Title: Let them Live...Another Day?
Author: Lisa
Email: lisacheerio_85@yahoo.com
Disclaimer: See part one
Note: Half of this is strangely reminiscent of a former fic, however when both fics come from the same brain – it's sometimes hard to avoid! Hehe
Therefore I personally give myself permission to "modify" a former scene/scenario to include it in this one! hehehehe Technically, considering I wrote the familiar seeming one about uh...a year and half ago? Anyways it was one of my firsts (that sounds so bad!) but yes I give myself permission to use my idea again. Hehehe
Part Three
Oscar rolled over in his bed.
"You awake?" Angie asked from above him. He nodded, not that she could see.
"Yeah," he choked back, his voice throaty. "Nearly time to swap?"
"Narr, half an hour still." She paused. "I can't see Pete?"
"He's gone off walking somewhere."
"Oscar can I come down there?" He paused.
"Course you can." Wasn't a moment before her bare feet appeared, then her jeans, then her jumper, then her face, as she knelt beside him. He rolled onto his side. "What is it?" he asked, letting his arm fall out in front of him, his fingers rubbing her knee gently. She shrugged.
"Just lonely up there." He nodded, before a strange thought entered his mind.
"Oh no," he whispered.
"What is it?" she asked, eyes wide. He showed her his watch and turned on its tiny light.
"What date is on that?"
"The tenth."
"Shit!" he hissed, taking out his mobile. Lines still down. He sat up, almost knocking his head on the bunk above him until Angie reached out and grabbed it just in time.
"What?" she exclaimed, louder this time. He grimaced.
"I totally forgot. I'm so dead-"
"What? Oscar?"
"My parents arrived today." Angie laughed.
"Today?"
"Tonight!" He sighed. "I'm so dead. I wonder if they found the spare key."
"Oh no, what are you going to do?" He shrugged.
"I have to go-" He paused, thinking. "Right so you stay here, get some sleep, take my bunk – much better – I'm going to go and borrow Mac's car if the battery's still good. It's out the front. I'll be back. I just need to make sure they're okay." Angie smiled, nodding as he impulsively hugged her. She laughed.
"What'd you do that for?" she asked as he kissed her on the cheek. Oscar paused, half way out of the room already.
"I don't know..." He grinned, shrugging. "Experimentation!" Angie rolled her eyes, snuggling beneath the covers Oscar had just occupied as he raced out of the door.
*
Danni looked up from her magazine to see Oscar race across her line of vision. Ah, she thought, must be edgy, before returning to the movie reviews.
*
Mac was at her desk and looked up abruptly as Oscar raced around the corner into her working space.
"Yes?" she asked.
"Can I borrow your car keys?"
"What?" Mac asked. Oscar explained quickly, ignoring Mac start to laugh. She managed to find some seriousness to the subject of two abandoned parents waiting for their son. She handed her keys to him.
"I'll be back as soon as I can. I just want to make sure-"
"That's fine!" She narrowed her eyes. "Although, you do hold any freedom we had, escape route even, in your hands."
"I promise you I'll be back."
"Okay then. How will you get out?"
"Abseiling is a terrific skill."
"Need help?"
"Narr I'll be right. I'll be back."
"Okay, take your time."
*
Angie leant out the window, shining the torch as she pulled the sheets back up and waved Oscar off. He was going to need the ladder to get back in, but they'd found some old walkie-talkies, one of which he'd taken with him. Angie would keep the other.
*
Pete walked behind Danni after fixing himself a cup of coffee, and took the steps to Mac's office. He poked his head in. The desk lamp was on, that was all. Her computer screen-saver was rolling in all directions across the screen and he sat at her desk, fiddling with it for a moment, playing around, before returning it to how it was. He looked around for her, before standing and passing into the only area she could have possibly been without leaving the room.
"Mac?" he called softly, before finding her sitting on the floor in the makeshift bathroom. There was a sink and lots of cupboards, if that counted for anything. Pete moved to her quickly, kneeling down beside her. "What's the matter?" he asked, slipping to sit beside her, letting an arm rest around her shoulders. Mac wiped the tears from her face. "Can you stand?"
"I don't know, but it's not that," she sniffled as Pete encouraged her to lean her head into his chest. She felt like it, so she did. He held her tightly.
"Is it this whole situation? You sure it's not your foot? Maybe we should splint it..."
"No, it's not that," she managed a laugh. "I was just thinking about this review."
"Oh?"
"Mm, well, you see it's not to get rid of any of you. It's to get rid of me."
"What?" he whispered. She nodded, composing herself.
"Yeah, well, basically they read what you write about me, each other, what I write about all of you, my own actions, and once it's written and signed, it can be used as evidence at any employment hearing in this state."
"What if we lie?"
"You wouldn't."
"We might."
"Oh come on, you all aren't going to leave out things like me being so distracted with Bill, hitting you, lashing out at Danni- Who, by the way's, not coming back either."
"She typed her letter of resignation last night," he whispered in her ear. "You don't have to feel guilty."
"Thing is Pete, neither does she." She looked up at him. "Or you." He shook his head.
"Your assurance that I shouldn't doesn't mean that I don't. I mean most of the time I don't, but occasionally I do."
"Yeah? How come?"
"You were ashamed to have been with me?"
"No, just ashamed of how we were being. Bernie wasn't easy you know."
"I know."
"You didn't get in trouble at all, did you? Buy him a beer and he forgot about it all."
"I guess. Why?"
"Well, I mean he did the same for me too, but, there was something always there."
"He trusted you."
"Mm."
"Everyone here trusts you, Mac."
