Chapter 7
The air was still fairly cool when the three arrived at the stage. The discussion and debates would be held indoors at the inn's large conference room, but the stage for the opening ceremony was set up outdoors just under the Da Chao mountains, with the sparkling ocean off to the left.
On the stage, several chairs had already been filled with the delegates, with Rufus and his two Turks being among the last to arrive. The seats in front of the stage were mostly full, the press shoved near the front, cameras and notepads at the ready. There was a buzz of excitement as people chattered amongst themselves, both in the audience and on stage. Tseng was out in the audience, while Elena would be sitting near Rufus. Both of them would be connected via a tiny earpiece and a microphone hidden by their suit jackets. Only a whisper was needed for the microphone to be heard.
Finally, Lord Godo stood up in front of the podium. The din from the crowd died down, until only the clicking of the photographers could be heard.
"Welcome delegates and honored guests, to the First Annual Summit on New Energy. We hope that this summit will open a dialogue on the energy crisis facing us today..." Elena flicked her eyes to her right. Rufus's face was held in a neutral expression, his eyes on Godo as the emperor continued to speak.
"...let us welcome President Rufus Shinra of the Shinra Electric Company to the podium," said Godo finally. There was a wave of polite, obligatory clapping as Lord Godo sat down and Rufus smoothed his suit before standing up to the podium. He and Godo exchanged a brief nod as they passed each other.
"We all are aware of the issues that mako energy causes, and while it has sufficed for a time, the damage it caused outweighed its benefits. As the Shinra company is responsible for mako energy, it is also our duty to find or financially back another source of energy. This summit comes at a time of change; the world is rebuilding and cannot afford to be without power."
Rufus went on. Elena kept her head straight ahead, making sure that she kept a lookout for anything suspicious. Her mind kept drifting toward the previous night but she forced herself back to the present by concentrating on the audience and the surrounding buildings. She had seen nothing suspicious yet, and she had to hold back a yawn.
"Elena."
She perked up immediately at the sound of Tseng's voice. "What is it?" she whispered, barely audible.
"Large tree nearest the green pagoda. There's no wind, but the tree's rustling." She glanced over to Tseng and saw that he was using his small set of binoculars. But he put them back in his pocket and shook his head; apparently whatever it was had disappeared.
"It could be an animal," she said.
"You're probably right, but I'm going to have a look." She watched him as he crossed behind the audience. She watched the tree for several minutes, but it was still. Her eyes wandered from the tree to the roof of the building nearby. It had a non-reflective, unpainted roof and a decorative finial. Most of the pagodas in the area also had them serving as lightning rods. A glint caught her eye, but it didn't come from the finial, rather it seemed to come from something on the roof. She squinted, wondering why the wood was reflecting light. Her eyes widened in horror when she realized the reason. She saw a dark object move along the side of the roof before disappearing again to the back of the building. There had been someone in the tree. And now they were on the roof. Her eyes flitted between the roof and Rufus. Rufus didn't appear to notice anything. The glint stabilized, as if it was getting ready to…
She jumped out of her seat and slammed into Rufus just as the shot rang out. He landed on the ground with a grunt.
She felt the sniper's round connect with her shoulder. She dropped to the ground, only half-aware of the screams rising from the crowd as people jumped out of their seats, running around haphazardly, hoping to get out of the open. The delegates on stage were hurried off the stage by their bodyguards. A puddle of blood was growing underneath her.
Rufus came to her side, shielded by the podium. His mouth was drawn in a tight line. His eyes were moving rapidly as though he were trying to figure out what to do.
"You should get out of here," she said weakly. He didn't move. "Go!" she said, with as much strength as she could muster.
Finally, he nodded reluctantly. "Don't die. I don't want to lose my best bodyguard," he told her, just loud enough to be heard over the din of the crowd. She gave him a weak smile as he took off.
"Elena!" She heard Tseng's voice and his rapid footsteps on the wood as he knelt down beside her. He tore off his coat and wrapped it tightly around her wound, stemming the bleeding for the time being. His eyes were wide with fear.
"I'm gonna die, aren't I?" she asked quietly. She was surprised at how calm it sounded when she was terrified on the inside.
"No!" Tseng exclaimed, shaking his head. "I'm not going to let that happen!"
Elena wanted to keep her eyes open, but she could feel blood still leaving her wound, despite the makeshift tourniquet. "Stay with me, Elena," he said firmly, panic coloring his voice.
