"Well this is a nice surprise" He spoke, unfazed by our threatening entrance
Jesse and I remained in place, ready to fire our weapons at any moment
"What are you doing here Jess?" Arden continued, urging his two sidekicks to lower their guns with a nod
Jesse shook his head "You chose the wrong side"
"Did I?" He quirked an eyebrow casually moving closer to us "Or did you?"
My grip tightened, my stance ready
"Shaun is power hungry, you are nothing but a tool to him" Jesse spoke, calm but firm "Are you aware of what he's doing?"
Arden shrugged "You were once a tool, you belonged to me, now look at you, and yes, I'm aware. Sometimes sacrifices need to be made" He said, almost proud
He took another step closer, in which I became nervous of
"Keep back" I demanded
Suddenly, his eyes were on me, studying me up and down "I really underestimated you" He began "You're a brave girl, too brave" His smile quickly dropped, his eyes hungry on me
"No" I shook my head slightly "Brave entitles one who takes risks lightly, I do not take risks lightly" I informed him
Arden's gaze averted to Jesse "Smart too" He added "Just as smart as you maybe" He mused with narrow eyes
Gunfire exploded from the other side of the wall, shouts erupting causing me to flinch. Jeremy and Jacob also flinched, or, more like jumped. Arden however, barely moved, his eyes held firmly on Jesse and I in front of him
"You brought friends" Arden smiled "Your friends will die"
"And so will you" I snapped bringing his gaze back
He gave a sigh "What's holding you back? Do it" He half laughed, holding his open hands outwards in surrender.
I shifted a little.
What was holding me back?
My hesitance pleased him, his smile extending wide "You won't kill me" He told me confidently "And neither will you" He looked towards Jesse
"No?" Jesse tested, his gun straight, his finger on the trigger, steady
Arden shook his head "No" He repeated "Because if you pull that trigger, Jacob here" He nodded to his friend "He will shoot her right between the eyes" He threatened Jesse, looking at me as he pointed to the middle of my head, squinting
Jesse's jaw twitched, easily noticeable from the corner of my eye. I couldn't believe that this was Arden, the same Arden I knew only a week ago. I hadn't known him well, yet I hadn't ever imagined him to be on the opposite end of my weapon, threatening me with brute force. I couldn't imagine how Jesse may have felt.
"It doesn't matter if I die" I told Arden "People die every second, I'm no less important to this world as much as you are"
He continued to smile "It's not always about being important to the world, but you can be important to just one other single person" He responded
My eyebrows crossed, confused "What are you talking about?"
"I heard about what happened in the boiler room" He sighed, signalling between Jesse and I with his hand "You see Jesse here, he's like a piece of gum, the moment it catches your shoe, it's stuck, and it quickly becomes completely attached"
My head was spinning, and I wasn't sure if it was because of my high blood pressure, the slowing gunfire from the other side of the wall, or his cryptic sentences
"You've lost your mind" I told him, impatient
Arden allowed a small chuckle out; amused as he stared at me "I could smell the sexual tension the moment you were introduced to him"
I now understood what he was getting at.
Instantly, I shook my head "You really have lost your mind"
"Okay sweetheart, but I warn you, the denial will only hurt more than admittance will" He sighed taking another step closer.
I pulled back my bow string, realizing I had dropped a little under the distraction of his insinuations.
I watched him smile, and then it vanished, his eyes turned deadly, empty and soulless.
His next words were firm and cold, catching me off guard as he spoke in almost slow motion "Shoot her"
I hadn't had time to fully grasp what he had activated with his lips, and the moment I had felt a sharp steel bullet collide with my body, my grip fell and my arrow shot out of place. Time slowed down as my ears rang, my eyes shadowed over with shock and through the dark spots, I could make out Arden tumbling backwards as I was. Gunfire followed, the sound piercing through my ears like the noise was being executed directly besides my face. I cringed as my back found a wall, slamming against it with force that caused me to grunt out in agony.
