Damn…I knew I had changed Raven's name…at first I had planned on calling her Devin, but decided on Dru, so please forgive that minor mistake. Argh…but, I'll fix that in this chapter. Again, really sorry about that. Okay, I have had to change my email adress three freaking times along with my internet server! I am now Jessimudflap. Damn. (Someone took my name so I gotta use this one. grumbles But, alas, I am still Jessemudflap, just spelled with an I. I hate that...anyways...Enjoy.
"Are you serious?" Robin asked incredulously.
"What do you think?" Twain rubbed his pounding head as he stood in the hospital hallway. "A farmer on his way home hit her. He said she just ran out into the road and he didn't see her until it was too late. He slammed on the brakes just in time, but still hit her. Somehow, Hannah got away from the White Rose Killer. But we still are lost because, until she wakes up from her coma, we can't ask her anything."
"Yes, but you can always search the woods from which she ran, correct? Surely she was held captive close to that area." Starfire glanced inside at the pale girl lying in the bed, her skin ashen and her face beaten and bruised.
"Yeah, you're right. She was bound to leave a trail of blood or something." Twain cut a glance at Ethan, who was standing beside Robin, yet peering into Hannah's room. Robin awkwardly patted his shoulder. "She'll be just fine. If she can escape the White Rose Killer, then she can survive a coma."
Ethan gave a weak smile. "I know." His eyes instantly returned to Hannah.
Twain nodded, off in his own little world. This could be a nig breakthrough on the case…if only the girl were not in a coma.
"Are we able to go in?" Ethan asked, wringing his hands.
"Nope. They're prepping her for surgery." Twain mumbled, watching the elderly doctor walk into the ICU with four younger nurses and doctors following. They were all garbed in green paper gowns, caps, and shoes.
"How do you know?" Ethan asked as the doctor held his gloved hands in front of him and used his back to open the swinging doors.
"I asked. There was some serious damage to her shoulder and she busted her knee, so…yeah. There also worried about the scars on her back…doing some test on that, too. Said the scars on her back busted open and was one cause of the blood loss…" A young nurse with oval glasses shooed them from the hallway, telling them to go into the waiting room. A nurse would keep them updated, she said. She eyed Twain with interest before scampering off to the emergency room. Twain blushed.
Ethan slumped down into a chair, cradling his forehead in his hands. "Guess I don't need to help you anymore."
Twain's eyes narrowed upon the two undercover teens and they blushed. "Uh, yeah, he somehow found out about us," Robin muttered, shoving his hands into his jeans.
Since her legs were still so sore, Starfire eased down into a chair next to Ethan, cringing slightly. She patted Ethan's knee. "It will be all right, I am sure. We will find the wrongdoer. But you should go home and rest. There is nothing you can do here."
He nodded, leaning back. "I'm going to talk to one of the nurses and see if I can get a room with two beds so I can stay with her. I'm the one paying for this anyway, so the least they can do is let me stay, right?" Ethan smiled at her. "Sorry to have put you through…this."
"You didn't put us through anything, Ethan." Robin said, glancing around before his eyes once again landed on Ethan. "You go to Jump City Private School, right?"
Ethan nodded. "Yeah."
"Well then, Star and I go there as well now, starting Monday, so you can keep us updated about Hannah."
"You are going to JCPS?"
"Until we catch the White Rose Killer, yes, we are."
Ethan nodded again. "Alright. Then I'll see you Monday." Ethan stood up and walked to the elevators, planning on making a stop at the nurses station. It was weird. He didn't think that he had ever felt anything for Hannah, and yet, all of the sudden, in a period of less than a week, he was crying when he thought she was dead and hurting when she was in a coma. Ethan knew it wasn't just the guilt that made him want to stay with her. It was something else, something deeper than remorse. It was like…he cared for her. Creepy.
Robin watched Ethan disappear and sat down next to Starfire. "What are you going to do now?" Robin watched Starfire rub the top of her thighs, massaging the sore muscles. His hands itched to take over the job, so he shoved them between his knees, clenching them together. Hell, now his mind was filled with naughty thoughts…
Twain yawned. "Don't know. But we're sending out an alert to keep all girls between the ages of ten and twenty, just to be safe, to stay in their homes. They are not to walk to school and must either ride a bus or have a family member pick them up. This will go on until we catch this guy. Maybe it'll keep girls from being kidnapped. Just hope he doesn't break into houses, but I doubt he would."
Robin nodded and stood up. "If we do that, then when Star and Raven scout the streets, they'll have a bigger chance to be kidnapped."
