Title: Plan C
Chapter 19 – Every Parent's Worst Nightmare

Warning: You might need a Kleenex…or two

'Erin, it's Preeti. Just arrived at the school now. Sorry was late b/c of work but yes we'd love to join you in the Park again for another outing but how about after playing for a few hours we all come back to our place? Trust me we'd love it and it's no trouble. I'll also call Laura and her, Richard and Belle can come over afterward too. We'll do potluck style.'

'Sounds great! We'll be there. What can we bring for food?'

'Whatever is your favorite thing to make. That always works best.'

Erin pauses in the high school hallway looking down at the text with a perplexed expression. "Make…like cook? Can I tell her I suck at cooking?" Erin muses with a slight smirk; her ears picking up the sounds of The Wizard of Oz music. "What if I undercook something and make them all sick? Damn…maybe I can pick something up," she huffs as she puts her phone away, continuing on toward the gymnasium.

A few seconds later the sounds coming from behind the closed doors seem to change – oddly so. As she's putting her phone away the sounds are still happy and mirthful. A pause. Silence. Silence? Odd but not that alarming. Then…shouting. The sounds change. The future changes.

Darkness falls.

"What's…the…" Erin starts and then stop, her mind trying to make out the words that are being offered.

Then…hell breaks loose literally.

*bang* *bang* *bang* *bang*

"OH MY GOD!"

*bang* *bang* *bang* *bang*

"JAY!" Erin shouts into her phone as she pulls her gun and races toward the gymnasium doors.

SCREAMING! SHOUTING! CURSING! CRYING! SHOOTING!

*bang* *bang* *bang* *bang*

With her heart about to beat out of her chest she reaches the doors, her fingers curling around the handle and pulling for all she's worth

"LOCKED! JAY! THE DAMN DOOR IS LOCKED! OH GOD! JAY!"

"ERIN!"

*bang* *bang* *bang* *bang*

"WE HAVE TO GET IN THERE! THIS DOOR'S LOCKED!" She shouts as she tries it once more; her partner arriving at her side. "Jay…Aurora's in there!" She states with watery panic welling in her eyes.

"Okay we have to…"

*bang*

"Jay!" Erin shouts as they both try to kick the door. "What the hell!"

SCREAMING! SHOUTING! CURSING! CRYING!

silence

"Did he…"

*bang*

"They're outside!"

"Go!" Jay shouts as she hesitates. "Erin, we have to stop the shooter!" Jay reminds her firmly as she looks at him in misery. "We have to stop the shooter first!"

"The team…"

"We have to now!"

Erin bolts toward the area they heard the last gunshot a few minutes ago, her mind racing with horrible thoughts and her heart not even sure she wants to see who was hit inside. She knows by now Kelly's team would have gotten the call and can only imagine what him…as a father with a child in the area affected…would be thinking.

*bang*

"SOUTH SIDE! GO!"

XXXXXXXX

"From Erin?" Matt asks as Kelly laughs. "What's up?"

"Preeti and Gurj invited us over next weekend and Erin is wondering if we can show up with a bucket of KFC and a six pack. Knew there as a reason I love her," he snickers as Matt shakes his head. "What? I can't cook so unless you…"

"Really?"

"No," Kelly tosses back as he puts his phone into his pocket. "Can I suggest beer and chips?"

"No," Matt mocks in return. "Let's brainstorm."

"Glad today's quiet so far," Kelly tells Matt a few seconds before the overhead paging system goes off.

"Way to go," Matt snickers as he slaps Kelly on the back.

"Maybe it won't be too…" is all Kelly manages before the next few sentences stop his heart cold.

"Engine 51, truck 81, squad 3, ambulance 61, battalion 25 – ALL first responder services needed at Templeton High School. Shooting in progress. Multiple injuries."

Kelly looks at Matt who is a few seconds from understanding just what the urgency is all about. "AURORA!" He shouts knowing that's the same place his daughter is for the high school play. "SHE'S THERE! LET'S MOVE! LET'S MOVE!"

"GO!" Boden shouts as all of squad 3 scrambles toward the truck; Kelly slapping the side of the door before they had all closed.

"Oh my God…oh my…" Kelly's lips mutter anxiously as he tries Erin's number again. The of the cabin remains in tense silence; Matt and the truck members just as tense and all praying that everyone…was okay. "Answer the damn phone!" Kelly shouts as Erin's phone reaches voice mail again. "ANSWER!"

