Chapter 8

The appointment at the hospital had been the earliest in the morning they could book so Merlin was actually up before Arthur. Or he would have been if he had been able to put his leg on. He tried. But with only on hand it was practically impossible and moving the wrong way even slightly made his shoulder erupt in pain. So he'd had no choice but to wake Arthur up and ask him for help. He was crying out of frustration and then out of pain when it came to putting his shirt and jacket on. Arthur looked like he wanted nothing more than to go with him to the hospital but he knew he had to be at work.

Merlin and Iseldir would be going to the hospital while Arthur was at work and Annie stayed with the dogs for them. Merlin would have been excited to leave the building for the first time if it wasn't for the fact he'd be spending hours in a hospital instead.

They did scans and x-rays and tests discovering quickly that when the paramedics had tried put his shoulder back into place, it hadn't been entirely successful and had been dislocated ever since in such a way that the bone was causing the surrounding tissue to swell horribly.

Iseldir's boss, a man who Merlin had only heard referred to as the Sarrum and who had been trying to disband the Druids for a long time, pulled a few strings over the phone to get the procedure Merlin would need done within the day. Because of the nature of the procedure and the injury, Merlin was sedated and put to sleep completely to have his shoulder fixed so by the time he was stumbling back into Iseldir's car later that evening, he was a little bit loopy and drowsy from the medication.

He couldn't have recalled what he rambled on about in the car on the way home. Probably something deathly embarrassing. But it never came up again because what met them in the apartments was considerably more important. The door to Arthur and Merlin's flat was open when they arrived so Iseldir immediately drew the firearm he'd been issued with as a precaution and entered first. Merlin stumbled after him, not really aware of what was happening.

"Oh my god, Annie!" Iseldir caught sight of his partner lying motionless on the floor in the middle of the room but restrained from running over to her. He had to check the flat was empty. "Merlin, stay next to me," his voice wobbled a bit. The flat wasn't big. Only the open living space/ kitchen and the bedroom which was en suite. So it didn't take long to check everywhere. But whoever had been there was gone. Iseldir pushed Merlin onto the sofa and went over to his partner, already on the phone calling for help.

Merlin, in his drug induced haze sat down quite happily, catching sight of a white ball of fluff in the corner, "Killi," he called to his dog, "Killi! Come here, Killi!"

He frowned when the dog didn't respond and struggled to his feet, tripping across the room to get to Killi who hadn't even twitched an ear. Red blood matted his pure white fur but as Merlin got closer he could hear him whimpering quietly. Clearly assuming the worst for the poor dog, Iseldir told Merlin to move away and sit down but Merlin ignored him and fell to his knees by Killi's side. His heart was shattering slowly as he gathered the dog up in his arms and comforted him quietly.

"It's alright, Killi," Merlin hushed, "I'm here, you'll be fine. I bet you were such a brave boy. Our little hero, eh? Don't worry, we'll get you fixed up."

A few minutes later, more police were bursting into the room and leaping into action. Not long after them, Arthur ran in, looking terrified. His heart plummeted at the sight of Merlin on the floor, cradling Killi and rushed straight over, ignoring the police who tried to stop him.

"Arthur," Merlin breathed. His eyes were glazed over as he trembled.

"It's alright, Merlin, I'm here," without even knowing, Arthur mirrored what his husband had said to their dog not even ten minutes before. He had a hurried conversation with one of the police officers and, with permission, got his phone out, "Gwaine? I need a favour."

"Of course, what's up?"

"There's been an accident at the flat. Killi's hurt. Could you come and pick him up? Take him to the vet?"

"Am I allowed?"

"Yes, it's all cleared. You live closest, that's why I called."

"Let me just check Percy will be alright with the kids." Gwaine and Percival were looking after Will while Gwen and Lance were on their holiday in Norway.

"Of course," Arthur looked at Merlin and asked him gently, "Where's Aithusa?"

Merlin just stared back, not comprehending anything.

"Arthur?" Gwaine's voice came down the phone, "I'm getting my shoes on now, where am I going?"

"Let me hand you over to one of the police officers," Arthur said, "He'll give you the details."

"Alright. But Arthur, was anyone hurt?"

Arthur smiled, "Merlin's fine. I know he's what you really care about."

"Good. Now hand the police the phone, Pendragon."

Arthur gave his phone to the woman who was waiting and then turned to Merlin again, "Hey, come on. This isn't like you, snap out of it."

"It's not the panic," Iseldir came over, "It's the drugs they gave him."

"What do you mean?"

