LET YOU DOWN.
chapter forty two.
"OH HOW I LOVE YOU IN SLEEVES," Hunter stood on her tippy toes and whispered into Buck's ear as she walked behind him.
Buck laughed out, a blush lacing his cheeks, "and here I thought you, uh, you were gonna say you loved me," he whispered back.
"That too," she said at normal volume, tapping his back slightly as she strode past him and stopped next to Eddie at the barricade who shot her a knowing look.
The autonomous cop free zone. What could possibly go wrong there? Hunter rolled her eyes as the woman at the entrance wildly glared the firefighters down. They were called there to do their job, to help a gun shot victim, and they didn't need anyone making their job harder.
"I don't know who called you guys. No official passes these barricades," the woman announced, standing her ground.
"We don't need you!"
"Get out of here!"
"Rub your two brain cells together and recognize the fact that someone in this stupid fucking camp needs some god damn help," Hunter cussed out pointing a finger. The five straight days of work and blackouts was taking its toll on her— it was taking a toll on everyone. Hunter was just one of the few who had the gaul to be brutally honest with a civilian.
"We have volunteers to take care of that."
"But they're not," Chimney firmly announced, "Someone in your camp called 911. That's who we are. We are 911," he deadpanned as the captains truck pulled to a stop with its sirens behind them, "You've got a man in there bleeding out."
"You have your rules, and we have ours," the lady retorted.
"Why is everyone just standing there?" Bobby asked, an already angry tone lacing his voice.
"They won't let us in," Buck gestures towards the barricades and line of people.
Hunter rolled her eyes, "This wannabe mayor is blocking the way and really just asking me to commit assault today, Cap."
"Really? Since when do anarchists have rules?" Their captain scoffed out.
Eddie sighed out with a shake of his head, "Adapt or die."
"Yeah, someone's gonna fuckin' die, darling," the blonde muttered under her breath as she stared at the woman.
"There's no rules here," Bobby gritted out as he took the pry bar from Eddie's hands and kicked a barricade over with his foot before striding into the camp.
The 118 seem almost stunned by the hot headed outburst from their captain as they stood around. Hunter was the first to move, following in his succession.
"You're not supposed to be here," one of the bystanders in the camp tried to tell them. Hunter moved faster as she spied the assault rifle in his hands— the man child wasn't prepared to use it.
"I'm not supposed to crack your skull open with this either," Bobby gritted out loud enough for them to hear as they approached, "Where is the injured guy?"
They strode pass the fake macho guard who had tried to stop them, Bobby pushing through the people until they heard a call for help. The firefighters picked up the pace as they watched their captain wave them over to the scene, "Gun wound. Looks like a through-and-through. Brachial artery looks to be intact. Chim?"
"Got it," the paramedic clarified as the snapped his latex gloves around his hands and kneeled down next to Bobby to assess the victim, "Take some breaths."
Hunter watched with a frown as her captain walked away to call it in. She shared a confused glance with Eddie as he had a pointed finger aimed at the retreating man. It seemed she wasn't the only one who noticed his behavior.
"So, uh, that was awesome, Cap," Buck finally spoke up as she left the side of the victim on the gurney once he had been properly strapped in and moved closer to the ambulance, "Just not having it tonight, huh?"
"Everything okay?" Hen asked with concern lacing her motherly voice as she eyed her captain who stood stoically in front of them.
Bobby kept his face blank , pursing his lips as he tried to formulate a response, "Harry's been kidnapped," he said before quickly walking away without saying a word.
The ride to the station had been eerily quiet, Bobby rode by himself in the captains vehicle but that didn't lightly the atmosphere in the fire engine.
"What's he doing? He still hasn't moved."
"Leave it alone, Buck. Nobody's going in there," chimney sighed out from his spot next to Hunter stocking the engine truck.
"I can't imagine what Cap's going through right now," Eddie muttered quietly. Hunter moved from the fire truck and sat down on the bench in front of her locker, "If it was Christopher, I'd be losing my mind."
"Why Harry? Thought this guy's thing was attacking women."
"Pretty sure that's exactly what he's doing, Buck," Hen finally chimed in as she left her spots at the tool box.
Hunter sighed, looking up at Buck, "nothing else would get to Athena like Henry," she pointed out, bitting at her lip.
It seemed as soon as she had finished talking the bell had rang out, sirens over head blaring into her ears as she stood from the bench she was on and climbed into the fire truck.
Everyone was surprised to see Bobby sitting in the drivers seat. "Cap... you good to go on this call?"
"Athena needs our help," he said, his voice almost scarily unwavering at the thought of his wife being in danger.
That ride was more silent than the first had been. Bobby hadn't even told his crew where he was taking him. Hunter recognized the train tracks as the fire truck rolled to a stop and the headlights were switched off.
Hunter exchanged a passing glance with Eddie, her eyes showed an uneasiness that was returned by him as if to say neither of them liked the current situation.
She didn't know how long they had sat there. Faintly, in the distance, Hunter could hear the voice of Athena Grant calling out to Jeffery. "I know things seem dark right now and hopeless, but they're not hopeless," Hunter gritted her teeth, she couldn't imagine how difficult it was for Athena to have to utter those words to that man, "And they're most definitely not dark."
