It Started in a Cabin Ch. 02

"You were out there a long time Scarlett, how's the knee feeling?" Chris asked.

She thought for a moment then grinned happily, "Great! A little achy but good bro."

"You were shaking that ass!" Dani giggled. "I think you gave every guy in the place a hard on with your moves Scarlett!"

"No I didn't!" Scarlett laughed as she coloured.

"You have no idea Scarlett, from here it looked like every guy was watching you." Jason commented. "Some of the girls too!"

"No!" Scarlett cried as she blushed even more deeply.

"Yeah!" Chris laughed. "But most of them were giving you dirty looks while their guys watched you."

The foursome sat and chatted for a bit more until the girls caught their breath then they dragged the guys up for a while. The girls teased and flirted with the boys constantly. Dani bumped and wiggled to the beat, garnering a fair bit of attention herself, but once again Scarlett stole the show. She'd shake and writhe like she was being seduced by a snake, then whip around and press herself against Chris while teasing his lips with her tongue. Every move she made was solely for Chris's pleasure but everyone noticed. The one person who noticed the most just got angrier and angrier with every passing moment.

---

Adrian stood at the bar nursing another drink, his eyes smoldering with hatred as he watched Scarlett pretty much have sex with the little punk she was dancing with. It was the same little shit he'd watched her walk with for an hour and make out with a few nights previously. Just seeing her with that guy drove him nuts, and the way she was so shamelessly flirting with him made him sick. Scarlett was HIS girl! He'd spent months getting her to where she'd pretty much do anything he told her to. Then the little bitch had to go and get a spine once she decided to come to Ontario to go to college. SHE had broken up with HIM! The bile rose to his throat again as he thought of that day. No girl had ever broken up with Adrian before so Scarlett dumping him had been a blow to his fragile ego.

There had only ever been one other girl who had touched him as deeply as Scarlett had. Her name had been Rachelle and she'd been a grade ahead of him in high school. She was stunningly beautiful and the first time he saw her he had been smitten and had worshipped her through three years until she graduated. Adrian had eventually worked his way into her circle as something of a gofer, handing, fetching and basically doing whatever she had asked him to do. Although she had treated him as less than dirt he had fawned over her. Her friends had openly mocked him and most of the school watched almost aghast as he demeaned himself constantly for her attention. Finally, a week before the end of her last school year she let the hammer fall. In the middle of the cafeteria she let loose with the most horrible, vile and hurtful outburst against him, absolutely humiliating him in front of just about the whole student body of the school as her clique of friends laughed at his embarrassment. The following year he had transferred to another school just to get away from the place where he had been so thoroughly destroyed by Rachelle.

After what had happened to him he had never let another girl get to him like that again. He'd use them for what he wanted then toss them aside like a used tissue. That had worked well for him for years, he never dated a girl for very long and really only used them as his sex toys, leaving them once he got bored with them. Then he met Scar and somehow things changed. She was young, and beautiful, and oh so eager to please him. With almost no convincing at all he'd gotten her trained to be his little lap kitten, doing whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted. That had gone on for the better part of seven months, then she'd told him she was going to be moving to Toronto to go to college. He knew he had to find some way to get her to stay, so he thought if he could get her into a gang bang with him and a few of his friends and secretly video it he could blackmail her into not going by threatening to post it on the net. Then she'd be his for good. Unfortunately for him his logic had been so skewed that it had never occurred to him that she would say no, so when she had gone ballistic and stormed out of his apartment telling him she never wanted to see him again he had been floored. He hadn't heard from her after she left his apartment and in the intervening months every girl he tried to date quickly realized he was a low-life and followed Scar's lead and dumped him.

In his twisted psyche Scarlett was elevated to the almost goddess like status that Rachelle had held during his high school years. He knew that the only way he would be happy was if he could get her back, and he knew he'd do anything to get that to happen. He had convinced her mother that they were good friends and gotten Scarlett's current address and cell number and headed to Ontario to get her back. He watched her for several days before calling her and meeting up with her, and was stupefied when she told him she had a new boyfriend and again told him that they were through and he should leave her alone. Adrian had held up a good front to her rejection but inside he had squirmed like a pinned worm on a board. After that he had held an almost constant vigil outside her house, watching when she came and went and who she was with. He saw that she spent a lot of time with whomever the guy was that lived in the house with her. It turned his stomach to see them kissing out in front of the house when it dawned on him that the little shit was her step-brother! He had her, he had the leverage he needed to get her back! All Adrian had to do was confront Scar about what she was doing with her step-brother and threaten to go to her parents about it and she'd cave in and be his again.

