Chapter 2
Once at Spencer's they all updated Emily as to the status of their other halves.
"I talked to Caleb. He is about half way to knowing where the original broadcast came from. Should have it within the hour he said." Hanna went first with her update.
Spencer took a few minutes longer because Toby was doing this as an Academy graduate so he couldn't have his fingerprints on anything even with how corrupt the cops in Rosewood were. "Toby is keeping watch around the cabin in case someone catches on to Caleb's hacking. He knows how A works. Or…..he used to know. One thing is for sure," she started as she set her phone down and leaned on the island in her kitchen, "He wants to do this as fast and clean as possible."
"Thank you guys." Emily told her friends but wa only half paying attention.
That was when the tv actually switched stations on it's own and there was another 'breaking news' alert
All the girls stood up and went to stand in front of Spencer's television. The breakaway happened and there was Paige again. Still in her bounds and in a chair. Hair was half covering her face this time but you could tell she had taken a few more hits. Her eyes looked up and into the camera that was pointed at her like she was searching for Emily to understand. Almost as if she was saying 'i love you' one last time before it was too late. Emily could feel this and reached for a seat almost immediately. This time the Black Hoodie stepped into view behind Paige and grabbed a handful of her hair and tilted her head up so her neck was exposed fully but her eyes were still visible. The hair that was covering her face had swept to the side almost as if brushed so her face could be seen. The black and blue bruises already starting to show on her cheek and jawline with blood mixed in as the gashes became more apparent.
Jaws dropped all around the group but Emily was the only one who was even slightly vocal when it sounded almost like a whimper coming from her throat as she took the scene in.
The altered voice spoke again. "Catch me if you can, Liars. Even if you do find me, you still have to stop me." Still unable to see any face or hair from below the hoodie there was nothing to give away the person behind Paige. Fist still in Paige's hair the hoodie moved to her side and took a fist to her face to backhand punch her before cutting off the broadcast again.
Spencer broke the silence first after turning the tv off, "I don't know about you guys but I can't just sit here and wait for the next news break to pop on. I want to do something. Hanna, do you think Caleb would object to us coming out to the cabin to be ready when he gets the hit?" Spencer had her 'game face' on and they knew she wasn't taking a no for an answer.
Nodding Hanna pulled out her iPhone and started to dial her boyfriend. "Hey, yeah, we just saw too. We are going to come out and keep you company until you get a location. No, I'm not giving you a choice, this is for Emily. Okay. See you in a little while. Bye." She hung up and sighed as she put her phone back in her pocket. "Okay, he's good with it." Hanna told Spencer and the girls with shifty eyes because they know she was on the same page as Spencer now.
Grabbing their coats again and discussing car arrangements before leaving out the side of the house. It was going to be Spencer and Aria in Spencer's SUV and it was Hanna and Emily in Hanna's car. Emily almost won the argument about wanting to take her own car so she could get to wherever it was Paige was quicker but both Hanna and Aria silenced that saying they all drove faster than she did.
No one turned their radio on and they didn't talk much the whole drive over to the cabin where Caleb and Toby were hold up trying to work on finding the location of the broadcast. Everyone was scared because they knew it could have been any of them who was taken on their way home but they were also angry that A had the balls to do this. After all of the almost completely hands-off bullying and stalking and threats A kidnaps Paige at dusk and then broadcasts practically torturing her on the news. Who exactly does A think he or she is?
Spencer pulled into the driveway about a minute before Hanna and they both waited in their cars for Toby to come all the way around the cabin and give them the 'all clear' saying it was safe. Once inside they all gave a collective sigh before Hanna kissed Caleb and Emily thanked him and Toby for doing this for her.
