Hanna had been doing her best to keep her head down, to focus on her work, but the commotion in the office had gotten so loud that she couldn't ignore it any more. She got up and wandering over to where her coworkers were standing around. She picked up bits and pieces of conversation, too jumbled to figure out what was happening.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpm72NtFEn5
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAaKCqETqbs
Hanna spotted Rachel and went to try to get some answers. "What's going on?"134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY9RUzw0aN4
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjgqUEocviS
"You didn't hear? Ethan and Jerry were attacked." Rachel's tone had a gleeful edge, like she was more entertained by the excitement than concerned.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWJWBeFNhcP
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE8usi1z1tU
Hanna felt her stomach plunge to new depths. She hadn't been paranoid. She had been right all along. Her legs suddenly felt like jelly, barely able to hold her upright.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeCmkcS2cLq
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEsV9BeumDc
"No..." Hanna said softly.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKBz9ZtnEu0
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡef5ubJNdf1
Rachel, completely oblivious to what was happening to her coworker, continued to gossip. "It's true! How crazy is that? Jerry's in the hospital right now."134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5Qp3ldIvL7
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH661R4PNqd
Hanna swallowed hard. "And Ethan?"134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw44BqTuMlI
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhwGdJqWSXI
"I don't know... I don't think they've found him yet," Rachel answered briefly before turning back to the group's conversation.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqaAi2WDIxZ
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ6ENwIRi61
Hanna's insides churned in terror. Her mouth felt impossibly dry. She felt like dread had frozen her entire body and she was stuck on another world , disconnected from the people and conversation going on around her. No one else appeared to notice the state she was in as they continued to talk amongst themselves.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUXFNvNLEjy
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ87mosaPkLB
A piece of information broke into her mind. "I hear Steve had to give the police an interview," Rachel gossiped to another woman.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEhBNsARIaG
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJTNAjgqVkG
Nobody noticed Hanna slipped away from the group. She found herself walking towards the door, her legs moving almost robotically . She wasn't quite sure why she was moving or where she was going.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeXjFBAPIMp
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx80iwB4geF
As she passed the threshold of their shared office, she realized that her brain had somehow already made the decision for her, she was going to help him. Her mind raced to find a plan to catch up with this decision.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMADcJiXXn7
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl6kb8kbgYm
All she knew at the moment was that she needed to talk to Steve before she left, anything he knew, she needed to know as well . Hanna speed walked the short distance down the hall and barged into Steve's office, startling the short middle manager.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVs3Xp68N5e
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIvp5PbGrUz
"What happened?" Hanna demanded loudly.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCObbTL5ACM
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx5nzu9PYRJ
"I know the rumour mill is—" Steve's protest was quickly cut off by Hanna.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiGFuBu2fia
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc75V3WhA1d
"Cut it out. You were interviewed. What do you know?" Hanna pressed firmly, trying and failing to keep her voice level.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZmOoyQfsFm
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPSfe6BLxeK
If Steve was shocked by Hanna's behaviour , he didn't show it. "I really don't know what happened," Steve admitted.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCa0wE3ZL79
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA58BvYlGZW
"Then what did the police want to know?" Hanna insisted.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡczAEXMPu7w
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm2tS4fd2q2
Steve sighed. "They just wanted to know how the kidnappers knew he was there."134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNUtKQOC9ek
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI5N4NTJvxz
"Why did they think the kidnappers had that information in advance?" Hanna asked, not to be deterred from any relevant information.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVLWIlk8km4
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuPjyPz10oD
"They said it seemed planned, professional—" Steve stopped talking abruptly as Hanna started walking quickly out the door and out into the empty office. He followed her after a moment's hesitation. "Where are you running off to?!"134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4gyl0i2RJZ
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq6Z7lHREpv
"I'm not going to leave him there!" Hanna wasn't slowing down.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9kFhIBsj1K
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw1u8QLo3hZ
Steve continued following her. "Let the police handle this. There's nothing else you can do."134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp83alq5SRN
