A.N. Thank you so much for everyone who has taken the time to give feedback on the story so far. It really means so much! This wasn't an easy chapter to write and this is where the 'M' nature of the narrative really comes into it's own but nevertheless I hope you enjoy it.
Coolsville.
Velma stared wordlessly at Stella in the bed, aware that Rory was watching on from the doorway. Whilst it was undoubtedly a relief to see Stella was at least alive, she wasn't taking very much comfort from the detective's current condition.
Stella White's eyes were closed, with burns visible on the left hand side of her face and arm. Her other arm was tucked under the blanket. Steeling herself, Velma gently peeled back the layers and immediately wished she hadn't; clearly what they could see had been Stella's good side. This arm was heavily bandaged from the shoulder down, all the way to her hand that was severely strapped up. Velma suspected her covered right leg would reveal similar injuries or worse. Her grip of Shaggy's hand tightened unconsciously.
Rory came and joined them now, looking as equally distraught as they now felt.
"Her right hand is a mess," he explained quietly, "she lost...erm...part of it in the impact."
Shaggy's stomach recoiled when he heard that bit, staring at Rory in horror.
"Is she..." Velma tried her best to look unfazed, but was failing miserably. "Is she conscious right now?"
"Yes, she is, she's been in and out of consciousness for a while, we keep sedating her though, she needs the rest."
"Has she spoken?" Velma asked. "Does she remember what happened?"
Rory glanced over at Stella, afraid that she might suddenly awaken in this moment and he ushered the two of them back outside, his expression was incredibly pained.
"She suffered a huge concussion as a result of the explosion, she's experiencing lots of problems with short term memory and her hearing. She remembers nothing of what happened after they went in." Rory confirmed grimly.
"Oh man," Shaggy sighed. "Poor Stella." He stole one more look at Stella's still form before he turned to Rory hopefully. "So Will's here too, right? In another little ward somewhere, you just haven't shown us yet?"
At the mention of Will's name, Rory's strained face crumpled further and he didn't have to say any more.
"No," Shaggy reacted, his eyes widening as he found himself slumping against the wall hard. "No Rory, please say no..."
Rory looked utterly shattered, as he confirmed what the whole gang had feared from the moment they got news of the attack. "He...and his team...they went right in where the bomb had been hidden. He...didn't stand a chance."
Velma felt numb with grief; Will Barnum had gone from cynical hardened detective to embracing every last thing about their crazy crime fighting crusade. He had been there every step of the way in Coolsville. In fact, both he and Stella had become almost like some kind of weird surrogate parents to a gang of youths that between them had very little of their own family left. And now she was critically injured and he...was gone. And it was all because of Devon Blake.
She let out a shrill scream of pain that surprised even herself, and found herself collapsing into Shaggy's arms. He gently shushed her, with his hand over her mouth as Rory looked at them frantically.
"She doesn't know! She keeps asking about him, but she doesn't know. I can't tell her, she's so weak, it will destroy her. But...I know...seeing you guys will lift her spirits no end."
Velma's grief rapidly spiralled into anger and she turned on Rory speaking in a furious whisper. "You brought us here because you wanted us to speak to her?! The very people you and she, and everyone else, has betrayed for the best part of two years?!"
"I told you, I never agreed with them, but they had their reasons," Rory said defensively.
"Oh good! Well, I can't wait to hear what those reasons are, because it doesn't look like it turned out very fucking well does it?"
"Relma, Rhaggy," Shaggy was the only one alert to Scooby Doo's observations, and followed his gaze.
"Zoinks! Er, guys..."
But Velma was in her stride now, and ignoring Shaggy, she channelled all of her grief into an angry outburst at Rory. "You told us in the car that this went far deeper than we even know about! How about fronting up and telling us exactly what happened at Oakland and at the rehab centre Rory! People are dead, people we ALL care about! Stop trying to protect us or whatever bullshit excuse they peddled...this has gone..."
"GUYS!" Shaggy abruptly interrupted her rant now, and Velma finally took notice of what direction Shaggy's anxious glance had been cast in, he spoke with a very nervous tremor in his voice.
"I think she's awake..."
In Hong Kong...
Mei Ling leaned over Fred carefully, while Daphne anxiously hovered over her shoulder, the panic and fear was clear in Daphne's voice.
"Is he dead?"
Mei lowered herself all the way down to his face, tilting her head so her ear was directly above his mouth, and so she could look down his chest. She was gratified to feel his wispy breath on her cheek and to see his chest was still rising and falling.
