If this situation was all over the news then Layla would bet that her brother and Serendipity were probably already on their way, though she had no idea how long it would take them to get here.
‘Is that what you want? To take more innocent people down? Drew and Serendipity won’t walk in here unless you let these other women go.’
‘And when they’re here, we might consider that,’ Ashcroft said. ‘Now what’s his phone number?’
‘I don’t have it,’ Layla said. She knew her brother’s phone number, but she wouldn’t call him up and tell him to come here when it would mean certain death. ‘Is this about revenge? Why do you want him here?’
‘He tried to tear apart my life and now I want him to witness his own demise.’
‘You can kill him, you can kill me, you can kill all of us. It won’t make a difference. The story is still out there.’
‘Politicians aren’t the only professionals who can be bought. Newspaper editors are partial to a pay-off too.’
‘Even if you’ve already done that, you can’t erase this.’
‘I wouldn’t want to… Once your brother is here, you’ll see just how this can work in my favour. I won’t be villainised. I am going to be the hero.’
Layla couldn’t envision how he would make that happen until the sound of feedback heralded a voice from outside. ‘Governor Ashcroft, are you safe? We need to negotiate with your captors. Please, ask them to pick up the phone.’
The phone in Ashcroft’s hand began to ring again and he smiled at her. ‘You see? They do not see me as the aggressor. I am in peril, I am a victim, and this is going to be my greatest hour.
‘They think he’s the victim?’ Ruger said to his brothers who were huddled together on the sidewalk, still beside the barricade. Their father had regained some of his composure and although Ruger could see his hands shaking, he did his duty consoling neighbours. ‘That’s not going to fly.’
‘What are you going to do about it?’ Blaser asked.
Ruger was speed-dialling Jansen again. ‘I’m going to make sure the media get wind of the truth before the cops cock this up.’ Lifting the phone to his ear, he listened to it ring and looked to Colt. ‘If you can think of anyone you can call to get the story straight, start dialling.’ And his brother did just that as Jansen answered the phone.
‘What?’ Jansen asked. Ruger couldn’t tell if it was anger or concern that saturated his voice. No doubt there was an element of both.
‘You need to get on the phone with this editor who’s printing your story. This is happening fast. The media are running with the cops’ line that Ashcroft is the victim.’
‘How can he be the victim?’ Jansen demanded. ‘He had no reason to be there, no reason to be in your parents’ house threatening my sister.’
‘Maybe not, but the media haven’t done their checking yet. It’s all misinformation and assumption now. But you have to get the truth out there before the cops start shooting at the wrong people.’
‘Ok. Ok,’ Jansen said. ‘Serendipity is calling now… If Ashcroft wants to come out of this as a hero…’
‘Then he’ll have to kill everyone in that house,’ Ruger said, pinning his own sights on the house. He could understand the numbness that had overcome Colt earlier.
‘He could be setting up one of his own men as a patsy.’
‘It will never work out,’ Ruger said. ‘You have the story. You’ve sold it to the newspaper and then there’s all of us. We would never let him triumph. If he takes out the women in that house then the rest of us have nothing to lose.’
‘I’m sorry about this, Warner. I got you in way deeper than you signed up for.’
‘Falling in love with your sister’s done that to me. I’m not going to lose her to this maniac’s delusions.’
‘You’re right that the story probably wouldn’t fly. There are too many holes in it. He’d get away with it for a few days, maybe a week or two, then the media would lose their sympathy and start to do their checking and that’s when his world would implode.’
‘But that’s not much of a consolation to us, because our women would still be dead.’
‘I’m on my way, Ruger, and whatever it takes, we’ll get them out of there.’
Ruger appreciated his optimism, but knew it was likely misplaced. There was nothing any of them could do. The cops wouldn’t let them near the house and just as he hung up the phone the police came in a gang to herd them further away. The Warners and neighbours protested this, but one of the wooden barriers was moved aside and a fleet of black vehicles poured into the already manic space. The FBI was here.
