I could not get this story out of my head. I know I have another story I'm supposed to be finishing, but this story was taking up all the room in my head. I swear I'll finish the other one, though. Promise.
Shawn stared at the two angry groups of people staring back at him. He held his hands up, his mind working frantically to find a way out.
"Why don't we just take the nephew here and ransom him for the gold?" Iron Giant/Mark growled.
"We have no other choice!" Andres piped.
Shawn felt his heart jump in fear. This situation was escalating far too quickly for his liking.
"No! No, you always have a choice." Shawn soothed holding up a finger, hoping to placate to angry treasure hunters. He gave a discreet glance around. Where was his backup?
"You could ransom Gus here." Shawn stalled. "Or, you could mix it up a little." He offered. "Ransom half of me and half of Gus. We have some options, here, people."
Andres cocked his head. "No. The small weak one would only slow us down."
"What?" Gus exclaimed, indignant. "I'll have you know I am a perfectly average size for a man my age."
"I don't know man, it wouldn't kill you to do a few push ups…" Shawn trailed off, most of his concentration focused on the multiple guns pointed at them.
"Let's take the nephew and go." Iron Giant rumbled, moving forward.
Shawn took one last ditch look to the woods around them. As Iron Giant reached for him, he lunged forward, grasping his gun. Shawn twisted his hand, making him drop the firearm. He shoved Gus to the side, punching Iron Giant squarely in the jaw.
"Run, Gus!" Shawn shouted at his friend. He ducked a punch from Mark, kicking him in the chest. Shawn stumbled back a few steps.
"God, it's like kicking a freaking fridge!" He exclaimed. Shawn noticed Gus still standing, looking conflicted.
"Go, Gus, go!" Shawn yelled. "Now! Get help!" He blocked a punch from Mark, and screamed at Gus. "Go now!"
With one last pained look at his friend, Gus started sprinting for the cover of the woods.
At that moment, Mark and Andres' henchmen broke out of their shock, and shot at the one clear target. Gus.
Shawn turned. He saw Gus jerk, and fall. It seemed to happen slowly, and so fast.
"Gus…" He whispered. He felt Mark tackle him, pinning him to the ground. However, all he could see, could think about was the body of his best friend since kindergarten, lying on the dirty ground. Motionless.
On some level, Shawn could hear the people talking above him. He felt the duct tape wrap around his wrists, over his mouth. He felt them pick him up, carrying him to the car. He saw the hood fall over his head. He felt the car start.
But all he could think about, really think about, was Gus. Stick-in-the-mud Gus. Pharmaceutical Salesman Gus. Gus, who didn't even want to start in this whole business. Gus, who always warned him to be careful. Gus, who should never have been dragged into this.
I'm so sorry, Gus. Shawn thought. Too little, too late.
Juliet narrowed her eyes as they neared the site. Lassiter was going as fast as he could, but Juliet still felt the urge to press him to go faster.
They soared into the described area, and Juliet's heart plummeted. No one. Where was everyone?
No car. No Andres. No Shawn.
"Oh, God." Lassiter exclaimed. Juliet looked at him curiously.
Lassiter fumbled with his door, lurching out. He started sprinting to the side of the clearing. Juliet followed his path with her eyes and finally noticed what she had failed to before.
No. She thought. Juliet scrambled out of the Lassiter's car, running to him.
Lassiter was kneeling by an unconscious Gus. He pressed fingers to Gus's neck, checking for a pulse.
"He has a pulse." Lassiter confirmed. "But it's weak. We need an ambulance here. Now."
Another officer stood to the side, already calling 911.
Juliet crouched by Gus. "What happened?" She whispered, her voice trembling.
"He was shot." Lassiter deadpanned. He pressed a jacket up to the gunshot wound, which was closer to the shoulder than the heart, which was a good sign.
"Carlton!" Juliet shouted. Lassiter looked up, his eyebrows raised.
