Chapter 13: Anastasia's POV
Still Tuesday, November 22, 2016
As we drove the short distance from Grey House to my apartment, my lips were still tingling from the kisses Christian and I had shared as I was leaving. I felt a little guilty for insisting that I go ahead of him, but I really didn't want to be late to our dinner out with Kate and Elliot. Thankfully, Luke was driving us in one of Christian's SUVs, which he'd insisted on. I was no longer able to walk to Grey House, as had been my habit before I went to Sweden with Dad. I'd never told Christian that I couldn't afford to keep a car in Seattle before I started working for him. I'd had a car in college, a cute little vintage VW Bug whom I called Wanda, but her upkeep had been getting too expensive, and paying to park her in Seattle would have cost more than she was worth. So I'd had to get rid of her before moving.
My mind went back to Kate and Elliot as I watched the Seattle traffic we were driving through. The two of them had never met, and I wanted to be there tonight to do the introductions. I was certain that they'd be perfect for one another. They'd had similar upbringings, except that Elliot's dad was a lot nicer than Kate's, and they both were used to being around wealth and success. I knew Elliot fit the description of the kind of guy that Kate's presumptuous father would approve of, which I also knew deep down mattered a lot more to Kate than she wanted to admit. And I also knew that Kate, at heart, was a sweetheart. She was one of the most loyal friends I'd ever had. I had no doubt that she was the kind of person that Elliot wanted to settle down with. I'd gotten to know Elliot well enough by now to see how much he wanted more than the one-night stands he'd grown accustomed to. Kate had so much in common with him, but he'd have to get to know her to know that. Christian's view of her was completely skewed, and I was afraid Elliot's would be too if I didn't get there to do damage control.
I needed to hurry if I was going to get to the restaurant ahead of them. And sadly, I wasn't even sure where the packages of chocolate that I'd purchased for Christian's family even were. I thought they were still in my suitcase, which I'd never had time to completely unpack, but I hadn't been back to my apartment since Saturday morning, and I'd been more than a little distracted then, so I wasn't sure. It wasn't like me to be so disorganized, but Christian Grey was a good excuse for being distracted.
Unfortunately, there weren't any parking spots close to my building, so we'd have to park around the corner. That would take extra time. I wondered if Luke would be willing to let me out by the door with Belinda.
"Luke, why don't you just drop us off here and then meet us inside," I suggested.
Luke glanced at me uncomfortably in the rearview mirror. "I can't do that, Ana. I promised Mr. Grey to stay by your side at all times."
Oh, right. Yes, and I promised to keep them both at my side at all times. Well, shit.
Thankfully, there were no paparazzi outside like there had been on Saturday, so it didn't take us long to get inside once we'd found a parking spot.
"Hi, Fred!" I greeted the doorman. "I think you remember Luke from Saturday. And this is Belinda. They're my bodyguards." I might have giggled a little there at the end. The idea of me having not one but two bodyguards was still strange.
Fred smiled his friendly smile and waved us over. "I need to make some introductions, too, young lady," he said. Fred was an older guy, so he often called me "young lady." I kind of liked it, since he reminded me a little of my grandpa, who had died when I was little but who Ray had lots of pictures and memories of. Fred motioned towards a tall young guy with blonde hair and a goatee standing next to him. For some reason, the new guy was giving me an odd look. And it wasn't one of those "Holy shit, it's the famous billionaire's girlfriend" looks, but more of a "I'm trying to solve this confusing puzzle" look.
Fred told me, "This here is Tanner Langford. He's new. Just started yesterday. He'll replace Doug, starting next week. This week he's shadowing me part of the time and Doug part of the time."
I reached out my hand to shake Tanner's. "It's nice to meet you," I said politely. Tanner looked to be in his early twenties, and he looked fit. A good person to have as a security guard, other than the odd expression on his face.
"You're Anastasia Steele?" he asked confusedly.
"Umm… yeah?" Hadn't he seen my picture plastered all over the internet? I doubted there was anybody in Seattle who didn't know who I was by now.
"And… you aren't wearing a disguise?" he asked, still just as confusedly.
I laughed a little, but he was making me uncomfortable. "I don't think that's necessary, with two bodyguards."
"No, that's not what I mean," he said. He was looking really uncomfortable now. He turned to Fred and said, "Remember yesterday, when you went for your lunch break and I was here by myself for about an hour? A lady came in wearing a scarf and these humongous sunglasses. Said she was Anastasia Steele. Said she was dressed that way to avoid the paps. She even showed me her ID. It was a valid Washington Driver's License with her photo on it. She removed her sunglasses and scarf to show me… I insisted on it. It said Anastasia Steele, and it had her picture on it. I believed her." He turned back to me and added, "She looked a lot like you. Except she had brown eyes, not blue like yours."
Holy shit! He had to be talking about Leila Williams. Of course she looked like me. All of Christian's former submissives had looked like me. He'd explained long ago about his own mommy issues. Or at least, that's what the pedo-bitch had led him to believe. That was my theory, anyway. Anyway, it wasn't the time to think about that bitch because there was apparently another bitch running around pretending to be me. With a fake ID with my name on it!
"But how would she have gotten into my apartment without a key?" I asked.
Now Tanner looked even more embarrassed. His face was beat red, and he looked like he might start crying any minute. "I let her in," he said, not much louder than a whisper. "She said she forgot her key. Her story was really… convincing. I'm so sorry. I thought… She had an ID and everything. And other than the eyes, she looked like you."
The new security guard let Leila Williams into my apartment? Seriously? I didn't even know they had keys to the private residences. Why did they? If somebody locked themselves out, they needed to call a locksmith. I was not happy to know that Tanner even had keys to my apartment, much less that he was letting in strange people pretending to be me.
"Haven't you seen pictures of Ms. Steele in the media over the past few days?" Belinda questioned.
