The Bet

Chapter 14

8:23 a.m.

Station Square Hospital

"Silver, what happened?" Amy asked. The silver hedgehog didn't answer, his head in his hands, shaking it slowly, rocking back and forth. "Silver? Silver. Please, answer me…" it was all she got. Tails, who was outside the same room in the hall, was talking to the doctor while Blaze was cared to by nurses.

"Is she okay?" he asked.

"Well, she suffered a lot; three broken ribs, a dislocated arm, cuts, bruises, and she was raped…tests showed it was from five different guys. We're waiting on DNA results as we speak, and she was out in the cold for a while before Mister Silver found her. I can only imagine if she had to walk just to get to his house…"

"How long before she wakes up?" Tails asked. He spotted Amy cradling Silver as he wept.

"I'd give it a day or two, all depends on if her body rejects the medicine or not. She'll be going into surgery to take care of her other wounds soon, for now, it's best we give her morphine while she's out and-" he stopped when he heard screams and seconds later a chair crashed through the frosted window to Blaze's room.

"IT'S ALL MY FAULT! I SHOULD HAVE WENT WITH HER!" Silver shouted. His blue aura surrounded the next chair and he threw it into the wall near Amy and she screamed again. A nurse rushed over with a syringe and injected it in the hedgehog's neck. The blue aura that surrounded a vase faded away and he slumped to the floor in a heap.

"We've had to do that six times before you guys showed up. Once he wakes up, he rocks back and forth before crying and then throws something. This is the first he's thrown something so big…"

"…Thanks." was all Tails could manage before walking in the room. Silver was out-cold and it didn't seem to faze Amy who was shaking. Shadow came rushing in the room just then.

"What happened?" he asked. His eyes fell upon Amy and the broken chair next to her, one of its four legs embedded in the wall near her head. His gaze softened as he helped the poor girl off the floor.

"Silver's been yelling and throwing things since Blaze has been here. Supposedly, this the first time he's thrown an object so big." Tails replied. Setting Amy in the only still standing chair, he helped Tails drag the unconscious hedgehog to the window sill.

"I thought you had left?" Amy asked, her voice shaking from the obvious scare. Shadow returned and held her for a second.

"I was about to when I heard the glass break and screaming. I sort of figured it was you…" Shadow said, helping her up again.

"Where were you going?" Tails questioned. The fox didn't like the idea of him leaving when a silver hedgehog was mentally unstable while his crush laid in a hospital bed motionless.

"If you hadn't noticed, I nor Amy has eaten since being up, not to mention being woke up when someone just had to have everyone here for the telekinetic hedgehog who's lost his mind." Shadow sneered at the fox. Tails was taken aback from the ebony's harsh tone.

"What's with the sudden attitude?" Tails asked, with a small hint of anger in his face.

"Tails, please. We're all just tired and need some sleep." Amy suggested, but that didn't stop the nasty look Shadow threw the golden fox.

"I don't know why you're talking to me, he's the one with the tone…" he said, sounding like a child.

"Well, since when is it any of your-" Amy pressed a hand to the hedgehog's mouth shut him up before he started something. She had said his grudge would get him in trouble. Leading him out the room carefully, only then did she lower her hand.

"You need to calm down, Shadow. He only wanted as many people here to support Silver and Blaze while they're in this situation." Amy stated calmly. All the ebony could do was snort.

"I can understand that, but what I don't understand is how he thinks he just gets to know where everyone is at all times. We have lives. I don't have time to just sit around waiting for Blaze to come to. We have other problems." Shadow said coldly.

"You wouldn't be saying that if it were me…" the rose-pink girl whispered. His intense blood red orbs shifted to her jade green ones.

"You know I wouldn't let it get that far." he said quietly, his tone softly demanding. They each others gaze for two seconds more until the doctor came back.

"The results just came in." he said.

"Well, who did it?" Tails asked.

"The results show that it matches with Scourge the Hedgehog, Xavier the Fox, Jack Deanate, Ivan the Hawk, and…Sonic the Hedgehog…" the doctor stated.

"I should've known." Knuckles commented. Rouge and Amy shook their head, while Tails and Shadow were trying to contain their rage.

"Is that all?" Rouge questioned. The doctor shifted, before continuing.

"Yes and no. You see, all these men belong to a street gang called 'War Broken Hearts'. That's what the broken arrow and black heart means. The police have been trying to track them down for years and…we were told that anyone involved with them must be immediately reported to the police to be questioned." he said, sadly.

"B-But you can't! We didn't do anything, Sonic did!" Rouge exclaimed.