So he followed them that night, sitting outside in his cold car while they were in the restaurant, then to the club and waiting to line up far enough back so Scar wouldn't see him. Now he stood in the dance club and watched HIS girl dance with another guy and it infuriated him. So he waited and watched for his chance to get to Scar and get her back with HIM where she belonged.

---

Scarlett and Dani had been out dancing for some time when they decided they needed a quick washroom break and headed in that direction. They freshened up and headed back out to go sit off for a bit with Chris and Jason. Scarlett had been having a great time, she'd always loved dancing and had been very upset when she'd injured her knee back in January and hadn't been able to dance since, so she was dancing as much as she could despite the dull ache she felt in her knee. She knew she was probably over-doing it but she was having too much fun with their friends to stop. When they came out of the short hallway that led to the washrooms Scarlett stopped dead when she heard someone call out to her.

"Looking fucking HOT babe!"

She looked over her shoulder and her face went ashen as her heart dropped into her stomach. Adrian was leaning against the wall by the hall entrance with his typical sly grin plastered on his face. He pushed himself off the wall and walked slowly toward her.

Dani looked from her friend to the guy who had spoken to her and saw the look of fear on her friend's face. She knew just by how Scarlett started shaking that whomever this guy was he had just scared the shit out of her. The only guy she could think of who would be able to do that would be her ex, Adrian. Dani tried to pull her friend along with her but she was rooted to the ground. She knew her friend was in trouble but since she couldn't get her to move she would do the next best thing she could think of, she'd go get Chris and Jason. She took off as fast as she could through the press of the crowd toward the guys.

"What...what are you doing here?" Scarlett asked almost like she'd been knocked senseless.

"Oh, I just thought I'd come say hi babe, you know. Maybe spend some time with my best girl." Adrian said.

"I told you to leave me alone Ade, we're done so...so fuck off!" Scarlett replied as some of her shock wore off.

Adrian's head fell back and he laughed loudly, drawing the attention of some of the people nearby despite the loud music. "Really babe? We're done?" he asked as he gave her a look that genuinely frightened her.

"Like you said the other day Scar, it was never about you. It was about me. Just because you 'say' we're done that doesn't mean shit. You don't dump ME!" he snarled as he grabber her upper arm roughly.

"A-Adrian you're scaring me! We're through, get over it. I don't want to see you anymore. J-just leave me alone okay?" Scarlett pleaded as she felt his fingers dig into the tender flesh of her arm.

"You don't get it do you bitch? We're NOT done, you're coming with me Scar so shut the fuck up and get moving!" he raged as he started pulling her along with him.

Several of the people nearby saw what was going on, but only caught a bit of what was said between the wild eyed guy and the red haired girl. One of them quietly moved off to alert club security of a possible problem while the others watched cautiously unsure of what else they could do.

Meanwhile Dani had made it across the floor and to the guys. She breathlessly explained that Scarlett was in serious trouble and they needed to move NOW to help her before it was too late.

"What's going on Dani?" Chris asked while she gasped and tried to tell him and Jason what was going on.

"A-Adrian!" Dani cried out as she fought to control her nerves. "He's here and he's got Scarlett!"

"What!" Chris shouted as he bolted up from his chair. "Where?"

"By the washrooms, hurry!"

Chris took off in the direction Dani pointed and rammed his way through the milling people, knocking drinks out of hands and bowling over a few who got in his way and didn't move quick enough. Jason and Dani followed as quickly as they could but Chris was moving like a man possessed. Scarlett was in danger and he needed to be there to protect her. Chris caught sight of his step-sister and charged forward as she looked toward him, her eyes wide with fear. He lowered his shoulder and slammed into Adrian's back with all of his strength, sending the other man flying forward and onto his face on the floor. Scarlett backed away from where Chris was standing over Adrian and eventually got caught up by Dani and Jason as they arrived on the scene.

