Brothers Forgive
By
AJ
Part 3
The hospital? That was something Damian hadn't expected.
"What happened?" Damian asked, genuinely curious.
"I didn't hear everything when Bruce went and got his suit jacket, only that there was an accident and Tim was involved."
Damian stood there for a moment, not sure what to do. He didn't know what to say. That wasn't fully true Could his words have caused this? Did Tim leave because of what he said? What happened out there?
"I . . .I . . ."
"Damian, I don't want to hear any more of your "explanations." Dick stated. "Tim needs us, so let's go."
Damian was silent the whole way as Dick drove them to the hospital. As they drove along the main road to Gotham, they could see police lights up ahead. There was still a police presence at what was the accident scene. Before passing the scene completely, Dick pulled over and parked the car.
"Stay in the car," Dick said as he pulled out his police badge from the glove compartment. Damian watched his brother as he moved over toward where the officers were taking measurements and writing up a report. Damian couldn't hear what was going on, but his sharp eyes spied Tim's damaged motorcycle. Strewn all over the area were the contents of Tim's suitcase. There was no other vehicle present on the scene.
'A hit and run,' Damian thought. 'Someone tried to kill him.'
With that thought, something inside Damian twisted and a hollow emptiness sank into the pit of his stomach. He could feel his heart quicken and his breath came in quick short gasps. He gulped down air and squeezed his eyes shut, rubbing his fingers into the closed sockets to keep from crying. Guilt engulfed him as he realized that his words played a part in Tim leaving.
'I've got to see him.'
Damian wasn't aware when Dick returned to the car until the engine started and they were once more heading toward Gotham.
"What . . . what did they say?" Damian asked trying to keep the emotion from his voice, but failing miserably.
"They think it was a hit and run," Dick answered.
It was just as Damian surmised.
"They will be taking impressions of the tire tracks. There were some clear ones since the ground was soft in that area. I told them to forward the information to my desk."
"The highway patrol would be the ones to investigate, would they not?" Damian asked having just studied about the various branches of law enforcement.
Maybe," Dick stated. "But this did not look like any average hit and run. And you do remember earlier last year what Tim did to secure Bruce's company and the fact that he fingered two crooked cops working with gangs that Tim was trying to work with through his Neon Knights Wayne Foundation project."
"So, you believe this was not a random act," Damian asked.
"Apparently you do, too," Dick added, looking up into the rear view mirror so he could see Damian in the back seat.
"No, I . . ."
"Don't try to hide it Damian. I can see it in your eyes. You were trying not to cry."
With those words a single tear fell down Damian's cheek along with another.
"If you tell Grayson, I will murder you in your sleep," Damian scowled, shaking a finger at his older brother. Then his mouth became a narrow line with a familiar familiar frown. " . . . I . . . I . . . Didn't mean . . . for this to happen. I . . . Didn't expect him . . . to leave."
"A sharp tongue can cut deeper than any knife," Dick stated. "I should know."
"I do not understand."
"When I was in college and came home for winter break, I got a call from the Titans. The mission took longer than expected and I ran late. Batman didn't want to hear any excuse, but he didn't tell me what was going on either. Anyway, after the mission was over, when we got back to the cave, he laid into me and I argued with him over his definition of commitment. We said some pretty awful things to each other and the next thing I knew, he fired me. We didn't speak for almost a year. Within that same year, he . . . replaced me . . . with Jason. Needless to say, both of us were hurt and neither of us knew how to resolve what had happened. And it took nearly three years. We did eventually resolve some things. A knife wound takes weeks to heal depending on the depth of the cut. Harsh words used to wound can take much longer to heal, and even then that wound is far more fragile. It never completely heals, while a knife wound . . . that can leave a visible scar and eventually the scar will fade. The scar in here," Dick pointed toward the center of his chest. "That's hidden and well, that it can remain raw and open for a very long time."
"I think I understand," Damian replied.
"I hope so, for both you and Tim's sake," Dick stated.
"For mine?"
"The one who wields the knife can also get cut," Dick stated. "And the one who wounds with sharp words will also be cut deep if not more so, because the tongue is double edged."
"Those are not your words, Grayson," Damian stated.
"You're right. A Shaolin Priest told me those words a long time ago. They do speak truth. We're almost to the hospital."
"Grayson, please don't tell Father what happened between Drake and I," Damian pleaded.
"It's not my place to tell him what happened," Dick said. "Knowing Bruce, and seeing the contents of Tim's suitcase all over the road, Bruce knows all ready. And if you don't say something to him soon, you know it will go worse for you. Own up to what you did. Take responsibility with no excuses and Bruce might go easy. Neither of us expected the accident. If you expect Bruce to trust you, you have to be honest."
"I . . . I know. I'm just afraid . . ."
"Afraid of what?"
"That he'll send me back," Damian stated in a near whisper.
"I was afraid at one time that Bruce would send me back to the Center if I screwed up, but . . . He's not like that. He might not trust you to do certain things . . . But he won't send you back."
'How do you know?" Damian questioned.
"We'll talk later," Dick stated. "We're at the hospital and I think we need to concentrate on Tim for now."
"Very well," Damian answered, but the next opportunity he got, Damian was going to demand an answer.
Continues With Part 4