The pain and her desire to fall asleep battled against each other before unconsciousness prevailed.
-X-
A steady beep roused Elena from her sleep, her shoulder throbbing. She didn't dare roll over to find the source of the beeping, but from the sterile white walls, she knew that she was in the hospital. A nurse walked in with, checking the clipboard at the foot of her bed.
"Good morning, Elena," said the nurse briskly.
"…" Elena was still feeling drowsy from the opiate pain medication in her system.
"How are you feeling today?"
"I don't know," she said, her voice raspy. "Okay, I guess."
"Well, you're lucky to be alive," said the nurse, studying the bag attached to the IV.
"How long have I been out?" she asked sleepily.
"Since yesterday. Gotta say, that was really brave of you to take a bullet for Rufus Shinra," she said, a hint of disdain in her voice.
"So that's what happened," said Elena distantly. She vaguely remembered seeing the glint of the sniper rifle, hearing the report of the bullet and shoving Rufus aside, but not much else.
"It was all over the news how one of the Turks saved President Shinra's life," continued the nurse.
"Yes, well, it's my job," said Elena as distant as she could manage. She remembered the night before last, how she had rejected Rufus when he was at his most vulnerable and wondered what he thought of her now. However, a knock brought her attention to the door.
"Elena?" Tseng asked tentatively. She turned her head a fraction to the right. His normally immaculate hair was somewhat messy.
"Tseng…" was all she could say as he walked over to sit down on the chair next to the bed.
"How are you feeling?"
She sighed. "Hurts a lot," she said.
"You were hit with a 7.62 NATO shell," he said. It took a moment for Elena to register how close her brush with death had been, especially with a bullet that large. "It shattered your collarbone. It's out now, obviously, but..." he trailed off. No wonder it hurt.
"Thank Gaia for modern medicine," she said blandly. Suddenly she felt something bubbling up in her stomach and moving into her throat. She clapped a hand over her mouth and Tseng grabbed a nearby basin, holding it out while Elena was forced to sit up so she wouldn't choke on her own vomit. Not only did her throat ache from lack of water, but her shoulder seared in pain as she sat upright.
"Let me take care of her," said the nurse. Tseng moved aside, and Elena threw up twice more. The nurse left with the basins, and Tseng moved back, looking at her with sympathy.
"I'm sorry," Elena whispered, not able to look at him. She leaned back slowly. She wanted to cry, but managed to hold back tears.
"It's alright," said Tseng gently. They were silent for a moment before Elena frowned.
"Where's Rufus?" she asked.
"Reno and Rude picked him up today and brought him back to Edge."
"So what's going to happen to the summit?"
"It will be rescheduled."
"I see..." said Elena. "Um…did he say anything about me before he left?" She cringed inwardly, knowing that Tseng would probably wonder why she was asking.
"He told Reno and Rude that you were going to be in the hospital," said Tseng.
"Oh." She couldn't help but feel some disappointment that Rufus didn't say anything more. "Why are you still here?"
"The Wutai police are conducting an investigation. I'm going to try to get some information from them," said Tseng. He checked his watch. "Speaking of, I should be off now."
"Are you going to come back?" Elena blurted out.
"I'll do what I can," he said, and left. The only sound in the room was the steady blip of the monitors. Elena felt hot tears run down her face, though she was unable to figure out why she suddenly felt so sad.
-X- The next day
Elena flipped through the channels, avoiding the news, which replayed the moments repeatedly just before the sniper shot her while reporters and politicians discussed the summit and attack.
She finally settled on a nature show. "Here we see the normally calm chocobo use its attack, Choco Meteo, on a wild Griffin that mistook the bird for easy prey..." A nurse knocked the frame of the open door.
"You've got a visitor," she said. Tseng walked in and sat down in the chair. "And I'll be bringing your lunch in a minute."
"You came back," said Elena bluntly, fidgeting with the sheets.
"Yes, I'll be here until you leave," he said. "I...brought you something." He set a book of crossword puzzles in front of her. "I figured you might want something to do."
"No paperwork?" she joked.
"Not now," he said with a small smile. "Though once we know more about the sniper, there'll be plenty of that," he said with a resigned sigh. The nurse brought in Elena's lunch and set it down in front of her. Elena looked at the food, wrinkling her nose. She dipped her spoon in the stainless steel bowl of lumpy, watery oatmeal and lifted it above the dish, watching it drip back into the bowl. She had been trying to eat the food for several days but only managed to get down a few mouthfuls before losing her appetite.
