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Wow, 30 chapters! I really hope this one's up to scratch. WARNING : THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS STRONGER THAN USUAL LANGUAGE IN ONE INSTANCE.
Chapter Thirty # The Last Night #
She had long since stopped screaming. He stared at the fire licking at the blackened body in horror but he couldn't move. He was effectively paralysed, he couldn't move. He could only stare. The smell of burnt flesh filled his nose.
Morgan...
Greg felt so empty. So alone.
"You idiot."
He turned, his eyes open wide. "Katie?"
"Snap out of it, Greg! She's hurting, and you can't turn your back on her now!" his cousin put her hands on her hips.
"I haven't!" Greg protested, his voice quiet. Katie was there. His dead cousin, his Kat, was standing in front of him, right there, as his girlfriend burned.
"That's not what she thinks."
Greg looked back through the glass.
Morgan's head was hanging low, but there were no flames. Her body wasn't black, she was breathing, she was alive.
Oh, thank god, she was alive. No screaming. No burning.
Susannah was still humming to herself.
Greg blinked. "Why, Kat?"
"Greggo, you gotta be there for Morgan. She need's you. She didn't wanna hurt you and she thinks you hate her!"
"Why would she think that?"
"Look at yourself."
Greg obeyed the voice in his head. He hadn't moved a muscle since Morgan had been ripped from his arms.
"Morgan."
For the first time the word actually escaped Greg's mouth, his speech no longer in his head although it was too quiet to be heard.
"That's right, Greg. Morgan. You're staring into space and she tied to a damn stake!" Kat's voice chided him. "They are going to burn her!"
Greg's eyes widened as he realised that the firewood wasn't a part of his imagination. His eyes flicked back – Katie was gone, like he would have expected.
He'd known all along that she wasn't really there. But who better to snap Greg out of a stupor formed by the revelation of his girlfriend's bulimia?
Morgan.
Greg knew what he had to do.
He stood up and stared at the glass. It was too thick to break easily. He grabbed a saucepan off of the stove and swung it like a baseball bat with all of his might. The window cracked but didn't shatter.
Susannah looked at him but Morgan just winced. She didn't look up. He hit it again and the glass shattered within the pane, refusing to fall apart.
He grabbed at the glass with his bare hands, making a hole just big enough for his arm. The lever that Susannah had pulled was a meter away. He shoved his arm through, crying out as his skin was sliced by the glass.
Morgan looked up, tears coursing down her face. A few disjointed thoughts made their way through her scrambled brain. Greg...glass...bleeding...Greg...
He stretched as far as he could, shoving his whole arm through the glass.
Susannah's eyes narrowed and for a moment Greg thought she'd try to stop him. Instead she doused the wood by Morgan's feet with gasoline. Wincing, Greg pulled the lever, his fingers slipping from the blood covering his arm.
Immediately the glass moved down, almost taking Greg's arm with it. Greg charged Susannah just as she lit a match.
He knocked her to the floor, punching her across the face. She screamed and he hit her again, recoiling when blood flew from her mouth into her face. He was half shocked at the amount of anger and hate in his body. He wasn't a violent person. Ever. Despite his conscience's protests the blind part of his mind took control.
He smashed his fist into the woman's stomach, and stood up, kicking her in the ribs. She scrambled to her feet and ran for the exit.
Greg chased after her but was stopped by the soft whoosh of flames. He turned in horror.
She'd left a fuse.
The woman cackled and disappeared up a stairway. Greg raced his speeding heart to Morgan. She sobbed and turned her face away as he advanced, effectively crushing his already broken heart.
Already the flames were burning her dress, licking her legs. She couldn't hold it for long. Morgan screamed as the flames grew closer.
"Make it stop! Please, don't, I don't wanna die; I don't wanna...I'm sorry, PLEASE!"
Greg plunged his hands into the water filled sink and ran back and began to pull away the burning wood, ignoring the pain in his hands.
"Greg, stop!" Morgan sobbed as she saw what he was doing. "Leave me to...don't hurt yourself, don't hurt me, Greg." Greg paused but she didn't notice. She cringed away from him, her mind baffled and broken. "Don't hurt me, Greg, don't hurt me... I'm sorry, Greg, don't hurt me."
