A/N: Aww, your reviews were my favorite Christmas present this year. I know I say it pretty much every time I post a new chapter, but you all really do encourage me to keep going by letting me know you're reading, so thank you for that. I love hearing from you.

Chapter 25:

Shock and Awe

She remembered reaching for her phone. She remembered her shaking fingers dialing Ali's number. And she remembered the call going straight to voicemail. Then she'd sent a pleading text:

"Are you okay? Please call me."

After that, Emily zoned out. She wasn't entirely sure what was happening. Her phone slid out of her hands again. She saw Hanna close to her face, reaching her hand out to her cheek and asking if she was okay. Emily managed to nod. Her ears were ringing and her vision started to blur. She blinked several times and when she looked down she saw the ground moving beneath her feet. Her movements didn't feel real to her. She was walking towards the car, Spencer gripping her arm to help her from stumbling and falling. Then she blinked again and everything was different. They were driving down the road. She heard someone talking to her, but she couldn't hear what they were saying. She couldn't answer either.

Everything felt like it was happening in slow-motion, like she was living in quicksand. One minute she was looking out the front windshield of Caleb's car watching the road disappear underneath the hood, and the next…her entire world started to fade away. She felt blank. Empty. For a few seconds, maybe it was longer…she wasn't sure where she was or how she got there. Then the floodgates opened and everything came rushing back to her. All of A's threats. The phone call about the accident. Alison.

Oh, God. Ali.

Emily moaned and fell forward. The only thing preventing her from collapsing in between the floorboard and the center console was the seatbelt across her lap. She snapped back so suddenly that she could feel the whiplash in her neck.

"Whoa, easy." She heard Toby gasp out a surprised breath.

"I – I think I'm…" But Emily couldn't finish her thought. Her mouth felt thick, frozen. She slid down against the seat, her body suddenly feeling too heavy to support. She felt herself falling to the right, against Spencer.

"Em?" She felt Toby's hand on her arm.

"What's happening to her?" Spencer choked out.

Emily's neck felt strained. Her head was throbbing, a dull ache radiating through her temples. She could hear her friends talking over her, but she was having trouble pulling herself out of her muddled mind to reply.

"Hanna! Hanna, stop, pull over!" Aria cried.

"Oh my God." Spencer huffed.

"Emily?" Toby tried to rouse her.

Emily felt her body shake gently. There was an eerie moment of silence, and for a second Emily thought she'd died.

"We need to elevate her feet." Toby quickly took charge.

She heard shuffling. Something clicked, and she realized it was someone unbuckling her seatbelt. Emily felt them moving her. She didn't resist. She couldn't even if she wanted to. She felt the car stop moving. Someone was stroking her cheek.

"What…what do we do? Do we call an ambulance?" Spencer asked, her voice strained. The backs of her fingers were pressed against Emily's face, gently moving across her jaw.

"No." Toby had his hand on Emily's wrist right below her heart monitor. "No. She's okay." And then he looked down at Emily and tried to calm her. "You're okay, Em. Everything is okay."

"Toby…" Spencer's tone wavered in uncertainty.

"Just give her a minute. She's in shock," Toby explained. "The news about the wreck must have hit her harder than we thought."

"God, she's going to pass out…" Was that Hanna?

"No. She's not," Toby said, his voice stern, but caring. "Emily, just concentrate on your breathing."

Toby seemed to be the only one who knew what was going on. Emily was glad he was here to take the lead, not just for her sake, but for her friends, too. They needed that calm authoritative presence, especially in situations like this. Sometimes they got so close to falling over that ledge that they needed someone like Toby to pull them back from the brink. God bless her favorite drinking buddy.

Emily felt a gentle pressure on her hand.

"Deep breaths, Em." It was Aria. Her voice sounded muffled, like she was speaking to Emily from underwater.

"Toby, are you sure she's okay? She looks pale." Spencer again.

It was evident that they were having flashes to the day at the loft. Emily wanted to tell them she was fine. She wasn't dying. But she couldn't. Her voice seized in her throat. It's like her mind wasn't communicating with her body. She felt like she was outside of herself watching all of this unfold. Her body tensed up and her teeth started chattering. She drew her free hand up from her side and held it a few inches above her chest. She could feel it shaking. Spencer immediately grabbed her trembling hand, curling her fingers around her palm and cupping it close to her body, trying to steady Emily. She could feel Spencer's heart beating wildly against her knuckles. Emily squeezed Aria's fingers firmly with her other hand.

"She's shivering," Aria said. "Hanna, turn the heat on."

A few seconds later Emily felt a blast of hot air gushing over her body.

"Here, cover her with this." Hanna pulled Caleb's jacket out from in between the seat and her back.

Toby unzipped the jacket and used it to cover Emily's midsection up to her neck. She could smell a mixture of aftershave and pine wafting into her nose. She had never realized how outdoorsy Caleb smelled. There was a hint of Hanna's perfume on it, too. She could really feel the heat starting to roll over her body. She felt like she was sinking.

"She's crashing. Look, I'm not a doctor, but I know this can't be good for her heart. How long do we let this go on before we call someone?" Spencer asked.

"Just…let her breathe." Toby's voice was calm and controlled. He'd gone into "cop" mode. "She'll come out of it." He assured the girls.

