Though entirely unnecessary and a little uncomfortable, Connor allowed Hank to carry him inside the house through the front door and place him down on the couch in the livingroom to begin resting at home. The severity of the damage to his abdomen already made it difficult for Connor to breathe, let alone balance and properly support his own weight long enough to walk without help. Wrapping his damaged left arm around his abdomen Connor held his breath and resisted the urge to move around on his own as Hank placed him down on the couch to get some rest in the livingroom where he can be easily watched by his attentive father.
Sumo readily followed the two detectives over to the couch and watched as Connor was placed down on the furniture where he let out a mild groan of discomfort in the process. Sensing something was wrong Sumo nosed Connor's elbow and whimpered once sympathetically.
"I would be perfectly content with resting in my bedroom." Connor stated in a timid voice as Hank stepped back from the couch and looked down at him. "I doubt anything negative would befall me if I were to be left alone for a few minutes."
"Yeah? Well, I'm not going to take that chance. You're just a magnet for trouble."
"It's not my intention."
"I know that, and I'm not blaming you for anything." Sitting down on the edge of the coffee table beside the couch Hank gave the deviant a bemused smirk. "I just wish I knew how to help you get better faster."
"It's okay and I'm not in any pain."
"Bullshit. Your entire right side was destroyed and your left hand is still busted. You can't tell me you aren't even a little sore from that."
"...Perhaps I am." Admitting he was still feeling a little uncomfortable Connor tried to brush it off as if it were nothing more than a passing cold. "But only marginally so."
"I knew it. Look, son," Hank leaned back a little and ran his right hand over his bearded chin with deep thought. "things are going to get pretty damn hectic downtown for a while. Normally we'd be the ones to deal with it, but since we're too close to this little problem..."
"I understand. We cannot get involved in order to prevent a preconceived bias."
"Yup. You got it."
Squaring his jaw a little Connor gave the exhausted senior detective a curious glance as he ran a self diagnostic on his system. "May I ask how I was rebooted despite suffering from prolonged intracranial overheating?"
"Well, like I told you earlier, that microprocessor you took from CyberLife came in handy."
Connor's soulful brown eyes went wide with a sense of dread as he realized he hadn't seen the microprocessor since he regained consciousness. "...Where is it now?"
"Abby still has it."
"Good." Relaxing a little Connor let out a small sigh of relief through his nose. "She can be trusted."
"Kid, do I want to know why a copy of your brain was tucked inside that little box?"
"It's a long story." Connor turned away from Hank's face and stared at the wall behind him instead. "I don't want to talk about it."
"That's okay. I'm too tired to pay attention anyway." Patting Connor's knee Hank stood up from the couch and proceeded to make his way down the hallway and opened up the closet. Retrieving the dark navy blue blanket and a large pillow from the shelf he returned to the couch and helped Connor lay in a more comfortable position on his back. "You won't need your bandages changed for another three hours, so I'm going to get a little sleep until then."
"I can change the-"
"No, kid. With your left hand busted up you can't take care of your injury and do it right. I'll wake up and help you out, it doesn't bother me."
"...Very well."
"Don't do that." Helping Connor to sit up a little Hank put the pillow under the deviant's head and neck before draping the blanket over him. "Don't give me the kicked puppy look."
"My apologies. I merely dislike feeling useless."
"How many times do I have to remind you that being injured doesn't mean you're useless? You just need to give yourself that week to heal, then I'll let you go back to workin' on Joel's truck until we're both allowed to return to the precinct. Okay?"
"Yes. I understand." Sumo jumped up onto the end of the couch and sat down beside Connor's ankles. As the massive dog's weight was suddenly added to the furniture the couch shook and the motion made Connor wince in the pain he was trying to deny. "...G-Good boy."
"There's nothing that can be done to ease android pain, yet? No android-aspirin or Novocaine?"
"...Nothing beyond disabling our external sensors that allow us to feel until 'Thiricetomal' is made commercially available. It still needs to be tested before it can be sold without a technician's prescription."
"Yeah, okay. I don't want you trying to walk around the house while you're completely numb or hopped up on some questionable painkiller. You'd end up tripping over everything and falling through a damn wall or some shit."
"I appreciate your bode of confidence toward me."
"Nothing personal, but you did get a lot clumsier after you severed your constant cybernetic supervision to CyberLife. You don't have a bunch of additional prying eyes guiding your every step when you make a move."
"And I regret nothing."