I clenched my teeth, my back sliding downwards leaving a trail of fresh crimson blood on the worn white paint. My hand pushed at my wound, instincts of attempting to stop the blood flow kicking in.
I had been shot, just like Arden had threatened. But in turn, he hadn't gone unharmed himself.
I looked ahead, dazed and hot as Arden sat against a desk, blood coughing from his mouth. An arrow end, my arrow end protruded from his chest, causing him to endure a slow and painful demise.
And then, silence fell. As quickly as it had begun, it had ended.
I had been in these kinds of situations before. I had the scars to prove it. I had gathered a high tolerance for pain over the years, and it took a rare moment for me to complain about an injury or wound. But now, I had experienced something I had been yet to experience.
A gunshot wound. The pain was searing, burning pressure that begged for attention, for acknowledgement.
I hissed through my teeth, frozen in time as I waited for myself to become numb, as I waited the moment my organs shut down, my body to bleed out. I was waiting to die.
It was a surreal moment, and in no way shape or form had I expected to die from such a circumstance. I had pictured my own death dozens of times, and this, was no way near a single one of them.
"Stay awake!" Jesse's voice rose, my eyes closed, dark, beckoning for sleep
"What the hell happ-" Jaxon could be heard entering the morbid situation, cut off by the scene in front of him
"It's through and through, you're going to be fine, you're going to be fine!" Jesse spoke again, my ears continuing to ring. He sounded panicked, but he was hiding it, I could hear that too
"Morgan!" Ronan began to my left "What happened?!" He demanded
"Arden shot her" Jesse replied to my right, where my bullet wound was. My hand had dropped to my side, the pressure replaced by a new larger warm hand
"How did you let that happen!?" Ronan continued angrily
The voices around me slowly became clearer, my ears adjusting to the sound of 'through and through'.
I was going to be okay.
It was a flesh wound that was all. I was being a wuss, I was being weak. I forced my body to recuperate. My eyes fluttered open, blurry at first, but re-complying with the light. I took in the silence, the sound of my own heartbeat audible inside my head. Blood flowed freely from my shoulder where the bullet had entered and exited, I could feel its warmth dripping down my arm, down my torso
Jesse kneeled to my right, his jacket pushed against my shoulder, soaked in blood. His hand was also covered in blood.
I couldn't help but smile.
"Why is she smiling?" Ronan snapped, worried I'd lost my mind
"Jacket for a jacket, right?" I managed out, raspy
Jesse held back a smile in return, his lips straightening out to force back the expression. His jaw twitched as my eyes came back to full focus on his face. He was clenching his teeth, his eyes hard on my shoulder
"Did we get them all?" I asked, clearing my throat
"Yeah, we did" Jaxon replied, standing behind Jesse, his hands on his hips
"Are you guys okay?" I worried about their own safety
"Better than you" Jaxon snickered folding his arms
"The bleeding is slowing down, but it'll need stitches" Jesse seriously spoke, avoiding my face with his eyes "We have a med kit here"
It was as I watched Jaxon place his gun down on the desk Arden's dead body slumped against, that I remembered why I hadn't taken a gun in the first place
"The noise, hasn't it attracted Creatures?" I asked, baffled by the silence
"We took care of that" Ronan told me, his hand held on to my left tightly
"How?"
"We dragged a few bodies out the front of the library, Creatures are satisfied enough with them to go searching for us" Jaxon informed me, pulling a small bag from his big bag
My eyebrows crossed "You did it that fast?"
"I don't ass around" Jaxon shrugged, leaning down beside Jesse with the bag
"You're going to have to move" Jesse told me "I need to stitch the back as well as the front and make sure the bullet didn't leave fragments"
I cringed, but put on a brave face. It was a flesh injury, that was all, toughen up Morgan.
