In accordance with the occasion, the spray of blood from Morgause was impressive. It spurted up onto the chandelier as he slammed into her artery. She screamed and fell backwards, Arthur stumbled with her, dropping forward onto his knees. He felt something wet splash against his shoulder and arm. He struggled to stay upright, pulling his hand from Merlin's in an attempt to prevent Merlin from toppling. As Arthur crashed down, his right side seemed to hit something solid, and he gasped as he landed heavily on his knees. There was a riot of pain, where all he could do was sob and gasp but he leant against something solid and caught his breath.
Although it took a few seconds Arthur realised he was leaning on Merlin, putting most of his weight onto his legs. He pulled back a little, not wanted to put too much weight on someone so slight. But he had to stay down to get his breath back, blinking to steady his vision. He decided after the sixth attempt that blinking really wasn't working so instead he stopped trying that and gave up. He could work out the vague shapes around him. Morgause lying still and silent on the floor, and Merlin, Arthur looked up at Merlin. His hand moved, his fingers crawling up the chain to meet Merlin's hand. Arthur grappled for him, looking up, trying to find the connection that had been so strong moments before. There was a flicker, but it lacked the power. Merlin didn't react, his fingers loose and limp as Arthur threaded his own through them.
"Merlin?"
Arthur steeled himself and got to his feet, using Merlin a little to steady himself but mostly working under his own steam. He looked at Merlin. The glow in his eyes had faded, and Arthur tightened his grip on Merlin's hand. He had seemed so strong a minute ago. Arthur turned and looked down at Morgause. She was dead, her body still, eyes fixed, her blood gathering on the floor, and also splattered around the room. His stomach clenched in horror.
"Merlin, please, Merlin," Arthur slurred the words again, looking back up at the still and silent man. There was a splash of Morgause's blood on Merlin's face and more had landed on his clothing. But it was the smear across his cheek that Arthur flinched at. He reached up, pulling the sleeve of his shirt down to carefully wipe away the mark. Arthur tilted his hand so Merlin wouldn't be scratched by his cufflink, rubbing his wrist gently against Merlin's face to clear the mark.
"We need to find a bathroom or something, to clean you up," Arthur said dopily, he looked around and looked at the door he had been aiming for before Morgause had intercepted them. By reflex he blinked again, causing his vision to blur worse than it had been. He stood there dumbly, his mind as lethargic as his body. Merlin didn't react as Arthur gently dabbed at the blood on his cheek, trying to clear it off. Arthur watched him in concern, the glowing light in his eyes had completely gone, and Merlin looked back to normal. Or the normal that Arthur knew.
He felt a stirring of concern in the pit of his stomach. Arthur wasn't quite sure what he had expected. He had felt Merlin's presence, strongly, so strong that Merlin's words had come out of Arthur's mouth. But now the link was gone. Arthur looked down at Morgause again. She had been part of the circuit, so had Cenred. There could have been a vain hope that perhaps with that Merlin might suddenly wake up, the two people clearly responsible for his predicament gone. But what if Arthur's reaction had done something to Merlin, something that permanently damaged him as a result of severing him from Morgause. They had to have been connected in some way, for Merlin to have seen what he did.
Arthur swallowed heavily, he couldn't start to consider the implications of his actions, not yet anyway. What he had to do was get Merlin to safety. The immediate threats were gone, but Merlin was shivering, either with cold or shock. He needed care. Arthur had to get him back to the hospital, and he probably required medical attention himself. He didn't know what the long term affects of what he had been given might be.
Moving slowly he tested the chain that still linked them. It was secure enough, so he took Merlin's hand again, feeling a small jolt of warmth, but nothing close to the intensity of a few minutes ago.
"Let's go Merlin."