Suddenly it wasn't just the fire burning Greg. He ripped away burning logs and finally there was a path through the flames big enough for Greg to squeeze his arms through, untying all of the ropes binding Morgan.
She fell away from the stake into his arms, her dress still alight. He dragged her away and rolled her over on the floor, putting out the fire. When he let her go she didn't move.
"Morgan..."
Her body was so still that Greg could have believed she was...
"Morgan?"
He cautiously put a hand on her shoulder and she didn't react. Her eyes were squeezed closed, her lips quivering with small words. "I'm so sorry, so sorry, I'm sorry..."
"Mo."
Morgan's eyes slowly opened to Greg's tortured expression.
"How hurt are you, Mo?"
He didn't just mean the fire. They both knew it.
"Why didn't you tell me?' He whispered, his voice breaking.
"I wanted..." Morgan whispered. "You were always...wanted to be...you deserved... you deserve perfect."
Greg felt tears burst from his eyes and felt sobs shake his chest, though they didn't reach his lips. The hand he had clamped over his mouth stopped that.
"Didn't want...I couldn't tell you... you to hate me. Now you hate me." She finished quietly, her voice resigned. Greg picked up every word.
"Mo."
The single, tiny word expressed everything Greg was feeling as it cracked with emotion.
Pain, guilt, fear.
Love.
He reached out and automatically grabbed her up off of the floor. He dragged her into his arms, holding on to her tightly.
"I thought you were gonna die...I was so scared. I thought you were already burning...Shit, Morgan, I couldn't hate you. Ever. I love you Morgan Brody, Christ... I love you so much. And you are perfect."
Morgan just sobbed. She couldn't bring herself to put her arms back around Greg. She felt dirty, fat...she felt pathetic. She shook violently with the tears and the sobs, but instead of pushing her away in disgust, Greg pulled her closer, holding her tightly. He stroked her hair softly and kissed her on the top of the head.
"I'm gonna fix it." Greg swore as he held her. "I'm gonna make it better. I'm gonna make it go away. You're gonna be alright, Mo. I'm not going anywhere."
Morgan's hand shakily moved to Greg's top. Her fingers fluttered over the soft fabric, as if she wanted to hold onto him but she was afraid to. Greg took her hand in the hand that wasn't stroking her hair and pressed it against his chest. Her fingers curled around his top, holding him tightly. Slowly, her arms wound around his chest and she pulled him closer.
"I'm gonna fix it, Mo. I promise."
CSIVCSIVCSIV
Jillian Stoke sighed, glancing at her watch. "MJ, where the hell is Nicky?"
"I dunno, I switched groups, mom. They took the minibus." MJ shrugged, yawning. It was 10 o'clock, half an hour after the others had got back.
Jillian sighed and walked up towards the teachers. "Excuse me, can you tell me when the minibus is going to get here?"
Jim Brass frowned. "Russell said he was dropping the students off at their homes and that he was calling ahead."
"We...didn't get a call." Jillian frowned as nine other parents began to move from their cars.
"Wait, you mean none of you got calls?" Brass frowned. He flipped up his phone and showed the parents the text. The phone rang. "Excuse me. Hello?"
"Mr. Brass. This is John Oswald, from Jamieson Manor. I have news for you. Your students aren't coming home."
"Excuse me?"
"What I mean to say is that we're keeping them here, for a while."
"What the hell are you talking about?"
"Well, they're in a little bit of trouble. So are your co-workers. And I'm calling you to give you a heads up. They won't get out of this house alive."
Brass covered the phone. "Jo, can you get the cops on the phone?" The parents shuffled uneasily. Brass went back to the phone. "Now why would you say a thing like that?"
"My mother always told me to tell the truth. We are going to kill each and every one of your children and both of your teachers, oldest to youngest."
"What the hell you talkin' about?"
"Have a listen." A long scream emitted from the phone. Despite the fact that it wasn't on speaker, Morgan's mom recognised the voice.
"Oh my god, that's my daughter, what the hell is going on?"
"Do I hear a mother in the background? You know what? I'll email you a video. Speak to you later." The phone went dead.
"What is going on?" Jillian asked with conviction.
"One moment please." Jim dialled his phone and held it up to his ear. After a minute he tried another number. "Come on, Gil, pick up... Oh, Gil?"
