Warehouse 13
High School AU
Eventual Bering and Wells and Cleena; current Myka/Sam and Claudia/Todd
Still pretty intense, if you are waiting, you may want to continue.
Chapter Twenty-nine
They both bolted.
Her to the grass. Him to her.
Her head cleared as she ran. Her pain muted. Getting away was all that mattered.
The grass grabbed at her. It scratched her arms. It tore her legs.
Her feet slipped on the rocks beneath her. Her knees gave out every few steps.
Only the thought of him chasing her kept her upright.
Adrenaline coursed through her as she changed direction once…twice…three times…before slipping into a copse of trees.
Her mind was blurred, only focused on getting one foot in front of the other. She dodged around trees. She ducked beneath low branches.
She ran into the stone wall that edged the woods.
She froze as pain shot through her chest.
Her fingers gripped the stones, just trying to stay upright. Her eyes were wide. Her mouth let out cries she couldn't hear.
When the pain subsided enough, she slowly turned and scanned the trees.
There was no sign of him.
(peek-a-boo)
She forced herself over the wall, then sat on the other side. (i ran with my heart pounding down that broken path, with the devil snappin at my heels ) She pressed her back against the wall, and pulled her knees to her chest.
Her eyes drooped, but she forced them to stay open. She had no other defenses. ('my father's house' – bruce springsteen) He could appear at any point.
(always found her)
When the adrenaline faded, however, her eyes closed on their own and sleep quickly took her.
-oOo-
Warren cursed himself.
He had lost her. How the fuck had he lost her?
He hadn't started to run until after her, true; the shock of seeing her out of the car had frozen him for a few moments. Okay, and the corn reached over his head. And she had been right next to the field, while he had been yards away.
But, she was a concussed, underfed teenager with at least one broken bone, how the fuck had she gotten away from him?
He stared at the corn for a few more moments, then kicked at the ground and turned to the car.
Bitch was probably going to die on her own, less of a mess for him to clean up.
He just had to get as far away as possible now.
-oOo-
The numb sensation was slowly leaving her body. Pain began to creep through her stomach.
Helena stared at the ceiling above her bed, one hand rested on her stomach.
Her flat stomach.
She felt…empty.
She was empty.
The door opened and a nurse walked in, completely engrossed by the clipboard in her hands.
"Where's my baby?"
The nurse froze and looked at her.
"You're awake," the woman said.
"My baby," Helena repeated. "Where? Please."
The nurse walked to her, a damp rag in her hand. She gently pressed the fabric against Helena's forehead.
"Your baby's in NICU."
Helena let out a strangled cry.
"He's under constant watch. He made it through the night, though, which is really good."
"He?"
The nurse nodded. "He."
"Can I see him?"
"In a little bit, but first, there are some people who want to see you."
-oOo-
Pete stared at the couple. He had been alone in the waiting room – Claudia had reluctantly gone home for the night, Leena had left to get a change of clothes and a shower, and his mother had gone somewhere after dropping him off – when the man and woman had just walked in.
They hadn't said anything, but it would have been hard pressed to not know who they were.
The woman had long, dark hair and a perfectly sculpted face. She was hunched over in a seat, her hands buried in her hair.
The man's eyes were a deep brown, and kept darting around the room as he paced.
"Wells," a nurse said as she walked into the room.
The man stopped pacing and the woman stood.
"How's our daughter?" the woman asked.
"Awake. You can come see her."
-oOo-
Pain shot into Myka's head. She raised her arm to cover her face, only to freeze at the pain in her shoulder.
Every sensation in her body hit her at once.
The stabbing in her shoulder. The searing in her head. The cold induced numbness that took the edge off. Her chest was heavy as she breathed. Shivers moved through her body.
As she lay, the sun steadily rose over the tree line. The rays warmed her, clearing the cobwebs from her mind just as the pain did.
A cough spread through her chest, then up her throat. Her body shook from the force of the coughs. Her head pounded with each one.
Her mind faded out as the cough continued to rack her body.
-oOo-
"They're fucking monsters. All of them," Ms. Belk exclaimed as she walked into the staff room.
The other teachers looked at her in shock. She didn't explain, instead she just stared at the TV. The news anchor was, yet again, giving the news that there was no news on Myka Bering.
"What happened?" Mrs. Reynolds asked.
Belk shook her head as she put her stuff on her desk.
"I passed a group and one of them was talking about his cousin's school. A student died in a car crash, and the entire school could have the day off if they went to the funeral."
"No," Reynolds sighed, seeing where it was going.
"One of them said that if they get that, it would be the only good thing Myka ever did."
They all stared at her in stunned silence.
