A/N: The little bit in quotations at the end I sort of *borrowed* from a book called 'After the First Death' by Robert Cormier. I changed the name of the character, but other then that... Oh, and sorry this took so long.
"He's coming to!" Dave told Luka. Carter blinked.
"Déjà vu!" he said. Dave looked at Luka who was looking at Carter.
"He's right," Luka said, "Something like this has happened before," comprehension dawned on Dave's face.
"Lucy..." Dave said, sadly.
"Lucy who?" Carte asked. Luka and Dave took one last look at Carter before he fell back unconscious.
"Delirium," Luka voiced the answer to the unsaid question, "he'll be fine."
"Are you sure? Because that's what they said about my mother!" Claire said.
"Calm, down, everything will be fine!" Luka assured her.
"You don't know that! You doctors don't know anything!" Claire was getting angry.
"Keep quiet, girl!"
"Lucy..." Alex stood up and tasted the word, "is that his friend that died?" Luka and Dave turned to him, shocked.
"Shut up, Alex! Now's not the time!" Angela said, urgently, pulling him back down to the floor.
"Kids are just too nosey!" Jay said, gruffly, lighting a cigarette. Dave glanced at Jay. There was something about those eyes that were familiar to Dave. And the voice, too. Jay pulled out the communicator.
"Where's the money?" he asked, "And the copter?"
"We are arranging it, sir," Frank's voice came through, "How is Carter?" Jay stared at the communicator.
"I never told you who was shot..." Jay shot a look at Dave, Luka and Carter.
"I told him!" Jay's eyes were diverted from Dave, Luka and Carter. Dave turned, eyes full of terror, to who spoke.
"Jenna, no!" Dave cried. Jenna glanced at Dave.
"Why does everyone have to be so god damned stupid?" Jay sighed, "Brave, but stupid. Bad combo!" he readied his gun.
"Leave Miss Morgan alone!" Claire stood up, "Do you really want to shoot her? That will be another one down. One less hostage. 1000 dollars less. You don't want to lose that money, do you?"
"This girl is smart," Luka whispered to Dave.
"Yeah," Dave was still trying to place Jay. Then, he remembered.
"Jason Malcolm!" Dave declared, standing up and pointing at him. Jay's head snapped away from Jenna and Claire.
"What?" he asked. Dave ignored him and continued.
"At age 17, he was brought in to the County General with bad marks and bruises all over his body."
"How do you know that?" Jay asked.
"I know those eyes. There is not one case or child abuse I forget. And your eyes chilled me to the bone."
"You see, now, you're coming with me!" Jay said, "I'm sorry," Frank came on the communicator again.
"Jay, we guessed the wounded person was Dr. John Carter, it wasn't-"
"Shut up, old man, I know that Carter was playing spy for you!" Jay screamed into the communicator, "That's why I shot him. Now, get me the money and the helicopter fast or Dr. Carter here won't make it through the night!" Luka looked at Dave, sadly.
"He's right," he said, "We may need to intubate. And surgery. How can we do a surgery in a school room?" Dave looked up at Jay, then at the communicator, only half listening.
"What's the problem, *Jason?* Losing control of your hostages?"
"Shut up!" Jay screamed.
"Oh, I'm sorry, Mr. *Malcolm!* Sorry I saved you from your wounds last year!" Dave emphasized Jay's real name, loud enough for them to hear it on the other end.
"Give us time, Jay, to gather the money," Frank said, pretending he hadn't heard Dave, "And we will send it with a chopper to the roof of the school," Jay nodded.
"You have 4 hours."
But the hours past.
2:00
3:00
4:00
4:30
"Frankie..." Jay called in a singsong voice, "Your time is getting shorter!" Carter was awake, now, though in much pain. Luka and Dave had done all they could with the limited equipment they were aloud to bring. Jay looked around and his eyes rested on Claire.
"Dee, grab the girl!" he commanded. Dee, the vulture that he was, listened to the hawk. But the lonely falcon intervened
"No, Jay, she's done nothing wrong!" Em tried to reason with the leader.
"So?" Jay shrugged, "She is a child. I told you, children would get hurt!"
"But you promised to leave it until hurting a child was vital for-"
"It is vital!" Jay explained, "We must show them that if they don't get the money to us by 5:00, then we will do something drastic. Must show we are serious!"
"The doctor! The accented one! Or the principal! What about them?"
"Those two?" Jay laughed, "If we kill the doctor, we will have none left and no one to keep Carter alive! If we kill the principal... that's no good. We must kill a child," Dave didn't like the way they were speaking. As if Dave's fate was already planed, already decided. It made him uneasy.
