Thanks to ScribbleDribble for the first review of the new chapter, there might be more but I'm in school right now so I have no idea. I'm sorry you got so upset about Shane's Death but, sadly, it had to be done. Please review and enjoy, the story is close to being finished.
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Chapter Twenty
Safe and Sound
Kimberly was finally able to drag herself out of the stupor she had slipped into when she heard the all too familiar scream of ambulance sirens. When the scene had finally become clear, a good-citizen construction worker had no doubt phoned an ambulance, though it was painfully clear that it was too late to save Shane. She managed to stagger to her feet, feeling much more light-headed then she had before she had seen the latest corpse.
Altessa was still on her knees, near her dead boyfriend, though she had stopped sobbing and was now staring at the cracks in the ground. She didn't look up when Kimberly knelt beside her, placing her palm on the girl's shoulder. Finally, the teenager lifted her face, looking up at the brunette, cheeks covered with ash and streaked with tears. "I knew, Kimberly, I knew he was going to die. I knew it. I could have...I should have saved him." She sighed deeply, trying to hold back the tears that had yet to fall.
"There's nothing you could have done, Altessa, it's not your fault." Kimberly assured her strongly, saying the words that she wished to hear in her regard. "If...if I had been watching the road, if I had seen the blockade in time then maybe..."
Altessa's eyes widened and she shook her head fiercely. "No, Kimberly, it is not your fault." Her words were filled with a strange mixture of emotions that Kimberly couldn't sort out and wasn't quite sure if she wanted to.
Kimberly stood and pulled Altessa to her feet, the teenager looking slightly grateful for the assistance; she was certain that she would have stayed on her knees until Death circled around to get her, if the decision had been hers. "Come on, Altessa, I think you need to be home right now." Kimberly mumbled, hoping that being in a familiar setting would ease the pain that the teenager was feeling, though surely not by much.
"How are we going to get there? Your car..." Altessa trailed off, deciding that such a question was absurd in the wake of her boyfriend's death.
Kimberly frowned, forgetting the situation for the moment. "Oh...my car..." She mumbled, knowing now wasn't the time to mourn the loss of her beloved sixteenth birthday present, but she couldn't help herself. "I guess we'll just walk then."
Altessa cast a final, pained glace at her dead boyfriend, noticing how his once beautiful eyes were now glassy, staring upward, frozen in a death stare. She turned her head away, knowing that she couldn't afford to lose herself in grief. When everyone was safe and Death beaten, her pain would come in rivers. It was only as they were headed down the cracked sidewalk, leaving the accident site behind, that Altessa noticed that Kimberly was limping slightly. "Kimberly, are you all right?" She questioned, a look of concern crossing her face.
Kimberly frowned and then shrugged her shoulders. "I think I twisted my ankle I fell." She mumbled, shifting her weight. "I think I'll be okay...better then most."
Altessa nodded, knowing exactly what the brunette meant; Kimberly should be more then grateful that the only injury she had suffered was a possibly sprained ankle. The rest of the walk was taken in silence, both women too over-whelmed and exhausted to even think about making conversation. Altessa walked slow so she didn't leave the limping Kimberly behind; both girls seemed almost unwilling to let the other out of their sight. The survivors were dropping like flies, with no reprieve or answer in sight and either one of them could be next. Altessa and Kimberly knew that now was no time to be careless.
Finally, the two story Adams house came into view and Altessa stopped and turned to face Kimberly, who seemed to be staring past the teenager at something unseen. "Kimberly?" The brunette's gaze quickly returned to Altessa's face. "You should come inside, get some ice for your ankle or something. Maybe you should call Thomas to come pick you up, I'd hate for you to have to walk home alone." She didn't want Kimberly's sprain to become worse but she also didn't want her friend out entirely on her own, either.
Kimberly seemed almost to be debating the idea but she finally nodded, looking over at the house for a moment before back at the teenager. "That might be a good idea." She mumbled finally, nodded once as though answering to a question only she could hear.
Altessa saw something in her eyes that she wanted desperately to ask Kimberly about but decided to let it rest for the time being; if it were something important then Kimberly would surely say something. She led the way up the walk to the front door, opening it slowly and peaking inside; she could hear the muffled sound of the television coming from the living room, which signaled that her mother was at least home. But, for all Altessa knew, Amanda could be dead in front of the television, another victim of yet another freak accident.
