Message-ID: <6cd3114c.358ac531@aol.com> Date: Fri, 19 Jun 1998 16:08:15 EDT From: Maryilee@aol.com Subject: "And Then There Were Two" Part 7 Chapter 7 Gary stood on a corner, shivering. He was cold, and tired. He had been tramping through the neighborhood where the paper said that Herrara was going to be found beaten, for over three hours, and despite his efforts, was still no closer to finding the man and warning him. Everybody Gary asked seemed to know the guy, but either they didn't know, or were reluctant to tell a stranger where he could be found. Gary heaved a sigh and crossed the street. All he could do now, was try to find the alley where the schoolchildren were going to find Herrara. Maybe there was still some way to prevent the tragedy. Gary hoped so. Suddenly, the sound of tumbling trash cans echoed out of an alley just ahead of Gary. He quickly but cautiously peeked around the corner of a building. Two men were confronting a third man. Gary swallowed hard. He had found Herrara. He looked around for a weapon of some kind, and had to settle for an empty beer bottle. It wasn't much, but he was hoping that he wouldn't need it. He cursed under his breath when he heard a cry of pain come from within the alley. Taking a deep breath, and saying a silent prayer, Gary rushed into the alley, shouting. "Hey! Leave him alone! I've called the police!" He bluffed. The two attackers whirled to face him, forgetting their intended victim for the moment. Gary recognized one of the men from the day before when he had tackled him and saved Herrara the first time. The men, hardly more than boys give each other a smirk. Gary stopped about five feet short of them, his gaze flicking to Herrara, who was curled into a protective ball, moaning. "Why don't you guys just run off, and leave him alone. Go on! Before the police get here!" Gary yelled. He shifted nervously. It was apparent from the predatory gleam in their eyes, that his bluff wasn't working. Suddenly, both of them rushed him. Gary swung the beer bottle in self-defense, landing only a glancing blow on one of his attacker's shoulders. "Oomph!" Gary hit the ground hard, one of his attackers landing heavily on top of him. He threw up his arms to protect his head, as blows started raining down on him. Rolling over to his side, Gary struggled to his feet, grunting in pain when a well-placed kick caught him in the ribs. Panting, he had almost made it to a standing position, when his coat was grabbed from behind. He was flung to the ground again, his knee skinning painfully on the rough pavement. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a foot pull back, aimed for his head. In panic, he scrambled to his hands and knees, bracing for the blow. Suddenly, his attacker was sent flying across the alley. Gary looked up in surprise, as Chuck was wrestling with one of Gary's attackers. While Gary was gawking at Chuck's fighting prowess, the other attacker landed another kick to Gary's side. He collapsed, gasping in pain, and was dimly aware of hands rifling his pockets. The paper! He thought foggily, they're trying to steal the paper! He stumbled to his feet, lashing out in anger. Gary's fist connected solidly with his attacker's jaw, sending him crashing to the ground. He stole a look at Chuck, shocked to see him chasing one of the boys part way down the alley. He turned his attention back to the boy he had punched just in time to see a blur of brown glass an instant before it connected with his head. Stars burst in his vision, as he wobbled into a wall of a building on the side of the alley. Suddenly, his knees collapsed, and he sank to the ground, into oblivion. Gasping, Sam turned towards the sound of breaking glass. "Gary!" He shouted, rushing back to help. Gary's attacker, seeing that his partner had fled, lost his courage and will to fight, and turning on his heels, dashed away. Dropping to his knees next to Gary's still form, Sam angrily looked up at Al. "I thought you said he doesn't get killed till tomorrow night!" Al bent over Gary in concern, and started furiously punching buttons on the handlink. "Ziggy says that he's only stunned, Sam." Al sighed in relief, running a finger across his forehead. Grimly, Sam checked for himself, closing his eyes in a silent prayer of thanks as he felt a steady pulse in Gary's neck. A moan on the other side of the alley caught his attention, and he turned remembering the other man who had already been down when Sam had gotten there. "Stay with him, Al." Sam directed as he hurried over to the other victim. At Sam's touch, the man flinched and opened his eyes. Sam winced at the sight of the man's left arm bent at an unnatural angle. "It's okay." He reassured the frightened man. He quickly checked him over for any life-threatening injuries, and was satisfied that the arm was the worst injury. He didn't like the man's pale color or clammy skin, though, and quickly shrugged out of his coat, gently covering the injured man in an attempt to keep him warm and prevent shock. Sam heard a small gasp, and looked up the stunned faces of two young boys. Not wanting to frighten them, he slowly raised his hand, "I need your help, okay?" The boys shook their heads in confusion, not comprehending. They looked frightened and ready to bolt, when Sam switched to Spanish. Relaxing somewhat, they listened as Sam asked them to please go call nine-one-one. Nodding, the boys dashed away. Sam wearily rubbed his eyes, wincing as he found a lump above his eyebrow. "Sam! He's coming around." Al called. "Hey Gary." Sam said softly, as Gary's eyes flickered, accompanied by a soft moan. Gary struggled to sit up, his face contorting in pain. Sam gently but softly pushed him back down. "Lie still, Gary. An ambulance will be here soon." Sam arched a questioning eyebrow at Al. "Oh, yeah, it'll be here in two minutes, Sam." Al answered the unspoken question after a quick check of the handlink. Holding the side of his head, Gary brushed Sam's restraining hand away and sat up against the wall. "I'm fine, Chuck." Gary's eyes closed tightly, obviously not 'fine'. Opening his eyes, his gaze only slightly clouded now, Gary asked, "How is Mr. Herrara?" Assuming correctly that Gary was referring to the other victim, Sam answered, "He has a badly broken arm, but other than that, he looks like he should be okay." A look of relief washed over Gary's face. Sam leaned over, examining Gary's head, his brow furrowing with concern noting the blood pouring from a gash on the left side, just above Gary's ear. Sam gently pulled the hair away to get a better look. "Ow!" Gary winced, flashing Sam an annoyed look. "What are you doing?" Sam sat back on his heels, satisfied that the cut wasn't too big, but like most head wounds, just bled a lot. "Hey, I just didn't want you to bleed to death on me." He replied, glad to see Gary acting normally. He could hear sirens in the distance, and looked towards the end of the alley to find a crowd starting to gather. "Well, it looks like..." Sam started to say, glancing back at Gary, he stopped in mid-sentence when he found Gary regarding him with look Sam couldn't quite decipher. "What?" "What's gotten into you lately?" "What...what do you mean?" Sam stammered, nervously glancing at Al. The hologram just shrugged. "Well, for starters, when did you learn to fight like that?" Gary asked.