So this chapter is more strongly T rated, so consider yourself warned.
-GABRIEL'S POV-
His nose and eyebrow were bleeding, and his ribs felt bruised. Riley was in much worse shape. She needed a surgeon, and he only knew combat first-aid, which meant wrap it up and go. Left without options, he decided to text Nelson with the chip.
"Nelson, do you know any doctors that could go to your house discreetly?" Gabriel knew the message would show up as blocked, and he wasn't surprised at the response.
"Who is this? How did you get this number?"
Gabriel quickly thought of a codeword. "The clock needs work."
" OMG ! WHERE ARE YOU?! ARE YOU OKAY?" Gabriel shook his head at Nelson's sudden change.
"Nelson, get the doctor, okay? ETA: 1 hour."
Wherever Mr. Smith had taken them, it was a lot closer to Angel's Bluff than their cabin. Riley groaned in the backseat, and Gabriel tightened his grip on the wheel. She was in pain, and he couldn't help her.
"Hold on, Riley. We're almost there." Gabriel stepped on the gas and the car sped up. He would take care of the speeding tickets later.
They arrived at the Cassidy residence in 45 minutes. Nelson ran out the door just as Gabriel was lifting Riley out of the car. He was exhausted, and Nelson jumping around like an excited puppy didn't help. Gabriel carefully carried her into the workshop and laid her down on a cleared table. The doctor that Nelson and Dr. Cassidy had called was a tall, thin, graying man named Dr. Jonah Wilkerson.
"You worked with Doc here to get Clockwork ready." Gabriel nodded at Wilkerson.
"You are correct. Now, leave me to my work." He said and turned to the table.
Gabriel started to protest but Dr. Cassidy interrupted. "Gabriel, you're injured too. You need to let me look at your injuries."
Gabriel glanced at Riley one last time and followed them into the kitchen. He wanted to stay with Riley, but he knew the doctor knew what he was doing. Dr. Cassidy told Gabriel to sit on a stool in the kitchen and left to get surprised. Nelson kept Gabriel company.
"What the hell happened?" Nelson almost yelled.
"Well, we were getting ready for bed, and-" he was interrupted by Nelson.
"Bed? Together?" Gabriel sighed and immediately regretted it because his ribs screamed in protest.
"No, Nelson, focus please."
"Sorry." "I saw the news report on us, and when I called Riley in to see, Tetazoo started yelling at us to come out with our hands up."
"Tetazoo was there? He's been missing for days!"
"He's dead." Gabriel said darkly.
Thankfully Nelson didn't ask about how he knew. "So Tetazoo was behind all this? He tortured Riley?"
Dr. Cassidy came back with everything he needed and began to work on the open wounds.
"No, I don't think he was behind it. Someone named Mr. Smith is."
"Definitely an alias, so we pretty much have nothing."
Gabriel was getting sleepier as he was worked on, and the room fell silent. Nelson left to pester Dr. Wilkerson, and the house was peaceful. He moved to the couch after Dr. Cassidy finished, and quickly fell asleep. His dreams were pleasant for a while, but they took a darker turn. He was thrown into Riley's torture room, and he was the one throwing punches and digging up her painful past. He woke up with a jump, confused as to where he was for a moment. He looked around, and the only sound was Nelson and Cassidy tapping quietly on their keyboards.
Gabriel slowly sat up. "Doc, you got any scotch?" He asked as he reached a sitting position.
"Ah, Gabriel, you're awake. With the painkillers in your system, alcohol would not be a wise choice."
"Fine." Gabriel grunted unhappily.
"You can see Riley now."
Gabriel got off the couch quicker than he should have. Ignoring Doc's protests, Gabriel hurried down the hall and into the workshop. Dr. Wilkerson was finishing up notes, and Riley was laid out on the table. He pulled up a stool and gently took her hand.
Her face was badly bruised, leaving two black eyes and her lip split. According to Wilkerson's computerized notes, she had 3 broken ribs, a sprained wrist, massive blood loss, and a mild concussion. Her knuckles were scraped and her wrists were wrapped from where the leather rubbed into her skin. Gabriel didn't want to think about the emotional damage.
Dr. Wilkerson said she was on a lot of painkillers, and she would sleep for a few days. Gabriel stayed with her.
