Chapter 19

Paige unlocked The Hideout, a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach as she slipped inside. She didn't particularly want to be here, but she knew it would be easier if she faced this head-on sooner rather than later. Juliet may never want to step foot in here again—Paige couldn't blame her for that—but Paige needed to do this.

She took the stairs slowly; that usual sense of pride for this bar now marred. Would it ever feel like their business again? Would it always feel alien walking in here? Paige really hoped they could keep this place. How dare Cara come in here and destroy what they'd built! How dare she even breathe the same space as Juliet! God, Paige needed the police to find her soon. Because if they didn't, Paige would, and she wouldn't stop until Cara was gone. She wasn't violent, far from it, actually, but Cara had brought out a rage in her that she didn't know she possessed.

As she stepped into the main bar area and flicked the lights on, Juliet's blood was stained on the floor. The new floor Juliet had spent six weeks deciding on. The new floor Paige hadn't even had the chance to admire. And she couldn't possibly do that now. Not with her fiancée's blood covering it.

She inhaled a shaky breath, her mind cast back to last night when she'd held Juliet in her arms, begging her not to die. Praying that, by some miracle…they'd still be together. She didn't know who had been looking over them yesterday, but Paige was beginning to believe that there may just be some higher power for moments like this.

Her phone started to ring as she took another step inside the room. She lifted it and looked at the screen, smiling when Henry's name was displayed. "Hi, Henry."

"How is it? Are you sure you want to be alone in there?"

How was it? Paige hated it, in all honesty. "I, uh…yeah, could you come in please?" Paige had done the hard part. She'd walked in here, and not turned around to leave. But having Henry around would make this easier. She had cleaning up to take care of. "I can't believe they just leave it in this mess."

"Yeah, it's not ideal. Especially when you're the victim of the crime."

Paige swallowed. She was tired of being the victim in things. Why couldn't they just have a normal life? "I don't know how much more bad news I can take. I'm only human, H."

"I know, love. I'll be in now."

"Thanks." She ended the call, eyeing the piano that remained in the same spot it had been in since day one. Juliet had wanted to keep that as the main focus, but the thought of Paige ever sitting at it again almost made her hurl. Everything had been destroyed here. And if Paige hadn't been away on tour…

The main door opened, and the familiar sound of Henry's heavy boots settled Paige. He stepped into the room, puffed out his cheeks, and waited for further instruction.

"You okay, H?"

"Yeah." He forced a smile, but Paige saw through it. "You'd think this wouldn't faze me, wouldn't you? I've seen all kinds in my time, but Juliet means a lot to me."

"I know she does." Paige stepped towards Henry and squeezed his shoulder. "And before we know it, she'll be home. Where she belongs."

"They still haven't found Cara." Henry rubbed a hand down his face, tiredness evidently pulling his shoulders low. "They need to find her before I do."

"Did you find anything? She has to have something to do with the threat. The whole reason you're even here."

"It's looking like she is Big Ron's niece."

"Tell me more about this guy."

"Ronnie went down about two years ago. Juliet represented him but failed to keep him out of prison. Nobody was surprised by that except for Ronnie. The evidence against him was overwhelming. He didn't have a leg to stand on." Henry pulled out a seat and motioned for Paige to join him. "He's the lowest of the low. At one point, they had footage of him distributing drugs to kids as young as twelve. He handed out burner phones and bikes for them to use, and they'd take the drugs to his dealers. To be honest, I'm surprised Juliet ever took the case on. She surely knew from day one that it wasn't going to end well for him."

"Why did she take on the case?" Paige couldn't understand Juliet's choice to help people like that.

"She was likely threatened into doing it. That's usually what happens with these people. Juliet wasn't just defending the petty criminals, Paige. At one time, most of the criminal underworld had her on speed dial. Hence why she has this place instead."

Paige lowered her head to her hands, wishing Juliet had never found herself involved with these people. "They're not going to stop until she's dead, are they?"

Henry lay a land on Paige's shoulder. "If my contact confirms this, I'll make sure it stops. Don't worry about that."

"H-how?" Paige couldn't imagine Henry being violent towards anyone else. She still struggled with the knowledge he had been willing to beat up James. But if it meant Juliet was safe, Paige wouldn't stop him.

"The less you know, the better."

Yeah, the less she knew, the better. Without a doubt. She already hadn't slept last night. If she knew Henry was up to something, her instinct would be to stop him whether she wanted to or not. "Yeah. Don't say anything else."

Henry took Paige's hand and held it. "They will get Cara, Paige."

God, I hope so.

She smiled, tears threatening once again. "I know. Now, I guess I should get this place cleaned up." Paige eyed the dried blood and took a deep breath. "This should be fun."

