Chapter 3:

Spencer didn't sugarcoat how bad it was, but she didn't tell Emily's mom everything. She left out the part about Nate and she glossed over the fact that both Emily and Caleb were crashing when they were put in the ambulances. Her mother hadn't said much on the phone. Spencer was pretty sure that the instant she heard "Emily" and "stabbed" in the same sentence that Mrs. Fields had grabbed her purse and headed out the door with the cordless phone still in her hand.

The drive to the hospital was the hardest thing they'd ever done. No one said anything, because no one knew whether or not Caleb and Emily had survived. When they got to the emergency room, Pam Fields was already there. She met the girls at the front desk. She seemed unusually calm, especially considering her natural inclination had always been to control the situation. The only hint of nerves she showed was how tightly she had her fingers wound together. Her hands were in constant motion, but as soon as the girls reached her she stopped fidgeting.

"They're both in surgery." Her eyes were flooded with tears, but she hadn't completely fallen apart.

Surgery. That meant they were both alive. There was a sense of relief, but there was also a sense of dread…for everything that Caleb and Emily had gone through. Pam looked at Aria, Spencer, and Hanna and she saw the haunted look in their eyes. She had no idea what had happened out at the lighthouse, but she knew that the girls were broken. She had never been a hugger, but when she saw the girls for what they were…scared children who needed comfort…she didn't hesitate to embrace them. Despite her own daughter being in peril, she became the parent they needed at the moment.

"Emily is strong. She'll be okay," she said it as much for herself as she did for them. "And Caleb…" she paused and looked at Hanna, "…it looks like the bullet missed all his vital organs. They may have to take his spleen, but he should recover."

Hanna nearly collapsed at the news, but Mrs. Fields held her up. Spencer and Aria both put their hands on Hanna's arms just to let her know they were there.

"Hanna, your mother is on her way. She was able to reach Caleb's mom in Montecito." She looked at Spencer. "And Spencer, I spoke with your mother. We've agreed that for right now the police are not going to get anywhere near you. They will eventually need statements, but what matters right now is you girls and Caleb."

How had she been able to hold it all together? Had it been her husband's military training? Or was she still in shock? Her eyes darted to the phones and then back to the girls.

"I have to try and reach Emily's father. He wasn't on the base when I called."

The girls all nodded silently. They watched her turn the corner and then looked at each other.

"You guys, do we think this is Paige's revenge for the set-up for her tonight?" Aria asked.

"No, I don't think she'd hurt Emily." Spencer shook her head.

"She tried to drown her!" Hanna reminded her.

"I know, but…I just can't see her overpowering Emily, Nate, and Caleb. Besides, she may hate us, but she loves Emily." Spencer frowned.

"Unless Emily found out the truth," Aria said.

"Okay, this is pointless. We just need to wait for Emily and Caleb to wake up and then they can tell us what happened." Hanna sat down.

Aria and Spencer did the same. All they could do now was wait. Time seemed to stop moving forward. Everything around them slowed down. They watched people come in and out of the ER for what seemed like an eternity. Ashley Marin came by to make sure Hanna was okay. She tried to convince the girls to go home, but they refused.

Spencer looked at the clock and sighed. She looked around the waiting room for any sign of Mrs. Fields or Emily's doctor. Her heart nearly leaped out of her chest when she saw Paige walk in to the waiting area escorted by a police officer. She had a butterfly bandage on her head and something that looked like salve on her wrists.

"Are you kidding me?" Aria looked at Paige. "What is she doing here?"

"I don't know, but I hope Emily is the one who gave her that knock on the head. She's going to need a whole lot more than a little bandage when I get through with her…" Hanna leaped up.

"Hanna, wait…" Spencer grabbed her.

Paige saw them and approached them. She looked shaken. She didn't look anything like a cold-blooded killer. Her hands were trembling.

"I saw Emily's mom, but she was on the phone and I couldn't talk to her. Is Emily okay?"

"No, she's not okay!" Hanna couldn't control her temper. She tried to lunge at Paige, but Spencer and Aria held her back. "But you already know that."

"Look, I don't know what you think happened tonight, but I was dragged out to that place," Paige explained. "It was a trap. I was set up."

The words registered to the girls. They had been set up more than once. But if Paige was 'A' then she'd be saying exactly what she was saying to them to throw them off her trail. But there was more to what Paige was telling them. Spencer recognized something in Paige that she'd not seen before. It was fear. Real fear. Spencer had been the first one to jump on the 'Paige is A' bandwagon, but now she wasn't so sure.