"Jim? Oh, thank god!"
Another voice, more muffled came down the phone. "You have your cell phone?"
"No outward calls, texts or emails." Grissom dismissed Russell. "Jim, we have a big problem."
Brass' heart sank. "What sort of problem?"
"These people are psychopaths, Jim! We're still at the house, they're trying to kill us, you gotta get cops here, now." Grissom said relatively calmly.
"Okay, okay, Jo's on it." Jo Danville, who had been standing by listening, nodded and Brass continued. "Are the kids okay?"
The parents began fidgeting nervously.
"Mommy?" A tired Emily asked her mom. "Where Ryan?"
"I don't know, sweetie." Anna held her daughter closer.
"I don't know, we were knocked out. We've all been separated, I think they're in pairs. Catherine and Warrick were relatively unhurt, but we got separated again. Someone's hurt, Jim, I can feel it. Sometimes we've heard screaming...the girls, Greg, Nick... We need help and we need it now."
"Okay, Gil, just hang on, help's coming. What exactly have they done so far?"
"They're trying to create a real life horror movie, I think. I'm worried about the kids, Jim, these people are crazy and from what Catherine and Warrick told me they've already been chained, caged, burned, beaten..."
"Jesus Christ...I'll be there as soon as I can."
"Jim, it's a two and a half hour drive."
"I don't care, I'll see you then."
"Jim, I have to hang up, there's someone outside."
"Okay, be careful."
The phone went dead.
"What is happening?" Elise Sanders asked.
Jim Brass sighed and relayed everything he had heard on the phone to the horror-struck parents of the missing children.
"Oh, lord..." Warrick's grandma, Lily closed her eyes.
Suddenly Brass' phone beeped. "Uh oh..." he clicked on the email attachment. Everyone jumped as Morgan screamed.
"Make it stop! Please, don't, I don't wanna die; I don't wanna...I'm sorry, PLEASE!"
Morgan's mom covered her mouth, her hand shaking. "Oh, god..." she looked at the small screen of Brass's phone and screamed herself at the sight of her daughter tied to a stake.
The parents watched in horror as the screen snapped to Greg being hit with a hammer, Tali being thrown to the floor, Catherine's being dragged towards a black pit, Warrick straining against his chains, Tony struggling to keep his eyes open as he staggered down the corridor, Sara on his back, Sara's foot being snapped in the trap, Archie getting stuck over a stair railing, blood seeping through his t-shirt, Ryan tripping under the feet of a man with a chainsaw, the man bringing the chainsaw down quickly, and finally Nick being shot in the neck before the screen went black.
Jillian covered her hands with her mouth and staggered backwards. "No...no...Nicky!"
"Oh my god, my son! Greg!" Elise turned to her cousin. "You bitch! This is your fault!"
"My fault?" Anna cried.
"You told us not to go back to San Gabriel, you told me to stay! Now look what's happened! You absolute-"
"My son is in that fucking hell hole too, Elise!" Anna yelled, going red when she swore in front of a confused Emily. "I didn't exactly predict this. And you can't move back, your job won't let you! My kid is missing to! My son...my...my son..."
"They shot my...they shot my son, my baby...oh my god! Mary-Jane! Mary-Jane!" Jillian called and her daughter jumped out of the car.
"Mom? Momma what's wrong?" she jogged up and instantly Jillian grabbed her second youngest.
"The police will be here in a few minutes, they're sending cops over to the mansion." Jo Danville announced, putting an arm on Lily Brown's.
"Mommy? Why was Ryan screaming? Does he have an owie? Where is he?"
Anna held Emily close. "I don't know, baby."
"Mommy, I want Ryan!" When no one responded to her, Emily's lip trembled. "Mommy? I'm scared. Mommy?"
Listening to her daughter, all Anna could here was her son's voice, the way it sounded when he was taken away by the doctors to have his tonsils out. Confused, young, pleading, innocent.
"Mommy?"
CSIVCSIVCSIV
Sara shivered and Tony paused.
"You okay?"
"Yeah..." Sara murmured, trying to keep her eyes open.
"Sara?"
"Yeah?"
"Talk to me."
"Why?"
