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“We need to get out of here. The fire‘s spreading fast. We don’t have much time before we’ll be right in the middle of it”
“I agree. You both need to go on…Get the fire under control then someone can come back for me”
“No way!…We’re not just leaving you here!”
“You don’t have a choice. I’m stuck. I can’t get my leg out. Not without equipment, which we don’t have….You and Bode have the option to leave. There isn’t any use in all three of us burning to death out here!”
“Just…Just let me think. We can come up with something. We can all get out of here”
“We just need to get his leg out and then I can carry him…”
“None of you are going anywhere”
Turning her attention to a voice that wasn’t familiar to her, Sharon found herself facing a man with a gun pointed in the direction of her family, a protective flair igniting in her when a glance to her side reminded her of how vulnerable Vince currently was with his leg trapped
“Well what‘ve we got here?”
“Who are you?”
“I think I’m the one who gets to ask the questions, seeing as I’m the one holding this…Why don’t one of you start by telling me why all three of you have Leone on your jackets?”
Looking between the man and the barrel of the gun currently aimed directly at Bode, Sharon found herself uncharacteristically frozen, the idea of loosing both Vince and Bode on the same call not something she’d previously considered - She’d always known with a job like theirs that her and Vince’s time together was finite, and she knew the risks of Bode joining the family business
What she hadn’t thought to consider was the possibility of having to watch both of her guys die on the same day, helpless to do anything but watch, only to then potentially die right after them
Should she volunteer to go first?
Selfishly save herself the pain of watching both of her boys die?
Could she do that to them? Force them to watch their wife and mother die?
Was the kind thing to do to try and outlive them, if only for a few extra minutes?
“Well?…I’m waiting”
Catching Vince’s eye, Sharon shook her head ever so slightly in a silent message, an action that unfortunately did not go unnoticed - Their captor had established one thing
That they were far more than just colleagues
Now it was just a matter of how long it took him to establish the relationships between the three of them
“I see. You don’t want to tell me. Probably worried I’ll use whatever you all are to each other to my advantage…Let me guess. It’s certainly not a common name, so don’t even bother giving me any coincidence crap. Who’s related to who?…He looks like you…He your son?”
Watching him gesture his gun between her and Bode, Sharon felt her heartbeat increase rapidly, the fear of a mother who’s baby was in danger - She was sure her expression answered his question without her needing to say a word, yet she couldn’t find the strength to hide her fear
“I’m going to take that as a yes…Which leaves this guy. How does he come in?…He’s not your brother, you don’t look alike…That means he’s gotta be…He’s gotta be your Daddy then, don’t he?…Which means it’s my lucky day! I’ve stumbled across an entire family”
Wincing at Vince’s identity now also being exposed, Sharon suddenly knew this could only end badly - There was no way he would let any of them leave without hurting someone
And the only way to guarantee Bode wasn’t hurt was for her or Vince to put themselves further into harms way
Was to offer to take the bullet for him
Taking one small step forward prepared to sacrifice herself if it meant better odds for Vince and Bode, Sharon found that her wedding ring suddenly weighed heavier on her finger at a voice from behind - At her man thinking along the same lines, but getting to the conclusion she had sooner
Vince was trying to sacrifice himself
He was trying to be the hero
“You’re right. I’m sure you know that already from our reactions…Now you know, so now you can leave my family out of whatever plan you’re forming…You want a hostage as some kind of leverage? I’ll be your hostage. Let my wife and son leave”
Unable to stop herself, Sharon found a protest leaving her lips before she could think about the consequences of giving this man more information - About showing him anymore vulnerability
“Vince, No!”
“It’s okay…”
“Dad, you can’t do this!”
“As beautiful as I’m finding that you’re willing to sacrifice yourself, Vince…I don’t think I’m going to take your offer. I think I can have more some fun with all three of you”
Shuffling backwards slightly so that she was now stood closer to both of her guys, Sharon tried to take some relief from the touch of Vince’s fingers against her skin when he moved his hand to sit against her ankle as he spoke up, his engagement prompting their captor to keep his eyes and gun trained on him - Sharon couldn’t come up with any circumstances where they were going to get out of this now without Vince getting hurt, and that realisation was breaking her heart
“What do you want? Leverage over this city?…Well you’ve got a firefighter and two chiefs. I’m not sure what better leverage you’ll get than that”
“So what are you gonna do?…You gonna shoot one of us and make the other two watch?”
