The next chapter will be the last. Thank you all for being faithful readers and reviewers, I cannot thank you enough!

Chapter 20

Ella was sitting on the bar at Maggie's place as she started cooking. She was munching on a large cookie she'd bought at the corner bakery. It had smelled so good she couldn't resist.

"So was it actually him?" Maggie asked as she opened a bag of dill pickles.

"I don't know Maggie, it looked like his hair, but I couldn't see his face or anything, so I can't really say." She said. The pickle smell hit her nose and she moaned.

"ohhhh, give me one of those." Ella said reaching. She grabbed a pickle and stuck it in her mouth along with the cookie.

"What are you eating?" Mary said coming up to her.

"Chocolate chip cookie and a pickle." Ella said smiling.

"Ella, that's gross." Maggie said.

"It sounds gross, but god it's good." She said taking another bite. Maggie stared at her for a minute before she shook her head and got back to work. She grabbed the cheese from the fridge and opened it wide. Ella took another bite of the pickle as the cheese smell drifted into her nose. Before she could stop herself she gagged. She felt everything she'd eaten come rushing up and she jumped off the counter and scrambled to the bathroom. She made it just in time to throw herself over the toilet and puke the contents of her stomach up. Pickle and cookie did not taste as good coming up as they did going down.

"Ella, what the hell?" Maggie asked as she rushed into the bathroom. Ella was finished and she dropped back onto the floor.

"I feel like shit." Ella said shaking her head and wiping her mouth on her hand.

"Oh Ella…you're not…you're not pregnant are you?" Maggie asked. Ella's eyes shot open and she shook her head quickly.

"Hell no, I'm on birth control." She said.

"Doesn't matter, one little discrepancy in it and BAM, you're pregnant. That is how I ended up with Mary." Maggie said.

"No, I can't be pregnant. I can't have a baby." She shook her head quickly.

"Calm down, we can make a doctor's appointment, find out for sure." She said quickly. Ella pushed herself off the floor and turned to the sink. No way was she pregnant, she couldn't be, Kelly would die, neither of them was ready for a baby. They weren't even married. Here she was bitching at her sister and now she was in the same boat, possibly. Yeah, stay positive, maybe she wasn't pregnant. Think not pregnant, positive thoughts.

The next day Ella sat silently in the doctor's office, Maggie was sitting in the chair while Ella perched on the table, her hands shaking.

"We can just go you know, I mean I don't have to know today, we'll just wait until I blow up like a balloon." Ella said as she let out a very nervous laugh. Her stomach was in knots and she felt like she might throw up again. A knock at the door sounded and her heart leapt to her throat, she swallowed down the vomit and tried taking several deep breaths as the doctor walked in.

"Well Ms. Dennison, depending on how you're looking at it, either you're going to be very happy or very upset." He said. Ella sighed, that could mean anything.

"Get on with it." she said closing her eyes.

"You're pregnant." he smiled. Everything in Ella's body sank downward, her heart raced, her mouth watered, and she felt like she was about to pass out.

"Are you sure?" Ella asked quickly.

"Blood test shows positive, but we can do a quick sonogram and make sure." He said. Ella didn't want to know, she really didn't want to know, but she needed to know.

"Ok, alright." She said.

Ella walked down the street in a daze, her mind going 90 to nothing. Maggie was walking next to her riddling things off as she carried her bag of medicine.

"Prenatal medicine is expensive." Ella said slowly.

"Huh?" Maggie asked quickly.

"It's expensive, babies are expensive. I mean yeah I can handle it, I'm a doctor for Pete's sake, but they need a solid relationship don't they? Like with a mom and dad, a nice house, white fence, a dog, golden retriever, you know the family dog." Ella rattled off. Maggie stopped and grabbed Ella's arms, turning her to face her.

"Listen to me Ella. You're smart, funny, and so great with my kids, you're a doctor, expenses are not bad at all, and no, children don't have to have a father. Mine get along just fine without one. We live in a nice apartment, no dog, no daddy, and we're fine." She said. Ella swallowed hard and nodded.

"But I have to tell Kelly." She said slowly.