"Please…just tell me what happened to Emily." Paige's voice quaked as she started to cry.

"Not until you tell us the whole story," Spencer said.

Paige sighed.

"I got a text earlier telling me to show up at the cemetery or Emily would get hurt. I was on my way out there, but the chain on my bike slid off the track and when I stopped to fix it…someone grabbed me and smacked me over the head."

"Who?" Aria asked.

"Nate." Paige stated. "He kept telling me that I was going to pay for stealing Emily from him. The next thing I know he had me tied up in a closet. He told me if I made any noise he would do to me what he did to Maya." She paused and the tears flowed freely down her face. "I could…I could hear him talking to Emily in the next room. I thought maybe I could get free…warn her…but he waited until she was asleep and then he knocked me out. When I woke up…he had a knife to her throat. Then he brought me out like I was some prized pig he was about to slaughter. I have never been so afraid in my life. But Emily…she was determined. I could see it in her eyes. She led him away, and that's the last thing I remember. The police found me and brought me in for treatment."

"Why would Nate hurt Emily? And why would he kill his cousin?" Spencer asked.

"He wasn't really her cousin." Paige wiped her tears. "He said his name was Lyndon. Lyndon something. James or Jones."

"Oh my God. The knife." Hanna gasped. The initials on the knife they'd found in Maya's bag were L.J.

"Look, I know you guys have your problems with me, but I would never hurt Emily. And I would never hurt you either." Her voice sounded completely broken. "Please…just tell me what happened to her."

The girls looked at one another. Aria and Hanna looked at Spencer to answer.

"She's hurt," Spencer said. "But Mrs. Fields seems to think she's going to be okay." Spencer was lying through her teeth. Emily's mother was as terrified as the girls that Emily wouldn't pull through, but Pam would never tell them that.

Paige nodded and wiped away a few more tears.

"Ms. McCullers, we need a statement. Your parents are waiting at the station." A police officer walked over to her.

"Of course," Paige nodded. She started to walk away.

"Paige?" Spencer called after her. Paige turned to face them again. "I'm sorry. For…" She struggled to find her words. "…just for everything."

"You'll let me know when you know something about Emily?" she asked.

"We will." Aria nodded.

After she walked away the girls faced one another.

"Nate?" Aria questioned. "Nate killed Maya?"

"It adds up." Spencer nodded. "Emily always thought there was someone bothering Maya. He must have been following her for a long time. I bet he came back to do the same to Emily."

"Paige said Emily led him away from the cabin. She must have fought him in that lighthouse. I bet he thought she wouldn't be able to fight him off. But with our history with 'A'…Emily's got more bite than bark these days," Hanna said.

"Never thought I'd be happy that we were tortured by Mona all of Junior year," Aria said sarcastically.

"Wait, are we really saying Emily killed him?" Spencer whispered.

"She wouldn't have done it unless she was forced. He must have stabbed her first." Hanna shook her head.

"God, poor Em," Aria frowned. "I can't even imagine…"

"I'm just surprised that out of all of us, she was the first to kill someone," Spencer said. She looked at Hanna. "I always thought it would be you going off on some sales clerk who gave you the wrong color cashmere blend."

Aria chuckled and Hanna rolled her eyes. A surgeon approached them and they all stood at attention.

"Excuse me, are you here with Caleb Rivers?" The doctor asked.

"Yes, that's us." Hanna's heart leaped into her chest.

"Are you family?"

"We're…married." Hanna lied.

Aria and Spencer looked at her and tried to hold back their laughter. The doctor looked at them skeptically, but continued anyway.

"He's out of surgery, Mrs. Rivers. He's in stable condition."

The girls breathed a sigh of relief.

"He was in rough shape when he got here because of the blood loss, but fortunately the wound was through and though. It missed all the major organs. His spleen had some damage, but we were able to repair it."

"When can I see him?" Hanna asked.

"He's coming out of the anesthesia now. As soon as he's awake we'll come find you." The doctor reached out to shake her hand.

Hanna skipped the handshake and went straight for a hug. The doctor smiled and cleared his throat. She faced her friends with an optimistic smile on her face. The doctor started to walk away, but Spencer stopped him.

"Do you know anything about how Emily Fields is doing?"

"Uh, she's still in surgery, I think. They are finishing up on her now."

"Is she going to be okay?" Aria asked.

