I scolded myself for thinking such thoughts, however. It was selfish. Too selfish for me to even consider for real. I thought about Natalie and the two little girls in the photographs. His nieces had been asking about him, they missed him. Imagine if they never saw him again, and if Natalie had to live with always wondering what happened to her brother? His dad had already lost his wife recently, he couldn’t lose a son too.
No, this was my burden to bear, and I had to do it alone.
Slowly, I started slipping out of Finn’s arms, doing my best to avoid any sudden movements. I didn’t want to wake him. It took a while, but eventually, I managed to break free from his hold and slip from the bed. I gathered my clothing and took Ollie in my arms. He was getting so big, and it was hard to carry him when he was asleep and was simply dead weight in my arms. But I didn’t want to wake him, so I held him against my chest and took one last parting look at Finn.
My cheeks were wet with tears, but I didn’t make a noise. He looked so peaceful and calm in bed, his chest rising and falling with each breath. He looked almost exactly like the boy I left all those years ago, only bigger. And here I was leaving him again. The second time might have been harder than the first. If only because I’d let myself believe we might get a second chance.
Sadly, I had been wrong, and his heart would have to pay the price again.
Without saying a word, I slipped from the hotel with my son in my arms. I had to leave everything behind except the clothes on our backs. I had money in my pocket, my tips from my last job at the bar. Hopefully it would be enough to get us a little further away, somewhere we could start over again.
The night air was cool, but humid. A storm was brewing in the distance. Lighting filled the night sky miles away. If I wanted to avoid getting rained on, I’d have to run. And running with my son in my arms was a challenge, especially since I didn’t want to wake him, or worse, fall.
The hotel parking lot was pitch black except for two streetlights. Cars were lined up in front of me, and I walked between them, hustling as quickly as I could as I balanced Ollie in my arms.
“Mommy?”
“Yes, sweetie?” I said, holding him even closer, “I’m right here.”
“Where are we going?” he asked, his voice tinged with sleepiness. He probably wouldn’t even remember this the next day.
“On an adventure, sweetie.”
“Is Finn coming too?”
My heart sank into my stomach. I stopped in my tracks, as if having second guesses about leaving the hotel. I glanced back at the room, which felt both so close and so far away at the same time. It would be so easy to sneak back inside and climb back into that bed. No, stop that, Chelsea. You know why you can’t do that, I thought.
I didn’t get a chance to answer the question, however. In the midst of trying to make it across the street without disturbing or scaring Ollie, I hadn’t been paying attention to the cars. My gaze fell on the one closest to us, one that had been sitting outside of our hotel room and parked next to Finn’s car.
A black BMW. A familiar vehicle because I’d been inside it many times. Yes, there could be a similar BMW sitting outside the hotel, but in my gut, I knew it wasn’t a coincidence.
My eyes flickered all around, trying to see in the near pitch-black parking lot. Turning completely around, there was a shadow that had moved from beside the building. My eyes weren’t merely playing tricks on me. It was a figure. A man, to be precise.
He was only a few feet away from me, and even though I knew I wouldn’t be able to outrun him with Ollie in my arms, I tried anyway. My feet hit the pavement just as the rain started to come down. Thunder cracked open the sky, and my hair stood on end from the electricity in the air along with my nerves.
I ran back toward the room, only because it was closer than trying to make it across the street. I pounded on the door.
“Finn! Let me in!”
The door swung open just as someone grabbed me from behind. Ollie dangled from my arms, and before I knew what was happening, I was engaged in a tug of war with Rick, with my son being the rope.
Finn lunged toward my ex without hesitation, taking him down to the ground. I’m not sure if Rick didn’t realize I had backup or what, but we were able to surprise him. For that reason alone, Finn had the upper hand temporarily.
Finn shouted, “Get inside and lock the door.”
I put Ollie down, who was now crying and screaming in fright. “Go into the bathroom and lock the door,” I told him. He did exactly as he was told, running inside and disappearing into the darkness.
