One Last Chance (28 page)

“Are you still sure about your apartment, Ally?”
Ella asked as she gave Ben another spoonful of porridge.

“Of course I am,” Ally smiled as she poured herself a glass of orange juice. “I am so happy you two are going to come here more often. It is good for Ben an
d Little Bean to spend more time with their grandparents. When I was growing up, Nan and Pop were a huge part of my life. Even long before I went to live with them. I adored them both. I want that for my babies.”

“I am so pleased you are happy about this,” Ella replied.

James joined them in the kitchen, as they all tucked into their breakfast. Well, all except Ally.

“Aren’t you hungry?”
Cole looked at Ally questioningly.

“Not really,” Ally replied. “I guess I am a little nervous about today.”

“Try not to worry,” Cole said reassuringly. “We will get through today and you and the baby will be just fine. I promise.”

“I know,” Ally smiled.

“I have to get going,” he said feeling horrible for leaving her while she was so worried and nervous. “I promise I will be at the hospital. And I promise I won’t be late.”

“I know
you will be there,” Ally smiled. She knew Cole hated leaving her and she was trying to put on a brave face but she was worried. “Nick will be with me, we will drop Ben at Nan’s and I will go straight there.”

“I was hoping you would let us mind him,” Ella said suddenly. “Dad and I were hoping to head into town and we were thinking, if it was okay with you both, we could take Ben with us for the day.”

“You want to take Ben?” Cole asked and Ally knew Cole wasn’t keen on the idea. She knew when Ben was at Nan’s, Adam was there with them and they were all safe. Ben being with his parents would just give her more to worry about. And she knew Cole didn’t want her any more worried than she needed to be.

“I think it’s a great idea,” Ally said quickly. She needed to put Cole’s mind at ease. “I think it would do Ben so
me good to get out and about and spend time with his other grandparents.”

Cole looked at Ally for a moment. She knew he was running through a million scenarios in his head
. Then he turned to his mother and sighed.

“Okay,” he said sounding less than happy. “But Adam goes with you. And you take extra care.
Let him drive the rental car.”

“Deal,” Ella exclaimed excitedly but Ally couldn’t help but feel a little sad that Cole couldn’t be a
bit happier that his parents were trying so hard.

She walke
d to the front door with him as he was leaving.

“Please
, don’t worry about Ben with your mom and dad,” she said once they reached the door. “I want his life to be normal. A day out with his grandparents is normal. And Adam will be with them. Nothing will happen.”

“I just didn’t want you to have something else to worry about today,” Cole sighed. “I know you are nervous enough about today
as it is.”

“I’m not worried,” Ally reassured him and smiled. “Please relax. Nothing can possibly go wrong.”

“Okay gorgeous girl,” Cole said then leaned in and kissed Ally on the lips. “See you soon, okay.”

Ally stood and watched Cole head down the steps and to his
awaiting car. He turned before he climbed into the back, blew Ally a kiss and gave her a big grin. Then slipped into the back seat as Liam closed the car door behind him.

Ally spent the morning chatting in the kitchen with Rosie and Ella before she waved Ella, James and Ben off on their shopping trip
just before eleven.

She headed to her bedroom and got ready for her
doctor’s appointment while Rosie got stuck into her usual morning routine.

“You all ready?” Nick asked when Ally walked into the kitchen shortly before one o’clock.

“Ready as I’ll ever be,” Ally replied nervously.

“Try not to worr
y, dearie,” Rosie said walking over to Ally and squeezing her hand. “I have no doubt you and the wee one will be just fine.”

“Thanks Rosie,” Ally s
aid and kissed her on the cheek. “By the way, you didn’t see the picture frame Ella bought for us by any chance?”

“No I haven’t,” Rosie replied. “Isn’t it with the rest of your gifts?”

“I thought it was,” Ally sighed. “I thought I saw it with them this morning when I gathered some of the stuff up from the sideboard there and took them upstairs. But when I came back I couldn’t find it. I will have another look when I get home.”

“I will have a look around while you are gone,” Rosie replied. “I am sure it is around here somewhere.”

“Thanks Rosie,” Ally said and kissed her on the cheek once again.

Ally and Nick headed out to the car and set off towards the hospital. The traffic was very heavy as it always was at that time of day on a Friday. At about fifteen minutes to two
, Ally’s phone buzzed.

When she pulled it from her bag, she saw Cole
’s name flash up on the screen and Ally instantly smiled.

“Hi,” she chirped when she pressed answer on her phone.

“Hey there,” Cole replied sounding equally cheerful. “I am just calling to say I am about five minutes from the hospital.”

“We got stuck in traffic,” Ally replied. “But we should be there shortly.”

“Was Ben okay heading off with Mum and Dad?” Cole asked and Ally smiled.

“He was fine,” Ally reassured him. “They called me before I left, and he was having a ball.”

“Good,” Cole replied and Ally knew he was now smiling too. “I have reached the hospital, I will see you in a few minutes.”

“I am almost there,” Ally replied. “I will see you soon.”

When they pulled into the car park, Nick jumped out and reached for Ally’s door, but suddenly he seemed to slump against it. And slowly fall to the ground.

“NICK!” Ally cried out
in horror as she pushed the door open and climbed out. She bent down to Nick and gasped when she saw blood trickling down from behind his ear. “NICK! NICK! PLEASE OPEN YOUR EYES!”

“Don’t think that will happen for a while,” a familiar voice said from behind Ally. She recognised it instantly and her stomach flipped. She turned around and was face to face with Jason.

“Alone at last,” he said with a smile but his eyes said a very different thing. They were full of anger, possessed almost. He was almost unrecognisable.