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡboLj3PL48b
"That's where you're wrong." Hanna smirked.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLNjPxzQncU
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXyHOJZUMEg
"What are you talking about?" Steve raised his voice.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyfAiv2MBEM
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxsau4CTrur
"I'm going to be gone the rest of the day. Cover with Sarah for me." Hanna stopped, grabbing a black marker off someone's desk and stuffing it in her pocket.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSQPC6wnfZQ
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6t5GyThrx9
Steve stopped himself before he slammed into her. "Why?"134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD8wgnvw4BU
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9lPrsK5JYf
"I know who took him. I've got to talk to the police. It'll probably take a while." The half-truth came out of her mouth easily, almost instinctively. She continued her beeline for the exit.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvATCJU67Cx
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLO5ys9Dwvr
"Oh." Steve replied, standing there. "Sure, I'll let Sarah know."134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLXlxrqxFB6
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc28GzZFqHd
"No, don't tell her. Just make up something," Hanna called back.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8UXZ8MzUsI
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1liysfkX2J
"Uh, okay?" Steve answered as Hanna pushed open the door to the stairwell.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTb368ic3k2
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLk4TXXgsL7
Hanna rushed down the stairs two at a time. She could only hope to arrive before they dissected him and not afterwards. She already knew where they'd likely taken him and she had a plan. More like a fifth of a plan, she admitted to herself, but it’s a start.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMoZH0UvRcZ
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeu2BqNN4cC
She'd told him not to go, but it hadn't been enough. They knew he was Charax from the start, it was so obviously a setup. But he was just so confident in his cover, ignoring all her warnings. That man severely lacked self preservation instincts.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ8ohyYgY0J
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEiSKOlJ3p9
As she raced towards her car, she cursed herself for not acting sooner. I can't believe I let this happen, she thought regretfully. No, I won't let it happen. There's still time.
Hanna knew Ethan might not be held at the laundromat, it might be just an old hideout now. What she did suspect, if they suddenly found another helpless Charax on their hands then they'd take her to the same place he was being held. So here she was, parking a block away from the laundromat. Preparing to do the one thing she always avoided, getting caught.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY93wZquO7Z
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRlqRVJyBXI
Hanna knew she'd have limited tools at her disposal. Any weapons or drugs found on her could wreck her whole plan. She needed to look like the perfect, vulnerable, nonthreatening little target. If they were suspicious of her then they'd be on their guard and move the operation or stop her from implementing the second step of her plan... whatever that would be. At the moment, she really only had the 'find Ethan' part down.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt8d1AePWmR
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH0ZLH2fUVr
For the first part of that plan, she took out the marker she'd swiped from the office and took the top off with her teeth. She marked a small Charax symbol on the inside of her wrist, where she knew it would be found. It was a rush job and wouldn't fool anyone who knew what they were looking for but she had a feeling these weren't particularly bright criminals.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQNeHD8Z2NP
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpGfHqHSrJi
Hanna knew she should be thinking about what to do once she found him, but there were simply too many unknown variables to start planning ahead. She suspected Ethan was not going to be in good condition when she found him, but specifically what he'd be like and what they'd have done to him was a mystery to her. Even if they'd just thrown him in a room, she couldn't be sure how helpful he'd be in an escape attempt.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI4EPlBRqZR
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOJ2qMzUzPZ
She checked the time. The Trazinol will have worn off by now, if that what the only thing suppressing his symptoms then he'd be feeling the full force of the heat right now. Based on that, she wasn't sure how... sane he'd be. She was sure most of the stories about Charax heats were exaggerations. Or rather, she hoped they were exaggerations at least.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2J3S3YUxNv
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9MuygQJCqP
She had to consider the stories might be true. If it turned out he was less than... coherent and if it came down to *that*... well, she was thankful she was already on birth control. She wouldn't be scared off by a bit of rough sex. So when she found him, she'd just have to improvise.134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYfa1skCemM
134Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5mXDMGtWRj
Hanna waited until nightfall and got ready for her mission. She left anything that might make them suspicious in her car and set up her phone to send a message to Kayla in a day if she didn't turn it off. Then she took a deep breath and headed off towards the laundromat, ready to be captured by the Crimson Keys as a Charax ready to be processed.