Adrian rolled onto his side and slowly stood up, glaring at Chris as he tried to get air back into his lungs. "You little fucking shit! She's mine, she's coming with me!"

Chris crouched slightly and his arms tucked in, his eyes hooding and giving him the look of a cobra ready to strike at the smaller man in front of him. "No. She's not Adrian. Get the fuck out of here before you really piss me off." he said almost calmly, in a tone that frightened the few people who had heard what he'd said.

"You don't get it! You can't have her, she belongs to me!" Adrian yelled as he charged Chris with a wild punch aimed at his head.

Chris ducked the swing and had already been swinging his own fist when it connected with Adrian's ribs, giving him a satisfying crunch under his opponent's shirt as he felt bones crack against his knuckles.

Adrian yelped and moved back quickly, holding a hand to his side as he watched the younger man move forward. "You broke my ribs you puke!"

"Be glad that's all that's broken," Chris chuckled as he made another step toward Adrian.

"Fuck you!" the injured man screamed as he launched another punch at Chris.

Dodging the second punch Chris waded in and landed a solid shot to Adrian's jaw, dislodging and cracking teeth and sending blood flying as he dropped to the floor. Club security showed up just then and grabbed both men, dragging them toward the exit. Adrian fought and screamed the whole way but Chris went calmly and didn't make any fuss at all. Jason, Dani and Scarlett followed them to the door and outside. The security team merely let Chris go but held a still struggling Adrian between two massive walls of flesh. They could hear sirens approaching and Chris looked at Jason sheepishly.

"Guess I'm not gonna get my princess home before she turns into a pumpkin bro." he said as Scarlett crushed him in a tight hug.

Jason looked at his girlfriend, "Run back and get the coats Dani, I think we'll be out here for a few."

Dani ran back in to grab their coats as fast as she could while Chris held a shaking Scarlett and Adrian raged in the grip of the bouncers. The sounds of the sirens grew closer by the second.

"You fucker! You're not going to keep her! When I tell her dad your fucking his little girl he's going to kick your ass!" Adrian screamed at Chris as he sprayed blood from his frothing lips.

"Shut up Adrian," Chris responded quietly.

"You're a sick bitch Scar! Fucking your step-brother! What we did was nothing compared to what you and that little fuck are doing!" Adrian raged as he struggled in the bouncers' grip.

"Fuck off!" Scarlett screamed back as tears began streaking her cheeks.

Chris held his step-sister close, stroking her back and trying to keep her calm. A police car rolled up with lights flashing and two officers got out, walking over to where they were standing. Suddenly Adrian managed to pull his arm free from one of the strong-men's grasp and jammed his hand into his pocket, pulling out a small pistol and pointing it at Chris and Scarlett.

"You can't have her!" he screamed as he pulled the trigger.

Time slowed almost to a standstill as Chris saw Adrian's hand swing up at them. His first response was to shove Scarlett away from him as hard as he could, sending her flying to the ground as he saw the muzzle flash and heard the pop of the gun a fraction of a second before a sharp pain lanced through his chest. The last memory Chris had was the feel of the cold ground hitting his back.

People screamed and ducked at the sound of the gunshot, running away in all directions in a panic. The one bouncer and the police tackled Adrian and wrestled the gun from his hand as he continued to scream and fight them. It took two shots from the taser before they could cuff him.

Scarlett screamed when she saw Chris lying on the ground near her, a bloom of blood growing on his shirt. She crawled to him and held him as she cried into his chest, not caring that his blood was covering her. "CHRIS!! NO! No, oh God no don't die Chris!"

She saw the bouncer and one of the officers lift Adrian up to his feet and launched herself at him, punching and screaming as she wailed her grief. The other cop grabbed her with one arm as he radioed for an ambulance.

"You fucking bastard! I'll kill you! I'LL KILL YOU!"

