"Jane, can you get some fresh towels?" Barney sounds close, to my left by the sound of his voice.
"Of course, I'll be right back." The sound of a short kiss follows the oddly familiar female voice. The door clicks shut and Barn sighs. Something cool is laid against my forehead, and Barn's chair scrapes on the floor as he moves to get up. I grope for his hand, and find it resting near my hip.
"Rose?" I struggle to crack open my tired eyes, blinking a few times before my friend comes into focus.
"Hey Barn." I creak. "Who's Jane?"
He grins "The girl I was dancing with when you…" He grimaced "... I'd better wake Sam up."
He went over to the other side of the bed, I tried to follow his movement, but turning my head was virtually impossible. I could feel Barn shaking something on the bed next to my back, and the pressure on my shoulder that I hadn't noticed increased.
"Huh?... Barn? What's up?" Sam's voice slurred from my right.
"Rose is awake." The pressure on my shoulder disappeared and a chair clattered to the floor. A split second later, Sam's flustered face dominated my vision.
"Rosie?"
"Hey."
"How do you feel?"
"Like Jack threw me in the courtyard and then ran over me." I managed a short lived grin "… Where's Alban?" I wasn't sure if I really wanted to know the answer.
"He was sent home."
"What? Didn't he tell everyone about me?"
"Well… Seeing as he really can't talk, it would be difficult, not to mention against his better interest." He looked a little sheepish.
"And why can't he talk?"
"It's a hard thing to do with a broken jaw…" I close my eyes, feeling guilty at the relief washing over me.
"Can't really say he didn't deserve it…" Barn half grins from behind Sam. What would I do without them?
"Oh! You're up… How's your head?" Jane breezed in carrying a stack of towels and grinning at the sight of me wide awake.
"Like it's been kicked in." Everyone winced at that, Sam squeezed my hand. I shrug, no point in pretending it didn't happen.
Barn got up with a sigh, "I best be the others you're awake."
"Others?" What did they do... "Who have you told about me? And what about Will? Where has he been all this time?"
Sam turns to me, clenching my free hand in both of his. "Rosie, we had no choice, we tried to say that Will was greatly injured trying to help Rose." He paused, looking a little confused trying to explain it to me using my two identities, but he shook it off at the look I was giving him and continued. "Sir. Godfrey tried to help, but Old Tom knew something was wrong, he insisted on seeing you, and we saw no way out. It was Sir. Godfrey that brought Tom into his chambers and explained the situation. Tom was aghast, he raved and spluttered for a time, going on about how you were risking all of our heads, and that you were a she-devil…"
He looks to see how I react, and I nod for him to continue. "Sir. Godfrey had everyone leave the office and talked to him for over three hours. Old Tom came out of the room, said he wouldn't speak of this to anyone until he talked to you, and left. We haven't heard from him since, we've tried to talk with him, but he refuses to be in a room alone with any one of us." Sam took one hand and rubbed the back of his neck, leaving the other tightly clasped in mine. I squeezed it reassuringly. " The situation is better than I ever could have hoped for, thank you." I look to Barn and Jane standing at the foot of the bed, hands laced together. "Thank you." They nod Barn cracks a smile, but his eyes are glistening, Jane is crying freely. I turn my focus back to Sam, he nods, knowing what I'm thinking in an instant. Our lives lie in the hands of Old Tom now.