Chapter Text
The first Eddie knew that they were in trouble was when the ambulance sirens unexpectedly went silent.
“What the hell?” he muttered, looking up from where he’d been concentrating on the wounded inmate and suddenly there was a gun in his face. Shit. Not guards.
“I can't thank you boys enough. I've waited eighteen years to get the hell out of that place,” Eddie heard the guard in the front say, and saw another gun pointed at Buck.
Now that he was looking at the man sitting in the back with him instead of his patient, Eddie thought he looked vaguely familiar. Maybe he’d seen his face on a news report for whatever crime he’d been locked away for. It didn’t matter. He needed to figure out how they were going to get out of this.
The ambulance stopped moments later, before Eddie had worked out any sort of plan. He needed more time, dammit.
In front of him, the man with the gun gestured towards the ambulance door, and Eddie climbed out. He couldn’t risk doing anything yet, not until he could get eyes on Buck.
Outside, Eddie felt calmer once he saw Buck coming around the side of the ambulance, the other guy right behind him, still pointing a gun at him. They were stronger together; they’d get through this.
Then it all went to hell when Buck and the man behind Eddie laid eyes on each other.
Both snarled, “You!” almost at the same time, then Eddie was shoved out of the way as his captor ran at Buck and belted him hard across the forehead with his gun. Buck stumbled back, blood starting to drip into his eyes, and the man attacked him again, punching him in the face once, twice until Buck fell backwards onto the ground.
Eddie lunged forward to help Buck and skidded to a stop when the other inmate pointed his own gun at Eddie’s head, shaking his head and saying, “Uh, uh uhhh,” with an amused look.
Nearby, Buck was being kicked in the ribs, and then on his back when he curled into himself for protection. His grunts of pain thudded into Eddie’s chest as if he was being hit as well.
“Doug, enough!” the man before Eddie barked, eyes flicking away to look at the other two. For a moment, Eddie considered attacking – but then the name registered in his mind and connected with where Eddie had seen the other man before.
Doug Kendall. Maddie’s abusive ex-husband.
The man that had stabbed Chimney, abducted Maddie and nearly killed her, and killed an innocent bystander. The man currently kicking Buck on the ground while Eddie stood there and did nothing.
Eddie stepped forward instinctively – and the other man did as well, pressing his gun right into Eddie’s chest.
“Kendall, quit it! We’ve got places to be,” he barked again, and Doug finally stopped kicking Buck.
He stepped back, but Buck stayed where he was, curled on his side and holding himself, panting harshly. His eyes were closed, blood dripping down his face, but he was conscious. How badly hurt he was, Eddie couldn’t tell, and his hands twitched with the need to check him over, to help him.
“This changes everything, Mitchell,” Doug said, and Eddie filed the name away carefully. “That’s my brother-in-law.”
Mitchell snorted in amusement. “Lady luck is on your side today then, isn’t she. But remember our agreement. Me first, then you can do whatever you want. Check ‘em.”
Doug looked like he was about to disagree, but didn’t. Instead, he curled his lip and nodded, then dropped to his knees to go through Buck’s pockets, shoving him roughly to get him to roll onto his back.
“Okay, so you broke out,” Eddie decided to speak, hoping to get Doug’s attention off Buck. “What now? Patient in there currently fighting for every breath. That your handiwork?”
He didn’t get an answer, not that he really expected one. Stood still while Doug’s hands went through his own pockets, clenching his fists to stop himself from grabbing him, from fighting back. He couldn’t, not while Buck was on the ground, hurt, with two guns in play.
Buck rolled onto his knees slowly and started getting up, and after a quick look at Mitchell for permission, Eddie went and helped him. He slid under one of Buck’s arms and practically lifted him to his feet, pressing his other hand to Buck’s chest to check how badly he was hurt.
Hissing in pain, Buck flinched back from Eddie’s hand, and swayed slightly. Then he lent heavily against Eddie, head on his shoulder.
“Wha— what do we do?” Buck muttered into Eddie’s neck, breathing shallowly. Eddie could feel blood dripping onto his neck from Buck’s head.
“Don't know yet,” Eddie murmured back just as quietly. Anger simmered inside as he kept his eyes on the two men talking inaudibly to each other.
“Doug’s gonna go after Maddie.” Buck’s fear was obvious to Eddie.
“Probably,” was all Eddie could say. He’d started to make a plan before, when it was two on two, but Buck was injured now and wouldn’t be able to fight. The other guy had said something about ‘him first’, he obviously had a plan. Maybe they could make some sort of deal with him, delay Doug long enough for the police to find them…
“Cute kid. Yours? I'm guessing he lives with you at 4995 South Bedford Street?” Mitchell suddenly asked, looking up at Eddie while holding up the photo of Chris that he kept in his wallet.
