Pay the Price

Disclaimer: I own nothing

A/N:


Chapter 19 (The Bitter Truth)

The torture continued and it took every ounce of strength inside of Trina not to run into the mansion with guns blazing. Robbie was bleeding everywhere, no inch of his body seemed untouched. Just when she thought Erin might be done, she would attack another part of his body.

"And I thought Cat suffered the worst of it," Lindsay muttered with a low growl. Trina waited for Gary's call letting her know that his men were posted and ready. Her hands trembled and he fingers clutched tightly her knees.

She watched as Courtney flew out of her room and made her way down the hallways. Lindsay studied the movements closely, able to track her on the cameras and sort through what cameras belong to what.

The girl made her way up the stairs and into the room where Robbie was being held, her eyes were wide with horror and fear, and her hands were trembling over her mouth. Erin turned around, scowling at the child. Courtney ran between her and Robbie, then stretched her arms out as if to plead with Erin not to hurt him any longer.

Erin grit her teeth and slowly left the room, allowing Courtney to run into a nearby bathroom and return with a bucket and sponge. Trina watched as the girl tried to clean up the blood and nurse Robbie's wounds. "She's definitely trying," Trina said, "But I don't think she's going to be able to fully reason with that woman."

"You know something weird," Lindsay said while pointing at Robbie. "Is it just me or does it look like his boxers are melted to his skin?" Trina's heart jumped up to her throat and she leaned in, groaning as she studied where the boxers should have been sliding with gravity.

Not only were parts of the pants twisted, but they were hanging as if the ceiling were the floor. Jason and Travis both grimaced, with Travis holding his gut. "What the fuck did Mr. Shapiro do to this woman?" He asked. Trina was afraid to answer, fearing that she may already know the answer. If the answer was what she thought, then the motives for Erin trying to poison everyone and what she was doing now went far beyond mere bullying.

"Oh Robbie." Her voice quivered and tears ran from her eyes. "I'm not going to let you die for your father." She watched Courtney as the girl checked her phone. The girl started to freeze, her eyes growing large as she threw her head up and looked to the window. "What?" Trina scrunched her face and leaned forward, her brow furrowing. "What's happening right now?"

Courtney pocketed her phone and ran out of the room, running through the halls until she made her way to the kitchen. She started going through one of the kitchen drawers and removed a large knife, then ran back to Robbie's room.

The girl instantly cut through the rope and caught Robbie with her arms sliding under his arm and one wrapping around his torso. The boy's legs sprawled out on the floor and his head rolled to the side.

Slowly, Courtney pulled him into the restroom. She ran out, picked up a gun from a nearby table. She turned her frantic gaze to the camera, as though she knew she were being watched, then ran back into the restroom, slamming the door shut

"Money's on our boy Sinjin letting her know what's about to go down," Jason remarked while moving his hand over his forehead. "Seems like she's moving to protect herself and Robbie."

"Then we need to be getting in there," Trina said with a growl, "I think this constitutes probable cause."

"Go charging in there, we'll be putting a lot of lives at risk."

"You're right…we need to think this through."

Gary made his way to the car and Trina rolled her window down. "All my men are in place throughout the neighborhood. I have them also evacuating any civilians present on this street."

"Good, I don't want anyone getting hurt."

"I've got snipers posted on the rooftops like you suggested, and some of my best squad members are ready to go in. This could get messy though, Trina."

"We have another problem." She had Lindsay rewind the already recorded footage, showing Courtney to Gary. The man's jaw dropped and his hands started to shake. "Seems like she's in there trying to be a voice of reason for her birth mother. I talked to Sinjin, he should be sending text messages to you."

"He has, I haven't the time to go through them yet."

"Well looks like Sinjin is Erin's son, and I don't have a good feeling about the how. I just know we thought she hated Regina the most, but she's putting Robbie through more pain and suffering than any of these kids have suffered. He's in constant pain, constant duress, it's a miracle he's still breathing; but I think Courtney has been trying to keep Erin from going too far and killing him."

"Are you suggesting that Thomas may have done something worse than just picking on her?"

"Putting the pieces together, I think he may have done something horrible. The others might know about it, but regardless, Robbie's suffering for his dad." Gary closed his eyes and breathed in slow, his nostrils flaring as his hands closed into tight fists.

"How do you want to go about this?"

