Episode 16 #3
“Su-jin and Jaewoong are with the last two winners,” Geun’s voice came from the door. Jun grabbed Damian’s shoulder and pushed himself upright. He had to see the others, had to know they were all right.
Yohei crossed the room, dragging Geun behind him. “Fuck, JunJun.”
“I’m fine.”
Yohei snorted, but he grabbed Jun in a hug around the shoulders, reaching over Collin and avoiding Jun’s waist. “You got fucking shot.”
“I’m fine.”
Yohei tore himself away, only to let Geun repeat the hug.
“But it’s done.” Jun forced himself to smile and tried to blink back tears that were threatening to show. “It’s done, right? We got everyone?”
“It is.” Ellisandre stood and brushed themselves off. There was blood on their bright white suit that hadn’t been there before. “Everyone we planned to arrest was taken in, plus Bak Sahyuk was re-arrested. And Gyeong’s a nonissue. The Seoul part of our operation is finished.”
Jun looked around the room. Some people were missing. “Where’s Jamal?”
“Already in an ambulance heading to the hospital. They won’t know more until they can wake him up.”
“But he wasn’t asleep.” Jamal had been there for him, holding the gun on Sahyuk.
“He fought off the sedative long enough to help. Collapsed right after,” Ellisandre said. “Almost as soon as he saw you were safe, he was out. If it was just a sedative, he’ll be fine. If not, the hospital will figure out what was in the syringe. They’re running it to a laboratory now.”
“It’s a good hospital,” Damian said. “He’s in good hands.”
Jun grimaced and nodded, then put his hand to the bruise by his waist. Knowing Richard and émeric, he was going to be seeing the inside of the same hospital soon.
But first, he needed to see Su-jin and Jaewoong.
At least he had the Residency already. Richard, émeric, Collin, and Damian were all there. No one was dead. No one was missing.
Damian
Damian stayed out of the way, gripping his wrist with one hand behind his back, letting the doctors poke and prod the large purple bruise between Jun’s hip and his ribs as he lay on the examination table.
It looked like it was spreading, the mark wrapping around towards Jun’s back, even though the impact had been frontal and glancing.
Nothing, absolutely nothing, was going to erase the memory of rushing into that room and seeing Jun standing above his father, arm running with blood, eyes full of fury, looking stronger than Damian had ever seen him before.
His chest had burned with pride and clenched with fear.
There had been so much blood. At first he wasn’t sure where it had been coming from.
And he’d been right to worry. They’d come so close.
The crease in the bulletproof vest validated every seemingly over the top protection he’d planned with Richard and Ellisandre going into the evening.
And still—with Jamal right there, Timothy only steps away, cameras and listening devices in the room, panic buttons on every principle—still, they’d come to this.
Damian breathed out, forcing calm through his nerves.
What was running through his veins now was after-fear.
Not a real word, but he was going with it.
He’d felt something akin to this when rushing across the US after being informed that émeric, Richard, and Collin were all hospitalized.
Perhaps he was destined to always be standing in attendance in the aftermath of violence.
It wasn’t right that Jun was hurt again and he was not.
Not just Jun. Jamal and Maleko, too. They were both being attended by doctors. And Geun was only one exam room away. Yohei and Su-jin were with him. Jaewoong had wedged himself into Jun’s room only a few feet away from Damian.
Jun raised his eyes from speaking with the doctor. “DaSu.”
Damian moved closer. Jun motioned with his head for Damian to be even closer. He didn’t stop until Damian was right beside him. “Hope you don’t mind a little blood.”
“There’s less of it now than before.”
Jun huffed. He looked half asleep but still wired. Damian pressed his body against the exam table, his hand on Jun’s chest. Jun tangled his hand in the front of Damian’s shirt and turned his face so that he could rest his forehead against Damian’s hip.
“We’re going to get started, Mr. Gang,” the doctor said.
Jun nodded for them to get on with it. Damian rested his hand against Jun’s cheek, shielding him from seeing what the doctors were about to do. “He’s ready.”
The doctor nodded. “Just keep him steady. The local anesthetic is working now. It should be painless.”
“So tired,” Jun slurred into Damian’s jacket. He was speaking English.
“He’s good,” Damian told the doctor. “Go for it.”
The doctor nodded and got to work.
The door opened and Collin slipped inside beside Jaewoong. How had he managed that? Damian raised an eyebrow.
Collin blushed and stepped close, avoiding the doctor and his assistant. “Jamal is getting scanned. Then Maleko. Geun’s getting an X-ray. Richard sent me to check on you.”