"Because I'm bored." Tony lied. He didn't want her to fall asleep. He shifted her weight slightly.
"I can walk if I'm too heavy."
"Its fine, Sara."
Sara sighed.
"Hey, Sara?"
"Uh huh?"
Worried about how Sara's tone was becoming even wearier, Tony said one of the biggest things on his mind. "You look really hot in that corset."
Sara's head snapped up. "What?"
"You look really nice in that corset." Tony repeated, his face going bright red as silence fell. "I'm sorry if I offended you or like objectified you or anything..."
"No..." Sara's voice sounded odd. "Are you being serious?"
"Yeah." Tony turned to look at her and she was even more shocked at the solemn expression. "Don't you believe me?"
"No." Sara said bluntly.
"Why not?" Tony frowned, starting to walk again.
Sara shrugged uncomfortably. If it weren't for the searing pain in her leg she would have insisted that he put her down.
"Its not the first time I've told you that you're beautiful." Tony remembered his first conversation with Sara in the alcove.
"Why would I have believed you?" What stung the most about Sara's words was the truth about them. Tony was a jock, and Sara wasn't exactly popular, so any flattery given by him to her would automatically be perceived as 'piss taking'.
"I have no idea. But I wasn't...I'm not lying." God, DiNozzo! How many girls have you chatted up by now? What the hell is wrong with you? "Look, what I'm trying to say is..." Argh! What, exactly, are you going to say, DiNozzo? "I really..." God you sound pathetic! You're screwing up!
"What?" Sara murmured, her cheeks going red. He was going to deliver such a low blow as to pretend to be interested while they were in a life or death situation. He's more of an asshole than I thought, she sighed.
Oh great, now you've offended her! Great work Tony, great work. "I punched Jake Berkeley in the face because he put foam in your locker." Tony said.
"What?" Sara was taken aback.
"When I found out he put foam in your locker I punched him in the face. Then I went back and got that book."
"What the hell did they do to you?" Sara asked. "You're not the Tony DiNozzo I see around school."
"They didn't do anything. You did." Tony swallowed. "I haven't thought about anyone else since that day that they sung Alyssa Lies. I'm deadly serious, Sara." When she didn't respond he took a deep breath and continued. "I don't fancy you. I...I think it's more serious than that. I... Jesus Christ, this is hard!"
"Why? You never have a problem talking to anyone else."
"I know. This is not me at all. Okay..." Here goes. "What I really, really wanna know is this. If we ever get out of here would you consider going out with me? Please?"
"If we get out?" Sara said calmly, surprised that she was able to keep her cool.
"Yeah..." Tony winced.
"I'll consider it." Sara smiled teasingly. Tony exhaled.
"What if we don't get out?" Sara frowned.
"Then we'll probably be dead anyway."
"Okay. If we get out, I'll go on one date with you. One. Then we'll see." Sara said, deciding to try and play it safe.
Tony beamed. "Great. Where'd you wanna go?"
"Hmm..." Sara pondered. "What about-" a bloodcurdling scream froze them in their tracks.
"Do we go to or from the scream?" Tony whispered.
"That was Tali!" Sara whispered back. "We gotta help her!"
"Okay. To the terrified screaming we go." Tony jogged forward.
"I can get down..."
"Its fine." Tony shook his head. They crept up to the door. Behind it she could here Nick screaming in terror and Tony peered through the key hole in the door. "Jesus Christ that's a big ass snake pit!"
"What?" Sara cried.
"Can you get the door, my hands are-"
"I know exactly where your hands are." Sara interrupted him, grabbing the door handle and pulling it open. Nick yelped and tumbled backwards out of the door closely followed by Tali. A snake was wrapped around Nick's arm. He stared at it with a stark white faced and screamed in horror, shaking his arm.
Tali flung it off and Tony slammed the door shut.
"Boy am I glad to see you guys. Are you okay?" Tony asked.
"Oh my god, Nick your neck!" Sara cried.
"Sara, your leg!" Nick went even whiter.
"Don't talk about it; I don't wanna think about it." Sara said through gritted teeth. "What happened to you?"
"I got shot." Nick replied. "Just scratched me. Tali kicked the guys ass."
"In true David style, I bet." Tony nodded.
"Sara, what happened?" Tali asked softly, her eyes on Sara's leg.