Thoughts were swirling around in Emily's head faster than she could process them. She should have been more careful in telling Ali about A. She should have heeded the warnings. Ali had been obsessively worrying about Emily when it should have been the other way around. She should have stayed by Ali's side. This was her fault. She'd caused this. She'd pissed A off, and now an entire bus full of innocent people were paying the price.

"Em?" Hanna's voice broke the silence. "Talk to us. Please…"

Emily blinked. Had her eyes been open this whole time? She moved her head slowly and let her eyes relax. When her vision returned to normal she saw Spencer staring down at her. Emily's head was in her lap, her fingers running through Emily's hair. Emily glanced down and saw that the backs of her thighs were up against Toby's right leg. He had one arm underneath her knees, elevating her legs slightly. Her feet were pressed up against the door. It took her a minute to realize she was in the back of Caleb's car. Hanna was in the driver's seat, twisted around and peering at her with very anxious eyes. Aria was in the passenger's seat, leaning over the console, her hand squeezing Emily's.

"Ali…" Emily uttered, barely recognizing her own voice. She had to know what was going on with Ali. She needed to know. "The bus. Is she…" The thought that A had put an entire bus full of kids in jeopardy just to send her a message made her head spin.

"We don't know anything for sure yet." Toby put his free hand on her arm. Something about his touch was reassuring. She trusted Toby. She always had. "Lorenzo is going to call us as soon as he knows something."

Or he wouldn't call, because it wasn't common police practice to tell the family member over the phone that their loved one had died in a wreck.

Ali is not dead. She told herself. She couldn't be. They were supposed to start their adventures together after they escaped from the darkness in Rosewood.

Emily couldn't stop thinking about the kids on that bus and how terrified they were…and how terrified their parents must be. What had A done? How bad was it? Were the kids okay? Was Ali hurt? If A was willing to go that far to hurt her and Ali, what was this person going to do to them next?

In a twisted sense of morbidity, Emily felt herself longing for the days when Mona was A. She would give anything to pour out a tub of take-out Chinese and find it filled with worms instead of rice or get a doppelganger doll version of herself complete with a voice-box that bossed her around. Anything was better than this. God, how screwed up was she that she was trying to bargain her way down from this level of torture to horrors she was more comfortable with? Why was it so normal to feel okay with the crap she'd endured when she was a teenager?

Jesus, get ahold of yourself. Emily snapped at herself.

She hadn't felt this weak since high school. Hadn't she spent years working to overcome this vulnerability, refusing to become the victim again? She'd broken free from the restraints keeping her weighed down in a cloud of fear and doubt and she'd tackled life with a bullheaded fierceness that molded her into a version of herself that she could truly be proud of. Since when did she fall apart so easily again?

Of course the answer was blatantly obvious.

Since she'd let her walls down with Ali. Since she'd let herself love her, and be loved in return. Sometimes Emily was afraid of how much they loved one another. She was afraid, because of very moments like this…moments where the gravity of never seeing Ali again sent her into a place so dark and so terrifying that the real world didn't exist anymore.

Emily squeezed her eyes shut and pushed her fears down. She buried the pain deep, deeper than she thought possible. She knew she couldn't crumble. She couldn't break. Not now. If she fell apart right now, A won. A didn't get to do this. A didn't get to take away the one good thing she had going in her life. She couldn't let herself be controlled like this. She felt her chest rising and falling in slow even breaths. Slowly, but surely, her senses started returning to her.

She licked her lips, her eyes still closed, and let out a deep breath. She felt hot. Her heart was hammering against her ribcage.

"We have to…" Emily stuttered. "I have to…"

"You have to what?" Spencer leaned forward.

There was a beat, an anxious pause. The car was silent.

"Turn the damn heat off." Emily's mouth felt dry from the hot air. "I feel like I'm The Human Torch back here."

"Oh, thank God. I've got sweat running down the crack of my ass." Hanna reached forward and cranked the heat down.

Emily stirred, shifting her weight above Spencer and Toby. She felt Spencer's hand on the back of her head. She tried to pull her feet down.

"Take it slow." Toby warned her.

Emily let go of her friends' hands and carefully pushed herself up. Spencer's arms hovered underneath her, ready to help if Emily needed it. Thankfully, she didn't need it. She put her shaky palms flat against the seat in between Toby and Spencer and put her feet on the floorboard. She leaned forward, her shoulders dropped, and she took several quick breaths. Her arms were trembling. Her muscles ached. She felt like she'd been swimming laps. She looked up and saw that all eyes were on her.

"Sorry. I…" She didn't know what to say. She didn't know how to explain how she was feeling. She pulled her shoulders back and cleared her throat, trying to put on a brave face. "I don't know what came over me. I…uh…I shouldn't have…um…" She brushed her fingers through her hair, nervous to have them all staring at her.

"Shouldn't have what? Expressed human emotion?" Aria's eyebrows pinched together, half in concern and half in confusion. She couldn't believe that Emily was trying to apologize for something she had no control over. "There's not one person in this car that hasn't been in shock before."

"Yeah, hello? I went full on Nell and ended up in Radley. Remember?" Spencer agreed.

"I know. I just…I've already put you guys through so much. I didn't mean to add to it. I feel really bad…"

"Okay, the next time you apologize I'm going to smack you." Hanna rolled her eyes.