Chapter Twenty-One
‘You need to answer the phone,’ Layla said, sick of the sound of it ringing. They had been restrained here for over an hour and Ashcroft wasn’t making any further moves.
‘Once your brother arrives, we will.’
‘My brother isn’t coming,’ Layla said.
‘He’s coming,’ Ashcroft said, full of confidence.
The canapes meant for the engagement party were being consumed by Ashcroft and his men. There was enough prepared food to last them for a week. Lyssa and Suzette had had their mouths taped, one for trying to analyse the governor and the other for being too annoying. The only person who Ashcroft seemed to be interested in was Layla, he dismissed all the others, but was open to discussion with her.
‘I can get his phone number,’ Layla said. ‘Let me phone a mutual friend, he’ll be able to give me it.’
Ashcroft popped another canape in his mouth and then used the napkin he had tucked in his pocket to wipe his fingers. ‘You didn’t want to phone him when I asked you to before.’
‘No, but now I want to warn him to stay the hell away from here.’
‘That doesn’t serve my interest.’
‘None of this serves your interest. They’re going to find out the truth and when they do, the media will take you down.’ Layla had chastised Ruger for the opinion that people could be vilified in the court of public opinion and now it was going to be her greatest ally. ‘They’ve had some time. Turn on the TV. I’ll bet they’re not reporting your heroism right now. The news will be asking why you were here and what business you had in this house. When they figure out that you have no connection to anyone here except your connection to Drew and Serendipity, they are going to put the pieces together and what will you do then?’
Padget had been wandering in and out of the various occupied rooms. He seemed to hold some kind of authority among the men and was keeping them in line as Ashcroft followed his own fancy.
‘Turn on the TV,’ Ashcroft demanded when Padget came in.
The television was wall mounted and as such hadn’t been removed with the other furniture that the Warner men had taken out. Unfortunately, it was on the wall behind Layla and so she wouldn’t be able to see what was going on outside where the media were filming. If Ashcroft saw that she was right, then he would have to reconsider his actions, she just hoped that didn’t include hurting anyone here.
Padget found the remote and turned on the TV and the female newscaster’s voice filled the room. ‘As yet unconfirmed reports of corruption in Governor Ashcroft’s office seem to be the catalyst for this event. We’re still piecing together how the governor ended up here when no known associates can be found in the area—‘ Ashcroft snatched the remote control from Padget and stabbed a button, either to mute the offending screen or turn it off.
‘As yet unconfirmed,’ Layla said. ‘How long will it take them to confirm? I bet your DA buddy is already starting to sweat.’
‘How did you do this?’ Ashcroft demanded.
‘I didn’t do anything. Your own greed got us here,’ she said and the phone began to ring again. ‘Maybe now would be a good time to answer that.’
‘The FBI are here,’ Bri said. ‘They’re all over the TV. The cops must have been biding their time until the FBI got up to speed. I’d bet they won’t be patient in moving forward now.’
‘And if they blast in here and see this setup…’ Layla said, trailing off to let the sentence finish itself in his mind. His face was glowing red and his strides got longer as he paced the width of the room. ‘You really didn’t think this through, did you? Or did you think you were invincible?’
‘You need to go out there and come clean,’ Bri said. The phone stopped ringing. ‘Maybe you can rise from the ashes as a reformed man?’
Ashcroft stopped pacing and Layla was impressed by Bri’s quick thinking. They didn’t want Ashcroft to be in a desperate state of mind because desperate men did desperate things. ‘Yes,’ Layla said, backing up Bri’s idea. ‘You’ve done wrong and you can’t deny that, but this does not have to be the end for your political career.’
‘How can I make them see?’ he snapped, grabbing his gun from the table by the phone.
Layla couldn’t see Bri, but they were side by side, so she felt the tension in her arms through her own shoulder. Bri had the most to lose here, she was with child. Thankfully, her bump wasn’t yet showing, but Blaser would be going out of his mind outside.
