Status: Completed on October 4th, 2013

Breaking Their Hold

Chapter Twenty-Six: A Change in Direction

“The only way I can think of to fix this situation is for us to split up,” Pierre muttered under his breath a few moments later as they all stood in a small circle, attempting to figure out what they were going to do. They knew that it was only a matter of time before Sean came and found them, and they knew that they couldn’t stay with the boy or his sister.

“We can’t do that,” Mel shook her head, looking up at Jimmy and then at Pierre. “We all need to—”

“We all might be better off doing this,” Matt cut her off, although he definitely didn’t like the fact that Pierre thought they should split up. The last thing he wanted to do was leave Mel, but he had always known that in a situation like this, danger lay in numbers. There were far too many of them travelling together in order for it to be safe. Eventually someone would catch on to who they were, and it wouldn’t work.

“I can’t leave Jimmy,” Mel shook her head, clutching on tightly to his hand before she squeezed her eyes shut tightly. She loved him far too much to let him and Matt travel alone, and especially now, when they were so far away from Canada. She would have no idea what was going on with them if they weren’t there with her.

If the Government caught them, she wouldn’t know about it. She also wouldn’t know if they somehow died on the journey to Canada. She wouldn’t be able to be there with them if anything else happened, and if, God forbid, the Government sentence them to death and they were murdered by the State, she wouldn’t know about it until after it happened.

“Baby, he’s right,” Jimmy tried to reassure her before he pressed his lips against her forehead, wrapping his arms around her in a secure hug.

He didn’t want to leave her any more than she wanted to, but like Matt, he knew that it might be the best option. He might have wit and stealth, and Matt might have brawn, but Pierre would be the best option to keep Mel completely protected. If it came down to the four of them needing to split up, Jimmy would far rather have Mel with Pierre than she would have her with himself or Matt.

He knew that Pierre understood the ins and the outs of the Government in ways that most citizens didn’t—Matt and Jimmy included. He would know where to find safehouses for Mel, and he’d know how to get her any medical attention if she needed it. He’d be able to get her food and find things for her that she’d need.

“Can we talk for a bit? Just us?” Mel murmured to him, not letting go of him as she looked up at him through watery eyes. Jimmy nodded, pushing his hand back through his hair before he lifted his head to look at Pierre and Matt. He knew that he and Mel needed this time with one another. The two of them needed to talk and he needed to make sure she understood that even if neither of them necessarily liked the fact that they needed to be separated for a few months, it was what was best for everyone involved at this point of things. They were still far away from Canada, and Jimmy knew that if there was an incident now, here in Colorado, there would be even more in other states as well. He couldn’t risk losing Mel, and he knew that that was exactly what would happen if they didn’t split up for the remainder of their journey to Canada.

Pierre and Matt agreed that it would be a good idea for Mel and Jimmy to have at least a few moments to themselves to discuss what was going to be happening within the next few moments. They were obviously both upset about having to separate from one another, but both of them—even Mel, deep down inside—knew that it was the only thing any of them could do right now.

Jimmy grabbed her hand in his and then led her up a small path that he found, stopping when he knew they were far enough away from the others that they could have a private discussion, and yet close enough that they would be able to call the others for help if they needed it.

“I don’t want you to leave me, Jimmy,” she whispered, clutching on to his shirt and pressing a desperate kiss to the fabric before she leaned her forehead against his chest.

Jimmy frowned, knowing how firmly she felt about this. He felt bad, knowing that he needed to put his foot down about this, but he also knew that he had to do what was necessary in order to ensure her protection. If being away from her until the end of everything was safer for her, he knew that was exactly what he had to do.

“I know you don’t, baby, but it’s what we have to do,” he tried to reassure her, knowing that it wasn’t something she was going to want to listen to.

“Why?” She whimpered, looking up at him before wincing slightly when he reached up with his thumb to brush her tears out of her eyes.