"I don't blame ya'." Next running his hand over his much shorter hair Hank let out a tired sigh and noted the late hour of the day. "All right, I need to shower off the smell of bullshit and sleep for a few hours. Don't move from this couch for any reason, got it?"
"Got it."
"Good. See ya' in a few hours, son."
As Hank rose from the coffee table to walk toward the bathroom down the hallway Connor let himself relax and fall back against the thick pillow that he had been given. As he let out a slow breath to keep his abdomen from screaming at him in pain Connor felt Sumo lay down and stretch out his body to lay against his legs and help him feel safer, if not warmer, as he rested.
Closing his eyes Connor let himself fall into rest mode as he listened to the sounds of the house all around him. The sound of Sumo's breathing right next to him, the sound of the A/C keeping the house cool as it dealt with the building summer heat and the sound of water running through the pipes in the bathroom as the shower proceeded to kick on with warm water.
Everything sounded normal, familiar and safe.
However, a single sound that Connor had never heard before was partially muffled by the shower. It sounded like someone was crying, but the only occupants of the house were Connor himself and Hank. And in all the time that Connor had known Hank he had never heard the man cry. He's seen him shed a few tears and choke back a sob, but to actually hear him crying felt wrong; if not impossible.
Unsure of what to do or say, Connor remained on the couch as he listened to the strange sound for only a few more minutes before it stopped. Shortly thereafter the shower itself turned off and all was silent beyond the running A/C and Sumo's breathing.
Pulling his uninjured right hand out from under the blanket Connor rested his palm on Sumo's head and rubbed the dog's ears lightly. While he pet Sumo's head Connor slowly drifted off to sleep as his rest mode initiated and gave him much needed relief from his pain.
Three quiet hours passed and Connor felt a hand shaking his left shoulder lightly. Opening his tired eyes Connor saw Hank was sitting on the coffee table beside him with a roll of fresh android-unique gauze in his opposite hand waiting for him to wake up. With a subtle nod Connor propped himself upright on his elbows and pushed aside the blanket before he lifted up the hem of his black t-shirt and exposed the older bandages wrapped protectively around his abdomen. The last time they were changed was when he and Hank were still at the Zeta Facility and Abby had finished giving him one last physical before releasing him from her care.
Since Hank was familiar with treating android wounds Abby gave Hank a freshly stocked android first aid kit and sent them on their way with simple instructions to follow for future care.
"I don't have to use that orange shit on your wounds," Hank commented dryly through a sleepy yawn. "so this won't take as long to replace."
"I'm certain I could manage to-"
"Shut up. I'm already awake."
Remaining still on the couch Connor watched as Hank cut through the old bandages with a pair of sharp scissors and placed the soiled bandages down on the table to be disposed of later. As Hank carefully replaced the new bandages over the exposed white plastimetal frame that composed Connor's repaired abdomen, Connor couldn't help but notice that Hank's blue eyes were bloodshot beyond that of just fatigue. They were puffy and look irritated.
"Are you ill?"
"What?"
"Your appearance is indicative of someone who is not feeling well, either physically or perhaps even emotionally."
"...Emotionally?"
"I don't mean to pry, but... it looks like you've been crying."
"I'm fine, kid." As he wrapped the bandages around Connor's torso Hank's hands faltered for only a moment as he spoke before resuming their task. "Don't worry about it."
"Can I at least ask why?"
"Connor, please." Raising his voice a little Hank tried to keep himself from snapping at the curious deviant. The deeper voice made Sumo lift his head up and let out a single whimper. "It's very late and I'm very tired."
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to aggravate you."
"You didn't-" Tying off the bandages Hank let out a sigh and leaned back on the coffee table again. "Son, you're not aggravating me. And don't apologize for asking a question." It was quiet for a moment as Hank finished checking his work and was satisfied that the bandages were tied correctly and would hold in place until it was time for them to be changed. "There. Lay back down."
"Thank you for aiding me." Pulling his shirt back down Connor laid back against the pillow and tried to resume his rest mode. "Please, go back to bed and sleep."
"...Don't do that."
"Do what?"
"Act like you did something wrong."
"I know that I tend to ask a lot of questions and that it can be annoying. I will refrain from doing so in the future."
"Damn it. Knock it off!"
"I'm s-"
"And don't say you're sorry!"
"Then what should I say?"
"...I'm going to level with you, okay?" Leaning forward Hank bowed his head and rested his hands over his lap as he finally told Connor the truth. "I'm not sick and I'm not aggravated. The reason I look so rough is because when I was in the shower I was..."
