fic: Ambitions Trilogy Part Two: I Can, Therefore I Am - Part Five
Title: Ambitions Trilogy Part Two: I Can, Therefore I Am - Part Five
Author: slacker_d
Pairing/Characters: Rachel/Santana, OCs, Mike/OFC, Beth, Shelby, Puck, Brittany
Rating: R
Summary: 2021 to 2035 in Rachel and Santana's lives together.
Disclaimer: Not mine. Also, any real celebrities used are purely for entertainment. I know nothing about any of these people and am simply manipulating them for my own devices.
Word Count: ~7,000 (this part) / ~41,100 (total)
Spoilers: Previous parts of this series and season 1 of glee
A/N: Part two, finally. For helionwolfchild. Because even though she only posted one update of Talk Too Much instead of the promised two, it was still awesome. Plus, the initial motivation of the "deal" was enough to keep me on track with this fic. Title is a quote by Simone Weil.
2nd A/N: All real actors used were chosen because their age would match what it would be when this fic actually takes place. Also, once again, anything I didn't know (mostly anything related to lawyer-ing) was researched on the interweb, so I apologize if I've gotten things wrong.
3rd A/N: Unbeta’ed, so all mistakes are mine.
Part One | Part Two | Part Three | Part Four
Part Five
Summer 2029
Santana's running late. It's not her fault. Brittany is in town for a visit and so she's had no alone time with Rachel that doesn't involve actual sleeping. So earlier this morning when Rachel pulled her into the shower, how could Santana say no?
Except now she's running late and she still needs to stop and get cash for tonight.
Of course there's a small line; three people in front of her. One by one they use the machine and exit, the door shutting slowly with a loud click.
When it's finally her turn, Santana quickly steps up to the ATM, not noticing that the door doesn't click shut before it swooshes open again.
When she turns around she finds herself face to face with an Sig Sauer. More used to guns being shoved in her face than she'd like, Santana takes a deep breath and looks at the kids with her assailant.
There's a blond little girl in pigtails and a spring dress who looks about 5 and a defiant looking boy of maybe 10 in brown cords and a faded Harry Potter t-shirt. He has long dark blond hair that is desperate for a haircut. The fear in both the children's eyes tells Santana that she's in deep shit.
She then looks at her attacker. He's very twitchy. Her first thought is he's going through withdrawal. But then she watches him to talk the air next to him and she wonders if he's an escaped mental patient. Either way, he's a loose cannon waiting to explode.
"Give me your money," the guy says. "Now."
"Actually I just made a deposit," Santana lies.
"You expect me to believe that?" he asks. "No one does that anymore."
"Actually my partner's dad just sent a birthday check," Santana continues. "My partner didn't have time to deposit, so I offered."
He eyes her for a minute, his gaze dropping to her hands. They're loosely hanging at her side, but when he sees the ring, he seems to relax. "Well, we have a bit of a problem," he tells them, backing away slightly.
"Oh?"
"Yeah, cause I was hoping grabbing these kids would mean good hostages, but the little one won't stop crying."
"Cause you hit our mom," the boy pipes up.
"Shut the hell up," the gunman says, backhanding the boy.
"Whoa, hey," Santana says, jumping in between them. "That isn't happening again."
"The hell it isn't," he snarls.
"What's your name?" Santana asks
"What's yours?"
"Santana," she answers. "I just want to know what to call you."
"You can call me Jack," he answers.
"All right, Jack." Santana crouches down so she's eye level with the kids. "What's your names?" she asks.
"I’m Robert," the boy replies. "And this is my little sister, Caitlin."
"And how old are you?"
"I'm eleven and Caitlin's six."
"Okay." Santana stands. "So Jack. Explain what's going on."
"I'll tell you what's going on," he spats. "I was trying to rob the bank, but was stopped before I could even start. So I grabbed these two and took off. When I saw that door closing, I thought it was another way out. Fucking figures I'd pick a god damn dead end. You? Well just luck, I guess. Because an adult hostage would be much easier to deal with."
"So you're going to let them go?" Santana asks.
"Of course not," Jack replies. "The more hostages I have the better."
Santana barely holds back a sigh as she grimaces. Her brain is already going over various scenarios of how this is going to end. None of them are good. She's momentarily glad that she made love to her wife before she left this morning. If it's the last thing Rachel has to remember of her, she's glad it's a pleasant memory.
She watches as Jack scopes out the situation. The first thing he does is shoot out the security system so no one else can enter the vestibule. It leaves a small fist sized hole when the plastic contraption falls off, but Jack doesn't seem too concerned about that. Santana is somewhat grateful; more hostages would only make the already tense situation, much worse.
Santana sits on the bench and motions the kids to join her. Robert sits on her right side, out of Jack's line of vision while Caitlin crawls into her lap. A bit surprised, Santana, nonetheless, wraps her arms around the obviously scared little girl as Robert grabs her hand.
"I don't know what going to happen," she whispers to them both. "But I promise I'm going to do everything in my power to get us out of here. Okay?"
Robert nods.
"You don't have to be brave all the time, kiddo," she tells him. "Sometimes it's okay to cry."
"I know," Robert whispers back. "But if I do, Caitlin will be way more scared. It's my job as her big brother to take care of her."
Santana's mind immediately goes to Felix and she swallows down her own tears. "You must be a very good big brother," she says instead.
Robert won't meet Santana's eyes. "I pick on her a lot."
"It's okay. My older brother did the same when I was growing up," Santana tells him. "But we're good friends now."
"How old are you?"
"Ancient," Santana replies. "I'm thirty-five."
"You're almost as old as our mom," Robert says.
"I told you," Santana smiles. "Ancient."
…
An hour later, the entire block is barricaded and a hostage negotiator is outside trying to make contact.
Not wanting to give Jack access to her life, Santana hasn't offered her cell phone. She especially doesn't want him to know she's works for the city. He's already worked up enough that he didn't think to ask. That knowledge makes her a much more valuable hostage. Looking at her watch, Santana notices that she is due in court in about twenty minutes. She's pretty sure she's not going to make it.
Caitlin isn't crying anymore, though she's still on Santana's lap, clutching her suit jacket. Robert is sitting stoically next to her, obviously doing his best not to cry, but he hasn't let go of her hand yet and she's surprised she hasn't lost feeling from his tense grip.
Her cell phone vibrates almost silently and Santana is thankful it's in silent mode. Who knows what Jack might do when he realizes people are trying to contact Santana.
The three of them watch anxiously as Jack paces back and forth in front of the vestibule. The windows are tinted and Santana remembers that seeing inside is extremely difficult. She also knows seeing out isn't nearly as tough and knows a sniper taking Jack out isn't going to happen.
Santana feels momentarily guilty for hoping that someone would just shoot Jack in the head and end it all quickly. But then Robert buries his face against her shoulder and the guilt turns into anger at him for scaring these kids.
…
Rachel is quietly sipping coffee and reading the paper when her cell phone rings. Absently she answers it.
"Hello?"
"Rachel? It's Jules."
"Hey Jules," Rachel replies, setting aside her paper. She can't think of a good reason that her wife's coworker would be calling her at 8:50 in the morning. "What can I do for you?"
"I don't suppose Santana's with you?" Jules asks. "Please tell me she's with you."
Fear washes over Rachel like a bucket of cold water. "She's not. She left for work an hour ago. She had to be in court at nine, she said."
"That's what I was afraid of," Jules says. "I'm sorry Rachel, but she hasn't shown up yet and she's not answering her cell."
Beth walks into the kitchen and head straight for the coffee. After pouring herself a mug and taking a sip, she notices Rachel's tense posture. "What's going on?" she asks.
Rachel waves her off, fighting off the rising panic as she asks, "You sure you haven't just missed her? Maybe she's in the bathroom? Or maybe her train is running late?"
"Rachel…"
"I know, Jules, I know." Rachel stands. "Do you have to cover for her?"
"I do, I'm sorry. You know I'd--"
"Jules," Rachel interrupts. "It's fine. I'll start calling. I'll find her. Okay? Just… if you do see her, make her call me that instant. Okay?"
"Of course, Rachel."
"Good luck."
"You too."
"What the hell is going on?" Beth asks when Rachel hangs up her cell.
"It, uh, seems that Santana is… unaccounted for."
"What does that mean?"
"No one knows where she is and she isn't answering her cell."
"She's missing?"
"She's fine," Rachel says. "She probably forgot to charge it or something. She's fine."
"What do you need me to do?" Beth asks.
"I'm going to start calling around," Rachel replies. "Can you call Britt and Mike? See if they've heard from them?"
"Of course."
"And wake Abby," Rachel adds. "I really… we could use her help calling."
"Sure, Rach," Beth replies. Leaving her coffee mug on the counter, she hurries out of the kitchen in search of her cell phone.
Knowing it'll be futile, Rachel nonetheless, dials Santana's cell phone. When the voice mail picks up, she takes a deep breath, hoping her tears aren't too evident in her voice.
"San, honey, it's, uh, Rachel. Jules just called and said you haven't shown up yet. So as you can imagine, I'm a bit worried, especially since you didn't answer. I need you to call me the moment you get this message, so my heart can stop pounding so quickly, I'd really appreciate it. Okay? I love you. Call me."
