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Megan mentioned nothing about the fainting episode to Izzy the night after the concert or the next morning as they prepared for their drive back home.  She was too busy chattering about the concert and meeting the guys.  This had been a once in a lifetime experience for her, even the experience of dealing with their manager was exciting enough for Megan to talk about but no mention of Izzy fainting crossed her lips, it was almost as if Megan couldn’t remember it happened.


“Are you going to answer that?” Megan was asking Izzy when she tuned back into listening to her friend.


“What?” She asked and noticed her phone was buzzing on the nearby counter.  Izzy looked down and noticed Natalie’s name flashing on the screen.  She groaned internally.  She knew if she didn’t answer the call it would only fuel Natalie’s fire but she did not want to ruin her mini vacation already and listen to her friend gripe.  


Finally deciding to give in she pushed the green button on her screen and made a face at Megan as she answered. “Hello Natalie.”


She managed to talk her friend down after about ten minutes.  She didn’t understand her friend’s concern with her being with Megan for the concert.  Izzy told her that she would tell her about it when they got home and that she shouldn’t worry.


“How can you stand being friends with her?  She seems like such a controlling bitch.” Megan said when they finally got the car packed up and started on their way home. 


“She’s just acting like a big sister,” Izzy shrugged. Sometimes she wondered why she put up with Natalie, but every time she distanced herself from the girl she found she missed her after awhile. 


“Even big sisters need to back off,” Megan mumbled turning the car onto the on ramp for the highway.


The girls were quite with only the sound of the radio echoing through the car as they started on their trip back home.  Izzy was hoping that Megan wouldn’t be upset with her the entire time.  It was really none of Megan’s business regarding Izzy’s friendship with Natalie.  And it was none of Natalie’s business what Izzy did when she was hanging out with Megan.  Izzy tried to get the two girls to hang out once so she could hang out with both at the same time, but personalities clashed badly and Izzy never tried again.


“Sorry I was such a bitch,” Megan finally spoke as they pulled off the highway to grab some lunch.  “I want to stop here, it’s nothing but flat boring flat land ahead and I want to stretch and eat.” She smiled at her friend as they piled out of the car and into the fast food restaurant.  


“It was a long four hours.” Izzy smiled back at her friend hoping now the remainder of the trip would be easy going and fun like their trip out to the concert had been.  The girls ate slowly, chatting the entire time. Though they had several hours more in the car they seemed to be making up the lost time at lunch.  By the time they got back into the car they had lost valuable time.


“Shit,” Megan said when she got back in the car and looked at the clock.  “We should have gotten it to go; we spent way too much time in there.” She laughed and smiled at her friend.


They pulled out of the parking lot, neither one noticing the black SUV that pulled out after them. 


“That concert was the best I’ve been too,” Megan said, yet again.


“Oh?” Izzy asked. She’d only ever been to the one concert so she had nothing to compare it to. 


“The energy from the guys, the meet and greet, having you with me, all of those things just made the whole experience that much better.” Megan was smiling but her face soon fell and she looked concerned as she checked her mirrors.


“What’s wrong?” Izzy asked picking up on the concern on her friend’s face.


“There is a black SUV behind us that has been riding my ass for miles.  I keep slowing down in hopes that he will take the hint and go around, but he just slows down with me.” 


“Try going faster, maybe they just want to move and are too chicken shit to pass?” Izzy suggested finding it strange that the other side of the two lane highway was empty and a big SUV didn’t want chance passing.


“They’ve been passing the same cars as me; they just are staying right on my ass.” 


“Pull over and maybe they’ll get the hint.” Izzy craned her neck to look behind her at the SUV. She could see two men sitting in the front with a possible third guy in the back.  She felt Megan start to slow the car down and move to the side.   The SUV sailed on by and both girls let out a sigh of relief. 


“That was a little scary.” Megan noted leaning back in her seat with her eyes closed.    “I am going to wait a little bit before going again so that they are far enough down the highway that I won’t meet up with them again.” 


Izzy nodded in agreement and the girls sat staring at the SUV driving down the highway.  Soon it was out of sight and Megan put the car in gear and started along the road again.   Megan had chosen this particular route because she enjoyed the smaller highway, less people on the road but enough that you didn’t feel you were on a lone road to nowhere.   Soon the girls were chatting in their carefree manner again.


