Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Fallen Angels, Broken Hearts ❯ Ch 10 ( Chapter 10 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Heero slipped his phone back into his jacket pocket, glancing at Trowa. Trowa shook his head, just as tired. Walking softly, Heero entered the room where Cody and Li had been momentarily placed. The small compartment had been quickly transformed into an adequate but slightly cramped injured ward, containing all of the basic necessities but no more. This was due to how quickly they had rushed to the colony, urged on by Lady Une. She had wanted to get the two out of harm's way as soon as possible.
Cody was in the bed nearest his, and he knew with one glance that she had fallen into one of her many deep sleeps that she'd had the entirety of the trip. She may have been drowsing, but on her countenance was a rather sad expression, and he looked away to keep from thinking about it.
Leaning against the wall, he rubbed his temples and then let his gaze finally rest on Li. Her once brown hair was a midnight black, shining in the sparse light. Her light jacket was ripped as was the skin that showed underneath it. She was bandaged in numerous places, too many to count, and both her arm and leg were in casts. The doctors had said they were not the only broken bones, but they hadn't had enough time with the patients to fully help them. An IV traveled over the bed and into a needle in her arm, it's soft dripping and the heart monitor's constant beeping the only signs of her being alive.
He felt a sharp pain slice through him at the sight of her lying there, broken and helpless, and he slowly crossed the room until he was at her side, gazing down at her prostrate form. He got on his knees and took her hand in his, resting his head on his arms, deep in thought. He was so confused, and needed to sort out his feelings, but all of that could wait. Right now she needed him.

When Heero and Trowa arrived back with Li and Cody Lou was there waiting in a large SUV.
Smiling tightly Lou helped to load the poor injured peeps into the vehicle without saying a word. It seemed nobody was in a very talkative mood.
"Where is the safe house 'Ro?"
He heaved an exhausted sigh before answering, "It's in the 5th district of this colony. Not so far away as to be out of reach, not too close as to be suspicious. We'll settle them there. Lady Une has guards already positioned."
Lou nodded. "I'll need to come with you. The doctors aren't going to get a look at them without me there." She said the last with a finality.
Heero nodded slowly and softly, the look in his eyes screaming for help of some sort.
Lou sighed softly, "I may end up over there because Duo may kick me out. I had an irrational streak that pissed him off some."
Trowa chuckling was the only sound in the vehicle. The laughter sounded so foreign.
Heero shrugged again, "Just get through this one step at a time."
The words were spoken as they pulled into the drive of a small small house.
"This is the safe house?" Lou said, skepticism in her tone.
"It's bigger than it looks. It has an underground facility that will be used as the hospital complex." Trowa replied, exiting the van and opening the back doors to unload Li and Cody.
Heero nodded, following him. Together they slowly and carefully carried first Li, then Cody inside. Lou followed, quietly observing the house and it's surroundings, noting clean and sterile conditions and the overall uninhabited feeling of the house. There was only furniture in the rooms directly near the windows, and the rooms reaching further into the house were bare.
"There wasn't enough time to make it homey," Trowa informed her.
"Who needs homey?" She murmured as she critically inspected the hospital settings. It was an amazing up to date facility. "Mm, this may be a better place to move Fei. He needs sterile, and I think Duo is ready to kill me." Her laugh was strangled before it could even be registered as such.
Trowa nodded slowly, "You go get him, bring him here. Tell Ryo and Duo he needs more specialized attention."
Lou numbly nodded to the command and walked away to do so, calling orders ideally over her shoulder. "Get those two set up with anti-biotic drips and start redressing wounds. I will be back in about half an hour."

Heero and Trowa had moved Cody and Li downstairs, where they were situated in a room in two white hospital beds. Trowa assembled and laid out the various medical supplies, and without further ado he set to work on redressing Cody's leg. The doctors at the hospital in the colony had been forced to cut off her right pants leg up to her upper thigh because by the time she had arrived to them she had lost a considerable amount of blood and they had needed to act quickly. They had done an exceptional job, but she would be unable to walk very well for a while and would be in pain. She would need to keep off of it for quite some time. Along with her leg were an assorted number of slices and bruises from the car wreck, worst of all where a piece of metal from the car had sliced deep into her collarbone and had ripped a bad wound. She would carry a scar there forever.
Following Trowa's example, Heero began to tend to Li. He started with a nasty gash in the back of her head, which had probably rendered her unconscious and was responsible for her long stretch of unresponsiveness. So far she had shown no signs of coming to, and Lou had worried but had had her hands too full with Wufei to deal with the matter at the present time. It would have to wait until they were able to bring more hands to the field.