Trina turned to Lindsay. "I've got these cameras sorted based off the movements of Courtney and of the guards. I think I know which cameras belong where and have a good layout mapped of the place. I should be able to guide you and the police through the house now."

"Okay, so what are we facing in side, Linds?"

"The first floor seems composed of the living room, kitchen, a dining room and a couple bathrooms. The second floor has about three bedrooms, two bathrooms and a game room. Third has two bedrooms, one of which Robbie is being held in. Courtney's taken him into the bathroom in there, she's got a gun and a knife. We're assuming she's locked the door and is trying to protect Robbie. There is also a balcony between the two rooms."

"So besides the bathrooms, there are nine rooms in the house."

"Yes. Each room has one to three guards posted in it. I'd estimate anywhere from twenty to thirty guards in this mansion." Gary's eyes went large and Lindsay looked over to him. "Erin is on the top floor. Right now, it looks like she's standing out on the balcony, which judging by the way the house faces the street, the balcony is overlooking the backyard."

"Okay." Trina turned to Gary. "Do your snipers see any guards out in the yard or around the house?" Gary shook his head.

"I haven't noticed any on the outside, my men have been scouting around as well and aren't reporting any guards."

"Here's the thing then, I do not want to treat this like a raid with guns blazing." She motioned to the cameras on the screen. "If there are thirty guards in there and we go in shooting up the place, Erin will definitely know. If Courtney has locked herself and Robbie in the bathroom, that won't hold for long before Erin gets in there."

Gary nodded in understanding. "So it's a stealth mission?"

"Yes. Go in there, having the police making arrests, but we need to be sure to avoid a gunfight. Detection will mean possible mission failure. Assume the second you are spotted by one of the guards that the hostages are dead."

Gary smirked and a flicker of pride flashed in his eyes. "Spoken just like your father would." Trina's heart swelled with joy, though she didn't have the time to truly enjoy it. "Okay, I will have my men follow your lead."

"Bring enough men, I want them splitting up so they can make the arrests. I will head for the top floor. You can handle the guards on the second, and Jason I want you leading a team on the first." Jason nodded and looked to Travis, who instantly tipped his hat.

"I'll provide cover with the other snipers."

Lindsay dropped her shoulders and sighed. "Aw darn, I won't be able to be a part of the action." The girl's eyes lit up and her mouth spread into a grin. "Though, I do get to have a fun role."

"An important one," Trina replied, "Because we're going to need to know when those guards are on the move. This is a stealth rescue operation, try to bring these criminals out alive but if you are in a situation where deadly force needs to be used…"

"Permission is granted," Gary said without hesitation. "Use lethal force only if needed. Don't go crazy in there."

"Exactly." The group started to leave the car to grab their equipment. While Trina was retrieving her handgun and sword, she saw Gary giving one of his guns over to Jason. Her brow furrowed as Gary met the man's eyes.

"Don't let yourself get hurt in there," Gary instructed, "Trina's going to need you alive." Jason nodded and Trina walked over, rolling her eyes a bit.

"He'll be fine as long as he lets the police take some lead." She pat Jason's cheek, then leaned up to kiss his lips. "Just clear the first floor. Once you've done that, get out."

"Got it." He gave her a gentle squeeze of the hand, comforting her as she looked up to his tender gaze. "Love ya, hon."

"Love you too."

"Stay safe in there too, don't do too much. If it gets too heavy, let Gary and the cops take it from there." She closed her eyes and started to smile as he gently kissed her forehead.

Soon, they were ready. She, Gary and Jason each had a team of about eight officers, giving them plenty of help to cover each floor. Jason knew to get out once they cleared the first, Gary would clear the second and join Trina if need be. Lindsay had stated that there wasn't very many guards on the third floor, if any at all, so Trina was hopeful all she'd have to contend with was Erin.

"There's a little door on the side of the house," Lindsay said, "I see it on the kitchen cam. There are two guards in the kitchen, but they're busy playing some card game and have their backs turned to the door. Enter there, take out the guards."

"Thank you, Linds."

They ran along the side of the house, trying to be quick but silent. Jason carefully opened the door first and poked his head in. After a few seconds, he waved his hand through the air and his team hurried inside.

The officers overtook the two men without issue, grabbing their wrists and throwing their handcuffs on. Gary's team went in next, followed by Trina's. "Trina, there's a stairway closet in the kitchen, I see it because of an open door."

She looked to her right and spotted the door that Lindsay mentioned, with a nod, she and her team made her way to the stairwell.

