"Back against the wall!" Karofsky had only had a second to process the presence of the armed man before he came fully into the light and pointed the gun right at them. "And hands up!"
The others slowly, reluctantly obeyed, but Hudson kept Kurt held tight to his chest and didn't move an inch. Karofsky, acting on instinct, moved to the side slightly as well as backwards.
Hummel raised his head and said in the same clear, arrogant tone that had been his hallmark for so long, "Put me down, Peter." Finn looked confused and as much as he admired Finn's courage, Karofsky decided he had to back up whatever Hummel's plan was, since at least he had a plan.
"Do it, Peter," he grunted.
Clearly conflicted, Hudson very gently lowered Kurt and supported him to the wall, where Hummel leaned and eyed Heimstra. "You are so very, very pathetic," Hummel announced in clear, imperious tones, like he was some kind of king addressing a peasant. "I doubt you even guessed that I was the one who got you fired. I was the one who found out that you were embezzling and I was the one who demanded that Dad fire you."
Karofsky gaped. Hummel might have had a plan but it sure looked like a terrible plan. Heimstra took a menacing step forward. "Shut it, you lit-"
"Oh, don't think that she left you just because you lost your job. She left you because you're a pathetic loser." Kurt actually took a step forward, catching himself with his shoulder against the wall when he stumbled, and then taking another. His eyes never left Heimstra's but Karofsky noticed that his left foot was jerking as if he were trying to kick some kind of moving target. It took him a moment but he figured it out. Kurt was trying to signal for them to run while he kept Heimstra engrossed. That's still a dumb plan since it ends up with you dead. Karofsky's own plan wasn't much better, but what the hell. Heimstra was holding the gun now like he was going to pistol whip Hummel. Karofsky waited until it looked like Heimstra was going to take another step forward and charged.
He heard the gun go off and though he didn't even have time to think it, desperately prayed that his action hadn't killed Kurt. He was on the ground on top of Heimstra, the gun had rattled across the floor, and he couldn't stop punching until Azimio and Evans pulled him off by force. He turned, dreading seeing Kurt bleeding, or already dead.
Kurt had sunk to a sitting position on the floor and Karofsky's guts clenched in horror until he saw that there were no more injuries on him. Hudson was visibly shaking and Azimio was quietly being very, very sick in the corner. Chang had grabbed the gun and was holding it as though he thought it might go off by itself, while Evans was carefully putting the two jackets around Kurt again.
Finally, he heard sounds from outside. "Police, open up!"
"Down here!" he yelled back and went up to find them. Officer Hammond was the first one in and looked at him suspiciously. Karofsky shrugged in his general direction and led them downstairs. Slane took in the situation with a glance and knelt next to Kurt.
"The ambulance is coming in a minute. They'll get you to the hospital and we'll take your statement when you're ready." She looked up at Finn. "Can you tell me what happened, Mr. Hudson?"
"Uh...it was really all Karofsky's idea. He's the one who figured it all out."
"That's what whichever one of you called said."
"He risked his life." Kurt sounded absolutely confused and Karofsky couldn't really blame him.
"They," he jerked his thumb at the police, "They thought I did it and so I kind of had to figure it out." He cleared his throat and added, quickly, "I had to save my own ass."
"By trying to get yourself shot," Kurt commented, dryly. Karofsky for the life of him couldn't figure out what Kurt's look at him meant.
Two EMTs came into the room and began a quick, expert examination. One, a short-haired brunette, touched her radio. "Bring down the cutters, he's still got handcuffs and a Marley's ghost chain." She grinned at Kurt. "I probably wasn't supposed to say that." She stuck a thermometer in mouth and pulled it out after a moment. "Well, you've got dehydration, fever, some of those cuts don't look good, and there are some things we'll want to x-ray. But while I'm not supposed to say anything like this, I think you're going to be okay." She was carefully wiping his face and chest with something that looked like it sometimes stung, since Hummel was wincing every now and again. The other one, an older man, was doing the same with his hands and arms.
Kurt smiled at her shakily, "You had me at 'going to be okay'."
"Jerry Maguire is responsible for a lot." She looked around and snickered as she saw Azimio. "It's always the biggest ones who get sick. Or faint. Or both."
"Finn's scared of needles," Hummel volunteered and she snickered again as she fit a brace around his neck. "I don't think there's any injury there, but just to be safe."
A tall man came down the stairs with what looked like medium-sized Jaws of Life and cut away the handcuffs. The EMTs joined hands to create a seat for Kurt and brought him up the stairs and into the ambulance. Hudson climbed in behind them and took Kurt's hand as the doors closed behind them.
AN: Just one chapter to go, I'm pretty sure.
The bunnies might not get out as quickly after this week, since a combination of a week off work and several long train or bus rides meant a lot of time to write.