"Umm… no, not really. I don't… if it's not sports, I don't really pay attention," Tanner explained.
"So… this woman is in my apartment… now? You haven't seen her leave?" I demanded.
"No ma'am," he replied. "But I… I didn't work last night."
"Doug worked alone last night," Fred said. "I can call him and ask him."
"That won't be necessary, Fred," I told him. "There's a simpler way to find out if she's still there."
"Ana, I hope you're not suggesting…" Fred started, but Luke interrupted him, already one step ahead of him.
"Ana, there is no way that I can allow you to go into that apartment as long as we believe Leila Williams might be there," he insisted.
I raised my eyebrows, a little surprised at the force behind his words. I wasn't Christian's submissive, and I sure as hell wasn't Luke Sawyer's. If I wanted to enter my own damn apartment, I would. Neither Luke Sawyer nor any army was going to stop me.
"You don't understand, Luke," I tried to reason. "If she's been in my apartment since yesterday, there's no telling what kind of damage she's already done. That's my stuff, Luke. It's my home. She has no right to be there. And I'm not going to stand around and wait while she's just in there, doing God knows what!"
"Ana," Belinda jumped in. "I don't blame you for wanting to go in there and protect your home. But let me and Luke do our jobs, OK? As well as Fred and Tanner here."
"I'll go up there right now and kick her out," Tanner said. "I'm so sorry about this mix-up."
I was furious, but not at poor Tanner, not really. He'd done everything by the book, it sounded like. He'd just had the misfortune of being new. How the hell had Leila Williams known that a new security guard would be on duty, one that wouldn't recognize me on sight? I was fucking enraged at Leila Williams, as well as Elena Lincoln, who had undoubtedly put this bitch up to all this shit. Just who the hell did this bitch think she was, going into my home, pretending to be me? Why the hell wouldn't these people leave us the fuck alone?
"I'm going with you, Tanner," I spat. Tanner looked afraid. Yes, be afraid, Tanner. You should be.
"No, you're not," Luke insisted.
"Just try to stop me," I said menacingly. "Have you forgotten that trip to the ER? You know, when we thought I'd broken your wrist? I'm going to my fucking apartment, Luke Sawyer, and you are NOT going to stop me."
Luke sighed and got out his cell phone. Within moments, he had Jason on the line. What, did he really think Jason was going to stop me with a phone call? Jason was Luke's boss, not mine.
"Ana, we're just trying to protect you," Belinda reminded me while Luke was explaining to Jason what was happening.
"Then come with me," I said simply. Belinda didn't have a chance to respond because Luke handed his cell phone to me.
"Taylor wants to speak with you," he told me. I could see from the glint in his eye that he thought he'd won. Well, he had another think coming.
I took the phone and started speaking, not giving Jason a chance to speak first, "I am going in there, Jason. You know goddam well that I am no man's submissive, and especially not Luke's and not yours. I am NOT going to stand by like some helpless female while the big men take care of the bad guys. Bullshit! That's my home, Jason! I'm going to kick that bitch's ass!"
If my words shocked Jason, he didn't show it. He calmly replied, "Ana, I'm not trying to talk you out of going in there. All I ask is that you wait ten minutes. That's how long it will take us to get there. Just ten minutes, Ana."
"By 'us,' you mean you and Christian. He doesn't need to be here, Jason. Do you know what kind of day he's had? This is the last thing he needs! We can have this all resolved in a couple of minutes. That's all it will take me to take her down. Not even two minutes! And besides, I have not one but FOUR security officers with me! Well, three if Fred stays at his post. But that's THREE people protecting me! Two of those people are armed, military trained, and on Christian's payroll. So NO, I am NOT fucking waiting for Christian, so he can get hurt just trying to protect me too, when there are already two people right here that he pays to do that! I'm going in there right fucking NOW!"
I didn't wait for him to respond, but I threw the phone back to Luke, stormed over, and punched the button for the elevator. Belinda was next to me the entire time. "Ana, calm down. You're not going to do any of us any good if you storm in there like this. You need to have a level head."
She was right. I needed to calm down. The next thing I knew, my own phone was ringing. Christian. Of course. I'm glad that I took that moment to calm down before talking to him. I answered the call in much the same way as I had with Jason, not giving Christian a chance to speak before I told him what was what.
"Christian, I know what you're going to say," I told him. "And no, I will NOT wait for you. That bitch is in my apartment! My apartment, Christian! There's no telling what she's done to my stuff! I don't have much in that little apartment, but it's mine, Christian, and I'm not going to just stand here and wait while she's in there doing who knows what!"
If he dared tell me that he would replace it all, I was going to scream. Yes, I knew he could afford everything in my apartment times a hundred, easily, but that wasn't the fucking point!
"Ana, please!" Christian begged, and the fear in his voice nearly broke my heart. "We're on our way! We'll be there in ten minutes, tops. Just wait for me, baby! She wants to hurt you!"
Didn't he realize that she wanted to hurt him too? And I was trained in self-defense? I was much more worried about her hurting him than me.
"She's not going to hurt me, Christian," I assured him. "I'll see you when you get here." I ended the call and turned off my phone because I knew he'd keep trying to call. Again, I felt guilty, because I was making him worry, and he'd already had such a stressful day, particularly due to Barney's discoveries. This was just adding more shit to his growing pile. But I knew it would all be over before he got here if we did it my way.
I hadn't even noticed that we'd all gotten on the elevator. Luke and Tanner were both looking at me in fear. Were they more afraid that I was going to hurt them or that I was going to get hurt by the woman in my apartment? I wasn't sure.
Tanner took that moment to speak up, as we were waiting for the elevator to take us to the eleventh floor. Damn, when did this elevator get so slow? I'd never noticed it before.
"Umm… you know, you're really very beautiful," Tanner said shyly.
What? Remember what I said earlier about not being angry at Tanner? Well, I changed my mind. I wanted to rip his throat out.
