Life moves on...things happen!

[ladyofavalon77]

First and foremost, HAPPY BIRTHDAY crashandburn!! I hope it’s a wonderful filled with special memories and you get every birthday wish imaginable. If I could, I would sent Tony right to your doorstep J

Well, the shock of Monday’s showing of 24 should be manageable now. I’m getting used to the idea of it happening and am preparing accordingly. I still have all of Season Five and can make music videos when inspiration strikes. Getting stabbed by the woman you love sounds very much like Shakespeare so it’s kind of romantic in a weird, twisted way. And I hold on this one mantra…there’s always hope as long as both are alive. Call me stubborn, call me deluded, but I’m sticking with it!

So I finally go to meet a celebrity!

He was in Dukes of Hazzard and Smallville? Can you guess who I’m talking about? John Schneider for $1000 and the Daily Double hehe. At any rate, he was here to promote his movie yesterday and I had to buy a ticket to see him but I bought it for today. I brought my Smallville magazines for him to autograph since there were like three interviews with him over the last few years. He’s so much taller in person…and handsomer. Just a good ole boy with a sexy southern accent. I also love how he wants to be a strong father figure for young people. Quite admirable.

The only downside is…he evidently didn’t leave Smallville on a happy note. When they asked him at the event if he would ever go back, he said they would have to ask very very nicely. Evidently they never talked to him after his departure and he was hurt by the cold shoulder. Unfortunately, I was next in line and he signed the magazines while commenting how sad he looked (he actually looked pretty hot as a brooding farmer hehe) because of what he couldn’t say. Kind of a downer but he very nicely autographed the other two magazines without me asking. He really is a nice guy.

Unfortunately, he cannot make a movie. It was entitled Collier and Co. and a take off on the Dukes of Hazzard. I bought a ticket for my Mom so we could support him but we were the only ones in the theater…soon found out why. Evidently, he does not have very good contacts in Hollywood because the sound was completely off the whole time. You could see raindrops on the camera lens twice. You knew the actors were acting. The special effects were more fake than the gold watches sold in Times Square. And the lines were really really cheesy. I felt so bad because he’s such a nice guy. At least I got his autograph J

Are you lost with me?

This episode (3.11 “Enter 77”) was another great hour of entertainment. Lost hasn’t disappointed me yet and I can’t wait till they find the camp of the Others. The new Russian guy is tough and intimidating that it should be interesting to watch him accompany Kate, Sayid, and Locke to where the Others live. I love how devious he was by first shooting Sayid and then sewing him up. What does the next phase mean? He shouted something about that before the second attack.

Sayid’s flashback was so well written. I really believed he hadn’t tortured that woman…I wanted to believe he hadn’t tortured her. SHE is a good actress…beautiful with so much depth. I loved the story she told him to get him to confess and then letting him go. Oh this is why I watch TV. We need this on 24 J Side note: Hurley beating Sawyer at table tennis rocked the night. Great humor in this episode J Idiot of the night goes to Locke for blowing up what could have been a treasure trove of information on the Dharma Initiative by pressing two buttons even I wouldn’t have pushed if given those choices.

So now that leaves us with another chapter of fan fiction. I’ve been meaning to plan out the last nine chapters because I would like it to be 24 in honor of the show but getting the different threads together takes some time and forethoughts. Hopefully it will come to me soon and with disaster looming on the horizon it will inspire me more. This chapter is from Martha’s point of view where she is finally rescued by Aaron only to have things go from bad to much much worse in just a few minutes time.

CHAPTER TEN

 

 As she watched Vladimir Bierko make his final plans to transport the nerve gas out of the country, Martha could only feel pity for the man who believed mass murder was the only option he had left to achieve his goals. What kind of man would he have been had circumstances been different? This was the same man who would probably give the order to end her life and all she could do was feel sorry for him. How ironic.

She had no words to describe this sudden change of heart except that it could be the result of accepting her fate, whatever it might be. She had already faced the possibility of death more than once in the past few hours and a fear of the unknown had been replaced by a new confidence that events were beyond her control. Therefore, she refused to waste what time she had left on self pity or past regrets. What would come would come.

