Chapter 22

When Chris saw Erica lying on the ground, her eyes closed, he was filled with dread. He sprinted over and knelt down next to her. "Jesus! Please tell me she isn't dead. Oh God!"

Bianca blinked when she saw him, then quickly recovered. "She's just unconscious. Greg hit her, and then shot Leo."

Chris looked over at David tending to Leo, then up and saw Greenlee standing there. She put her hand to her mouth as she gaped back at him. Weakly, she whispered, "I see dead people."

Chris gently brought Erica's head up and cradled it on his lap. "Erica? Talk to me, babe. Open your eyes." She started to groan, and her lashes fluttered. It took her a moment to focus on Chris's face. When she comprehended who she was looking at, she recoiled in horror and wailed, "No, I'm not ready to die! You're not taking me with you!"

Chris grasped her shoulders and made a gentle shushing sound. "No, sweetheart. You're still in the land of the living. I just neglected to tell you that I was, too."

She frowned at him. "What?"

"I didn't die when that bum shot me. I just let everyone think so."

"You faked your death? But why?" She held her hand to her head. "Wait a minute, never mind about that. Where's Madden?" She looked around. "Where's Kendall? He was threatening her…"

Bianca came over and took her mom's hand. She nodded back towards the main hall. "He took her up to see Spike."

Erica's eyes widened. "He's getting his son so he can escape again. He's going to use Kendall as a hostage." She staggered to her feet and started towards the main hall. "We have to stop him!"

Chris grabbed her arm. "You're in no condition to go gunning after Madden. I'll go – just tell me where I can find him."

Erica's shoulders slumped and she threw herself into his arms, hugging him. "Oh Chris, you don't know how happy I am to see you. We were so scared."

Chris held her tightly for a moment, then felt the vibrating of his cell phone. "I need to take this call, babe. It's probably Slater and Lavery."

She nodded and pulled away. He answered the phone. "This is Stamp."

"It's Zach. We're at the gates to the chalet. What's happening?"

"First of all you need to call the cops and an ambulance. Leo's been shot in the stomach. Madden's somewhere with Kendall and Spike. I'm about to go after them. Keep your eyes peeled when you approach the house, in case he tries to escape."

Chris heard a deep intake of breath on the other end. Obviously struggling for control, Zach replied, "You find him, Sam. Get Kendall and the baby away from him." Zach was so upset that he had reverted to Chris's former name.

"Will do. Tell the ambulance to come in the entrance on the east side, then get your asses down here. Over and out." Chris ended the call and turned to speak to Erica. She wasn't there. Goddamn it! He reached for his piece, and realized that it was missing. She must have slipped it out of his holster when they were hugging. He looked over at Greenlee. "Do you know where Spike's nursery is?"

She shook her head. "It's on the second floor, but that's all I know for sure. I think maybe it was the wing opposite ours. Umm…uh…a left at the top of the staircase." He gave her a short nod and then ran in the direction of the front hall, hoping he would find the right room quickly.

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With shaky fingers, Zach dialed the emergency number. He wanted badly to take off running in the direction of the chalet, but he knew every minute counted when it came to a gunshot wound. He had to trust that Sam would make headway in finding Madden and Kendall in the time it would take to make sure help was on its way.

Ryan stared at him. "What's going on, man?"

"Leo's been shot. Sam told me to call an ambulance."

Ryan shook his head. "No. You look worse than you did when Kendall was in the coma. What happened to her? What about Spike?"

Zach barked. "They're fine for now! Hello? Do you speak English? Perfect. We have an emergency. A lunatic has taken hostages – women and children. A man has been shot in the stomach. We need help immediately. " He gave the address of the chalet. "If you have a helicopter, bring it. There's plenty of space to land, and if he tries to escape, you'd be able to spot him." He answered a few more questions, then hung up the phone and looked over at Ryan. "Madden has Kendall and Spike, and Chris went to find them. Other than Leo being shot, I have no idea what else happened. No mention of Greenlee or Erica."

Ryan grabbed his arm. "I have to assume that they're okay, if he didn't say anything."

Zach went back to the car. "I think at this point we can dispense with stealth. The car will be faster. As for Greenlee and Erica, maybe Chris hasn't run into them yet." Ryan was barely able to slide into the passenger seat before Zach peeled off down the driveway. "You should go find Greenlee and Erica, and I'll search for Madden and Kendall."

"No, man, if Madden has her and Spike, I want to help out. Make sure she's safe."

"I understand, but what if Greenlee's in danger? She's almost due to have her baby…your baby. With everything that's happened to her, she could easily give birth prematurely. I think your first duty is to make sure she's okay."

Ryan rubbed his forehead. "Wow, I guess you're right. I've spent so many months focused on Kendall and Spike, and trying to be there for them, that…it's kind of hard to switch priorities."

"I know, I know. Too many paradigm shifts. I don't envy you. But you gotta know that I'll take care of Kendall and Spike."

"After what you did for them when she was in the coma, I'm more than sure they'll be fine."

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Greg shoved Kendall into the nursery. She stumbled, but quickly caught her balance. She almost stopped breathing when she saw her son in the crib, screaming at top volume. Considering how fragile he'd seemed in the neonatal unit, she was overjoyed that he apparently had a healthy set of lungs. Kane lungs, judging by the furious tone in his cry. She rushed over and gently picked him up. Her world felt right again as she cuddled him to her and whispered soothing words to him. In no time at all he quieted down.

