Author's Note: Hope you all enjoy! Thanks, as always, to BluCrayons! Love you!
Chapter 45: Running
"Hurry! Over Here!" Micky exclaimed seeing Mike and the others running toward him. He smiled when he saw Rose holding a bundle of towels in her arm. And even more so when he saw Sarah running up behind them. He'd hated the thought of leaving her behind. He'd been forced to split them up and there had been a choice between having Davy or Sarah help him carry Peter. And he'd only had a split second to decide. He knew in his heart that no matter how badly he wanted to stay with Sarah and keep her safe, she was the better fighter. She could handle a gun much better than Davy. So she had to be the one to stay behind and help Rose and Mike deliver the baby.
He'd been right. As they ran out of the tunnel, she turned and aimed her gun down the tunnel to shoot at whoever was pursuing them. Micky, Willow and Davy had gotten Peter into the back of the van Willow had pointed out she had the keys to. He'd instructed Davy to get behind the wheel and start the van so they could be ready to leave quickly once Peter had gotten into the van securely. Mike and Rose reached the van first and Micky and Willow helped them both climb into it quickly while Sarah fired off another shot behind them. Once she was safely inside, Micky and Willow slammed the door to the back of the van closed.
"Where am I going?" Davy asked.
"I don't know yet," Micky answered. "Just drive. Get us out of here fast before they have a chance to start following us."
"Wayne," Sarah said. "Claire stayed to help Heather. Ordered Wayne to shoot to kill. I think I nicked him in the shoulder…"
"That should slow him down at least a little," Micky said pulling her close to him. "How's the baby?"
"Fine," Rose said cleaning off the face of the baby a little more. The baby had stopped crying not long after they got into the van, which Micky knew was a good sign. "He's just fine."
"He?" Mike asked tentatively.
"He," Rose answered. "Do you want to hold him?"
"Hold him?" Mike echoed as though it were some foreign concept to him.
"It's ok, Mike," Micky said. "You can do this."
"How do I…" Mike trailed off as Rose scooted next to him a little to hand the baby to him.
"Just hold your arms out," Rose said as Mike did as she told him. "That's good. Just remember to always support his head. He can't do that on his own yet, so you have to hold his head."
"Ok," Mike said softly and nervously. As soon as Rose was ready to give the baby to Mike, he backed away. "No, I can't. What if I drop him?"
"Mike, relax," Rose said. "You aren't going to drop him. You're gonna be fine. And I'm going to help you."
"We all will," Micky said knowing this wasn't just about Mike being afraid of dropping the baby. He knew because he'd been in Mike's shoes before. To a degree. Micky had known he was going to give up the baby Rose bore. And he'd always known it was his. He was still terrified that he'd made the wrong decision in giving up his child, though. That's why he'd gone back to check on her. He had to know she was ok. And he was even facing it again with Sarah. They were both terrified of being fathers. Of failing their children.
"Thanks," Mike said after a moments hesitation, then reached for his son again. Rose carefully placed him into Mike's arms and the baby cried for just a moment, but then stopped. Rose showed Mike how to cradle the baby's head properly and a smile crossed Mike's face.
"Meet your son," Rose said.
"He's beautiful," Mike said almost teary-eyed.
"He is," Rose said. "Just like his daddy."
"Do you know what you wanna name him?" Peter asked smiling.
"I don't think he's had a lot of time to think about that," Micky said.
"Actually, I have," Mike said. "Emmett. His name is Emmett."
"That's beautiful," Rose said. "Why Emmett?"
"My mother's name was Emelita," Mike said. "I want to honor her. She was so tortured and abused when she was alive. But neither of us would be here without her."
"That's really sweet," Sarah said. "Emmett is beautiful."
"Now we just have to keep him alive," Micky said. "Anyone following us?"
"Not that I can see," Willow said looking out the window of the back of the van.
"We need to figure out what we're gonna do, Micky," Rose said. "Where we're gonna go. How we're gonna do this. We need food, gas, baby formula. We need money."
"I know we do," Micky said sighing and leaning back against the back of the van.
