You Distract Me - S01 E56

Story 4 months ago

You Distract Me - S01 E56

Read Story: SEASON 1 EPISODE 56

The majority has spoken then.

Olivia

"C'mon, baby. Open your eyes."

When I came to, Shayne was leaning over me and almost immediately, the pungent smell of antiseptic assaulted my senses, pulverizing any trace of unconsciousness.

I jolted up, frantically looking about me. I was seated on a gurney in what appeared to be an OR. "Wha-what happened?"

Those oh-so-familiar arms snaked around me, absorbing my initial shock. Instinct had me reciprocating the embrace only to yelp at the shot of fire wrapping around my arm.

"Take it easy. You took a hit," Shayne said softly, pulling away.

I looked down at my bandaged arm, allowing the memories to sip in one by one.

The hottest sex I'd ever had. My confession to Shayne just before she shoved me aside. Pain whooshing through my arm. Both of us hitting the floor. And blood, lots of it.

I must have passed out from the shock.

"Are you okay?" I asked, gripping her bicep.

She chuckled. "I'm fine, you're the one with a bullet hole." She inhaled deeply and rested her forehead against mine. "When I heard you scream and saw all the blood, I almost lost it. I wasn't even sure where you'd been hit at the time. I just brought you down here as fast as I could with Freya and Laura on my tail."

I smiled, my heart aching impossibly with all my love. "I'm sorry I put you through that."

"Damn right. This whole 'almost dying' thing between us is starting to get old."

A burst of laughter ripped out of me. She'd never been more right. "Where's the lie?"

She pressed her lips against mine, cupping the back of my head before deepening the kiss. I held onto her wrist, moaning into her mouth.

But like the devil she was, she pulled away. "I haven't yet mastered my hormones with you. I don't think I'll be able to stop myself if we go any further. And this is the worst possible time. We have to get going."

My brows drew together. "Get going? Where to?"

She answered my next question without hearing it. "Yes, someone tried to kill you, again. One of my men spotted the sniper from a mile away, but before they could get to him, he'd already vanished."

My heart was pounding. "From a mile away? That's..."

"I know. But I'm changing your location. Some of my men will join you while the rest will remain here with me in case those fuckers come back."

I flinched away from her. "The hell you are." My voice was low, icy and unrecognizable.

Clearly taken aback, Shayne raised her brows. "Listen—"

"No, you listen. I am tired of being thrown about like a rag doll. I know I'm not that useful, and can't make the brightest decisions. But please, please don't let go of me. I'll learn how to fight better, I promise. And I'm not bad with guns either you know? Infact, I'm a master in the art of baking. I can be usef—"

She cut me short with a chuckle. "Baby, you had me at no."

I paused for a second before letting the relief set in. I grinned widely. "You're not leaving me?"

"Apparently not, the boss has spoken. Damn, woman."

The smile couldn't leave my face. "Somebody has to humble you once in a while."

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"Well consider my ass humbled. But on a serious note, my intention wasn't to make you feel useless. The odds of you being hurt would be less if you were separated from me. Their goal is to weaken me by hurting you, but they can't do that if they think you're not with me. At the very least, I hope I've figured out their goal."

Freya came in through the double doors. "It's time to go. Laura and Drew are waiting in the car. How are you feeling, Olivia?"

"I'm good. Thank you for this." I gestured to my arm.

"Ah, it was no trouble. The bullet went right through. It was a simple stitch and patch process. You should have seen the boss though. With the way she was panicking, one would think your head had been blown open or something."

"Don't believe a word from her."

"I'll try not to," I said, laughing.

As Shayne helped me off the gurney, I noticed I was wearing her T-shirt while she had on her jeans and sports bra. I was just about to joke about our indecency when a loud bang shook the floors above and below us.

Ceiling particles dusted above our heads while the lights flickered lively.

"What the fuck was that?" Freya shouted. She grabbed her radio. "Laura! Laura, what's going on?"

There was disruption in the background. "Thank God you're okay...We've...never saw it...lost a lot of men...nuke had..."

"Nuke?" We all said.

Shayne took the radio from Freya's hands. "How bad is it, Laura?"

"Really bad...we can...tunnels—" It suddenly went silent on the other end.

Shayne hurled the radio at the wall, smashing it into several pieces. "I'm done with these motherfucking bastards! I'll skin all of them alive! Come on." She pulled me to my feet, lifting me without hesitation when I wobbled on them. "You've lost a significant amount of blood, it'll take you a while to gain back some energy."

