"If justice is denied, let the law of karma take the ride. Nothing in this world is done without a price."
-Anonymous
Aria
I was pacing around the apartment, chewing on the inside of my cheek. We had basically created the perfect plan to get Alison behind bars and Ezra custody of his daughter...although I wasn't really sure how perfect the Marley plan would work since he wasn't really her biological father, but we would deal with that when that came up later. Ezra was jotting down the key aspects of the plan on a yellow pad of paper. He had that crazed, reporter look in his eyes and I had to stifle a giggle. He looked up at me and smiled sheepishly.
"Am I getting too into this plan..?" I shook my head, sitting down next to him.
"Not at all, I find it quite sexy, actually," I bit my lip, smiling as he leaned forward to kiss me. I leaned into the kiss for a few, short seconds before I pulled away.
"We have to focus, Ezra, this is important. I think we should call the cops..."
"Right now?" he breathed, eyes widening. I nodded and he agreed, nodding back at me.
I crossed the room and brought the landline phone with me. I dialed 911 as my thumb hovered over the 'send' button. Why was I nervous? Alison deserved this...she deserved this fate. Marley, however, did not. She was just a baby. But she would be okay, Ezra would get custody of her...and I would be like a mother to her...but was I ready for that task? That job? That responsibility. I swallowed hard and stared blankly at the phone. Ezra's arms wrapped around me and he leaned close to my ear.
"It's okay, Ar. This is the right thing to do. We're doing the right thing. I promise, you." I looked him in the eyes and saw that he was smiling genuinely at me. "You're not a bad person, Aria." His thumb pressed my thumb onto the 'send' button and it began to ring. He wrapped his hand around my hand that was holding the phone and brought them both to my ear.
"Rosewood Police Department, what's your emergency?"
"Hi, yes, um, I'd like to make sure that my identification remains anonymous?" I swallowed hard again as I waited a tenth of a second for the response.
"Ma'am, are you in any danger at the moment?"
"No, but there is someone who is a danger to the city...her name is Alison Dilaurentis. She attempted to kill my-my boyfriend's friend's cousin by bribing someone to crash their car into him seven years ago." There was a brief pause before the woman spoke up again.
"Are you positive she was in an assisted hit-and-run?"
"Yes. My boyfriend's friend's cousin's name is Ezra Fitz. He used to live in Rosewood, he moved away, and now he's back. Alison Dilaurentis almost murdered him and I won't feel safe in this city until she's behind bars!"
"Do you have an address for Miss Dilaurentis?"
Toby
I heard the masculine voices coming from the front room so I stepped out from the kitchen. Marley was holding onto Alison's leg as Alison stared wide-eyed at the police officers in front of her.
"Are you Alison Dilaurentis-Fitz?" I could hear them ask.
"Y-yah, I am. What do you need, Officers?" she was frozen in place. I walked towards them and placed my arm around Alison's shoulder, turning half of my mouth up in an attempt to grin.
"Good evening, officers. We were just about to sit down for-" they cut me off abruptly, answering Alison's question.
"We have reason to believe that you assisted a hit-and-run car crash from about seven years ago. Please turn around and put your hands behind your back. We have some questions to ask you back at the station."
"There must be a mixup...y-you must have mistaken me for someone else. How dare you accuse me of such heinous crimes!" her voice stayed at the same volume, but you could hear the acidic tone in her voice; that was always enough to make people uncomfortable in their own skin-but not police officers.
"If it's a mistake, then you'll be back in your home tonight. Please turn around, Miss Dilaurentis-Fitz. It will be a much shorter process if you cooperate."
She turned around, making eye-contact with me for a split-second. I took Marley in my arms as I pried her from Alison's leg.
"Mommy...where are you going? Why do they think you hurt somebody? Only Daddy hurts people!" Marley asked, tears streaking her face.
"Mommy will be back, Baby. Don't you worry."
The officers escorted Alison to the police car and I shut the blinds after the door was closed and locked. Marley sat in front of the fireplace on the rug, hugging her knees to her chest. Tears were silently falling down her face, but all I could care about was that she was mine. I made her. And I wanted her.
"Marley?" I tried, clearing my throat. It was raspy from all the cigarettes I smoked, but I didn't care. In all honesty, I desperately wanted a smoke right then and there. But Marley was more important at this moment.
"You're my real daddy, right?" she asked, craning her neck around to look at me before she turned back and gazed into the fire. I walked towards her and sat down next to her as I began answering her question.
"Yah, I am, I'm sorry I wasn't with you for all this time...but I am now. And I want you to know...I want you to know that no matter what happens, I'm gonna be here for you from now on. Okay?" She nodded and looked into my face, her eyes were a bright, sparkly blue. Just like Alison's. "I love you, Marley...what's your middle name, baby?"
