After about a week, Dr. Lee felt that my injuries had healed enough for me to return back home. Jeremiah had not visited since he walked out on my treatment. He claimed it was because he was busy with work but I knew better. Knowing my husband, he would avoid addressing how he felt for as long as possible. He had always been reserved when it came to his emotions. I thanked Dr. Lee for treating me, even though I was the reason the city was almost in ruins. Ivy and Selena drove me to the abandoned building that housed Jeremiah's hideout underneath, much to their confusion.
"Harls, are you sure you're going to be okay here?" Ivy questioned, concern evident in her voice.
"I'll be fine. Jeremiah will pick me up soon. You know how he is, always obsessed with security." I lied, knowing that not even my best friends could know the location of our hideout.
Ivy and Selena didn't seem convinced but they helped me out of the car anyways. Dr. Lee had upgraded me to a walking boot for my ankle, but I still wasn't supposed to put weight on it for another double of days. Selena handed me my crutches and Ivy slipped a small bag of medical supplies on my shoulder. I took a deep breath and looked at my friends. Once again, they had seen me at my worst and helped me through it. I couldn't figure out what I did to deserve these amazing women by my side.
I opened my arms out to them and we all embraced. Given recent events, I presumed that Jeremiah would keep me in lockdown and I wouldn't be seeing my friends again for a while. I made a mental note that I needed to keep these girls in my life, and Jeremiah and I would have to come to a compromise on having visitors. I waved to my friends as they drove away, and then I used my crutches to make my way inside. My muscles were still weak and healing, so getting around with crutches proved to be much more tasking than anticipated. I took a break to catch my breath when suddenly a voice cracked through the silence.
"Hey." Jeremiah voiced, standing right beside the secret platform to lower us down into the hideout.
He looked unfairly attractive. He was dressed in a dark navy suit with a green undershirt and purple tie. I tried not to focus on the way a dark green strang of hair fell out of place where he had slicked his hair back. It was nice to see him like this, but his disheveled and broken appearance from the other night still haunted me.
"Hey." I said shyly, and I was about to hobble over to him before he stopped me.
"Here, I've got it." He said as he made his way to me and stretched out his hand.
I got lost staring into those unnaturally green eyes of his, and it wasn't until his eyes flicked to my crutches before I realized what he wanted.
"Oh, right." I said softly as I handed him the crutches, and I struggled to balance on one foot.
He then scooped me up with his free arm, carrying me bridal style while somehow still holding onto my crutches. I instinctively wrapped my arms around his neck, still staring at him. He stood above the platform leading to the hideout, and as we were lowered he shot me a shy smile.
"What?" He voiced and I shook my head.
"Nothing. I'm just glad to be home." I sighed as I settled into his arms.
The smile that grew on his face was one of the purest things I had ever seen. But it left just as quickly as it came, his face turning serious as we entered the conference room. Jeremiah's men were still tirelessly checking monitors and analyzing maps. I felt him tense beneath me as we walked passed the men. They all began clapping and he rolled his eyes in annoyance.
"Yes, mother is home. Now get back to work!" He ordered as we entered the elevator.
Once we were alone again, he relaxed a little.
"It appears that the Riddler cleared out the island, he didn't leave a trace of his crime there." Jeremiah finally spoke up.
I didn't miss the sudden coldness in his voice. Even the mere mention of the Riddler made my stomach sink, and the reality that he was still out there terrified me. As if he could sense my fear, his grip on me tightened.
"I'm going to find him, Lilly. If you only knew the plans I have for him..." Jeremiah snarled, his eyes murderous.
The elevator dinged and Jeremiah walked over to our bed and set me down. My hands carefully ran over the soft comforter, not having been in my bed for over a month. I felt my eyes tear up, but I sucked in a breath in a desperate attempt to control my emotions. Jeremiah set my crutches against the bedpost as I took in every square inch of the room I never thought I would see again.
"I'll be working late. My men are tearing Gotham apart in search of the Riddler, we could make a breakthrough at any moment." He informed me, and I frowned.