"His arm was put back in the wrong place," Iseldir explained, "They knocked him out to fix it. But you know the drill, small build and doesn't cope well with anaesthetic- this is the aftermath. He was meant to sleep it off when we got back, but…"

"What even happened?"

"I don't know. Someone must have tried to get in while we were out. Didn't find what they came for and left."

"Is Annie alright?"

"She's critical. They've just taken her in."

"I'm so sorry."

"It's part of the job," Iseldir smiled, "You should probably move Merlin out the way. Go across to our flat, it's quiet in there, he can get some rest."

"Thank you."

Arthur managed to convince Merlin to leave Killi's side after assuring him dozens of times that Gwaine would take good care of him. Half way to the other flat, Merlin's legs gave out and he fainted in Arthur's arms. Arthur sighed and scooped him up before anyone could see and whisk Merlin off to hospital. He settled him in the bed and tucked him in, being careful of his bad arm. He kissed Merlin's forehead and went back across the hall, making sure to tell one of the officers where Merlin was even though the entire floor of the building had been cut off so no one could get in anyway.

Back in their apartment, someone had found Aithusa hiding under the bed. Arthur checked her over briefly and then took her across the hall to Merlin. She cuddled up to him immediately even though he hadn't stirred at all.

"Arthur," Gwaine was running towards him, "What's going on?"

"Someone broke in while I was at work and Merlin was at the hospital for his appointment. They beat up the police officer who stayed behind with the dogs and we think Killi must have tried to protect her because he's hurt too."

"How bad?"

"I think Killi will be fine if you can get him treated at this time. It was just a shock. And the police officer in in critical condition at the hospital."

"Percy's already found a clinic I can take Killi to," Gwaine said, "He's called ahead and everything, they're ready."

"How far away?"

"Fifteen minutes. I've got water in the car and this to keep him comfortable," he held up a blanket.

"Thank you so much."

"Arthur!" Iseldir shouted him, "Come and look at this."

Arthur looked apologetically at Gwaine who said, "Don't worry about it. I'll keep you updated on Killi."

"Thanks."

"Here," Iseldir handed him something, "Only touch the bag."

Arthur took an evidence bag from Iseldir and read the note inside it. It read, 'We didn't want to hurt anyone innocent. Providing you got home in time the dog and the girl will live. You all know who we're after. You should also know now that we're not going to be put off by a few weak police officers guarding your door. You're not as well protected as you like to think. We know where you work and we know what you do. If we don't get what we want soon, we'll be picking on your guests and customers soon enough. Cripples and vulnerable people aren't as good at defending themselves. So unless you want a whole load of complaints coming in, I suggest you let us take him. Just a piece of advice.' It was signed with the symbol which all members of the Druids had tattooed on them.

"That's sick," Arthur said.

Iseldir nodded, "The Sarrum's on his way. He'll probably want you off the scene. You haven't met him before, have you?"

Arthur shook his head.

"He's a tough man to deal with but he wants the same as us. He's a good man and he's excellent at what he does. But he's terrifying. I recommend you keep in his good books."

"I'll get out the way, then."

"Will you be with Merlin?"

Arthur nodded.

"I'll come through when I have a minute and tell you what the doctors said at the hospital."

"Thank you."

The next few hours were a complete blur. Arthur stayed in the other flat for all of it, talking to people if they came in, messaging his friends and keeping an eye on Merlin. They were avoiding using the group chat because they didn't want to worry Gwen and Lance when they were away enjoying themselves. Instead, they'd made a smaller group consisting of Arthur, Gwaine, Percival and Morgana so they all knew what was going on. Gwaine assured Arthur that Killi was going to be fine. He'd broken his front leg and he had a large gash on his back but he was going to be fine once he'd been stitched up. Gwaine was going to stay at the clinic until Killi had been treated and was in his cage for the night in the safe hands of the vets. Arthur was immensely grateful for that and told Gwaine he owed him a hundred trips to the pub.

Thankfully, Arthur didn't have to have any interaction at all with the Sarrum. He could hear the man next door bossing people about and getting things done but never saw him. At some point, he got into bed beside Merlin and fell asleep because he was woken up early the next day by Iseldir.

"Where's Merlin?" Arthur asked immediately.

"He's in the kitchen," Iseldir said, "Hasn't eaten since yesterday lunch, remember."

"Is he ok?"

"He's confused. Doesn't remember any of yesterday. I thought it might be better if you explained so I made him some food and came to get you."

"Alright," Arthur heaved himself out of bed and went into the kitchen. He put his hand on Merlin's shoulder and leant around to kiss him, "How are you feeling?"

"What's going on? Where's Killi, why are we in here?"

