A/N: There are a lot of jumps in this chapter because I wanted to write both sides of the situation. I hope it doesn't turn to be too annoying ;)

Sometimes Will forgot he wasn't the only one who deeply cared for Mackenzie; sometimes, he forgot that he wasn't the only one who loved her. He was in the car with Charlie and Sloan, the three of them in silence, their comforting presence enough for him to relax a little bit. Sloan had kidnapped his hand and was holding it in a tight grip, her head resting on his shoulder. He wasn't sure who was comforting whom but, every two or three minutes, one of them squeezed the other's hand in support while Charlie kept glancing at them from the passenger seat.

Every few minutes, one of their phones beeped. While Will and Sloan ignored theirs, Charlie attended the messages he was receiving, most of them coming from Jim who was keeping his boss informed about what the news were saying about the situation. Tired of hearing his phone going off, Will took it out from the inside of his jacket. Just when he was about to turn it off, the screen lit up and Maggie's name appeared. Knowing she wouldn't be calling if it wasn't really important, he answered.

"Julian McHale called a few minutes ago." Maggie told him before he could say anything. "His plane landed a couple of hours ago. When he got into his hotel room, he turned on the TV and saw the news."

"Did he call his parents?" Will asked, raising his hand to stop the questions that were about to come from Sloan and Charlie, who could also hear Maggie on the phone.

"I told him to wait, that it wouldn't do any good to worry them, but I don't know if he listened to me at all."

"Do you have his number?" Will said, sighing deeply at the thought of having to deal with a distressed Julian.

"I'll send it to you right now." She replied.

"Thanks Maggie." He said before hanging up.

Will tapped on the window with his knuckles and Lonny opened the door. He got out of the car, closing the door behind him. He lit up a cigarette and opened the message he had just received from Maggie with Julian's number. After a deep drag and a deeper breath afterwards, he dialed the number.

"This is Julian."

"Julian, it's Will McAvoy." Will said when the other man answered his phone. "One of my producers told me you called."

"I didn't have your number so I called ACN. They didn't want to give me your number but they forwarded my call to your staff." He said. "What the hell is going on? An hostage situation involving my sister? What did you do?" Julian angrily asked Will.

Will was tempted to ask him why did he care after three years of ignoring his sister but he resisted. Instead, he took a deep breath and replied as best as he could. "This isn't anyone's fault. There's a creep that has been obsessed with Mackenzie for the last few months. Tonight, he managed to bypass all the security measures that have been put in place. NYPD is working right now on a plan to get her out of there." Will explained, trying to give away as little details as possible.

"I'm taking a taxi to Mackenzie's place." Julian informed him.

"Don't." Will quickly told him. "They won't let you get through the police line." He said. Will didn't want Mac finding her brother there, without any warning, when she got out; the situation was stressful enough, she didn't need her brother bombarding her with questions. "I'll keep you informed, okay? I'll call you as soon as I know something."

"You better, McAvoy, or I promise I'll kill you with my bare hands." Julian threatened him.

Instead of replying, Will simply hung up the phone and put it back in his pocket. "Great, just what we needed." He muttered while taking another drag of the almost consumed cigarette on his hand. "Any news?" He turned around to ask Lonny.

"They're going in."

Lonny urged Will to get back into the car and he complied, a but reluctant but without voicing any objections. Once he was seated, Sloan quickly reclaimed his hand back. Keep it together, he told himself after seeing the scared look on both Sloan and Charlie faces.

"Mac's brother?" Charlie asked him.

"I don't know what the fuck is he doing in New York but he saw the news and freaked out. I convinced him to wait in his hotel room." Will explained.

"They got into a terrible fight about three years ago and haven't spoken to each other since." Sloan told Charlie when she saw the confused expression on his face.

"You know what happened?" Will said, turning to look at Sloan.

"You don't?" She replied, surprised.

"Mac only told me they had a fight, she never said what it had been about." He told her. Sloan sent him a hazy look and Will gently smiled. "Don't worry, I'll ask her in a few days." Will reassured her, making sure she knew he wouldn't ask her to break Mac's confidence.

After a whole minute in silence, Charlie decided to break the ice. "What's going on?" He asked, knowing that the news about Julian being in New York wasn't what really worried Will.

"Negotiations failed; the SWAT team is getting ready to go in." Will explained.

"Oh God." Sloan whispered.

"It's gonna be alright." Will told her, squeezing her hand. "They know what they're doing and Mike told me he'd be right behind them." He repeated the words Michael had told him a while ago. "It's gonna be alright."

