Chapter 14

Christian's POV

Sleep decided to evade me again last night. Once the clock said 4:30 in the morning I decided to head to the gym and workout some of my frustration. I am frustrated with just about everyone right now. Ana, for doing what she did without tell anyone before hand. Ros, for making me have to go into the office. Taylor, for forcing even more security on me. The list goes on. I heard from Sawyer confirming they made it to the Portland house around 3 this morning. I should be there, that's another reason I'm frustrated. I know that in less than eight hours I'll be on my way to them, but it seems like and eternity. After doing ten miles on the treadmill and using the circuit machine, I go shower and get ready for my meeting.

At 7 A.M. we pull into the service entrance to Grey House. I've used this entrance before to evade the paparazzi, but never to evade a potential assassination attempt. We take the service elevator all the way up to my floor. It is extremely cold in the elevator and I make note to have someone look into it. It feels like a freezer making my mood worse than it already was. Luckily it doesn't take long to reach my floor. Andrea greets me and informs me that she has cleared the rest of the meetings I have after the one this morning. I thank her before walking into my office.

It feels as if has been months since I was last in here. I sit down in my chair and look at the large canvas painting Ana had commissioned. Ana had the artist take several photos ranging from the WSU graduation photo, one of our weddings photos, and a family photo taken after Teddy was born, and others from out time together and had him paint them into a collage that flows so nicely you would never think they were separate. Our entire time together summarized in a painting. It was her gift to me for our one year anniversary. My thoughts come back to here and now. I look down and notice the control Taylor was telling me about on my desk. I press the buttons a few times to see how it works. I leave it so the windows let in light and gather my things for the meeting in the conference room next door.

Hyde's POV

Perfect. I look through the scope of the rifle and can see that Christian Grey is in his office. Sadly, he isn't in there long enough for me to get a good shot. I did take notice of the new windows though. They fucking installed smart glass! Rodriguez must have forgotten to tell me this bit of information. I get pissed off thinking that he might have just fucked my chance until I see that Grey left my view clear. I smile as he leaves his office for a meeting. I know he will be back in his office, so I sit and wait. My chance will come and I will get to end Christian Grey once and for all.

Christian's POV

The damn meeting went on for three hours and in the end the deal was signed. It didn't come without casualties though. Three people were fired once the representatives from the ship building yard in New Jersey left. It was due to their incompetence that we even needed to have this meeting. I'm sure my mood didn't help anything and Ros will chew my ass out later for it, but right now I just want to get things finished up so I can head to Portland.

I sit behind my desk and make some quick notes on a contract Ros sent over. My pen is hating me and stops working midway through the draft. I open the drawer to grab another one, but end up dropping it instead. I try to reach for it, but it rolls under my desk. There isn't another red pen in the drawer, so I push back my chair and bend down to grab it. Right as I am bending down the glass behind me shatters. I stop where I am under my desk and don't move. I am not sure what happened. I didn't hear a gun shot, but it could have been one. I hear the door open and several voices calling my name.

"Mr. Grey! Are you alright?" Taylor asks from the door way.

"I'm fine. I'm under my fucking desk. I dropped a pen and bent down to get it. Right then the glass just shattered!" I shout back at him as the remaining windows go dark and Taylor makes his way to my desk.

"Ryan contact Welch and let him know we have a situation and to be on standby. Reynolds, help me with Mr. Grey." Taylor says giving orders as he grabs my arm and pulls me out of my office and into the lobby.

"Mr Grey are you okay?" Andrea asks.

"I'm fine. Thank you Andrea. Taylor, what the hell was that?" I ask as I run my hands through my hair.

"Sir, it appears that someone tried to shoot you. There is a hole in the wall directly across from where you were sitting. If you hadn't dropped the pen..." Taylor doesn't finish the sentence. He doesn't need to. I know exactly what would've happened.

"You think this was the plan Jose and Jack had in place? To shoot me while in my office?" I look at Taylor and ask.

"Yes Sir, it appears that way. Now that the plan failed we have to be prepared for a secondary attack." Taylor responds as we walk into his windowless office.

"Shouldn't we be heading to Portland? Is it even safe for us to be here?"

"Sir, right now I don't think it is safe for anyone to be in this building. Most secondary attacks are in place before the initial attack. It is highly likely there could be bombs placed around Grey House or outside. We really should consider evacuating the building," Taylor says as Ros walks into his office.

"Grey! What the hell happened? I was told about a shattered window in your office. Are you okay?" she asks me.

"Ros I'm fine. Someone just tried to kill me. Taylor is recommending we evacuate the building as a precaution." I explain to her without going into too much detail.

"Fuck Grey. They really are serious. If we evacuate the press will have a field day. What do you want us to tell them?" She asks. I know she is right. We need to have a story that the press will eat up.

"We will tell them there was a potential gas leak in the building and for the safety of the staff it was best to evacuate and close the building while technicians checked the lines," Taylor chimes in. This is one of the reasons I keep him around.

"That sounds great Taylor. Give the order and get everyone out of the building," I respond as someone comes in with my briefcase and jacket.

"I will have Welch get security on it now. We need to get you down to the car sir," Taylor says.

"Fine, lets go. I'll call Ana once we are in the car. I'm sure news of the evacuation will air right away and I don't want her to worry when she sees it."

"Be safe Grey. I don't want to have to run this place forever." Ros says playfully as she walks with us to the service elevator.