…
Santana wonders how it's possible to be both frightened of dying and bored out of her mind. The last few hours have been her sitting on a bench, kids huddled against her while Jack paces and curses as the police negotiator, Dan Lymann attempts to communicated with Jack.
Things are heading decided downhill in Santana's opinion and this situation has barely started. She wonders if that means it's going to end quickly and badly or be drawn out and end terribly.
She feels a bit of optimism when she hears Lymann's latest attempt.
"All right, Jack," Lymann says into the bullhorn he's been clutching to the past four hours. "I'm going to approach. I'll be unarmed. All I want to do is give you a cell phone so we can communicate. My number is the only number programmed in it. So you can call me whenever you're ready to talk. Okay?"
Santana watches as Jack considers it for a moment before yelling, "Fine!"
Lymann nods and hands his bullhorn to the officer next to him. He removes his gun and begins slowly walking over. Once in front of the vestibule, he gingerly reaches into his pocket and pulls out a cell phone. He carefully pushes it through the broken glass and waits for Jack to take it.
Jack leaps forward and snatches it out of Lymann's grasp. He immediately sets it on the window ledge, knocking some pamphlets to the ground.
"Call me," Lymann says. "I'd like to talk." He then slowly backs away until he's back behind the road blocks.
…
Rachel wonders how it's possible to feel so alone, surrounded by loved ones. Apparently, Beth took it upon herself to call, in addition of Brittany, Mike and Zoe, but Kelly and Ryan. Everyone is front of the TV as Abby flicks through the channels looking for information. Beth, Kelly and Mike are all on their phones, trying to find information that way. All Rachel can do is sit on the couch and try not to think the worst. Brittany's doing her best to distract Rachel by reverting to what Santana has dubbed "high school Brittany".
"I been studying them for three weeks now," Brittany says. "And I have yet to catch them in the act, but every time I look in the tank, the castle has a new room or tower and I don't understand how they can build something without hands. Do you think that fish can move stuff with their minds? Because it's the only explanation I can think of."
"I have no idea, Britt," Rachel replies. "Have you tried setting up hidden cameras?"
"But if I do that in front of them, they won't be hidden," Brittany points out.
"Maybe cover the tank with a blanket while you do it," Rachel suggests."
"Hmmm. Maybe."
"Abby, stop, a sec," Ryan interrupts Abby's channel surfing. "Go back to New York 1."
On screen is a female reporter standing in front of police barricades. "We are now four hours into the stand off between police and a man who has barricade himself in an ATM vestibule attached to the First Manhattan Bank on Broadway and Worth Street. I have been told he has three hostages, two small children he snatched on his run from the police and someone who happened to be using the ATM when he burst in. According to police sources, the third hostage is Santana Lopez, an ADA for the Hate Crimes Unit. Lopez has a 91% conviction rate and is an up and comer in the DA's office. However she is most well known for being the wife of Broadway star, Rachel Berry. Police say they're making slow, but steady progress. We'll continue to update you as the situation continues."
Mike grabs the remote from Abby and hits the mute button as silence falls. Everyone tries their best not to stare at Rachel, but she can feel their eyes on her.
She stands. "I need a glass of water," she announces and heads into the kitchen. She can hear them whispering over her shoulder, debating whether or not to follow her. She's mildly curious as to who will end up comforting her first. She has to admit she's a bit surprised when Brittany strolls in.
Brittany doesn't say anything. She simply joins Rachel in leaning against the counter. Once Rachel's done with her water, Brittany puts an arm around her. When she doesn't resist, Brittany pulls her into a hug.
"It's going to be fine, Rach," Brittany says.
"You don't know that," Rachel mumbles into Brittany's shirt.
"Well, I suppose that's true," Brittany agrees. "I'm certainly no psychic. But I do know that San will do everything in her power to come home to you."
"I do too, but that isn't always something she can control."
"S knows what she needs to do in this situation," Brittany points out. "An upside to her job."
"She's not a negotiator."
"She's a lawyer," Brittany counters.
"I can't lose her," Rachel whispers.
"You're not going to," Brittany tells her and Rachel is amazed at the conviction in Brittany's voice.
"Hey, uh, Rach?"
Both women turn to find Abby standing hesitantly in the doorway.
"You should probably take this?" Abby hands Rachel her cell.
…
The cell phone has rung fourteen times, Santana’s kept track. Jack is ignoring it. He seems to be having a panic attack and after almost six hours, Santana’s not sure she can take much more.
Right now, hunger is warring with the fear in her stomach. She wonders if Jack would be up for requesting a pizza or something.
Looking at the kids, Santana's willing to bet they're starving. Caitlin is now cuddled up, asleep in her lap and while Robert isn't asleep, he is drowsily leaning against her.
Jack is pacing again and it's a bit nauseating.
Santana just sighs and leans her head back, trying to think of more pleasant things.
…
Of all the people Rachel expected to call her, Eric Yarr, the DA wasn't one of them.
"Rachel, it's Eric."
"Please tell me you know something."
"Probably not much more than you do. I'm sorry that you found out from the TV," he apologizes. "That was the damn police. When I find out who leaked that info, I'll… Anyway, I just wanted to touch base with you and make sure you're, uh, not okay, but well, hanging on, I suppose."
"I've got people around me," Rachel answers.
"Yeah. Your, uh…"
"Sister."
"Right. Sister said as much," Eric replies.
"I'm fine, Eric," Rachel tells him. "But I appreciate the call."
"Of course, Rachel."
"And I'll be calling you for updates if I feel the need," Rachel continues.
Eric chuckles. "I assumed as much. I'll talk to you soon."
"Bye Eric."
"Who was that?" Brittany asks.
She's now sitting on the counter, with Rachel leaning into her, the blonde's arms wrapped around her.
"Eric Yarr, the DA."
"Santana's boss?"
"Yep."
"Whoa. S really is his favorite," she comments.
Rachel nods.
…
Rachel's never been patient. She's certainly gotten better over the years, but there are some things she'll never be able to wait out. And though it's never really happened before, Rachel has decided, waiting to find out if her wife is safe is one of them.
It's been hours since Eric's phone call and the TV is no help. Everyone is keeping an eye on their phones, each on a specific bit of internet, hoping to find new information, but it seems that Eric really did come down on someone, because there is no news.
Rachel jumps up and begins pacing. "I can't take this anymore!"
"We just have to be patient," Abby tries, her voice wavering.
"Yeah, Rach," Kelly adds. "There's nothing we can do, but wait this out."
"That's not true," Rachel retorts.
"Why did you say that?" Ryan asks. "Now you've got her started."
"Anything else is better than this quiet, closed in Rachel," Beth says.
"You'll be eating those words soon, kid," Mike tells her.
"Rachel Lopez is not passive." Rachel continues her pacing. "I need to do something."
"Such as?" Ryan asks.
"I don’t know. But not being proactive is killing me."
"We could go down there," Brittany suggests.
Rachel actually stops pacing and stares at Brittany. Everyone else stares at well, but in disbelief.
"Britt…" Mike warns. "I'm not sure that's such a good idea."
"Why not?" Brittany questions.
"Because it's dangerous," Beth says.
"No, it's perfect," Rachel interjects. "I should go down there."
"What would that accomplish?" Kelly asks.
Rachel shrugs. "Because the minute she's safe, then I'll know. Right?"
"Or the minute there's trouble, you'll know," Abby says.
Beth elbows her as Mike shoots her an incredulous look.
"Exactly," Rachel continues on. "I'm going."
"I don't think that's a good idea, Rach," Mike says standing.
"Probably not," Rachel replies. "But I'm going."
Before anyone can say anything else, she scurries off to change.
"Why would you say that?" Mike asks Brittany.
Brittany shrugs. "She would have thought of it eventually."
"Or," Kelly says. "The crisis would be over before she does."
"This is Rachel we're talking about," Brittany replies.
"And Santana's not here to keep a reign on her," Ryan throws out.
"Yeah, so we have to," Beth adds.
Brittany sighs. "You could try. But it would have been useless."
"Britt," Mike tries. "Just because they're just as… insane about each other as they were twenty years ago, doesn't mean that we should let Rachel run out and do something crazy."
"Why not?" Brittany asks.
"Because," Beth says. "It's not safe."
"And it's not like her presence is going to help matters," Kelly adds.
"But it won't hurt it either, right? And it'll help Rachel, which matters more."
"She shouldn't go down there alone," Ryan protests.
"Who said I was going alone?" Rachel asks, returning.
She's changed into jeans, boots and a navy shirt. Everyone blinks at her for a moment. She's eerily calm and everyone finds it a bit unsettlingly.
"Britt's coming with me. Right?"
The blonde nods.
"So we'll keep in touch," Rachel continues. "And the minute we know something, we'll let you guys know."
Ignoring everyone's protests, the pair stroll out of the apartment.
"We should go after them," Beth says.
"Really?" Mike asks. "You're going to convince her to not go?"
"That I'd like to see," Kelly adds.