"Shut the fuck up, man," Luke whisper-warned, but in the tight space of the elevator, all of us could hear him.
"I was just trying to relax her," Tanner whispered back. Seriously? Did he really think…?
"Deep breaths, Ana," Belinda said, ignoring both of the idiots in the elevator with us. "Deep breath in, now hold it. OK, now release it. Now, do that again."
I followed Belinda's lead, and found that her breathing exercises actually worked. I was feeling a little less like murdering Tanner. And Belinda had done a fabulous job of not only helping me relax but also of filtering out the two idiots.
It seemed like an hour later, the elevator doors finally opened on my floor. I didn't waste any time heading down the hall towards my apartment. Yes, I was more relaxed, but I was still a woman on a mission. Belinda wasn't even two steps behind me.
"Ana, slow down. You don't want to give her any warning you're coming," Belinda whispered. Oh, right. Belinda had a good point.
I slowed down and eased my way quietly to the door of my apartment. I got out my key, ready to unlock the door.
"May I?" Belinda asked, so I handed her the key. She looked at me and whispered calmly, "Would it be OK if the three of us go in first? You can come in right behind us."
I nodded at her and stepped back.
Moments later, I watched Belinda and Luke, both with their guns drawn, step inside my apartment. Tanner was right behind them, holding out his stun gun like it was a loaded pistol. I knew that security guards in my building didn't carry guns with bullets, only stun guns. Well, if it came down to it, he could use it to destabilize the bitch, to knock her on her ass. I suppose that would be better than killing her.
Then again, maybe not. For a moment, I wanted that bitch dead, as I looked through the door into my apartment. I could see all the chaos before I even stepped into the room. My clothing was strewn everywhere. No, scratch that. Pieces of my clothing were littering the entire apartment. The bitch had taken a pair of scissors and cut up all my clothes! Most of my business suits were now scattered around in shreds. And my evening and cocktail dresses that I'd worn to events with Christian! God damn it, there were some beautiful dresses, and they were all completely ruined now! And why? What had I ever done to this bitch?
Speaking of the bitch, where the hell was she? All the lights were on. There was a half-eaten can of tuna on the kitchen counter, along with an open jar of peanut butter with a spoon sticking out of the top. I guess she'd helped herself to what little food I had left in my apartment. I guess if I'd gone shopping after I returned from Sweden, the bitch would have had more choices than tuna and peanut butter. But I guess home invaders can't be too choosy.
Oh, but wait. It turned out, she'd eaten more than just tuna and peanut butter. God damn it! And she hadn't even cleaned up the mess she'd made. What the hell was I thinking, after the mess she'd made with all my clothes, of course she didn't clean up candy wrappers. There, in front of the couch, was a huge pile of wrappers from all of the chocolate that I'd purchased in Europe. This chocolate was the main reason I'd stopped by here today, and if all the wrappers were any indication, she'd eaten every last piece! Crazy mother-fucking home-invading bitch!
And then, we heard it.
"And I…. will al….ways love you…..!" It sounded more like a screaming banshee than music, but whatever it was, it was coming from my bathroom. And that was definitely the sound of the shower that I also heard over her squealing voice. The bitch was taking a shower in my home, after eating all my chocolate and destroying all my clothes. And now she was singing in my shower. Or at least trying to.
"Is that….the song from Bodyguard?" Tanner whispered.
"Mmm-hmm," Belinda mumbled, and continued in a whisper, "And that ain't Whitney Houston."
I wanted to laugh, but I was still too angry at the fact that this bitch was in my shower.
"It ain't Dolly Parton neither," Luke added, also whispering.
Belinda gave Luke a confused look, like she didn't know what he'd said. I guessed Belinda wasn't a country music fan. Ray was, so I'd grown up with Dolly Parton music. And Luke was right, this wasn't that. Leila Williams couldn't carry a tune in a tin bucket.
I'd waited long enough. "I'm going in there," I told them, still whispering.
"No, you're not," Luke said. Did he really think he was going to stop me? I was done with his shit.
The wailing on the other side of the bathroom door stopped Luke's protesting. She wasn't singing now, just wailing loudly. All I could think about was the fact that this woman had already sliced her wrists open, just the day before, and now… she was in my fucking bathtub. Was she going to finish the job there?
Without waiting for Luke, I opened the bathroom door and rushed inside, startling the naked woman in the shower, so that her wailing morphed into high-pitched screaming.
"Shut up!" I yelled at her. I had to yell to be heard over her screaming. "You're in my apartment, and you dare to scream at me?!"
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Belinda pick up a gun from the vanity. She put it in her pocket without taking her eyes off the woman in the shower. Belinda's own gun was still pointed at the bitch, who stopped screaming and just stared at me in confusion.
"You?" That was all she said. What about me? What the hell was wrong with this chick? Well, there was obviously a lot wrong with her.
"Are you Leila Williams?" I asked her. I didn't need to yell any longer, but my voice sounded angry. Of course I was fucking angry. This bitch was in my shower!
She just stared at me as I reached over and turned off the shower. Then, I handed her a towel. MY towel. Stupid home-invading bitch.
"Are you Leila Williams?" I asked her again, calmly I thought. Much more calmly than I felt.
She glanced at Belinda, noticing her gun, and then at Luke and Tanner standing in the doorway gawking at her, also with their guns drawn. Her eyes widened, and she pulled the towel around her more. Yes, she'd just given them an eye full. Well, that's what happens when you decide to get naked and take a shower in a home you've invaded, bitch!
She glanced back at me and nodded. "I, umm… I think so?" she mumbled, more like a question than an answer.
"You think so?" I asked her. She wasn't sure who she was?
"I… I'm supposed to be… well, you. I think. Anastasia Steele. That's you, isn't it? But I'm not you. I'm… nobody."
