"Follow me. We're going to the hospital to arrest Chris and Julian," Chelsea called as she passed a few police officers. When Chris had called the police, he had said that he was with Julian at the hospital. Chelsea figured he was probably still there.
The officers were surprised when they heard that she was going to arrest the two men. They had all heard rumours about how powerful Chris and Julian were in Baltimore.
"You can't go!" Finn ran out of his office, looked at the other officers, and said, "The case is not clear, so no one can arrest Chris and Julian yet."
He knew Chris would have his head if his own officers showed up to arrest him and Julian. He was desperate to stop them from making trouble.
Chelsea glanced over at the other officers. When she met their eyes, they all lowered their heads. She knew that they didn't have the courage to go with her.
She would go alone. She wasn't the kind of person to let other people's opinions affect her own actions.
She turned toward the door.
"Officer Wood, wait for me. I'll go with you." It was the young police officer who had choked and vomited from the bloody smell at Saul's girlfriend's residence.
"Layla Napier!" Finn called out.
"Captain, I heard what Saul said. Chris and Julian have paid to have people killed. They should be arrested," Layla said a little timidly to Finn, and then ran after Chelsea to go to the hospital.
Finn was very angry with Chelsea. If he hadn't been in the police station, he would have thrown things and shouted to vent his anger.
He went back to his office and slammed the door. He walked back and forth a couple of times. He had to report this to Chris immediately, but he feared that Chris would want to kill him as soon as he told him.
The police station was only a twenty-minute drive from the hospital.
If you don't call him now, she'll arrive at the hospital before he can prepare. Just call him, he thought as he made up his mind.
He picked up the phone and dialled Chris's number.
**
At Union Medical College Hospital, Julian had been furious when he had heard that Alex had been released by the police. But he didn't dare to complain out loud. Chris was sitting quietly near him, and he didn't want to upset him.
Julian's parents sat by the bed and quietly comforted their son. They said that they would get revenge on Alex for him.
Chris's phone rang. He was puzzled when he saw that the call was from Finn.
Did Finn take Alex to the police station again? he thought.
Chris answered and asked, "What's happened?"
"Chris, Chelsea is on her way to the hospital to arrest you and Julian," Finn said.
"She's coming for me?" He clenched his phone. Chelsea Wood was really starting to get on his nerves.
"What! Who's coming?" Julian also heard the voice. He said angrily, "What now? I was crippled by Saul and that security guard, and now they're coming back for more? What's their reason?"
Finn said, "Chelsea said that you and Julian hired Saul to kill the two security guards. After he failed, you sent men to pursue him. He also said that in the past three years, he helped you kill several people. He has enough evidence to prove that what he said is true."
"Well, so what if it was me? As a member of the Wood family, she doesn't seem to be taking me seriously as a Steadman. I'd like to see what she thinks she can do to me," Chris said coldly.
He hung up and slammed his phone down onto the table so hard that the screen shattered.
"Who does she think she is, trying to mess with us? If she dares to touch me, I'll slap her," Julian said.
"When she comes, I'll see how good she is," Chris said with a slight sneer.
He shouted, "Nurse!" A nurse pushed the door open. He demanded, "Pour me a cup of coffee!"
A few minutes later, Chelsea and Layla arrived at the hospital. They learned which room was Julian's from the doctors and walked in that direction.
When they arrived, Chelsea pushed the door open.
Chris was sitting in a chair leisurely sipping coffee and didn't raise his head to look at her.
"What are you doing here?" Julian angrily looked at Chelsea and said, "Is it to see if I'm really injured? Well, I am. Leave my room now."
"Hello, I'm Chelsea Wood. I'm a police officer from the Central District precinct." She showed them her badge.
She said, "According to the information we have, you two are suspected of hiring murderers. Mr. Steadman was involved in hiring Saul, who killed many people for him. Mr. Duvant, I see that you are seriously injured. The police will allow you to receive treatment in the hospital first. But Mr. Steadman needs to go back to the police station with us for further questioning."
"What do you think you're doing? What are these accusations? Get out of here! You can't move my nephew!" Julian's mother tried to stop Chelsea.