Now came the waiting game. Caleb was doing his thing on the computer typing away as fast ass he could trying to find where Paige was and Hanna, Emily and Aria were sitting on the couch and trying to work on small talk but it was lacking. Spencer went outside to help Toby watch the house. Emily didn't feel safe anymore. She hadn't gotten a text from A this time like she had after the last broadcast and it looked as though Paige was being hurt a lot. Unsure if it was because she was Emily's girlfriend or just because A thought she was an easy target, no one had that answer. The rage building inside of Emily was uncommon for her. Sure, Emily had been mad and even angry before but the rage she was feeling now almost had her fists shaking. Emily was passed being scare of A and moved on to being done with this game that A loved to play. Whomever A was needed to be taken down and Emily felt like she was going to make sure that happened so she could save Paige and live a real life with her. Free of all the torment from a faceless person and the threats that person made to her and her friends.
Aria spoke up to break what little silence there was, "Who do you think is behind this? I mean, I know A is signing the papers but do you think there is someone else who planned it?"
"It does seem weird that it was Paige taken and not one of us or something…" Hanna offered.
"Alison." Emily let out absentmindedly.
Hanna and Aria turned to face Emily now. "You think that Alison could be behind all of this?" Aria asked.
"Huh?" Emily focused her eyes and turned to her friends. "Alison what?"
"You said Alison could be behind this." Hanna said a little annoyed.
"Oh." Emily looked down and played with the hem of her shirt for a second. "It's just, Alison tried to tell me that she loved me. That she lied when she said she was playing 'pretend' with the kisses we had before she disappeared. Maybe it angered her that Paige and I were back together and that we all turned on her so she was going to hurt me most of all. I'm the loyal one. I bet she thought I would never turn on her." She tried to explain her thinking to her friends.
They nodded in unison at what Emily said. It made perfect sense to them that Alison could be behind everything.
That was when the air left the room and no one could breathe.
"I found it." Caleb voiced loudly. No excitement but a hardness to his voice. Paige and he had bonded and became friends over trying to keep Mona in check and away from their girls. Caleb liked Paige and was just as ready as Emily to take down whoever it was who took her to begin with.
Emily was slow to stand as the others stood quickly and Caleb went to get Spencer and Toby. It hadn't been but a few hours since the first broadcast and Caleb had really found her.
"Emily, are you ready? Do you want my car or Spencers?" Hanna questioned as Emily finally stood fully.
Emily shook her head clear of the thoughts in her mind and looked at Hanna and Aria. "Your car. Grab Caleb. Let's go." Nothing but slight anger in her voice as she walked out of the cabin then with Aria hot on her tail.
Standing next to Hanna's car was when Emily finally remembered to breathe. They were going to find her girlfriend, Paige. Somehow Emily felt like this was her own fault for daring to fall in love and trying to have a normal life while someone was stalking and tormenting her friends and her. Everything felt wrong but Emily wasn't sure if she would trade everything with Paige up until this point.
Hanna and Caleb came walking from around the house and to the car. "Ready. Aria are you riding with us too?" Hanna asked the smaller girl.
Aria looked from Emily to Hanna. "Yeah."
"Okay." Hanna nodded before they heard Spencer and Toby walking towards the now.
"I'll back out first and you can go ahead of us." Spencer told Hanna as she walked to her car and got in.
"I called in the address. The cops are taking this seriously. I sent it in anonymously so they can't ask me how I got it before they did. We will follow you. Emily," Toby went around the car and stood in front of her. Pulling Emily into a hug now, "please wait until I get there to go inside. I have my gun. We are going to end A tonight if it's the last thing I do. I love you." He told Emily before letting her out of the hug.
Emily looked into his eyes and told him okay. She knew Toby was wise to have next to her when it came time to go inside wherever A was holding Paige so she wasn't going to argue.
Everyone got in the car with Caleb in the front with the computer telling Hanna where she was going. Emily and Aria were in the back seat and Aria took Emily's hand into her to hold and squeeze and tell her that she was in this too. None of her friends were going to let A win anymore. No one was going to save the girl and get out and leave A to torment them again. As happy as Emily was about everyone being done with A and wanting A gone, she couldn't help but wish they had been done sooner so that Paige didn't have to have gotten hurt to show the lengths A was willing to go to now.
