Choices (Narry) **EDITING**

Chapter Twenty Two: Christmas Eve

I pluck the card out of Harry's hands, needing to see this for myself.

Scrawled neatly on the small card reads:

See you soon son,

-Mommy

"What the fuck?" I mutter, reading over the card again and again as if the words will change any second.

Harry stands silent, not really looking at anything in particular.

"Harry?" I ask worriedly, taking one of his hands in mine.

This seems to snap him out of the state he was in because now he's pressing me up against the counter and grabbing my wrists, and not in the sexual way I would prefer it either. His eyes seem frantic, searching for some sort of answer like it's written on my face somewhere.

"Shit," he mumbles. He's working himself up and he won't listen to anything I say, so I kiss him to calm him down. He relaxes almost instantly against my lips and I slip my wrists from his grasp and bring my hands to his hair. He hums approvingly.

When we pull away he leans his forehead against mine and sighs, "This isn't good."

I hum in agreement, "I can't believe she found you."

"She's the most powerful woman in New England, it was just a matter of time," he says solemnly, not looking me in the eyes, "I'm just pissed at myself because now you and Liam are in danger."

I pull back and look up at him, "Danger? Why?"

"I'm assuming that she isn't very happy finding out that I'm still alive," he admits. I push the hair gently from his forehead.

"She is an evil woman with evil intentions," he says angrily, kicking at the counter.

"What do you mean intentions?" I ask quietly. If he doesn't want to talk about it I won't push him.

"Once I snuck into her office while she was at work. We weren't allowed in and it was locked, and somehow I got in. That was when she starting to distance herself from me. I was in there mostly to steal some money from her to buy drugs. I heard the front door open and I quickly hid in the closet praying that she wouldn't come in there for anything, because if she did, I would be on the streets a lot sooner than I was. She didn't find me thank God, and while I was in there she got a phone call from a man named Simon. He was a colleague of hers, nice guy. He was saying something about the pills being such a hard time, especially to go and change everyone individually. My mother replied, 'then take one blueprint and override the system to make all of the outcomes the same and make them blue.' She worked the system. Made all of the outcomes end in death or becoming homeless and they gave the people they didn't deem fit enough in their vision of New England only the blue pill. They still do this. I didn't believe it until I went in to choose my pill and there was only blue. In a way, being homeless was a blessing because if I were dead then I wouldn't have met you."

I blush at Harry's compliment but I don't say anything in response until his words process.

"We have to stop her," I tell Harry seriously.

"How Niall? She has security on her twenty-four seven."

"We can tell the media or something," I say.

"Who's going to believe two twenty-something year olds over Anne Styles, most influential person in NE. Not likely."

I huff and cross my arms, knowing he's right.

"We should tell the boys."

"We will. After Christmas though. And we'll come up with an elaborate plan to stop big bad momma Styles," Harry tries to joke.