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This chapter is named after 'Run Away Baby' by Bruno Mars
Lily Watson's Point of View
"Vegas?" I asked. "You have a place in Vegas?"
"Sure do," Dean replied, leaning back in his seat, relaxed. "And where better to hide than in plain sight, a place I know well, and somewhere where I can get whiskey any time of the day?"
"It makes the most sense to me," Seth commented thoughtfully. "The Authority wouldn't expect it."
We were currently parked on a highway in the middle of nowhere. Fields surrounded us as the moon shone down on us, providing some form of light. We had stumbled across a payphone where Roman was currently talking to my brother, updating him on what was happening.
Payphones made the most sense as our form of communication to John since their old fashioned technology meant it was harder for The Authority to track our current location. Plus the fact that, even if it was tracked, it was located in the middle of nowhere, meaning we could have headed in any direction afterwards. Our enemy wouldn't have a clue where we were, and that played well into our hands.
"I've never been to Vegas before," I said as I settled back in my seat. The rest of us were still in the car whilst Roman chatted away a few yards down the road.
"Beautiful weather, beautiful ladies, beautiful times," Dean smiled. "What's not to love? It's fantastic there."
I smiled. Dean Ambrose, ever the optimist.
"I say we head there, hold up at Dean's place for a while, at least until the dust settles," suggested Seth. "It'll be harder for them to find us, and being surrounded by civilians means it'll be harder for them to try anything." We all agreed, seeing it as the best plan of action.
He turned to face the steering wheel as Roman began to return to the car. The wince his face made did no go un-noticed.
"Seth, what's wrong?" I asked in concern, leaning forward from my seat in the back to look at him better, my eyebrows furrowed.
"It's nothing, just a little battle wound, no biggy," he smiled, playing it off as if it wasn't a problem.
But he couldn't hide his pain as I glanced at his arm. "Shit, you're bleeding!"
It had been difficult to tell at first due to his black clothing hiding the injury and the moon providing little light for us, but sure enough, his clothing was damp and blood was beginning to pool on his skin.
Shit…
"Don't worry about it," he mumbled as Roman got into the car.
"Of course I'm gonna fucking worry about it! You're hurt, Rollins!" I exclaimed.
"She's right, Seth," Dean said, worry etched on his face as he examined his brother's arm. "You need to get that looked at. There's a first aid kit in the trunk."
Upon hearing this, Roman immediately jumped back out the car and rushed to get it.
"Honestly, I'm good. I've had worse injuries," Seth reasoned as Dean ignored him and dragged him out the car and led him to the back seat. "Ambrose, I'm fine."
"No you're not," he replied matter-of-factly. Dean ordered me into the front passenger seat as Roman jumped in beside Seth to tend to his injury. Dean would drive. I did just as I was told, turning to look at poor Seth once we had settled into our new seating arrangement.
"It's not fine, you're hurt, Seth. Please let Roman look at it," I argued as worried tears pooled in my eyes. In that moment I could only think one thing.
It was all my fault.
I knew these men were risking themselves in order to look after and protect me. They didn't need to, I was a stranger to them, but they had, and I'd always worried about what would happen to them. And now one of them was hurt, and rather seriously too. This poor man had been injured protecting me and I hated myself for it.
They were defending me, and I should have been defending them. The Shield weren't involved in mine and my brother's fight against The Authority, but now they were casualties, and I'd never forgive myself if anything serious happened to them. They were my friends and my protectors, nothing could happen to these guys.
But something had. They were hurting themselves for me, risking themselves for me, putting their lives in danger for me, and I fucking hated it. I had gotten to know these men and they were wonderful human-beings.
They'd had to isolate themselves, fight for me, live life on the run for me. They shouldn't be put in danger for me, not now I was so close to them.
I couldn't let it happen anymore…
Seth looked at me sadly, seeing the tears in my blue eyes, and he sighed. "Lily…"
"Please, Seth. Just get it looked at. For my sake."
He nodded, wiping away one of my concerned tears as it fell with his thumb. "Fine. For you." He removed his special-ops vest and t-shirt, allowing us to see the injury better, shivering a little as the air hit his bare muscled chest.
Erm… wow…
Regardless of my pleading, he didn't really have much choice in the matter; Roman had already been preparing the bandages. He began to clean the wound with alcohol, a large gash across the brunette's upper arm, blood dripping from it.
Oh god… poor Seth…
Dean put the car into gear and we headed down the road, checking on Seth through his mirrors. "How'd you get it?"