"Of course you have to tell Kelly. He deserves to know. He seems like a great guy Ella, one that's willing to help out, and be around. But if not, then we'll be alright. I'll be right there to help through it all, I swear." Maggie said. Ella nodded slowly as Maggie pulled her into a hug.

"I can do this." Ella said quickly.

"You're damn right you can." Maggie said.

"Yeah, I'm strong, I'm independent, I can do this." Ella said.

"Yes ma'am." Maggie said.

"I'm going to be a mom." Ella smiled.

"You're going to be a mom." Maggie repeated. Ella laughed and smiled widely.

"I'm going to be a mom." She said a little louder.

Ella sat across from Kelly as they ate dinner. She'd chosen a nice restaurant that was decently filled, mostly so that he couldn't make a scene. They'd been together for a while now, nearly six months, not nearly enough time to discuss marriage and babies, but Ella had come to the conclusion that she didn't need to be married in order to have a baby. She and Kelly were not like Becca and Tommy, they didn't need to get married, they could keep dating until they were ready to get married, if that time ever came. If Kelly wanted to be a part of her life and the baby's life then he could, but if not then she needed to know, because if she was going to be alone in this then she needed to start preparing herself.

"So, when is your surgery?" she asked.

"Thursday, I have to be there at 5 am." He said. Ella nodded and took a bite of her steak.

"Well I'm off that day, so I can come if you want." Ella said.

"Of course I want you to come." He smirked.

"Good." She said as the waiter returned.

"How is everything here?" he asked.

"We're good, Ella, you don't want some wine or something?" Kelly asked. Truthfully, there was nothing Ella would like more than a large glass of wine to calm her nerves, but she was a doctor and she knew the effects of alcohol on a baby.

"No, I'm good, thanks." She said. The waiter nodded and left as Kelly raised an eyebrow.

"You're not driving, why aren't you having a glass of wine?" he asked. Ella sighed, she guessed now was as good a time as any.

"I wanted to wait till we were done eating, but I guess I can tell you now." She said putting her fork down. Kelly frowned and sat his down as well.

"I guess this is serious." He said.

"Yeah, it is." She said nodding.

"You're not breaking up with me are you?" he asked with a laugh. Ella shook her head and closed her eyes for a second.

"Ok look, do you remember the night in the field, when we were in Vernon?" she asked. Kelly nodded and smiled.

"Yeah." He said.

"Well my birth control was not effective that day, I don't know why, but it just didn't work." Ella said shaking her head. Kelly's eyes instantly widened.

"Are you saying that you're…" he trailed off as his eyes scanned her.

"Yeah, I'm pregnant." she said in a slight whisper. He sat back in his chair and looked up at the ceiling, his breaths were deep as he tapped his fingers on the table. Ella waited for it to sink it, she waited for him to look back down and take her hand and tell her it would be ok, they could do this, but he just stared at the ceiling.

"Look Kelly, I'm not saying we have to get married, we're not Tommy and Becca, my father's opinion doesn't bother me." she said shaking her head.

"Jeez Ella, how did this happen?" he asked finally looking back down. Ella lifted her eyebrows and smirked.

"Would you like me to explain in detail?" Ella asked.

"I know how it happened, but birth control is your job, you told me you had it covered." He said. Ella dropped back in her seat.

"Are you blaming this on me? It takes two to tango Kelly. I didn't fuck myself." she growled. She noticed several eyes on her and she sighed.

"Look, I'm not doing this, I'm not arguing about this Kelly. I'm pregnant, and I want you to know that I'm not expecting a marriage proposal. I'm not asking for one or anything like that. I want you to make your choices. You can be a part of my life and this child's life if you want, or you can walk away now and never see us again. Your choice Kelly. I'll see you Thursday." She said standing up. She grabbed her purse and hurried out of the restaurant. She was halfway to her apartment when Kelly caught up to her.

"Ella, wait!" he called. She turned and faced him.

"I'm sorry for that, but I'm not ready for this Ella. I've never even had a relationship that lasted longer than six months, and now I'm going to be a father, that makes me in it for the long haul. That's a lot of pressure El." He said. Ella's hormones flared and she laughed.

