Hello! I'm so very sorry that it has taken me so long to update this story. I've really struggled with this chapter, changing it several times but this seems to be the best I could come up with. Thank you for being patient. I hope the next chapter won't be quite so slow.

Enjoy!

Chapter Ten

The world around Sarah had been reduced to the ravaged flesh of Clint's feet. Every time she touched the skin, Clint would flinch despite the pain killers. It set her teeth on edge but she desperately needed to clean the damage done by the leather strap. While she worked as gently and as thoroughly as she could, Sarah was unaware of the stream of tears that were running down her face. How could a human being do this to another person? This level of evil was beyond her ability to comprehend.

Concentrating on the work in front of her, Sarah completely lost track of what the two Avengers were discussing. The pain Clint must be in under the medication must have been absolutely intense. Under her breath, Sarah cursed Natasha with each tender wipe at the puss and fluid weeping out of the archer's feet. Bile was constantly at the back of her throat but she ignored that as well. The only thing that mattered was tending to the blonde young man unconscious on the bed.

It took longer than it probably should have but Sarah wasn't willing to rush, there was too much damage. When she was finally satisfied, she'd carefully washed again every inch of exposed skin, lathered on the ointment and then lightly wrapped them in white bandages. Standing up, Sarah took her materials to the sink and sorted through it. The next item on her agenda was cleaning up Clint's wrists.

"You're sure he's going to be okay?" Steve asked as he watched Bruce tend his injuries.

"Yes, Steve, for the fifth time, yes, he will be okay. Rehab is probably in the future for him but nothing should be permanent. Once we get to New York we can have a plastic surgeon look at his back and feet. The scaring should be minimal," Bruce responded. Steve's own injuries were mild by comparison but he still wanted to make sure they were tended to properly. The doctor didn't want to put the Avenger's ability to heal to the test if he didn't have to.

Behind him, Bruce heard Sarah settle into a chair again. Curious, he glanced at her to find the woman seated on Clint's nearest side, studiously tending to the cuts, blood and mess that were now his wrists. How had he missed that? Bruce wondered. In the grand scheme of things Clint's wrists were a minor inconvenience but still, they were also a potential threat of infection.

"There, that should do it for now," Bruce said as he turned his attention back to his charge. Just as Bruce was about to stand up the floor under his feet shook, nearly sending him crashing to the floor. "What the hell?"

Instantly alarms began to ring throughout the helicarrier. Something bad was happening. As he regained his balance, Bruce threw a look at Steve. Captain America was all ready on his feet and headed for the door. "I'll let you know what's going on," he shouted over his shoulder.

"Cave wouldn't let her get away without a fight," Sarah stated simply. The wrists weren't nearly as bad as they could have been. She was finding that cleaning them was a lot faster and easier than anything else had been so far. That gave her some sense of hope that the end was near.

"I hope you're wrong," Bruce responded. Now that Clint's back was cleaned, the doctor knew they should begin on the archer's front. That was going to prove to be a little more difficult. Sighing heavily, he scanned the man's back to figure out the least painful way to do this. "Let's roll him over onto his side."

Nodding, Sarah gained her feet and stood on the other side of the bed, ready to help as Bruce needed it. As they rolled the unconscious man, she was overwhelmed again by the extent of his injuries. Swallowing a few times, she paused long enough to make sure that Clint was stable before she left to get more supplies.

"My God, Clint," Bruce breathed as he took in Clint's chest and abdomen. Clearly Nat's sadistic streak hadn't decreased in intensity. Just to be thorough, Bruce pulled the sheet down over Clint's legs. A sharp breath burst out as he recognized the dried fluid on the archer's genitals. There were also mild signs of abuse which suggested to the doctor that none of the interaction had been consensual. Cursing Black Widow under his breath, Bruce pulled the blanket up again.

He was going to deal with that when Sarah wasn't there. The woman had all ready had to deal with the archer's sexual abuse enough. Bruce had the distinct impression that Sarah was all too familiar with sexual abuse. Through observations of the woman's reactions and habits, he knew it had occurred during her childhood but that she also wasn't going to talk to him about it. She'd put it as far behind her as she could. That wasn't a wound he was willing to scratch at.