Arthur headed to the door that he had seen earlier, Merlin shuffling behind him, obediently following. When he reached the door it took Arthur several attempts to grasp the handle, his body feeling weak, and still uncoordinated. The adrenaline from the fight had started to wear away and all Arthur wanted to do was sit down and rest. But Merlin remained the most important thing, before he could do anything else, Arthur had to get help. He also had to consider what might happen if he stopped, at least at the moment he fought against the effects of the drug, if he stopped it could end up in disaster. As far as Arthur could tell it had to be the same thing that Merlin had been given, although he had probably been given far more, over a longer course of time.
He rattled the handle but the door refused to give. Arthur stared at it, rattling the handle again.
"Must be locked," Arthur informed himself, or Merlin. He paused and looked around. Morgause could possibly be carrying a key, or maybe Cenred had one. Arthur didn't really want to bother looking, rummaging through the clothes of either corpse. He shuddered as that word drifted into his mind. He had caused the damage. Without even really thinking about it he rattled the door again. As he jerked the handle for the third time he heard a curious loud click, echoing around the open space. It made him jump, his sweat-damp hand slipping on the handle, pulling it down again and the door swung inwards by a few inches.
"Oh," he murmured, not entirely sure how it happened. Tensing slightly he opened the door, feeling a light, cool breeze which indicated he had been right in his assessment. He had found an exterior door. Arthur pushed it open and looked out, scanning the area warily. He didn't know where they were, or what might be outside. If it seemed safer to stay in the building then that would be exactly what Arthur would do. He didn't want to wait, he presumed that no one knew where they were, Morgause had been hiding for what Arthur guessed could have been years.
Quite tentatively Arthur took a few steps forward and peered out into the darkness. As he moved beyond the door he flinched as a harsh light flashed on, the sensor picking up his movement. Arthur lifted a hand to his face, and moved so he stood in front of Merlin, hoping to protect him from the brightness. After a few seconds of squinting, and keeping his free hand cupped around his eyes to shield them he carefully assessed the scene.
It didn't look entirely familiar, the building ran down to his right, and behind him a shorter section lay at a right angle. From that a small annexe had been built, so the building looped around what appeared to be a car park. The area was littered with building materials, piles of flagstones, and bricks. Several plastic window frames lay propped against the side of the building, the glass panels thickly wrapped in plastic were piled beyond that.
Having stayed still for a while the light flickered off again but as Arthur took another step, pulling Merlin along, it flashed on again. He shuffled forward, drawing Merlin close to him, keeping a close eye on the ground. Very slowly Arthur weaved a path through the clutter, the bright light made his head hurt but as they crossed the area it flickered off again. Arthur paused again, blinded in the sudden darkness. It took his eyes a few moments to adjust. Looking up he realised a nearly full moon hung in the sky, the darkness twinkling with stars. Arthur looked around again. He could make out shapes, and landscape, and the building they had just left.
"If there's a building, then there must be a way to get to it. Looks posh enough to be a hotel, so it must be easy to find. It can't be that far in the middle of nowhere surely. I suppose if we wait long enough then whoever is working here will show up."
That debated option ended as Arthur realised it was Friday. Which meant that it was unlikely anyone would be there until Monday. Arthur shivered, concluding that perhaps they wouldn't have made it through to that morning. Or they wouldn't still be in this building, but somewhere far more remote. The moon did a good job of illuminating the area, Arthur stepped forward, and Merlin automatically started to follow him. Arthur slowly led them out of the shelter of the car park and followed what appeared to be a long driveway. A little uneven but clear enough. Areas of it were dipped and pitted from the heavy trucks that had delivered the goods scattered around the yard. He stumbled on occasion but didn't fall, gaining some speed as they headed away.
"If we find a road Merlin, then we should be able to find someone. Maybe a house, there has to be farms and cottages out here."
There didn't look to be much. Gazing out at the landscape he couldn't see a single flicker of light that could indicate that someone lived nearby.
"Or a car," Arthur added.