"Bear trap." Tony couldn't quite hide the wince as he said the words.
"It's gone pretty numb." Sara said truthfully. "It's fine."
"Where're Cath and Warrick?"
"We sent them ahead at the last minute. Where are the others?"
"We distracted the guy in the room in front of Greg." Tony explained. "Now, I don't know."
"We need to find a way to get out and get help." Nick insisted.
"Let's keep moving." Tali insisted.
Tony shifted Sara on his back slightly and she whimpered. "Sorry."
"Its okay..." She gritted her teeth. They made their way through the corridor for what felt like hours. Finally they found a room with a window.
"Its pitch black." Nick yawned.
Tali looked at the sky and studied the stars. "About two am."
Tony sighed tiredly.
"Tony, I can walk." Sara protested weakly for the seventh time.
"Sara, it hit your bone." Tony protested just as wearily.
"You don't have to rub it in." Sara sighed.
"I'm sorry." Tony replied.
"Maybe we should rest awhile." Nick suggested. "We aren't getting anywhere, if we scope out the room, sit down for a minute."
The others agreed and in a minute Tali and Nick sank down against the wall.
"Brace yourself." Tony muttered to Sara who squeezed her eyes shut and bit her tongue as Tony swung her off his back, catching her and holding her up so that her legs didn't hit the floor. Then he slid down against the wall next to Nick, helping Sara down next to him.
"This is so messed up." Tali sniffed, wiping her eyes on her sleeve. Nick put an arm around her and she fell into his chest.
Sara yawned. "Is anyone else cold?"
"Not really." Nick shrugged in worry.
"The floor is really cold..." Tony supposed. Then he patted his lap. To Nick and Tali's surprise Sara smiled shyly.
"You sure?"
He nodded and she lifted herself onto his lap, whimpering slightly as she jolted her leg. Tony wrapped his arms around her and she shivered delicately as her body got used to the warmth emanating from Tony.
"Bet you wish you'd stayed with the other group, huh?" Nick asked Tony sleepily.
Tony glanced at Sara. "I guess so. Well, honestly no."
"Really?" Nick frowned.
"Yeah. MJ's my friend, I'm glad she's not here."
"And I'm glad she's got friends like you. I never really thought her friends were as amazingly epic as mine." Nick smiled.
Sara, Tony and Tali laughed softly. Tony watched as the younger teens began to drift off to sleep. He was exhausted himself but he refused to let himself sleep. Instead he kept watch. The door hesitantly opened and he tensed, reaching out to thump Nick just hard enough to jolt the other boy awake.
Tony relaxed slightly when Greg poked his white face around the doorframe. The youngest boy on the trip sighed in relief and led a pale Morgan into the room.
"Where're Ryan and Archie?" Sara asked in fear as she woke up. "And what happened to your dress, are they burns?"
"We lost them. They got away; I have no idea where they are now." Greg explained hoarsely. Morgan didn't say a word. Her hand was loosely linked in Greg's but her eyes stared at the floor.
"They tied her to a stake and tried to burn her." Greg added almost monotonously, gesturing to the dress.
"Morgan, what's wrong?" Sara asked in fear as Morgan's shuddered.
Morgan just clung to Greg, burying her face in his shoulder. At that moment the door flew open and Ryan and Archie tumbled in.
"Thank god!" Ryan moaned when he saw the others.
"Where're Warrick and Catherine?" Archie asked.
"No idea. Are you guys okay?" Nick asked and they both nodded.
"Experiencing heart palpitations from being chased by a crazy madman with an axe and having to save Ryan's butt, but okay." Archie sighed.
Once more the door opened, revealing Catherine and Warrick. The teens all slid down against the wall like Nick, Sara, Tony and Tali. They unconsciously kept very close - touching each other at all times. About half an hour of strained conversation they turned back to the silent forms of Morgan and Greg.
Greg's chin was resting on Morgan's head and his eyes were trained on the floor. Morgan was in his arms, her face pressed into his skin.
"Morgan?" Tali asked quietly.
This time there was a response, so quiet that no one caught it, though Greg winced.
"What?" Sara asked softly.
Morgan looked up for a second, a tortured expression on her face. "I'm bulimic." She whispered and Greg held her tighter.
