Hangman's Joke

by ErisAndEntropy

Summary:

The members of Hangman’s Joke always seemed to connect beyond just playing music together. They supported and loved each other, and each other’s partners. When the news of Eric and Shelly’s murder reaches them, they’re devastated. They stay in the city and take care of Sarah as well as they can, but none have been able to find any sense of closure with the killers still on the loose.
~~~
This story is mostly going to pull from the 1994 movie, but there may be bits and pieces from the original comic and the 98-99 show The Crow: Stairway to Heaven. We’re going off of vibes here.

Chapter 1: Before the Storm

Summary:

A little prologue. A tiny snippet of everyone's life together before it all goes wrong.

Notes:

Thank you for taking the time to read my little fic! I just watched The Crow for the first time recently and it's taken over a significant portion of my brain. I latched onto the idea of fleshing out Eric's band into actual characters who matter to the story almost as soon as I watched it. I heard they had a slightly bigger part to play in the TV show so I watched that too. The show was fun but it still didn't do the band any justice and was not the dynamic I wanted to write. So, here we are! I hope you enjoy!

The band finished their final song of the night with a flourish. The crowd cheered as they took their bows and headed backstage. “That was fuckin’ amazing!” Tex hollered the moment they were out of sight. He side-hugged Eric, Nearly knocking him over.

Eric laughed, righting himself. “I don’t know how you’re always so energetic after killing it on drums every night, but I’ll be damned if it isn’t infectious!” He returned the hug before pulling away. He turned to the rest of the band. “You all did great! Where did that solo even come from, Moe? We gotta write that down!”

“Same place as yours and Brion’s on the song after! The energy was just right and we rocked it!” Moe grinned, slinging his guitar onto his back. “We’ll hash out the details for it at the next rehearsal. For now, let’s just relax and have a good time!”

They all burst into the lounge, laughing like madmen. “Shelly!” Eric and Gunnar shouted at the same time, noticing her waiting on the softer of the two couches. A set of cheap beers and cups of water were waiting on the table.

Shelly smiled and rushed over to the band. She gave each of them a quick kiss on the cheek, and Eric full on the lips. “Great show, boys! The crowd loved you!” She ushered them all into the room. Everyone quickly put their equipment away and piled onto the couches.

Gunnar flopped onto the other couch, this one was a poorly maintained but still comfortable leather. He grabbed one of the beers and raised it, “To another amazing night for Hangman’s Joke!” He said. His face split into a wide grin.

The band and Shelly followed the toast with a cheer. Tex was the last to grab a drink, and raised one of the waters to toast. The group spent a couple hours in the lounge, just talking and enjoying each other’s company. Eventually the time felt right to pack up their equipment and head home for the night. They all piled into Moe’s van. Tex sat down in the driver’s seat.

“Hey, my van, I drive!” Moe complained. He leaned against the driver’s side door to keep Tex from closing it on him.

Tex laughed, “Hey, I saw you drink the extra beer I left on the table, absolutely not!” He grinned, “Unless you want us all to sit around here on the street for an extra hour to make sure you don’t get us killed, I’m driving. This place is rough enough to drive through as it is.”

Moe grumbled but reluctantly let the door close. He crawled into the back seat, mumbling under his breath. Brion chuckled as he clambered over him. “C’mon, it’s not so bad, you get to sit back here and cuddle with me and the love birds!” He leaned over to let his head rest on Eric’s shoulder and wrapped his arm around Shelly.

Gunnar took his spot in the passenger seat. He immediately started fiddling with the radio dials to get a good station that wasn’t full of static. Tex began driving as the rock station they usually heard eventually crackled through the speakers. Gunnar let out a whoop and grinned back at the four people piled in the back seat. “And this is why I ride shotgun!” His voice was raised to be heard over the drum solo in the song that played. “You all look like a can of sardines!”

Shelly smiled back at him, petting Moe’s long hair gently as he laid across the other three’s laps. “I’d say we’re pretty happy for sardines, but I guess that’s why no one argues with you for shotgun. That and no one else seems to be able to get that damned radio to work as quick as you.”