"Sorry," Chelsea said. She gently pushed Julian's mother out of her way and walked toward Chris.
"Mr. Steadman." Although she was angry, she tried to speak courteously to him. She grabbed his hand and prepared to handcuff him.
"Officer Wood." He looked at her and said, "I think you know who I am. If I'm seen in a police station, do you know how much impact this will have on the reputation of my family? Are you not afraid of destroying the peaceful relationship between our families?"
"We have reliable information. As a police officer, I can't turn a blind eye to it," she insisted.
"Saul? Hasn't it occurred to you that he might be trying to shift blame over to me to protect himself?" he asked in a sharp voice.
She said, "According to the current evidence, we need to arrest you. There's no room for discussion. When Saul comes back to the police station, he will give the rest of his statement. We will investigate, and let you go if you're innocent. But if we find evidence that you have done anything illegal, then it will be a different story." She clicked the handcuffs onto his wrists.
"Well, just remember that if I'm wronged, I'll make you pay for it," Chris said coldly, staring at her.
She didn't pay attention to his threat. "Stand up and come back to the police station with me."
She pulled him up, looked back at Julian, and said, "We'll send police officers to the hospital tomorrow to take turns taking care of you until your injury improves. Once you're able to go, they'll take you to the station."
"Let's go." Chelsea and Layla pulled Chris out of the room. However, Chelsea was mindful that it could cause a great deal of fuss if anyone saw that someone from the Steadman family was being arrested, so she covered the handcuffs with her scarf.
**
The next morning, Alex got up, went for a run, and walked to the cafeteria for breakfast. In the morning at John Hopkins University, many diligent students got up early for breakfast, and then they trotted off to the library or study room.
Although they were at a good university and already in a good position in society, they knew they still needed to work hard to succeed.
Alex arrived at the gate of Debbie's family home and waited. At twenty after seven in the morning, Debbie came out of the house.
She carried a small backpack. When she spotted him, she ran over to him with a giggle.
"You look tired! What time did you go to bed last night?" she asked with concern as she looked at his dark eyes.
With all the excitement the night before, he hadn't made it back to the residences on campus until nearly three in the morning.
"Oh." He scratched his nose, thought quickly, and said with a smile, "I watched a movie until late last night and didn't get enough sleep."
They walked toward the security building where he worked.
"You should go to bed after work," she said. She looked around and asked, "Why is Don absent?"
"Don asked for a few days off," he said. He didn't want her to know what had happened to him and Don the night before.
She said goodbye to him and went to class. He was relieved.
He got out his phone and called Don, but his sister Daisy answered.
"Alex, how are you? My brother is worried about you. The police didn't embarrass you, did they? Do you need my brother to go to the police station to make a statement?" she asked anxiously.
His heart warmed. "Don't worry about me. I've left the police station. It's okay now," he said.
"That's good news!" she exclaimed.
"How's your brother doing?"
He heard her talk to her brother. "Don, Alex is all right. He's been released. I told you it would be okay! He's a good guy, nothing bad could happen to him."
She said, "Alex, my brother is in very good condition. The doctor said that he had a slight concussion. He has seven stitches on his forehead, and his legs and back are contused. As long as he rests for three to five weeks, he can be discharged for rehabilitation."
"Well, that's good news," he replied.
Don took the phone and said, "Alex, thank you. Thank you so much."
"Don, there's no need to say thank you again. It's good that you'll be okay," he said.
Don had mixed feelings. "I'll definitely pay you back the medical fees that you covered for me. Although we can't work together again in the future, you can be rest assured that I'll never default on my account."
Alex knew that he couldn't pay back that kind of money on his own. He felt sorry for him.
"What do you mean? Aren't you working as a security guard?" he asked.
"It's not that I won't do it again. It's that the Steadman family won't let me continue. I still think they might try to get revenge on us again. Besides, I'm injured again, and I don't know how long it'll take to recover. Do you really think that Chief Lewis will let me take sick leave for that whole time? I just called him to tell him about my injury. Although he didn't make it clear, I think I'll be dismissed in the next couple of days," he said.