"I should have said something, but I was…I was too shocked to do anything."
"They have no idea how bad it is," Mr. Browen muttered. "I was talking with John last night." He shook his head and rubbed his temple.
They all watched him. John, his son, was one of the officers on the case.
"When they searched the house…he-he said her window was nailed shut."
-oOo-
"Mum? Daddy?"
Helena tried to sit up, but the nurse gently pushed her back down.
"Sweetie, how are you?" her mother asked, walking to the side of her bed.
"Needa see my baby," Helena mumbled.
"You will," her mother responded, brushing some hair off of Helena's forehead. She leaned forward and pressed a kiss to the skin she had just uncovered. "We've missed you, love."
Helena didn't reply. The false tone rang in her ears.
-oOo-
"Are they going to take her back to England?" Jane asked questioned once the Wells' had vanished into Helena's room.
"I'm not sure," Mrs. Fredric answered. "Although it would be entirely within their rights to do so."
"I won't apologize for not caring about the rights of people who sent their pregnant daughter to another country to keep up appearances."
"They might keep her here for the same reason."
"If they do, I want her to move in with me."
Mrs. Fredric raised an eyebrow.
"It was one thing having her live with Leena while pregnant, but she will need more support with a baby, especially one born so early."
Mrs. Fredric nodded. "I do believe that can be arranged."
"Good."
-oOo-
(left…right…left…right…)
Her ankle folded.
She felt the sensation of it rolling beneath her weight but felt no pain.
(right…left…right…)
She blinked rapidly.
(my bologna has a first name)
Her body was numb.
(it's oscar)
Her mind was strained.
She stopped and turned around.
She couldn't remember waking up again.
(if she fell asleep now – and woke up exactly when her alarm went off – she would have seven hours and eighteen minutes of sleep)
She couldn't remember when she had started to walk.
-oOo-
Helena choked back sobs as she ran her finger tips down the plastic barrier between her and her son.
"My precious Christopher," she whispered. "I'm so sorry."
She brushed away her tears. He was so small. The tubes that surrounded him only made him seem smaller. His diaper reached his armpits. She could hold him with one hand, had she been allowed to hold him. As it was, he was trapped in the incubator; the plastic keeping her from so much as touching him.
She screwed her eyes shut, but the image was burnt into her mind.
"I'm so sorry."
-oOo-
Claudia paced back and forth across her room. Between what had happened with Leena and Emma's constant nagging, she had given in and gone home for the night. Five hours later, she was just anxiously waiting for Emma to take her back to the hospital.
She stopped pacing at the knock on her door. She turned to see Steve hovering in the doorway.
"You ready?" he asked.
She glared at him.
"My mom's almost ready," he continued. "She said to go to the front door."
She nodded and followed him through the house. Her mind was racing as they walked.
"I kissed Leena," she blurted out.
He turned and stared at her with wide eyes. "What?"
She wrapped her arms around herself and leaned against the wall. "In the waiting room yesterday. I just, kissed her." She shrugged. "And she kissed me back."
"Woah." He rubbed the back of his neck. "So, are you two together now?"
She shook her head. "She says the age difference is too big right now."
"It kinda is."
She glared at him again.
He raised his hands in surrender. She slumped further down.
"I'm a shit friend," she murmured. "Myka goes missing and I make a move on Leena."
-oOo-
Jane ran a hand down the doorframe. She sighed and slumped against the wood, her eyes closing.
She had barely been in the room since she and Pete had moved in. She had never thought that it would be used for anything more than a spare room full of boxes.
She opened her eyes, taking in the bland room.
She would have to get Pete to help her clear out the room. Hopefully bring in another bed.
Baby stuff. They will need baby stuff.
She sighed again and pushed herself up. Before any of that, however, Myka had to be found, and Helena had to stay.
She picked up the bag of Pete's clothes and turned away from the room. She had to get back to the hospital.
-oOo-
"Helena, you have to understand, we did all of this for you."
"I'm still not going with you," Helena huffed. Her body hurt, her mind was blurred, her heart ached, and the last thing she wanted to deal with was her mother.
"Of course you are, darling," her mother replied. "We will help you care for the baby."
"His name is Christopher, Mother, not the baby" Helena muttered. "And I have people here who will help me."
"They aren't your family, Helena."
"They didn't send me away when I became pregnant. In fact, they accepted me despite it."
Her mother sighed and rubbed her temple.
"We sent you here for your own good, love. You know how vicious people can be. They would have destroyed you."
"No, they would have destroyed you. Your precious reputation, always more important than the well-being off your children."
"You are coming back with us, and that's final."