"I did such a good job of this place!" she exclaimed sarcastically. "Look how we've ended up. We're stuck here."
"Oscar's gone to get help I see."
"He forgot his parents were arriving tonight-"
"At his place?" She nodded. "Classic!" They managed to laugh. Pete let his fingers run through Mac's hair as they fell silent again. Mac reached out, letting her hand brush against his.
"Just um, Peter," her eyes flicked up at him momentarily. "I wasn't ashamed of being with you, it's not what I meant, yeah?" He nodded, tilting her head up so he could see her face.
"Yeah, I know," he whispered. They watched each other, before Pete leant down and kissed her softly. Mac didn't object, and pulled him to her as they quickly found a more comfortable position sitting against the rows of unused cupboards.
*
Angie let her eyes fall closed in the bottom bunk. If she'd still been on the top, a shaft of light from below would have passed over her, alerting her to the presence outside. Yet for now, she pulled the covers snugly around her neck, creating a warm pocket of air. She could still smell Oscar on the pillow, soft and warm, and she was tired, drifting into sleep.
*
Danni cast a glance towards Mac's office. It didn't look like either of them were actually in the office, probably sitting on the couch just beside the door, she assumed, sorting out some stuff.
*
Mac realised things were fast becoming out of her control as they kissed against the cupboards, hands everywhere, touching, brushing, caressing. She wanted to pull off, but then again there was another, much larger part of her that didn't.
*
All four of them stopped as they heard the first gunshot, and the many that followed.
*
Danni stood in her spot, looking around for her gun and snatching it up quickly.
*
Angie froze, her eyes open. She too, looked for the gun, before realising they'd taken them all out into other rooms with them, and she hadn't brought hers back with her. She didn't know where Oscar's were. Shit, she thought, trying to work out what to do. She couldn't just go out there defenceless while they blew the place apart...Could she?
*
Pete's arms tightened around Mac. He could feel her heartbeat fasten further. Usually the extra connection between their bodies would have excited him, but not now. He looked up at Mac, who was resting a finger delicately across his lips. She turned to face him, biting her bottom lip. He stood, for a moment waiting for her to stand also. He looked down as if to ask what she was doing. She shook her head and he soon remembered her ankle. In the heat of the moment he'd forgotten all about it. She didn't need to be able to walk for what they'd been up to. He bent down, helping pull her to her feet. He grabbed his gun from his waist – Mac's was in her desk drawer by the looks of things – and poked his head out of the door.
*
Danni froze as four men in long, dark coats stormed into her vision, semi-automatic and automatic weapons spraying bullets everywhere. One of them laughed when he saw her, and then some more when he shot her.
*
Angie blushed, embarrassed. She knew she was a coward. Big deal. Things were different when there was no gun, when they had all the guns. She got out of the bed, straightened it. Good thing the light was off, it would maybe distract them for a while longer. She made sure the bed looked decently made, before grabbing a bunch of towels from the closet and dragging them beside her as she lay on the ground, sliding sideways under the bed. There was a cupboard directly at the feet of the beds, up against the wall also. She had good protection, good coverage. She shook, managing to drag enough towels over her body and head.
*
Mac and Pete crossed the hallway to the empty looking overnight room the boss was able to use. They looked at the bed. A small-frame single, spring-based – it would never be enough cover for both of them. There was, however, a large wooden cupboard opposite the foot of the bed. Pete opened the door as the gunshots got louder. He helped Mac inside, before he too got inside – it was tall enough to stand in, and wide enough for the both of them. Pete turned the deadlock from inside. He turned to face Mac. Neither of them were facing the door or the back panel, standing at either sides. Yet there wasn't enough room for there to be much extra space between them, and Mac was on one foot, her left knee bent up, resting alongside Pete's right thigh. His right hand held onto it as she leant into him, his other holding her waist as they both tried to steady themselves. This could be a long wait. Not to mention the fact that they had one weeny, little police pistol compared to the makings or World War Three right outside their doors.
*
"That's one," the first man mumbled. "SO WHERE ARE THE OTHERS?"
"Maybe that's all we got?"
"It was a perfect trap. They were all-"
"Mackenzie's car isn't there any more. It was though. Maybe they left to get help or something? A lot of them?"
"They wouldn't leave this bitch here by herself."
"Maybe they did?" He turned on his mates.
"WOULD YOU STOP WITH THE MAYBES? We don't have much time. Some security guard's probably already prowling. You know what to do." They nodded. One started on the desks, one the computers. He stood opposite the electric equipment, sending streams of bullets crashing through the hard drives. Someone was already down in the archives, exposing tapes, shooting and destroying equipment.
In the meantime, the first man went looking for flesh.
*
"Oh shit," Pete whispered, as the bullets seemed to fade to further away.
"What?" Mac mouthed, looking up at him. He brought her closer, whispering in her ear. Mac liked the feel of his lips against her ear, she noticed, but this was hardly the time.
"Your desk lamp and computer are on."
"Do you know where the switch is?" she asked. He nodded. Tears came to Mac's eyes. "I won't lock it on you." He nodded, pecking her softly on the lips, before opening the door and making sure the coast was clear, running softly out of the room.
*
Pete slid the secret door to Mac's office open slowly. There was nothing there. No one. He ran in quickly, making sure not to make any noise. He found the switch that held the adaptors that catered for the computer, the light, the small desk fan Mac used occasionally. He switched it off, the room spiralling into darkness. He found her bag and looked up at the approaching footsteps. He took it with him, walking as fast as he could back to Mac.
