A/N: Okay you must if you can listen to the song "Hero" by Chad Kroeger! This chapter was modeled after that song, so look it up on you tube or whatever, it makes the chapter all the more...well I won't spoil it. Enjoy!

Chapter 4

He never drove so recklessly in his entire life. Weaving in and out of mid-day traffic he frantically tried to call her, but when he continued to get her voice mail he became more worried that he too late.

"Pick up!" He frustratingly shouted as he drove onto the docks seeing the boatmen look at him like he was crazy with the way he came to startling stop when he saw her red Volkswagen beetle, "Please…" He prayed that he wasn't too late, she had only left his apartment ten minutes ago he couldn't have been more than five minutes behind her.

He didn't even bother to close the car door, he ignored the angry boatmen and ran out past the small buildings where he knew was a small sweet area where one could enjoy a sunset while looking out at the harbor, "Maximista!"

She sat motioned to sit down when she heard her name only spoken by one person, "Spinelli?" She looked up trying to place the sounds of his voice with a face.

Thank god, he told himself, "Come on!" He motioned to her as he ran down the stairs.

"Spinelli I need to be alone," she tried to be nice about it, but he didn't run away from her.

He put his sweaty nervous palms on her shoulders frantically looking around the place, "Well, you can be alone at Stone Cold's." He grabbed her arm pulling it.

"No," she stood there about to throw a tantrum, "Spinelli, I…" She didn't know how to explain that she needed to be away from him.

"There's no time, come on," he tugged harder and she pushed him away, "Spinelli I'm staying here."

God damn it, he told himself, couldn't she see that something was wrong, "Listen to me!" He yelled at her irrationally, "He's going to kill you!"

She looked at him taken back, but before she could question his words his eyes reacted as if he just heard something.

He quickly looked around, hearing the sound over and over again, it was the sound of a rifle a sniper rifle loading. Maybe it was the video games, maybe it was all the adventures with Stone Cold, but he knew the sound, "It's too…" He looked at the stairs, he looked at the boats in the harbor he looked at the buildings behind him, she was asking him things, but he ignored her, the sound was coming from somewhere, but where, where was this haunting, this eerie…And then he heard her shout, "Spinelli!"

He looked down at her, "We have to get out of here Maxie!" He put his hand on her back glancing up at building nearby them and suddenly he saw him, in the window cracked open, he saw the red dot shimmy from the weapon of death onto her milky skin, "No…"

She heard his faint cry and looked up at him only to follow his gaze, he was right, she was a target, he was right.

He glanced up at her, "Maxie get down!" He quickly grabbed hold of her putting himself in what would be the line of fire.

And they say that a hero can save us.

"Spinelli!" She freaked out as he threw them to the ground where suddenly she heard the loud echoing of gunshots. His eyes squinted as the bullet pierced the flesh of his back near his shoulder, oh it hurt.

Hitting the dock floor he rested his forehead on his fist in front of him where he instantly spit out blood, ahhhhh, if only that was the end of his pain, but it was just the beginning.

"Are…" He slowly breathed, "Are you okay?" He glanced at her hoping it was worth it.

Her eyes fluttered open trying to understand what was going on around her, "Yeah," she glanced at him before looking back noticing this time the blood dribbling down his chin, "Spin."

He coughed to the side of her resting his forehead on his fist again trying to breathe while Maxie found the damp spot on his jacket.

He lifted his head up from his fist where he saw her eyes fixated on something, "Oh…oh Spinelli," her voice was reacting to the blood on her fingers, he was hurt, he was bleeding, he was in pain because of her.

Her hand came into his vision and he quickly grabbed it for he needed the sniper to believe they were dead and her shaking wasn't going to convince him of that, "Shh…" He said as calmly as he could looking down at her hand where he slowly put each finger into his mouth, sucking the blood.

He removed the last finger from his mouth and looked at her hand that was falling weak in his, "All…better," he smiled trying to tell things were going to be okay.

She looked at his tense face, his eyes that were squinting with every breath he took like a stinging feeling, "I should have listened," she wanted to apologize a hundred times, she wanted to go back to the penthouse, she wanted to stay, she wanted this moment to never occur.

"It doesn't…hurt that bad," he tried to confidently tell her, but the truth was that it hurt more then he thought it could, it was nothing compared to being shot in the foot.

She could see he was lying, his emotions said it all, "I'm…" She hiccupped, "So sorry," she slowly.

He kissed her hand once more taking a deep breath, "Promise me…" He let her hand rest on her chest where she instinctively touched his chest, his heart. He looked at her remembering the last time she touched him there.

Spinelli I need you

He smiled, no matter what she thought about their time together, the minute she said those words, the second he worked up the courage to place his hand on her cheek and kiss her ever soft lips, he never regretted a single moment between them, a moment of perfection, a moment one man waits his entire life for.

He leaned over her shoulder moving his lips to her ear, whispering, "Promise me," he closed his eyes their whole relationship flashing before him, "You'll love again."