"Yep. That's what I was thinking." Twain shrugged. "You better go home now. There's nothing we can do here, so…"
Standing, Robin helped Star to her feet. She slowly straightened her back, flinching in pain. "I really detest walking." Robin gave her a crooked smile. "Are you hungry?"
"Yes, actually."
"Alright, then, lets go get something to eat." Starfire nodded and started to slowly walk down the hallway, Robin beside her. "Need help?" He asked in amusement.
"No. I am fine." Once inside the elevator, which was surprisingly empty for such a bustling place, Starfire leaned against the wall, leaning down to rub her sore calf muscles.
"How do you do it?" Starfire asked as Robin pushed the button to the first floor. Jump City had a huge hospital and they were only on the ninth floor, the very top of the building.
"Do what?" The elevator jerked as it slid down. He noticed the way it creaked and groaned, but ignored it, concentrating on Starfire's hands.
"Walk everywhere on two feet. It is most uncomfortable."
He gave a small smile. "I'm just—" Suddenly, the elevator jerked to a stop, throwing both occupants off balance. They crashed to the floor hard as the elevator lights flickered on and off. The elevator groaned, then all went quiet.
"Damn it." Robin cursed, pushing himself up. He pressed button, but it was to no avail. They were stuck between the seventh and eight floor. He glanced up to see if there was some sort of escape route, but it was nothing but lights and that damn annoying elevator music. He was going to go mad if he had to stay and listen to that music.
With muttered oaths, Robin slid down the wall, resting his arms on his upraised knees. "This is just perfect."
Starfire sat up on her elbows. "What happened?"
"The elevator's stuck."
"I can always peel the top from the ceiling—"
"Yeah, but how would we explain that to the maintenance crew?"
"Oh. Of course." Starfire crawled to the opposite side of the elevator, studying the ground. She knew not to bother him when he was in one of his dark moods, and now that she could see his eyes clearly, she was not about to have him blow fire at her. She slowly stretched out her legs and leaned against the wall, trying her best to ignore the elevator music. It was worse than the blaring music Beast Boy listened to.
But, since she hated quite, she asked, "How long do you think it will be before someone knows we are stuck?"
"Don't know." Was his curt answer, so Starfire eased back into silence. Figuring it would probably be awhile before anyone knew they were stuck, she tried to think of something to do, by herself, until Robin cooled down.
Starfire loosed her hair from the band and pulled the mass over her left shoulder, plucking at random curls. She was still not used to her hair, but she was slowly starting to like it. Tucking her legs under with care, she absentmindedly braided three curls together. This was going to be a long stay…
Robin watched her from where he sat. He wasn't really mad at all, actually. But it was the thought that every time he was alone with Starfire now, he would always get these mad urges to just…take what he wanted, which happened to be her. But Robin was not the type of guy to push anyone into something. But hell, when Ethan first arrived, he was all over her. Not that she complained or anything, but he knew Star would be the type to take things slowly. Really slow.
Robin caught himself. But he was not going anywhere with Starfire. They were teammates and maybe make-out buddies, but nothing else. Silently, he went through his rules.
No dating teammates. No falling in love with anyone. Putting his job before everything and anything. Stay away from Starfire.
Robin gave an inward groan. He really hated that last rule…but, since they were going to be in here for awhile…he could break that rule for just a little while…
"Starfire."
Thrown out of her own little world, Starfire's gaze shot up to meet Robin's.
"Yes?"
"Come here."
She blinked, but readily complied. Pushing herself up, she walked slowly to where he sat, planning on sitting beside him. But, obviously, that was not his intention.
Starfire's wide, innocent eyes snapped up to his when he pulled her onto his lap, facing him, arranging her legs so the where on either side of his waist.
"Since we're going to be her for awhile, I figure we should spend our time wisely." With a grin, his hands tangled in her hair and pulled her mouth down to his.
"You gave me the wrong name, you know." Raven dropped the piece of paper and picked at her reheated pizza.
"What, you think that was an accident? Of course I gave you the wrong name. I didn't think that meathead needed to know your real undercover name." Beast Boy took a huge bit from his pizza and watched her as he chewed. He had, unintentionally, mind you, spent the night over at Raven's…with Raven in his arms.
Oh and in the morning things had not gone to well. He ended up getting slapped. But damn Raven could hit hard.
"Why not?"
He swallowed and reached for his soy milk. "Because. What guy in their right mind follows a woman, that he doesn't even know, around like some lovesick puppy? For all you knew, he was the rapist."