Wincing at Bode copying his father in making conversation with their captor, Sharon found her eyes drawn to the man’s face to try and read something - Anything she could gauge that would help them get out of this unharmed
All three of them
“I’m considering it…I just don’t know who’d be more fun for me. Do I shoot the son while his parents watch?…Do I shoot Mom? See how much of a Mama’s boy I’ve got…Or do I shoot Dad? Find out if you’ve got as much hatred for your old man as I had for mine”
“Whatever shit you have with your Dad has nothing to do with mine”
Biting back the “No, Bode” on the tip of her tongue, Sharon found the gun suddenly trained on her and a question asked that she couldn’t possibly answer - She was a mother, and her only remaining living baby meant everything to her
She was also a wife, and the idea of living life from here on out without Vince at her side was inconceivable
“What about you, Mom?…Which of these two do you prefer?…I’m guessing you’ll choose your son. What mother wouldn’t?”
“Shar…”
“Don’t even suggest it, Vince…He asked me”
“…And I’m waiting on your answer…Which one would you like me to shoot?…Father or Son?”
“Neither…You will let me go, and you’ll let both of my boys leave with me”
Hit with a sudden wave of bravery, Sharon took a confident step forward, forcing herself not to retreat despite the gun now trained on her
“You’re not calling the shots here, Lady, I am….However, I’m feeling generous, so if want your boys to leave, I’ll shoot you instead”
“You’re not shooting my wife!”
“I’ve got this, Vince…Listen to me. Sharon Leone. That name might not mean anything to you right now, but if you hurt either of my boys, it will. You’ll live to regret your decision. I’ll make sure you do”
“You don’t scare me, Lady…Just for your disobedience in answering my question, I’m going to decide for you”
Stuck rooted to the spot as a flurry of movement occurred around her, Sharon heard Vince’s scream of pain at the same time as she saw Bode lunge forward to retrieve the gun, Vince’s attack having been the saving grace none of them saw coming - It appeared to her now that their captor, despite all of his threats, had never actually shot someone before, if the expression on his face before he’d dropped the gun and ran had been anything to go by
It would appear he’d realised a little too late he was in over his head
“Vince!”
Finding her voice and her mind again, Sharon dropped to her knees to offer her husband first aid, grateful when some careful palpitations by her hands confirmed one very important thing - No fatal arteries had been hit
This was bad, but Vince still had a chance of survival
They all still did
“You both need to get out of here…He could come back at any moment, decide he isn’t done with us yet…”
“We’re not just going to leave you, Dad…We’re back to where we started. Mostly…It’s harder now, but we just need to get your leg out and we’ll get you to the hospital…You’re going to be fine. He’s going to be fine. Isn’t he, Mom?”
“Yes…He’s right, Babe. So don’t even start with any ‘leave you behind’ nonsense…Put pressure on his side, Bode. I’ll try my radio again to see if we can get help out here”
“Even without the threat of our new friend, the fire is approaching us too fast for anyone to get here on time…We have minutes to get out of here before we’re all ash. Bode, I need you to leave, and I need you to make sure your Mom leaves with you”
“Vincent Leone…”
“You can survive loosing me, Sharon. You need…You need Bode more than you need me”
“I need…I need both of you!”
Feeling instantly bad for snapping at her husband when she saw his face fall, Sharon persevered on despite the feeling, suddenly determined to make sure he understood that he was wrong - Loosing him would break her, that much she knew for certain
Not as much as it would break her to loose Bode when they’d only just gotten him back, but it would still be an endless amount of pain
“You can’t do this, Vince. I’m not…I’m not letting you leave me like this…You need to fight, you need to live, so that I can yell at you later about all of the self sacrifice you’ve tried today”
“Okay. We’re wasting time, so if you’re sure, we need to make a move…Bode, get ready to carry me out of here. Sharon, I’d really appreciate if you could hold my hand, because…this is going to hurt”
“Wait, Babe…”
Too late to interfere before Vince could yank his (likely broken) leg free violently, Sharon did as requested, holding his hand as he screamed out in pain and attempting to sooth his cries with soft murmurs of reassuring words
“Let’s go, Leone’s”
Running side by side with Bode as he ran as fast as he could with Vince weighing him down, Sharon waited until they were finally safe to pull both men close to her, impulsively offering Vince a slap upside of his head before she pulled him into a long kiss that led to words of protest coming from Bode
“Don’t you ever try to be a martyr like that again!…I’m so glad you’re alive but I’m furious at you for scaring me like that…Come back here, Bode. I need to hold both of my Leone boys right now”