Sarah returned with a clean basin of water and other accessories in her hands. Setting them down, she looked to Bruce. If the doctor wanted to be the one to clean Clint's front she wasn't about to argue with him, well, not out loud anyway. Her maternal instincts had kicked in again and all she wanted to do was protect the man. Wrapping him up in bubble wrap for the rest of his life also seemed like a good idea.

Just as Bruce was about to accept wet cloth from Sarah, the ground shook again. The two looked at each other in concern as the rumbling seemed to last forever. Then the PA system came online. "Dr. Banner to the bridge," Nick Fury intoned.

"Damn it," Bruce swore as he looked down at Clint. The man's face was still pale and a thin sheen of sweat was all ready covering his skin. There were pain lines in the corners of his eyes and his mouth despite the morphine. As he watched, a spasm passed through Clint's body and registered on his face. The archer's breathing had become more rapid and shallow as well. "Damn it."

"I'll watch other him," Sarah assured the doctor. "If I need any help Dr. Lawrence is still here. Go, see what they want."

For a heart beat longer Bruce considered arguing but again Fury's voice demanded he join the others on the bridge. Sighing heavily, Banner handed over the cloth. "Just get him as clean as you can. If you find anything else wrong, let Dr. Lawrence know."

"Yes, Dr. Banner," Sarah responded. With one last reassuring look at the dark haired man, she deliberately turned away from him and began the task of cleaning up Clint. She wasn't even aware of the fact that Bruce left.

It took a lot less time to get Clint's stomach and abdomen washed off. During that time the entire ship shook three times. Concentrating on her work, Sarah tried to not notice that the intensity of the shaking kept getting worse. She tried to not notice the alarms that were blaring randomly through the metal structure. Beyond the metal hull she could hear huge booms just before the shudders. Also outside those walls she could hear thunder, the shriek of engines as jets flew off the tarmac and roaring that told her Doctor Banner wasn't going to be coming back any time soon.

Finished with the parts of Clint that she could see, tentatively Sarah pulled the sheet down. She didn't want to see this part of the much younger man again but she also wasn't about to let anyone else touch him. Sighing heavily, she tried to pay attention. Then she realized there was more than just grime covering Clint's genitals. Her stomach dropped somewhere around her knees as realization hit. The light claw marks told her the rest. As quickly as she could, while not causing discomfort for him or herself, Sarah cleaned Clint up.

Pulling the blanket back in place, Sarah glanced around the clinic. No one was really paying any attention to her. They'd all ready taken the hint that their help wasn't wanted. While Sarah had cleaned Clint's back she had only done a cursory wash of his buttocks. Again, she hadn't really wanted to look or touch the man in that way.

Sliding off the stool she'd been sitting on, Sarah moved around the bed until she was facing the archer's tortured back. She took a moment to steel herself before she grasped the sheet in one hand and slowly pulled it down over Clint's hips and legs. As soon as she went to spread the man's buttocks, however, to get a better look at his rectum, Clint began to shift around as if he were in pain. Gritting her teeth, Sarah moved to do a more detailed inspection. The subtle movements of the man's body became more pronounced and a quiet moan issued from him.

"Damn it," Sarah swore as she took in the redness and few drops of dried blood. The roaring outside the carrier was still evident. As much as she hated to draw the other medical personnel into this Sarah felt she had no choice. Neither she nor Banner had examined Clint there and now they had reason to. Leaving the archer to rest, Sarah paced over to where Dr. Lawrence was dealing with an injured crewman. As impatient as she was, she waited for him to give the nurse hovering nearby her orders before she caught the man's attention. Dr. Lawrence was a tall man with very blond hair and an easy manner about him. Under normal circumstances Sarah would have felt a little out of sorts around him but now she just wanted his help.

"Yes?" Dr. Lawrence asked, his brown eyes taking in the woman's concerned expression.

"I need help with Agent Barton," Sarah stated simply. Around them the other medical personnel were bustling about, dealing with new casualties as they came in. From the number of them she knew that there was fighting going on. That thought made her sad.

"Lead the way," Dr. Lawrence responded. He knew intuitively that it was killing the woman to ask for help so it had to be for a good reason.

Back at Clint's bed, Sarah briefly outlined what she'd found and then stepped back as the doctor bent to examine him. Again, as soon as any pressure was placed on Clint's buttocks, the man began to mumble and thrash a little, particularly when the doctor donned a latex glove lathered in gel and probed inside his rectum to check for damage.

