It has been three days since they had saved Meredith from William Dunn. Now, Derek stands with his entire team outside of that very man's hospital room. He is handcuffed to the bedrails, two security guards on him at all times in a very isolated part of the hospital.
Much to Derek's disappointment, William's gunshot wound is healing.
Today is the day Seattle PD is going to haul his ass off to prison until a court date can be set, and the entire FBI team all wants to be there to see him off. With a glance at his watch, Derek finds it's 10:59 AM. One more minute and William will be locked up forever.
The elevator doors open, drawing the agents' attention, and two tall, large, young men walk over to them. They are uniformed, though not the same as the normal police officers had been. The men stop in front of the FBI team, both reaching into their back pockets and pulling out credentials. They're top guards from the maximum-security prison on the far side of Seattle.
"We're here to take Mr. Dunn," the first man states, casting a cold glare into the room next to them.
"We're just here to see him off," Derek replies, his tone cold as he steps aside to let the officers into the room. They enter the room and haul William to his feet.
As soon as they uncuff him from the bed, he tries to break out of their grips and make a run for it. He doesn't get very far though, there's a good ten people standing around him to make sure he doesn't get anywhere but prison.
They quickly contain the psychopath and shove him forward, one guard on each side as they exit the room. The air around Derek's team becomes harsh, cold, and about as unwelcoming as it gets. Derek doesn't have to look behind him to know he and his team all share the same stone-cold facial expression, hate in their eyes.
"How's my favorite little toy doing, Derek? Mary, was it? I bet she's wishing I had killed her when I had the chance." William laughs menacingly as he passes the agent.
Derek tenses up even more and doesn't grant the killer the privilege of looking him in the eye. William just snorts in response, opening his mouth to say more but is shoved forward by a guard.
Soon enough, William is out of sight. The aura around them relaxes a bit, but Derek doesn't move, his anger still boiling away inside of him, knowing he'll explode at anyone who tries to talk to him.
It seems his team knows this too, so all he gets is a quick pat on the shoulder from Jake as the three women and two men pass him, heading back downstairs. It takes a few minutes for him to regain control of his emotions, but when he finally does, Derek follows them.
Knowing they have another meeting with Quinn Perkins later today, Derek figures most of his team must have gone back to the station or to the conference room to prepare. That's not what he wants to do though. What he wants is to see his girlfriend.
So, he makes his way down to the VIP wing, with no guard outside her door anymore as people finally got the idea she needs to be left alone. He raps lightly at the door, waiting for a response before he makes a move. Within the minute, he was greeted by the exhausted-looking face of Cristina Yang.
"She's finally sleeping, shut the hell up!" Cristina whispers harshly.
"Sorry...do you want me to sit with her while you get some rest?" Derek offers. Cristina hasn't really been sleeping the past few days and it's becoming pretty obvious. Bloodshot eyes, dark bags around her eyes, even the same rumpled set of clothes.
Cristina hesitates, still blocking the doorway with her body.
"You should shower and get some real sleep. Eat something. Help her by helping yourself."
She scoffs at him, though drops her gaze, realizing he's right. "I'm not going home. I'll shower and nap here. You page me if anything happens. Anything." Derek nods, knowing that's the only way he'll get the stubborn surgeon to do what he's asking. "Fine. Alex is asleep in the sitting room."
She steps aside, letting him into the room as she takes one last long look at her friend before stepping out the door to shower and eat something. In the past three days, Meredith's throat has healed significantly, so she can talk relatively normal again. The swelling on her face has gone down, save for the left eye itself which is still swollen shut, leaving only purple and blue bruises decorating her face.
Bruises aren't an uncommon sight either. They litter her body, along with the healing cuts that will have to have the sutures taken out in a few days. It will be at least another week and a half before she's released, according to her doctors.
Derek quietly crosses the room, catching sight of Karev on a couch, then shifting his gaze to the woman who he loves so much in the bed. She is asleep, though not peacefully. Every now and then her breathing would hitch or she would make a tiny sound.
Derek takes a seat next to her bed, watching her sleep and getting lost in his own thoughts. First, about where he and Meredith stand. He knows their relationship should be the last thing on his mind, but she has barely spoken to him. He has told her he loves her multiple times, but she never responds. So what does that mean? Should he no longer say she's his girlfriend?
Not only that, but Quinn will undoubtedly demand a statement from Meredith today. Derek knows Olivia will hold up on her promise to do it, though he dreads having to put Meredith through that trauma again. Cognitive interviews will literally put someone back in the moment, and it can be terrifying.
A while later, Derek finally catches sight of the clock on the wall. 12:30. Quinn will be here at 1:00. Meredith is still sleeping, and Derek smiles slightly. Two and a half hours is a lot considering she has only been taking naps at an hour long max to get her through the days.