"Grace-Marley Grace Fitz."
"Well, Marley Grace, I love you. What do you say about coming to live with me? Would you like that?" Her had bobbed vigorously.
"Yes, Daddy! Yes!" I smiled as she stood and plopped down in my lap. "I love you, too."
Ezra
I walked around the police station, waiting for Alison and Marley to arrive. Marley would be brought here because there was no one else to take care of her. Alison's father was always unreliable in the past, so he would not take care of her now.
"Ezra!" Aria hissed from the chair she was sitting in. "Stop pacing around!"
"Sorry, sorry," I sighed, sitting down next to her. My nerves were shot and all I wanted was to see my baby. My Marley.
Soon after, we both spotted a blonde figure walk inside. The officers led her down the opposite hallway so she couldn't have seen us. Good. We called anonymously for a reason.
"Marley's not with them, Ezra," Aria whispered to me. My heart began to race. Where else would she be? Where else could she be?
But then it dawned on me.
Alison wasn't even 1% stupid. Deceitful? Yes. Cruel? Yes? Bitchy? Definitely. But stupid? Not at all. She wouldn't have come to Rosewood with the risk of the police without having a backup plan. And I had an idea of what she had up her sleeve.
Toby.
Marley's biological father had to be here...with her.
"She's not coming, either. I know what happened." I grabbed Aria's hand and led her outside as we went to my car.
"What is going on, Ezra?" she asked once we were buckled in and I was driving.
"Marley's biological father is here. He's with her right now and I'm going to get her."
"Wait! What? Stop the car, Ezra!" Aria demanded. I wasn't stopping though, I accelerated instead and continued driving to Alison's old house. "Ezra, I'm serious. Stop the car!"
I braked and pulled to the side of the road, gritting my teeth together and breathing through my nose.
"We can't go there. We can't get her. Technically, that's kidnapping, Ezra!"
"I don't care! My name is on her birth certificate! She has MY last name! I'm not letting her stay with that freak of a man while Alison rots in jail! I don't care if I'm not her biological father or not! She's my daughter!"
"I know, I know. It's not fair. But we can't get her, Ezra, we can't." She put her hand up and hesitated a moment before placing it on my right arm, rubbing it up and down. "I'm sorry all of this happened to you. I'm sorry, I'm sorry. It's all my fault...and if I could take all of it back, I would. I'm sorry."
I shook my head.
"No, it's not. Don't apologize." I breathed, leaning towards her and brushing her hair away from her face. "I love you so much, you know?"
"Let's go home and wait to see what happens...you will get Marley back."
Three Months Later
Alison's court date was scheduled for a rainy day in April. That was the day where we would get to see Alison's fate decided by someone other than herself.
"Are you ready?" I called right as Aria emerged from the bathroom wearing a black, pencil skirt with a dark lavender blouse. He hair was down and wavy, almost reaching her ass, but not quite. "Wow...you look...amazing!"
"So do you, Mr. Fitz." She looked me up and down, admiring the khaki pants and baby-blue dress shirt I was wearing. She crossed the room quickly, wrapping her arms around my neck and stepping on her tiptoes to kiss me. I kissed her back, wrapping my arms around her petite waist to yank her closer to me.
* * *
"Quiet! We have now reached the time where the jury will declare the verdict." The judge announced. Aria was practically bouncing up and down on the bench and I could tell she was nervous.
Very slowly, the eldest member of the jury - a small, grey-haired woman with glasses - stood up and began speaking.
"We, the jury, find the defendant guilty of assisted manslaughter and bribery."
There was a small moment of absolute silence before the crowd began to murmur. Alison stood in her orange jumpsuit and looked around cluelessly. She didn't know what to do. There was a small fraction of my heart that yearned to comfort her, but I pushed it away. The feelings I had for her were built on lies and therefore meant nothing.
As Alison was walked down the hallway, she spotted us and whispered something to the officer. He nodded and she began walking towards us.
"I hope you're happy, Aria. You got what you always wanted. I'll be out of your life for good, now." She spat. I stood and shielded Aria from her as I spoke.
"Where's Marley, Alison?" She chuckled at the question with spite.
"You'll never see her again, Ezra. She was never your daughter to begin with. She's in a better place now." Alison smiled and walked back to the officer.
What the hell was she talking about? I was going to get custody...
I had to.
Four Years Ago
Toby
"It's yours, Toby." Alison sobbed as soon as she walked through my apartment door.
"What are you talking about...you can't be....are you pregnant?!" I ran my hands through my hair and pulled them out again.