And they say that a hero can save us.

He kissed her neck taking one more sniff of her perfume before he brushed his face against her cheek to feel as close to her as he did that afternoon they were together and then without hesitance he turned away from her pulling his gun out knowing full well this was the end of Damian Spinelli, his entire existence, his family name, all would die right here.

The sniper ducked down firing a few worthless shots hoping to stop him from shooting so accurately at the window. Finally one of these worthless shots swiftly cruised by him, "Ah…" Spinelli turned to his shoulder where he saw her face, "I'm okay…" He softly smiled as he felt her hands hug his waist trying to keep his balance she told herself, but the truth was that she wanted to be there for him, she wanted to be there for all the times she wasn't.

He glanced away from her to the window where he envisioned himself in the level of a video game, he was James Bond and this was a goon, he took aim and bang, the sniper was dead, but he didn't die without firing one last shot.

Someone told me that love would all save us.

Stone Cold had told him this forty-five minutes ago, his love for Maxie Jones would save her, but Stone Cold had also said his love for her would convince the blonde of her own feelings, where were those such feelings now?

But how can that be?

He saved her the minute she walked into Kelly's asking him to find Wise Georgie's killer, he saved her mind that day, he saved her soul when they together and now he had saved her body.

Look what love gave us.

Love for Georgie brought them together, made them friends, the best, love gave them something they've been looking their entire lives for, each other.

A world full of killing, and blood-spilling,

Gasping for air as he felt a jolt threw him back into her arms, his hand with the deadly weapon slowly fell to the ground while his other hand touched his once white shirt, his eyes mortified at the thin liquid leaking out of him.

That world never came.

No it never would, love would never happen for him, he would never get to hear her utter those words to him, he'd never get to say marriage vows, he'd never get to have beautiful Blonde Ones or brainiac Jackals with her, the life he dreamed would become just another unfulfilled destiny.

"Spinelli!" Her face turned white, he had been doing okay before, she almost believed he could live, but the look in his eyes now, his mouth moving, but nothing coming out sent her into panic mode, it sent her over the deep end, "Oh…oh…oh." She put her hand on his rising chest of blood.

She raised her bright red hand and found herself screaming, "Somebody help!" She shouted but no one could hear her, "Okay…Okay…" She looked around trying to think of something to stop the bleeding, put pressure on the wound, "okay," she pulled him against her.

"I'm…I'm scared," he panted.

She turned to him with her arm around him, "Listen to me, you are NOT going to die." She clenched her jaw seeing the petrified look in his face and then saw as he tried to speak blood seeping out of his mouth.

"You're okay," she looked in his eyes, "You're going to be okay, you have to BELIEVE." She touched his cheek where her eyes wandered to his black jacket, "Okay, I know how we can stop the bleeding," she filed her fingers motioning to remove his jacket but his eyes darted at her.

"Please, let me help you," she trembled knowing this was the only way.

She touched his jacket where he looked at her again not to, "Do you trust me?" She asked and his eyes grew wide, nodding, of course he trusted her.

She kissed his forehead for being so brave as she let his head rest on his chest while she carefully removed the jacket from his arm that had a bullet lodged in his shoulder, "I've almost got..." She walked him through it hearing him huffing in pain. She pulled the jacket off hearing him yell, "I've got it! I've got it!" She told him again letting him no it was over.

She quickly placed the jacket over his chest feeling the small puddle of blood, so much blood, it was more blood then she hoped to ever see ever again.

"Okay," she pressed hard on his chest, "We need to just press this really hard, okay?" She glanced down at him and he nodded, he wished he could say something to calm her fears down, she was an emotional wreck, her eyeliner had run, her hair was mess and her beautiful clothes where covered in his blood, "Th..tha…"

"Don't talk, save your strength," she cupped his cheek, gently rubbing it before pressing her hand harder on his chest.

"Thank, you," he breathed in and out each time letting a little blood drizzle downwards.

He was bleeding so much it was obvious to her in the little bit of medical training she had that the bullet had hit an artery, "It's going to be okay," she tried to assure him with her voice cracking and her tears spilling out of her eyes, who was she kidding? It wasn't going to be okay, he was going to die in her arms, he was going to leave her just like everyone else in her life had.

He began to breathe heavily, "…Max…"

"Don't talk," she looked at him insisting he just sit there and let them try to stop the building, "I'm going to call for help, I'm going to get you some help." She never once looked away from him, the key was eye contact, keep him focused and he won't fade away on you. Her hand searched the docks for her purse and finally she felt it and quickly grabbed it.

"But," he needed to tell her something, it was important to him that she knew she was worthy of his love, that she was not a horrible person who didn't deserve such an emotion to be thrown her way, she was loved and wanted her to know it.

He glanced up at her hand that was quickly dialing numbers, "no…" He touched her arm, "I…There's something…" And then he saw the one thing keeping him from completing his mission.

And they say that a hero can save us.

