Chapter 1:
"Hank!What are you doing here?" exclaimed Sheridan.
"I'm not doing anything so I decided to drop by and see if you'd like to go
to dinner with me." Hank said.
"Sure,um....I'll go"she said.Sheridan had been thinking about Luis and had
hoped it was him at the door.'What am I thinking?!I'm a Crane;Luis hates the
Cranes,although we have been getting along better lately.'
"Ready?" Hank called interupting her thoughts.
"Yes" Sheridan said,barely hiding her regret."So where are we going?"asked
Sheridan.
"It's a surprise" Hank said mysteriously.
'Great,just great'thought Sheridan.'He's probably planning something
romantic and I only want to be with Luis.'She paused,startled by her
thoughts.She stared out the window,noticing that they were going farther and
farther away from town,and it kept getting more and more
secluded.Suddenly,in a dark area,Hank stopped the car.
"Where are we?" she asked.
"You'll see" replied Hank."Now on with this blindfold!" Hank took her deeper
into the dark woods.
"Hank,I want to go back now" said Sheridan.
"I don't think so!" he said,pushing her through a doorway.
"No!Hank,stop!"
He dragged her into a corner where she was forced to sit in a chair.Her
ankles and wrists were bound and her blindfold was removed to serve as a
gag.
"Now Sheridan I hope you're comforatable because you're going to be here for
a long,long time."And with that,Hank left.
Chapter 2:
As Sheridan took in her surroundings,her eyes wide with terror,she let the
realization that Hank had left her to die sink in.She was in a cabin
furnished with a small stove and the chair she was in.It had a fireplace in
the far corner.Sheridan began screaming,or trying to,but realized she could
only sit and wait for death or a miracle.'Please,Luis.Please come and find
me.I need you' Sheridan silently prayed.
"Officer Lopez-Fitzgerald" Luis answered the phone.
"Luis,have you seen Sheridan? She left her cottage about six hours ago and
never came back" a frantic voice said.
"Who is this?" asked Luis.
"Ethan Crane,Sheridan's nephew."
'Uugh.A Crane'thought Luis.He despised all the Cranes.Except for
Sheridan.She was...different,a decent person."No Ethan,I haven't.She left
the Youth Center hours ago."
"Well she's been gone with Hank for a long time now,and since you're his
best friend I thought maybe you would know where they'd gone."
"Hank?"Luis said,surprised."He came by just a few hours ago to see me"
"Well she's not here.I demand a search party be sent out at once!"Ethan
said.
"Mr.Crane,we can not yet legally send out a search party"Luis said,at the
same time feeling his heart skip a beat at the thought of Sheridan
missing.'What was that?'he thought,but brushed it off and continued arguing
with Ethan.
Back at the cabin night had fallen and Sheridan could no longer see
anything.For hours she had tried to cut her bonds,but it was no use.Sheridan
was falling deeper and deeper into despair.'How will I ever get rescued?'she
asked herself,begining to cry.'And the worst part is,if I die,I'll never get
to see Luis again!'Sheridan was now sobbing and she soon cried herself to
sleep.
Chapter 3:
"Sam,we have to organize a search party for Sheridan!"Luis said.
"But it hasn't been long enough"said Sam.
"Well,it's been long enough for me!"Luis said,surprising Sam and
himself.Just then the phone rang,saving Luis from having to explain himself.
"Officer Lopez-Fitzgerald."
"Hello,I'm calling in to report a purse that I found with the identification
Sheridan Crane in it."
"Where?Do you know where she is?"Luis asked frantically.
"I found it near the road near some woods.I can give you directions if you
need to check it out." Luis took down the directions that he was given and
after thanking the person,he hung up.
"Sam,they found Sheridan's purse!I have to go find her!"
"Alright Luis,but take some backup,just in case."
"Okay"said Luis,and set out to find Sheridan.
Meanwhile Hank was at the Youth Center congratulating himself on his
cleverly assembled scheme.'No one will ever find her out in those woods and
I've put and end to this budding romance between Luis and Sheridan'Hank
thought,grinning evily.Just then Luis burst in.
"Hank,I'm so glad I found you.Sheridan is missing and we're going to find
her.Will you come and help?"
Hank cursed under his breath then forced a smile and said "Of course I'll
help.You know how much I like Sheridan.Just let me get my coat."
"Okay"said Luis."I'll be waiting in my car." After Luis had gone Hank got
his coat and said "Well I suppose I'll just have to make sure no one finds
Sheridan. Ever"
Chapter 4:
Back in the woods,Sheridan was feeling terrible hunger and thirst.She was
fighting sleep because she knew that if she closed her eyes they would never
open again.