"If he was the rapist, he would have already taken me." Raven tucked her feet under her as she picked at the crust.
"I guess." Beast Boy stretched out his long legs and watched her intently. "You're not mad…about last night, are you?"
"Which time, " she muttered under her breath, not meaning for him to hear.
"Look, Raven. I apologized for that countless times. I don't know what else I'm supposed to do. You want me to leave and act like it never happened? I can try. But of you're gonna keep bringing that up, then…I guess I'll just have to stay away from you, because, unfortunately, I don't know what else to do. I'm really embarrassed about what I did and you brining it up does not help my humiliation anymore." He leaned back against the chair and tried not to make eye contact with her.
She sighed. "Okay. What you did…well…uh…" She let out a huff of breath. "Okay, so I didn't hate it." There. She said it. It was all out in the open now and there was no stopping it. "If I would have hated it, you wouldn't be sitting here right now. I'm just…shocked…I guess."
"Why?"
She gave a small shrug. "I don't know. I never thought you would do something like that…"
"Why?"
"Why do you keep asking me why? I'll just give you that same answer every time, so there's no point in asking why…" She hoped her cheeks were not red, but, with her luck, they probably were.
"Well, at least you liked it, so maybe I'm not too horribly embarrassed. I'm just surprised you didn't kill me." He grinned, his entire mood brightening considerably.
"The day is still young," she muttered, bringing her cup of coffee to her lips. She detested the stuff, but it was the only thing that kept her alive in the morning. She always drowned it in cream, milk, and sugar, and hid in her room when the stuff made her hyper. Who would have thought that Raven could be hyper? It was sad, actually, how manic she really became…
"Did you hear about Hannah?" Beast Boy asked, his gaze trailing down her throat. Raven followed his gaze and blushed, chunking her crust at him. His eyes jerked up and his straightened in his seat.
"Yes. I did. It was on the news this morning. Also, they sent out an alert that all women between the ages of ten and twenty are to go nowhere alone." Her eyes narrowed when he gave her an innocent grin.
"Yep. So maybe he'll discover you now, since you'll be the only one walking the streets like an idiot." His grin widened when her eyes narrowed into slits. "That is not my fault."
"You being an idiot? I know. You were just born like that." Reaching across to his plate, she threw his pizza at him, hitting him squarely in the chest. It fell off with a plop, leaving a red stain across his shirt. His nose wrinkled as Raven fought back a laugh. "Dude! I was gonna eat that."
She gave him a smug look, leaning back in her chair. "Too bad."
Beast Boy pulled the shirt from his chest with the tips of his fingers. "Gross."
"Well, why don't you go change?"
He started to grumble, and, to Raven's astonishment, pulled his shirt over his head. "Fine. I'll be back in a minute." But everything he said went in one ear and out the other. Her wide eyes took in everything about him, from his broad shoulders, to his muscled torso and stomach, to his slim hips. His chest and stomach was voided of any hair save for the thin line that ran from his navel and disappeared into the waist band of his jeans.
Quit staring, quit staring. Beast Boy, gleefully aware of her gaze, acted innocent. "I'll be back." He sauntered away while Raven sunk down into her chair, her cheeks flushed and her head bowed in humiliation. He was bound to have noticed her gaze…
Raven did not ogle people, yet here she was, staring at his chest like an idiot…since when did Beast Boy have a physique? He had always been like a stick with twigs for arms and legs and now…whoa.
She was still in the same position when Beast Boy returned and he grinned. She glanced up but immediately looked away and started to pick things up, trying her best to act calm, like she usually did.
"So…what do you want to do next?"
"Why don't you go home and do something there?"
He took no offense and walked closer to her to help. He bit back a chortle when her eyes widened and she practically ran away.
"Come on, Rae. What's the matter with you?"
"Nothing. I am just cleaning." She had calmed down now so she could actually look in his direction. But not directly at him…
"Alright. So, whatcha wanna do?"
"Nothing. Absolutely nothing." She walked around him to the couch, freezing when he grabbed her arm lightly.
"What?" She snapped, her eyes narrowing.
"Aren't we touchy this morning?" He grinned.
Yes, considering she just humiliated herself by drooling over his body. "I'm not a morning person."
"Yeah right. That was a horrible lie, you know. Even I could do better." She slapped his hand away from her arm. With a glare, he pressed his throbbing hand to his mouth. "Cranky."