"Fine." Beth slumps back on the couch.
"So we wait," Ryan says.
"We wait," Mike agrees, sitting back down.
…
Listening to the demands that Jack is spouting off to Lymann, Santana wonders if he's an idiot or if it's just the stress of the situation is getting to him.
She admit the stress of the situation is getting to her. She's starving and on her last nerve. If it wasn't for Robert and Caitlin, Santana's pretty sure she would have gone off on the guy already. Them and her fear of what he might do. For all her bravado, she's not a moron. She knows how tense and serious this whole thing is.
Now done on the phone, Jack places it back on the window ledge and turns towards them.
"Well, maybe we're making some progress," he tells her.
"That's be nice," Santana replies.
"It's not my fault," Jack argues. "If they would have just listened to reason, we would have been out of her a lot sooner."
Santana just shakes her head, not wanting to set off a rant again. The last one went on for over ten minutes and was… painful to listen to.
"I'm hungry," Caitlin whispers.
"I know, kiddo," Santana says, turning her attention to the girl, still on her lap. "Hopefully we can get something to eat soon."
"Really?"
"Hopefully."
"Yay," Caitlin says quietly.
…
When Rachel and Brittany arrive at the scene, it's chaos. Rachel tells Brittany who to search out in the maze of heads and eventually the blonde spots someone who may be Eric Yarr. She drags Rachel over.
"Rachel," Eric greets.
"Hello, Eric. I couldn't sit at home anymore," she says to his unasked question.
"Understandable."
"So what's happening?" Brittany asks.
Eric looks at her oddly.
"Oh, this is Santana's best friend, Brittany. She's visiting from LA," Rachel explains.
Eric nods. "He's made his demands. They're unreasonable, of course. But he's allowed them time to go find what he wants. And he's calmed down a bit. They've managed to get a hold of the layout of the vestibule and so hopefully, they can get in there and secure them."
"That sounds dangerous," Brittany comments.
Eric nods. "They're running out of options. They can't go in through the front and so they're hoping there's a back way."
Rachel nods, absently, trying to see what's going on, but of course she's too short and too far away to see properly.
"So we wait."
"We wait," Eric agrees.
…
To Santana the situation has reached a point of desperation that will quickly spiral out of control. Jack is pacing frantically and muttering to himself. He's waving the gun around and she's pretty sure the safety isn't on.
Because he seems rather distracted, Santana decides to try something desperate. Knowing her wife as she does, Santana's willing to bet her life, literally, that Rachel is nearby. She might be behind the police barricades, but there's no way in hell that Rachel is going to stay seated on the couch, being kept out of the loop.
Slipping her hand towards her phone, Santana just prays that Rachel doesn't answer the phone too loudly. Going only on her sense of touch, Santana hits speed dial one, which is Rachel and hopes for the best.
…
The vibration in her pocket, alerts Rachel to her cell. She pulls it out and almost drops it when she sees Santana's name in the display. She takes several deep breaths before answering it.
"Hello?" she whispers.
There's no answer, but Rachel can hear things happening. It's mostly movement, but she can occasionally hear children whimpering and someone ranting, rather hysterically.
"Eric," she says, tapping him on the shoulder.
He turns to face her. "Yes."
Rachel holds up her cell. She's hit mute, so no one gives Santana away. "Santana called me."
"What?"
"I think she just has it hidden somewhere, but I can hear what's going on in there."
Eric nods. "Come on."
Rachel and Brittany follow Eric as he tries to get the negotiator's attention.
"What the hell is it Yarr?" Lymann demands when he's finally dragged over to the trio.
"This is Lopez's wife--"
"Yeah, thought you looked familiar. Nice to meet you. But I'm kind of in the middle of trying to--"
"We have ear inside," Rachel blurts out.
"What?" Lymann asks.
Rachel holds up her cell again. "She just called me. She's not talking, but I think she just has it hidden somewhere, but you can hear what's going on."
Lymann reaches for the phone, but Rachel quickly snatches it back.
"What the fuck, lady?" Lymann growls. "If you have--"
"Let us past the barricade and it's yours," Rachel demands. "We'll stay out of the way."
He eyes her angrily for a moment. "Fine," Lymann agrees.
Rachel ducks under the barricade and Brittany follows. "It's on mute," Rachel explains as she hands over the phone.
Lymann nods and accepts it, quickly returning to the huddle of people on the sidewalk.
"Well this is an interesting development," Yarr says, behind Rachel.
Rachel just ignores him as she leans back against Brittany and the blonde wraps her arms around her.
…
Santana must have drifted off for a moment because Jack is suddenly in her face, ranting. He's threatening the kids and her and the fear that she's been pushing down is quickly rising. She tries to breath, knowing it'll help keep the panic down, but it's difficult with a madman screaming in her face and two shaking, frightened children surrounding her.
Trying to keep her expression neutral, Santana lets her mind wander to Rachel and she knows she'll do anything to come home safe, so she takes another deep breath and tries to talk Jack down or at least away from her and the kids. If she can just get the a safe distance, maybe SWAT can break down the door and take him out before he takes all four of them out.
She feels confident that Rachel has handed over her phone to someone involved and that Lymann is most likely listening to all this. She can only hope he has a plan, because Santana knows that time has run out.
…
As she sees SWAT carefully approach the vestibule from both sides, but trying to stay out of sight, Rachel fights the urge to bury her head against Brittany's shoulder; she needs to see what happens.
Everyone is posed and quiet. Rachel's heart is beating so fast, she's surprised she isn't having a heart attack. She knows Brittany is just as nervous; the arms wrapped around her have tightened significantly.
All of a sudden, they're kicking down the door and there's the sound of glass shattering. It's followed by shouting, bangs and crashes.
And then, amidst all the chaos, Rachel hears a sound that stops her heart; two quick gunshots. It's followed by more shouting and a particularly loud crash.
"Clear!"
Brittany's arms around her are the only reason Rachel doesn't run towards the vestibule towards Santana. Her hands are gripping Brittany's arms so tightly, Rachel worries that she's hurting Brittany, but the blonde doesn't seem to mind.
They watch as the paramedics run in and there's an even bigger flurry of action. The first person dragged out is the gunman. He appears just as maniac and it takes two extremely muscular cops to drag him towards a squad car and throw him in the back.
And then a stretcher is hurriedly pushed into the vestibule and Rachel fights the tears she feels forming. She feels horrible for thinking it, but she hopes the stretcher is for one of the SWAT guys or god forbid, one of the kids.
When the stretcher finally reappears, Rachel can see Santana laid out on it, but she seems awake and alert, so Rachel's worry lessens slightly. The presence of the kids, walking next to the stretcher is also somewhat reassuring.
Brittany lets Rachel go and they quickly approach the ambulance that Santana is being wheeled towards. They're still held back by a police officer, but he doesn't make them return behind the barricade, so Rachel tries to be patient.
All she knows is there's no way in hell Santana is going to the hospital alone. She just has to wait for the right moment to jump into the ambulance with her.
…
When Santana hears the sound of glass breaking, she knows it's the beginning of the end. She pulls the kids behind her and tries to protect them the best she can. Jack is on the opposite side of the small vestibule, still pacing, but reacts quickly when hears SWAT storm in.
He raises the gun and manages to get off two shots before he's tackled to the ground and quickly handcuffed. She feels a stinging pain, but brushes it off as she watches.
Once Jack is dragged out, she lets herself relax a bit and the kids peek out.
"You're bleeding," Robert tells her.
Santana looks at her arm and sees that she is indeed bleeding. One of the bullets seem to have found their target. That explains the pain.
Someone else must have noticed this because suddenly there's a stretcher in front of her and she's being helped onto it.
The kids begin to cry and it takes them "helping" push the stretcher out to keep them calm.
When they reach the ambulance, the kids are lifted onto the right side of her stretcher and looked over as someone looks over her left arm.
It's declared they're mostly suffering from hunger and fear, which Santana could have told them, but whatever. A moment later, a frantic woman in her late thirties appears and embraces them both. The air if filled with weeping and apologies.
"She saved us," Robert tells her.
Their mother looks over at Santana and gives her an awkward, but enthusiastic half hug.
"Thank you. Thank you. Thank you." Her voice is so full of gratitude, it almost chokes Santana.
Santana just nods.
"We need to get her to the hospital," the EMT tells the mother, who nods.
And then suddenly Rachel is at her side with tears streaming down her face. Behind her stands an equally tearful Brittany and a stoic Eric Yarr.
"Hey babe," Santana greets. "B."
Rachel just squeezes her hand as they push the stretcher into the ambulance.
"I'll see you guys later, okay?" she calls out to the kids.
She kind of sees them nod as they hug their mother tightly.
And then the doors slam shut.
Thankfully, Santana doesn't seem to need too much attention from the EMT, so Rachel is able to sit on her right and tightly grip her hand. She doesn't say anything, just grins at her with a watery smile.
…
Watching the ambulance drive away, Brittany steps away slightly from the chaos and calls Mike. Letting them know what happened, everyone agrees they'll probably head home, now that they know Santana is safe. They don't want to overwhelm her when she finally is allowed to leave the hospital.
