She’d worked so hard for this. Planned for so long in the darkness, even before Hannah had arrived, contriving a way out of the bleak reality Lawes instilled for her. Now, she had done it—she’d really done it—and as the sirens rang out in the distance, April knew it was true. The police were coming. Her ordeal was over.
“They should be with you in a few moments.”
“Yes.” She couldn’t stop herself from smiling as she replied. “Yes, I hear them.”
“Good,” the woman replied. “Hang in there, Ms. Page.”
April sighed, the sound resembling someone who might have just reached the finishing line of a marathon.
“Thank God.”
She had never much been one for God, but deep down, that didn’t matter. In her darkest moments, in those times when the bastards had nearly broken her, she had prayed, unsure if anyone was listening, but knowing it was worth a shot. If there was some monolithic entity up there who had authority over this dominion, April needed his help—to grit her teeth, to spit back in their faces, to keep fighting.
And she had. April had fought tirelessly, and as she heard the first collection of officers burst in through the main entrance, a sense of satisfied relief fell over her. Even though this wasn’t really the end. It was only the beginning. If she wanted to see Lawes and Fuller convicted of the things they’d done here, she would have to keep fighting.
They all would.
She dropped the receiver as the main door to Lawes’ office was flung open, and two armed officers stepped into the room.
“Shit,” she whispered into her chest, suddenly aware how naked and vulnerable she was.
“Ms. Page?” April could hear the concerned voice of the operator on the line, but her brain couldn’t process it anymore. There was only the ferocity of this new moment, and her heart raced as if to prove the point.
“Miss, are you okay?” One of the men moved toward her while the second continued his sweep of the room.
It was like something out of one of those American cop shows she used to watch, except this was real life, and she was perched naked on the desk at the end of the room.
“No!” she snapped, her arms rising to cover her exposed breasts out of instinct. “No, I’m not alright.”
“Looks clear,” the other officer reported, his gaze already assessing the door, which led to the treatment room. “Shall I continue, Sarge?”
“No.” The first guy’s tone was emphatic. “We hold until we have backup. We have no idea what to expect in there.”
“Oh, I can tell you that,” April told him in a wry tone. “If you can find me some clothes.”
Both of their gazes shot to her immediately.
“We need blankets in here.” It was the first guy talking again, his head tilted to talk into the radio attached to his body armor. “And paramedics when we give the all-clear.” He paused, his eyes flitting over April. “As soon as you can, please.”
“Copy that.” The reply ended with a burst of white noise that vibrated through the room.
“Miss, are you injured?” The one referred to as Sarge took a step in her direction. “Do you need any immediate assistance?”
April’s nostrils flared. Only her pride was injured by this encounter. She might have been forced to be naked all the time for fucking weeks on end, but that didn’t mean she had gotten used to it. It didn’t mean she’d liked it.
“No,” she replied. “Just the blankets, please. Then you can get me the fuck out of here.”
His lips curled despite the obvious tension in his shoulders. “That’s that we’re here for, Miss.”
“It’s April,” she said with a sigh. “Enough with all this miss crap.”
That time he definitely smiled. “April,” he repeated. “You’re the one who made the call?”
She glanced down to the receiver, which was still hanging precariously over the side of the desk. “Right.”
“I’m Sergeant Rose,” he told her in what she assumed was supposed to be a reassuring tone. It was probably something he learned during his training—how to manage victims in psychologically intense crime scenes or something.
“Blankets, Sarge.”
April looked up at the sound of the new voice to find another guy, this one brandishing blankets as well as an automatic weapon.
“For April, please.” The sergeant gestured in her direction, and both of their gazes fell on her.
She inhaled at the indignity of it all, reaching for the blanket before the new guy could deliver them. For too long, she’d lived like an animal—being shoved into cages, fed from bowls, and expected to obey every fucking command—but no more. There’d be no more waiting on any man… for anything. From today, April Page was getting her life back.
“Thanks,” she muttered, snatching the regulation gray blanket from his large hand and wrapping it around her body.
“First team update. We have one female victim and are about to carry on with our sweep.”
April’s brow furrowed at his description.
Victim—the word echoed around her head.
Was that what she was now? Was that all she was worth?
Rose tilted his head into the radio. “Second team, update, please.”
“Copy, Sarge.” A fresh voice sprung to life from the radio. “We have swept the entire right side of the ground floor and found no one.”
“No one?” The sergeant’s brow knitted.
“Affirmative,” came the reply. “Whatever happened here, we missed it.”
April sighed. “You didn’t miss it,” she interrupted. “You’re just not in the right place.”
Sergeant Rose looked up, their gazes meeting again. She assessed his dark eyes, her mind trying to decide whether she should trust him. He may be wearing a uniform, but it would take a little more than that to convince her after the onslaught of the last couple of months.
“Where do we need to look, April?”
“Further down the corridor.” She gestured left with her head. “Out of here and left, you’ll find the training room. That’s where they all are at this time of the day, except Lawes.”