"Jason, Gary, if the two of you can tend to the three guards in the living room, then the second floor team can make their way up the main stairs."

Trina guided her team up the secondary stairs, making sure to stop and check every few seconds for anyone potentially coming down. It was surprising to her to see Erin wasn't all that prepared, but then she had no reason to expect a full blown raid.

Yes, she'd lost a few of the hostages, but she likely hadn't discovered what transpired with Monica just yet, and figured no one would suspect her of hiding out in a three story mansion.

''She's just standing on the balcony," Travis remarked, "I could take that shot right now if you need me to."

"No, we're not ready for that yet. We need to try and make the arrest first."

"Alright, but you know what they say about sitting ducks…"

"I know you're ready to take her out, but just wait."

"Can do."

Trina continued onto the third floor, opening the door slowly and looking around. "Lindsay, are there any guards on the third floor yet?"

"No," The girl replied, "I saw one starting to make his way up, but he ran back down the stairs. I think he heard something." Trina tensed and waited for Lindsay to say something else. "Ah yes, he heard a commotion I think and Gary had to grab him. All good."

"Okay." She looked towards the stairway. "How are you hanging in down there, Jason?"

"Pretty good," Jason replied, "Haven't been noticed so far, there aren't a whole lot of guards down here."

Gary's voice came over the radio, growling with annoyance. "That's probably because they're all in the fucking game room." Trina raised her eyebrows and then heard Gary curse.

With that, gunshots echoed out and Trina threw her hand to her forehead. "Crap." She looked back to the officers. "I need you four to go down there and help." She pointed to four of her eight officers and they quickly raced down to aid Gary's squad.

"That's not too good," Lindsay muttered, "Erin heard that. Looks like she's on her way back inside."

"Shit." Trina moved forward, stopping in the center of a large lobby-like room. On the right was the hallway leading to the bedroom that Robbie was located, and on the left was the hallway leading towards Erin's bedroom. Directly in front of her, Erin was making her way in through the doors of her balcony.

The four officers aimed their guns the minute Erin noticed them. "Freeze, put your hands in the air." Trina smirked with pride and Erin narrowed her eyes, growling at her.

"I thought the demands were no police activity," Erin remarked.

"Yes well…" Trina moved forward, resting her hand on the tip of her sword's hilt. "You see, all the other kids have been rescued. Robbie's dad lifted the freeze for this rescue mission." Hatred flickered in Erin's eyes and the woman slowly tilted her head.

"Do you know what kind of a man Thomas is?"

"You know what? I thought I would care, but I don't." She looked to the right, then back with a sigh. "Because whatever the fuck he did twenty five years ago doesn't equal what you're doing to his son."

Erin bared her teeth and pulled her lips back in a vicious snarl. "What I'm doing to his son is nothing compared to what he did to me! Nothing compared to what his friends did."

"You cannot blame innocent children for the sins of their parents."

"The hell I can't."

"Oh." Trina raised her hand to her chin and bowed her head a bit, doing her best to remain calm. This woman had a mental health issue, that was clear, and she was psychotic. The last thing that needed to happen was to antagonize the woman. "So, if you can blame the children for the sins of their parents. Does that mean, by your logic, I can blame your children for your sins?"

Erin's eyebrow rose and she let out a low growl. "So you know? You want to blame the spawn of Satan for what I'm doing?"

"Spawn of Satan, huh? Which one is that?" Trina pursed her lips and tilted her head to the right. "Is that the rage-filled alcoholic, or the one that is currently trying to protect the child you are currently torturing?"

"No, Courtney was the result of something good."

"I'm not sure you believe that, 'cause the prison guard abused his power did he not?"

"But I consented that time!"

Trina snapped her fingers, there it was. Erin let out a roar and turned to the right, pacing a bit and growling. "You don't understand. You could never understand."

"Try me." Trina moved her hands behind her back, curling her right hand over her left wrist. "I understand being picked on day in and day out. I understand being bullied to no end, feeling like you're all alone to the point you're ready to put your father's gun to your head and pull the trigger." Erin turned towards her, furrowing her brow. "No, I understand. I understand having to sit there, with my boyfriend practically wrestling the gun out of my hand. I understand just fine, Erin…"

"No, because you have your boyfriend. Kyle was going to leave me. They were laughing at me, all of them, mocking me."

"Who was."