Nodding to Santana's boss, Brittany pushes her way through the crowd and tries to find a cab back to the apartment.
…
Luckily the bullet just grazed Santana's left arm, so it really just require stitches. She's given high priority, despite her protests. Santana wonders if it's because she's an ADA or because she was just a hostage for eighteen hours.
Rachel is by her side the whole time; there's no persuading her otherwise. Not that Santana would try. The hospital staff learn this very quickly and leave the pair be.
Santana's waiting for the doctor to come and release her when Yarr sticks his head in.
"Sir."
"Lopez. Rachel."
"Hello, Eric."
"Doing all right, I see," Yarr says.
"Nothing like pain medication to take away all your troubles," Santana quips.
"Uh huh. Well, I just wanted to let you know you have rest of the week off. Your only responsibility is go in tomorrow, well today, I suppose and give a police report."
"It's Friday, sir," Santana points out. "I appreciate the generosity."
"Is it Friday, already?"
Rachel nods.
"Well, then take Monday too. Jules covered just fine this morning, I'm sure she'll continue to do so."
"Thanks, I guess."
"It's the least I can do," Yarr says. "For our little hero."
"What?"
"Everyone's calling you a hero Lopez, for protecting those kids," Yarr explains. "Everyone's showing the initial interview with the kids and their mom. The boy can't stop raving about you."
Santana groans.
"Awww," Rachel coos.
"And of course, the little girl loves you," Yarr continues. "Combine that with the rumor that you took a chance with your cell phone and helped SWAT know when to go in."
"How'd that get out?" Santana asks.
Yarr smirks. "I may have had a hand in that."
Santana growls at him.
"I gotta ask. How'd you know that Rachel would be close enough to help?"
Santana shrugs. "Where else would she be?"
Rachel nods.
"Right. Of course. Stupid question. Anyway, I should go. We'll talk next week."
Santana nods.
"Thank you, Eric," Rachel calls after him. Then she turns to Santana. "Have I ever told you that you're my hero?"
"Quiet you," Santana replies. "Besides, you helped."
"By being a predictable basket case when you're in danger?" Rachel asks.
"Or the loving wife that just wanted to be near me when I was in danger," Santana counters. "It got bad in there pretty quick. But without knowing what was going on inside, there's no way they could just storm in. That idiot took the perfect hostages, two adorable children and a city employee."
"You're more than a city employee."
"So they had to be extra careful about causalities," Santana continues. "All things considered, I think it turned out well."
"Santana, you were shot."
"It's just a graze," Santana replies. "Now I'm even more badass. War wounds or whatever."
Rachel just shakes her head.
…
Brittany is the only one still awake when they finally make it home. Both Beth and Abby tried to stay awake, but Brittany eventually pushed them out of the room and into their beds. Watching TV on the couch, Brittany looks up as Rachel and Santana enter the room.
Rachel helps Santana sink onto the couch next to her best friend before joining her.
"All hail the conquering hero," Brittany teases after she hugs Santana long and tight.
Santana groans. "Not you too."
"You're all over the news. If it's possible, you're now more famous than Rachy. At least in the city."
Santana looks over at Rachel apprehensively at that statement, but her wife is grinning wildly.
"This will definitely help you become DA, don't you think?" Rachel asks.
"You're not mad?"
"San, you're home safe and sound," Rachel replies. "Nothing else matters."
"Yeah," Brittany agrees. "And now you can use your tragedy to your advantage. It's a win-win. Sort of."
"Yay. All it took was eighteen torturous, frightening hours," Santana snarks.
"Yep."
"Huh."
"Everyone else had to go home to sleep," Brittany explains. "They said they'd all call this afternoon, to see how you're doing."
"I'm sorry your visit got so interrupted," Santana tells her.
"Oh stop," Brittany replies. "I'll just glad I could be here for you and for Rach. They weren't going to let her go down there."
Santana looks at Rachel, who has cuddled into her left side after carefully lifting her injured arm around her. Thanks to the pain medication, she didn't even notice. Rachel has tears running down her face, but just nods.
"Well thank god you were here, then Britt," Santana says.
"I know, right," Brittany replies. "It's like those guys don't know you at all."
"Well to be fair," Rachel speaks up. "I think Abby and Beth were worried about something happening to me as well. The others were worried about me seeing something terrible happen that I'd never get over."
"Don't they know it wouldn't matter if you were there or not," Brittany says. "If something happened to Santana, you'd never get over it."
"They should." Rachel sees that Santana's starting to doze. "Maybe we should get the hero to bed, huh?"
Brittany nods and helps Rachel pull Santana up and head into the bedroom. They both undress her and tuck her in under the covers.
"Thank you," Rachel says, hugging Brittany tightly. "For… understanding."
"I'll see you in the morning?"
Rachel nods.
Crawling into bed with her wife, Rachel lets the tears fall freely. Curled into Santana's right side, it's easier that way. Half asleep, Santana tightens her hold on Rachel and kisses her forehead.
"Love you, babe."
…
The pain medication lets Santana sleep until noon, which she hasn't done in a long time. She's greeted with a bottle of water and more pain meds. She quickly takes them and goes in search of coffee.
In the kitchen she finds Brittany doing work, Rachel reading the paper and Abby on her phone. She can hear Beth in the living room. She doesn't say anything, just gets herself some coffee and sits down next to Rachel.
In the middle of an article, Rachel gives a little wave, before taking Santana's hand and lacing their fingers together.
Abby looks up. "Hey Santana."
"Hey Abby."
Abby jumps up and hugs her. Since Rachel is holding Santana's left hand, Abby feels okay squeezing Santana tightly from the right. "I'm glad you're okay," she whispers.
"Thanks."
Beth appears a moment later and hugs Santana just as tightly after Abby's done.
Looking over at her wife, Santana sees a small smirk as she continues to read the paper. The fingers wrapped around hers give her a brief squeeze.
Once Rachel's done, she turns to Santana. "I'll help you shower and then we'll go down to the station to make your statement?"
Santana nods.
…
The day passes quickly. Between the police report and avoiding reporters, Santana is exhausted. She and Rachel both agree an official interview should be given, it's just a matter of waiting for the right offer.
Everywhere they go, they see newspapers with Santana's picture, calling her a hero. Rachel keeps singing all the lyrics she can think of that have the word hero in them.
Sometimes a hero doesn’t know she’s a hero and that's the beauty of sharing love. And it doesn’t take superman, just plain ordinary people… is sung on the way to the polie station. And while they're sitting there waiting for someone to come interview Santana, Rachel sings, Look inside you and be strong. And you'll finally see the truth, That a hero lies in you.
Santana tries to be annoyed, but Rachel is having too much fun and it's just too cute, so she just does her best to ignore her.
They're even stopped on the street a few times by people wanting an autograph from both Rachel and Santana. Worried, her wife might take it the wrong way, Santana tries to refuse, but Rachel insists.
"They're votes, tiger," Rachel tells her.
"You think they're going to remember in ten years?"
Rachel shrugs. "Who can say? But it doesn't hurt."
"True."
"You want to talk about it, yet?" Rachel asks.
"No." Santana sighs. "I will though. I guess it's back to therapy, huh?"
"It'd probably be a good idea, yes."
…
When a messenger drops off Rachel and Santana's cell phones, they both check their messages. Santana has nineteen where Rachel only has nine.
The first couple of messages are quick, frantic ones from Jules, wondering where she is. There's even one from Yarr, asking the same thing, as if Santana didn't call Jules back because they're coworkers. There's only one message from Rachel and it almost breaks Santana's heart to hear the fear in Rachel's voice.
The next few messages are from Beth, Abby and Britt, telling her to hold on. There's even one from Mike.
There's several from the day after from her parents, which are frantic; as are the three from Felix. There's one from Jen checking up on her and surprisingly, there's one from Puckerman.
Rachel has messages from each of the Lopezs as well as one from Jake. There's also one from Jen asking what the fuck is going on.
Both are glad they called people after the police station the day after. They would have called sooner if they'd known that the news had travelled so quickly; though they probably should have known better.
Everyone was so relieved that they didn't have the energy to be angry. Although it took a lot of convincing that Santana was truly okay. Rachel spent over twenty minutes on the phone reassuring Clara and convincing her that she didn't need to fly out.
…
It doesn't take Santana long to get sick of doing interviews. She does a few for some newspapers, a couple magazines and two television shows because Rachel insists. There's even a tearful reunion with Robert, Caitlin and their mom. It's considered media gold by everyone, even Santana, who knows it's necessary, but can't help but find it annoying.
Of course, Rachel and Santana become lesbian poster women for a while. They get some harassment for being career driven, but childless, but when people bring up Beth and Abby, the arguments begin to die down.
Rachel worries how Noah is taking all this. Hearing how his little girl is being raised by someone else on national TV, might be difficult to take. In turn, Santana is really worried about Quinn. They're both glad it was a closed adoption and that Beth is well into adulthood.
Beth makes no mention of being contacted by her birth mother, leaving Santana to hope that Quinn hasn't figured it out. She would argue that twenty years is a long time and that maybe Quinn has finally moved on. Except she knows that was never true for Shelby, so why would it be for Quinn?
