I'm going to kill someone if they don't turn up the heat in this damn building.
I opened my eyes expecting to see my dreary room. The ceiling was a little too close, it was too dark, and the sound of heavy breathing penetrated my ears louder than any noise I'd ever heard.
My head was throbbing painfully. Was this what a hangover felt like? Was it a hangover? I didn't recall drinking.
I wanted to lift my arms to cover my ears and block out the headache but I found that I couldn't move them. That was strange. I was at least able to turn my head to the side and found the source of the heavy breathing. A man's face lay very close to my own. He had blood running down his cheek from a small cut and his eyes were closed. The skin around one of the eyes was black and blue. His hair was so blond that it almost appeared white and his ears were pointy.
All around me was broken glass and splintered wood chips. I still couldn't move or feel anything other than my head and I couldn't remember where I was or what happened to me. I slowly lifted my head to try and see if I was hurt. That slight movement resulted in the movement sent a shock wave through the right side of my body.
A blood curdling scream penetrated the stuffy air.
Everything snapped back in an instant. I felt it all, every deep and shallow cut, every drop of blood lost. I felt every bruise and all of my broken ribs. Worst of all, I felt the searing burn of the poison wrapping itself around the bones in my arm.
The ceiling above me disappeared and a light shined in my face.
A hand clamped down over my mouth and a voice shouted at me, telling me I was going to be ok. This person was obviously delusional. The only way it would be ok is if I died, right then and there, and the pain went away forever.
"What do we do?!" Someone shouted.
Here's an idea, shut up. Your voice is way too loud. I thought, wincing at the sound.
"Her arm is glowing!" Another voice shouted.
Really?
"I've seen this poison before. Its calcium based. It's going to follow her bones to her spine and then deteriorate every bone in her body." A third voice explained. That scared me.
"It moves very slowly and hasn't gone far but we need to isolate it in her arm otherwise the damage may become permanent." The voice said. I panicked for a moment but I thought of an idea during that panic attack.
"Mmmrk mah mahm!" I screamed into the hand over my mouth.
"What did she say?"
"Take your hand off her damn mouth and maybe we'll know." The person did as they were told and I breathed in a large amount of air. The deep breath made my broken ribs ach.
"Break my ARM!" I screamed. The voices around me went silent. I wished that they would get rid of that ridiculous light so that I could see their faces.
"We don't need to be that dramatic."
"Actually, it may help slow down the poison. It won't be enough to stop it but it will buy her a few more minutes.
"Just do it!" I screamed, not wanting this pain to grow into any other part of my body. A hand found mine and squeezed it softly.
"I'm sorry." The person whispered close to my face. I didn't say a word as I braced myself. The hand tightened and something struck me. I didn't want to scream. I wanted to be brave and take the blow in silence but I just couldn't.
It hurt and I cried.
"How is he?" A kind voice asked.
"He was infected by black magic that was keeping him from recovering through treatment. If I hadn't found out about it when I did he may have already been too far gone. Fortunately, it wasn't difficult for me to break the hex that was on him once I got back here. He could wake up at anytime. Be assured that it will happen very soon." Another voice explained.
"He's not going to be happy." The first voice, small and feminine, whispered.
"None of us are happy. We don't even know if she's going to make it." A third voice snapped. That didn't sound good at all.
"Don't talk like that! Of course she will make it." The woman argued, defending an unknown "she".
"I believe she will be fine, Clay. The only complication was the poison in her arm." The logical second voice said.
"Don't know if she's going to make it…"
"Poison…"
Rai…
What a wonderful thing to wake up to. The kid can't even stay out of trouble when I'm incapacitated.
Feeling in my body came back slowly and it was painful as hell. The tight pain in my chest was the worst of it. The pain subsided as slowly as it had appeared. I cracked my eyelids open and was blinded by the bright lights in the room. I groaned and got the attention of the three other occupants in the room.
"Hellboy!" Liz shouted in relief.
