Participants:
| Scene Title | Serious Trust Issues |
|---|---|
| Synopsis | Despite Ryans continued tolerance of Huruma, there are still some serious trust issues to work on. |
| Date | May 11, 2010 |
It's been almost 24 hours since what was labeled 'the incident' in the ambulance bay at the ER. Since that time, Delia's been either lying in bed watching the fuzz of bug hockey on television, or sleeping, or having yet another test done. A few of her fellow hospital staffers have come to visit, but there aren't any flowers to be had, the gift shop is out of cards, and chocolates… It's just really depressing.
"Hey Delia, how's it going?" Nurse Tanner says with a cheery voice as she comes in with a clipboard. "The Doc says you'll be free to go in a few hours, we're just waiting for your CAT results to come back." There's been some trauma in the first one that they suspected might be a bleed… lucky for Delia, the machine was just out of order.
"Great, hey has my sister been around yet?" The redhead says as she sits up in the bed. She doesn't ask about her father, the snow's been too heavy and she doesn't know exactly where he is. "Or.. anyone?"
There is some arguing in the hallway, the distinct sound of the senior Ryans' voice drifting through. More then likely he's barking orders to an agent being posted outside her door. Any police officer that was there is being dismissed.
There is a short loll, before the door opens, between that moment and the next, Benjamin Ryans has that neutral and calm exterior going. "Lia?" He asks, slipping into the room. Pausing he looks out the door. "No one unless I approve it first." Then he lets go of the door and moves to his daughter's bedside.
A hand grips her arm lightly, as he leans over to kiss the top of her head carefully. "I'm sorry I wasn't here sooner, sweety." His face gentling at the sight of her, "As soon as found out, I came down."
The commotion in the hallway isn't taken without some protest from the medical staff. "Sir! You can't just…" Nurse Tanner is trying to barge her way into the room after Benjamin, only to be stopped by the agent at the door. "Let me through, this is my patient!"
Delia angles her head a little and her face brightens at the sight of her father. "Hey Dad, is Lu with you?" When he leans down to kiss her, she winces a little and then gives him a tentative smile. Her cheek is scraped from where she hit the concrete, there's red patches of raw skin where the frostbite didn't heal properly, but nothing that won't heal in a few days.
"I understand, work…" The last word is said with a grim tone and she shrugs and looks out the window for a moment before turning back to him.
It was not difficult to blend in with the hospital crowds; the swamp of people in and out, the lines tromping in and out. Huruma, unbeknownst to Delia, did not entirely leave her alone. After her jumping the fence, so to speak, the woman went off and doubled her way back as to give herself just enough time between incident and return. She stayed overnight with the crowds, hanging around like a great vulture in a broken tree.
A few minutes after morning began, she could tell that some company agents had come and gone by their demeanor and mood; Company agents are considerably different than say, homicide detectives or homeland agents. The little things matter most in telling them apart. Huruma simply waited after this point, keeping herself tucked away until she would be able to spot or feel the familiar man coming for one of his two pups. It was only a matter of time.
Even after Benjamin gets there, Huruma has waited a few minutes before going to follow the course towards Delia's private room. This gives him just enough time to get in to her and get his greeting in, before poor Nurse Tanner and the agent are faced with fielding Huruma as she practically appears out of nowhere.
"Benjamin." Even with the door only ajar, it is hard to mistake the drawling voice out in the hall.
The agent at the door, looks at Ryans and he gives a nod, he doesn't answer her though, his attention going to the young woman in the bed. "More then work." He chides gently. "The land and cell lines are down, it takes time for news to reach people."
The familiar voice catches Ryans attention and he steps away from Delia, his hand sliding off her arm. "Let her in." Comes the rough order, he moves to one side of the door, as soon as Huruma steps in, she can feel his anger, flare hot across her skin, before his large hand shoots out, grabbing her around the throat. It's like a vice has been latched on, squeezing, and she's shoves up against the wall roughly, the other hand slamming the door in the shocked faces of the Agent and Nurse, with a slam.
Blue eyes are like ice that has been lit on fire, shadowed by his fedora, as he leans in, but far enough away that she can't snap teeth at him. His anger and fury lick across her senses, she hasn't ever really seen the lion like this yet, but then she's never threatened his family before. Lips peel back from teeth in a snarl, his words growl out dangerously. "You have a lot of nerve coming in here, Huruma."