Part Six
Author: slacker_d
Pairing/Characters: Rachel/Santana, OCs, Mike/OFC, Beth, Shelby, Puck, Brittany
Rating: R
Summary: 2021 to 2035 in Rachel and Santana's lives together.
Disclaimer: Not mine. Also, any real celebrities used are purely for entertainment. I know nothing about any of these people and am simply manipulating them for my own devices.
Word Count: ~7,000 (this part) / ~41,100 (total)
Spoilers: Previous parts of this series and season 1 of glee
A/N: Part two, finally. For helionwolfchild. Because even though she only posted one update of Talk Too Much instead of the promised two, it was still awesome. Plus, the initial motivation of the "deal" was enough to keep me on track with this fic. Title is a quote by Simone Weil.
2nd A/N: All real actors used were chosen because their age would match what it would be when this fic actually takes place. Also, once again, anything I didn't know (mostly anything related to lawyer-ing) was researched on the interweb, so I apologize if I've gotten things wrong.
3rd A/N: Unbeta’ed, so all mistakes are mine.
Part One | Part Two | Part Three | Part Four
Part Five
Summer 2029
Santana's running late. It's not her fault. Brittany is in town for a visit and so she's had no alone time with Rachel that doesn't involve actual sleeping. So earlier this morning when Rachel pulled her into the shower, how could Santana say no?
Except now she's running late and she still needs to stop and get cash for tonight.
Of course there's a small line; three people in front of her. One by one they use the machine and exit, the door shutting slowly with a loud click.
When it's finally her turn, Santana quickly steps up to the ATM, not noticing that the door doesn't click shut before it swooshes open again.
When she turns around she finds herself face to face with an Sig Sauer. More used to guns being shoved in her face than she'd like, Santana takes a deep breath and looks at the kids with her assailant.
There's a blond little girl in pigtails and a spring dress who looks about 5 and a defiant looking boy of maybe 10 in brown cords and a faded Harry Potter t-shirt. He has long dark blond hair that is desperate for a haircut. The fear in both the children's eyes tells Santana that she's in deep shit.
She then looks at her attacker. He's very twitchy. Her first thought is he's going through withdrawal. But then she watches him to talk the air next to him and she wonders if he's an escaped mental patient. Either way, he's a loose cannon waiting to explode.
"Give me your money," the guy says. "Now."
"Actually I just made a deposit," Santana lies.
"You expect me to believe that?" he asks. "No one does that anymore."
"Actually my partner's dad just sent a birthday check," Santana continues. "My partner didn't have time to deposit, so I offered."
He eyes her for a minute, his gaze dropping to her hands. They're loosely hanging at her side, but when he sees the ring, he seems to relax. "Well, we have a bit of a problem," he tells them, backing away slightly.
"Oh?"
"Yeah, cause I was hoping grabbing these kids would mean good hostages, but the little one won't stop crying."
"Cause you hit our mom," the boy pipes up.
"Shut the hell up," the gunman says, backhanding the boy.
"Whoa, hey," Santana says, jumping in between them. "That isn't happening again."
"The hell it isn't," he snarls.
"What's your name?" Santana asks
"What's yours?"
"Santana," she answers. "I just want to know what to call you."
"You can call me Jack," he answers.
"All right, Jack." Santana crouches down so she's eye level with the kids. "What's your names?" she asks.
"I’m Robert," the boy replies. "And this is my little sister, Caitlin."
"And how old are you?"
"I'm eleven and Caitlin's six."
"Okay." Santana stands. "So Jack. Explain what's going on."
"I'll tell you what's going on," he spats. "I was trying to rob the bank, but was stopped before I could even start. So I grabbed these two and took off. When I saw that door closing, I thought it was another way out. Fucking figures I'd pick a god damn dead end. You? Well just luck, I guess. Because an adult hostage would be much easier to deal with."
"So you're going to let them go?" Santana asks.
"Of course not," Jack replies. "The more hostages I have the better."
Santana barely holds back a sigh as she grimaces. Her brain is already going over various scenarios of how this is going to end. None of them are good. She's momentarily glad that she made love to her wife before she left this morning. If it's the last thing Rachel has to remember of her, she's glad it's a pleasant memory.
She watches as Jack scopes out the situation. The first thing he does is shoot out the security system so no one else can enter the vestibule. It leaves a small fist sized hole when the plastic contraption falls off, but Jack doesn't seem too concerned about that. Santana is somewhat grateful; more hostages would only make the already tense situation, much worse.
Santana sits on the bench and motions the kids to join her. Robert sits on her right side, out of Jack's line of vision while Caitlin crawls into her lap. A bit surprised, Santana, nonetheless, wraps her arms around the obviously scared little girl as Robert grabs her hand.
"I don't know what going to happen," she whispers to them both. "But I promise I'm going to do everything in my power to get us out of here. Okay?"
Robert nods.
"You don't have to be brave all the time, kiddo," she tells him. "Sometimes it's okay to cry."
"I know," Robert whispers back. "But if I do, Caitlin will be way more scared. It's my job as her big brother to take care of her."
Santana's mind immediately goes to Felix and she swallows down her own tears. "You must be a very good big brother," she says instead.
Robert won't meet Santana's eyes. "I pick on her a lot."
"It's okay. My older brother did the same when I was growing up," Santana tells him. "But we're good friends now."
"How old are you?"
"Ancient," Santana replies. "I'm thirty-five."
"You're almost as old as our mom," Robert says.
"I told you," Santana smiles. "Ancient."
…
An hour later, the entire block is barricaded and a hostage negotiator is outside trying to make contact.
Not wanting to give Jack access to her life, Santana hasn't offered her cell phone. She especially doesn't want him to know she's works for the city. He's already worked up enough that he didn't think to ask. That knowledge makes her a much more valuable hostage. Looking at her watch, Santana notices that she is due in court in about twenty minutes. She's pretty sure she's not going to make it.
Caitlin isn't crying anymore, though she's still on Santana's lap, clutching her suit jacket. Robert is sitting stoically next to her, obviously doing his best not to cry, but he hasn't let go of her hand yet and she's surprised she hasn't lost feeling from his tense grip.
Her cell phone vibrates almost silently and Santana is thankful it's in silent mode. Who knows what Jack might do when he realizes people are trying to contact Santana.
The three of them watch anxiously as Jack paces back and forth in front of the vestibule. The windows are tinted and Santana remembers that seeing inside is extremely difficult. She also knows seeing out isn't nearly as tough and knows a sniper taking Jack out isn't going to happen.
Santana feels momentarily guilty for hoping that someone would just shoot Jack in the head and end it all quickly. But then Robert buries his face against her shoulder and the guilt turns into anger at him for scaring these kids.
…
Rachel is quietly sipping coffee and reading the paper when her cell phone rings. Absently she answers it.
"Hello?"
"Rachel? It's Jules."
"Hey Jules," Rachel replies, setting aside her paper. She can't think of a good reason that her wife's coworker would be calling her at 8:50 in the morning. "What can I do for you?"
"I don't suppose Santana's with you?" Jules asks. "Please tell me she's with you."
Fear washes over Rachel like a bucket of cold water. "She's not. She left for work an hour ago. She had to be in court at nine, she said."
"That's what I was afraid of," Jules says. "I'm sorry Rachel, but she hasn't shown up yet and she's not answering her cell."
Beth walks into the kitchen and head straight for the coffee. After pouring herself a mug and taking a sip, she notices Rachel's tense posture. "What's going on?" she asks.
Rachel waves her off, fighting off the rising panic as she asks, "You sure you haven't just missed her? Maybe she's in the bathroom? Or maybe her train is running late?"
"Rachel…"
"I know, Jules, I know." Rachel stands. "Do you have to cover for her?"
"I do, I'm sorry. You know I'd--"
"Jules," Rachel interrupts. "It's fine. I'll start calling. I'll find her. Okay? Just… if you do see her, make her call me that instant. Okay?"
"Of course, Rachel."
"Good luck."
"You too."
"What the hell is going on?" Beth asks when Rachel hangs up her cell.
"It, uh, seems that Santana is… unaccounted for."
"What does that mean?"
"No one knows where she is and she isn't answering her cell."
"She's missing?"
"She's fine," Rachel says. "She probably forgot to charge it or something. She's fine."
"What do you need me to do?" Beth asks.
"I'm going to start calling around," Rachel replies. "Can you call Britt and Mike? See if they've heard from them?"
"Of course."
"And wake Abby," Rachel adds. "I really… we could use her help calling."
"Sure, Rach," Beth replies. Leaving her coffee mug on the counter, she hurries out of the kitchen in search of her cell phone.
Knowing it'll be futile, Rachel nonetheless, dials Santana's cell phone. When the voice mail picks up, she takes a deep breath, hoping her tears aren't too evident in her voice.
"San, honey, it's, uh, Rachel. Jules just called and said you haven't shown up yet. So as you can imagine, I'm a bit worried, especially since you didn't answer. I need you to call me the moment you get this message, so my heart can stop pounding so quickly, I'd really appreciate it. Okay? I love you. Call me."