"If the shooter is still active…she might not be able to."

The voice is just trying to offer reason. Reason Kelly knows is plausible. But right now…he only wants to make sure his precious daughter is okay.

Please God…please let my daughter be okay.

That plea would be echoed by every parent affected by the darkness.

XXXXXXXX

Erin reaches the back of the gymnasium…her heart beating so painfully that she can't even swallow properly. She had chased down hardened criminals…gone face to face with serial killers and happily pounded the crap out of professed child molesters but this…knowing that if something happened to Aurora she'd have to face…STOP IT! Her mind yells. FOCUS! STOP THE SHOOTER! FOCUS!

Her hears Jay telling Voight where to send the rest of their team to the other exits; uniformed officers already on site to help with the containment and lockdown; Firefighters and EMS minutes out, standing by. Everyone else…bystanders – holding their breaths.

"Jay…"

*bang*

SCREAMING! SHOUTING! CURSING! YELLING!

silence

"Voight, the shooter is heading for the north side!"

"We're ready!"

"We gotta get this guy!"

Getting the word that Roman and Antonio were already inside, racing toward them, they remain at the gymnasium, guarding the open back door until given the all clear. They had told one of the teachers who told them inside…was a war zone.

"I can't stay out here any longer."

"Erin…"

"I can't wait out here Jay…if the shooter comes back…I know I can't leave you here alone but…ah damn I'm conflicted!"

"Any eyes on the shooter?" Jay asks his team as Erin turns back and looks at the gymnasium door.

*bang* *bang*

"WEST SIDE ENTRANCE!"

"Damn he's moving fast!" Erin turns back with a growl; someone having already confirmed it was a young white male.

"They'll get him."

"Jay…I have to get in there. Andrea's in there and…I texted her but got no answer. I NEED to get in there!"

At first he hesitates but when two uniformed officers rush toward them, guarding the front entrance he looks at Erin and nods. "Go."

"I'm going in," Erin tells them as Jay nods. Since the backdoor didn't lock from the inside, Jay would wait outside to make sure that the area would be safe until the shooter was neutralized.

Waiting…would be hell.

Erin steps inside and instantly her stomach lurches and her eyes flood.

"Oh…my…God."

Silence

XXXXXXXX

"What do you mean I can't go in there! MY DAUGHTER'S IN THERE!" Kelly's voice booms as Boden quickly steps up; Voight looking at him in misery. "Hank…"

"Erin's in there…Jay…the team…right now there's an active shooter who…" Voight's voice pauses as Antonio Dawson's voice comes to life over his radio.

Kelly watches Voight pull back and then looks at Matt and Boden and shakes his head. "Why the hell…it's one shooter who…I'll take my chances!" He hisses as the rest of the first responders look at him in misery. "I just can't…" he huffs as he grits his teeth and curses under his breath.

Kelly looks around at the other parents, school officials, first responders and media and shakes his head; his eyes rapidly blinking back oncoming tears.

"Damn these…Matt…I have to get in there!" He hisses.

"I know…Andrea's in there too, she was with them. And uh…I've texted and gotten no answer."

"I'm…" Severide's heads shakes as he watches an officer hurry from around the side of the building; the opposite area from where they heard shots being fired, carrying a bloodied child in his grasp. "Oh…God…"

"Kelly…" Matt's voice speaks to him a low but tormented tone. "Maybe I should go in first."

He knows there's protocol. He knows they have to clear the site before the medics can come into the hot zones and since they didn't know where the shooter was, if there was a chance he could double back and take out more targets the police wouldn't take that chance.

He'd have to wait.

Waiting…would be hell.

XXXXXXXX

As soon as she steps through the doors, Jay firmly closing them behind her; her senses is instantly struck with the smell of – death. The deathly silence lasts for only a few seconds…mostly the eerie calm inside her terrified brain. Then…a hellish cacophony of sounds breaks loose.

Crying! Moaning! Cursing! Screaming! Panic! Confusion! - anything but silence

She starts to look around for Aurora, wanting to see if she's okay but then instantly being hit with regret in seeming to overlook the others. What the hell…do I…oh God…this is bad. But before she can make a move, her path is instantly blocked.