I nodded, hating my immobility. It made me feel like more of a burden.

She placed me in Freya's arms. "Take her, use the tunnels. Laura said something about them, I'm sure she'll be waiting for you there." She cupped my cheek. "I have to—"

"I know," I said, interrupting her. "Do what you have to do, help as many as possible. And then come back to me, you hear?"

"Yes, ma'am." She placed a warm kiss on my forehead, staying there for a couple of seconds before pulling away, quite rigidly. She turned to Freya. "Don't wait for me if I'm not back in fifteen minutes."

She was gone in the next second as if she hadn't even been there.

Freya wasted no time. She was out the OR and rushing down the hallway in an instant.

Screams and shouts could be heard above us but both of us pretended not to hear anything. Although, the thin layer of wetness coating Freya's eyes told me everything was far from okay. It was her family up there. And yet she was walking away from them because of me.

"Freya—"

"I'll be damned before I let the only reason for Shayne's continuance existence out of my sight."

"What?"

"If it weren't for you, she wouldn't have made it through her grandmother's death."

Although the topic was a million miles from what was currently happening, I allowed her the distraction.

"She didn't seem to need me at the time."

"You know how the boss is. She won't let alot witness any of her weaknesses. But otherwise, she was a mess for a while, the mere thought that you were nearby was enough to keep her going. She'd ask about you every few hours and then lock herself in her office. It was a whole routine."

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"I wish I'd tried harder to relieve her grief."

"You wouldn't have known."

When we reached the end of the hallway, Freya pushed the door open into a steel-walled dark tunnel.

"Now I need you to try and walk, sweetheart. I won't be able to defend either of us with you in my hands."

She put me down and steadied me on my feet.

"Just stay behind me and hold onto my shoulder." She pulled out her gun and aimed it low as we slowly moved through the tunnel.

After what felt like several minutes, we reached the end of the tunnel, the early morning sun barely illuminating the opening.

A gray Range Rover swerved at the entrance, causing a spray of dust and pebbles to fly behind its wheels.

Freya pushed me against the wall. "Don't move."

I could feel the tension leave her body when it was Laura who jumped out the passenger side, running towards us.

"Thank God," Freya said, holding me against her as we moved. She let her tears fall this time.

Laura was weeping when she reached us. "Boy, am I glad to see you. Another chance with you idiot, huh?"

They gripped each other's napes and butted heads, closing their eyes for a moment.

Laura pulled away, roughly wiping away her tears. "If we hadn't been waiting for you guys in the car, we would have been within vicinity of that nuke. It hit the west wing, it's so bad, Freya. But I'm glad you're okay."

She turned to me, sorrow and sharp accusation in her eyes. "I'm guessing you know why this is happening?"

"Laura," Freya warned.

"No, she has to know this is her fault. Look, I like you, sweetheart, but since you showed up, a lot has gone to shit. I don't know if you've noticed, but our home has been lit up."

I was frozen, racked by guilt and confusion.

"We aren't even sure if it was meant for her," Freya argued.

"Her presence should be proof enough." She looked behind us, suddenly panicked. "Where's Shayne?"

"She went upstairs," Freya said.

"Is she crazy? You guys were lucky to be underground, but otherwise, it's complete chaos above. The nearest fire station is atleast twenty minutes away, she'll never make it out in time."

Laura attempted to run into the direction we'd just come from, but Freya stopped her. "She ordered us to leave if she's not back in ten minutes."

She pinched the bridge of her nose. "Fuck! It's just like Shayne to do something like this!"

Freya placed her hand on Laura's shoulder and spoke gently. "I know you're in pain, but I need you to get it together."

The rage gradually dissipated from her face. "Damn, you're right, I'm sorry. And I know Shayne has a tendency to put everyone else's well being above her own. It's what makes her her." She looked me in the eye with shame. "Forgive me?"

"There's nothing to forgive. I understand your feelings towards me."

"It doesn't mean I'm right to have them. I'm only looking for a way out of the pain."

"Don't worry about it, really."

She gave a curt nod and gestured to my arm. "How's the arm?"

"Nothing I can't handle."

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She smiled. "There's a good champ."

"Hey, let's get going!" It was Drew shouting from the wheel of the SUV.

"C'mon," Laura said, taking me from Freya.

When Laura and I got in the back, I found Joshua seated in the middle of the seat, his head between his knees. As soon as those innocent blue eyes rose to mine, his slight arms went around me. "I'm scared, Olivia."