…
Santana wonders how it's possible to be both frightened of dying and bored out of her mind. The last few hours have been her sitting on a bench, kids huddled against her while Jack paces and curses as the police negotiator, Dan Lymann attempts to communicated with Jack.
Things are heading decided downhill in Santana's opinion and this situation has barely started. She wonders if that means it's going to end quickly and badly or be drawn out and end terribly.
She feels a bit of optimism when she hears Lymann's latest attempt.
"All right, Jack," Lymann says into the bullhorn he's been clutching to the past four hours. "I'm going to approach. I'll be unarmed. All I want to do is give you a cell phone so we can communicate. My number is the only number programmed in it. So you can call me whenever you're ready to talk. Okay?"
Santana watches as Jack considers it for a moment before yelling, "Fine!"
Lymann nods and hands his bullhorn to the officer next to him. He removes his gun and begins slowly walking over. Once in front of the vestibule, he gingerly reaches into his pocket and pulls out a cell phone. He carefully pushes it through the broken glass and waits for Jack to take it.
Jack leaps forward and snatches it out of Lymann's grasp. He immediately sets it on the window ledge, knocking some pamphlets to the ground.
"Call me," Lymann says. "I'd like to talk." He then slowly backs away until he's back behind the road blocks.
…
Rachel wonders how it's possible to feel so alone, surrounded by loved ones. Apparently, Beth took it upon herself to call, in addition of Brittany, Mike and Zoe, but Kelly and Ryan. Everyone is front of the TV as Abby flicks through the channels looking for information. Beth, Kelly and Mike are all on their phones, trying to find information that way. All Rachel can do is sit on the couch and try not to think the worst. Brittany's doing her best to distract Rachel by reverting to what Santana has dubbed "high school Brittany".
"I been studying them for three weeks now," Brittany says. "And I have yet to catch them in the act, but every time I look in the tank, the castle has a new room or tower and I don't understand how they can build something without hands. Do you think that fish can move stuff with their minds? Because it's the only explanation I can think of."
"I have no idea, Britt," Rachel replies. "Have you tried setting up hidden cameras?"
"But if I do that in front of them, they won't be hidden," Brittany points out.
"Maybe cover the tank with a blanket while you do it," Rachel suggests."
"Hmmm. Maybe."
"Abby, stop, a sec," Ryan interrupts Abby's channel surfing. "Go back to New York 1."
On screen is a female reporter standing in front of police barricades. "We are now four hours into the stand off between police and a man who has barricade himself in an ATM vestibule attached to the First Manhattan Bank on Broadway and Worth Street. I have been told he has three hostages, two small children he snatched on his run from the police and someone who happened to be using the ATM when he burst in. According to police sources, the third hostage is Santana Lopez, an ADA for the Hate Crimes Unit. Lopez has a 91% conviction rate and is an up and comer in the DA's office. However she is most well known for being the wife of Broadway star, Rachel Berry. Police say they're making slow, but steady progress. We'll continue to update you as the situation continues."
Mike grabs the remote from Abby and hits the mute button as silence falls. Everyone tries their best not to stare at Rachel, but she can feel their eyes on her.
She stands. "I need a glass of water," she announces and heads into the kitchen. She can hear them whispering over her shoulder, debating whether or not to follow her. She's mildly curious as to who will end up comforting her first. She has to admit she's a bit surprised when Brittany strolls in.
Brittany doesn't say anything. She simply joins Rachel in leaning against the counter. Once Rachel's done with her water, Brittany puts an arm around her. When she doesn't resist, Brittany pulls her into a hug.
"It's going to be fine, Rach," Brittany says.
"You don't know that," Rachel mumbles into Brittany's shirt.
"Well, I suppose that's true," Brittany agrees. "I'm certainly no psychic. But I do know that San will do everything in her power to come home to you."
"I do too, but that isn't always something she can control."
"S knows what she needs to do in this situation," Brittany points out. "An upside to her job."
"She's not a negotiator."
"She's a lawyer," Brittany counters.
"I can't lose her," Rachel whispers.
"You're not going to," Brittany tells her and Rachel is amazed at the conviction in Brittany's voice.
"Hey, uh, Rach?"
Both women turn to find Abby standing hesitantly in the doorway.
"You should probably take this?" Abby hands Rachel her cell.
…
The cell phone has rung fourteen times, Santana’s kept track. Jack is ignoring it. He seems to be having a panic attack and after almost six hours, Santana’s not sure she can take much more.
Right now, hunger is warring with the fear in her stomach. She wonders if Jack would be up for requesting a pizza or something.
Looking at the kids, Santana's willing to bet they're starving. Caitlin is now cuddled up, asleep in her lap and while Robert isn't asleep, he is drowsily leaning against her.
Jack is pacing again and it's a bit nauseating.
Santana just sighs and leans her head back, trying to think of more pleasant things.
…
Of all the people Rachel expected to call her, Eric Yarr, the DA wasn't one of them.
"Rachel, it's Eric."
"Please tell me you know something."
"Probably not much more than you do. I'm sorry that you found out from the TV," he apologizes. "That was the damn police. When I find out who leaked that info, I'll… Anyway, I just wanted to touch base with you and make sure you're, uh, not okay, but well, hanging on, I suppose."
"I've got people around me," Rachel answers.
"Yeah. Your, uh…"
"Sister."
"Right. Sister said as much," Eric replies.
"I'm fine, Eric," Rachel tells him. "But I appreciate the call."
"Of course, Rachel."
"And I'll be calling you for updates if I feel the need," Rachel continues.
Eric chuckles. "I assumed as much. I'll talk to you soon."
"Bye Eric."
"Who was that?" Brittany asks.
She's now sitting on the counter, with Rachel leaning into her, the blonde's arms wrapped around her.
"Eric Yarr, the DA."
"Santana's boss?"
"Yep."
"Whoa. S really is his favorite," she comments.
Rachel nods.
…
Rachel's never been patient. She's certainly gotten better over the years, but there are some things she'll never be able to wait out. And though it's never really happened before, Rachel has decided, waiting to find out if her wife is safe is one of them.
It's been hours since Eric's phone call and the TV is no help. Everyone is keeping an eye on their phones, each on a specific bit of internet, hoping to find new information, but it seems that Eric really did come down on someone, because there is no news.
Rachel jumps up and begins pacing. "I can't take this anymore!"
"We just have to be patient," Abby tries, her voice wavering.
"Yeah, Rach," Kelly adds. "There's nothing we can do, but wait this out."
"That's not true," Rachel retorts.
"Why did you say that?" Ryan asks. "Now you've got her started."
"Anything else is better than this quiet, closed in Rachel," Beth says.
"You'll be eating those words soon, kid," Mike tells her.
"Rachel Lopez is not passive." Rachel continues her pacing. "I need to do something."
"Such as?" Ryan asks.
"I don’t know. But not being proactive is killing me."
"We could go down there," Brittany suggests.
Rachel actually stops pacing and stares at Brittany. Everyone else stares at well, but in disbelief.
"Britt…" Mike warns. "I'm not sure that's such a good idea."
"Why not?" Brittany questions.
"Because it's dangerous," Beth says.
"No, it's perfect," Rachel interjects. "I should go down there."
"What would that accomplish?" Kelly asks.
Rachel shrugs. "Because the minute she's safe, then I'll know. Right?"
"Or the minute there's trouble, you'll know," Abby says.
Beth elbows her as Mike shoots her an incredulous look.
"Exactly," Rachel continues on. "I'm going."
"I don't think that's a good idea, Rach," Mike says standing.
"Probably not," Rachel replies. "But I'm going."
Before anyone can say anything else, she scurries off to change.
"Why would you say that?" Mike asks Brittany.
Brittany shrugs. "She would have thought of it eventually."
"Or," Kelly says. "The crisis would be over before she does."
"This is Rachel we're talking about," Brittany replies.
"And Santana's not here to keep a reign on her," Ryan throws out.
"Yeah, so we have to," Beth adds.
Brittany sighs. "You could try. But it would have been useless."
"Britt," Mike tries. "Just because they're just as… insane about each other as they were twenty years ago, doesn't mean that we should let Rachel run out and do something crazy."
"Why not?" Brittany asks.
"Because," Beth says. "It's not safe."
"And it's not like her presence is going to help matters," Kelly adds.
"But it won't hurt it either, right? And it'll help Rachel, which matters more."
"She shouldn't go down there alone," Ryan protests.
"Who said I was going alone?" Rachel asks, returning.
She's changed into jeans, boots and a navy shirt. Everyone blinks at her for a moment. She's eerily calm and everyone finds it a bit unsettlingly.
"Britt's coming with me. Right?"
The blonde nods.
"So we'll keep in touch," Rachel continues. "And the minute we know something, we'll let you guys know."
Ignoring everyone's protests, the pair stroll out of the apartment.
"We should go after them," Beth says.
"Really?" Mike asks. "You're going to convince her to not go?"
"That I'd like to see," Kelly adds.
"Fine." Beth slumps back on the couch.
"So we wait," Ryan says.
"We wait," Mike agrees, sitting back down.
