Traded(90)

“You told us exactly where to find her, and yet you say you didn’t kidnap her.”

“Exactly.”

The door swung opened and Arthur, my father’s lawyer, stepped through. “That’s enough of the questions. I’m Mr. Colburn, Mr. Hawes’s attorney. From what I understand, he’s given you the information to prove he is innocent. At this time, he will not answer any more questions until you stop treating him like the accused and instead realize that he’s actually the victim.”

The detective clenched his jaw, but made no attempt to correct Arthur, instead, leaving the room, the door crashing into its frame as he slammed it behind him.

Arthur took the chair next to me. “What the fuck happened, Ashton? Your father is ready to storm the place.”

“I take it Dad’s here?”

“You could say that. I’m not the only lawyer he brought. Now do you want to tell me what the fuck happened so I can go out there and calm him down, before he makes any of this worse on either of you?”

“The soon-to-be ex-husband of the woman I’m seeing claims I kidnapped her.”

“Elena?”

I nodded, curious as to how Arthur knew that.

“Don’t look surprised. Your father told me all about her. Now let me go out there and calm him down.”

Before he had a chance to stand, screaming could be heard from the main lobby and it happened to be the only voice I wanted to hear.





CHAPTER 27





Elena




“From the top,” Alan called from somewhere near the back. “Vince, remember where we made the changes to the blocking.”

We’d been rehearsing the same number for the last three days when Alan decided that the scene didn’t work and we needed to start from scratch. My feet were sore from all the dancing, not to mention my throat was scratchy. At some point Alan would need to give up and give us a break.

The intro to the music started and I counted the beats. I was the first to come in. I heard my cue and started to sing. Suddenly, the door was flung open, the heavy metal handle crashing against the wall and startling everyone in the room. Six police officers ran through the door, guns drawn.

Alan jumped from his seat and into the aisle, his hands raised. “I’m not sure what’s happened, but I think you have the wrong place.”

The one in the front took a step forward, calling out, “Elena Tolley?” and all heads, excluding those of the police officers, snapped in my direction.

“I’m Elena Tolley,” my voice squeaked out.

He holstered his gun and came toward me. “You’ll have to come with us, ma’am.”

I crossed my arms over my chest and stood stock-still. “I’m not going anywhere with anyone until someone explains what is going on.”

“Ma’am, we have Ashton Hawes in custody. He is being questioned regarding your disappearance. Kidnapping,” he clarified.

My eyes practically popped out of my head. “You what?” I yelled.

Alan ran up onto the stage. “You arrested Ashton?” he asked, a bit more calmly than me.

Why in the hell would they think that Ashton kidnapped me? I was only clueless for a fleeting moment because the answer slapped me in the face.

Dominic.

Asshole was still finding ways to ruin my life.

“Officer, I can assure you Ashton did not kidnap me. I’m with him of my own free will.”

The officers looked at me like I was crazy, probably thinking I was suffering from Stockholm Syndrome. The ridiculous thing about it was that the jerk parading around their station, most likely with his head held high, had caused me more damage than anyone could imagine.

“Are you sure you’re okay, ma’am?”

“I promise, I’m fine.” I knew I could fix this whole mess when I got to the station. Taking a deep breath, I tried to force myself to relax. “Give me a second to grab my things and I’ll come with you.” I gave a curt nod and headed off stage.

Alan followed me to the back dressing rooms. “Do you want me to come with you?”

I shook my head. “No, I needed to stand up to my soon-to-be ex-husband sooner or later.” I lay my arm on his. “Keep working. I’ll fix this mess and be back tomorrow.”

He pulled me into a hug. “I’m glad he sent you to me. Take care of him tonight—he’s going to be pissed.”

“I will.”

I gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and ran around to come out of the audience door instead of the stage door. The officers were still there waiting. “Let’s go,” I said, leading the way to the doors.

We walked out to find the place surrounded by even more cars. Members of EMS came running up to me with a stretcher.