I sighed. She was batshit crazy. No other explanation. And no matter how angry I was, I couldn't beat the shit out of a crazy chick. Even if she had invaded my home, destroyed all my pretty dresses, eaten all my chocolate, and used my shower gel.
"You need to get dressed, Leila," I told her with a kind tone. "Where are your clothes?"
She looked around again, more at the guns pointed at her than anything else. "Umm… I don't know?" Another question. Well, shit.
I walked back into my room and glanced at the open door of my closet. Empty. Anything that I'd left hanging there was now in shreds, littered all over the place. I hoped, as I turned towards my chest of drawers, that she hadn't gotten to it yet. Thankfully, the clothes I had neatly folded in the drawers were still in place. From one drawer, I pulled out a pair of faded jeans, and from another a Mariners sweatshirt. From the top drawer, I found a pair of panties and an exercise bra, which I knew would work for her even if she was a different size than me. All of these were clothes I still wore, as I didn't have room for anything I didn't use. But now, despite losing everything she had destroyed, I was giving her my clothes to wear.
I wondered for a moment if I was not the one who'd lost her mind instead of this woman. Was I really sorting through the few clothes I had left that she had not destroyed… for something for HER to wear? Well, yes. I was. And I wanted this bitch to be dressed before Christian got here. It pissed me off to even consider the idea that he'd seen her naked, so I forced that idea from my mind and focused on what needed to be done.
Marching back into the bathroom, where Belinda and Leila were still standing, staring at one another, I spoke first to Luke and Tanner, who were still standing at the bathroom door where they could see both women inside as well as me as I'd gathered clothes for Leila. "We need some privacy," I announced before I closed the bathroom door.
Luke spoke through the door. "Ana, I need to keep an eye on you at all times."
I ignored him and spoke to Leila instead, handing her my clothes that I'd gathered for her. "Here, put these on," I said. I wanted to add that she was lucky she hadn't ripped them up too. Where the hell were the clothes she'd taken off, anyway? But I didn't say any of that because I didn't need to. Leila obeyed me without a word. She dropped her towel and put on my underwear. Yes, she was a submissive alright. And I took a bit of sick pride in the fact that her tits were smaller than mine. Crazy flat-chested submissive bitch.
Not even thirty seconds later, I opened the bathroom door again, as Leila was now dressed. "Come," I told her, still in a kind tone. Luke and Tanner were still aiming their guns at her.
"Guys, I think you can put your guns away," I told them. "Leila isn't going to hurt anyone. Are you, Leila?"
"No, ma'am," she answered me. Shit, did she think I was some kind of BDSM Dominant or something? Why else would she address me as "ma'am"?
Tanner and Belinda both holstered their guns, but Luke kept his trained on Leila. I decided to ignore him again, for now.
"Let's sit down and talk while we wait," I suggested. I knew Christian would be here any moment.
Leila obediently sat down next to me on the couch. She sat with her head bowed, not looking at me or anyone else in the room.
"Would you like to tell me why you're in my apartment, Leila?" I asked her.
Leila was silent for a moment, but I could see that she was thinking about my question. "Umm… I am Anastasia Steele. I mean, no, I know I'm not. But I have your ID. I'm supposed to be you. I'm supposed to… Oh, God!" She put her face in her hands and began to cry.
"What are you supposed to do?" I asked her gently.
She glanced up at me, through her tears, and asked confusedly, "Why are you being so nice to me? I almost… I was going to… Oh, God! You're so nice! And I was going to… I'm so sorry!"
"What were you going to do?" I asked again. "Were you going to hurt me?" Still gentle. I wasn't angry with her anymore. OK, that's a lie, but I didn't want to hurt her. I knew she was mentally ill and wasn't completely at fault for all the shit she'd done.
Leila nodded, still crying. "She gave me a gun. I was supposed to shoot you. I'm so sorry! You're so nice, not at all what she said."
"Who gave you a gun?" I asked curiously, even though I already knew the answer.
"Mrs. Lincoln," she answered, in not much more than a whisper. "She told me… if I… got rid of you, then I would be… Then Mr. Grey would… He would want me instead."
Christian could not have chosen a worse moment to come crashing through the door. Never mind that it was unlocked, and that Luke still had his gun out. It was a wonder nobody got shot in the ruckus that Christian raised as he entered my apartment. Oh, and now, Belinda had her gun out again too. And Jason came in, with his own gun blazing as well. Tanner was just standing there, looking confused and afraid.
I didn't have a chance to tell them to put their fucking guns away, because the next thing I knew, I was in Christian's arms. He was kneeling in front of me, kissing me. And nothing else mattered. Leila Williams could have been a world away from us instead of sitting next to me on the couch, watching us kiss.
"I was so afraid," Christian whispered in my ear when he finally broke free from our kiss. "So, fucking afraid. Ana… Oh, God. Don't ever… please, Angel. Don't scare me like that again."
"Christian," I said. "I'm OK. It's all OK."
He took my hand and placed it over his heart. Damn, his heartbeat was too fast. It was thumping like mad against my hand. "Ana, don't you get it?" he asked painfully. "You're my heart. If she'd hurt you… Oh, God, baby! I need you, Angel. I love you so fucking much!"
"I love you, too, Christian. Now, calm down, OK? We're OK. You and I are both just fine."
"Why didn't you wait for me?" he asked, still with that pained tone.
"I wanted to take care of things before you got here," I explained. "I was afraid she'd hurt you."
He snorted. "Afraid that she'd… Ana, she wanted to kill YOU, not me."
I glanced up, realizing that Leila was still sitting right next to me, hearing everything we were saying. She was watching us with an astonished look on her face, but as soon as I made eye contact, she bowed her head and looked at the floor.
"Actually, you're right," I told Christian. "She did want to kill me. But that was before she met me." I spoke to Leila then, still with the kind tone I'd been using with her. "You don't want to kill me now, do you, Leila?"
