Chapter 10

By the time Laurel gets back to the hotel, it's after six. She knows that the DA has probably already left for the day and that's confirmed with a quick call. Their meeting is supposed to be first thing the next morning; she wanted to get it all settled, get Frank out as soon as possible. Now, though, she's going to have to show up without her bargaining chip and ask for more time. Hopefully, she has some leverage but she doesn't know how she's going to be able to convince him that she'll get back on Frank's case. She's not sure of that herself.

She orders some room service and changes into more comfortable clothing, trying to unwind from the downward spiral in which the last few hours have put her. Talking to Frank's mom helped a little, helped give her the motivation to keep going, not give up, even though it feels like she's climbing a mountain.

Sighing audibly, she falls back against the bed, laying there without doing much else. When she closes her eyes, she sees Frank's eyes, hears his voice. He's not in a jail though. They're on his couch years ago, and he's promising her that he'll do whatever he can to help her. She let him take the lead; she trusted him to do exactly as he said when she left Philly.

He's trying to protect her still, and Frank is nothing if not loyal. Annalise had been right back then. Frank's loyalty shifted to Laurel somewhere along the way. Bonnie said it herself too; everything Frank has done since she left has been to protect her. It's not going to be easy to convince him to let down his guard, to trust that she'll be okay. She runs a hand over her face, feeling weary and frustrated.

There's a knock on the door then, followed by a soft voice announcing "room service." Laurel gets off the bed and makes her way over to the door. The woman on the other side pushes a cart into her room and sets up the food on the small table. Laurel smiles and thanks her with a small tip.

The food smells great, and she realizes she hasn't eaten all day. She's been too consumed. She needs a break from Frank and this case, just a small one to refocus and get caught up on everything that she's neglected this week.

Grabbing her computer and phone, she sits down and begins eating while scrolling through her email. She has a follow-up email from her firm. They want to know about her bar exam, and if they are still on track for her start date. She silently swears; she's almost forgotten all about that. She stops eating to quickly type up a reply, letting them know that she has passed the bar but that she needs a little more time. She tells them she has a family issue out of town before she hits send. She hopes that will be sufficient.

She then turns to her phone and another issue she's been ignoring: Mark. He's not actually an issue, not really, but she's been so busy researching and planning and running around to meet with the DA and Frank that she hasn't been very attentive to his texts. His numerous texts. Each getting more and more agitated. She's tried to keep up with them but has really only given him a few short replies here and there, not providing many details. She can see his frustration is growing but she can't bring herself to be too upset over it. She's been solely focused on Frank, and she's not going to apologize for that. She just hasn't had time or energy for anything else.

She takes a minute, thinking about her words, before typing.

Hey, I'm really sorry I've been so MIA… I haven't been trying to ignore you; it's just been busy up here. A lot going on and a lot at stake. I hope you understand.

She hits send before taking a bite of her salad. She's not even finished chewing before she gets a text back.

When are you coming home?

That's it? She knows he's upset but she thought he might want to know about what she's been doing, if she's okay, something.

I'm not really sure. This is a little more complicated than I anticipated but I'll keep you updated.

Again, it doesn't take long to get a reply.

Yeah, okay.

Laurel frowns and shakes her head. She not going to feel bad about this. It's something that she needs to do, and if he loves her like he says, Mark should understand that.

Pushing her phone to the side, she turns back to her food but she's lost some of her appetite. Maybe she should have continued focusing on Frank after all. It's better to not complicate things in DC. Complications lead to problems, especially with Mark, and she's spent too long trying to force everything into a perfect version of what she's always wanted for her life. She's been doing everything that she should be doing, and she's been doing it well. Mixing that with Philly is not a good idea, and so she decides to let it go for the day. She can't fix Philly or DC tonight.

o0O0o0O0o0O0o

"So, I heard from transport that Delfino refused to come this morning?" DA Denver says as Laurel walks into his office. His lips form a smirk as if he's entertained by all of this. "Something about how you're no longer his lawyer. I guess he's dumber than I thought."

"He's not dumb," Laurel retorts, sitting across from him. "Annalise got to him; he thinks she's going to come after me, and he's trying to protect me. I'll get through to him though… And that's why I'm here. I need to make sure that we'll still have a deal once I fix this."

He looks at her for a long moment, thinking through his response.

"You know, Laurel, I don't have a lot of time here. The citizens are expecting me to move forward with this case. And if Frank won't give me what I need, then that's exactly what I'm going to do." He shrugs as if he's not willing to help her, and why would he be? The election is fast approaching, and all he cares about is what he can tout to the people.

