A/N: Thank you SnidgetHex, GuestM, Buckhunter, and leyapearl for reviewing! GuestM: *g* That was a reference to the Leverage episode "The Miracle Job" where they did exactly that lol.
Chapter 3
Arthur wasn't having any luck coming up with a plan to get Cenred behind bars for a good long while.
"What about other stash houses?" he asked Elyan. "We could alert the police and they could do a raid."
"Cenred probably moved them by now," Elyan replied sullenly.
Arthur inhaled loudly in irritation. "You should have come to me first before you burned that other one down, then. We could have used it."
Elyan dropped his gaze.
"What's done is done," Gwaine said. "Besides, raiding a stash house wasn't going to concretely tie the drugs to Cenred unless they caught him there. We need something more."
"Like committing arson," Leon muttered.
"You're worried he'll come after me," Elyan pointed out. "Attempted murder is a good way to get sent upstate."
Leon rolled his eyes. "Don't be a martyr just because you screwed up."
"Putting yourself in danger isn't going to help Gwen," Arthur said firmly.
"Neither is Cenred continuing to roam free."
"What about wearing a wire?" Percival put in. "And confronting Cenred again?"
"Still risky," Leon replied.
"But maybe our best option at this point," Arthur said. "I'm sure Morgana can get me one."
"She'll need a warrant for it to be admissible," Gwaine mentioned.
Right.
"Still think we can do this within the constraints of the law?" Elyan asked pointedly.
Arthur's expression hardened. He understood Elyan's frustration. Gwen may have been his sister, but Arthur cared for her just as much.
Something came flying through the window then, shattering the glass and bursting into flames as soon as it hit the floor. The Knights jumped out of their seats as several more Molotov cocktails came crashing into the bar. Through the broken window panes, Arthur could see Cenred and his gang outside, lighting up more rag-stuffed bottles.
Gwaine and Percival surged forward and yanked the curtains down to use to bat out the flames. Gaius came running over with a fire extinguisher and sprayed a bunch of retardant over them. But more and more bottles were being thrown. Gwaine and Percival had to leap out of the way, and Leon pulled Gaius backward before he could get hit with the glass.
Arthur sprinted to the door, intending to attack Cenred and his men head on. But the door wouldn't open. He yanked and yanked on the handle, to no avail. He thought he heard the clinking of chains just on the other side.
"The door's blocked!" he shouted, turning and gesturing for them to head for the rear door.
But they found that one stuck as well. Cenred had chained the exits.
They were trapped, and the flames were rising ever higher.
Merlin had printed out a whole page of listings to look at for potential orphanage relocations. Unfortunately, the needs of running a group home for kids came with a lot of requirements, and finding a place that fit them all was proving challenging.
He, Lancelot, and Sister Martha were just exiting one such listing that failed to meet all their needs.
"I'm so grateful for Mr. Pendragon's offer," Sister Martha said. "But it seems we won't find a place in time."
Merlin, however, was determined to keep trying. "The next listing is just down the street," he said, doggedly pressing on.
Lancelot and Sister Martha followed.
Merlin glanced at the numbers on the buildings, frowning when he couldn't find it. He pulled up short when they'd gone too far, then turned to look back in confusion.
"What is it?" Lance asked.
"A typo maybe? The street number isn't here."
"Could it be inside one of these newer buildings?"
"If it is, I'm afraid it won't work for us," Sister Martha put in.
Merlin peered at the brief description of the listing in tiny print. It didn't sound like it was a suite inside a larger building.
"Wait, here it is," Lancelot called, pulling some ivy away from a short stone wall that framed an alley overgrown with foliage between two buildings.
Merlin furrowed his brow. "Where?"
"Back here, I think."
Lancelot headed down the walkway, and Merlin followed skeptically. So he was surprised when they emerged into a courtyard surrounded by high stone walls with an old manor planted right in the middle, hidden away in this little plot of preserved land.
"Oh," Sister Martha breathed. "Would you look at that."
The place looked as though it hadn't been disturbed in a decade. It was a wonder it was on a listing at all and not forgotten as it appeared to be. The three of them headed for the door, which didn't even have a lock on it. Inside, the place was in a pretty bad state of disrepair, with peeling wallpaper and paint, light fixtures that either didn't work or didn't have electricity going to them. But there was a large parlor and a kitchen, and many rooms upstairs, not to mention a good size yard outside.
"It's perfect," Merlin said.
"It needs a lot of work," Sister Martha remarked. "I'm sorry, Merlin, I know you want to find a place, but I don't have the means to fix this up."
"I'll help you," Merlin insisted. "And I know people in construction who I'm sure would help too. We can even have the kids help, teach them some skills while we're at it."
Sister Martha looked around thoughtfully. "Well…"
"I agree with Merlin," Lancelot put in. "We could even invite some of the kids we've helped in the past, make a community event of it. And if we advertise, we might draw more volunteers as well."
Merlin beamed and looked at Sister Martha beseechingly.
She shook her head. "Those puppy dog eyes, never could say no to them when you were young. Alright, let's do it."
Merlin clapped his hands together in delight. "Then all we need to do is tell Arthur and he'll put a bid on the place right away."
They saw Sister Martha back to St. Augustine's, and then Merlin and Lancelot rode their bikes back to the Apothecary.
Merlin straightened in his seat at the sight of smoke billowing out from the front windows. There was a group of people gathered outside, and from a distance he thought the leather-wearing figures were the Knights, but as he and Lancelot rode closer, they saw whoever it was throwing flaming bottles of alcohol through the broken windows. Cenred.