She shook her head furiously as she squeezed her eyes shut. She looked like she was in pain too. "No, ma'am. I don't want to hurt you. I'm so sorry, ma'am."
Christian looked surprised. "She thinks you're a Dominatrix," he told me.
I nodded. "If that's something from BDSM, then yeah, I think you're right. I'm not sure why she'd think that, though."
He shrugged. "Doesn't matter." Then he looked at Jason and the other security officers standing around. "Umm, Sawyer? I think you can put away your gun now, don't you?" Interestingly, Christian had still not spoken to Leila or even acknowledged her presence, except for in his comments about her to me.
Finally, Luke holstered his gun. "She had a gun, sir," he informed Christian.
Christian paled a little. "Where is it?" he asked.
Belinda answered, as she got it out of her pocket, "Here. It's a Glock 43." Belinda then checked the chamber for bullets. "Fully loaded."
"She had a gun, Ana," Christian lamented as he looked in my eyes. "She could have killed you!"
"She never even came close," I assured him. "She never had a chance."
"How the hell did she get a gun?" Christian shouted at Jason.
I answered, "Where do you think, Christian? The same place she got a fake ID with my name on it. The same way she got inside your penthouse. The pedo-bitch."
Christian glanced at Leila uncomfortably. Shit! Of course he didn't want her to know about his past relationship with said pedo-bitch. I needed to watch my words.
Leila was not looking at either of us, as her eyes were still on the floor, but she seemed to shift a little, as if she knew Christian's eyes were on her. "Leila, look at me," Christian commanded her.
She looked up immediately, meeting his eyes. But Christian didn't hold hers very long. Instead, he looked at me and asked, "Is it OK if I have a conversation with her? With you here too, of course. I just… I don't want to make you feel uncomfortable by talking to her if you'd rather I didn't. I can leave her here for Jason to deal with, if you want to get out of here."
I snorted a little before I replied, "Christian… she's not only IN my home. She DESTROYED my home. See all the pieces of fabric everywhere. Those were my clothes. And she ate all of Elliot's chocolate, and everybody else's too. So no, we will not be going anywhere just yet. Damn it, we need to call Elliot and Kate and tell them we're going to be even later. Anyway, no. We're staying here and having this conversation. And we're not leaving until we get the result we want." I knew he'd know what I meant. I agreed with his plan to send this crazy chick off to the same mental health facility in England that Christian had recently returned from. But Leila had to agree to it.
Christian nodded at me, pulled me closer, and then turned back to Leila. When he spoke, it was a tad bit gentler than before, but he still sounded pissed off. "Leila, first of all, I want you to understand something. I am not a Dominant. I am not YOUR Dominant. So forget anything you thought you knew about me from the past."
"Yes, Sir," Leila replied.
"No, cut the shit. Don't address me as 'Sir,'" Christian insisted. "I want to have a conversation with you, and I want you to communicate person to person. No subs or Doms. Just people."
Leila looked confused. "Are you… umm… are you a sub now? Did you switch? Is she your… Domme?" Leila was obviously asking about me, which made me snort again.
Christian shook his head. "No, Leila. Ana and I aren't in the lifestyle. We prefer vanilla. Anyway, this isn't about us. This is about you. Why are you here, Leila?"
She looked to be deep in thought. "Why am I here? Umm… my husband died."
"I heard about that, and I'm sorry for your loss," Christian told her. He sounded sincere, but I knew he was just as angry about her being here as I was. Probably even more so.
"Umm… Mrs. Lincoln has been emailing me. I was… confused, I think. I missed Master. He was my husband. Not just my husband, but my Dom too. I loved him. And I miss him. So much."
"Leila, what does any of that have to do with me?" Christian asked, sounding a bit too impatient.
"Mrs. Lincoln convinced me that I could have Master back again… I mean, not my husband, but Mr. Grey. You. I… I'm confused. Master is dead. Master is… not you."
"No, Leila, I'm not Master. I was never Master, even when you were… umm… You never called me that."
"Oh, God!" Leila exclaimed. "Your angel called her… Pedo-bitch! Like pedophile, plus bitch. She was talking about Mrs. Lincoln, wasn't she? Mrs. Lincoln molested you, didn't she? Of course. You're so young. When Mrs. Lincoln introduced me to you, that was two years ago. You were only 24. Two years younger than me. And you'd been in the lifestyle for several years longer than I had. The pedo-bitch… Mrs. Lincoln… she introduced you to it, didn't she?"
Damn! For a bat-shit crazy woman, Leila Williams was incredibly astute. She got all that just from the one slip of my tongue?
"Leila…" Christian began, and I could feel how tense he was that Leila had figured out this secret from his past.
"She hurt you!" Leila continued. "I… I lost a child!"
Wait, what?
"What do you mean, Leila?" I asked her.
"I was pregnant. Not long before Master died. My baby died. I miscarried at about four months. We cried together. It was the only time I ever saw Master cry. We both wanted that baby so much. And now… now they're both gone."
"Leila, I'm so sorry," I told her. And I was. No matter what she'd done to my apartment, I could kind of understand how her grief had driven her mad, making her vulnerable to Elena Lincoln's sick manipulation. OK, if this had been anybody else, I'd probably hug her right now, the way she was sitting there crying. But I couldn't bring myself to go that far.
"I want to be a mother," Leila continued. "I've spent so much time thinking about what kind of mother I want to be. And if anybody… If somebody like Mrs. Lincoln ever came near my child… I'd kill her. Oh God!" Leila turned to me and continued, "Mrs. Lincoln gave me a gun. I'm in no mental state to have a gun! And… I almost killed the angel. Shit! You're his angel, and I almost killed you! My God!"
"So… you understand what almost happened?" I pressed her. Yes, she was batshit crazy, but she seemed pretty damned lucid at the moment.
