The pain quickly subsided and Dipper found Stan unconscious behind the wires. Thankfully he hadn't fallen forward and set off the trap.
"Now this feels much better," came a voice from the back of his mind. "So how many miles ya got on this thing anyway?"
"Shut up Bill," Dipper thought as he contemplated a way to disarm the trap.
"Rude," Bill scolded. "Look pine tree all ya gotta do is cut the wires."
"I figured as much." Dipper hissed with great resentment. "I don't need your help." He growled.
It took some time to properly dismantle the trap and get Mabel down. By the time he had done so she had passed out. He had managed to drag gruncle Stan to his bed and was just laying Mabel down in Fords bed.
"Oh wow, you're a real pervert eh pine tree?" Bill laughed. Dipper was trying to untie the ropes binding Mabel's naked body.
"It's not like that." Dipper protested. Finally getting frustrated with the knots and deciding to simply cut the ropes.
"You don't have to lie to me, I don't judge. Besides, I'm in your head I know all your secrets." Bill reminded with ominous causality.
Dipper reached for the razor still lodged in Mable's shoulder. His hands shook as he made an attempt to remove it. Despite himself Bill's comments infuriated him, "Mabel's my sister!" she shouted aloud, ripping the blade from her flesh.
Mable let out a painful cry.
"Oh my god, Mable I'm so sorry."
Mable looked about weak and bleary eyed. "Where's gruncle Stan?" She asked softly.
"He's here, he's fine." Dipper lied as he started sawing away at the ropes with Stan's straight razor. Stan was still alive at least, but when last Dipper checked, his pulse was slow and his breathing shallow.
"Dipper I feel dizzy." she moaned.
"Don't worry Mabel everything's gonna be ok," Dipper assured as he cut the last rope.
"Don't make promises you can't keep pine tree." Bill said. "She'll bleed out if you're not careful."
Dipper watched as Mable slipped out of consciousness again. Bill was right. He had to do something fast. The hospital, they needed a doctor. But what would he tell them, there's no way he could convince anyone that this was just an accident, could he? What if he was blamed for it.
"Quite the pickle, eh pine tree?" Bill said coolly.
"You!" Dipper realized. "I'm not gonna fall for your tricks, I'm getting Soos and we're going to the hospital."
"Whatever you say pine tree." Bill replied causally.
Thankfully when Dipper brought Soos down to the lab he was to stunned to ask questions. Dipper simply directed him and Soos complied. He had Soos drag Stan out to the car while Dipper carefully wrapped Mabel up in the now blood soaked bed sheets and carried her out.
Stan was heavy and Soos wasn't quite as gentle as he could have been. Dipper couldn't blame him though, he was scared, they both were. Dipper gingerly placed Mabel in the back seat next to Stan who had been propped up against the window behind the drivers seat.
The car ride felt like it lasted forever. The whole time Soos remained uncharacteristically focused on the road. Mabel kept drifting in and out of consciousness. Every time she would whimper, "It hurts," and Dipper would reach back to place a comforting hand on her knee, "I know, everything's gonna be ok."
All the way Bill was laughing at him. Taking pleasure in his pain, rage, and fear.
Upon arriving at the hospital Mabel was rushed to the ICU and Dipper volunteered a liter of blood for his sister. The whole process was exhausting, everything went by in a blur. Somehow the low blood sugar delirium of donating blood left Dipper strangely relaxed. Bill was quiet now as Dipper sat in the hospital cafeteria sipping from a can of Pit Cola.
His mussels ached and he was very aware of the bandage and gauze over his veins. The silence however, did wonders for his rattled senses.
"Oh my god Dipper what happened?!"
Dipper looked up slowly to see Wendy making her way across the cafeteria.
"Soos called me, he said Stan and Mabel were in the hospital. What happened, are you guys alright?" Wendy hurriedly pulled up a seat beside Dipper. She was frantic and it looked as if she had run across town on foot.
Dipper looked down at the table. "Stan has a mild concussion. Mabel's still in intensive care but the doctors said she should be fine in a couple days." Dipper kept staring down at his soda can. Of course Mabel wasn't ok, how could she ever be.
"Dipper what happened?" Wendy asked with great concern.
What was he going to say, that Stan did it? No, telling her about Bill wouldn't help. At best it would cause a panic if anyone knew, at worst...
"You think any of these rubes wouldn't turn on you to get to me? I guess you could hide behind you're uncle like a coward..."
"Shut up! Just Shut up!" Dipper screamed aloud, crushing the soda can so tight in his hands that the twisted metal sliced him palms.
"Wow Dipper calm down!" Wendy took the mangled soda can from him and reached for the napkin dispenser. Dipper looked down at the table to see it covered in soda.
"I- I'm sorry let me help," Dipper reached out to help clean the table only to have Wendy grab his hand.
Wendy set the napkins down and inspected both of his hands. "Geez Dipper you really did a number on yourself." Dipper looked down at his palms. They were bleeding.
"Go clean yourself up, I'll worry about the mess." Dipper nodded and did as he was told. Bill was quiet again.
Later on Dipper was asked to give his testimony on the event to the police.
"I-I'm not in trouble am I?" Dipper stammered as he stared down at his bandaged hands.
"Keep it up pine tree, you're looking nice and guilty." Bill taunted.
"I didn't do anything." Dipper mumbled.
"What are you talking about boy?" Sheriff Blubs puzzled. Dipper looked up at him in surprise. He hadn't meant to say that out loud.
Blubs took a few steps closer and rested his weight on the corner of the table. "Look, kid I wish we didn't have to do this. You've been through a lot and the last thing we wanna do is make this any harder than it's already been."
Was that compassion, sorrow, maybe even guilt? Dipper hadn't ever seen Blubs take his job so seriously before. Nor had he ever spoken so frankly and kindly to him.
"But if we wanna catch the guy who did this, we need you to tell us everything you know." Blubs placed a hand on Dippers shoulder.
"Ha that's a laugh!" Bill chuckled.
"I don't know..." Dipper lied. "I just found them that way." He could hear his heart pounding in his ears. He couldn't tell them Stan did it.
"You can't think of anyone who might have done this?"
"You're a liar pine tree," Bill jabbed. "You're lucky these two are morons, don't rely on it. Someone's gonna find out..."
"It wasn't me!" Dipper shouted hitting his head on the table, hard at first, followed by a series on light tapping. "I didn't do it." He was crying now.
"Hey kid, calm down, no ones blaming you for anything." Blubs lifted his head from the table. Dipper looked into the mans sunglasses and could see his face reflected in them. He hadn't slept in twenty four hours and there was a thin trail of blood dripping down his face.
"Look, go home kid," Blubs sighed. "Clean yourself up, get some sleep. We'll sort this out."
Dipper merely nodded weakly. Bill was quite.