“Jason,” Ally said trying her hardest to soun
d calm but feeling anything but, inside. “What are you doing here? Why have you hurt him? He has nothing to do with any of this.”

“He was one of them,” he growled as he looked down at Nick
’s body, slumped on the cold ground. “He helped keep you away from me.”

Ally didn’t know how to respond to that. Her heart was racing now in her chest, but she knew she had
to try her hardest to remain calm. She looked down at Nick once again and her heart was breaking, she needed to know he was okay. She couldn’t bare it that someone else had been hurt because of her.

Then s
he remembered she had left her phone on the back seat of the car. She knew she needed to get to it.

“I am
just going to check he is okay,” Ally said bending down to Nick. To her relief he was still breathing. As she stood back up, she used the back seat of the car for support and quickly let her hand slide along the seat, reaching out for the phone.

“
NOT SO FAST,” Jason shouted, almost knocking her over as he quickly reached in past her and grabbed her phone and threw it out of her reach on the far side of the car. “Nice try, But it’s just you and me now. No more fucking Thomas. He has stood in our way for long enough. Him and all his fucking flunkies.”

He suddenly swung a kick and connected with Nick’
s ribs and Ally cried out as a semi-conscious Nick groaned in pain.

“
From now on it’s just me and you,” Jason continued, turning back to Ally, “Just me, you and the baby. As it should be”

“Jason, please,” Ally begged as she fought to push the tears back inside. “Don’t do this. I swear she isn’t your baby.”

“Don’t lie to me Ally,” he snapped back. “I won’t be kept away from what’s mine any longer. Now let’s go. Back to where you belong.”

“I AM GOING NOWHERE W
ITH YOU!” She screamed angrily at him.

He didn’t repl
y instead he just stepped closer and Ally could feel something press against her stomach. She looked down and her stomach heaved when she saw the dark metal of a gun, pressed against her bump.

“
Oh, I think you will,” he said calmly with a strange smile and Ally knew she had no choice. He had her.

Cole checked his watch again. It was now five minutes past two. Ally should have been here by now. When he had talked to her, she had said she was a couple of minutes away. He had no idea what could be possibly taking her so long.

He p
ulled his phone from his pocket, hitting redial as Ally’s number was the last one he called. He held it to his ear and listened as it just rang out. He immediately hit the redial button again and listened as it once again as it just rang out.

He
brought up Nick’s number and pressed call and a wave of panic washed over him when that too rang out. He pressed Ally’s number once again.

“Come on Ally,” he growled as it just kept ringing. “Answer the damn phone.”

Suddenly, it was answered but there was no reply for a moment.

“
ALLY! ALLY! IS THAT YOU?” Cole roared into the phone. Everyone that was around him in the hospital waiting room, stopped what they were doing and looked at Cole. He couldn’t have cared less who was looking at him. “ANSWER ME, DAMN IT.”

“M…Mr…Thomas,” Nick said weakly into the phone. “He…he jumped…me… He… he has her… the bastard has her.”

Cole took off running for the exit and headed straight for the car park. As he ran, he brought up Nathan’s number and hit call.

“How did the appoin
tment go?” Nathan asked the minute he answered the phone.

“Nate…. “Cole said and had to take a deep steadying breath to stop himself from vomiting. “He has her. H
E FUCKING HAS MY WIFE!”

“WHA…HOW?” Nathan exclaimed
, he too sounding panicked. “What the fuck happened?”

“I don’t know,” Cole replied as he finally reached the
car park. He scanned the car park until he spotted the Rover, with a very shaken looking Nick, standing next to it, holding his head. Cole raced straight over to where Nick was and he was shocked to see the blood pouring from Nick’s head and soaking into his shirt collar. “He must have been waiting for them I think,” Cole continued talking in to the phone to Nathan. “He jumped Nick. I am with Nick now. He looks like he received quite a blow to the head.”

“Mr. Thomas,” Nick said as he took the handkerchief from his pocket and held it to his head. “I am so sorry. I did the
usual perimeter sweep. He just came out of nowhere. I don’t know how he got so close.”

“Nick, we can worry about that later,”
Cole replied. “Did he say anything to indicate where he was taking her?”

“I am sorry Mr. Thomas.” Nick said as he winced w
ith the pain from his ribs. “Most of what he was saying was very garbled to me. I was trying not to black out completely, but I was struggling to focus on what he was saying.”

“Is there something,” Cole pleaded, grasping at anything that could give him the tiniest
bit of hope. “Anything at all that you remember, that might help.”

Nick tried hard to make sense of the jumbled words that were in hi
s head. He tried hard to ignore the pounding headache and focus on the snippets of information floating around his mind.

“He said something about it being her, him and the baby from now on,” Nick said trying hard to
remember anything at all that may help. “He was taking her back where she belonged.”

“Did you get that Nathan,” Cole said bringing the p
hone to his ear once again. “Are there still men at his apartment?”

“Yes,” Nathan confirmed. “I have them on the oth
er line. They have said there is no movement at Jason place. But if he is travelling through the city. He isn’t going to do anything stupid, like speed to have the police pull him over. I am heading straight over there now.”

“I am on my way too,” Cole replied. “Oh, and Nathan, think it’s time you involved the police. This has gone far enough. I don’t want to do anything to
put Ally in any more danger than she is already in.”

“Nick, you need to get to a hospital,” Cole said when he hung up the phone. “That cut on
your head looks very serious. I want you to have it checked out. Liam shouldn’t be too far away. Why don’t you call him and have him take you to the emergency room.”

“With all due respect,
Mr. Thomas,” Nick said straightening up his shoulders. “I would rather stay with you sir. I am not sure how much use I will be but I want to help. This is my fault. You trusted me and I failed you, again. I need to help put this right.”