A/N: Didn't want to leave you guys waiting too long and besides, I wanted to write some more. So here you go. Hope you enjoy. Thank you for all the reviews. They made my day. Please review. Love you all.

Chapter Forty-eight

Help Me

Erik felt a sob well up in him as he shifted her body to cradle her tighter into his arms. He knew she was still alive by her ragged breath but knew that he had probably heard her voice for the last time. Anguish filled him and he began to shout for Helene despite the uselessness of the action. The only way she would have a chance at living was if she saw a doctor quickly.

He soon heard running footsteps and looked up to see both Lionell and Helene in the doorway followed shortly by Meg and Garren. The reactions varied from sobs to simple gasps. "Help me. Help me save her," he pleaded, unsure of what they could do to help him. Garren surprisingly stepped forward.

"Meg. Go get some water. Hot preferibly. Helene, see if you can't find some clean fabric and tear it into strips. Rossau, go get any of the officers that are not busy," Garren ordered, taking charge of the situation. He knelt down on the other side of Darcey. "Do you have any idea where she was hit?"

Erik shook his head. "You're a doctor?"

"No, but I do have medical training. I used to help the town doctor when I was a kid. I never could afford to go to school. Do you have a knife, I'll have to cut back the fabric around the wound." Erik handed him the blade and removed his cloak before he watched as Garren pulled the fabric away from her and carefully cut it. He blinked back tears at the sight of all the blood. Garren let out a sound of surprise causing him to jerk his gaze back down. The blood soaked fabric had been folded out of the way to reveal her corset. The bullet had hit one of the whalebone spines and had broken it. Garren quickly cut away a section of her corset to show the wound. They looked at each other in surprise. The bullet was in sight. Because it went through the boning of the corset, its impact was greatly impared. "There's more of a chance than I feared but we could still lose her from lost of blood."

"The water is cold but I could see if I can get some heated up," Meg said as she carried in a pot of water.

"No time. She has already lost a lot of blood. We might have a chance to save her. Go help Helene. We'll use Darcey's skirts if we have to but we have to bandage her up," as he spoke, he began the painstaking process of removing the bullet. Meg, face white as blood began to pour back out of the wound, turned and fled from the room to find Helene. "Erik, If you could tear a section off of her underskirt, I'll be able to clean the area afterwards." Erik nodded before doing as he asked.

He grimaced as Garren managed to get out the bullet. He handed the fabric to him silently. Garren mumbled a thank you before dunking it in the water and begining to wash the area around the wound. He then reached into his pocket to pull out a package that contained a few basic medical supplies. Erik had to close his eyes as he began to sew up the wound.

"There," he muttered, tying it off. "Meg! Helene!" he shouted. A couple seconds passed before they entered, handing Garren strips of their own underskirts before finishing ripping the rest of the fabric. "Thank you. Erik, if you could help me..." Erik nodded and proceeded to move her clothing out of the way while still maintaining her modesty. Then he held her in a way that allowed for Garren to bandage her. "There. I've done all I can do. All we can do is wait."

"Thank you, Garren." He nodded and washed his hands in the soiled water. Erik cradled Darcey closer to him.

At that moment, a pair of officers stepped into the room making Erik roll his eyes. "Wonderful timing," he muttered low enough that only Garren could hear. Garren laughed before turning it into a cough. "We have everything handled here unless you could help in the means of transportation."

"Actually there is a carriage in the stable. It's not fancy by any means but it should suit your needs."

"Thank you. Now if you excuse me," he said as he came to his feet, careful not to jostle her.

"Here, Take my cloak. I'll come with you to help with the carriage," Meg said as she drapped it around Darcey.

"I'll come too," Garren said, taking Meg's hand.

"I'll bring Cesar to the stable," Helene spoke up, taking off to get a headstart. The two officers looked lost for a moment before assigning themselves to investigating the cottage.

They worked quickly to get the carriage ready and took off at as fast of a pace as they could without being unreasonable. Erik was glad that Darcey was unconscious as he held her close. Every jostle and bump would have been agony with her injury despite their effort to be careful. Helene sat silently across from him, sitting next to an oddly silent Meg while Garren drove them with their horses in front and Cesar tied to the back. All seemed locked in thought and prayer as they waited for something to happen.