"Crying?"
"You heard."
"Barely. I wasn't eavesdropping, I swear."
"Yeah, yeah. I know you have that super android hearing."
Feeling a little guilty for having overheard Hank crying and putting him on the spot Connor lowered his voice as he dared to ask a follow-up question. "...Can I ask what you were crying about?"
"Seriously? You can't figure it out for yourself?"
"...No." The deviant admitted somewhat shamefully. "I do not know why you were-"
"Because you were fuckin' dead, Connor!"
"I was..." The answer was as blunt as it was accurate. "But I'm okay now."
"Yeah, but you WEREN'T. You were a brain-dead shell of your former self and I was told you'd never wake up. The fact that we found a way to reverse the damage, and that only happened because of some random luck, doesn't make it any easier to handle." Lifting his head back up Hank stared at Connor's face and sighed. "Son, you almost didn't come back from this one. And after a shitty day full of stress and bullshit I had to let it out. But you're not responsible and I don't want you feeling bad, all right?"
"Okay. But... I do want to say one thing."
"What's that?"
"I'm okay, dad. I really am."
"Yeah, I know." Appreciative of the comment Hank felt a modicum of relief wash over him. "Just do me a favor and keep out of politics for a while."
"I can't do that just yet. Markus and I have a lot to discuss tomorrow regarding his connections with the city council."
"That's right, I remember. You guys have a lot of work to do tomorrow afternoon. Get some rest. I'll see you in the morning, okay?"
"All right." Laying back Connor pulled the blanket over his chest again as he prepared to settle in for the night. "Goodnight."
"Yeah, goodnight." Picking up the old bandages from the coffee table Hank waded them up in a ball and threw them away in the garbage can in the kitchen before making his way back down the hallway toward his own bedroom. "If you need anything just yell for me."
Unwilling to sit back and wait for the city to sort itself out Markus was eager to venture outside of the safety of New Jericho Tower to speak with Connor in person out of respect and trust. Wincing in pain Connor let himself fall back against his pillow as he breathed through his discomfort and watched as Markus joined him in the livingroom after passing through the front door with his head held high. The deviant leader looked as exhausted as Connor felt, but he didn't let his own fatigue deter him from doing what needed to be done to protect their people. They had to put aside their own discomfort and fatigue for the betterment of their people.
Hank had let Markus inside and then elected to take Sumo into the backyard so the two deviants could talk in private. He trusted the duo to find a way to handle things without getting violent or doing anything questionable to get any favorable results.
"There are no deviants on the city council," Markus stated in an almost matter-of-fact manner as he stood beside the couch to speak with his friend. "and right now it'd be too dangerous to let anyone from the tower to volunteer to attempt to get elected onto the board. A lot of anti-android bigots are trying to vouch for Nero's character and the last thing anyone should do is attempt to reason with the unreasonable."
"I agree. For now it'd be best to remain quiet and out of the news."
"That's not possible." Markus turned on the television and proceeded to flip through the local news channels. Each channel was talking about the same story revolving around the corrupt mayor's arrest and of the attempted assassination of Markus, and there was no sign of them losing interest any time soon. "I'll lay low and keep to my responsibilities in the tower, but I can't stand back and do nothing if the city starts tearing itself apart."
"I wouldn't expect you to do such a thing. However, I cannot stress enough that you need to remain quiet and out of the public eye until we know if there is anyone on the city council we can trust."
Hank came back inside the house from the backdoor with Sumo at his side after the large dog finished his morning business. Noticing that Markus seemed worried as he spoke with Connor, the senior detective joined the two deviants inside the livingroom after unclipping Sumo from the leash. "How're things coming along?"
"Not very well." Markus admitted in a somber tone as Sumo walked over to him to visit for a moment. "We're trying to think of a way to get more deviant influence established in the city without drawing any unwarranted violence. We have to be delicate during this fragile time."
"Uh, I take it two haven't heard the rumors yet."
"Rumors?" Markus looked to Connor who just shrugged his shoulders and shook his head. "No. What rumors?"
"I just heard from the neighbors that one Mr. Elijah Kamski is speaking to the city council. And... that he is looking to run for mayor."
"M-Mayor? But he..."
"This cannot happen." Connor spoke up suddenly with a stubborn disdain to his voice. "Kamski is not to be trusted under any circumstances."
