A few quick warnings: Please go back to the description of the story and read all of the trigger warnings. This is the chapter that everything starts going downhill for the characters (but I promise that I won't kill Will or Nico off). It only gets more violent and heartbreaking from here, guys.

WPOV

"Please don't touch me."

Those words echoed through my mind. It was painful to hear how hopeless they sounded.

I pulled my hand back, doing as Nico asked, forcing it to rest by my side.

He didn't look at me, just wiped the tears out of his eyes and went back to tearing up the floorboards. Blood was starting to dry in his hair and on his clothes, but it all seemed to come from the single wound. I realized he must have been laying in it for awhile, before I showed up.

Judging by the amount of it I could see, he had already lost scary amounts of blood.

"Nico, you can't move around like that. Your side-"

"What does it matter?" He interrupted, so quietly it was almost a whisper. "You shouldn't be here. Octavian- He's going to-" His voice cracked and he shook his head slightly.

Part of me wanted to say something, but I didn't know what words to use. Even though I should have, I didn't protest when he went back to work. I only watched as he put the boards aside and reached his hand into the hole that had formed.

He pulled a number of items from the hiding spot: a needle, a spool of thread, and a brown bottle. He laid them on the floor, studying them for a second, and then one of his hands flew to the chain around his neck.

I knew the truth about the figurine and the ring now. It wasn't hard to make the connection that they were gifts from his sister, Bianca. They were probably the most valuable thing he owned.

He looked at the trinkets, rotating and feeling them with his fingertips. He unclasped the chain and sighed. I was startled when I saw him drop them into the hole.

"What are you doing?" I asked, shocked at what I had witnessed.

He started putting the floorboards back, still avoiding my gaze. "They're safer there. I was scared Octavian would notice them."

"Oh."

Nico straightened, leaning heavily against the wall. His expression was full of agony, and his breaths were coming out as sharp gasps.

Concern rushed through me as my eyes dropped to his wound. I didn't know what happened, but, whatever it was, it was more than serious. There was too much blood to see the actual cut. I felt a spike of fear at the possibility of one of his organs being damaged.

"You need to let me take care of that." I told him. I was already trying to remember everything I could about stitches.

"I can do it-" He started to say, but I cut him off.

"No." I picked up the bottle. "I've read and practiced how to do this - please let me help you."

Nico looked at me, and I saw my own desperation mirrored in his eyes. A few tears trailed down his face. "Okay."

I resisted the urge to brush his tears away, because I remembered his request from earlier. I didn't want to push him any farther than I had to.

I read the label on the container in my hand. Hydrogen Peroxide.

Hydrogen Peroxide was an antiseptic, ideal for smaller injuries. I remember a time that I fell off my bike and scraped my knee. My dad used it on the scrape before giving me a band-aid. Of course, Nico's wound was a lot more serious than just a scrape.

Nico's wound was life-threatening.

I'll just have to work with what I have. It's better than nothing; It could still prevent infection.

"Can you tell me what happened?" I asked. I wanted to get a better idea of what I was dealing with.

"Octavian was drunk when I got here. He was upset because his girlfriend, Rachel, broke up with him. - I'm glad she got out while she could, though. Octavian treated her like garbage." He paused, wiping the blood on his hands off on his jeans. It didn't do much; the crimson still colored his skin and soaked his jacket. "Anyways.... he ended up stabbing me and dragging me into the other room."

I imagined the scene as he described it. I knew I was giving some of my real emotion away by my stiffness and the tears I ignored, but I couldn't help it.

The thought - no, the fact - that the person I love has been terrorized for so long was harrowing. Octavian gave Nico too many reasons why he shouldn't have told anyone about what he was really living through, so he stayed missing. He stayed locked in a nightmare.

Nico didn't deserve that. He didn't deserve to see his sister get shot, right in front of him when he only eight years old. He didn't deserve being forced into doing anything that monster wanted.

I knew my thoughts were straying. I had to focus.

"Will you take your shirt off please? I need to clean it out before I can stitch it." I told him, crouching down so that I was eye-level with the wound. I didn't register his fear until I looked up.

"Do I have to? I-I'm sorry, but I have scars. That's why I'm always wearing my jacket." He looked away, unnecessary shame on his features. His next sentence was barely there at all, a whisper. "I don't want you to be disgusted with me."

"Oh Nico, no. Never." I stood, hands finding their way to Nico's face. I didn't care about what he said earlier anymore. I needed to make sure he knew how much I cared about him. "I love you, okay? I love you. You aren't disgusting. Those scars are proof that you survived, that you're strong."

He shook his head and let out a choked sob. "How can you say that? Didn't you hear what Octavian said out there? He-He-"

"That wasn't your fault. Don't you dare blame yourself for that."