He rolled his eyes and turned back to the front, smiling at the other’s antics. “You’re probably right. I’m sure one of you could learn this thing’s quirks eventually.” He said. As if to prove his point, he smacked the dash above the radio and the static cleared up a bit more. “Y’know, I’d offer to drive on occasion too if Moe wouldn’t mope every time someone other than him drives!” His wide smile burst into a fit of laughter that nearly knocked his sunglasses off the top of his head as Moe sat up with a huff.

“I am not moping! I’m- I’m” he looked to the others for help. Eric did his best to hide his snicker behind Shelly’s curly hair. Shelly raised her hands in a gesture of ‘I’m staying out of this,’ though the amused glint in her eye told a different story.

Brion didn’t care to hide his bright laugh “You’re definitely kind of moping there, Mr. Devious!” He said, gently ribbing him on his rockstar name choice.

“Hey now, you have no room to use my name like that, Brion! You could’ve picked anything but you decide keep Brion!” Moe laughed, jumping at the opportunity to change the subject from his definitely-not-moping.

Shelly sighed and put her hands down, setting one on each of their legs. “Alright you two, cut that out! No arguing in the van. I don’t want to get caught in the crossfire!” She grinned as she pushed them apart playfully. Brion’s glasses ended up a little crooked, but she quickly helped him fix them.

The van pulled through the Detroit streets, dodging trash piled up on the side of the road and cars parked where they shouldn’t be. The seemingly ever-present light rain made the already poorly maintained streets look more like rivers. Despite the dreary state of the city, the inside of the van was filled with joy. They joked and sang along with the radio, delighting in each other’s company. Gunnar and Brion kept the happy attitude as they ducked out of the vehicle and into their apartment, which was the closest to the club. When they got to their stop, Eric and Shelly kept the goodbye going a little longer. They stayed in the back and sang along with the radio for a couple more songs with Tex and Moe.

“Hey, why don’t you two just crash with us for the night?” Eric said as the song faded out. He and Shelly crawled out of the back seat. He held part of his jacket over her head to keep her dry as they both leaned into the passenger side window. “The loft might be small, but it’s a hell of a lot better than that tiny hole in the wall you’ve got.”

Tex grinned, turning off the engine and tossing the keys into Moe’s lap. “You don’t gotta ask me twice!” He ducked out of the van. “Help me get the equipment up your rickety staircase, though. Like hell am I leaving it out here.” He began grabbing bits of his drum kit.

Moe gently shut the van door behind him as he got out. He swung his keys around his finger once before tucking them into his pocket. “If my van gets broken into, you three are covering repairs.” He picked up his guitar case and an amp and headed to the door. The others followed suit, grabbing their things and heading up the stairs.

Shelly set down the cases she’d been carrying and unlocked the door. She picked them back up and walked in, holding the door open for the three boys. Gabriel trotted up to them, meowing gently and immediately rubbing up against their legs. They quickly began putting their heavy armfuls down near the door. A noise from the couch caused them all to freeze and snap their gazes toward it. They breathed a sigh of relief as they saw who it was.

Sarah stretched as she sat up. The couch blanket fell off from where she had been sleeping. “Sorry guys, didn’t mean to startle you.” She yawned. She got up and made her way over to the group, hugging Shelly first, then pulling everyone in. “Mom locked the door on me again..”

Eric frowned. As they all pulled away from the hug he crouched down to be eye level with her. “It’s alright, we got you a spare key for a reason. We’re sorry for waking you.” He gave her another hug and smiled. He turned to the rest of the group as he let Sarah out of the hug.

Moe reached out ruffled Sarah’s hair, “Looks like we’re having a nice big sleepover tonight.” He made his way over to the couch and collapsed. It creaked at the sudden weight, but no one paid it any mind. There were always quirks to secondhand furniture. Tex and Sarah followed him over. Sarah taking up a perch on the arm of the couch despite there being plenty of room for her on the cushions.

Tex lightly rolled his eyes. “Y’know, you don’t have to be up there on our account.” He smiled with a mischievous glint in his eye. “It can’t be that comfortable up there.”

