Chapter 67: Caught

Jon stared at the woman in disbelief. She wasn't drunk at all; she was a damn cop. He saw red and got ready to lunge at her. Before he could move, someone busted down the wood-covered door. When he turned around, Jon saw Andy and several others all running in with their guns drawn. How had they found him and had time to set him up?

"Get on your knees and put your hands up now," Andy yelled at him. They knew precisely where Jon was heading thanks to Dorian's fast camera watching. When they saw him standing against the building like he was waiting for the right woman, they called an undercover that was already in the area pretending to be a prostitute. She bought a bottle of booze, dumped it on herself, messed up her hair, and smeared her makeup.

She tried to make herself as easy of a target as possible, and it worked. They knew when she said to freeze; it was their signal to come in from where they were waiting outside the door. If Jon had bothered to look around, he would have seen that they were being followed down the alley. His rage had made him sloppy. When the undercover walked over and put the cuffs on Jon, she spit on him.

"Looks like your killing days are over, you sick son of a bitch." Darlene said with pure loathing. When she got the call from her superior asking her to quickly change assignments, she jumped at the opportunity. Taking down a serial killer would definitely help her career. She had only a few minutes to prepare, but luckily she was good at her job.

"Thank you, Darlene, you did a great job," Andy said as she pulled Jon to his feet. She shoved him toward the agent.

"Thanks, I love taking scum off the streets. I'm sure every woman in the city will sleep well knowing this jackass is locked up." Darlene looked at Jon in disgust, and he turned red with anger.

"I got out before, and I'll get out again. When I do, you're the first one I'm going to gut like a fish, you nasty bitch." Jon yelled at her. Darlene looked at Andy, and he nodded; he knew what she wanted. She punched Jon's already broken nose, making the blood stream down his face, and when he bent over to spit, she kneed him in the groin.

"I think the only one getting gutted is you once the hardened criminals get a hold of you." Darlene chuckled as Jon fell to his knees in pain. She walked out as two officers helped him to his feet and put him in a patrol car. Andy pulled out his phone to call Dennis.

"Hello," Dennis answered.

"We have him. Darlene tricked him into taking her, and now we're taking him downtown. I'm not letting him out of my sight until he's behind bars. Tell Dorian thank you, we couldn't have done this without him." After hanging up, Andy walked to the car and got into the passenger seat. He glanced back at Jon and saw the blood still all over his face. Andy smirked at him.

"Looks like a woman finally made you bleed. I can't wait to throw you in the cage where you belong." Jon glared at him from the backseat as they started driving to the station.

"Once everyone finds out that the captain was helping me, shit is going to hit the fan. The NYPD will be put under a microscope, and I'll get off free." Andy turned around again, looking at Jon with a grin.

"That's where you're wrong. There's no evidence of what transpired between you and Captain Clifton other than you killing him. So you'll be going down for the murders of all those women, the murder of a police captain, and the attempted murder of Natalia and Hayden. Not to mention drugging Dorian and Krista. If you're lucky not to get the death penalty, you'll still rot the rest of your miserable life away in prison." Jon felt his heart sinking with each word. How had they gotten rid of the evidence? The rest of the trip was completed in silence.

______________

After Dennis hung up with Andy, he looked at the four young people and smiled. It did his heart good to tell them that the nightmare was finally over.

"Good news. The setup worked, and Jon is on his way back to jail. Andy is staying with him until he's behind bars." Natalia looked at Hayden with tears running down her face.

"It's over? We can finally get on with our lives?" She asked in almost a whisper. They had been living on the edge for so long that the thought of having a normal life had seemed like a faraway dream.

"Yes, it's over." Hayden leaned down and kissed her. Relief flooded his body, knowing Jon was no longer out there in the shadows waiting to attack. Maybe now Natalia could focus on healing. He glanced toward Dorian and saw he and Krista were hugging. She also had tears in her eyes.

"We may need you all to testify about the stalking, drugging, and attempted murdering. Dorian, we're going to say we got this information anonymously, so there are no questions regarding the methods used. However, we would like to consult with you from time to time if you're okay with that." Dennis commented with a slight grin, and everyone looked at Dorian, who was turning red.

"I would like that." He answered honestly. After helping find Jon, he has a new respect for the police. Dorian had always thought they would look down on someone like him, but Dennis and Andy had shown that they appreciated his skills. However, before he went totally on the side of law enforcement, he'd made Natalia a promise, and he had every intention of keeping it. Jon being locked up wasn't going to deter him from doing what was necessary.

"We'll be happy to testify as long as he never sees the light of day again. They won't make a deal with him, will they?" Hayden asked, not wanting to give Jon a chance to ever get out.

"If they make a deal, it will only be to keep the death sentence off the table. At the very least, he'll spend the rest of his life in prison." There was too much evidence for Jon to get off. He had posted most of the evidence online of him murdering the women. Dennis was confident there was nothing Jon could do or say to get out of this.

"I'm so glad they have him. Now we can plan our wedding. I refuse to get married while in this wheelchair, so it won't be for a while. Dennis, I want both you and Andy there." Natalia cocked her head to one side as she saw the surprise on his face.

"I'm sure I speak for both of us when I say we wouldn't miss it for anything. I'm going to take off so we can take care of everything with Jon. Please let me know if you need anything. I'll keep you informed throughout the entire process." They thanked Dennis before he walked out, and then everyone started laughing. None of them knew why, but they all felt giddy.

"After everything we've been through, I think we're all a little slap-happy. I can't remember the last time I felt so free. You'll still stay with us, won't you?" Natalia asked Dorian and Krista. Despite being free of Jon, she knew Hayden couldn't take care of her himself.

"Of course, we will. We'll stay until you're up dancing." Dorian said with a smile. He understood why Natalia still wanted them there, but neither would say it, not wanting to hurt Hayden's pride.

Hayden watched the interaction with a heaviness in his heart. He wanted Natalia all to himself, especially since they were now engaged. He knew that wasn't reasonable with only one good arm. He was just thankful they had all survived and could celebrate. Maybe they could finally live in peace.

____________

Jon's arrest was all over the news. The women of New York felt like they could rest a little easier now that the monster had been caught. However, there were some people who had hoped Jon had been successful in killing Natalia. Those people still wanted revenge and would bide their time until they could find a way to get to her themselves once her guard was down. They were determined that Natalia Crawford wouldn't live to see her next birthday.