Chapter 23

Ilgaz can tell by the smell that he is someplace unfamiliar. The last thing he remembers is walking down the street and having the feeling that someone was watching him. Which wasn't an unexpected feeling considering that seemingly half the police force was following him. But he felt as if one particular watcher had nefarious intentions. Which again, wasn't a big surprise. Because he knew he was being targeted by Yekta. He just didn't know when the attack would come. So he hadn't seen it coming. Whatever they did, they had done quickly. And they must have drugged him somehow. Because he's currently alone, nursing a pounding headache, in what looks like an old hotel room. And he has no idea how he got there.

But what he does know is that he probably won't be alone for much longer. This has to be a part of Yekta's plan. The one the photographer told them about. According to the photographer, Yekta wants to stage some disgusting photos to make it look as if Ilgaz is cheating. As if he'd ever look at any woman other than his wife. Let alone touch another woman. But it's hard to refute visual proof like a picture. No matter what, Ilgaz imagines it would have been hard talking his way out of this trap had he gotten caught. He's suddenly thankful for people in this city that are loyal to his grandfather. Truth and justice might not have saved Ilgaz from this. But his grandfather's brand of law and order did. He almost laughs thinking about how shocked Ceylin would be to hear him admit that. And just like that, all he wants is to be done with this and get back to his wife. His family. She's probably worried by now.

At this point, he's not even sure why he agreed to this plan. The last thing he wants to be is in Yekta's clutches. Under his control. At the mercy of his every sick and twisted whim. But that man has terrorized them for far too long. And if this is the only way to get Yekta permanently out of their lives, then Ilgaz will do whatever it takes to keep his family safe.

The door to the dirty little hotel room opens and in walks the man himself. Yekta. Ilgaz snarls at him while struggling against his restraints.

"What's going on? What are you doing here?"

Ilgaz's shock at seeing Yekta isn't feigned. He's truly surprised to see the man here. Ilgaz just assumed Yekta would send someone else to do his dirty work for him.

"Seeing to my problem personally," Yekta says. "Making sure you won't be a problem anymore."

Keep him talking, the voice in his ear says. Ilgaz has a tiny earpiece that is transmitting sound in both directions. Pars is on the other end.

"How am I a problem?" Ilgaz asks him, trying to do as Pars suggested. "What have I done to you to deserve this? And all the other things you've been doing. Don't think I don't know how you were behind my son's kidnapping."

"Was I?" Yekta cackles, that irritating laugh grating on Ilgaz's nerves. But he has to keep it together. He has to get through this.

"You might as well tell me," Ilgaz tries to shrug. But his hands are tied too tightly. Nothing he can't get out of, though. His grandfather taught him more than magic tricks. "Because from what I can see, you have bigger plans for me here today. Bigger than any kidnapping."

"You are smart. But no one has ever accused you of being otherwise," Yekta says, giving Ilgaz a long look. "But you're right. I lose nothing from telling you and gain everything. It's why I'm here. I couldn't resist the look on your face when you see that it's me defeating you. And knowing there's nothing you can do to stop me or prove that I did this."

"People are going to know I'm missing," Ilgaz reminds him. "Especially Ceylin. We never go long during the day without speaking to each other."

"Even better," Yekta says with that annoying laugh again. "Your inexplicable absence will work in my favor. Especially when the news prints photos of what you were doing during that time. Or maybe I should say, who you were doing."

Ilgaz doesn't have to fake the sickness he feels at how giddy Yekta seems to be. He really intends on going through with his disgusting plan.

"What do you mean, who?"

"All in good time, Ilgaz. You'll meet your leading lady for the afternoon soon."

"Leading lady? You're going to make it look like I'm having an affair?" Ilgaz asks, as if he doesn't already know. He knows exactly what Yekta has planned for him. But hopefully if things go the way they should, it won't get that far. But he still has to play the part. "I won't participate in this. You're sick, Yekta."

Yekta just laughs again, his eyes filled with such glee and satisfaction. He really thinks he's got Ilgaz right where he wants him.

"You have two choices. You can do what we tell you, put on the act, and have at least some control over your actions. Or we can drug you again and let you be surprised by the creative positions we come up with when you see the pictures. I hired a professional. She'll know exactly what to do. And don't worry, she'll make sure you both have a good time."

