Hostage

21. "We can end this right now"

Kathryn Holmes (Raleigh's mother) POV

"She can't be there. We checked there"

"Are you sure?"

"Yes I'm fucking sure!" I exploded, jabbing the red pin into the map. The map of our city was covered in red pins, all the places that we've checked and that Raleigh hasn't been in.

"I dont know where she is" I cried, throwing myself down in my seat with my head in m hands. "We've checked so many places and she- where is she? Where's my baby?"

Wanda gave me a sympathetic look as tears rolled down my cheeks. There was only so much more the police force could do before they gave up, and then I'd be on my own. It's been a month. One month of not hearing Raleigh and Spencer bickering.

One month of not seeing her beautiful smile. Hearing her beautiful laugh. Her voice.

One month since she's been missing and no traces at all. She's gone and I'm going crazy.

"Station 215. Come in. Station 215. Come in. Over" My eyes locked on the walkie talkie device sitting at the corner of my desk. I sighed and Wanda excused herself from the room.

"Station 215"

"Kathryn we need you to report to Miller Drive immediately"

~*~

"Stand back, maim please" I held my arms up, attempting to keep the crowd tame. There was a fire. And for some reason people who aren't even relevant feel the need to make themselves involved.

I was here to make sure the crowd didn't get too rowdy.

"Please" A man spoke up. His clothes were dusty, eyes wide and wet as he pleaded with me. "My daughters in there. She's only six months old. Please!"

"Sir the firefighters are handling it, they're get her out"

"No they won't! They're only putting the fire out PLEASE! They won't listen to me" Tears rolled down his cheeks and he dropped to his knees. I sighed, glancing behind me at the firefighters who were on top of their trucks, spraying the fire.

"Please" He begged. "She's upstairs in the nursery"

I cursed and left the crowd, running up to the fireman who was standing behind the truck. "Excuse me" I approached him carefully. "Did you make sure nobody else was in that house? That man over there says that his daughter's in there and-"

"There's nobody in there miss" He assured me. "We've checked. Now please go back to your station"

I looked back at the man, who was weeping to himself on the ground. And I put myself in his situation.

If Raleigh had been in there and nobody was in there looking for her I'd probably go in there myself to save her. Because she was my daughter.

I sighed heavily one last time before snatching an oxygen mask of the truck and breaking into a run towards the house. I could hear the shouts of protest behind me, but I was motivated. Deluded with the thought that that was someone else's daughter. Their kid. Their creation.

I couldn't just let her die.

Once I was in the house I immediately placed the oxygen mask over my mouth, squinting my eyes against the smoke in a failed attempt to see through it. I could hear the echoes of a baby's cry sound through the house, and I found it odd how the firemen could have missed it.

I was coughing into the mask as I ran up the stairs. Flames erupted in every room, bright and orange and huge. But the cries of the baby was what had me pushing through it.

The cries got louder and louder as I rounded corners and climbed up stairs. I was on the third floor in the hallway when I heard the cries suddenly stop. Oh no. No no no.

I pushed myself through entryways until I found the nursery, running over to the cradle. Only....when I peered inside all I found was a cassette tape and a pair of speakers. The cries sounded through the speakers and I threw them down in confusion.

What the hell was going on? There was no baby. Why did he tell me there was a baby? I turned around, prepared to get the hell out of this house, but that's when the roof caved in, and a thick wooden block landed on top of my frame, pushing me to the ground and knocking the oxygen mask out of my hands.

Smoke filled my lungs, and I clawed at the floor in an attempt to crawl away. I could feel my body giving up, the smoke spread throughout my chest and I struggled for air.

And then I blacked out.

~*~

Raleigh's POV

"I tried to save her. I was tracking down one of their men and he was there. He was at the exact house where the fire was. I kicked his ass until he told me what happened and he said he got your mum to go into the house and that it was all a set up and he was going to say something else but I shot him" Harry spoke breathlessly, watching me with careful eyes as I stared right through him.

"When I got in the house the whole third floor was practically in flames but I still went up there. She was on the floor. There was a piece of wood on top of her. I tried to pull it off but one of the firemen pulled me out of there. I ran here as soon as I was able to breath properly"

I sat still on Harry's lap. I could see his hands cupping my cheeks but I couldn't feel them.

I stared right at the headboard above Harry's head as the tears leaked from my eyes.

My mom was dead.

***** 1 week later*****

"Listen Raleigh" Harry spoke harshly as he came downstairs. I didn't move from my position in the corner of the room, legs tucked to my chest and hands wrapped around them as Harry bounded down the steps.

