Chapt. 27

Matt slammed on the brakes in the car causing him and PJ jerk forward roughly. "What the hell do you mean by that?" He listened for a minute then he said, "We will be there in ten minutes. DON'T LEAVE HER! Not for anything at all."

"Man, listen, just be prepared, there's a lot of blood. More than I've ever seen at one time in one place."

Hanging up Matt banged his head on the steering wheel. "Son of bitch," he screamed as tears began to pour down his face. "PJ you have to drive and you have to get us to Claire fast. Break speed limits, if a cop gets on your tail, keep going. Don't stop til we are there okay?"

As the two changed seats PJ looked at Matt and put his hand on his knee. "What's going on Matt?"

Choking on his sobs Matt stared out the window. "Stephen thinks she may be dead. Her bastard ex husband better pray to God she isn't."

"Fuck," PJ muttered as he gunned the engine.

What should have been a fifteen minute ride took five and Matt and PJ pulled in just as the distant sound of sirens sounded to the east. Matt started to rush around to the back door and PJ grabbed him by the arm. "Why not just use your key and go in the front door Matt?"

Shaking his head, tears still running down his face in rivers, Matt said, "I just thought since Stephen went in the back that we should so we disturb less of the house in case it's a crime scene or something."

"Good point, but if he saw all of the… well, the mess, then it's likely in the kitchen. We don't want to add to the footprints or anything. Get your key out and let's go this way." PJ didn't tell Matt that he really just wanted to protect him in case the kitchen was a bloody mess as Stephen had implied. He knew how close Matt was to Claire and he knew that this was already killing the man he was growing to love. That hurt him alone, and then he hurt for whatever had happened to Claire on top of it all.

Heaving a heavy sigh off his chest Matt took the keys and opened the front door slowly, afraid of what he was about to see. Just as he went to step the sirens got louder as they turned onto the street and he wondered what on earth had taken them so long to arrive. Didn't they know that his best friend was in trouble?

As Matt eased into the living room he was assaulted by the scent of something metallic and it turned his stomach. One glance toward the kitchen and he was on his knees, his whole body shaking with gut wrenching sobs. PJ walked in behind him and saw the state of the kitchen and the stairway leading to the bedrooms and dropped down next to Matt. He wrapped his arms around his shoulders and pressed his lips to the top of his head.

"Come on, let's get upstairs and find them. We have to see her and be sure she's still with us." PJ was fighting his own tears now and swallowed hard to fight them off. He needed to be strong for the other two men in this house right now. He knew that they both loved Claire in their own ways and this was hell on them all.

Matt clung to PJ for a minute sobbing into his shoulder. "How can she survive when she's already lost that much blood? She can't die. She can't," he cried.

"She won't, she's stronger than that and you know it! Now let's get up there with her before the paramedics won't let you."

They stood and climbed the stairs, Matt crying the whole way as each step was stained blood red. At the top of the stairs he headed straight to her room and nearly lost it at the sight he saw. Stephen was sitting on the bed, holding her lifeless hand in his. His shoulders were shaking as he cried softly speaking to her in a language that Matt couldn't understand. He hated to interrupt but he had to say something.

He moved his lips, no words came out. He could have sworn he was speaking. He tried again with the same results. The third time he opened his mouth to speak his voice was a whisper. "Is she…"

Stephen didn't turn his eyes from the limp and fragile woman on the bed when he said, "There's a pulse, but I don't know how much longer it's going to keep her going. It's barely there now."

"The paramedics are here. They are headed up the stairs now with the equipment." PJ spoke softly from the doorway.

Stephen slowly stood. "Matt, stay with her. I guess I'll have to talk to the police. She'd want you here anyway, not me." Wiping his eyes the big man walked out of the door and headed down the stairs. PJ quietly followed.

Matt sat on the edge of Claire's bed, something he'd done so many times before, only this time he was afraid he'd never do it again. He took her hand in his and fought the urge to wipe her face clean. "Claire, I love you. Please hold on and be strong okay? You have big plans, plans to help keep this from happening to anyone else. It was him wasn't it, Claire?"

"Sir we're going to need you to move out of the way so that we can get to her."

Matt stood slowly not wanting to break his connection to his friend. He walked to the corner of the room and stood silent as the tears continued to wash his cheeks. How did he have anything left in him to cry? His heart was shattered at the sight and the thought that this might be the end.

The paramedics were talking to each other, hushed tones, and urgent tones. She had a pulse, but it was weak and she'd lost far too much blood. Matt could have told them that. Why didn't they just get her in the ambulance and to the hospital and save her? They were finally moving her onto a stretcher and they had a bag of oxygen over her mouth. One of them was speaking to him but he wasn't making out the words.

"Sir, I need you to talk to me. Do you know who did this to her?"

Matt's head snapped to look at the man speaking. "You're damned right I do. Why don't you let the police know that they better find her son of a bitch ex husband before I do? Logan Maxwell," Matt said before taking off after the stretcher.

Claire could hear people talking and she was feeling a pain that she couldn't explain. It was the worst thing she had ever felt in her life, and she'd been through hell so she knew it was bad. Her body felt like it was on fire. Why did she still feel things? You weren't supposed to feel pain in heaven, so maybe she really had gone to hell as Logan had wished. No, that was a place for people like him. She wouldn't have gone to hell, would she? That could only mean that she wasn't dead. That thought hit her hard. The pain immediately tripled in its intensity and she knew undoubtedly that she was alive. Why God, she thought, why can't you just take me home and end this horrible pain? I can' do this I'm not strong enough. She heard no answer in response just the muted voices all around her. She sensed brightness but knew it wasn't the brightness she sought. Maybe someone had found her and she was in the hospital. That had to be it.

She couldn't move her body hurt so bad. She wanted to open her eyes, make her throat form the words to tell them she was in pain, so much pain that she could barely breath. Nothing worked on her body it seemed. She couldn't tell them she was dying inside and it was okay, that she was ready to go. She couldn't tell them that if she had to stay she needed pain medications. She couldn't tell them to call her mom and Matt. She couldn't save herself, not even if she wanted too.