Chapter Twenty-four
Sitting in the corner of the desolate concrete room Peter stared at the water stain running down the far wall trying to visualize anything other than a pool of blood in the pattern but still finding himself always coming back to the particular comparison. He had been studying the stain for hours but still didn't have it memorized as it was just another shade of gray on gray in their monochromatic world, but looking at the slightly darker gray spot was as good a distraction as any. Peter pulled his attention away from the stain when Neal went into another bought of shivering that had nothing to do with the cold. Jake had actually offered them a large wool blanket that they currently had draped around them making them more comfortable than they had been since their ordeal had started.
The warmth didn't keep Neal from periodically shaking like he'd been left out in the snow on a bitter cold day because it had nothing to do with his physical state. Peter held him a little closer tying to comfort him while at the same time being mindful of the ribs Marco had most likely cracked. It was hard to tell if the added psychological support of the embrace helped stop the shaking or if the pain it caused his ribs simply distracted Neal from his dark thoughts. Either way it worked and Neal managed to regain control for the time being. Neal had rolled over at some point to put his ear against Peter's chest. Despite the discomfort it caused his brand Peter allowed Neal to listen to his heart as it had appeared to calm him, although his breathing suggested that he still hadn't fallen asleep. Proving he was awake Neal pressed his hand into Peter's side briefly in a silent appreciation of the help with the tremors that kept coursing through him.
Resting his chin over the top of Neal's head Peter went back to staring at the water stain knowing that Neal's thoughts were probably wandering back to the ring and the gory end to the battle. It wouldn't be long before he was shaking again, haunted by the memory of his actions to the point where it manifested itself in his flesh. Fearing he wasn't dealing with Neal's shock very well Peter sighed heavily knowing that he should be encouraging Neal to talk to him about what had happened but finding himself too heavy hearted to speak. He had tried at first to break Neal out of his eerie silence, but had switched tactics to giving Neal some time to process it on his own. However now it had been nearly six hours since Neal had last spoken, although his last words were still echoing in Peter's mind.
The fight with Marco had not ended with Neal's gruesome attack on his sight. Neal had made a terrible mistake assuming that Marco would give up once blind and didn't work on getting back to his feet right away. Marco had been disoriented at first and had bellowed a horrifyingly anguished cry that had caused Neal to make his second big mistake: he apologized.
"I'm sorry…I…"
"Neal, no!" Peter shouted.
"That was really dumb." Jake mocked.
Peter's warning had come far too late. Marco had honed in on Neal's voice and threw himself at him with the reckless abandon of a man with nothing left to lose. Neal cried out in surprise and tried to scramble back but Marco was on him in seconds. Neal quickly found himself like prey in a snake's coils as Marco wrapped his arms around his hips and tried to physically squeeze the life out of him. Neal tried to twist his way out but only managed to rolled them both over several times. With eight minutes still on the clock there was no way the bell was going to save him in time as Marco started grappling up his body in an attempt to get around his chest and crush his ribs.
"Neal!"
"Don't just shout, Burke, be useful." Jake said calmly. "Tell him what to do."
"Neal...uh...Beethoven!"
"What?" Jake asked confused.
"He went deaf."
"Ah, good plan." Jake praised from his place on the far side of the bars.
Neal had been doing everything in his power to inflict pain on Marco but his only real target had been the man's muscular shoulders and the hard top of his head. Marco had tucked his face down to keep Neal out of his eyes as he worked to improve his hold on him. His ears however were a prime target if attacked right. Peter had used the one example he could think of to give Neal the hint without tipping Marco off.
Neal clearly hadn't understood at first but after Peter repeated his odd advice Neal nodded and took action. Flattening out his hand Neal slammed his palm down hard over Marco's ear. The pressure wave blew out Marco's ear drum, not only deafening him on that side but also bringing with it an explosion of pain. Screaming in a combination of rage and agony Marco automatically released his hold on Neal giving him a chance to escape. Rolling over onto his stomach Neal desperately clawed at the concrete to get away from Marco's deadly grasp. He managed to get mostly away before Marco clamped down on his left calf. Knowing that Marco would just pull himself back up his body Neal rolled over on his back to try and free his leg. When that failed he hesitated on his next move even though he had a very clear one.
"Kick him!" Jake called out.
"Let me go!" Neal cried in warning.