"No..." Clint moaned as he struggled against the unwanted touch.

"Ssshhh," Sarah breathed as she settled down beside Clint and rested a reassuring hand on the man's shoulder. "Dr. Lawrence is examining you."

"No," Clint whispered, his face screwed up in pain. Memories of what had been done to him started to play through his mind's eye. That made the pain worse and much harder to rationalize. All he knew was that someone was inside his body and he didn't want them there. Flailing his free arm, Clint tried to knock the man's hand out of him. He wasn't successful.

"Please, Clint, he knows what he'd doing," Sarah said as she moved her head a little closer to the blonde archer. His skin was pale, blotchy and slick with sweat. Yet, it was cool to the touch. Despite the fluids he was still verging on shock. "Just a few moments more."

Clint tried to respond but darkness was all ready trying to overcome him. Between the pain and the memories, he felt like he was drowning in a sea of confusion and sensation. Desperately, he caught hold of Sarah's hand and held on for dear life.

"How much longer, doctor?" Sarah asked as the bones in her hand creaked under the pressure of Clint's grip. She wanted to loosen his hand but figured she'd give him what little comfort she could at the moment.

"Huh?" Dr. Lawrence grunted. He was concentrating on what he felt with his finger and not the discomfort he was causing. While there was some mild tearing, he didn't think it was worth trying to treat. Now that he noticed how anxious Agent Barton was he realized it really wasn't worth putting him through more. Gently, he pulled his finger out and removed his glove, dropping it in a waste can. "He should be fine. The damage is minimal and should heal on its own."

"Thank you," Sarah responded as she looked down at Clint's drawn face. His eyes were tightly shut and his lips were pursed together as if he was expecting something bad to happen. Sighing, Sarah used her free hand to push some of Clint's hair back away from his face. The archer unconsciously moved towards the warmth of her touch. Not sure of what else to do, Sarah placed the palm of her hand against Clint's cheek. Almost instantly the tension in the man's body began to face. Then he was asleep once more.

"You're good with him," Dr Lawrence stated. He'd stepped back to allow the woman room but had continued to watch. Suddenly looking a little embarrassed, Sarah mumbled a response before turning back to her cleaning duties. There were still Clint's legs to finish. Smiling slightly, Dr. Lawrence took his leave and returned to the steady flow of patients that were entering the clinic from the other end.

While she worked, Sarah was intensely aware of the sounds of battle reverberating through the walls. Every time she heard the Hulk roar she knew that Dr. Banner would not be coming to help in the near future. Well, that was all right, Clint's legs had received the least wounds. She didn't see anything that would require a doctor's attention when she pulled the sheet up. Settling down on her stool once again, she started where she'd left off.

OOOOO

"How many men does this bastard have?" Stark grated as he flew through the sky in his iron suit, knocking the small fighter jets out of the sky one by one. A short distance away, Thor was on the deck of the helicarrier, swinging his hammer to create lightning. This act made Tony a little nervous. The last thing he needed was to be hit by an electrical discharge while he was housed inside the suit of metal. Still, the god had incredible accuracy and was also helping to knock down the fighters.

"Too many," Steve replied. He was helping as he could but not being able to fly was hampering his efforts somewhat. He desperately wished either Natasha or Clint were well enough to fly him around in one of the shuttles. At least then he'd feel like he was doing something. From his position on the bridge, Captain America was trying to coordinate Stark, Thor and the Hulk to their best advantage. So far it seemed to be working but he hated being on the side lines. Around him the bridge was loud with people talking over their mouth pieces, also trying to coordinate efforts to defend the helicarrier. Up on his platform, Fury was scanning his computer screens and listening intently to everything that was going over the radio.

"There's no way all these planes were at that compound of his. Where the hell are they coming from?" Stark demanded. They were holding their own but for every two fighters they took out three seemed to take their place. Surely Cave was going to run out of resources soon, right?

"We haven't been able to pin down their base of operations but we've been a little busy," Fury responded. "Hill is on it now, just give her a minute or two."

"How's Barton?" Tony asked. He hadn't had time to check on the archer and it didn't look like he was going to have a chance any time soon. All he knew was that the woman, Sarah, was watching over him. That was a small measure of comfort. Angry, Stark turned his attention back to the machines attacking the helicarrier. It was going to be a long day.