A/N: I'm so sorry, once again for the long wait in updating! RL and a certain (angsty) fic has been taking over my time...
I hope to have the next chap up much quicker than I have been posting!
Please let me know what you think...this was my first fic...EVER and I still have quite a ways for it to go.
Thanks to ReeseisLAVAhot for always looking through my fics with eagle eyes ;-)
Chapter 13
Ella's head bobbed as she tried to keep sleep from claiming her. After she'd worked on Harold earlier to try and ease some of his pain, she had told him to try and get some rest. She knew he'd been up all night, and nodding off for an hour or two, didn't count as rest. She didn't know how much sleep she'd had either, but at least she'd been in bed...with John. The fact that her own so-called sleep had been plagued with nightmares most of the night didn't even cross her mind when she was wondering why she was so damn tired.
After John had been helped to the bathroom, she had helped Louis get him back onto the bed. It hadn't taken him long to drift back into a restless sleep. He'd refused to take another pill, which she fought him on at first, but ultimately gave up, rather than spending energy on fighting him about it because she knew he wouldn't give in again. He'd asked her to stay with him while he 'slept'. At first, she had outright refused, using the excuse that she might keep him up, or God forbid she might hurt him if she started thrashing around in her sleep. She hadn't won that argument either. She'd mumbled as she crawled up onto the bed, but she was secretly glad he'd talked her into it. It really was a nice bed and she really was tired from lack of sleep, and her muscles were screaming at her from being so tense for days. She constantly felt like crying, which was definitely an indication that she was tired and in pain.
She sighed, looking over at John, who seemed to finally be resting, at least semi-quietly for the moment. Her eyes slid closed but then her body convulsed, startling her awake if only for a few short seconds. This happened several times, but each time her eyes stayed closed a little longer. Unconsciously, she settled down further into her pillow, falling into a deep sleep, and didn't wake again for several hours.
It must have been the comfort of knowing that John was at least partially out of the woods, and the fact that he was so close because when she woke up, she was once again snuggled up around his arm. The difference in the first time and this time was that John was awake already and smiling down at her when she opened her eyes.
"Good morning." He glanced over at the clock. "Yeah, still morning...but barely."
His eyes were at half mast as he looked down at her but he didn't look nearly as tired as he had yesterday. She smiled and blushed. "Sorry...again..."
"For what?" Even his voice sounded better now.
"For commandeering your arm so rudely again."
"If I minded, do you think you'd still have it?"
"Well...I...um..." She stuttered and looked down so that she wasn't meeting those steely grey orbs that seemed to have a knack for making her feel...things...things she wasn't used to feeling. Normally they were a beautiful and unique shade of blue, but in dim light, or in the evening they darkened along with the sky.
She changed the topic quickly, to something she was much more comfortable talking about "Well...you sound like you're feeling a bit better."
His mouth quirked up in a quickly flashed half smile. "I don't feel...so much like I'm dyin' today."
"Yes, I'd definitely say that's an improvement." She grinned up at him.
Her breath caught in her throat as she watched him slowly reach over with his free hand and then he ran his fingers down her cheek. He did it with much more ease than when he'd reached out to her yesterday, but he was also closer to her today. "Thank you, Ella," he whispered.
She could barely think, much less speak, as the soft skin of his hand touched her. She nodded, barely a movement at all because she didn't want him to take his hand away. They lay there for several minutes, neither one moving away, both studying the other's face. His fingers continued to lightly trail over her skin until his eyes were once again starting to close. When they closed and didn't reopen, she reached up and gently wrapped her fingers around his. She moved his hand, letting it brush her lips and laid it on his chest, but didn't remove her hand. Her thumb started running softly over his knuckles.
"No...Thank you John, for giving me something to care about," she whispered.
After a few minutes she let go of him and slid gently out of the bed. She walked out of the room and quietly closed the door behind her. She never heard his soft reply of, "You're welcome."
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Ella walked out and found Harold at his computer. He looked up at her and smiled. "Good morning."
"Morning. How did you sleep?"
"Very well, thanks to you. Your hands worked some magic, that's for sure."
"Oh that great! I'm glad I could help, at least a little."