Sarah let out a loud laugh, “Hah!” She adjusted her position on the arm to be more stable, “I am not getting lost in a cuddle pile again! The moment I sit down there, Shelly will come sit down. Then Eric will think he’s hilarious when he lays across all of our laps like a big puppy!” She shot a glance at Eric.

Eric, for his part, was doing his best to hide his laughter. “Damn, we’re getting predictable!” He couldn’t stop himself from laughing for long and it escaped in a gentle chuckle. “Guess we’ll have to change it up.” He made a face like a lightbulb had gone off in his head. “When was the last time any of us made a pillow fort?”

The room exploded into bright laughter. “A pillow fort? What are we, five?” Moe said once he’d gotten ahold of his laughter. “Do you even have enough chairs and blankets for that?” He glanced around at the room and its sparse furniture.

“I’ve never even made a blanket fort!” Sarah said, still giggling. For the second time that night, everyone in the room’s eyes snapped toward her. Eric and Moe did their best to hide their surprise so that she wouldn’t feel like the odd one out.

Shelly and Tex couldn’t hide it and gasped, “What?!” They looked to each other, then back to Sarah. “Oh no, we’re absolutely doing this.” Shelly said, practically launching herself over to the bed. She quickly began gathering blankets.

Tex stared at Sarah for a moment more before shaking his head, “You are not getting all the way through being a kid without making a pillow fort. Not on my watch!” He stood up from the couch and scooped Sarah up in a quick bear hug before setting her down. “C’mon, help me find stuff we can use as supports!”

Sarah slowly followed Tex over to the round dining table, or at least what was supposed to be a dining table. Photos of the band and pieced together camera equipment covered every available bit of space on it. Sarah picked up one from the top of the pile. In the picture, Eric sat on top of Moe’s van. He was caught mid laugh as the rest of the band stared up at him. They all looked just as happy as Eric did. “Hey Shelly!” She shouted, turning toward the bed, “Where do you want your pictures if we need to use the table?” She set the photo back down with the others and smiled.

“There should be a couple drawers in the vanity.” She said. She put the blankets down and made her way over. She began gathering the mess into semi-organized piles. “Here, let me get those. You focus on designing the fort.”

Tex grabbed one of the two rickety chairs from beside the table and placed it so that its back faced the back of the couch. “Could you grab the other one for me?” He adjusted the placement of the chair so there was a little more space.

Sarah nodded. She dragged the other mismatched chair over and put it in the same position on the other side of the couch. “Like that?” She looked at Tex with a small smirk.

Tex nodded, “That’s perfect.” He looked around. “Moe, make yourself useful and grab stuff to weigh the blankets down with.” He pulled the couch blanket out from under him.

“Hey!” He said indignantly. He stood up, shaking his head, “I was using that!” He sighed and moved over to the bookshelf. “Eric, do you care which books I grab?” He didn’t wait for an answer as he began to grab the ones that looked heaviest.

Eric looked up from where he had been gathering the blankets Shelly had dropped. “Not really. The only ones I would worry about aren’t heavy enough to work.” He chuckled. “This is probably the most lighthearted thing that poetry’s been used for in a while, though.” He finished gathering the blankets and dropped them on the couch.

Sarah grabbed one of the blankets, “Alright, let’s see what you’re all fussing about.” She draped it from the back of the couch over to one of the dining chairs and held it there. Moe placed a book on each side of the blanket and Sarah released. It shifted a bit, but stayed.

Tex grinned. “And the first blanket is placed! The fort begins!” He laughed as he grabbed a different blanket and mirrored its placement to her’s. He made them overlap a bit so the ceiling of the fort wouldn’t have gaps. The middle sagged a little bit, but it held. “That’s the easy bit.”

Shelly finished putting away the photos and equipment from the table and looked over to the partially constructed fort. “Looks like it’s coming along well!” She walked over and stood next to Sarah. “Do you still want to use the table? I’m not sure we have a blanket big enough to cover it and hang down as far as those two.”

Sarah grinned, “I’ve got an idea.” She turned to Eric and Tex, “Drag the table over here.” She pointed between the two chairs. “Put it closer to this wall in line with the middle of these two.”