I tried to sit up, ignoring the pain in my chest and back. Ignoring it became much easier when Liz pulled me into a hug. I enjoyed the short moment of contact and let go reluctantly when she stepped back.
I blinked a few times to get use to the light. When I refocused on the people around me I was a little surprised. Liz had her arm in a cast. Abe had bandages on his two arms. Clay's usually well kept hair was in disarray and his tie was loosened and wrinkled. His suit was tattered and dirty. Another quick glance around the group brought me to the realization that all of them looked like crap.
"Has no one here been sleeping or showering since I last saw you?" I asked with a teasing smile. Liz smiled back. Abe blinked. Clay ignored the joke and dropped his head into his hands, exhausted.
I steadily got to my feet, ignoring Liz and Abe's protest. I tried to retain some dignity as I stumbled toward the door.
"Hellboy, you need to stay in here. You aren't fully healed yet." Liz said planting herself in front of me as I tried to leave. "I'm fine." I countered, trying to step passed her. She held her ground with a scowl. "And where exactly do you think you are going?" She asked with her hands on her hips.
"I want to see Sparky." I replied. Liz tensed.
"Red… you can't. She's… busy." Liz tried to explain. I rolled my eyes at her.
"Can the bull shit. I heard all of you. I know she's in trouble and I want to see her." Liz tried to stay in my way but I made it passed her.
Once I was out in the hall, I realized I had no idea where to start looking. Liz followed after me and directed me to the right room.
I walked as quickly as my body would allow. My father stopped me at the door to Rai's room. He looked relieved to see me but then he gave me a look I knew very well that said that I needed to stay calm.
I entered the room with Liz who was ready to catch me if my legs gave out. Not that it would be very helpful seeing as I'd probably crush her.
"Sparky." I breathed softly. The girl wasn't even recognizable under all the bandages. Her head and half her face were covered with gauze.
Her beautiful, acidic green eyes were closed. Every part of her body, from head to toe, was either bandaged or in a brace. The bandages were starting to turn red after soaking up so much blood.
I felt my father place a hand on my shoulder. "There's nothing you can do for her right now." My father said. Suddenly Liz was in front of me, trying to push me back and take me away from the sight.
"Sparky. Come on kid wake up." I muttered, suddenly feeling completely at fault. I need to take care of her. I need to make sure she would pull through this. Liz kept pushing and a few minutes later she got me away from the room.
"What happened?! Who did this? How did she…" I was so pissed I couldn't even complete my thought. This wasn't what I wanted to wake up to. This wasn't something that I wanted to worry about. But it was here, in front of me and there was nothing I could do. I stormed back into the medical room that I had been held in and confronted Clay.
"The Ornias Brothers." He said, answering a question that he hadn't heard me ask aloud.
They would pay.
"There really isn't much left for you to do. One of them is dead and the other two had no intention of kill her." Abe said. Clay barked a laugh. "That doesn't mean they didn't cause some damage." He glared at Abe, daring him to question the statement. I was surprised by the agent's fierce attitude.
"There was another person that we found unconscious at the scene who wasn't one of them. He apparently tried to protect Rai and she protected him. He told us everything that happened and he's currently receiving medical attention." Abe explained. I sat down on the edge of my bed.
"What happened, Blue?" I asked. Liz sat beside me and Clay put his head back in his hands. Abe remained standing and explained every detail of the incident that he had seen through Rai's memories.
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. "Why on earth was she in a bar?" I asked, trying to sound as calm as possible. Clay shook his head. "You'd have to ask the leprechaun." He replied. I pinched the bridge of my nose.
A leprechaun? Of all the creatures in the world that she would end up in a bar with, it had to be a damn leprechaun?
"How does your head feel?" She didn't answer.
"Can you touch the tips of your fingers to your thumb, please?" She lifted her left hand and showed me that she could.
"How about the right hand?" I asked. She stared down at her right arm, willing it to move, but she had no success. "Sorry, Abe." She mumbled.
