AN: Can I please say a huge thank you to everyone who has rejoined this journey, new followers, thank you so much!
Luke Sawyer
It's great being on the night shift. The house is quiet and we don't have to worry about the level of coming and going this house has seen since all this crap kicked off.
Boss asked T and I to do the nights so that everyone could feel safe to sleep and neither of us objected. Plenty of security around in the day but only us to watch the cameras at night. Not like we're needed otherwise right now as no one but the boss from the immediate family leaves the house.
I still can't wrap my head around what happened to Ana and I'm surprised I still have a fucking job. Ana was my primary. I should have been with her. But we were all wrapped up in finding Amaya and none of us thought Amaya was taken to get to Ana.
On the fact Ana wandered off and became her very own little vigilante PI, well that didn't surprise any of us. Ana would do anything for her family. Ten years ago she put herself at risk for Mia and it should have been obvious to us she'd do the same for Amaya.
I don't think anyone could have ever anticipated what happened though. This is not the type of shit that happens outside books and horror movies.
"We've got movement." Taylor says pulling me from my thoughts and I turn to look at the screen he's signaling.
It's Ana. She's poking her head out of her bedroom door and having a look around.
"She's cut her hair." I say quietly noticing the shorter locks that rest on her shoulders.
"Gail said Grace found her in the bathroom. Just cut it all off." T replies. "Said it was something to do with taking control."
I shrug. I don't have a clue. I adore Ana like a kid sister. I've been by her side for more than a decade and you can't not care deeply about someone after that much time protecting them. But I don't know what's going on with her right now and I won't pretend that I understand any of the stuff they all talk about when it comes to her.
They do keep me filled in. Whether that is because they think I need to know or deserve to know as her primary but they've been good at just keeping me in the loop. None of it makes sense though they talk about Catatonia and control and night terrors like they're supposed to mean something to me but they don't. I just need them to let me know that she's ok.
I watch as she slips quietly out of the room and T and I both sit a little straighter as we watch her. She's not left her room at night before. Only once early in the morning for a coffee but not at night.
"Where are you going An?" Taylor asks quietly as Ana seems to tiptoe nervously across the landing to the stairs. We switch to the stair camera just as she starts descending and like Taylor I'm wondering what she's playing at.
"Should I?" I point to the door thinking someone should go check on her.
"No, let's see first what she does." Taylor replies as we switch to the hallway camera.
She heads to the front door but stops short. I want to go to her or at least go to the on-duty therapist sleeping in the guest room to get them to go to her.
She just stands there though, staring at the door.
"What the hell?" Taylor whispers and I shrug even though I don't think he was asking me just thinking out loud.
The minutes begin ticking by and Ana doesn't move. Ten, fifteen, twenty. When her hand finally lifts towards the door and she takes a tiny step forward I think both Taylor and I hold our breaths but then she drops her hand, shakes her head and takes a step back.
"She's not left the house since this has happened has she?" I ask quietly.
"Well she went to do the victim statement at the police station but that was before the catatonia. Hyde being charged set that off." Taylor replies as we once again watch as Ana stands and stares at the door.
"What do you think she wants to do?" I ask but I know Taylor can't answer me. He's as clueless as I am when it comes to this.
"Maybe she's had enough of everyone babysitting her and is running off." He says and I sense a little bit of playfulness there and realise he doesn't actually mean that but I deserve it for asking a stupid question. He's not psychic.
Again we watch as she steps up to the door. Her hand is up again reaching towards the handle but she doesn't touch it and again she slumps and takes a step back.
Then she cricks her neck and shakes herself out a little as if psyching herself up but she doesn't try again yet.
"I'd love to know what's going through her mind right now." Taylor says and I hum an agreement. It would make this make sense at least.
Taylor
It's been two whole hours since Ana came downstairs and she's still standing there staring at the fucking door as if she's expecting it to do some kind of magic trick.
It's hard keeping an eye on her and the rest of the fucking house but I ain't going down there to her for no reason. She's a grown adult and there's obviously something going through her mind right now. I don't think she's going to go far even if she manages to get the door open. We just have to let her work this out on her own a while.
