A/N: I know, I know. You all want to kill me for keeping you waiting for this update but I really had no idea how to start this chapter. So lets not dwell in the past lol. Onto the story! I know you guys will love this chapter, some angst and romance and its a pretty good length, enjoy!

Chapter 11: Who Will Survive and What Will Be Left of Them

Moving very slowly, Nathan moved through the woods where he had sent Brooke and Owen not too long ago. He was very conscious of the loud crunching of dry leaves beneath the heavy souls of his shoes. Suddenly, it seemed as if the sky opened as heavy drops of rain started to fall, making his footsteps seem quieter.

Although the rain dulled the sound of him walking through the brush, it could not pacify the crying he heard as he reached the edge of the woods. There, kneeling on the ground was a hysterical Brooke, craddlingOwen's lifeless head in her lap. He quickly made his way up behind her, grabbing her by her shoulders. She let out a shrill scream, fighting against him. Finally, she realized it was Nathan and she broke down into his arms.

Her breathing was shallow and erratic as she gripped and pulled at his shirt. "Shhhh, Brooke, you need to breathe. Breathe and tell me what happened."

Trying to steady her breathing, she spoke, "They, they just shot him for no r-reason." She slightly began to panic, "W-we have to do something, we have to call the cops." she said, rummaging through her pockets, franticly looking for her phone.

"Brooke, you can't call the cops." Not listening to him, she started dialling as soon as she found her phone. He snatched the phone out of her hand and she looked at him as if he had just slapped her. He spoke slowly as if speaking to a child. "We. Can't. Call. The. Cops."

"Nathan, you're not making sense. If we can't call the cops, who can we call?"

"Listen, Brooke. The police did this, the police killed Owen. We can't call the cops." When the meaning of the words finally processed in her head she broke down crying. He put his arm around her and pulled her against his side. "C'mon, let's go find Haley and Jimmy."

xxxxxx

Sanctuary, n. refuge: a shelter from danger or hardship. Jimmy James' sanctuary, his den, was completely destroyed. Books were thrown from the bookshelves, drawers were ripped from the desk. He heard something crunch under his shoe. He realized that it was a cracked picture frame and bent down to pick it up. Inside the frame was a picture of his wife who was holding Haley as an infant alongside his sons, Noah and Christian. His wife had died when Haley was in middle school and this picture meant everything to him. Whenever he had a hard decision to make he would look at the picture and remember everything he loved and lost and it made him do the right thing for Haley.

Wiping the tears that were formingin his eyes, he took the picture out of the broken frame and shoved it in his pocket. He looked over at Haley who was sitting on his brown leather couch, craddling a sobbing Brooke in her arms. Her eyes were trained on Nathan who was leaning back against the desk with his arms crossed against his chest, staring down at the ground.

Haley was the first person to break the silence, "What are we gonna do about this?" she whispered. Nathan looked up at her but Jimmy kept assessing the damage of the room, neither said anything. She spoke again, raising her voice. "Owen is dead! What are we gonna do about this?"

"There's nothing we can do." Jimmy said softly.

Those words made Haley's blood boil, she stood up and approached her father. "What do you mean there's nothingwe can do? What are you gonna just sweep it under the rug like everything else? Owen had a family, he's someone's son!"

Jimmy's cool exterior cracked. "Don't you think I know that? If I publicly acknowledge what happened here today, the precious life that you are so accustomed to will come crashing down. Do you want that?" His outburst was so out of the norm that even Brooke's crying subsided as she looked on.

"I don't give a shit about any of that!" she screamed as tears bursted from her eyes. "This is wrong and you know that. Be a man and admit it."

He roughly grabbed her shoulders, "Don't you dare talk to me like..."

Nathan quickly stepped in. He grabbed Jimmy's shoulder, trying his hardest to hide his immense worry for Haley. "Whoa, Jim, relax." As soon as Haley escaped her father's grip, Haley ran out of the room as quick as she could, tears rushing down her cheeks.

Brooke got up to go after her, Nathan quickly stopped her. "Brooke, why don't you take it easy, I'll go check on her."

xxxxxx

Knocking softly on the door, Nathan entered Haley's bedroom to find her frantically stuffing articles of clothing into her large Louis Vuitton suitcase. "Hales?" When she spun around, he saw the tear tracks that stained her cheeks.

He approached her and wrapped his arms around her shoulders. She gripped the muscles of his lower back as she buried her face into his chest. He kissed the side of her head as he ran his hands gently over her back. "Baby, what are you doing?" He asked her, motioning to her haphazardly packed luggage.

"I can't live like this, Nathan. The fact that my whole world could come crumbling down if the wrong person finds out about our lifestyle is burning a whole through me. I can't take it anymore." She said as she began to sob again.

Nathan's heart broke in two as he felt her shake in his arms. "Tell me what I can do, baby. Tell me what I could do to make this better for you."

Haley looked up at him and placed her hands on each one of his cheeks. She pulled his face towards hers but their lips didn't touch. "Take me away from all of this, please. I don't care where we go, anywhere will be better than this." She whispered quietly, her warm breath lingering between them.