Dr. Cassidy and Nelson took turns bringing him food everyday, since Gabriel refused to leave her side, and he left only once to try and sneak home for clothes. He was constantly irritable, and barely ate the food he was brought. Sometimes Nelson wondered what would happen if she didn't wake up.
-RILEY'S POV-
When Riley woke up, her throat burned, but the rest of her body was pain free, a Heaven after a fiery Hell. Her ribs ached when she moved, but she could handle it. She tried to move her arm, but she realized someone was holding her arm down.
"Gabriel?" She whispered hoarsely.
He woke up immediately. "Riley?" She put a hand to her throat and he rushed out of the room. She heard a faucet turn on and off somewhere, and she tried to sit up. Gabriel came back into the room holding a glass of water.
"Whoa, Riley, that isn't a good idea." She ignored him, and thankfully he decided to help her.
Once she was up, he handed her the glass of water. She drank it in gulps, which earned her hiccups, which made her ribs hurt. Gabriel smiled, obviously enjoying watching her bounce up and down when she hiccuped.
"How long have I been out?" She asked once she got rid of the hiccups.
"3 days." He responded, a sad look overtaking his face. Riley was shocked. 3 days? She hadn't even slept that long when she was stabbed protecting the First Children.
Riley looked down at her hands, notice the wrapping on her wrists and torn clothes. She looked up and saw Gabriel glance at her torn shirt.
"I'll be right back. Don't move anymore, okay?" Riley wondered where he could possibly be going. He returned moments later, holding a gray shirt.
"This is the best I could manage, and I figured you would rather wear my clothes than Nelson's." Gabriel said rather sheepishly.
"When did you go home?" Riley asked, gingerly taking the shirt.
"Last night. They had guards and cameras everywhere, so all i could grab where a couple of shirts." Riley started to get up, but Gabriel stopped her.
"Riley, that's a really bad idea. You shouldn't get up too much." Riley raised her eyebrows.
"So you're going to dress me and carry me everywhere?"
Gabriel grinned. "Yep. Arms up."
Riley rolled her eyes and slowly put her arms up. She held eye contact with him as he moved closer. Her legs dangled on the side of the table, and Gabriel carefully started pulling the torn shirt her head.
Their faces were extremely close, and Riley felt his breath on her lips. She closed the space between their lips, pressing her cool lips into his warm ones. She felt him respond immediately, stepping impossibly closer. Riley knew they shouldn't be doing this, but her painkillers blocked the pain, and every part of her bruised body wanted this. His lips forced hers open, and their tongues met. They breathed heavily, and his hands ran up and down her arms, leaving goosebumps in their wake. Her fingers tangled in his hair, holding their faces together.
The two were so wrapped up in each other that they almost didn't hear Nelson come in. Almost.
"Oh, YES! Finally!" Nelson shouted when he saw them.
Gabriel tore away from her, much to her disappointment. He grabbed the gray shirt and helped her pull it over her head.
"Nelson, why aren't you in bed?" Gabriel asked breathlessly.
"I heard a noise, but now I definitely know what it was!" Nelson said excitedly.
Dr. Cassidy and Dr. Wilkerson appeared behind Nelson. "What's going on? Who's hurt?" The two men were asking questions at random.
"Nothing, everyone's okay." Gabriel assured them.
Dr. Wilkerson stepped towards Riley. "How do you feel?"
Riley tried to calm down, but that was impossible with Gabriel anywhere near her right now. "Okay." She said, but she sounded out of breath.
Dr. Wilkerson pulled out his blood pressure pump and stethescope. "What were you thinking, exerting yourself like that?" He asked sternly.
Gabriel sighed and Riley blushed. Of course they knew, they weren't stupid.
"Well, your blood pressure and heart rate are fine, but I guess we have Gabriel to thank for that." He took the cuff off her arm.
Gabriel put his hands up defensively. "Sorry Dr. Wilkerson."
"No more of this nonsense until you're both healed. You'll pull stitches. Bed rest for you, young lady, and you shouldn't move too much either, Gabriel." Dr. Wilkerson scolded.
Riley tried to protest, but she knew it was no use.
"Yes sir." She mumbled.
"Gabriel, take her to your room, and no funny business." Gabriel helped her down from the table and half carried her to his room.
"What are we going to do with those two?" Dr. Cassidy shook his head and went back to bed.