Chapter Song: Hanging On by Ellie Goulding
~ Same Day ~
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"You didn't see their faces?"
As soon as the police had arrived, the three of us were escorted out of the bakery. I broke down in another fit of tears when I saw the damage to my precious bakery. Whilst one of the men had been trying to get to me, the other must've just felt like trashing the place and that broke my heart.
The glass of the door and windows in the front is shattered, even the glass case that showcases our sweets is smashed in. The register has been pried open, but thankfully the petty cash and profit from the day were already locked away in the safe in my office. Even the back kitchen has pans and pots thrown to the ground, ingredients spilt on the tile, and even more glass broken. Tables and chairs have been overturned in the front too. It looks like a hurricane had swept through the area. Despite being thankful for the safety of Edward and me, I can't help but be heartbroken by the shape of my business.
Once outside, surrounded by a multitude of paramedics and police, Edward and I were taken to the back of an ambulance to get checked out. We were fine other than being shaken up and in shock and for that I'm immensely grateful. The calm didn't last for long though once the police wanted to talk to me, get my statement if you will. They wasted no time to speak with me, not even waiting for my pulse and blood pressure to return to a semi-normal rate.
"No, it was dark. I had the lights in the front and in the kitchen off. I was so engrossed in work that I didn't even really notice that the sun had set." If only I had finished working on time, then we wouldn't have been here, or if I had just turned on some lights then maybe the burglars wouldn't have tried to do what they did. "They were big though, I assume male, taller than my fiancé, definitely bulkier too." A shiver runs down my spine when I think about how easy it was for Harry to push the filing cabinet from my door. It would've been even easier for them if they had gotten to the lock turned.
"And your fiancé showed up when?"
My eyes immediately flicker towards Harry standing by the ambulance. He's visibly tense and has been since arriving here. He has Edward in his arms, who's wrapped tightly in a wool blanket that the paramedics gave him, and he's rocking from foot to foot, probably to keep Edward calm in all this chaos. I can't make out anything he's saying, but his lips are moving, saying something to my brother, maybe even singing to him.
"Probably two minutes before you did. As I said, I was on the phone with him when it happened and he was already on his way." I sigh, glancing over my shoulder towards the bakery, where men and women in uniforms are coming and going.
"Can you think of anything else?" I can't seem to un-jumble the mess my head is currently in, trying for the life of me to piece together any other important information about the events, but I come up empty. I shake my head, dropping my gaze to the ground, staring at nothing but asphalt and my sneakers.
"Do you think my business was targetted in some way?" I find myself asking as I glance back at Belle's again. The officer standing before me sighs heavily, her eyes following my gaze.
I can't think of anyone who would personally target me or my business, but you can never be too sure.
"There have been a few businesses that have been broken into in the area, with investigations open; so we're lead to believe that this is not an isolated incident. Fortunately, in those other cases, no one was located in those locations during the time of the crime." I'm not happy to know that other businesses have been violated, but I am grateful that no one else has experienced what we went through tonight in the bakery. "We're doing everything in our power to investigate quickly and thoroughly to prevent this from happening to anyone else."
"You don't think they'd come back? I had the cash stowed away, they didn't get what they were coming for if that's what they were looking for." I'm a rambling mess, anxious with the possibilities of the burglars coming back.
"It's extremely rare for that to happen, especially with the media coverage." The female officer motions across the police line towards an abundance of members of the media. "They'd be stupid to make the same mistake twice."
She has a point. Once you rob a place, security and awareness increases, so getting caught would be almost guaranteed. I can only assume the media is here because people were in the bakery during the time of the robbery, but if it prevents anyone from coming back then I suppose I'm grateful. But if you think I'm giving them any kind of statement, you're clearly mistaken.
"Do you have any other questions for me?" The officer inquires.
"I don't think so."
"We're going to speak with your fiancé briefly, but I think we have everything we need tonight from you. If you wouldn't mind coming to the station tomorrow, we'll get this report finished up. I know it's a lot right now, but if you or someone who works alongside you can get a list of anything stolen or missing, that would be beneficial."
"Of course, thank you." I part from the officer, making my way towards Harry and Edward.
We're like a magnet, Harry and I. There's this automatic pull towards each other when we're in the same vicinity, tonight is no different. Harry's eyes are already on me from meters away and continue to follow me until I'm right in front of him as he rocks the sleeping boy in his arms. He's quick to shift so that his hand rests on the small of my back - always having to have some type of physical touch with me.
"The officer wants to talk to you and then he said we could go home," I say lowly, noticing the way Edward is slumped against Harry's body. The sight on any other day would bring a smile to my lips, but I can't find it in me to even try to smile, even if I'm more than relieved to see us all together.
Harry nods, motioning down to Edward. It's a silent exchange as I take Edward into my arms, the boy barely stirring in the process which I determine is from the bit of medication the paramedics gave him to calm down.
"Okay, I won't be long." He assures me, his hands come to rub my arms gently. "I love you." He says, leaning down to kiss my lips quickly before making his way in the direction I had just come.
It'd only been an hour since everything happened and he's already told me he loves me no less than twenty times and I to him probably more. There's this constant nagging in the back of my head that if Edward hadn't been there and I was all alone and stupid, I may not be able to say those words to him. I'm not taking any chances.
I watch like a stalker as Harry goes over to the officer I had just been talking to, the two wasting no time to strike up their conversation. My gaze shifts to the bakery, tears threatening to fall as I take in the scene yet again. All of my hard work, effort, and time is now shattered like the glass that's all over the floor inside. We'd have to close, for how long I don't know, and that's something that already is weighing heavy on me. It shouldn't be the thing at the forefront of my mind, but it is. My anxiety keeps me from thinking straight sometimes and this is one of those times.
