Tengoko: Well, I didn't keep you waiting in suspense for too long I suppose. I hope this chapter makes up for the shock and surprise of the last. Honestly, I was afraid that some of you might just hunt me down if I didn't update any sooner, heh. Well, in a very Elena like way, I've been talking too much, so I'll just let you all get on with the chapter. Please Review.
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Rated M for language and romance
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Chapter 17: Rescue
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People couldn't help but gape at the strange sight. They all knew who he was, but never had they seen him like this. Dripping wet, his face paled with pain. No, not him. Never him. He was indestructible. One of Shin-Ra's finest. To seem him as he was now was too surreal by half. It was almost surprising to them to discover that he could bleed.

Finally, a young woman stepped forward, more like raced, and approached him, sliding a hand behind his back and putting one on his stomach to steady him. Rude looked at her appreciatively before saying, "I need a phone."

She nodded. "Of course, sir. I've got one in my house. Come on." She grimaced a bit when she began leading him. Though she could tell he was trying to put most of his weight on his own two feet, it was still a difficult endeavor for the much smaller woman. The moment they crossed the threshold, Rude became aware of another pair of eyes upon him. A small child, staring with confusion at the sight.

"Hunter, go get mommy some towels, all right. And bring the first aid kit." Without a word, the boy complied. She set Rude down on her sofa before kneeling in front of him.

"Ma'am, that phone."

"Right now?"

He nodded. Quickly, she rose to her feet and disappeared into the kitchen. It didn't take her too long to return. Handing him her phone, she stood in front of him and waited for her son to return with what she'd requested.

Rude wasted no time in dialing Elena's number. Pick up! Pick up! She didn't. Stupid girl. Probably saw his number and ignored it, thinking he was calling on behalf of Reno. He'd have to remember to get after her for that later, but now, there were more pressing matters at hand.

He dialed another number and waited. This time he wasn't disappointed. Reno's angry voice filled his ear, but still, it was a comforting voice to hear just now. "What the hell do you want?" he'd snapped.

"Why the hell did you let Elena leave your apartment?"

"She's not my prisoner, Rude. I can't force her to stay."

"Reno…I've been wounded. I should be dead, but I got lucky."

"Shit man. Where are you? Are you at the hospital?"

"No, it gets more complicated than that." He looked up at the woman who was politely trying not to listen, but couldn't help it. The sight of her made him pause for a moment. How had he not realized how beautiful she was? She was a petite woman with long, raven black hair that fell in waves down to her lowerback. Her eyes were a deep gray, almost blue but not quite, and had an exotic angle to them, almost gypsy like. Before he could observe anything else, Reno's voice snapped him back to reality.

"Why the hell not? Justus should have taken you there the moment you were injured."

"That's the thing, Reno. Havre's not the one who shot me…" There was a deafening silence that followed afterwards. Rude continued. "He's been working against us the whole time. Look, I'll be fine. I'll call Tseng and have somebody come pick me up, but you need to stop Elena from going to Justus. He'll kill her."

"…Fuck!" It was the last thing he heard before Reno hung up the phone. Rude let out a breath. Reno would get to her. He knew he would. The man cared more about the girl than even he realized and would give his life to ensure her protection. He could rest easy now.

It was then that he realized the woman who'd helped him had already unzipped his jacket and was now unbuttoning his shirt. He stiffened a bit and then winced when she put a wet towel on his wound. She chuckled. "Imagine a big guy like you wincing at a little thing like this."

"A little thing?" he defended. "Woman, I just got shot."

"Oh stop being a baby," she teased, cleaning away the dried blood. She slid her hand around him, making him shudder. Her hand came to rest on his shoulder blade, and he winced again. "It seems it went straight through you. That's a good thing. I can fix you right up and not have to worry about the bullet still being inside of you."

"Ma'am, this isn't necessary. I can call Shin-Ra and have them send a medical team."

"You don't trust me?" she asked, her eyes glinting with humor.

"I just don't want to be a bother. Besides, I probably shouldn't be here when your husband gets home. He might not be as willing to help a Turk as you are."

She shook her head. "What makes you think I'm married?" She turned around and looked at Hunter who had his eyes plastered to the television now, apparently bored with what his mother was doing. She turned back to look at Rude, her gray, stormy eyes reflecting on his shades.

"Sorry, I just assumed…"

She smiled again. "No need to apologize. You didn't know." At that, she reached for his shades and removed them. "There, that's better. It's unnerving talking to somebody when I can't see their eyes. And, if I may be frank, sir…you really shouldn't cover up those eyes." Her smile widened when she saw his cheeks redden, but she pretended not to notice. She just grabbed her towel, and continued to attend to his wounds.

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How long had she been sitting there? For some reason, she couldn't will herself to move. Her phone had been ringing non-stop for the past seven minutes now. All from Reno. She fought the desire to pick it up. Hearing his voice was the last thing she wanted to do right now. She was still too angry to speak with him.

The cell phone rang again. Glancing at the caller ID, she was surprised to see a new name. Tseng. Hesitantly, she hit talk, and put the phone to her ear. "Hello?"

"Elena! Where are you?"

"In a parking garage," she answered, looking around as a car pulled up the drive and started looking for an empty space.

"Elena. Something's happened. I need you to come to headquarters. You'll be safe here. Hell, why don't you pick up the phone when people call you? Reno's been trying to get a hold of you for the past ten minutes. I don't care what's going on in your personal life, Elena. When your superior calls you, you pick up the damned phone."

