Chapter Text
*FIVE MINUTES BEFORE THE EXPLOSION*
Inside the back Lucy watches as the bank employees become more and more agitated. They are adamant that they don’t have access to the main vault downstairs but Martinez and his crew are money hungry and amped up on gun power and adrenaline.
One of the goons points a semi automatic rifle at a female bank tellers head and demands that she bring him downstairs or he’ll start shooting the hostages in the bank.
“Please, I’m begging you,” the distressed employee cries.
“We have no access to the money downstairs. You have to believe me, there’s no way of getting near all that cash…..”
She is cut off by the sound of a gun being fired at the ceiling.
“Shut up lady,” Martinez roars aggressively. “Just bring us to the vault and we’ll take care of the rest.”
He gestures at the bag of explosives near Lucy and encourages her to pick them up.
“You, hotshot! Let’s go,” he points at Lucy and two of the masked men beside her.
“We don’t need the rest of them so just shut them up or get rid of them,” Martinez gestures at the unfortunate bank patrons who are lying on the floor.
“I say we kill them all,” one of the crew shouts. “Makes it easier for us to get away quickly with no witnesses.”
Lucy looks at the small group of innocent people, crying and terrified on the floor. She cannot stand by and let anyone else get hurt, but if she blows her cover then she’s as good as dead herself.
Thinking on her feet she offers to stay with the hostages while the others get the money.
“I’ll stay with these,” she says casually.
“You guys go get us what we came for. Anyone so much as sneezes and I’ll take care of them.”
Lucy instills as much menace and contempt into her voice as she can.
She needs to protect the hostages, no other outcome is good enough for her.
“Fine,” Martinez concedes. “We’ll figure out what to do with them after.”
He leads the bank staff and the rest of his gang towards the rear of the building where the basement stairs are located.
Lucy waits for an opportunity to ensure the hostages are safe and maybe try and signal to the ever growing number of police officers outside the building. She is aware of them out there, knows they are putting tactical plans in place to get the hostages out and the criminals arrested as quickly and safely as possible.
She wonders if Tim is out there, imagines him scowling at whoever is in charge and knows in her heart that he is close by.
She is about to try and release some of the hostages discreetly when she hears two voices shouting from the direction of the basement stairs.
“Go to the girl, Martinez doesn’t trust her. He says one of us stays with her at all times.”
A voice she recognises as Peter Small is bellowing around the bank.
“I ain’t staying up here when all the money is down there,” his associate yells. “Boss is trying to get rid of us, he wants to take our share of the cash and I ain’t having it.”
“Well one of us is staying with them,” Small gestures at the group of men, women and children lying on the floor.
“Unless we just shoot them all,” the other man reasons. “I’m not letting the others get all that cash.”
He starts to point his weapon at the group and Lucy knows she has to act fast. But before she even has a chance to think; one of the hostages charges at Lucy, attempting to grab her weapon. Chaos ensues and suddenly shots are being fired in all directions.
Out of the corner of her eye, Lucy can see that a young child has become separated from her parent and is becoming more and more distressed. One of the gunmen sees the movement and points his weapon at the unsuspecting child.
Lucy has no choice; a child’s life is at stake and she knows she would rather die herself than watch an innocent toddler be gunned down. Without hesitation, she throws her body in front of the young girl, covering her completely.
Two gunshots sound and all Lucy is aware of is excruciating pain. Her leg and her belly are on fire but she needs to get the child to safety.
Her cover has undoubtedly been blown and her weapon had become dislodged in the chaos. She looks around frantically, finally spotting her gun a few feet away.
With as much energy as she can muster; Lucy drags her body across the floor to grab the weapon.
She is almost within arms reach when Small stops her in her tracks. He whips off his mask and stares down at her; her own mask on the floor beside her.
“I knew you were a snitch,” he snarls, kicking her in the stomach and then grabbing her forcefully by her throat.
Some of the hostages appear to be running in the opposite direction and Lucy is aware that she is losing blood rapidly. She desperately tries to fight back but between her two gaping wounds and Smalls tight grip on her neck; she is fighting the battle to stay conscious.
Behind her; one of the hostages has overpowered the second gunman and he is shouting at the rest of the group to run for the exit doors at the rear of the building.
The hostages are running, seeing an opportunity to escape now that there is only one lunatic with a gun remaining. A lunatic who is hell bent on squeezing the life out of Lucy Chen.
“We can’t leave her,” Lucy hears a woman cry frantically.
“She saved that kids life, we have to help her.”