"Can we get out of here now!"

Erin turns to see a teacher standing a few feet from her face with an almost dazed expression; her hands smeared with blood, blood she transfers to the sleeve of Erin's jacket, clutching it tightly.

"Please…we need to get out of here. Please," she begs, her legs instantly collapsing. When she had first entered the large auditorium, time seemed to slow; her movements were sluggish, her thoughts delayed…her anger building. But when the woman's body falls to ground, time resumes and misery slams into her full force.

Crying! Moaning! Cursing! Screaming! Panic! Confusion! - anything but silence

"Whoa! Hold on!" Erin exclaims as she quickly checks the woman's body for injuries. "Oh no…" she gasps as she finds the source of the woman's pain – a gunshot wound to the lower right side. "Jay! Status! We got lots of wounded in here…oh God this is bad."

"Someone help me!" Erin calls out as two students rush to her side. "Here…just press down and…don't let go."

"But…"

"DO IT!" Erin shouts and then recants as the two grade 12 year olds look at her in shock. "Sorry…I'm so sorry…just please…hold here."

As soon as her hand pulls away she hears Jay enter, calling out that they have neutralized the shooter and that medics were only minutes away.

"Aurora!" Erin starts to call out. "Aurora! Where…"

"Officer?"

"Aurora! Andrea? Andrea!"

"Is she your daughter officer?" One of the teachers rushes up to her.

"Aurora…yes uh…where is she?"

"What's she wearing?" The woman asks as Erin hears Jay calling Aurora's name.

"She's uh…" Erin's eyes frantically search around. "She's five and uh…" her voice stammers nervously as she looks around; the landscape before her a virtual blur. "She's…"

Children screaming….crying…covered in blood…all ages…all races…all in a state of terrified confusion. Some are moving…some are crying…some are trying to get others to wake up…call out…breathe…BREATHE!

"She's…" Erin tries again as she looks around and shakes her head. "Help me find her," Erin's voice manages in a soft whisper.

The woman doesn't say anything, merely takes Erin by the arm and leads her through the chaos toward the back to the section where the preschoolers and kindergartners were seated. She tries to numb her raging emotions as children, young teens and older teens were looking up with pleading eyes, crying, asking for help and looking for someone to remove them from the carnage.

"Aurora!"

"Erin…"

She hears a faint voice and frantically looks around, her eyes searching the rows before and around her until they rest on the source of the voice.

"Andrea!" Erin rushes to the teacher's side and drops to her knees. She curses under her breath as she notices fresh blood on her blouse. "Where…are you hit?"

"My side…"

"Okay…okay so…" Erin huffs as she quickly reaches for a nearby sweater and then presses down on Andrea's wounded side; the distraught teacher gasping in pain. "Where…where is Aurora?" She dares to ask as Andrea looks up in misery.

"Two rows…behind. Erin…some of the children were…oh God he just started shooting…for no reason. She was…"

"I have to see her. Where…is she?"

"I tried Erin…I tried to get them all…" Andrea pauses with a teary gasp, her face wincing heavily as Erin's mind races. "I'm…sorry."

"No…" Erin shakes her head as Andrea's eyes water heavily.

"I've got her," another teacher rushes in to help Andrea.

Erin hears the woman's voice and then dares to pull away; the rest of the world starting to blur around her, the frantic noises morphing into a dull buzz, the pounding in her heart threatening to stop her heart completely. She pushes herself to her knees and for the first time feels…weak? I AM NOT WEAK! I CAN DO THIS! OH GOD…HELP ME DO THIS!

She passes by one more row and then stops…cold. Literally. "Oh no…" she whispers as she spies the first familiar face; her mind hoping beyond hope that the littler ones had managed to get out. They didn't.

Today, no one would be spared.

The darkness would envelop them all.

"Belle? Belle!" Erin shouts as she kneels down by Aurora's friend, seeing some blood splatter on the little girl's tear stained face. "Shhhh it's okay," Erin tries to soothe the little girl; her arms instantly wrapping tightly around Erin's neck. "Belle…sweetie where is…" Erin tries as Belle's body shakes in her grasp.

But that's all she gets. Two boys had gotten up and when they did moved a section of chairs that opened her view to the other children in the same area. Her world grinds to a halt when she sees a mass of dirty blond curls…a few feet away a mass of jet black curls.

