Arranged love

actions speak louder than words

Juliet's Pov

"So to conclude Mrs. Hilton. I will see you and your husband in the prosecutor's office tomorrow to go over the details of the official charges being pressed against the accused. They will go over how things are going to progress from here and moving forward. the charges will be on the news later today because it's been a high-profile case" my lawyer Mr. Passman says over the phone. He called to tell me that the charges are being finalized and that we are excited at the prosecutor's office tomorrow.

"Okay. Then I will see you tomorrow at 10 am " I say, and we agree to that before hanging up.

It pisses me off that the press is going to hear about it, but apparently, the case has been in the media a lot since I got kidnapped. I've been told that it's because I'm a high-profile victim, so it didn't take long before it hit the news. Mr. Passman is trying to get a gag order from the court but it's not that easy to get. I'm terrified that the media headlines will give other people ideas to get to me too. That I'm an easy target. We have upped security on all three of us, as well as our apartment because I have this constant thought that someone else will come for us. It's probably irrational, but I just can't get it out of my head.

The sad part is that because of my privilege, I feel like I had better odds than the thousands of victims being kidnapped every year. Because of my privilege, they set in all sorts of resources and kept them up until they found me. There was a dedicated tip line where the public could send in tips, and it was on the news almost every day.

The fact that I come from money and am the CEO of the biggest hotel empire in the world gave me the privilege of extra resources being put in place to get me home. Most people aren't that lucky. Even worse, if the family isn't privileged at all the kidnapping can a lot of the time not get any attention at all, it will simply sit on a shelf in the police station.

It feels unfair that my privilege is one of the reasons why I'm home right now. The feds, the police, the public tip line, and several private investigators paid for by my family were working on my case. No price tag was too big for them to get me home because it would be a bad look for the feds and the police department if they didn't find the precious Mrs. Hilton. It makes me sick to my stomach. I'm grateful for the fact that they worked so hard to get me home, but I also feel guilty for the fact that I'm one of the few lucky people who got to go home again.

They say that in a kidnapping case, the first 48 hours are the window they work the hardest because after that the chances of finding the person are minimal. Oftentimes the resources get pulled quickly after that and the public's interest fades. It's the nature of how our system works, but it also sucks.

I was gone for three and a half weeks, but they never slowed down or pulled resources to find me, they worked day and night until they found me in that apartment that I now know was in Harlem.

"What are you thinking about love," Will says as he sets a Starbucks cup in front of me making me jump. I didn't even hear him coming in the door after personally dropping Lilly off at school and talking with the administration.

"Just how privileged I am that I was found. I can't help but... feel guilty I guess" I say taking a sip of my venti iced white chocolate mocha he got me. No matter what season it is, I love myself an iced coffee. If it's too cold outside I just bundle up in more clothes to enjoy myself an iced coffee. It's early March, so at least it's spring.

"Guilty for what?" He says as he sits down on the couch next to me but keeps enough distance so he can fully look at me. "Because they kept the resources so high to find me. Most people aren't that lucky will. I just feel guilty because of my privilege. I'm so thankful for every single person that worked to find me, I can never thank them enough because I got to go home to the people I value and that love me. But there are so many people that don't get that chance will" I say and can't stop the tears from sliding down my face.