Finishing that, he hesitated for a moment, hands poised on her jacket, dreading what he would find. He slid her jacket off and stopped, dressing the bullet wound in her right arm. The lower portion of that arm was wrapped tightly in a cast, the bone shattered. Her left forearm had a slight burn that had begun to heal, signaling its age. That must have been from the bomb.
Hoping the worst was over, he unbuttoned her shirt, gasping slightly and immediately stopping himself.
Trowa glanced at him, concerned. "You okay?"
Heero nodded, "It's just . . . nothing. I just never realized it was this bad."
Wanting to see what he was talking about, Trowa scooted his chair over and whistled softly. "I get what you mean."
A festering burn seared from the corner of her right shoulder, stopped, then continued down across her ribs, past her navel, where it brushed her hips. The skin was raw and red. Where the burn didn't reach the skin was a purple-blue, covering broken and fractured ribs. He couldn't tell if it was from the crash or not. A deep gash cut into her chest, still fresh. The burns and bloody slices continued across her back, where yet another deep gash was located.
With Trowa's assistance Heero did the best he could to wash and dress these, trying to keep his mind off his work. He didn't know what would happen if he let himself dwell too deeply on it. Moving on, her left leg was also casted and accompanied by the continuation of the burn that had scorched her torso. Her right leg was almost untouched but for a bandage over another gash, and he sighed tiredly when at last they finished. They draped the hospital blanket over her and sank back tiredly in their seats, closing their eyes.
Trowa sent him questioning glance, quickly quelled. It was for the better good, Heero didn't feel in the mood to answer questions at the moment. He wanted to kill someone.
"The doctors hinted that there might be internal damage, judging from her state. We'll have to check it out as soon as the rest of the personnel arrives. Lou will insist, anyways. Till then, there's nothing we can do but this." Trowa threw up his hands in an expression of helplessness, looking as exhausted as he had during the early years of the war.
Heero nodded, but inside he felt anger burning deep within his chest at the thought that the people who did this to them were still alive and free. He would make sure it didn't stay that way.

Ryo walked around the safe house, looking confused. She stopped in front of the room Quatre was staying and knocked. "Have you seen Lou?" she asked when he opened the door.
"She's not here?" he looked puzzled.
She shook her head.

Lou had returned to the Maxwell residence and was quietly packing Wufei up for the move over to the secret safe house. When she entered Ryo and Duo were watching some oldies movie in the living room and Quatre was nowhere to be seen.
That was fine with her.
Ryo heard her arrive and glanced at Duo, "I need to talk to her for a second, wait for me, okay?"
He nodded.
Lou was watching Wufei sleep, monitoring his progress when she heard uncertain footsteps behind her. She sighed and sat down her clipboard and pen, turning to meet Ryo's gaze reluctantly. "What?"
"You left for a while ago."
"I needed some time to cool off." Lou shrugged then went back to charting Wufei’s progress, or rather, lack there of. "I don't think I am to stay here any longer. I need to move Fei to a move secure spot for his tender condition and it would be easier without me here."
"Why hasn't Cody come back?" Ryo asked suddenly.
"Because Cody was in the accident with Li and was determined to stay with her. Heero saw it as less intrusive and problematic to do so and let her meander back in her own timing." It made Lou sick how easily the lies flowed out. "I am to go and check up on them tomorrow."
"I'm going with you."
"No, you aren't." Lou was stern and simple, "Duo and I will not allow it. Li is already gone Ryo. Heero had her moved on so she would not worry when she woke up. I will go alone as I will not have you causing anymore trouble."
Her sigh was irritated as she started to pack.
"Leigh Lou Rochelle Cheng, you will not tell me I cannot see my sister. I'm sick of you trying to run my life," her voice remained calm as her look turned icy. "You may be in charge when we are on a mission, but in matters concerning a Kamiya, you have no authority. I will be there with my sister and my cousin. I will have the baby wherever, whenever it feels like coming. One thing I will not tolerate is being coddled when there are two people in much worse conditions. Both of them need me."
"No they don't actually, and I am tired of you butting in when basically I do have a mission so people don't die." Lou completely ignored the look and continued to move around Ryo, "Now look. Would you rather be in they and me not be able to help them or just wait a little bit and it will be better. Hm?" Her eyes rolled delicately as she moved two bags to lay by the door. "And frankly someone who acts so young and foolish, no matter the status of a relationship or child, deserves to be coddled for the safety of all involved. Shoo."