Henry stood and took his jacket off. "I'll get some buckets and soapy water. Let's see what we can do with that floor."

Paige sat back on her knees, exhausted from cleaning. She didn't know why she was bothering; the blood stain wasn't coming out. It seemed easier to call the company where they'd chosen the flooring and have them send out a fresh batch that would cover the area, but Paige didn't have the energy to call them about it. The more she thought about the reason she was on her hands and knees, the sooner she wanted to be out of here and at Juliet's side.

She had tried to head there an hour ago, only choosing not to when Henry told her she needed some space from the hospital. From the moment Juliet was admitted, Paige had spent very little time anywhere else. At least if she was here cleaning, she could consider herself useful. And then, when the day came for Juliet to walk back in here, it would be spotless…with very little to remind them of this time in their lives.

Yeah, you keep telling yourself that!

Paige knew she was lying to herself. The chances of Juliet ever wanting to be inside this bar again were slim to none. And who could blame Juliet for feeling that way? She had almost died in here. The trauma of that would surely see this place closing down. A shame, really, given what they'd put into The Hideout, but Paige didn't care what happened to it so long as Juliet recovered. The rest didn't matter.

"You doing okay down there?" Henry appeared behind Paige, wiping his hands on a rag. "I can finish off here. You should go home for a few hours before you go back to the hospital."

"I can't. I need to sort this stain out. It's just not budging."

Henry approached Paige and lay a hand on her shoulder. "Paige, you've been down there for hours. Your back won't thank you for it. At least have a break and a cup of coffee."

Coffee, she could do. She would need the caffeine for another night of bed watch anyway. "Good idea." She groaned as she got to her feet, throwing the sponge into the bucket that sat beside the blood stain. "Coffee for you too?"

"I'd love one. I'd also offer to make it, but I have no idea how to even turn that machine on, so it's best if I don't bother trying."

Paige smiled in Henry's direction. Who knew they'd all become so close in the last year? Not Paige. And certainly not with Henry. But he was around more often than not lately, so it made sense to make him feel a part of the place. "Have a seat in our lovely new ruined bar."

Henry lifted himself onto a stool, scratching at his stubble. "You know, things will get better. It's going to take a long time, but you and Juliet will recover from this. And the moment she opens her eyes, I'm never leaving her side again."

Paige appreciated that, but Henry couldn't spend his life sitting outside their apartment. Cara had to be caught soon. "Any news on anything?"

"I've had confirmation. Cara is definitely Big Ron's niece. I know one or two people inside who can get to him. They know what I expect of them at this point."

Paige shook her head. "H, you're going to get yourself into trouble. Where will we be then?"

"It's all good. Don't you worry about it."

Paige didn't like this. She didn't want them to become part of some huge crime. She just wanted Juliet to be safe and loved. The way it had been since they'd met. "I never should have gone on that fucking tour!" Paige braced her hands against the counter, her head dipped between her shoulders as she exhaled a deep breath. She was beginning to move past the anger stage…and now came the guilt. "If I hadn't, none of this would have happened. Cara wouldn't have had the fucking balls to do it if she knew I was around. No way."

"Or…maybe she would have, and I'd be dealing with you both in hospital." Henry raised an eyebrow as Paige turned to face him. "It's becoming quite clear that Cara purposely applied for a job here so she could get to Juliet. And knowing it was on Ron's say-so, she would have stopped at nothing. The moment he gave her the okay, she would have done it no matter who was around."

Paige's eyes filled with tears, her bottom lip trembling. "But at least she wouldn't have been lying there alone. Knowing she was dying…she wouldn't have been alone. She must have been so scared, H. I can't even bring myself to think about it. But it'll always be there, won't it? That moment I walked in here is going to keep me awake for a long time, I know it is."

"Maybe it will." Henry nodded slowly. "But eventually, you'll stop seeing it. It'll stop playing on your mind."

"I hope so. I need to be on my game to take care of Juliet."

Henry winked. "You'll be just fine, Paige. You've already been through a lot and powered on like an absolute champion. This is a blip, and I'm going to do everything I can to make sure you're both okay."

Paige reached a hand over the bar and squeezed Henry's. "You're a good man. Don't let anyone tell you any different."

"I do my best to look after the people I care about. That's my focus."

"And we appreciate it. Everything you do for us." Paige prepared two coffees and set them down on the other side of the bar. She rounded it, sitting facing Henry on a stool. "One day, when this is all over, we're all going to be in here drinking something far stronger."

Henry laughed. "I think I'll book the night off when that happens. I'd like to be here for the celebrations."

"Guest of honour, H. Guest of honour."