Erik's mind alternated with pleading for her life to be spared, thoughts of the past, and thoughts of what the future might hold. The future made him think about what Darcey had said. I kept dreaming of a little girl. Oh Erik, she was so beautiful. She had your wonderful cobalt eyes.

He had never really thought about children before now. He had never had to. A part of him feared the child would receive his disfigurement. Now that he thought about it, he felt a desire for a child of his own that surprised him.

He stroked Darcey's cheek as he wondered what their child would look like. She would be beautiful like her mother of course, but what would her features be. He closed his eyes and tried to imagine what Darcey must have looked like as a child. He could easily see her at three years old, her dark mischeevious hair flying in all directions as she ran through the grass.

He opened his eyes as the carriage slowed in front of the country estate. It soon stopped and Meg opened the door. Erik carefully stood and exited the carriage before walking towards the manor. Helene ran ahead to tell them they needed a room ready. The butler's face went white as he recognized Darcey. He personally showed the way up the stairs to a room that must have been hers at one time if the wall color was any indication.

"Monsieur, if you will help me, we can get her clothed in clean clothes," a maid said as everyone left the room. Erik felt slight heat rise up his neck but nodded knowing it was necessary. Her clothes were filthy and now cut up. They made quick work of the task, changing her into a simple night gown before Erik laid her down in the bed and lovingly tucking the blankets up around her. The maid asked if there was anything else she could do. He thanked her but shook her head. "Just ring if you need anything," she said indicating the bell pull and leaving the room, leaving the door open behind her.

Erik took her pale hand and bowed over it to place a kiss gently on the back of it. How weak and small she looked like this, her face white to match the sheets. He maintained his hold on her hand as he looked away to blink away the tears. He glanced around the room in an attempt to distract himself. This had to be her old room. The walls were a light blue-violet with swirls of white. He remembered her saying that she had sold all of her possessions but perhaps some had been left behind here as he noticed a small jewelry box on the vanity. His attention was brought back to the walls as he continued his visual tour of the room. His eyes caught on several lines drawn in a column that made no sense at first but then it clicked. They were measurements of her height. The top line had to be close to her current height.

He finished looking around and brought his attention back to Darcey. His worry for her well being warred with his exhaustion. Between the lack of sleep he had received the night before and the events of the day, he was drained. he fought as his eyes closed but lost in the end. He was soon fast asleep.

He didn't wake for several hours and when he did, it was late that evening. He blinked in confusion as he tried to figure out what had happened and what had waken him when he felt a slight squeeze to his hand. His gaze jerked to Darcey but her eyes were closed. He squeezed gently back and felt his heartbeat pick up as she returned the pressure. "Darcey?" he asked hopefully, not sure what to expect.

She seemed to stir before her eyes slowly opened to look at him. "Hello, love," she said softly with a gentle smile.

"Oh Darcey. I thought I had lost you." He couldn't help himself. He came to her side and kissed her. He felt as much as heard her soft laugh as she kissed him back. He pulled back and grinned at her. "I'll have you know that I am never letting you out of my sight again. And I am most certainly never allowing you to so something so dangerous again."

She chuckled softly despite her grimace. "I don't think I would mind if you never let me out of your sight."

He grinned at her before kissing her again. "Soon we will be married and then nothing will be able to keep us apart."

"What about tomorrow?"

"What?" he asked confused.

"Why not get married tomorrow?"

"You are in no condition to go anywhere. Not even a church."

She laughed softly. "Then we have the priest come here. I never wanted a big wedding anyways. I'm afraid of losing you." Her tone turned serious on her last sentence.

"I'm afraid too. If that is what you want, we will be married tomorrow. Everyone I care about is here except for Madame Giry."

"Please. I don't want to wait any longer." He pressed a kiss to her hand.

"I don't want to either. I'll have both Giry and the priest sent for and we can be married by midday. But now you should sleep. We can talk when you are well rested." She nodded and carefully shifted, grimacing in pain, to a more comfortable position.

"Stay with me?" she asked sleepilly.

"Always."