So intent on staring around, he almost crashed into the gate that blocked the entrance way. He gave a murmur of surprise as he reached for it. The metal bar felt cold under his hand as he groped his way to the end to try and locate a latch, or even a gap they could slip through. As he did that Arthur looked up, staring out into the darkness. For a moment, he could see nothing more than a dim glow but somewhere in the distance it seemed like something moved. Arthur carried on fumbling, struggling with the latch one handed. Looking up again his elation faded, the light had gone.
Reluctantly he released Merlin's hand and used both on the latch until it eventually gave and swung open. Gathering up Merlin's hand again Arthur pulled him around the gate and slipping slightly on a ramp of wet soil Arthur felt the solid reassurance of tarmac under his trainers.
"We've found the road Merlin."
As he spoke Arthur felt his words break up. His teeth started to chatter, the night air starting to affect them. Reaching out to check him, Arthur felt Merlin shivering, quivering like a newborn foal. He didn't even have a coat that he could have given Merlin, who had been taken from the hospital with just a long-sleeved tee shirt, shielding him from the elements. Arthur had taken his jacket off before he had got into the car, as had always been his habit. The night air started to chill them. Autumn had been slowly moving into winter over the last week or so. Now shocked and vulnerable, the cold would be just another thing to attack them.
Arthur debated the options. He could retreat back to the building, maybe find a phone, maybe just wait it out. There had to be food, and perhaps heating. But if they couldn't find anything helpful, then he couldn't guarantee that they would be located. On the other hand, he could set off walking. The movement would help warm them a little, and they had to run into a building, or a car, and find someone that could help them.
For a moment Arthur dithered. He normally felt so capable of making decisions, calmly assessing the situation and working out the course of action needed. Now all he could seem to do was stand out in the lonely road, unable to choose the best option. Neither of them really sounded good to him. As he took a sharp breath, trying to think of something Merlin must have shifted, as he slipped forward, down the small incline, crashing into Arthur. Arthur staggered forward into the road and turned reaching out to meet Merlin as he fell, letting Merlin crash into his chest. Arthur wrapped an arm around Merlin's waist to make sure he stayed steady.
"All right Merlin."
He felt the subtle shift of weight as Merlin leant against him, almost forcing Arthur backwards, further into the road. That somehow helped Arthur make up his mind. Once he felt certain that Merlin was not about to fall he turned his head looking one way and then the other. On the left the road dipped down, and it was the direction from which the flash of light had come from. Although it hadn't made it's way any further down maybe it meant that someone had pulled in somewhere. A house or something. Arthur didn't care if he even interrupted a clandestine adulterous meeting. He needed to find people, whatever they were doing.
"Come on then Merlin," Arthur said taking Merlin's hand again, and slowly, shivering as they walked, they made their way slowly down the road.
XxxxxxxxxxxxxX
Since Arthur had lost his watch he had no idea what time it was. Looking up at the moon, and stars, he presumed it was early in the morning, which would also explain the lack of movement on the road. No one would really be travelling at this time of night. Their journey was quiet and lonely, and cold. Arthur couldn't shift that thought as they trudged along, Merlin shuffling along behind him, to the point that Arthur was drove almost to irritation by Merlin. Arthur wanted to shake him, to demand that he wake up, or at least come back to him, to be as he was when that surge of heat had seemed to flow through him into Arthur.
He contained his emotions. Arthur didn't want to upset, or frighten, Merlin, and none of it had been his fault. Arthur's feelings were because he felt worried, and frightened. He didn't like it. He started to realise just how sheltered his life had been. Over the years he had never really considered his father's way with him, but Arthur always had to account for his whereabouts, his behaviour, and all aspects of his life. He had just taken it as normal, Uther was his father, and he would want to know what his son was doing. Now Arthur considered the fact it was more than that.
Uther knew what horrors lay out there in the world. Arthur knew it. He had walked through enough incident rooms, treated enough patients. But it had never really touched his own life. He wondered if that made him more than a little patronising to people, as he talked through their problems, and helped them. Even if he had never experienced what they had been through, he always seemed to understand. What was that word Morgause had used, he pondered. Empathic. He understood things. If that was the case, he couldn't understand why he now couldn't seem to reach Merlin. That was the worst thought in Arthur's mind, what if his actions, in killing Morgause at that moment had caused something to happen to Merlin. Arthur couldn't live with himself if he had done that.