The car started to slow and Emily took her hand back so she could scoot up and see through the middle of the front seats where they were. In the distance, off to the left side, they could see the lights of the cops that were on the way.
Spencer pulled up to the right side of the car and rolled down her window as Caleb rolled his down. "Do we want to wait or should we go in now?" She wanted to know. More so asking Emily than anyone else in the car.
Emily looked back to the left and tried to calculate how far off the cops were and how much time they would have before they got there and pulled out a speakerphone to announce their presence. "Let's go now so we have time to grab A and be quiet about it. I don't want to give ourselves away so whomever A is get's away."
Hanna and Spencer parked and everyone got out as quiet as they could. Toby and Emily went first followed by Spencer, Aria, Hanna and Caleb. It was almost like an abandoned barn but it had been turned into a business at some point before it was abandoned. Maybe A had bought it and this was A's lair now….
Toby pulled his gun out before he very quietly turned the knob on the door and slipped in followed by everyone else. Having to stop Emily a few times from going ahead of him Toby was almost ready to send her to the back of the line. They went through the lobby and into a second room that was dark and empty and into a third that was the same way. They stopped and Toby asked the group if they wanted to split up now and try both of the doors out of this room at the same time or stick together. Spencer was actually the one who objected to the splitting up of the group for the first time.
"You are the only one with a real weapon, Toby. If we find A first what are we going to do? I'd rather take longer and stay together then split up and more of us get hurt as well." Spencer whispered quickly.
Everyone agreed and switched spots in the line they were in. Toby and Emily always being in front. Into the middle room of the place they were in and they took it slow letting their eyes adjust to the growing darkness they were finding as they went deeper into the building. The door at the back of the room looked like one of four in this room. Still no one wanted to split up so they took a vote on which door to go through first. The back door won out.
"Okay, if A is in there Toby you will shoot right?" Emily asked to make sure this was the end of the line for their hooded enemy.
Putting his gun in the holster before giving Emily another hug, "You can bet I will draw blood and unmask this asshole ,Em." He assured her.
Gun back out and leading the way, Toby took a deep breath before very slowly turning the knob on this door. As soon as it was an inch open he could see a light at the far end of the long room they were headed into. Throwing open the door without caution, Toby yelled freeze at the black hood standing in front of the chair that looked like it held Paige in.
That's when they heard it. The cops, outside, talking through the speakerphone, "Whoever is in there, come out with your hands up. Let the girl go and you won't be harmed."
It all happened so fast now. A ran towards them and a gun went off. Without stopping, A managed to knock all of them down except Emily who was torn between running to Paige and running after A. Door after door slammed open as A ran out of the building. A second and third gun shot went off. Hoping that it was the cops bringing down A Emily ran to Paige and untied her head so she could breathe better. Caleb gave her his knife to cut off the zip ties on her wrists and ankles that were bound to the chair. Carefully leaning down and pulling Paige into a hug instead of a kiss seeing how swollen her lips and face were, Emily felt the hot wet tears falling fast from her eyes and soaking into Paige's tank top. There were new cuts on her upper arms and her jeans were torn around the calves. Emily had only moments to hold her girlfriend before they heard a very familiar voice from behind them.
"Let her go Emily." Alison yelled with venom in her voice.
Emily let Paige go and turned around to see Alison holding a gun pointed right at Paige. "Alison, you don't want to do this." Emily shot back with just as much venom in her voice. Everyone recoiled to the wall and watched the interaction. They didn't notice that Toby had his gun by his side but it was trained on Alison all the same.