Erin pointed to the direction of Robbie, her voice rising and trembling. "His father, that man's friends…"

"You know what? I could call one of them up right now, let you vent to your heart's content." Erin flared her nostrils as Trina slowly removed her phone while stretching out the palm of her hand to let Erin know she was in no danger.

As she glanced down, she noticed she was receiving a call from Mr. West. "Oh look, one of them is calling me as is." She flicked her eyes out to Erin. "Is it okay if I answer?" Erin leaned forward, growling low.

"Which of the bastards is it?"

"Mr. West. Henry."

"Fine. But make it fast…and put it on speaker!"

Trina did as instructed, standing her ground to try and keep control of the situation. She needed to act if Erin did anything, and as unpredictable as the woman was, she knew chances were good.

She raised the phone towards her chin while holding her gaze on Erin. "Hey Mr. West. Not the best timing, what do you need?"

"I-I had to tell you something."

"Okay. What is it?"

"Look, I know you and Janet started talking about a lot of things, you asked her about our divorce and all that." Trina rolled her eyes a bit, failing to see why this was a good time to have this conversation. "She said we just drifted, but that's not true." Henry's voice started to break. "I…Jade told us what happened to her…I need to get this off my chest."

Trina watched Erin's nostrils flare once more, the woman's upper lip twitched and her eyes narrowed. "Keep going, Henry."

"It's because she didn't know, I told her one day and she said she needed time to figure things out. A day turned to a week, a week turned to months, and eventually I was handed a divorce notice."

"What did you tell her?"

"That I…I mocked that woman mercilessly. I knew what Thomas had done to her, because he told me. Then…Then I told Keith about it, he told the girls." Trina's hand moved to her mouth and Erin began to snarl. "We all agreed it was better to keep quiet, but somehow word got around, one thing led to another and everyone started going after her because of us. I-It was wrong, I should never have…I should have told Thomas to fuck off after that, I should have told the owner, told somebody."

"I think I get it, Mr. West."

"Knowing that this happened to my little girl." His voice broke and Trina heard a sob echo into the air. "I can never forgive myself, I…I called Thomas, I told him that I wasn't going to keep quiet about it anymore. Regina agreed, she said she's ready to ask him to step down. All of this…All of this is because of that, isn't it?"

Trina sucked in a deep breath. "I think it might be." She heard voices in the background, grabbing her attention. Squinting as she tried to pin exactly who was talking, she felt a certain anxiety gripping at her. "Are all of you guys together over there?"

"We're all here," answered Regina, "I mean of course Denise and Thomas aren't, but we are. We're at the hospital, Cat's in bad shape, but the doctors say she'll pull through." Trina saw Erin's eyes grow wide with realization and she began to breathe heavily.

Trina held out her hand again, mouthing that everything would be okay. "Hey, Mrs. Valentine, you guys caught me right in the middle of my operation here. It's not the best time, but I have Erin with me right now." She heard the parents' gasping and Erin's gaze turned to fear as she glared at Trina. "I was wondering if you had anything to say to her. I know things obviously are pretty messed up right now, and Robbie's clinging to life in the other room as we speak; so if you have something you'd like to get off your chest, now would be a good time."

She wanted to know if they could get through to her, but it was a risky bet. The risk was that they would be too angry to say anything positive, and she wouldn't expect them to do so on any ground. Still, it was worth a try.

If nothing else, she could hope this might turn out like it did with Bruno; but she did realize chances were pretty slim.

"I have something to say," Henry said with his voice growing quiet. Erin's eyes quivered and her fists clenched tight. "Erin, I know we hurt you and honestly nothing any of us can say will be enough; but please, our children have done nothing to you. We're the ones that caused the damage, we're the ones that caused the pain; and I wish that things had been different. We were young, we were stupid; and certainly none of us expected one of our closest friends would ever go to such lengths that he did. I…am deeply, truly sorry. I've been living with my own actions, my own inaction, for twenty-five years. Now, what you guys put Jade through, I-I don't know."

"It wasn't my decision," Erin growled. "My brother is responsible for his own actions."

"Exactly," Regina replied, "You don't want to be blamed for something you didn't do. Our children shouldn't have to suffer for something they didn't do. Robbie…Robbie is not his father, Erin. My daughter is probably the complete opposite of the person I was when I was her age, I raised her to treat people with kindness, not-"

"Then explain." Erin chuckled menacingly while glaring at Trina. "For five years I've planned, I've plotted, I've watched." The parents remained silent and Trina felt her heart grinding to a halt. "I've watched your kids pick on people, bully people-even the one person that appears to be saving their life for some absurd reason! If you raised your kids to be different, then why are they acting just like all of you? How long before one of them decides to do what Thomas did?"