Merlin cranked the brake hard and skidded his bike to a stop, then was leaping off and letting it fall to the asphalt with a clang as he ran at Cenred's men. Lancelot was right behind him, and they both launched themselves at two guys arching their arms back to throw more incendiary devices at the bar. Then it was a battle of swinging fists, but it was two against six and the rest of the gang quickly turned to descend on Merlin and Lancelot. At least it stopped them from throwing more Molotov cocktails into the bar. Where the hell was everyone, anyway? Surely they weren't still inside…
Merlin grunted as he took a punch to the gut and doubled over. A second right hook knocked him to his hands and knees, and a kick to his side flipped him over. A few feet away, Lancelot was getting equally pummeled.
There was the sound of tinkling glass, and between the kicks and punches, Merlin caught sight of Percival using a chair to clear away the jagged pieces still clinging to the sill. Then Gwaine was vaulting over it, followed by Elyan, and the two charged across the lot toward Merlin and Lancelot.
Merlin rolled out of the way as his assailants were distracted. Behind them, Percival had climbed out the window and was now at the front door urgently prying apart some chains that'd been wound around the door handles. He got them off, and Arthur and Leon came out with a coughing Gaius between them. Once outside, they deposited the old barkeep a safe distance away and then came running to join the fight.
Merlin struggled to his feet, body singing with pain, and threw himself back into it as well. Someone yelped, and he spun to see Gwaine was facing down someone wielding a knife, and a fresh cut was glistening red down his chest. Merlin snatched up one of the unused cocktails and smashed it over the bastard's head. Gwaine cocked his brow at him, then turned to engage someone else.
Sirens wailed in the distance, and a few moments later, police cars and fire trucks were careening into the parking lot. Uniformed officers leaped out of their vehicles and drew their guns, shouting at everyone to get down on the ground.
Merlin threw his hands up and backed away. One of Cenred's guys pulled a gun and aimed at the cops, but they shot him first and he dropped. That broke through the haze of fighting among the rest, and everyone put their hands up and got down on the ground. Merlin winced as his hands were handcuffed behind his back and he was left there until more backup could arrive. He craned his neck trying to see the others. Everything was chaos, with firefighters rushing to put out the blaze and more cops arriving with guns drawn.
Merlin wasn't sure how long it was before someone stomped over to him, but instead of pulling him harshly off the ground, his hands were uncuffed. He lifted his head cautiously.
"The bar owner claims you were trying to defend his place."
Merlin nodded. "That's right, sir. Five of our friends were inside the burning building when we pulled up." He nodded to Lancelot. "And these men were throwing Molotov cocktails."
The cop didn't say anything and instead took down Merlin's statement. Around the lot, the other Knights were being let up and interviewed as well. Merlin spotted Gaius sitting in the back of an ambulance with an oxygen mask over his face. Once Merlin and Lancelot were done giving their statements, they were allowed to get treatment from the EMTs, not that there was much that could be done for their blossoming bruises. They hadn't suffered any broken bones, at least, but they'd be smarting extra hard tomorrow.
Morgana arrived at some point and also spoke to the officer in charge. In the end when everything was finally sorted, Cenred and his goons were arrested for arson and attempted murder, and each of the Knights were all too happy to testify to that in court.
Arthur stood outside Gaius's bar, morosely surveying the damage.
"I'm sorry about this, Gaius."
The old man shrugged. "At least those scumbags will be off the streets for good."
Indeed, most of them were third strikers. Still, it was a heavy price to pay, and they wouldn't be going to prison for the attack on Gwen.
"I'll help pay for the damages," Arthur added.
"There's a lot of rebuilding to do," Gaius commented.
Yes, there was.
Gwen's shop was finally released and cleared for cleanup after the arson investigation had concluded and the insurance company had done their own assessment. The settlement wouldn't be enough to cover a complete restoration, but Arthur intended to find a way to help pay the remainder without Gwen knowing.
For the moment, he and the rest of the Knights went over to help her start clearing out the rubble. Even Morgana showed up, though she focused more on the small lifting with Merlin and Lancelot, who were still healing from the beatings they'd taken.
"We'll rebuild good as new," Arthur promised Gwen.
"And you can stay with me as long as it takes," Morgana added.
"I really don't know how to thank you all," she said, emotional tears welling in her eyes.
"We are family, after all," Arthur said with a smile.
Gwen smiled back and leaned in to steal a kiss.
Lancelot cleared his throat apologetically. "Um, Arthur, you got a minute?"
Gwen blushed and went back to work.
"Sure, what is it?"
"Merlin's orphanage."
Right, Arthur had completely forgotten about that.
"We found a place," Lancelot went on, keeping his voice down. "We were coming to tell you when we found Cenred trying to burn the bar down. Merlin didn't feel it was appropriate to bring it up after that, but I know it's killing him inside. He even tried to get a loan himself to buy the property but was denied."
Arthur frowned. "Thanks. I'll talk to him."
Lancelot gave him a relieved nod.
Arthur found Merlin outside, sweeping up some of the refuse that'd washed out with the fire hoses. "Lancelot told me you found a place for the orphanage."
He straightened. "Oh. He shouldn't have. You've got enough fixer-uppers to deal with right now."
Arthur couldn't help but smirk in dry amusement. "That bad, huh?"
Merlin grimaced. "Pretty bad. It's gonna take a huge commitment and investment. Sister Martha understands, though. Gwen comes first."
"There's no reason we can't do both," Arthur said. "At this point, what's one more?"
Merlin looked tentatively hopeful. "Are you sure?"
Arthur rolled his eyes. "Yes, Mer-lin. We're Knights, remember? Consider it the organization branching out in our noble causes."
Merlin's face split into a wide grin. "Thank you, Arthur! I have to call Sister Martha." He shoved the broom into Arthur's hands and hurried off to make his phone call.
Arthur shook his head fondly and looked over the rest of his crew. Yeah, they were taking on a lot. But these futures were worth building.