"I know, I know. It's what we were told to do, all results are recorded and sent to police in cases such as these…" he paused, before lighting up, "…with the consent of the person in such case."

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

"We'll call as soon as Miss Blaze wakes up from her surgery. All we can do is wait now." the doctor said. Everyone nodded understanding as the silver hedgehog begun to move.

"Uggghhh…" he moaned. He rubbed his head and his eyes fluttered open. The nurses quickly rushed to block his view from the healing feline, hoping he wouldn't lose it again. They couldn't afford him breaking more stuff…

"Silver, are you okay?" Amy asked.

"I feel like a truck hit me…" he said, his words slurred. He spotted the nurses, then the beeping machines and realization came in. "Where's Blaze?" he demanded.

"She's resting Silver-"

"I said where is she?!" he demanded again. Sighing he defeat, the doctor signaled for the nurses to move away as he slowly approached. "Oh, Blaze…" he muttered, taking the hand of the good arm in his, resting his head against them.

"I think it's best we give them privacy. I don't want him going crazy again." the doctor whispered to Tails. He nodded and motioned for everyone else to do the same. Even when they were all in the hallway, the broken window still gave away the distraught room.

"Well, as previously stated, we'll call all of you when she awakens. Until we meet again…" the doctor said, in a manner of saying goodbye.

"So…what do we do now?" Amy asked. Tails shrugged.

"What can we do? It all rests on when Blaze wakes up, and even still, we don't know where they're hiding, if in town. Just go on with our lives…" was all he could say.

XxXxXxXxXxXxX

Amy and Shadow returned to the hotel room, after eating, and Amy collapsed on the couch. "Never in my life would I have thought something like this could happen…" Amy sighed.

"Everyone's life isn't perfect. There are other people who go through this, just probably not as much where it affects us." Shadow stated truthfully. This only caused the girl to sigh again. Then something resurfaced in her thoughts…

"Shadow, what was that back at the hospital? Tails didn't mean anything by asking where you were going." she asked, sitting up.

"I know…honestly, I couldn't tell you even if I tried. I'm just sick of all Sonics' been doing. If he seriously thinks he'll get away with cutting little girls and going as far as raping one of his former teammates, then he must be stopped." Shadow explained sitting next to her. Amy shook her head.

"So…you're just stressed?" she asked, not certain herself.

"I guess you can say that. I think I woke up too early to be doing all this…" Shadow sighed. He said nothing else as he sunk further into his seat. Oh how he wanted to fall asleep right then and there…

"Ohh! I got an idea!" Amy exclaimed. He reluctantly reopened his eyes to look at his female counterpart.

"Can it wait…?" he asked. She shook her head enthusiastically. Blowing out a breath he had held, he let the rose-pink hedgehog lead him away from the comfy couch. To think I'd ever want to sleep on one so badly…

"What am I looking at?" Shadow questioned. She had made a flourishing movement towards the bed in front of them when it looked exactly the same, with the exception of a small plush on his side.

"Umm, well, I started moving the pillows but I realized that I didn't have any then, so I moved them again, but then you didn't have what I was going for, so I moved everything back and thought of letting you sleep with my kitten, Snowball." she smiled.

"…No."

"Aw, come on! I worked hard on this!" Amy whined. She pouted and crossed her arms. The ebony one just rolled his eyes.

"What part of 'letting' me sleep with a stuffed animal helps me…sleep?" he asked, eyeing the infernal thing with a level of disgust.

"Something to cuddle, I guess." she said with a shrug.

"That's what you're for." Shadow shot back with a blank stare. Her eyes with wide and blushed as he just came out and said that.

"I'm a sleeping tactic now?" Amy questioned. She placed her hands on his hips when he ignored her and laid on the bed, tossing the plush to the side.

"If you want to put that way, sure." and his red irises were hid behind dark eyelids. The girl continued to blush as he had no shame in admitting it. Puffing, she closed the curtains in the room, picked her kitten, and laid next to the hedgehog. And just like that she was flush up against Shadow.

"You're crushing Snowball…" Amy said quietly.

"Put her down." he demanded softly. Sighing deeply, she placed the kitten on the bedside table. So, then he could cuddle her.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

"Did you do as you were told?"

"Yeah, I was there. I'm sure we got their attention now…" Scourge said.

"Well, go on to phase three. It's time I got my revenge."

"But-"

"This is an order! Do it now!"

"When will you learn, Blue?"

"Yes, sir…"

XxXxXxXxXxXxX

"Hello?"

"Silver, I need your help…"

"Sonic?! You…you bastard! How could you do something so cruel and expect me to help you?!"