"OPEN THE DOOR AND I'LL SHOOT HER!" Brian shouted through the closed bedroom door, supposing that the policemen were waiting on the other side.

The situation had gotten to a point in which she couldn't predict what Brian would or wouldn't do. She could see that he was scared, even if he tried really hard not to show it, his breathing was becoming erratic while the hand holding the gun was slightly shaking. Mac closed her eyes and pulled her legs closer to her chest with her free arm, hiding her face between her knees and trying to make herself as little as possible.

"Mr. Brenner." They heard someone say. "The building is surrounded, every escape route is covered: you have no way out. Don't make things more difficult than they already are. Let us get in, drop the gun and let Ms. McHale go."

"DON'T COME IN! I'LL SHOOT HER, I'M NOT FUCKING AROUND." Brian replied.

Here comes nothing, Mac thought before raising her head and opening her eyes. "Brian." She said, gaining his attention. "You know that if you surrender everything will be easier and the DA will take that into account." She tried to reason with him.

"Mackenzie." He warned her.

"Nobody has to get hurt." Mac continued, ignoring his warning.

"Shut up." He sternly said.

"Brian, please, they aren't going to leave without-"

The strong kick he delivered to her side stopped her. "Shut. The. Fuck. Up." He leant down to tell her, punctuating every word. He grabbed a handful of her hair and pulled her head back. "I don't want to hear another word. Are we clear?"

"Oh God." Mac groaned in pain, her free arm unconsciously moving to hold her bruised ribs.

"Are we clear?" He asked again, more forcefully, tugging at her hair once again.

"Yes." She muttered through her clenched teeth.

Brian released the hold and straightened up. Out of the blue, he kicked her again. The pain on her side intensified to the point that taking deep breaths became difficult. Mac tried to regulate her breathing, an arduous task considering the situation she was living, but she slowly managed to do it. Tears of pain and anger were freely falling down her face; she was past the point of caring about Brian seeing them. The situation would be over in a matter of minutes, or she hoped so, and she would safely be back in Will's arms.

Suddenly, the bedroom's window broke into little pieces than flew everywhere while, at the same time, the door bursted open, slamming against the wall.

A single gunshot was heard, interrupting the conversation Will was having with Charlie and Sloan inside the car. Will jumped out of the car, immediately followed by Charlie and Sloan, who quickly walked around the vehicle to stand by his side.

Lonny saw them and began to run. "Get back in the car!" He shouted at them.

"What the hell is going on?" Will yelled back. He looked past the running man and saw a bunch of paramedics rushing into the building. "Lonny?" He asked, alarmed.

"Suspect's down." He told them.

"And Mac?" Sloan quickly asked.

"They're securing the scene, it shouldn't take long. We'll know more as soon as they do." Lonny explained.

Will began to walk away from them but Charlie quickly grabbed his arm and stopped him. Just when Will turned around to give Charlie a piece of his mind, Lonny's phone rang. "Church." Lonny listened to the other man and nodded, covering his phone to speak to them. "Mac's fine, Mike's with her." He said before returning to the phone conversation. The three of them took a deep breath, relieved after hear those words, and impatiently waited for him to finish.

"Mac! Mac! Look at me!"

Mike was kneeling in front of her, trying to gain her attention without touching her. When she had heard the shoot and the SWAT team breaking in, she had curled into a ball to make herself as little as possible and had tightly closed her eyes, wanting to shut everything out. Michael looked around him: Brian was facedown on the floor, groaning and complaining about the bullet in his shoulder while one of the police officers used a towel to put pressure on the wound until the paramedics arrived. The other officers were securing the scene, letting him approach Mac so she would see a friendly face. He wasn't being successful in his attempts to gain her attention without startling her. Just when he was about to gently touch her shoulder, the team leader knelt next to him.

"Can you uncuff her?" Mike whispered to the other man.

"Of course." He replied.

"Mac." Mike said once again, only louder, while his hand found her shoulder and gently squeezed it. She whimpered, pulling away from him. "Mackenzie, it's Mike." He told her. "It's over, you're safe now." He assured her. "An officer is gonna take the cuffs off and we'll get out of here, ok?"

It took her a few seconds but she finally nodded at him. Mike quickly looked at the man next to him and nodded, telling him he could proceed. The moment Mac's wrist was free, she flung her arms around his neck, a choked out sob escaping her closed lips. His arms quickly went around her waist to steady her while one of his hands gently stroked her back. He could feel, more than see, that she was shaking uncontrollably so he looked up at the officer that was still with them and asked for a blanket.

