One Wild Night

Diana's heart was still racing as she left the study, her emotions a whirlwind of relief and anxiety.

She had never expected to bare her soul to Shawn Rosewood, nor had she anticipated his reaction. His calm demeanor and unexpected empathy had thrown her off balance, and now that he had taken the fight out of her, she didn't know what to do anymore.

Reaching her bedroom, her hands trembled as she pushed open the door. She closed the door behind her and leaned against it, taking a moment to compose herself. She couldn't afford to waste time in case Shawn changed his mind.

With quick, efficient movements, she began packing her belongings. As she folded clothes and gathered her essentials, her mind raced with thoughts of all she needed to do next.

First, she would try to reach out to her blackmailer and let him know how things had turned out, and then she would go to Vanessa. Vanessa had a right to know what had happened, and she owed her an apology. She needed to apologize to Vanessa for letting her down and for not following through with her plan.

As she threw her shoes in her suitcase, a soft knock echoed through the room, startling her, and she paused, her heart pounding anew.

Was it Shawn? Had he changed his mind already? Or did he call the police? She mused.

Taking a deep breath, she walked over and opened the door. She felt a wave of relief when she saw Jeff standing there with a concerned expression.

"Are you okay?" He asked in a low voice laced with a hint of nervousness.

Even though Tom had asked him to stay calm, he was still feeling pretty nervous about the entire situation.

Diana sighed, "I don't know. I'm not sure yet. But I'm leaving," she said simply.

Jeff's brows furrowed in confusion. "Leaving? What about your plans? What did Henry's brother say?"

Diana hesitated, glancing around to ensure no one else was nearby. "Shawn knows everything now. I've told him about Henry and what he did to my brother. Shawn has asked me to let him handle it."

Jeff's eyes widened in surprise. "And you trust him?"

"For some reason, I do," Diana replied, her voice steady. "Shawn seemed genuine. He promised to make sure everyone gets justice, and he won't let Henry's actions destroy more lives. I need to believe in that."

Jeff nodded slowly, understanding her decision. "I'm glad he is willing to let you go."

Diana nodded. "I didn't tell Shawn about you, so make sure you stay under the radar too for the time being. And maybe you can watch from here and see how he handles things," she said and Jeff nodded.

"I will. Thank you, Diana. Be careful," he said and Diana offered a small, grateful smile.

"Thank you too. Stay safe."

Jeff gave her a nod and left, allowing her to finish packing. She zipped up her suitcase and took one last look around the room. This place, filled with memories of her mission, now felt like a chapter closing. Taking a deep breath, she picked up her bag and headed out.

After she had driven some distance away from the house, the gravity of the situation settled over her.

She parked by the roadside, her hands trembling slightly as she pulled out her phone and flashed the number Tom usually used to contact her.

She waited for some time and just as she was about to give up and drive up, her phone rang and she received the call.

"Diana," Tom's voice was calm and reassuring, "what's going on?" He asked, even though he knew why she was calling.

After he received the call from Jeff, Barry had hacked into the security camera in the study and had sent him the footage, so he knew all about her conversation with Shawn.

Watching the footage had made Tom realize that his mother had been right and they could have easily resolved things had she reached out to Henry's parents (chapter 867).

Perhaps they wouldn't have had to do all of this or go through such a long process had they simply taken up the divorce issue with Henry's family.

They had assumed that the Rosewoods were all terrible people like Henry, but it was clear to him now that Henry had been hiding under the Rosewood family name to perpetuate his evil deeds.

Diana exhaled shakily. "I just wanted to let you know that the plans have changed. Henry's brother showed up. I didn't expect he would be so smart or very interested in the details of what happened to his brother. I had to come clean with him. I told him everything. But I didn't tell him about you or about Vanessa knowing my plans. He only knows about Henry and what he did to my brother and some others. He promised to handle it and asked me to back off," Diana explained and Tom listened silently.

"You did well, Diana. I believe Shawn will take care of things. Just stay safe and keep a low profile until he does. And if you need my help in any way, you can let me know."

Diana let out a deep breath, "I will. Thanks. I just needed to let you know what was going on."

"Thanks. And don't worry about anything. I'll keep my eyes on everything and make sure no harm comes to you," Tom assured her.

"Thank you for everything. Even though I don't know who you are or anything about you, I have felt safe and at ease these last couple of weeks knowing that there was someone else out there who had it for Henry too, and would handle things if I couldn't," Diana said before

hanging up.

After ending the call, Diana felt a renewed sense of determination. She drove to Mia's place, needing to get it all done with before disappearing.

The Lawsons were just getting ready to have dinner when she arrived, and Maria directed her to the living room to wait while she went up to get Mia from her bedroom.

Moments later, Mia hurried down from her room, her face a mix of surprise and concern. She had heard from Jeff that Diana had left the house a while ago and she had been worried about

her.

"Diana! I'm so glad you're here. I heard from the chef," Mia said, rushing to embrace her.

Diana hugged her tightly. "I'm sorry I'm barging in on..."

"Oh, please shut up," Mia said with a roll of her eyes as she pulled back to look at Diana, who had become like a sister to her.

"How are you? You must have been startled by all the questions," Mia said, and Diana nodded as they both sat down.

"Shawn was here earlier," Mia said and they both exchanged information, telling each other about their conversation with Shawn.

"I came because I wanted to let you know that I'm leaving now. And also because I wanted to apologize to you," Diana said and Mia frowned.

