Chapter 168 Scuffle

Chapter 168 Scuffle
THEODORE

There were arguably tons of places where I could be right now instead of parked outside Hotel Belcourt, but there was no way in hell that I'd miss this. 

The police had been on Mom and Felix's tail for the whole morning. Detective Whitman had been keeping me informed, so I decided to show up. 

I couldn't help it. I was far too paranoid. 

What if they got away?

At least here, I was watching the entrance, so if they tried to run, I'd be right here to stop them. Mom, not so much. 

But Felix? He was far too vain to accept going to jail. He could try to do something out of despair. I knew that rat far too well to take chances where he was concerned. 

My phone rang. It was Oliver. Sounding anxious, he asked me, "Any news?"

"Still waiting on the warrant."

"Dammit," he said under his breath. "Fuck, when is this going to end? I can't take the suspense anymore!"

I smiled to myself. Oliver wasn't the cursing type; never was. But this situation had worn all of us out. "Soon. I'm here right now, parked in front of the entrance."

"Isn't that risky?"

"It's not like they know I'm here."

"Be careful anyway."

"I will." I had another incoming call and it was the detective. "I'll call you back. It's the detective."

I answered his call before Oliver could say anything else. Shit, I couldn't ignore the way my fingers shook. "Tell me you have good news for me, Detective."

"I have the warrant in my hand right now."

I rested my forehead against the steering wheel and closed my eyes. He continued, "I'm driving to the hotel right now. I'd like to remind you again to stay put, Mr. Hawthorne, and not intervene in any way. Let the law handle it."

"Duly noted," I stated. "Thank you."

"Take care."

I ended the call and tossed my phone on the driver's seat. Gratitude washed over me as I ran both my hands down my face and looked up at the roof of my car. Finally, this farce would come to an end, and Alice and I would move on from this shit. It had been hard, yeah, but absolutely worth it. Those two were going to be out of our lives for some time, and if they ever came out in one piece, they'd have nothing left to torment us with. 

Felix was definitely not going to earn a cent of his inheritance, and Mom...

A shout distracted me from my thoughts and I looked out my window promptly. Up ahead, I saw what appeared to be a scuffle, and I had to admit that it took me an embarrassingly long time to recognize the people involved. 

"What the—?"

I threw my door open and left it that way as I raced toward the scene. For the few seconds before I reached them, I thought that maybe, I'd gone mad, because there was no way that Alice had her arms hooked around Felix's shoulders while scratching his face, yelling obscenities at the top of her lungs, and Rory was on the ground in front of them with a bloody nose. 

Felix moved away from the entrance as he tried to get her off him, backing away until he slammed her against one of the stone pillars. Rory stood back up to lunge at him just as I reached them. 

"Son of a bitch!" I gritted out before punching him. He immediately tried to grab any part of me that he could as we struggled. I glanced at Alice to make sure she was alright, and she was clutching her lower back while hugging Rory with one arm. 

He hurt her. 

This motherfucker actually hurt her. 

Rage hit me like a brick. I swung at Felix as hard as I could, hitting him harder than I ever thought I could. The hotel's security swarmed us just as the cops showed up.

"You lying motherfucker!" Felix spat as he thrashed against the guys holding him back, spitting everywhere. "I had a feeling you were lying, you traitor!"

"Fuck you!" I hissed, trying to get to him again. I couldn't, though. "How does it feel knowing you're gonna go to jail for your crimes, cousin? Huh?"

My words enraged him even more. His face was all scratched up and bleeding from Alice's attack. This time, I had a feeling he was trying to free himself to get away, but the police officers were beginning to intervene. 

"I didn't do anything!" he yelled. "Let me go! I didn't do shit!"

"I hope you paid attention to geometry in school, Felix," I added. "They're gonna have you in all sorts of angles in the can."

Detective Whitman showed up then. He gave me an exasperated look before saying, "Felix Hawthorne? I'm Detective Whitman. We have a warrant for your arrest."

The security guards surrendered Felix to the cops, but even then, he wouldn't stop fighting them and insisting that he was innocent. I assured the guards that I was fine and wouldn't cause a scene, and once they released me, I hurried to Alice's side. 

"Baby," I began, getting on my knees beside her, "are you alright? Talk to me."

"It hurts," she admitted. "I need to go to the hospital. Something isn't right."

"Where does it hurt?"

"My back. My front. I don't know."

I glanced at Rory. Apart from the bloodied nose, he seemed to be fine. His eyes were wide with panic, and he immediately helped me bring Alice to her feet. I scooped her in my arms just as the detective approached me. "Mr. Hawthorne, I thought I told you to stay put."

"He was attacking my wife. I couldn't sit in the car and watch. She isn't feeling well. I have to take her to the hospital."

"Do you need me to call an ambulance?"

"I'll be faster."

"Alright. We're searching for your mother. She couldn't have gone far."

"Theo," Alice whined. I immediately headed toward my car with Rory in tow. I set her in the backseat and got in. Her head was on Rory's lap and she was clutching her middle while moaning in pain. 

"We're almost there," I promised her, thankful that the hotel was so close to a hospital. "Just hang on, baby. Please, just hang on."

"It hurts," she cried. "Theo, I'm scared."

"What's there to be scared of?" I asked as I ran a red light. The cars on either side of me honked, but I couldn't possibly care less. "You don't have to be scared of anything."

"I think it's the baby," she claimed. "I'm scared, Theo. Hurry!"

I skidded to a stop in front of the emergency, and took her out of the car. I hurried inside, screaming for help. Nurses rushed toward me a few moments later and took her away from me. My hands were fucking shaking.

"Is she gonna be okay?" Rory asked beside me. 

I cupped the back of his head and pulled him closer. He needed medical assistance, too. I had to find someone to clean him up. "She will. I know she will."

I desperately wanted to ask him what happened, but the last thing I wanted was to press him for details. I'd just have to wait for Alice to explain things to me herself. Fuck, she'd be okay. She had to be okay. 

She was the most important piece of my life, and if I lost her, I'd have nothing left.