Author's note: Well, here it is! Chapter twenty-one. I'm so sorry for two things. The 1st is that it took so long. Thank you all for being so patient. The 2nd is that the chapter itself is so long. I had to cram a lot in at once and it was difficult. This story will be ending in just a few chapters, but I'm officially announcing that there will be a sequel! Make sure to read and review. Love you all.

Chapter Twenty-One

Eddie

By the time Eddie realized what had just happened, her ears were ringing and there was glass everywhere and Jamie was screaming into his cell phone while yelling something to her at the same time. Panic was clutching her chest in its fist, squeezing until she could no longer think or breathe or move.

Over the ringing in her ears, Eddie could hear Jamie telling her to stay down and to cover her head. It was muffled, but she could hear him. Then, another shot rang out. Jamie whipped the Mustang to the right swiftly so that the bullet just grazed Eddie's side of the car. Somebody was shooting out of the passenger side window of the SUV. That much was obvious.

Eddie crouched down, closed her eyes, kept her arms over her head, and prayed – she never prayed – that Jamie wouldn't get hit. Suddenly, Eddie was hit with that image, the image of Jamie being shot and her holding him as he bled to death, and it damn near knocked any breath she had left right out of her. Her entire body started to shake.

Eddie had no idea how long she sat like that. It was almost as if she had blacked out completely from the stress of the situation, something she knew could happen without her control as her mind's way of coping and protecting itself. For all she knew, it could have been a minute or an hour, but the next thing she knew, there was a hand on her shoulder, and the ringing in her ears was starting to disappear slowly. She could hear Jamie's voice clearly. "Eddie! Are you hit?" He sounded frantic, and that panic in his voice really brought Eddie back to reality.

Eddie realized that she had all but curled up into a ball, was rocking back and forth, had tears streaming down her face, and was shaking so hard she was nearly seizing. The car was at a complete stop, pulled off on a side street. She was confused briefly until she saw the shattered glass in the backseat. Everything came rushing back to her, and the panic descended on her once again. She sat up slowly, trying to connect her mind with her body. The first things she noticed were the dull but throbbing pain in her head and the stinging sensation on her face, as if she had been stung by a thousand bees.

Jamie gently grabbed her chin and turned her face towards him. Once again, it was as though Jamie was behind foggy glass. She could barely make out his features, but she could see him enough to see the sheer panic in his face. "Eddie, what hurts? Talk to me so I know you're okay. An ambulance is on the way and Danny will be here soon."

Eddie's tongue felt massive in her mouth, and there was a lump in her throat, threatening to choke her. Her mouth was dry as the desert. It took her a moment to find her voice. "My head hurts a little... And my face." Trying to clear her vision, Eddie reached up and rubbed her eyes, closing them momentarily. When she opened them again, she could see a bit more clearly. Jamie looked terrified. Unhurt, but terrified. "What happened?" she croaked out, studying Jamie up and down, looking for injuries through her blurry vision. "Are you hurt?"

Jamie's hand reached over to pick glass out of Eddie's hair. Eddie gathered that her face was stinging from being sprayed with glass, but she couldn't be sure. "The back window was shot out, and then a bullet grazed your side of the car," Jamie explained, out of breath with panic. "I'm not hit. I swerved right and we lost him." Eddie was wriggling in her seat, and Jamie reached a hand over to steady her. "Eddie, I need you to stay still until the bus gets here. We need to make sure you're okay."

Eddie didn't have the energy to argue. She suddenly had flashes from the accident she'd been in two years before, when she'd been kidnapped by Russell Price, and Jamie, Danny, and Baez had intervened by crashing into the car he'd taken her in. Jamie had found her duct-taped, scraped up, and terrified in the back seat, and after he cut the duct tape, he'd told her to stay still and she'd completely refused. Not a minute later, she was sitting on her ass on the sidewalk, where Jamie had led her when she nearly passed out in his arms upon insisting on getting out of the car.

She knew to listen to him this time.

As they sat there waiting for help to arrive, Eddie's shock began to wear off slowly, and the harsh, horrible reality of what had just happened hit Eddie like a ton of bricks. Tears started pouring down her face and she tried to swipe them away, only to find her hand covered in blood when she pulled it away. Jamie noticed before she had a chance to wipe it on her pants. "Eddie, don't touch your face. There could still be glass in your cheek," he said, grabbing her hand and holding it in his. He inspected the left side of her face, the side the glass had come in contact with, and that was when he noticed that she was crying, despite Eddie's best efforts to hide it. His face softened, and he squeezed her hand. "Eddie, please don't cry. You're okay."

