If he didn't die (Fargo fan-fiction)

Spoilers if you're not caught up

 Chapter 1 (An alternative to Mr.numbers' death.)

Mr.Numbers yelled out in agony as Malvo twisted the deadly blade deep in his back, his head spun and he felt so sick that he could barely hear the words being yelled at him. His heart was still racing from Malvo's surprise attack and his gut was twisted in fear as this seemingly weedy man gripped him tightly in a murderous rage, the pain was so intense that he could only make whimpering noises to try and call for help. Malvo was getting impatient and his grip tightened in anger as he repeated his simple and loud request.

"who?!....WHO?!"

The words spun around Mr.Number's head and he could barely comprehend the question as another twist of the knife sent him lurching forward in blinding agony. The only things he could see were the swirling flakes of white that made the blizzard as well as the black dots that clouded his vision from the wound in his back. Malvo leaned closer to his ear and dug his nails into Mr.Numbers' coated shoulder,

"Who?", this time he whispered it to get Numbers attention, "Who sent you?"

Fear went pumping through his veins and spurted out through the hole in his back, drenching his coat. How could he give himself up? Not only would this mission be lost but the entire organization could crumble. Not to mention what would happen to Wrench. His eyes clouded up at the thought, he couldn't let his own weakness ruin everything they'd worked for. His hands were pale and shaking as they clenched and un-clenched to try and over come the brutality forced onto him by the hand of a psychopath like Malvo.Small and salty tears dripped down his cheeks and his voice cracked and faltered as he tried once more to scream for help. 

One more twist of the metal blade in his back was Numbers' breaking point and he gathered all the strength in his lungs to breath out the word, 'Fargo' with a bloody cough that shook his fragile body.  Malvo's eyes instantly lit up with intrigue and he smiled with pearly white teeth as another piece of the puzzle fell nicely into place. Mr.Numbers was now irrelevant. Malvo went to pull the blade out to slice his neck but was interrupted by the loud footsteps of Molly running towards them as she began to yell at the pair to stop, Malvo panicked and his grip on Numbers dropped as he ran out into the blinding blizzard ahead of him. Numbers took all his effort to throw himself onto his side and he hit the hard snow with a loud thump as he moaned in pain, Molly took a glance at him with half concerned eyes and decided foolishly that he was dead. She then pressed on to catch up with the escaping Malvo.

As Molly's footsteps disappeared into the bleakness Mr. Numbers was left alone on the snow with his life blood slowly bleeding out of him, he was sobbing now and the stabbing pain in his back was consuming all of his energy. Far out in the distance he could vaguely hear more gunfire and the sound of a body dropping to the ground, he prayed to himself that it wasn't Wrench. Another set of boots came speeding past him and he heard the deep yells of a mans voice as he cried out for the other officer and completely ignored Numbers' writhing body on the floor. After the male officer left, he was all alone on the icy ground and he waited in solitude to die peacefully. He opened his eyes one last time to look out upon his final view but instead of swirly white snow he saw the burly figure of a man running towards him.

Wrench had spotted a dark figure curled up by the shed in the distance and had assumed it was Malvo, he smiled at a job well done and ran over to gloat over the body, finding Numbers could wait for a few seconds. As he approached though he noticed the figure had a knife in his back and was writhing around in pain, surely Numbers would have just shot the guy instead of using his knife? Wrench sped up and reached the body on the floor. He realized who it was. Dropping to his knees, he picked up Numbers body in his arms and held him close, he couldn't take the knife out now, it would just kill him faster. He looked down at his dying face and his eyes began to fill with tears as Numbers tried to mouth something, 'help me'. Thinking fast, Wrench ripped the scarf from Numbers' neck and pressed it against the wound to soak up the blood, immediately his hand was covered in warm, sticky blood and he knew he had to calm him down. Slowly, Wrench rested Numbers head on his knees and he gently stroked his face with his warm, free hand to try and soothe his friend, Numbers' breathing slowed from shaky coughs to slow gasps as he fought for his life. 

If Mr.Wrench could talk, he would have comforted his dear friend with more than just an embrace, he would have told him it would be okay and that he was always going to be there, but, his courage failed him and the too men just sat in the snow in a heart-breaking silence that ate away at Wrench as he rocked back and forth cradling Mr.Numbers' body like a broken doll. It was the scary thought of losing Numbers for good that motivated him to stand up and carry his friend to safety. Wrench heaved himself off of the cold,wet ground, being careful not to hurt Numbers more and stood there for a moment, with one arm stopping the blood from leaking and the other supporting Numbers' rolling head.He looked deep into the eyes of his companion and they shared a knowing look, Mr.Numbers opened his mouth and tried to speak but he was cut off by a series of bloody coughs that caused him to gag and splutter. This sparked fear in Wrench and he took off into a fast stride back to their car, occasionally glancing down to his friends limp body that was precariously cradled in his strong arms and every so often he had to give his friend a shake to make sure he didn't black out completely.

 They were only a few steps away from the car when Number's started to hear the revving of an engine in the distance as well an ear-splitting scream that rattled through his bones, he moaned in pain as he heaved his arm up to pull at the sleeves of his rescuer to alert him of the pressing danger. Mr.Wrench lifted his head to see the milky glare of distant headlights and knew it had to be Malvo, come to finish the job, and he furiously yanked at the car door whilst trying to balance Mr.Numbers' bleeding body over his shoulder, he knew it was risky- but so was being caught by Malvo.After several failed attempts that struck panic Wrench he pulled the door open and he carefully rested his friends body on the back seat and then ran round to the front seat and slammed the door closed behind him. The headlights were now gleaming brighter as they approached the pair and with one last look at the heavy rise and fall of Numbers' chest Wrench beat down on the gas pedal and the car sped away into the blizzard.

 End of Part 1