*
She jumped as he opened the door to the cupboard, locking himself in. She held onto him tightly as he turned back to her, hugging her to him.
"It's all right," he whispered. "I did it." He let the bag fall between his feet, holding it steady as Mac signalled to him she wanted to be closer. Considering she could barely move on one foot, Pete slid forward along the wooden floor, wrapping his arms around her waist and back as she buried her face in his neck.
*
He entered the office. He could have sworn there had been a faint light. Now there was nothing. We'll see about that, he thought to himself, walking forward. He rested a hand on top of the lamp's protective cover – it was warm. Hot even, he could say. He cursed, looking around, ready for an ambush. Wherever they were, he was going to get them. Although they could have easily slipped out while he'd been down the hallway. Damnit! He looked around, before readying his gun and shooting into Mac's hard drive. He found her filing cabinet. Every drawer was locked. To unlock it, he simply destroyed each lock with a bullet. Easy as pie!
*
Pete jumped, same as Mac, as he heard metal being torn apart just through the wall. Mac was shaking terribly and he knew if this got more serious she was going to go into shock, already having the extra burdens of a painful injury and having being out in the heavy storm for so long earlier. She felt almost cold to him, yet she hadn't moments ago in the bathroom. She'd been warm, soft - he remembered it well. Fear, he supposed. He wondered if he had cooled down, or heated up.
*
He looked around. Where was that door he'd dealt with then? No matter, he'd go searching later. For the moment...He turned back to the filing cabinet, emptying files onto the floor. He quickly slid out every nametag on each filing compartment and put them in his bag. They weren't going to know what they had or didn't have – he wasn't going to let that happen. No recovery from this one.
*
Pete could hear Mac breathing into his ear as they stood cheek to cheek in the cupboard, which seemed smaller by the second. They could hear shots from every direction. The next shot they heard, however, was much closer. It was on their side of the wall. He was inside. He couldn't have seen it – it was dark. There was no light...She pulled her face back from Pete's to look into his eyes. He watched her.
'I'm scared,' she mouthed. He nodded, kissing her forehead.
'I'm scared too, it's all right,' he mouthed back. He held in tears as the bathroom cupboards were torn apart by whatever type of serious weapon this person was carrying. It wasn't long before the gun shattered the lock on the door to the bedroom also. Mac felt Pete instinctively pull closer to her, his arms seemed to stretch the furthest around her body they ever had as he held her. Her ankle was throbbing and it was getting harder to balance on just one, while helping to maintain both their balances, Pete putting all his weight between them, same as she was doing.
They both fell completely silent as the door swung open, hitting the wall opposite it. Pete said a quick prayer inside his head, Mac not far from it herself. Bullets were released from their chambers, not sounding too much like they'd hit anything but a dead end. A wall. He was shooting under the bed, Pete would bet a hundred bucks on it. His conscience suddenly stopped as he realised he was holding Mac's head in his hands, holding it easily against his shoulder. He'd forgotten about her hair. How soft it was. He wondered if she knew he'd always loved it, even on a bad day! He smiled to himself before another action brought him back. Mac's hands clenched into fists against his waist as they started to move.
"Geronamo!" the cry was from outside the cupboard. Pete grabbed Mac's neck and lower back and she got the idea to do the same as the cupboard was tipped over. They braced each other for impact with the ground, slamming to a stop only half way down, perhaps thirty-five degrees northeast. Pete had bitten his bottom lip, unnoticed, and now he tasted blood, his back tingling. If he thought he was bad...Mac had been the one to fall back first. He held her tightly. For now though she was resting against the side of the cupboard, tipped over and most probably balancing against the foot of the bed-head. The top of his shoulder stung slightly where she'd dug her chin and later on her teeth into him. Anything to stop her biting her tongue and/or crying out in pain and surprise. He felt her start to shake and had a feeling what was going to come next. He pulled himself over so that he was lying almost directly on top of her, holding her steady, her neck still in his hands. She nodded softly, Pete could just make it out through the dark, telling him she was all right – for now.
*
He laughed, having a bit of fun while he was at it. He knew someone was inside. But it was Church! It had to be. Only Church would hide somewhere so stupidly obvious! He wasn't going to kill Church, just have a little fun. Although, he told himself inwardly, fate is always the killer. He aimed anywhere on the cupboard, and fired.
*
Pete felt Mac shrink beneath him as the gunshot rang through their ears, hot air rushing past their faces. Mac pulled herself up into Pete in slight delay as it exited just right of her head. He could see the hole. That was the only shot though. The room became quiet. Mac opened her eyes, starting to relax but not wanting to. Not yet.
Pete felt her shift beneath him, starting to get uncomfortable. He reached along and let a hand rest along her cheek, leaning his face down so that their foreheads fell together. She allowed a sigh to escape her lips. They lay there for moments, before Pete kissed her softly. The shots were fewer and further between, much farther away than they had been. As Pete's lips left Mac's, he felt her start to cry silently, her chest shaking as she bit her lips, trying to hold it in for minutes longer. Pete didn't want to move beside her, but he felt he could risk it. He communicated with Mac's eyes – wet, white pools – and she shifted to her left slightly as he rolled to his right, using his hands to support his body at the angle as he rolled onto his side. Once he was stable, the cupboard wasn't tilting or creaking, and the silence continued, Mac turned to face him, burying her head in his chest. He let his own tears run down his cheeks. That had been close. So far. Mac was well and truly crying now. He tried to get her to calm down, just for another ten minutes, but Mac wasn't capable of stopping herself now. As he'd thought earlier, she was partly in shock, it seemed, almost not hearing his whispered assurances, even the one he wanted her to hear most of all.
