Chapter 171

Chaos exploded around them. Shouts and screams filled the air as Captain Whitlock ordered that Ghost be apprehended and an ambulance be called. Ghost dropped his gun and raised his hand in surrender as his fantasy came to life right before his eyes.
“Beautiful!” he said over the din. “It’s more beautiful than I could ever imagine.”
“Shut up,” Captain Whitlock spat as he wrenched Ghost’s hands behind his back. “You’re going to go away for a very long time. They may even make a case for the death penalty against you.”
“I hope they do,” he said with a contented sigh. “I’ve done all I have ever wanted to do.”
“Take this vile piece of shit. And read him his rights. This arrest needs to be perfect. I swear if this fucker gets out on a technicality, I’ll fire the lot of you!”
An officer took Ghost away, who’s eyes were shining with unbridled mirth.
“Will!” Emma had thrown herself on ground. She knelt over Will, patting his face, urging him to keep his eyes open.
“I need a status on that ambulance!” the captain called out.
“Will, please! Stay with me. Look at me. Keeping looking at me,” Emma pleaded.
“Em… em…” he managed.
Alex was doing his best to keep pressure on the wound. He had removed his shirt was using it to help stop the bleeding.
“You can’t leave us,” he said through his own cries. “Not now.”
“I… I…” Will tried to sleep.
“Shhh,” Emma soothed, running her hands over his face. “S-save your strength. Okay? Just keep looking at me. Keep looking. Don’t close your eyes. Please don’t.”
Alex and Emma were covered in his blood and filled with dread and despair. The sirens sounded like birdsong to them as the sounds got closer.
“They’re coming,” Emma said, trying to keep her composure. “You can hear them, right? You’ll be okay. You just have to hold on a little while longer, okay?”
“Lizzie…” he wheezed. His body started to tremble as his own tears began to mix with his blood.
“She’s fine.”
A shaky hand reached up towards Emma’s face.
“You need to stop moving,” Alex shouted. “You need to lay still.”
“Emma,” Will breathed, still reaching for her. Before his hand could make, his arm went limp, and his eyes closed.
“Will? Will!” Emma screamed. “No! Open your eyes! Open your eyes!”
“Where are the paramedics?” Alex yelled! “Come on, Will! You’ve got to hold on!”
***
Will looked around, feeling a strange sense of familiarity with surroundings he couldn’t possibly know. He sat in a large room, that resembled a study of some kind. A gorgeous, rich mahogany desk dominated the center of the room and matching bookcases lined the wall across from him. Behind the desk was a handsome wooden armchair, its back was facing him. He was sitting in a plush, burgundy, velvet couch with overstuffed cushions. The room smelled of Earl Grey Tea and peppermint. His heart thumped with realization and jumped into his throat.
“Pop?”
The chair turned around, and there was Conrad Stewart.
“Pop!” Will’s eyes widened with delight as he got up to run towards his grandfather. But Conrad held up a hand, stopping him.
“It’s good to see you,” the old man’s face lit up with warmth. “And while I would love to hug you, I’m afraid I can’t.”
“Why?”
“Well, for starters you are not supposed to be here. And if I were to touch you, you would not be able to leave. We can’t have that.”
“But I’ve missed you so much.”
“I’m sorry. I don’t make the rules. I cannot touch you, but we can talk. Before you ask, because I know you’re going to… Yes, I’m fine. And yes, I’ve been reunited with your grandmother. She sends her love, and regrets that she was unable to come and see you.”
“But why couldn’t she?”
“The rules,” Conrad shrugged. “Only one can come. Especially because you are not supposed to be here.”
“Where is here?” Will looked around, confused but admiring the beautiful room.
“Dear boy. You’re dying.”
“Dying?” Will stood. “What do you mean?”
“You don’t remember?”