"It is alright. I didn't expect you to be able to move it." I placed her medical chart down on a side table. "When was the last time you had your bandages changed?" She glanced over at the clock near the door.
"Two hours ago." She answered quietly.
"Good." I stood from my chair and started towards the door.
"Is Caleb ok?" She asked before I could leave. I turned around to look over her again. She was still mostly covered in medical gaze and dark purple bruises. She looked tired and I knew, despite the strong medication, she was in serious pain. Yet she was still worried about someone else.
"He is recovering. He woke up long before you did and we contacted his family to inform them of the situation." I explained. She nodded her head slowly. "And the Brothers?" She asked hesitantly.
"Karson is dead. Mykail and Jacob are being..." She interrupted me before I could finish. "His name is Ja-kub, not Jacob." She muttered. I stared at her questioningly for a moment but then I decided it didn't really matter.
"Right, Ja-kub. The two of them are being taken care of and will be detained for further questioning about the incident."
She didn't seem to care about that last part. All she wanted to know was who was alive and who wasn't. She stared up at the ceiling mindlessly.
"Hellboy is awake." I stated, earning a very strong reaction from Rai. She tried to sit up but her chest and her back were too sore. She opened her mouth to ask me about the hex but I shook my head. "Don't worry about that. I removed every trace of the hex and he is back to his old self again." She sighed in relief.
"He wants to see you." I whispered quietly. Rai went back to staring at the ceiling.
"Why hasn't he? Why hasn't anyone come to see me, Abe?" She kept her voice low. She sounded upset.
"The professor and Director Manning wished to speak with you first." I replied. The wounded girl exhaled loudly and closed her eyes. I waited for her to say something in reply. Her facial features relaxed and I realized, as I listened to her breathing even out, that she had fallen asleep.
Leaving was always hard for me. As much as I hated to upset everyone, I knew that leaving was the right thing to do. I said my goodbyes to almost everyone. I hadn't had a chance to see Rai since she woke up. As I finished packing my things, I took one last glance at the bleak room and walked out the door.
I hadn't said goodbye to Hellboy because I knew he wasn't ready for it yet. The thought crossed my mind right before I felt his presence beside me. He had finally caught up to me. I had already avoided him long enough to convince myself that this was what I wanted. Nothing he was going to say could convince me otherwise.
"You don't need to leave. You can find help here, Liz. You don't need to go." Hellboy spoke up as he tagged along beside me. I shook my head.
"You don't understand, Hellboy. I have to get out of here." He grabbed my arm and pulled me around to face him.
"You don't." He stated firmly.
"Yes. I do."
He didn't look happy. He never did when I started to leave. He was crushed every single time. I hated hurting him but I just couldn't deal with the threat of killing someone. I didn't know how to keep my abilities under control. "Listen Red, you can't keep waiting on me." I said softly. He looked surprised by my words. He opened his mouth to deny my statement but I shook my head.
"You know I care about you just like I care about Abe and the Professor. But I don't think I care about you in that way right now." I let my words sink in. He seemed to consider them but never took his eyes off me. The eyes told me all I needed to know. He was upset, frustrated, and confused.
"You aren't leaving because of me are you?" He asked. I was thrown off by his question.
"No! HB it has nothing to do with that. I'm leaving because I have to. It has nothing to do with you." I stared at him forcefully hoping he would understand.
"Then you don't…feel the same?" He muttered. He looked defeated and heartbroken.
"I didn't say that exactly. If we ever see each other again, I might be better prepared to answer that question. But until then…." I placed my hand on his cheek and forced him to look at me. I smiled at him sadly. "You really need to open your eyes." I whispered. He stared at me in confusion.
"You have someone right in front of you that cares about you just as much as I do, maybe even more than I do. Don't lose her, Red. She might be exactly what you're looking for. You never know until you try." While he stood there, even more confused than he was before, I hugged him tightly. He hugged me back after a few hesitant seconds.
"Goodbye, Hellboy." I whispered. I snuck in a kiss on his cheek before I pulled away and left him standing in the hallway, completely dazed.