Falling For The Bad Guy.

Chapter Twenty Four

I booked the first flight to Mystic Connecticut and left. Right now, while on the one way trip, I'm thankful I saved enough money to stay at a hotel. I have two weeks of hotel stays before I run out of money, and I know I can get a job by then. I'm ready to disappear for a while, and become myself again. My reality was consumed by a murderer and tragedy. I don't want that to be anymore. While I'll miss my romance with Derek, and my friendship with Pete, life is much more than relationships. Before I can be a detective again, before I can investigate anything else, I need to forget about everything for a while. Nobody knows where I am, and that's something I could get used to very easily. With my hotel right in town, I don't have to waste money on renting a car. Walking into the first store I see, I'm surprised by the kindness of strangers. "Hello Ma'am! What do you need?" I get asked. Warmly I respond, "Nothing really. Just looking." Taking a look at the beauty of the wooden shelves filled with food and drinks, I see something that could be relaxing: wine and chocolate. I walk out of the store with Russel Stover Chocolate, Wine, and potato chips. I simply need a bath, food, and a nap right now. Walking into my hotel room, I'm happy to find it empty. Empty and silent. Silence, Something that hasn't been in my life for so long. Getting into the bathtub and drinking my glass of wine, I'm in a state of tranquillity. There's nothing but me here, and I don't have to worry about Daniel finding me. After my night, I head to bed and sleep peacefully for ten hours. Waking up, I have no missed calls. None. Everyone is giving me time to myself and I appreciate it. After getting dressed, I leave the hotel and go back to the store I went to yesterday. "I see you've returned." The friendly woman smiles. "Yes, I'm going to need more than chips and chocolate if I want to survive." I laugh. "Are you allergic to anything?" She asks. "No." I respond. "Okay hun, lets get you a basket." I leave the store with butter, cheese, bread, vegetables, fruit, pasta, and chicken. There's a mini fridge and stove I could use to prepare food for myself. After eating berries, I decide to read the only book I packed, The Time Traveler's Wife. The beginning of the book fascinates me and I flip every page so fast, I have to stop myself before I finish it in a day. After a while, I become bored. But I like being bored and not having to worry and be paranoid over every single thing that happens.
Waking up the next morning, I see that my phone has been blown up over night. Twenty five phone calls, thirty two text messages, all from Chief Grayson, Derek, and Peter. There's something going on. I call Chief first, since I know he'll inform me of everything. "Chief, this is Rebecca Donelli. What's going on?" "There's been a mass shooting at the station." He says, disheartened. "Is Derek okay? What about Peter?!" I ask. "They're okay, they were prepared and armed." He responds. "Who was killed or injured?" I ask. "Five injured, seven killed." He says, in a heartbroken tone. "Was it anyone close to you?" I ask, knowing the feeling. "Yes. My wife and son were killed. They were visiting me, and I couldn't stop the gun shot. There were to many guys." I hear him start to get choked up. "I'm so sorry." I say. "Do you think you could come back?" He asks, desperately. "Yes. Of course. I'll be there tomorrow." I let him know. "Thank you." He says, hanging up. Selfishly, I consider not going back. But I know that can't be an option, I should be there to help and comfort. They rely on me, and while the peace and quiet has been nice, when such a duty calls, you leave everything behind and make sure that the people you care for are okay. Although I'm not that close to Chief Grayson, I know what it's like to lose someone close to you. I can't imagine losing the love of my life or my child, and that's what he's going through right now, probably alone. I call Derek to see what he's been doing since I left, after all he's not being paid for this. "Hey, how are you?" He asks, picking up the phone. "I've been good, until I heard what happened." "Yeah, it hasn't been good without you. Progress has been slow, very slow, and Daniel's minions managed to hack into the system and wipe everything clean. There is officially no proof that Daniel Wilson even exists. We can only go by words now." What? "What do you mean, they got a hold of everything?" I ask Derek, barely speaking. "Yes Rebecca. The files Chief gave us, they're gone. Everything's gone." "Fuck. Well this is just fantastic! I leave for a few days and no one could keep there shit together, a mass shooting happens, and now I have to come back to clean up everything." I scream, angrily. I know I'm taking out my anger on the wrong person, but he's the only person there right now. "Rebecca, call me back when you have composed yourself." He says, hanging up on me. I call him back, to yell some more. He answers and I shout, "You can't just hang up on me like that! You know I'm entitled to some" Before I can finish my sentence, I hear a gun shot, screams, and a crash. Oh no. "Derek? Derek? Are you okay?" I say. "Help." I hear him say. I hang up with him and call Chief, "Chief! Are you okay?" I ask. "Yes I'm fine why what's happening?" "You're not at the station?" I say. "No. I'm home right now, I took a few days- "I don't care, get to the station, now! Derek's been shot!"
I run to my hotel and pack everything. Booking my flight, I realize I won't get back to Australia for another 22 hours. I call Chief and ask him what's going on. "It was another shooting, but this time they only targeted Derek." He says. "We both know what this means Chief. Daniel wants Derek because he wants to hurt the people I love." "I know." He says. "Where is Derek right now?" I ask. "He's in the hospital, getting surgery. He was hit right below the heart, and he's in critical condition." I take a deep breath so I don't have a mental break down. "My plane is in two hours. It's going to take 25 hours to get there. Please keep him safe. I'll pay you, I'll do anything for anyone, just make sure Derek stays safe in that hospital. You lost the love of your life. Don't let me lose mine." Overthinking that statement, I don't know if Derek is the love of my life. But, I need him to survive, because if he doesn't I don't know what I'll do.  When I get on the plane, I'm eager to get to Australia. I need to make sure Derek is okay, and alive. I got him into this mess, he needs to make it out.
Two hours into the flight:
It's been 120 minutes. They've gone by so slow and I have no service. This is going to be the longest flight of my entire life.
Twenty hours into the flight:
Two hours to go. Two hours.
Arriving:
I'm in Perth, but now I have to checkout, get my car, and drive at least 90 miles per hour. After longer than I expected, I finally get to driving. I've become familiar with Australia, so I know exactly what hospital they've brought him to. After the long wait, I finally get there. I see Chief and run over, "Where is he?!" I cry. "He's recovering. The surgery was successful." He leads me into his room, and I see him, sleeping and alive. Finally, I can breathe again.