The guys jumped into action. Between the two of them, they lifted the old wooden table off of the floor. They carried it and placed it where Sarah had indicated without scraping it on the ground at all. “Does that look good?” Eric asked as they set the table down.

Sarah nodded, “Perfect!” She said, her aloof teen act cracking a bit. She grabbed two of the remaining blankets and laid them out on the table, each covering half. Moe, immediately catching onto her plan, weighed down the blankets in the middle and at both edges of the table where they met. Sarah grinned, seeing her little plan work perfectly. She grabbed a third blanket and tucked it under the book closest to the chairs. All three blankets slipped a bit. She frowned. “I think we need a bit more weight here.”

Moe quickly set a second, bigger book on top of the first. He corrected where the blankets had gotten out of place. “I’m starting to run out of weights here.” He stepped back and held up last two books that he’d grabbed, one in each hand, to prove his point.

Shelly smiled “I think that should be plenty.” She pulled one edge of the blanket attached to the table and held it to the seat of the chair. “We’re almost out of blankets anyway.” She said, taking the book from Moe’s left hand and weighing down the side.

Eric mirrored her action with the other chair. “That looks pretty damn good.” He said as he stepped back from it. He grabbed pulled a cushion off the couch carefully to make sure the fort stayed up. He then turned to Sarah and handed it to her. “It’s your fort, so you’ve got to be the first one in.”

She laughed and grabbed the cushion. Shelly pulled one of the blanket flaps aside for her as she crawled in. Everyone else quickly grabbed various cushions and pillows and made their way inside. “Y’know, it’s surprisingly roomy!” Sarah laughed from her spot under the table.

They spent quite a while in the fort, all of them reveling in the mild absurdity of the situation. They talked and laughed even as cloudy morning light began to filter through the large round window. One by one they began to drift off, no one having the heart to wake them once they passed out. Eric was the last awake. He smiled at the pile and lay down in between Shelly and Tex. Soon enough, he slipped into a peaceful sleep himself.

Notes:

Look at the happy little polycule/found family!
It would be an absolute tragedy if anything happened to them.

Chapter 2: Raining Glass

Summary:

The tragedy strikes, no one is okay

Notes:

Hey! So, This and the next chapter were supposed to be one, but I've been hit with a weird half writer's block. Basically, this half of the chapter is done and already longer than the prologue, and the other half is sitting in my brain and refusing to go on paper. But there's a nice break point in the middle, so I figured I'd just go ahead and split it in two. I hope you enjoy.

~One Week Later~

Officer Albrecht stared out the shattered window onto the scene below. He watched as the paramedics covered up the absolutely shattered body of the man who had, less than an hour before, been thrown from where he stood. He turned from the sad scene outside toward the ongoing situation inside the loft. The place had been torn apart. Papers and photographs were scattered everywhere. Furniture was thrown across the room. Some of it looked nearly as splintered as- he shook his head, clearing that thought away. This case would be stuck in his mind long enough.

“Sir!” One of the paramedics shouted from across the room. “She’s holding on, but we have to get her to the hospital!” He held the hand of an absolutely brutalized woman. A clear mask pumped her system full of desperately needed oxygen, but the pain she was in couldn’t have been more obvious.

“What the hell are you waiting on?! Do it!” He shouted back. They got to work without another word. The paramedics lifted her onto a stretcher as quickly and gently as they could and rushed her out of the room. A few of the other cops in the room looked at Albrecht with pity. He’d made the right call from a moral standpoint, but they all knew he’d catch a write up for it from the detective.
He turned back to the scene, ignoring his co-workers' stares. A nearly pristine paper in the pile of scattered memories caught his eye. He leaned down and picked it up. He quickly glanced over the paper and sighed sadly. It was a wedding invitation, dated for the next day at sunset. He held onto the paper as one of the cops called him over.

“What have we got here?” The man asked Albrecht. He gestured at the now blood-splattered wedding dress.