"Of course, I do," she answered, almost in a whisper. "I'm so sorry, Angel. I made a mess of your pretty things. I was… I saw pictures of you with him, wearing some of those pretty dresses, and you looked so beautiful. I wanted that to be me. But I could never be you. You're his angel, and I'm… I'm nobody."
Christian found his voice, and I could hear how much he was struggling with all of this. "Leila, you aren't nobody. I was wrong, two years ago, by treating you like nobody. You deserved more than that then, and you deserve more than that now, too."
"How can you say that?" Leila asked, sounding astonished. "I was going to kill her! I had a gun, and I was going to shoot your angel! I deserve the worst punishment! I should die and go to hell! Oh, God! I almost killed the angel!" Her voice got higher and more hysterical as she spoke.
I was getting really uncomfortable with her continuing to refer to me as an angel. "Leila, I'm not an angel. I'm just Ana. Just call me Ana, OK?"
Leila looked even more astonished and confused. "Not an angel? Yes, you are! This man…" She paused as she pointed towards Christian. "He's not the same man he was two years ago. I didn't know that… until now. Until I saw him with you. But he's different. And I don't know how… but I know it's because of you. He was dark then. Dark like me. That's why I wanted… more. But then I met Master, and he was dark too, and we were happy."
At that moment, our conversation was interrupted by a knock at the door. Luke was the one to look through the peephole and then open the door to two uniformed police officers. Who had called them? And when?
"We have a report of a home invasion," one officer said.
I had to think quickly. I knew if I pressed charges against Leila, that chances of the press getting wind of all this were very high. Christian's secrets would be very difficult to keep hidden.
"Oh, sorry, but that was a misunderstanding," I jumped in. "I think Fred, the security officer downstairs, must have called you, but he didn't need to do that. We've resolved the confusion, and everything is OK now." There. That sounded calm. I think.
"And you are?" the same officer asked me.
"I'm Anastasia Steele, and I live here," I answered.
"And who are you, officer," Belinda jumped in. "I didn't hear you introduce yourself."
"I'm Officer Danforth, and this is Officer Janson," he replied. "Who are you?"
"I'm Belinda Prescott, Ms. Steele's Close Protective Officer," she replied.
Officer Janson spoke up for the first time. "We got two calls regarding this address," she said. "The first was from the security officer on duty. He said that his colleague had mistakenly let somebody with a fake ID into your apartment. Then, a neighbor called about a disturbance, loud screaming. And forgive me for pointing out the obvious, but there was clearly a disturbance here." She motioned around the room, at all of the shreds of my former clothes.
"Yes, there was," I agreed. Again, I needed to think very quickly. "It was a misunderstanding, as I said. I… umm… I told my friend that she could stay here for a few days, while I am staying at my boyfriend's place. But I forgot to give her a key, and then she was unable to reach me when I was at work yesterday. We've had a very busy couple of days at work, and I haven't had my cell phone turned on while I'm working. So, anyway, she really needed to get in, and she thought up a pretty stupid idea to pretend to be me, so the security officers would let her in. It worked. I wasn't happy when I found out she'd done that, but I let it go because it all worked out OK. That was yesterday. Today, I was just stopping by to pick something up, but I couldn't reach her before I came upstairs. I think it was because she was in the shower. When we came inside, she was in the shower, and we startled her. That's why she was screaming. That's probably what the neighbors heard." Whew! Did any of that sound even remotely believable?
"So… how did this mess get here?" Janson asked.
"I was angry," Leila spoke up, and I willed her to shut up. I didn't know what she was likely to tell them, and it was better for her to just keep her mouth shut and let me handle this. That's exactly what Christian was doing, to my surprise. Jason and Luke, too. And Tanner really needed to keep his mouth shut.
"Who are you?" Officer Danforth demanded.
Please, don't tell them you're "nobody," I willed the crazy woman.
"My name is Leila Williams," she told the officer. "I'm… umm… the friend." Yeah, that would never happen, but at least she was cooperating with my story.
"Why were you angry, Ms. Williams?" Officer Janson asked her.
Leila looked at me, and I could see the fear in her eyes. Shit! I knew if I answered for her, that Janson wouldn't accept it. She had asked Leila a question, so I had to wait and just hope that Leila would answer it well.
"Umm… my husband died," Leila answered. "And Anastasia Steele… I wanted to be her. She's perfect. She's an angel."
"She was jealous," I added. "But these are just clothes, and they can be replaced. Nobody is hurt, and we've resolved the conflict. Everything is OK here."
Officer Danforth pressed, "So, you don't want to press charges against… Ms. Williams?"
"No, of course not," I answered with a very fake chuckle. "She's my friend. Just my very stupid and jealous friend. I'm still not happy about what she did, but there's no reason to press charges. Nobody got hurt." Never mind that she had a fucking gun that she was going to shoot me with. No, they didn't need to know that. But the only reason I was keeping that information from them, and not pressing charges, was to protect Christian's privacy.
Thankfully, the officers accepted my word. They checked my ID to confirm that I was indeed the rightful tenant, but they didn't even speak to Christian or the others in the room. Once they were satisfied with my story, they moved on pretty quickly. I thought this was also a good time to get rid of Tanner too, since he'd already heard too much about our private lives.
I spoke in my friendliest tone, "Tanner, would you mind seeing the officers downstairs and giving Fred an update. I'm sure he's worried. And thank you for your help today." Yeah, thank you again for letting the crazy woman into my apartment. Oh well, it hadn't really been his fault. I hoped he didn't get fired over it. I knew that Christian would get Jason to get Tanner to sign an NDA later, and hopefully that would be the end of that.
Once Tanner and the Seattle PD were gone, I think we all breathed a sigh of relief.
"You were magnificent," Christian told me. "I'd decided that I was going to go along with anything you told them. If you'd wanted to press charges, to have her arrested, that would have been fine."
"I had to protect you, Christian," I explained.
"I was never in danger," he insisted.