*
Angie didn't want to look around. It meant moving the towels from the top of her head. What if when she looked out, all she saw was a pair of eyes glaring back, then a gun? She couldn't, but she knew she had to.
When she moved the towels, there was nothing there. The footsteps and the shots had left long ago now. It must have been almost fifteen minutes by now, she guessed. She decided to take a look around. All the time people had thought she was the youngest, the least experienced – even though she wasn't that much different in age and experience from Danni and Oscar – but she was the trim blonde, the one that had it toughest, she knew it – so did Mac who she often confided in when the moments suited themselves.
She jumped as the walkie-talkie fired up beside her.
"Ange- Ange-"
"Shh!" she called back, before switching the volume down again. "Where are you?" she hissed.
"Outside your window. What is it?" Angie looked up the slit beside the wall between the beds and painted plaster, only to see the window still covered up. The ladder was resting beside the cupboard. Angie climbed onto the top bunk, using all her strength to hoist the ladder up and feed it out the window, tears streaming down her face.
Oscar guided the ladder to a stop and didn't waste a moment. Something was wrong. He knew it for sure when Angie reached out, pulling him and the ladder through and quickly taping the window back up before turning to face him. Oscar took her arms quickly.
"What's happened?" he asked. She shook her head, hugging him tightly.
"I love you," she whispered quickly. Oscar smiled, hugging her back.
"It's all right."
"I don't know, I don't know what happened. I didn't have my gun-"
"The others?" She shrugged, gesturing to the door.
"Out there." He nodded, taking out his gun and leading Angie out behind him.
*
Oscar stopped Angie in her tracks as he found Danni, her gun still in her hand. She hadn't changed shifts when this had happened. She'd been shot in the chest. He tried for a pulse anyway, but knew that after this long she would have to be dead. He looked up at Angie, shaking his head slightly as she turned, grabbing her gun from her desk draw and moving up to Mac's office, where she'd last seen her friend.
*
Oscar and Angie both stood in Mac's office, looking at the mess of papers over the whole floor.
"No blood," he whispered. She nodded, gesturing to the 'secret' door that had been flung open, the lock shot through. All the locks had been shot through, they realised. Angie took the bathroom while Oscar the bedroom. Angie soon rejoined Oscar, shaking her head: negative.
*
Mac was starting to calm down, content to lie in Pete's arms wherever they were, when new footsteps sounded. She tensed up as they approached the cupboard, Pete realising the door was on Mac's side. If they opened it, they'd get her first. That's not what he wanted, but there was nothing he could do. He pulled her to him tightly, hoping it was Angie, or Danni, or anyone who had 'friend' stamped on their forehead.
The door swung open suddenly. They both jumped, almost tipping the cupboard onto its other side and off the security of the diagonal lean, Mac burying her head into Pete's chest, her arms around his neck, preparing for the impact of the ground, bullets, it was all the same.
"Oh shit guys," was the whispered reply. Oscar backed off as he saw Mac react in fear, looking back at Angie and sighing with relief. She managed a smile. Oscar turned back.
Pete nestled Mac's cheek.
"Mac, it's Oscar, it's all right." She sniffled, still holding onto him tightly. "Come on, you're safe now. We're okay. We made it, eh?" Oscar reached in, helping to pull her out. She cried out as her ankle smacked into the metal from the foot of the bed, and Pete climbed out after her. He looked around. Oscar, Angie. 'Danni?' he mouthed, taking Mac in his arms, holding her. She wasn't crying any more, just silent, exhausted and relieved, shocked. Oscar looked down at the ground, before back up at Peter.
"Narr mate," he replied. "I'm sorry." There was a long pause as Pete looked down at Mac in his arms. 'Second best?' he thought to himself. 'Never.' "I called the cavalry before I got back. The phones are fine now outside this place. They're going to cut through the roller door to get in. We're supposed to be waiting for them there."
"But-" Oscar looked at Pete as Angie watched Mac silently.
"Danni's there. I, I covered her with a sheet but-" Tears started to run down Oscar's cheeks also. He tried never to cry, this wasn't helping.
"It's all right. We'll get through it."
"Yeah?" Pete nodded.
"We'll just step around, like we always do. Every single day. Then we'll go home and then it'll sink in, but there won't be anything we can do once it's happened, and now there's nothing we can do to avoid it." Oscar nodded, taking a deep breath as Angie approached him, slipping an arm around his waist. Mac pulled off Pete slightly, still holding onto him as the one foot she was standing on began to get shaky. She sighed, looking around. Four out of five. Not bad. A tear hit her eye but she ignored it.
"I, uh, my folks got in okay. They were worried sick. They'll be more worried now I think." They all managed to nod. "You should all come back my way after this. It'll be safer than any of your places I think."
"Sounds good," Angie whispered as a couple of loud horns sounded, loud voices and lots of lights lit up the outside world around them.
"I think our rescue team's here," Pete mumbled. "Little late." Angie leant over and took Pete's hand as he helped lead Mac out, Oscar on the other side of Ange.
"Well yeah," she whispered. "That's always the way." He nodded absent- mindedly, releasing Angie's hand gently as he helped Mac navigate the few steps they had to take to get down first, before they got anywhere else. She looked up at him.
"Thanks," she whispered. He shook his head, hugging her loosely as they all stood to await confrontation with the emergency services and cops on the other side.