"Please, hear me out! They made me do it. That was just phase two-"

"Sonic, this better not be a prank. I'm not in the mood."

"I'm not kidding! Scourge is looking over me to make sure I do this. Even now, I have to sneak around to find a spot just to talk to you. I might not have that much time left. I really need your help."

"…Alright, shoot."

"The hideout is in the district near the pier. Warehouse 034, if the light is out, the boss is here. Scourge leaves periodically on Thursdays and Saturdays, that should be the best time to strike. If not, use someone to get in. A girl or something. Make sure you disguise yourselves, the boss knows everyone, especially Shadow. I have to go!"

"Wait, who is-*click*"

"Well, Shadow will want to hear this…"

Shadow cuddled Amy even further, as she laid awake for a while relishing the moment. She wanted to have a memory where she could say he honestly loved her when he didn't say it. As bad as she really wanted her plush, she figured this would be just fine as his soft snores filled in the silence. He must've been real tired…

This made her think. He said he was stressed, but most of the time when he is, he just drowns it with alcohol. Now he battles it with sleep, while using her as a plush toy. It was sweet, yet confusing. And she couldn't help but wonder; why…? Sighing quietly to herself, Amy just let it go and decided to get some rest herself.

XxXxXxXxX

About three hours had passed since the two went to sleep, and all was quiet in the room. But, as they slept, Tails and Cream made their way to the right room the desk clerk told them about. She was nice enough to even give them a key, seeing as they were just friends. The fox had received a call, not to long after leaving the hospital from Silver sharing the information he got from Sonic. He shocked at first, but after he calmed down, he said he'd tell Shadow…if only he answered the phone. Cream even called Amy's cell, and she didn't answer either, so that's why they were here now.

"This should be it…" Tails muttered to himself. Inserting the key, a green light flashed and he twisted the handle, letting themselves in. "Where are they?" he asked.

"They're probably sleep. Explains why they didn't answer the phone." Cream replied. Shrugging, he went towards the bedroom, stopping short when he heard…giggling. Looking back at the cream rabbit, she could only offer a shrug of her own, before he carefully opened the door. Inside, he found a shocking scene.

Shadow had his head in Amy's lap as she scratched behind his ears, purring throughout the whole process. The most shocking part was that he was sitting there letting her do it. Cream couldn't help but let out a giggle of her own, as Tails was mostly being scarred for life. Clearing his throat to grab their attention, Shadow immediately sat up and pushed Amy away. He finally spotted the two at the door, as the rose-pink hedgehog behind him continued to laugh.

"You saw nothing." he threatened.

"Sure…"

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

"He said all that?" Amy questioned.

"That's what Silver said. He hung up apparently because someone came back. Maybe Sonics' still on our side." Tails said hopefully.

"If he was still on our side, he would've called way sooner than this. He cut my friend's…friend, and left her there to die! How is that on our side?" the pink hedgehog exclaimed.

"I agree. He's gone too far to ask for automatic forgiveness. He could be setting us up, for all we know." Shadow said, crossing his arms.

"Silver said he sounded sincere. I believe him-"

"But did you hear the conversation?" Shadow asked, angered.

"No…"

"Point proven."

"But better yet, we can prepare for it! He's being bullied into this." Tails said.

"Bullied or not, he knows how to fight back. As he likes to brag, 'He's the Fastest Thing Alive!' Not so fast when all our lives depend on it, huh?" Shadow said. Tails blew out a breath. Reasoning with the dark hedgehog was like fighting with your own reflection in the mirror. You make a point and he finds a way to make you look stupid before you can even wrap you hands around the idea of it being good!

"Okay, what do you suggest we do?"

"Absolutely nothing."

"What?" Cream exclaimed. It was the first time she'd spoken since they started arguing. "You can't seriously expect us to sit by and do nothing while he's out there with whoever doing who knows what!" she said, enraged.

"Well, last time I checked, Blaze was in the hospital, and Silver's gone completely crazy worrying about her. We can't fight unless we have a full team, and even still, that might not be enough." Shadow told her.

"So? We weren't made heroes because we sat around and waited for Eggman to foil himself. We fought no matter what." the rabbit argued back.

"Yeah, but we still had a full team, then, Cream. Eggman isn't behind this, this time. We're dealing with something or someone who knows what they're doing." Amy said.

"I can even see she has a point, Cream," Tails said. "Whoever is doing this, isn't joking. They want something, but the question is…what?"

Kind of a bad ending, but it'll do. So, how are you liking it so far? As you can see, we have a little interaction with the "boss" of this crew, but the big question is, who is it? And who is he really after? Feel free to guess, and please a review. Until then… -D.A.K