"No, he's still breathing," she confirmed, her own relief obvious as she watched Daphne's tense expression visibly relax at her words.
"Oh thank god," the redhead breathed, letting out a huge sigh. "Thank god..."
Mei set about slowly trying to rouse Fred, gently shaking his shoulder and calling his name loudly. She was further cheered by groggy signs of response from the blond. His eyes remained closed but he tried to speak and Mei shushed him.
"He's okay," she confirmed to Daphne, grabbing him now under his shoulders, being very careful not to aggravate his existing shoulder injury. "Help me get him inside," she urged and Daphne duly grabbed her boyfriend's feet.
Despite their slight statures, Mei and Daphne were deceptively strong but even with their combined strength, dragging Fred was definitely a struggle for the two young women.
With Fred slowly coming round, though groggy and disoriented, his body was like a dead weight and as they carried him back inside Mei's house, she caught sight of his matted blond hair stained with blood. She realised he must have taken a hefty blow to the back of his head that had caused his concussed state.
They got him to the sofa, and Mei grabbed some towels to rest his head on. She then started to clean the mud and blood from his face. It was quickly apparent the biggest concern was the blow to the head and that the blood and mud on his face that had so terrified the girls initially, was mostly just superficial cuts sustained from falling from a car at some speed.
With Fred becoming fully conscious now, he immediately tried to sit up, but both girls pushed him back down again. He turned his head to the side to vomit instead, groaning wildly.
Some of it landed on Daphne's shoes, and most of it on Mei Ling's pristine white rug, but it was clear that both girls were far more preoccupied with their unwavering concern for Fred to even notice.
"Fred!" the panic in Daphne's voice had dropped down an octave or two, although she was obviously still very worried. "What happened?!"
Fred could feel the sticky wound at the back of his head and raised a hand to touch it curiously. His head in general was pounding and he fought the urge to be sick again.
"I'm not too sure," he admitted. "I went for a walk and was suddenly aware of someone close behind and before I could react, I think they must have hit me with a rock or something. I'm pretty sure I must have blacked out, because the next thing I remember is falling out of a car?"
"Whoever it was, they whacked you very hard," Mei confirmed, examining the back of his head gently. "It's pretty much stopped bleeding now but you're going to have quite the lump."
"Great, it will go brilliantly with the gunshot wound to my shoulder," Fred replied glibly.
"This isn't funny Fred! You had only been gone less than half an hour. They must have tracked us from the city and then bided their time. I told you it wasn't safe!"
"You were right Daphne, whoever is after us, they clearly have the means to find us anywhere," Fred said seriously.
"And that doesn't terrify you?" Daphne asked. "You got lucky...again! They could have taken you or..." Her eyes welled up as she thought of the worst alternative and Fred took her hand, looking her straight in the eye.
"I'm here Daphne, that's what matters," he replied softly. "I'm OK."
Mei's eyes flickered away from the hand holding, and she caught sight of something for the first time since they carried him inside and she stiffened a little.
"What's that on your jacket, Fred?"
A feeling of unease instantly settled over the three of them after Mei pointed out that something had indeed been pinned conspicuously to Fred's jacket. A small, clear plastic baggie was hanging out of his breast pocket. Fred immediately knew it hadn't been there before.
He grabbed the bag from his pocket and saw inside there was a folded white piece of paper. He squeezed the bag open and realised the note was also wrapped tightly around another item.
The girls watched tensely as he unrolled the note to reveal the tiny item inside.
"Oh boy," he said quietly, already feeling apprehensive about what the USB was going to contain.
Daphne stared uneasily at the USB stick that had obviously been planted by the same people that had attacked Fred. Fred carefully placed the USB on Mei's coffee table and unfolded the note. Daphne tried to stay calm but she knew her voice was shaky as she asked what the note said.
Fred read it to himself first and then visibly swallowed hard.
"Uh," he hesitated, not entirely sure he wanted to share the contents with Daphne, or with Mei for that matter, but Daphne snatched it from his hands anyway, paling as she then read it aloud.
STOP TRYING TO FIND OUT WHAT HAPPENED TO ETHAN.
THIS WAS HIS FATE.
UNLESS YOU WANT IT TO BE THIS BOY's FATE TOO;
LEAVE CHINA IMMEDIATELY.
WE LEFT YOUR BOYFRIEND ALIVE THIS TIME.
THERE WILL NOT BE A SECOND CHANCE.
LEAVE NOW.
"Oh my god," Mei Ling said in a horrified whisper, staring at the typed threatening note that had now fallen to the floor from Daphne's numb fingertips.