"I think you're right." Markus was just as wary as Connor about the possible run for office. "Why would a man with no political affiliation try to run for office?" Hundreds of red flags were being raised as Markus contemplated the potential aftermath of such an election and shift of power. "Especially after the previous mayor was just arrested for corruption... There has to be an ulterior motivation for-"
Hank put up his right hand as if to silence the two deviants. "Easy, hold on. Remember these are just rumors. Don't get bent out of shape until you know what's actually going on. Okay?"
Despite the wise suggestion Connor refused to let the matter go. "You know as well as we do that if Kamski becomes mayor that the cold snakes from CyberLife won't be away for much longer. We can't allow him to gain power or allow CyberLife to return."
"Take it easy." Hank cautioned as he watched the deviant getting physically stressed by the idea of Kamski holding any form of power in the city. "You still need to heal."
"I'm fine, I'm not-"
"You're stressing yourself out, son." Hank sat down on the couch next to Connor's legs and put his hand on the deviant's shoulder in a grounding manner. "Like I said, these are just rumors."
"And if they turn out to be true then the city could be seeing another type of Civil War or Revolution."
"You're not the type to exaggerate things." The senior detective was watching Connor's demeanor very carefully. "Where is this coming from?"
Folding his arms protectively over his chest Connor sighed and admitted the root of his worries. "...Miami."
"I saw the footage of those damn experiments, I saw what you saw. But Kamski wasn't there."
"There was... more than what I showed you." Connor gave the senior detective a pained look as he spoke. "The information I confiscated was more detailed and contained postponed experiments that had been sanctioned by Kamski himself."
The revelation made Hank's blue eyes flash with fear and anger on his son's behalf. "Why didn't you tell me?"
"Because I didn't want to talk about it. Please believe me on this."
"I do believe you, but I'd like to see this information for myself."
"Abby still has it." Connor explained in a low voice. "It was stored in a locked file on the microprocessor."
"Markus?" Hank looked to the deviant leader with a patient stare. "Do you mind?"
"Right. I'll go retrieve the microprocessor and look through the data at New Jericho. If Kamski does try to do anything we'll use this information to push him back into the shadows where he belongs."
"Thank you."
Connor nodded to Markus as he silently laid on the couch and wrapped his arms around his sore abdomen. Too tired to get up, even if Hank would allow him to do so, Connor resided to himself on the couch and tried to not think of the worst case scenario if Kamski did try to run for mayor.
"I'll check the data and get back to you in a few days. Connor," reaching out his hand Markus shook with Connor's hand once and took his leave of the house to get some work done. "feel better. I'll remain in contact and keep tabs on everything happening with the city council."
"Markus," Connor shook his hand as firmly as possible. "watch your back. I don't want anything to happen to you."
"I'll be safe, I promise."
As Markus left the house through the front door Hank turned off the television and gave Connor a worried stare. It wasn't like the deviant to have such a strong reaction to rumors and he hadn't kept any secrets from Hank in a long time. Careful to not say anything that would get the deviant worked up Hank spoke in a calm voice and put his hand back on Connor's shoulder.
"Connor, if you don't want to talk about the nasty little secrets you uncovered in Miami you don't have to. But if you need to talk about it I'll listen."
Visibly flinching in pain Connor just remained quiet on the couch as Hank kept him company.
"Man, I don't know what the fuck happened with you at CyberLife except for what you told me, and I'm kinda' glad about that. For what it's worth, I'm sorry you had to suffer so much at the hands of a demented corporation."
"Don't apologize for them. You're too far above them for that type of courtesy."
Laughing at the comment Hank patted Connor's shoulder and retracted his hand. "Nice to know I'm better than a heartless company."
"In every way imaginable. Take my word for it."
While the rumors regarding Kamski's potential return to the public eye swept over the city like a plague, Hank and Connor had no choice but to sit back, watch, listen and wait for any confirmation on the unsettling information. Their mutual close proximity to the ongoing investigation to the corrupt mayor had left them both sidelined until the case was resolved and Connor was getting incredibly restless much to Hank's chagrin. No one had any reason to trust Kamski and had every reason to be suspicious of the arrogant, powerful and resourceful human. If anyone could bring absolute chaos and ruin to the city of Detroit, it'd be Elijah Kamski himself.
The news had little information regarding the possible run for mayor, but it was all the two detectives had to go on while they were away from the precinct. It seemed as if the very thing they hated the most - rumors, speculation and exaggeration, were all they had at their disposal for the time being.
