The Quattro was deadly silent as Gene drove thunderously towards St Bartholomew's Hospital. Chris and Ray sat in the backseats tentatively, too shocked to even speak. DI Drake was a know-it-all, pain in the arse, mouthy tart but she didn't deserve anything bad to happen to her. Certainly not after the horror she was put through a few nights ago.
Sweat was trickling from Gene's forehead as he drove crazily, desperate to get to the hospital and see his Bolly as quickly as possible. They parted on an argument. This couldn't be how it ended. She had to be okay. She had to be.
Gene skidded to a halt outside St Bartholomew's Hospital and charged inside like a madman, Chris and Ray hot on his tail. Striding furiously up to the reception, Gene demanded the woman's attention.
"Alex Drake," he barked desperately and almost robotically, "tall, slim, early thirties…most gorgeous thing on two legs…what happened? Where is she?"
"Ah, the woman in the car accident?" the receptionist checked. "She's being seen at the moment."
"She's alive?" Gene breathed, his heart hammering.
"Oh yes, sir, she's very much alive," the receptionist nodded as Ray and Chris sighed in relief, "but she's hurt, the poor thing. Having stitches at the moment, I presume. Her boyfriend's hurt too, but –"
"Yeah, don't care 'bout 'im," Gene spat, "where is she?"
"Down the corridor, second left," the receptionist informed him, "talk to Doctor Williams and he'll be able to help you."
"Cheers," Gene muttered, storming off immediately. Bolly was hurt. That stupid twat Sarouche had put his Alex in danger. Gene was livid.
"Steady on, Guv!" Chris called out as they strode down the deathly pale white corridor. "They said she's all right, there's no need ter –"
"OI!" Gene yelled at a passing doctor. "You Williams?"
The doctor, a highly educated man in his mid-fifties with a white beard, raised his eyebrows at Gene. "I am Doctor Williams, yes," he said calmly, "and you are?"
Gene flashed his badge. "DCI Gene Hunt, Metropolitan Police. DI Carling and DC Skelton. We're here about a fellow colleague, DI Alex Drake."
Doctor Williams nodded in acknowledgement and then motioned to the seats in the corridor. "She's just down the hall at the moment. Have a seat, gentlemen, and I can inform you of what happened."
Gene sat hastily, desperate to see Alex but desperate to understand what happened.
"Alex was out with the young man Oliver Sarouche, which you may or may not be aware of –"
"I'm aware of it," Gene muttered darkly, "she's been seeing 'im. God knows why."
Doctor Williams chose to ignore that last comment. "Well, they were both involved in a car accident. The brakes appear to have been cut on Mr Sarouche's car, an incident which I'm sure will come up in your cases soon, and this resulted in causing the vehicle to spiral out of control on the roads and collide with an approaching lorry."
Ray and Chris inhaled sharply, wincing. Gene's jaw was tightly set; his lips pierced together.
"The car has been severely damaged, but Mr Sarouche made a lucky escape. A bruise to the head, a cut on the arm and pure shock, but nothing serious. He was the one that made the phone call to the hospital and got the ambulances on the scene as quick as possible," Doctor Williams explained.
"And Alex?" Gene demanded, trying not to let his concern for her show through his voice.
Doctor Williams smiled weakly. "No lasting damage. Alex's injuries were a bit more serious than Oliver's – a nasty cut on the forehead which is being stitched up as we speak, a bruised cheek, a cut arm and a bruised leg. Miss Drake also was unconscious for about ten minutes with the force of the car hitting the lorry, but was seen to by medical staff immediately."
Gene felt as if he had just swallowed a bag of sawdust. His mouth was dry and his limbs felt numb. Alex had been hurt. And not only that, but she had been way more hurt than that bastard, lunatic date of hers driving the car.
Sarouche hadn't been knocked out. Sarouche didn't need stitches. But Alex had suffered both of those things.
Gene knew in his heart that this was not Sarouche's fault – some twat had cut the brakes on his car, he had driven with Alex in it and they'd had a crash. But Gene needed to blame someone. Gene needed someone to blame for the fact that his Bolly was hurt.
"DI Drake's goin' ter be okay though?" Ray spoke up.
Doctor Williams nodded. "Perfectly okay. She's a bit shaken up and scared, but nothing a couple of days rest won't sort out. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to make a check on Mr Sarouche."
The doctor left, leaving Gene staring at the floor angrily. Chris and Ray exchanged glances before addressing him.
"Guv?" Chris said tentatively.
Gene was silent.
"She's okay, Guv," Ray swallowed, "Drake's tough, she'll be –"
"Yeah, she's tough!" Gene spat, sitting up furiously. "But how much more of this can she take? She's just a woman underneath her mouthy persona. A vulnerable, fragile, woman. Will she still be tough if this shit carries on? She's been drugged, abused, nearly raped, a victim of my anger and now of a pissing car crash. She doesn't deserve this. She doesn't."
Ray and Chris stared at each other. They knew the Guv was dying to get in Drake's knickers, but the way he was talking about her almost made it seem as if he cared deeply for her. More than just a casual shag. But that wasn't possible, was it? He was the Guv. Gene Hunt didn't do love.
The boys were suddenly snapped out of their little worlds when the unmistakeable sounds of voices and high heels began to approach them. Gene looked up to see Alex, his beautiful Alex, being supported down the hall by a nurse. Even from a distance, Gene could make out the injuries. He could see a violent, purple bruise on her left cheek, the rough, jagged marks of stitching on her forehead and a bandage on her arm. Her thigh was also sporting a blue bruise, and the way she clung to the nurse vulnerably almost brought a tear to his eye.
But Gene Hunt didn't cry. Especially not over birds.
