A tall man stood off to her right, back away from the scene. He was wearing black, so Seth couldn't see much of him, but he knew it was Hawk. Seth turned back to Whitney and the gun that was trained on him.
He heard guns being pulled from behind him. "Don't shoot her!" Seth shouted without looking back. Whitney was shaking, from the cold and her tears and the trauma.
"Put it down, Whitney," Quinn said.
Her eyes drifted to Quinn. "I can't," she mumbled.
"Shoot him," Hawk said. "Shoot him, Whitney,"
Her body trembled even more at the thought. Even if she had the heart to shoot, she'd miss. Seth's eyes pleaded with her, begging her to not shot. But also in his eyes was understanding. Whitney got the strange feeling that Seth would want her to shot him if it meant Jesse's life.
"Remember Jesse, Whitney. Shoot him."
"Jesse is safe, Whitney. He's safe," Seth said. Whitney looked back toward where Hawk stood.
"Do not just stand there! Shoot him, now! Or Jesse will pay for your mistake."
Whitney's mind spun around. She turned back to Seth. She couldn't shoot him. She'd die first. She needed them both to be safe, but she didn't know how. All Hawk had to do was send the signal and Yuri would kill Jesse. Seth wouldn't expect an attack from the inside. She had taken pity on Yuri before, even though she'd known it hadn't been wise. Now he was against her again.
But how to end this with both Jesse and Seth safe? If only they were alive, then they would take care of each other.
Then it clicked. And she knew. She knew what had to be done. Another tear rolled down her cheek as she thought about how much she'd miss them both.
She felt her lips curve up in a slight smile, then she bent down and put the gun on the ground. Quinn and the others behind Seth lowered theirs too. She knew by the shocked look in Quinn's eyes when he lowered his gun that he knew what she planned to do. He'd miss her too; they'd been friends for so long.
"No." Whitney said, turning back to Hawk. "No,"
"Then suffer the consequences,"
Time slowed.
Seth couldn't make it to Whitney in time and he knew it. He could almost see the bullet fly threw the air.
"Take care of Jesse for me," she mumbled, then her eyes closed against the bullet as it ripped through the air.
Her body jerked with the impact of the bullet. She collapsed to the ground. Seth heard shouts, saw blurs as Hawk ran and others gave chase.
Stephen led Megan to Whitney and they got there before Seth.
"Don't let Seth over here," Stephen yelled.
He felt someone hold him back, but he didn't turn to see who. He shoved off and away so that he made it to Whitney and collapsed next to her.
The first look at her told him that she was dead.
He thought about all the times they'd never get together; the future they had yet to make. The few memories he had of her.
Shouts still echoed and Seth heard another gunshot, but he couldn't rake his eyes off Whitney's still face. She looked pained. Choking on a sob, he saw the bruise on her neck from his nightmare that night so long ago.
Then she breathed and Seth was jerked out of his daze.
She was alive. The tears poured from his eyes as she took in another small and shaky breath. She was alive.
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Whitney opened her eyes, forcing them open despite her tiredness, pain and the bright lights.
Well, at least I'm alive...
"Barely,"
Then the shape that had been a blob above her took a familiar form. Seth was leaning over her, smiling. His eye lashes were dripping with tears, stuck to his skin in clumps.
Thanks for your confidence,
"I'll ask what you just said later, when you can talk, okay?" he asked. "You've been asleep for about a day now. Megan and Stephen stopped the wound from gushing blood; the doctors think you'll live. Jesse is safe and we caught Hawk. I almost—only almost—feel sorry for the guy. They led him back to the ranch just as the police got there. He had a broken nose. Quinn was awfully proud of that."
She tried to smile, but didn't have the energy. Seth gave her another crooked smile.
"Rest, sweetheart, just rest," Seth's touch on her forehead was light, but that was all it took to send her back to sleep.
Epilogue
Whitney was released from the hospital about two weeks after Hawk shot her. The bullet had gone into her abdomen, barely missing vitals, but hitting a blood vessel. She was fully recovered after three and a half months. She did tell Seth what 'we will hunt' means but that secret is kept between them.
Hawk aka Slade was given a life prison sentence for numerous crimes, including stalking, kidnapping and shooting Whitney. Yuri, Whitney's ranch hand, was a known accomplice to Hawk even before this incident. When Whitney threw Slade out the first time around, she didn't have the heart to toss out Yuri because he had no where else to go. She let him stay on and she thought he'd changed. Yuri received a twenty years sentence for aid in kidnapping among other charges Whitney had no idea about.
Wind, however, remained loyal to Whitney, as he always had been.
Six months after her recovery, Whitney and Seth eloped, despite the odds his family presented against it. They returned after a long time to Whitney's ranch and soon after, Jesse went back to school.
Aaron stayed in rehab for nearly two years, but when he was released, he was a new person. Despite his new self, he had little contact with Whitney. He called her about three years after the shooting to tell her he was looking at a Western sunset and thinking how much she'd like to see it. She never heard from him again.
Tragically, Whitney and Seth's first baby was still born. They named him Tristan. Four years later though, a healthy baby girl was born. They named her Sabine.
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I love this story. I don't know about you all, but I've really enjoyed it. I do think it could be a little smoother and a little slower, but I still love it.
goblz, potostfbeyeluvr, jilyn90, Tammi, stephannie teresa, Karmen Krowe, kate, negotiator24, and hgranger07—Thank you all so, so, so much for reviewing! Considering the number of stories for the O'Malley series, I'm so amazed that so many of you took the time to read.
Tammi, thank you for the series suggestion—I will look into it. I hope thing get better for you.
Thank you also to anyone who has just read this story. I know there are a few. Thanks.
DreamWeaver010