"The leader of our rival gang is coming today. He wants to see you. This is the man that has my sister, okay? I don't want you fucking things up so just keep your mouth shut. You don't have to be tied up as long as you behave. Are we clear?"

I kept my eyes on the wall beside me as he spoke. My mom was dead. Both my parents were gone now. Maybe my dad wasn't actually dead, but he wasn't physically here. And he was leaving me here to suffer for his mistakes. And for that, he's dead to me.

I clutched my hair in my hands as thoughts from my childhood filled my mind. My mom helping me swing at the park. Spencer taking me to my first movie R-rated movie. Everything.

I heard Harry sigh beside me, and a warm hand was placed on my shoulder, squeezing slightly before it disappeared completely, and Harry left the room.

~*~

"Oh. She's a pretty one, ain't she" The man spoke, his nasty breath splaying across my face as he peered down at me curiously. "Nice and fit. Bet you've all had some fun with her, am I right?" He twisted to face Harry and the boys, who stood against the wall with their arms crossed and solemn expressions.

"Crazy how a sweetheart like you could come from a disgusting man like your father"

I no longer felt the need to defend my father anymore. So if this man was trying to get a rise out of me, it wasn't working.

"Harry claims that your daddy betrayed us. That he stole our money and fled. But I think that Styles is to blame. Styles and his bunch are a greedy pack of wolves, and they'd do anything to get beneath our skin. So killing our leader seems fit for that, yeah? But I decided to give them a chance, yeah? Told them that if they proved that George did this by himself I'll release his sister"

He chuckled in amusement. I could sense Harry's tenseness all the way over here, and when I chanced a glance at him, his eyes were locked on me, his jaw set into a determined clench.

"And what have you found out so far, kid?" The man teased. "Other than how this lass looks when she comes"

I let out a disgusted scoff at that, crossing my arms over my chest. This was the man who killed my mother. This man and his gang are the reason that my father is gone and that my mother is dead.

"You got something to say, sweetheart?" He looked at me with a smile, but his eyes were cruel. His eyes were daring me to cross him.

I looked behind his back where Harry had stood up a little straighter, one of his feet were in front of the other as if he'd wanted to intervene but decided against it. And his eyes. His eyes were soft, pleading with me to not open my mouth.

He shook his head no.

"I'm gonna kill you" I spat out, pushing myself to sit up straighter. "You killed my mom, so I'm gonna kill you" The rest of the room grew silent. All eyes were on me. I wasn't sure if they were shocked at my statement, or amused by the fact that I was dead serious.

"I'm gonna slit your throat" I finished.

The man's eyes suddenly grew dark, and the next thing I knew, he'd pulled me up by my hair so I was standing chest to chest with him.

"Clearly Styles hasn't put that mouth of yours in check" He whispered heatedly, only for me to hear.

He turned to one of his men. "Get Gemma out from the car" He said with a smirk.

I watched as Harry looked at the men in confusion. And he stared hard at the door they had just exited. And he didn't even blink until a girl was tugged through, a bag over her hair.

The man turned to the rest of the room, a tight grip still in my hair. I kept my eyes locked on Harry, who hadn't taken his own off his sister. Gemma's limbs were covered in bruises and cuts, from the hair that we saw under the bag it was tangled and puffy, and she was wearing a completely see-through white T-shirt. Only a white T-Shirt.

"Here's what's going to happen Styles" The man spoke, pulling me into him tighter. Harry finally snapped out of his trance and glared at the man.

"You no longer have to prove your innocence. You can have your sister back and we can forget all about George. My gang and I will continue to find the chip on our own and you no longer have to be involved. We can end this right now" He smirked, removing his hand from my hair to rest it on my waist.

"But you have to give me her. That's all I want. I get Raleigh and it's like a clean slate for you. You can have your sister back, and you can have your life back. We won't interfere anymore. But I want her."

My throat closed up and I swallowed back a sob when Harry's eyes landed on my own, filled with sympathy. He was going to say 'yes'. Because all of this was for his sister. Kidnapping me. Torturing me. It was for his sister.

But what about everything else? What about letting me sleep in his room? Saving me. Kissing me. Trying to fucking save my mum. That wasn't for his sister. That was for me.

"Okay. Fine, take her"

His voice was harsh. He was spitting the words out, but his eyes were soft. He was sorry.

"Harry wait a minute" Niall spoke up, nudging Harry in the shoulder. Gemma was thrown into Harry's arms and he removed the bag from her head in an instant.

But I didn't see anything else because I was hauled over the man's shoulder, my eyes locked on Niall's as I was carried out.

"Niall" I cried, reaching out for him. He frowned, eyes glistening in sadness as he watched me go.

Harry hadn't spared me a glance as I was hauled out.