Chapter 157

It was as though he was moving through sand. Nothing registered. Nothing clicked. Not the unnatural metal of the handcuffs as they tightened around his wrists. Not the officers’ angry voices as the read him his rights, or the rough hands that pushed and shoved him into a cell. Not when those cell doors slid home with a loud, echoing clang. Captain Whitlock tried to stop the way they were mishandling him. But they had lost one of their own. A young man who was vibrant and full of life, at the beginning of his career.
Another one. Because of me?
“I get one phone call. I need to call Emma,” he said, his eyes not seeing anything.
“Fuck you!” another officer spat at him. “Fuck your phone call!” And then punched him in the face. Will moved with the punch but didn’t protest or make a sound. He didn’t feel it. I would punch me too.
“Hey!” Captain Whitlock pulled the officer away before he could hit Will again.
“You are out of line, officer!”
“He killed Nathan!”
“We don’t know that!”
“It was his car! He sent set up a trap and sent Nathan out there to kill him!

“And why would he do that?” Captain Whitlock challenged. The officer had no answer but allowed his emotions to lead him.
“He’s a murderer! A cop killer!” The officer lunged at Will again. Captain Whitlock grabbed the grieving man around the waist and threw him aside.
“That is enough! I know you’re hurting, but this behavior isn’t going to change a damn thing. You are a police officer! Uphold the law! Get to work and getting the CCTV footage from in front the station immediately! Do some actual police work!”
The officer shot a dirty look at Will before stomping away.
“Are you okay?” the captain asked. A bruised bloomed on Will’s cheek. “I’ll get you some ice for that.”
Will waved him away, but the gesture was still hollow. His limp hand flopped down to his lap.
“No, it’s fine. I get it. Just get me my phone call.”
Captain Whitlock walked away, shouting commands, and trying to restore some sense of order to the madness the station had devolved into. Will had fallen into shock. People ran around, calling family members of the injured officers. Others held each other while grieving the loss of such a young and promising life.
Will felt like was watching the scene instead of being a part of it. As though it were a scene in a movie, or even a story someone was telling him. None of it was real. It couldn’t be.
“William!”
Will looked up and saw his attorney, Sam Weaver, looking at him through the bars of his of his holding cell. Seeing someone outside of the incident helped bring him back to reality. The seriousness of the situation hit him.
“Sam! How are you here?”
“Damon Whitlock called me. He says your being charged with domestic terrorism.”
“Domestic what?” he shouted, shooting up from the bench. “They really do think I did that?”
“Yes, they do. But don’t worry. There isn’t any proof and Damon is working pulling the footage from in front of the station. This should be resolved soon. But we do need to address the obvious.”
“And what is that?”
“That what happened, was indeed an attack. But it was an attack on you.”
***
Emma paced in her apartment. Lizzie played in her playpen, babbling and giggling, oblivious to the peril that loomed over them. She jumped at every sound, her nerves, and senses on edge. The air buzzed and popped around her, and she couldn’t sit still. When her phone rang, she screamed in fright which in turn scared Lizzie who started to cry.
“Oh, baby girl, I’m sorry,” she soothed the startled child. Emma picked her up, bouncing her on her hip. A quick glance at the phone’s screen revealed it was an unknown number. Normally, those went unanswered. But something stirred within her. Answer it. Emma answered the phone and put it on speaker. It would be easier to speak that while she was holding the baby.
“Hello?”
“An inmate from Queensbury City Jail is trying to contact you,” an automated voice said. “Press one to accept the call.”
Emma gasped. Something was very wrong. She pressed one as the voice indicated.
“Please hold while you are connected.”
Hokey hold music played for a few seconds before it came to an abrupt stop.
“Emma?”
“Will! What’s going on? Why are you calling from the jail?”
“I don’t have much time. It’s going to sound crazy, but I’m being charged with domestic terrorism.”
“I’m sorry. There is no way I heard that right.”
“You did. Someone planted a bomb in my car. An officer went to move it and it exploded. He was killed in the blast.”
“Oh my God,” she whispered. “That could have been you.”
“It was supposed to be me. Listen, like I said, I don’t have a lot of time. They are going to transfer me to the prison soon. My attorney, or Captain Whitlock, will fill you in on everything.”
“But your uncle is dead! Who could be doing this?”
“The person who killed my uncle. The person behind all of this. Denis Ratcliffe.”
“Who is that?”
“Grace’s ex-husband.”
“The one she…,” there was no air. She felt a punch to the stomach.
“You can’t still be holding a torch for her,” Alex added. “I’m sure Emma could help you forget her. Couldn’t you, doll?” He winked. “And Will, if you don’t want Emma, I’ll be sure to keep her company.”
“Shut up, Alex,” the men said in unison.
“But seriously,” Bryan continued. “She moved on. You should too.”
“Yeah, I know,” Will answered with irritation.
“No, I don’t think you do. She’s… getting married. To Denis.”
That felt like so long ago. The man that had stolen Grace away… the whole reason they fell into the strange dance their relationship had been… Emma’s skin was ice.
“Yeah,” Will answered, and she could hear the anguish in his voice. “It’s him.”
“Will…”
“I need you to understand,” he pleaded. “This is bringing up a lot of old feelings that I thought I was done with. My mind is so scrambled, and things just hurt in ways I don’t myself understand. But Emma, I swear…”
“It’s okay,” she shuddered. “I do understand. We’ll worry about all that later. What do you need me to do now?”
“I need to know you and Lizzie will be somewhere safe. He knows where you live. He could come and get you or try to hurt you at any time.”
“Okay. But I’m going to see you. Before they take you, I’m going over there.”
“Please don’t…”
“You can’t stop me. I’m going to see you.”
“Don’t bring the baby. I know she’s still little, but I don’t need this to become a core memory for her.”
“Okay. I won’t. But I will be there.”
“Emma, I…”
The line disconnected. Their time was up.
Emma put Lizzie down and scrambled around the apartment, throwing together a bag for Lizzie and another one for her. She anticipated they would be gone for a while, so she wanted to have as much as she could. She moved like a hurricane throughout her space. While Lizzie played, Emma made plans. There were phone calls she needed to make. More than anything, she had to ensure that her daughter was safe. She dialed a familiar number and waited.
“Hey girl,” Sabrina greeted. “What’s up?”
“I need help. Lizzie and I need to stay with you and Alex. I don’t know many details, but Will was arrested at the police station. Someone blew up his car.”
“Holy shit. We were just watching the news about that! It’s on every channel. Okay. I’ll arrange for a driver to pick you up. I’ll send you a photo of the driver. Do not get in any car unless it matches that photo, do you understand?”
“Yes. Have Alex get in touch with that one police captain. The one who helped rescue Jess and me. I think Will was there talking to him when all of this happened.”
“Got it. I will call you when the driver arrives. See you soon.”
They hung up. A sudden, strong knock at her door startled her. Emma waited several minutes for another knock, but it never came. Emma crept to her door and looked through the peep hole. Nothing. The hall was empty. After a few deep breaths, she opened the door. On the floor, was a bouquet of multicolored hydrangeas and white roses. It was a beautiful arrangement in an elegant crystal vase. The whole hallway smelled of them.
For about a second, she thought perhaps Will had prearranged for these to be delivered. They were meant to spend the weekend together. But he knew what her favorite flowers were. He wouldn’t send these, as pretty as they were. There was a car nestled in the blooms, and she plucked it out. Her eyes went wide, and her hands trembled as she read the words on the card.
You can place these on his grave. I hope you have a black dress.