"Gene," Alex whispered as the nurse let her go to fill in a report. Gene's heart shattered at how tiny and broken Alex's voice sounded.
"Come 'ere, Bolls," Gene said softly, drawing Alex closely into his embrace, shielding her and protecting her from the rest of the world. He wrapped his arms fully around her, drawing her closer as she tucked her head under his chin and clung to him.
A few tears leaked from Alex's eyes as she blinked them away furiously. She couldn't cry. Not now. Not here. Everyone had seen her weaknesses enough lately – whether it was the fright in the alley with Ray, the numbing fear at the house of the skinheads or the aftermath that followed. Clinging to Gene harder, Alex found it hard to fight as her body gave into the tears, flowing hot and fast as her small frame shook uncontrollably.
"Shh," Gene said soothingly as Ray and Chris looked on awkwardly, "shh. It's okay. You're okay. Don't cry, Bolls. The Gene Genie's here now."
"You said you wouldn't save me," Alex mumbled weakly.
"Well you said yer didn't need me, Bollykecks. I guess that makes us both liars."
Alex looked up at Gene and smiled, the last tears falling. "I'm so sorry," she whispered, "all I could think of when we raced towards the lorry was you…how I…I never said th-thank you for anything or…or…how I actually d-do need you…I need you, Gene, and I'm so sorry…I'm so sorry…"
"Hey," Gene soothed her, wiping her tears and lightly stroking her bruise as if to wash all the pain away, "you don't have to worry about any of that now, Bolls. Yer still here. I'm here. Even buggering Chris and bloody Ray are here."
Alex turned and gasped as if she had seen them for the first time.
"All right there, Ma'am," Chris grinned goofily, "gave us quite a scare."
"Yeah," Ray smiled weakly, "only you would go driving into a lorry and think you could get away with it."
Alex chuckled, wincing slightly due to the bruise on her cheek. Gene noticed, and then did something that he never, ever thought he'd do.
He kissed Alex's bruised cheek tenderly, right there, right then. In front of Chris and Ray and for the world to see.
"All better now, Bolls," Gene said softly, "now c'mon, we need to see if this fancy poofter boyfriend of yours is all right."
"Not my boyfriend," Alex muttered as she followed Gene round the corridor and back into the large reception area. Gene beamed with happiness, a little smirk tugging on his lips as he burst through the doors to face Doctor Williams and Oliver Sarouche. Ray, Chris and Alex followed closely behind him.
Oliver smiled weakly as he saw Alex, but then gasped when he noticed Gene's thunderous face. Oliver shrunk back, glancing at Doctor Williams anxiously. Gene had a feeling that he wasn't going to like what he was going to hear.
"Alex," Oliver burst out, reaching out to her, "I didn't mean to…I didn't know, I mean, I'm so confused…"
"It's not your fault," Alex offered quietly.
"No…I mean…"
"It would appear," Doctor Williams interrupted sternly, "that your police officers may need to speak with Mr Sarouche."
Oliver looked mortified as Alex frowned in confusion. Gene stared at the doctor as Ray and Chris glanced at each other.
"What do yer mean?" Gene asked dangerously.
"After taking a breath test," Doctor Williams explained, "we discovered that Mr Sarouche had consumed over the legal limit of alcohol before he drove, meaning he has committed the offence of drink-driving."
Alex gasped, bringing her hands to her mouth as Ray and Chris cracked their knuckles threateningly. Gene was livid, his eyes sparked with rage as he clenched his fists.
"WHAT?" he boomed, making everyone jump. "Drink-driving?" Gene seethed. "I trusted you, yer prick, to keep my Bolly safe! And you endangered her life with a selfish, thoughtless, inconsiderate and bloody lawbreaking act!"
Alex blinked back tears as Chris put his arm around her waist comfortingly. Ray stepped forwards to join Gene, furious.
"Gentlemen…" Doctor Williams said firmly as Oliver shrunk back in fear.
"YOU COULD HAVE KILLED HER!" Gene roared, lunging forwards and grabbing Oliver violently, causing vocal protests to come from Williams, Alex and Oliver himself. "ALEX NEARLY DIED BECAUSE OF YOU!"
"GUV!" Ray yelled desperately as Gene began to punch Oliver, throwing the smaller man to the ground and hitting him constantly.
"HE HURT HER!" Gene thundered. "THE SELFISH BASTARD!"
"Gene!" Alex screamed as Chris held her back protectively.
"That's enough!" Doctor Williams shouted as Ray finally managed to drag Gene off Oliver, whom was now sporting a few new bruises to the face.
"Scum," Gene hissed as Ray restrained him with difficulty. Doctor Williams helped a whimpering Oliver to his feet as Chris and Alex looked on in shock. "Fucking scum!"
"Alex," Oliver pleaded, "Alex, baby…you believe me, don't you? I don't know how I'm over the limit! I only had one. Come on, darling…you're my girlfriend, you believe in me don't you, sweetie?"
"I'm not," Alex said quietly, "I'm not your girlfriend, Oliver. I'm sorry, but I can't deal with this. It's all…too much. Us being together, seeing each other…it's not working. I don't think it's going to work. It's just one drama after another and it's only been a couple of days and…and I just can't take it. I'm sorry, but I really can't see you again. Especially not after this."
Oliver stared at her. "But Alex!"
"You heard the lady," Gene growled, "piss off out o' her life. And get out of our sight."
Oliver's jaw dropped in shock as Gene threw his arm around Alex, guiding her out of the hospital as Ray and Chris called the West End Central Police Station. This was on their patch. They could deal with this as the officers at Fenchurch would all be too personally involved with the crime to be fair. Sarouche had hurt one of their own, and no-one would even think about giving him a chance to explain due to that.