"...ost a lot of blood. The bullet wound on his side pierced through a part of his intestines which we had to repair. Also the wound on his shoulder fractured his clavicle bone. It's going to take a while to heal. As for the gunshot to his leg, luckily the bullet missed any bones, but it did however tear a muscle. Recovery will take some time, but with the right rehabilitation, he should he alright. No longterm injuries."

"Thank you, Doctor. Oh, one more thing, Miss."

"Yes, Sir?"

"When do you think he'll wake up?"

"We have him under heavy medication, it might take him some time before he--"

"Wakes up?" I hoarsely groaned. My tongue felt like burlap. "Yeah, I've dealt with harder drugs."

"Russ!" Leon walked up to my hospital bed, as did the doctor, both looking stunned. "You goddamn fool. Why don't you ever do as you're told?"

"By now you should know why."

"Yeah? Well maybe getting shot is what you needed then," He scoffed, crossing his arms while the doc checked up on my vitals.

My body felt like tender meat. Maybe I now finally knew how fish felt when they got a hook through their mouth - only the hook was I don't know how many bullets and the mouth was my whole body.

- If that was the case, I just became a vegetarian.

But surprisingly enough, what hurt the most was my head. And damn it if I knew why. "Hey, doc? Mind pulling out that morphine drip? It's not good for an ex-addict to get high."

"I'm sorry Sir, but if we turn of the drip--"

"I'll be in a shitload of pain, but I'd rather be that than go to one more stupid AA meeting. Turn it off."

"Just do as he says," Leon sighed apologetically to the doctor. She gave me a prudent look, but then turned off the morphine drip. Thank the fucking God. There were better things than morphine to get high on. Morphine just made me nauseous.

"So, Russ--"

"I'm sorry about Michelle."

"What?"

"I'm sorry I brought up Vegas to Michelle," I elaborated and tried to wet my dry lips. Didn't work, my tongue still felt like a starfish's arm, all thick and raw.

"I wasn't questioning the Michelle part, I was questioning the sorry bit," Leon replied with a flat look. "I don't think I've ever heard those words come out of your mouth before."

"Well I--"

"Open wide please for a moment." The doctor opened my mouth for me and stuffed a popsicle stick down my throat. I coughed and jerked away from her.

"Jesus woman, do you mind? My tonsils are fine, my pupils respond properly, my only problem is you," I snapped, ignoring the offended glare she gave me. "Go help someone else, I'm sure there are plenty of people in this hospital who needs your popsicles more than me."

"Thank God, I thought for a minute there the Russ I knew had been brain damaged," Leon scoffed while the doctor took my chart and then left, looking like I cursed her children to Hell. "But now you sound like yourself again."

I snorted, which turned out to be a painful act. "You know I don't change, Leon."

"No, you never do, do you?"

I closed my eyes and let out a long breath. "How is Michelle? Is she--"

"She already knew you dipshit."

My eyes flew open again. "What?"

Leon smiled tightly at me. "I told her the same night we came home from Vegas. She wasn't too mad, but she's known for months. You didn't ruin us."

My eyes fell shut again and I exhaled I breath that felt like I just let go of a huge burden. Guilt? "How's the girl? She safe?"

Leon didn't mind my rapid subject change. He knew I was no good with feelings. "She's safe, thanks to you. She came running out and crying my name. I'm guessing you told her to come look for me," He noted whereafter I tiredly nodded. "Then once her safety was ensured, the SWAT teamed moved in and took over. We found you painting the concrete red in the hallway while Vahlov was chained up like a dog with his mouth gagged. Also you, I'm presuming." I didn't bother nodding this time as Leon continued. "Then it was just a matter of rounding up as many of the men you had graciously left alive for us, and take them into custody. Some of them talked and told us what went down, what the whole plan had been." Leon paused and raised a brow at me. "All of this for a woman, Russ. Jesus."

I closed my eyes and cursed silently in my head. Fucking great. Now he was going to bash me on that.

"Speaking of which, she's here."

My eyes flew open. He didn't bash at all. Maybe he was saving it for later when my cheeks were nice and pink again and my scrapes were less obvious. Then he'd attack me for sure, I was positive.

But Amy was here. Alive and well, I assumed. Not harmed, not even a little. No danger around her.

"She's been asking if she can see you."

"Only family is allowed to visit," I curtly replied back. I didn't feel like talking to her about all this. From the look on Leon's face, he had probably told her all about everything. I could deal without having her cooing over how I had 'fallen in love with her'. Dear lord.

"Exactly," Leon replied and straightened out. "Good thing she is your fiancée, then."

"She's what?"

I heard rustling outside the door before a doctor and Amy then stepped through to my room. Leon leaned down to my ear in than moment and whispered quietly, "Play along or she'll get kicked out." When I gave him a flat look that told him I wasn't going to do that, he padded my bad shoulder with a smirk. "That's the least you can do for betraying me on Vegas."

"But she knew, then it's not--" I growled as he walked out, still grinning. He nodded at Amy in the passing who smiled back and then looked at me. Her face instantly paled by the look of my no-doubt gruesome-looking condition.

"It's not as bad as it looks," I told, rolling my eyes. "You can stop looking at me like I'm goddamn dying and start spilling what it is you want to say."

Her face warmed up again, clearly by how I hadn't lost my dry sense of humor. She pulled on a big exaggerated sweet smile and walked up to me. "Oh, honey. I'm so glad you're safe. How are you feeling?"

"Engaged, apparently."

She chuckled heartfully - also fake - and leaned down and pecked a kiss on my forehead. "You silly man, I can't believe I agreed to marry you. Nurse, would you mind if we had a moment alone, please?"

"Of course. I'll be right outside if you need anything," The nurse smiled at our 'loving reunion' and then left us be in my room. Leon had hooked me up with a private one, the asshole. Who the hell was I going to annoy the shit out of now?

"So, honey," I sarcastically scoffed to her delight. "What are you doing here?"

"Just checking up my plaything. Had to make sure it wasn't broken."

I snorted but secretly felt like smiling. I knew there was a reason my idiotic brain decided it liked her pheromones. "I'll be fine in a few weeks. You'll have to do most of the work in the meantime, but I have a feeling it won't be a problem."

"Shouldn't be, no. I purchased these gorgeous new police handcuffs that I just can't wait to try out. And since you won't be able to put up a fight..."

"Very funny. Cut the crap, you know, don't you?"

"Know what?" She smirked innocently, brushing a thumb over my brow, following a suture. "That the carpet matches the drapes? Yes, I do."

"You're going to force me to say it, aren't you?"

"If I can, yes."

"Well you can't, words so stupid will never leave my mouth ever again, they don't mean anything anyway. Chemistry and attraction is shown through touch and bodily intimacy, not through meaningless, corny words that's become a token of great--"

"Oh just fucking say you love me."

"Fine. I love you. Happy?"

She didn't speak, just split her mouth into a wide smile. She then leaned down and pressed a kiss to my lips, a kiss I only partially welcomed and didn't return. She wasn't going to turn all sappy on me now, wasn't she? Good God, what had I gotten myself into again? Wasn't the first time enough? Had I learned nothing?

"Don't get that look now," She said, pulling back and smirking mischievously. "I see that pretty little brain of yours working in overdrive, it's not good for it. Not right now anyway, right now you need to rest. When you get back to your apartment, I'll make sure there'll be something interesting for you to... deduce."

I pursed my lips and looked her up and down. "What are you, Amy? I can never figure you out."

She just smiled and hiked up in her thin bag before walking up to the door. "I'm a woman."

- And that sentence in itself was a mystery.

• • •

Ah, women. The greatest mystery known to mankind.