"Ana, I am so sorry about this."
"Taylor, this is not your fault. You couldn't have known Sawyer was in on this. We still don't really know for sure that he is."
"I know, Ana. In my gut I know. I just wish I would have seen it sooner. Okay this is what you are going to do. Grace's doctor friend is going to drive you ten minutes out and drop you off at the supermarket parking lot. There is going to be a blue Ford truck parked in the back corner. You are going to walk to the drivers side window but stay at least six feet away. My friend Will, who I have known for decades is going to open the window. Will is 5'11, blondish brown hair and brown eyes, he has a scar on his forehead and tattoos all up and down his arms. He used to be a cop so he will keep you safe. The code word is chipotle. You do not get into his truck unless he says chipotle. Do you understand?"
"I do. I understand"
"He is going to drive you to Sea-Tac and stay with you until you get to the gate. Once you get through security he is going to call me. I am going to text you on this burner phone and when you get into your seat and everything is okay you are going to text me back one word."
"Chipotle?" He chuckles and shakes his head yes.
"You should have enough cash for a few weeks. If you need more we can figure something out. You can not use any of your cards. Don't check your bank account. Don't go on social media. Nothing."
"Okay, I got it." My mind was racing. All of these things to remember all of these things would keep me safe but I didn't care about myself I only cared about Christian. "Taylor, please promise me that you will keep him safe - even from himself."
"I will do my best Ana, he is in a controlled rage right now. I can't guarantee what will happen if he comes face to face with Hyde."
I needed to get away, far away from everyone and everything having to do with Christian. I also truly believed that my presence only made things more difficult and more dangerous. Everyone spending time trying to protect me and keep me safe was a waste of energy and if I am being honest they have been doing a crappy job anyway. I mean I almost died in a helicopter crash and was lost in the wilderness for days. My life had turned into a season finale of Grey's Anatomy. I needed a reality check and there was no greater dose of reality than my mother Carla. She was real 100% of the time. No pretense. No nonsense. She would give me the clarity that I needed. Something only a mother could do for her daughter. She didn't even know I was coming. I couldn't wait to see the look on her face when I knocked on her door. I wasn't sure I was going to tell her everything that was going on. I didn't want to scare her but I wasn't sure if I could keep it all in.
I couldn't get Olivia off my mind. I wrote her a letter. I told her that I was going on a trip and that I would be back soon. I didn't have the nerve to say goodbye to her face, I knew I would never go if I had to say goodbye to her. I wondered deep down if I would ever see her again. I wondered if I would ever return. I felt awful about it, it was terrible leaving her when I promised I wouldn't. But didnt I make the same promise to Christian? He and Olivia were so similar. Broken in the exact same way. And my heart loved them both but couldn't have either one of them. Not truly. Not the way I wanted. Something felt so final about saying goodbye to Christian. I held him like it was the last time I ever would. Like we both knew this was it. We had never been apart since we met and now hundreds of miles would separate us. All I wanted was for him to be safe and careful, I wanted him to find Hyde and put and end to this once and for all. And then we could figure out what was going to happen next.
This plan was going to work. It had to work. All the pieces were finally coming together. I just couldn't understand why Sawyer would turn against Christian the way that he had. It had to be more than just money. I was fairly certain that Hyde had leverage over Sawyer. For him to be able to pull the wool over Taylor's eyes for so long was shocking but then again it wasn't. Taylor had know Sawyer for years. They had served together. So whatever it was to make Sawyer flip must have been huge. It made me sick to think that Elena could have been pulling the strings this whole time. How would she had even know Hyde? Did she seek him out? It would be crazy to believe that they knew each other before. But knowing what I knew about Elena and Hyde maybe it was possible. My skin crawled with all the possibilities.
I felt sick, I had this pit in my stomach as I walked through the airport with Will by my side his eyes darting around looking for threats. I just needed to breathe and relax. Today I was just a girl at the airport going to see her mother. Will was not at all what I expected. He looked gaunt and thin and very tired but he also looked like he was someone who could keep me safe and he was very invested in getting me to my destination. We talked a bit in the car. He told me about how he knew Taylor that his sister was friends with Taylor's ex-wife. He told me that he was just in Seattle for a few months staying with a friend while he got his shit together. He gave me his cell number and told me to call him if ever I needed anything. Will walked me to security and I knew this was the end of the road. I was going to be on my own soon.
"Do you have everything you need?" I nodded. "Okay, good. Listen, it's gonna be alright. You're gonna get on the plane and everything is going to be okay Taylor is the best. I don't know how the fuck this has gotten this far but Taylor will make it right."