"I can't speak to what her condition is because I wasn't in her surgery."

"I can." Someone from behind them said.

The buttery English accent was unmistakable.

"Wren, I didn't know you were working tonight." Spencer reached out to hug him. He looked exhausted.

"I should have come out to update you sooner. I wanted to come and find you as soon as they brought Emily in, but they needed me in surgery."

"How is she?" Aria asked.

"Stable. I just spoke with her mother. She's been on the phone all night updating her husband. She told me you were all still here." He smiled. "Can't say I'm surprised." He looked at the clock. It was three in the morning. "I'd tell you all to go home and get some sleep, but I doubt you would listen to me."

"We're not going anywhere." Hanna shook her head.

"Right." Wren laughed softly. "I've got to get back, but I'll let you know when she's out of surgery."

"Thanks, Wren." Spencer nodded.

They sat down.

"When did 3 AM happen?" Aria looked at the clock.

"Right after 2:59, I'm assuming." Spencer retorted.

They watched the minutes continue to tick by. Around 3:45 Hanna was escorted to Caleb's room. Aria and Spencer stayed in the waiting room to wait on an update on Emily.

Caleb was laying in bed with tubes hooked up all around him, but he was awake. The nurse gave Hanna a brief update and then walked towards the door.

"Let me know if you need anything else, Mrs. Rivers," she walked into the hallway.

Caleb smiled weakly at her.

"Mrs. Rivers?" He asked. "You have something you want to tell me?"

"I should smack you." Hanna walked over to his bedside. "But I'm just so happy you're alive."

"That's me. I'm resourceful." Caleb moved his hand towards her. She took it.

"You are an idiot." Hanna leaned down and kissed his forehead. "I told you not to take that gun."

"I thought it would make a better weapon than a pink fuzzy lamp," Caleb teased her.

"I should have knocked you out with it. Then we wouldn't be here." Hanna huffed.

"Or Emily might not have survived." Caleb squeezed her fingers. "How is she? I asked about her when I came to. They only told me that she was here and she was in surgery."

"She is." Hanna nodded. "Wren talked to us about 45 minutes ago and said they were finishing up. Aria and Spencer are waiting for an update."

Caleb nodded.

"Caleb, what happened out there tonight?" Hanna leaned forward. He looked so pale.

"When I got there Nate was bleeding out on the ground and Emily was hurt pretty bad," he glanced away in discomfort. "I seriously thought she was going to die in my arms. The fact that she was even standing was…" He shook his head, "…I don't think she realized how badly she was hurt. She kept saying stuff…about Maya."

"Yeah," Hanna nodded. "She said some things before she passed out. Some of it was stuff that Maya had said to her…on the videos. But it's like Emily thought she was there."

"Did she say anything else about what happened up there?" Caleb questioned.

"She kept apologizing."

"Sounds like Emily." Caleb laughed. He tensed up and groaned in pain.

"Caleb, she killed him, didn't she?" Hanna asked.

"I was trying to get her out. I thought Nate was dead." He frowned. "Should have checked. Why does no one ever check to make sure attackers are dead?" He grumbled. "I saw him come at us out of the shadows. I didn't have enough time to get both of us out of the way and I didn't think Emily would survive a gunshot wound on top of her other injuries. I got her out of the way and before I could rush Nate, he pulled the trigger." He scrunched his face in thought, trying very carefully to remember what happened next. "The rest is kind of blurry. I just remember thinking that Nate was going to kill me. I thought about how pissed you were going to be…"

"Oh, I'm plenty pissed." Hanna glared at him.

"I knew you would be." He brought her hand up to his lips and gently kissed it. Her fingers brushed the tube in his nose.

"Don't try to act like a cute wounded puppy." Hanna glared at him.

"Worth a shot." Caleb continued to smile at her.

"Bad choice of words for someone who just had a bullet removed from his gut." Hanna rolled her eyes.

"I'm just lucky the bastard didn't get a second shot off," Caleb sighed. "I heard Emily moving in the corner. I turned to see if she was okay, but I couldn't. I was blacking out. Then I heard a struggle and the gun falling to the ground. After that I think I heard Emily calling out my name. She told me…" He paused, not sure if he was remembering things right, "…she told me to think about you. And that's the last thing I remember…until I had this vision of you wrapping your arms around me."

"We were there." Hanna nodded. "We found you and Emily barely clinging to life. She was trying to hold your guts in place."

"You have a way with words," Caleb said sarcastically.