Meanwhile Jason ran forward as soon as he saw Chris fall and the cops and security guys take out Adrian. He checked Chris for a pulse and breathed a sigh of relief when he found it. It was thready but there. Quickly stripping off his own shirt he pressed it under his hand over the oozing wound in his friend's chest, thankful that he'd had first aid training and knew what to do, although it wasn't as much as he wished he could do. The officer holding Scarlett handed her off to Dani when she arrived back, shocked at the scene that she came back to. Both girls stood crying as they watched the police officer and Jason work to keep Chris alive on the cold ground.

The few people who hadn't run stood quietly watching as the scene unfolded before them, the sounds of more sirens blaring as an ambulance and another cruiser rolled up at almost the same time. The paramedics grabbed their gear and raced to Chris, replacing Jason and the cop in their efforts. A second ambulance pulled in and the second team of EMT's grabbed a blood soaked Scarlett and took her to their vehicle, checking her over to make sure she wasn't hurt. Dani and Jason stayed close to her, trying to comfort the crying girl as she was looked after. One of the initial policemen on scene gently pulled the pair off to the side to get their statements as to what had happened. Dani and Jason told him what they knew and what they had witnessed that night and he handed them a card with his name and badge number on it, telling them that he would be in touch with them in the next day or so for a more detailed report, and that they should go to the station as soon as possible to file their full statements.

The paramedics working on Chris got him onto a stretcher and wheeled him toward the ambulance. Jason walked over to them to see what was going on. "I'm his friend, is he going to be okay?"

"Should be, we have to get him to the hospital, he's lost a lot of blood." The EMT said curtly.

"Okay, which hospital?" Jason replied quietly as his friend got loaded in and one of the paramedics hopped in with him, the other running to jump in the driver's seat.

"Mississauga General!" called the paramedic as he slammed the rear door shut.

"Oh God, Jason!" Dani said as she cried into his chest, shaking with reaction as the second ambulance took off with Scarlett strapped in to the bench.

"It's okay Dani, we'll get to the hospital as quick as we can." he murmured into her her hair as he lead her to their car. He wiped his blood soaked hands on his pants and threw his jacket on before they got to the car, shivering with the cold and reaction to what had just happened.

They arrived minutes after Chris and Scarlett did and raced to the emergency room check in. The duty nurse told them that Chris was already being prepped for surgery and Scarlett was in an examination room and had been given a mild sedative as she was hysterical. They entered Scarlett's room and saw her lying on the gurney, her eyes half shut and sobbing quietly while she moaned Chris's name over and over. Dani ran to her and took her in her arms, gently comforting her friend and trying to calm her down and reassure her that everything would be fine. Jason stood back quietly watching the two girls crying in each other's arms, not sure what else he could do.

"Fuck!" he yelled as he reached into his jacket to fish out his phone.

Dani jumped in her seat and glared at him, "What?" she hissed.

"Their folks! We have to let their mom and dad know what happened! I'll be back," Jason said as he hurried outside to call Chris and Scarlett's parents, looking at the time on the phone and hoping that they would still be up.

---

"Hello?" Lisa said into the house phone, not sure who would be calling this late at night since she didn't recognize the number.

"Mrs. McCormick? It's Jason."

"Jason? What are you doing calling at this hour? Chris and Scarlett are out right now." she replied.

"I know, we're all at the hospital, you guys need to get here right away." he tried to say as calmly as he could although he could hear the quiver in his own voice.

"WHAT? Why are you at the hospital?" Lisa cried out, wide awake now and sitting up in bed as she shook her husband awake too.

"Chris, oh God. Chris has been hurt real bad. He got shot!" Jason wailed as the full impact of what had happened that night finally had time to sink in. He sank to the ground by the Emergency Room doors and cried as he tried to explain what had happened.

Lisa jumped up and grabbed her clothes as Jason sobbed over the phone to her. She nudged Steve again and got him moving quickly as she relayed as much of what Jason was able to tell her to him. Within minutes they were dressed and heading toward the front door as Lisa hung up the phone and threw it somewhere into the living room before they ran out.

Chris's mom clamped down on her tears but was absolutely frantic, urging Steve to drive faster. Fifteen minutes later they slammed to a stop in front of Emergency and Lisa leaped out, finding Jason still sitting on the ground crying quietly. She waved to her husband and told him to park the car and meet her inside as she bundled Jason into her arms and helped him up from the cold ground, leading him back into the warm hospital.