"Come on Hank"said Luis.The search party had reached the area that
Sheridan's purse had been found."Okay,let's split up.It will be easier to
find Sheridan that way"Luis said,panic rising in his throat.'How will we
ever find her?'he thought.
"I'll go that way"volunteered Hank,pointing in the direction of the cabin
Sheridan was in.
"Okay"Luis said,and after pointing the other officers in a direction,they
all split up.
Sometime later,Hank burst into the cabin.Sheridan had managed to get the gag
off,as it wasn't tied very tightly.
"Hello,Sheridan"Hank said pulling out a gun.
"Hank please.Don't do this!!"Sheridan said trying to hide her fear.
"Sorry but if I can't have you,then no one,especially Luis,can."
Sheridan's eyes widened with fear as Hank's finger tightened on the gun.
BANG!!"What was that?"Luis said,taking off in the direction of the
gunshot.As Luis ran all he could think about was finding Sheridan.He
couldn't lose her.He needed her in his life.Luis reached the cabin and
opened the door and stood motionless,unable to move at what he saw.
Chapter 5:
Luis burst in the door to the cabin and stopped uable to move at what he
saw.Sheridan lay on the floor in a pool of blood and Hank stood holding a
gun in his hands,shaking,just staring at Sheridan.Luis ran over to Sheridan
and checked her pulse.He found that she had a pulse was breathing,but she
was unconcious.He released a breath that he didn't even know he was
holding.Hank,by this time had realized what he had done and had seen that
Luis was there.He ran out the door and into the woods.Luis barely noticed
and knew that no matter what he had to stay with Sheridan.He began to search
for his radio in his pocket,but found that it had fallen out.Luckily for him
the other officers had heard the gunshots and found the cabin.
"Hey Luis your friend was running like crazy away from here"said one of the
officers.He then noticed Sheridan laying on the floor.
"Call an ambulance!"Luis barked at the officers."Come on Sheridan.You can't
leave me now"he said quietly.
"Luis the ambulance can't come into the woods,so they will have paramedics
come to the cabin and carry Sheridan out to the ambulance."
"She doesn't have that long!We have to at least get her out of the
woods"Luis said.He picked her up,cradling her in his arms and carried her
out the door.It had begun to rain,and was quite slippery,but Luis didn't
notice.All he knew was that he had to get Sheridan to a hospital.Sometime
later,after much slipping and sliding,they reached the road.An ambulance had
just pulled up and Luis ran over to it.They got Sheridan inside and began
the drive to the hospital.The heart moniter was beating steadily but they
couldn't get the bleeding to stop.She had been hit very closely to her
heart.They reached the hosptial and got Sheridan into a room.They had been
able to slow the bleeding,but her condition was worsening.Suddenly,the heart
moniter sped up."What's wrong?What's happening?"Luis asked the panic rising
in his throat.Then they heard it.The dreaded sound of a flatline.
Chapter 6:
"I need 300cc's stat!!"yelled a docter.Luis watched in horror as Sheridan's
body convulsed.Everyone waited a moment,that seemed like years to Luis.The
heart moniter began to beep again."Hey are you okay??"a doctor asked Luis.
"What??Oh yeah I'm fine"Luis answered,breathing a sigh of relief.
"Well she's stable now and she really should get some rest"
Luis reluctantly left the room and went to call his family and the Cranes.He
called his house first.
"Hello?"
"Mama,it's Luis.I'm at the hospital with Sheridan."
"Why?!What's happened?"
"Sheridan was missing and some other officers and I went to find her.I found
her in a cabin,shot.....by Hank."
"Hank?"
"Yeah Hank.Well Mama could you please inform the Cranes?"
"Of course Luis.Then I am coming right over there."
"Okay.Bye Mama."
"Good-bye Luis."
A while later Pilar,Miguel,Theresa,Ethan and Ivy came rushing into the
hospital.Julian came in,walking camly.
"How is she?"Ethan asked breathlessly.
"She's fine now.They found the wound and were able to stop the bleeding"Luis
replied.
"Well that's a relief.I hope none of this gets into the papers.Could be
damaging for the Crane name"Julian said.
"Julian!"said Ivy."How can you even say something like that?"
"You bastard!She's your sister!How can you not even care??"Luis
yelled,looking ready to attack Julian.Julian's cell phone rang then saving
him.
"Hello?"
"Julian!It's Hank."
"Oh Hank it seems your plan didnt work."
"I know."
"Well well just have to do something about that now wont we?"