Daphne was frozen for a few seconds but soon reacted typically dogmatic.
"Give me the USB," she demanded, but Fred held it back from her reach reluctantly.
"No, let me look at it first, you don't know how bad it could be, I'll watch it first..."
"No!" Daphne reacted furiously. "Stop trying to protect me Freddy, I need to know what happened to him! At least we might finally get some answers! Please Fred, I have to watch it." She begged him with impassioned eyes.
Fred loved Daphne's fierce and passionate personality and knew that it was absolutely pointless even trying to argue with her, despite how much he desperately wanted to. Every last instinct was telling him to prevent her viewing what was on this USB.
This was his fate.
He felt utterly helpless; both from that he was unable to shield Daphne from what he was sure to be a deeply unpleasant truth about Ethan, and also for the fact that it was his life they were blackmailing Daphne with.
Instead, he handed her the stick and she inserted it into the laptop, which had just about enough power left. There was one single file contained on the device and it was ominously entitled: 'Watch Me.'
Fred pulled himself upright on the sofa and he steeled himself the best he could, his arm draped around Daphne, but nothing could have prepared the youngsters for the shattering horror of the video they were about to witness.
Daphne clicked 'play', then settled back in Fred's arms as the video came to life on the tiny screen, Mei was stood quietly behind them, unsure she wanted to watch, but unable to turn away.
The scene opened inside a vehicle that was speeding down a dark road, with the sound of men talking in Chinese, immediately detectable in the background. Fred turned the volume up on their chatter, turning around to Mei expectantly as they watched the footage and she began to concentrate on the dialogue.
"Only one thing seems to be important to them...target," she said grimly. "They're talking about a target."
The footage continued inside the vehicle for a few more minutes before the phone camera switched around to take in the road they were travelling down. It was pretty empty with the ocean visible from time to time at the side, as the vehicle continued to drive. The chatter suddenly increased frenetically and both Fred and Daphne found themselves tensing as a motorbike came into view further along the road, ahead of the car.
"It is he," Mei translated stoicly. "It is he."
The vehicle increased it's speed to surely dangerous levels now, until it was almost alongside the motorbike. The phone camera was now passed to someone else and Fred felt himself go completely cold as the passenger window was now slid down, suddenly having a very bad feeling how this story was going to end.
The helmeted rider on the bike was startled as the car swerved dangerously close.
He could never have seen it coming.
It all happened so soon.
"Don't look Daph!" Fred screamed a split second before it happened.
He squeezed his own eyes shut and pulled Daphne firmly against his chest in time so that she didn't see the sickening impact, but they all heard it. They heard the shocking sound of a gun discharging, the crack of a bullet whipping straight into the rider's helmet. This was followed by the bone chilling sound of the bike smashing into the reservation, and with both bike and rider then crashing over the edge. There was the sound of cheering from within the vehicle and then the video stopped abruptly.
Mei was stood with both of her hands over her mouth, scarcely able to believe the savagery she had just witnessed in her own living room. She didn't know the unfortunate person who had just been executed in the worst video nasty but that wasn't the case for poor Fred, and especially Daphne.
They were still wrapped up in each other's arms, too shocked to react any further, until Daphne started to hyperventilate and jumped out of Fred's arms before he could stop her. He was of course reeling himself, but he hurried to find her.
Daphne had collapsed onto the porch, and finally released the grief she had been holding within, from the moment she had been told Ethan was missing. From the moment that she received the report of his bike being found at the bottom of the cliff, she had known deep down what his fate was. But she hadn't allowed herself to accept it. Instead, for so long, she had forlornly hoped that he was still alive; that hope had now been stolen from her in the most brutal way imaginable.
She felt a hand on her shoulder, and she turned to find an equally grief-stricken Fred knelt beside her. She threw her arms around him, and he held her tight as her whole body shook with sobs. Angry tears also streamed down Fred's cheeks. It wasn't enough for the perpetrator to just kill Ethan; whoever was responsible didn't just want Daphne and Fred to have the knowledge that Ethan was dead.
They wanted them to suffer too.
The ultimate feeling for both of them was a tidal wave of grief right now, but the anger was already bubbling away underneath. Someone had executed Daphne's brother and then revelled in the brutal nature of it, and now they were using her love for Fred to ensure that they would back down from searching for the killers.
As if it would ever be that simple.
Daphne and Fred had a very good idea now who was responsible, and if Devon Blake thought a couple of threats was enough to dissuade them, he was wrong.
Dead wrong.
