Okay guys, this is it. This was such a tough chapter to write, but it's one of those 'I gotta finish what I started' things! I won't say I hope you enjoyed it, lol, but I hope you stick with the story if you've made it this far, because there's definitely going to be some lighter moments ahead, and a whole lot more angst of course! Your reviews would be very welcome, thanks :)

"Okay, based on Ralph's calculations - weight of the flyover, their position on it, the size of the crack, the position of the car, their position in the car - I'd say we've got no more than 25 minutes before that crack opens further, causing the car to ..."

"Don't say it Sylvester" Walter snapped, unwilling to comprehend any possibility that they wouldn't be okay.

"Sorry Walter. The added problem is that the bridge won't take any more weight so we're going to have to go on foot and leave the van at the end."

"We haven't got rope or cable long enough to attach to the van and secure the car that way" Happy added, "but we can each loop a section of rope around our waists. We just need to hook Paige and Ralph up, and together the 5 of us will be more than secure and strong enough to pull them out safely."

"Toby, do you have your medical kit?" Walter asked. "Paige was trying to hide it but she's in a lot of pain."

"I'm on it boss" said Toby, knowing there was a time and place for quips, and this wasn't one of them.

"Thank you" Walter said. "Cabe, any chance of getting a chopper to the area, just in case?"

"I've called Homeland son, but all the choppers are in service right now across Los Angeles. We're doing this alone."

"We're here." said Happy, as she brought the van to a screeching halt at the end of the flyover. "Jesus ... not good"

The flyover looked like a scene from a disaster movie. Cracks were everywhere, some small, and some huge. A few abandoned cars were strewn across the highway, and they knew about halfway across lay Paige's car.

"We're going to have to be super careful. No sudden movements. Happy, you're the engineer, you go first, and everyone follow her steps, okay? Sylvester what's our timing?"

"20 mins 33 seconds" Sylvester replied. "But we're at risk of aftershocks that could hit at any time. We have to get going."

It took them a good 5 minutes of carefully traversing the bridge before they reached Paige's and Ralph's location, and as the huge crack that had swallowed up her car came into view, it soon became clear how perilous their situation was.

"Paige, Ralph?!" Walter called, trying not to rush as he made his way to the edge of the crack, where Paige's car was stuck at a 65 degrees angle. As he looked down he could see that the windows of her car were smashed out. Paige was seated nearest to him, suspended by her seatbelt, while Ralph was furthest away, the angle of the car causing his body to be flush against his passenger door. The car was wedged tightly in the crack, but if it widened much further there was only one outcome.

"Walter!" Paige cried in relief as she looked up at him. "We're okay but the car feels like could give way any second." Despite the relief of seeing Walter, the rising panic in her voice was palpable. She also wasn't in a good way, breathing rapidly, presumably from her broken arm.

"Mom's arm is bad" said Ralph. "Is Toby here?"

"Yeah he is, I'll get him to check on your mom in a second buddy okay?"

"Walter it's fine" Paige insisted, sounding anything but fine. "Please just get Ralph out. That'll make me feel a whole lot better."

"Okay, hang tight, I'm going to bring Happy and Sylvester over to check over the car, and Toby to check you out Paige and we'll get you out in no time." He was at touching distance from Paige, and wanted to take her hand, to give her the comfort everything would be okay, but he didn't want to risk destabilising the car. As if reading his thoughts Paige gave Walter a reassuring smile. "Walter, it's okay" she said weakly. "Just concentrate on doing what you do best."

For the next few minutes the geniuses inspected the car before huddling together. "Sly, Happy, I need some figures."

"Okay" said Happy. "Getting Paige out first is safest and easiest. Less car movement."

"We're looking at 90% chance of success of getting them both out as long as we get no aftershocks." Sylvester added.

"But" Happy continued, "if we get Ralph out first that makes things trickier. We'd have to pull him out over Paige and that will cause more movement and instability, and increase the chances of the crack widening."

"Walter" Sly added. "We'd be looking at a 50% chance of the bridge giving way before we can the. get Paige out. But whoever we pull out second there's a chance of aftershocks at any time, and if we're pulling Ralph out 2nd ... Walter either decision is a risk, but we have to move fast. We're at 12 minutes before the crack opens up regardless, and then they're both gone."

"Okay boss" said Toby, making his way over after having tended to Paige. "Paige's arm is bad. The compound fracture is causing blood loss and she's going to go into shock if she doesn't get treated properly soon. I got Ralph to carefully wrap his shirt around the wound but it's rough and ready. We need to get her to a hospital as soon as we can."

Walter's mind was in turmoil. He knew what Paige would say. She'd sacrifice her own life without question for her son. He couldn't therefore involve her in the decision. There was no time for emotion right now. But how could he use pure logic when the lives of the two people that mattered most to him in life were at stake. 50%. If they got Ralph out first Paige's life would effectively be decided on a coin toss. He knew what he had to do.

He made his way back over to the car. Paige had her eyes closed, trying to regulate her breathing, while Ralph was talking to her about his latest science project at school, trying to take his mom's mind off the pain. He'd never felt as much love as he did for them both at that moment. "Paige," The sound of his voice stirred her and she looked up at Walter and smiled. "Paige, listen to me. We've done the calculations and we're going to get you out first, and Ralph quickly after. It's the most efficient and safest way of getting you both out. You have to trust me okay? We have to do this now, we haven't got any time to lose."

"Walter I do trust you" she said. "But I also know you. You want to save everyone and sometimes that isn't possible. You need to get Ralph out now before this thing gives way."