Slowly and regrettably, I pushed myself off the wall with my back, hissing through my lips with each movement of my muscles
"This will take a while, and it's going to hurt like hell" He warned me "We won't be able to move her afterwards for a few hours" Jesse turned to Jaxon "Go and barricade the open doors and windows, make sure there is no way in" He told him
Jaxon nodded and stood, stuffing his gun back into the back of his pants
"Sure" He sighed, leaving
My head slung forward, my chin almost touching my chest as I awaited the pain to come. Jesse shuffled closer to me, the need of wanting to drop and rest my head on his knee all too tempting
"You're going to be fine Morgan" Ronan spoke, his hand clasped in mine squeezing.
The mention of my name, my real name, made me lift my head "Can you do me a favour?" I asked him, looking dead into his eyes, fuming inside despite my condition
"Anything" He nodded, all too keen
"Is there another room we can go to once this is done? Somewhere I can sleep this off, without the smell and sight of bodies?" I asked him, half honest, half getting rid of him
He was unsure "Maybe, once you're patched up I can go and check"
"Actually, can you do it now? I think once I get through this, I'll crash out pretty much straight away" I persuaded, using my best pained victim expression
Hesitantly, he nodded "Okay"
With great regret he released his grip on my hand and stood
"I'll be back as soon as I can" He told me before smiling and leaving.
The instant he was gone, I slumped my head forward again, sighing as Jesse released the pressure on my shoulder.
Silence fell, my body cold, my right arm numb.
I felt dizzy, I was shaking and nervous of the pain I was about to endure. I wanted to sleep.
Jesse tossed his jacket aside, blood splashing to the floor in smears
"I know this is going to be uncomfortable, but I need to move your clothing from the entry and exit points, I need to clean the area on both sides before I stitch it up" He told me, his voice rough yet focused
I nodded, my eyes closed as I waited
Carefully, I felt Jesse's fingers over my neck. He was gentle as he took a hold of my singlet top and bra strap, sliding it down over my shoulder until it reached the middle of my upper arm. I chewed my bottom lip, the cold air nipping at my exposed skin. I tried to fight back a shiver, but it was near impossible and my flesh was quickly sporting goose-bumps
"I'm sorry" Jesse apologized
"Not your fault" I told him, muffled
"I shouldn't have hesitated"
I sighed "You aren't the only one that hesitated"
The feeling of Jesse's fingers over my skin, it didn't help to smoothen out the bumps, in fact, it made it worse. I could feel every movement he made, yet I could feel no inch of my arm, hand and fingers.
"I'll try to be quick and as gentle as I can" He warned, bottles and utensils being heard, dropping my heart into my stomach which tempted to hurl
I nodded again, not trusting the fright in my voice.
Seconds later, a moist cloth was pushed against my front shoulder, burning like acid being poured over raw muscle and tissue. I cringed and twitched, my eyes squeezing hard as I bit into my bottom lip, drawing blood.
I forced back noise the best I could.
"Looks like we'll have to buy each other a new jacket once this is all over" He attempted to make small talk, distracting me. It was sweet, but it didn't lessen the intensity of pain
"Will it ever actually be over?" I remarked, forcing back tears
"We have the cure thanks to you, so yeah, I hope so"
"The cure only works for some people from what I gathered" I informed him
I felt his fingers move to my back, and then the pressure of the second cloth pressed into my open flesh. I reacted the same way I had the first time, cringing and cursing under my breath
"I'm sorry" Jesse apologized again, the words sounding strange from his mouth
"Its fine" I spoke in between teeth
Once the burning subsided, the numbness took over. My head pounded through my ears, my stomach gurgling. I wasn't coping
"Tell me if you start to feel faint" Jesse said
"Would fainting be such a bad thing at this stage?" I scoffed
"I won't be able to fix you if you're face first on the ground"
I quickly felt stupid
The silence was bliss, although it made me want to sleep. Jesse fumbled around with stitches and the needle, soaking it in vodka before I felt his eyes on the side of my face.
I shouldn't have, but I lifted my eyes, looking towards him
"What?" I mumbled, unsure of the expression on his face
He eyes narrowed "I would never have guessed you to be a Morgan"
Thanks Ronan.
"No?"
He shook his head "No"
I was curious "Why not?"