Arthur sat down at the table beside him and took his hands, "What's the last thing you remember?"

"Being at the hospital for my shoulder. Did they fix it?"

"Your shoulder's fine," Arthur assured him, "Iseldir knows more about it than me, though so we need to talk to him."

"But what happened?"

Arthur explained everything, taking care with which words to use when so Merlin would stay calm. Iseldir listened from the kitchen counter, not interfering but there to set anything straight or help if he needed to.

"I don't remember any of that," Merlin said in shock when Arthur finished.

"I'm not surprised. I don't think you could have told me what was happening at the time either."

"How's Killi?"

"He's going to be fine. He has to stay at the vets for a few days but he's being well looked after."

"Good. Aithusa's really shaken up."

"We're not going anywhere today, she'll get plenty of cuddles and attention."

"She's confused, she doesn't know where Killi is."

"He'll be back soon enough."

"The Sarrum's on his way," Iseldir said, "He wants to talk to you about the note."

"Note? What note?" Merlin asked.

Arthur quickly filled him in and Merlin's face fell.

"Don't say anything rash yet," Iseldir advised, "Wait until the Sarrum is here."

Merlin stood up and went over to the sofa to sit down, looking very thoughtful. Arthur left him for a few minutes before going over to sit with him.

"What are you thinking?"

"That I'm not going to let any of our customers get hurt."

"The police might have a solution," Arthur said hopefully.

"Or they might say that I have to give my life to protect the community."

"That's not their job."

"If even a single person gets hurt because of me, I'll-"

"It's ok."

The Sarrum was a terrifying man. He marched into the apartment, sat down at the table and somehow managed to summon Arthur and Merlin over without even saying anything.

"So far we've made nearly a dozen arrests," he announced, voice booming, "But we know there are more to be made. We have to acknowledge that they might follow through with their threat before we've arrested them all."

"So what? We close everything down temporarily until the threat is gone? Disappoint hundreds of people and lose months of profit?" Arthur asked.

"It's an option."

"Arthur, people's safety has to come first."

"What else can we do?" Arthur asked the Sarrum.

"Ignore the threat. Continue as we are."

"Or give them what they want," Merlin said quietly.

"No," Arthur said immediately.

"I could be bait," Merlin said, "Lead them to where I am but have them all arrested before they can do anything."

"These people don't care about being arrested," the Sarrum said, "It won't keep you safe. As far as they're concerned, their lives have been ruined because of you. They just want revenge before spending the rest of their lives in prison. So long as they've got you."

"I don't want other people to suffer because of me!"

"But it's not because of you. It's because of the Druids."

"For now, it's best you close the doors to your business and stay put. Both of you. We're trying to get a man in undercover. I've got press coming here this afternoon to talk to you with me and our media correspondent. Get everything out properly and not as gossip."

"Press as in…?" Merlin prompted anxiously.

"Magazines, papers, tv news broadcasters."

"I don't want to be in the news," Merlin said.

"And is it safe for them to be coming here?" Arthur asked.

"You don't have to say anything," the Sarrum told Merlin, "But I want you here so you can at least have a say on what's included and what isn't and how it's portrayed. I'll make sure you aren't quoted or recorded," he turned to Arthur, "We're using a room downstairs for the meeting. So while they may discover the building you're staying in, your precise location remains private. You should know there are now officers positioned outside your front door, by the lifts on both this floor and the ground floor, on the stair wells, at the entrance to the hotel, in reception and on surveillance outside. They all know to contact James immediately should anything suspicious arise. They're all armed."

So somehow their lives managed to get worse. The call to their friends at work to ask them to close the business was a difficult one. Especially because they knew they'd then have to completely ruin Gwen and Lance's holiday in Norway to let them know what was happening.

"Let me call Lance," Merlin offered, "I'll explain everything to him and he can decide when it's best to tell Gwen."

So he had. Lance had felt guilty for not being there to help out and offer support but said he'd tell Gwen at a good moment. Percival, who'd been filling in for Gwen on customer services, had composed a letter to send out to any members or people who had bookings. The reason for the closure wasn't given but they underlined it was for the safety of the customers and the staff were deeply apologetic. On-site managers were called, staff members were emailed and Merlin was forced to call Freya. He hadn't wanted to so he could save her from knowing about the accident at the flats. But as a member of staff, she obviously needed to know about the closure. And as Merlin's sister, she needed to know about the reasons.

So Merlin explained to her and she in turn explained to Hunith who immediately called Merlin and demanded to know why she hadn't been informed earlier.

At the end of the day, Merlin fell into bed beside Arthur, kissed him passionately and emotionally and then fell asleep immediately.