The End – As you may have realised, I've left A LOT of loose ends. If you are really curious as to what happens and all that 'stuff,' let me know SOON and I'll see what I can do about an epilogue that will "explain all" hehehehehe :P as usual, feedback much appreciated. :P
Author: Lisa
Email: lisacheerio_85@yahoo.com
Disclaimer: See part one
Note: Half of this is strangely reminiscent of a former fic, however when both fics come from the same brain – it's sometimes hard to avoid! Hehe
Therefore I personally give myself permission to "modify" a former scene/scenario to include it in this one! hehehehe Technically, considering I wrote the familiar seeming one about uh...a year and half ago? Anyways it was one of my firsts (that sounds so bad!) but yes I give myself permission to use my idea again. Hehehe
Part Three
Oscar rolled over in his bed.
"You awake?" Angie asked from above him. He nodded, not that she could see.
"Yeah," he choked back, his voice throaty. "Nearly time to swap?"
"Narr, half an hour still." She paused. "I can't see Pete?"
"He's gone off walking somewhere."
"Oscar can I come down there?" He paused.
"Course you can." Wasn't a moment before her bare feet appeared, then her jeans, then her jumper, then her face, as she knelt beside him. He rolled onto his side. "What is it?" he asked, letting his arm fall out in front of him, his fingers rubbing her knee gently. She shrugged.
"Just lonely up there." He nodded, before a strange thought entered his mind.
"Oh no," he whispered.
"What is it?" she asked, eyes wide. He showed her his watch and turned on its tiny light.
"What date is on that?"
"The tenth."
"Shit!" he hissed, taking out his mobile. Lines still down. He sat up, almost knocking his head on the bunk above him until Angie reached out and grabbed it just in time.
"What?" she exclaimed, louder this time. He grimaced.
"I totally forgot. I'm so dead-"
"What? Oscar?"
"My parents arrived today." Angie laughed.
"Today?"
"Tonight!" He sighed. "I'm so dead. I wonder if they found the spare key."
"Oh no, what are you going to do?" He shrugged.
"I have to go-" He paused, thinking. "Right so you stay here, get some sleep, take my bunk – much better – I'm going to go and borrow Mac's car if the battery's still good. It's out the front. I'll be back. I just need to make sure they're okay." Angie smiled, nodding as he impulsively hugged her. She laughed.
"What'd you do that for?" she asked as he kissed her on the cheek. Oscar paused, half way out of the room already.
"I don't know..." He grinned, shrugging. "Experimentation!" Angie rolled her eyes, snuggling beneath the covers Oscar had just occupied as he raced out of the door.
*
Danni looked up from her magazine to see Oscar race across her line of vision. Ah, she thought, must be edgy, before returning to the movie reviews.
*
Mac was at her desk and looked up abruptly as Oscar raced around the corner into her working space.
"Yes?" she asked.
"Can I borrow your car keys?"
"What?" Mac asked. Oscar explained quickly, ignoring Mac start to laugh. She managed to find some seriousness to the subject of two abandoned parents waiting for their son. She handed her keys to him.
"I'll be back as soon as I can. I just want to make sure-"
"That's fine!" She narrowed her eyes. "Although, you do hold any freedom we had, escape route even, in your hands."
"I promise you I'll be back."
"Okay then. How will you get out?"
"Abseiling is a terrific skill."
"Need help?"
"Narr I'll be right. I'll be back."
"Okay, take your time."
*
Angie leant out the window, shining the torch as she pulled the sheets back up and waved Oscar off. He was going to need the ladder to get back in, but they'd found some old walkie-talkies, one of which he'd taken with him. Angie would keep the other.
*
Pete walked behind Danni after fixing himself a cup of coffee, and took the steps to Mac's office. He poked his head in. The desk lamp was on, that was all. Her computer screen-saver was rolling in all directions across the screen and he sat at her desk, fiddling with it for a moment, playing around, before returning it to how it was. He looked around for her, before standing and passing into the only area she could have possibly been without leaving the room.
"Mac?" he called softly, before finding her sitting on the floor in the makeshift bathroom. There was a sink and lots of cupboards, if that counted for anything. Pete moved to her quickly, kneeling down beside her. "What's the matter?" he asked, slipping to sit beside her, letting an arm rest around her shoulders. Mac wiped the tears from her face. "Can you stand?"
"I don't know, but it's not that," she sniffled as Pete encouraged her to lean her head into his chest. She felt like it, so she did. He held her tightly.
"Is it this whole situation? You sure it's not your foot? Maybe we should splint it..."
"No, it's not that," she managed a laugh. "I was just thinking about this review."
"Oh?"
"Mm, well, you see it's not to get rid of any of you. It's to get rid of me."
"What?" he whispered. She nodded, composing herself.
"Yeah, well, basically they read what you write about me, each other, what I write about all of you, my own actions, and once it's written and signed, it can be used as evidence at any employment hearing in this state."
"What if we lie?"
"You wouldn't."
"We might."
"Oh come on, you all aren't going to leave out things like me being so distracted with Bill, hitting you, lashing out at Danni- Who, by the way's, not coming back either."
"She typed her letter of resignation last night," he whispered in her ear. "You don't have to feel guilty."
"Thing is Pete, neither does she." She looked up at him. "Or you." He shook his head.
"Your assurance that I shouldn't doesn't mean that I don't. I mean most of the time I don't, but occasionally I do."
"Yeah? How come?"
"You were ashamed to have been with me?"
"No, just ashamed of how we were being. Bernie wasn't easy you know."
"I know."
"You didn't get in trouble at all, did you? Buy him a beer and he forgot about it all."
"I guess. Why?"
"Well, I mean he did the same for me too, but, there was something always there."
"He trusted you."
"Mm."
"Everyone here trusts you, Mac."
