Page 53 of In Their Arms

Ward leans back in his chair, a smug grin spreading across his face. “Because I’ve been promoted.”

I blink. “Wait, what?”

He smirks. “After all the bullshit that happened to Luther and then you, I’ve been working my ass off to get the corruption out of this precinct with the chief. As you may notice, Peyton isn’t here.”

My brows practically fly off my face. “You’re serious?”

“Dead serious.”

Luther grins, nodding approvingly. “Well, damn. About time.”

Grayson tilts his head. “What happened to Peyton?”

Ward shrugs. “Officially? He’s on ‘extended leave.’ Unofficially? He got caught feeding Hudson information.”

Heat flares up my spine, burning through my chest, my hands clenching into fists against my thighs. “So, hewashelping him?” Even though I was aware, it’s so different actually hearing it.

Ward nods. “Enough to get himself booted before they could do any real damage control. Peyton’s lucky he hasn’t been arrested. But that’s not why I brought you in.”

I swallow hard, forcing down the knot in my throat. “Then why?”

Ward leans forward, clasping his hands together, his grin widening. “Because I wanted to see your faces when I told you that Hudson has been arrested.”

Blake tenses against me, his breath catching. Luther’s jaw goes tight, his fingers twitching where they rest on his knee. Grayson is the first to speak. “You’re serious?”

Ward nods. “Over in the next county. Apparently, he decided to take another Omega and got caught red-handed abusing her.”

Something cold settles in my stomach. I should feel relief, but instead, all I feel is anger. “What about everything else?” I ask, my voice coming out harsher than I mean it to. “Hearthstone? The other Omegas?”

Ward’s expression shifts, just slightly, something unreadable flashing across his face. “Luther brought it up,” he admits. “But we haven’t found any other connections to it other than Hudson’s donations. Hearthstone is pretty tight-lipped.”

I grit my teeth, my pulse hammering in my ears. “So that’s it?”

“No,” Ward corrects. “But now that Hudson is in custody, things are changing. He doesn’t have anywhere to go. His resources are running out.”

Hudson has connections. Too many for me to believe that this is over, that we’re just going to walk out of here today and live the rest of our lives in peace. The thought makes my skin crawl, the weight of uncertainty pressing against my chest like a slow-building panic. The second Ward told us Hudson had been arrested, a part of me wanted to believe that it was done, that the nightmare was finally behind me. But my gut tells me otherwise.

I fold my hands in my lap, pressing my fingers against my thigh, grounding myself as I try to keep my voice level. “Hudson has connections,” I say again, slower this time, watching Ward carefully for his reaction. “You really think this is going to stick?”

Ward exhales, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees, his expression calm but firm. “His connections won’t work this time. Not in the county over. There’s no one to rescue him there, no judges that will look the other way. No one is protecting him anymore.”

It should make me feel better. I should feel relief at those words. But something about it doesn’t sit right. Hudson has always found a way out. Every time he’s been backed into a corner, he’s walked away unscathed, like nothing ever touched him. The fact that he’s suddenly locked up now, after everything, doesn’t make sense. He should’ve been arrested the first time. When I told them what he did. When I showed them. But he wasn’t. And now, suddenly, he is?

I’m not the only one questioning it. Blake’s shoulders are tense beside me, his arms crossed over his chest, barely restraining his frustration. “I don’t know why he wasn’t arrested and charged when it was Luca,” he snaps, his voice sharp with anger. “Why did it take him doing it to another Omega?”

Ward sighs, rubbing a hand over his face before he finally speaks. “Because he had officers here looking out for him,” he admits, and I catch the way his jaw clenches. “They’ve been fired, and I’m hoping there aren’t any lingering connections, but Hudson’s going away for a while.”

His words should bring comfort, but they don’t. Because there’s something about the way he says it—like he’s still not entirely sure. Like there’s a chance Hudson could slip through the cracks again. I can see it in his expression, in the way his lips press together, in the way his fingers tap against the armrest of his chair. He wants to believe this is over as much as we do. But we all know better.

Then, Ward says something that makes my stomach drop. “The Omega they found… she wasn’t breathing when they got to her. You’re lucky it wasn’t that bad for you.”

I school my features, force myself to keep my face neutral, to push down the memories clawing their way up my throat. Because it was that bad for me. More times than I can count. All the nights I spent in that house, the times I thought I wouldn’t make it out, I’ll fall apart if I focus on it. And I refuse to do that in this office, in front of Ward, in front of anyone.

I swallow hard, keeping my voice steady as I finally speak. “So what now?”

Ward watches me for a moment, as if weighing his words. “Now? We focus on making sure his arrest holds. He’s in another jurisdiction, which means fewer people willing to look the other way for him.” He pauses before adding, “That doesn’t mean he’s done trying to get out.”

“So it’s just that easy?” I ask, forcing my voice to stay even. “That’s all it takes? It’s over? We just get to move on?”

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