The blonde almost jumped as the lights of the 118 turned on again, Hudson frozen in the bright headlights in shock and fear, "Drop the gun, Jeffery."
Hunter couldn't help but be surprised at their plan, it was risky and more importantly it wasn't planned out, it was pure luck he had run and stopped to end up right in front of them. Coincidences didn't end well in the Callahan's experience.
"Wow. You lured me down here."
"No, bitch, I chased you down here," she was quieter for a moment, Hunter almost couldn't hear her, "Now drop it, and tell me where my boy's at."
Hudson scoffed, trying not to show any fear, "How'd you even manage to pull this off?"
"Easy. I got no end of backup," she spat out with squinted eyes, "You think you got me alone that night? No, sir. When you came at me, you came at everyone who loves me."
Buck had clenched his jaw, a nervous anger had long since risen in his chest as he sat in the front seat of the engine truck, ready to exit once Jeffery was on the ground.
"You got lucky that night. If you hadn't picked up that gun, you'd be dead already!"
"And you'd still be peeing standing up," Athena retorted which got a small smirk to play at the lips of the Callahan but she quickly wiped it off once the reality of the situation hit her again. "Now drop it. Don't make me shoot you again."
"No?" Hudson asked, looking over at the firefighters with a grin. Hunter swallowed hard, if he aimed at them, she wouldn't be responsible for her own actions that followed. "That your firefighter husband?"
Athena had a choice to make, she felt her heart beating heavily as she watched the gears turn inside the man's head before she pulled the trigger five time. His body fell to the ground, landing on the train tracks as his death began to quickly set in.
"Damn it," Athena yelled as she jumped down onto the tracks. The 118 had quickly exited the truck as soon as the shots were fired, "Where's Harry? Tell me where he is! Keep him alive. Keep him alive!"
Hunter bit at her lip as she watched the life drain from his eyes, blood peaking out from the corners of his mouth. "He's not breathing."
"Where is he?" Athena yelled from the arms of Bobby, "Tell me where he is!"
Hen swallowed hard as she looked at her friend, "I got no pulse," she regretfully informed.
Hunter hoped, she truly hoped, that when they got to the neighborhood Harry would still be alive. Her fingers clenched the metal of the cross she had been given tightly in her hand, the edges of it digging painfully into her skin.
Her boots patted against the asphalt as she slowed to a stop in front of her captain, her favorite sledge hammer heavy in her hands.
"All right. I want every one of these houses checked. Every room. Every closet, crawl space, basement. Every inch. Let's go."
Hunter nodded her head in agreement as she quickly broke from the group with Eddie and Buck behind her, watching as she strode to kick in the door of the first house.
"Harry," she yelled out, her voice booming and echoing off of the empty walls in the dark and lonesome house. She couldn't hear any response, a heavy weight on her shoulders as a sinking fear set it that maybe to was too late.
She yelled into each room she entered as if it was going to make a difference. Eventually she had no where else to search before she ran into the rest of the 118 again.
"We can pull the FLIR tech. Or maybe we can get some dogs out here," she heard as she stopped walking.
Hunter sighed, turning her flashlight off and placing her sledgehammer on the floor, "Infrared would be a fuckin' life saver— literally," she muttered out in agreement but quickly shut her mouth once she realizes what she said.
"Yeah, or maybe this is a goose chase, and he's buried out there somewhere," Michael Grant yelled out in frustration, his emotions running high.
"Hey, I found this out back. I— I don't know if it means anything."
Bobbys eyes bore into Buck's as a light set off into his head, "Check for wet paint, guys."
They all looked around for a moment, pausing as they watched Athena set a hand down on the wall and pulling it away, revealing her covered hand, "Wet paint."
"Eddie," captain called out.
"On it," he replied, immediately striding forward and sinking the crowbar into the drywall before ripping it away."
"Wait, wait, wait," Michael yelled, stopping Eddie from hitting the wall again, "Harry!"
Hunter's back fell against the comforter of Buck's bed as she sighed out. The sinking feeling in her stomach seemed to have not yet left even after Harry woke up again. Hunter wasn't that big of a fan of kids, but she at least had morals— a heart at that.
"Oh, how I've missed power," she said as she stared up at the spinning ceiling fan. Buck laughed at her as he came to a stop at the foot of his bed and peered down at the woman. Bending down, he pulled the shoes off of her feet and tossed them to the corner of the room and tapping her thigh with another laugh as she groaned before flopping down onto the bed next to her.
"Oh, how I've missed sharing a bed with you," he mumbled into her neck as he draped an arm across her stomach, her old marines PT shirt having risen when she sprawled herself out.
Hunter laughed, bringing a hand up to run through his hair, "and I've missed showering— don't give me that look, I meant in general," she swatted his head when she saw the look he gave her when he raised his head.
"Mhm, that's a lie," Buck accused as he laid a kiss down on her neck before dropping his head again and closing his eyes. They both could sleep for days if it was allowed. Hunter settled in further, rolling onto her side as she draped a leg over Buck's body before closing her own eyes and letting sleep overtake her.