Trina rolled her eyes and muttered under her breath. "They know I'd kick their ass first." It would be a hell of a fight, considering it took all three of the boys to try and overpower her at one point, and they failed to do so.

Erin's voice started to tremble and the woman shook her head, uttering a growl. "Why? Why did he do it? You assholes treated me like shit and then he goes and-"

"None of us have an answer," Keith said abruptly. Erin pressed her lips firmly together and narrowed her eyes. "We can explain our actions afterwards. We thought we needed to protect him, he was our friend and we didn't know what the right move was. Friends defend their friends, they have their back. What he did was horrible, without question, but we were scared. I mean, what do you do when someone like that…"

"You do the right thing." Erin snarled. Trina understood, she knew who Robbie's grandfather had been. Thomas was the son of a politician, so he had clout and he had power.

"Erin, we are all sorry for what happened and we know that doesn't change the stuff you went through. If we could change those events, we would. Please, let Robbie go. Take us, name your price."

Erin began chuckling and soon turned her back, her hands dug into her pockets and she quickly shook her head. "I should've just killed all of you from the start." Trina noticed the woman's hands moving in her pocket and watched as she began removing something.

The four officers began moving to make an arrest and Trina tried to call them back, but it was too late. Erin threw some sort of powder their way, Trina turned and shielded her face but all four officers dropped to their knees, screaming as they clutched their eyes.

"Shit!" Trina looked to see Erin running for the room Robbie was in and raced after her. "Erin, stop!" The woman reached the bathroom door and began pounding on it.

"Open this fucking door."

"Go away!" Courtney screamed from inside. Erin screeched and began rattling the doorknob. "I'm serious, leave us alone."

Within a matter of seconds, perhaps longer but perhaps less, Trina heard three gunshots ring out. Her heart stopped when she saw the door had been opened and Courtney was on her knees in front of Robbie with the gun she grabbed smoking.

Erin's body was trembling, blood oozed down her waist and thighs, her hands had fallen limp at her sides. Courtney was breathing heavily, watching with her eyes full of fear as Erin dropped to her knees.

Trina walked towards the girl, staring still at Erin as the woman fell onto her side. Erin's eyes were wide and shocked, gazing at the child as the life faded from her. "What," Courtney said breathlessly, "What have I done?"

"It's okay." Trina knelt onto one knee and extended her hand. "You're safe now." She hoped that the medics would get in and get Erin before she succumbed from her wounds, but if not, that was fine too. All that mattered in her mind right now was the safety of both Courtney and Robbie. "Can you stand?"

Courtney nodded slowly and placed a trembling hand into Trina's. After helping her to her feet, she made her way over to Robbie, who was gazing up at her with a wide, frantic gaze. "I'm getting you out of here, Rob." Robbie sputtered, struggling to speak.

Gary ran up behind her with his team, a look of bewilderment was etched onto his face. "What the hell happened here?" Trina looked over her shoulder and sighed.

"Courtney ended up shooting Erin. Could we make sure she gets medical attention?"

"Yes, I have medics waiting outside for the all clear." He crouched beside Erin and felt of her pulse. "She's still with us, still breathing."

"Well send them in then."

Gary nodded and called for the medics to enter the mansion. It was not long before they had both Erin and Robbie on stretchers outside. Trina was surprised to see Mrs. Shapiro without her husband, the woman cradled Robbie's head in her arms, her face wet with tears.

Gary stood beside her, his hands on his hips and his head bowed as a contemplative expression grew on his face. Another officer approached him and whispered something that made the color drain from his face.

"What's the matter?" Trina turned to him, her brow furrowing. Gary's voice trembled as he answered.

"Thomas Shapiro was found hung to death in his garage." Trina's heart sank and her hand rose to her mouth. "It's an apparent suicide." It was a devastating, crippling blow, and one that would surely affect Robbie. Although, given what he likely knew about his father and what he'd been through due to the man's own crime, she wasn't too sure Robbie was going to have an opinion right away.


Well, Erin's been taken down, but it seems a bit bittersweet. Robbie's safe, nothing will eer be the same for him though.