Chapter 14

Chapter 14

After a lengthy walk through of picking the handcuffs, Elizabeth finally got Sarah out of the chair. She stood up and almost fell but Liz caught her around the torso. She didn't let go and dragged Sarah close for a hug. They held on for dear life for as long as they could anyway. They pulled away from each other and locked eyes. Sarah smiled wanly and squeezed Liz's shoulders in a somewhat reassuring manner.

Elizabeth pulled herself together and straightened her spine. She pulled away when she noticed that Sarah could hold herself up.

"I need to send some sort of signal to the people outside. We need to get to a window or something. The bad part of this is that it's pretty much an open space out there."

"Look out the window real quick. They're not going to be paying too much attention to the room right now. I overheard Jose saying he had some sort of weapons deal going down tonight. They're busy getting everything ready."

Elizabeth walked over to the window and looked around. The crates varied in size and color. There were some close to the door but for the most part the door to the office was open to the table Jose was standing at. They could use the crates as cover to get somewhere for a diversion or signal. The closest exit door was about two meters to the right of the office. She sighed heavily.

"There's no way to get out of the office without being seen. We'll have to wait until the deal happens. Do you know how long it will be?"

Sarah shook her head no and sighed too. Liz took a deep breath.

"So we wait."

And they did wait. Every minute that ticked by felt like an hour. Every hour that ticked by felt like a day. Elizabeth estimated that it had been about two hours since she was taken into the office. Which meant that it was probably after midnight. Her internal clock had never been good. There was a commotion outside. Liz got up to look out the window. There were more men in the warehouse than before and Jose was talking to someone, flanked by his right hand men. Liz turned to look at Sarah.

"Get ready. They're here."

Sarah stood up and swayed a little bit. Elizabeth bit her lip.

"Are you going to be okay to run?"

She nodded her head. They walked to the door. Liz opened it and peered out, looking for any sign that someone was looking in their direction. She turned and whispered to Sarah.

"Run to the crate to the right of the office. Be as quiet and as fast as you can."

Sarah ran through first and made it to the crate. Elizabeth watched to make sure she'd get there safely. She took several deep breaths before peering out the door again. Everyone had their eyes on the table. The men in charge were looking at the guns and everyone had their weapons in their hands, ready for anything that happened. She opened the door quickly and rushed out. Unfortunately someone saw her. They started firing. The gunshots were loud and the bullets piercing the warehouse wall behind her echoed in her ears. She ran as fast as she could. She got to the grate and put her back against it breathing heavily. Sarah looked at her with narrowed eyes and Elizabeth nodded her head. She pointed to the door.

The gunshots and the yelling had stopped. They could hear Jose yelling at the men who had shot at that them.

"I want them alive! No shooting-"

That was when hell was let loose to the warehouse. Men drifted in through all of the doors with guns and through the windows. Their reinforcements arrived in droves. The door that Sarah and Liz were going for was now open and men still filtered through it. Guns were going off everywhere and they flinched every time one of the bullets hit the crate they were hiding behind or the wall nearest to them. There was only a couple of feet until the door.

"We can make it, Sarah."

She nodded her head in agreement. Sarah took a deep breath and looked deep into Elizabeth's eyes. She pulled her close and it took a second for Liz to register that Sarah was kissing her. She kissed back. The kiss had no finesse. It was all teeth, tongue and desperation. A last goodbye in case they couldn't make it out. They pulled back and their foreheads touched.

"I love you," she whispered to Elizabeth.

"I love you."

They pulled back and Liz raised her hand. One finger went up and their bodies tensed. Another finger followed and they straightened, poised to run. Their muscles tightening. Three.

They ran as if hellhounds were on their heels. Gun shots echoed in their eardrums and wood splintered everywhere they ran. Sarah made it out the door first and ran a little ways away from the warehouse before she stopped, looking back for Liz. Liz ran out after her and she smiled at Sarah, happy to make it out. Sarah's face went from happy to concerned and she started yelling at her.

The pain lanced through her chest. Her body jolted forward with the force of it. Sarah cried out, tears streaming down her face. The sound of another gunshot was muffled, as if Liz's ears were stuffed with cotton. She fell to the ground on her knees and landed sideways. She turned her head to see Jose lying on the ground near the doorway of the warehouse. Two men in S.W.A.T. gear were on either side of him.

"Liz. Liz!"

She turned to Sarah and smiled weakly at her. Her hand went up to wipe tears from her face, though it didn't stop the flow.

"I love you, Sarah."

A sob broke through her and Liz couldn't help but start crying at the sound.

"Don't say it like that. Don't say it like you're saying goodbye. You're going to hold on and stay. Stay with me, Liz. Elizabeth you have to stay with me. Elizabeth!"

And she couldn't. It became to difficult to breathe. Each pull of air into her lungs was a struggle. Tremors wrecked through her body as it still, selfishly, tried to save itself. Liz could barely concentrate on Sarah's voice. She faintly squeezed her hand and tried to smile weakly at her once more.

"I lo' you, Sarah or Jennifer. It doesn't mat-ter which. Lo' you so 'uch. Much."

And she couldn't hold on anymore. Her eyes were focusing on Sarah's face. She was fading away, like through a foggy tunnel. And right before she closed her eyes, Sarah was being pushed away and people swarmed around her.

Sarah stayed in Liz's hospital room with her. She refused to leave and go home. She had Benji and Charlie bring her clothes and food. She slept in the uncomfortable chair that never reclined. She left to go to the bathroom and to shower. And when she sat in that chair she couldn't help but think.

The beeping of Elizabeth's machines turned into a dull background noise as she remembered, constantly, the events that led to this point. The guns, her past, and Jose. She just wanted to keep Liz safe and what did she do? She managed to get Elizabeth put in the hospital from a gunshot wound. They were just lucky that it missed her heart by a couple of inches. The breathing and heart monitor were constant reminders of it but they held hope as well.

The doctors told Sarah that she could wake up any time now. It just depends on her body and whether or not she's ready to wake up. Sarah wouldn't blame her if she never did. She caused her so many problems in that last few weeks.

But she loved her.

Damn did she love Liz. She reached over and grabbed her hand and squeezed it gently.

"Come back Elizabeth. We miss you. Benji decided to give Charlie another chance. They're working things out and they seem happy. They visit you every chance they get, you know. You've probably heard them moving around and talking to you and me. They're not exactly quiet. We miss you so much Liz. I love you so much. Come back."

She squeezed her hand one more time and waited another fifteen minutes before she had to go to the bathroom. By the time she walked out and into the hallway there was a flurry of activity. The nurses were running around, one was on the phone at the desk, another was fetching medical equipment and another was rushing into Elizabeth's room. She ran down the hallway and stopped in the doorway.

She rushed to the bed and just stared.

"Hey."

"Hi."

Sarah broke down crying and placed kisses all over Liz's face.

"I love you. I love you. I love you."

Liz laughed and Sarah cherished it.

"I love you too, Sarah."

Those were the only words that Sarah really needed to hear. Even through everything; the pain, the dreams, the worry. Five words were the only thing that could lift her spirits and emotions. The only thing that could make her life worth living again. The one thing she could look forward to every day. And she would make sure that it would be something she would hear, see and touch. She promised herself that. Her and Elizabeth. Her best friend and lover.

And to think, she would have never thought it'd all start with a pair of handcuffs and her best friend's bed.

**a/n: edited once. The whole story will be edited again at a later date.**