Chapter 858: Burden Of Proof

I never thought in all my life I'd ever be in a high-stake hostage situation before. All those crime flicks and cop shows I'd gleaned over every once in a while on television had really set me up for quite the preconception as to how one would usually go. 

On the other side of the flatscreen, it was all guns drawn and careful negotiating as an innocent's life hung precariously in the balance. Reality, on the other hand, turned out to be much more dramatic than that. 

"Now," Ria's eyes darted fast, cautious, her tone resounding a warning for no sudden movement as she slowly laid the hostage atop the counter. "My head's been putting two-and-two together all this while I've been up, and I'm really struggling to believe what it's trying to tell me. So instead, I'm trying to convince myself that I'm just stupid. Easier that way. Hell, it's actually believable, so ten points for that alone."