"So, what? That's it? I can't get him here today, so you're taking the deal off the table?" she asks, sighing. She can't be defeated already.

"No, I didn't say that," he tells her with a shake of his head. "I can't give you a lot of time but I will give you a chance to turn this around. We both know that anything Frank has done has been for Annalise Keating. If I can get her, it's better all around. You have until next week, but then there's nothing else I can do for you, Laurel."

It's Friday, so that's not a lot of time, but it's something she can work with. She takes a breath and nods slowly. "Thank you," she says, looking up at him.

"You're welcome," he responds before looking down at a file in front of him, effectively dismissing her. She has to stop the urge to roll her eyes, not bite the hand that's feeding her. Instead, she stands from the chair, grabs her bag, and exits his office. It's really not a lot of time… Maybe if she can just talk to Frank again, get him to see her and actually listen, then she can turn this around.

Once she's in the hallway, she takes a deep breath and thinks about trying Bonnie again. Maybe the blonde will answer this time, offer some guidance. At this point, what can it hurt? She gets out her phone and hits the call button while walking down towards the bathroom. No answer. Again.

She sighs, pushing open the door. Before she can make it far, she hears a familiar voice behind her, one that immediately sets her on edge.

"Well, well, Miss Castillo, it's been a long time," Annalise says, and Laurel forces herself to take a breath as she turns to face her. "I didn't expect to see you here."

Everything about Annalise's tone and facial expression tell Laurel that she knew exactly where to find her this morning, is here because of her.

"You didn't?" Laurel throws back. "It's quite a coincidence that we both ended up in the same bathroom then."

Annalise silently shrugs, not too interested in keeping up the ruse. But the dark smile on her face reminds Laurel of how intimidating Annalise can be. "How's DC been treating you?"

That surprises Laurel, and she puts on a confused look. "DC?"

"Do you really think I didn't know where you were? That Frank was so smart to actually trick me?" She asks, her tone almost mocking. "I knew where you were, Miss Castillo, but it was easier to keep Frank in line if he thought that I would go looking for you again. He was always so easy to control."

"What did you say to him yesterday?" She goes straight to the point. Because isn't that the reason Annalise is here? She threatened Frank yesterday, and now she's moving on to Laurel.

Annalise shrugs casually. "We just had a little chat," she says.

"A little chat?" Laurel has to stop herself from laughing. "Must have been some chat. He kicked me out when I went to see him."

"Oh yes, I did hear something about you representing him."

Laurel shakes her head. "That's the only reason you went to see him. You felt threatened that I might be able to get through to him, that Frank might actually try to save himself after you put him there. And for what?"

That doesn't get any sort of reaction; instead, Annalise just continues on as if Laurel didn't say anything at all.

"Frank told me some interesting things yesterday. You know, he was almost able to stand up to me? He was so close but the second I mentioned your name, the second I told him exactly what I remember from that night, I had him exactly where I needed him. He's always been predictable when it comes to you or Bonnie or his family."

"What you remember from that night?" Laurel asks, confused. If she can get Annalise to fill her in, maybe she can use that with Frank.

Annalise looks at her for a moment as if it's the most obvious thing in the world. When she speaks, she puts on an air as if the words are truth, as if she were saying them to the DA, to the jury. "It was you that shot me that night. I had forgotten that detail in the aftermath but these past two years, going over it and over it trying to remember anything I could, it finally came back to me. It was you with me in that room before everything went black. You and Frank were working together trying to frame me. You meant to kill me but you messed up, so you two had to make it look like it was Catherine."

Laurel can feel the tears filling her eyes. Of course, Frank would push her away if he thought Annalise could actually do this. He'd rather go to jail for the rest of his life than jeopardize her.

Being there, in that small bathroom with Annalise, Laurel remembers exactly what it was like to be around this woman when she's desperate. She remembers that night so clearly, still. The way she told Asher what they had all done to Sam, used him against them and them against him; the way she screamed at them all, used their every weakness and fear to try and goad them into shooting her; the way she held everything over them after; she remembers just how easy it was to bend and give up and do exactly what she wanted so that Annalise wouldn't lose everything she worked for years to perfect. Laurel got away; Frank never did.

But she refuses to bend now, to give up and let Frank succumb to the years of manipulation. She refuses to let Annalise have any more control over her.

