Title: The City Between Us
Chapter 7 – On Deadly Ground

Matt cast a worried gaze into the belly of Firehouse 51 that now housed a few members of Precinct 21 while they waited for news on their missing friends and co-workers. Voight had called late the night before to tell them that the small airport, while they didn't have a confirmed flight plan for Sam Wallace, they knew his usual flight route because he often told them and was a creature of habit. This flight would have been no difference.

However, it was different because if the weather had pushed them off course they didn't know which direction and that had slowed their search starting point.

"Never thought I'd be this worried about him," Matt heard Benny confess to Boden and felt his heart sink. Kelly had often confided in Matt that he and his father had never been that close as he grew up and he often wondered if his father cared at all. But while Benny failed to tell his son or show him affection in public, he could hear now by the things he said that the eldest Severide was indeed worried.

"Hey…"

Matt looked down at his wife and offered her a tired smile as his arm encased her and held her close; his lips gave her a tender kiss atop her head.

"How's Antonio?" He asked as he nodded toward her brother who continued to nervously pace the open truck area.

"Sylvie is doing her best to distract him but…it's not working," Gabby answered with a heavy sigh as she watched her brother with a deep frown. "Just wish…we had heard something by now. Jay won't leave the intelligence area in case Voight calls and needs Mouse to help with something."

"His partner…I'm just as worried. I can't think about going home until I know Kelly's on his way home – safely. How's Katie?"

"She's worried and trying to catch a flight here. Benny paid for it. She just has to work things out with the restaurant."

"Can't believe this," he sighed as he rubbed his face. "Been almost three days…"

"Hey…they'll be okay. We have to believe that," she told him firmly as he hugged her close once more.

XXXXXXXX

Erin's fingers lazily played with buddy's side as they slowly made their way up toward his neck just to check on how the wound healed. Her fingers came away with no fresh blood and that was reassuring to her as Buddy looked up with a soulful look.

"I think you'll like Chicago," she said in a soft whisper as Kelly remained asleep beside her. She cast her hazel green gaze past the small fire that still burned to the mouth of the cave and then outside into the early morning light. They had seen a small glint of something…it wasn't much but it was enough to fill them both with hope that they were closer to help and civilization than they thought but with her broken leg and the treacherous terrain, she worried that it would be slow going and could only hope the glint wasn't from a vehicle that has moved overnight and their hope was lost.

Erin turned her head back and looked at Kelly's handsome face and instantly felt her stomach tighten as she recalled how she felt when he lost his footing and nearly went over the edge – terrified of losing him. Not of being left alone but of having to go on alone without him. And yet…when you are back to your own worlds you will have to go your own way – you now that.

"Hey…"

"Hey…" she greeted him with a warm smile as his eyes opened and he looked at her with a lazy grin. "How are you feeling?"

"Nothing a good hot shower won't fix. You?"

"Same…I think I'm starting to get dreadlocks."

"Suits you. Course…you'd look beautiful bald."

As soon as Kelly had said the words he stopped and both looked at each other in surprise as time started to slow around them.

"I…uh…" he stammered as her cheeks gently flushed. "Wrong time and place for a lame line…"

"Didn't think it was that lame," she quickly qualified as he felt his frame flood with relief. "But thank you."

"I meant it. But I know that…" he started as she moved in closer. Once again before either could react, Kelly's hand gently cupped her cheek and brought her lips to his and crushed them for a few seconds until Buddy broke the moment with an excited bark. "I shouldn't have…" Kelly apologized as he pulled back and offered her a heavy frown.

"Kelly…"

"As soon as we exit this hell, you go back to your world and I go back to mine and uh…I'm sorry…I shouldn't have done that," he told her as her heart sunk. She's got someone back home…she can deny it but a woman this fine…just save yourself the heartache now…

"I don't regret it," Erin told him in haste.

"I just…we should get going."

"I'm not mad."

"It's not…real," he stated as her expression turned confused.

"What do you mean? This is real."

"No. It's the setting…we survived nearly dying and I saved you and you're grateful and…"

"You kissed me," she reminded him in haste as his lips pursed. "'I'm not mad," she told him again as he offered her an expression that held hope but at the same time also held doubt and it was the small seeds of doubt that troubled her most.

"We need to make it down to that glint of silver we saw yesterday," Kelly told her as he offered his hand and she took it and he helped her up. "When we make it back to our worlds and…" he started only to have her put her finger to his lips and give it a gentle push to stop his next words.