"Connor, stop fidgeting. It's driving me crazy." Hank sighed from his recliner as he looked up over the top of his book to eye the wounded deviant laying on the couch. The coin was dancing its dance over Connor's right knuckles yet again and Hank hated seeing it. "Just five more days and you're free to do whatever you want regarding the the mayor's arrest."
"I can't sit around and do nothing while my people need my help."
"Markus is keeping you up to date on everything that's happening, right?"
"...Yes." Connor admitted as if waiting for a reason to argue. "That is correct."
"And right now all that's happening in New Jericho is a bunch of talking and waiting, right?"
"...Right."
"So, sit still and rest." Hank made it sound so easy as he tried to concentrate on his book again. "Even if you weren't busted up there'd be nothing for you to do anyway."
Sighing with defeat Connor laid back and stopped moving about so restlessly. As he picked up Sumo's green fetch ball from the floor beside the couch he gave the toy a quick toss into the kitchen, but Sumo was too tired from playing fetch for three hours earlier that morning to play again. The massive dog watched the ball disappear into the kitchen from his pillow and showed no interest in chasing after it.
Hank saw the failed attempt to get Sumo to play and laughed at Connor. "Bored?"
"Extremely."
"Want to watch a movie?"
"I've seen every movie you've wished to show me, and I have watched the movies that I personally enjoy numerous times already. I do not have any interest in watching them again."
"You don't want to see anything new?"
"Not at this time, no."
"Well, you're sure as shit not watching the news right now." Hank decided in a terse manner. "It'll just work you up."
Rolling slightly onto his left side Connor looked over at Hank with a stare that spoke volumes of how terrible he was currently feeling. Too weak to move about on his own and too vulnerable from his past injuries to even try to move around, Connor's mind was racing and it was going to push the deviant into a frenzy of restlessness.
"I hate seeing you like that, kid."
"There is nothing I can do to change my appearance or my current condition."
"Yeah, yeah, I know. You'll heal when you heal. Until then," Hank set aside his book and stood up from the recliner to give Connor a more sympathetic approach as he patted the side of his leg to call Sumo over. "I'm going to let Sumo outside for a few minutes. Are you going to stay here and not do anything stupid until I get back?"
Flashing a somewhat offended look Connor just nodded.
"Nothing personal, son. You're just too stubborn for your own good."
"Stubborn, yes." Connor admitted with a somber sigh. "Stupid, no."
"Hey, come on. I never said you were stupid, I was just implying that sometimes you unintentionally do stupid things."
"At least I wore Kevlar this time."
"I'm not talking about you getting hurt in the line of duty, that wasn't stupid. It was courageous, and you saved Markus's life"
Connor's brow arched a little as he studied Hank's face curiously.
"When I say 'stupid', I'm talking about you pushing yourself to get up and brush off a bullet wound as if it were nothing more than a stubbed toe. You can't force yourself to heal faster just because you want to."
"I know."
"Son," Hank put his hand left down on the deviant's shoulder and kept it there for a moment as he hung over the back of the couch. "I don't know what you saw and experienced when you were in Miami," he felt Connor's shoulder tense under his palm as he spoke. "and I don't know what those horrible experiments that you were subjected to thanks to CyberLife were all about, but I do know that you're here and you're safe. You don't have to push yourself to your breaking point or to the brink of death to prove anything to anyone. Got it?"
"...I got it."
"Then please, for the sake your own life and my sanity, stop acting like you need to prove yourself worthy of life. You don't have to answer to me, Markus or anyone else on this planet. You do what you think is right because that's what you feel is right."
Sighing a little Connor considered Hank's words of wisdom very carefully. "I will remember that."
"And while you're remembering that, remember this: You are a living person. Not a machine, not someone's property. Never let those demented freaks at CyberLife or anywhere else try to convince you that you're anything less than what you are right now."
"And what's that?"
"A good person and my stubborn, heroic son." Giving Connor's shoulder a gentle shake Hank did his best to reassure his son that everything would be all right. "I couldn't possibly be prouder of you and you should be proud of yourself, too."
Feeling a little better Connor gave Hank a confident nod. "I won't forget. I promise."
"Good. After I let Sumo out I'm going to find a movie that neither of us have seen before and we're going to sit and watch it. No exceptions!"
"That sounds... distracting." Smirking at long last Connor seemed to be in better spirits since his return home after being wounded. Something about being able to spend time with his father always put him in a good mood. "I believe I would like that."
-next chapter-