Daphne clung tightly onto Fred, her tears soaking into his shoulder, he stroked her back, completely overcome with anguish himself, but he pushed himself to be that tower of strength he knew she so desperately needed right now.
"Just let it all out," he encouraged gently.
Mei appeared at the door, hugging herself, she looked completely overwhelmed herself, still recovering from what she had unwittingly witnessed too.
"Um, I'm so sorry guys," she offered her condolences awkwardly. "I can't even begin to imagine what you two are going through right now."
Daphne stopped sniffling and looked at Mei, and despite her own heartbreak, her heart went out to her. Mei Ling had answered one bizarre, desperate phone call from her ex, and then since that moment, had inadvertently had drama and danger brought right into her life. From treating her ex boyfriend's gunshot wound, and then a further attack on his life on her doorstep, to bearing witness to the kind of violence usually reserved for gangster movies, Daphne and Fred's arrival had been an absolute tsunami.
"God Mei," Daphne's voice trembled. "I'm so sorry we brought all this on you, all this...horror."
Mei shook her head resolutely. "Don't even worry for a second about me, I'll be OK. Look, you're both welcome to use my guest room tonight. Take as much time as you need."
Once again touched by the young woman's selfless kindness, Daphne got up and hugged Mei warmly.
"Thank you so much," she whispered, her eyes puffy and blotchy as she thanked Mei for her overwhelming hospitality. She slowly wandered into the small neat bedroom, and Fred and Mei Ling watched as she curled herself up onto the bed. Fred gently closed the door, promising Daphne he would be in in a moment.
Fred turned to Mei now, his arms folded and his expression looking more stoic but Mei could see the genuine pain in his eyes.
"You don't have to do this Mei," he said quietly. "We should go. Every second we're staying here, it puts you in danger and that isn't fair. In case it wasn't obvious before, that tape proves without a shadow of doubt exactly how much jeopardy we're in here."
"Fred Jones," she said quietly but in a fiercer tone. "You reached out to me to help you, and that's exactly what I'm doing. If you think I'm going to just give up on you now, well you're very much mistaken." She jutted out her chin in defiance.
"I appreciate everything you've done for us Mei, but providing us shelter, puts a target on your back too, and I will not allow you to put yourself in harm's way just to help us! They know we're here, what if they come back?"
Mei sighed before beckoning to Fred to follow her, "come with me."
Fred glanced in at Daphne and was relieved to see she had already managed to fall asleep. He hastily followed Mei Ling before she paused at an unremarkable looking bookcase in the corridor.
She looked at Fred peculiarly, before reaching forward to pull at a book, and the entire bookcase swung forward to reveal a hidden room.
And Fred couldn't help himself and laughed. It started as a giggle but suddenly he couldn't stop and it developed into a longer belly laugh and he had to bite down hard on his lip to stop himself.
Mei Ling was staring at him in astonishment, fearing perhaps his grief had now descended into mania and Fred quickly explained, unable to hide the grin.
"God Mei, you wouldn't believe how funny that is to me! The amount of haunted houses the gang and I have been in over the years, and every damn time I bet Velma we'll find some hokey secret passageway, and every damn time she wins that bet and now finally there is a secret passage and it's opened by a fake book! And she's not here to see it! Do you mind just opening and closing it again so I can film it?" he asked somewhat giddily, producing his phone from his pocket.
Mei continued to look very unsettled by the outburst but agreed, pressing a switch on the back of the bookcase so it slid into place again noisily. She repeated the book tug and Fred filmed it all gleefully as it opened again.
"Thanks."
"Fred, are you OK?" she said, squinting at him in alarm.
"I'm fine, I really needed that laugh to be honest, I can't remember when I last laughed like that," he said sadly and Mei nodded her understanding before leading the way into the room.
Fred eagerly followed her and then stopped in his tracks when she put the light on.
"Er Mei?" he said, looking around the room in awe at the weapons on display and the certificates and photos on the wall that were evidence of Mei's hidden prowess.
Mei turned to him with a slight smile and hint of embarrassment.
"What? You think after what happened to me in America, that the first priority back home, wouldn't be learning how to take care of myself?"
Fred walked around the room, marvelling at the photos of Mei Ling's secret martial arts abilities.
"Mei, this is incredible," he enthused, reading about how Mei became the most decorated female fighter in the academies' history, and he gingerly fingered the tip of a particularly potent looking blade.
"I know I don't look like much," she said shyly, gesturing to her slim frame. "But I learned how to turn my body into a weapon and how to fight properly," she said proudly, pulling out a sword.
"Unreal," Fred whistled.