They trudged down the road and Arthur slowly came to a halt as they crested a hill. The darkness stretched out in front of them, and behind them looked much the same. Arthur gave a whimper, whatever light he had seen had clearly been some figment of his imagination. He had not passed a house, no cars had come along. They were totally alone, and too far committed to their course to turn back. Arthur tightened his hand on Merlin's. The wind whipped up, whistling as it rushed past them. Arthur staggered, his knees almost giving out again. His right knee felt hot, while the rest of him felt cold. Looking around Arthur walked to the side of the road. Part of the stone wall had collapsed, a huge tree looming up close to it.
"Merlin, I need to sit down for a minute."
As always Merlin simply followed him, and stayed compliant as Arthur helped him sit down, tucked against the wall, in the lee of the tree. It protected them from the worst of the winds as Arthur sat next to Merlin, unwinding the chain from Merlin's wrist so he could, instead, wrap his arms around Merlin's thin, still shivering, body, pressing himself close to try and give Merlin some of his body heat.
"I'm sorry, Merlin. I don't know what to do now," Arthur said, hearing the despair in his voice. Arthur bit down on his lip, increasing his grip on Merlin, wanting to take some reassurance while giving it to Merlin. He felt Merlin exhale heavily, his body relaxing, leaning against Arthur, as if he understood what Arthur wanted.
"It will be all right Merlin, someone has to come along, we'll be found."
The only problem was, he didn't know when.
XxxxxxxxxxxxxX
Arthur wasn't sure if he had dozed off. His head jerked up for some reason. More than likely, he had been awake, just resting his mind, closing his eyes and letting the darkness envelope him. After they had been snuggled together for a while the shared body heat seemed to do them some good, although the wind still buffeted against Arthur, Merlin's shivering had calmed. It had not gone completely but it felt less dramatic than previously.
Arthur looked around, sensing something, a vibration in the air, which he eventually realised was the sound of a car. A car coming towards them. Arthur looked around, and then realised he couldn't see either stretch of road clearly, which meant that whoever was about to drive past would not see them either. He couldn't risk that, he had the chance to get Merlin to safety.
"It's a car Merlin!"
He struggled to disengage himself from Merlin and Arthur stood up, using the wall to lever himself up. To his right, just cresting the hill appeared a set of headlights, the little car chugging towards them. Arthur slithered on the grass as he stepped off the verge and got his feet onto the road. Just as he steadied himself the small car rumbled up the hill and Arthur waved his arms, stepping forward to stop them. He couldn't catch a clear glimpse of who was in the car, as the engine roared and it sped past him. Arthur's waving paused, and he blinked in shock as he watched the taillights head away from him. Slowly his arms dropped, flopping to his sides in shock.
"But…" he mumbled, his mind daring his eyes to defy what they were seeing. They had driven straight past him. Arthur staggered as he turned, stepping back towards the little alcove where he had hidden Merlin. His foot slipped from under him in shock as he caught the edge of the wet grass, and he stumbled as he realised Merlin had stood up to follow him. Arthur crashed inelegantly to the ground, landing at Merlin's feet.
Arthur felt an overwhelming sensation of defeat to just lie there, and do nothing. But he couldn't, as he stared at Merlin's trainer clad feet. He had to get up and help. Maybe they should walk a little more, it had to get light soon, then there might be a little more hope. Arthur sighed, they needed help, they just needed someone to help.
In the car, the passenger turned to look at the fading scene.
"Drug addicts probably," her husband grumbled leaning forward over the steering wheel.
"And what in heaven would drug addicts be doing out here. There's nothing here except that half built hotel, and they are not exactly rushing with that."
"That's what it will turn out to be, some hostel place for alcoholics and drug users, what was that thing that Alicia was prattling on about tonight, with farming and animals."