"We have to make it down this mountain first," she reminded him as he took her hand and gave it a kiss and nodded.

"Ready Buddy?" Kelly asked the dog who stood excitedly beside them and looked up as his tail wagged. He handed her a few pieces of the cougar jerky and then a few of the kibble to Buddy.

"Mmmm breakfast of champions," Erin lightly laughed as she tugged on a piece of the tough meat.

"Gonna need a whole canister of Metamucil when we get back," Kelly deadpanned as she offered another bout of laughter. He put out the fire and then stepped outside into the crisp morning air and took a deep breath of the cool mist. "Sure smells clean up here."

"Haven't smelt air this fresh in…I think forever," Erin commented lightly as she joined him at the mouth of the cave. She pulled out the small pair of binoculars and then started to look in the direction of the area she spied the glint the day before. "I don't see…" she started as despair threatened to creep into her fragile subconscious. But before ALL hope was lost she quickly found it again. "Found it!"

"What is it?"

"I think…here look…" she handed him the small binoculars. "What is that? Someone who can help us?"

"Looks like…a piece of sheet metal or rain tubing or something…but it's not rusted so that's a good thing. That's where we'll try to head. It's slippery out so we'll just take our time. No more injuries," he stated somewhat fatefully as she gave him a grateful nod and the three of them set out once more.

"Careful…" Kelly cautioned as he grasped her arm and helped her down a pair of mossy covered rocks.

"Showoff!" Erin teased Buddy who bounded down beside her, reached the bottom and then looked up and barked. "We need to talk about joint custody arrangements," she mentioned lightly as he offered her a small smile.

"Whoever has the biggest bag of Milk Bones," Kelly gently laughed as he ruffled Buddy's neck before the three of them continued on their way.

"At least we are heading downward," Erin commented as they walked on toward their destination. "Makes me feel like we're at least on the right path."

"Yeah I agree. Better than up. Think you'll fly again?" He retorted lightly as she gave him a mock look of horror before she shook her head no.

"But I might think twice about getting on a small plane in a storm…no matter how desperate I am to get home. I keep thinking if we hadn't asked Sam…would he still be alive?" Her voice ended in a soft huff as she looked at him with a frown.

"Yeah I wonder that too," he confessed in truth. "But if I dwell on it…I know I'll just drive myself insane with guilt and won't be able to function normally. He deserved better."

"I don't think he would have blamed us," she tried to assure him as her hand slipped into his and gave it a squeeze. "Kelly we need to talk about that moment in the cave."

"No we uh…I was just overcome with…heat of the moment."

"Kelly…"

"No I get it…once we're back to reality we'll go our separate ways and…"

"What's her name?"

"What…who?"

"The woman you keep trying to push me away for?" Erin asked in a somber mood as she offered him a tight lipped expression. "You said you weren't in a serious relationship anymore but…"

"Maybe I'm just being practical," he interjected in haste as they continued at their slow careful pace. "You'll go back to your world and I…well I find it hard to believe you don't have anyone special waiting for you."

"Why do you find that hard to believe?" Erin inquired in a somewhat sour tone.

"Because…you're pretty amazing," Kelly confessed as she looked at him in surprise. "Gotta keep it real for myself," he concluded with a small shrug.

Erin looked at him in wonder and found it amazing that a man so confident and self-confident in a crisis situation could be so insecure when it came to matters of the heart and the emotional arena. That made her heart actually break all over again. But maybe he was right. Maybe it was better his way…although after all this was all over, it would be hard to return to her normal life in Chicago and just forget Kelly Severide ever existed. It would be near impossible.

"Think it's a logging camp?" Erin tried to make regular conversation so as to keep the impending awkward silence from developing.

"Looking at the various growth stages I'd say it is," Kelly agreed as they continued down a small rocky path. The sound of the water had stopped a few hours back and both wondered if they had made the right choice.

"And the fact we can't hear water anymore?"

"Could be we're heading toward either the ending and in that case it could be frozen over or…or we just veered off course but we really had no choice. As long as we can see that silver glint and are heading toward it…that's what counts."

"Maybe we'll luck out and actually find some people."

"Not sure about that."

"Why…not?" Erin wondered as she rested her hand on his shoulder and slowly traversed down a small slope.

