Title: The City Between Us
Chapter 8 – Too Close for Comfort?

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

"KEL…"

"No…No…NO!" Kelly shouted as he pushed past any throb in his leg or chest and raced toward the area Erin now floundered in. Buddy heard his voice and hers and also raced toward the human in need. He of course reached there faster than Kelly but unlike his human companion could only stand by the edge and bark helplessly.

"Kelly!" Erin tried as she felt herself slip beneath the icy surface once more, her hands unable to claw the slippery edge. The last time she had bobbed up she spied Kelly on his way toward her but feared he might not make it in time. With the lower part of her leg still broken and wrapped she found it painful to kick. But if she remained still she'd sink – either way, she was in for a painful bout.

"Erin!" Kelly called out as he reached the edge and then quickly dropped to his knees and then belly and knees and slowly crawled toward the opening; the opposite side of where she fell through. He hated the fact that he had to go slow but reminded himself if he too fell into the water they'd both be lost as there was no one around to come to their aide. He was relieved that Buddy continued to bark but dismayed that the desperate animal's call went unanswered.

"Kel…" Erin tried as she came up once more and then slipped into the waters again.

"NO…damn it!" Kelly cursed as he yanked off his gloves, shoved them into his pockets and prepared to reach into the icy waters and grab her. But at the same time he heard small cracks and cursed the fact that his weight now put added pressure onto the ice which threatened to take him with it. "Hold damn you!" He cursed the icy elements once more, as if talking to something he actually had control of.

As much as he hated to do it, Kelly reached into the waters and latched onto her hair and pulled upward; hoping she'd forgive him if he got her to safety in time. "Erin…damn it come on!" He growled as both hands reached into the waters and grabbed the edges of her jacket and gave them a good yank.

Her body somewhat responded but due to hypothermia quickly encasing her in its wicked embrace so her reaction time was sluggish.

"Erin!" Kelly shouted as he, still with a grip on her shoulders, started to pull backwards onto the ice. The mouth of the gaping ice hole finally decided it had had enough and started to give way which forced Kelly to roll to one side but thankfully still with Erin in his grasp.

"Erin! You gotta…oh God please don't…don't let her die…" he grunted as he summoned up another bout of energy and yanked her toward him once more. "There…okay…yes…" Kelly huffed as he managed to get her partly out of the water and onto the ice.

But before she could slip through his cold fingers, he was able to roll once more and take her with him. Kelly pushed himself back onto his knees and was able to drag her, now, unmoving frame onto the ice and then looked down in a panic.

"Erin!" He yelled again as he dropped once more to his knees, felt for a pulse and then started to do CPR. "Come on….you're too damn stubborn to die! Come on! Come…on…COME ON!" He shouted as he leaned down and covered her cold lips with his warm ones and gave her two breaths. Buddy standing by anxiously but helplessly looking on.

No response.

"Erin!...come on you can't…you can't leave me…." he stammered as his now gloved hands, pushed down on her chest for another set. "Come on…come on…" Kelly hissed once more as he leaned in and delivered two more warm breaths. "COME ON!"

This time there was a response as her slightly blue lips started to cough and sputter and her eyes fluttered to a half open position. He quickly rolled her onto her side and let her spit up whatever frigid lake water had to be expelled and then let

"Kel…ly…" she whispered as he sat back on his knees and swallowed back a sniffle as he tried to get his heart rate to come back down to a normal level, but knew there wasn't much time for him to relish in his rescue – he had to get her into the cabin, start a fire and make sure she didn't slip into hypothermia.

"Come on…" Kelly gently grunted as he scooped her up into his somewhat shaky arms and started toward the cabin.

"Kelly…"

"Hold on baby…just hold on…" he whispered, not even realizing what he just said. "Found a cabin…gotta get you in…get you warm…"

"Kelly…" Erin moaned once more as her head lolled into his shoulder and remained motionless.

"Erin!" Kelly snapped as her eyes tried to flutter open. "Stay with me okay…found a cabin…I'll start a fire…you just gotta…stay with me!"

"C-cold…" she chattered as her body continued to shiver.

"I know. Have you warm soon."