"Care farming," she told her husband absently. Then she frowned and glared at him. "Go back!"
"What? I'm not helping some drug addict!"
She glanced back again, seeing the other man stood there, while his companion fought to get onto his feet, the one who had tried to flag them down, a look of shock on his face as instead, the car had speeded up to get away from him. She scowled and turned back to her husband.
"Tristan, you will stop this car and go back! Now!"
Arthur struggled up, reaching up to take Merlin's hand to steady himself. He avoided putting too much weight on Merlin, but Arthur had noticed that Merlin seemed to refuse to let himself fall, as if he knew that Arthur needed him to stay up. Arthur knelt up, moving one leg to get his foot back firmly on the ground, and he paused as he heard the sound of the car become louder. The white lights at the back were blurred in his vision, but he knew well enough that meant they were reversing. Bracing his leg Arthur got to his feet, staggering as his head swam again and he leant against Merlin. Arthur felt the pressure as Merlin leant into him.
The car stopped a short distance away and the passenger carefully got out.
"Are you all right?"
Arthur giggled, it seemed a rather daft question. The two of them stood in the middle of nowhere, Arthur still struggling with the effects of whatever he had been given and Merlin remained outwardly unresponsive to everything. How could they possibly be all right? The old lady looked at him in concern, her husband stood by the driver's door.
"Just stay there, Isolde," he ordered her. "I'm calling the police."
The old man used the police as a threat but it was music to Arthur's ears. Tristan had already dialled the emergency number and appeared to be rattling off their location.
"Yes!" Arthur said brightly. "You need to tell them to inform Detective Chief Superintendent Pendragon."
The old man paused talking, staring at Arthur in surprise, but he reiterated the information. Arthur swayed on his feet and Isolde watched him in concern.
"I think you should sit down."
Arthur agreed, backing up so he could drop down onto the grass verge behind him.
"In the car!" she snapped. "You'll get a chill sitting on the grass!"
That helped Arthur focus.
"Merlin's cold, we need to warm him up, can you run the heaters for him?" Arthur tugged Merlin's hand. "Come on, Merlin."
Merlin shuffled along as Arthur coaxed him. The old man carried on talking to the emergency services, until he looked up again.
"And you would be?"
"Arthur," Arthur said, then he blinked, realising that might not be entirely helpful. "Pendragon, and Merlin Emrys. Merlin, come on, into the car."
He intended to get Merlin into the passenger seat, and then worry about himself. However Isolde was having none of it. She opened the back door of the little car.
"You get in as well."
"Merlin needs help. He's my patient. I'm his psych…" Arthur's tongue decided to be unhelpful at that point and he struggled to say the word, stumbling over it as if his tongue was far too big for his mouth. "I'm his doctor," he added in the end. By that point Isolde had separated them, so Arthur stood by the back door. The little old lady straightened up, although she couldn't have topped five feet tall it still seemed to make an impression as she glared up at Arthur and ordered.
"Get into the car, now young man, before you fall over!"
It was a tone of voice that cowed her husband, her children and grandchildren. Arthur blinked, swayed and obeyed. He sat down while Isolde made sure he didn't bang his head, then she went round to get Merlin into the car. For a moment Merlin resisted until Arthur leant forward against the front seat, holding out his hand.
"Come on Merlin, sit in the car, you need to be warm."
Merlin obeyed, either just following Arthur's voice, or listening to the words. Isolde helped Merlin towards the seat and Arthur leant forward, resting against the back of the seat, reaching around to coax Merlin inside. He shuffled to the centre of the backseat, steadying Merlin from inside while Isolde worked outside. Between them they got Merlin inside and the old lady shut the door. Arthur sagged sideways, he felt exhausted but as least they had some help. Uther knew where they were.
"It's all right Merlin, we'll be safe now," Arthur said. He sat forwards against Merlin's seat, reaching out, groping for Merlin's hand, taking his wrist lightly and rubbing gently. Arthur felt his eyes drooping and he forced himself to open them again. The blurring appeared to be worse, but he guessed he could manage with that, he could relax now, and let his body calm down.