"Frank is in jail because of you… He's done so many things—committed so many illegal, criminal acts—all for you so that you could win your cases, maintain your reputation," she starts, continuing on before Annalise can protest. "He was young when he started for you. Young and seeking approval. And you made him think he was worthless. I saw it all the time. You beat him down so that you could have a lapdog to do all of your bidding."

Annalise does speak then, her voice lowering just in case someone may be walking past. "You can't say that being a hard boss is any excuse for what he did, for killing my baby, for killing an innocent girl and her baby."

"Yes, he messed up all those years ago," Laurel concedes, "He was young and naïve, and he had no idea what they were going to do. He didn't know you were going to get hurt; he never wanted that. And Sam held it over him for ten years, that and everything Sam had done for Frank's family… Can you imagine what that must have been like?" Laurel sighs. "I'm not saying it excuses what he did for Sam; it doesn't. At all. It still makes me sick just thinking about it. And it doesn't excuse him planting the bug. But he didn't know what was going to happen," she reiterates. "I know that he wouldn't have done it if he knew they were going to hurt you."

"He wouldn't have?" Annalise asks, smirking. "I think you underestimate just how much Frank cares about having money. He'll do anything for a paycheck. He doesn't care about anything but that."

Laurel shakes her head knowing it's not true. She sighs. "Frank didn't start out a murderer," she says after a silent moment. "He wanted to better himself, yes, but he also wanted to do good. He didn't start out a murderer," she repeats. "None of us did. And look at everything that happened to the rest of us, after less than a year working for you, after barely knowing Sam." She thinks about her own statement before scoffing lightly. "It's actually impressive that it took Frank ten years, when the rest of us were murdering a man and burning his body after less than five months."

Annalise doesn't say anything and so she continues. "That should tell you something about Frank. It should also tell you something that he was sitting in that jail and still wasn't going to go against you. He's committed all of these crimes for years for you, to protect you. And what did you do to thank him for that? You turned on him, put him in jail. The same way you turned on Nate all those years ago. The way you turned on us when you felt threatened… What does that say about you? About the kind of person you are?"

That's when Laurel sees it, a bit of recognition in Annalise's eyes. It leaves almost as quickly as it appears but she seizes on the moment. "Our lives were irreversibly changed that first year of law school. None of us were the same. And, no, that wasn't completely your fault but you used what we did to keep us under your control."

When Annalise speaks again, it's almost as if she hadn't heard a word Laurel said but she's shaken. Laurel can hear the slight tremble in her voice. Something Laurel said got to her, and she holds onto that. She can use it.

"Are you done, Miss Castillo?" Annalise asks, sounding bored. Laurel acquiesces, knowing that nothing else she says will change anything today. Annalise continues, "You may think you have this all figured out, Laurel. You may think you're so smart. But just remember, I hold more cards than you do. And if you continue to try and turn Frank against me, I will use them." Her voice gets low and menacing as she finishes, moving closer to Laurel. "If you know what's good for you, you'll take him firing you as a sign that you should go back to DC, to your boring boyfriend, and to your corporate law firm and be done with Frank once and for all."

With that, she steps back and puts on an innocent air. "It was so nice seeing you again, Laurel."

She smiles and turns to walk out of the bathroom; Laurel doesn't let out a breath until the door closes. She can feel herself shaking and she tries to calm herself, not let the words get to her. It feels good to finally stand up to Annalise, say the things she's been thinking about since everything happened. But it's also true that Annalise has more cards. She's got Sam and Lila's deaths to play if really pushed. And those facts won't just affect her. Lila's death will most certainly get Frank the death penalty or life in prison. And Sam's death? Well, that would affect the others, pull them into this, and put them all in jail. Is that really something she can risk?

Another woman entering the restroom breaks her out of her thoughts. Laurel gives her a silent smile before leaving and making her way out of the building.

Only then does she look down at her phone and see that she got a text from an unknown number. She opens it, frowning at the message inside.

You have to stop calling me. There's nothing else I can do to help you without making it worse. –B

Great. Annalise has definitely gotten to Bonnie too.

She's not sure what to do now. Part of her wants to try and visit Frank again, see if she can get him in the same room for a couple of minutes. But no. If Annalise knew to find her at the courtroom this morning, then there's a chance she's going to be monitoring her. And though she doesn't have long before her deal with the DA falls through, she thinks it might be a good idea to give Frank a day to process everything. She has a lot to think about too; mainly, whether or not it's worth it to potentially destroy everyone else.

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