Chapter 22

"Steve!" his lover greeted him with a smile.

"So, it's him," the other man said.

The military man walked over to Charlie, who extended his hand, while looking at the stranger. He too had red hair, medium-length, tied in a bun, and darker blue eyes than his lover's. He seemed to be slightly taller than Charlie but thinner, and most notably, three long scars streaked the left side of his face.

"I guess you're Bill?" the Hawaiian asked, remembering that his lover's older brother had been injured by a werewolf during the wizarding war.

"That's right," the wizard smiled, shaking his hand. "Is it a tradition in your family for the in-laws to attempt to assassinate the newcomer?"

Steve looked at him perplexed, while Charlie uttered what he suspected was a swear word in a language both brothers shared. Bill said a few words in the same language, and the younger of the two spoke up.

"He's joking, Steve."

The named man wasn't entirely sure; however, what he was certain of was that Bill was very protective of his younger brother (and he suspected it was the same for the rest of the siblings) and didn't appreciate seeing him in a hospital bed because of his mother.

"Our mother has a rather unique clock," Charlie continued. "When it indicated her I was in danger, she contacted Bill to find me."

"And you know she's not going to let go of me until I tell her where to find you and then she'll swoop in."

Both brothers cast apologetic glances at the former military man, who became concerned.

"Do I need to expect her to try and kill me?"

"It would level the playing field."

"Bill!"

Steve realized he would have to have a conversation with Charlie's older brother if he didn't want to have his lover's, very large, family on his case.

"Let's just say she can be suffocating," Charlie explained.

"Both literally and figuratively," his brother added.

There was a moment of silence during which Steve recalled his lover's remarks about his mother, including the one where she had killed a very powerful witch who had targeted her daughter after Fred's death. There were seven children in their family; six had fought and survived the last wizarding war. Except for Charlie, all had married wizards who had also fought and survived. Some had even been decorated for their actions. The parents of this... dangerous... family had participated in both wars, both in battles and in the resistance. Steve suddenly had no desire to meet them. Charlie had almost died because of him; he almost felt like Bill was giving him a warm welcome considering what he could have expected.

"Alright, what's next?" Bill asked, cutting off the former military man's anxious thoughts.

Charlie looked at him with concern; he must have read on Steve's face or through their connection that he had just played a horror movie in his head.

"I'm going to move in with Charlie to the reserve. Start a life together there."

Charlie's brilliant smile erased all the doubts he had just had about his new family. As long as he saw him happy like this every day, he was ready to take the risk.

"Are your things ready?"

"In the car's trunk."

"And what are you planning to do with the car?"

"Give it back to Danny."

"And come back here on foot?"

"Do you have an idea?" Steve asked, tired of Bill's questioning.

"I'm coming with you, and I'll Apparate us back here."

Before Steve or Charlie could respond, a nurse entered the room, stating she had some final tests to conduct before the patient could leave the clinic and that she was kicking out the visitors for that.

"Well, I guess it's the right time to empty the trunk and return the car."

Steve decided not to argue and led Bill to Danny's vehicle. Without a word, the wizard shrunk their luggage until it all fit into a single backpack. With a nod of his head, he indicated to the non-magical man to get behind the wheel. The latter complied and left the clinic. The first few meters were heavy with silence until Bill spoke up.

"Care to explain how my little brother ended up with two holes in his belly?"

Steve sighed; he expected to have this conversation and dreaded it.

"What do you know?"

"That you thought your mother died in a car accident twenty years ago, that she reappeared in your life a few weeks ago, that yesterday morning she showed up at your place while you and Charlie were sleeping and flat-out rejected your relationship. He told me he wanted to leave, go back to the reserve, but you stopped him. Then a man showed up where he was waiting for you, and he got shot."

"It does sound bad when put that way."

"Oh? Is there a version where it sounds good?"

Steve felt bad; that's not what he meant, but it was the first time he was meeting a member of Charlie's family, and it hadn't been a good start until now.

"Listen, I found out my mother was a compulsive liar and a narcissistic manipulator. She faked her death and then bought off the people close to me to manipulate my life. But she never knew about Charlie. She went crazy when she realized I wasn't following her plans."

"And she hired someone to kill him."

"Yes."

"That doesn't sound any better."

"Bill, I love your brother more than anything. I'd been thinking of coming to join him for months, but I wanted to remove any threats that could weigh on him because of me."

"And so, convincing him to stay with your friend when your mother wanted him out of the way seemed like a good idea."

"I didn't think she would go that far. My mother died twenty years ago; this woman is a stranger to me."

"What makes you think she won't follow you to kill him and get him back?"

"I hope he'll be safe in the reserve or in the magical world in general."

There was silence; Steve didn't like to expose himself, he hoped Bill was done with his questions.

"You're leaving your life for him."

"My life means nothing without him. I thought I lost him, several times, the last time being yesterday. I never want to feel that again."

The non-magical man parked the car in the 5-0 members' parking lot.

"Wait here," he ordered the wizard, pointing to an area not covered by cameras.

He rushed into the building, left a note with the keys on Danny's desk, and hurried back down. He found Bill where he had left him, backpack on his shoulder, and felt the blue gaze inspect him from head to toe.

"Steve."

The named man wondered if he was about to resume his interrogation.

"Welcome to the family."

The former military man sighed in relief; being accepted by Bill meant a lot to him, and he knew how important it was to Charlie. He extended his hand to the redhead, who shook it while smiling, and then, without warning, Apparated. They arrived in the courtyard of the clinic and went up to Charlie's room, where they found him ready to leave.

"Hey, what did the mediwizard say?" Steve asked, concerned, as he wrapped an arm around Charlie's waist to help him stand.

"That I can leave, but I'm prohibited from working, exerting myself, and Apparating for the next two weeks."

The former soldier held his lover's waist a bit tighter; he would do anything to switch places with him.

"Steve, I'm okay."

He didn't reply; he knew it wasn't true and that Charlie was saying it to ease his guilt.

"I suppose you can't take an international Portkey either," Bill said.

"Not recommended, but they didn't forbid it."

"You won't last on a broom for such a long distance, and using Floo networks one after the other will exhaust you."

"An airplane?" Steve suggested.

"Isn't there a risk that your mother will come after you both if she finds out?"

"Not impossible."

"Hey, Bill, confirm with the mediwizard if I can take an international Portkey, even if a medical team has to meet us at the arrival point."

The other two men understood the message; Charlie wanted to leave as soon as possible.

Bill left the room as Steve turned Charlie's head toward him and gently caressed his face.

"Don't apologize, you're not to blame," the wizard whispered.

"I love you."

Charlie smiled, kissed him, and nudged him with his fingers to make him move.

Bill rejoined them, positioned himself on the other side of the injured man, and together they walked to the Floo network to leave the hospital. They went to the airport and took the first Portkey to Romania, then another Floo network to the reserve. Charlie held on throughout the journey, even though he was in pain and getting paler as they went along. However, he passed out when they exited the last Floo network.