More tears spilled out of Eddie's eyes and she shook her head. "No, I'm not. None of this is okay. We were shot at, Jamie. What the hell is okay about that? About any of this?"

Before Jamie could answer, the ambulance rolled up, with a squad car as well as Danny and Baez not far behind. Two paramedics, a man and a woman, came bounding out of the ambulance, each holding a medical bag and a gurney, which Eddie had no intention of getting on. The woman came to Eddie's side and the man to Jamie's. The woman looked like she was maybe in her mid-forties, and she looked like she was tired of her job.

"I'm Shannon and I'll be taking care of you today. What's your name?" the woman said, slipping a blood pressure cuff around Eddie's arm.

"Eddie Janko."

Shannon asked Eddie a few more questions, like her age, date of birth, blood type, and if anything was hurting her. Eddie, being Eddie, downplayed it. "My head hurts a little, and my face." She pointed to the cuts on the left side of her face.

Jamie knew her far too well, knew she would be downplaying it, and said, "She has a TBI and a resulting subdural hematoma from an attack a few weeks ago. She also has a cracked wrist that's still healing."

Eddie couldn't help but roll her eyes, a mixture of amused and annoyed. "Sorry. He's overprotective," Eddie said to Shannon, making sure she said the "overprotective" part loudly enough that Jamie could hear. "I'm going to the doctor tomorrow for a scan of my head, so if you could just patch these cuts on my face up, that would be great. I didn't hit my head or anything like that."

Eddie could tell that Shannon wanted to ask what had happened, but probably knowing that that was the police's job, she didn't ask, and Eddie didn't volunteer. She didn't want to bring anybody else into this clusterfuck of a situation.

After checking Eddie's blood pressure – which was shockingly stable – and shining a light into Eddie's eyes, Shannon pulled glass out of Eddie's left cheek with tweezers, and Eddie couldn't help but cry out a few times in pain. When Shannon was sure all of it was out, she rubbed them down with an alcohol wipe – holy ouch – and covered them with Band-Aids. Eddie was asked two more times if she would go to the hospital and she refused, so Shannon gave her a waiver to sign.

Shannon returned to the ambulance and Eddie remained in the car, knowing she shouldn't get out until the area was properly cleared and cordoned off. Jamie was still being treated, the male paramedic putting a butterfly suture over a small cut on Jamie's left temple. Jamie refused to go to the hospital as well, and when the waiver was signed, the other paramedic joined Shannon in the ambulance.

"You all good?" Jamie asked Eddie, his face full of concern as he looked her over, studying the now-covered gashes on her face.

Eddie nodded and reached out to grab Jamie's chin in her hand, tilting it sideways to inspect his face the same way he had done hers before the ambulance had arrived. "We don't look too bad for having just been shot at, do we?" Eddie said, trying to lighten the mood. It halfway worked, because Jamie smiled at her and shook his head incredulously.

"I have a feeling I'll be taking another sick day today," Jamie said, and Eddie felt elation, because truthfully, she wanted nothing more than to go back to the apartment, curl up into Jamie's arms, and never leave again.

Before Eddie could say anything, Danny and Baez approached the car and motioned for Jamie and Eddie to come out. Eddie climbed out of the Mustang as slowly as she could, but not slow enough. A feeling of lightheadedness washed over her and she had to grab onto the edge of the car to keep her balance. Jamie, of course, didn't miss a beat and was over to her in what she swore was half a second. "Eddie, are you alright? Do you need to sit down?" He had his hands tight on her shoulders and he was staring into her eyes, that terrified look back on his face. "I knew you should have gone in the ambulance and gotten checked out. You could have hurt your head worse or the stress could have done something or-"

Eddie stopped him by putting her violently shaking hands on either side of his face, careful to avoid the gash on his cheek. "I'm okay. I'm just a little lightheaded," she assured him, stroking his skin with her thumb. "Calm down. I'm okay and you're okay." She couldn't stop herself from leaning forward and pecking him on his unhurt cheek. Danny and Baez were watching (closely), but frankly, Eddie didn't care. Not now.