She sees blood…neither little girl is moving and her stomach lurches. "Aurora…" she whispers as bile enters her throat. Tears sting her eyes. "Aurora…" she tries once more, her voice a bit louder. "Aurora!" She shouts as she puts a crying Belle down onto the floor and literally crawls over two crying children; her own body starting to lightly shake from fear.

"Aurora…oh God no…NOOOOO!" Erin shouts as she pushes away a few chairs. "Aurora! Wake up…WAKE UP!" Her voice shouts frantically; Andrea Green hearing the anguish in Erin's voice and squeezing her eyes shut as her body shudders.

"Aurora!" Erin calls out as she reaches the two unmoving children. "Please God…please…PLEASE!"

Her hand reaches out…her fingers already shaking as they near, her eyes resting upon Aurora's sleeping expression; the pale cheeks dotted with blood. "No…nooooooo…." Erin's voice shudders as she reaches toward Aurora's neck; her eyes wet with tears.

Just as they rest on her neck she hears Aurora's name being called out by another familiar voice. Kelly….oh God NO!

"Aurora! Erin!"

XXXXXXXX

"Give me a damn gun already and I'll get this GUY!" Kelly shouts as Voight looks at him with a strained expression; his eyes fixed on the agitated firefighter while his right ear remains glued to the phone with Antonio.

"Hold on…say again Antonio."

"We got the shooter. Eye witnesses told us one lone white male. Teenager. We got him boss. But uh…it's bad in here. Send in the medics."

"Voight?" Kelly asks in anticipation.

"Go!"

Kelly wastes no time in turning on his booted heel and racing toward the entrance, Matt in tow and the rest of Firehouse 51 seconds behind; the rest of the first responders being deployed accordingly, the ME already on site and heading with Voight's team toward the body of the shooter to call the time of death and then to the worst part – the innocent victims.

"Kelly!" Matt calls out as Kelly's body summons a surge of energy and he pulls ahead and races toward the gymnasium; his heart about to burst at any second; his mind praying for the welfare and safety of his precious daughter. He nears the entrance to the gymnasium and instantly he hears the same noises that Erin had earlier – crying, screaming, cursing, crying….mostly crying, calling out for help and asking 'why'.

He pauses just as two EMS rush from the room with a bloodied boy on the stretcher, one pumping on his chest while the other races him toward the entrance.

Kelly hears Matt calling out to him just as he pushes himself in through the back doors and then stops and stares at the scene before him in horror. He knows his best friend means well but right now he has emotional tunnel vision – the welfare of his daughter.

Shot up props lying askew. Jackets, sweaters, shoes – all littered about. Children huddled tougher and crying. Teachers holding children – even though some are unresponsive. Uninjured trying to help the injured. Teachers trying to complete their head counts. EMS rushing about. Police starting to gather up the bullets – where they could find them. Everyone trying to make sense of the utterly senseless.

At first he doesn't see Erin. He sees Jay near the back of the room working with Antonio to try to get the heavy locks from off the door handles – the locks that prevented anyone from escaping the impending senseless massacre.

And then…

The EMS finally part, Matt looking past Kelly on his way to see if Andrea is okay and Kelly sees…his family. His heart beating so painfully fast he fears he'll be the next victim.

"Erin…" he mouths as she turns around with a little limp frame in her grasp; her dark mascara making sad trails down her pale but somewhat flushed face; haunted eyes looking at him in misery. "Aurora!" Kelly shouts as his heart stops cold. "Oh no…please God…please no…not my daughter…AURORA!"

Darkness had enveloped them all...

A/N: I had thought about not writing this storyline b/c there's been so much negative stuff in the news as of late (and the shooting in San Bernardino yesterday – ugh my heart to those affected families!) and I know this is a sensitive topic. But I wanted to explore something like this horrible but real world situation for our new family (don't worry I'd never kill Aurora-but there will be some deaths) that would touch them all, even Aurora. I want to focus on the emotional effects and how that stress/strain would impact them and hope that's okay. So there won't be many physical details b/c I dont want that to be the focus. Don't worry we'll get back to happier times but…its time for angsty tension to take hold for a bit – please stay with me! But I would love your thoughts on this update and how our new little family will cope with this tragedy.