“So Izzy, I have to know.  I’ve been quiet about it because I kept thinking you would mention something to me, but what happened when you shook Brian’s hand?” Megan glanced between her friend and the road. 


Izzy didn’t quite know how to answer her friend.  How do you explain having memories of someone you’ve never met before without sounding insane?   She was saved from having to answer when both girls saw a black SUV coming towards them in the other direction.


“Was that?” Izzy started to ask but her question was soon answered when the SUV swerved around quickly and was following them again, going faster.  Megan pressed the gas pedal down but the SUV kept right on their tail. 


“Something tells me pulling over won’t help this time.” Megan was visibly scared for her life as she tried to go faster than the SUV.  The car lurched forwarded as they felt the SUV collide with them.  Megan pressed the pedal all the way to the floor and they managed to get away from the bumper of the SUV but only for a moment. 


This road wasn’t normally this empty, where were the other cars, Izzy wondered as the SUV collided with them again both girls flying forward and lurching back quickly.


“What the fuck!” Megan cried out as the SUV hit them harder forcing their car to spin around and off to the side of the road.  Thankfully they had not rolled but now they were facing the SUV and both girls could see the men sitting stone faced as they collided with the car head on.


“Megan?” Izzy shook her friend; the blood trickling from her forehead scared her.  Was her friend dead? All sorts of questions were running through her mind.  Why were these guys doing this? Were they looking for a fun time by running a couple of girls off the road or was there something more sinister?  She didn’t have time to think as the doors to the SUV opened and all three men started to get out.  Izzy undid her buckle and threw open the door. She hoped that if she could get away she would be able to help her friend.  She glanced at the license plate of the SUV and tried to remember the plate VTV-686. 


She took one glance at her friend before taking off through the field next to them.  The fence near the road where they crashed was low and she was able to climb it easily.  She looked back as she made it over and saw two guys heading in her direction, the third going towards the car. 


Izzy tried to run away from her would be captors but she was shaky from the accident and she was unsure of where she was going.  She tripped over a rock and fell flat on the ground.  She heard footsteps near her and she knew they’d caught up to her. 


She felt hands on her arms as they started to pull her off the ground.  The man holding still showed no emotion. 


“What do you want?” she demanded of her captor.  Neither one answered her. She caught movement out of the side of her eye and noticed the other man pulling something out of the pocket in his jacket.  Her breathing became faster, this man was going to drug her and take her somewhere or worse they were just going to do it all here.


Panic took over and before Izzy knew what happened she escaped the man’s grasp.  She swung her arms out attacking the man. She was shocked that her punches were thrown with precision, it was like she knew what she was doing but she’d never been in a fight before in her life.  Perhaps this was animal instinct taking over; perhaps when everyone fears for their lives they can fight. Somehow she doubted it and really didn’t have time to ponder her new abilities.


The man behind her grabbed hold of her trying to keep her arms down but somehow she managed to throw him over her shoulders and to the ground.  Quickly she brought her leg down on the man’s gut and then kicked his head, the angle it was now at did not look natural and Izzy was sure she just killed him. 


The first man started towards her again but she quickly evaded his lunge and used her elbow to his back to knock him down, he stood and faced her, a needle in his hand.  She knew that if that needle broke her skin it would be over for her.  He grabbed hold of one arm and moved the hand with the needle closer.  She managed to use her strength in her other arm to keep the hand away, slowly she freed her other arm and grabbed hold of the hand with the needle plunging it into the man’s neck. He looked at her shocked before falling to the ground. 


Izzy fell to the ground breathing heavily.  She was stunned she just managed to fight off two men who were bigger than her.  “Megan!” the thought came over her and she rushed back to the car.  The SUV was gone an ambulance replaced it. EMT’s were pulling Megan out of the car and attending to her.  She walked over and a cop took notice of her. 


“Ma’am” He started to grab her arm but she jerked her arm away.  After what just happened she wasn’t sure what was going on but she didn’t want to be touched. 


“Two men in the field,” She managed to get out between breaths. The cop nodded and he and another went out into the field where she just came from.   Now that she felt safe, Megan was getting help, the third man was nowhere to be seen, now Izzy let her legs give way and she collapsed to the ground in relief and exhaustion.