Albrecht looked away from the dress. “Eric Draven and Shelly Webster. The wedding was tomorrow night.” He looked around, now noting all the preparations scattered amongst the chaos. A bouquet of flowers and the vase they’d been sitting in were scattered across the floor, water soaking into the floorboards. A basket of matching boutonnières was knocked over, with several of the delicate flowers crushed.

The other cop shook his head, knocking Albrecht out of his observations. “Who the fuck gets married on Halloween anyhow?” He said, his voice carrying a level of judgment that seemed inappropriate for the situation.

He took another look around, “Nobody, I guess.” He replied, his tone not matching his colleague’s. He stepped out of the loft and down the stairs. Outside, the woman, Shelly, was being loaded onto a rolling bed to be taken to the hospital.

The detective was shouting at the paramedics, “I did not give you permission to move her!” He whipped around as Albrecht exited the building. “Is this the victim?”

Albrecht shook his head and layered sarcasm on thick, “No sir, it’s Amelia Earhart. We found her, you missed it.” He chuckled, relieved as the paramedics used the detective’s momentary distraction to start loading Shelly into the ambulance. Albrecht ignored the detective’s biting remarks and rushed over to her side.

Sarah rolled up on her skateboard and froze, seeing the scene in front of her. She ran over to Shelly’s bedside. Shelly groaned and spoke, despite the oxygen mask in her way. “Where’s Eric?..” she asked, her eyes darting around, looking around for any sign of him.

Albrecht’s eyes wandered to the sheet-covered body still laying on the pavement for a split second before he shook his head. “Look, don’t worry about him right now.” He did everything he could to keep his tone neutral and calming. He helped the paramedics lift the bed into the ambulance.

“Tell him to take care of Sarah!” She said, her voice edging on panic. Albrecht nodded acceptance of her request, which seemed to calm her down just a little. The medical personnel piled into the ambulance and closed the door.

The officer stepped off to the side, pulling the teen away gently. “Are you Sarah?” He asked. Her slight nod was all the confirmation he needed. “Look, your sister.. she’s gonna be fine-“

Sarah cut him off. “She’s not my sister. Shelly just takes care of me. Her and Eric..” her words lost their bite as she glanced back over at the sheet. The wind from the storm rolling in had blown it back just a tiny bit. His cut and bloody hand was partially visible. “..You’re lying to her about Eric.” She turned back to the cop, still not meeting his eyes.

Albrecht kept his voice as gentle as he could. “I had too.” He internally winced at how patronizing that sounded, but rolled with it.

“And you’re lying to me about Shelly.” She said with the certainty of a child who’d already seen far more bad in their life than anyone should have too. “She’s going to die too, isn’t she?”

He couldn’t think of a true response that wouldn’t sound like a lie. “We’re going to do everything we can.” He said, knowing it was a half-answer at best. He shook his head and placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “You said they took care of you.. is there anywhere else you can go? Anywhere I can send word if she pulls through?”

Sarah nodded and wiped tears from her eyes. “Yeah..” her voice shook. “They’ll want to know what happened too.” She couldn’t help her eyes from wandering to the scene again. Eric’s hand had been re-covered. Her eyes instead wandered up to the shattered window that all of them had gathered around so many times to watch the few stars that shone bright enough to peek through the city lights. “I don’t know the address, but I can get there..” she forced her gaze back down to the officer.

Albrecht shook his head. “You shouldn’t be out on the streets by yourself.” He looked around, knowing he had to get back on the scene. “Look,” he pulled out a piece of paper from one of his pockets, “I don’t like you being alone, but I have to find out who did this. If you need anything, let me know, okay?” He handed her one of his cards from his days as a detective. The number on it was still good, even if the title was inaccurate.

Sarah nodded and shoved it in one of her jacket pockets. “Thanks..” she took one last look at everything and turned away. Partially because she knew she needed to leave and partially to hide the tears threatening to fall. She walked for about a block, trying unsuccessfully to force herself to calm down, before she put her skateboard on the pavement. The rain began to pour as she headed toward Gunner and Brion’s place.