"Sarah," Helena's father cut in. "Perhaps it is for the best that we let her stay here."
She spun on him. "What? Joseph, how could even suggest that?"
He placed his hands on her shoulders. "Because it might just be what's best for her right now."
Sarah's face darkened.
"Besides, Christopher will hardly be in any condition to travel to England soon. We can decide if it will happen when he is well enough to make the journey."
Sarah huffed, then nodded and left the room. Joseph turned to Helena. He stepped to her side.
"Daddy," she started, but he cut her off by leaning down and kissing her forehead.
"Just don't raise him to be a Yank," he murmured.
She nodded through her laugh and wrapped an arm around him, hugging him the best that she could.
-oOo-
She pushed into the store (no money…no candy)
She moved through the store (dorito…banana…chips ahoy…) She reached the pay phones in the back of the store, she pressed the return coin button a few times (ping…ping…ping…), then checked the slot. Empty (nope…nada…zilch…)
She sighed and screwed her eyes shut. Her head pounded and her body weakened (white noise makes wonderful background music) Her knuckles turned white as she gripped the phone box to keep herself from falling.
She focused on her breathing. Just a little further.
Just a little further.
(stayin' alive…stayin' alive…ah-ah-ah-yeah)
The vertigo passed after a few moments. She slowly relaxed and turned to the counter (count…one-two-three…sesame street) The boy glanced up a few times as she walked over.
"Hav' a phone I c'n use?" she asked, focusing on keeping her voice from slurring.
The kid raised an eyebrow and looked pointedly at the payphone (asshole)
"No money," she murmured (no candy)
She focused on his lips, doing her best to understand him. All she could make out, however, was 'can't'.
"Please, needa call ma'mom." She spoke slowly, focusing to make sure every word came out correctly. "Prob'ly real worried."
She didn't catch any of what he said, but did catch the way he looked her up and down (look…don't touch)
She recoiled and left. Her stomach was tight and tears threatened to spill over as she moved away from the store.
(run away…run away and never come back…)
She didn't know how far she had gotten, but she only stopped when nausea forced her to double over.
(ready…aim…fire…)
-oOo-
The nurse turned the TV off as the news, once again, turned to Myka Bering. She didn't need a reminder that the girl was missing.
All she had to do for that was look in the waiting room.
-oOo-
Zach blankly stared at his phone as he waited for a taxi.
His eyes burned from the red-eye flight and his stomach growled every few minutes. His focus, however, was getting to Jefferson. He could eat and sleep there.
-oOo-
Another cough spread through her chest (always found her) It scrapped against her throat as it moved up. She pressed a hand to her chest as she stopped walking. She doubled over, then collapsed to the ground (lips create words)
When the cough finally passed, her chest felt heavy, her head light (B-A-N-A-N-A-S) She pulled herself into a fetal position.
She didn't know how much time had passed when something touched her shoulder. She let out a cry and pushed herself backwards (along came a spider) away from whatever it was. She whimpered at the pain that spread through her body at the sharp movement (tap dance on the dashboard)
When the pain subsided enough, she pushed herself up (only one in class to get it) and squinted to find an older woman crouched next to her. The woman was watching her closely, with concerned eyes.
The woman's mouth moved (hairstreak butterfly) but Myka couldn't focus enough to figure out what she was saying. The woman tried again but Myka just shook her head.
"C'n' hear," she slurred.
The woman's eyes went wide. She called something (count – seven…ate…nine) over her shoulder. Myka glanced over to see a man (hanery silt loam) standing by a car.
"Phone," Myka murmured.
The woman's eyes scrunched for a moment, then she ('braska) nodded. She pulled out a cellphone, unlocked it, and handed it to Myka.
Myka blinked a few times as she tried to keep her focus on the numbers. She searched her mind (i see you) for the number she knew. She knew it (nope…nada…zilch) she knew she knew it.
Her fingers moved along the keys absently (rain in topeka) She blinked in surprise when she realized that she had typed the number. She raised the phone to her ear (no ear-no voice-no ear) then pulled it away and stared at it.
"C'n' hear," she mumbled again.
The woman gently took the phone from her (seven hours and fifteen minutes of sleep) and raised it to her own ear.
"Is Pete," Myka told her.
The woman nodded (stained like that) and began to speak after a few moments. Myka watched her, then snatched (chips ahoy) the phone back.
"Pete? Pete is me. Scared, Pete. I can't...can't hear, Pete. Pete, I...I-I don't know. Pete, help me, please, Pete."
She didn't notice the woman gently taking the phone from her. She just curled back up, the litany continuing to fall from her lips.
(scared…pete…help…can't hear…scared…so much pain…pete…help…so scared)