"I did such a good job of this place!" she exclaimed sarcastically. "Look how we've ended up. We're stuck here."
"Oscar's gone to get help I see."
"He forgot his parents were arriving tonight-"
"At his place?" She nodded. "Classic!" They managed to laugh. Pete let his fingers run through Mac's hair as they fell silent again. Mac reached out, letting her hand brush against his.
"Just um, Peter," her eyes flicked up at him momentarily. "I wasn't ashamed of being with you, it's not what I meant, yeah?" He nodded, tilting her head up so he could see her face.
"Yeah, I know," he whispered. They watched each other, before Pete leant down and kissed her softly. Mac didn't object, and pulled him to her as they quickly found a more comfortable position sitting against the rows of unused cupboards.
*
Angie let her eyes fall closed in the bottom bunk. If she'd still been on the top, a shaft of light from below would have passed over her, alerting her to the presence outside. Yet for now, she pulled the covers snugly around her neck, creating a warm pocket of air. She could still smell Oscar on the pillow, soft and warm, and she was tired, drifting into sleep.
*
Danni cast a glance towards Mac's office. It didn't look like either of them were actually in the office, probably sitting on the couch just beside the door, she assumed, sorting out some stuff.
*
Mac realised things were fast becoming out of her control as they kissed against the cupboards, hands everywhere, touching, brushing, caressing. She wanted to pull off, but then again there was another, much larger part of her that didn't.
*
All four of them stopped as they heard the first gunshot, and the many that followed.
*
Danni stood in her spot, looking around for her gun and snatching it up quickly.
*
Angie froze, her eyes open. She too, looked for the gun, before realising they'd taken them all out into other rooms with them, and she hadn't brought hers back with her. She didn't know where Oscar's were. Shit, she thought, trying to work out what to do. She couldn't just go out there defenceless while they blew the place apart...Could she?
*
Pete's arms tightened around Mac. He could feel her heartbeat fasten further. Usually the extra connection between their bodies would have excited him, but not now. He looked up at Mac, who was resting a finger delicately across his lips. She turned to face him, biting her bottom lip. He stood, for a moment waiting for her to stand also. He looked down as if to ask what she was doing. She shook her head and he soon remembered her ankle. In the heat of the moment he'd forgotten all about it. She didn't need to be able to walk for what they'd been up to. He bent down, helping pull her to her feet. He grabbed his gun from his waist – Mac's was in her desk drawer by the looks of things – and poked his head out of the door.
*
Danni froze as four men in long, dark coats stormed into her vision, semi-automatic and automatic weapons spraying bullets everywhere. One of them laughed when he saw her, and then some more when he shot her.
*
Angie blushed, embarrassed. She knew she was a coward. Big deal. Things were different when there was no gun, when they had all the guns. She got out of the bed, straightened it. Good thing the light was off, it would maybe distract them for a while longer. She made sure the bed looked decently made, before grabbing a bunch of towels from the closet and dragging them beside her as she lay on the ground, sliding sideways under the bed. There was a cupboard directly at the feet of the beds, up against the wall also. She had good protection, good coverage. She shook, managing to drag enough towels over her body and head.
*
Mac and Pete crossed the hallway to the empty looking overnight room the boss was able to use. They looked at the bed. A small-frame single, spring-based – it would never be enough cover for both of them. There was, however, a large wooden cupboard opposite the foot of the bed. Pete opened the door as the gunshots got louder. He helped Mac inside, before he too got inside – it was tall enough to stand in, and wide enough for the both of them. Pete turned the deadlock from inside. He turned to face Mac. Neither of them were facing the door or the back panel, standing at either sides. Yet there wasn't enough room for there to be much extra space between them, and Mac was on one foot, her left knee bent up, resting alongside Pete's right thigh. His right hand held onto it as she leant into him, his other holding her waist as they both tried to steady themselves. This could be a long wait. Not to mention the fact that they had one weeny, little police pistol compared to the makings or World War Three right outside their doors.
*
"That's one," the first man mumbled. "SO WHERE ARE THE OTHERS?"
"Maybe that's all we got?"
"It was a perfect trap. They were all-"
"Mackenzie's car isn't there any more. It was though. Maybe they left to get help or something? A lot of them?"
"They wouldn't leave this bitch here by herself."
"Maybe they did?" He turned on his mates.
"WOULD YOU STOP WITH THE MAYBES? We don't have much time. Some security guard's probably already prowling. You know what to do." They nodded. One started on the desks, one the computers. He stood opposite the electric equipment, sending streams of bullets crashing through the hard drives. Someone was already down in the archives, exposing tapes, shooting and destroying equipment.
In the meantime, the first man went looking for flesh.
*
"Oh shit," Pete whispered, as the bullets seemed to fade to further away.
"What?" Mac mouthed, looking up at him. He brought her closer, whispering in her ear. Mac liked the feel of his lips against her ear, she noticed, but this was hardly the time.
"Your desk lamp and computer are on."
"Do you know where the switch is?" she asked. He nodded. Tears came to Mac's eyes. "I won't lock it on you." He nodded, pecking her softly on the lips, before opening the door and making sure the coast was clear, running softly out of the room.
*
Pete slid the secret door to Mac's office open slowly. There was nothing there. No one. He ran in quickly, making sure not to make any noise. He found the switch that held the adaptors that catered for the computer, the light, the small desk fan Mac used occasionally. He switched it off, the room spiralling into darkness. He found her bag and looked up at the approaching footsteps. He took it with him, walking as fast as he could back to Mac.
*
She jumped as he opened the door to the cupboard, locking himself in. She held onto him tightly as he turned back to her, hugging her to him.
