Family Ties

Framed

Hannah's POV

To say I was on edge was an understatement.

I was so anxious I could barely think straight, overthinking every little thing and jumping at any small sound. I was doing my best to keep it together, but the idea that someone was out there watching us, just waiting to pounce, was slowly but surely driving me crazy.

I was worried. I was worried for the kids, for Harry and I and what lengths we might have to go to in order to keep them safe, and for all the people who could get hurt in the process. Ever since Mitt and Deaks had come up with the idea to ask Gucc for help I'd been worried about them, anxiously waiting for them to call so I'd know they were alright. Every day that went by without hearing from them I worried that we never would.

"Mom, why do I have to take so much stuff?" Hank asked as he watched me packing up a suitcase in his room.

"Because we don't know how long we'll be gone, buddy." I said as calmly as I could. "You guys don't have school for two more weeks so we might decide to stay a bit longer."

"Why isn't dad coming?"

"He is, he just has to work for a few days, so we are gonna go up and get everything all ready and he'll be there before you know it." I said as I leaned over and kissed his head. "Can you go get your sister?"

He nodded as he hopped off his bed and went to find Mace, and I zipped up his suitcase and did one more check that there was nothing else we needed to take with us.

I'd found a cabin to rent on the same mountain as ours, but on the other side, so the kids could still play around in the snow but we wouldn't be anywhere that might be familiar that anyone would know about. Harry was going to work for a couple more days to keep things as normal as possible, even though I'd practically had to shove him out of the house every morning because he didn't want to leave us. Brian and Ash were off until the new year so they'd agreed to come up a few hours after us, and Louis planned to come up with Harry when they wrapped things up with work.

I took the kids bags downstairs to the foyer where I'd already left Harry and I's, and headed into the kitchen to make them some lunch before we hit the road.

"Guys, come get some lunch!" I called out as I started to make them some sandwiches, mentally going through the list of things I had to grab before we left.

I finished making their sandwiches and suddenly realized they hadn't come down, and I immediately froze as it occurred to me how quiet the house was.

"Hank? Mace?" I called out and still didn't get an answer.

Panic was beginning to rush through me as I hurried out of the kitchen and ran up the stairs, calling out for them with no response. I frantically searched every inch of upstairs and didn't find them, my heart racing as fear completely took over, and I sprinted down the stairs to the main floor and started searching for them.

"Maci!! Hank!!" I screamed as I went from room to room. "Where are you?! Answer me!"

I scrambled down the stairs to their playroom, my heart beating uncontrollably as I turned the corner and saw them sitting quietly by the window, their headphones on that they'd just gotten for Christmas from Liam and Gemma. I raced over to them, practically collapsing beside them as I tore the headphones off both their heads and they looked up at me with wide eyes.

"You answer me when I call you!" I yelled, and both of them looked completely shocked as they looked up at me. "Do you understand me?! You answer!"

It wasn't like me to yell, and I immediately felt horrible as they stared at me with guilt in their eyes like they might start to cry. They both studied me as I tried to calm down, before Mace reached up touched my face and I realized for the first time that I was crying.