"I know, buddy. It's gonna be okay."

"Is it?" Drew said, maneuvering away from the tunnel.

I only stared at him through the rearview mirror, our eyes glued for a full second before I looked away to console Joshua.

The end of the tunnel was at least two minutes away from the mansion, so I wasn't prepared for the sight ahead of me when it came into view.

What was once a beautiful beast of magnificent craftmanship was now smoke and flames. The east wing still seemed intact. But the flames were fierce and quick. The entire building was going to go down in no time.

Drew stopped at the entrance just as a flash of orange flew right for the tunnels we'd just gotten out of. We barely had time to react before another went for the east wing of the mansion. Over all the smoke, it was impossible to source out the direction of the missiles.

Laura was outwardly crying at this point. Freya had her hand clasped over her mouth, her hand shaking violently. And Joshua was rocking against me, bowling his eyes out.

Drew was cursing like a sailor. "We have to go." He even had the audacity to start the engine.

Fully aware of my actions, but not giving a damn about the consequences, I reached for Freya's gun, clasped in her holster, and pressed the barrel into Drew's cheek. He immediately let go of the stirring wheel, splaying his hands above it.

My voice didn't shake once. "Shayne said fifteen minutes. We have five more minutes left, we aren't leaving without her." Not a chance.

Cool steel caressed my temple, and from the corner of my eye, I noted Laura's hard look, a far cry from her initial expression. "You pull that trigger, missy. I dare you," she said, tightening her grip on her gun.

"I'm sorry, okay? But Shayne's instructions were clear. We have to trust her."

Drew's tone was icy. "Didn't you just see what happened? There's no way anyone is coming out of that alive."

Laura let out a sob, her aim unsteady.

"Let's just all keep calm. Olivia, please give me the gun," Freya cooed.

"No, you heard Shayne yourself. Her fifteen minutes aren't yet up."

"Alright, we aren't leaving then. Five more minutes. Right, Drew?"

He stayed quiet, but I encouraged him by clicking off the safety.

"Right." He practically growled the words.

"So please lower your weapons," Freya said.

Slowly, Laura and I lowered our guns, alert and distrusting.

Freya slipped the weapon out of my hands. "Good. Now we wait for five minutes."

Ten minutes later, my lip was starting to bleed from how bad I was biting down on it to avoid sobbing. Even when Drew turned on the engine, I didn't stop him. I just covered my face with shaking hands.

Shayne, you promised.

Freya's radio hissed with static. "Freya, come in." It was Byron's voice.

We all paused for a moment, unsure of what we were hearing.

Freya took her radio, swallowing first. "Byron?"

"Yes, it's me. The boss and a few others are with me. What's your location?"

Sighs of relief filled the car.

Her voice thick with emotion, Freya said, "We're at the main gates. What's yours?"

"We're coming to you. We were able to find a tunnel that led to the highway. You're about ten minutes away from us."

"Alright, we're on our way to you then."

Indeed, in but a few minutes, I could see that familiar Jeep coming towards us. But just as soon as I saw it, I heard the blades of a chopper whooping above us. As if in slow motion, I watched the missile whiz for us, so fast that I didn't realize we were already flying in mid air.

The SUV turned three times before landing on its roof. My vision blacked for a moment but I shook the dizziness away, which proved futile with all my blood rushing for my brain. "Is everyone okay?"

To my relief, though unconscious, everyone offered some movement. No matter how injured, as long as they were alive, they still had a chance.

Undoing my seatbelt without thinking, I fell onto the roof below me with a hard thud, almost knocking myself out.

This time, it was harder to stay awake.

I looked out my open window and couldn't stop my gasp. The begining of a huge gap in the road was a mere few meters away from us.

On the other side, Shayne was just getting out of the Jeep, immediately heading for the gap. I couldn't read her expression, but the stiffness in her stride screamed of anger and determination. I was almost sure she was attempting to jump the massive missing road.

The whooping of the chopper got louder, and I could hear the sound of stomping feet heading for the car.

The sudden pause in Shayne's rapid steps told me it wasn't good.

As soon as I made that conclusion, rough hands pulled me out of the SUV and onto broad shoulders. Unable to move my body, I just let my gaze fall on Shayne as we approached—I figured—the chopper, my assumption confirmed when I caught a glimpse of the rope suspension dangling near me.

The last thing I saw was Shayne's hunched over body. And the last thing I thought about was how good we were at the 'almost dying' thing.

Only this time, I wasn't sure almost would be included.