Rape was too small of a word to describe it. Four letters can't cover the pain and suffering and fear it causes.

"I should have fought back somehow...."

"There was nothing you could have done. He's three times your size, and he probably would've killed you if he couldn't have his way."

He shook his head again.

"You've seen the eye patch Ethan wears? The scar on Luke's face?" Nico asked, but he didn't wait for me to say anything. He rushed on, like I was a confessional. "That happened because of me, Will. They tried to help me, and they ended up getting hurt.... Now you're here."

"We have a plan. The cops are going to be called soon. Frank is somewhere else, waiting to call them." I said.

He was starting to panic. I could see the emotion play out in his expression, and I could hear it in his tone. "Why would you do that? If Octavian goes to jail, one of his friends will kill someone from the school. He has someone there, a spy to keep him informed."

I frowned. "Then why didn't he know who I was?"

"He likes to play mind-games." He said, like it was obvious. After a beat of silence, he added, "Ethan and Luke had a plan, too."

"We just have to survive the next hour, and we'll make it through. The police can do background checks on everyone - maybe question a few people." I don't know if I was saying it to reassure Nico or myself.

Nonetheless, Nico seemed to accept what I had said. He leaned his head back against the wall and closed his eyes.

I crouched back down. "I'm just going to lift your shirt up a little, okay? That way you don't have to show that much skin."

He nodded. "Okay."

I lifted his shirt up, gasping at what I saw under it. Other than the knife wound, there were more injuries. Scars, burns, and bruises covered the skin, allowing for a collection of color. One scar, a light pink one near his hipbone, stood out in a group of green and purple bruises.

Before I could stop myself, my hand was gently brushing against it. The skin was smooth and tight, and I felt how thin he was.

I started to cry. My chest heaved, and small sobs escaped from my lips. "How could he do this to you, Neeks? How could he?"

"I don't know." He said softly.

Nodding, I took a steadying breath and tried to pull myself together.

I had work to do.

I uncapped the bottle. "This is going to sting."

"Okay."

I didn't have a clean rag, so I sprayed it directly on the wound. Nico cried out at first, his face twisting as he clenched his teeth and squeezed his hands into fists. However, the longer I sprayed, the quieter his whimpers became. I only stopped when most of the blood was washed out of the wound, and I could see clearly what I was working with.

"Did Octavian twist the knife at all when he stabbed you?" I asked, examining the flesh. It didn't look like a clean cut. It looked almost like the area was shredded.

"Yeah. A couple of times, I think."

I nodded, threading the needle. It was a good thing the police were coming soon. I felt a whole lot better about giving him stitches, since my work was just going to be combed over by a professional later.

I tried to keep it neat, though, using everything I had learned and putting it into practice. Nico was good at keeping still, only grimacing a little.

I talked as I stitched, hoping to get Nico's mind off of the pain. "Your dad moved here. Did you know that?"

"No." He said. After a slight pause, his voice resurfaced with a question of his own. "Why did he move here?"

"This is the last place they had any leads on, regarding where you were. He moved his whole family down here from Alaska, begging the Police Department to reopen the case."

"I always thought he gave up on me."

"I think your dad just lost hope, you know? He tried to move on, but I guess he couldn't" I said honestly, making another stitch. "I met him and his wife once. They have a kid together.... you know Hazel from school?"

His eyes widened in surprise. "Is she my half sister?"

I nodded, a small smile slipping on my face when I saw his expression.

"Wow." He said, sighing. "I don't know how to feel. I mean, just wow."

"It's a lot to take in." I admitted.

I leaned in, tying off the last of the stitches. I used the ace bandage, wrapping it around his torso.

"You were pretty lucky, all things considered. The knife didn't puncture any major arteries or organs. But try not to move much. I did the best I could with the stitches, but my handiwork is far from perfect. You've lost too much blood, so you'll get dizzy easily until you regain some energy."

"Thank you." He said quietly, sincerely.

I didn't say anything. I just stood and wrapped my arms around him. He hugged me back, shaking as he sobbed.

"I'm so sorry, Will. I'm sorry you got wrapped into this." He said between between breaths.

"Shhhh. Everything is going be be okay. I promise."

A/N ~ School just started and I'm already exhausted.

I'm a full-time Move On When Ready student (which means that, even though I'm still in high school, I take all of my classes at a university for both high school and college credit). I'm taking really hard classes this semester, so most of my time is spent studying.

I'm going to try to update as often as I can, especially because I don't want to leave everyone on a cliffhanger for too long. I want to come up with a more consistent updating schedule for both of my fanfics, but I'm still not sure how to fit it all in this semester (but don't worry, I'll find a way!).

Thank you all for the reads!