To Be Continued...
Chapter 7:
Luis looked through the window of the hospital room at Sheridan. She was sitting up in bed reading through a clothing catalog. Luis chuckled. She had only been awake for one hour, and already she was ready to go shopping. He opened the door and went into the room. Sheridan looked up at him and smiled.
"Hey" he said softly, and produced a bouquet of white lilies.
"Luis!" she exclaimed. "How did you know that these were my favorites?"
"Just a lucky guess, I suppose. So, how are you feeling?"
"Much better."
"I would think so, after all that sleep you got."
"How much sleep did I get, exactly?"
"About two days worth."
"Luis? What," she paused, gathering her thoughts, "What happened to Hank after I got shot?"
Luis sighed and she could tell from his eyes that this was a touchy subject.
"You don't have to answer if you don't want to" she said gently.
"No, I just needed a minute to think. There has been an APB put out for him, and no one has seen him since he ran out of the cabin when he shot you." He took a shaky breath. He was still having a hard time accepting the fact that his best friend, the man he had known since he was a child, was responsible for Sheridan's kidnapping and shooting. He almost killed her, with full intent of doing so.
"Luis, are you all right?" Sheridan asked quietly.
"Yeah, I'll be fine" he answered in an unconvincing tone.
"Do you want to talk about it?"
"Not really. I just thought I knew Hank, and for him to go and pull a stunt like this, I don't know, I just feel so...betrayed, I guess."
Sheridan nodded. "I understand exactly what you're going through. If I can help you with anything at all, I will."
Luis smiled weakly. "Thanks, but I really don't want to talk about it anymore. There's actually something I wanted to ask you."
Sheridan felt her throat tighten. She knew exactly what he was going to ask her.
"Sheridan...do you remember anything after you got shot?"
"Yes. I remember going unconscious and then I remember waking up to your face."
"Do you remember what happened after that?"
Sheridan hesitated, embarrassed. "Yes. I...I asked you to kiss me before I died, and you did."
"Right. So what I wanted to ask you was, did that request come from a state of delirium, or was it purely from you?"
Sheridan took a breath. Yes, she was right. He asked her exactly what she thought he would. She knew she could lie and say she was delirious, but she was tired of lying and hiding from her feelings. He had to know.
She might not be so lucky next time. She mustered up all her courage, and said "I was fully conscious Luis, and I meant for you to kiss me." She looked down, unable to meet his gaze. He grinned. He had hoped so much that she would say that.
"I have one more question for you Sheridan. Did you regret it?"
She still wouldn't look up at him, so he tilted her chin up to meet his gaze.
She searched for a way to get out of the situation. She didn't know if she had enough courage in her to answer this question.
"Did you?" he questioned again, this time in a whisper.
"Dammit Julian! Can't these people you hire do anything right?"
"Father, it was something that couldn't have been prevented. That damnable cop, Luis Lopez-Fitzgerald, figured it out."
"It could have been prevented by better planning, something you once again fouled up. And put that glass of brandy down! Can't you go five minutes without being drunk?"
"I will get the situation under control, Father."
"Do it right this time Julian!"
Julian responded to the hum of the dial tone by downing the rest of his brandy and pouring himself another. He turned around at the sound of a knocking on the window. He walked to the window and peered out.
Hank was there frantically motioning for Julian to let him in. Julian went over to a section of the wall and pushed a small button that opened up a section of the wall. Hank scurried inside and glanced around the room.
"Oh don't worry. There is no one coming in here."
Hank was not reassured by Julian and locked the door to the study.
"Ok Julian. I'm here, now what do you want?"
"You are to complete your assignment. You are here to receive new directions, and don't let Officer Lopez-Fitzgerald interfere in any way, no matter what you have to do."
To Be Continued...
Chapter 8:
"I have one more question for you Sheridan.Did you regret it?"
She still wouldn't look up at him, so he tilted her chin up to meet his gaze.
She searched for a way to get out of the situation. She didn't know if she had enough courage in her to answer this question.
"Did you?" he questioned again, this time in a whisper.
"I--I..." she stammered. How could she answer without knowing what he felt? Would her answer determine her future with Luis, if there even was one?
"Please Sheridan" he whispered. "I need to know."
She summoned what was left of her courage and uttered one word. "No."