"It's all right," he whispered. "I did it." He let the bag fall between his feet, holding it steady as Mac signalled to him she wanted to be closer. Considering she could barely move on one foot, Pete slid forward along the wooden floor, wrapping his arms around her waist and back as she buried her face in his neck.
*
He entered the office. He could have sworn there had been a faint light. Now there was nothing. We'll see about that, he thought to himself, walking forward. He rested a hand on top of the lamp's protective cover – it was warm. Hot even, he could say. He cursed, looking around, ready for an ambush. Wherever they were, he was going to get them. Although they could have easily slipped out while he'd been down the hallway. Damnit! He looked around, before readying his gun and shooting into Mac's hard drive. He found her filing cabinet. Every drawer was locked. To unlock it, he simply destroyed each lock with a bullet. Easy as pie!
*
Pete jumped, same as Mac, as he heard metal being torn apart just through the wall. Mac was shaking terribly and he knew if this got more serious she was going to go into shock, already having the extra burdens of a painful injury and having being out in the heavy storm for so long earlier. She felt almost cold to him, yet she hadn't moments ago in the bathroom. She'd been warm, soft - he remembered it well. Fear, he supposed. He wondered if he had cooled down, or heated up.
*
He looked around. Where was that door he'd dealt with then? No matter, he'd go searching later. For the moment...He turned back to the filing cabinet, emptying files onto the floor. He quickly slid out every nametag on each filing compartment and put them in his bag. They weren't going to know what they had or didn't have – he wasn't going to let that happen. No recovery from this one.
*
Pete could hear Mac breathing into his ear as they stood cheek to cheek in the cupboard, which seemed smaller by the second. They could hear shots from every direction. The next shot they heard, however, was much closer. It was on their side of the wall. He was inside. He couldn't have seen it – it was dark. There was no light...She pulled her face back from Pete's to look into his eyes. He watched her.
'I'm scared,' she mouthed. He nodded, kissing her forehead.
'I'm scared too, it's all right,' he mouthed back. He held in tears as the bathroom cupboards were torn apart by whatever type of serious weapon this person was carrying. It wasn't long before the gun shattered the lock on the door to the bedroom also. Mac felt Pete instinctively pull closer to her, his arms seemed to stretch the furthest around her body they ever had as he held her. Her ankle was throbbing and it was getting harder to balance on just one, while helping to maintain both their balances, Pete putting all his weight between them, same as she was doing.
They both fell completely silent as the door swung open, hitting the wall opposite it. Pete said a quick prayer inside his head, Mac not far from it herself. Bullets were released from their chambers, not sounding too much like they'd hit anything but a dead end. A wall. He was shooting under the bed, Pete would bet a hundred bucks on it. His conscience suddenly stopped as he realised he was holding Mac's head in his hands, holding it easily against his shoulder. He'd forgotten about her hair. How soft it was. He wondered if she knew he'd always loved it, even on a bad day! He smiled to himself before another action brought him back. Mac's hands clenched into fists against his waist as they started to move.
"Geronamo!" the cry was from outside the cupboard. Pete grabbed Mac's neck and lower back and she got the idea to do the same as the cupboard was tipped over. They braced each other for impact with the ground, slamming to a stop only half way down, perhaps thirty-five degrees northeast. Pete had bitten his bottom lip, unnoticed, and now he tasted blood, his back tingling. If he thought he was bad...Mac had been the one to fall back first. He held her tightly. For now though she was resting against the side of the cupboard, tipped over and most probably balancing against the foot of the bed-head. The top of his shoulder stung slightly where she'd dug her chin and later on her teeth into him. Anything to stop her biting her tongue and/or crying out in pain and surprise. He felt her start to shake and had a feeling what was going to come next. He pulled himself over so that he was lying almost directly on top of her, holding her steady, her neck still in his hands. She nodded softly, Pete could just make it out through the dark, telling him she was all right – for now.
*
He laughed, having a bit of fun while he was at it. He knew someone was inside. But it was Church! It had to be. Only Church would hide somewhere so stupidly obvious! He wasn't going to kill Church, just have a little fun. Although, he told himself inwardly, fate is always the killer. He aimed anywhere on the cupboard, and fired.
*
Pete felt Mac shrink beneath him as the gunshot rang through their ears, hot air rushing past their faces. Mac pulled herself up into Pete in slight delay as it exited just right of her head. He could see the hole. That was the only shot though. The room became quiet. Mac opened her eyes, starting to relax but not wanting to. Not yet.
Pete felt her shift beneath him, starting to get uncomfortable. He reached along and let a hand rest along her cheek, leaning his face down so that their foreheads fell together. She allowed a sigh to escape her lips. They lay there for moments, before Pete kissed her softly. The shots were fewer and further between, much farther away than they had been. As Pete's lips left Mac's, he felt her start to cry silently, her chest shaking as she bit her lips, trying to hold it in for minutes longer. Pete didn't want to move beside her, but he felt he could risk it. He communicated with Mac's eyes – wet, white pools – and she shifted to her left slightly as he rolled to his right, using his hands to support his body at the angle as he rolled onto his side. Once he was stable, the cupboard wasn't tilting or creaking, and the silence continued, Mac turned to face him, burying her head in his chest. He let his own tears run down his cheeks. That had been close. So far. Mac was well and truly crying now. He tried to get her to calm down, just for another ten minutes, but Mac wasn't capable of stopping herself now. As he'd thought earlier, she was partly in shock, it seemed, almost not hearing his whispered assurances, even the one he wanted her to hear most of all.