Alison loved that everyone moved to the wall to give her a clear shot. "Oh, I do want to do this Emily. I'm Head A just so we are clear. I set this up. I wanted you here. I wanted you to watch me take everything you 'love' away from you my loyal pet." Alison's venom was felt in Emily's bones now. This was in no way about having Emily for her own or even a choice of 'if I can't have you no one else will' because Alison didn't actually want Emily.
Moving in front of Paige to block her from Alison's view Emily wasn't sure what to say back but she wanted to keep her talking. "So it was all your idea? To kidnap someone innocent and torture her for nothing? Or was it because you wanted to make sure you actually died and it wasn't just fake for those two years?"
"Oh, I don't plan on being the one to die tonight. I will go through you if I have to." Alison told Emily without a care. "Mona started what I wanted her to and I came back in when you all exposed her. I wanted to make it harder for all of you. To up the game. Ezra got in my way though. I was pleased with Shana when she shot him on that roof top. I wasn't pleased when Aria killed her. Meant I had to start doing things my self. So I am." Narrowing her eyes now and lifting the gun in her hands slightly, "Move Emily. I don't want to have to shoot you but I will."
Toby moved so quick no one really even saw it. A loud gun shot as he took Alison down. He was done with her dialogue. He didn't shoot to kill but he took out her right shoulder and a quick second shot took out the bottom left of her abdomen. He was trained to shoot where there would be no internal bleeding from hitting an organ or something.
Cops came through the door and kicked the gun away from her. Calling for a second ambulance on his walkie one of the officers asked Toby how he learned to shoot like that and Toby let him know that he was a recent graduate of the Academy. He knew how to write up the report he was going to need to for discharging his gun as well. They talked for a few minutes before the ambulance got there. The cop that was watching Alison read her the miranda rights and made sure she knew that after the hospital and some slight recovery in there she would be going to jail.
An hour later after statements were given and everyone was cleared, Paige was treated for her injuries and released because she had no broken bones, Emily softly kissed Paige on the lips and helped her slide into the back of Hanna's car. Aria rode with Spencer so that Emily and Paige had room in the back to sit. Emily requested to be taken back to Spencer's house so she could get her car and take Paige home. Everything seemed to go in slow motion now. Emily looked over the wounds on Paige again while they were on their way home. Every part of her wanted to kiss every cut and every bruise.
"I'm so sorry." Emily whispered to Paige as she slid closer in the back seat. "I love you."
It hurt Paige to smile and she winced but she tried her best. "I love you too Em. I would do anything for you. Don't be sorry. This wasn't your fault."
Emily was scared that this could happen again even knowing that Alison would be behind bars and there was no more real A anymore. Wishing on a shooting star was all she could do to hope that their lives could be really normal now. "Paige, I would go to the ends of the Earth to make sure you were okay. You make my life happy."
They share another soft kiss as Hanna pulled up beside Emily's car and parked. "We're here. Be safe you two. I'll check on you both tomorrow." She told them as they got out.
As Emily and Paige got into her car there was something different in the air. Both ladies could feel it. "Paige, I really love you and… I had wanted to give this to you for a couple months but I need to give it to you now." Emily pulled her school ring out of her pocket and held it up to Paige. "I never want to be without you. I was so angry tonight when I had to wait for Caleb to find where you were and I just, I don't want to feel that way again, ever. I want to be yours forever Paige McCullers."
The tears were falling from Paige's eyes without care. "Yes. Forever, Emily. I want to be yours too. I love you so much." Her voice was quiet but emotion filled.
Emily slipped the ring on Paige's finger and they kissed once again. No care in Paige as she kissed Emily hard with passion and a happiness they hadn't experienced before. They were going to be together for life. It was all either of them had wanted for the longest time but hadn't said out loud. When they were done Emily started the car with a wide smile on her face and drove them to her house where Paige's mom and dad still were. As she went to sleep that night, after the questions and hugs from parents, her dreams were filled with a whole new life and a wife by her side on their wedding day. Emily couldn't of been happier unless Paige was in her arms. Soon…..