The bile rises at even the thought of touching another woman. And against his will at that. Ilgaz has to choke it all back to keep from being sick all over Yetka's shoes.

"You've actually gone mad," Ilgaz says, astonished at the utter depravity Yekta is displaying. "Who would even think to do something like this? What is wrong with you?"

"It gets better," Yekta chuckles, apparently amusing himself. "The red head I've chosen is a dead ringer for you lovely ex-fiance. I'm sure your wife will get an extra kick out of seeing you with her best friend."

Ilgaz doesn't want to hear any more. But this may be the only chance he has at getting Yekta to confess to all of his crimes. He has to keep Yekta talking.

"You're clearly trying to ruin my marriage. But what did my son have to do with it? Why did you kidnap him?"

"Ah, didn't figure that out, huh? I guess you're not as smart as I thought. Although, that plan didn't quite work out the way I expected. But it did accomplish my main goals," Yekta hints.

"To have Ceylin's mother committed?"

"Not quite. To have Ceylin be forced to choose between you and her mother. To have you put her mother in jail and Ceylin defend her in court. I would have paid to see the two of you go against each other. That would have been a court date I would not have missed. But alas, you and Ceylin both surprised me. And it all turned out to be for nothing."

"I still have nightmares of my son being missing and my wife nearly dying. So I'm glad you think it was all for nothing. So glad my life is here for your amusement," Ilgaz snaps.

"Ceylin's accident was … ha ha … an accident. And you got your son back," he says nonchalantly. I never intended on him being gone forever. I was actually looking forward to a nasty custody battle."

"You're not going to get away with this. Any of it," Ilgaz swears. "We'll get Gül Hanım to testify against you."

"With no proof? And at the word of a woman that you yourself put into a mental hospital?" Yekta laughs his biggest laugh yet. "You've all but made sure no one would believe a word she says about me. You've all but made sure I've gotten away with all of this."

"I'll find proof. Just like I found proof that you aren't really a lawyer. I'll find proof of this."

"You're really going to have to give that up," Yekta sighs wearily. "I know it eats at you that my license isn't valid. But I've been doing this for longer than you've been alive. I'm more a lawyer than you'll ever be. You'll never prove anything. The explosion got rid of any and all evidence. I had Cuneyt make sure of it when he set the explosives. There's nothing left. That was the one time in my life I wasn't careful enough. I won't be making that mistake again."

Ilgaz just tilts his head and smiles. Because he has some news Yekta won't be smiling about.

"Are you sure about that?" he asks Yekta. "Are you sure there's nothing? Gül Hanım is an older woman. Her memory isn't always reliable. And she knows that. Are you sure she didn't, for example, make a recording of one of your meetings? Your plan was complicated, was it not? Yet, she executed her part in it perfectly. Do you wonder how she remembered it all?"

Yekta gets quiet. And pale. And if Ilgaz isn't mistaken, a line of sweat has broken out along his hairline.

"You're lying. No such recording exists. You would have said something about it by now."

Ilgaz smiles again and can see that Yekta isn't entirely sure about what he just said.

"Besides, a recording taken without my consent or knowledge wouldn't be admissible in court anyway. There would be no proof it was actually my voice. Your family is known for fabricating evidence. I'll end up suing you for slander."

"You can try," Ilgaz shrugs. This time his motion is freer. He's managed to get his hands loose in the time Yekta was bragging about how smart he is. And now, it's time to end this. "But maybe it wouldn't matter. Maybe I'll get up and walk out of here and tell the police what you've told me."

He lifts his now freed hands and stands from the chair. He can tell that he's managed to surprise Yekta.

"Ahh, one of those magician tricks Merdan taught you," Yekta scoffs. "But this isn't a problem. You tied to the chair was me doing things the easy way. I can get my guys in here if you'd rather do things the hard way."

Yekta bangs on the door to signal his guys to come in, keeping a close eye on Ilgaz. So he doesn't notice the police officers that come in instead. Not until the barrel of a gun is pressed into his back.