"Don't smell any wood smoke. Up here?...they'd have some kind of heating system that would use natural wood. But if there is one settlement…there could be more. At least it'll give us a place to spend the night with an actual roof over our head."

"Never thought I'd be so happy to hear I might have a toilet that flushes," she giggled as he couldn't help but laugh along with her.

"Just be glad you didn't reach for the poison ivy leaves."

"Ugh," she grimaced as she could only imagine the pain that would cause. They reached the bottom of the slope and then stopped to catch their breath as Erin turned and looked back up and felt her eyes widen. "We just came down…that?"

"And we didn't even lose a step," he smiled as he looked at her with a warm expression. "I don't regret it either," he told her seriously as she felt her cheeks warm. "And I think that…" he stopped as both of them heard a very familiar sound but one that wasn't near them.

"Buddy!" Kelly exclaimed as he frantically looked around for the dog. "Ah damn it! I hafta go after him."

"No we both do!"

"No!" Kelly insisted as he looked at her in concern and then pointed to her left. "I see a clearing that way. Head toward it. The glint was past that. I can't leave Buddy up here all alone."

"It'll be dark soon and I don't think we should separate."

"You can't keep up!"

"I've made it this far haven't I!" She argued back as they both held their ground in a heated stance.

"I can make it faster on my own. I'll get him and we'll catch up to you. I promise."

"Kelly…" Erin started to protest as he leaned in and kissed her on the forehead.

"I don't want to be wandering around here in the dark either but maybe…maybe Buddy's found something or someone who can help us. Just continue on toward the area we were heading and I'll catch up."

"I'll walk slow. Just hurry."

"I will."

With that he turned and rushed toward the dog as Erin watched for a few moments before she turned and slowly continued along their original path. She reached the clearing and then started to slowly make her way onto the snowy ground and then paused as she heard Buddy and Kelly off to her left and then turned to see where they were at.

"Buddy!" Kelly called out as he veered to his right – now parallel with Erin and hurried toward Buddy. "What the…" he started and then stopped as he came upon a small cabin a few yards in the near distance. With a sense of renewed hope, Kelly pushed himself to run the last few meters where Buddy stood by the front door and barked. "Good boy!" Kelly exclaimed as he pounded on the door and waited.

"HELLO!" He called out as he decided to take a chance and turn the knob. It opened but much to his dismay he entered it and found it empty. "Damn…course it's empty," he huffed as Buddy bounded in after him and started to sniff around the interior of the small structure.

"Better than the cold ground," Kelly mused as he did a slow circle inside the cabin and then looked around. "No phone…no way to call for help and no…" he paused as he noticed a newspaper in the small garbage can and hurried toward it. "October of this year…that's promising," he continued as he looked around for any kind of food or something to start the wood stove with.

But as he continued to look around something else started to dawn on him – just what kind of cabin he was now in and instantly his heart start to race with fear as he looked out the window and finally saw where he was.

In a small cabin on the edge of a frozen lake. Frozen? How frozen? It wasn't that cold up here and they had just heard fresh water. Was the lake that frozen? Or was it all just a façade – a hidden danger waiting to deal them another setback?

"ERIN!" He shouted as he bolted for the door; realizing she now walked on the frozen ice. But it wasn't extremely cold up here so he worried that it might crack and pull her in.

His worst fear was about to be realized.

"ERIN! GET OFF THERE!"

Erin heard the shouting and then looked up to see Kelly in the distance running toward her. "WHAT?" She shouted back as she took a few more steps toward him; thinking that maybe he had finally found someone to help them.

"GET OFF THERE! IT COULD BREAK!" Kelly shouted once more as he prayed he'd get to her in time.

Erin took another few steps but as soon as she did she heard a sickening sound beneath her and finally realized what Kelly had shouted – she stood on thin ice. "Oh no…" she whispered in dread as she slowly started to back up.

But she wouldn't make it.

*crack*

Another careful step.

*crack*

Another…

Kelly could only watch in horror as he neared the edge of the lake and the ice beneath her finally gave way. "ERIN!"

"KELLY! HELP ME!" She shouted before she sunk beneath the icy surface – disappeared from view.

"NOOOOOOOO!"

A/N: oh dear! Yikes….at least they found some semblance of civilization but…will Kelly get to her in time? Will they find help before its really too late? Would love your thoughts before you go so please do review and thanks so much!