‘What are you going to do with that?’ Layla asked. ‘You don’t have to hurt anyone.’
Ashcroft came closer, waving the gun up and down as he approached. ‘You’ve ruined my life!’
‘But this doesn’t have to be over! You said yourself that you weren’t capable of murder, remember? You said it when you came in here to talk to me. You said you didn’t want to hurt anyone,’ Layla said, struggling against her bonds and pushing her body forward to protect that of Bri on her other side. The pentagram formation they were in meant Lys and Pru wouldn’t see what Ashcroft was doing, though they would’ve had sight on the TV.
‘I came here to reason with you,’ Ashcroft said, grabbing her shoulder and sticking the gun in her face. ‘You wouldn’t see reason.’
‘Yes, ok, this is my fault. If anyone is going to be hurt today it should be me. You should punish me.’
‘No,’ Bri said. ‘This is his fault and he should take responsibility. For once, he has to stand up and take responsibility!’
‘Take it out on me,’ Layla said. A surge of panic when he stepped back from her made Layla struggle harder. ‘Please, leave these women alone. This is my fault!’
‘He has to take ownership, to be a real man and admit that it’s his actions that have brought us here!’ Bri insisted, she too tried to pull against the bindings.
‘They’re not going to believe me,’ Ashcroft muttered. Padget was watching his employer with a concern that worried her.
‘They will. They might. These women will back you up,’ Layla said, wishing she could move her chair to separate herself from the innocent women who she couldn’t bear to see hurt. ‘Take out your anger on me.’
‘Bri is right,’ Pru said in the background though Layla didn’t know if the woman understood just how urgent this situation was. ‘He is nothing but a pathetic, snivelling creature, blaming everyone else for his own shortcomings. No one will vote for that man. He cannot become triumphant until he can have pride in himself and the country can respect him.
‘Ignore them,’ Layla said.
Ashcroft was still retreating and his expression grew more distant. He was no longer looking at the women, but he had to still be listening. ‘I’ll be ruined,’ he murmured. ‘I’ll be ostracized.’
‘You’ll go to jail,’ Pru said. The woman still didn’t sound upset or worried. She had a lot of faith in her husband and sons but failed to understand how powerless they were in this situation. ‘You will have to go to court and be examined under a microscope. If they add murder charges then you may never be a free man again.’
Ashcroft flinched at this declaration and his eyes slowly closed. ‘I came here to resolve this.’
‘You came here to intimidate my friend into tucking tail but she has too much integrity for that,’ Bri said. ‘Act with some integrity yourself and maybe you’ll find hope when this is finished. Let us go, and own up to what you have done.’
‘You can’t manipulate the media,’ Pru said. ‘You’re not that powerful. Layla is right, the story will eventually come out and scandal always trumps truth in my experience, though in this case the scandal is the truth. You swore to uphold the integrity of your office, but you are not a righteous man. You are selfish and now you must reap what you have sewn. This predicament is no one’s fault but your own.’
They were really hammering home his demise and Layla didn’t like how his eyes glazed over. ‘I can’t let them know the truth,’ he said, his eyes slid up to hers and she actually felt a pang of pity because his expression was so childlike. The fear inside him of what his future held reverted him back to that primitive state. ‘I can’t face prison.’
‘Do the right thing,’ Layla said, softening her demeanour and slackening her shoulders to give up her fight. ‘And maybe you won’t have to.’
The phone began to ring again, but Layla held their connection, hoping she could be breaking through. A buzz came from outside and then a new voice came through the bullhorn. ‘Answer the phone, Ashcroft. Pick it up, or we’ll come through those doors. You’ve got one minute.’
The shrill ring of the phone seemed to intensify. It was an audio illusion, but it got louder and louder, just as it seemed Ashcroft got closer to her, but he did not. Their eyes remained fixed. She tried to will him to surrender, and for a few heartbeats, she really thought he was going to give in.
In a snap, he straightened, his expression became resolved and he lifted the gun to his own temple.