"We'll drain the battery if we run the heaters for too long," Tristan complained.
"Hush, you grumpy sod," Isolde ordered irritably from the boot end of the car. She reappeared on the driver's side holding a tartan rug in her arms.
"I'll pay for a new one," Arthur offered.
"Don't you worry about it," she announced, popping her head in through the open driver's door. "The police are on their way. What in heaven are you doing out here anyway?"
"It's a long story," Arthur murmured.
"Have you taken drugs?" Tristan demanded, glaring in at Arthur.
"Not willingly," Arthur said.
"Not now, dear," Isolde ordered him. "Get in and shut the door, we need to keep these boys warm until the police get here."
XxxxxxxxxxxxxX
Gwaine sensed Uther tense every time he had to slow down to take a corner. Dawn had not entirely broken, and the country road had no proper lighting. Gwaine put his foot down as often as he could but in the end, when a bend came, he had to remove his foot from the pedal. He roared up over the crest of a hill and on either side of them the landscape of the moor spread out darkly, but a way in front, on the road they saw the flash of blue lights.
"There!" Uther said.
His subordinate saw fit to not point out that he could actually see the lights in the distance. They would still take a few more minutes to get their and Gwaine did not want to listen to Uther rant. In the back Leon stayed quiet, trying not to look where they were going and have to deal with Gwaine's erratic driving.
Behind them another car tried to keep up, but Percival dropped back occasionally, not as confident as Gwaine appeared to be on the roads. With him were Morgana and Lancelot, just in case they needed a knowledgeable nurse. From what the operator had told them, when the call had been taken, Arthur appeared to be under the affect of some sort of drug. Lancelot knew Merlin's medical history and could deal with him. By the sound of it, Merlin was uninjured. They had been receiving updates from the officers and paramedics on scene. The local police had also cordoned off the half-built hotel, but had not yet entered.
On the road, tucked as tight to the verge as they could manage, two ambulances had parked and two police cars flanked them. For a moment Uther couldn't see Arthur until he saw a flash of blond hair at the rear door of one of the ambulances, and a dark thatch of hair next to it.
Gwaine roared up the last stretch of road and skidded the car to a halt, the bumper nudging against the grass verge as the tyres slithered on the lightly damp road. Before he had even fully stopped Uther had flung open the door and got out of the car to get to Arthur. It seemed odd, Gwaine thought, that Uther appeared constantly critical of Arthur, to a point you could assume that he was disappointed in his son. And then moments like this came along, albeit it was an over dramatic one, when Uther's concern reared it's head.
Percival brought his vehicle to something of a more elegant halt by Gwaine. Morgana smirked as Gwaine put his foot into a puddle.
"Shit!"
"No, mud," she announced, before taking Uther's wave as a hint, and she gave her own to Leon to order him to follow her, and they went over to the elderly couple lingering close by who had been talking to one of the uniformed officers. Uther went straight to Arthur, who now perched on the steps of the ambulance, swaying drunkenly, although the nearby paramedic appeared to have no intention of letting him fall. Merlin sat on Arthur's left.
"Arthur," Uther said, and on reaching him leant down to wrap his arms around his son. Arthur inhaled in surprise, taking in the scent of Uther's aftershave, a smell which Arthur had known all his life. He closed his eyes and sagged slightly as he rested against his father's chest, feeling Uther's fingers run through his hair. It caused Uther to tense and he pulled back, holding Arthur steady.
"Are you all right?"
"Fine, I think," Arthur said. Uther looked up at the paramedic.
"We need to take him to the hospital and run a test on what he might have been given, but initially it doesn't seem to be having a serious affect on him, he's just groggy. It means I can't give him anything else, but he doesn't seem to be in pain."
Uther frowned and the paramedic carefully shifted the blanket to show where he had cut Arthur's trousers to examine his knee. His kneecap had swollen and had turned a mottled black and blue.