Although worry was still written all over his face, Jamie just nodded and grabbed Eddie's hand. "Let's get out of here," he said, squeezing her hand tightly.

Danny and Baez led them over to the additional squad car that had arrived, where two officers questioned them extensively outside. Jamie explained everything that had been going on with Brian, and that this afternoon they had been shot at by people in an SUV who had been tailing them. Eddie spoke only when asked questions, cold and exhaustion overwhelming her all of a sudden. She slumped against Jamie, shivering where they stood, and his arm came around her so that she was pulled into his side. She was trying desperately to stop her teeth from chattering. The male cop was going on about traffic cameras and witness statements and other things of that sort. Eddie tuned him out, unable to focus on what he was saying.

Ten minutes passed. Then fifteen. Then twenty. Finally, when Eddie let out a wheezing, deep cough, Jamie gave her a squeeze and said, "Eddie, why don't you go sit in Danny's car? You shouldn't be out in this cold." She could hear the questioning officer protesting, but she didn't care. She didn't have anymore information to give him, and her tongue felt like it was freezing in her mouth, never mind the fact that she couldn't feel her feet or her hands.

Eddie knew better than to argue. Baez led her to the car and opened the backseat door for her. The car was warm with heat blasting full-force. Eddie couldn't feel her toes or her fingers at all, so she moved to where she was directly in front of the stream of heat coming from the front seat. "I'll be right back, okay?" Baez said, giving Eddie a squeeze on the shoulder before closing the door gently and walking back over to Danny, Jamie, and the other two cops.

In the comforting warmth of the car, Eddie put her head back against the seat, curled up, and closed her eyes, trying her hardest to ignore the pounding of her head and the stinging of her face. She found herself drifting off, and the last thought on her mind was one she'd had far too often lately.

This is all my fault.

Jamie

When the tow truck arrived to remove the Mustang and take it to get repaired, Jamie, Danny, and Baez returned to the squad car, where they found Eddie sound asleep in the backseat.

Jamie smiled and slowly slid into the backseat beside her, trying not to disturb her. She must have sensed his presence even in sleep, because she tucked herself in next to him, her legs pulled up onto the seat. He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close, her head landing in the spot between his neck and shoulder. He subconsciously rubbed her arm, and he could see Danny looking at them in the mirror, smiling.

They definitely know something's up, Jamie thought, giving Danny a smile back. The ride was silent for a few minutes, with Eddie snuggling closer into Jamie's side by the second and Jamie stroking her hair. Finally, it was Danny who spoke first. "Still don't think the safe house is a good idea, Jamie?" he asked, whispering so as not to wake Eddie.

Jamie stared out the window for a moment, contemplating. "I personally think it's a good idea. I really do," he whispered. "It's Eddie that needs convincing. I'll talk to her about it when she wakes up. Maybe what happened in the car today will make her change her mind." Truthfully, Jamie was too exhausted to think about it right then and there.

Luckily, Danny merely nodded and continued to stare forward, biting the inside of his cheek like he sometimes did when he was deep in thought. The rest of the car ride was silent, and they had pulled up to Eddie's building before they knew it. Exhaustion had hit Jamie like a ton of bricks, and he knew right then that he would be using another one of his sick days, no qualms about it.

"Jamie, talk to Eddie about Dal and about the safe house situation and let me know, okay? This is time sensitive, kid. You know this. And please, for the love of God, be careful. If you need a ride, call me or Linda or Dad or somebody." Danny's voice was stern but his expression was soft and full of concern.

Jamie agreed and thanked both Danny and Baez before sliding out of the warmth of the car. He very seriously considered not waking Eddie up and just carrying her instead, but he knew she would probably wake up anyway during that process, so he lightly bent down and stroked the side of her face. "Eddie, wake up," he whispered, and when she didn't even stir, he stroked her hair back from her face and said it again, a little louder. This time, she woke with a start, her eyes wild. Jamie immediately put his hands on either side of her face. "Calm down, Eddie, it's just me. You fell asleep in Danny and Baez's car. We're at your building."

Eddie's cheeks flamed red as she realized that Danny and Baez were watching. "Sorry," she said, looking down at her feet.

