, I think they were fake though. I called for Sierra, I didn’t even know they weren’t there. I heard him come down.”

She detailed what she remembered him saying and I just wanted to stomp him some more. I mean really, how arrogant was this prick? He’d been inside the house and that close! Chase took over once she was done to explain what happened.

“I came to see if I could just hang out, spend the day there, extra person basically. I know during the day it’s just the ladies. I parked and I saw an ATV off to the side of the house. I knew neither of you rode them so I went to the back, figured I’d just come to the back door and saw this guy there with her in black with a mask. She was sitting on the ground and he was kneeled, I thought he’d hit her. I broke a pane of glass and went inside. Hit him pretty fucking hard if I say so, we struggled and he got free and ran out the back. Left. I told the detectives he is physically like me but smelled musky and I think he had long hair, I tried to get that mask off.”

“Did you notice anything that could identify him?”

“Not really. I swear that I got a piece of him when we were scuffling, so I had a doctor here scrap under my nails and preserve it. I turned it over to the police. I’m hoping I got blood, tissue, or something.”

“So, what happens now?” I asked.

“Well, Heather and Sierra feel horrible but I can’t blame them.”

“How did he get inside?” I asked.

“The detective played the video back, Heather disarmed the alarm and stepped onto the front porch about three am. She had gotten a call from her mother at that time, she was outside fifteen minutes and he came in the back door, he hide in the art area until she was back in the room and then came up-stairs. They left a little while later and he just disarmed it, which is why it didn’t go off when Chase broke the window.”

“Which I called Andrew’s uncle and he’s fixing it today.” Chase said.

“So what are you doing to make sure he doesn’t come back?”

“I’m going to stay the next several days going to take the couch. Jack is going to stay also. We will call in Bradley and Stella. Heather and Sierra will be in the city for several days.”

“How is her dad?”

“Recovering nicely. It means he will have to change some things but over all he’s going to be fine.”

“I should come home.” I said.

“You don’t need too. I’m fine.”

“I don’t like this.”

“I know, but I’ll have Shawn and you know he’s going to make me sit my happy ass right here.”

“I know. I just feel like I should be there.”

“Well, in two weeks you will be. But, I know you have the walk soon and I need to get settled. Shawn is going to bring me food. Jack is making sure the spiders are gone and Chase is going to sit here and stalk me until Shawn is back. I’m fine. She’s fine.”

“I’ll call you after the show and if anything changes you better call me Gabriella.”

“I will.”

I let her go, filled them in again and then we prepared for the walk and show. I know I was distracted and neither of them called me out on it.

He was inside our home. He put spiders inside our bed and all around the house. The fucker was trying to scare her, evidently so much to cause her to go into labor. He’d almost succeeded. I kept myself from exploding on fans or anyone else and I was pleased that several actually asked me how she was, how the baby was. But, I didn’t give them much information beyond they were fine.

The show itself went fine and after we were showered, I did sign a bit before I got on the bus and settled. I then called her back. Shawn answered her phone on the first ring.

“She fell asleep. Do you want me to wake her up?”

“No. Is she still okay?”

“Yes. No more pains, no more problems. They’re going to release her first thing in the morning. The window is fixed, the spiders are gone.”

“Okay. I was just checking on her. Have her call me in the morning.”

“I will. She’s fine Zac, I’ll make sure of it.”

“Thank you.”

“You go get some rest too, she’s being taken care of and if anything changes I will call you.”

I felt better knowing she was fine and that nothing had changed, but I still felt like shit for not being there. I headed to bed rather early and replayed which people we knew that could possibly fit Chase’s minimal description. There were still so many possibilities. I finally fell asleep sometime around three am.