Songbird (completed)

chapter twenty two

Delia's head spun as she walked back down the hallway. She didn't hear Riggs calling her name or the people who were asking if everything was okay. She kept walking until she saw Thomas. Thomas lazily glanced over, doing a double take when seeing her expression. He straightened, uncrossing his eyes and taking a couple paces towards Delia. "He fucking did it." Was all she managed to get out before storming into the interview room. 
      Hugh sat alone, and as Delia rushed into the room a wave of expressions crossed his face. Delia grabbed Hugh by the collar and pulled him up, his face centimetres from her. She felt her face grow hot and she felt her temper rise. "You fucked up." She growled. Hugh's eyes changed to a different kind of scared. "You put those fucking cameras in my house? And you didn't even have the balls to do it yourself?" Delia shouted, her voice getting louder. The interview door was still open and she watched Hugh's lawyer pass the door out of the corner of her eye. He was yelling. "What the hell are you talking about?" Hugh nervously shouted back. "You know what the fuck I'm talking about!" Delia spat. She felt hands grab at the back of her shirt, Thomas sliding in her in his arms, making her drop Hugh. Hugh stood up and backed into the corner of the room. 
      Thomas pulled Delia out of the interview room and down the hall. She fought the entire time until he finally let her go. "What the hell is going on." Thomas shouted, his voice echoing off the empty hallway walls. "Hugh hired that fucking freak to set the cameras up in my house. He did it." Delia paced back and forth in front of Thomas, running her fingers through her hair. "Fine, but you can't just go in and fucking attack him, especially with his lawyer on the damn way." Thomas threw his hands up in the air and turned his back to Delia angrily. His breathing was deep and heavy. "Delia this is gonna end up costing you." Thomas shook his head and turned back around to face her. "I'll get it sorted out. I'll apologize if I need to. Public even. But I should have punched that motherfucker in the face while I had the chance." Delia growled. Thomas stared at her, his face expressionless. "Okay." Was all he said before walking away back towards the interview room. 
     Delia paced the hallway by herself, her chest heaving and her brain racing. The dots were so close together how had she not noticed before. She sat down on a bench and rested her hand on her heart taking deep breaths. Everything was connecting. Delia's chest felt like it was closing up, her breathing getting harder and shorter. She put her head between her legs and tried to keep herself from blacking out, when she heard footsteps. "Cordelia." came a voice. It was Riggs. Delia kept her head between her legs a few more seconds before lifting her head. He sat beside her on the bench and put his arm around her, pulling her closer towards him. "I'm sorry honey." He whispered. Delia sobbed into his shoulder, her fear consuming her. 
      Delia walked back out to her desk and started grabbing her things. Riggs told her to take a few days off and that she would have to take a test to see if she's fit to come back. She was planning on retiring this year, this was a pretty inconvenient time for this to be happening. "Hey." Thomas spoke up, startling Delia from her thoughts. "I heard Riggs say that he was gonna give you a few days off. I'll take you back to the motel if that's okay?" He asked, his hands awkwardly shoved in his coat pockets. Delia gave him a weak smile and nodded, grabbing her coat off the back of her chair. "Come on. I wanna get pizza before I crash."
        Delia sat on the creaky motel bed, a dirty and greasy napkin sitting next to her on a plate with a leftover pizza crust. She flipped through the channels mindlessly, not paying attention to much of anything. Thomas sat in the chair by the window, his legs crossed over one another as he payed attention to Delia and finished his pizza. Delia stopped clicking when she found "Impractical Jokers" and got up to take care of her mess. When she turned around, she noticed Thomas's gaze. "How are you doing?" He asked. Delia paused by her bed, moving her tongue in her mouth like she had something in her teeth before she answered. "I've been better. But I'm glad we just put at least two criminals behind bars." Delia shrugged and started unmaking the bed. Thomas stood up, tossing his plate in the trash before making his way towards Delia. He wrapped his arms around her, embracing her from the back. Delia rested her hands on Thomas's arm and took a deep breath. "You're safe now." He whispered in her ear. Delia leaned her head back on his chest and smiled. "I hope so."