Danny shook his head and waved a hand. "You have nothing to be sorry for, Janko. You've both been through a lot. Go get some rest."

Eddie thanked Danny and Baez before climbing out of the car, where Jamie wrapped his hands around her elbows and guided her, trying to avoid the ice patches that seemed to be everywhere. "That was embarrassing," Eddie mumbled as they finally walked through the doors of her building.

"You never have to be embarrassed for anything, Eddie," Jamie assured her, squeezing her hand as they started to climb the stairs, one of his hands still around her elbow. "Especially not with me or Danny or Baez."

Halfway up the stairs, Eddie started to cough and had to stop to rest. She leaned into Jamie as she caught her breath, and he studied her closely with concern. Her cough was rough and ear-piercing, and as Jamie studied her, he realized that her coloring was off as well. Eddie caught him eyeing her, straightened up, and said, "I'm good. Let's keep it moving."

Jamie put his hands on Eddie's shoulders to stop her. "Eddie, stop. Slow down. Your cough sounds horrible, and I think you need to rest another minute before you climb twenty more steps." Her cough sounded worse than horrible; it was shrill and barking.

Eddie huffed in exasperation. "Jamie, I'm fine. I just want to get up to the apartment and sit the hell down. Maybe drink some tea or whiskey with honey or whatever the hell it is that people do when they have a cough. Plus, it's freezing in this damn stairwell."

She had a point. Jamie had chill bumps on his arms and he was trying consciously not to shiver. "Fine. But we can stop again if you need to."

They started walking again, Jamie keeping his arm firmly around Eddie's waist. He studied her face every few steps, trying to make sure she wasn't about to pass out. "We don't really have time to keep stopping, Reagan. You have a tour to get to."

Jamie scoffed, shaking his head. "No, Eddie, I don't. After this morning, I'm not leaving you here. Obviously, Brian still has minions out trying to take us down since the bastard can't do it himself... I'm just not taking that chance. Not with you." Jamie cringed a bit at how mushy he sounded, but a little smile was quirking at Eddie's lips. "Plus, I don't know about you, but I want to go back to the apartment and sleep all day. I have plenty of vacation time to do so."

Jamie was expecting Eddie to argue, but she didn't. She just kept walking, coughing every once in a while and rolling her eyes every time Jamie suggested they stop, even though she was clearly exhausted and sick.

When they finally did reach the apartment, Eddie was nearly doubled over and heaving, and Jamie felt sick just watching her and hearing her barking cough. The frigid cold had obviously affected her horribly, and that was all the motivation Jamie needed to not get her out in it again until her appointment tomorrow.

Eddie leaned on Jamie heavily as they entered the apartment. Jamie could feel her shaking and feel how cold her hands were. Her teeth were chattering violently. "Eddie, are you alright?" he asked as he armed the alarm system and locked every lock. Eddie had dropped onto the couch and was still violently shivering. She looked miserable.

"Not r-really," Eddie stuttered between chattering teeth. "I f-feel like h-hell."

Wordlessly, Jamie walked over to Eddie and crouched down in front of her, pulling her shoes and socks off in one tug. His heart leapt into his throat when his fingers came into contact with her feet. They were white as a sheet and ice cold. What worried him almost as much was that Eddie didn't even protest when he examined them, almost like she couldn't feel his fingers on her skin. "Eddie, can you feel your feet at all?"

Eddie's head had lolled back against the couch, and her eyes were closed. "A little. I feel l-like my s-socks may have b-been wet."

Jamie frowned and pulled Eddie's boots and socks over to him, and lo and behold, snow had soaked through the bottom of her boots and had soaked her socks, meaning she'd been standing outside that whole time and walking up all those stairs with frozen feet.

Jamie threw Eddie's shoes to the side and moved up on the couch beside her, brushing her hair back from her face. "Eddie, I need you to stay awake and tuck your feet under you. I'm going to go get you some dry clothes, okay?" Her cheeks were bright red and her closed eyes were red-rimmed.

Eddie nodded, tucking her feet underneath her as Jamie stood from the couch. "Third drawer down in my d-dresser. T-there's s-s-sweatpants and an extra w-warm sw-sweatshirt in t-there."

Jamie nodded, forehead creased with worry as his strong partner – soon to be his ex-partner – lay on her couch, stuttering and slurring and shivering violently. "Okay. Don't move. I'll be right back."