Emily couldn't help but smile. Hanna would totally do it, too. In fact, Emily was surprised that Hanna hadn't leaped on top of her when she went into shock and started slapping her face to try and bring her out of it.

"Sor…" Emily stopped herself when she realized she was getting ready to apologize for apologizing.

Hanna glared at her, daring her to say it. Emily didn't. Toby's phone beeped. Everyone stared at him. Emily's eyes darted towards the noise. He apprehensively glanced at the screen. Emily considered yanking it away from him to see what it was.

"Is it Lorenzo?" Emily asked hopefully.

"Uh…no." Toby pushed his lips together tightly. "It's just a traffic alert."

"Don't lie to me." She was afraid that he was trying to keep her from going back into shock and that he was withholding information from her.

"I'm not. I promise."

"Then let me see."

"Emily…"

"Toby," she argued back.

He reluctantly showed her his phone, and she saw that he was telling the truth. There was a little red triangle with an exclamation point in the center notifying travelers that there was an accident. She read the message that came along with the alert.

Accident. Road closure at Van Allen and West Street. Seek alternate route.

Emily swallowed hard. They only closed the roads if there was a death.

Keep it together. Emily clenched her jaw.

"What is it?" Hanna could see the concern on Emily's face.

"They closed Van Allen Street and West Street." Spencer answered for Emily.

"That…that doesn't mean anything. I'm sure she's fine." Hanna rambled nervously. She didn't know what to say to make Emily feel better, so she just blurted out the first thing that came to her mind. "I mean, she has to be, right? She's Ali. You know her. She's tough. She's got more lives than a cat. The girl was buried alive and survived…"

"Shut up, Hanna," Spencer snapped through her teeth.

"What? I'm just saying, she's still standing after everything she's been through. No way she's…" Hanna looked at Emily's face and instantly regretted having such a big mouth.

"Where's my phone?" Emily felt around for her cell phone. The last place she'd seen it was on the ground outside the dollhouse.

"I've got it." Aria handed it to her.

Emily looked. Still no texts from Ali. She tried calling and it went straight to voicemail again. She slammed it against the seat in frustration, tears burning her eyes. She took a few deep breaths.

"I need some air." Emily gulped.

Toby rolled the window down and motioned for her to switch seats with him. He pushed up, his hands against the roof of the car, and let Emily slide behind him until she was up against the door. He took her spot in the middle. Emily leaned out the window and felt a gentle breeze. But it wasn't enough. She felt herself beginning to panic, and out of fear that she'd collapse again she started pawing at the door handle. She shoved the door open with force, nearly falling out head first.

"Emily, wait." Hanna frantically reached for her own door handle.

Emily stumbled out of the car and slammed the door shut. She felt sick to her stomach. Her head was swimming. Toby had been right about moving too fast. Hanna grabbed Emily's arm just as she fell back against the side of the car. After a few seconds Emily was able to catch her breath. She pushed herself off of the car.

"You good?" Hanna asked.

Emily nodded wordlessly and pulled her arm free from Hanna's grasp. She took a step forward and craned her neck up, shoving her nose into the air to take a deep breath. She took in as much air as her lungs could possibly hold and then slowly brought her head down as she exhaled. She leaned over, putting her hands against her knees. She heard a car whiz by them, the wind from its wake blowing a heavy breeze against them. She stared at the pavement, taking deep heaving breaths, trying not to scream…or cry. She felt Hanna's hand on her back. After a couple of minutes she stood upright and looked at her phone once more. Still nothing.

"Em, we should go." Hanna tried to coax her back towards the car.

"Yeah." Emily stared at her phone with a dull feeling in the pit of her stomach. "Okay."

She climbed back in the car without saying another word and they got back on the road. Aria called Ezra to let them know they were almost back in town. Caleb and Ezra were heading to Ezra's place to do some research on Alexander Drake. With Ezra's journalistic contacts and Caleb's tech software they were convinced they could find something on him fairly quickly.

The girls hit traffic as soon as they got back into Rosewood. Cars were backed up on the road for what felt like miles. Since Lorenzo wasn't answering his phone, Toby called the station to see if he could get an update. They didn't have any new information. Toby tried the school next. Hackett told him that they were still waiting on the word on injuries and fatalities. He didn't have any information on any of the students or the chaperones. Toby knew they wouldn't get anywhere near the scene of the accident, so he suggested they check the hospital to see if Ali was there. They crept along at a snail's pace, Emily fretting the entire time. She started to get road rage, but she kept it to herself.

"How are you doing?" Aria glanced back at Emily.

Her head hurt, but she felt okay. She rubbed her left temple and slowly blinked her eyes.

"I'd be better if we weren't sitting in a parking lot." Emily mumbled. "What is taking so long?" She asked impatiently, looking at the line of cars in front of them.

"We'll get there, Em." Hanna glanced in the rearview mirror.

"We'd get there faster if we walked," she muttered, massaging a tense spot above her right eye.

Then suddenly, something registered in her brain. The roads were closed. But there were other forms of transportation. She looked out the window.

"It's only a couple of blocks to the hospital, isn't it?"

"Yeah, like I said, we'll get there." Hanna nodded.

But Emily wasn't going to wait any longer. She unbuckled her seatbelt and hopped out of the car before anyone could stop her.

"Emily!" Toby yelled out the window. "You shouldn't…"

"I'll call you if I find anything out!" Emily called back.