Amanda was not dead before the television, still alive and wallowing in her grief, ignoring her only surviving child when she called her name. Altessa sighed deeply, looking at Kimberly for a brief moment before returning her gaze to the back of her mother's head. "Mother? I just wanted to let you know that I brought my friend Kimberly over because she hurt her ankle and is going to call her boyfriend to come pick her up." Altessa told her, not surprised when her mother didn't give any sign of having heard her. "Oh yeah, I also wanted to let you know that Shane is dead." And with those words, the teenager turned and headed into the kitchen, followed slowly by Kimberly, who took a seat at the kitchen table.
At her daughter's final words, Amanda finally took notice and turned around, only to see an empty hallway behind her. Switching off the television, she stood up and left the living room, heading into the kitchen, where her daughter was filling a dishtowel with ice cubes while a brunette twenty-something woman was dialing numbers on the cordless phone. "Altessa, what are you talking about? Shane is dead?" Amanda questioned, looking her daughter over once and noting her haggard appearance. "And what in the hell happened to you?"
Altessa looked up, looking almost surprised to hear her mother's voice. "Gee, Mom, I'm surprised you even noticed." The teenager snapped, folding the towel up and handing it to Kimberly, who took it and placed it upon her slightly swollen ankle. "Remember all that stuff I told you about before I left earlier? About how Death has a Design and it's after us because it's our time to die? Well, I wasn't bull-shitting you."
Amanda opened her mouth to snap back but remained silent when she glanced over at Kimberly, who was attempting to appear as inconspicuous as possible. "Altessa, let me speak with you, in the living room." She commanded instead, biting back her retort for later.
After a moment's mental debate, the teenager followed her mother out of the living room, leaving Kimberly alone to explain the latest events to her worried boyfriend. Once in the living room, Amanda turned to face her daughter, face a mask of anger and grief. "Altessa, why are you doing this? Why do you insist on continuing to break up death; I understand that you're upset about the fact that your father and brother died, I am too, but it's not going to make it any better to make up 'conspiracy theories' about why they died. People die all the time, Altessa and..."
For the first part of the conversation, Altessa could only listen to her mother with a sort of stunned amazement; her mother was actually attempting to have a real 'heart to heart' with her daughter. But, after another second's pause, she could listen to no more and shouted, "I am not making this up! Miss McAnderson is dead, Morgan and Shane are dead! If you ask me, that's more then a god-damn coincidence!"
When her daughter's shouts finally subsided, Amanda stared at her, too stunned to retort for a moment. Finally, her strength gone, she only muttered, "Enough Altessa." It did little more then make her daughter even more upset.
"Enough of what Mother? I'm trying to help you, trying to make you understand that this is for real." Altessa mumbled, drained, having no more energy to deal with her mother or with Death and the whole ordeal
Amanda looked as though she was about to say something but instead she turned away from her daughter, exiting the living room and heading up the stairs, unable to listen to anything else her daughter might have to say. Altessa watched her mother disappear and sighed deeply, not even having the energy to call after her, or even shed a tear. Instead, she headed back into the kitchen, where Kimberly was still sitting at the kitchen table, off the phone and holding the ice bag against her ankle. She looked over at the teenager when she entered, a look of concern upon her face. "Altessa, I'm sorry-" She began but the teenager cut her off by shrugging her shoulders.
"There's nothing more I can say; she wants to die." Altessa mumbled, her words startling Kimberly slightly, though she understood where they were coming from. Nora had spoken similar words to her a year ago, saying that if it was her turn to die and re-join her family in Heaven then she was okay with that; but Amanda still had a sliver of family left.
"Thomas is on his way over, you're welcome to come back with us." Kimberly offered, understanding that the teenager had no desire to stay in her once sweet home any longer. Even if they found a way to beat the Design and save themselves, Death had still won in a way, having destroyed the Adams family beyond repair.
Altessa looked at Kimberly, face falling into an unreadable expression as she studied her friend. "We've got to beat this thing Kimberly, no matter what." She mumbled, words almost inaudible, though Kimberly heard what she was saying. Though, to her, it sounded as though the teenager's words weren't for her own benefit but the benefit of the other survivors.
