Hints slightly at possible R/H in this chapter too :o)

Again, please do review, I'd love to hear what you make of this, it's my first 'in progress' fic that I've posted so I'd like to know whether or not to continue it! lol.

Chapter 2

I've been in hospital for 3 weeks and it's safe to say I am going slowly insane. I feel much better, the wounds are almost healed and I'm pretty sure I would be ok to at least go home. I've been bugging the doctors and nurses all morning to find out when I'll be discharged, but all they keep saying is 'when you are fully healed, Mr Cox, you will be released'. I'm sure that I heard one doctor mutter 'believe me, we want you to go home soon too' but I can't really blame him.I know I'm not the easiest of patients.

Harry was released 2 days ago, supplied with an industrial sized brace for his leg and a set of crutches, he was also chomping at the bit to get out of here. He came to see me before he was picked up and told me very firmly that until he was convinced of my full good health, I was not to put even a single toenail inside Thames House otherwise he would see straight to it that I was sent home with a stack of decades old paperwork to get through if I was that desperate to work. I grinned and asked him if the same applied to him, or whether the driver of the pool car coming to get him would be dropping him off at his second home immediately. Harry smiled at me and muttered "Please, what do you take me for. I will of course be sat on my backside at home watching Countdown until I am ready to recommence running the marathon"

"Sure you will" I rolled my eyes at him and he said goodbye before he left.

God, I want to get out of here.

Ruth, Jo and Zaf have all been to see me, bringing with them pieces of fruit and news of the outside world. Fiona's mother and father, who have been looking after Wes have also been in, bringing my son with them. He looked afraid as he entered the room, I wonder what his grandparents had told him, but he soon picked up and was sat on my bed complaining that it wasn't very comfortable. We talked about his schoolwork, how his project on Space was coming along, how his teachers had been nice to him and had understood when he'd got a bit upset in class about his Mummy. I hugged him close to me and said that it was ok, I still got upset about Mummy too, but that we would be ok because we both had each other. Kissing his head, he snuggled close to me and asked me when we'd be able to go home. I had to tell him that I didn't know, but that it would be very soon, hopefully. Thankfully, the nurse left us alone whilst they were with me so I could take down the board displaying my false name for their visit. I didn't want them asking questions that I couldn't answer truthfully.

Ruth had been tearful when she'd first arrived to visit.

"Oh, Adam! I couldn't sleep thinking about you and what would happen to poor…" She stopped, a slight colour rising in her cheeks.

"William?" I asked, thinking she meant my son.

"Yes, William… and Harry" she finished, the colour deepening. Aha! So there WAS something between her and Harry, I'd had my suspicions… but I decided to play this and see what I could get.

"Yeah, well, we're both ok now, both me and our grumpy boss" I smiled at her and she looked back at me.

"I saw it all happening on the monitors in the lobby, god Adam, my heart nearly stopped"

"Mine too" I replied and she raised her hand to her mouth

"Oh, damn - I'm sorry, insensitive expression" the blush was back, but this time for a different reason I'm sure.

"Oh Ruth I'm kidding, I'm fine - honestly, me and Harry are both fine. William's still got his daddy and you've still got your… boss" I finished, raising an eyebrow at her expression.

"Yes, the world shall continue to turn for another day" she said as she looked into her bag to hide that there were more tears threatening to fall.

"I have these" she said, once she'd sat back up. They were newspapers that had reports of the shooting in them. I skim read the article that she'd handed me. Of course, details were altered, now it was an attempted mugging that had gone wrong and there were no names mentioned.

"The hospital think it's a gun club accident?" I asked, wondering where the confused story had come from.

"Ah, well yes - we were a bit hasty with the cover story" she answered, quietly. "Well, we were still trying to sort out the mess at the other end too, Adam" she finished, at my surprised look.

"So how are things back at the old club then? Still ticking over?" I asked to change the subject. Ruth's expression hardened almost instantly.

"Ticking over as well as can be expected when we have the demon woman having a field day about all this, yes. They're launching an investigation into how this whole little affair came about, Adam it's bloody awful"

"Between you and me Ruth, I don't think Harry's too enthusiastic about how things will work out" I put the newspapers in my side cupboard and when I turned back, Ruth had a look of utter shock on her face.

"You don't mean he's going to…" she said

"Oh no, not without a bloody hard fight at least. No, he's just not looking forward to that fight."

"Good job he's got us to support him then. Adam, they can't get rid of Harry! I mean it was hardly his fault was it, what happened?" Ruth had a passionate anger burning in her blue eyes and it despite everything, it made me smile.

"No, no I know - and I've told him as such". I grinned.

"What?" she asked, calming down.

"Oh nothing, just… well, it's nice to see such strong loyalty to your boss, is all" I gave her a wink and there it was again, that colour rising in her cheeks.

"He should be free to go home in a few days" I told her and her eyes lit up.

"So soon?" she smiled

"Yeah, apparently the surgery went really well, so he's just got to have physiotherapy now… well, there's no point in me telling you all this, you may as well go and see him yourself, he's just down the hall." Ruth grinned at me.

"Yes, thank you Adam, I think I will" she said, standing. "Get better ok, we need you to help sort all this mess out"

"Will do, bye Ruth, have fun with Harry" I laughed at her enthusiasm as she headed to the door.

I might start a bet, see how many times I could make that woman blush in a single day. I laid back against my pillows and started to think. It was not great that the winged monkey was involved, but then again I knew she had to be. This could get very, very muddy. A sudden wave of tiredness washed over me and I closed my eyes, thinking of how we were going to have fight tooth and nail to get through this.

2 doors down the corridor, another tired man was dozing lightly. He stirred and opened his eyes to see a visitor, who was sat on the chair beside the bed and had been watching him sleep for the past 10 minutes.

"Ruth" Harry smiled. Ruth smiled back.