"Doesn't look very appealing, does it?" commented Tseng, watching her stir around the oatmeal. She looked up at him to find him with a thoughtful look on his face. "Perhaps I could get you something better."
"Well…um…" Elena stopped stirring the oatmeal. In truth, she did want something else. "I mean, I don't want to impose…"
"It's important that you eat," he said. He left the room and returned soon after with a box of plain white rice and some broccoli beef. "Hopefully this is better." Elena looked at the broccoli beef skeptically.
"Just the rice, I think," she said. He handed her the rice while he kept the broccoli beef.
"Thank you," she said. She took a few tentative bites at first, but her hunger took over and she quickly scarfed it down. By the time her doctor had walked in, the boxes had been disposed of. He looked at the tray.
"Not hungry, Elena?" he asked, looking at the tray with all the food on it. She shook her head truthfully. The rice had filled her up.
"When do I get to leave?" she asked.
"In about two weeks. And then you've got a lot of physical therapy ahead of you," he replied. Elena groaned.
"I just want this to be over," she said wearily. She lie back down on.
"I need to be going now, Elena," said Tseng, standing up. The doctor finished checking her over, and he left as well.
Tseng came to visit her nearly every day, even though he had to leave shortly afterwards on some days. He told her that he was talking to the Wutai police and officials, trying to figure out anything he could and keeping in touch with the president and other two Turks.
Unfortunately, when Tseng wasn't around, it gave her a lot of time to think about Rufus. He was an excellent businessman and politician, holding onto his dignity and self-worth even knowing that he was hated by most of the planet's citizens. She was just the rookie Turk while he was the president of a company in ruins. The fact that I can't even think of us as Rufus and Elena is…Her mind trailed off.
But suddenly, after all the long hours of mulling it over, it became clear in an instant. When she had pushed him away that night, he had closed himself off. Even after taking a bullet for him, she was now merely his bodyguard again. A good, dedicated bodyguard, but still just an employee. And she hadn't heard a word from him ever since he had left. She knew what it meant, and let out a shaky sigh, tears rolling down her face. After awhile, all of her stewing and mulling over Rufus stopped, and she was left with a dull feeling of loss hanging heavily on her.
-X- Two weeks later
Elena's bag was already packed up and put on the helicopter. She had reluctantly agreed to be wheeled out of the hospital once she realized it was regulation. Her shoulder was extraordinarily stiff. Anytime she shifted, she experienced pain that would have been far worse than if she hadn't had the bottle of painkillers.
She insisted on getting into the helicopter herself, though jumping in like she usually did certainly wasn't on option. It was amazing that getting shot in one place could cause difficulty in seemingly unrelated tasks. When she had been shot by Yazoo, the shots had gone through clean or had glanced off. While painful, they were far easier to deal with and had a shorter recovery time.
It had taken her twice as long to get dressed, and she was no longer wearing the button down shirt she was used to. Instead, she was wearing a long, loose t-shirt over her suit pants. The t-shirt was far easier to put on and take off with just one arm available for use.
Several hours later, they landed on top of the new Shinra office. They both got off the helicopter and walked to the rear doors to unload the bags. Tseng took out both bags.
"I've got it, Elena," he said. They walked back inside the office side by side.
"ELENA!" came Reno's unmistakable voice. "Oh hi, boss," he tossed in, not even bothering to look at Tseng. Instead, he ran over to Elena. "You're alive! Man, I'm gonna KILL whoever did this to you," he said. She gave him a weak smile, knowing that given the opportunity, he probably would have killed the sniper in the slowest and most painful way possible. While the redhead was laid back most of the time, he could be lethal when properly motivated, especially when a fellow Turk was involved.
"Glad to see you too, Reno," she said. "Hi, Rude."
"Welcome back," he grunted.
"It's nice to be back here," she replied.
"Back to work, you two," said Tseng briskly, after he had set down the bags in the office.
"So when do we get our hands on that bastard?" asked Reno, instead of returning to his own desk.
"He was transported to the WRO headquarters last week. What happened at the summit is being treated as a terrorist incident," replied Tseng.
"Who's going to be responsible for the questioning?" she asked.
"We aren't," said Tseng tightly. "The WRO is."
"Are you friggin' kidding me?" Reno exclaimed in disbelief.
"No, I'm not," said Tseng.
"So that's it, huh?" asked Elena, sighing.