Lou sighed irritably when Ryo started to argue. "Fine. I will give you the address where they are. Take Wufei there, Heero will take care of him. Tell Quatre to grow up and Duo that he can take his pretty little wife and be happy with his fake life. You don't have to bother with me anymore, because I am effing the coward and quitting. I give up. The End." Lou grabbed her bags and coat and went to walk out the house.
"Lou, wait! You know your the best doctor here, you can't leave. Please. Just because you're mad at me shouldn't make you abandon them." Ryo acquired a pleading look in her eyes, "Li and Cody need you, too."

After hours of nervous watching on the part of Trowa and Heero, the doctors arrived. A sigh of relief went up from them both as they let the personnel into the complex, giving hurried descriptions as they walked. They could now be assured that Li and Cody were in the hands of professionals, and allowed themselves to relax a bit for the first time in days.
When they reached the ward the three doctors swarmed over to the two patients, followed closely by their nurses and personnel. Heero and Trowa waited uncomfortably in the doorway, not wanting to get in the doctor's space. Trowa placed a sure hand on Heero's shoulder, causing him to glance at the quiet brunette with surprise.
"They'll be fine now, Yuy. Relax." Was all Trowa said, communicating volumes in the short but reassuring dialogue.
Heero sighed unhappily and shrugged off Trowa's friendly gesture, looking the other way in silence. He wasn't worried about them, why did they all keep on acting like he was still dating Li? She was merely his comrade, missing for a few years, of course he'd care, but they just seemed to think more than that. Couldn't they just leave him alone? His mind strayed to Kara for the first time in hours, and it suddenly came to him that he should call her. "Excuse me," He said sternly to Trowa, then left the room gratefully, dialing on the way. He leaned against the wall, listening to the ringing, hoping the person on the other end would answer. Seeming to mock him, Kara's answering machine picked up, mimicking her voice in a recorded copy of her greeting. he listened halfheartedly, then left a short message that she should call him should she get the message. He hung up and slipped his phone into his pocket, staring emptily at the opposite whitewashed wall.

About the time Heero was calmly staring at the wall, Lou burst through muttering mean things in Hebrew. Many of them along the lines of ignorant pushy people needing to die a harsh death.
Heero's head floated up as Duo carried Wufei in, Ryo waddle-jogging behind.
"Lou?" He left the stern question hanging.
She snapped back in her native tongue. "You try and tell them to stay away, or do anything. I dare you."
He stared, then couldn't help it as a small grin crossed his lips. The Kamiya sisters were at it again, much to Lou's anger. She was obviously more than a little unhappy with the current situation, so he quickly vanished the smile from his usually stoic face and strode forward to assist. "There anything I can do to help? Li and Cody are in the next room, and the doctor's just arrived a little while before you."
Hebrew still came easier when she was angered, "They wouldn't let me leave. Kill Quatre. Or Duo. Or them all. I don't know. I need to be in there. Oy, vey. Allah." Her words jumbled as she handed Heero her medical bag and walked into the OR with a nod to Trowa.
Duo smiled weakly, "Where do I put Fei?"
Heero gestured to an adjoining room, right down the hall from the OR. "There's no room where Li and Cody are, and with the doctor's its crowded. We'll put him in there for now until its his turn to be examined." he paused for a space of a few breaths, then asked tentatively, "How is he?"
"Not to good 'Ro. Poisoning, and it is the worst. Lou wouldn't leave his side." Duo sighed deeply and ran a hand through his messy hair, "We have him pumped with antibiotics. Lou is frazzled. Ryo is frazzled. Quatre is devastated. I am angry. This is all together not a very good situation. How are they?" He nodded his head towards the OR.
Heero sighed, his turn to be weary, "Pretty much in the same position. Cody lost a lot of blood, and we're still in the dark as to how bad the damage to her leg was. We won't really know until Lou and the others get a good look. Li is in bad shape, she's pretty banged up. There seems to be not an inch of skin on her that isn't in some way wounded. Trowa and I did the best we could manage, but I'm glad Lou's here. Li has a pretty bad head wound, recent, so probably something from the car crash. It's serious, I think, because she hasn't shown any signs of waking up. Cody stirred a little earlier, but Li hasn't moved at all. She could be in a coma. I dunno, Duo," he sighed, "This just doesn't seem real to me yet, it all happened so fast, you know?"
Duo nodded softly and clapped his friend on the shoulder. "But we are all together and everything will work out eventually. For better or worse, ya know?"

Ryo took one look inside the room and decided a pregnant woman would just not do to be in the already crowded room. She decided to wait until either the doctor or Lou had left. She wandered back to Duo and gently took his hand. "Everything is going to be okay, Maxwell. Wufei, and Cody will be good as new in no time. Li will wake up soon and then we can all go back to our lives." she whispered to only him. She then looked at Heero, "Honey, where is Kara?"