"I did learn my tricks from Merdan," Ilgaz admits. "But I learned an even more valuable lesson from him. The key to magic … distraction. While I had you in here with me, do you wonder what's been found while your home and office were searched?"

Ilgaz thought Yekta turned pale before. But before pales … ha ha … in comparison to now. Ilgaz can joke too. At the very least he can rejoice. They finally have Yekta where they want him. There won't be any getting out of this.

"Did you get everything on the recording?" Ilgaz asks Eren when he walks in.

"Every word. But it doesn't compare to what they've already found at his office," Eren says, turning to where Yekta is being held between two officers. "Money laundering, Yekta Bey? Human trafficking? I thought to expect everything from you. But even this is too much."

The idea to raid his premises while he's distracted had come from Neva during their planning session. Although she knew no judge would allow Gül's recording to be used as evidence in court, she knew it would go a long way in convincing a judge to sign a search warrant for any property connected to Yekta. As soon as Yekta had kidnapped Ilgaz, the judge they had on standby signed the order for the search warrant. The warrant was technically to search for Ilgaz. But it gave the police free reign to search for other things as well. The best part about it all? Yekta hadn't seen it coming. So he hadn't had the time to hide or get rid of anything. Every piece of evidence concerning his illegal activities are now in the hands of the police. Not to mention whatever confessions he made to Ilgaz just now, not realizing the police were listening.

"Like I said before, Yekta. You're not going to get away with any of this," Ilgaz reminds him. "Not my son's kidnapping. Not your attempts to ruin my family. Especially not whatever this was tonight. You're going down for it all."

"Unhand me," Yekta demands, trying to pull away from the officers holding him. "Let go of me this instant. You can't do this. Do you know who I am?"

"You are Yekta Tilmen," Eren says. "And you are under arrest."

What happens next, happens quickly. One second Yekta was being dragged from the room, the next, he was pushing away from his escort after a scuffle, gun in hand. He waves it around to keep the officers away from him.

"Don't do this," Eren warns, his own gun out now. He points it at Yekta and cocks it, letting the man know he's ready. "Stand down. Don't make me shoot you."

"I'm not going to jail," the man blubbers, his usual evil cackle a distant memory. "You set me up. I'm not going to let you get away with this."

"You're the one who kidnapped me," Ilgaz points out. "You're the one who tried to set me up."

"I'm not … going … to jail," Yekta says again, raising this gun, this time pointing it at Ilgaz. But before he can take accurate aim, a body flies in from the side and tackles Yekta to the ground. The over eager officer manages to knock the gun from Yekta, but not before he's able to get off a shot.

There is a moment of absolute silence after the gunshot. Then a flurry of voices yelling out varied and confusing commands fills the air as people jump into action. Then all is silent again.

"What happened? What's going on?" Ceylin asks in a panic, trying to grab the police radio from Metin's tight grasp. "Why can't we hear anything anymore?"

"I turned it off," Metin explained, his voice shaking. "You don't need to hear this."

Metin has been on more ops than all of these cops combined. Just because he's retired doesn't mean that he's forgotten what can go wrong in an unstable situation. He knows what to listen for and how to quickly assess a situation to mitigate the risks involved. They underestimated Yekta in a way he wouldn't have if he were still in charge. And consequently, Yekta had somehow managed to get his hands on a weapon and fired. But at who?

"Calm down, Ceylin," he says gently when the woman begins to panic even more. "All we can do now is wait and see what happened."

"I'm calling Ilgaz," she says, reaching for her phone.

"Not during an op," Metin advises her. "You could put him in danger."

"What if he's already in danger?" she argues. And he has to admit that he has the same concerns.

He finally manages to compromise with her. She goes upstairs to get herself and Asen ready, just in case they need to leave quickly, while Metin tries to make contact with anyone on the team for information.

But the information he gets isn't what he was wanting to hear. And when Ceylin comes back down, he can't mask the fear and worry in his eyes. He watches her face go visibly pale when she figures out something is wrong.

"Ceylin, sit down," he says when she looks like she's about to fall down.

"Just tell me." He watches her stiffen her spine and stare him down. And he can't help but admire her strength and determination.

"Ilgaz is fine," he starts. "But he is on the way to the hospital."

"He was shot?"

Metin just nods.