*
Angie didn't want to look around. It meant moving the towels from the top of her head. What if when she looked out, all she saw was a pair of eyes glaring back, then a gun? She couldn't, but she knew she had to.
When she moved the towels, there was nothing there. The footsteps and the shots had left long ago now. It must have been almost fifteen minutes by now, she guessed. She decided to take a look around. All the time people had thought she was the youngest, the least experienced – even though she wasn't that much different in age and experience from Danni and Oscar – but she was the trim blonde, the one that had it toughest, she knew it – so did Mac who she often confided in when the moments suited themselves.
She jumped as the walkie-talkie fired up beside her.
"Ange- Ange-"
"Shh!" she called back, before switching the volume down again. "Where are you?" she hissed.
"Outside your window. What is it?" Angie looked up the slit beside the wall between the beds and painted plaster, only to see the window still covered up. The ladder was resting beside the cupboard. Angie climbed onto the top bunk, using all her strength to hoist the ladder up and feed it out the window, tears streaming down her face.
Oscar guided the ladder to a stop and didn't waste a moment. Something was wrong. He knew it for sure when Angie reached out, pulling him and the ladder through and quickly taping the window back up before turning to face him. Oscar took her arms quickly.
"What's happened?" he asked. She shook her head, hugging him tightly.
"I love you," she whispered quickly. Oscar smiled, hugging her back.
"It's all right."
"I don't know, I don't know what happened. I didn't have my gun-"
"The others?" She shrugged, gesturing to the door.
"Out there." He nodded, taking out his gun and leading Angie out behind him.
*
Oscar stopped Angie in her tracks as he found Danni, her gun still in her hand. She hadn't changed shifts when this had happened. She'd been shot in the chest. He tried for a pulse anyway, but knew that after this long she would have to be dead. He looked up at Angie, shaking his head slightly as she turned, grabbing her gun from her desk draw and moving up to Mac's office, where she'd last seen her friend.
*
Oscar and Angie both stood in Mac's office, looking at the mess of papers over the whole floor.
"No blood," he whispered. She nodded, gesturing to the 'secret' door that had been flung open, the lock shot through. All the locks had been shot through, they realised. Angie took the bathroom while Oscar the bedroom. Angie soon rejoined Oscar, shaking her head: negative.
*
Mac was starting to calm down, content to lie in Pete's arms wherever they were, when new footsteps sounded. She tensed up as they approached the cupboard, Pete realising the door was on Mac's side. If they opened it, they'd get her first. That's not what he wanted, but there was nothing he could do. He pulled her to him tightly, hoping it was Angie, or Danni, or anyone who had 'friend' stamped on their forehead.
The door swung open suddenly. They both jumped, almost tipping the cupboard onto its other side and off the security of the diagonal lean, Mac burying her head into Pete's chest, her arms around his neck, preparing for the impact of the ground, bullets, it was all the same.
"Oh shit guys," was the whispered reply. Oscar backed off as he saw Mac react in fear, looking back at Angie and sighing with relief. She managed a smile. Oscar turned back.
Pete nestled Mac's cheek.
"Mac, it's Oscar, it's all right." She sniffled, still holding onto him tightly. "Come on, you're safe now. We're okay. We made it, eh?" Oscar reached in, helping to pull her out. She cried out as her ankle smacked into the metal from the foot of the bed, and Pete climbed out after her. He looked around. Oscar, Angie. 'Danni?' he mouthed, taking Mac in his arms, holding her. She wasn't crying any more, just silent, exhausted and relieved, shocked. Oscar looked down at the ground, before back up at Peter.
"Narr mate," he replied. "I'm sorry." There was a long pause as Pete looked down at Mac in his arms. 'Second best?' he thought to himself. 'Never.' "I called the cavalry before I got back. The phones are fine now outside this place. They're going to cut through the roller door to get in. We're supposed to be waiting for them there."
"But-" Oscar looked at Pete as Angie watched Mac silently.
"Danni's there. I, I covered her with a sheet but-" Tears started to run down Oscar's cheeks also. He tried never to cry, this wasn't helping.
"It's all right. We'll get through it."
"Yeah?" Pete nodded.
"We'll just step around, like we always do. Every single day. Then we'll go home and then it'll sink in, but there won't be anything we can do once it's happened, and now there's nothing we can do to avoid it." Oscar nodded, taking a deep breath as Angie approached him, slipping an arm around his waist. Mac pulled off Pete slightly, still holding onto him as the one foot she was standing on began to get shaky. She sighed, looking around. Four out of five. Not bad. A tear hit her eye but she ignored it.
"I, uh, my folks got in okay. They were worried sick. They'll be more worried now I think." They all managed to nod. "You should all come back my way after this. It'll be safer than any of your places I think."
"Sounds good," Angie whispered as a couple of loud horns sounded, loud voices and lots of lights lit up the outside world around them.
"I think our rescue team's here," Pete mumbled. "Little late." Angie leant over and took Pete's hand as he helped lead Mac out, Oscar on the other side of Ange.
"Well yeah," she whispered. "That's always the way." He nodded absent- mindedly, releasing Angie's hand gently as he helped Mac navigate the few steps they had to take to get down first, before they got anywhere else. She looked up at him.
"Thanks," she whispered. He shook his head, hugging her loosely as they all stood to await confrontation with the emergency services and cops on the other side.
The End – As you may have realised, I've left A LOT of loose ends. If you are really curious as to what happens and all that 'stuff,' let me know SOON and I'll see what I can do about an epilogue that will "explain all" hehehehehe :P as usual, feedback much appreciated. :P