Hank shifted his position in the bushes and ran a hand through his hair. He felt bad, there was no question about that, but what else could he have done? It was either his life or hers, and he sure as hell wasn't going to let the Cranes kill him. 'Yet,' he thought, 'I surrendered to their demands.' He almost laughed out loud at the irony of it. In a way he had been defeated by the Cranes without losing his life. Oh well. He had a job to do, and he would do Alistair and Julian's dirty work as sort of a payback. Yes, he would get his revenge. He gripped the gun in his hand tighter as he continued to watch the scene in Sheridan's hospital unfold. There was an undoubtable outcome of this conversation. 'Enjoy it now' he thought, a bitter grin coming onto his face, as the details of his plans danced through his head.
Luis replayed the word over and over in his head. She had said no. She didn't regret kissing him. She interrupted his thoughts.
"Now YOU need to answer a question for ME."
"And what would that be?"
"The exact one you asked me. Do you regret kissing me?"
He had her answer, so he no longer feared revealing how he felt.
"No."
The look of happiness in her eyes was all he needed to see. He swept her up into a sweet kiss that slowly escalated as they explored each other's mouths.
Hank watched in disgust through the small window above the hospital room. Seeing this scene only gave him the encouragement he needed and quickly dashed any feelings of guilt that were left in him. He stretched his legs again and pushed aside the bushes to check for any people. When he saw that there was no one around he crawled out and stood up. Now was not the time to complete his task. He'd get to a place with fewer people, and then. And then Sheridan would be no more. He would kill her this time--even if it meant killing his best friend.
Two days later Sheridan walked into her cottage with Luis following behind her. She sighed and threw herself down onto the couch. "It feels so good to finally get home!" Luis chuckled. "Sheridan, you were only there for two days."
"I know, I just hate hospitals." She shivered as memories of the hospital in Paris came back to her. Concerned, Luis lay a hand on her shoulder and took a seat next to her. "Sheridan, are you all right?" She was unresponsive, just stared straight ahead in a trance-like state.
The little girl ran into the living room in fear and hid in a corner, grabbing a letter opener. She was so afraid, so afraid of the horrible man chasing her. He wanted to hurt her, she could tell. She wouldn't let it happen. She drew herself out of her thoughts as the man approached the room and came into the corner where she was hiding. She jabbed the letter opener into his chest. The man stood still in shock, then stumbled backwards, knocking a table over in the process and fell to floor, hitting his head hard and blood gushed forth from his wound on his head as well as on his chest. As he uttered his final breath, Julian came into the room with a look of horror upon his face that lookedalmost mocked. "Sheridan, what have you done?"
Alistair followed Julian into the room, that strange look of horror on his face. "Sheridan, what have you done?" The little girl watched, more terrified than she'd ever been, as her father cleaned up the blood and wrapped the man she had killed in a white sheet, the blood stains soaking through. She stood before the sheet with blood on her hands. "You're a wicked, wicked girl Sheridan." "I didn't mean to!" "Yes you did. You did. No one will ever love you." The voice continued it's taunting chant and slowly faded out of the room, leaving the young girl crying. "No one will ever love me." She repeated this over and over until it became nothing but darkness. She woke up to find a bright light and doctors hovering over her. "Where am I?" "It doesn't matter" answered a doctor. "All that matters is that it was just a dream. Nothing really happened 'that night'." The young girl closed her eyes and fell back into her fitful sleep in the Paris hospital.
"Sheridan? Sheridan, come on. Don't do this to me."
Sheridan came out of her remembrance to find Luis shaking her. "Luis, what are you doing?"
He pulled her into a hug. "Oh thank God. I thought I had lost you for a minute there. You just kept staring ahead, not doing or saying anything. What happened Sheridan?"
"I did it," she said.
"Did what?"
"I killed him. Oh God, I killed that man."
Luis just looked at her. "You...you killed someone?"
"I didn't mean to! I didn't mean to! It was an accident!"
"Sheridan, why don't you just tell me what's going on?"
Sheridan looked at him. "Luis?"
"Yeah. Sheridan, who do you think you killed?"
"Oh my God. I said I killed someone?"
"Yes you did. And I would really like an explanation."
Hank peered watched into the cottage from his spot in the bushes. He dialed a number.
"Julian Crane."
"Julian" he hissed. "We have a problem."
"And that is?"
"The scenario that you said would never happen...well, it just happened."
"Luis knows?"
"Yes Luis knows. Sheridan blurted out that she killed someone during one of her little 'episodes'."
Julian turned away from the phone. "Dammit!" After pouring himself a large glass of brandy, he said, "Well, as planned before, you will just have to go ahead and do what I told you to do."
"You want me to kill Luis?"
"Yes, I want you to kill Luis. And if Sheridan starts to get too close to the truth, kill her. We can take no chances with the Crane Empire."
To Be Continued...
