He's a She

Chapter Twenty-Six

            "Hey, wait!" But I wasn't stopping for her. 

            I jogged passed the aisles as I made my closer to the back room.  Where was he?  My breath caught in my throat as I stopped just before the room.  There was a large puddle of blood there.  I started to follow it.  My heart was in my throat and the adrenaline pumping through my veins had stopped all of my chills, now leaving me stiff, but wary.

            "Jaxon?" I called out weakly.  I heard a grunt and looked out into the shadows that were cast by the machines.  "Jaxon," I whisper yelled again.  "Jaxon, it's me, it's Charlene, everything's going to be okay." I told the person in the shadows as I continued to approach the darkness.

            "Jaxon," I breathed when my eyes fell on the all too familiar figure who was leaned up against the corner.  He was leaning forward, his hands pressed into his bleeding thigh with his head was thrown back, he looked deathly pale.

            I kneeled down next to him. 

            "Jaxon," I started softly, reaching out for him and looking down at his leg.  I winced, he had lost a lot of blood.  "Jaxon, I'll go get the paramedics, you're going to be okay." I made as to get up, but Jaxon grabbed me by the arm, keeping me down.  He shook his head no and I frowned.  "What?"

            "I-I can't," he breathed.

            "You can't what Jaxon?" I looked down at his leg anxiously as he shook his head back and forth.

            "I...I've been bad Charlie." He told me.  "I can't do that."

            "Can't do what?" His eyes cracked open.

            "Prison." I sighed, reaching out to his face.  He leaned into my hand.

            "It's going to be okay Jaxon, I won't let them get you."

            "I did it." He muttered.

            "What, what did you do Jaxon?" He shook his head again.

            "Tell Parker hey for me won't you Charlie?"

            "Jaxon, this is crazy."

            "Hey!" Someone called.  "We got someone over here!" The lady kneeled down next to us.  "It's okay kid, the paramedics are on their way." Jaxon's chest started hitching, as if he was going to cry, but no tears came.

            It didn't take long for the paramedics to come and take him away just as they had my father. 

            I stood up and rubbed my hands over my arms under the blanket, trying to fight off my growing gooseflesh.

A car sped into the parking lot and my eyes turned to it.  It was an all too familiar truck.  I frowned.  How did he get here?

            Paul practically threw himself down from the driver's side as Jack hopped out of the passenger's, rubbing at his clearly sleepy eyes.

            "Charlene!" He practically screamed as he ran up to me and buried me in a hug.  Luke sauntered his way over to us.

            "Paul?" I stated skeptically as he hugged the daylights out of me.  "Aren't you supposed to be in Massachusetts?" Paul just waved it off.  "That's next week hun.  They gave me the call and by god I was so worried." He told me as he held me away from him by the shoulders.