He yelled something about not getting herself worked up, but she didn't hear him. She was already on her way. She wasn't exactly sure what she was going to find when she got there. Maybe Ali was hurt. Or maybe she wasn't there at all.

By the time Emily got to the hospital she was covered in sweat and shaking from head to toe. She raced into the Emergency Room, her eyes scanning the waiting room. She went up to the desk and tried to get information, but the receptionists were slammed and they couldn't tell her anything. She paced the waiting room, trying to figure out what to do. She glanced over and saw a familiar face. Not the face she wanted to see, but a familiar face nonetheless.

"Elliott?" His presence worried her. What if someone had called him about Ali? What if she was hurt…or worse?

He looked up, frazzled. His eyes were red-rimmed and he looked visibly upset. She felt her heart thumping in her chest.

"Emily?" He seemed just as confused by her presence.

"What are you doing here?" Emily asked, hoping that he wasn't about to say what she was afraid he might say.

He looked at the ground before he looked back up at her.

Speak, damn it! She wanted to scream.

"One of my patients was brought here after she OD'd this afternoon." He ran his hand over his chin.

Emily felt herself relax. Then she felt guilty for feeling relief. But at least it wasn't bad news about Ali.

"I just got the word that she didn't make it. Now I have to tell her kids."

That felt like a sucker-punch to Emily. No wonder Elliott looked drained. The man really did seem to care about his patients. It had to suck to be a doctor and have to deal with loss and grief on a daily basis.

"What are you doing here?" Was that a nervous inflection she heard in his tone? "Is everything okay with…" He motioned towards her heart monitor.

"Oh, yeah, no. I'm fine." Emily nodded, a little surprised that he actually cared about her. Had she misjudged Doctor Doom? "I'm…" She looked around, afraid she might miss seeing a glimpse of Ali. "I'm actually looking for Ali. You haven't seen her have you? She was on a field trip with her students today and the bus she was on had a wreck."

"Ali was in a wreck?" His head snapped up. "Is she hurt?"

"That's what I'm trying to find out." Emily looked at the reception area. "You don't happen to have privileges here, do you?"

Elliott stood up, already a step ahead of her.

"Let me see what I can find out." He glanced at her, taking in her appearance. He didn't have to be a cardiologist to see that she her circulatory system was working overtime. "Why don't you sit down?"

"I'm good." Emily declined his advice. She had way too much nervous energy to sit still.

He frowned in disapproval, but didn't push her. He walked over to the reception desk and talked to the girl on duty for a few minutes. Emily stood on the balls of her feet in anticipation when she saw him turn and walk back towards her.

"Anything?" Emily asked.

"I didn't get much, unfortunately. They have had a lot of MVCs…Motor Vehicle Collision victims come through here today. She said there were several that came in from the bus crash. A lot of them are underage, so they're being really tight-lipped about sharing information."

Emily felt sick to her stomach. Those poor kids. Elliott paused, seemingly having the same thought as Emily. Or maybe he was just thinking about the kids of his OD patient. His face tightened and Emily felt weak. She knew that look. He had bad news. He was just trying to figure out how to say it.

"I asked if there were any adults brought in…" He trailed off nervously. He shuffled his feet and lowered his head, pinching the bridge of his nose. "She said wasn't entirely sure, but that she thought so. She didn't have the details, but…the person was DOA."

Emily dug her nails into her thigh. Her vision flashed white for a split second. She thought she might collapse again. But then she pulled herself together.

"Elliott…" Her voice cracked, "I have to find her. Please. I have to know that she's okay."

Elliott nodded in understanding. His brow creased in thought and after a minute he seemed to have an idea.

"A friend of mine heads the EMT department. I'll see if the first responders know anything."

He grabbed his phone and dialed a number. He chatted with someone for a few minutes, a serious look on his face. He nodded and listened intently as the person responded. After he hung up he sighed and shook his head.

"They don't have a record of an Alison DiLaurentis, but they said a few of the victims were unconscious and they don't have names on everyone yet."

"Doctor Rollins?" A voice called from across the lobby.

They both turned, hoping it was someone that could give them answers about Ali. Instead, Emily saw a young man who couldn't have been older than 18 standing next to a girl who was probably around 11.

"Emily, I'm so sorry. I have to go. Those are my patient's kids." He nodded to acknowledge the young man. "Please, call me as soon as you know anything."

She watched him walk over to the young man. She felt an outpouring of sympathy for the boy and his little sister. Their lives were never going to be the same again. She knew what it was like to get earth shattering news about the loss of a loved one. She suddenly had a flash to the day she'd gotten the news about her dad. She'd slid down into the floor of the science building office at Pepperdine, phone still in hand, and turned into a trembling mess of tears on the ground. She'd sobbed so hard she hyperventilated. She vaguely remembered the receptionist scurrying next to her to comfort her. Had she ever thanked that woman for her kindness?

Emily pulled her phone out so she could try calling Ali again. She had three missed calls, all from Spencer. She had several texts, too…ranging from worried to angry. She knew they were pissed at her for taking off. She texted them to let them know she was at the ER, but that she didn't know anything. She looked around the waiting room again and sighed. Every single person here was in pain, whether it was a physical ailment they were here to be treated for, or if it was a loved one waiting on news about someone they cared about being here. She would take the physical pain over the emotional pain any day.