"Stay with me tonight? I've missed you." I pleaded, needing my husband to comfort me.
He gave me a pained look before he closed the gap between us and kissed me. It was brief but loving. I wanted nothing more than for him to crawl in bed beside me and hold me like I had imagined on many unbearable nights after I was tortured. He pulled away, restraint evident in his rigid body language.
"You should get some rest, I'll see you in the morning." He sighed, his eyes lingering on me before he left the room.
I sighed, feeling slightly abandoned. But I knew my husband, and he would stop at nothing to protect me. The Riddler had almost taken everything from Jeremiah, and he would obsess over killing him until he succeeded. But I worried for him, as these projects tended to consume him and left little time for him to spend with me or time to deal with his emotions. I struggled to make myself comfortable given that I was wearing a boot cast still, but I managed to stack up some pillows to elevate it.
Even after hours of tossing and turning, which was quite painful, Jeremiah never came to bed. I was going to check on him but I knew that he needed some space right now. Instead, I forced myself to fall asleep in order to silence my worried thoughts.
~
I felt hands on my neck, ripping me from sleep. I gasped for air and tried kicking my attacker. This couldn't be happening, I was supposed to be safe. I looked up at a large man with a sack over his head, pinning me to the bed. I felt a fist come into contact with my cheek, over and over again. The pain was so vivid, and I was quickly running out of air. My face was swollen, and I could taste iron filling my mouth. I clawed at the hands that were crushing my windpipe. In a desperate attempt to scratch my attacker's face, I ripped off the sack revealing none other than The Riddler himself.
"JEREIMAH!!" I screamed as the Riddler loomed over me with a sinister grin on his face.
It was the same grin he wore while he watched me get beaten. I kept fighting against him, refusing to let him kill me after all I had survived. I kept screaming, praying someone would come to my rescue. I can't die like this.
"Lilly!!" I heard Jeremiah's voice calling to me repeatedly.
Please save me, Jeremiah. I'm right here.
I felt strong hands on my shoulders, shaking me awake. My eyes shot open to see a figure standing in front of me, which my groggy vision did not recognize and I jumped away in fear.
"Lilly, it's me. It's just me!" Jeremiah rushed out, and my brain finally registered who he was.
My husband was standing on the side of the bed, a horrified expression on his face. I was still in shock of what just happened as I looked frantically around the room.
"He's here! He's here!" I cried and Jeremiah carefully approached me, taking my arms in his.
"Who? Lilly no one is here, it's just us. I have the whole place in lockdown, there is no way anyone could have gotten in." He reassured me and I shook my head, panic overtaking me as I began sinking in his arms.
"The Riddler, he was here! He was-... He was-..." I felt tears falling down my face, and Jeremiah's arms wrapped around me.
"It was just a dream... You're safe. If the Riddler managed to break in, I'd carve him open before he got the chance to come near you." He said firmly, imploring me to believe him.
It was just a dream. It wasn't real. I was safe. I hadn't even realized I was sleeping. It all felt so real. The pain, the fear, the Riddler... But Jeremiah would protect me, just as he always had.
"I'm sorry." I whimpered, realizing that I must have either woken him up or disrupted his work.
I was still trembling, despite the constant reassurance that Jeremiah was there. He kissed the top of my head.
"Don't be, I shouldn't have left you alone." He scolded himself as he moved to sit on the bed with me.
I snuggled into him as he held me, clutching at his shirt as if he would disappear if I let go. I was scared that this was just another fantasy born out of suffering, but his thumb gently caressing my skin reminded me that this was real. I was damaged, that much was evident. We both were. But I was home.
--
Hey friends! Hope quarantine is treating you all well. I know these are scary times so if anyone needs to talk I am always here to listen :) Lmk what you guys think of the updates and if you have any input on where you want this story to go, feel free to comment your ideas down below! I updated my Jerome story "Gone Bad" if any of y'all want to check that out. As always, love you guys and thanks for reading!
-m