I snorted. "You don't think the media would have gotten wind of this? They would have been relentless until they figured out her identity. Your past, Christian…."
He nodded, but then he kissed my cheek, and then my forehead tenderly. "None of that matters. If it comes out, it comes out. All I care about is you."
"See, I told you," Leila spoke up. "You are his angel."
I was done with Leila Williams and I wanted her gone as soon as possible. And we were also now very late for our dinner appointment, and we'd not yet let Kate or Elliot know where we were.
"Christian, can I make a suggestion?" I said, ignoring Leila's words.
"Of course," he answered.
"Can you talk to Leila about… your idea? I think she realizes that she needs mental health therapy. While you talk to her, I'll call Kate and give her a good reason for why we're running so late."
That being agreeable to Christian, I walked into my bathroom where I'd be able to talk to Kate without her being able to overhear Christian or, God forbid, Leila's voice in the background. But what the hell was I going to tell Kate?
I decided to go with mostly the truth, but I left out everything about the past hour. I told Kate about the last interviewee we'd had for the day, who'd previously worked as a high school teacher, and about Christian's employee in Finance, who'd been raped by that former teacher, who was now being interviewed to be her boss. OK, I might have exaggerated about her being raped, but in my mind, it was close enough, and I knew it would distract Kate. In fact, Kate had experienced something pretty similar in her own past, so she was able to empathize better than usual. She bought my story, hook, line and sinker. And then, in Kate-like fashion, she changed the subject to herself.
"Did you know that I knew Elliot already?" she asked.
"No, really?" I asked, surprised. I was sure they'd never met.
"Yeah, I just didn't know his last name. I didn't know who he was. But yeah, I met him several months ago, at a night club. I, uhh, might have… spent the night with him. Or, umm… part of a night, anyway."
"Kate!" I exclaimed. "You had sex with Elliot? When?"
"Well, like I said, it was a few months ago. I didn't know… He never told me his last name. Just Elliot. And he said he worked in construction. He didn't mention that it was Grey Construction, or that he owned the damn company."
"Did he remember you?" I asked.
"Well, yeah, of course. I'm pretty memorable, Ana," she added. "Besides, he knew my last name. I told him. I just… didn't give him my real phone number. Now I regret that. Christian Grey's brother, and I didn't know it."
I rolled my eyes. She was so full of shit. "Are things… awkward?" I asked her.
"They were at first, but I think we're OK now," she answered. "I just came to the restroom to talk to you, but I need to get back to him. How much longer are you going to be?"
"Well, Christian is just finishing up talking to his employee," I lied. "I'm sure he's almost done. We'll come straight there as soon as we leave here. So, twenty minutes, tops?"
"OK, we'll order appetizers and see you soon," Kate said.
As I walked back into the room after ending the call with Kate, my heart almost broke from the words I heard Christian telling Leila.
"Look, I know you feel like you're in a dark tunnel. I know, because I've been there too. And Elena Lincoln knew you were in a really vulnerable place, and she preyed on your weakness."
"Just like she did with you," Leila agreed sadly. "I see that now."
"It took me years to see her manipulation, so you're way ahead of me," Christian told her.
Leila shook her head, still frowning sadly. "I still think what you're offering me is just… too much. After all I've done, I deserve to go to prison. Your angel should have told the police the truth about what I did, and what I almost did. I don't understand why she wanted to protect me like she did, other than the fact that she's just… an angel. And I don't understand why you want to help me. It's a lot of money you're offering to pay for my treatment, I'm sure. This place you've described… it sounds really expensive."
"Look, it doesn't matter why I want to do it, OK?" Christian said. "The point is, you need help. You haven't had a chance to grieve properly, and these folks can help you with that. And as for the money, I've got plenty. This is nothing for me."
"But… why?" she insisted. "I just can't understand why you want to help me."
Christian sighed. "Look… two years ago… I took something from you. I know you were willing to give it. You signed the contract and consented, but still, I was wrong. I treated you badly. I don't like the person I was then."
"You were a good Dom," Leila told him. She wasn't being weird about it, just stating a fact as she saw it.
"No, I wasn't," Christian insisted. "You don't know what was going on in my head because we never had a conversation after that first one, when I interviewed you. I was using the lifestyle for a very unhealthy reason, and it was abusive. I think I probably contributed to your own current mental problems because of my own issues. And I'm sorry about that, Leila."
Leila just stared at Christian in shock. "I'm sorry too," she finally said. "About almost… hurting your angel."
"It's not your fault, and I forgive you," Christian told her.
I decided now was the time to join them, so I moved closer to the couch where they were both sitting. "I forgive you, too, Leila," I told her. And I did. But I wanted her gone as soon as possible. Maybe she would be OK after she got treatment, but I had zero interest in being friends or anything remotely close to it.
"So, umm, Dr. Flynn is on his way," Christian told both of us, as he glanced at his watch and then back at Leila. "He'll be here any minute. He's arranged a place for you to stay through the rest of the week, and on Monday, he'll fly with you to England and check you into the clinic. Does that sound OK?"
Leila nodded, and I could see that she was now trying not to cry. "Thank you," she said quietly.
Christian didn't respond to Leila, but he took my hand and pulled me into his lap. "I think we're done here," he told me. "As soon as Flynn gets here, we can be on our way. And I'll hire somebody to clean this shit up. And, of course, I'll replace everything that…"
I cut him off by placing my fingers over his lips. "Don't say it. I don't want to hear it. I don't want to talk about it right now," I warned him.
Christian responded by kissing my fingers. Wisely, he didn't say another word about replacing my ruined clothes.
"You need to get Jason to get NDAs from Tanner and Fred," I reminded Christian. I knew I didn't need to mention Leila's NDA, as he would have already thought of it.