I couldn’t leave Finn to fend for himself, especially since I knew Rick was armed. He was always armed. Finn, on the other hand, was not. I turned around just in time to see Rick reaching for something, his hand breaking free from Finn’s grasp.
“Finn!” I shouted. “Watch out!”
But it was too late. Rick had a knife in his hands before Finn could get control of his arms again, and he sliced through the air. Blood flowed from Finn’s cheek, and I screamed, feeling so helpless and afraid. Rick might have been smaller than Finn, but he was well-versed in fighting. Raising his legs up, he kicked Finn in the groin, rolling the two of them over until he was on top.
“Get inside, now!” Finn said.
“I’m not leaving you,” I said, my voice cracking as I rushed toward the two men. I’d felt helpless for so long, but no more. I wasn’t about to let Finn end up hurt, or worse, because of me.
Time seemed to stand still. Climbing on Rick’s back, I grabbed the hand holding the knife while biting down, hard, on his ear. Rick screamed out, “You bitch!” before flailing and throwing me off. The knife clattered to the concrete at the same time I did. My head collided with the ground, and my vision started to blur once more. Just like before, I felt dizzy and sick.
But the knife was closer to me than to Rick. He went for it at the same time I did, but I managed to grab ahold of it first. I lunged forward, but he ducked out of the way. I missed, falling to the ground once again.
“Let me have Oliver and I’ll leave,” Rick said. “No one has to get hurt. I just want my son.”
“Go to hell,” I blurted out, pushing myself up against the wall.
Checking on Finn, I saw him frozen in place. His hands were in the air. I turned back to Rick, and almost didn’t see the gun in his hand. Almost.
My hands trembled, and I nearly dropped the knife. Somehow, I managed to hold onto it, hiding it behind my back.
Lights turned on in the room next to ours. I noticed other lights had also come on. In the distance, I heard sirens. Rick must have heard them too, his body tensed up.
“Give me Oliver and no one has to get hurt,” he said again.
“I’d rather die first,” I said.
He was still too far for me to make a move, but I inched closer to him. The sirens grew louder, but they were still in the distance. The wind whistled, blowing the rain and making it hard to see.
Rick moved quickly, closing the distance between us and grabbing me before I had a chance to make my move. He flipped me around, holding me against him with the gun touching the side of my head.
“Looks like you’re going to have to die then,” he whispered against my cheek.
“Let her go,” Finn said, his face hardly recognizable from the blood running down his cheek. I prayed it looked worse than it was due to the rain. “No one has to get hurt. The police will be here soon, and you don’t want a dead woman on your hands, Rick. You really don’t. You won’t get your son back that way.”
“I’d rather die than let her get away from me again. She’s mine.”
A chill ran down my spine. This was never about Oliver, I realized. It was about me. I was his property. Oliver was just a pawn in his little game. He thought he could use my son to lure me back to him, and when it didn’t work, well, he found another way.
“Finn, take care of Ollie,” I said, a feeling of calm rushing over me at the thought that Rick mig
ht finally see his day in prison. Or maybe he was speaking the truth and would rather die. Maybe he’d do us all a favor and take himself out too.
“No, Chelsea--” Finn pushed himself up against the wall.
“Finn, don’t be a hero,” I said, swallowing a lump in my throat. “Be there for Ollie, please.”
“Yeah, don’t be a hero,” Rick said. “You’re not bulletproof. There’s no way you’re going to win this one. Go in, get Oliver and deliver him to me. And we’ll all live happily ever after, a family once more. Or else, she dies.”
Rick said it so casually, but I knew he meant it.
“And you’ll die with me,” I said.
With the sirens upon us now, I decided to act. They’d be there soon, but likely not before he shot me. One way or another, I thought that was it. I was going to die. There was nothing I could do but make sure the asshole went down with me.
The knife was still firmly in my palm, Rick had missed it. That one mistake would cost him dearly, I’d make sure of it.