"Apologize? What for?"

"For failing to keep my promise to you. I couldn't get rid of Henry forever as I promised," Diana said and Mia smiled.

"I'm actually happy you couldn't go ahead with your plan. I was worried you'd stain your hands with his dirty blood and ruin your life. He's not worth it. And I'm more than grateful for all you have done for me. Thank you for looking out for me and doing your best to help me,"

Mia said and Diana shook her head.

"There's nothing to thank me for. I didn't do anything."

"You did a lot. Where are you going? What will you do now?" Mia asked, and Diana shook her

head.

"I'm not sure yet. I always thought I'd go turn myself in to the police after I was done with him, but now I don't know. So, I'm just going to go somewhere and wait to see how Shawn handles Henry," she said and before Mia could respond, her mother, who had been setting up the table for dinner while listening to them, joined them.

"I'm sure you haven't had dinner. Why don't you join us for dinner before you go?"

"Thanks, but I wouldn't want to impose...."

"You're not imposing. And it's the least we can do after all you've done for Nessa," Maria

said, cutting her off.

Diana smiled warmly. "I'd like that, thank you," Diana said as she and Mia rose to go join her

parents at the dining.

Dinner was a quiet affair, filled with an undercurrent of relief and gratitude. Afterward, Diana felt a sense of calm she hadn't experienced in a long time.

As Diana left Mia's place, she and Mia exchanged contact information, ensuring they could

stay in touch.

As Mia watched her go, she had a mix of admiration and sadness in her eyes. Diana had risked everything for justice, and now it was time for her to find her own peace.

Mia couldn't help but wonder what Shawn was going to do and what it would all mean for her.

All she wanted now was for her and Jeff to be finally free to leave here. She wanted to be able to go back to her new family in Ludus- to the people who have shown her more care and love than her own family, Mia thought as she returned inside the house.

"I just received a call from Henry's brother. He asked for your phone number and I texted it to him," her father informed her the moment she walked in.

Before she could respond her phone rang, and when she saw it was an unsaved contact, she received the call, guessing it was Shawn.

"Vanessa, I called to apologize to you once again for all that Henry did to you. And I want to assure you that I will make sure you get the justice that you deserve. I've submitted all the evidence I got to the police and I have placed a call for his immediate arrest even though he's still hospitalized. Tomorrow I will release a press statement to tender a formal apology to all of Henry's victims. You have my permission to press charges. I'm sorry this is coming late. I wish I had known about it all sooner. But you don't have to run or hide from him anymore," Shawn said and tears gathered in Mia's eyes.

"Really? Can I really do that?" she asked, wondering if Shawn was telling the truth.

"Yes, you can. You can do whatever you want, Vanessa," Shawn said and her tears began to

drop in torrents.

"Thank you. Thank you so much, Shawn. Thank you," Vanessa cried, unable to hold back her

tears.

As much as she had been mad at Tyler carelessly for exposing her, she was glad now that he had come along when he did and his action had forced her to confront her past. It had all worked out for her good and now she was finally free from Henry.

Away from there, at the hospital, Henry's eyes fluttered open, the hospital room coming into

blurry focus. He felt like he had just woken up a bad dream. His mind was foggy, the events leading to his unconsciousness a jumbled mess.

He tried to move, to sit up, but his body refused to respond. His limbs felt like dead weights, utterly unresponsive to his frantic commands. Panic surged through him, and then he remembered with horror that he was paralyzed and it was not a bad dream but his reality.

He lay there, helpless as he listened to the beeping of the monitors. Tears began to well in his eyes as the full weight of his situation settled over him.

All he could think about was the look in Diana's eyes, the searing hatred that had burned so

vividly. Her betrayal cut deeper than any physical pain he had ever experienced. How had he been so blind, so utterly fooled by her?

Memories of their interactions flooded his mind. The warmth in her voice, the seemingly genuine concern, the way she had seemed to worship him. It had all been a lie, a cruel, calculated deception. His throat tightened, and a tear slipped down the side of his face.

He had loved her and had believed that for the first time in his life, he had found someone who loved him. He had trusted her, confided in her, and she had manipulated him.

He was broken, both physically and emotionally, and he had no idea where to go from here or

what to do next.

As he lay there, lost in his torment, the door to his room creaked open. He couldn't turn his head to see who had entered, but the sound of footsteps drew nearer.

A figure stepped into his line of sight, and he was flooded with relief when he recognized Dr.

Morgan. Seeing Dr Morgan walk in with police officers, he could tell they were there to take his statement and find out what happened to him.

The police officers stepped forward, their eyes hard and unforgiving and to his surprise

instead of asking him what happened, they began to read out a list of charges, a litany of crimes.

The words barely registered. Henry's mind was numb, his body immobile. He could do

nothing as they listed his crimes, each accusation a hammer blow to his already fragile state.

Henry wanted to ask them if they knew who he was. He wanted to tell them that they would lose their jobs for doing that, but something about the way Dr Morgan stood there, told him they knew who he was, and his family was also aware of what was going on.

Betrayed by Diana, paralyzed, and now facing the full force of the law because he was certain his family had abandoned him- there was nothing left for him.

Henry shut his eyes and turned his head away from them, unable to face the harsh reality any

longer.

Resignation settled over him like a heavy shroud. He was at the mercy of forces far beyond his control, his fate sealed by the very actions that had once made him powerful.

Now, he was nothing more than a broken man, left to bear the consequences of his own

making.

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