Kimberly stood, joining Altessa before heading toward the front door with the teenager in tow. "We will, don't worry." She replied, not sure if her words were meant to be reassuring or simply a stated fact. Either way, it seemed satisfy the teenager, who remained silent.
* * *
When Thomas' SUV pulled into the driveway, Kimberly got to her feet, relieved to see that he had made it in one piece; she knew that she would feel relieved whenever she saw any of the survivors, since they had no way of knowing when the time would come when they might never see each other again. Thomas looked just as relieved, drawing the brunette into a tight embrace, which she returned with equal emotion. "I was worried about you, Kimberly, I'm glad you're safe." He mumbled as he kissed her on the cheek.
"Safe." Kimberly muttered the word, which seemed foreign to her. "For now."
Altessa stood and silently walked toward the SUV, getting into the back behind the passenger seat and disappearing behind the high seat in front of her, giving off the impression that she would wait patiently as long as need be. Kimberly turned her head away from where the teenager now sat and pulled away from Thomas, sighing and closing her eyes for a brief second. She couldn't shut them for much longer then that, fearing the images that she might see behind her eyelids. Thomas' concerned words brought her attention back to his face. "Is she all right?" He questioned, gaze flickering over to the SUV before returning to his girlfriend's face.
"Everyone she loves is dead. I don't think so." Kimberly answered, realizing that her statement wasn't exactly true, since Altessa's mother was still alive. This was a fact that Thomas knew but if he picked up on her oversight, he didn't let on, accepting her words at face value, as he did most of what she said.
Thomas gave her shoulder a comforting squeeze before saying, "Once we figure out how to beat the Design, we'll help her become okay again. Help her make it out safe and sound. Help all of us." He assured the brunette, holding her gaze.
Kimberly pulled him into an embrace once again, burying her face against his chest, feeling protected when he wrapped his arms around her. As desperate and impossible the whole situation was, she almost believed Thomas' words just that moment, enveloped in his arms. She believed that they would all be safe and sound once again.
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This was kind of a nothing chapter, but I felt like my lovely readers needed a little break from all the Deaths that will, of course, return in the next chapter. The title comes from the wonderful song by Cheryl Crow of the same name, and I'm going to use it again later on. Also, a very, very special and heartfelt "thank you" to ScribbleDribble. She knows just what those words are for. Please review.
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Chapter Twenty
Safe and Sound
Kimberly was finally able to drag herself out of the stupor she had slipped into when she heard the all too familiar scream of ambulance sirens. When the scene had finally become clear, a good-citizen construction worker had no doubt phoned an ambulance, though it was painfully clear that it was too late to save Shane. She managed to stagger to her feet, feeling much more light-headed then she had before she had seen the latest corpse.
Altessa was still on her knees, near her dead boyfriend, though she had stopped sobbing and was now staring at the cracks in the ground. She didn't look up when Kimberly knelt beside her, placing her palm on the girl's shoulder. Finally, the teenager lifted her face, looking up at the brunette, cheeks covered with ash and streaked with tears. "I knew, Kimberly, I knew he was going to die. I knew it. I could have...I should have saved him." She sighed deeply, trying to hold back the tears that had yet to fall.
"There's nothing you could have done, Altessa, it's not your fault." Kimberly assured her strongly, saying the words that she wished to hear in her regard. "If...if I had been watching the road, if I had seen the blockade in time then maybe..."
Altessa's eyes widened and she shook her head fiercely. "No, Kimberly, it is not your fault." Her words were filled with a strange mixture of emotions that Kimberly couldn't sort out and wasn't quite sure if she wanted to.
Kimberly stood and pulled Altessa to her feet, the teenager looking slightly grateful for the assistance; she was certain that she would have stayed on her knees until Death circled around to get her, if the decision had been hers. "Come on, Altessa, I think you need to be home right now." Kimberly mumbled, hoping that being in a familiar setting would ease the pain that the teenager was feeling, though surely not by much.
"How are we going to get there? Your car..." Altessa trailed off, deciding that such a question was absurd in the wake of her boyfriend's death.
Kimberly frowned, forgetting the situation for the moment. "Oh...my car..." She mumbled, knowing now wasn't the time to mourn the loss of her beloved sixteenth birthday present, but she couldn't help herself. "I guess we'll just walk then."