“Hey, man,” Buck immediately protested, slipping out from Eddie’s arm to step forward. “Hey, don't even—”
Doug stepped towards Buck and hit him across the face again without any hesitation at all, smiling a little as he did. Buck grunted and fell to his knees, clutching at his ribs as Eddie grabbed his shoulder from behind, keeping him from keeling over completely. He glared at Mitchell as if he could incinerate the criminal where he stood.
“Okay, so now that we're all on the same page, here's what's gonna happen next,” Mitchell said as if nothing had happened. His eyes looked dead, like he had no soul at all. His voice stayed calm, as it had when he’d threatened Christopher, as it had the whole time. There was no question who the one in charge was.
Moments later Eddie found himself removing the ambulance’s transponder as ordered before sitting behind the wheel. Buck had been shoved into the back of the ambulance with Doug, while Mitchell sat in the front again, next to Eddie.
“Eddie, this guy, he’s not doing so well—” Buck started to say as Eddie drove off when ordered, the damned Glock never wavering from where Mitchell was pointing it at him. There was a meaty thud and Buck grunted again.
“He’s doing just fine,” Doug informed them blithely. “Don’t worry about him.”
Dammit Buck, don’t worry about some convicted prisoner. Keep your mouth shut so Doug leaves you alone! Eddie thought with worried anger towards his partner, wishing whatever sort of telepathy they seemed to have in the field would get the message across.
“So where’s Maddie live now?” Doug asked casually – and of course that was when Buck finally decided to keep his mouth shut.
The ambulance swayed slightly as Eddie felt movement in the back, and he had to hold the wheel steady to keep from swerving. A choked off sound came from Buck, who was sitting right behind Eddie where he couldn’t see, then faint wheezing.
“Dammit Doug, quit choking him, we’re not done yet!” Mitchell cursed as he saw whatever was happening in the back.
Eddie slammed on the brakes hard at his words, turning to help Buck, only to have Mitchell shove the gun into his chest and order him to sit back down. “Keep driving or you’ll see what it’s like to be shot.”
The words made Eddie snort bitterly. Jokes on him, I know exactly what that feels like.
“I’ll drive when my partner is left alone,” Eddie glared at Mitchell, staring at him angrily.
“I’ll leave him alone when he tells me where Maddie is,” Doug retorted from behind them.
“I’m not fucking telling you anything,” Buck muttered hoarsely, and Eddie lifted his eyes to the heavens with a sigh. Sure enough, there was another thwack as Doug evidentially hit Buck again.
“Doug, quit it!” Mitchell yelled back at them. There were no further sounds, and Eddie relaxed just a little. Whatever hold Mitchell had over Doug, Eddie hoped it stuck.
They continued on in silence for a while, driving through an industrial part of the city outskirts. Large buildings dominated the landscape, most seeming deserted. It was a Saturday, Eddie remembered. Most of these places would be closed for the weekend. The chance of someone seeing them and reporting them here was slim, but he had to hope that word was out now. Had to hope that they were being searched for.
“Find somewhere to stop,” Doug abruptly demanded, and Mitchell looked back at him with raised eyebrows. “Find somewhere to stop, I’m done.”
“No fucking way,” Mitchell replied angrily, his composure breaking for the first time. “We had a plan.”
“Your plan was stupid. Did you really think they’d let us both into an operating room - that they’d let me do a heart transplant?”
“You’re a heart surgeon—” Mitchell began.
“I’m a felon,” Doug cut him off bitterly, “because of this one’s bitch sister.” There was a scuffle, and a pained grunt from Buck.
“We’d be shot before we ever stepped into the hospital,” Doug ended derisively.
Operating room? Heart transplant? What the hell were they talking about?
When Buck and Athena had gone to Maddie’s rescue after Doug had taken her, Kendall had been arrested and sentenced to life in prison for murder; attempted murder, and premeditated abduction. Eddie had thought they’d never see him again.
He’d been wrong.
When he’d realised who Doug was, he’d thought this was about revenge against Maddie – but now it seemed like he was wrong about that too, or at least, not entirely right.
This had been a carefully planned prison break, designed to lure in first responders. Mitchell and Doug had taken the ambulance for something more than just an escape attempt. Mitchell wanted Doug to operate, but on who? And why? Maybe they could use that to their advantage somehow.
Beside him, Eddie realised Mitchell was getting angrier. “This wasn’t the plan!” he insisted, and Doug scoffed.