He shrugged, his eyes searching mine
"It doesn't matter who I was, I'm not that person anymore"
"Who is?" He asked, watching me carefully, his face close "I'm not the same person, Jaxon isn't the same person, and obviously Arden wasn't the same person he was a week ago" He moved his head in the direction of Arden's body, but I didn't move an inch
"What about Ronan? Is he the same person?" I felt my lips speak, regretting it as Jesse grumbled and moved his eyes and face from me completely, his hands getting back to work
"You don't want my opinion on who I think he is" His voice was deep, dark
"Actually, I do" I urged
He moved his hands with the needle and stitches to my shoulder, his eyes steady
"I'm going to start stitching"
I nodded, but kept my eyes on his face. I couldn't feel anything apart from the contact of his fingers on my skin, so when he began, I barely moved
"Tell me" I pushed "You want me to stay away from him, give me good reason"
"I need to concentrate here Arrow" He sighed, focused on my wound. I felt a wash of electricity shoot through me at the use of my present name. He knew my real name, and yet he refused to use it. I forced back a smile, remembering the conversation at hand
"Ronan told me his side" I lied
Jesse's jaw twitched and I knew my lie had worked, so I continued
"It was hard to listen to" I watched his expression change
"You should be careful around him" He finally spoke "He's good at convincing people he's sweet and innocent"
I forced him to continue "How do you mean?"
Jesse gave a sigh and paused mid stitch to look at me, frustrated
"If I need to be careful, I need to know what to be careful of" I lied, I didn't.
I was always careful, and so far I saw no such threat in Ronan – except for his eagerness in intimacy with me.
Jesse returned his eyes to my shoulder and then spoke
"He and I used to be friends. Before the outbreak happened" His face was relaxed, focused on the job at hand as he revealed the truth to me of his and Ronan's tension
"Tricia" He said her name like a foul taste lingered on his tongue "Her and I were...." He was fumbling for words, so I tried to further along the story
"Together?"
Jesse grumbled, unimpressed by the word. Something had gone sour between the pair. I remembered hearing about it from Keira.
"Then the outbreak happened and we went on the road, the three of us. One morning I woke early and decided to get some fresh air, when I returned I found Ronan and Tricia, grappling at whatever skin of each other they could" He told me, shocking me
I hadn't expected Tricia to be involved with Ronan, I hadn't expected Tricia to be involved in the incident at all, but I should have. She was trouble and I knew that from the very beginning. I haven't even seen Ronan and Tricia together, not even on speaking terms. How had I missed that?
"I'm sorry" I gently said, watching his face. He expressed no emotion, he was covering his anger well. I didn't understand how Ronan could have done something as low as steal another man's – his friends - girlfriend. I hadn't seen Ronan as being that kind of person. But now, that had changed
"Don't be" Jesse shook his head, picking a small pair of scissors up to cut the stitching off "I'm glad they did what they did, because it changed me, in the same sense your experiences changed you. It made me more wary, more aware of what's going on around me"
"That explains why Tricia tries so hard around you, I knew it was desperation I was sensing" I scoffed, looking forward as Jesse's eyes fell on me
"It doesn't matter how hard she tries, the damage is done" He began arranging the new stitching for my exit wound
"Did they have a reason? I mean, how long had it been going on?" I was being intrusive now, he had told me his secret, and now I was walking over the boundary into details
Jesse shrugged "No, but I have a fair idea"
"How so?"
He gave a sigh and leaned back, sitting down beside me so his leg almost leaned against my waist. He was extremely close, and for once, it didn't bother me the way it normally should have.
"Once Tricia realised she'd been caught out, she told me she..." He paused, looking down at his hands which fidgeted with stitching and scissors
"We got into an argument" He changed his ending
"I can only imagine the excuses to come from her mouth" I spat
"She blamed it on stress"
I scoffed and shook my head "Right, because she's the only one stressed about the world being overtaken my deadly Creatures"
"That wasn't her excuse" Jesse revealed, his face remaining down on his hands
I paused for a moment before asking "What was?"
He hesitated, and then he lowly spoke "She told me that I had gotten her pregnant"