"Not just a little, quite a lot actually. Maybe I should've hired you as a personal massage therapist...if only I had known, I would've had that put in the contract."
"There's a contract?" Ella asked.
"Oh yes, it's quite extensive. You might want to have an attorney look it over before you sign." He said this with a straight face, but it didn't last long. The side of his mouth pulled up in a grin.
Ella gave him a mock annoyed look but ended up giggling. "Very funny Finch."
Harold raised his generously arched brows at her. "You know, you reminded me very much of John, just then."
"Really?"
"Mm hmmm. And speaking of...how is he this morning?"
"He actually seems to be doing better. He was awake before me."
Harold blinked at her, lending to his owlish persona for just a moment. It didn't go unnoticed by Ella, but she continued on.
"He didn't seem to have as much difficulty breathing, or talking. His movement wasn't as painful either."
"What kind of movement?"
The question seemed innocent enough but Ella knew better. She could've slapped herself for being so obtuse. Of course he would catch something like that.
"Reaching." She answered, simply.
"Oh? Where was he reaching?"
She sighed and closed her eyes. "It wasn't any big deal."
Harold reached out to her, but let his hand fall back down. "Ella, it's OK, I don't need to know." He quickly changed the subject after seeing how uncomfortable it was making her. "Would you like some coffee?"
"Oh yes, I'd love some!" Her answer was quick, and a little higher pitched than she'd meant for it to be. "...But I'd really like to take a shower and wash my hair before we go anywhere."
"Of course. I took the liberty of having some clothes brought up for you...since we didn't have time to grab any before we left."
"Harold...you think of everything, don't you?"
His eyes glassed over for just a second then he shook his head and he was focused on her again. "Not everything...but I'll be here when you get out."
"Thanks!" She ran to 'her' room. The same room that she hadn't used since they'd been here.
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Harold rose slowly from his chair, but nowhere near as slow as yesterday. Ella followed him towards the door but stopped short when he opened it to leave. He read the look on her face without having to ask her what she was waiting for. "It's all right. We aren't going any further than the little cafe on the roof. It's only down at the end of the hall." Harold stepped out into the hallway and motioned for her to join him.
"But, what about John. It may not be safe..."
"I've taken precautions. There is no one else staying on this floor, the elevators are set to bypass our floor, and the guards would take care of anyone that would try to enter by any other means."
Ella knew she had to have a stunned look, because she was...completely. "Wait...There's no one else on the whole floor? There are Guards here...for us?"
Harold chuckled. "Yes. As you can see, we are quite safe to venture out...if only for coffee and a scone."
"But what if he wakes up and needs us?"
"I will take care of anything Mr. Smith needs, Miss." Louis stepped into sight from around the doorframe.
She smiled warmly at the tall black man. "Oh, Hi Louis. I'm sorry, I didn't know you were here."
"I only just now arrived Miss."
"Please call me..." Her eyes flickered quickly over to Harold who gave her an almost imperceptible shake of his head. "...Emma. Call me Emma."
"Thank you, Emma."
She looked back over at Harold again. "OK, ready."
Harold nodded and she walked out into the hall with him.
Ella was surprised by the grand affair that was the "little cafe" at the end of the hall. It looked like a place where a couple could go for an intimate dinner on a special occasion. "Wow, this is an awfully nice 'cafe' Harold."
"It actually serves as a restaurant in the evenings as well. They started the Cafe about a month ago at the owner's suggestion."
She smiled at finding out that her assessment had been so accurate. "It really is beautiful."
"Thank you." He smiled and walked over to a table by one of the many windows lining the outside corner of the room. He sat down in an over sized leather chair. There was a table and an identical chair sitting across from him. Ella tilted her head in confusion and then followed him to the table.
"What was that for?" She asked.
"Your compliment."
"You're the...designer?"
He nodded. "And the owner."
"Pardon?"
"But you said...the owner suggested it...I thought you meant the owner of the hotel."
He nodded again. "I did."
"You own the entire hotel?" Her eyes widened. "I knew you had money, I didn't realize you were...wow."
Harold chuckled and then smiled up at the waiter who approached their table to take their order.
They both placed their order and sat back to get comfortable while they waited for their drinks and scones. They talked for quite a whilecovering topics including anything from the weather, to his treatments after his last surgery when the doctor had fused his vertebrae."
