A Journalist and a Singer [h.s]

13.

Maggie's POV:

His face remains serious. He takes the next sharp turn, but the car is still behind us. I imagine that's who Nick was calling. Harry didn't say anything, he just drove. No matter what he did, we still weren't losing them.

"Hold on." he says as he takes another sharp turn. I hold onto the door handle and my seat belt, doing everything I can to stay upright in my seat. He starts to drive down a back road on the opposite side of town that the bunker is on.

"I need you to inconspicuously turn around and see how many people are in that car." he says as he keeps driving. Without saying anything I unbuckle my seat belt, and position myself in my seat so that I can see through the back windshield without the other driver seeing me. Luckily, the windows are tinted so I don't have to be as careful.

I look out the window to see two men in the car, something pointed in our direction. I couldn't tell what it was until I saw a small bullet come fly past my window. I turn back around and crouch down in my seat, Harry's arm instinctively going over me, keeping me down as more shots are fired.

All of a sudden Harry reaches down and grabs a gun that was resting under his seat. He rests it by his leg, his finger on the trigger.

"Cover your ears, this one is loud." He warns as he rolls down the window. I bring my hands to my ears, bracing myself in my seat. Harry sticks his left arm out of the window and starts shooting at the car behind us, all while driving. After a few shots I hear a loud pop and tires screeching to a stop. I look behind us to see the stopped car with it's two front tires completely shredded. Harry turns his focus back on the road and puts the gun back under his seat, a lot more calm now than he was before.

"Are you alright?" he asks, sweeping his hand through his hair.

"Yeah, are you?" I ask him, and he gives me a smirk in return. "Right, duh, you do this everyday."

"More like a few times a month, but yeah, you get the point." he jokes.

"My grandfather, he's not only a Rider..." I trail off. Harry looks over at me sympathetically.

"He leads them." he says, finishing my sentence. I have been so frazzled that I haven't been able to digest what Nick said until now. He was working for my grandfather. My grandfather was after Harry. They must've been using me to get to him.

"He must want me so he can get to you." I say, thinking out loud. "I'm not going to let him."

"Maggie, you could get killed for this. I hate to say it, but maybe you should go with him, give him what he wants. It's the safest option." he urges. I shake my head.

"It might be the safest option for me, but it doesn't mean it's right. I'm not giving him the satisfaction, and I'm especially not letting him kill you. That's not happening." I push back, giving him my word.

"Alright then." he says, letting a smile across his face, but he doesn't seem happy. I don't blame him either. Today has been... a lot.

We make it back to the bunker in one piece. Harry was pretty quiet after everything settled down. He went straight to his room, slamming the door behind him.

"What twisted his knickers?" Tate asks, a lit cigarette in between his fingers. I set my bag on the table and lean against it, the rest of the group sitting around me.

"The interview was fake. It was a trap." I tell them, but I don't get the reaction I expected. They keep looking at me, waiting for me to continue.

"But you guys figured that out, didn't you. You knew as soon as I told you the meeting was set up." I ask, and they nodded their heads.

"We had our suspicions, and Harry did too. That's why he didn't want you to go. What happened?" Gabbs asked.

"Well, he invited me in and then two "body guards" moved to cover the door. I pretended I didn't notice and just kept going with the interview. He said he knew who was behind the fires, and that when I got really suspicious." I explain to them.

"What did you do? Like did he suspect you?" Mac asks me.

"They already knew who I was, but I kept the act. I asked the basic journalist questions, played the part. Then things went sideways." I say, peaking their interest.

"Sideways how?" Tate asks, but instantly connects the dots. "Oh right, the fire."

"Harry texted, and somehow Nick, the guy I was interviewing, caught on that I knew who he was. He said my name when I never told it to him." They nod in response.

"He closed in on me and tried to keep me where I was. He could've been armed for all I know. Anyway, he said and I quote 'What a shame it would be to kill the boss's granddaughter, wouldn't it boys' and it instantly clicked. I figured out how I'm connected." I resolve.

"Wait, so the leader of the Riders is your grandfather?" Gabbs confirms. I nod, staying quiet.

"How did Harry save you?" Mac asks.

"Well he heard everything on a phone call that I was hiding, so he came in once the 'bodyguards got closer to me. He knocked them out effortlessly and then pulled me away while the Nick guy made a phone call. He had me pull the fire alarm and well then I guess you know what happened." I say.

"I'm sorry that happened to you guys." Gabbs says, her face concerned.

"That's not even the end of it. The phone call was to call for backup that ended up following us, shooting at us, then again, Harry saved the day."

"Wait, did you say shooting at you guys?" Tate asks, the cigarette long gone. I nod, confirming his suspicions.

"They better not have messed up the SUV." he says, heading out to the garage. We all let out a little laugh in response, seeing him walk off, lighting another cigarette.

"Man, we were on a good streak too." Mac says to John, who was staring at the TV the whole time. "Something like this hasn't happened in like 4 or 5 months? Something like that."

"She's right. It's always brutal afterwards, especially around Harry." John says, sitting down with us.

"Wait-" I say, immediately hiding away in my thoughts.

How long have you..." I start. "Been sober?" he finishes. "Four months. Not long."

I rush to get up from my seat, maneuvering around everyone as I make it out of the common room. They all call my name but I don't listen, I start straight for Harry's room. I sprint down the long hallway, my feet feeling like they're in water, slow and hard to move forward.

I can't get there quick enough. I list the number of things I could see when I enter his room, all of them terrible. All I can think about is that I caused this, I put more pressure on him, I yelled at him, I could've done this too. A wave of guilt washes over me as I approach his door.

I knock once but I don't get an answer. I knock a second time, but still nothing. I take a deep breath before turning the handle. Unlocked.

I pushed the door open, the sight before me not something that I expected. He sat there, a glass bottle of liquor in his hands. I carefully approach him to where I'm standing on the edge of his bed. He looks at me, his eyes look sober, but there's no telling if he drank and how much. The cap was on the bottle, but he could've done that when I knocked.

"I think I need to go on a drive." he says.

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And the plot thickens!! Sorry for this post being so late, I've been super busy :/

The next chapter is my absolute favorite, so I might post it this weekend, if not next week! Hope everyone is doing well!