"Oh I'm sorry that it's a lot of pressure on you. Because if I'm not mistaken I'm the one who is having the baby. I don't get a choice in this Kelly, this baby is in me not you. I told you to walk if you want to. I don't want to hear it anymore Kelly. Make your choice and that's it." she said. She turned on her heel and rushed to her apartment before he could say anything else.

Ella walked into her apartment and closed the door behind her, making sure it was locked. She kicked her heels off and moved into her room to change clothes. She shouldn't have gone off on him like that, he'd had the same reaction she had, he deserved to be nervous and scared. She'd call him tomorrow, he needed to sit on it for a while. She grabbed her pajamas and turned to remove her dress when she spotted the window in the far corner of her room. It was wide open and broken. Ella's heart sped up and she put her hand protectively over her stomach.

"I thought I'd never see you again Ella." his voice said right behind her. Ella couldn't help the involuntary jump as she felt him behind her. Her room door closed and she instantly felt for the phone in the pocket of her dress, trying not to get caught. She decided to talk to him.

"How'd you find me?" she asked slowly. Her hand tightened around the phone. She knew if she pulled it out and turned it on the light would illuminate the room and she couldn't risk that.

"I followed you all from your mom's house to the airport. Waited until they left and then asked them where that plane was headed. There's a ton of hospitals here, so it took me a while to find you, but once I did it was only a matter of watching you and finding out where you lived." He said. Ella nodded and clicked her phone on in her pocket, she couldn't see, but she'd programmed 911 as speed dial 1, just in case.

"Oh no no no!" he grabbed her hand and ripped it out of her pocket. He spun her around and white hot pain tore through her stomach. Her eyes shot open and she looked down to her stomach where the large steak knife was sticking out. It was her knife, from her own kitchen. She couldn't speak as his hand wrapped around the hilt and he ripped it out of her. Her hands scrambled to cover the wound as blood ran in between her fingers. She dropped to her knees and he kneeled down in front of her.

"I wish I could have gotten to have more fun with you, but you always have to ruin it, who cares, we can still have a little fun before all that blood runs out." he said. Ella couldn't feel anything, her body was numb, and all she could think about was the fact that he'd stabbed her in the stomach where her small baby was. Her eyes sank shut as he stood. She fell backward, unable to hold herself up anymore as Bennet started to take his clothes off.

Kelly stood out on the street in front of Ella's building, pacing back and forth, he needed to go apologize, right now. Hell yeah he was scared out of his mind right now, but she was important to him, and she was right, he was just as much at fault as she was. He finally went up to the door and hit the button to her apartment, he waited and waited, but she didn't pick up. Finally he sighed and hit Maggie's button.

"Hello?" she answered after a minute.

"Hey Maggie, it's Kelly. Ella and I had a little fight but I really want to apologize, can you buzz me in?" he asked. The buzzer sounded and Kelly opened the door. He headed down the hallway and knocked loudly on her door. He waited and waited, but no one answered.

"Ella!" he called. Maggie's door opened and she held her hand out, a key sat in her palm.

"Go check on her." Maggie said with a sigh. Kelly nodded his thanks as he took the key and she returned to her home, closing the door. Kelly slid the key in the lock and pushed the door open. As soon as he was in the home he heard a quick movement and a loud grunt, he rushed into her room. The sight before him made his knees buckle, nearly causing him to fall. Ella was laying on the floor, her hands covering a wound on her stomach as blood ran in between them, but the man over her, almost naked was what made Kelly nearly kill over.

"What the hell?" he asked quickly. The man leapt up, knife in hand and ran at Kelly. Kelly jumped into action, he swung at the man, he ducked quickly but came back up. He was clearly insane and all Kelly could think about was getting to Ella. The man swung the knife at Kelly, successfully slashing his arm, not to bad though, Kelly rebounded quickly. He swung back and hit the man hard across the jaw, he crumbled and Kelly kicked the knife away. The man was shaking his head, trying to get his bearings when Maggie came running in.

"Ella!" she screamed.