Lucy is starting to black out but she is vaguely aware of two men wrestling her attacker to the ground. She is finally free of his grasp and she uses her remaining energy to wrestle the gun from his hands and turn it on him. Before she gets a chance to fire her weapon, a man grabs her roughly and pulls her towards the exit doors at the back of the bank.
But as they run, she hears another shot ring out. One of the hostages has aimed the gun at her attacker but has badly misfired. The bullet hits the bag of explosives on the floor and just as Lucy and the remaining hostages are racing towards the exit; the world turns black.
______________________
Tim watches as the building is set alight, his ears ringing and his chest ready to explode. Without hesitating, he finds himself running towards the bank. He is aware of police officers and paramedics everywhere, pulling at him and trying to stop him as he gets closer to the burning building.
“Sir, you need to stay back,” a fireman shouts in his face, yanking him back forcefully and halting his movement.
“I have to get in there,” Tim screams.
“My partner, my friend…. I have to get to her.”
Tim is frantic, trying his best to escape the fireman’s clutches, but soon he is outnumbered and he is being held back by three more men.
“I’m sorry Tim,” he hears Grey saying from behind him. Grey is shaking his head sadly, an expression of heartbreak and horror on his face.
“You need to prepare yourself son,” he says gently; reaching for Tim’s arm.
“That explosion just tore that bank apart. Anyone who was inside wouldn’t have a chance in hell of surviving. I’m so sorry Tim.”
Grey continues to placate Tim while he continues to be held back forcefully.
“No,” Tim screams painfully.
“We don’t know, we can’t give up on her, we need to get inside right now….”
He can feel his heart beating frantically in his chest and he recognises the imminent signs of a panic attack starting as the building shakes and burns.
Tim feels his legs give way and he stumbles to the ground. There are people all around him, shouting and running in every direction but all he is aware of is his heart- it’s breaking in his chest and his breaths are becoming harder and harder to catch.
His eyes are filling up with tears and he releases a guttural scream before bowing his head and allowing himself to crumble.
He is vaguely aware of arms surrounding him and holding him, of a quiet and concerned voice whispering in his ear and offering words of comfort. He recognises it as Angela’s but he can’t speak and he can’t think.
If Lucy Chen is dead; then he might as well be too.
He tries to stand up, to start looking for answers when he hears frantic shouting and screaming from the far side of the building.
“We need help, please help us. A woman is bleeding to death. Please, we need help,” a voice cries out, her face covered in soot and dirt.
Everybody stops in their tracks to take in the sight of one of the hostages who has run frantically to them from the back of the building.
“What the hell,” Tim hears a fellow officer say.
“How did anyone get out alive?”
There is a cacophony of voices and questions but all Tim can focus on is the possibility of other survivors.
“Take us to the others,” he shouts urgently. The woman gestures to the back of the building and Tim, Grey and dozens of other LAPD officers begin running in that direction.
There are people everywhere, women and children crying and injured, three men badly burned but Tim only has eyes for one person. He searches their faces desperately, looking from one to another but only seeing strangers.
He continues to rush through the mob of people and isn’t even aware that he is shouting her name.
“Lucy, Lucy,” he cries urgently. “Lucy, please, where are you?”
His gaze finally lands on a figure, curled into a ball and covered in blood. Instantly Tim knows it’s her; he would recognise her chestnut curls anywhere.
He drops to the ground and immediately turns her over.
“Lucy, Lucy,” he cries again, horror written on his face as he turns her towards him. There is blood running from her stomach and a large gaping hole is visible on her left thigh. Her face is covered in scrapes and bruises and there are burn marks on her arms and hands. Her eyes are shut and he takes in the sign of handprints on her bruised and battered neck.
“Lucy, baby, I’m here. It’s me. It’s Tim. Please Lucy, look at me”
He is aware that he is crying, desperation and fear clouding his voice.
“We need help here,” he screams.
“We have an officer down.”
A paramedic is beside them in seconds and he feels himself being pushed aside roughly.
He watches as two paramedics kneel beside Lucy’s body and he tries to grab any part of her that he can; desperately afraid to break contact with her.
He sees the first paramedic check for a pulse and notices as the second grabs an AED machine from his kit.
“She’s not breathing and her airway has been compromised.”
Tim’s heart shatters as he watches them cut at her shirt and place the AED pads on her chest and side.
“Sir you have to move back, we have to shock her right now.”
Tim’s whole world stops as he watches Lucy’s body jump off the ground. He hears the voice command of the machine state that no pulse has been detected and he watches on wordlessly as the paramedics continue their efforts.
Lucy’s body shows no sign of responding and after several more attempts, the first paramedic shakes his head resolutely.
“I’m sorry Sir,” he utters solemnly.
“But it’s too late. Officer Chen is dead.”