Chapter THIRTY-SEVEN: Black VS Blue

Mark Jefferson grinned from ear to ear as he slowly approached his captive…his subject. He looked upon the girl tied up tightly on the chair and he didn't see a young girl who would die alone and afraid soon, he saw the future of photography and his legacy. Even though the young woman had only just regained consciousness and was only beginning to comprehend her situation, Mark could already see the change he so desperately wanted to capture. The fortress of innocence was already beginning to crumble and weaken as the fear took hold of her and Mark would make sure it wouldn't let go. This was going to be easy! This was going to be fun!

Mark Jefferson loved the sound of his camera especially within the confines of his dark room. He adored the precious moments after the picture was taken also as it represented a victory for him, that he had got what he wanted and he could now look forward to studying the finished product and gaze upon that all too precious moment when the innocence of his subject evolved into corruption…the moment when black turned to white and then to grey. Normally he wouldn't spend all that long with his models as he was eager to move on and recapture that precious moment on someone else but there was something different about the girl in front of him…an intense beauty that was buried under the strain of innocence and purity so he felt pride as he would be the one who would take away that purity and allow the true beauty of this girl to take shape…the true beauty of Chloe Elizabeth Price!

A memory of similar beings came into his mind as he continued his session. All of those faux-punk sluts dancing around and being to bitchy for their own good but that was exactly the point Mark Jefferson had missed…he had been so busy focussing on the outside beauty of the girls from Blackwell that he completely ignored the invisible aura that girls like Chloe Price carried around. This was his new mission, to capture the evolution of innocence to corruption from within, the change from black to white to grey from within their souls! It was perfect yet ambitious, it meant starting a whole new binder of subjects and research and this would be difficult but he was reminded of his famous saying that doubled as his way of life…always take the shot!

A thought occurred to Jefferson as he took another photo from a low angle of the blue haired punk. He didn't need this one anymore, she was only the beginning! He had already buried her late partner, that intolerable Max Caulfield, so why shouldn't he just do the same with Chloe so he could truly start fresh with his new ambition. He decided in that one single instant that he would kill her, end her life and her suffering. The gun had been placed on the desk behind him and it only took a minute to collect the weapon, load it and aim. He wasn't too fond of guns, they were simple and barbaric at the best of times but his work needed to be done and Chloe Price was not part of his work anymore. Mark couldn't help but smile as the look on Chloe's face turned from fear to anger and then finally to acceptance. It felt good to see the look of intense fear on the face of someone who was infamous for being tough and loud, it was strangely ironic that she would die silent and alone in his dark room and no one would even know about it. Mark smiled once more as he aimed the pistol at Chloe's head and uttered the final words she would ever hear…

"It's time to wake up…" and then without another thought or sound there was a loud bang and everything went silent…

"CHLOE!" yelled Max as she shot up. Her surroundings were blurry and her head was pounding. Tears had made their way down her face and her lips were extremely dry. She blinked a hundred times a minute as she tried to focus on her location and was surprised to see that she was in some sort of hospital room. Sweat was pouring down from her forehead as she signed in great relief.

She had been dreaming!

A horrible disgusting dream but still thankfully a dream. The room was still spinning around her as a Doctor burst in and attempted to calm Max down. She felt sick and actually scared after what had just happened, she even had to take a moment to convince herself that she hadn't just seen the future again like she had done months ago before the storm. Max reached out her hand and surely enough nothing happened…her power was still gone and she was all the more better without it! All those terrible thoughts about Jefferson still lingered in her mind as if she had been there and it made her feel sick to her stomach, so much so that she had to the bathroom to throw up which wasn't east at all considering she was in intense pain and she had just woken up. The Doctor had explained to her that she only had minor fractures and a nearly broken leg plus a gigantic bruise on the back of her head that she was lucky it wasn't too serious as it could have easily been so much worse. The worst part was the bruising on her stomach area that hurt like hell when she threw up. It wasn't serious but would hurt for a good month or so and would be sore long after but Max wasn't really that concerned with any of this, all she cared about was Chloe! The events of her nightmare still horrified her and this coupled with the accidence made her worry so much to the point of tears. Thankfully Joyce had been the one to tell Max that Chloe was fine, despite her complaining and foul language when she was pissed.