She was about to give up hope when she heard someone shout her name across the lobby. She looked up and saw Elliott waving at her. She pushed her way through the crowd to get to him, her eyes anxious. She saw the son of Elliott's OD patient go into a room behind them. She could only imagine what was going through that poor boy's mind. She sympathized. Losing a parent at any age was hard, but losing a parent so suddenly and at such a young age…it was a bitter pill to swallow. She knew this because she was still choking on her dad's death.

"What's up?" Emily asked Elliott eagerly.

"I just saw Ali get on the elevator down the hall." His voice was full of relief. "I wasn't able to get her attention, but I was able to flag down a nurse to find out where she was going. The nurse said she's been with one of her kids in pediatrics. She's probably been there the whole time. They're on a different system than the ER. It's probably why it was so hard to get information on the crash."

Emily felt a wave of relief flood her body.

"Where…"

"Third floor." He nodded towards the elevator.

"Thank you, Elliott. Thank you so much." She gave him an appreciative smile and then ran towards the elevator.

It didn't take her long to get there. She would have rushed up the stairs if the elevator hadn't already been open and waiting for her. It was one thing to hear that Ali was alive, but Emily wouldn't be satisfied until she was holding her in her arms. She found the signs directing her to pediatrics and dashed down the hallways as fast as her legs would carry her. She turned a corner and almost bowled someone over. It was only when she looked down into her familiar cerulean eyes that she realized it was the exact person she was looking for.

"Oh, thank God." Emily grabbed Ali's neck gently with her hands and looked her over. She was okay, or at least she appeared to be.

"Emily?" Ali looked startled to see her.

Emily couldn't help herself as she pulled Ali's face towards her lips and gave her a hard kiss on the forehead.

"Ali, thank God." She repeated, every ounce of fear she'd felt dissolved into nothingness. She wrapped her arms around the back of Ali's neck and pulled her in for a hug.

"What are you…" Ali pulled back and looked at the beads of sweat on Emily's face. "Jesus Christ, Em, did you run here?" She put her palm against Emily's neck, her thumb resting on Emily's pulse point. She could feel Emily's heart racing. "What the hell were you thinking?"

"Traffic was stalled because of the accident." Emily brought her hands back up to the sides of Ali's face, her fingers grazing the bottom of Ali's jaw, peering at her closely, looking for injuries. She looked perfect to Emily. "It was only a couple of blocks…"

"You really shouldn't have done that." Ali pulled her bottom lip in between her teeth and bit down in concern. Emily's pulse was way too fast for her liking.

"I thought…" Emily couldn't bring herself to say it. She didn't want to think about the turmoil she'd felt when Toby got that call. "I tried calling you."

A flash of realization washed across Ali's face. Everything had been so hectic after the wreck, and Ali's first concern had been her kids. She'd let the other chaperones take care of the uninjured students and she'd jumped into an ambulance with one of her frightened kids without even thinking about grabbing her things.

"Oh, crap. I should have called you," Ali said, her eyes teeming with regret. "My phone is still on the bus. I – I'm sorry." No wonder Emily was so freaked out.

"Are you okay?" There were tears in Emily's eyes, equal parts relief that Ali was okay and anger that A had done this to her and her students.

"I'm fine. The doctor says I might be a little sore tomorrow, but I already took an anti-inflammatory. I was one of the lucky ones. I landed on the yoga mats we brought for the kids to use during one of the star-gazing exhibits."

"They told me there was a fatality." Emily looked away in discomfort.

Ali nodded solemnly. Emily felt a surge of anger flowing through her veins. A had killed someone. Someone completely innocent. It was one thing to torment them, but this person was pulling people who had done nothing wrong into their sick game. This jackass was going after kids. That really pissed Emily off. When she found out who this person was she was going to pulverize them.

"What happened?" Emily asked softly. She couldn't contain herself as a whimper escaped her lips. "Please tell me it wasn't one of your kids."

"No," Ali said, her voice shaking. "It was the bus driver. After the accident he had a heart attack."

A heart attack. It had to be a heart related death. No irony lost there. That's not something that even A could have planned. That was like the universe giving Emily the middle finger for everything she'd done wrong in her life.

"Ali, I'm so sorry." Emily took a moment to be grateful that Hanna wasn't here to hear her apologizing, because she'd make good on her promise and would probably hit her. "I can't even imagine…"

"I guess all things considered it could have been worse," Ali said quietly.

"Are your kids okay?"

"Four were brought here. I came with them because I didn't want them to be alone," Ali explained.

It made sense that she was thinking about her students. Emily was in awe of the beauty of Ali's kindness. It made her appear even more stunning to her.

"Two were released to their parents already. They just had minor injuries. The third has a concussion. They want to keep her for the night. We're still waiting on her parents to get here. And Luke…" Ali glanced down the hallway. Emily remembered how Ali had spoken fondly of her mischievous little trouble-maker when she'd visited her at school. "He doesn't have the best home life. Absentee dad and a real piece of work for a mother. I know how that feels," she muttered. "They were able to get ahold of his aunt, but she's six hours away. He freaked out a little when he found out he had to have surgery for the breaks in his arm. I told him I'd stay with him until his aunt gets here."