The soft fabric landing on her shoulders seemed to bring her mind back. She carefully untangled her arms from Mike's neck and grabbed the edges of the blanked to pull it tightly around her. Mac slowly opened her eyes and looked directly at him. "Please, get me out of here." She almost begged, her voice small and afraid.

"Are you hurt?" He asked her, concerned.

"A bit, but I can walk. Please, just get me out." Mac told him, tears falling once again down her face.

Between Mike and the team leader, they helped Mac stand up and escorted her out of the room. They walked to the couch but, once Mac realized where they were going, she drastically stopped and glanced at the kitchen's door. Both men accompanied her and helped her sit down on one of the chairs. Mike went to get her some water while the officer took a chair and sat down in front of her.

"Ma'am?" He said, worried about the absent look on her face.

"Mac." She softly corrected him, giving Mike a little smile when he handed her a glass of water.

"Mac, I'm Nick." He told her. "Paramedics are on their way up, they'll be here any second now. Is there anything I can get you in the meantime?"

"Is Will downstairs?" Mac asked.

Nick looked at Mike, slightly confused at her question. "He is." Mike quickly replied.

"I'll ask someone to get him so he can wait in the lobby." Nick said.

"Thank you." Mac sincerely told him. Nick smiled at her and got up to make the call. Before he could take a step, Mac stopped him. "Wait!" She exclaimed.

"Mac?" Mike rushed to her side.

"He wasn't working alone." She blurted out. "Brian." She clarified. "He didn't tell me but he was texting with someone who was keeping him informed of what was going on downstairs."

"We'll look into it right away." Nick assured her before leaving the room.

Mac took a sip of the water she was holding with her trembling hand before leaving the glass on the table. Mike sat down in the empty chair in front of her. Mac extended her hand and he quickly took it between his own, gently squeezing it.

"Mike." Mac softly said, looking at him.

"Yes?"

"Could you call Lonny? I need to talk to Will."

A police officer had escorted him to the lobby and had asked them to wait there. Charlie and Sloan were sitting down on the uncomfortable couch while Will paced in front of them under Lonny's protective glimpse. Lonny's phone rang and he retreated a few inches to answer the call. A few seconds later, he returned and handed his phone to Will. He looked at his bodyguard, confused, but he accepted the phone.

"Yeah?" He said, unsure.

"Billy?" He heard Mackenzie's tearful voice on the other side.

"Mac!" He exclaimed. Charlie and Sloan jumped out of their seats and rushed to his side. "Are you ok, sweetheart?"

"A bit shaken up but I'm fine." Will took a deep breath and closed his eyes for a few seconds. "I'm fine." Mac reassured him, knowing he must be beating himself up at that moment. Her voice was telling him that she was about to break down even if she was attempting to sound calm, for his sake. "Will, I..." He heard the sob before she could keep it down.

"Mac. Oh, honey." He said, his heart breaking inside at the sound of her soft crying.

"I'm sorry."

"It's alright." He tried to reassure her.

"I want ... I need you."

"We'll be together soon. Ok? I'm in the lobby, waiting. I promise I'll run to you as soon as the elevator doors begin to open."

"You'll fuck up your knee." She tearfully laughed at him.

"Don't worry about that." He simply said.

"I have to go. They want to check me out before we leave."

"I'll be waiting, right here." He assured her. "Mac?"

"Yes?"

"I love you." Will softly told her.

"I love you too, Billy."

Will hung up the phone and handed it to Lonny with a quick thank you. He needed a few moments to collect himself, to ease down the fear he had been feeling for the past two hours since Lonny had gotten the call.

A hand in his arm put him back on Earth. "Is Kenzie alright?" Sloan asked him.

"She's fine." Will told them, putting his arm over Sloan's shoulders and pulling her to his side. "They're making sure of it, though."

"Good." Charlie said.

"She'll be here soon." He told Sloan, not really sure if he was reassuring her or himself. Sloan smiled at him and he returned the gesture. Then, after a deep sigh, he took out his phone. "I have to call Julian."

"I can do it." Charlie told him.

"And I'll call Jim." Sloan offered.

Will was about to thank them but the commotion they could hear coming from the elevators interrupted him. The three of them turned around just when a group of policemen and paramedics stepped into the lobby surrounding a stretcher. Thinking it was Mackenzie, Will took a step forward. Charlie was the first to realize it wasn't Mac. Faster than he thought he could, he put himself between Will and the group and called Lonny. When Will saw Brian, he threw himself at him. Luckily, for Brian, Lonny was ready to grab his arms and restrain him while Charlie put his hands on Will's chest to help the other man.

"Don't do anything stupid." Charlie warned him.

