„Please, Sentinel, you have to go,“ David pleaded with me with his pain filled despaired voice

… And the Day Was Beautiful Again

This is for Lexie – my first and best e-friend ever!

“Please, Sentinel, you have to go,“ David pleaded with me with his pain-filled despairing voice.

“No.“ That was the only answer I gave him. The only answer I was able to give him without showing my own despair. I couldn’t believe that just a couple of minutes ago everything was fine in my world and now it was turned upside down.

Absentmindly I looked at my watch and was surprised that everything took place just ten minutes ago. I was driving my black jeep – well, me driving is the only possibility in our partnership since David doesn’t have a driver’s licence – and we were headed to the cross section near our police department. The day was sunny – a rare thing in Cascade - so we were enjoying its beauty. I was teasing David about his lack of cooking skills and he was blushing furiously, looking out of his window stubbornly refusing to meet my laughing eyes.

But then, just when we were in the middle of the crossection, I saw the blood leave his face. He turned ghostly white and a second later I noticed the danger too. A dark blue car was racing down the hill showing no attempt to slow down at the street light. I zoomed automatically towards the driver. A young woman, maybe twenty-five years old, was franticly trying to stop the car, to slow down, but the brakes were obviously not working. There was no way I could stop the accident from happening. One car was in front of me, another one behind me, in the line next to mine a steady row of cars coming from the opposite direction. My last thought before the big crash was of David as he caught my hand. I could feel our bond burning brightly, my Guide’s presence cocooning my mind like a warm blanket for a second before he severed every connection between us.

A mighty force threw me against the safety belt and my face hit the air bag that popped out automatically. Then there was only darkness.

When I woke up a young man was shaking me, trying to rouse me from unconsciousness. With a quick scan of all my body parts I could reassure him that I was relativelly unscathed, except for a lot of scrapes and bruises. Everything seemed to be relatively okay except from my sense. They were acting up. I could barely get them under control. My ears were ringing and the pain in my head was pushing me to the verge of a zone out.

I reached out with my mind searching for the soothing presence of my Guide. But instead of the burning light that has always represented my mate’s soul all I could feel was a candle-like flicker at the end of a long dark tunnel. I looked to the right and I could feel my heart freeze in my chest.

The right site of my jeep was nothing more than a pile of twisted metal. With my Guide in the middle. The other car had crashed a little to the right of David’s door. The right window had burst into a million pieces and cut his face and neck, leaving small rivulets of blood making blotches on his white sweater. His face was turned to me. He was white as snow, his eyes closed, lips parted. His chest and arms were pinned by the twisted metal of his door. I could only see small movements of his chest as he was taking only shallow breaths, indicating bruised or broken ribs.

The shock of seeing my soulmate in this state seemed to force my senses back on-line. I sent out my hearing. His heart was beating sluggishly, unevenly. I reached over and touched his face – the need to reassure myself that my mate was okay almost overwhelming me.

Then I smelled it – gasoline! I looked over at the other car. A small tongue of flame was licking out from under the hood. I zoomed in on the vehicle, and saw the gas dripping from the ruptured gas line. I knew exactly what that meant. We had to get out of there before the cars exploded.

I called a warning to the people gathering around us and loosened my safety belt. I took my swiss army knife out of my pocket and cut Davy’s safety belt because I couldn’t unbuckle him. I was looking at options for getting him out through the driver’s door and finding none. Then I felt him stir.

“Davy?“ I called his name catching his face in my hands. I caressed his left cheek carefully minding the small shards of glass that were embedded deeply under his skin. I knew I had to get him out of the car soon. But I also knew that his barriers would be down and he would be totally open to the feelings of other people around. When I looked over at the car that almost managed to kill us I saw some people getting the young woman out. She was screaming in pain. I knew if she should die within this distance from my Guide the backlash of her death could push him into empathic shock while his barriers were down.

I reached out with my mind carefully so as not to hurt him even more that he already was and tried to establish the connection between us again. I was delighted when I felt him responding tentatively.

“Sentinel…?“ There was confusion in his whispered voice. Confusion and pain.

“I’m here, little one,“ I answered putting all the reassurance I could manage into my voice cocooning his hurting mind with my own building shields around him to protect him from the emotions of the crowd.

He opened his big emerald green eyes clouded with pain. They moved without focus around the cab until they settled on me. I could see him trying to focus but without much luck – a sure sign of concussion. “Wha’… happ’nd…?“ he asked blinking sluggishly.

“We had an accident,“ I reminded him my attention divided between him and looking for a way out of there. It was becoming pretty obvious to me that the only way out led through the driver’s door.

My statement brought him fully in focus and he opened his eyes in shock, looking over at me trying to find any signs of a serious injury. “You okay?“ The fear in his voice was evident.

I looked straight into his eyes. “Yes, I am. But you aren’t.“

He frowned. “I’m not?“ Then I saw him panic as he tried to lift his arm to touch his head and couldn’t.

“Easy, easy, Davy. You are pinned. Tell me what hurts…“ I tried to calm him down holding his head gently but firmly in my hands.

“Everything,“ he whispered after a couple of seconds.

“Can you feel your arms and legs?“ He nodded. “Okay. That’s good, really good. What about your barriers?“

“All gone…“ I could hear a small whimper in his voice and I caressed his face lightly. His blood was tainting my hands and it’s stench was almost overwhelming my already strained senses.

I looked over at the people carrying the wounded woman away from the accident scene and the burning car. They were far enough already so that I could leave David unshielded for a moment without danger of him falling into the black void of empathic shock every Guide feared so much.