"Mom, I'm fine" Ralph said. "Walter's right. "You need to get out first. If you don't it puts us both at further risk."

"Ralph" Paige began, before being abruptly interrupted by Walter.

"Paige" Walter interrupted. "I'm not going to let anything happen to you both, but we haven't got time to debate this either way, okay?"

Paige shook her head, grimacing in pain. "Do I have a choice? ... Okay, let's do this. And Walter? ... I love you. We both do."

"I love you both too" Walter stuttered, feeling more emotional than he should right now. "Right, let get to work."

The next few minutes were a blur. Happy used her hydraulic tools to carefully prise open the door, while Walter carefully reached in and placed the looped rope over Paige's head an under her arm, with the help of Ralph. Her breathing was getting ever more ragged, and Walter knew that this movement was causing Paige an immeasurable amount of pain. "Paige" listen to me" said Toby. "This is going to hurt lie hell but it'll be over in no time okay? Feel free to curse as much as you like!"

Paige could only nod. She was feeling lightheaded, and was struggling to cope with the pain. She looked over to her son and gave him a wink, reaching over carefully with her good arm to run her fingers through his hair. "I love you Ralphy. I'm so proud of you, you know. Always."

"I love you too mom."

It didn't take long for the geniuses, working as one, to hoist Paige out of the car. Her cries of pain were hard to take but they didn't have time to go slowly. Once out Toby extracted himself from the rope and helped move Paige to a safe distance about 10 metres away, before tending to his patient.

"Well Miss Dineen. You really did a number on this here arm."

"It hurts to fuckery Toby" Paige gasped, as he began wrapping a clean bandage around the wound, being careful not to touch the bone, before giving her some strong painkillers.

"I know it does. That's because you've got a bone sticking out your arm Paige. They taught me at medical school that bones sticking out of arms hurt a little bit."

Paige managed a smile, grateful for Toby's humor right now. She knew it was his way of getting her mind off Ralph. "How are they doing?"

"They'll have him out in no time."

"Okay, just hang on Ralph."

It didn't take long before they'd pulled Ralph out too, leaving them all collapsed on the bridge by the car, trying to catch their breath.

"2 minutes to spare" Sly grinned. "You did good buddy."

"Thanks Sly" Ralph smiled.

"Right" said Walter. "We need to get out of here. Ralph, let me tighten this rope around you first ... Woah, hold on buddy!"

The bridge suddenly began to shake violently and sway, causing everyone to drop to the ground in order to steady themselves.

"Oh God it's an aftershock" Sly cried. "We need to move fast and get off this bridge before the whole thing gives way."

The crack behind them began to shift and crumble, and Paige's car suddenly plummeted through the widening gap, smashing into the creek below with a deafening crash.

"It's giving way" Walter shouted. "We have to move now!" There was no time to tighten Ralph's rope so he instinctively reached for him, lifting him in his arms to carry him to safety. But it was too late. The ground suddenly began to give way beneath him, and he felt himself falling. Luckily, the rest of the team attached to his rope meant he quickly came to an abrupt halt, but the force of the jolt caused Ralph to slip from his grasp, and Walter lunged to desperately grab Ralph's wrist, tightening his hand around it. They were dangling off the edge of the bridge, 100 feet of nothing between them and the ground below.

"Walter!" Ralph screamed. He began to desperately reach up for Walter's arm with his free hand but he couldn't do it. His wrist was beginning to slide through Walter's grasp and he was starting to panic. Walter I'm slipping!"

"Ralph!" Paige screamed. It took all of Toby's strength to hold her back as she tried to run to her son, broken arm or not.

"Paige, no, it's too dangerous" he pleaded, worried that any more movement would cause them all to fall.

"Hold on buddy" Walter called desperately as he looked down at Ralph. "Guys, you need to pull us up! There's no time. Ralph, Ralph, listen to me, you have to try and reach up for my arm." He reached down with his own free arm to try and grab Ralph but no matter how he tried he couldn't reach.

"I'm trying" Ralph cried. "Walter I can't hold on!" He was panicking, and there was nothing Walter could do. His hand that was gripped round Ralph's wrist was beginning to slip further down Ralph's hand, and he knew he couldn't hold out for long. "Guys you need to pull me up NOW!"

As Walter stared at the scared boy below him, he could hear Paige's desperate cries behind him, begging him not to let Ralph fall. Sylvester, Happy and Cabe were pulling him up, but it was taking all their strength just to move a few inches at a time. It was not fast enough and Ralph was slipping away from him.

"Mom!" Ralph cried. His own genius mind was calculating the reality of his situation, but he was still just a boy, and he just wanted his mom to make everything okay.

"Ralphy" Paige cried. "Toby please let me go!" Toby knew he couldn't keep Paige from her son at that moment, and released his grip, allowing her to rush to the edge. Her heart almost stopped as she saw her son hanging in mid air, reaching up desperately for Walter. "Ralphy sweetheart, just hold on. Sweetheart you have to reach up for Walter's arm, please Ralph."

"I'm trying mom, I can't!"

"Walter!" Paige cried desperately. "Hold onto him. Please don't let him go. Please don't let him fall."

"I can't ... hold on" Walter gasped. There was no angle he could find to reach down and grip Ralph with his free hand, and his hand that was holding onto Ralph continued to slide further from his grasp. Walter knew it wouldn't be long, and there was no time to free some more rope for Ralph to grab. There was nothing he could do."

"Walter, please" Paige cried. "Please don't let him go." But it was too late.

"Nooooooo!" Paige screamed as she saw her son slip away from Walter completely, desperately crying out her name as he fell. "Nooooooo!"

He was gone.