“Scans are done,” Damian kept his voice low. “They’re going to keep him overnight to watch for internal bleeding.”
“Want to go home,” Jun complained. His eyes were fully closed.
Colin rested his hand on Jun’s thigh and squeezed gently. “If they’re concerned, you should stay.”
Jun let go of Damian and reached for Collin. “I want to go home.”
Collin squeezed back and let Jun hang on to him. “We’ll get home. It just might take a little longer. We have to make sure you’re all right.”
Jun shook his head, his hair making rubbing sounds against Damian's suit. “‘m always al’ight when, with…you.”
Collin smiled, blinking hard, and looked at Damian.
Goddammit . Damian blinked fast himself, breathing through his nose. He was not going to cry. “We’re with you, Jun, here or at a home.”
“Okay, Alpha.” Jun slumped a bit. The doctor grunted and adjusted his work.
“Is it all right that he’s this out of it?” Damian asked the doctor’s assistant, gesturing to Jun’s face. He looked like he was about to pass out. “Did he lose too much blood?”
“Not too much blood,” the assistant smiled and nodded. “It’s the adrenaline crash. We’ll get a warm blanket to cover his legs.”
“I’ll do it,” Jaewoong said. “Just keep taking care of him. I’ll fetch one from the nursing station.”
After the bullet wound in Jun’s arm was treated, Damian, Collin, and Jaewoong accompanied Jun up a floor and down the hall to the room where they were told Geun was already resting.
When they wheeled Jun into the room in a chair, Geun was already asleep, Su-jin and Yohei sitting beside him, Su-jin holding his hand.
Damian and the med tech tried to help Jun into the remaining bed. Jun stood readily enough, but then caught sight of Geun, asleep. He paused. Damian touched Jun’s arm.
“He’s okay.”
Jun blinked, slowly. The pain meds had made him loopy, starting about twenty minutes before.
He stared at Geun with concern for a long moment.
Yohei stood and gave Jun a thumbs up, speaking softly in Japanese.
Jun’s shoulders dropped with relief and he turned back to Damian, letting himself be helped into bed.
“How is he?” Su-jin asked, tilting his head to show he was asking about Jun.
“He might pee some blood, but if nothing else shows up, he can leave tomorrow. His arm is going to be okay.” Jaewoong answered. He looked to Damian for confirmation.
Damian nodded in agreement. “They’re hopeful it’s just really bad bruising. The vest and the angle kept the second bullet from making direct contact.”
Su-jin breathed out like he was trying not to drown. Yohei reached for him.
Collin’s phone rang. He stepped outside to take the call. Damian and the tech fussed with getting Jun situated with all his monitor wires laid properly. Jaewoong helped by holding up blankets and resettling them once Jun was positioned.
A nurse came in, checking the machines. “His blood pressure is high. If it stays this way, we’ll have to medicate him.”
Damian grimaced and nodded. They’d do it if they had to. He stroked Jun’s shoulder. His wolfling turned towards him. In moments, Jun was asleep.
Collin came back, pocketing his phone. He leaned into Damian, speaking quietly. “Ellisandre is heading to the airport.”
“Everything okay?”
Collin grimaced. “Rei triggered the extraction code. Something happened. Sevastyan isn’t operational.”
Cold goosebumps washed over Damian. “Ellisandre will get them. Are they going alone?”
“They said they had what they needed. Linda’s seeing them off. Then she’ll bring food over. Gigi’s bringing up coffee.”
“Thank goddess,” Damian muttered.
Collin shook his head, a little humor in his eyes. “You’re lucky I’m letting you drink this much.”
Damian narrowed his eyes. “This isn’t a case.”
Collin put his hands up. “I know. I know.” Then his shoulders slumped. “It feels like the concert was a week ago, not five hours.”
“Six,” Yohei said.
Collin grimaced. He moved towards Geun’s bed. “Linda’s bringing food. Does anyone need anything else?”
“A change of clothes,” Yohei said.
“I can go back to the hotel. If you don’t mind me going through your things.”
“Mi Hi has our keycards,” Su-jin said. “I don’t care.”
“I’ll grab Timothy…no…actually, I don’t have a bodyguard right now.” Collin closed his eyes and tapped his forehead with his fingers. “I’ll go as soon as Richard is finished.”
“What’s he doing?” Damian asked.
“Giving his statement. Mr. Su was with him. Meng is also still with him.”
Meng. Who was Meng? Oh, yeah, the Seoul-based English-Korean interpreter Damian had chosen himself. Damian was starting to lose the thread of the plot. Gigi and her coffee delivery couldn’t come fast enough.