A belief worth dying for

Single strand of hope

Riley breath got caught in his throat, while the captain and others managed a scream. What the hell?! Riley thought he had finally won against the devil but he had not.

"Did you really think I was going to let him go just like that, you don't defy me without consequences..." Rafael said as he walked towards Riley, satisfied with his action.

Riley could not help but stare contnoiously at Jason, lying now in a pool of blood. The shot was not an execution style, to the heart, like Rafael's other victim, but Riley knew it would be hard for Jason to survive. He would surely bleed out if nothing else.

Riley stared blankly as Raphael raised his gun. All he wanted to do was say sorry to this kid whose life not only got caught in the cross fire, but whose bravery and resolve had never been given a chance. How old was he again? Riley caught himself thinking. He could not remember. He had not bothered to really remember. A kid, that was ready to die then become a murder.

Riley closed his eyes as Rafael large build hovered over him. He could feel the gun. He could feel the end.

Crash! Shatter!

Riley jerked open his eyes to see Rafael fall, behind him a glass window of the officer room was shattered showing a pair of black uniform moving at a quick pace. The swat team had already infiltrated. They had not followed protocol, no negotiation, no black out. It was a direct assault, they probably knew it was Rafael who was the culprit and changed tactics; which meant that someone talked. Someone from gang rolled over, and probably saved all thier lives today.

As soon as Riley gained senses, he tried to slowly move towards Jason who lay still. The Captain was trying to do the same. The Room had been filled with flash bombs and sudden shots with Rafael's team dropping one by one. It was over in a blink of an eye. Riley reached Jason as the smoke, glass and the chaos started to settle down. The Captain had already made her way to Jason and was checking his pulse. From the relief on her face Riley could tell that Jason was still alive.

Riley sat beside Jason's side. His face almost unrecognizable and the blood soaked through his clothes. It caused a painful pull on Riley's heart. He wanted him to survive, he wanted him to live, just to tell him that he was proud of him. To get a second chance with this kid, who could grow up to be a strong headed man. Riley could almost see a clear future for Jason. Rileys eyes started to fill up as the medical staff reached and started to cater to Jason.

Riley was beside Jason the entire night, waiting for the operation to finish. The boy had no next of kin and an emergency contact that did not pick up. Riley was treated and met with his family who could not understand why he needed to stay at the hospital until he told them that Jason had saved his life. Riley did owe Jason, but he was not there out of obligation or guilt. He genuinely wanted to be here, A kid he had written off so easily, showed guts he had not himself imagined. He needed him to live, the world needed people like him.