"For the time being," he replied.
Reno slunked off, his expression dark. Rude followed him and they could hear him grumbling in the office next door.
She sat down at her desk, turning on the computer. She put her arms up to type rather awkwardly due to the sling. A searing pain ran through her shoulder and she winced. Tseng's back was turned to her, so he didn't see her face contort for the brief moment. She pulled a folded piece of paper out of her jacket and smoothed it out. It was the referral for the physical therapist in the area, Craig Sherman. She picked up the phone, dialed the number on the paper, and made an appointment.
-X-
Elena walked into Craig Sherman's office the next day at 3:50, her arm still in a sling. Craig was a man of medium build, wearing shorts and a polo shirt. There were several beds lined up along the back wall, with several balance balls and various pieces of exercise equipment around the large room.
"Hello…Elena, right?" he said, looking down at a clipboard.
"Yep."
He shook his head. "Wow, just wow. You're a brave girl," he said. "Gunshot wound, huh? It'll take some time, but we'll have you up and running again." They walked over to one of the beds.
"Alright, lie down on the table so I can take a look at what we're dealing with." He felt around her shoulder, barely touching the wound. She hissed in pain when he touched certain spots, and he made notes on his clipboard. They started out with exercises aimed at increasing her strength around her injured shoulder. They started exercises to increase the range of motion, but didn't get very far. Her eyes started to tear up, but she refused to let them fall. Finally, to her great relief, the session was over and he handed her a sheet of paper with exercises that she should do at home. She made another appointment before leaving, and walked back to her apartment. She struggled through taking a shower and getting her pajamas on early.
Elena felt exhausted, pain occasionally throbbing through her shoulder. She climbed into bed, carefully settling herself on her back. But she couldn't sleep, despite being tired. She had taken some of the pain medication earlier and was waiting for them to kick in. Time seemed to slow down, and she remembered that the doctor told her it would take at least two months to make a recovery. Eventually she fell into a shallow sleep.
It seemed like only a minute later pain shot through her shoulder and she let out a tight scream. Tears came unbidden to her eyes and she realized that she had rolled onto her left shoulder. She quickly rolled onto her back, but the pain didn't subside for quite some time, and she eventually fell back into a restless sleep.
She woke up hours later, feeling unrefreshed and incredibly sore. Reaching desperately for the pain pills, she gulped them down. She put on her suit pants and a loose shirt, and put the sling back on before trudging to the office.
"Good morning, sir," she mumbled.
"Good morning, Elena," Tseng said. "How are you today?"
"Could be worse, I guess," Elena said. After about an hour, the pain pills finally started to kick in.
She sat down at her computer and stared at the blank screen. It was only nine in the morning, and yet she was already wishing that she could go home. She went through the routine of checking e-mail and typing the report of the failed summit.
-X-
The rest of the week went by quietly. It didn't help that Rufus was once again locked in his office, constantly on conference calls. She thought that she had gotten over Rufus while at the hospital, but being in close quarters with him caused her to start thinking about him all over again. She suddenly remembered the feel of his lips on hers, and the sudden sadness that it would never happen again. She wondered if she should just go up and knock on his door. He had to be at least a little grateful that she had taken a bullet for him. But she spent so much time deliberating that it was easier to sit rather than approach him only to be rebuffed.
However, the following Monday Elena came in to find Tseng and Rufus having a heated discussion outside Tseng's office. They immediately stopped when they saw her. When Rufus glanced at her, his expression was neutral, whereas Tseng looked more concerned than usual.
"What's going on?" she asked warily.
"It took the WRO several days to get information out of that sniper. He finally broke and told them about a rather well-stocked weapons storehouse." Elena was able to put the pieces together. If the sniper had been an amateur, it would have only taken a few hours at most to get everything out of him. Instead, they were dealing with a trained professional. In addition, if they had a storehouse full of weapons, it meant that they were likely well funded.
"So…what are we going to do?" she asked. Tseng and Rufus exchanged a look.
Tseng sighed. "Elena, there's something we need to talk to you about."
A/N – Woo, that was a long wait and I apologize for it. This was a difficult chapter to write, and I have several folks to thank. chibipinkbunny for being the beta and providing the medical knowledge, cookiecat for the gunshot logistics, and Blue Jae for her idea about the communicators. Now that school's started again, who knows how much I'll be able to write. But rest assured that I have Chapter 8 started and I won't just not finish the story because that's not fair to the readers.