"We were so afraid you were both going to die." Hanna quieted her voice. "You were…you were both…" She got too emotional to finish.

"We're okay, Hanna." Caleb brushed his fingers against her to calm her down.

"I could see how much pain you were in." She choked back tears. "I thought 'it can't get any worse than this' and then Emily woke up and I thought maybe things would be okay. And then I looked at her…and she wasn't there, Caleb. I could see her looking right through me. She kept looking for you and you were right in front of her."

"She was in shock." Caleb said softly. "We were all in shock." He paused. "As much stuff as we've been through you think we'd be immune to shock at this point."

"I almost lost you both tonight." Hanna cried. "I never want to feel that way again."

"Hey, come here." He motioned for her to move forward. She leaned over the bed and gently put her head on his chest, careful not to disturb any of the wires he was hooked up to and careful not to put any pressure on his wound. He gently placed his hand on her cheek and stroked her hair. They just laid like that for a little while, until a knock on the door drew them out of their state of shock.

Spencer was standing in the doorway.

"Hey, Caleb." Spencer waved. "How are you?"

"Eh, my organs feel a little loose." He smiled.

"Glad to see you still have that biting humor." Spencer smiled back.

"We'll be back to verbal sparring in no time." Caleb nodded.

"Well, don't think I'm going to take it easy on you just because you have a hole in your spleen now."

"Bring it on." Caleb dared her.

They all laughed. It felt good to smile after the night they had.

"Han?" Spencer called to her friend. "Emily's awake. She's still groggy, but her mom says she wants to see us."

Hanna looked at Caleb.

"Go," he said.

She nodded. Spencer and Hanna walked down the hallway. They passed Mrs. Fields on the way. She was talking with Emily's doctor. She stopped long enough to smile at the girls and then turned back towards the doctor. They walked into Emily's room. Aria was in a chair next to Emily's bed.

"You know it's not your fault," Aria was in the middle of a conversation with her. "Paige said he held a knife to your throat."

"I never should have run off with him. I should have stayed with you guys. You were just trying to help and I totally shut you out…" Emily heard Hanna and Spencer walk into the room and she turned to face them.

"Hey, Em." Hanna walked over to her bed. "How are you feeling?"

"Like my ulcer was a piece of cake compared to this." Emily started to move, but a sharp pain stopped her in her tracks. "Have you seen Caleb? Is he okay?"

"He's going to be fine." Hanna reassured her. She sat down in the chair next to Aria.

"I thought…" Emily swallowed a knot in her throat.

"I know." Spencer gently took her hand. "So did we. Neither one of you was in the greatest shape when we found you."

"I'm so sorry." Emily shook her head.

"Em, you couldn't have known what that monster was planning," Aria said.

"I should have figured it out." Emily was mentally kicking herself. "He was just…he was so convincing."

"He had everyone fooled." Hanna put her hand on Emily's arm.

"Not everyone," Emily said. "Jenna knew."

"Wait, what do you mean Jenna knew?" Spencer asked.

"I mean that she came to my house before she skipped town and told me to be careful."

"Jenna as in Jenna Marshall?" Hanna asked.

"How many Jennas do you know, Hanna?" Aria rolled her eyes.

"She told you to be careful?" Spencer questioned. "Be careful of what?"

"She didn't say. Something spooked her and she left before I could ask any more questions," Emily explained. "I thought she was just messing with me."

"Well, that is what she does best," Hanna muttered. "If she knew, why didn't she just come right out and say it?"

"I don't know. Something was different about her that night. But of course, I was too dumb to pay attention. If I hadn't been so wrapped up in being mad at you guys maybe I would have been able to figure things out. We wouldn't be here. Caleb wouldn't be here. It's my fault."

"Don't start that again." Spencer frowned down at her friend.

"Don't you get it? I killed someone." Tears flooded her face.

"Any one of us would have done the same." Spencer pushed Emily's hair out of her face and brushed it behind her ears to keep it from getting wet from her tears. "I would have gutted him myself if I knew he was going to do this to you."

"You did what you had to do, Em." Hanna leaned forward and took her friend's hand. "Caleb said Nate was going to kill you both, and I, for one, would rather have the two of you alive than that psycho."

"I know…" Emily's demeanor had calmed a bit, "…I just…I took a life. I'm no better than he was when he killed Maya."

"No," Aria said defiantly. "You are not the same. Not even remotely. What you did to him was a mercy compared to what he did to you and Maya. He deserved a hell of a lot more than that knife in his chest."