“Now you‘re sure this vessel can take us to St. Petersburg? We cannot afford another mistake,” Bierko demanded, leaning over the shoulder of one of his cohorts. “We need to start moving the nerve gas now.”

“Already done. I sent Sergei to direct the loading of the canisters.”

“Excellent. Now make sure they follow my instructions precisely. I’ll be joining you shortly,” the Russian terrorist replied as the other man nodded before leaving and Bierko turned to face his captive. “Well, it appears I no longer require your presence, Mrs. Logan. We did not need your husband’s assistance after all.”

“He should never have helped you in the first place,” Martha informed him, returning his steely gaze with one of her own. “He should have let me die.”

“Ah but self sacrifice is the easy choice, no? If the roles were reversed and someone you loved was in danger, could you really take a stand and see them die…because of a decision you made? I’m not so sure…unfortunately I do not have any more time to discuss this matter. I told your husband there would be consequences for changing our arrangement and I will not be caught in a lie. Gentlemen…you know what you must do.”

And with a wave of his hand, he directed the two men holding her captive to take her away. They didn’t drag her far, stopping at an empty storage room to complete this final task. Making her face the wall and forcing her to a kneeling position, Martha tried to hold her emotions in as she heard the cold metallic click of a gun being armed behind her. Bracing herself for the shot to come, she had no last thoughts or words…only the cold paralyzing fear of her own demise. Where had all her strength and courage gone?

And then a single gunshot rang out, echoing over and over in her ears…but she emerged unscathed. Trembling so hard she didn‘t know what to do, Martha tried to will her body to get up and move but found she was no longer in control of herself. Suddenly strong but gentle arms were lifting her off the floor and she found herself collapsing into their welcome embrace. She didn’t know who had just saved her life and she didn’t care. She was safe and that was all that mattered.

“Thank you,” she breathed, her voice wavering slightly as she rested a moment against the reassuring broad shoulder. “You don’t know how much this means to me…thank you.”

“Just doing my job, ma’am,” a warm familiar voice replied and she pulled back to find herself looking into the concerned eyes of Aaron Pierce. “Are you hurt in any way?”

“Oh my god, Aaron,” she cried out, disregarding protocol completely as she threw her arms around his neck and whispered in his ear. “I thought…I thought I lost you.”

And for a moment she felt his body relax against her own as she took comfort in his strong, reassuring presence and he took pleasure in the fact that she was safe and under his protection once more. The world could have passed away and she would not have noticed, content to stay in his arms forever.

“We need to get you back to the residence. Are you able to walk?” he finally asked, once more focused on his job to protect her.

“Yes…I should be fine,” she replied, trying to give him a reassuring smile as she stepped back and resumed her role as First Lady. Making sure one last time that she really was all right, Agent Pierce led the way out of the room while carefully placing her behind him so he could protect her in case any hostiles remained in the warehouse.

“Jack, this is Pierce. I’ve found Mrs. Logan. Do you require further assistance?” Aaron asked over his comm unit as the two of them made their way down the empty hallway. “Jack…can you hear me? Please respond.”

“No answer?” she queried, wrapping her arms around herself as she felt a sudden chill course through her body. Recognizing the first signs of post traumatic stress, Aaron immediately removed his jacket and wrapped it around her trembling shoulders, watching her visibly relax at his comforting touch.

“Are you sure you‘re all right?” he replied, gazing up at her with concern in his eyes once more. “My first priority is protecting you but if this nerve gas leaves the country…”

“Thousands of lives could be in danger. It’s ok, Aaron,” she reassured him, reaching out to touch his arm. “There are more important things at stake than my well being. As long as I’m with you, I know I’ll be safe. We need to help Jack.”

“I’ll agree to this but only on one condition.”

“What’s that?”

“You do exactly what I say. No arguments, no deviations.”