Christian nodded and glanced at Jason. Sometimes, they were able to communicate with just their eyes, and this was one of those times. Without another word, Jason left. I'm not sure if he was going to pull a print-out of an NDA from his ass or if he always carried them around with him for occasions just like this. Yes, for all those times when your boss's girlfriend's apartment is invaded by his crazy former submissive after she fools the naive new security guy with a fake ID and he lets her in. Yes, for occasions just like that. Oh, the lives of the rich and famous, and their bodyguards.
Dr. Flynn arrived shortly, and Leila left with him after apologizing and thanking us a couple more times. Did I mention that I was done with her? I was extremely happy to see her leave with Dr. Flynn. And then, with no chocolate remaining for me to take with me, nor any work clothes to pack for tomorrow, and before Jason had even returned from his errand, we were on our way down to the lobby.
I made sure to give Fred a hug and assure him that everything was OK as I was leaving. Jason joined us there, and then, we were on our way. Luke led the way as we left the building, with Jason holding the door for us.
And then, all hell broke loose. I heard some popping sounds, and then I felt a sharp pain on my right shoulder. Before I understood what was happening, Belinda and Luke were both knocking Christian and me to the ground.
"Ana! Are you hurt?" Christian cried out, sounding terrified.
"I'm OK! Are you OK? What's happening?"
"Are you hit?" Luke yelled. What did he mean?
"Affirmative," Belinda answered. "Call 911." She then spoke to Christian, "Mr. Grey, we need to get back inside, quickly. Can you move, sir?"
"Umm… yeah, I think so," Christian answered.
I'm not really sure what happened next, it happened so quickly. Jason and Belinda were both working to drag Christian and me back inside the lobby. I don't know where Luke was, but then he was there, pushing a bandage to my shoulder. Was I bleeding? Shit, that hurt!
"Christian?" I called out. Where was he?
"Here," he answered, but his voice sounded… strange. Weak.
"What's happening?" I asked.
"I think we've been shot," he answered.
Shot? With a gun?
"Are you hurt?" I asked Christian.
"Umm… I'm OK. What about you?" He wasn't OK. He'd been shot and didn't want to tell me.
"I think… my shoulder," I replied, not really able to speak in a complete sentence.
Then I heard Jason's voice, "Sir, the paramedics are on the way. Just lie still. You're OK. You're both going to be OK."
If we were both going to be OK, why did Jason sound afraid? Jason never sounded afraid.
I heard an ambulance siren, and then, the paramedics were there. I heard somebody's voice, one of them I think. "We have three gunshot victims."
Three? Who was the other one, besides Christian and me? I glanced around, and noticed Belinda on the floor next to me.
"Belinda! You got hit!" Shit! I hadn't even realized it.
She smiled weakly at me, and I could see she was in a lot of pain. "My first day on the job… and I get shot… in the ass. Don't worry, Ana… If you're gonna get shot… the ass… is the best place… to get shot. I'm sure I'll be… fine. Just fine."
I heard a groan from the other side of me and looked over to see what was happening. They were lifting Christian onto a gurney. And there was so much blood. Christian's blood. My God!
"Christian!" I yelled.
"It's OK… Ana… my love," he responded weakly. "I love you… Ana!"
"I love you, too!" I yelled as the paramedics took him to the ambulance. I had no idea how badly hurt he was. And I was terrified. I couldn't stop the sob that escaped my lips. Was this going to be the last words we ever spoke to each other?
The next hour was a blur, as I was taken to the hospital and stitched up. It turned out that a bullet had grazed my shoulder, just leaving a surface wound. I was treated and released. Luke was with me the entire time, and he didn't leave my side as I attempted to find out where Christian and Belinda were. But we kept getting turned away by the medical staff, who either didn't know or wouldn't tell us because we weren't immediate family.
Finally, Luke heard from Jason. He'd been speaking with the Seattle PD and was only now able to get to the hospital. He met us in the ER waiting area.
"We haven't been able to get any information about either one of them," Luke told Jason.
Jason immediately called someone and stepped away, so I had no idea who he was talking to. But a few minutes later, he was back.
"Belinda is out of surgery. They removed the bullet, and she's in recovery. They might keep her for observation overnight. Christian… he's still in surgery."
"Still… in surgery?" I asked. What kind of surgery? How serious were his injuries?
"That's all I know," Jason responded stoically. I recognized the front he was putting up. He was worried, but he didn't want to show it.
A few minutes later, we were joined by Elliot and Kate. I'm not sure how they'd gotten word about the shooting, but somehow they'd found us.
"Ana!" Kate yelled, too loudly for a hospital. "Are you OK?"
"I'm fine," I assured her. "Just a surface wound."
"What about Christian?" Elliot asked me worriedly.
"We haven't been able to get any information," I told him. "But Jason found out a few minutes ago that he's in surgery."
Elliot still looked worried, but also confused. "Why wouldn't anyone talk to you? Mom's on duty. I'm sure she knows what's going on."
Now I was confused. Grace was here?
"I don't know, Elliot. I haven't seen your mom."
Elliot began to text. He found out that Carrick was on his way, and that Grace was in the room where Christian was having surgery. They had just finished removing a bullet from his shoulder, and they were stitching him up.
Finally, I was relieved to see Grace making her way towards us. She looked tired. And angry.
"Mom!" Elliot called. "Is he OK?"
She didn't answer Elliot at first, and she didn't even look at me. She sighed and then replied, "Come with me, Elliot. You can see your brother." Then she turned and looked at me for the first time. I'd never seen Grace look this… vengeful. And her vengeance, for some reason, was directed towards me. "But as for you, Anastasia, you can go home. I don't want you near my son."
I was so shocked I couldn't respond.
"Mom, what the hell do you mean? Christian's going to want Ana there when he wakes up."
Grace looked angry. She spat out her words, "Don't you think that girl has done enough damage, Elliot? We need to protect your brother while we're able to."
Protect him? From me?
"Don't worry, Ana. I'll get to the bottom of this," Elliot promised as he left with Grace, who didn't give me a second glance.