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She knew that the only reason she was still standing and coherent was the combination of fear, adrenaline and stubbornness that coursed through her veins. All around her, Emily could hear screams of pain and anguish; named being called; agents, police and cult members alike calling for friends, relatives and colleagues. The sound and sight of crackling flames filled the air as the buildings were engulfed in flames. The church, the school building, the dormitories; all of it was ablaze.
Morgan and Reid had already turned to help Rossi and the other agents try and find survivors in the tunnels. Emily stumbled towards them, even as her ribs screamed in pain and the injuries she had accumulated over the last three days made themselves known. Emily had only taken a few steps forward before a figure stepped into her path. Emily blinked in the darkness for a moment before she realised that the man standing before her was Aaron.
He looked as if he had aged about ten years in the last three days. His face was lined with worry and concern and she noticed the slight tremor in his hand as he twitched his fingers as if he wished to reach out to her. She wasn’t sure whether it was the adrenaline, pain, flickering of the fire or the fact that she hadn’t slept in three days but there was something about the way Aaron looked at her. Although she couldn’t put a finger on it.
“How is it that I got the crap beaten out of me but you look worse than I do?” Emily quipped weakly as she winced in pain.
“Come on, we need to get you checked out.” Aaron said as he put an arm around Emily and supported her towards the ambulance. Normally, she would have protested such an action but Emily knew that she did need medical attention. A few dabs with a cold compress hadn’t been enough to help heal her possibly broken ribs.
Just as they reached the ambulance, where the EMTS were already overrun and had summoned for more ambulances to come and assist them. Neither Aaron nor Emily insisted that she be placed ahead of others seeking treatment. Some of those who had gotten into the tunnels before the explosions but not through before the flames came down were being carried towards them. Shrieks of physical pain joined the roars of emotional anguish and screams of terror and wails of despair that engulfed the night.
“Just drive me to the hospital,” Emily suggested after a moment. Aaron hesitated but she pressed on. “If any of these wounds were fatal, I’d already be dead.”
“Alright,” Aaron replied as he turned to one of the frantic EMTs loading a burn victim into the ambulance just as a fleet turned up. “Where’s the nearest hospital?”
“Other side of town, about fifteen miles away.” The EMT replied without looking at them. “Jerry, step on it and tell the surgeons to be ready.”
Aaron supported Emily back towards the SUV where JJ was encouraging Reid to rest and have a drink of water. “We’re headed to the hospital. Reid, are you coming?”
“I’ll be fine, I just need some sleep. JJ’s going to drive us back to the hotel.” Reid replied. He didn’t want anything, just a comfortable bed and something to eat that wasn’t fried chicken.
“I’ll tell Rossi where you are,” JJ offered as she gently hugged Emily.
The hospital was even more chaotic than the compound. Doctors and nurses dashed from patient to patient, trying to triage and assess the most severely wounded. Aside from the cult members and agents, there were also other civilian patients in the ER waiting room; kids who had injured themselves, drunks caught up in a bar fight. There was just so much noise. Wailing toddlers, crying children, swearing drunks, agonised cries of the wounded, worried and frustrated shouts of relatives, doctors and nurses rushing around, yelling for more support, paging other members of staff whilst the phone rang constantly with news of even more patients. She had never seen a hospital so busy and she knew it was only the start of a long night.
Emily set her hands over her ears in an attempt to block out the sound. Beside her, Aaron put an arm around her shoulders and held her close. He pressed his lips to the crown of her head.
“I’m so sorry,” Aaron said and Emily looked at him. They had had no way of knowing that they were going to be compromised or that Cyrus and his men had had enough weapons and ammunition and C4 to cause as much carnage as they had.
“This wasn’t your fault. I knew that once the firefight happened, you guys would be on your way and try to help us get out. I’m sorry you had to hear me get my ass kicked.” Emily replied as she nestled into his shoulder. Although she knew that neither of them had showered or changed clothes in the past three days, she didn’t care. Right now, she needed comfort and for someone who cared about her to be by her side. She and Aaron knew that there was some sort of spark between them; ever since New York, it felt like both of them were toeing around the possibility of there maybe being something more.
However she would think about that tomorrow. Right now, all she was focused on was the feeling of being in his arms. Mainly because in his arms, for the first time in three days, she felt safe. And that meant more than anything else.