"Gus could be dead! He could die! Don't pretend this is some other victim. This is Gus. Act like it!" She shouted. Juliet stood up, storming a few feet away.
"O'Hara." Lassiter said. Juliet stayed where she was, facing away from him. She took a few deep breaths. She tried to contain the tears that were threatening to fall.
"Juliet." Came a gentle, quiet voice behind her. She turned, puzzled, and stopped when she saw Lassiter looking at her with an expression that could only be described as kindness.
"Do you want to wait in the car?" He offered. Juliet shook her head instantly. She had never been much good at waiting.
"Come here." Lassiter requested. Reluctantly, Juliet crouched next to him. She held the jacket to the wound, and Lassiter gently rolled Gus onto his back. He checked his breathing.
"He's breathing normally. A little shallowly, but he might have bruised some ribs when he fell." Lassiter told Juliet.
Suddenly, Gus's eyes flared open. "Shawn- Mark- took-" he ended with a pained cry.
"Gus!" Juliet cried. She felt Lassiter launch up.
"Where is that amblance?!" He roared at the officer. The officer jumped.
"Th-three minutes, sir." He stuttered, nervous under Lassiter's intense gaze.
"Jul-Shawn-needs-" Gus broke off again, with another choke of agony.
"Shh, Gus, you're going to be okay." Juliet promised.
"Shawn-taken-Andres-" He managed. Juliet furrowed her brow.
"Andres took Shawn?" She asked.
"Mark- Andres-to-togeth-" Gus stopped, groaning.
"Mark and Andres took Shawn?" Juliet guessed.
Gus gasped, his chest heaving. Juliet saw his eyes go unfocused for a moment.
Suddenly, the gasps stopped. In fact, all breathing ceased.
"Carlton!" Juliet yelled. "Gus isn't breathing."
Lassiter's head whipped back around to glare in her direction. His gaze darted to Gus. Lassiter gave what sounded like a rushed exasperated sigh, and kneeled again by Gus. He then started CPR. Juliet helped keep count of the breaths and seconds.
Finally, the sirens of the ambulance could be heard. Juliet stood and directed the medics over to them. One of the medics had to push Lassiter out of the way. He fell back, breathing heavily.
They quickly loaded Gus onto a stretcher, and into the back of the ambulance.
Juliet followed Lassiter to the car, and numbly buckled her seat belt. As Lassiter followed the other cars out of the clearing, the thoughts that she had been trying desperately to repress found their way into her brain.
"You know, we don't know for sure what happened to Shawn. Gus wasn't that clear. I mean, for all we know, Shawn could have...found his way home, and is with his dad right now. That makes more sense than anything. Gus was just confused. Shawn wouldn't have...he couldn't have...I don't think it's possible." Juliet rambled.
"O'Hara," Lassiter said quietly. His tone was gentle, so unlike the Lassiter he normally was.
"What's more, the tire marks could have been weeks old. Other people go to the woods, too. I'm sure that Shawn just dropped his phone and is trying to find a phone to call us with." Juliet said decidedly. "Shawn wouldn't have gotten…I mean, he would have found a way to stop them...maybe he left before Gus. You know, got out of harms way. Or maybe-"
"Juliet!" Lassiter barked. Juliet silenced.
"I heard some of what Gus said." Lassiter said. He slowed the car for a moment, and turned to look at his partner. "At this point, we can only assume that Andres and Mark teamed up and kidnapped Shawn."
A sob burst from Juliet's mouth, and though she shoved her fist against her lips, it did nothing to stem the flow of tears coming from her eyes.
"No." She croaked. "He couldn't have been…" Another sob escaped her.
Juliet felt a hand on her shoulder. Stunned, she turned to look at her partner.
"Juliet, this is Shawn we're talking about. I think he'll be able to take care of himself until we can find him. And we will find him." Lassiter confirmed with such confidence that Juliet almost smiled.
Almost.
Whew. That felt good to get off my chest.
Tell me what you think. I really value your support. : )