"Noble," Seth said. "Jamie Noble had a knife." He hissed as the alcohol hit the wound, stinging him. "A bit gentler, Reigns. That stuff hurts."
"The little shit," Dean mumbled under his breath as the Land Rover sped down the road. "Always hated Noble."
I just watched as Roman cleaned up his wound, adding some cream and bandaging it up tightly in order to stop the blood flow. I could only watch on, feeling like shit, seeing my friend in pain.
How could this have happened? They were never supposed to get hurt. The Authority weren't just fighting; they were playing dirty and using dangerous weapons. What if the knife had hit him harder? What if it had been a few inches to the right and had hit his heart? Seth could be dead right now, any of them could.
I closed my eyes and faced forward again, letting tears fall from my eyes as I watched the world pass by around us. This couldn't happen again. I couldn't put my friends at risk like that. They had done so much for me already, I couldn't jeopardise their safety again.
So I made the decision there and then to leave. I didn't know when and I had no fucking idea how, but I had to leave them. I had to make a run for it and leave The Shield behind. The Authority was my fight and I would never put their safety in peril for me. I would leave them, let The Authority find me and not hurt my friends in the process.
The guys would all be pretty pissed with me, but I didn't care. I was doing it for them. I'd not have another Seth Rollins injury situation on my hands or conscious. My guilt was too great for that to happen.
They'd be safe, I'd make sure of it.
xXx
We pulled into a motel about midnight, all of us tired from the night's events. Dean parked up the car and turned off the engine. Roman stayed with Seth as Dean and I approached the front desk, asking for a room for the night. All they had was a room with two double beds, so we settled for that, knowing we needed the rest.
We all entered the room, putting the limited bags we had down on the floor. We hadn't really been able to grab much after leaving the cabin, just an emergency bag of clothes and a bag food that we had left in the car.
Seth fished through the bag for a clean shirt as we sorted sleeping arrangements. Both double beds were side by side, and we settled on me sleeping furthest from the door to keep as much distance between the entrance to the room and myself as possible. We decided that sharing a bed with Roman would be the best option for me as he was the biggest and could shield me better should there be an attack. Dean shared a bed with Seth, lying closest to the door. His lunatic ways meant that should they burst through the door, he'd fly off the handle the quickest and attack immediately. Plus it was wise to put an injured Seth between his two brothers.
The room wasn't that big, and it didn't smell the best, but it would do for one night before we drove to Vegas the next day…
Only I didn't plan to drive to Vegas. I wasn't going anywhere near it. I planned to make my escape that night. I had noticed a bus route on our way to the motel; I would wait till the guys were asleep then head out, going to the furthest point that the bus could take me. I'd make my way back to John on my own.
I'd found out from my time in the cabin that The Shield were heavy sleepers, so being as small and nimble as I was, I should be able to quietly make my way out without detection.
No more accidents on my behalf. I would no longer allow anyone or anything to threaten my friend's lives.
Dean collapsed onto the bed immediately, falling asleep before he'd even removed his boots.
"That driving really must have taken it out of Ambrose," Roman chuckled. I took my shoes off and helped the injured Seth settle into bed, moving Dean over as best as I could. Seth was still sore so I'd help him in any way possible.
"Dean is like a dead weight," I commented, finally moving the sleeping man to give Seth room. "Comfortable?" I asked as he settled under the covers.
"Very. Thanks, Lily," he said, smiling warmly as me.
I smiled back as I moved to get into the bed with Roman, settling under the covers and facing away from everyone. If I was to feign sleep, the best way was to not let them see my face. I'd wait for them all to drift off before I made my move.
It didn't take long, the evening taking its toll on all three men. They were exhausted and all fell asleep within ten minutes of each other. It took me a further fifteen minutes to actually gather the courage to get up and out of bed. I tiptoed and swiftly pulled my shoes on. I grabbed one of the bags and began to fill it with limited supplies.
I froze as Dean moved in his sleep, but visibly relaxed when he simply moved to get more comfortable, soon lying still again.
With my bag packed, I hoisted it onto my shoulders and gently opened the door.
I looked back at my saviours, tears pooling in my eyes. They had done so much for me in the few days they had known me. They had freed me from The Authority and protected me from them in every way since. I would be forever grateful for The Shield. I loved each and every one of them. I could truly call them friends… and that's why I did what I had to do.
"Sorry…" I whispered as I exited the room, closing the door softly behind me.
A massive thank you to Bajor10, KairiAnneYukari21, and a guest reviewer for reviewing the last chapter. I always love hearing feedback, guys, so if you have a few moments to put a few words, I'd be eternally grateful
