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The story you are about to read was written by Tana, MT_Reade

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There's a loud, resounding bang, and the door opens with a clatter. It swings open, to reveal Roman Kingsley standing in the doorway, gun at the ready, and still hot from shooting the doorknob off of the locked door.

Roman coughed at the density of the air in the room that hit him like a wall. He covered his mouth, and looked around the room. There was stuff everywhere. Discarded books and maps and a broken telephone, but his eyes stopped short at the large cage in the middle of the room. Detective Logan Christie lay unmoving inside it.

"SIR!"

Roman almost dropped his gun, and struggled to regain control of it, before he rushed to the cage's walls, and tugged on the bars. "Sir! No.... No no no no." He was too late.

Roman found the door, and ran around to it. He shot the lock off of the door without thinking about it, and used all of his might to haul open the metallic gate. He rushed inside, and dropped to his knees beside Logan's body. "No, no, no.. Please no."

Roman shook Logan's shoulders. "Please, sir. Sir, wake up. Can you hear me? Sir?" But, Logan didn't respond.

"Come on, sir. Sir?" Roman hesitated. "L-Logan? Logan can you hear me?" He held his breath.

Nothing. Roman broke. How could he have let this happen? He should've known something was wrong when Logan hadn't shown up to work that morning. He'd just assumed that Logan was investigating, or maybe with Patton. He'd thought, he'd thought...

He didn't know what he had been thinking.

He should've thought to come looking sooner. Lord, why was he so stupid? How could he have been so careless?

Roman reached down, and took Logan's limp hand in his own. He looked down at the pale fingers with tears springing to his eyes. His own fingers brushed over Logan's wrist a little, and Roman froze.

He turned Logan's hand back over, and pressed two fingers against the skin of Logan's inner wrist. There was a pulse. A faint one, but it was steady. It was there.

Roman hardly had time to rejoice before he started to cough again. He looked behind him, to see a knocked over gas tank, with the top open. Oh.

He had to get them out of here.

"Sir, you're okay." Roman couldn't be sure that the detective could hear him, but he couldn't fight the need to reassure him. "You're gonna be okay. I have to just..." Roman stood, and bent over to latch a hand under both of Logan's arms. "...get you out of here." Roman said, voice strained as he started to drag Logan away from the cage.

"Okay, okay... Um... I can do this." Roman pulled Logan out of the door.

Roman looked is dismay at the staircase that lead up from the small back room to the main hallway. He had to get up those. He let out a long breath. "This is fine. It's just fine, sir. I have this all under control. Don't worry." He wasn't quite sure if he was trying to console the detective, or reassure himself. He rested Logan back down on the floor, and weaseled his arms under Logan's back and legs, before lifting up. Roman was thankful for all of the hours of police training he'd done as he stammered to his feet, Detective Christie in his arms.

"Okay. That wasn't too hard, right?" Roman looked at the stairs, psyching himself up. "Come on, detective. Let's get you out of here."

Roman took the stairs one step at a time, slowly gaining confidence. "Yeah, this is perfect. I can do this."

Roman got to the top of the stairs, and began to pick up the pace to the best of his abilities as he made his way to the door of the school.

"R-Roman?"

Roman looked down to see Logan's dark eyes looking up at him. "Sir! Oh thank goodness, I thought you were dea--"

Logan interrupted him. "Did y-you stop the execution?"

"What?"

"Did you get the ev-evidence to I-Inspector Louis?"

Roman blinked, and his step faltered. "Evidence, sir?"

Logan all but leapt from his arms. "You can't be serious. All the evidence in that room? We need to get it to Louis before Patton..." Logan stopped. "Roman, what time is it?"

Roman checked his pocket watch. "Five fifty."

Logan felt his heart sink. He started to try to run on unsteady legs. "We don't have any time to lose. We have to get to the Hangman's Jurisdiction before it's t-too late!" Logan's voice was both tired and shrill at the same time.

Logan felt a strong arm wrap itself under his, taking his weight. Roman nodded at him, silently telling him that he didn't have to thank him for the assistance. "Come on, detective. Let's go."

***

"Patton Hart." The hangman said, voice low.

