Chapter 62 - Someone's Shot

Natalia screamed as the gunshot went off, and Dorian fell on top of Jon. Hayden was lying across her, but she couldn't take her eyes off Dorian on the floor. Was he shot?

"Dorian, are you okay?" She asked in a panic. She felt relieved when she saw him move and grab Jon's hand that was holding the gun. He took the gun from him and put it in his waistband.

"I'm fine." Dorian started to say as he looked at her. His eyes were wide, and she followed his stare. Hayden was lying across her lap with blood pouring from his shoulder.

"Hayden? Hayden?" She yelled frantically. He slowly started moaning. "Dorian, get me something to free his hands and call 911."

Natalia put her hands over his shoulder, trying to stop the bleeding. Dorian lifted Jon off the floor and punched him hard in the face knocking him out. He figured that was the best way to keep him subdued. He then called the police from his phone while using a pocket knife to cut the zip ties from Hayden's hands and feet. As soon as he hung up the phone, they heard the elevator ding. The officers and security from the lobby came rushing in with their guns drawn.

"Over here. Please help him." Natalia said in terror. Hayden was groaning, but he hadn't opened his eyes. One of the officers radioed for an ambulance as two others lifted Hayden off Natalia. They laid him on the floor and tore his shirt where the bullet had gone into his shoulder. One of them pressed on the wound while the other got a towel to tie around the area.

"How is he?" Natalia asked, wishing she could get on the floor next to him.

"He'll be fine. It was a thru and thru, so it's clean. Are you okay?" The officer asked her, and she nodded. Natalia looked toward Dorian, who was on the couch waking Krista up. She still looked groggy, but at least she was unharmed.

They heard the elevator ding, and in walked EMTs with Dennis and Andy. Dennis ran to Natalia's side while the EMTs went to Hayden.

"What happened?" He asked her, and that's when he noticed Jon lying on the floor, still out cold. One of the officers had handcuffed him.

"Jon came in wearing a mask that made him look like Andy. He tried to get us to leave with him. When we refused, he gave Dorian and Krista something to knock them out while Hayden and I were in the other room. He also told us you were dead, Dennis. We knew something was off about him. He brought a gun and knife, telling Hayden and me we were going to have to play his game. When I saw Dorian woke up and was working on getting his hands free, I kept him distracted. Dorian was able to get the zip ties off his hands, and he took Jon from behind. That's when the gun went off. Hayden jumped in front of me. If he hadn't, I would have been dead."

Natalia looked back at Hayden, and they were putting him onto a gurney to take him to the hospital. He still wasn't awake, and he seemed extremely pale. She looked at Dennis pleadingly.

"Can you please take me to the hospital? I'm not hurt, but I want to be there when he wakes up." Dennis was there when Natalia was the one in the hospital bed, so he understood how important this was for her.

"Of course, I will. Andy, I'm taking her to the hospital. Will you take care of him?" He asked, looking toward the agent who was standing next to Jon.

"You go ahead. I'll make sure he's well taken care of." Andy picked Jon up by the handcuffs and shoved him to one of the officers. "Take this piece of shit out of here."

"Dennis, can we ride with you? I'll help get Natalia in the car, and I'd like Krista to get checked out too." Dorian asked as he helped an unsteady Krista to her feet.

"Yes. Let's go." Dennis started pushing Natalia toward the elevator where they had just taken Hayden. When they all got to the lobby, she saw them putting Hayden in the back of the ambulance. At Dennis' car, Dorian picked her up and put her in the back with her legs across the seat. Krista sat in the back with her, and Dorian sat in the front.

As they drove, Natalia was a nervous wreck. Hayden hadn't been away from her since she got out of the hospital. By the time they arrived, she was almost hyperventilating. She couldn't focus on anything other than seeing him smile at her. She was terrified that they were wrong and Hayden was worse than they said. Dorian got her wheelchair out of the trunk and put her into it while Dennis helped Krista out of the car. They then switched spots.

While Dorian checked Krista into the emergency room to be checked out, Dennis flashed his badge so they could get past everyone to the waiting room in the back. Once there, he found a nurse.

"Hello, can you please let me know the status of Hayden Sumner?" Dennis said, showing the young woman his badge. She glanced at Natalia and then back at the detective.

"All I can tell you is he's in surgery. I'll let the doctor know you're here so he can give you an update when they're done." Natalia gave her a small smile.

"Thank you," She said with a scratchy throat. If anything happened to Hayden, she would go to the station and kill Jon herself.

"Are you sure you're not hurt?" Dennis asked, looking at the blood that was all over her. She shook her head.

"No, it's Hayden's blood. Do you think this will finally be over now? I don't know how much more we can take. Other than my first few days with Hayden, it's been a constant battle just for us to survive." Natalia was staring at the waiting room doors, wanting to see a doctor come through them with an update.

"At least he's in custody, and there is no question of what he's done. Jon is not as smart as he thinks he is. He posted all of his murders online and didn't even try to hide his identity. He won't ever see the light of day again." Dennis reassured her, hoping that what he was saying was true. He'd seen too many times where the worst of the worst get off because of a technicality.

"Even once he's in prison, will someone else want to come after us? It started with Shania and then Cara. We didn't even have time to breathe before Jon came in, causing everything to go haywire. I just want Hayden to be okay, get these casts off my legs, and then go away somewhere we can relax for as long as we want. I'm tired both physically and mentally." Natalia looked at the detective sadly.

"It will get better. You have been through enough for several lifetimes. I can't imagine anyone else out there wanting to cause you harm." Dennis said wholeheartedly. He'd never seen Natalia look so beat up before. He was getting anxious to get her near Hayden. he didn't like seeing her this way.

"I never thought Cara or Patrice would be out to get me either. It shows you don't really know who to trust. There will always be someone out there wanting what we have or trying to tear us apart." Dennis didn't know how to respond to that, so he didn't say anything.

Dorian and Krista made their way into the waiting room. Both looked much better, but they noticed Natalia seemed far away. She glanced up at them as they walked in.

"Are you okay?" She asked Krista.

"Better now. I don't know what he gave me, but it made me feel like I was underwater. Any news on Hayden?" She asked, and Natalia shook her head.

"Nothing yet." She looked back toward the door. Dorian walked over and sat next to Dennis.

"Did Natalia tell you what else we found before Jon showed up?" He asked.

"No, her focus has been on Hayden. What was it?" Dennis questioned, looking toward Natalia.

"We found someone else working with Jon in the police department," Dorian stated, watching Dennis' face show shock.

"Who is it?"

"Captain Clifton," Dorian said while Dennis stared at him in disbelief.

"I don't believe it. He's the strictest rule follower I've ever known." He pictured the captain helping someone like Jon and couldn't see it. Dorian showed him his phone.

"These are the emails they sent back and forth using code." Dennis read the emails and felt a chill go down his spine.

"We have a problem then." He said, looking at Dorian with his eyes wide.

"What?"

"Andy had the officer hand Jon over to Captain Clifton at the station."