“Davy…“ When he didn’t look at me I raised my voice. “Davy!“ Finally I got his attention. “I have to take my hands away from you. You’ll be open for a moment.“ I could see the panic return to his eyes. “I know it hurts to feel the emotions of others without any protection, but I have to get you out of here!“

“Wait… for the EMTs?“ he suggested hopefully his eyes brimming with tears.

I shook my head. “Can’t do. I can smell gasoline and the other car’s on fire already.“

The panic in his eyes turned to horror. He knew pretty well what that meant. But his next words surprised me although they shouldn’t – not after all those years together. “You have to get out of here, Sentinel. The cars will explode!“ His voice was clear now, full of fear – fear for me, the sluggishness was gone.

“I won’t leave you here!“ I retorted firmly, my hands leaving his face.

I grabbed the piece of twisted metal that was pinning him in his seat. The smell of gasoline was getting stronger. I needed to get him out. Now.

“Please, go!“ David repeated his plea with despair trying to catch my eyes with his, but I refused to meet his look.

What I feared finally happened. The gasoline dripping from the other car caught fire, and raced along the small stream to puddle of gasoline just a couple of feet away from our car. I looked at it sideways but refused to pay attention to it. I had to get my Guide to safety.

David saw the fire mirrored in the broken pieces of glass lying all over him and the car hood. He looked at me the horror evident within his watering eyes. “Please, Sentinel, you have to go.“

“No!“ With that one word I tore at the metal with strength born of fear and desperation and it twisted with a screeching noise, bending forwards freeing David from his metal prison. He cried out in pain as I released him from the suffocating pressure and slumped forward bonelessly. I caught him carefully, for once grateful that he had passed out. I knew that if he had been conscious the pull I gave to get him out of the car would have been torture. I knew I could be aggravating his injuries even more, but if I left him there he would die. And I couldn’t let that happen.

Outside the car I took him in my arms, his head pressed against my shoulder, and started to run as quickly as possible away from the cars. Just a few seconds later there was a big explosion, a wave of heat scalding my back through my jacket, throwing me to the ground. I twisted around so as to be the one who would hit the ground first. The hard fall stole my breath away leaving me gasping for air. My head hit the cold concrete with a thud causing the sharp pained I felt upon awaking to return.

When the first piece of molded metal hit the road near my left shoulder I turned us over covering my Guide, shielding him from the pieces of metal raining from the sky.

When the noises of the explosion quieted and the ringing in my ears diminished to an annoying background noise I could hear people screaming and running, and the sirens of an ambulance in the distance. I moved away from the precious bundle I was willing to protect with my own life. I leaned over him resting my weight on my elbows on both sides of his body.

David’s eyes were closed and his face was now a grayish color. His breathing was even more strained. His skin became cold and clammy – the shock was setting in. But his heart was beating and that was the main thing now.

Someone knelt next to us. It didn’t surprise me that I didn’t hear him approach. I looked up and saw Ellison giving my Guide a worried glance. Sandburg was standing behind him, one hand on Ellison’s shoulder. He too was watching David anxiously.

“We responded to a call regarding an accident and saw the explosion. Are you and your Guide okay?“ Jim’s voice was full of worry shown only to his closest friends. I felt honored by the friendship of this complex man once again.

Jim looked down at my mate and I was sure he was checking him for injuries with his senses. For once I didn’t mind another Sentinel coming near my Guide. These two were the only ones I would trust with the safety of my bondmate.

“Yeah, but send the EMTs to us immediately. He has a concussion and a couple of broken ribs for sure. He could have some internal injuries too.“

He nodded, got up and headed quickly to the arriving ambulance. Blair followed him with one quick glance over his shoulder. He was worried but he knew too, that the safest place for a hurt Guide was with his Sentinel.

I shifted my focus back to my Guide. With a whimpered sound caused by a slight movement of his head he woke up slowly. He took a shaky shallow breath and slowly opened his eyes. He blinked a couple of times looking at my face then his eyes moved to the burning pile of metal that has been our car just a couple of minutes ago. I could see tears gathering in his eyes. I touched his face, turning it to me.

“Hey, little one. Are you in pain? Where are you hurting?“ I was worried that I may have hurt him even more with my mad run and the fall just a short while ago.

He shook his head ever so slightly but one lonely tear slipped down his blood covered cheek leaving a visible trail behind.

“What’s wrong then?“ I was confused now. If it weren’t his injuries why was he crying?

His next words were said in such a quiet tone that only sentinel hearing was able to catch them. “You stayed with me… you didn’t leave me behind…“

I caught one of his tears with my thumb. “Of course not, little one. I wouldn’t do it. Ever. You are the other half of my soul. We live together and we will die together. We are one and nothing will ever change that. Didn’t you know it already?“ I caressed his hair, matted with drying blood and soot.

He looked at me finally with his watering eyes, the need of reassurance burning in them. I knew he could read me fully with his barriers gone, only my touch shielding him from the emotions of others. But I still said: “I would give my life for you anytime.“

Finally. There in the depths of his soul I could see the faith. Faith in my words. I couldn’t believe that after all these years together he still thought that I would leave him behind. I think we will have to have a talk together. Soon.

David’s eyes were closing. He was falling asleep or fading into unconsciousness and that wouldn’t do. So I touched his cheek slightly forcing him to open his eyes. “No, no, no. No sleep for now, sleeping beauty. The EMTs are here and I don’t think they would be happy to find you taking a nap.“

I looked up and could see two young EMTs running towards us with Ellison and Sandburg on their heels standing sentry to protect one of their own.

A small smile touched my Guide’s lips. His eyes were still clouded with pain, but the faith in me, in us, our bond was shining through. “Bossy Sentinel…!“ he whispered sentinel soft and I had to smile. Yeah, he will be okay. We will be okay again.

And the day was beautiful again.

The end