"Sorry," she said apologetically. She reached for the keys in the ignition and started the car up. "Is this about Havre. Because, I'm only a few steps away from being at Justus' place. I'm sure he'll…"

"No, Elena!" he shouted. "Justus was the one who let Havre out. They've been working together, and he will not hesitate to kill you."

Elena was in shock. "…what?"

"Elena. Just get out of there now!"

"How do you know all this?" she demanded, tears filling her eyes. She'd never felt so betrayed, so angry. But, she was mostly upset with herself. She should have seen this. How could she have let herself been deceived by him. And now, Reno would most definitely have the right to wag a finger in her face and do the whole 'I told you so.'

"Reno called me. Justus tried to kill Rude. He's fine," he added when he heard her gasp. "We're sending some people to go get him now. But, Elena…you need to get somewhere safe. Do you understand?"

She was about to answer him, about to tell him that she did. It was at that moment that she started backing her car out. She screamed, more out of surprise than anything, when her car was suddenly rammed into. She looked out of the window and saw the grinning face of Justus in the other car.

"Tseng…" She tried to step on the gas, but Justus had pinned her car into the tight spot between two other vehicles. There was only one thing for it. Unbuckling her seat belt, she grabbed her gun and crawled over into the other seat. The door was pinned by the other car.

"Elena?" Tseng called out. "What's happened?"

"Send help," she pleaded, before kicking the window with her boots. The glass shattered everywhere, and she slid out, just as she saw the Havre getting out of the other car. Jumping to the cement, she turned and took off running. She heard a car door slam behind her and then the sound of screeching tires. "Oh Gods!"

"Elena! What's going on?"

She didn't look behind her. She didn't have to. It was obvious what they were going to do. There was no way she could outrun a car. "They're going to kill me," she panted, turning around and pulling the trigger. It went straight through the windshield, but both men had ducked when they saw her lift the gun.

They were getting closer. She shot again, which caused them to swerve away. The car doors opened again. But they didn't get out so fast. Elena took cover behind another car and peered over the top. So, it was going to come down to a shoot-out?

She dropped the phone and checked her gun. She didn't have a lot of bullets left. This was the end. She frowned. She never did say good-bye to Reno. She'd die here, and he'd only remember that they'd been angry with each other, that she'd been mad at him. It wouldn't matter that she forgave him now. He never would know.

There was a gunshot and then, much to her dismay, Justus shouted. "Come out, come out wherever you are. You aren't getting out of this one alive, Laney."

"Don't call me that!" she snapped. "You fucking coward! If you're going to kill me…fine! But at least do it like a man and not like a fucking pansy!"

"Kill her!" she heard him bark. Suddenly, there was an onslaught of gunfire. She turned and took aim, hitting Havre in the right shoulder. He'd been running towards the car. Obviously Justus had meant to distract her while he went around the side to get her. It's a good thing Elena suspected as much.

"Try again," she challenged. "It'll take a better plan to get kill a Turk."

"Why you…"

But whatever it was that he was going to say, got cut short. Elena turned when she heard the loud sound of an engine and screeching tires. A black car was speeding towards them, and then, as it approached, the driver stepped on the gas, causing the car to spin.

"Reno!" she cried, as the red-head emerged from the window and begun shooting at the two men who'd retreated back into the car. Reno's car had stopped spinning, now facing the opposite direction so that the passenger side was closest to Elena. Taking that as a cue, she ran from her hiding spot and jumped into the car.

Reno fired one last time before getting back into the car and flooring it. They sped off, knowing full well that Reno's car was much faster than Justus'. In next to no time, they'd lost them and Reno slowed down.

They drove in silence, further and further away from the city. Elena had no idea where they were going. All she knew was that Reno had saved her for the umpteenth time. Even after everything that they'd said to each other, he was there. She turned to look at him and saw the most unreadable expression on his face.

"Reno?"

"Hold on, Elena," he whispered, a tone that seemed so alien coming from him. He pulled into the parking lot of an inn. "Come on," he ordered, getting out of the car. She followed suit. She waited behind Reno as he talked to the man behind the counter, and then he turned around and took her hand.

He led her down a narrow hall and opened the door. "You'll be safe here," he said. Tseng's already made arrangements. There are guards everywhere. Nobody will get to you, I promise."

He turned to leave, but Elena sprung forward and caught his arm. "You're going to kill him…aren't you?" He didn't answer which made it clear. "You could get killed," she said quietly.

"That is a risk," he admitted. "It's always a risk. It's never bothered you before."

"I've never thought about it before." She slid her arms around him, pressing herself against his back. Reno's hand came to rest atop hers as the other reached behind him to pull her head to his shoulder.

"It bothers me now," she told him, squeezing tighter. "Don't got yet, Reno. Stay a little bit longer."

He smiled. "Damn, Laney. Stop being so weak. You're a Turk." He turned around to take her into his arms and asked, "how long would you like me to stay?"

"Forever," she cried, resting her head against his chest. Reno was taken aback by this. She looked up at him, tears falling on their own accord. "Or at least until I tell you how I feel about you. I'd hate for you to die without knowing."

Reno looked at her, his own eyes filled with uncertainty. "How do you feel about me?" he asked.

Elena paused for a moment. Her eyes bore deep into his, her lips curling into a sweet, innocent smile. More tears fell as her arms tightened around his waist. She didn't have to answer him now. She just did. Her eyes said it all. "I love you."

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Ooo! What'll happen now? I won't keep you waiting too long. I promise...).