"We may not have to shoot the girl!" Em explained.
"You're right," Jay agreed, "But if we have to, then we do!"
"So be it!" Claire spoke up, "If you want to kill me, go ahead! It will take me away from this horrible world that took my mother and my older brother!"
"Ah, Charlie! Did they ever catch the 'bully' who ruffed him up that much?" Claire's eyes widened, for the first time realizing what had happened the school night her brother was killed.
"YOU!" Claire screamed, "YOU-" and she continued, using every swearword she knew to describe him. She struggled against Dee to get free and try and tear Jay apart with her own two hands.
"Whoa, girl, easy there!" Dave called over.
"Was it you who took a shot at my mother, too?" Claire asked, "Did she see what you had done to her son? You bastard!" Claire spat at him. Jay just yawned and looked at his watch. He grinned.
"Five past five!" he declared, "It's show time!" he raised his gun, Claire closed her eyes, whispering.
"Was I brave, mother? Was I? I'm coming, mother..." BANG!! It silenced everything.
"When Claire McAlester was eight years old, she almost choked to death. A chunk of meat caught in her throat. For one, terrible moment, she was stiff with terror, her throat jammed with the meat, unable to move, her breath cut off so swiftly and completely between inhale and exhale that she could not even gasp, but could only try to rise to her feet, eyes bulging, mouth frozen open. She could not move, she could not utter a sound, was paralyzed, silent, and thought: I am dying and nobody knows although they're here at the table with me, my mom, my dad, my two brothers. And then, at the moment when suffocation threatened, and the room began to grow dim and far away, the lodged meat somehow, miraculously, loosened. And she coughed and retched and the meat came up into her mouth, freeing her, unlocking her bones and muscles, allowing the air to rush into her lungs and she was instantly bathed in a cool perspiration that glistened on her skin. With the breath came a sense of reprieve, the sweet knowledge that she was not going to die after all, she was going to live. Life, the act of being alive and able to draw breath, was suddenly unbearably beautiful, like music within her. She was safe. Safe.
But not this time.
This time, everything had stopped the way a watch stops, and the pain was her body and her body was the pain and she knew exactly what happened and was going to happen. The gun had gone off. She was caught between inhale and exhale. *The pain... wow... breath-caught dying mommy and daddy I can't breathe and nobody to tell me if I was bra...*"
"He's coming to!" Dave told Luka. Carter blinked.
"Déjà vu!" he said. Dave looked at Luka who was looking at Carter.
"He's right," Luka said, "Something like this has happened before," comprehension dawned on Dave's face.
"Lucy..." Dave said, sadly.
"Lucy who?" Carte asked. Luka and Dave took one last look at Carter before he fell back unconscious.
"Delirium," Luka voiced the answer to the unsaid question, "he'll be fine."
"Are you sure? Because that's what they said about my mother!" Claire said.
"Calm, down, everything will be fine!" Luka assured her.
"You don't know that! You doctors don't know anything!" Claire was getting angry.
"Keep quiet, girl!"
"Lucy..." Alex stood up and tasted the word, "is that his friend that died?" Luka and Dave turned to him, shocked.
"Shut up, Alex! Now's not the time!" Angela said, urgently, pulling him back down to the floor.
"Kids are just too nosey!" Jay said, gruffly, lighting a cigarette. Dave glanced at Jay. There was something about those eyes that were familiar to Dave. And the voice, too. Jay pulled out the communicator.
"Where's the money?" he asked, "And the copter?"
"We are arranging it, sir," Frank's voice came through, "How is Carter?" Jay stared at the communicator.
"I never told you who was shot..." Jay shot a look at Dave, Luka and Carter.
"I told him!" Jay's eyes were diverted from Dave, Luka and Carter. Dave turned, eyes full of terror, to who spoke.
"Jenna, no!" Dave cried. Jenna glanced at Dave.
"Why does everyone have to be so god damned stupid?" Jay sighed, "Brave, but stupid. Bad combo!" he readied his gun.
"Leave Miss Morgan alone!" Claire stood up, "Do you really want to shoot her? That will be another one down. One less hostage. 1000 dollars less. You don't want to lose that money, do you?"
"This girl is smart," Luka whispered to Dave.
"Yeah," Dave was still trying to place Jay. Then, he remembered.
"Jason Malcolm!" Dave declared, standing up and pointing at him. Jay's head snapped away from Jenna and Claire.
"What?" he asked. Dave ignored him and continued.
"At age 17, he was brought in to the County General with bad marks and bruises all over his body."