He hugged her tightly, burying his face in the crook of her neck as he breathed in her scent. Taking a moment and another deep breath, he moved his lips to her ear, "I would love to take you away from the danger of this lifestyle, I never wanted anything more in my life. But I can't take you away from your family, doll."

"You're my family now, Nathan, the one true thing I have. I never wanna lose you."

Pulling back slightly so he could look her in the eyes, "Hales, believe me, there is nothing in this world that could tear me away from you."

"That's what I needed to hear." she whispered, gently gripping the back of his neck and pulling his lips to hers. He let his hands snake around her waist and slide down to the swell of her ass.

She gasped into his mouth as she felt him squeeze her cheeks. As soon as she was lifted off the ground, she wrapped her legs around his waist.

With one of his hands holding onto Haley, Nathan used his other hand to knock the suitcase off the bed. He sat down on the bed with his beautiful girlfriend straddling his lap. Her lips stayed attached to his until she grabbed the hem of his shirt and pulled it over his head. She rocked her hips against his before going in for another kiss before Nathan stopped her by threading his fingers through her hair. There was a long pause before he spoke. "I love you so much it hurts." he whispered, looking up at her as he placed her hand over the left side of his chest.

Looking at this man in front of her, Haley had no doubt in her mind whatsoever that this was the person that she was going to spend the rest of her life with. This was the man that she was going to wake up to every morning, the man that was going to father her children, the man that she was going to grow old with. Slowly bending her head down, she replaced her hand that was on his chest with her lips.

Nathan's eyes rolled back into his head as he felt her warm, wet lips move across the sensitive skin of his chest. She gradually moved her mouth along his upper body, licking a path up his neck to his ear. "I want you."

Securing his hold on her waist, he flipped them over so she was on her back and he was above her. His lips closed over hers as he settled himself between her legs. She gasped lightly into his mouth when she felt him grab her thigh firmly and hitch it around his waist. Knowing the effect that she had on him, she took hold of his bottom lip between her teeth and raised her hips off the bed to press intimately against his.

His hand moved up the back of her thigh to squeeze her ass, trying his hardest to keep her warm pliant body against his growing erection. Haley could feel the burning sensation pool in her stomach at their closeness, the feeling only intensified when his hips bucked against hers. She scraped her nails down rock hard abdomen to the waistband of the jeans that fit his body so perfectly. As she started to coax the button through the hole, his hands found hers. "Are you sure?" he asked softly, looking back and forth between her eyes and her mouth.

"Yes", she breathed, bringing her hand to his cheek and brushing her thumb across his kiss-swollen lips.

They continued to strip the remainder of clothing from their bodies. Nathan sat back on his knees and just stared at raw beauty that was lying in front of him.

Haley moved her hands to cover herself. "Nathan, quit staring. You're starting to make me feel..."

"Don't", he said, nimbly grabbing her hands in his. "You have no reason to feel uncomfortable, baby. You are the most gut-wrenchingly beautiful person I have ever seen."

The brightest smile stretched across her lips at his words. He laid his body down over hers and she hugged his torso tightly as he reached down to the floor to pull a condom out of the pocket of his jeans. She peppered his neck with kisses before taking his earlobe between her teeth. "I can't wait to feel you inside of me." She whispered, her lips moving over his ear.

"If you keep talking like that, this will be over before it even starts." he warned, giving her a look that she apparently found funny. He could feel her laughter reverberate through his body.

Nathan propped himself up on one of his elbows as he slipped the condom on. She watched as he did so, taking in a deep breath as she took in the weight of what was about to happen. He looked back up at her and let both of his elbows frame her head. A concerned look spread across his face when he noticed that she was trembling.

"Babe, are you sure you're okay? You-you're shaking, Haley." he questioned, brushing a strand of hair back from her forehead.

"I've never been more sure of anything in my life." she exhaled, running her fingers over his dark hair.

He bent his head down and lightly kissed the beauty mark on her collarbone. "Then what is it?"

"I just never thought that I could feel so deeply for someone and now that I do I just, it's completely overwhelming. Everytime you look at me it feels like, it feels like I can't breathe." The last part was a breath. Her words knocked the air out of his lungs. His heart ached knowing that no one could make him feel the way she was making him feel in that moment. There is no one on this earth like Haley James.

Looking up into his beautiful blue eyes, she saw something in them that she has never seen in them before. Tears. There were tears in Nathan's eyes. "God, I love you", he mummbled. She watched him as he leaned into kiss her, closing his eyes which caused one singular tear to fall down his cheek.

Closing her eyes, Haley lost herself in the kiss and in the man she loved. She felt him begin to position himself at her entrance so she pulled back and looked back at him. "I'm sorry but this might hurt a littl..."

She silenced him with a kiss. "Please, just do it." She smiled against his mouth.

Doing as he was told, Nathan entered her causing Haley's mouth to fall open in a silent gasp. He stilled instantly, letting her become accustomed to his size. She brought her hands up to his shoulder blades and dug her nails into the mucsles there as a few stray tears escape her eyes. "Are you alright?" he asked, a concerned look marring his handsome features.