How long will it take to get the place up and running again? How much money is it going to take to reopen? What if we can't come back from this? What about insurance? I'd just hired Olivia not long ago, Jack has a pregnant wife, Ruby's been saving up for a car, and Ian is in the process of buying a home with his girlfriend - how am I to continue paying them when we can't turn a profit?
"Anna!"
There's a shriek from the police line, where they've blocked the few onlookers and members of the media from the scene. I catch a glimpse of two very familiar yet worried faces in the small crowd, practically trying to push through the police line. I nod to the policemen who are holding them back, allowing them to come over. I'm so grateful to see them, the sight of them rushing towards me makes me want to cry all over again.
Ruby and Niall look equally frantic as they do tired as they approach at a quick pace. Ruby is clad in a pair of leggings and an oversized t-shirt, her extremely curly hair pulled up and out of her face with a headband. It's clear that she was asleep when someone had called her, Harry maybe, I'm not sure who else knows about any of this. Niall, on the other hand, is garbed in a pair of scrubs and is wearing his glasses, which he rarely does anymore so I assume he's just come from the hospital.
"Oh my God, oh thank God!" Ruby is quick to tackle both Edward and me in her arms, hugging me so tightly I think I'll bruise. I can feel her trembling against me, my heart aching that she's experiencing such emotional trauma for me. "I knew I shouldn't have left; I just knew. I've had this bad feeling all day and I couldn't shake it and then when Harry called us I just thought the worst. I'm so sorry; I'm so fücking sorry." She's practically weeping at this point and I've honestly never seen her this worked up over anything in our entire friendship.
My gut churns painfully at the thought of her staying late instead of me, the possibilities of what could have happened if she were on her own. I try to push it out of my mind for my own sake; my conscience not being able to take the thought.
Nothing can change the past. Everyone is okay. I just have to keep telling myself that and then maybe I'll believe it.
"We're fine, Ruby. Just shaken up is all. It's okay." I assure her as she practically steals Edward away from me, holding onto him tightly. He's still basically asleep and doesn't startle too much when he's passed into my best friends arms. As soon as the boy is out of my reach Niall is wrapping me in his arms, rubbing my back and patting the back of my head.
"Scared the fück out of me, Annabelle. Don't ever do that again." He whispers in my ear, squeezing me tighter, almost to the point of cutting off oxygen.
"We're okay."
"Things could have been worse. What if you weren't on the phone with Harry? Why didn't you set the alarm or turn on some dåmn lights?"
"Niall, calm down, please." Ruby scolds, probably noticing the way my chin is quivering and eyes are filling to the brim with tears at his tone. I know he means well, he's usually quite calm under pressure, but apparently, a nerve has been hit. Perhaps it's because he's sleep-deprived and overly stressed from work. This surely must be the cherry on top of his day, who knows how work was for him today. "She's been through enough, stopping scolding her." Niall leans back and notices the far off look in my eyes and the tears that I so desperately try to blink away, cursing to himself.
"Shįte, I'm sorry, love. Shhh, it's alright. Just being a prick, don't mind me. I was just so worried about ya'." He pulls me back into him, swaying from foot to foot and holding me tight, shushing me as I cry. Even with all of the worries in my head, fear still raking my body, and tears still escaping my eyes, I somehow feel relaxed in his arms. He just has this aura about him that can calm even the most panicked.
"Anna," I turn my head towards Ruby, who is standing closer than I thought, "I don't want you to worry about ringing Ian and everybody else. I'll do that once we're done here, okay? And we'll handle cleaning the place up too; you don't need to be in there any time soon." I sadly smile at my best friend all whilst I continue to hold Niall close to me. I really just need a calming touch right about now and since Harry is so far away, Niall has to do.
"The police said that they'll be wrapping things up shortly, but I'm going to have to go to the station in the morning."
"Alright, then I'll handle everything else. You just need to go home and relax. Take a few days off; just let me know what needs to be done."
"I can't do that, I have to -"
"No, you don't." Harry's low voice appears from behind me, my head turning to see him approaching us. He walks right up to me, wrapping his arm around my shoulders once Niall parts from me. "You're going to take a couple of days. We're going to go home and get some rest. I don't need you jumping into anything right now; Ruby can handle it." I want to argue with him, but I know it's no use, especially since he's doing this all for me and my health.
He takes a few moments to greet Ruby and Niall, before bringing Edward into his arms again and grasping my hand in his free one. It doesn't take a mind reader to know that he just wants to be close to us, always having to touch us in some way. He's not let us out of his reach since everything happened, not until we had to meet with the police separately.
"The police are going to secure the place; I told them who you guys were, so they won't try to mess with you. Ruby, you guys will have to enter through the back door when you come in, they're going to board the front. If you could get a list of anything missing that would be great, we'll take that to the police tomorrow afternoon."
"You got it," Ruby assures Harry.
"Thank you guys for coming, but I'm going to take Belle and Edward home now."
"Of course. I think we'll stick around and make sure everything gets sorted out here." Niall says, his eyes flickering over to me, "I'm so glad you both are okay."
"Thank you, Niall." He pulls me in for another quick side hug, telling me he loves us, before pulling away and letting Ruby have her turn. It's a much shorter embrace this time, but still just as tight. It's aggressive, but in the most loving and caring way
"Love you, Anna," I mumble back an I love you too, pressing a friendly kiss to the side of her head. "Now go home."
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ooooooo a brand new chapter! I hope you all enjoyed it xx
Question of the Week: favourite beverage? I'm a sucker for a Diet Pepsi or Cream Soda
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21.04.2021