Altessa cast a final, pained glace at her dead boyfriend, noticing how his once beautiful eyes were now glassy, staring upward, frozen in a death stare. She turned her head away, knowing that she couldn't afford to lose herself in grief. When everyone was safe and Death beaten, her pain would come in rivers. It was only as they were headed down the cracked sidewalk, leaving the accident site behind, that Altessa noticed that Kimberly was limping slightly. "Kimberly, are you all right?" She questioned, a look of concern crossing her face.
Kimberly frowned and then shrugged her shoulders. "I think I twisted my ankle I fell." She mumbled, shifting her weight. "I think I'll be okay...better then most."
Altessa nodded, knowing exactly what the brunette meant; Kimberly should be more then grateful that the only injury she had suffered was a possibly sprained ankle. The rest of the walk was taken in silence, both women too over-whelmed and exhausted to even think about making conversation. Altessa walked slow so she didn't leave the limping Kimberly behind; both girls seemed almost unwilling to let the other out of their sight. The survivors were dropping like flies, with no reprieve or answer in sight and either one of them could be next. Altessa and Kimberly knew that now was no time to be careless.
Finally, the two story Adams house came into view and Altessa stopped and turned to face Kimberly, who seemed to be staring past the teenager at something unseen. "Kimberly?" The brunette's gaze quickly returned to Altessa's face. "You should come inside, get some ice for your ankle or something. Maybe you should call Thomas to come pick you up, I'd hate for you to have to walk home alone." She didn't want Kimberly's sprain to become worse but she also didn't want her friend out entirely on her own, either.
Kimberly seemed almost to be debating the idea but she finally nodded, looking over at the house for a moment before back at the teenager. "That might be a good idea." She mumbled finally, nodded once as though answering to a question only she could hear.
Altessa saw something in her eyes that she wanted desperately to ask Kimberly about but decided to let it rest for the time being; if it were something important then Kimberly would surely say something. She led the way up the walk to the front door, opening it slowly and peaking inside; she could hear the muffled sound of the television coming from the living room, which signaled that her mother was at least home. But, for all Altessa knew, Amanda could be dead in front of the television, another victim of yet another freak accident.
Amanda was not dead before the television, still alive and wallowing in her grief, ignoring her only surviving child when she called her name. Altessa sighed deeply, looking at Kimberly for a brief moment before returning her gaze to the back of her mother's head. "Mother? I just wanted to let you know that I brought my friend Kimberly over because she hurt her ankle and is going to call her boyfriend to come pick her up." Altessa told her, not surprised when her mother didn't give any sign of having heard her. "Oh yeah, I also wanted to let you know that Shane is dead." And with those words, the teenager turned and headed into the kitchen, followed slowly by Kimberly, who took a seat at the kitchen table.
At her daughter's final words, Amanda finally took notice and turned around, only to see an empty hallway behind her. Switching off the television, she stood up and left the living room, heading into the kitchen, where her daughter was filling a dishtowel with ice cubes while a brunette twenty-something woman was dialing numbers on the cordless phone. "Altessa, what are you talking about? Shane is dead?" Amanda questioned, looking her daughter over once and noting her haggard appearance. "And what in the hell happened to you?"
Altessa looked up, looking almost surprised to hear her mother's voice. "Gee, Mom, I'm surprised you even noticed." The teenager snapped, folding the towel up and handing it to Kimberly, who took it and placed it upon her slightly swollen ankle. "Remember all that stuff I told you about before I left earlier? About how Death has a Design and it's after us because it's our time to die? Well, I wasn't bull-shitting you."
Amanda opened her mouth to snap back but remained silent when she glanced over at Kimberly, who was attempting to appear as inconspicuous as possible. "Altessa, let me speak with you, in the living room." She commanded instead, biting back her retort for later.
After a moment's mental debate, the teenager followed her mother out of the living room, leaving Kimberly alone to explain the latest events to her worried boyfriend. Once in the living room, Amanda turned to face her daughter, face a mask of anger and grief. "Altessa, why are you doing this? Why do you insist on continuing to break up death; I understand that you're upset about the fact that your father and brother died, I am too, but it's not going to make it any better to make up 'conspiracy theories' about why they died. People die all the time, Altessa and..."