"Think it's time to alert someone?" Luke asks as I stifle a yawn. It's gone four am now. At least we've only got another two and a half to go before we can hit the sack.
"Nah. Leave her to it. She's trying to figure something out." I say because I really don't see the point of getting someone to go to her who will likely just send her back to bed. She's figuring something out and she needs time to do that. She isn't hurting anyone.
Again she steps up to the door, that shaking hand coming up to the handle but before she touches it she crumbles to her knees. Luke and I jump to our feet at the same time and without even hesitating a beat we're out the door of the security suite and down the stairs to Ana.
She's crying quietly when we get to her and we know she knows we're there as she would have heard us on the stairs.
Luke and I slip to our knees either side of her but say nothing as she cries. Whatever this is, it's obviously a big deal to Ana but I don't know how to approach a conversation about it. What should I ask? Could I set her back? Maybe we should have woken the shrink.
"I just want to prove I can do it." She hiccups quietly.
"Do what?" I ask as she clasps Luke's hand in her own.
"Go out there." She says her head nodding towards the door. "I just need to be able to do it."
I glance over at Luke who looks so apprehensive. We both are in over our heads now and we have no choice but to do our best. Neither of us would leave her to get a shrink now.
"Why?" I ask pushing her further.
"I need to go to court and do the victim statement. I need to face the bastard that tried to destroy me and this family. But the thought of going out there makes me sick. It scares me so much. I need to go." Ana is shaking here in her nightdress and I slip my jacket off and pop it over her shoulders while she calms herself down. We're here kid and we ain't going anywhere.
"You're not alone." Luke says softly, in a voice I've never heard him use before. "You're never alone."
"I can't..." Ana says as if she understands there's more to what Luke is saying than just the words.
"Yes you can. You've got me and Taylor here. We're not going anywhere. We'll be with you every step of the way. You're stronger than this Ana. Morton is behind bars, Hyde is behind bars. You can go out there with us and know you're safe no one will ever get to you again." He talks so softly with her but reassuring and pushing too.
Eventually, she clambers to her feet again and as well as keeping hold of Luke's hand she takes hold of mine and we step together towards the door. She releases me for a moment and again reaches for the handle and this time she not only touches it but she opens it too.
An alarm sounds and I laugh as Luke jumps to the keypad and quickly hammers in the code. Ana starts cackling like a hyena before she jumps over the threshold and goes out into the pouring rain.
"I did it!" She yells gleefully and Luke and I laugh as she starts dancing in the rain, barefoot and in her nightgown.
It's short-lived though as the boss comes running down the stairs.
"Fucking hell Anastasia get out of the rain!" He yells running out and he grabs her by the wrist and drags her inside not giving a damn about what the hell has just happened. Once the door is shut Luke quietly resets the alarm while Ana stands there dripping wet and looking towards the ground. "What the hell were you thinking?" He asks angrily and I glance at Luke and think this is likely not going to end well if this is left to The boss.
"Mr Grey." I step up and gently push in front of Ana, showing them both that I won't let this continue. "Now is not the time. I think it's best if you go to bed and Luke and I will see Mrs Grey upstairs."
Mr Grey is momentarily lost for words and I know why. The control freak in him wants answers. He wants to yell at us all for our stupidity. However, he knows Ana is in a vulnerable and precarious place and he doesn't want to be responsible for upsetting her further.
"Get her to bed." He growls before turning on his heels and heading upstairs. I glance at Luke, relieved that's over and then I turn to Ana who is struggling to stifle her giggles.
"I'm sorry." She laughs. "I didn't think about the alarm."
"You need a hot shower, a change of clothes, and your bed." I tell her failing to hide my own amusement.
"He'll be over it by morning." She says heading for the stairs. "I'll text him what happened and he'll leave it at that. Thank you both. I needed your support and strength to achieve that." And as she walks away I swallow the lump in my throat as what was a gleeful moment is shattered with a reminder as to why the front door was a giant step for her to take.