"Thank you, Will. For everything. And I hope everything works out for you."
"Thank you, Ana and It was nothing. Good luck."
I got into the security line and got through with a breeze. I looked back and Will was still standing there, phone pressed to his ear. It brought me comfort knowing that Taylor was on the line. I realized this was truly the first time since meeting Christian that I had ever been alone. No security. No Christian. Just me. I only had a carry on and a purse. I had the cash and the burner phone that Taylor gave me. It was strange handing him my real phone so I couldn't be tracked.
I just felt uneasy and afraid. I couldn't wait to board the plane. My ticket was a coach seat much to Christians dismay but I wanted to draw as little attention as humanly possible. I sat there waiting at the gate, there was a slight delay due to the weather. There was fog but there was always fog in Seattle. My phone dinged and there was a text that just read chipotle. Once I was seated I would text him back.
Fifteen minutes later we were finally able to board. I loaded my things into the overhead compartment and took my seat by the window. I quickly sent Taylor his text confirming that I was okay and slid the phone into my pocket. I could finally relax. Everything is going to be okay.
I can hear her begging for him to stop. The door locked and she is screaming. I know that he is hurting her. All she keeps saying is please stop, please stop. Over and over again. I can hear him moaning and saying horrible things to her. Calling her awful names. And then he begins to laugh. I am banging at the door. Screaming out her name. Begging him to stop. It finally goes quiet and the man emerges from the bedroom. He looks down at me as he zips up his pants and walks out of the apartment. My mother is so quiet. There isn't a sound. Just the smell in the air of sweat and cum and death.
"Sir, I got the text. Ana is on the plane. It was delayed a bit because of the fog." Taylor's voice breaks me out of my trance. I felt a huge sense of relief, Ana was on the plane and safe. Now I could pour all my anger and attention on Hyde and Elena.
"Good, very good. Where are Sawyer and Ryan?"
"We sent them on a lead, they think are looking for Hyde. I have trackers on their phones so we will know where they are at all times. The new guys are on their way. No more than an hour and then we can get to the bottom of this one way or the other."
"Good. I want Sawyer and Ryan back here once we get the new team up to speed."
"What are you thinking?"
"I am going to get the info out of Sawyer one way or the other."
Three hours later we are in the basement of my mother house. I am surrounded by this new team of men and they are even more imposing than I am. Sawyer and Ryan are bound by their wrists and seated before us, both in total disbelief of their situation.
"I am only going to ask this once. I have absolutely no patience left." I can feel the old be bubbling up to the surface. "Are you working with Hyde? Yes or No? There is only one answer to the question. One word." Ryan instantly looks stunned and then afraid. He does not hesitate to say no and I believe him. But Sawyer's face is filled with rage and defiance and before he can answer Taylor steps forward and hits him square in the jaw with a right. Sawyer's heads flys back and he covers Ryan in spatters of blood and spit.
"You goddamned son of a bitch." Taylor strikes him three more times before the men pull him back towards the edge. He is like a rabid animal and I realize in this moment how much Gail means to him. "I trusted you. All this time. You were the reason Gail was attacked. Why? Why the fuck would you do this?"
Sawyer looks up his face already swollen and blood stained and looks at me right in my eyes.
"He knows why. You freaky son of a bitch." He spits out a mouth full of blood in the direction of my feet. "I watched you for years. Girl after girl. They came bright and beautiful and they left broken. All that time in your red fucking room screaming while you beat them. Then then there was Lelia. Sweet beautiful Lelia. I loved her. From the moment I saw her. All the time you would ignore her and neglect her. I was there. I would listen to her cry. I would talk to her. And then to watch her take the gun to her head and pull the trigger because of you. You sick son of a bitch. And you got away like nothing ever happened. You killed her. You didn't pull the trigger but she was dead long before that. You deserve everything that is coming for you Grey. It doesn't matter what you do to me. Things are already in motion. Your Ana is already right where Hyde wants her. And there is not a damn thing you can do about it. Or you Taylor."
"You're a fucking liar."
"Am I? Flight 286 to Savannah?" His words make my blood run cold.
"She was on the plane, Christian. He is bluffing."
"Yeah she was on the plane but did she stay on it?" He starts to laugh and I know he is telling the truth. I black out and it is just a haze of blood and fists and screaming.
Hello Readers - Two chapters in one week! I am just as shocked as you are. Please review or comment the word "chipotle" if you would like me to continue with this story. I would really appreciate it.
Thanks,
Erin