~~~

Gunner raised an eyebrow when a knock rang out. He glanced at the clock. The bright red numbers showed that it was after midnight, nearly one am. He rolled off his spot on the couch and over to the door. The chain lock jangled as he pulled open the door a crack. “Sarah?” He said, a little shocked. She was clearly soaked to the bone. “What are you doing here? Give me just a second.” He closed the door and undid the lock before throwing the door back open. “What’s wrong?” He ushered her inside and locked the door behind her. “Brion, get a towel!”

Sarah dropped her skateboard and bag in a heap. She collapsed on the couch, her whole body shaking from the cold rain and the tears that she finally felt safe enough to let fall. She opened her mouth to try to explain why she was there, but all that she could manage was a croak before she had to curl back in on herself and sob.

Brion stumbled into the room. His glasses were off-kilter on his face like he’d just slapped them on. He flipped the light switch on, flooding the room with a warm yellow light. It took him a second to process what was going on in the living room. As soon as it hit him he rushed over. He wrapped Sarah’s shoulders in the towel and a hug. “Hey, hey, it’s alright.” He paused when Gunner sat down on the other side and pulled the couch blanket over her lap. “Take your time, we’re here.”

The three of them stayed like that for what felt like an eternity, but the clock claimed was less than an hour. Sarah crying it out, trying to compose herself, and Brion and Gunner doing everything in their power to help. They held off asking her anything again until her breathing finally got closer to even and she stopped shivering.

Gunner was the first to speak. “Are you okay?” He asked. Sarah nodded, then, after a moment, shook her head no. “Are you ready to talk, or do you still need chill time?” His voice was gentle, much more than usual.

Sarah took a deep, shaky breath. Then another. On the third she felt steady enough to say, “I’m sorry for waking you guys up..” she shivered, though it was less intense than before. “Especially like this..” Thunder rolled outside as the rain continued to pour. She couldn’t help but think of how hard it would be to track anyone down in this weather.

Brion let her go enough to look her in the eye. “You have absolutely nothing to apologize for.” He let her go the rest of the way, but stayed close, just in case she still needed a hug. “Our door is always open. Though I have to ask,” he glanced at Gunner for a second, who gave a small nod, “Why’d you come here in this storm instead of going to Eric and Shelly’s? They’re closer, and you know how dangerous it is to be out tonight. It’s Devil’s Night.”

Sarah winced, biting back another round of tears. They needed to.. they deserved to know. “I..” she started, “I know it’s not safe.. but I couldn’t stay there.” She had to stop herself.

Gunner’s mind immediately began running through possibilities. “Why not?” He asked carefully. “You know they would never turn you away. And even if those night owls were already asleep, you’ve got a key to get in..” he watched Sarah’s face closely as he spoke, trying to figure out what had gotten the usually unshakable teen so upset.

She nodded. “I know.. I couldn’t stay there because.. because it’s a crime scene…” She stuttered. She took another deep breath. “Because Eric’s dead and Shelly’s probably not going to make it!” She blurted out. The shocked silence that followed was palpable. She began shaking again as the two beside her processed.

A few times Brion opened his mouth to ask if he’d heard her right, but the tears beginning to fall again told him everything he needed to know. “..what?” He said, finally breaking the silence. His voice was barely a whisper. He tried to meet her eyes, but she had them closed, trying to block out the world for a moment.

Gunner stayed frozen for nearly a full minute longer. When his brain finally caught up with him, he said nothing and stood up. He moved robotically to the phone mounted in the wall. Without even having to look he dialed the number for Tex and Moe’s current place. Despite how often they had to move, he always memorized the number. If his mind could have more than one thought at a time in that moment, he would have thanked himself for that. The phone rang for quite a while. Well past when he normally would have given up on getting ahold of them.

On the other end of the line, Tex rolled off the lumpy mattress, having been awoken by the phone. Moe was still passed out. That man could sleep through anything. He picked up. “Who the hell is calling this late tonight of all nights?” He said, his tone short and groggy.

“Tex. It’s Gunner.” He kept the shakiness out of his voice, but only barely. “You and Moe need to get your asses over here. Right now.”

Tex raised an eyebrow. He glanced out the window just as lightning flashed. “In this weather? The roads will be soup! What the hell could be so-“

Gunner cut him off. “Something happened at the loft.” His voice broke, unable to keep himself composed any longer. “Sarah saw the aftermath.. Eric is dead. Shelly’s hurt really bad, too.” He took a deep breath.

The line was silent for too long of a moment. “No, no there’s no fucking way.” His mind raced. “Moe and I are going to go by the loft first. See what’s going on.” He shook his head, refusing to believe it. “Maybe.. maybe she didn’t see what she thought she did.”

“Please just get here. We’ll go together.” He practically begged.

