Here is the next chapter...now where were we...(evil laugh).

Beta-ed by the fab Melanie39.

Disclaimer - I own nothing to do with The OC.

The Accidental Hero

Chapter 14

Ryan tried to get away from the two men that pinned him, but they still both held onto him tightly waiting for a sign from Rafferty. It had gone quiet and if Ryan could just have turned his head he knew he'd see a standoff as each group summed up their chances.

He heard Trey's voice again.

"You've messed up big time here Rafferty. I suggest you bow out gracefully and I'll let you leave here with your boys still intact… and you know I ain't talking about the two ass-holes you're with."

The threat to his manhood was obviously enough. The hands holding Ryan withdrew at a signal from the big man and he slid down the wall in a messy heap, every muscle crying out after being held tense for so long. He rolled on his side and pulled up his pants, shame and embarrassment flaming his face. He could hear flashes of the retorts that were flying around the room, they sounded strangely distant over the roaring in his ears. He knew that he needed to get up and stop looking like such a victim in front of Trey and whoever else in the room. He lay on his side willing his body to return to normal after its state of blind panic but it wasn't ready to comply with him yet.

He heard Rafferty say in a loud voice, 'it isn't over Atwood' as he stormed his way out of the room followed by his minions. Ryan pushed himself up on his hands and knees and watched as Trey slipped the knife he'd been holding back down the side of his sock and pulled his pant leg down over it.

Ryan slid his back against the tiles and sat. He breathed a sigh of relief as the tension in the room subsided. Trey rushed over and crouched down.

"Shit Ry, you O.K?"

Trey turned to his friend and barked at him to get some wet paper towels.

"Yeah, thanks…." Ryan muttered.

"They didn't…didn't..." Trey obviously couldn't put it into words. Ryan didn't want it put into words.

Ryan squeezed his eyes shut and chose to ignore the question. He couldn't handle what had just happened so his brain went into denial mode.

The Latino came back holding wads of soggy paper and handed them to Trey. He moved his head sharply away from Trey's hand as his brother reached over to try to stem the flow of blood from the cut on his head. Ryan grabbed at the paper towel and pressed it firmly over his own eye.

"So, last I saw of you was about three months ago skipping town on a greyhound heading for Las Vegas." Ryan found it hard to keep the bitterness out of his voice.

Trey glanced at the three people standing close by and glared. They got the message and moved away.

"Shit, is that why you're in here? I told the cops what really happened, I swear."

Ryan snorted.

"Eventually…I'm your brother, Trey. I mean, what the fuck? That was low even for our family."

Trey looked uncomfortable.

"Ry, I was ambushed, I'd just come out of a fucking coma and then that crazy bitch threw me for a loop. I thought I was protecting Marissa. I thought you'd understand."

Ryan removed the towel from his head and examined it. He threw it down and picked up a clean wad to replace it.

"It would have been nice to have a choice in the matter Trey. You know how hard it was for me to fit in. Then to have people think I lied and coerced my girlfriend into taking the rap. Thanks, that was a great feeling."

Trey shifted his legs.

"Look I'm sorry Bro. Really, I know I fucked up big time."

"So how come you're back here?"

Trey gave a laugh.

"I wasn't in any position to leave the hospital. I passed out about half an hour after I got on the bus and slid to the floor. I was still wearing my wrist tag from Hoag. The police were called and the rest is history. With the coke they found in my apartment and the gun possession, they got me for parole violation; I'm back to finish my sentence. Shit Ry. Are you now going to tell me why you're here?"

Ryan struggled to his feet and sat down on one of the slatted benches that lined the room.

He went for the abridged version, it was easier.

"Breaking and entering, aiding and abetting, my arraignment is tomorrow."

Trey frowned.

"What...you?"

Ryan shrugged.

"You do it?"

"Yeah."

Trey looked annoyed.

"Fuck little bro, why the hell did you choose now to dip into the Atwood gene pool? You had it sweet."

Ryan snorted at his brother again.

"This coming from a guy who tried to frame me for attempted murder."

Trey snapped his head up. He was surprised to see a wry smile of Ryan's face.

"Yeah, I guess we aren't exactly the Brady bunch. We better split before the guards come down on us. Come on."

Trey got up. He watched Ryan wrap his hand around his abdomen and do his best to heave himself upwards. Trey winced at his slow movements and held his hand out. His cellmate came over and looked at Ryan, then Trey.

"He's kind of fucked up. Do you think that maybe we need to take him to the H wing?"

Ryan stood up as straight as he could and shook his head.

"I'm good."

Trey gently cuffed his head and looked at Sanchez.

"Us Atwoods are made of tough stuff. Isn't that right Ryan?"

As Ryan lay on his bunk that night he wished that what had Trey said was right. But he wasn't tough. He never had been.

He spent another night staring at the springs of the bunk above, listening to the snuffles and snorts of the guy who slept there. He was so damn tired but when he had briefly drifted to sleep he'd woken an hour later covered in a cold sweat, shaking and gagging. His dream had cruelly replayed every aspect of the attack but this time Rafferty had completed his task. Trey hadn't come to the rescue, Trey had stood there laughing at him.

Deep-seated fear grabbed at his insides. What if, with his record, they threw the book at him? No plea bargain, no suspended sentence like Sandy said, just years of existing, not living, inside a hell hole like this. He rested his hand gently on his bruised ribs and sat up, swinging his legs over the side of the bed.

