It Only Hurts When I Laugh

Chapter 5 – The Final Stand

Steve blinked at the sunlight as they stepped outside.  Stan was standing to his left with his gun jammed in Steve's injured side.  The contact with the counter had reopened the wound and blood was flowing freely down his stomach and onto his pants.  The added pressure of the tip of the gun only aggravated the injury more.  He tried to determine how close Amanda was to him and smiled slightly as he got his answer.  A small hand slid into his and squeezed lightly.  He squeezed back as best he could.  It's now or never, he thought to himself.  After another brief squeeze of Amanda's hand he flew into action.  He used his shoulder to knock Stan off balance then quickly changed directions and moved towards Mike.  Amanda jumped back and a hand snaked out from inside Bob's and yanked her through the door.  Steve made an attempt to follow her but Stan had recovered enough to grab him by the collar of his shirt and yank him hard.  "Close and lock the door," Steve screamed.    His reward was a punch to the lower back.  Mike leaped towards the door as it closed and the lock clicked into place.

'No!" Mike shouted.  He grabbed Steve and pressed his gun to his temple.  "You just killed yourself."

~~****~~

Jesse had waited by the door on pins and needles.  Amanda and Steve were depending on him.  He had moved as close as he dared and could not believe his good luck when he saw they had not bothered to close the door as they left.  He had heard Stan's grunt as Steve impacted his body and caught a glimpse of Amanda as she jumped back.  He reached out and grabbed her arm and pulled her inside Bob's.  For a brief moment he had thought Steve would make it as well, but then Stan had grabbed him.  With great reluctance he had done as Steve asked and closed and locked the door.  With Amanda in tow, he had moved towards Mark who appeared to be in shock and led them towards the rear door.  As he reached to turn the knob he looked up to see the face of a SWAT team member.

~~****~~

Cheryl had winced as she caught the first glimpse of her partner.  His face was bloodied and bruised.  She could see the dark stains on his right sleeve and the free flowing blood running down his left side.  He's alive, that's all that matters, was her thought.  What happened next caused her to inhale deeply and hold her breath.  She saw Steve fly into action and watched as Amanda was pulled to safety back into the restaurant.  Her legs began to move her forward as if by their own volition.  Simon Ward's warning sounded in her head and she suddenly stopped. 

~~****~~

Mark had known what the plan was but that didn't mean he liked it.  He wanted a solution that would protect both his son and Amanda.  He had watched as they had walked out the door of Bob's, had been blessed with the smile Steve had shared as they exited but the empty feeling in the pit of his stomach only intensified.  He knew when things began to happen and had been pleased when he saw Jesse pull Amanda safely back through the door, but his gaze had remained transfixed on that opening waiting for the familiar figure of his son to appear.  His next conscious thought occurred when Jesse touched him lightly and guided him towards the back door.  Steve, he cried silently.

~~****~~

Steve found himself standing between Stan and Mike.  He knew what was coming and tried to prepare himself.  In the bright sunlight, he caught the glint of something and instantly knew where one of the sharpshooters' was.  He was contemplating if he should try anything else, when he felt something impact his right shoulder.  He looked down and saw a red spot.  The spot almost immediately began to grow in size.  He then realized what had happened.  The shooter had taken his shot and Mike had fortuitously chosen to move thus moving Steve with him and had avoided the kill shot that had been aimed at him.  He was not as lucky the second time as the marksman hit his target with the next attempt.  Steve turned to try and drop low to avoid the next shot he knew was coming.  Stan suddenly became aware of what was happening and focused on the figure that was attempting to fall towards the ground.  He fired his gun at the same moment as a bullet impacted his head.  What followed was a deafening silence.

~~****~~

From his position at the back door Mark heard the single gunshot and felt his knees weaken.  He knew the shot had to come from one of the robbers.  The sharpshooters' would have been using silencers and even if they hadn't a rifle made a different sound than a handgun.  One of the robber's had fired their gun and the most likely target would have been his son.  He then found himself propelled outside by Amanda, Jesse and members of the SWAT team.

~~****~~

Cheryl had watched the events transpire in horror.  She had heard the order go across the radio to not only take the shot but also had given the approval to utilize the kill shot.  Her horror increased as she saw Mike move at just the right moment and move Steve into the line of fire.  She saw his body jerk with the impact.  She gave a silent cheer as the next shot hit its mark and Mike dropped, but that relief was short lived as she saw Steve start to move towards the ground and much to her dismay saw Stan aim his gun at Steve's unprotected back.  The sound of the shot reverberated through her head.

~~****~~

Steve found himself on the ground lying across Mike.  His body felt numb.  He had felt Stan punch him in the back one last time and wondered what other damage had been done.  As he lay there he contemplated trying to stand up, but quickly decided that maybe he would just take a little nap.  He quietly drifted off into oblivion unaware of the mass of bodies that were descending upon his position.