…
Listening to the demands that Jack is spouting off to Lymann, Santana wonders if he's an idiot or if it's just the stress of the situation is getting to him.
She admit the stress of the situation is getting to her. She's starving and on her last nerve. If it wasn't for Robert and Caitlin, Santana's pretty sure she would have gone off on the guy already. Them and her fear of what he might do. For all her bravado, she's not a moron. She knows how tense and serious this whole thing is.
Now done on the phone, Jack places it back on the window ledge and turns towards them.
"Well, maybe we're making some progress," he tells her.
"That's be nice," Santana replies.
"It's not my fault," Jack argues. "If they would have just listened to reason, we would have been out of her a lot sooner."
Santana just shakes her head, not wanting to set off a rant again. The last one went on for over ten minutes and was… painful to listen to.
"I'm hungry," Caitlin whispers.
"I know, kiddo," Santana says, turning her attention to the girl, still on her lap. "Hopefully we can get something to eat soon."
"Really?"
"Hopefully."
"Yay," Caitlin says quietly.
…
When Rachel and Brittany arrive at the scene, it's chaos. Rachel tells Brittany who to search out in the maze of heads and eventually the blonde spots someone who may be Eric Yarr. She drags Rachel over.
"Rachel," Eric greets.
"Hello, Eric. I couldn't sit at home anymore," she says to his unasked question.
"Understandable."
"So what's happening?" Brittany asks.
Eric looks at her oddly.
"Oh, this is Santana's best friend, Brittany. She's visiting from LA," Rachel explains.
Eric nods. "He's made his demands. They're unreasonable, of course. But he's allowed them time to go find what he wants. And he's calmed down a bit. They've managed to get a hold of the layout of the vestibule and so hopefully, they can get in there and secure them."
"That sounds dangerous," Brittany comments.
Eric nods. "They're running out of options. They can't go in through the front and so they're hoping there's a back way."
Rachel nods, absently, trying to see what's going on, but of course she's too short and too far away to see properly.
"So we wait."
"We wait," Eric agrees.
…
To Santana the situation has reached a point of desperation that will quickly spiral out of control. Jack is pacing frantically and muttering to himself. He's waving the gun around and she's pretty sure the safety isn't on.
Because he seems rather distracted, Santana decides to try something desperate. Knowing her wife as she does, Santana's willing to bet her life, literally, that Rachel is nearby. She might be behind the police barricades, but there's no way in hell that Rachel is going to stay seated on the couch, being kept out of the loop.
Slipping her hand towards her phone, Santana just prays that Rachel doesn't answer the phone too loudly. Going only on her sense of touch, Santana hits speed dial one, which is Rachel and hopes for the best.
…
The vibration in her pocket, alerts Rachel to her cell. She pulls it out and almost drops it when she sees Santana's name in the display. She takes several deep breaths before answering it.
"Hello?" she whispers.
There's no answer, but Rachel can hear things happening. It's mostly movement, but she can occasionally hear children whimpering and someone ranting, rather hysterically.
"Eric," she says, tapping him on the shoulder.
He turns to face her. "Yes."
Rachel holds up her cell. She's hit mute, so no one gives Santana away. "Santana called me."
"What?"
"I think she just has it hidden somewhere, but I can hear what's going on in there."
Eric nods. "Come on."
Rachel and Brittany follow Eric as he tries to get the negotiator's attention.
"What the hell is it Yarr?" Lymann demands when he's finally dragged over to the trio.
"This is Lopez's wife--"
"Yeah, thought you looked familiar. Nice to meet you. But I'm kind of in the middle of trying to--"
"We have ear inside," Rachel blurts out.
"What?" Lymann asks.
Rachel holds up her cell again. "She just called me. She's not talking, but I think she just has it hidden somewhere, but you can hear what's going on."
Lymann reaches for the phone, but Rachel quickly snatches it back.
"What the fuck, lady?" Lymann growls. "If you have--"
"Let us past the barricade and it's yours," Rachel demands. "We'll stay out of the way."
He eyes her angrily for a moment. "Fine," Lymann agrees.
Rachel ducks under the barricade and Brittany follows. "It's on mute," Rachel explains as she hands over the phone.
Lymann nods and accepts it, quickly returning to the huddle of people on the sidewalk.
"Well this is an interesting development," Yarr says, behind Rachel.
Rachel just ignores him as she leans back against Brittany and the blonde wraps her arms around her.
…
Santana must have drifted off for a moment because Jack is suddenly in her face, ranting. He's threatening the kids and her and the fear that she's been pushing down is quickly rising. She tries to breath, knowing it'll help keep the panic down, but it's difficult with a madman screaming in her face and two shaking, frightened children surrounding her.
Trying to keep her expression neutral, Santana lets her mind wander to Rachel and she knows she'll do anything to come home safe, so she takes another deep breath and tries to talk Jack down or at least away from her and the kids. If she can just get the a safe distance, maybe SWAT can break down the door and take him out before he takes all four of them out.
She feels confident that Rachel has handed over her phone to someone involved and that Lymann is most likely listening to all this. She can only hope he has a plan, because Santana knows that time has run out.
…
As she sees SWAT carefully approach the vestibule from both sides, but trying to stay out of sight, Rachel fights the urge to bury her head against Brittany's shoulder; she needs to see what happens.
Everyone is posed and quiet. Rachel's heart is beating so fast, she's surprised she isn't having a heart attack. She knows Brittany is just as nervous; the arms wrapped around her have tightened significantly.
All of a sudden, they're kicking down the door and there's the sound of glass shattering. It's followed by shouting, bangs and crashes.
And then, amidst all the chaos, Rachel hears a sound that stops her heart; two quick gunshots. It's followed by more shouting and a particularly loud crash.
"Clear!"
Brittany's arms around her are the only reason Rachel doesn't run towards the vestibule towards Santana. Her hands are gripping Brittany's arms so tightly, Rachel worries that she's hurting Brittany, but the blonde doesn't seem to mind.
They watch as the paramedics run in and there's an even bigger flurry of action. The first person dragged out is the gunman. He appears just as maniac and it takes two extremely muscular cops to drag him towards a squad car and throw him in the back.
And then a stretcher is hurriedly pushed into the vestibule and Rachel fights the tears she feels forming. She feels horrible for thinking it, but she hopes the stretcher is for one of the SWAT guys or god forbid, one of the kids.
When the stretcher finally reappears, Rachel can see Santana laid out on it, but she seems awake and alert, so Rachel's worry lessens slightly. The presence of the kids, walking next to the stretcher is also somewhat reassuring.
Brittany lets Rachel go and they quickly approach the ambulance that Santana is being wheeled towards. They're still held back by a police officer, but he doesn't make them return behind the barricade, so Rachel tries to be patient.
All she knows is there's no way in hell Santana is going to the hospital alone. She just has to wait for the right moment to jump into the ambulance with her.
…
When Santana hears the sound of glass breaking, she knows it's the beginning of the end. She pulls the kids behind her and tries to protect them the best she can. Jack is on the opposite side of the small vestibule, still pacing, but reacts quickly when hears SWAT storm in.
He raises the gun and manages to get off two shots before he's tackled to the ground and quickly handcuffed. She feels a stinging pain, but brushes it off as she watches.
Once Jack is dragged out, she lets herself relax a bit and the kids peek out.
"You're bleeding," Robert tells her.
Santana looks at her arm and sees that she is indeed bleeding. One of the bullets seem to have found their target. That explains the pain.
Someone else must have noticed this because suddenly there's a stretcher in front of her and she's being helped onto it.
The kids begin to cry and it takes them "helping" push the stretcher out to keep them calm.
When they reach the ambulance, the kids are lifted onto the right side of her stretcher and looked over as someone looks over her left arm.
It's declared they're mostly suffering from hunger and fear, which Santana could have told them, but whatever. A moment later, a frantic woman in her late thirties appears and embraces them both. The air if filled with weeping and apologies.
"She saved us," Robert tells her.
Their mother looks over at Santana and gives her an awkward, but enthusiastic half hug.
"Thank you. Thank you. Thank you." Her voice is so full of gratitude, it almost chokes Santana.
Santana just nods.
"We need to get her to the hospital," the EMT tells the mother, who nods.
And then suddenly Rachel is at her side with tears streaming down her face. Behind her stands an equally tearful Brittany and a stoic Eric Yarr.
"Hey babe," Santana greets. "B."
Rachel just squeezes her hand as they push the stretcher into the ambulance.
"I'll see you guys later, okay?" she calls out to the kids.
She kind of sees them nod as they hug their mother tightly.
And then the doors slam shut.
Thankfully, Santana doesn't seem to need too much attention from the EMT, so Rachel is able to sit on her right and tightly grip her hand. She doesn't say anything, just grins at her with a watery smile.
…
Watching the ambulance drive away, Brittany steps away slightly from the chaos and calls Mike. Letting them know what happened, everyone agrees they'll probably head home, now that they know Santana is safe. They don't want to overwhelm her when she finally is allowed to leave the hospital.
Nodding to Santana's boss, Brittany pushes her way through the crowd and tries to find a cab back to the apartment.