Buddy bounded ahead of them and then barked as they neared and then entered the small cabin. Kelly carefully laid Erin's shivering frame on the table, pulled off his jacket and wrapped it around her. "I just gotta…" he muttered as he opened the small fireplace, busted up the two nearby chairs and then shoved them into the opening and started a small flame.

"Come on…" Kelly chanted as he finally felt the cold as it started to penetrate his weary frame. "Just a bit longer…can you…undress…even a little…"

But as he glanced over at the table Erin's frame just lay sprawled and motionless on the table; no response to his verbal commands; which meant he had to hurry. With the door closed to keep the wind out he laid the blanket on the floor and then set about removing her boots as best he could with her broken leg; her jacket and then her sweater. He left her pants and undershirt on as he was afraid he'd hurt her leg more if he tried to get her pants off. Plus he wasn't sure how she'd feel without giving her consent so he just pulled off of his clothes what he could and then lay down on one side and encouraged Buddy to lay down on her other side and then wrapped the blanket around them both.

"Scared me…" he whispered as he tucked a damp strand behind her ear. But her eyes remained closed and her now pale skin cool to the touch. What happens when we get back to Chicago…how can was just…part ways…his mind pondered as he held her close and hoped his body heat would help warm her up. She has her life…and I have mine but…but after all this…how can I just…walk away?

"Mmmmm," she lightly moaned as her eyes fluttered but she remained in a sleep-like state.

"Just rest," Kelly tenderly instructed as he kissed her forehead and then closed his eyes. I want to kiss her more but …now? She nearly died…this would be taking advantage of her…

With Buddy now asleep beside them and the fire going at a good pace and giving the small space some muchly needed warmth, he closed his eyes and then offered a small prayer of thanks and tried to get some rest.

XXXXXXXX

"We have news?" Gabby asked excitedly later that same day as she watched her husband's facial expressions change as he talked to Hank Voight who was still in New York; Antonio Dawson right beside his sister.

"Okay thanks…yeah any news is good news…keep us posted."

"What?"

"Search and rescue found the plane and what appears to be an arrow in…blood…"

"What?" Antonio interjected in haste.

"The winds are making it hard for the rescue helicopter to land safely and they don't see any signs of life. They looked in the direction of the arrow but the winds have blown over any discernable tracks. But…."

"But what?" Gabby pressed anxiously.

"They saw beside the plane what looked like…a grave marker," Matt relayed gravely as the whole of 51 went silent. "But no confirmation if that was our team or…was there before. Once they have a clear window they'll land but in the meantime they'll try to look around the rest of the area the best they can."

"Thank God they found the crash site," Antonio uttered as he gave Matt a firm nod.

"We know they survived," Gabby added as Matt's brow remained knitted. "Have to believe that right?"

"Right."

But at the same time it had already been four days and the odds, if not already ran out, were certainly stacked against whoever survived that plane crash.

XXXXXXXX

A few hours later Erin's eyes slowly opened and focused on Kelly crouched by the small fireplace and she couldn't help but smile.

"How long was I out?"

"Few hours…you okay?"

"I'm alive thanks to you," she replied with a relieved smile as Buddy's nose nudged her thigh. "And you too," she oohhed as she rubbed his head and he uttered a playful bark. "That was…damn when I went down into that dark water…thank God you were nearby. How are you?"

"A lot warmer now," he replied with a small wince that he hoped she didn't see.

"Kelly…"

"You nearly drowned…I'm okay," he tried to assure her as the fire started to blaze once more. "We have some good shelter for tonight…a bit of that jerky leftover and tomorrow we'll look for a road out of here. No one builds a cabin in the woods by a lake without having access to it," he reasoned as he felt her forehead.

"Hot stuff right?" She mused as he held her gaze and her face started to warm.

"A bit warmer than you should be but after nearly dying…think it's allowed," he winked as she smiled. "Hope whoever comes doesn't plan to sit anytime soon," he chuckled as he nodded toward the table that was now devoid of its chairs.

"We'll buy them some new ones…if we ever find out who lives here," she suggested as he nodded and then sat down beside her.

"How's your leg?"

