Wow, I got a response from that one, but considering how I left it hanging I shouldn't be surprised.
Kayli: I tried to hurry, but I'm afraid you might consider this chapter evil as well.
Fett012000: Things are FINALLY coming together…slowing but surely everything will be resolved.
Captain-Rogue-River: Sorry to prolong your torment!
Queenjane516: Jayne is my favorite too…it hurt me to do it but it's all for the stories sake.
Thanks for hanging in there with me guys! Next one will be up soon!
Jayne was pushed back by the blast. He fell right into Cassidy and then hit the floor. She couldn't do a thing to stop it even though she wanted to desperately, but her hands were still tied behind her back, so instead she knelt and tried to see how bad it was. Before she could think she was roughly grabbed from behind and hauled up and around.
"You lying bitch! You said he was drugged!" Her personal devil screamed at her, she knew that she had said nothing of the kind but was too busy watching him wave the gun he still possessed around to reply. Of course that meant that in that second they were both too busy watching each other to pay any attention to Jayne.
Cassidy heard the knife whiz past her arm and in the same second imbed itself into his gun hand forcing him to drop his weapon. She didn't waste a moment, running forward she knelt and awkwardly picked up the gun, at the same time she heard the yell and it filled her with relief and terror at the same time, "Jayne, you fools get him! Don't worry about her, get him!"
She whirled in time to see them once again surround him but this time he didn't have to pretend, he was injured…badly but somehow he still fought like a man possessed. With his bare hands he fought armed men and made them wish they had never encountered him. He didn't have time to pull any of the weapons on him but he still held his own…amazingly. He was fighting on pure adrenaline and the pain in his chest only added fuel to the fire, he just hoped it would hold long enough.
Cassidy knew there was danger still from the ringleader who was busy wrapping a hand that appeared to be missing a few fingers. She quickly found Jayne's knife and blindly rubbed her ties on it to rip them, she felt her own blood flow but, thankfully, felt the ties give as well. One yell from Jayne turned her complete attention towards him again. She was not helpless, like she said she had the strength of everyone she loved behind her. That and a few lessons learned in a forest when she was young by her brother and his best friend. One man was about to swing a club at Jayne's back but found a knife in his stomach instead. Her aim might not have been as perfect, but she could hold her own.
"Cassidy! Forget me, get Evan!" She heard Jayne yell and she remembered what they were all fighting for. In an instant she turned and it broke her heart to run from the room where Jayne could very well die, but she had to get to Evan.
As she ran to the door out of the corner of her eye she saw the man she had once feared most cradling his injury and looking at sorts of pathetic, how did this man hold so much power over her? When he noticed her leave unhindered he screamed, "where the hell are my men?"
She ran, not giving him any more of her attention, ran straight into an empty room. No, not empty, there was Nora staring out the window but she turned and held out a gun when she saw someone enter the room. Once she recognized Cassidy she lowered her arm and pointed to the closet. Cassidy had room in her heart for this woman, she had once told Cassidy that when her husband was killed, Marcus had offered her and her family protection and so, without many options, she had tied herself to him. Often she had cleaned Cassidy's wounds and snuck her food, she was also the person Cassidy had made swear to protect Evan, and she had done her job.
Cassidy didn't say a word, just ran to the closet and hoped to god the gunshots she was hearing were Jaynes…or Mals or Zoes as long as they didn't belong to anyone else things would be alright. Then nothing mattered anymore because there was Evan huddled in the corner with his hands over his ears and his eyes tightly closed. When she stepped inside and knelt down he opened his eyes, "Mommy?" he whispered.
Nodding, Cassidy knew she was crying, but her heart was bursting to see him. She went to him and pulled him to her all the while checking for any injuries and was relieved to see he was unharmed, "it's me Evan, we have to get out of here."
"We can't mommy, Nora said to stay in the closet until the shouting stops."
"You're a brave one you are Evan, but Daddy is waiting so we have to hurry." His eyes grew wide and he nodded, "now I need you to hold real tight to me and close your eyes ok?"
She didn't wait for a response, standing she ran and paused to look at Nora, a woman she had to thank…but couldn't. Their gazes locked for a second and it was enough. Leaving, Cassidy ran down the stairs hoping that the silence below her meant that the rest of the crew was successful. Every empty room she passed gave her more and more hope until she came out of the building and there was Kaylee in the mule, "Cassidy! Common, we have to get out of here…where's Jayne?"
Not bothering to explain, she passed Evan to her, "Evan you have to go with this lady ok?"
"Mommy, No! What if you don't come back?" Cassidy didn't know what to say to that…Evan had seen too many people he loved never come back and she could offer him no reassurance, maybe she wasn't meant to be a mother after all.
Kaylee was having a hard time controlling the wiggling bundle in her arms, "Cassidy are you crazy?"
"Go get Mal, we need help." For the first time Kaylee noticed the blood all over Cassidy and covering her hands and she picked up on the urgency. "Kaylee, take Evan NOW!" She kissed Evan on the forehead and ran back to the building hoping that help would arrive in time. She ran back up to her place of nightmares because in there was one of the only people she had left in the world, he couldn't be taken away from her now! There was no way she would stand aside so he could sacrifice himself for some ideal that she knew he had made up in his mind. She couldn't…she couldn't leave him to die.
When she arrived back at the room she had to step around bodies and knew Jayne instantly. Her heart beat again because it was proof the he was still alive. There was only one large man left but Jayne was struggling to finish it.
Searching for a weapon, Cassidy felt her nightmare at her back and with a piece of wood in her hands she spun determined to fight him with all she had. She jumped when she heard a gunshot but couldn't turn to see whose it was since she was focused on the man who was pulling back his fist in an all too familiar gesture.
"Touch her and I blow your head off." The voice belonged to the man who owned Cassidy's heart and she knew joy from the look of horror on the monsters face as his turned and ran for the fire escape. In an instant, she turned to watch Jayne…and was just in time to see him fall to his hands and knees.
"Jayne!" She screamed and ran over to him. He fell completely and she tried to move him to his back to allow her better access. She heard the pounding on the stairs and saw Mal run into the room with Zoe right behind, "help me!"
It took less than a second for Mal to take in the scene in front of him. There was blood everywhere but when he ran over he still saw Jaynes chest rise and fall, shallow but he was still breathing, "we need to get him to Simon." He turned and nodded to Zoe, they both knew he wouldn't be able to walk and so with all of them together they tried as gently as possible to lift him enough to half drag him out of that god-forsaken building.
"Gorram it Jayne why do you have to be so heavy?" The silence that answered Mal scared him more than the blood, he shared a look with Zoe that they both tried to hide from Cassidy, but there was no more hiding from her.
In her loudest voice she addressed her husband, "Jayne, you listen to me, "she began after seeing his eyes flicker open. "There's no way I'm losing you! If you die on me I swear I'll follow and never let you rest in peace for abandoning me again!" She was intentionally trying to provoke him to keep him conscious but knew by the paleness of his face she was failing.
She wasn't a very religious person but she found herself praying once again to any god that would listen, please let us get to the ship in time.