"Let me go." Will growled.

"Calm down." Charlie said.

"You're going down, McAvoy!" Brian said, out loud, when the stretcher went by their side. An officer quickly told him to shut up.

It took Lonny all his willpower and strength to keep Will from breaking free. "Don't make me knock you out." Lonny told him.

"Will." Sloan called him. "Hey! Look at me!" She said, grabbing his face between her hands. "Stop it! It won't do you, or Kenzie, any good if you get arrested for assault for punching him."

"I'd make me feel better." He replied, suddenly deflated.

Lonny and Charlie waited for a few seconds, until they were sure Will wouldn't run after the guy, before they left him go. Will rubbed his arms and glared at them but, at the end, he decided to take Sloan's advice.

When, a few minutes later, they heard the elevator again, Will began to run. Nobody tried to stop him, knowing fully well that nothing could keep him from getting to Mackenzie as soon as possible. He saw her, leaning on Mike while she slowly walked out of the elevator with two EMTs right behind them, and his heart broke into a million pieces. She looked so small and lost, engulfed by the blanket covering her shoulders, that the only thing he wanted to do was wrap his arms around her and never let go.

Before he could think about anything else, he heard Mac's strangled sob and felt her body crushing into his chest. For a few seconds, Mac didn't care about the pain on her neck and ribs; she only wanted to feel his strong arms around her body and his lips against hers because, even if it had only been for a little while, at one point she had thought she would never be able to feel them again. Will, with trembling hands, framed her face and slowly rested his forehead against Mac's. They both closed their eyes and sighed deeply. Will was the first one to open them again before gently removing the tears on her face with his thumbs. Mac leant into his touch, seeking the comfort and peacefulness he always brought to her. She felt his lips on her forehead and opened her eyes to look at his blue ones before standing on her tiptoes to kiss him.

Everybody left them alone, looking everywhere but at them to give them some privacy. When the kiss ended, Mac tucked herself into Will's side and under his arm and nodded at Mike, telling him they could continue. They quickly reached Sloan and Charlie. Without leaving Will's protective grasp, Mac gladly accepted Sloan's hug and Charlie's kiss on the cheek.

"Are you ok, kiddo?" Charlie asked her.

"Yeah." Mac simply said, afraid that another round of tears would begin.

"She needs to get checked out by a doctor." One of the EMTs told them. "They're waiting for us at Presbyterian."

"I'm going with her." Will quickly told them, his voice making clear that it was non-negotiable.

"If Mike goes with you, and you promise to stay by his sight all the time, I'll take Mr. Skinner and Ms. Sabbith and meet you there." Lonny said.

"Deal." Will replied before turning his head to look at Mike, who nodded in agreement.

The eight of them walked out of the building. Detective Johnson was waiting for them just outside the door and explained that Brian had been arrested before he had been taken to the hospital. He also told them that, as soon as possible, they would begin looking for his accomplice.

"I'll swing by the hospital in a bit to take your statement." He informed Mac.

"Can't it wait until tomorrow?" Will asked him.

"It's alright." Mac said.

"I'll see you there." He told them before walking away.

With Lonny and Mike standing before them, Mac and Will went to the waiting ambulance. One of the EMTs was about to help Mac step into the ambulance when three consecutive gunshots were fired at them.

People began to scream and ran away in all possible directions. Lonny and Mike, especially trained for that kind of situations, quickly put themselves on the line and pulled their protégées to the ground, covering them with their own bodies; Charlie, who was standing next to the ambulance, grabbed Sloan's arm and pulled her behind the vehicle and to the ground, quickly laying down beside her.

"Where are Mac and Will?" Sloan asked him, raising herself on her forearms to look around.

Charlie gently made her lay down again and put his arm over her back to keep her still. "Stay down." He hissed.

"But Charlie..." Sloan began but stopped talking when Charlie shushed her.

They stayed there until an officer knelt next to them. "Sir? Ma'am? Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." Charlie replied before looking to his side. "Sloan?"

"I think I'm fine." She told them while the officer helped her sit down.

"Your knee is bleeding, ma'am." The officer said, pointing at her knee.

"I must have scratched it when I went down."

Charlie, who had just managed to stand up, offered his hands to Sloan to help her do the same. Once she was upright, Charlie put his arm around her waist to support her. "Come on, we'll find someone to take a look at it."

"It's nothing, Charlie. I'm fine, really." Sloan argued.

"Let's find the others." He told her with a little smile.