Tex pulled the phone cord as long as he could and reached over to Moe to shake him awake. “Fine. But I want you all ready to jump in the van the moment we pull up.” Moe began to stir, his groan audible even over the phone. He went back over to the phone hung up without another word.

The line went dead. “Fuck.. fuck.” Gunner paced around the room. He shook his head. One of them had to be practical here, and judging by the shaky hugs happening on the couch and Tex’s reaction, that job fell to him. He made his way back over to Sarah and Brion. “Hey..” he said, his voice gentle. “Moe and Tex are on their way.” He looked at Sarah, “I’m so sorry, I know this is a lot, but I need to know. Is Shelly still there or have they taken her to the hospital?”

Sarah looked up at him. “H-hospital..” she wiped her face on her sleeve. “They.. they were putting her in the ambulance when I got there..” she wrapped the towel and blanket around herself further.

Gunner nodded. “Okay. That’s good. There’s a chance she’ll pull through.” He paused. He took a shaky breath and braced himself for the answer. “..and Eric?”

Sarah buried herself further into Brion’s arms. She shook her head, needing a moment to form more words. “He..” her voice was muffled, “He’s gone..” she gulped in air. “..he was on the street in a pile of glass.. the window was broken.” With that her voice gave out into more tears.

Brion pulled her in closer without saying a word. His own face was streaked with tears, but he was doing his best to stay strong for now. He picked her up and stood from the couch all in the same motion. The towel and blanket were still wrapped around her. He looked at Gunner. “Grab a couple extra blankets..” His voice was nearly as unsteady as Sarah’s. “She’s still freezing.. and we could be in the hospital for a while.”

Gunner nodded, quickly ducking into the bedroom. He glanced at the pair of secondhand suits he and Brion had for tomorrow’s wedding hanging in the closet for just a moment. He bit back the wave of pain that threatened to break his composure and forced himself back on task. He grabbed several spare blankets and slung them over his shoulder. He pulled a couple more towels from the bathroom cabinet as well, just in case. He went back to the pair. Brion still had Sarah held to his shoulder. He couldn’t help but think about how terrible the scene must have been for someone with as strong of an independent streak as her to allow herself to be held like a child. He pushed the thought out of his mind for now and added her things to the pile in his arms. He sighed and unlocked the door. “C’mon.” He said as he held the door open for them. Brion shuffled through the doorway, careful to keep Sarah from bumping on the frame. Gunner followed and locked the door behind them. He double and tripled checked the locks. Worrying about their apartment getting broken into was low on his current list of priorities, but it was always a possibility.

The trio stood half in the doorway, half under the entryway awning as they waited for the telltale rumble of Moe’s van. They didn’t have to wait long. Tires squealed as Moe took the corner far faster than usual and slammed into a full stop in front of the apartment.

“Shit.. he wouldn’t drive like that unless he’s seriously pissed off.” Brion muttered. Only Sarah heard him over the rain, but Gunner was thinking the same. They all rushed the few steps through the rain and into the back of the van. They half expected for Moe to peel off the moment the door shut behind them. Instead, the interior was uncomfortably quiet. No radio played. The only sound was the rain hitting the metal roof and the click of seatbelts.

Once they were all in, Moe finally released his white-knuckle grip on the wheel. He shifted the van into park and turned around. Anger was clear on his face. “What the hell happened?” He said, his eyes on Sarah. “Who did this? Do you know?” His shoulders shook from the tension in every fiber of his being.

Tex placed a hand on his shoulder as Sarah shook her head no. She curled in on herself a bit at his tone. “Moe, Gunner said she only saw the aftermath.” Tex said as gently as he could. “Don’t take this out on her.”

Moe unwillingly relaxed his shoulders a bit. “I’m sorry.” He forced his tone to be as calm as he could, but it wasn’t much less than it was before. He turned back to the wheel, “Let’s just get to the loft. Maybe one of those fucking cops will actually make themselves useful.” Finally, he shifted the car into gear and sped off.

Notes:

Yeah.. ow.

Fun fact: I have five characters to work with, so each of their reactions reflects one of the five stages of grief more heavily. Some are fairly obvious now, some will be more clear in the next chapter. I'm curious to see if they come across as clearly as I'd hoped.