"Harold, why won't you tell me how you got hurt?"
He studied her quietly before lowering his eyes. "There's only one other person that knows what happened to me, and he's dead...at least to the rest of the world."
She gasped. "You mean there's someone out there that knows you well enough to know what happened?"
He nodded solemnly. "Yes." He closed his eyes for a moment and then turned to look out over the city. "He was there...that day. His face took on a sad, forlorn look. "He had to run, leave everyone and everything that he loved behind..just like I did."
Ella was so stunned, she couldn't speak, so Harold continued on.
"We made the decision that we would 'die' so that those who were after us would have no reason to continue to hunt us...or those we loved. We severed all contact with our loved ones, staged our fake funerals, and then severed contact with each other."
Ella watched the tears gather in his large blue eyes and she nearly started weeping at the sight if it. She took a deep breath and reached out, laying her hand on top of his. "You had a family?"
He nodded. "Brothers..."
"Were you married?" She shuddered at the thought that he would've had to leave a wife, or God forbid, children behind.
He shook his head. "No...but I had a fiance. And Na... My friend had a son."
"Oh Harold, I'm so sorry to hear that." She squeezed his hand that she was still holding.
He stared out the windows for several more moments then looked over at Ella. "I think it's time to check in on John."
Ella glanced at the time, and blanched at how late it had gotten. "Oh, yeah. I didn't realize we'd been here so long." It was nearly three. They'd sat and talked for over three hours. She jumped up and nearly left Harold behind, but she put herself in check and allowed him to set the pace back to their suite. As soon as they reached the room, it was a different story though. She rushed across the foyer, nearly missing Louis sitting on the couch. She came to a halt and quickly asked him how John was doing. He told her that he had been sitting up, ate a small breakfast and that he went back to sleep a couple of hours ago. She breathed a sigh and quietly opened the door to John's room. It was almost completely dark. The sky was dark from rain clouds, and the only illumination was from tiny bits of dull light sneaking through the curtains.
She walked over to the bed and looked down at his sleeping form. She couldn't keep from noticing how peacefulhe looked when he was sleeping. His eyelashes were one of his most interesting and attractive features when he was awake but they were just as interesting when he was asleep. She remembered noticing them when they were in the car after he'd been stitched up and in such a great deal of pain. She wasn't sure why, at a time like that, she'd made such an observation, but she had. They were so lovely, but now, being asleep and relaxed, they looked even longer, and the way they lay across and contrasted with his skin, was absolutely breathtaking.
She wasn't sure how long she'd stood there staring at him or how long she'd continued staring before she noticed that those heavenly lashes were no longer hugging his skin and that his eyes were now open and staring intently back at her. The intensity of his stare startled her out of her trance.
"I'm sorry. Did I wake you?" She whispered.
The almost imperceptible movement of his head was the only indication of his response. The dark look in his eyes awakened something inside of her, something she was unfamiliar with and didn't even know existed.
"Do you..." Her voice broke. She closed her eyes and cleared her throat before beginning again. "Do you need anything? Louis is right out..." She stopped mid-sentence when he shook his head again.
"Do you want anything?" This time he nodded his head in the affirmative. "OK, just tell me what it is and I'll get it for you."
He said something so quietly that she didn't hear him. She went to lean down so he didn't have to strain. "What did you say?" Suddenly his hand rose towards her, much quicker than she would've expected, and came to rest on the back of her neck. She froze. She couldn't move and she couldn't breathe.
John felt her go rigid and saw her eyes widen and he immediately dropped his hand. "I'm sorry." He whispered. "I shouldn't have grabbed you...like that."
She sucked air into her lungs and immediately felt horrible for her reaction. "No, no I'm sorry. I..." She closed her eyes briefly and when she opened them back up she reached down and placed her hand over his. "I trust you John. I haven't been able to say that about a man in...well, in a very long time. Not since my father was killed... I just, I don't quite know how to react to..." He could tell she was having a hard time explaining what he already knew so he kept quiet and let her find her footing. "It's just, the last time a man touched me, at least in that capacity, he almost beat me to death.