She nodded as tears poured down her face. Alison was always the prettiest out of her group of friends, Spencer was a close second, but Alison would always be the prettiest.
"God, Ali, it was a one-night stand! We used protection for God's sake!"
"I know! I don't know what happened!"
"What are we gonna do?"
"I'm married, Toby! Married! To the most wonderful man on the planet! I don't want this child! I don't want part of you living inside of me!" A sick feeling churned in my stomach to hear her say such evil things.
"Look, girl, you came to me, remember? You wanted this at one point that night. So don't go around blaming all this shit on me!"
"Okay. Look. I'm going to tell Ezra the truth. But if something happens later on...with us...you have to do some things." I raised my eyebrows at her.
"I don't think I have to do anything for you.."
"Grow up, Toby! Not for me, you'll do it for the baby. And for yourself." She snapped.
"Explain." I demanded. She sat on the couch and I followed her.
"If something happens...like...if I ever go to jail or cops ever come to my house, you have to come to me. Find us. You'll have to take the baby as your own and you'll go to the bank. Activate the account under the name "Marley Cavanaugh" and take everything. Then you'll have to find my brother. He'll give you passports, ID's, and birth certificates. And finally, you'll need to get custody of the baby."
"What about Ezra? This plan doesn't make any sense, Alison!"
"Yes it does. But I can't tell you anything. The less you know, the better for both of you."
"Alison?"
"What?"
"Marley Cavanaugh? Is that the name? Do you know if it's a boy or a girl yet?"
"Yes, Marley's the name. I don't know the gender yet. Thanks, Toby. I have to go now."
Present Time (three days after Alison's arresting)
I was driving back to Philly with Marley in the car. I had done everything Alison told me to. Marley was mine.
"Daddy, where are we going?" she asked.
"We gotta go to court...your other Daddy wants to take you away from me. But we can't let that happen, can we?"
"No! I don't wanna go with him! Don't let him take me, Daddy!" she cried, tears already threatening to spill out of her eyes.
"I won't, Mar, I won't. But you gotta do something to."
"I'll do anything if it will let me stay with you!" I looked at her in the rear-view mirror, watching her facial expression.
"You gotta tell the grown-ups that he hurt you when we get there. You gotta tell them he hit you. And sometimes, he wouldn't stop."
Her face became pale and her eyes widened.
"He never hurt me...why do you want me to lie?" she whispered. Panic spread throughout me. I had to think of something, and fast.
"You need to lie, Marley...or he'll take you. And that Aria lady will be like your new mother. She was the one who made Mommy go away!"
"Miss Aria did all of that?" her eyes turned a shade darker and she closed her mouth together tightly.
"Yes."
"I'll lie, then. I'll tell them Daddy hurt me and he would keep on hurting me sometimes."
"Good girl, Marley."
Ezra
We were waiting in the parking lot for them when they arrived. I saw her before I saw him and I ran toward her.
"Marley!" I called, she glared at me and stepped backwards as I tried to hug her.
"Get away from me!"
I could feel my heart sink into my stomach. I turned around to look at the man who created my daughter.
"You did this..." I stated it as a fact. He shrugged and smiled an ugly smile. His teeth were disgusting, probably from all the cigarettes he smoked, I could smell the distinct scent of cigarette smoke before he got out of his car.
"Yah, well Alison was a big part of it, too."
I looked back to Marley and got on my knees so I was as tall as her.
"Marley, I don't know what they told you...but I love you. I will always love you no matter what." Her chin wobbled a bit as tears started coming from her eyes. I thought she was going to finally give in and hug me, but I was 100% wrong.
She was stubborn, just like her mother.
"I hate you. You ruined our family and you left me! You left me!" She screamed and ran into Toby's arms.
Aria ran out of the building to meet me, probably because she heard all of the screaming, but she stopped as soon as she saw Toby.
"Toby?"
"Oh, Aria. What a pleasure to see you." He sneered. He walked past her and into the building.
Today was going to be terrible. I could feel it.
I was not going to get custody of Marley.
It was too late.
A/N:
Hey guys. I just saw that the amazing and talented Skyler just published our last chapter. I'm so very sorry that we haven't updated in so long. We lost our inspiration to write the fanfic and once school started we kind of stopped talking.
Like Skyler wrote at the end of her chapter, you guys...please please please leave actual feedback. No promises, but we might take into consideration your suggestions and opinions.
Thank you for all of your support and loving comments you've left on all of the chapters. Hopefully we can get some more going as finish this as amazingly as we started it.
Love you all so much!!! <3
Xo xo xo xo,
Marissa