"Yes." Patton said, avoiding looking at the crowd in the viewing area. Tears stung in his eyes, but he would not cry in front of all these people.

"It is my duty to carry out your sentence to death on this day: August twenty-fifth of eighteen-ninety-two."

Patton wrung his fingers. As much as he should be worried about his own death, he feared that Logan too, would end up dead. After last night in the cell block... he couldn't help but fear the worst.

***

The two ran. Well, Roman ran. He helped the detective along as best as he could. Logan's determination was enough to carry him though, and for the most part, he was able to hold his own. It felt like they were trying to outrun time. Dread loomed over the two as they ran down the street.

***

"You will have your senses deprived, and privacy in your final moments. Then the door beneath you will open..."

Patton looked down at the wooden hatch that he stood on. He could feel the empty cavity beneath it. The blackness below was visible between the slats of wood.

"...and you will hang until you are dead."

***

The granite staircase was unforgiving under the pounding feet of the two lawmen as they scrambled up the stairway to the Hangman's Jurisdiction. Logan forced himself to take step after step.

He then heard the clock bell strike behind him.

***

Patton heard the city hall clock tower bell ring. Six tolls of the bell. It was time. He lowered his head. He could feel dozens of eyes on him.

He closed his eyes as the rough rope was lowered over his head, and gagged as the noose was tightened around his neck.

"Any last words?" The hangman asked.

***

"Come on, sir!" Roman pleaded as Logan's strides started to slow. "We can still make it! We're almost there!"

Logan looked up at him hopelessly.

"Come on..."

***

"I..." Patton risked looking up. He scanned the crowd behind the gate, sitting in rows. They were all silent, their faces solemn. They all avoided eye contact, except one.

One, in the far back corner. Patton locked eyes with him, and the man slowly raised his hand, wiggling his fingers slowly instead of waving.

Patton knew his face well. Daemon White.

Patton felt an emotion that he hadn't expected to feel today. White hot, blind, anger. He felt betrayed, hurt, and so incredibly angry. Patton's eyes narrowed, a fire alit under him.

"I didn't kill Virgil."

"And I want Detective Logan Christie to know that I..." Patton watched Daemon's eyes flash, a moment of pain.

"...I forgive him. This wasn't his fault, and my feelings toward him haven't changed." He finished, forcing the last of his tears away.

Daemon slowly stood, and tipped his hat. As if saying "Goodbye, old friend. It's too bad that it had to end this way."

Daemon leaving the room was the last thing that Patton saw before the black bag was tugged over his head.

Patton could hear the hangman's heavy footsteps move to the lever. This was it. He balled his hands into fists, and screwed his eyes shut, even though he couldn't see with them open, either. He braced himself for the fall. For the floor to drop out from beneath him. It would be death on impact, right? Snap of the neck. Quick. A flash of pain, and it would all be over. Nothing more. He'd be okay. He could live with that.

Or not.

Patton let out a last, long, wavering breath.

Here we go.

***

"WAIT!" Logan and Roman burst through the door.

Logan felt all the blood drain from his face when he saw Patton on the platform, bag over his head. "Stop!" Logan cried. "Stop it!"

"What's this?" The hangman asked, looking down at the two sweaty, dishevelled, out of breath men standing at the base of the platform.

"He's innocent!"

"Detective Christie, what is the meaning of this?" Remy Louis stood in the viewing area.

Patton's bowed head lifted sharply. "Logan?!" He called from through the bag.

"Sir, I can prove it." Logan said. "The real killer is Daemon White! All of the evidence is in a back room at the University of Carlton, including a full confession. Please, you have to believe me!"

"Sir," Roman piped up. "I can show you the way. We can go right now."

"Please just..." Logan turned to the hangman. "Take the noose off."

The hangman looked to the inspector. Remy licked his lips a little as he thought. Then, he gave the hangman a nod. The hangman crossed back over to Patton, and removed the bag from his head.

As soon as Patton saw Logan, he burst into tears. He frantically ripped the noose from his neck, and ran over to the detective, flinging himself into Logan's arms. "Y-You're alive! I was so worried that you'd--" Patton's hands twisted into Logan's hair as he cried harder."

Logan's hands found their way around Patton, and he held him close. "I'm alright. It's all going to be alright."
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