John's heart sped up, his breathing became erratic, and he saw red. Just at the mention of that animal putting his hands on her...hurting her, made him want to hunt the bastard down and... He had to stop. She had already been frightened enough. If she saw him like that, she would never come near him again. He tried to inhale deeply, but his breath caught in his throat and the searing pain tore through his side. The only physical indication that he was in pain was a quick flickering of his brow, but she caught it.
Her persona quickly changed back to that of the caregiver as she reached out and laid her hand on top of his. "Are you all right? What happened?"
He attempted a smile but he thought it probably looked more like a grimace when her look of worry changed to disbelief. "I'm sorry." He whispered through short, uneven breaths. "Just don't...don't leave. I'm...sorry I scared you...I won't...touch you again."
Ella stood there for what felt like several minutes just studying his face. "I won't leave you." She whispered in response to the first part of his plea. She wasn't sure how to tell him that she didn't want him to stop touching her though. She hadn't wanted to be touched by anyone before, not like this. It was such unfamiliar territory and she was at a complete and utter loss. She looked over at her hand lying on top of his. She ran her thumb gently across his finger. His eyes flickered up to hers but she was still watching their hands. Eventually, she stopped and dropped her hand back to her side. Her eyes were still looking down as she backed up, walked around to the other side of the bed and crawled gently onto it. She sat down next to him, her eyes still not meeting his, then she reached out and took his hand in hers.
The boldness of the contact surprised him, but her words surprised him even more.
"I...I'm not sure how to say this...to tell you...I don't want...I just..."
He wasn't sure how he was going to get up and leave when she told him that she didn't want him like that, that she was sorry, but she couldn't. He turned his head to look up at the ceiling, he didn't want her to see his reaction. Maybe he would just tell her to leave since he couldn't...
"Idon't want you to stop."
Her voice was so quiet. Damn Louis for talking him into taking that pain pill! It was fucking with his head...he would've sworn that she'd just said that she didn't want him to stop. She took his right hand in hers and pulled it up to her face. She placed her cheek in his palm and pressed her hand over his so that every inch of his hand was touching her skin. She slowly moved his hand down the side of her face. He turned his head slowly and watched her slide his fingers across her cheek. When he was close to her mouth he moved his thumb so that it would swipe over her lower lip. Her eyes slipped shut as her lips parted. She sighed and he felt the rush of air fall over his fingers. Without opening her eyes she moved his hand to the other side of her face and moved it down that cheek. He once again let his thumb glide over her soft lips. Then she pressed the back of his hand firmly against her cheek. "Ella." He breathed out.
"Your hands are so soft." Her next words were so quiet that he almost didn't hear her. "Daniel's were...not."
He took a chance and moved his hand a little so that he was controlling the movement rather than her. She dropped her hands from his and slid it down to wrap around his wrist. Her eyes stayed shut while her head hung down. John opened his hand up so that his palm was cupping her cheek again. She tilted her head, pressing it more firmly against his hand. Her eyes flickered open and met his gaze. His thumb drifted across her cheekbone.
"My face was the one place he never touched, until that last time..." Her voice was so quiet and it was trembling. "I don't know if it was because he knew it was the one spot he couldn't hide the bruisesor if he just didn't like it enough to expend his efforts there."
He watched as a tear rolled down her cheek and felt the warm droplet when it reached his skin. His eyes squeezed shut and he ground his teeth together hoping that she wouldn't see the anger there. He inhaled deeply as he opened them back up and met her eyes.
"I'll never hurt you." His voice was quiet but firm.
Her eyes were fixed on him as she dropped her hand from his wrist. It was her show of trust in him, as she responded. "I know." And she did, with every fiber of her being, she knew he would never hurt her.
She reveled in the feeling of his hand on her for a moment longer, then she took his right hand in hers and lay down next to him. She threaded her fingers through his and wondered at the circumstances that had brought her here, to this man and his boss. She never thought she would trust a man again, yet here she was entrusting her life to not one, but two. She could barely remember a time when she had been this comfortable; it had been with her parents, before that monster had sunk his claws into her. They'd been her rock, her world, and since they'd been gone she'd felt like a drifter looking for a home. She sighed, a contented sigh of relief. She no longer felt like that drifter, she'd found her home. John's soft voice interrupted her thoughts.