April inhaled as the fate of Lawes washed over her again.
“He’s unconscious next door.”
Her focus shifted to the numerous unused syringes on the desk beside her, and she smiled. Lawes was unconscious, and she had done that. She’d finally got the better of the sadistic fucker.
“Unconscious?” It was the one by the treatment room who asked. “What happened, Miss?”
She glanced up in his direction. Why was he calling her miss again? Hadn’t she just told the other one her name?
“I gave him a shot.” She held up a syringe to illustrate her point. “Or maybe two.”
Rose moved toward her, and instinctively, her grip on the blanket tightened.
“What’s in those things?” he demanded.
“No fucking idea,” April said as she fingered the plastic syringe. “All I know is they used them to sedate us, and it worked. When I left, he was out for the count.”
Rose’s brow rose at her admission, his attention turning to his colleague at the door.
“Okay, well, that might make things a little easier. We’ll get in there and check him out. Once he’s cuffed, we can get the medics in there to assess his condition.”
“Yes, Sarge.”
“And Morgan.” He glanced right to the cop beside him. “Get the second team back and redirect them to this training yard.” He shook his head as he said the words out loud. “I’ll join you once this area is contained.”
“On it,” Morgan confirmed as he retreated back the way he had come.
“Stay there.” Rose was talking to April now, his palm raised as he walked toward the other cop. “The suspect might have been unconscious when you left, but that doesn’t mean he is now.”
April blinked at him, neither countering nor concurring with the instruction. She had heard enough bloody instructions from th
e mouths of men to last her a lifetime. Lawes was definitely out; she knew that for sure. If he’d stirred, she’d have known about it by now. He’d be fucking livid as soon as he came around and remembered what had transpired.
“Let’s do it.” Rose practically growled the words into the other’s guys ears and acting on reflex, April slipped to her feet as they opened the door and moved inside the treatment room.
For a moment, she looked around the room, unsure what she should do. Her instincts still told her to run and to stay the hell out of the room the cops had just entered. Too many things had taken place in there. Things that would take hours of therapy to even try to reconcile, and yet in her heart, April knew it hadn’t all been bad. She hadn’t hated everything Lawes and Fuller had done, even though she bloody well should have, and mingling with that reality was an absurd curiosity about the man she’d drugged. Despite assuming she didn’t want to set eyes on him again until trial, April had a burning desire to see Lawes one last time. To witness his body sprawled out on the hard floor, the way she’d left him.
The way she’d made him.
Her lips curled again at the positive idea, and without thinking, her feet padded in that direction. Stopping in the entrance, her gaze fell over the scene. Both officers hovered over Lawes’ body, the unidentified one standing with his back to her while Rose crouched on the other side.
“Suspect confirmed unconscious,” Rose said into the radio again. “Request medical assistance.”
“Check his airway, then roll him over and cuff him.” He lifted his head as he gave the order, his gaze catching sight of April as his colleague kneeled to comply. “I thought I told you to stay where you were?”
She let out a long breath, watching as the other guy listened for Lawes’ breathing.
“Yeah, well, it turns out, I’m done with doing as I’m told.”
“He’s breathing, guv,” the other cop confirmed before he rolled Lawes gently from his side to his back. “Seems to be no obstruction to his airway.”
“Good.” Rose stared down at Lawes’ lifeless body. “Get the cuffs on him and wait here for paramedics, Walker. I’m going to join the others.”
“Yes, Sarge.” Walker nodded, reaching for the handcuffs he had stowed below his bullet-proof vest.
Rose was back on his feet and striding toward April before she had time to register what was happening.
“You can come with me.”
Her brow rose at his tone. “Is that an order, Sergeant?” she asked in an intentionally sardonic tone.
He shook his head with a smile. “Yes, it is, April. I’ll take you to the paramedics myself and get you out of here.”
April liked the sound of that, nodding as she turned to cross the study. Gripping the large blanket tighter, she waited for Rose to catch up with her stride, and together, they left the room and made their way toward the main entrance.
“How many suspects are there in this place?” Roses’ voice was soft, trying to be soothing and not deliver any triggers which might turn April into a blubbering mess.
“Four men in total,” she told him without returning his gaze. Her attention was on the front door and the daylight and freedom that waited beyond it.
“Second team is in position, Sarge.”
Jumping, she glanced toward Rose.
“Okay, move forward,” he responded. “But use caution. There are three more suspects at large and an unknown number of victims.”
“Ten at the last count,” she mumbled without thinking. “There were ten plus me.”
Rose shook his head as if he couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “Update, there are ten other victims.”
There was a pause as they passed into the porch.
“Copy that, Sarge. Ten victims. We’re going in.”
April stepped out into the fresh air, the chill of the autumn breeze greeting her, and for the first time in too long, she welcomed it. The breeze meant freedom.
A life without this place.
A world without the rule of Lawes.
The End.
The Rule of Lawes series is set to continue.
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