"It feels hot," Arthur said. Uther hissed in a sharp breath.
"How did he do that?" Uther addressed the paramedic, but Arthur answered.
"I fell, or Cenred kicked me, might have been both actually."
"Scene Of Crime are at the… well… scene," Gwaine announced as he talked on his phone. Uther looked up.
"You and Percival go and see what is happening. Morgana too. Leon can gather any information we need here."
They all nodded and went piling into Gwaine's car after Percival had given Leon the keys to his car. Lancelot, slightly forgotten by the rest of them, crouched down by Merlin's side.
"He's fine," Arthur said. "Just a bit cold. How did they get him out?"
"He walked," Lancelot said. "Percival saw him out of the window. He went of his own accord, looking for you, we think. Merlin's disappearance happened after yours."
Arthur blinked, and looked at Merlin again. His hand held Merlin's, he had refused to be separated from him. As they had moved Arthur, he had taken Merlin's hand and they had both shuffled over to the ambulance. Merlin still had Isolde's blanket around him and one of the paramedics had added another to make sure Merlin stayed warm.
"We need to take them both in now," the paramedic told Uther. "You can travel with your son if you wish."
"I want to stay with Merlin," Arthur said stubbornly.
Lancelot shifted, so he was in front of Merlin, rather than at his side, so he could look up at Arthur.
"I'll stay with him. Arthur I think you need to look after yourself for a moment. Merlin will be all right with me." Lancelot glanced up at Uther. "Could we taken Merlin straight back to the annexe? I don't think we need stress him out by admitting him into the main hospital. Especially since the press might have wind of this."
Uther nodded.
"Perhaps it's safer for both of them there. Let me make a phone call."
XxxxxxxxxxxxxX
Gwaine, Morgana and Percival carefully made their way through the half built building. The lighting didn't appear to be up to much, but the Scene of Crime had brought enough themselves. The trio passed Morgause's body, which one of the team concentrated on photographing her body, and found one pathologist examining Cenred.
"Everything appears to have started from along here. There are several pairs of footprints to and from the end room. Two sets left there, examining several of the rooms, and going into this one."
"From what I can tell," another of them said, his head popping out of said room. "They hid in here, and someone came out."
"Which I think was when the fight happened," the pathologist said. "There is definite sign of a scuffle, our victim here…" she pointed at Cenred.
"Interesting to hear him called that," Gwaine murmured. Morgana glowered and hushed him, peering over to see what was of interest.
"Has bruising to indicate he was attacked, but by the look of it, he punched back. There is marking to indicate that. He was struck several times by a blunt object, which has been taken from the scene, and then stabbed. I think I'd be inclined to safely guess that the weapon in the neck of our second victim downstairs is the one that killed him. Both weapons, I think, were retrieved after Cenred died."
"What makes you say that?" Morgana asked. The pathologist frowned but pointed to Cenred's hand.
"By the amount of dried blood here, I would suggest that he pulled the weapon out himself. But it has been taken. There is a partial print here, but I can again guess, it will match one of the two people found on the road."
"Which means Arthur," Gwaine said. Morgana gave him a sharp look.
"You can't assume that."
"Are you seriously going to consider Merlin as an assailant? He doesn't move."
"He did walk out of the hospital on his own."
"I think there is a difference between ambling about and killing someone," Gwaine said. "And as nice as Arthur is, if he is anything like Uther, he wouldn't have hesitated. He had Merlin to protect." Gwaine looked down at Cenred, his face flickering with distaste. "I don't think I'd have thought twice either."
"I would think in this case, we have definite cause for self-defence."
"What about downstairs?" Morgana asked.
XxxxxxxxxxxxxX
"Arthur, we're following the ambulance with Merlin. They'll stay together."
Merlin seemed to be his son's only concern. And if Uther ordered, people generally obeyed. Both emergency vehicles were staying together, blue lights flashing but sirens quiet. It wouldn't be that busy on the roads at such an early point in the morning.
