Epilogue - 1 year later

Ana

It's been a year since Jack Hyde was sentenced to life for conspiracy to rape me and for the last year my final thought each night has been whether or not he is guilty.

I've done the counselling with Tamara and done the activity therapy with Jamie but it doesn't shift the thought from my mind.

So I made a visit request to Washington State Penitentiary and Jack accepted it. So without anyone but my trusted friend Melissa knowing, I'm sneaking off today to visit the man jailed for life for changing my life forever.

I don't know what I'm hoping to achieve by going today. I don't really know what the purpose of my visit is. As Melissa said it's unlikely he'll tell me the truth if I ask him and I have to make peace with that, with the never knowing. I just need to see him again even if I don't know why. Maybe it's to convince myself that guilty or not he's in the right place for him, that he's alive and looks well despite being in prison.

Carrick said it best outside the courtroom that fateful day, we put it in the hands of his equals and they decided to convict. That's not on me and it's not on Julia. This is how the justice system works. I wish I knew either way though of his guilt or innocence.

Of course, Carrick thinks if he appeals he will walk but there's been no mention of an appeal thus far. I don't know why. Maybe it's something he can't afford to do and he's waiting for one of those innocent projects to take up his case.

What I do know is that I need to speak with him. Just to know ... I don't know what I need to know.

"Don't tell Christian." I tell Luke as we arrive outside the prison. I had to bring security out with me but I drove and while we edged closer I know it dawned on Luke where we were headed but I needed to do this and didn't want him talking me out of it.

"Tell him what?" Luke asks and I smile, at least I can count on him.

"I'll be fine." I say unbuckling my belt. He nods knowing that means I'm not inviting him along with me.

It takes a good half hour to get through the process to get into the prison and I'm led through to a visiting space that is separated with screens and phones to communicate.

I feel sick with nerves. So sick. But I'm here now and I'm going to do this.

The door opens and I stand as Jack is bought in. He looks... different and I'm not sure if it's a good or bad different. His hair is much shorter and in that blue jumpsuit I can tell he's lost weight but muscled up. I bite my lip awkwardly as he grins at me and I'm not sure if it's friendly or arrogant. He sits and picks up the phone before signalling me to do the same.

"Well well well Anastasia aren't you a sight for sore eyes?" He says and I feel my skin crawl as he eyeballs me. "You look good. How old's your sprog now. One right?"

"Right." I reply. "Jack I..."

"No, no, no sweetie I get to speak first." He says and I nod. Ok his game. "So how have you been?" He asks and I manage not to look too surprised.

"I'm ok Jack." I reply awkwardly. "How are you?"

"I'm really good." He says. "Really fucking good."

"I'm...I'm glad to hear that." I say even though it sounds so bloody stupid.

"Are you? Will it make you sleep better at night to know I'm ok?" He asks hissing at me.

"Jack..." I start.

"Happy to know I'm here again Ana?" He asks.

"I don't know Jack should I be?" I reply trying to put on a better front. It's clear he wants to be confrontational about this.

"Do you sleep well at night knowing I'm here?" He questions and I gulp, this is not going how I thought it would be. "You've come here to get answers, haven't you. You hoping those answers will help you sleep better at night?"

"Jack." I reply awkwardly. This is going so bad.

"Do you want to know what really happened Ana? Is that what you want?" He questions and I nod because I don't actually know where this is going now and when I came here I thought I'd be in charge of the questions yet here he is making me feel like a naughty schoolgirl in the principal's office.

"Sit back and relax then baby because this is a bedtime story I want you to never forget." He says and I gulp though I hope that he doesn't see how frightened I am right now. I'm safe. He's behind a screen and can't get me here but he looks so evil, glaring at me with hatred in his eyes. I didn't expect this, I expected the Jack who comforted me in the aftermath of the assault, not this man who reminds me so much of the person who assaulted me

"I had done seven years when Stephen Morton became my cellmate. He asked what I was in for and I told him what I did to you and Mia. At the time I was in a really good place and knew my parole would go through in a few years time and I'd be a free man again. That was when Stephen told me what happened between you and him, the way you treated your own mother Anastasia you should be so fucking ashamed of yourself..." I gulp fucking hell he knows way too much. These are things a little over a year ago my husband didn't even know.