Heero shrugged, the worry plainly written on his face "I don't know. They said she checked out of the hospital. I tried calling her but she didn't answer, so I left a message."
"It'll be ok, bud." Duo repeated, hand still on Heero’s shoulder.
Heero only nodded, unconvinced. In his world there was no such thing as happily ever after, this was real life, where the good people could lose and evil could win. It was all he had ever known, and not even Duo's optimism could sway him. "Whatever. Let's see what they're doing, okay?"
As the trio reentered the room Trowa was talking to Lou, her pale pink shirt dotted with clashing red. She still spoke rapidly, in a slur of English and Hebrew.
She stopped talking when they entered and sighed before moving back into the OR, doors flashing momentarily to show agitated doctors.
Trowa translated. "Li has internal bleeding. They don't know from where. Well, the doctors don't. Lou thinks it is her kidneys, and it is an easy fix but MDs are stupid. Cody is in shock."
"So, Lou will be able to fix everything, right?" Ryo looked hopeful.
Trowa looked doubtfully at Duo, trying for his support, "Umm . . ."
"We don't know yet, Honey." Duo smoothly cut in. "Lou will tell us when she knows."
Hebrew curses flew and a doctor stormed out.
"She is impossible. Insists it is the kidneys." Her looked accusingly on the group. "My partner agree."
Quatre chuckled, "Out voted were you?"
The doctor huffed and walked out of the room, leaving Ryo biting her nails.

A tense hour passed before a triumphant red splattered Lou walked out. "It was her kidneys, the old kook was wrong." She smiled warmly at Ryo for the first time in ages it seemed. "Li is okay now dear. Go see her while I check on Fei."
"Oh, and be careful," Lou called after her, "She woke up suddenly and I was hard pressed to keep her body from feeling trauma. After all, no matter how oblivious she is to pain, her body still knows she's human. She'll be more than a little tired."
Ryo walked slowly into the room, looking first a Cody and then to Li. She walked next to the bed and saw Li open her eyes, wincing.
"Hey, sis," Li smiled slightly.
Ryo smiled back. "Hi..."
Li stared silently at Ryo for a while, seeming to not quite believe she was there, then finally managed to say, " . . . I . . I'm sorry . . . "
Ryo stared at her sister for a moment before realizing tears were falling down her cheeks onto the bed. She took her hand and squeezed it, afraid doing anything more would hurt her.
"Oh, come on Ryo, don't cry . . . " Li tried to sit up, but quickly abandoned the attempt in a new wave of pain, "ugh . . . None of this was your fault, I had my reasons for leaving, sis, you know that . . . "
Ryo shook her head and spoke barely above a whisper. "I know. I just feel like I should have tried harder to find you, and maybe you wouldn't have been hurt. Not you, or Cody, or Wufei. I should have tried harder those first months and none of this would have happened."
Li squeezed her hand, "You always blame yourself for things you couldn't have been able to prevent. Stop it, ok? These things happen, and we'll just have to deal with them. You're pregnant, Ryo, you can't be blamed for being unable to stop events from progressing. You didn't know"
She nodded slowly. "I've missed you so much, Liandrin. I thought you were gone forever this time." She wiped away tears with one hand.
Li gave a small smile and held her hands out, gesturing for a hug.
"B-But, you're hurt . . . " Ryo stammered.
"I don't care, I haven't seen you in years, sis."
Ryo sniffled and leaned down to hug Li lightly, when her sister wrapped her in a tight hug.
"Li... Lou says not to stress yourself. Your body needs time to heal..." Ryo sniffled once more.
"Screw healing. I don't have time for it anyway." Drawing away, Li smirked, "After all, the danger hasn't fully passed yet."
Ryo nodded, "They'll still be after Trowa, Quatre, Lou, Duo and I. Hopefully they think you, Cody and Wufei are dead. That would give us an element of surprise."
Li nodded, "I never thought I'd see the day when my being dead would be a good thing . . . " Good, at least her sarcasm was back.
Then she seemed to actually process what Ryo had said, and she jerked. "Wait, what?"
"Cody and Wufei are both hurt. They say Cody is in shock from the accident and Wufei has been poisoned, but he's on antibiotics. I'm just hoping they will count them dead. It's one less target." Ryo said.
"Oh, gods . . . " Li murmured softly, her mind whirling as she imagined how Cody would feel when she found out. For she surely did not know yet. If she did, she would not be sleeping calmly in the adjoining bed just then . . .