"Thanks for telling me Joyce. I'm so glad Chloe is okay but I need to see her" Max practically begged. Her voice had been rough and she had to constantly stop in between words thanks to the pain in her stomach. She had been given painkillers but they had only served to make the pain angry and force it to lash out even more!

"You can see her in a little while, you both are still in observation and you need your rest. I know you're about as stubborn as a thick tree but you are also a very smart young woman and you know you have to get some rest. Only for a little while and then maybe Chloe can come and see you later in the day okay" compromised Joyce. It was clear that the older woman had been crying recently but the energy in her voice told Max that she was given good news, probably regarding the health of her daughter. Max wanted to make a case that she needed Chloe to get better, she wanted to bust the damn door down and run to the love of her life but Joyce was right, she did need her rest and so did Chloe.

The rest of that day went on slow but pretty much okay, besides the intense pain Max was forced to endure. The remnants of her nightmare still terrified her but she had one small comfort, it wasn't about the storm as whenever that crept its way into her dreams…she wouldn't be the same for a while after. It was getting very late and after a few checks from the Doctor and a couple of texts from Kate and the others, Max was left in the dark to get some proper sleep. Sleep wasn't going to happen and Max knew it. The pain in her stomach made for an excellent substitute for a hundred cups of coffee and every time she even attempted to get some much-needed rest, she would see the evil warped face of Mark Jefferson smiling at her like the creep he was. Max didn't like the idea of him still having power over her even now. That's why she never talked about him, not even to Chloe as she was determined not to let that man screw her up anymore than he already had done. Max would never let him win!

It had to have been around midnight when the door to her room slowly creaked open. The sudden gust of wind caused by the opening of the door startled Max immediately and she was scared to turn around as she was facing the windows. Whoever had invaded her room was slowly creeping towards her bed and Max could hear the silent tapping on the ground from the bare feet of whoever it was. Max shook slightly but closed her eyes for a moment, reassuring herself that no one bad could come into the hospital unknown to the staff so it had to be someone visiting her from inside the hospital itself. Suddenly a hand lightly grabbed Max's shoulder and she spun around ready to shout her head off to get some attention from anyone passing by if this person intended to harm her in some way however, it turned out to be a much better and more beautiful alternative…

Chloe Price smiled at her fiancé who looked up at her surprise,

"Hey there Max. You really didn't think I'd let you sleep without a goodnight grope from me right?" chuckled Chloe. Without a second thought or regard for the pain it would inevitably cause, Max jumped up with speed and brought Chloe into a hug. Chloe returned the hug instantly and the two lovers remained like this for several minutes before they each began to tear up. The events of the past day were unexpected and they were just so glad to be together again. It took a further minute for both Max and Chloe to realise that they were both causing eachother a great amount of pain from the hug so they backed out and simply settled for a round of tonsil tennis instead after which Chloe retired to the chair beside Max's bed.

"Chloe I'm so glad to see you but you should be resting and the Doctor will bust his nut if he knew you snuck over here and I don't want you hurting yourself because of me" insisted Max, still holding onto her fiancé's hand whilst lying in her bed.

"No amount of pain would ever stop me from seeing you Mad Max and besides, you could always kiss better the parts that hurt" Chloe winked, earning a genuine laugh and smile from Max.

"You're such a dork but I mean it, you need to go back to bed and get some sleep okay, I love you so much but I'd sleep better knowing you were okay. Do it for me okay?" asked Max. Chloe sighed and rested her head by Max's for a second before kissing her warmly on the cheek and reluctantly stood up to leave.

"I obey thy command Lady Max" joked Chloe before blow kissing in Max's direction,

"I love you so much, you big dork. Whatever happens I will see you tomorrow okay" Max explained.

"I love you to Max…always" beamed Chloe as she made her way out the door and back to her room. Max smiled and closed her eyes finally ready to begin the battle of trying to get some sleep. It only took a few minutes for Max to actually fall into a calm sleep, the appearance of the girl she loved the most had mad her feel more peaceful that ever before and the dark memories of Jefferson were replaced with the loving image of Chloe Price. Mark Jefferson, wherever he was now, had lost!