Of course Ali would volunteer to stay with her scared kids. She had a fiercely protective maternal instinct. She bitched about her students, but she was very vigilant when it came to looking out for them. Ali had once told Emily she wasn't sure where she acquired the guardian role, because she was certain it wasn't from her mother. Emily told her she'd always been one of the most devoted women she knew. It was just another reason she adored Ali.

How close had she come to losing that beautiful soul today?

Unable to contain her emotions, Emily softly pulled Ali's face towards hers until their lips were touching. She pulled back, and gave her several little light pecks and then she pulled her into a loving embrace, just wanting to feel Ali's body close hers.

Ali could feel her shaking. She peered up into Emily's eyes and saw a fear that she knew very well, because she'd seen it in her own reflection ever since she'd found out about Emily's diagnosis. It took a minute for Ali to realize that her hands were trembling, too, probably the lingering effects from her adrenaline.

"Come here." Ali pulled her towards a bench a few feet down the hallway, knowing that both of them needed to catch their breath. "You need to calm down."

They sat down, both of them gathering their emotions. Emily texted the girls to tell them that Ali was okay and for them to focus all their energy on following up on what they'd found at the dollhouse. The girls were relieved to hear that Ali wasn't hurt. Seeing it in writing gave Emily a sense of relief. For the first time since she'd heard the news about the accident, Emily was able to breathe normally again.

She leaned forward and buried her face in her hands, trying to hide all the emotions that were swimming through her head. She felt Ali's warm hand on her thigh, but couldn't bring herself to look at her yet. What was she supposed to do now? Telling Ali the truth was why they were sitting in this hospital. A clearly wouldn't hesitate to hurt everyone in her proximity.

But she couldn't look Ali in the eyes and start lying to her again. She could feel Ali's eyes on her, burning through her. After a few seconds she pulled back and heaved out an unsteady breath. Ali watched her curiously. She saw something in Emily's expression that worried her. Ali could tell something was weighing heavily on her.

"What's wrong?"

"You mean besides the fact that we're sitting in a hospital hallway?"

"It's more than that." Ali kept her voice quiet. "Did something happen at the dollhouse?"

A nurse and two orderlies shuffled down the hallway. Emily glanced at her, a tense expression on her face.

"Not here, Ali." Emily shook her head. Not in such a public place.

Ali looked around and nodded. She pulled Emily to her feet and guided her to the room across the hall. Before Emily could say anything, Ali explained,

"Luke is still in surgery." She shut the door behind them. "What happened out there today?"

Emily felt her heart racing. Should she tell Ali about what they found in the dollhouse? What about A's taunt about causing the accident? How had A even found out that Ali knew? Did A know they went to the dollhouse? Was it Alexander? Did he know they were on to him? What if they were being watched right now? Ali could see the wheels turning in her head.

"You're shutting down again." Ali glared at her. "Don't do this to me." She huffed in frustration.

"No, I'm not. I swear. It's not what you think." Emily shook her head. "It's just…" She looked into Ali's eyes and sighed. "A did this." She motioned to the room, the hospital. "This was retaliation because I told you."

"Em, no, this wasn't…"

Emily held her phone up to show her the message she'd gotten about the accident. Ali's face went slack in shock, the color draining from her cheeks.

"I got it right after Toby got the call from Lorenzo." Emily put her phone back in her pocket.

"How…"

"I don't know." Emily threw her hands up in the air. "All I know is that we're dealing with a very twisted mind here. Whoever did this hurt a bunch of high schoolers just to send me a message."

Ali's face flushed in anger.

"This bitch thinks it's okay to come into my town and mess with my kids?" She rubbed the palm of her right hand over the knuckles on her left hand. "Oohhh, I am going to rip this psycho's hair out by the follicles and force them to eat it until they choke." She growled. "Who is this monster?"

"I don't know."

Alexander Drake. Sara Harvey. Both of them. Neither of them.

It was really anyone's guess. Emily pushed her lips together and tried not to look too conspicuous.

Ask her if she knew Charlotte had a secret husband who enjoyed long walks on the beach, traveling, and shoving your head under water until you passed out.

But how could she bring it up without further endangering Ali? The last thing she needed right now was Ali trying to investigate this on her own. If A was watching Ali and he found out they were hot on the trail, the game would end in a bloody mess…and Ali would be the one paying the price. That was too steep a cost for Emily.

Emily looked around the hospital room, her eyes catching on a medical waste basket near the door. Her body seized up as she thought about the faux-hospital room in the dollhouse where she'd been forced to play the game with the keys. Suddenly, she was back in the dollhouse again. She could feel the cold metal against her sweaty fingers. She could hear her friends' screams. She started breathing hard through her nose. Ali saw the faraway look in her eyes and recognized it immediately.

"Em." She instinctively put one hand on Emily's cheek and the other against her side. "Hey, look at me." She watched as Emily's eyes slowly met hers. Ali's eyes were fixed on hers, full of reassurance. "Focus on me. Just take a deep breath, sweetie."

Emily nodded and blew out a relaxing breath. The room became deathly silent as Ali let Emily work through her thoughts. She could see the pain in Emily's eyes, and Emily knew it. She looked away so Ali wouldn't have to be subjected to the chaos in her head.

"God, I knew letting you go back there was a lousy idea," Ali muttered.