Shock filled everyone's eyes.
"Its gonna be okay, Morgan." Nick was the first to get his voice back. She looked at him. "I promise. You're gonna be okay, we'll help you."
She sniffed and frowned. "You won't...you won't leave me?"
"Why would we?" Ryan frowned. "You're our friend, Morgan, and we're yours. If you have a problem we'll help you."
Morgan's mouth popped open.
Greg leaned down and whispered into her ear. "I told you."
She squeezed her eyes shut again, and her body shook with small sobs. Greg shifted his arms and pulled her close.
The silence that followed wasn't comfortable.
Ryan, Nick, Sara, Archie, Tali and Warrick were all horrified with themselves for not noticing what had happened with Morgan, and with the whole situation. Catherine, having had many friends with bulimia and anorexia, felt awful for everyone. Tony felt bad, but also very awkward. Greg was still slightly numb, but he was almost surprised at the pain in his chest. Morgan had never felt so broken in her life. She clung onto Greg as if she was afraid he would abandon her if she let go, but she knew that he wouldn't. He wasn't that sort of guy.
"Well, my mom's defiantly gonna wanna go back to San Gabriel now." Greg sighed.
Morgan looked up at him and he smiled wanly at her.
"I won't go. I gotta look after you."
Nick swallowed. "Is it pathetic that I really want my mom right now?"
"Nope." Warrick shook his head. "I wish I could see my mom."
"Will she be waiting at school for you?" Catherine asked.
Warrick shook his head. "My parents died in a car crash when I was five."
"Oh my god, I'm sorry."
"Don't be. You weren't the drunk guy in the other car." Warrick shrugged.
Tony looked at Warrick with a new light. "My...my mom's dead too."
"Really?" Catherine frowned.
"Yeah. She...she was sick. She died in hospital when I was eight. We were watching a movie together."
"I'm sorry." Sara murmured.
He took a deep breath and looked at Warrick. "Doesn't feel right to say it's okay, does it?"
As an understanding passed between the two boys Warrick shook his head.
Greg put a hand on his pocket and slid out his iPod.
"You don't have internet on that thing do you?" Archie asked hopefully.
Greg shook his head and put one earphone in. He fiddled around for a minute before carefully putting his headphones in Morgan's ears.
A man's voice sang. "Your parents say everything is your fault
But they don't know you like I know you
They don't know you at all."
A woman's voice took over. "I'm so sick of when they say
'It's just a phase you'll be okay, you're fine'"
The man's voice came back
"But I know it's a lie.
This is the last night you'll spend alone,
Look me in the eye so I know you know
I'm everywhere you want me to be
The last night you'll spend alone
I'll wrap you in my arms and I won't let go
I'm everything you need me to be.
The last night away from me
The night is so long when everything's wrong
If you give me your hand I will help you hold on
Tonight,
Tonight.
This is the last night you'll spend alone,
Look me in the eye so I know you know
I'm everywhere you want me to be
The last night you'll spend alone
I'll wrap you in my arms and I won't let go
I'm everything you need me to be.
I won't let you say goodbye,
I'll be your reason why.
The last night away from me,
Away from me."
Morgan looked up at him, tears in her eyes and removed the headphones.
He whispered in her ear. "I didn't know how to say it with words. I'm a guy."
She half laughed and he grinned at the sound.
"We're not broken." Nick shook his head with conviction. "Nah-uh. Not yet."
Not yet.
One by one, the physically, mentally and emotionally exhausted, teens fell asleep, unaware of the angry eyes watching.
Azrael crept silently into the room, aching and angry. He had a specific job to do. He stared at the teens. Greg's arms were wrapped protectively around Morgan, who looked troubled in her sleep. Tony and Sara were in a similar position, and Tali's head was on Nick's chest. Ryan, Warrick and Archie were all lying in similar positions on the floor and Catherine was still propped up against the wall.
He took his knife out of his bag and walked over to the intended victim.
He smiled to himself as he drew the knife across Nick Stokes' throat.
Ooh! Does he live? Does he die? Is this story dragging on too much? Did I keep in character enough? Should I update soon?
SO MANY QUESTIONS! AH!
Tell me what you think, even if you HATE this story! although I obviously hope you don't ;)