Biting her bottom lips, she tried her best to smile as she nodded. "I never expected it to feel this incredible. You're everywhere." He smiled at her words and covered her lips with his.

Haley began to rock her pelvis against his and he knew she was ready. Gripping the pillows on either side of her head, Nathan began to move within her. She opened her mouth under his and granted access to his tongue. It took every fiber in her being not to clench her teeth shut, the sensations shooting through her body were indescribable. One of her hands reached behind to clasp her headboard as the other travelled south to grip Nathan's lower back.

Everytime he moved, the noises she was making became louder and louder. He showered her face with light kisses as he continued to move his body along hers, "Hales, you have to try and be quiet, baby." he laughed faintly. She nodded, taking big deep breaths. It worked for a couple of seconds before she moaned loudly again. "Hales!" he chuckled.

Her breathing was so fast that one would think she was crying but Nathan knew better. "I'm... really... trying... but... I... CAN'T! UNGH NATHAN!" He pressed his mouth against hers, trying pacify her moans. Don't get him wrong , he thought Haley's moans were the sexiest thing he has ever heard. What wouldn't be sexy is if Jimmy heard her and came bursting through the door.

He felt her inner muscles clench around him and whatever he was thinking about immediately left his mind.

xxxxxx

Looking down at her feet, Brooke ascended the staircase of the James' mansion. Jimmy had sent her to go check on Haley when she and Nathan hadn't returned to his den. As she walked down the upstairs hallway she looked at the pictures that adorned the wall.

There were several pictures of Brooke and Haley together over the years. Brooke was practically Jimmy's daughter, there's the key word, "practically". There was no blood between her and the James family but she still went through all the hardships that Haley and her family dealt with. From the death of Haley's brothers and mother to the nights when Haley couldn't sleep because she worried for her father's safety.

Taking on these burdens are welcome compared to living a life with the James' family. Even though he was one of the most wanted men in America, Jimmy James was the closet thing she had to a father and she loved him. She never questioned his lifestyle until now because his lifestyle never took away someone she loved. Until now. Despite the doubts spiralling around in her head, there's no way that Brooke could live without the James family because thet were her family.

Reaching the door of Haley's bedroom, Brooke lifted her fist to knock before she heard the sounds coming from inside. She heard heaving panting, soft moans and the bed creaking against the wall. She smiled as tears rolled down her cheeks. She was so happy for her best friend because she knew Haley had wanted this for so long. On the other hand, it made her heart ache because Brooke knew that she wouldn't be able to experience that with the man she loved. Not as long as that man in Owen.

Turning on her heel, she headed back toward the staircase wracking her brain for some excuse to get Haley off the hook.

xxxxxx

Kissing his way across her collarbone, Nathan could taste the fine sheen of sweat that appeared there. Haley let out a breathy moan as she tangled her fingers in his short dark hair. She started to feel him hit places inside of her that she never knew existed. The churning in her stomach started to grow more and more intense.

He could feel her start to quiver under him and knew that she was close. "Nate", she breathed, "I think I'm gonna..." Haley didn't finish her sentence, instead she bit down on her lip, trying to surpess any noise that would come out of her mouth.

Nodding quickly, he spoke, "Me too, baby. You think you could be quiet?" She shook her head, fighting the urge to let her eyes roll back into her head. "That's what I thought. Bite my shoulder." She gave him a questioning look. "Trust me, just do it."

So she did. She sunk her teeth into the hard muscle of his shoulder as she wrapped her legs around his waist and pulled him as far into her as she could. Nathan could feel her muffled moan reverberating off the skin of his shoulder. Her climax was so powerful that she was literally shaking under him.

Feeling the intensity of her orgasm sent Nathan over the edge himself. He buried his face in the crook of her neck and let out a loud groan as he acheived his much needed release.

They laid there in silence for several moments, basking in each other. The only sound that could be heard was their ragged breathing.

Bringing her hand to her forehead, Haley struggled to catch her breath before speaking. "So much for being quiet. Huh, babe?" He removed his face from the crook of her neck so he could look her in the eye.

"That had to be the hottest experience of my life." He stated, pressing a kiss against her lips. "I can't wait for the day when I can hear my girl scream my name." He could feel her become more wet as a reaction to his words.

"Jesus, Nathan", she groaned, moving her hands down to his ass where she squeezed it and pulled him closer into her.

Gritting his teeth, Nathan tried his best to compose himself. "As much as I can't wait for round two, we should really head back downstairs before anyone suspects anything."

"Yeah I guess you're right." she sighed. As Nathan went to move off her, she grabbed his shoulders lightly also grabbing his attention. "I love you, Nathan, you're the most important person in my world."

Plesantly taken aback by her admission, he couldn't help the smile that graced his face. "I love you too, Hales. You saved my life." Happy tears came to her eyes as she pulled him down for another kiss. Everyone else could wait.

Hope you guys liked it! Please review!