"Eren said that it's just a graze. The hospital visit is just a formality so that Ilgaz can have a medical report to add to the case against Yekta. He assures me that Ilgaz is fine."

Ceylin shakes her head and Metin is grateful when she manages to hold back her tears. He hates when people he cares about cry. It breaks his heart thinking he's failed them somehow. And even though he had no part in this operation, he still feels as if he failed both her and Ilgaz.

"I won't be calm until I see him for myself," she says.

And once again, Metin can't disagree with her. He also needs to see that his son will be okay. So even though it would be wiser to stay home and wait for Ilgaz to show up, they head towards the hospital instead.

When they get to the hospital, they go to the information desk to find out where Ilgaz is. Eren meets them there and directs them where they need to be. But he stops them just outside the entrance to the emergency room.

"He's not in a room?" Ceylin asks, trying to contain a wiggling Asen. Eren is one of his favorite people and he always gets excited when hearing the man's voice.

"He doesn't need one. Don't you trust me, Kraliçe? I said he was fine. He really is." Eren reaches out and laughs when Eren lunges for him. He catches the baby and takes him into his arms. "He'll be out soon. They're just … cleaning him up a bit. The wound isn't bad, but it bled a lot. He looks a lot worse than he is. You don't need to see him like that."

"I just need to see him," Ceylin snaps. She tries to get past Eren, but is stopped by Metin.

"Ceylin. Kızım. Let's just give them a few more minutes," he suggests. "Let the doctors do their job."

She pulls away from him, anger sparking. Even though what he's saying makes sense, she doesn't care. She just needs to see her husband. She's irritated at herself when tears fill her eyes. Now is not the time for her hormones to go all wacky.

"What aren't you telling me? Why won't you let me see him?"

She can see it in his eyes when he capitulates. He gives Eren a look and just shrugs. Eren lets out a sigh of resignation and nods. They realize they can't stop her.

"Fine," Metin says. "But you have to get yourself together first. Don't let Ilgaz see that I let you get upset. He won't ever forgive me."

They start to walk towards the bathrooms so that Ceylin can splash some water on her face.

"His wound isn't bad, like Eren said. But head wounds tend to bleed a lot."

She stops in her tracks and turns around to face him. Her face has gone pale and she can see him mutter a curse when he realizes what he said.

"Head wound? He was shot in the head!"

"Ceylin, he's fine," Metin tries to assure her. He grabs her when she tries to run back to Ilgaz. "You need to calm down, Kızım. Getting this upset isn't good for you."

Despite their peace talks earlier, she never imagined being at a hugging phase in this relationship with her still slightly estranged father in law. Yet here she is. And she's grateful he's with her because she falls into arms that wrap around her and hold her just how she needs. She's just finding some calm again when a familiar voice ruins it.

"Get away from my daughter!"

She wishes they had just given her something for the pain. Something to help her sleep. Escape. Anything. But the doctors at the clinic didn't want to prescribe her any more medication until they figured out what was causing her racing heart issues. With her age, they didn't want to risk anything, so they sent her to the hospital for a full exam with the heart specialist. The clinic had called her daughters to inform them, but only Aylin had answered. She's on the way now. Ceylin apparently couldn't be bothered.

But when she looks up, she sees Ceylin there. For a moment, her heart fills with joy. Ceylin finally chose her family over those Kayas. That joy is short lived, however. Then it turns to rage. Because she sees that Metin Kaya has his hands on her daughter. And she's crying.

"Get away from my daughter!" she yells, running off from her escorts. She had surprised them with her sudden outburst and they didn't have a chance to catch her before she took off running.

But she has to save her daughter.

"What did you do to her? Why is she crying? Why is she in the hospital? Get away from her!"

She pushes Metin. And pushes. And pushes. The next thing she knows, the ground drops out from under him. No, not the ground. Stairs. He's falling down the stairs, tumbling feet over head until he reaches the bottom with a sickening crack that echoes in her ears.

"Anne!"

She turns to Ceylin, the look on her face one of horror.

"Anne, what have you done?"

Gül looks at her daughter. Then down at the still man below. Then at her hands. Her shaking hands.

"What have I done?" she repeats, fear filling her soul. "What have I done?"