"Any ideas?" Mike asked. "I didn't even think about that…"
"Not right now," Micky lied; he'd decided on a plan a long time ago. "You just worry about Emmett right now. Let me deal with finding the money and a place to stay." They sat in the back of the van in silence for a while, but Micky kept an eye on where Davy was driving. They weren't followed and they tried to keep to the speed limit. Micky knew they'd also have to ditch the van now before the police found them, but wanted to push it as far as they could. He told Davy not to draw attention to themselves and try and stay away from where cops would be likely to be hiding. Claire would have reported the van as stolen and they couldn't afford to get pulled over.
While Micky worked out the kinks of his plan in his head, Mike bonded with his son. He held onto him, wrapped tightly in those towels. They didn't have any clothes for him, nor did they have food. He'd need food soon if he was going to grow. If he was going to live. Rose had cleaned him up and dealt with the umbilical cord. Mike held Emmett close to him and rocked him softly. Emmett mostly slept. All they needed to do now was feed him.
"Micky, it's getting dark," Davy said. "And we're running out of gas."
"I know," Micky said.
"What are we gonna do?" Mike asked.
"Davy, pull off at the next exit," Micky said.
"You know where we're going?" Peter asked.
"Yeah," Micky said. "I've been thinking about this for a while. We need to ditch the van for one and get another."
"We can't steal a van, Micky," Peter said.
"I don't plan to," Micky said. "I plan to buy one."
"How do we do that?" Mike asked. "We have no money. And we need money for other stuff."
"Well, if we stay in this van, the cops will eventually pull us over," Micky said. "Whether Sarah winged him or not, Wayne knows we took off in this van. They'll report it stolen and that's gonna make us a moving target. Davy, turn left."
"Where are we going?" Sarah asked.
"To get some money," Micky answered.
"How?" Davy asked.
"I'm gonna "Robin Hood" it," Micky answered.
"Excuse me?" Mike asked.
"Stealing money is as bad as stealing a car, Micky," Peter said.
"Well, we don't have much of a choice," Micky said. "Only choice we have is to steal from those who don't deserve the money. Who earned it on the blood and tears of others."
"Micky…" Rose cautioned.
"I did it before," Micky said. "I took money from my parents when I broke the two of us out. I don't have that luxury this time, but luckily I know where about half the city's high ranking pedophiles and rapists live. Davy, make another left up that dirt road."
"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Davy asked.
"It's the only chance we've got," Micky said.
"Who are we stealing from?" Rose asked.
"A judge," Micky said. "And he's loaded. Likes teenage girls. Can't resist them. Takes pictures of them and sells the photographs. Not to mention he takes money under the table from defendants to let them off easy. He's dirty and his money's dirty. The least we can do is use it to keep us alive."
"I don't like this," Peter said.
"I know you don't like stealing, Peter," Micky said. "But we aren't really left with any options. Either we rob the innocent or the guilty."
"That's not what I mean," Peter said. "I mean, this sounds dangerous? What if we get caught?"
"That's why it's not gonna be a "we" thing," Micky said. "I'm going in alone."
"No you aren't," Rose said.
"Rose, you're a cop," Micky said. "If you get caught, you throw your career away."
"Like it's not already destroyed," Rose laughed. "You think my boss didn't completely smear my record the second we got taken? He works with your mom. I can't work under someone like that anyway. Besides, better to have someone who knows the law and how crime scenes work with you so you don't get caught."
"I don't like this either," Mike said.
"Well, if he's home, Micky's gonna need some sort of distraction," Rose said. "I can distract him. He like's teenage girls? I just have to act like one."
"Walking into his house this late at night?" Mike asked.
"I hate to say it, but it's a better plan than I had," Micky said. "All she has to do is say she's a gift from Claire...damn it."
"No," Mike said. "No, no, no."
"Ok, so I go in alone," Micky said. "You like that better? If he's home, I get shot. Davy, stop here."
"No, but I don't like using Rose as bait either," Mike said.
"Better me than Sarah or Willow," Rose said. "Besides, I know what I'm doing."
"You think that makes me feel better?!" Mike snapped. "Knowing you've been given as a fucking "gift" to some sleazeball before? You know how to act that out? That's supposed to make me feel better!?"
"Of course not," Rose said softly. "But it is supposed to remind you that because of that, I know how to get out safely."
"Safely?" Mike asked. "What about untouched?"