A sudden pain bloomed in the center of Will’s chest, and he doubled over with the intensity of it. It left as quickly as it came. Conrad motioned over to the mirror on the desk. Instead of his reflection, he saw a hospital waiting room. An inconsolable Emma sat in one of the chairs. Jess knelt in front of her, taking her hands. Alex was pacing and seemed to yell something. Sabrina attempted to calm him, but he was hysterical. Spencer was off the to the side, on the phone shouting instructions to someone.
“Why can’t I hear them?”
“Would you like to? Come closer.”
Will walked closer to the mirror, and their voices became clear.
“Why did he do that?” Emma wailed. “Why?”
“Because he loves you,” Jess tried to comfort her.
“How can he love me if he leaves me?” Emma’s face was stained with tears. “Lizzie needs her father. He can’t die, he just can’t!”
“He’s not going to die,” Jess said, rubbing her hands. “Everything is going to be fine. The doctors will save him and soon he’ll be back to his bad ass CEO self. You’ll see.”
“I can’t lose him!” Emma cried.
“Alex, please,” Sabrina tried to coax him. “You need to sit. You’ve been hurt.”
“I’m fine!” he snapped. His face was also tear stained, but he appeared to be angry. “Why isn’t anyone telling us anything?” he yelled. “What the fuck is going on?” he knocked something off of the information desk.
“Mr. Rossi!” a nurse admonished. “Please contain yourself, or we will have to call security!”
“Call them! I don’t care! Call all of them!”
“He doesn’t mean that,” Sabrina said to the nurse. She grabbed Alex around the waist and held him tight. “Please, babe. Please.” He melted and sobbed like a little boy.
“We just need an update. We need some good news,” Spencer said into the phone. After a few moments, his eyes lit up. “The captain is going to be okay.” He said to everyone.
“That’s great!” Sabrina said. Alex and Emma nodded, but despair still had a strong grip on them.
“They’re so upset,” Will said, touching the mirror.
“You sound surprised about that.”
“I guess I am.”
“Oh, my dear boy. Somewhere in that steeled over stoic heart of yours lingers the doubt of whether you’re worthy of being cared for. Those two, Emma and Alex… care for you more than you’ll ever know.”
“I… want to believe that. But part of me still can’t.”
“I understand. And it will always be my biggest failure that I was never able to undo the damage your parents did.”
“Pop, I know you loved me. I never doubted it.”
“Then don’t doubt that they love you. Emma and Alex, along with the others in this mirror, and that precious baby girl of yours… that’s your family now. And they’re going to look after you while you heal. The same way you’ve looked after them. All of the things they did for you… was out of love. That’s what family feels like. That moment you all had together… that’s what makes life worth living.”
“You’ve seen Lizzie?” Will perked up.
“Of course. You thought I wouldn’t want to meet my great grandchild? She’s very special. You wait and see.”
“I do want to go back, but… I miss you, Pop. I need you.”
“I miss you, too. You’ll always have me. And when it is your time, I will be here to greet you. I love you, William.”
“I love you, Pop.”
***
Bright, fluorescent lights assaulted his eyes as they fluttered open. The sounds of slow breathing interspersed with soft shudders filled the space around him. He tried to move, but his body protested against the attempt. It felt as though a two ton boulder was resting on his chest.
He tried moving again. Someone in the room noticed and scrambled up to him.
“Hey,” it was Spencer. His face broke out into a relieved smile.
“What happened?” Will wheezed, his voice barely above a whisper.
“You jumped in front of a gun. You were in surgery for hours and have been asleep for about two days.”
“Two days?” he rasped.
“Here, sip on this water,” Spencer brought a cup of ice water to his lips. It felt amazing as the cool liquid soothed his ravaged throat. “Better?”
“Much,” his voice sounded more normal. “Where is Emma?”
“She’s asleep, right over there,” Spencer tilted his head to the side to indicate Emma was nearby. “They had to sedate her. And Alex. They’ve been a wreck.”
“Is everyone else okay?”
“Yeah. Jess and Sabrina went down to get us some food. They’ll be up soon. Let me get a nurse.” Spencer turned and began to walk out of the room. But before leaving, he turned to face Will. “We thought we had lost you for a while. Thanks for being alive.”