Ryo rubbed her foot uncomfortably on the plain tile floor, looking slightly unhappy about something. Like she was the bearer of even more bad news. "What is it?" Li asked her, not liking the look being flashed her way in her younger sister's eyes. "What's wrong?"
"It's just, well, there's someone else here, too."
Li was silent.
"Someone that I know you don't want to see . . . "
Li's eyes narrowed sharply and was about to say something when Lou swept back in, talking smoothly in a mix of Japanese and Arabic.
"Now now boys, Ms. Kamiya senior will need her rest. I will tie her down and demand it whole-heartedly. I know you understand me Duo Maxwell, stop there. The sisters need their own time." She stopped talking and a familiar low old rumble of a murmur swept over Li. Her own breath caught.
"No Yuy, that means you as well. Go call Kara again." Lou turned and smiled at Li, "I was right. You were right. Doctors know nothing. Ryo, sit down."
Ryo looked around hopelessly for a chair until Lou rolled her eyes and called out into the hall for Duo to fetch her one. "I'm sorry Lou... I've just been so much trouble lately."
As the door closed behind Duo, Li turned a look on Lou. "Why in the world is he here?"
Lou cocked an eyebrow. "By he I take it you are referring to Yuy?"
"Would I be referring to anyone else?" Li's voice had a sharp edge to it, dulled with the pain of raising her voice.
Lou sighed. "He's the one who brought you and Cody here, with Trowa. He saved your lives."
Li didn't reply, gazing blankly at the empty white wall, expression devoid of emotion, giving no hint as to how she was feeling.
Lou sighed, "I didn't think you'd be grateful."
Lou finished her check up and left again.
"Li, he did it on his own." Ryo said quietly. "Duo was going to go, but he wouldn't let him. I know he hurt you, but at least talk to him."
"About what?" Li's tone was level, giving away nothing. Ryo dropped her head. Li had shielded herself again, her moment of weakness now over. Li continued, "I left because I had something I needed to do, and I needed to do it alone. I can't really explain it at the moment. What I did may have hurt you and Cody, and I know there is nothing I can do to change that. I'll just have to hope that the two of you will one day forgive me for it. But I did nothing to him. I did not wrong Heero in any way, so I just don't see what I could possibly have to talk to him about."
Ryo looked at the ground. "I.. I just thought... that maybe... you left because... you were hurting and you didn't want anyone to see."
'Well, you were wrong." At the look on Ryo's face, Li softened, reaching out and taking her hand. "To put it simply, sis, I was lost and went to find myself. I just didn't know how to fit in to the world, and so I decided that until I figured it out I would have to leave."
Ryo hugged her sister, "I'm glad you're back though." Ryo winced in pain suddenly.
"Sis? You okay?"
When Ryo seemed unable to fully reply Li grew concerned. "Lou! Come quick!" She immediately called as loud as she could, ignoring doctor's orders and her pain.
Lou rushed in and stopped suddenly when she saw Ryo. "Honey, how long have you been in labor?" She was calm.
Ryo took a couple deep breaths. "Since we got off the transport..." She said quietly. "The contractions are still like 10 minutes apart. I wanted to see Li."
Lou rolled her eyes. "Sit down and I'll tell Trowa to find someplace we can use as a bed for you."
Li ignored the immediate urge to shake some sense into Ryo, and settled for an exasperated glare, "Why didn't you say anything, Ryo? This is serious, seeing me should not have been your top priority!"
"No offense, sis, but I've only been carrying the baby for months. I haven't seen you in years. My priority is you. It always has been." Ryo smiled. Less than five minutes after the first one, another contraction came. "Heh, guess they were closer than I thought."
Li couldn't help but roll her eyes at her sister, "You worry me too much, Ryo, really you do. Now that you've seen me, promise you'll think about yourself and the baby first from now on, okay?"
Ryo nodded as Lou brought in a wheelchair.
Duo came tearing through the door directly after her, "Honey, are you okay? Are you in pain? Do you need anything?" He was breathless and pale with concern.
Ryo smiled slightly, "Yeah, honey, calm down before you pass out. Just do whatever Lou says."
He helped her to the wheelchair, doing his best to hide the pain as she squeezed his hand. "Alright, alright. Don't you ever pull anything like this again."
"I won't. I swear."
He kissed her forehead and began pushing her out of the room. "Wait," she said. She turned to Li. "I'll be back. I promise."
Li nodded as Lou directed Duo to wheel Ryo to another room.
Lou smiled warmly at Li, "Do you think the excitement ever stops? We just like to do things in bulk, eh?"
Li chuckled and the motioned Lou out, her pain getting the best of her as she drifted into sleep.