For the first part of the conversation, Altessa could only listen to her mother with a sort of stunned amazement; her mother was actually attempting to have a real 'heart to heart' with her daughter. But, after another second's pause, she could listen to no more and shouted, "I am not making this up! Miss McAnderson is dead, Morgan and Shane are dead! If you ask me, that's more then a god-damn coincidence!"
When her daughter's shouts finally subsided, Amanda stared at her, too stunned to retort for a moment. Finally, her strength gone, she only muttered, "Enough Altessa." It did little more then make her daughter even more upset.
"Enough of what Mother? I'm trying to help you, trying to make you understand that this is for real." Altessa mumbled, drained, having no more energy to deal with her mother or with Death and the whole ordeal
Amanda looked as though she was about to say something but instead she turned away from her daughter, exiting the living room and heading up the stairs, unable to listen to anything else her daughter might have to say. Altessa watched her mother disappear and sighed deeply, not even having the energy to call after her, or even shed a tear. Instead, she headed back into the kitchen, where Kimberly was still sitting at the kitchen table, off the phone and holding the ice bag against her ankle. She looked over at the teenager when she entered, a look of concern upon her face. "Altessa, I'm sorry-" She began but the teenager cut her off by shrugging her shoulders.
"There's nothing more I can say; she wants to die." Altessa mumbled, her words startling Kimberly slightly, though she understood where they were coming from. Nora had spoken similar words to her a year ago, saying that if it was her turn to die and re-join her family in Heaven then she was okay with that; but Amanda still had a sliver of family left.
"Thomas is on his way over, you're welcome to come back with us." Kimberly offered, understanding that the teenager had no desire to stay in her once sweet home any longer. Even if they found a way to beat the Design and save themselves, Death had still won in a way, having destroyed the Adams family beyond repair.
Altessa looked at Kimberly, face falling into an unreadable expression as she studied her friend. "We've got to beat this thing Kimberly, no matter what." She mumbled, words almost inaudible, though Kimberly heard what she was saying. Though, to her, it sounded as though the teenager's words weren't for her own benefit but the benefit of the other survivors.
Kimberly stood, joining Altessa before heading toward the front door with the teenager in tow. "We will, don't worry." She replied, not sure if her words were meant to be reassuring or simply a stated fact. Either way, it seemed satisfy the teenager, who remained silent.
* * *
When Thomas' SUV pulled into the driveway, Kimberly got to her feet, relieved to see that he had made it in one piece; she knew that she would feel relieved whenever she saw any of the survivors, since they had no way of knowing when the time would come when they might never see each other again. Thomas looked just as relieved, drawing the brunette into a tight embrace, which she returned with equal emotion. "I was worried about you, Kimberly, I'm glad you're safe." He mumbled as he kissed her on the cheek.
"Safe." Kimberly muttered the word, which seemed foreign to her. "For now."
Altessa stood and silently walked toward the SUV, getting into the back behind the passenger seat and disappearing behind the high seat in front of her, giving off the impression that she would wait patiently as long as need be. Kimberly turned her head away from where the teenager now sat and pulled away from Thomas, sighing and closing her eyes for a brief second. She couldn't shut them for much longer then that, fearing the images that she might see behind her eyelids. Thomas' concerned words brought her attention back to his face. "Is she all right?" He questioned, gaze flickering over to the SUV before returning to his girlfriend's face.
"Everyone she loves is dead. I don't think so." Kimberly answered, realizing that her statement wasn't exactly true, since Altessa's mother was still alive. This was a fact that Thomas knew but if he picked up on her oversight, he didn't let on, accepting her words at face value, as he did most of what she said.
Thomas gave her shoulder a comforting squeeze before saying, "Once we figure out how to beat the Design, we'll help her become okay again. Help her make it out safe and sound. Help all of us." He assured the brunette, holding her gaze.
Kimberly pulled him into an embrace once again, burying her face against his chest, feeling protected when he wrapped his arms around her. As desperate and impossible the whole situation was, she almost believed Thomas' words just that moment, enveloped in his arms. She believed that they would all be safe and sound once again.
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This was kind of a nothing chapter, but I felt like my lovely readers needed a little break from all the Deaths that will, of course, return in the next chapter. The title comes from the wonderful song by Cheryl Crow of the same name, and I'm going to use it again later on. Also, a very, very special and heartfelt "thank you" to ScribbleDribble. She knows just what those words are for. Please review.