"It was pretty useless in the water," she huffed as she leaned forward and gingerly felt it. "Still hurts to the touch but I'm afraid to unwrap anything…even with a wet foot."

"I'm afraid of that also. Don't want to do more damage than already done."

"Guess I can toss my shorts out the window."

"Ohh come on now…scars on a woman are sexy," he teased as he faced warmed further. "Speaking of scars…" he interjected before they could start a you show me yours and I'll show you mine and he either broke his cracked ribs or did more damage to her leg for a brief moment of personal gratification. "How's Buddy's neck?"

"With all this hair…it's a bit hard to see but…awwww," Erin smiled as Buddy rolled onto his back, indicating that he wanted his belly rubbed. "Buddy…you're such a suck up," she giggled as Kelly leaned back against the dusty couch and she just automatically leaned back with him, her head now rested on his shoulder. "This…is actually kind of relaxing."

"It is," he agreed softly as he felt her slightly shiver.

"What's your cabin like?"

XXXXXXXX

"You should rest."

"I'll rest when I find them," Hank replied gruffly as before he softened his gaze as she neared with a cup of coffee.

"Seems I'm always offering you a cup of coffee," Olivia Benson smiled as they stood near the mouth of the small cabin later that same night; pitch black all that lay on the near horizon.

"Got any scotch?" He retorted as her brows gently arched. But he could only watch in amusement as she pulled away and then returned with a small object in her hand and nodded. "No kidding."

"No…kidding," she agreed as she twisted off the small cap and then offered him a swig.

"Woman after my own heart," he offered too easily.

"Sounds easy," she quipped as she took a swig of her own. "We'll find them. We found one grave marker and no bodies inside the cabin. And the grave…it was an older man. Not Erin or Kelly," she reminded him. As much as they hated to dig up the grave, they noticed it was fresh and had to see who had been buried just to be sure.

"But the blood…they'd have to be injured after a crash like that," he grimaced as her lips drew into a thin line.

"But they were able to make that arrow marker and walk away. We don't know where yet…but we'll find them. There's a lot of terrain out there."

"It's nearly been a week."

"They'll be okay," Olivia replied once more as he looked at her with a grateful expression.

"Glad you're here," he told her simply.

"Me too," she replied with a warm smile. "Now before we both start to drown in mush…what's the plan for tomorrow?"

He couldn't help but offer her a chuckle as he pulled out the map and then started to postulate where they might have headed.

XXXXXXXX

"Warm enough?"

"Getting there," Erin answered in truth. "After all this running toward a loaded gun might seem like an easy task," she gently joked as his expression turned a bit uneasy. "Kelly?"

"Yeah…true."

But when his silence started to grow she felt an uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach gain momentum. "Kelly…" she tried again, only to have him gently cup her cheek with his hand and kiss her lips and then pull back with a small head shake.

"Blame the setting…the woods, the fireplace…"

"Me smelling like a lake," she gently joked as his face softened. "I'm not mad," she whispered as she leaned in and kissed him for a few heated moments and then pulled back with a smile.

"But when we get back to the real world…" he reminded her with a small frown as Buddy's brown eyes looked up as his head rested on her thigh.

"Kelly…"

"Hungry?" He interjected in haste as her lips pursed.

"Talk to me," she implored. "Stop shutting me out."

"It's just that…you nearly died today…and for a few seconds there when I was doing CPR and you…I didn't want to lose you."

"I don't want to lose you either," she whispered as her hand reached out and latched onto his.

"Death has a way of putting things into perspective," he admitted softly as she locked eyes with him and nodded. "Time to eat and rest."

"Okay."

She watched him get up and then head toward the small knapsack and pull out a bit more of the food ration and then came back to her and eased himself down beside her. "Nice fire."

"I might know a thing or two about them," he grinned as she felt her agitation settle once more. It was a tough subject for him and she wanted to broach it but she liked it better when he smiled and was happy so decided to put it on hold for now.

"So when did you know you wanted to be a firefighter?" She prodded, wanting to keep the happy conversation going strong.

"Well…" he started.

A/N: *phew* couldn't let our girl die but of course her near death just cemented their bond and hope you liked all the tense action. Hope you are all still with me on this little adventure so please do review before you go and thanks so much!