He remembered a conversation he'd had with Seth not long after this had all started. Seth had been overexcited about Ryan using the bat on Pete. He'd gone on and on about how that had been the stuff Kid Chino was made of, swinging his arms like he was going to make a home run. He'd used the word Superhero several times until Ryan had told him to shut up about it. Ryan wasn't a hero, super or otherwise. Heros weren't scared of anything and he'd spent most of his life afraid, he just hid it well.

Ryan shuffled his way into breakfast along with everyone else. As he passed one of the guards, a hand shot out and stopped him.

"What the hell happened to you Atwood?"

Ryan heard the sniggers around him that told him that his encounter last night had been widely broadcast.

Ryan pulled his shoulders back and stared straight into the guard's eyes.

"Nothing Sir, I fell out of bed."

The guard gave a smirk, nodded and removed his arm.

Ryan felt the atmosphere change around him. The men that had been previously jostling and elbowing him now gave him space. He'd obviously passed the 'keep your mouth shut at all times' test. Someone even asked him if he was O.K.. Ryan nodded but kept his eyes ahead.

He got to the head of the line and had his tray filled with the inedible muck that passed for breakfast. He turned and was just in the process of looking for a table when he felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end. The smell of sweat and carbolic soap filled his nose, the smell that would haunt him for a very long time. He turned to see Rafferty and his henchmen standing directly behind him. Ryan felt his gut clench, a mix of fear and humiliation washed over him.

"You and me have some unfinished business Atwood, don't think I've forgotten. Your brother can't be around all the time to baby-sit you."

Rafferty leered at him. Ryan was aware that the mess hall had gone quiet. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Trey rising from his seat.

He knew what he had to do. He let his temper overtake his good sense.

Ryan flung his tray to one side and as it clattered to the floor he grabbed Rafferty's balls and twisted hard.

"Next time I won't need my brother," he hissed, and then head butted Rafferty full force in the face.

Rafferty dropped like a stone. His goons jumped into action and pounded Ryan. The hall started shouting and stomping at the unexpected early morning floorshow, the next thing Ryan was aware of was a couple of guards joining the fray to break it up. Ryan was manhandled to the ground with his hands pinned behind his back then hauled to his feet and dragged out of there. He complied with the guards as he was shoved against the wall outside and cuffed roughly. Ryan had known it was stupid to retaliate but he'd had to do something, he couldn't let Rafferty see that he was weak.

"Bad temper obviously runs in the family. You just earned some time in the play pen Atwood." The guard pushed him along the corridor.

He was hustled unceremoniously in the cool down cell.

He sat on the bare concrete bench and let his breathing return to normal after his body's adrenalin rush. It had felt good to feel in control for that brief moment after weeks of being played like a puppet, but the feeling quickly dissipated and all he was left with was a strong, numbing depression.

Being handcuffed was never good for the psyche. It always brought home to him how he was another in a long line fulfilling the Atwood family prophecy. He looked around at the bare walls and lent back. He shut his eyes against the bright lights as a headache crept steadily into his skull. More than anything he just wanted to crawl into his bed in the pool house, sleep a dreamless sleep and wake up to find this was all over.

Sandy had been shocked at the state of Ryan, as he'd been led into the courtroom. His head bowed low, when he had looked up at Sandy, his face was a myriad of scrapes and bruises. Sandy now knew why Ryan had refused to see him for their pre-hearing meeting a few hours ago. Sandy had wanted to give him the good news that the state, after a lot of deliberation, had agreed for Ryan to turn witness for the prosecution in return for a suspended sentence. His record had caused some problems and Sandy a lot of anxiety but a surprising amount of people had been willing to give character references for him, the most glowing one coming from Dr Kim. They all said the same thing, that Ryan was trying hard to reform and and fit in. That he desparately wanted to make something of his life. Sandy went through the motions as this was just a formality now. He requested bail and it was granted. The look of relief on Ryan's face was palpable to him, at least that was one promise that Sandy had managed to keep.

The ride back to Newport was not the journey he'd expected. Ryan had sat in the passenger seat like a zombie; he could barely get two words out of the kid about how he'd come by his injuries. As they neared the coast road it was clear to Sandy that Ryan was in no fit state to face the boisterous welcome home that Seth had planned for him.

It had seemed like a good idea at the time, a gathering to let Ryan know that pretty much everyone was rooting for him, to let him know that no one really held him accountable after the true facts had come out. O.K, there was a proportion of people who wanted him hung out to dry but on the whole people had been horrified that he'd been used and blackmailed in the way he'd been.

Sandy pulled over to the side of the road. Ryan looked at him.

"Kid, you can put it behind you now. You're out of that place now and you are never going back if I can help it."

Sandy watched as Ryan's face crumpled.

"Hey..."

Ryan grasped for the door handle and practically fell out of the car in his haste to get out.

Sandy opened his own door and hurried round to where Ryan stood. Sandy decided gave him some space for a while. He watched as the boy's shoulders shook as he tried to gain control of his emotions.

Sandy felt useless so he went to put his arm around him. Ryan stood back and wrapped his arms around himself.

He tilted his head down and just lifted his eyes up to Sandy, making himself look like the Bragolin 'Crying Boy' painting he remembered that his grandmother had had hanging on the living room wall when he was teen.

"I'm O.K Sandy, I just need to get my head around all this." Ryan eventually admitted in a anguished tone.

Sandy nodded.

He'd give the kid a pass for now but he wasn't stupid. If this was Ryan feeling O.K then he dreaded to see what he was like when he wasn't.

Sandy waited until Ryan got back in the car. He got his cell out and dialed home. Now was not the time for festivities. It wasn't like he'd thought that Ryan would be happy, he'd been through a lot...Sandy just hadn't expected him to be so fragile.

TBC

GASP...No cliffhanger!

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