Labyrinth of Emotions – 02.29 ~*~ Finale Pt 2


******

            “Do you think that Sam is the killer?” Marina asked and Bette looked in the mirror and Tina was calling Sam‘s house, but the line just rang and rang. Tina wanted to throw the cell phone out the window of the car, she was feeling helpless, just like she had when she’d seen Rosita in that hospital bed.

            “No, there is no way that Sam is a killer.” Tina said, remembering who’d saved Rosita in the first place, Samantha Vance.

            “But the evidence seemed to be saying differently.” Bette interjected, and she followed a speeding Jo Wheaton‘s mustang down the street where Sam‘s house was. A surreal golden glow at the end of the long street, casting a cape of yellow over the world as the sun was only half an hour from rising.

            “Oh god!” Jenny yelled, and Marina gasped and Tina covered her mouth and Bette just drove faster, thumping down on the accelerator.

*****

            Jo slammed the car into fourth gear, making the engine whine and the tires spin as she hit the accelerator and Alex groaned, she hated fire as much as she hated snakes and she saw Alice dialing 911 on her cell phone and Jayden cursed.

            “Fuck!” Jayden blared and Lara began to shake, and beg out loud.

            “No, no Sam, god damn it what did you do?” Lara asked and Alex stood in seat of the car, and as Jo hit the driveway, she jumped from the car, landing and rolling onto the lawn and hit the ground running to the front door, which was a blaze. Alice took it all in with the eye of a reporter, knowing that this was going to make it into a story somewhere.

            Jo groaned, had to be fire huh? Had to be, of all the things. She jumped from the car, her jacket flowing as she set her jaw and kicked the door in with one hard snap of her boot. She looked at Alex and Alex‘s eyes studied her, and she looked into the flames and the smoke.

            “When this is over, you are going to have to tell me how you do that!” Alex said and Jo just looked at her,

            “You first.” Jo said and they both darted into the blazing house, engulfed by the flames and smoke instantly.

*****

            Sam couched, pain shooting through her body, and she opened her eyes, seeing Shane was still breathing. That was something, wasn’t it? She reached up, caressing her cheek, down her chin and to her throat, finding the pulse at her neck, stronger than before. Hot damn, someone wanted to live, that’s the ticket Shane, you can win, at least one of us can.

            “Fire…” Sam said, a rueful laugh in her throat and she grabbed Shane and pulled her to the edge of the bed. The sharp pain in her chest shot up her arm, and she knew that C.J.‘d finished the job, a shot of potassium perhaps, the fire would just deter the medical examiner.

            Jo, just remember who I am, don’t let them remember me as a killer. That’s all I ask, with this last breath, I didn’t kill a soul, except for C.J. Masters.

            “You are the strongest woman I’ve ever met Shane, remember that. I didn’t do this, you have to tell Lara…” Sam begged and she used the last of her will, her strength and her life to lift Shane up onto her shoulder. She carried her to the tall window, she kicked it out, her bare feet being slashed as she did so, but the pain was nothing compared to what was in her heart at this very moment. Shooting and throbbing in her chest as she knew that the heart was about to fail her, she wasn’t going to let Shane die.

            Sam felt the hot tears rushing down her face, the world fading as she threw Shane out the window, and watched her plummet down to the earth.

******

            “Where is she?” Yelled Alex and she covered her mouth with her jacket, and Jo shrugged, the flames lapping and licking at them like hungry animals and she grabbed Alex, a part of the ceiling coming down right where the detective had stood.

            “We have to get out of here!” Jo barked and Alex shook her head, she was going to get this killer, once and for all. If she died doing it, she was going to get her, who ever she was.

            “You don’t get it! She’s not here, some on Alex! This place is about to go!” Jo yelled, grabbing Alex as more flames shot out towards them, and Alex saw her, on the top of the stairway, falling and collapsing to the floor.

            “JO!” Alex yelled and Jo looked up, and saw her, it was Sam.

            “Fuck!” Jo said and Alex darted away from Jo‘s reach and ran to the stairs, taking them three at a time and Jo was going to run after her, but the gas tank in the kitchen exploded, cutting her off from the stairs and Alex, throwing her towards the front door.

*****

            “Vance!” Alex yelled, being tossed to the far left as she landed hard, she had a wicked sense of Deja vu, the explosion at the WTC that had pinned her and taken a chuck of her life with it. The debris and the pain, she grit her teeth, feeling her leg on fire as she slapped it out with a leather covered hand.

            Sam was just a few feet from her, and Alex reached for her, and she got to her feet, and landed just inches from Sam. She turned her onto her back, her grey eyes vacant and she felt for a pulse, not finding one. She was dead, and Alex felt that helpless feeling over take her again.

            “FUCK!” Alex yelled and another explosion vibrated though the house and Alex shot to her feet, debris falling to her left, to her right and in front of her and she knew it was over. The hero was about to fall, and she fell to her knees as one of the beams from the ceiling fell and slammed her against the wall, rendering her unconscious.

******

            “Did you hear that?” Jayden asked as Jo and Alex ran into the house and she ran full tilt to the back of the house, and they all followed her and Jenny said in a surreal voice.

            “This house is not a home.” Marina turned, looking at the spaced out gaze that Jenny had on her face and wondered what she meant by that.

            “The pool? Was that a splash?” Lara asked, pulling up the rear of the group, staring at the fire dancing out of the windows, praying that Sam wasn’t in there that she was somewhere else, even if it was in bed with someone else, as long as she wasn’t in there. The gas tank of one of the cars in the garage exploded and they all screamed, ducking and yelling as the fear over took them.

            “SHANE!” Tina yelled as Jayden jumped into the pool, the crimson red trail of blood that flowed from her made Tina turn into Bette, as Bette watched with wide eyed astonishment. Shane had been here, oh god why?

            “Oh my god!” Dana yelled, and she dove in, helping Jayden pull Shane to the edge of the pool, and Alice grabbed at her, as the fire department arrived at the door. They pulled the prone figure of their friend onto the grass, and Jayden moved to her side and began to assess the woman with quick movements, every moment counting.

            “Go get the EMT’s!” Jayden said breathlessly and Marina ran to get them, Jayden felt for a pulse, finding one but she wasn’t drawing breath. She tilted her head back, blowing three times into Shane‘s mouth, she got nothing.

            Alice turned her onto her left side, and Jayden met Alice‘s eyes, the blood loss might have been to much, and Alice begged with her eyes to not stop trying. Jayden nodded, and she wasn’t going to stop, not now or ever.

            “How did she get out here, in the pool?” Tina asked and Bette‘s eyes drifted up to the house, the broken window the tell tale sign of how Shane had exited the house. The fire dancing it’s dance through the windows, burning and feeding as it ate away the place where a killer dwelled.

            “She jumped.” Bette said, and Jayden pounded her chest, then blew into her mouth again, her long dark blonde hair whipping around as she groaned.

            “Come on Shane, come on. I’m not losing anyone tonight. Fucking breath!” Jayden said as the EMT’s got there, and began to work on Shane with skilled hands and Alice moved back, right into Dana‘s arms. They watched as they tried to breath life back into their fallen friend, without any luck.