"I am not going to let it get that far," Rose said. "We just need to distract him long enough for Micky to get the money. As long as he gets in and out fast enough, it won't go very far." Mike didn't answer; he just looked down into the face of his son.
"Mike, I know you don't like this," Peter said. "Neither do I. But Micky's right. We don't have a choice. And Rose is our best option to keep Micky safe. We need money for gas and food. For your son."
"You'd both better come back," Mike said softly.
"We promise," Rose said. "Micky, you know where the money is?"
"Yeah," Micky said. "I remember being here a few times as a boy. It was hell, but I saw where he stashed his money. And I think I remember the combo to the safe."
"You think?" Mike asked.
"It was the date he graduated law school," Micky said. "Even if I don't remember the exact combo, I can find it on his degree on his wall."
"Alright," Rose said. "Let's do this."
"What do we do?" Peter asked.
"You wait here," Micky said. "Davy, keep the car on. We might need to make a fast getaway."
"Sure," Davy said nervously. Micky and Rose carefully climbed out of the back of the van. He'd guided Davy close enough to the man's mansion to where they could run to it, but not so close they'd be easily seen. Rose and Micky steeled themselves for what they were about to do and headed toward the mansion.
"No fingerprints," Rose said. "Wipe down anything you touch."
"Got it," Micky said.
"Stop for a second," Rose said turning to face him. She ran her fingers through his hair really fast.
"What are you doing?" Micky asked.
"Making sure you drop any loose hairs now instead of in the house," Rose answered. "No trace evidence they can use against you."
"Right," Micky said as they finished walking to the mansion ahead of them. "I'll howl like a wolf when I'm out."
"Sure," Rose answered.
"Be careful," Micky said.
"You too," Rose said before they split up. Rose headed for the front while Micky headed for a side window he knew would lead to the office with the safe. He checked to make sure no one was in the room before sliding the window up. He breathed a sigh of relief when he found it unlocked. He used the ends of his sleeves to make sure he didn't leave any fingerprints behind and carefully climbed through the window. He made his way over to the safe behind the desk, making sure to try and listen for Rose in case she got in trouble.
He made quick work of the safe and popped it open. Inside were stacks and stacks of cash. Micky wasn't sure how much was in there, but knew he could easily take it all. He just didn't have big enough hands to hold it. He quickly spied a bag on the floor and grabbed it, loading all the money into it before closing the safe and quickly climbing out the window. Once he was a safe distance and could see the front door, he gave the signal. Howling like a wolf to get Rose's attention. Then he waited. Finally, he saw the front door fly open and Rose rush out.
"I knocked him out," she said catching up to him. She had a small cut above her eye, but appeared to be otherwise ok.
"What happened?" Micky asked as they ran back to the van.
"He got handsy fast," Rose said. "I punched him, he slapped me. Then I heard you and grabbed a lamp and broke it over his head and ran." They ran back to the van and Willow and Sarah threw the doors open for them to jump inside.
"Go," Micky said to Davy. Davy threw the van in reverse as Sarah and Willow shut the doors behind them.
"Are you ok?" Mike asked looking at the cut on Rose's face.
"I'm fine," Rose said. "He didn't touch me. Don't worry."
"And we got the money," Micky said holding up the bag full of cash.
"Thank God," Mike said smiling and holding the baby close.
"We need another vehicle," Micky said. "And a place to stay. Davy, there's a supermarket next to a used car lot not too far from here."
"I remember," Davy said. They hadn't been in L.A. many times, but Davy remembered his way around L.A. nonetheless. Micky went to the car lot to look for a cheap van they could use while Rose and Sarah went shopping in the supermarket next door. The others stayed in the van for the time being. Once Micky picked out and bought a van, Micky told Davy to follow him so they could ditch the first van. Sarah and Rose piled the groceries and baby supplies in the back of the new van and waited.
Once the van was ditched and everyone gathered into the new one, they headed as far out of LA as they could. Rose had warmed up some formula for the baby in the store and had shown Mike how to feed him while they found a quiet hotel well out of the way. Mike was still trying to get used to having a son, but Rose and the others were all more than happy to show him what they knew. Then they slept. Even Emmett slept through the night in Rose's arms after Rose rocked him to sleep.