"Maggie, call 911, now!" Kelly yelled. Maggie nodded furiously and rushed from the room. Kelly pulled his fist back and slammed it into the man's face again, and again, anger taking over his body as he repeatedly hit the man in the face, nose, mouth, eyes.

"Kelly…stop." Ella mumbled. Her small words broke him out of his stupor and he stumbled away from him and to her side, dropping down to his knees he gathered her in his arms.

"Oh god no, come on Ella, stay awake ok?" he said gently. He looked down and saw blood seeping through her fingers. Her hands were shaking and she couldn't hold them still. Kelly grabbed her tank top that lay on the floor and he bunched it up.

"Move your hands baby." He said softly. She slowly pulled her hands away and Kelly pushed the tank top down on the wound. She moaned and arched upward but he held her tightly.

"Shh, it's ok, you'll be fine, it's going to be fine." He said as calmly as he could. Truth was he was scared out of his mind, he didn't know if she was going to be ok, she was bleeding a lot, and in his experience blood loss like this was dangerous.

"The…baby." Ella mumbled, her green eyes opening and closing slowly. Kelly's heart raced more, he'd completely forgotten about the baby. It was in her stomach, the same place where the knife had gone.

"I don't know baby, I don't know." he said shaking his head. He heard the ambulance getting closer and closer. Ella closed her eyes and Kelly shook her lightly.

"Ella, Ella, come on sweetie, come on please open your eyes." he begged. He heard the ambulance pull up in front of the building, but Ella's eyes didn't open, and her chest didn't move.

"Ella! Come on!" he said shaking her. Nothing, nothing at all. The paramedics rushed in, he recognized them, but couldn't recall their names. His hands were removed and he was pulled away gently as they took over. He sat back on his ass, watching as they worked furiously, he couldn't do anything as tears sprang to his eyes. He didn't know what to do. He was helpless for the first time in a long time.

Kelly paced the waiting room, his hands continually moving over his face and over his head. His mind was going 90 to nothing, he fell down into a chair and ran his hands across his face, finally dropping them into his lap. He looked down at the red spots on his hands, where her blood had been. He stood back up quickly, his head snapped up as the front doors opened. Shay, Casey, Dawson, and the Chief came rushing in.

"What are you all doing here?" he asked slowly.

"When you didn't answer I called Ella's phone, her neighbor answered and told me what happened. I called Dawson, she called Casey, he called the Chief." Shay said. Kelly nodded quickly and turned as he heard the ER doors open. It was just another family member of a patient.

"What happened Kelly?" The chief asked.

"Her Ex husband, he's crazy, he broke into her place, stabbed her." he said swallowing a hard lump in his throat.

"Shit." Shay said.

"Yea, I don't know anything yet." He said looking back toward the doors. Shay put her hand on his shoulder and squeezed.

"You guys don't need to stay. Thanks for coming, I know she'll appreciate it, I'll let her know." Kelly said. He wasn't even facing them as he talked, completely ignoring the fact that they were there.

"Have you eaten Kelly, maybe you should sit down?" Dawson said slowly. Kelly realized that he was probably in shock, but he didn't really care.

"I ate dinner with Ella, not hungry." He said.

"Kelly it is nearly 5 AM." Casey said. His eyes widened slightly, he had no clue he'd been here that long. He realized what time it was though when Maggie appeared at the front doors, a child on each hand. She came rushing in and quickly sat both children down before she turned to Kelly.

"Anything?" she asked. Kelly shook his head and offered her a tight smile before he went back to pacing. Maggie turned to the group and stuck her hand out.

"Maggie, Ella's neighbor." She said.

"Shay, Kelly's roommate."

"Dawson, work with him."

"Casey, fellow lieutenant."

"Chief Boden, his boss."

Maggie nodded her head and took each of their hands before she glanced at Kelly. He was completely out of it. His eyes were vacant, his hands and clothes bloody, he was barely acknowledging anyone. Maggie approached him and took his arm to stop his pacing.