"Then what?" I ask encouraging him to continue while hiding how anxious I've become. I'm being as stoic as possible, holding all my emotions inside. I don't want him to know this scares me.

"He told me how he had spent all those years waiting for the day he'd get you and he convinced me that I deserved to finally get that piece of you, bring you down once and for all. That's when we decided we'd get one of your kids. If we were ever going to get you at your weakest point it was by getting one of your kids. Of course I had my eye on Phoebe but then you and your useless fucking security made it so easy for us to grab Amaya." I listen as stoically as I can. Jack looks so fucking pleased with himself and I won't give him the satisfaction of an answer.

"So we followed through with the plan, got you to trust me and get you to Amaya. The deal between Morton and I was that he got you first and then I had my turn with you. We both fucking earned it over the years." Jack continues and again I remain as stoic as I can as he licks his lips. "But I'd realised weeks before we put the plan into action that he was a pig and he would squeal to save his own skin. So I knew that I had one choice and that was to kill the bastard. I didn't need to fucking rape you Ana. I just wanted to bring you and that husband of yours down once and for all and what better way than to destroy his most prized possession?" He grins at me and I know I twitch with the anger that's now pulsating through my veins but I won't give him the satisfaction of a reaction.

"So I'd figured I'd let him do what he needed to do to you and I knew he'd want to make sure he marked you for life with that fucking belt. Then I'd make sure I would appear the hero, I'd be the white knight rescuing you after leading you to Amaya. I called Christian to help cover my tracks, the more evidence that suggested my innocence the better. I didn't count on them saving Morton's fucking life. I had to make it look like an accident so that your testimony would back it up if it went to trial. I knew my parole would be cut short but I was ready to come back to prison to do my time knowing I'd fucked Grey over and brought his little wife down to her fucking knees. The woman who runs a fucking publishing company simply because she fucked over the employees and fucked the boss."

"Do you sleep at night now Jack?" I ask and he smirks a sickening smile at me.

"I sleep amazingly Princess." He says and I stand with the phone to my ear.

"Guess what princess?" I ask him with a shit-eating grin of my own on my face. "You're wrong. You didn't bring me down. I bought you down once and for fucking all. You've spent your life terrorising women, the assistants at SIP that you went through, you got away with your assault on me than you kidnapped my sister in law and beat me within an inch of my life. You spent ten years in prison where it's clear you spent that ten years fantasising at getting your own back. But guess what, you worked with a monster who got what he wanted but what you wanted? To bring me and Christian down? You failed you fucking idiot..." I laugh into the phone. "I walked away with my family. I had a healthy baby boy, I took you to court and you got convicted for doing something you were actually incapable of doing yourself. All those men in prison mean you can no longer get it up for a woman Jack?" I am on fucking fire.

"You didn't bring me down. I bought you down to your fucking knees you sick son a bitch and now you'll spend the rest of your days looking at four walls in a jumpsuit while I grow old with my husband and my children. You're my bitch Jack and don't you forget it." I wink at him before popping the phone down and he jumps to his feet and lunges at the glass, he's shouting but I don't know what he's saying as guards dive into the room and grab him. I wave at him and smile as he's ripped away and just as they're about to shut the door I flip him the bird before the door behind me opens to let me out.

For the last year, I've questioned whether or not we did the right thing. Now I know we did. What I said to Jack is true. He didn't bring me down if anything I'm stronger now than I've ever been and I'll rest easy knowing that he's locked up for the rest of his days while I grow old with Christian, happy and at peace.

Jack Hyde will always be my bitch now.

THE END

AN: Thank you everyone who has come back on this journey with me, I'm so glad that after all these years it's finally finished. It's not the end of my 50 fanfic though I have a couple more in the works so keep an eye out. Thanks again SD x