…
Luckily the bullet just grazed Santana's left arm, so it really just require stitches. She's given high priority, despite her protests. Santana wonders if it's because she's an ADA or because she was just a hostage for eighteen hours.
Rachel is by her side the whole time; there's no persuading her otherwise. Not that Santana would try. The hospital staff learn this very quickly and leave the pair be.
Santana's waiting for the doctor to come and release her when Yarr sticks his head in.
"Sir."
"Lopez. Rachel."
"Hello, Eric."
"Doing all right, I see," Yarr says.
"Nothing like pain medication to take away all your troubles," Santana quips.
"Uh huh. Well, I just wanted to let you know you have rest of the week off. Your only responsibility is go in tomorrow, well today, I suppose and give a police report."
"It's Friday, sir," Santana points out. "I appreciate the generosity."
"Is it Friday, already?"
Rachel nods.
"Well, then take Monday too. Jules covered just fine this morning, I'm sure she'll continue to do so."
"Thanks, I guess."
"It's the least I can do," Yarr says. "For our little hero."
"What?"
"Everyone's calling you a hero Lopez, for protecting those kids," Yarr explains. "Everyone's showing the initial interview with the kids and their mom. The boy can't stop raving about you."
Santana groans.
"Awww," Rachel coos.
"And of course, the little girl loves you," Yarr continues. "Combine that with the rumor that you took a chance with your cell phone and helped SWAT know when to go in."
"How'd that get out?" Santana asks.
Yarr smirks. "I may have had a hand in that."
Santana growls at him.
"I gotta ask. How'd you know that Rachel would be close enough to help?"
Santana shrugs. "Where else would she be?"
Rachel nods.
"Right. Of course. Stupid question. Anyway, I should go. We'll talk next week."
Santana nods.
"Thank you, Eric," Rachel calls after him. Then she turns to Santana. "Have I ever told you that you're my hero?"
"Quiet you," Santana replies. "Besides, you helped."
"By being a predictable basket case when you're in danger?" Rachel asks.
"Or the loving wife that just wanted to be near me when I was in danger," Santana counters. "It got bad in there pretty quick. But without knowing what was going on inside, there's no way they could just storm in. That idiot took the perfect hostages, two adorable children and a city employee."
"You're more than a city employee."
"So they had to be extra careful about causalities," Santana continues. "All things considered, I think it turned out well."
"Santana, you were shot."
"It's just a graze," Santana replies. "Now I'm even more badass. War wounds or whatever."
Rachel just shakes her head.
…
Brittany is the only one still awake when they finally make it home. Both Beth and Abby tried to stay awake, but Brittany eventually pushed them out of the room and into their beds. Watching TV on the couch, Brittany looks up as Rachel and Santana enter the room.
Rachel helps Santana sink onto the couch next to her best friend before joining her.
"All hail the conquering hero," Brittany teases after she hugs Santana long and tight.
Santana groans. "Not you too."
"You're all over the news. If it's possible, you're now more famous than Rachy. At least in the city."
Santana looks over at Rachel apprehensively at that statement, but her wife is grinning wildly.
"This will definitely help you become DA, don't you think?" Rachel asks.
"You're not mad?"
"San, you're home safe and sound," Rachel replies. "Nothing else matters."
"Yeah," Brittany agrees. "And now you can use your tragedy to your advantage. It's a win-win. Sort of."
"Yay. All it took was eighteen torturous, frightening hours," Santana snarks.
"Yep."
"Huh."
"Everyone else had to go home to sleep," Brittany explains. "They said they'd all call this afternoon, to see how you're doing."
"I'm sorry your visit got so interrupted," Santana tells her.
"Oh stop," Brittany replies. "I'll just glad I could be here for you and for Rach. They weren't going to let her go down there."
Santana looks at Rachel, who has cuddled into her left side after carefully lifting her injured arm around her. Thanks to the pain medication, she didn't even notice. Rachel has tears running down her face, but just nods.
"Well thank god you were here, then Britt," Santana says.
"I know, right," Brittany replies. "It's like those guys don't know you at all."
"Well to be fair," Rachel speaks up. "I think Abby and Beth were worried about something happening to me as well. The others were worried about me seeing something terrible happen that I'd never get over."
"Don't they know it wouldn't matter if you were there or not," Brittany says. "If something happened to Santana, you'd never get over it."
"They should." Rachel sees that Santana's starting to doze. "Maybe we should get the hero to bed, huh?"
Brittany nods and helps Rachel pull Santana up and head into the bedroom. They both undress her and tuck her in under the covers.
"Thank you," Rachel says, hugging Brittany tightly. "For… understanding."
"I'll see you in the morning?"
Rachel nods.
Crawling into bed with her wife, Rachel lets the tears fall freely. Curled into Santana's right side, it's easier that way. Half asleep, Santana tightens her hold on Rachel and kisses her forehead.
"Love you, babe."
…
The pain medication lets Santana sleep until noon, which she hasn't done in a long time. She's greeted with a bottle of water and more pain meds. She quickly takes them and goes in search of coffee.
In the kitchen she finds Brittany doing work, Rachel reading the paper and Abby on her phone. She can hear Beth in the living room. She doesn't say anything, just gets herself some coffee and sits down next to Rachel.
In the middle of an article, Rachel gives a little wave, before taking Santana's hand and lacing their fingers together.
Abby looks up. "Hey Santana."
"Hey Abby."
Abby jumps up and hugs her. Since Rachel is holding Santana's left hand, Abby feels okay squeezing Santana tightly from the right. "I'm glad you're okay," she whispers.
"Thanks."
Beth appears a moment later and hugs Santana just as tightly after Abby's done.
Looking over at her wife, Santana sees a small smirk as she continues to read the paper. The fingers wrapped around hers give her a brief squeeze.
Once Rachel's done, she turns to Santana. "I'll help you shower and then we'll go down to the station to make your statement?"
Santana nods.
…
The day passes quickly. Between the police report and avoiding reporters, Santana is exhausted. She and Rachel both agree an official interview should be given, it's just a matter of waiting for the right offer.
Everywhere they go, they see newspapers with Santana's picture, calling her a hero. Rachel keeps singing all the lyrics she can think of that have the word hero in them.
Sometimes a hero doesn’t know she’s a hero and that's the beauty of sharing love. And it doesn’t take superman, just plain ordinary people… is sung on the way to the polie station. And while they're sitting there waiting for someone to come interview Santana, Rachel sings, Look inside you and be strong. And you'll finally see the truth, That a hero lies in you.
Santana tries to be annoyed, but Rachel is having too much fun and it's just too cute, so she just does her best to ignore her.
They're even stopped on the street a few times by people wanting an autograph from both Rachel and Santana. Worried, her wife might take it the wrong way, Santana tries to refuse, but Rachel insists.
"They're votes, tiger," Rachel tells her.
"You think they're going to remember in ten years?"
Rachel shrugs. "Who can say? But it doesn't hurt."
"True."
"You want to talk about it, yet?" Rachel asks.
"No." Santana sighs. "I will though. I guess it's back to therapy, huh?"
"It'd probably be a good idea, yes."
…
When a messenger drops off Rachel and Santana's cell phones, they both check their messages. Santana has nineteen where Rachel only has nine.
The first couple of messages are quick, frantic ones from Jules, wondering where she is. There's even one from Yarr, asking the same thing, as if Santana didn't call Jules back because they're coworkers. There's only one message from Rachel and it almost breaks Santana's heart to hear the fear in Rachel's voice.
The next few messages are from Beth, Abby and Britt, telling her to hold on. There's even one from Mike.
There's several from the day after from her parents, which are frantic; as are the three from Felix. There's one from Jen checking up on her and surprisingly, there's one from Puckerman.
Rachel has messages from each of the Lopezs as well as one from Jake. There's also one from Jen asking what the fuck is going on.
Both are glad they called people after the police station the day after. They would have called sooner if they'd known that the news had travelled so quickly; though they probably should have known better.
Everyone was so relieved that they didn't have the energy to be angry. Although it took a lot of convincing that Santana was truly okay. Rachel spent over twenty minutes on the phone reassuring Clara and convincing her that she didn't need to fly out.
…
It doesn't take Santana long to get sick of doing interviews. She does a few for some newspapers, a couple magazines and two television shows because Rachel insists. There's even a tearful reunion with Robert, Caitlin and their mom. It's considered media gold by everyone, even Santana, who knows it's necessary, but can't help but find it annoying.
Of course, Rachel and Santana become lesbian poster women for a while. They get some harassment for being career driven, but childless, but when people bring up Beth and Abby, the arguments begin to die down.
Rachel worries how Noah is taking all this. Hearing how his little girl is being raised by someone else on national TV, might be difficult to take. In turn, Santana is really worried about Quinn. They're both glad it was a closed adoption and that Beth is well into adulthood.
Beth makes no mention of being contacted by her birth mother, leaving Santana to hope that Quinn hasn't figured it out. She would argue that twenty years is a long time and that maybe Quinn has finally moved on. Except she knows that was never true for Shelby, so why would it be for Quinn?
Part Six