"Arthur, are you all right?" Uther demanded.
"I'm fine, I feel a bit sick now."
Pain rather than warmth now came from his knee. Whatever drug he had been given appeared to be wearing off.
"My shoulder hurts too, and I'm sure I banged my head."
"Arthur?" Uther's voice stayed gentle. "Arthur?"
Arthur blearily raised his head from the contemplation of his knee, and what might have actually happened to it.
"I can't obviously question you," Uther pointed out.
"Anything he says now can be put down to the affect of the drug," the paramedic added. "Technically you shouldn't talk to him at all."
Uther shrugged, concentrating on Arthur. Arthur blinked again, causing yet more blurring.
"That's getting tedious."
"What is?" Uther asked in concern.
"My vision's blurry."
Uther looked up at the paramedic.
"It could be the drug or the head wound," he said. "Since he's quite coherent I think more the drug than the bang on the head, the wound isn't too serious from what I can see."
"I think it was blurry before I banged my head," Arthur mused.
"Arthur, what happened? How on earth did that woman get you?"
"I've no idea. I saw her, she looked to be in trouble, she looked ill, so I got out of the car, and then…" Arthur paused, frowning as he tried to remember it. "It was as if she ran into me, and I felt myself falling and just couldn't stop it, I tried to fight her, but I don't even remember her coming anywhere near me. I could see her stood about six foot away from me. That was it, then I woke up in the building with Merlin nearby."
"We think…" Uther paused, and glanced up at the paramedic, who pretended to be very absorbed in something else. Uther glanced back at Arthur, leaning closer to him and lowering his tone. "We think Merlin sensed it, that she had taken you, then we received the report that Cenred had escaped."
"He said he just walked out, how is that possible?" Arthur asked.
"He obviously has something similar to Merlin, a talent…"
"Empathic," Arthur said.
"Sorry, what?" Uther asked with a frown.
"That's what Morgause said about him, that he was empathic, that he siphoned off the emotions from the boys. Somehow Cenred linked with her."
"Vivian found her, a picture showing that she was seriously ill. We've left her searching for any record of her. The building is owned by a company hidden within a company. It links to Cenred, but we need to find a reference to her. Vivian saw her at a corporate event a few months back, looking like she was dying."
"Somehow the energy was sustaining her," Arthur said. "When I killed Cenred, it seemed to affect her. In the foyer of the building, she looked like I had stabbed her, not him."
Uther tensed, hearing Arthur ramble, talking about his crime as if it was commonplace. Uther assumed Arthur was nothing more than too stunned to comprehend his actions. There had been too much going on in the moment for him to realise what he had done. At least he hoped it was that.
"She said the same about me," Arthur added. "That I was empathic, that I could sense things. I always could with Merlin, and …"
Arthur frowned, eyes rolling in his head. Uther moved closer to him, putting an arm around him.
"What? Arthur, what?"
Arthur had been idly contemplating how often his father had clung onto him now, desperately trying to reassure him. It was Igraine who had done most of that when he was little. Uther worked odd hours. Arthur couldn't say he was never there, but it had been sporadic. Now Arthur shook his head and focused on what he was talking about.
"Merlin spoke. Well, not exactly. I spoke, but it was Merlin. I could feel him, right inside my head. And I said the words for him, to Morgause."
"And what did he say?" Uther asked warily.
"You're not taking Arthur away from me. I'm not sure, there was something between Morgause and Merlin, another connection. I wasn't quite part of it, but when she moved closer to Merlin I attacked her."
"How severely?" Uther asked.
"I stabbed her too, in the neck, she's… well, she's dead. There was just… as if I broke something between them." Arthur knew he was rambling, trying to get his point across. "I saw them, something was going on between them and I broke the connection."
Arthur paused for another minute or so, dredging up the courage to reveal the worst fear of the moment.
"I think it hurt Merlin," Arthur eventually said. "I think I broke him."