Kendall looked over at Greg, who was regarding them with a maniacal gleam in his eyes. "Spike is your son, isn't he? You used your sperm to impregnate me."

Madden gripped his gun, his expression turning sour. "I told you not to call him that! His name is Gregory Junior. Sometimes I don't understand how you could possibly be the offspring of someone as refined and elegant as Erica Kane. You must have gotten your more barbaric traits from your rapist father."

Kendall felt like she had been punched in the gut, but she quickly reminded herself who was speaking to her. "Barbaric? You have no room to talk when you've lied to and manipulated hundreds of women! You talk about my rapist father when you've violated my body and my mother's body? You're a total freak, Doctor Madden – completely subhuman. You may be my son's father, but I know he will rise above his paternity the same way I did."

Greg advanced on her, the menace on his face almost making her back up. She stood her ground. He sneered at her. "My son will rise above us all, on that we agree. With my genes added to the Kane genes, he will turn out even better than my other son. Joshua is a phenomenal young man, but he's held back by the Martin side of him. Brilliant people, but they have this nonsensical focus on duty and ethics, which has no place when it comes to the advancement of medicine. None of the advantages we have today would exist if scientists did everything by the book." The gleam came back into his eyes. "Our son will become a doctor, and surpass even myself with his discoveries. He'll think outside the box. He won't follow the rules. That's one thing you share with your lovely mother, Kendall – the Kane trait I look forward to cultivating. You stop at nothing to get what you want. When you suggested using your own egg because Greenlee's didn't survive, I was overcome with pride."

"I'll just bet you were overcome. When you left the room to prepare for the insemination, you really went to go jack off in a cup."

Greg looked at her in distaste. "You need to tone down the crudeness. I want my son to have a mother in his life, but not one that will be a poor influence. You mind your p's and q's young lady."

Kendall looked around the room, hoping to see something she could use as a weapon. Considering that the room was thoroughly child-proofed, she wasn't having any luck. She bit her lip as she saw something that might work. "I think he's crying because his diaper needs changing." She went over to changing table and gently sat him down on the pad. She started to unbutton his sleeper. "Okay, I never got to bring him home from the hospital," She gave him a pointed glare, "so I don't have much practice with this. What do I do first?"

Greg gave a disgusted sigh and gestured towards a box next to the pad. "There are wipes in there to clean him thoroughly of any residue." She reached for the box, and accidentally on purpose knocked it to the ground. It tumbled to a stop a few feet away. He sighed again, and bent over to pick it up. Kendall grabbed the large object on the floor that she had been told was called a "diaper genie" and swung it around, slamming him over the head with it. He lost his balance and collapsed to the ground.

Kendall quickly scooped up Spike and started for the door of the nursery. She had just made it into the hallway when Madden grabbed her by the hair, yanking her to a stop. "You really are a stupid and reckless woman, Kendall. Completely unfit to raise my child. Now you are going to march back into that nursery and put him down in his crib."

A voice from behind them declared, "On the contrary, Greg, my daughter will never have to let go of her son ever again." They turned and saw Erica standing there. She pointed a gun at Madden. "You're the one that needs to be put down. My poison didn't kill you, but I'm betting this bullet will."

Greg held up his own gun and put it to Kendall's temple. "Any bets on what this bullet will do to Kendall?"

Greg's arm was suddenly wrenched upward, and the movement caused him to pull the trigger, firing a shot into the ceiling. Kendall turned her head and saw Zach standing there. He snarled at Greg, "All bets are off."

Spike started crying again, alarmed by the gunshot blast. In his surprise, Greg let go of Kendall and she dashed forward and stood next to her mom. Erica positioned herself in front of Kendall and the baby. Greg tried to bring his gun down to point it at Zach. They grappled for a few moments, and it looked as if Greg was getting the upper hand. As he was inching the barrel of the gun towards Zach's face, Kendall started moaning, "No, no, please…"

Erica glanced back at her distressed daughter, then back at the struggling pair. Resolutely she stepped forward and raised her pistol. In their battle for Greg's gun, neither of the men noticed her approach. Zach shifted, and for a split second Greg's body was exposed. Erica squeezed the trigger and hit her target perfectly. His eyes wide and round with shock, Madden stopped struggling and looked down at the hole in his chest. Zach stepped back, and watched as Greg stumbled for a bit, then crashed to the ground and was still.

Zach staggered over to Greg and bent down to take his pulse. After a moment, he straightened up. "He's dead."

Kendall tried to soothe Spike, who was completely hysterical after the third gunshot. Zach stood and reached her in two strides. He enveloped Kendall in a bear hug, making sure not to crush Spike. "Thank God you're okay."

They heard Erica's name bellowed from down the hall. Everyone turned and saw Chris running towards them. He came to a stop, breathing heavily. "I ended up down the wrong hallway." He glanced over and saw Greg lying on the ground, blood pooling out from under him. "Dead?"

Zach nodded. "Finally."

Chris nodded, also. "Good work. You saved their lives."

Zach smirked. "I wasn't the one that shot him. That was the work of Mama Kane."

Erica smiled faintly, relief palpable on her lovely features. She brought a shaky hand up to her forehead, and then began to slide to the ground. Chris quickly scooped her up in his arms as exhaustion finally claimed her.