“I don’t care about your plan anymore! Get me somewhere I can find a car and I’ll take Evan with me. You can have that one. Use him as a hostage to get where you want to go.”
“No—” Mitchell scowled.
“Do it, Mitchell, or I’ll switch their phones back on and call the cops myself,” Doug ordered. “If I don’t get Maddie this time, I’ll wait until I’m released.” Mitchell slammed the gun down onto the seat in frustration, then lifted it and pointed it at Eddie again.
“Pull in behind one of these buildings,” he muttered sourly, and Eddie reluctantly did as he was told.
Dread had been rising within ever since Doug had said he wanted to take Buck with him, making the hairs on his arms rise under his turn out. Eddie couldn’t let them be split up. He didn’t want to imagine what Doug would do, alone with Buck.
Parking as directed behind an industrial building that looked deserted, Eddie turned towards Mitchell.
“We can help you—” he began to say – and Mitchell threw the hand holding the gun into Eddie’s cheek, punching him hard enough to rock his head back against the window. Hands were on Eddie’s then, and when he blinked his eyes clear a moment later, he saw that he’d been handcuffed to the steering wheel with the prison guards’ cuffs. Fuck.
Mitchell yanked the hand set off the radio mount and tugged until he’d pulled the cords completely out, then took the keys from the ignition. He left Eddie alone in the front of the ambulance with a mutter of “You hit that horn or make a fuss, I’ll shoot the guard in the back, and then I’ll shoot your friend.”
Fucking fuck fuck. Fuck!
“Get out, Evan,” Doug instructed behind Eddie, and he twisted awkwardly to watch as first Doug, then Buck climbed out of the back of the ambulance. Buck was made to turn and face Eddie as Doug handcuffed his wrists behind his back with the cuffs from his own stolen guard uniform. He didn’t miss the chance to slam Buck’s face against the door before he threaded the chain of the cuffs through the door handle so Buck couldn't escape.
When Buck was able to stop blinking the pain away, he and Eddie stared at each other silently.
Buck’s eyes were pinched, his expression stubborn, jaw clenched, and Eddie knew he wasn’t going to give Doug what he wanted. He could hear Buck’s breath hitching, and saw vivid bruises on his throat where Doug strangled him. Bruises covered his face as well, and Eddie knew there’d be even more under his uniform where he’d been kicked repeatedly. The way Buck was holding himself stiffly told him that, as did the way he swayed slightly.
Doug had already beaten him half to death. If Buck fought him any more, Doug would kill him. I have to stop this. What the fuck can I do? Eddie thought frantically.
Leaving Buck alone, Doug rummaged in the back of the ambulance. Eddie watched, bitterly helpless as Doug found vials of medicine, needles – and scalpels. His blood ran cold at the sight. Everything was shoved into the EMT go bag, along with god knew what else. Eddie had gone back to staring at Buck fearfully.
Mitchell returned, driving a small, older model Hyundai and Doug stepped out of the back of the ambulance to talk to him.
“Buck, don’t antagonise him. He’s a killer. Do what he wants,” Eddie whispered rapidly to Buck, knowing they were about to be separated.
“I’m not letting him get Maddie,” Buck had a determined, quietly furious tone in his voice that sent chills up Eddie’s spine.
“Then stall,” Eddie told him. “Give Athena and the police time to find us. Just— stay alive. Please,” he all but begged. Buck blinked at him, an indecipherable expression crossing his face, then nodded once.
“Come on.” Doug was back, undoing one of Buck’s cuffs to unthread it from the door handle before cuffing his wrist again.
Buck looked at Eddie one more time before Doug lost patience and yanked on his arms behind his back. Eddie heard a pained grunt and twisted even more to try and see what was happening, but he couldn’t see anything. He turned the other way to hastily look in the side mirror instead.
In it, he saw Doug drag a stumbling Buck to the back of the car and shove him towards it. Buck, predicably, didn’t do what was wanted, and before Eddie could even blink, Doug pistol whipped him across his forehead violently.
The last Eddie saw of Buck was him crumpling, limp with unconsciousness as Doug and Mitchell shoved his body into the cramped boot of the sedan, folding his long legs without care to get him to fit.
Mitchell said something angrily to Doug as he stalked away without looking back. He climbed into the front of the ambulance and ordered Eddie to drive off, not bothering to unchain his hands.
Behind them, the car with Eddie’s best friend - the man he loved, even if he hadn’t admitted that out loud yet - and a violent murderer with a grudge against him, drove off in the opposite direction.
The moisture in his eyes made it difficult to see as Eddie drove away.
Would he ever see Buck again?
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