My arms were pressed against him, but I managed to wiggle free just enough to twist my hand and jab the knife into his side. I closed my eyes, waiting for the gunshot. When the shot rang out, I fell to the ground, screaming and crying out, praying that Finn would be able to give my son the life I never could.
It took me much longer than it should to realize that I hadn’t been shot. Finn was at my side, pulling me into his arms and inspecting every inch of me. His hands moved over my face, pushing my soaking wet hair out of my face.
“You’re alright,” he said. He kept repeating that, as if to reassure us both that I really was okay.
I was numb and part of me feared that maybe I was dead. Maybe this was it. I couldn’t hear anything else. No more sirens. No more thunder or rain. Only Finn’s voice as he reassured me over and over again.
But there was no pain.
I didn’t believe I managed to kill Rick with my one clumsy move, but Finn didn’t seem worried. I was, though. I pulled free from Finn’s arms, turning toward the man who’d tormented me for so long.
He was dead, or at least unconscious. Blood pooled around him. The knife was still stuck in his left side, but most of the blood covered his face and head. I couldn’t make out his face at all, and if it hadn’t been for the fact that we’d just battled it out, I wouldn’t have believed it was him. There was barely anything left of him.
Red and blue lights nearly blinded me, and that’s when I pieced things together. Police officers rushed toward me, lifting me up and taking me away from the body of my ex. Finn was there, but EMTs were clamoring toward him. They were pulling us apart. Reaching out for him, he took my hand, and the rest of the world around us became a blur. My knees went weak, and my head began swimming again.
“You’re safe,” a female officer’s voice spoke from beside me where she held onto my arm.
“My son is in the bathroom,” I said weakly. Finn was close enough to catch me as I fell, my vision going black just like the night in the bar bathroom. This time, however, I knew we were safe.
“I got you,” Finn said, kissing the top of my head. “And I’m never letting you go again.”
Finn
“I guess that’s one way to guarantee some time off,” Justin said, poking his head into the hospital room. Justin was one of the guys on my crew. One of many that had stopped by to see me as soon as everyone heard what had happened.
“Eh, it’s just a little scratch,” I said.
“Always the hero, huh?” Jax said, following Justin inside.
“Of course. Isn’t that what we do?” I said.
I had a very large gash across my face, but I’d be fine. It would probably scar, but hey, considering the line of work I was in, a scar wasn’t that concerning. I could live with scars, no matter how big or deep. I got out alive, and so did Chelsea and Ollie. I’d have allowed him to cut me up even worse if it meant that I was to keep the two of them safe.
Jax plopped down in the seat beside me, a worried look on his face. Justin looked equally as stressed.
“Speaking of which, did Tim mention whether or not I was still fired for not showing up?”
“Nah, you’re good,” Justin said, leaning against the wall. “I believe you get a pass, all things considered. I mean, you are in the hospital after all.”
For some reason, hearing that didn’t fill me with as much joy as I would have expected. In fact, I felt a little disappointed. It must have shown on my face.
“What gives?” Jax said. “You look unhappy that you still have a job.”
“I don’t know,” I said, shrugging. “Maybe it’s just exhaustion, but after everything I’ve been through - I’m beginning to rethink my priorities, you know.”
“Trust me, I get it,” Jax said, running a hand through his hair.
“I don’t,” Justin said.
“You also don’t have a family to think about,” Jax said pointedly. “When you have kids, everything changes. The long hours away from them, the fact that you’re putting your life in danger every time you go into work… it wears on you, man.”
I nodded along with him. Even though Ollie wasn’t my son by blood, I loved him as if he were mine and I had to make some big decisions. Both he and Chelsea were a big reason for me to reconsider what I wanted from life. All my life, I’d wanted to be a hero, to save lives. After saving the lives of two people that meant the world to me, I had to wonder, was it worth continuing the fight if it meant they would have to suffer?