Suddenly, she whimpers. Derek is on his feet in an instant, studying her. A quiet sob rakes through her small body, followed by another. He wants to reach a hand out to wake her, but he knows from experience that touching would only make it worse. She cries again, causing Derek's heart to split.
"Meredith," He calls, "Meredith, Mer..."
It takes a minute, but she finally jerks into consciousness, sobbing. At first glance at him, she gasps, sending her into a coughing fit. Every sob, cough, and even breath she takes reignites the constantly burning fire in her torso from her broken ribs. Derek gently calls her name, trying to reassure her that she's okay, but the words don't reach her ears.
She's scared, gasping for breath, and trying to regain control of herself. Finally, the coughing subsides and she's left in the bed, her cheeks wet from tears, hiccuping as she tries to breathe. Derek comes into focus next to her, and at first, she jumps slightly but continues to remain calm in his presence.
"Oh my god," She manages, her voice quiet. A groan escapes her lips and she wraps her arm around her torso, hoping to relieve some of the pain. She collapses back onto the pillow, closing her good eye.
"Hey," Derek says once she's calmed herself. She gives him a forced, tight-lipped smile in response. There's a groan next to them, and Meredith gasps slightly at the sound before realizing it's Alex.
The peds surgeon walks out of the sitting room, rubbing sleep from his face. "You okay, Mer?" He asks, a hard gaze never leaving Derek.
"Uh, y-yeah," She responds.
"Can you stay with her? I have to meet with Quinn." Derek asks Alex.
"Stay with me? Really? I don't need a damn babysitter." Meredith spits. She knows who Quinn is, Derek had told Meredith about her two days ago.
"That's not what I meant," he sighs, not really knowing what to say, but knowing better than to take her anger to heart. She wasn't really mad at him, or everyone as it seemed, but William.
"Go meet with Perkins, just leave me alone." This time her voice is less angry and more desperate. So, Derek nods and quietly leaves the room, knowing she'll be fine with Karev.
He travels the halls until he reaches the conference room where they met with Quinn a few days ago, now taken over by files and everything they can use to build a case. His whole team is already there when he walks in.
"How is she?" Jake calls to his boss.
"The same," he shrugs, sitting at the table and taking a minute to run his hands through his hair and face. It doesn't take long for Quinn to step through the door, being the very punctual person she is.
"Let's get to it," she says immediately, setting down her briefcase. Today, her hair is pulled into a low bun and she wears a knee-length dress with heels. The agents are all in work mode now, going over everything they had.
The FBI teams not only does investigations and makes arrests, but they stick around helping all that they can through court trials to see and get the satisfaction of seeing every one of the people they've stopped go to jail.
An hour later, after working diligently, Quinn sighs, straightening the stack of papers in front of her. "We need Dr. Grey's statement."
"Does it have to be now?" Derek asks, feeling guilty.
"Derek, I told you, we've put it off for as long as we can, if we want Dunn to go away, we have to put him away. And, I think you all will agree with me when I say the sooner that happens the better," she stares around the room, daring anyone to argue that. "The only way we can do this is by putting Meredith on the stand. I hate it as much as you do, but her testimony is going to be the one to convince the judge to give Dunn the worst."
Olivia sighs, knowing their lawyer is right. With a look at her boss, she stands. "I guess I'll go get her statement." Derek nods, giving her the go-ahead.
"I want to come with you." Quinn decides, pulling together a file and standing as well. Derek opens his mouth to argue but shuts it when the lawyer gave him a hard look. When Quinn makes up her mind about something, there is no changing it, and she's usually right.
"I should page Yang," Derek mumbles, standing and leaving the room to the nearest nurses station. The blonde nurse at the desk looks up and smiles at him.
"How can I help you?"
"Page Dr. Yang for me, please. Room 5005."
"That's Dr. Grey! Is everything alright?" The nurse gasps, leaning forward keenly.
The only thing that spreads faster than the flu around this hospital is gossip.
"Everything's fine, just page her." Derek snaps. The nurse nods and types a few things.
"Okay. Is that all?"
"Yes, thanks," Derek says, then walks back into the conference room. Olivia and Quinn are standing by the door, talking softly. They're about to leave when Derek stops them. "This is gonna be hell for her and we all know it so please, please just try to be as gentle and patient as you can with her, she shouldn't have to suffer any more than she already has."
They both soften at this. "I know, Shep. I know better than you'd think. I'll do my best, okay?" Olivia says. All Derek can do is nod, and the women step past him.
Derek goes and collapses into a seat in the conference room, his head in his hands. He just wants it all to be over, he wants to protect his girlfriend from anything and everything, but he can't.
This is far from over for Meredith. Everyone knows it, but no one wants to say it aloud.