He felt so broken witnessing her hurting so much, but he knew that he couldn’t allow his sympathy for her to cloud his judgment in what would keep her safe. Making sure that she made it to Canada was all that mattered to him, even if he died in the process. He’d known at the beginning of everything that he might survive, and he was fine with that.

The world could survive without someone like him. He hadn’t done much for anyone in his short life. Sure, he’d fallen in love with Melissa, and she’d fallen in love with him as well. He’d made good friends and he liked to think that in return, he’d been a good friend. He’d made his mother proud through the things he’d done before being arrested and being hauled off to Haverly, and he knew that his sister was proud of him, too. But none of that matched up to what Melissa could do.

Melissa had the opportunity to end a terrorist’s regime. She was one of the few that had spent time in private sessions with those that worked directly under Schlagger, and although her testimony alone wouldn’t be enough for INTERPOL to arrest and detain the dictator, but she would be a large part in their case.

She had heard it said directly to her that love wasn’t a part of the Government’s plan, and she’d heard it said that there were conspiracies in place to rid the country of any opposition to Schlagger and his reign. Canada and INTERPOL could do something about that with Mel’s testimony, and that was why her survival was key.

“Just because we’ll be away from each other doesn’t mean that we won’t love each other, Mel,” Jimmy whispered in her ear before he grabbed both sides of her face, tilting her chin up so that she was looking up at him.

“But what if something happens to you?” She whispered, closing her eyes again and looking down at the ground. “What if—?”

“What ifs don’t matter, baby. I’ll make it to Canada alive just the same as you will,” he promised her before he pressed his lips against hers in a careful kiss. “This is the way it has to be, Mel. I can’t live with myself if something happens to you, and the only thing that’s ensuring your safety is making sure that you’re with Pierre.”

“You and Matt don’t know the terrain like Pierre does,” Mel pointed out, touching her hand to the side of his face. “What if you end up getting lost and—”

“We’ll figure things out, Mel. We’re men; it’s what we do,” Jimmy teased her before looking up when Pierre motioned over to him. “Baby, we’ve gotta get on the move if we’re going to get a safe distance away from here by the time he comes back with reinforcements.”

Mel knew that he was right, but it didn’t mean that she wanted to leave him. She wrapped her arms tighter around his body, holding him as close to herself as she possibly could before she pressed her lips against his again.

“I love you, Jimmy,” she whispered as he returned her hug.

Jimmy’s heart felt heavy as he saw the sadness in her eyes. He knew that her heart was more shattered right now than it ever had been before, but he also knew that he needed to do this for her.

“I love you too, Mel,” he returned her sentiments with a small frown.

He knew that tonight, Mel and Pierre were going to start making their way towards Scottsbluff. Jimmy had no idea where he and Matt would end up heading towards, but he knew that it would be in an opposite direction. He knew that this was for the best, but although he knew it, he didn’t feel good about it. Just knowing that he wouldn’t be there with Mel was hard for him to swallow, but he told himself that as long as she was okay in the end, this separation was worth the temporary pain.
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Hi, everyone. In my last batch of updates, I made a typo in the author’s note so I figured I’d correct that with this batch of updates. I will be updating all of my stories between tonight and tomorrow night. After that, no stories except my co-writes will be updated until September 14th. I have a lot going on at work and in my personal life and I need to get everything in order as well as make sure I have plenty of chapters on each story so that there are no unexpected hiatuses on any stories.

That being said, I have two new stories starting since I have several coming to an end within the next few weeks. The first one is called Down In Flames. It’s a Synyster Gates story, though Matt Tuck is also featured in it. The other story is going to be a full-length Zacky Vengeance story called No Matter What. It’s a story I’ve been working on under wraps for a month or so now and I’m super excited to get it out there and share it with you all. And the other story that I’m starting is a co-write with my friend Dasha called Brothers In Arms. We’re both super excited to start it and hope that you enjoy it as well. ^_^

This week, I’m also going to whore out a story that I think you all will enjoy. It’s called Dark Come Soon, and it’s a Harry Potter fanfiction by CharmedLuna and another extremely talented author, Overflowing Ashtray.