“Well, suit yourself,” Justin said, smirking. “One reason I have no intention of ever settling down.”
“Never say never,” I said, chuckling. “I used to say the same thing, you know.”
He was a little younger than Jax and me, and figured he had all the time in the world to fight fires and chase tail. I knew Jax wasn’t planning on going anywhere anytime soon, but the question had obviously been weighing on him too. Hard for it not to when you had a family.
“Eh, you’ve always wanted this. Admit it, Finn,” Justin said.
Maybe he was right. I never thought it would happen so fast, but yes, I had wanted this. I didn’t expect to get a kid so fast, especially one that was no longer a baby, but I loved that little guy. Even if Chelsea and I didn’t work out, I wanted to be part of his life.
“How’s Chelsea?” Jax asked.
“She’s doing fine,” I said. “She has a concussion, they’re going to keep her for observation, but they expect her to make a full recovery.”
“Good,” Jax said. “And Ollie?”
“Shaken up, but he’s not hurt, thankfully. My sister is keeping an eye on him for us,” I said. “But as soon as I get out of here, he’s coming home with me.”
And as soon as Chelsea was released, I hoped she would come home with me too. We had a lot of work to do; we needed to get to know each other again, but I was hopeful we could make it work. I’d never stopped loving her, and she’d never stopped loving me either. And we both loved Ollie to death. I had faith that maybe we could figure things out and get our second chance after all.
“I’m happy for you, man,” Jax said. “I really am.”
I couldn’t help but smile. Even through it all, he was right. I was given a second chance to make things right, and I wasn’t going to let her go so easily this time.
“Psht, you guys are such saps,” Justin said. But even as he teased, I could see him smiling too. He was happy for me as well, he just had a harder time admitting it.
There was a knock at the door, and a nurse stepped inside. She took one look at the two hunky firemen in the room - not counting myself since I looked like shit, obviously - and blushed.
“We are processing your discharge paperwork now,” she said. “You’ll be free to go soon.”
“Great,” I said. “And can I see Chelsea?”
I hadn’t seen her since they pried her away from me at the scene of the crime. She had lost consciousness, and I was terrified I’d lose her
for good. I couldn’t wait to see her again.
“Of course,” she said. “I’ll take you to see your wife as soon as we’re finished up here.”
Justin smirked, and Jax grinned. Yes, I caught the mistake. The nurse assumed Chelsea had been my wife. I didn’t bother to correct her. After all, had things worked out the way I’d planned years ago, we would have been married. I’d have happily taken Chelsea as my wife.
Maybe one day, I thought to myself.
Ooo000ooo
Chelsea’s eyes were closed when I slipped into her room. It was quiet except for the buzzing and beeping of the machines around her. Once the door was shut, the talking and footsteps from the hallway were drowned out. It was just me and her.
She looked so fragile and broken in that hospital bed. Her tiny figure almost disappeared into the bed. I didn’t want to wake her, so I considered leaving, but before I could, she spoke up, “Finn?”
Her voice cracked as she spoke, and it was such a soft sound, I almost didn’t hear it over the machines.
“Yes, it’s me,” I said.
Her eyes opened wider, and there was a hint of a smile on her face. The bruises from the first attack were still present but growing lighter by the day. She had new ones, however, and those only made her look more pitiful. My throat nearly closed up on me as I stared at her. Had I not been there, he would have still found her, and then what? Would she have managed to fight him off still? Could she have? I didn’t have the answers and didn’t really want them either. The thoughts were too horrendous to even imagine.
Rick was gone now. He was dead. He was shot by a police officer as Chelsea broke free from him. He’d no longer be able to torment Chelsea, and she was a free woman at last.
The wounds would heal, and she would be able to get back on her feet without fear.
I took her tiny hand in mind, enveloping it completely.
“Thank you.”
“No, stop that,” I said.
“Stop what?” she asked, cocking her head to the side.
Hearts On Fire: Firemen of Manhattan Series Page 11