"You sure? You do a better job than me and the pay isn't that bad," I playfully say trying to keep the mood light even though there is a small amount of fear coursing thought me.

"Ha! You're too funny Grey. You love your job too much. If something happened to you, you'd come back from it and be back in your chair the next day. Don't worry about anything here. You spend time with that wife and son of yours. You've all been through more than you should ever have to," she says as I enter the elevator.

Taylor informs me that the evacuation is going smoothly and the press are not questioning the story about the gas leak. Once I'm in the SUV my adrenaline stops and the fear begins to take over. How could I have been so stupid? I should have known Hyde was capable to trying something like that. I should have seen this attempt coming. Taylor has his off-book teams checking buildings where the shot could have been taken. There are not many, and for that we are grateful. If we can get to Hyde we can end this. Jose Rodriguez is another matter we would have to deal with, but I'm sure in time we will take care of him as well.

We are driving to the landing pad where Charlie Tango is waiting. Stephan is waiting to when we arrive. This is a surprise to me as I planned on flying us to Portland. I look at Taylor and he nods, acknowledging that this was his doing. He knows that I'm in no state to be flying. Charlie Tango has been guarded around the clock to ensure it cannot be sabotaged again. Remembering the close call I had with Ros coming back from Portland gives me chills. I know it won't happen this time, but it is hard to not have a sense of deja vu. Taylor sits up front with Stephan and I sit in back with Reynolds and Ryan. Once we are in the air I try to close my eyes and relax, but I can't. Then I realize that I forgot to call Ana when we were on our way here. Fuck. She is going to have my head for this.

Ana's POV

The late night trip from Tahoe to Portland was exhausting even if it wasn't long. Teddy was not happy at all about being woken up in the middle of the night to get into the car. Luckily he fell asleep on the way to the airport and slept the entire time we were in the air. I on the other hand didn't sleep at all. The looming threat against Christian is still too fresh in my mind. Knowing that I will be seeing him in a few hours helps. When we reach the house I automatically feel at home. It is similar to the house on the sound, but this one isn't on the water and has a 10 foot wall surrounding it. Sawyer put in a code and scanned a card to get the gate to open. The house is two stories and has a Mediterranean feel to it. It looks warm and inviting. I wonder how in the world Christian found this place, but I am too tired to even care.

Gail is kind enough to put Teddy to bed for me. I am so tired that the moment my head hits the pillow I am out. When I wake up I see that it is nearly 10 in the morning. I know Christian should be leaving Seattle around 12:30 pm, so I take a shower and find that my closet is full of new clothes. Christian thinks of everything. I select a wrap dress in a dark teal and pair it with some black flats. After blow drying my hair I go downstairs to see what everyone else is up to. When I walk into the living room the television is on and the news is playing. At first I don't pay much attention, but when I hear the broadcaster say Grey my eyes wander to the screen.

"Grey House has been evacuated due to a possible gas leak. This news comes from the head of public relations Richard Anderson. It is confirmed that Christian Grey, CEO of Grey Enterprises Holdings, was in the building at well. No injuries have been reported as they state this is just as a precaution. The building will be closed for the remainder of the day until technicians can determine the source."

Listening to the broadcaster say this makes my heart race. Something has happened, and I don't believe for a second it has anything to do with a gas leak. I run to my room upstairs and grab my phone. I dial Christian's number, but there is no answer. I try Taylor's number, but he doesn't answer either. My mind starts to think the worse. I need to see if Sawyer knows what is going on. I begin to make my way quickly down the stairs when I misjudge a step. I don't have any time to catch myself before I am tumbling down the stairs towards the floor at the bottom.

Sawyers POV

The new place we are in is pretty impressive. The security here rivals most places I've been in. I just finished meeting with the new security personnel hired by Taylor. These guys are bigger than me and probably could take me down with one hand. I don't want to know where Taylor found these guys. Something in the monitor catches my eye and I turn to see Ana falling down the stairs. I run as fast as I can to the stairs, but by the time I get there she is lying on the floor in front of the last step. I bend down and check her pulse. She is alive. Thank god, I think to myself. I try to get her to respond to me, but she is out of it. There is a bad gash on her head, which takes me back to the Hyde incident. She needs a hospital right now. I call for an ambulance and keep an eye on her breathing while checking her for other injuries. It doesn't look like her arms or legs are broken. I contact the hospital to arrange for security and send some men a head to collaborate with their security.

"Hang in there Ana," I say as Ray walks in.

"What happened!?" he asks with panic in his voice.

"I don't know. I caught a glimpse in the monitor of her as she started falling down the stairs, but I wasn't fast enough to stop her from hitting the floor. She has a bad gash and isn't responsive. I called for an ambulance and sent security ahead to collaborate with the hospital." I reply not taking my eyes off of Ana.

"Please be okay. Ana please open your eyes," a tearful Raymond pleads as he gets on his knees beside her.

Right then the paramedics enter the house followed by two security officers. They ask questions and I answer them as best as I can. I also inform them that she is pregnant. I know this information will affect the treatment she receives. Ray agrees to stay with Teddy until we know more. I follow the paramedics to the ambulance as they load Ana in. I tried calling Taylor, but they must be in the air as his phone is off. I get into the ambulance with Ana. The paramedics are not happy that I insist on coming, but it is my job to make sure she is safe. I'm not going to let her out of my sight.

~~~Author's Note~~~

What a chapter, right?!

I will hopefully have a new one up tomorrow.

Thank you to everyone for the reviews.

Have a good weekend!