Chapter 55 Stop Hiding
Chapter 55 Stop Hiding
Detective Harris's POV
I'd just studied her face carefully. “Ma’am,” I said slowly, stepping slightly in front of her.
The moment the woman saw the badge clipped to my belt, her body stiffened.
Her fingers tightened around the luggage handle and she started trembling slightly.
Her eyes darted left, then right.
Then she suddenly turned around and bursted toward the exit door behind us.
And just like that, she ran away.
“I… I didn’t do anything,” she said quickly, her voice shaking as she tugged at the gate, trying to open it so she could escape. Unfortunately for her, it was locked, and she didn’t have the keys.
That was when I raised a calm hand. “Relax,” I said softly, not moving an inch towards her. I didn’t even make any attempt to go after her.
I was too certain that she was scared to run away. Even if she eventually got out of the building, I was doubly certain that her trembling body wouldn’t take her far before I eventually got my hands on her.
But despite all my calmness, she wasn’t relaxed.
She kept adjusting her scarf nervously, covering more of her face like she was hiding something.
Her breathing grew faster as she clung tightly onto the gate as if she'd vanished into it.
“You came to my station earlier,” I started to speak after clearing my throat softly.
Her eyes widened in shock, but she didn’t answer.
Instead, she just kept glancing towards the exit gate behind us again and again like she was calculating the distance.
Paris noticed it too.
I didn't want to take any chances, so I stepped slightly to block her path gently. “You said your mother-in-law killed your husband,” I added calmly.
The woman’s lips suddenly began to tremble even more.
Fear was written all over her face.
Not to scare her even more, I slowly took out my gun and quietly and carefully laid it on the floor then I raised both my hands up into the air, like I was dealing with a scared animal that could run away any second.
“My voice was low, slow, and very calm. I didn’t want to add to her fear. ‘Hey… hey… relax. Nobody is going to hurt you here,’ I said gently
But the woman only kept shaking harder.
Her eyes kept moving left and right like she was looking for someone to rescue her.
This was when I took one small step closer, careful not to scare her. “Just breathe… okay? Breathe slowly.” I said slowly.
But her breathing was already fast. Too fast for her to suddenly control.
The way her chest kept rising and falling was like she had been running from danger for hours.
The fear on her face was deep, and unmistakably real fear.
It wasn't a performance fear, it felt like real survival fear.
I noticed her hands were shaking badly, fingers digging into her own arms like she was trying to hold herself together.
The moment I mentioned the note, her face changed completely. Like something inside her just broke open.
She suddenly flattened her palm hard against her stomach. “No… please… don’t hurt my child!” she cried loudly. Her voice was sharp with panic.
My eyes widened slightly. “Hey— I didn’t touch you,” I said quickly. But she was already panicking more.
She grabbed the gate behind her like she wanted to climb over it and escape. “Please! Please don’t hurt my baby!” she repeated, crying harder.
Her voice was shaking so badly it almost broke into pieces.
Before I knew it, she'd already grabbed the gate and started to climb up to escape.
I noticed too late, and for a pregnant woman as she claimed, I think she was surprisingly good at climbing things.
I didn't waste a second thinking, I moved very fast towards her and grabbed her gently but firmly around the waist before she could climb higher.
“Hey! Hey! Stop! You’re going to hurt yourself!” I said loudly but not aggressively.
I carefully pulled her back down, making sure I didn’t press her stomach or hold her too tightly.
I was thinking about the baby she kept mentioning. If she was truly pregnant like she kept mentioning, then I needed to be extra careful with her.
She wasn't making it any easier because she kept struggling in my arms, crying and shaking.
“Let me go! Please!” she cried.
Though annoyed at her behaviour, I still managed to keep my voice steady. “I’m not your enemy. Just calm down. You hear me?”
Slowly, very slowly, I brought her back down to the ground. Her legs were shaking so badly she almost collapsed, but I didn't let her fall. I lifted her into my arms and held her tighter.
“Blue shirt! Get the door!” I shouted quickly.
It was after the words had already left my mouth that I realized I had just referred to him as Blue shirt again, even after he had just told me his name was Paris. But how was I supposed to start thinking about his name in a situation like this? I could barely even remember my favourite food right now.
Paris jumped slightly but didn’t hesitate.
Even though he looked terrified and confused, he rushed forward.
He grabbed the woman’s luggage quickly and dragged it with him while unlocking her apartment door.
I noticed as his hands were shaking as he pushed the door open for me to step in.
However, I was still trying to hold the woman still in my arms, because if she kept struggling, she could hurt herself.
Paris stepped into the apartment and immediately signalled me that the path was clear and I could bring her in.
Though she was still crying softly, holding onto my shirt like she was suddenly afraid of letting go.
I carried her inside the apartment slowly.
I walked to the couch and gently placed her down. She immediately tried to stand up again, but I quickly placed one hand on her shoulder and pushed her back down gently but firmly.
“Stay,” I said quietly. Not harsh. Just commanding. She kept crying but didn’t try to run again.
It was during this moment that I really wanted to question why she was suddenly scared of me.
Mind you, this same woman had walked into the station on her own and asked for me. She had come to see me in particular, but now that I was here with her, she was suddenly scared of me?
Paris stood nearby while I stayed very close to the woman, worried that she might try to run again.