"I'll never let him hurt you again either. I will kill him. I think you have a right to know that..."
Her eyes widened and she shook her head against the pillow. "No John...I don't want you to do that. Please. The man is evil...don't bring yourself down to his level...Please."
"Ella...You'll never have to worry about looking over your shoulder again. There will be no chance that he'll ever do this to another woman. He doesn't deserve to live."
"Maybe not...but...if you do that...if you kill him, I'll always see that when I look at you. Please don't misunderstand, I want him dead, and he will be... but not by your hand. Please. Promise me that."
John didn't want to promise that, he wasn't sure that he could...not after what had happened to Jessica. He couldn't think about that now...He couldn't allow the rage to take over again. He also couldn't do anything to break that trust that Ella now had in him. He had an idea...it had worked before, he could make it work again...
"OK. I promise you, I won't...kill him."
"Thank you." Her smile didn't reach her eyes but he saw her body relax somewhat. "Can I get you anything?"
"No, actually Louis strong-armed me into taking a pain pill."
Ella actually smiled at that. "Strong-armed huh? Somehow I don't see anyone strong-arming you Mr. Reese." He grinned. "I guess that means you were feelin' some pain?"
"Maybe a little."
"I'm sorry."
"Don't keep saying that. There's nothing for you to be sorry about Ella."
She sighed. "You don't understand John. I was there at HQ when that Detective Carter..." She spat the name out. "...sold you out to Mark!...Snow, I think was the name she called him....Maybe I could've done something, found some way to warn you...I don't know, but..." Her voice broke and she closed her eyes so he wouldn't see the tears that were already burning her eyes and threatening to fall.
He pulled his hand from hers and slid it into the space between the bed and her neck. He put the slightest bit of pressure to pull her towards him. At first he wasn't sure she'd come to him, but then she shifted her body and in the next second, was curled up next to him. Her left arm was laying up against his side, her right was laying on the far right side of his chest and her head was tucked into the crook of his arm. The rest of her warm body was laying across her side of the bed so that she wasn't anywhere near his injured right leg. He would have killed to not be injured at this moment. He wanted to pull her into both arms and not be hindered by his side or leg. At least he was able to comfort her at the moment though, which was obviously what she needed right now.
"Ella, there was nothing, nothing you could have done. If you had shown up, Mark...he would have killed you. You know he would have. Or at least taken you back to Daniel."
She turned her head to bury her face against the side of his chest and her fingers curled into a fist around his shirt. She moved her face from his side after several minutes and relaxed her fingers. "I'm not a shrinking violet anymore John. I could have done something. I would have fought him, killed him."
"No." He said, with more force than he'd intended. "You must understand. The man you know as Daniel's uncle is far more ruthless and much better trained than you know." He took a deep breath; it pulled but it didn't take his breath away like it had before. "Please don't ever try and take him on Ella...Promise me. Please." He'd turned the tables on her, asking for her to promise something that it would be very difficult for her not to do, but he knew Mark Snow. He probably knew the man far better than anyone else on the planet, or at least he'd thought he had. He knew that she knew the man too, but in a different capacity.
"OK... I promise... At least until I get that one on one training you promised me."
"Not even then." He ran his right hand over the back of her head, smoothing down her long red hair. He heard her sigh and knew he'd won, but he also had the feeling that he hadn't heard the last of the argument. He would just have to keep her as far away from Mark as possible, no matter what he had to do. He continued stroking her hair, loving the feel of the silky strands gliding across his palm. Her fingers were contracting and relaxing around his shirt creating a wonderfully relaxing, and at the same time, tantalizing sensation over the skin of his chest. He fought the increasingly intense effects of the damn pain pill that was threatening to steal his consciousness because he didn't want to miss out on one second of reveling in her touch.
Unfortunately, the feeling didn't last that much longer. Her fingers stopped moving and he felt her chest push against his side as her breathing became heavy and even. She was asleep now, so he no longer fought a losing battle against the drug. She murmured a sweet little sound, her breath warm and soft against his chest. He let his heavy eyes close and he sank into the sweet oblivion of sleep with his arm wrapped securely around her.