Ignoring him Marco went to pin Neal by his leg so that he could launch himself up and attempt to get to Neal's throat.
"Neal!"
Peter couldn't bring himself to demand that Neal kick at his opponent in the face but his tone highly suggested it. Closing his eyes and looking away Neal brought his right leg up and kicked at Marco with all his strength. Striking Marco square across the bridge of his nose with his barefoot caused an eruption of blood and Neal was suddenly free as Marco went limp.
"Did he just kill him?" Jake asked shocked.
"The fight is over, let me out there!" Peter demanded urgently. "Open the gate!"
"It's not locked."
Peter shot Jake an angry glare and took a breath to curse at him but reminded himself that he had better things to do. When Jake had returned from the pep talk he'd given Neal he had closed the gate behind himself but Peter had been too distracted to notice that he hadn't locked it. Rushing over to the gate he pulled it open and ran out into the ring as the bell sounded officially ending the fight a few minutes early due to Marco being knocked out or possibly dead.
Having learned his lesson the first time Neal was doing his best to put as much distance as possible between himself and Marco. Failing to get to his feet he resorted to his hands and knees. Reaching him Peter went down on his knees and put his hand on Neal's shoulder without thinking. After the near brush with death Neal lashed out at Peter assuming he was a threat. Peter was surprised to find that Neal still had the strength to rear up as he ended up knocked back to the floor by Neal's charge. Neal was on top of him with his teeth bared and his blood soaked fist drawn back before Peter could even take a breath to call his name. Seeing Peter Neal froze in place with a labored panting as he stared down at his friend with confusion glittering in his bright blue eyes.
"It's okay, Neal, the fight's over."
Without responding Neal looked over his shoulder at where Marco was laying in an expanding pool of blood breathing heavily. Marco groaned as he slowly surfaced back into consciousness. It was difficult to tell if he would ever see again through the blood and the swelling, but Peter felt there was a good chance Neal had done enough damage to blind him for life and possibly render him deaf on one side. Seeing what he'd done Neal got off Peter before doubling over in a violent fit of dry heaving that stole his breath away as he whimpered in pain from the strain on his ribs between gasps.
Peter tried to get Neal up to at least get him away from the jeering crowd but shaking from his own adrenaline fading from his system he wasn't able to. Jake had stepped out into the ring and wordlessly reached down and helped Peter get him up. Peter had barked Jake away last time but accepted the help only because it was what was best for Neal right now. Once Neal was standing Peter pulled him away from Jake. Holding his hands up peacefully Jake motioned towards the gate in a polite 'after you' motion. Peter wanted to punch Jake for the courtesy but needed to help keep Neal on his feet.
Once back in the relative safety of their room Peter had taken Neal directly back into the bathroom. Locked deep in shock Neal just passively accepted whatever motions Peter put him through as Peter helped him wash the blood off his hands in the sink. Neal had noticeably kept his eyes cast away from the mirror and the blood swirling down the sink as Peter washed the gore off as best he could. Peter had considered pulling him under the spray of a shower but decided that Neal needed to lay down more than he needed to be clean. They'd had to stop several times on the way back down to room as Neal's stomach had rebelled on him once again and as time was passing he was quickly getting worse as he trembled hard enough to cause his teeth to chatter.
By the time Peter brought Neal back out into the front room Jake was mercifully gone, having also left behind the heavy wool blanket. Peter wasn't sure if Jake was concerned about Neal or if the blanket had been part of their 'winnings'. Not about to look a gift horse in the mouth Peter had spread the blanket out before settling in the corner with Neal laying against him. Pulling the rest of the blanket up over them both Peter took a deep breath and tried to sort through everything that had happened. It took him a moment to realize that Neal hadn't spoken since his last demand to Marco to let him go before he was forced to violently release himself.
Peter had felt at first that it might be best not to talk about what had just happened. Having been in a near trance since being taken out of the ring he had assumed Neal would quickly fall asleep but ten minutes after they had laid down Neal started the first of many shivering episodes. Concerned but unsure how to help Peter held him closer while he searched for some words that might help. Before he could really figure out what he was going to say Neal beat him to it with a question that had instantly ended the conversation before it had begun six hours ago and still haunted Peter now.
"Peter...what's the point in surviving this if I can't live with myself afterward?"