"That attack earlier caught me off-guard, but you and Daphne have nothing more to fear tonight, I will look after you." She declared, doing a little bow to him.
Fred felt a huge swelling of emotion in his chest, and a tremendous amount of love and gratitude towards Mei Ling.
"We really landed on our feet when I called you, didn't we?" he said, still looking at her fondly when they returned back outside the guest bedroom.
"I'm just glad I can finally pay something back for you saving my life all those years ago," Mei explained. "You need to rest too Fred. Don't worry, I've got your backs," she added, cheekily brandishing a small sword. "Just in case."
Fred hugged her close. "Thank you Mei Ling, for everything." He was about to go in the room when he paused and turned back to her and gently kissed her on the cheek, there was no romance in the gesture, it was pure gratitude, but even so, Mei found herself blushing deeply.
"Good night Fred," she said softly.
By dawn the next morning, the emotionally exhausted trio hadn't suffered any further attack. While Daphne had slept fitfully in Fred's arms, Fred had barely slept a wink. He was just too consumed with his feelings over Ethan's death, plus the guilt that wouldn't go away about bringing Mei Ling into this whole mess, despite her evident prowess in the self-defence stakes. It still wasn't fair; as gifted as she clearly was, the level of danger they were facing was unparalleled. Even if his mind allowed him a reprieve from the monumental feelings of guilt and grief overwhelming his brain, he found himself lying awake plotting what their next move would be.
Mei Ling meanwhile, had been on high alert throughout the night, reacting to every single sound in the house. She was determined to protect Fred and Daphne, but she couldn't forget that brutal video. She would never have admitted it in front of Fred, but she was frightened. She was relieved when the sun streamed in the next day, she didn't feel quite as vulnerable as she had done in the dark.
She passed by the now open door where Fred and Daphne were resting and glimpsed them asleep, embraced tightly together; Daphne was curled with her back against Fred's front, her head resting lightly on his outstretched arm and his other arm was locked securely around her waist.
They're just too goddamn adorable for words Mei thought, with a smile. He will do anything for her. She found herself thinking about how it was absolutely horrific what they were having to go through and the things they had already endured. She shook herself to stop staring and carried on through to the kitchen, making tea before heading into her bedroom, showering and changing into her work uniform.
When she returned, the pair of them were sitting at her kitchen table, looking tired, with pale expressions clutching mugs of tea each.
"I'm on shift soon," she told them apologetically. "I can drop you somewhere if you want? What are your plans?"
Fred glanced at Daphne, who nodded in relief at his response as he clutched her hand.
"It's about time we go home," he announced.
Mei Ling was also relieved, as she had feared stubborn Fred wouldn't back down so easily.
"I think you're making the right decision Fred," she commented, and Fred gave a curt little nod. "It's not running away, but the danger you're in now, only a crazy man would stay."
"Sure, could you take us somewhere near the Ramada?" Fred requested. "I don't want you to get too close but we have to go back, all our travel documents are in our room."
"No problem at all," Mei confirmed and soon they were all in the car, a nervous tension hanging over them all as Mei drove carefully. Any time a car did anything remotely suspicious, Fred's nerves were heightened, bracing for an ambush, but they managed to make it a few blocks from Daphne and Fred's hotel and Mei pulled cautiously into a side alley.
Daphne and Fred exited the car, closely followed by Mei. First, the girls embraced each other and then Fred and Mei. "You take care of yourselves, you hear me?" Mei instructed them. "Don't take any unnecessary risks. I want you to call me when you get back."
She released Fred and climbed back into the car, looking at the pair with overwhelming sadness. "I am sincerely so sorry for your loss," she told them before she drove away.
Daphne watched her and then hugged Fred close. "What a woman," she murmured.
"Amen to that," replied Fred as they began walking the back streets to their hotel. "If we can find a service entrance, I think we'll be able to sneak in," Fred confirmed his plan to Daphne.
"Great," said Daphne, "but then what? How are we going to get the airport? I don't think we can trust a taxi and I don't mind walking but it's just a bit too far."
Fred scoped out what he was looking for, finding a plausible route to get into the hotel, as staff changed sheets by a service entrance. "Get ready," he told her.
But Daphne was impatient for an answer and tugged at his sleeve. "Well?" she asked him.
Fred sighed, before giving her a very strange look.
"We're not leaving, Daphne."
Uh oh. Looks like Mei Ling was right about Fred's stubbornness. I'm aware we're only really glimpsing a bit of events in Coolsville, but we're about to get a big pay off with Shaggy and Velma's story next time. Please rate and review!