‘No!’ Padget screamed.
Horror erupted, but it was too late. Before Layla could open her mouth, Ashcroft pulled the trigger and his body fell onto the floor. The gunshot was enough to make Pru scream, Lys and Suzette made similar sounds through their gags, and Bri remained silent. Nobody moved. Layla wasn’t sure that anyone was still breathing. Padget went over and crouched to feel for a pulse, but there was too much carnage for there to be any hope of life.
‘He shot himself,’ Bri murmured, presumably for the benefit of the others who didn’t have a line of sight. Men ran in from other rooms and Padget surged to his feet.
‘You did this!’ Padget said to her. ‘You! He didn’t have it in him! He wasn’t a murderer! You did this to him!’
He raised his gun, but the front door burst from its frame making him whirl around. It took a few more seconds for law enforcement to get through the door past the furniture, but Ashcroft’s men were too confused to respond with force.
Padget still had his gun in hand, but the uniformed men were holding much more powerful rifles and each had the red line of his precision sight pinned to a different man as they poured in. Orders were made for the men to put down their weapons, and all did as they were told.
After the men were all being cuffed and led out, someone checked for Ashcroft’s pulse, but they too found nothing. The women were freed after that and the Warner men rushed inside, followed by another bunch of uniformed SWAT officers, who had no doubt been told not to let them in, but they were coming in and each would take a bullet before they would relent.
Every man had a woman to rush to and Ruger came straight to her. Layla was still seated but the tape had been removed allowing her to rub some of the gum from her wrists.
‘Are you ok?’ Ruger asked, crouching in front of her. ‘There are medics outside who are going to check you all out.’
‘I’m ok,’ Layla said. ‘You should let them tend to Bri first.’ She turned to see that Blaser already had Bri on her feet and in his embrace. Each of the couples were reunited. Layla noticed that even Gus was here to tend to Suzette.
‘Blaser will take her,’ Ruger said, spreading a hand on her face. ‘How are you?’
‘I don’t…’ Ashcroft’s body was being examined by officials, but with the gun still in his hand, the forensics, and the testimony of everyone, she was confident they would believe the suicide. ‘He shot himself.’
<
br /> ‘Good,’ Ruger said. ‘If it got you out—‘
‘He did it to save himself,’ she said. ‘But I’ve never seen anyone… He was looking right at me.’
Lyssa and Colt came into view. Lyssa was crouched beside Ruger, taking her hand, but Layla could still only stare at Ashcroft’s inert form. ‘Don’t hold in your emotion,’ Lyssa said. ‘The only way to process it is to let it out.’
Ashcroft’s body was blocked when everyone else came to crowd in behind Ruger and Lyssa. There they all were, scrutinising her with sympathy and understanding. The women were endangered because of her, because of her connection to those who started all of this. Layla expected them to revile her, to run away and blame her for endangering them. But there was no judgement or anger in their eyes.
‘Why aren’t you angry?’ she asked them.
‘We are,’ Blaser said. ‘But not at you.’
‘At Drew? Do you blame my brother for—‘
‘No,’ Ruger said. ‘This wasn’t his fault either.’
‘You’re family,’ Colt said. ‘When you’re one of us, we all take on the risks and responsibilities of each other. Yeah, I’m pissed that Ashcroft took the easy way out, but that’s not on you. None of this is.’
‘We’re proud of you,’ Lyssa said. ‘You were courageous and kept a cool head. That’s not easy to do in these types of situations.’
‘Drew is on his way,’ Ruger said, boosting up to kiss her, though she barely felt it because she was still cloaked in shock.
‘I think that’s the first time you’ve used his first name,’ she said. Her lips began to tingle when he kissed her again. It was the first sign that she was regaining some feeling.
‘I’ve used his first name before.’
‘It’s the first time you’ve said it with any familiarity, like he’s more than just a colleague.’
‘I better get used to it if he’s going to be family,’ Ruger said.
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