She glared at him and clutched her large T-shirt, pulling it out in front of her. "Do you plan on staying here for awhile?"
"If that's all right with you."
She blinked at him, then shook her head with a light sigh. "Whatever. I'm going to go take a bath."
"Need a helping hand?" She blushed to the roots of her hair when she caught his meaning and ducked into the bathroom, mumbling vulgar curses that he could hear. With a chuckle, he crawled on to her couch, stomach first, and started to flip through channels.
Ethan slowly walked into his house, his eyes dreary with fatigue and worry. He yawned loudly, running his hand through his hair, leaving it standing on end. Leaning against the white wooden banister, his uncle watched him, his eyes narrowed. "Where were you, boy?"
"At the hospital." Ethan mumbled, glancing briefly at his uncle as he dropped his keys on the large antique desk stationed beside the door. He caught sight of himself in the large mirror that hung over the desk and grimaced. He looked like hell.
"And why is that?" His uncle scrutinized him with beady hawk eyes that shot angry fire at him.
"You know as well as I that they found Hannah. I was just checking up—" Ethan visibly jumped when his uncle slammed down a meaty fist. "I forbid you to go see her."
Ethan's eyebrows drew together in confusion. "Why?"
"Don't question me, boy. I raised you—"
"For two years, uncle. And even then Helga took care of me," Ethan said quietly, talking about his nanny from Ireland, whom he dearly loved. She was like a second mother to him, since his real mother was killed along with his father in a plane crash two years ago. The tragic loss of his parents still haunted him to this day. People say it was just a freak accident and Ethan had believed it for so long that he just…didn't care. Digging up that past would not bring his parents back, so what was the point? They were gone, he was here, and that was that.
"Ethan Lee, do not talk down to me. When I tell you not to do something, I mean it. I don't care what women you go see, but you will not, and I repeat, do not, go see that little harlot, do you hear me?"
"She did nothing to you, uncle. Why should she pay for something—"
"Damnit, boy!" Ethan's uncle backhanded him hard, the sound ringing through the servants ears, who had stopped to listen.
Ethan worked out the kink in his jaw and turned to his uncle slowly. "I will see her when I please."
"What is your problem? You are just like your air-headed whore of a mother who never listen to anything anyone—" With speed he had no idea he possessed, Ethan pulled his fist back and thrust it forward, slamming his knuckles into his uncle's nose. With wide eyes, Ethan watched his uncle stagger backwards, his hand cupped over his bleeding nose. "Fuck! I think you broke my nose!"
Ethan clenched his throbbing hand. "I will not stay here any longer. Helga." He glanced at his plump nanny with bright red hair, who quickly rushed to his side to coo over his wounds.
"Oh, Elee, your poor knuckles." Ethan smiled at his nickname, pulling his hands from his 'mothers' soft hands. "Helga, would you please start packing my things up…" A thought struck him. He couldn't just leave Hannah here by herself with that man. He would instantly kill her. "And Hannah's as well. Hannah and I won't be living here any longer."
Helga smiled, enveloping him in a huge bear hug that lifted him off the ground. "Oh, Elee, where are you to stay?" Helga was fond of the little blonde girl named Hannah. She was the one to tend to her wounds and had even wrung a laugh from the child. She was such a sweet thing. Pretty too. Just what Ethan needed. Oh what pretty children they would have!
"All I know is that it won't be here. If I have to, I'll use my collage funds to rent an—"
He was dropped so suddenly that he almost didn't catch his balance. Helga whacked him over the head with a large, tan hand. "Oh no, Elee. You go to collage and make something of yourself. Me family will not have you be a lethargic lout. We care too much, that we do. You can stay with us till you get on your own two feet." Helga's Irish accented thickened with anger. "You are going to get a collage degree, by God, and nothing is going to keep you from doing just that. You can stay with Arnold and I till things cool down a wee bit. Ye know Lucian will love to have you stay with us." She smiled when she said her toddler's name.
"I can't." At his nanny's bewildered look, Ethan hurried to explain. "I need to look after Hannah and it wouldn't be fair to live with you…"
His uncle, whom he had completely forgotten, staggered to his feet. "I will ruin you," he muttered, his hands bloody. "I will make sure you and that whore pay."
With a sneer, his uncle stumbled out of the room. With a shrug, Ethan started to plan his new life.
He really needed to stop. Starfire was beyond willing and that was a problem. Now, maybe if she didn't pour her emotions into her kisses and touch, then he could kiss her to his hearts content. The problem was, he had a feeling that she cared for him more than just being his friend. What if she… he could not even think about the dreaded L word. God, he really hoped that she was just fanning her curiosity and not dreaming of a house full of children while he made out with her.