The smile on his face vanished as soon as he saw the situation waiting for them. Lonny, sitting up against a police car, was being attended by two paramedics, his arm bleeding despite the gauzes the paramedic kept putting on the wound. Charlie's eyes quickly looked for Will, thinking the worst: if his bodyguard had been hit... By the look on Sloan's face, she had reached the same conclusion.

They looked around, trying to find their friends among the chaos surrounding them. They saw another couple of ambulances arrive along with more NYPD cars. Out of the blue, Sloan shouted "There!" while pointing somewhere. They walked as fast as they could and it took them a few seconds to absorb the situation before their eyes: Mac was laying unconscious on the sidewalk with Will hovering over her and begging her to wake up, his voice cracking every single time he said those words out loud.

"Oh my God! Kenzie!" Sloan exclaimed.

Mike raised his head to look at them. "She hasn't been hit. She hit her head when I pulled her down." Mike quickly explained.

"And Lonny?" Charlie asked.

"Two bullets on his arm. He'll be alright."

"Will?" Charlie said. When he didn't answer, Charlie approached him and put his hand on the younger man's shoulder. Will, startled, turned to look at him. Charlie had never seen Will looking so desperate, so lost, and it scared him. "Will, are you alright?"

"What?" Will said without thinking. "Yes, yes, I'm fine." He continued once his brain had processed Charlie's question.

Will's attention returned to the unconscious woman in front of him. He didn't know what to do, his mind had shut down the moment he had seen her. He only wanted Mac to open her eyes and tell him she was alright. He carefully framed her head with his hands, running his thumbs over her cheeks. He heard Sloan yelling for some help while Mike put his folded jacket under Mac's head.

"Mackenzie, wake up!" Will sternly said, smacking her cheek as gently and lightly as he could. "Come on, Mac, you're scaring the shit out of me. Open your eyes, please?" He begged her, once again.

Two paramedics came running and quickly knelt beside her. Mike explained the situation to them and stepped aside to let them work. Sloan and Charlie grabbed Will's arms and obliged him to stand up and give the paramedics some room. Will, unwilling to be kept away from her, broke free of their grasps and dropped down by Mac's head, out of the way of the paramedics but still close to her.

"How long has she been unconscious?" The woman attending Mac asked Will.

"A couple of minutes." He nervously replied, looking at his watch. "Maybe five? I don't know."

"It's ok." She replied.

Mac showed signs of waking up a few seconds later, so the paramedic raised her eyelids and checked the pupils with a light. Mac squeezed her eyes shut and turned her head to one side, trying to avoid the bright light. When she began to violently cough, the paramedic asked Will to support Mac's head while they moved her to lay on her uninjured side. Will gently caressed her hair, his hand never stopping, going up and down from her forehead to her upper back, while leaning down, his mouth close to her ear, to whisper soft words of encouragement and a lot of "It's okay" and "I love you".

They placed an oxygen mask over her nose and mouth once the coughing subsided. Will raised his head, alarmed, and looked questioningly at them. "She may have some broken ribs so breathing it's a bit difficult and painful. This will help." The woman explained.

The strange object over her face seemed to be what made Mac finally open her eyes. "Billy?" She said, confused, her hoarse voice barely above a whisper.

"I'm here." Will quickly replied, dropping a kiss on her head.

"What happened?" Mac asked him.

He was about to answer but another coughing fit interrupted him. He patiently waited until Mac managed to calm down before answering. "Someone shoot at us but everybody's fine."

"I've been shot?" She asked, confused. "It doesn't hurt."

"No, honey, you haven't been shot. You hit your head when Mike pulled you down." Will explained.

"Is he alright?"

"He is." Will assured her.

"Mackenzie." The paramedic interrupted them. "Try not to talk too much, ok? We don't want you to get more tired."

"Sorry." Mac said, closing her eyes.

The paramedic gently touched her face and Mac opened her eyes again. "Stay awake." She told her. "Keep her awake." She whispered to Will, who nodded.

Someone approached them with a stretcher and they, very carefully, moved Mac onto it. Finally able to see him, Mac softly smiled at Will. "Hi." She said when her eyes found his.

"Hi yourself." Will smiled back.

A hand on his shoulder distracted him for a second. He turned around to look at Charlie, eyebrow raised. "They're letting us ride with Lonny. Mike will go with you." He told Will. "We'll meet you there."

"Thank you, Charlie." Will sincerely replied.

"Take care of her." Charlie said before walking away.

Will waited until they loaded the stretcher into the back of the ambulance before climbing inside and sitting at the back, out of the way of the paramedics but still able to hold Mac's hand. Once everyone was in place, the driver turned on the sirens and the ambulance began to move.