"Kelly, listen to me. You need to eat something and relax, she's going to be fine." Maggie said as reassuringly as she could. His vacant eyes stared at her for a long moment before they briefly closed tightly. When they opened Maggie could see unshed tears there, peeking at the corners of his eyes. Maggie grabbed him and pulled him into a hug. Kelly's arms slowly wrapped around her and she hugged him back. Despite the fact that his friends where here, he still found comfort in that hug. He pulled away quickly when the doors opened and a doctor walked out.

"Ella Dennison?" the man asked. Kelly stepped forward.

"Hi, I'm Dr. Nichols, first let me say how much I enjoy working with Ella, she really is a great girl." He said as he opened the file. Kelly nodded quickly, just wishing he would get on with it.

"Ok, the knife punctured her stomach and she suffered a lot of blood loss. We managed to go in and repair the damage done by the knife to her body. We gave her a blood transfusion and put her on some fluids. She's out right now, but we expect her to make a full recovery." He said smiling. Kelly let out the breath he was holding and a smile appeared on his face, but there was still one reason his breath was still not coming out like it was supposed to.

"And the baby?" he asked. He knew the men and women around him had heard him, but he didn't care. The doctor sighed and pursed his lips.

"Unfortunately we've been unsuccessful in getting a heartbeat on the baby. It's been through a lot tonight and I'm just not sure if a fetus that young could make it." he said slowly. Kelly's heart sank quickly, it dropped down to his stomach and he felt nauseas.

"What should I tell her?" he asked.

"Nothing until we know for sure. She should be waking up soon. She's on the second floor, room 212." He said. Before Kelly let him walk away he quickly spoke up,

"The guy that was brought in with her, Bennet, how is he?" Kelly asked. The doctor sighed and pursed his lips again.

"I'm only saying this because Ella is a friend, she's safe, he won't be coming after her again. He's dead, blunt force trauma to the head, self defense." He said. Kelly nodded and thanked him.

"Baby?" Shay asked when he turned around. Kelly didn't want to deal with the probing questions of his friends right now, but he felt he should at least give them a little explanation.

"Yeah, she's pregnant." he said. He saw the sad, heartfelt looks they gave him and he could barely stand it.

"I'm going up." he said quickly. Maggie suggested they all give him some time first and they nodded along as he left for the elevator. Kelly was in her room within minutes and he nearly lost it. She looked so fragile, her normally tanned skin was pale from blood loss, her body looked small and almost sank down into the bed. There were several IVs and cords running from her body and Kelly slowly sank down into the chair next to her. His hand shook slightly as he reached out and took her small hand. It didn't have any needles in it so he squeezed it gently.

"I'm so sorry this happened to you." He said shaking his head. He laid his head on the bed next to her and choked back tears. He felt movement, and he looked up quickly. Ella's eyes were open and she was staring down at him.

"Kelly." She said softly, barely a whisper.

"Hey, hey there, how are you feeling, do I need to get the nurse?" he asked.

"No, no I'm ok." She said shaking her head back and forth.

"I'm so so sorry Ella." he said quietly as tears formed in his eyes.

"No, no, I'm fine." She said lifting her hand and putting it on his cheek. He looked in her eyes and nodded.

"Is the baby ok?" she asked blinking back tears of her own. Kelly swallowed hard and shook his head.

"They don't know yet." He said. He watched as a few tears rolled down her cheek. He stood quickly and ran his fingers over her cheek and leaned down. He kissed the tears off her cheeks and leaned back just a little.

"We're going to be ok." He said.

"He's dead isn't he?" Ella asked.

"Who?" Kelly asked.

"Bennet, he's dead." She whispered.

"Yeah, he's dead. Blunt force trauma to the head." Kelly said softly. Ella closed her eyes and nodded.

"It's ok, you're safe, we're ok." He said.

"Kelly, I don't know." she said, her eyes still closed.

"I love you." Kelly said quickly. Ella's eyes shot up and she shook her head.

"No Kelly, you don't mean that." she said.

"I mean it, I mean it with every fiber in my body. I love you Ella Dennison, and I only realized it tonight when I almost lost you. I don't want that to happen again, ever again, I don't want to lose you Ella. I love you." He said. Ella smiled and nodded.

"Ok." She said.

"Ok?" he asked.

"I love you too Kelly." She said.