"Aria's right," Spencer agreed. "He kidnapped Paige. He stabbed you. He shot Caleb!" Her voice cracked and she felt tears burning her eyes. "Em, when we found you we were sure you were dead. He did that. Not you. Not Caleb. Him. So, yeah, if he had to die so you and Caleb could live…I think we are all okay with that." She spit without any hint of remorse. "We had your blood all over us tonight. We watched you stop breathing, so you'll have to forgive me if I don't feel sorry for the bastard who did that to you."

"Wait, what do you mean I stopped breathing?" Emily questioned.

"I mean you died right in front of us, Emily! If those paramedics hadn't shown up when they did…" Spencer trailed off. She couldn't think about that possibility. It was still too fresh in her mind.

Emily stared at them in shock.

"You didn't know?" Aria asked.

"No one told me that," her voice was barely a whisper. She took a thoughtful pause.

"Em, what are you thinking?" Aria asked.

"I think I remember it."

"Remember what?" Spencer asked.

"Dying."

"Okay, don't go all morbid on us. We've all had a tough night." Hanna rubbed some sleep from her eyes.

"No, it's not like that," Emily admitted. "I don't remember being afraid or upset. I think…I think I saw Maya."

Aria, Hanna, and Spencer all exchanged a glance. Emily hadn't missed their silent conversation.

"I know it must sound crazy, but I felt her there. I felt her with me all night, even before I was attacked. It was like this pull…like she was guiding me." She looked at her friends. "Okay, don't look at me like that. Someone say something."

"You don't sound crazy," Spencer stroked Emily's arm. "I saw it in your eyes, Em. Right before you crashed. I thought for a second that you were rallying, but then I saw your eyes looking right through me. You saw something in that lighthouse that none of us could see. We were with you, but you weren't with us. You were with Maya."

Emily looked away uncomfortably. She took a moment to compose herself.

"You believe me?"

"Well, it's not like it's the craziest thing that's happened to us." Hanna shrugged.

"Yeah, I guess not." Emily agreed. She closed her eyes for a second and took a deep breath. Her meds were starting to make her feel groggy again.

"You okay?" Aria asked.

"Yeah." Emily smiled weakly. "Just tired."

They heard footsteps approaching. A few seconds later Pam walked into the room.

"Hey." Emily smiled at her mother. "What did the doctor say?"

"He's cautiously optimistic." Pam smiled back at her daughter. "How are you holding up?"

"I'm fine," Emily replied. Pam didn't look like she believed her. "Really, mom. I'm just a little dizzy from the pain meds."

"Uh, girls…" Pam faced her friends, "…I can't begin to tell you how much I appreciate you being here, but…" She felt guilty asking them to leave, but she knew Emily needed rest.

"Visiting hours are over. We get it." Aria stood up.

"If you need anything, let us know." Spencer squeezed Emily's hand.

"I will. Thanks."

"Get some rest, Em." Hanna gently pat Emily's leg.

"We love you." Aria reached down and stroked her arm.

"I love you guys, too," Emily replied.

A few seconds later Emily was alone with her mother in the room. She expected a barrage of questions. Instead, Pam simply sat down next to her daughter and took her hand. Emily sighed and closed her eyes. She tightened her grip on her mother's hand and drifted off to sleep. The pain meds kept her sedated for a while. When she woke up, the room was empty. She looked around and saw a shadow in the corner of the room.

"Mom?" Emily tried to let her eyes adjust to the dark.

"Guess again." The voice made her heart flutter.

"Maya…"

"Hey, there she is." Maya walked over to the bed. She sat down on the edge. "You really scared me back there."

"You came back for me." Emily reached out for Maya's hand.

"Of course I did. You'll always be my girl." Maya took her hand.

Emily knew she was dreaming, but she didn't care. Her dreams felt more realistic than anything else in her life. Time stopped when she was with Maya. She felt safe with her. Maya interlaced her fingers with Emily's. She traced her other hand up Emily's leg. Her touch warmed Emily's entire body. She closed her eyes and sighed.

"Maybe you should go back to sleep." Maya whispered.

"Just…stay with me for a little while." Emily squeezed her hand.

"I'll stay with you forever."

Emily felt her body relaxing because of Maya's soft touch. She let out a content sigh and enjoyed every second with Maya, because she knew eventually she would have to wake up. But for the moment she was safe. She was happy.