“Don’t I always?” Martha replied softly, a coy smile already gracing her lips as he looked away in embarrassment at this unexpected side of her personality. “Don’t worry, Aaron, I promise to be on my best behavior. I wouldn‘t want you to lose your job.”

“That’s not what I meant.”

“I know,” she told him and smiled again as he looked up at her surprising answer. “However, we don’t have a lot of time to debate this so I’ll make it easy: let’s get out of here. You lead the way.”

Returning back to familiar territory, Aaron simply nodded his head and led them away from the main staging area of Bierko’s operation and to the back of the gigantic warehouse. Once again Martha found herself lost in a maze of hallways and side rooms, unsure where they had entered and how they would leave. However, her confidence never wavered as they finally reached their destination, the sound of gunfire alerting them to the danger ahead before anything else.

Motioning for her to stay back, Pierce unholstered his weapon and tried to assess the situation from his position. A quick glance around the corner revealed that Jack had managed to take down a good number of Bierko’s men before being cornered by the man himself and two other terrorists. Right now they were at a standoff, neither party able to reach the gas canisters in the van nearby and just waiting for the other side to make the wrong move. Fortunately Bierko had not counted on Pierce’s unexpected arrival. Indicating to Martha that he was going in to help Jack but she needed to remain hidden, the Secret Service veteran moved slowly into position, keeping his weapon lowered until he was right behind his targets. Waiting for the right moment, he carefully timed his attack from behind to coincide with Jack’s return of gunfire. Finding the opportunity sooner than he expected, Agent Pierce immediately dropped to the floor and managed to take down two of the terrorists before Bierko turned to face this surprise attack only to get shot twice from behind. Neither he nor his men had survived the onslaught.

“You couldn’t have timed your arrival any better, Agent Pierce,” Bauer informed him as he emerged from his hiding place with Henderson in tow. “I thought you needed to ensure the safety of the First Lady.”

“I figured you could use a little help.”

“I’m glad you decided to stay. I’ll put in a call to CTU and they can send someone to pick up Mrs. Logan.”

“No need. I have to inform Secret Service of what happened and they will send a vehicle to take us back to the residence at that time,” Aaron told him as he heard the soft footsteps of the First Lady approach from behind.

“I see you gentlemen have the situation under control,” she remarked with a smile and extended her hand to the former CTU agent. “I’ve heard your name mentioned before but it’s a pleasure to finally meet you in person.”

“The pleasure is mine, Mrs. Logan. I just wish we could have met under better circumstances.”

“As do I,” Martha told him sincerely, moved by the pain in the other man’s eyes that told her he had experienced things no one should have to go through. “I hope you understand that your sacrifice for this country is not in vain. Though no one might ever tell you this, we need more men like you, Mr. Bauer.”

“Thank you,” Jack replied, taken aback by her unexpected warmth. “If you’ll excuse me, I need to contact CTU.”

“Of course,” she replied and watched both Aaron and Jack step away to make their calls, feeling reassured the country was in good hands with men like these in the field.

“Mrs. Logan?” an unfamiliar voice interrupted her thoughts and she turned to face an older man with a well worn face and eyes as cold as ice. He had not been part of the original terrorist group and she did not detect an accent in his speech. “There’s something you should know about your husband.”

“What about Charles?” she questioned as she closed the distance between them. “How do you know my husband?”

“Mrs. Logan! Don’t-” Jack suddenly shouted out as he looked up and recognized what was about to happen. However, she realized the trap too late as the man known as Christopher Henderson allowed himself a small smile before seizing the First Lady by the arm and retrieving a weapon from one of the fallen terrorists in one smooth motion. Both Aaron and Jack immediately withdrew their guns at the new threat but were unsure how to handle this latest development.

“Drop your weapons or I will kill her right now,” Henderson threatened, pressing the metal barrel into Martha‘s temple until she winced in pain. “You know I will.”

Stay tuned to see what happens to Martha next week on your weekly 24 soap channel *giggles*

Sometimes going for a smoke can turn out to be quite useful...