It was going to take all the strength left in him, but he didn't care, his mission was to protect Maxie Jones at all costs even the cost of his own life. He pushed her down and fired two bullets into the henchman's chest where before he could even celebrate; a pre-smile before he faded away, he felt a gun jammed into the back of his head, "Game over."

He closed his eyes; he was so close, so close it was unbelievable to him that he couldn't catch a break, "I tried."

Spinelli looked at her completely disappointed in himself, he had failed, he had lived up to every insult of Mr. Corinthos Sir, of the unhinged one, of everyone that thought of him to be worthless, he was no hero, all he had done was post pone their deaths by fifteen minutes.

"Any last words?" The henchman shoved the gun harder into his skull.

Yes, he had last words for her, if they were going to die, he wanted her to know, so he smiled with everything he had left, which wasn't much and compiled the energy to speak three words, "I love you."

The henchman as ruthless as his boss laughed, "Aw that's sweet," he then tilted his head to the blonde, "What about you miss, anything you'd like to say to your dying boyfriend before I kill you two?"

She looked at Spinelli who was waiting for her to say something, he believed this was the end for them, but she didn't. She refused to BJ's heart go to waste, she refused to let Georgie's selfless act go undone, she refused to let all the pain Spinelli had been through be for nothing. This was not goodbye; this was not the end of her life nor was it the end of his.

She smiled sweetly at the man Spinelli was blocking, "Can I at least see the face of the man who's about to kill me?"

"Believe me lady, I don't want to kill a fine woman such as yourself, but if it's your dying wish then sure," he eased the gun from Spinelli's head.

Spinelli waited for her sign, for the henchman to come into vision only he had no idea what he was planning to do. If he got a shot, he would try to live as long as he could because the fact of the matter was he was dying, no one had to tell him Maxie didn't need to cover it up, he could feel it in the breaths he took, he could see it on his clothes, he could hear it in his voice. This would probably be the last thing he'd ever do, he my as well make it count.

The henchman came into vision, he was young, handsome on the outside, but his heart was like his boss; cold and undetectable. She smiled and that was the sign Spinelli was looking for.

Spinelli rolled off of her holding his chest while screaming agony where before man had time to react she kicked him in the groin and Spinelli fired the remaining bullets in his gun.

Spinelli froze as the man fell to the ground, it was over, he hoped no one else would come for her that she could get away that Stone Cold could get her to safety or the Law Abiding Ones anyone, but him for he felt himself fading away now, tick tock, tick tock, it was only a matter of time.

Maxie stared at the still man, the henchman who wasn't moving, "Spinelli," a smile came over her face, "Spinelli?" She glanced at him who slowly closed his eyes, exhausted.

She quickly grabbed his jacket and caught him in her arms before carefully lowering him to the dock. Pressing the jacket on his chest, she leaned over his face, "We did it." She tenderly touched his cheek softly speaking, "We fought the bad guys…We did it without Jason!" She believed they could do anything now, someone would come for help, someone was bound to hear the gunshots, Jason probably called for help just in case, someone was coming; Spinelli was going to live.

His lip quivered while smiling, "We're…a good…team."

"I told you, I told you we work well togeth…er," she paused for his eyes began to wander away from hers, "Spinelli stay with me," she began stroking his hair while her hand grabbed onto his, her face just inches from him, "You saved me, you did good…"

He slightly laughed, "I did well."

"Whatever," she chuckled with tears racing down her face, she corrected herself, "You did well."

He smiled before he felt himself beginning to shake, this is it, the taste in his mouth growing strong, "Maximista?" He raised his bloody hand from his chest.

As much as he wanted to touch her, she looked so beautiful in his eyes that he didn't want his blood messing with such perfection.

She grabbed his hand kissing it before resting it against her cheek; she knew he wanted to touch her, but was afraid to do so, "Tell me what it is?"

She heard him choking, his lungs must be filling up with blood now, "I know." She told him what she felt like he was going to say again, but she couldn't form the same words in her mouth, if she did then she felt like all this might be real, like she might actually lose him after the unthinkable just happened, they beat the villains, why can't the good guy come out as a hero for once?

Blood trickled down his chin making him struggled to get the words out, "I…"

She leaned in placing his hand on his bloody chest before stroking his hair again, "Don't…Don't say it." She urged him not to say that he loved her because then he might die, doesn't that always happen? A man professes his love and then dies in the arms of the woman he loves.

"But I do," he whined in an empty hollow voice that spoke the truth, he wanted her to believe.

"I…" He felt tears building up in his eyes now, feeling a final breath come over him, "I wish…we had more time." He took the hand that had gently been rubbing his cheek and he kissed it, "Goodbye, my love."

Her hand fell out of his, his eyes wandered away from hers and then he let out a long gasp coughing blood the ran down his cheek, his eyes closed and now it was up to her.

It isn't the love of a hero, that's why I fear it won't do.

That was intense! Really sad too!

Next Chapter: Will help come? It will, but his life is still in her hands.

Don't forget to review!