~~****~~

Cheryl was the first to reach her fallen partner.  She dropped to a knee beside him and rested a hand on his shoulder.  She fumbled with her other hand for a key to release the cruel handcuffs that had butchered his wrists.  She was quickly joined by Mark, Jesse and Amanda.  Mark took note of note of the fresh blood on his son's shirt.

"One of our guys shot him," Cheryl stated.

"What!" Mark exclaimed.  "Where?"

"In his right shoulder," Cheryl answered.

"Mark, I can't tell if the blood on his back is from the abdominal wound or something else," Jesse explained.

"The one guy shot at him," Cheryl informed them.  "I don't know if he hit him or not."

Mark gently moved Steve's shirt up his back and much to his dismay found another bullet wound marring his son's body.  "Cheryl, we need the ambulance, now."

~~****~~

Mark sat quietly waiting for word on his son.  Amanda's head rested against his right shoulder as she dozed lightly.  Cheryl sat to his left and even in his shell-shocked state Mark had noticed something in her demeanor that had captured his curiosity.  He had often wondered about the relationship she shared with his son.  It had, on occasion, seemed to extend beyond being partners.  She has been battling tears since they had arrived at the hospital and her expression displayed intense despair.  Mark sighed and shifted slightly to move Amanda to a more comfortable position and thought back to the not so distant past when they had arrived at the hospital.

"Mark, he's on his way to surgery.  None of the wounds by themselves are life threatening but he has lost a lot of blood, he coded briefly but he bounced back quickly.  It's going to be a little rough but I think we have a real good chance.  I'll be back as soon as I can," Jesse had explained.

Mark was brought back to the present by a sweaty tousled headed figure that leaned against the door frame.  He felt Cheryl tense beside him, and forgetting Amanda was sleeping on his shoulder he jumped up startling her in the process.

Jesse smiled.  "He's fine, pretty banged up, but I think maybe we ought to give him the nickname of 'Timex'."

As the three people in front of him stared at him quizzically Jesse elaborated.  "You know, 'Timex watches', they take a licking and keep on ticking."

Mark laughed and soon was joined by Cheryl and Amanda.  The tears of fear and sorrow that had been lurking in their eyes turned to tears of joy and amusement.

~~****~~

Mark sat quietly by Steve's bed.  He had come through the surgery with flying colors and had already been moved to a regular room.  He had an array of wounds that would take some time to heal but he would be fine.  He heard a sound at the door and turned to find Cheryl framed in the door.

"Hi, I thought you had gone home?" Mark said.

Cheryl dropped her head slightly, and when she looked back up Mark saw the tears glistening there.  "Cheryl, what is it?" he asked.

Cheryl was unsure what she should do.  She had started home, but she needed to see and touch him before she could relax.  How did she explain this to Mark?  "I just wanted to make sure he was alright." She explained with a tentative smile.

Mark smiled his understanding, and in his infinite wisdom garnered much more from what she didn't say, rather than what she had said, "Could you stay with him a minute, I would really like to get a cup of coffee?" Mark requested.

"Sure," Cheryl responded.

As Mark left the room, he squeezed her arm affectionately.

Cheryl moved to the side of the bed and lightly brushed her fingers through his hair.  She traced a finger down his face, across his chin and stopped when it reached his lips.  She raised two of her fingers to her own lips, and then reaching back down she placed those same fingers on his lips.  He stirred slightly under her touch, and she leaned down and placed her lips in the area her fingers had just vacated.  As she raised her head, she found two startled blue eyes watching her.  She felt the blush creep up her face, and she quickly jerked up.  Steve attempted to raise an arm to touch her, but grimaced in pain as the motion pulled at various wounds.  Cheryl seeing his discomfort rested her hand on his and grasped it. 

"Hey," she said.

Steve's first attempt to talk produced no sound.  Cheryl took note of the ice chips in the cup on the table by Steve's bed and carefully spooned some into his mouth.  He swallowed them carefully and then tried again.

"Hey, yourself," was his hoarse response.  "What were you doing?"

"What do you mean what was I doing?" Cheryl asked.

"Were you kissing me?" he asked.

The sureness and the confidence Cheryl had felt was quickly evaporating.  "Kiss you, Sloan, get real, I was leaning down to see if you were awake."

"So what, you got sleepy while you were checking and decided to take a nap against my lips for a moment?" Steve asked with a smile.

"No, I…well, I'm glad you're awake, your dad will be pleased.  He just went to get some coffee, let me go see if I can find him," Cheryl stuttered nervously as she quickly made her escape.

Sleep was trying to reclaim him, but Steve tried desperately to hang on.  He wanted to see his father, to make sure that he and the others were fine, but his eyes became heavier, and he lost the battle and slipped off into a deep healing sleep.