Jamie didn't give her a chance to respond before he literally ran down the hallway to Eddie's bedroom, grabbing a thick pair of sweatpants and the balled-up sweatshirt in the corner of the drawer, as well as a pair of socks. When he returned to the living room, Eddie had curled up on her side on the couch, almost in the fetal position. Her eyes were open this time, and she was staring blankly ahead.

Jamie walked over to her and crouched beside her again, his hand reaching down to stroke her hair before falling on her shoulder. She wasn't shivering as violently as before, but it was still obvious something wasn't right. Jamie held out the clothes to her and she took them with shaking hands. "Let me help you to your bedroom so you can change, okay?" Jamie asked as Eddie unsteadily got to her feet.

Jamie watched Eddie's every move (even more than usual) as he led her to her bedroom, his arm tightly around her waist. Saying nothing, Eddie plopped down on the bed, wrapping her arms around her own shivering frame. Eddie changed right there in her bedroom while Jamie went into the hall and pulled his cell phone out, speed-dialing Linda's number.

Linda answered after only one ring, and Jamie hurriedly explained what had happened with the SUV, explaining Eddie's symptoms and making sure to include that they'd been questioned outside in the freezing cold. Linda immediately launched into an explanation. "Okay, I'm sure you've already gotten her into dry clothes, so what you need to do next is keep her calm but keep her moving, and have her drink warm fluids that aren't caffeinated or alcoholic. Do not let her warm herself by a fire or heater or anything like that because she's more likely to get burned since she's probably lost feeling in her hands and feet. If none of this works, put her hands and feet in warm water. If she's completely alert, put her in a warm bath, but do not leave her even if she is alert. You can also try a heating pad or a hot water bottle, but at low heat only."

Jamie's head was spinning and he struggled a bit to process everything. Before he had a chance to say anything, Linda added, "And Jamie, you need to keep yourself calm, too. For Eddie's sake and for your own. If she sweats, her body temperature will drop even more."

"Okay. Thanks so much, Linda," Jamie said, blowing out a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding.

"It's no problem. If you need me to come over there and stay with Eddie or help with anything, let me know," Linda reminded him.

Jamie thanked her once again, and they hung up just as Eddie came shuffling down the hallway in the clothes he'd brought her. She was bracing herself on the wall for support. She looked sick and sad and scared and exhausted and Jamie was sick of seeing her that way. It took everything he had for him not to run over to her and help her – something that had become second nature – but with Linda's instruction to keep her moving in the forefront of his mind, he let Eddie do her thing.

"Who was that?" Eddie asked, gesturing to the cell phone still in his hands as she shuffled over to the couch and plopped down on it. Jamie was relieved to hear that her teeth weren't chattering so hard she was stuttering anymore.

"That was Linda. She gave me some tips on how to get your body temperature up," he informed her. Clearly, Eddie still had her sense of humor – a wicked one, at that – because she raised her eyebrows suggestively and gave him a half-smile that nearly made his heart stop. It was only then that he realized how his words sounded. "Get your mind out of the gutter, Janko. So, hot tea or decaf coffee? That's one of the things Linda told me to try: give you something warm to drink that doesn't have caffeine."

"Decaf coffee?" Eddie echoed with a look of pure disgust. "Hell no. I'd rather drink my own pee. Hot tea, please. There's a box of mint tea in the cabinet above the sink."

"That's a disgusting visual, but okay," Jamie said, stifling a laugh as he went to the kitchen.

"What else did Linda say we should try?" Eddie asked as she flipped the TV on, turning it to the channel that constantly aired Friends re-runs.

"She said to keep you moving, have you drink hot tea or coffee, and if that doesn't work, try a warm water bath." At the word "bath," Eddie whipped her head around again and stared at him with a questioning look on her face. He quickly added, "Just your hands and feet first. Then if that doesn't work, we can try putting your whole body in, but apparently that's a last resort. Also, you can try a heating pad or hot water bottle." Jamie shrugged, dipping the tea bag into the coffee mug in front of him.

Eddie chewed the skin on her lips for a minute, obviously pondering something. "I vote tea, my heating pad, and curling up on the couch in front of the TV. How does that sound?"

