Chapter 72- The Aftermath

*I didn't want to leave y'all hanging too long after that cliffhanger last night (those last two sentences I've had in my head now for almost 6 months, since the start of my little story endeavor).

I quickly wrote up this short chapter to clear (some) of the questions from the last one. My goal is to keep these "commercial breaks" as short as possible and role out the next few chapters once a day this week. It's a climax point of the story. Hopefully I'm building the anticipation.

Here we go… The Aftermath.

Voices sounded muffled to Charlotte's ears after the noise from the gunshots.

Charlotte hadn't pulled the trigger. Neither did Beck.

Still, two bullets had found their mark, striking Beck in the chest.

He fell instantly and did not move.

Her past was officially that. The past.

She now had to see if she still had a future.

"Nathan, I'm here," Charlotte fell to the ground beside Nathan, quickly taking over the task of providing pressure to try and stop the bleeding of his wound. "It's going to be okay. You're going to be okay."

The thin material of her blouse sleeve had already bled through, and Charlotte was about to remove another article of clothing when someone rested a hand on her shoulder. Charlotte jumped and looked up to see Bill standing over her, his rifle in hand. His mouth moved, but Charlotte couldn't make sense of what he said.

"Are you hit?" Bill repeated.

Charlotte followed Bill's sweeping gaze down her body. She knew her face was swollen from Beck's hit the night before. Her blouse and the skin underneath had been torn apart and covered in mud. Her upper thigh still bled from the gash she had received from falling earlier.

But no, she had not been hit by one of the bullets.

Charlotte just shook her head at Bill, unable to form even a simple one-word answer.

Bill nodded at her, before glancing over his shoulder to where Gabe and his rifle were crouching beside Beck's body. He looked over to Bill and Charlotte, shaking his head slightly side to side, confirming what she already knew.

"Charlotte, I can take it from here," Carson had swiftly moved in beside her. Analyzing the extent of Nathan's wound he quickly opened his medical bag and set to work saving his friend's life.

"I'm not going to leave him," Charlotte's voice rose.

"I know," Carson confirmed, glancing up to look at Charlotte so she understood what he meant. "But you need to let me work here to get Nathan stabilized so we can get him back down to the car."

"The car?"

"Yes, Lee and I had set out with Nathan from Hope Valley, until he asked us to turn back and find Gabe and Bill to help search to the north as he had found your tracks. When we rode back into town, Bill and Gabe had already returned and were trying to make plans on what to do next. All of us set out immediately to catch up with Nathan. Thankfully Nathan had figured out most likely where Beck was leading you to and then he also marked the path occasionally along the way with torn pieces of his shirt," Carson rattled off the details, while expertly working on Nathan's injury.

"When Nathan told Lee and I to go back to Hope Valley, he asked that we bring the car and my medical supplies with us when we returned. In case anything should have happened to you while with Beck," Carson's careful eyes scanned over Charlotte's rugged appearance before settling on her face, seemingly asking for an answer, without asking a question.

Charlotte knew what he met and shook her head. "No, he didn't," were the only words she could muster, but that's all Carson needed to know at this time.

"Charlotte!" Lee's arms wrapped around her shoulders and pulled her into his brotherly embrace. "Are you okay? We heard the gunshot and…"

Lee's eyes had fallen on Nathan. He quickly scanned his attention back to Charlotte.

"It's okay," he tried to comfort. "Nathan will be fine. We are here now and happen to have the best surgeon in the country as one of our town's doctors."

Carson glanced up to Charlotte and Lee. His eyes and facial expressions did not give her the comfort she so desperately needed.

"We have to get him to the hospital. I need to operate, but we need to get him back to the car with as little movement as possible. I'll need everyone's help carrying him and trying to keep his body as immobile as possible. Charlotte- keep providing pressure to the wound with these bandages and gauze the best you can, okay?" Carson gave his directions, and everyone set to work carrying them out. Charlotte reluctantly released Nathan's body into the care of the men.

Time seemed to creep along to Charlotte as they made their way slowly through the forest, but soon enough the road, car, Hero, Apollo, and Newton all came into view. The fog that had stuck around all day, seemed to dissipate on their descent, giving way to a heavy mountain mist that closed in around them. The steady drizzle, collecting on their clothes and skin, soaked them through.

When they reached the car, Charlotte jumped into the back and with the help of the men they moved Nathan's body to lie across the seat, his head resting on her lap as she kept applying pressure to the wound.

"Hey," Charlotte softly murmured, brushing a piece of Nathan's disheveled damp hair off his forehead. "How are you doing?"

"I've probably been better," he joked.

"Here," Charlotte moved her left hand to his and entwined their fingers together. "Hold my hand. That's always seemed to fix things in the past, hasn't it?"

Nathan's blue eyes gazed up at hers and he gave an intimate smile.

"You're going to be fine. I promise. Lee is going to get us back to Hope Valley quickly and Dr. Shepard here..." Charlotte glanced up at Carson who had jumped into the back with them to keep making sure Nathan was stabilized as Lee started the car and began their drive back to town. "Is going to make sure you're back chopping wood in no time."

"Is Beck?"

Charlotte paused and swallowed the lump in her throat.

"Yeah," she squeezed Nathan's hand. "He is. It's all because of you, Nathan. You've saved me in so many ways. No one can hurt us now."

A peaceful expression settled over Nathan as he closed his eyes and took a deep and rattly breath.

"Hey, just look at me, okay?" Charlotte comforted. "Breathe."

"There is nothing I'd rather see," Nathan gave her his crooked smile. Her favorite one where the right side of his mouth was wider than the left. "You're beautiful, you know that?"

"Once Carson fixes you up, I think he's going to have to take a look at your eyesight, constable," Charlotte winked, trying to lighten the situation.

Charlotte could feel from where she applied pressure to his wound, that Nathan's heart rate was elevated. His skin was pale and clammy as she brushed the sweat from his brow and adjusted the blanket over his body to keep him warm as they bumped along the rough road on their drive back to Hope Valley.

Lee was quick and calm as he maneuvered the car through the winding path and then onto the main road coming into Hope Valley from the north.

Charlotte tried not to think of anything other than putting on the bravest face she could muster for Nathan, but when the café finally came into view through the windshield, she let out a deep breath she seemed to have been holding the whole drive. A sense of relief rushing over her. They were home. Carson and Faith would be able to save Nathan.

"His blood pressure is dropping! Hurry, Lee!"

Carson's voice was filled with worry, drawing Charlotte's attention back down to Nathan in her arms. His eyes were drooping; he was losing consciousness. She could feel his pulse weakening where their hands were still entwined together. Nathan's breath was rapid and shallow.

"Stay with me, Nathan, stay with me!" Charlotte cried, tightening her grip on his body. Lee was pulling the car in front of the hospital. "Talk to me, Nate. Like when we are having coffee in our backyards. Please just say something. Anything!"

The resignation in his eyes cut her with the precision of a scalpel; he knew he was fading. He met her gaze, and inexplicably, his lips lifted in a smile that softened the agony in his eyes. Without a word, he said everything she ever needed to know.

He loved her.

"No. No, no, no. Don't go. Please don't go," Charlotte sobbed watching as Nathan closed his eyes and drifted out of consciousness. "Don't close your eyes. Nathan, please. Don't close your eyes!"

Charlotte was vaguely aware that people were moving about them. She curled herself protectively around Nathan.

"Please, Nathan. Stay with me. I can't do this without you," Charlotte pleaded. Clutching his body to her as if she could keep his spirit with her a little longer if she could just hold on tight enough. "I love you."