She was mentally kicking herself for not forbidding Emily from doing it. Then again, if she'd forbidden Emily from doing it, the girl probably would have yelled "Challenge Accepted!" and skipped all the way down there and declared that she was going to stay the night solely to disobey Ali's orders.

Emily didn't regret going back, though she wasn't sure Ali needed to know everything yet. If they hadn't gone back they never would have known that Charlotte had an accomplice willing to kill for her solely because they used to do the horizontal bop. Emily's panic passed. She sighed and looked at her girlfriend, hating that she was caught up in this mess. But she knew she had to ask.

"Ali, does the name Alexander Drake mean anything to you?"

"Alexander…" She said the name slowly, dropping her hands to her sides in thought. A look of thorough confusion washed across her face. "No, why?"

Emily didn't say anything. After a few seconds, Ali made the connection.

"Wait, Drake…like Cece Drake?"

"Yeah." Emily nodded. "It's just a…a name that came up."

"When?" She looked at Emily incredulously. "You did find something at the dollhouse, didn't you? Does it have something to do with that Xan guy you told me about?"

"We don't know yet."

She didn't want Ali to think that it was something that she needed to go off and try to solve on her own. Emily was trying to be very casual about it. She was afraid A would come after Ali if she started poking around in their investigation.

"What do you mean you don't know?" Ali stared at her crossly. "What aren't you telling me?"

"Nothing. We really don't know anything yet."

Ali studied her face, waiting for her to crack, but Emily's expression remained stoic. The less Ali knew about Alexander Drake, the better.

"Well, what do you know?" Ali questioned. "Why don't you start by telling me that?"

"Please don't push this. Not here. Not now. Not after…" She gestured to the room, "…this." Not after today. Not after your bus was made into a bumper car for A's carnival.

Ali frowned and let out an exasperated breath.

"What are we going to do?" she asked.

"We aren't going to do anything. In case you hadn't noticed you're in the hospital waiting on one of your students to get out of surgery." Emily sighed. "I got us into this mess. I'll figure out a way to get us out."

"Not alone you won't."

"Ali…"

"Don't let this scare you." Ali took her hand. "We can't go backwards here."

"Alison, a man is dead. Those kids are going to be traumatized! And you…" She shook her head and jutted her jaw to the left to bite back her emotions. "Look, you could have died today."

"You could have, too!" Ali snapped angrily. Sometimes it annoyed Ali how focused Emily got on others that she completely disregarded herself. Ali had been on her about that since they were teenagers. She'd spent years trying to get Emily to care for herself the way she cared for others. "I won't let you deal with this by yourself. You mean too much to me."

"If I pull you into this any further who knows what might happen? A could blow up the school." She cringed, regretting even saying it out loud. It felt like a jinx, or like she was putting it out there in the world and giving A ideas.

"Emily, you promised…" Ali sounded more pissed than upset.

"That was before you and your kids were sent on The Magic School Bus trip from hell." Emily curled her long locks around her index finger nervously. "Are you really willing to risk the lives of everyone we know? Our families? Our friends? Your students?"

Ali felt torn. She knew that Emily had a point. She'd seen terror in her students' eyes today that she never wanted to see again. There had to be a way to keep them safe. She mulled it over.

"I'll take a leave of absence." Ali stubbornly folded her arms across her chest. "A can't get to them if I'm not near them."

"That's not going to solve anything, and you know it." Emily argued. "Besides, you just got back. You can't bail on your job to help us play Scooby Doo."

"We are not going to play this game of who can be more stubborn. Because you know I'll win. I can't just ignore this. I can't just pretend like everything is normal. Nothing about our lives is normal!" She raised her voice.

She looked like she was on the verge of completely breaking down in tears. She was angry and frustrated…and scared. Emily took Ali's face in her hands to try and get her to calm down, the same way Ali had done for her moments ago.

"Hey, I'm not saying you're going to be completely in the dark." She locked eyes with Ali. "You know what's going on, okay? You know, and you've got my back."

"We have to be in this together. I can't help you if I don't know what you're fighting." Ali frowned.

"I hear what you're saying. I do. But A…this new A, whoever it is, they are willing to kill you to keep you out of this. And if keeping you out of it keeps you alive, I don't see what other choice we have."

"I can't just sit back and watch while you and the girls are being tortured. Not again." Ali's voice broke, and it killed Emily to hear her in distress. "You've been hurt enough. It's too much." Tears spilled down Ali's cheeks. She was so drained from this day. All of the emotions she'd been holding in came pouring out.

Emily pulled her into her chest for a hug and Ali buried her face between her breasts, perfectly content to stay there as she softly wept. She'd been through something traumatic today and it was finally coming to a head for her. Once Emily felt her settle down she loosened her grip and looked down at her.

"The girls and I are going to figure it out." Emily gently brushed the back of Ali's head, running her fingers through her soft blonde hair.

"At what cost?" Ali was a bit more composed now. She wiped her tear-stricken face with her fingers and pulled away from Emily so she could look her in the eyes. She had a pensive expression on her face. "You really have no idea what this is doing to you, do you? You can't see it," she sighed. "You never could see it."

"It's hard, sure, but…"

"Emily, I see everything in your eyes." She interrupted her. "I can see how exhausted you are, and I'm not just talking from a physical standpoint. You have so much going on inside. You're drowning." She tenderly caressed Emily's face. "And you keep disappearing under the current. And yet, you still keep taking in more." Her lips quivered. Her hand slid down the side of Emily's neck. "You can't keep taking these hits. It is tearing you apart. The more you bury, the faster you dig your grave."