Jamie smiled and nodded his head as he padded back into the living room and handed Eddie her tea. "That sounds perfect to me." Eddie's hands shook violently as she took the mug, and Jamie kept his hands over hers as she took a sip, just in case.

After a couple sips, Eddie let out a moan of satisfaction. "This is perfect. My throat hurts." She took slow sips and Jamie watched her carefully, terrified that a tremor would throw the cup out of her hands and the tea would scald her. The worst case scenario was always what popped into Jamie's head when it came to Eddie, and he hated it. "Can you get the heating pad? It's under the bathroom sink."

Jamie squeezed Eddie's knee and stood from the couch, leaving Eddie sipping her tea. After he retrieved the heating pad, he returned to the living room and plugged it in, putting it on the lowest setting possible and handing it to her.

After finishing her tea – much to Jamie's delight – Eddie laid down on her side on the couch and scrunched up as tight as she could go, curling her body around the heating pad. Jamie could see that she was still shivering even with warm clothes and her heating pad, and Jamie knew with one look at her that there was no way he was going to work. Even if her teeth weren't chattering anymore, Jamie could tell Eddie still felt awful, and there was no way he was going anywhere.

Jamie reached down and stroked Eddie's hair away from her face, and she leaned into his touch. "I'll be right back, okay? I'm going to call the 12th and let them know I'm not coming in," he told her. Once again, she didn't argue, instead just nodding her head and smiling half-heartedly at him.

When Jamie returned from making the call, he took his seat on the arm of the couch, not wanting to crowd Eddie. "Jamie?" Eddie said, toying with a string on the blanket she'd pulled over herself.

"Yeah?"

Eddie looked sheepish all of a sudden, something Jamie rarely saw from her. It took a lot to fluster her or make her nervous. He'd learned that pretty quickly.

However, Jamie was obviously easy to fluster, because what Eddie said next gave him butterflies. "Will you lay here with me and rub my back? I don't want to be alone right now." She stood up slowly and gestured towards the couch.

Smiling but trying not to seem too eager, Jamie rounded the corner of the couch and, after kicking off his shoes, planted himself in the spot she'd just vacated to make room for him. He positioned himself so that he was laying on his back with his head on the arm of the couch, his legs stretched out almost the entire length of the sofa. "Come here," he told Eddie once he was comfortable.

Wasting absolutely no time, Eddie laid down on his right side, closest to the back of the sofa. His right arm came around her naturally as she situated the heating pad onto her stomach so that it was in between them a little. She looked sleepy, and frankly, the warmth of Eddie's body and the heating pad was enough to make Jamie feel drowsy himself.

As she'd requested, Jamie slipped his hand just under Eddie's sweatshirt and ran his calloused fingers up and down her back, tracing random patterns on her skin as Friends played in the background.

"I think this needs to become a new thing," Eddie said, tilting her head back to look at Jamie.

Jamie decided to play dumb. "You think what needs to become a new thing?"

"Don't be coy, Jamie. Us, laying on the couch together, and you rubbing my back. That's what."

Jamie grinned down at her, unable to stop himself from kissing her on the forehead and then on her temple. "I think we can manage that."

Eddie settled her head back on Jamie's chest and snuggled as deeply into him as she could. He alternated between the pads of his fingers and his fingernails on Eddie's skin, rubbing circles and random zig-zags. Within minutes, Eddie's breathing evened out, and when he peered down at her face, he found her sound asleep. He made a mental note right then and there that rubbing Eddie's back helped her fall asleep.

Jamie just held Eddie for about a half an hour as she slept before he finally gave in to sleep himself.

It seemed like Jamie had just fallen asleep when he was yanked out of his slumber by his ringing cell phone. Confused, he sat up slightly and realized why he felt hot and sticky. Eddie was laying completely on top of him now, sound asleep, his arm still around her tightly and the heating pad forgotten on the floor beside them.

Trying not to jostle Eddie too much, Jamie reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. His heart leapt into his throat when he saw that the caller ID said Danny. Once again trying not to jostle or wake Eddie, he answered the phone in a whisper. "Danny? What's going on?"

"Jamie, we got Brian."

Four words. Four words and everything changed.

Well, there you have it. I hope you loved this chapter. I'm now writing for Pretty Little Liars AND Blue Bloods, so if you have any story requests, please send me a pm or an e-mail at the link in my bio. :)