"How do you know that?" Jay asked.
"I know those eyes. There is not one case or child abuse I forget. And your eyes chilled me to the bone."
"You see, now, you're coming with me!" Jay said, "I'm sorry," Frank came on the communicator again.
"Jay, we guessed the wounded person was Dr. John Carter, it wasn't-"
"Shut up, old man, I know that Carter was playing spy for you!" Jay screamed into the communicator, "That's why I shot him. Now, get me the money and the helicopter fast or Dr. Carter here won't make it through the night!" Luka looked at Dave, sadly.
"He's right," he said, "We may need to intubate. And surgery. How can we do a surgery in a school room?" Dave looked up at Jay, then at the communicator, only half listening.
"What's the problem, *Jason?* Losing control of your hostages?"
"Shut up!" Jay screamed.
"Oh, I'm sorry, Mr. *Malcolm!* Sorry I saved you from your wounds last year!" Dave emphasized Jay's real name, loud enough for them to hear it on the other end.
"Give us time, Jay, to gather the money," Frank said, pretending he hadn't heard Dave, "And we will send it with a chopper to the roof of the school," Jay nodded.
"You have 4 hours."
But the hours past.
2:00
3:00
4:00
4:30
"Frankie..." Jay called in a singsong voice, "Your time is getting shorter!" Carter was awake, now, though in much pain. Luka and Dave had done all they could with the limited equipment they were aloud to bring. Jay looked around and his eyes rested on Claire.
"Dee, grab the girl!" he commanded. Dee, the vulture that he was, listened to the hawk. But the lonely falcon intervened
"No, Jay, she's done nothing wrong!" Em tried to reason with the leader.
"So?" Jay shrugged, "She is a child. I told you, children would get hurt!"
"But you promised to leave it until hurting a child was vital for-"
"It is vital!" Jay explained, "We must show them that if they don't get the money to us by 5:00, then we will do something drastic. Must show we are serious!"
"The doctor! The accented one! Or the principal! What about them?"
"Those two?" Jay laughed, "If we kill the doctor, we will have none left and no one to keep Carter alive! If we kill the principal... that's no good. We must kill a child," Dave didn't like the way they were speaking. As if Dave's fate was already planed, already decided. It made him uneasy.
"We may not have to shoot the girl!" Em explained.
"You're right," Jay agreed, "But if we have to, then we do!"
"So be it!" Claire spoke up, "If you want to kill me, go ahead! It will take me away from this horrible world that took my mother and my older brother!"
"Ah, Charlie! Did they ever catch the 'bully' who ruffed him up that much?" Claire's eyes widened, for the first time realizing what had happened the school night her brother was killed.
"YOU!" Claire screamed, "YOU-" and she continued, using every swearword she knew to describe him. She struggled against Dee to get free and try and tear Jay apart with her own two hands.
"Whoa, girl, easy there!" Dave called over.
"Was it you who took a shot at my mother, too?" Claire asked, "Did she see what you had done to her son? You bastard!" Claire spat at him. Jay just yawned and looked at his watch. He grinned.
"Five past five!" he declared, "It's show time!" he raised his gun, Claire closed her eyes, whispering.
"Was I brave, mother? Was I? I'm coming, mother..." BANG!! It silenced everything.
"When Claire McAlester was eight years old, she almost choked to death. A chunk of meat caught in her throat. For one, terrible moment, she was stiff with terror, her throat jammed with the meat, unable to move, her breath cut off so swiftly and completely between inhale and exhale that she could not even gasp, but could only try to rise to her feet, eyes bulging, mouth frozen open. She could not move, she could not utter a sound, was paralyzed, silent, and thought: I am dying and nobody knows although they're here at the table with me, my mom, my dad, my two brothers. And then, at the moment when suffocation threatened, and the room began to grow dim and far away, the lodged meat somehow, miraculously, loosened. And she coughed and retched and the meat came up into her mouth, freeing her, unlocking her bones and muscles, allowing the air to rush into her lungs and she was instantly bathed in a cool perspiration that glistened on her skin. With the breath came a sense of reprieve, the sweet knowledge that she was not going to die after all, she was going to live. Life, the act of being alive and able to draw breath, was suddenly unbearably beautiful, like music within her. She was safe. Safe.
But not this time.
This time, everything had stopped the way a watch stops, and the pain was her body and her body was the pain and she knew exactly what happened and was going to happen. The gun had gone off. She was caught between inhale and exhale. *The pain... wow... breath-caught dying mommy and daddy I can't breathe and nobody to tell me if I was bra...*"