"I'm just trying to protect the people I love." Emily groaned in frustration. She hated that Ali was taking on her problems.

"So am I." Ali put her palm on Emily's face again, her thumb brushing Emily's cheekbone. "I'm watching this slowly kill you…and that is the worst feeling in the world. I can't go to another funeral, Em. I…I can't."

"You won't have to. Ali, it's going to be okay."

"How? How is any of this ever going to be okay again?" She dropped her hand to her side, leaving Emily with a sudden chill at the loss of contact.

"Because it has to be." Emily wasn't sure how to answer her question. She really didn't have an answer. "Because we've gone through too much and come too far to lose one another now. Because we deserve better."

"Really? Hope? That's what you're putting your faith in?" Ali asked, a dark undertone in her voice. "No genius idea? No solid plan? We're just going to sit and wait on the universe to throw us a bone?"

"Ali, this is what I do."

"Ugh," she grumbled. Her girlfriend was maddening. "You are impossible, do you know that?" She rolled her eyes. "I swear if I didn't love you so much I would strangle you."

Emily smiled and rolled her tongue around in her mouth.

"Awesome. I've been hoping to spice things up in the bedroom." Emily lifted her brows in a teasing manner, knowing that if anything could bring them out of this funk it was another four letter "f" word.

"Don't…" Ali said with a warning, but she was on the verge of smiling.

"Don't what?" Emily asked innocently. She swayed on her feet and wrapped her fingers around the back of Ali's neck.

"You're trying to make me forget I'm pissed at you." She did her best to resist Emily's coy smile.

"Go with it." Emily slid her hands down Ali's side, coming to rest on her hips.

One of her hands slipped under Ali's shirt and on to her stomach, her fingers dancing around the waistband of Ali's pants. Ali couldn't resist her. She ran her hand up along Emily's arm, smiling at her before leaning forward and placing a chaste kiss on her lips. Emily dipped her fingers inside Ali's waistband, lowering them until she grazed the top of Ali's lacy underwear. Her fingers dared to drift lower just as the door swung open with a loud bang.

Emily quickly pulled her fingers out of Ali's pants. They both dropped their hands to their sides, looking like a pair of deer caught in the headlights of a car. Ali looked at Emily's face and saw that her cheeks were bright red at the prospect of getting caught. Ali chuckled nervously and cleared her throat as a nurse rolled Luke into the room on his hospital bed. He was sitting up, but it was obvious he was loopy from his medications. He had a large plaster cast on his left arm.

"Heeeey, Miss D…" Luke grinned in a drunken stupor. "Check it out. I got a bionic arm." He tapped the cast with the index finger of his uninjured hand. "I'm Supa-man, man."

"Settle down, Luke." The nurse smiled.

"Is he going to be okay?" Ali asked.

"He's going to be just fine." The nurse replied with a laugh. "He's a bit of a wild one, isn't he?"

"He tried to grab your boob, didn't he?" Ali glanced at Luke, who was completely oblivious to their conversation. He looked like he was watching a very intense, very funny tennis match.

"Several times." The nurse nodded.

"Miss D…" Luke called for her attention. "Did you know that King Leontes was a total troll?" He laughed. "Shakespeare was pushing people's buttons long before the Internet. It's fantastic." He glanced around the room, blinked hard and then looked back at Ali. "I think I'm going to need an extension on my homework."

"I think that can be arranged." Ali laughed.

"You're the best." He leaned back against the bed. He looked at Emily and then winked at Ali. "Your girlfriend is hot."

Emily turned away and blushed again, trying not to give away just how close they'd come to really making this room hot. Ali snorted. She thought it was hilarious.

"Thank you, Luke." Ali smiled.

"Like hot hot." His huge dopey grin took up his entire face.

The wily teenager had plenty more to say, and it provided some much needed entertainment for Ali and Emily. By the time they got home that evening tensions had eased slightly. Ali went to soak in a hot bath to try and prevent herself from being too sore in the morning. Emily lavished in the opportunity to take care of her. She was in the middle of making Ali a cup of hot tea when Ali's phone rang. Emily saw that it was Lorenzo calling and answered. She told him Ali was taking a bath, so he gave her the message that the cause of the accident was a problem with the brakes. Emily had been expecting it, but it still hit her pretty hard. Minutes after they hung up her phone chimed. She glanced at it and when she saw the text she dropped the cup of steaming water she had in her hands, spilling it all over the counter.

"I gave you a BRAKE this time. But if you open your mouth again I won't hesitate to finish the job."

Emily's lip twitched. She felt a rage building up inside. She wanted to type a curse-filled reply telling this person exactly what she thought of them. The only thing that was stopping her was her trembling hands.

She heard something rustling around outside on the porch. Her head shot up. Immediately, she went into defense mode. Without even thinking, she raced to the door, stopping to grab an umbrella that was propped up against the door frame. She flung the door open and drew back the umbrella like it was a baseball bat and ran directly towards where she heard the noise. Her eyes darted around, looking for any trace of movement.

The night air was quiet at first. But then she heard something shuffling behind her. Before she could turn around, a hand shot out of the darkness and grabbed her arm.