Hey, I know it's been so long, I'm sorry! Anyway here's the next chapter, it's not my finest work but I wanted to get something up so I hope you guys enjoy and thank you to everyone who reviewed( they mean so much to me), favourite or followed!x x x

A/N: Any character personalities presented throughout the story are purely fictional. I write because I love to write stories and I'm respectful that in real life they have other partners :)

"The others can't know out about this," Joe muttered lowly, glaring at the poster with venom before shoving it back at Brian.

"Well that's going to be difficult once the police…"

"This stays between us," Joe said assertively, "Lauren is just starting to recover. Something like this could undo everything she's achieved! We can handle this ourselves."

"Are you actually fucking crazy?" Brian stuttered in disbelief, "We're no match for the psychopaths who took Lauren and you know it. Ignoring this could result in worse than a mental relapse. I'm handing this in to the police. I'm tired of being afraid Joe, I'm tired of worrying that some night I'll come home and find Meredith or one of the others missing."

Joe looked at him pleadingly before speaking in hushed desperate voice, "If they seek revenge, it'll be on Lo. She killed one of them, it's her they're after. Please Brian, for everything they put her through, for what they put all of us through… a lifetime in prison isn't punishment for what they did. People like them don't deserve to live…"

"Joe, just stop and think for a second what you are saying. Lauren didn't fall in love with a killer…"

"…Except she did, didn't she?" Joe snapped, "She fucking slept with one of them!"

Brian stared at Joe in shock, uncertain how he was supposed to respond to this information. Joe seemed equally stunned at his outburst, clearly regretting his words,

"She loves you Joe," Brian finally whispered, breaking the silence.

Joe turned away from Brian and rested his head against the wall as he took a few deep breaths,

"Fine," he sighed eventually, "we'll go to the police."

Brian cut the engine and pulled out the crumpled poster from his pocket, re-reading the message for what felt like the thousandth time. He was so grateful to have Meredith. She was his other half, his rock, the reason he knew love existed and soon, she would be his wife. He glanced over at Joe, whose vacant gaze gave away his exhaustion. Brian knew that whatever worry he had for Meredith's safety, Joe was suffering the same torture, only a million times worse.

"I don't know how you did it," Brian blurted out, "I just… I can't imagine what you must have gone through and I'm sorry if it sometimes seems like I don't understand… to be honest I doubt any of us will ever understand… but just know I'm sorry it happened to you and Lo, ye never deserved any of this."

Joe lifted his head as Brian fell silent,

"Thanks," Joe said quietly, "but sometimes it feels like I deserved it. I failed to protect her… "

"It wasn't you're fault man," Brian assured him, "you were dying... she saw no other way to save you. Lauren had her mind made up the moment that bullet hit you."

Joe froze in his seat, "what do you mean she had her mind made up?" he asked in a broken whisper, his face turning a sickly shade of green.

Brian looked like a deer caught in headlights as he realised what he'd said. The secret they'd kept quiet for so long, the one thing that would tear Joe apart, was now out in the open,

"What happened?" Joe stammered, his broken voice conveying his pain and guilt, "I thought she had no choice. I thought… "

Joe's breaths were coming deep and ragged as his eyes frantically searched Brian's face for answers,

"She volunteered to stay until the end… if in return, you were left free to receive medical aid."

"So I'm the reason she…"

"No!" Brian interrupted adamantly, "you were Lauren's weakness and they used that to their advantage. They needed a hostage to ensure a clean getaway."

"But that person should not have been her," Joe voiced sadly.

"No," Brian agreed quietly, "it shouldn't have been her… Listen Joe, we all felt her absence in the group. To be honest I don't think Starkid would have survived much longer with things the way they were. But she's alive and we need to make sure we keep her safe this time because we cannot fail her again."

"I need to talk to Lauren," Joe announced firmly.

Brian bowed his head and cursed his loose tongue. He knew he should try and stop Joe from confronting Lauren but knew it was a battle he would no doubt lose,

"Ok, I'll drive you back," he sighed, rubbing his temples as he felt a migraine coming on, "Just let me drop the poster in to the police first."

Brian climbed out of the car and glanced around nervously. For some reason he got the strange sensation that he was being watched. Pulling up his hood, he made a dash towards the door to the police station, savouring the relief that spread through him as he stepped across the threshold. He knew he was being overly paranoid but he couldn't shake the uneasy feeling that someone had been lurking out there. It wasn't the first time either. Over the past few weeks, more than once he'd felt like someone had been consciously keeping tabs on him. He'd kept quiet about it, fearing it would send the others into an unnecessary panic. But the convenient placement of the Apocalyptour poster, with its chilling message didn't feel like a coincidence. Someone made sure he would find it and for all he knew the poster could have been pinned on that notice board only minutes before he and Meredith had shown up.

Dragging his occupied mind back to present, he approached the deserted front desk. Thankfully it wasn't long before an officer appeared: a man in his thirties with an air of confidence surrounding that for some reason itched on Brian's nerves,

"Good evening," he greeted, ambling over to the desk with a questioning look on his face

"I'm here to hand in something that may help with the Lauren Lopez case… this," he said, sliding the poster across the counter, "was left for us."

He searched the officer's face, trying to read his reaction, but it seemed years of police duty had taught the man to hide his emotions well. The poster was placed delicately in a sealed bag which would be taken away for analysis,

"What do we do now?" Brian asked, "Shouldn't we have some sort of protection or police look out?"

The police officer sighed wearily, "I'm afraid one poster found taped to a bulletin board in downtown Chicago isn't enough to authorize a protection programme."

"I'd consider being recently kidnapped substantial evidence though," Brian argued.

The police officer, who Brian only now noticed was called Officer Wilson (according to his badge), took a deep breath and leaned in, "Look, I shouldn't be doing this but I understand your frustration and obvious concern, so I'll send two of the younger guys over to keep watch for tonight."

"Thank you."

Once Brian had confirmed he had nothing else to report, Officer Wilson excused himself. Brian stifled a yawn as he turned away, looking forward to finally getting home to Meredith. Actually he was half tempted to suggest everyone stayed at Julia's tonight. With the police on patrol, it was the safest place to be.

However as the police door swung shut behind him, he stopped. His car missing and there was only one explaination… Joe. He swore venomously, knowing it was his own fault. He should have known Joe would take off. As exhaustion from the day's commotion wracked his bones he stepped back inside the door of the police station. Not a chance was he walking home alone at this hour of the night. Perhaps one of the police officers would drop him back.

Suddenly something occurred to him, how had Officer Wilson known where he'd found the poster? He didn't recall mentioning it to him at any stage and now that he thought of it, there were very few questions asked at all. A cold feeling spread through him as he tried to comprehend what this meant. He ran back towards the desk,

"Can I speak to Officer Wilson?" he demanded, hopeful that all this was just his over-active imagination convincing him of something sinister.

A young, wide eyed officer on duty stared up at him in shock however her answer confirmed what he already feared,

"Officer Wilson retired two weeks ago, maybe I can help you?" she stuttered, but Brian was gone before the last words had even left her mouth, sprinting out the door.

Adrenaline urged him forward. In his head he knew Lauren was the one in the most danger but his heart pumped Meredith's name through his veins and with a decisive breath he turned left, heading back towards his and Mere's apartment.

He was suddenly starting to understand how Marcus and Kate had managed to evade capture for so long and cursed his own misguided trust and naivety. They were con men and as an actor, Brian felt he should be able to identify an act when he saw it. Things were not over yet and Shane's death should have taught them that a long time ago.

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