Gasping for much needed breath, Robin pulled back and leaned his forehead against hers. "We really need to stop and figure out how to get out of here."
She nodded, slowly climbing off him. She was surprised when he pulled her back down. She glanced at him. He blushed. "Just…stay there and don't move." He was having, er …minor difficulties. Something that she was bound to see and he had no real desire to tell what it was or how it came to be...
"What do you think we could do? I cannot peel back the roof and—" The elevator lurched, momentarily lifting their butts off the floor. The elevator gave a rusty groaned. Robin stood up, glancing around, his problem forgotten. "I don't think this elevator is going to hold much longer. Suddenly, the sound of metal against metal sounded.
"That sounds like…"
Robin's eyes widened. "Someone's sawing the elevator ropes." Hurriedly, without his consent, Starfire peeled back the roof with little effort and reached for Robin's hand. She had just pulled him out when the cables snapped and the elevator dropped. Quickly, Robin grabbed hold of anything to keep from falling, watching as Starfire grabbed hold of a lose cable. The weight of the elevator jerked her down and the metal slid against her hand, burning the skin from it. Biting her lip in pain, Starfire managed to get the elevator down to the first floor. Exhausted, Starfire floated to where Robin still hung and offered her hand.
She glanced down, and, with a huff of breath, wiped the blood off as best as she could and tore a piece of cloth from his shirt. She wrapped it around her hand, once again reaching for his. When finally on save ground, Robin ran a hand through his hair.
His gaze never left Star as she slid down beside him, ignoring the look people gave them.
"Why," she asked quietly, leaning her head against the wall, "do I have the feeling that someone is trying to rid of us?"
Robin said nothing, just stared ahead. For some reason, he felt the same way. Was someone trying to kill them or was the elevator stunt just to scare them? Either way, Robin and Starfire just gained a new enemy.
With a sigh, Raven leaned her head against the back of the tub, slowly closing her eyes. Maybe she should just rest…just for a minute…
The girl screamed out in pain as the man continued to rape her. He was literally tearing her apart and the pain was almost too horrible to bear. Her throat clogged with a fright and agony. Next to her, her beloved boyfriend lay dead, blood seeping from the gun shot wound in his head. He had tried to protect her from this man, but ended up dead. The girl sobbed.
The man screamed out a name, a name the girl had heard somewhere before, but in her cloudy mind, nothing mattered. Her fiancé lay dead and she was going to be next. What was the point of fighting? She had already lost everything.
The man pulled out of her and she collapsed, tears streaming down her face. She had no strength to go to her love, so she merely sobbed, curling up in a little ball.
With a huff of breath, the man zipped up his pants. "Ha. They think they can keep me from women by sending out an alert? Their stupider than I thought." He pulled something out of his pocket. The girl visibly blanched when he pulled forth a white, un-bloomed rose. Oh God. This was the man who her mother had warned her about. The one who raped virginal girls and killed them. The White Rose Killer.
But…why did he kill her fiancé? To get to her? Her heart clenched in guilt. It was her fault that he was dead, her fault that he would never see the age of twenty. He had only been eighteen.
The girl was suddenly jerked up by her torn collar and thrown back against the alley wall. His gaze softened as he stroked her cheek. Sobbing, the girl tried to move from his touch. "You're so pretty, so innocent. I really hate to have to kill you…but…" She watched as he put a silencer on the gun he held. "Your not the one I want."
He shoved the gun into her mouth and pulled the trigger.
Raven jerked up with a scream, her breathing shallow. She couldn't breath. She pressed a shaking hand to her throat, trying to draw in breaths. She heard a loud thumb, followed by a curse. Beast Boy slid past the bathroom door, disappearing for a short time, then burst into the bathroom.
"Raven, what happened? What's wrong?" He knelt beside the tub, his brows drawn together in worry and confusion. "Raven?"
Her wide eyes stared ahead, unfocused. She was gasping for breath, her entire body shaking. He reached out to her slowly. He yelped when her hand shot from the water and gripped his with enough force to break it. Her eye slowly met his and he was surprised to find tears.
Quickly, he lifted her from the tub, not even noticing her nudity, and wrapped a towel around her. Weak, she collapsed against him. Confused, he gathered her closer and rubbed his hand up and down her back soothingly.
"Beast Boy," she murmured, her voice shaking. "He killed again."