The only thing holding her to that wall, his that stoney grip, it would bruise lighter skin. "I talked to the officers before coming in here. I heard what you did." His voice raises to a barely contained roar, his eyes searching her face. "Why!?"
"DAD STOP!!" The shriek from the bed is loud and full of terror, Delia's never ever seen her father like this before. Wide blue eyes stare at the scene just before the thin blankets unfurl and get pushed to the wayside. The young redhead's bare feet hit the floor with a soft pat and she flies across the room, seemingly unaware that she's dragging the IV pole behind her.
"Daddy stop!" The agent, the nurse, the security guards that are now on their way… No one is brave enough to come between the lion and his prey. No one except the cub. She squeezes between the two of them and tries to push Benjamin back with all her might. It's not good enough. "Daddy stop stop… She stopped them."
So much exersion in such little time gives her a light headed feeling and she wobbles slightly. Shes much too proud to actually admit that she's still injured or even feeling any adverse effects of the thump to the head. The guardian angel might feel the confusion, just before the young woman places a hand to her head and quiets her voice to a small "oh… that doesn't feel so good…"
Huruma would be far more shocked- far more suspicious- if he were not handling her like a viper upon her appearance there.
They are both humans of naturally exuberant size, and even if the agent outside knew what was going to happen, fat chance that he would be able to do a damn thing about it. What Ryans is perhaps not prepared for is bound to be Huruma's lack of trying to not be grabbed by the throat, to not be slammed up against the wall- rather than any strange or new attempt at writhing out from under his paw. Instead, she moves easily with the jostling and the choking of his fingers around her long, wiry neck. The sinew under the thinner skin of his palm coils back and forth to find a more comfortable angle. Huruma's lips curl in a sneer, though her eyes remain disturbingly knowing. Her hands have found purchase on him in return, one set of spidery fingers kneading nails into the fabric of the arm pushing into her, and the other scraping palm onto his shoulder.
There is really only time for her teeth to grind and mouth to hiss before Delia is literally leaping to her side. To her side, and then in between the two of them. It's a tight fit, to say the least, getting between two squabbling big cats.
Delia's emotions run as high as Benjamin's. The hand on his shoulder slips away and back, curling around Delia to make sure she stays upright against her.
The door rattles, and fists pound on it, voices lifted on the other side, but it's obvious the Senior Company Agent has locked it. Even as his daughter pushes and shoves at his chest, he barely moves, the look dangerous, as if he'd have no qualms trying to finish what they started before long, long ago.
However, slowly the words his youngest slaps him with sink in, eyes narrow at the darker woman. With a jerk, his hand comes away from her throat and his turns and paces away, putting distances between him and Huruma, while he wrestles with his emotions. He stares at the window for a long time, letting the cannibal, help his daughter back to bed… right now, it's not a good time for him to be gentle.
Even though the stoney macks slowly falls back into place, Huruma can feel those emotions, warm and dry like the African plains. He doesn't apologize for what he did, but slowly, reluctantly he turns back to the older woman, clentched fists tremble slightly with his contained emotions. "Thank you, Huruma." The words grate out like they are painful to say. "For… protecting her."
The young woman is limp, like a bowl of overcooked noodles. Her hand is still on her forehead, rubbing the heel of her palm slowly across the cool skin. Allowing Huruma to guide her, she flops back into the bed and pulls the IV pole a little closer by the tubes.
She winces as she peels the tape back on her arm to check how much damage she might have done while dragging it around, hooked only by the tiny needle in her arm. Already a small bruise is starting to form, thankfully the tape held fast and was able to stabilize the assembly as the redhead made her way across the room.
She's weary, too tired to keep it up, her head is pounding and it feels as though it's about to explode off her shoulders at any moment. Giving the giant a grateful smile, she rests her head back on the pillow and closes her eyes for just a moment. It's all she has is just a moment before the pounding on the door become too much for her. "If it's alright… can someone get them to stop?"
Huruma observes him for some time after he draws away. The maelstrom he encounters seconds after registering what has transpired is something that Huruma can feel every idiosyncrasy of, every twitch from one polarized place to another. Not only this, she can tell that even without her ability, that he is hating so much to be so grateful for something she has done. It is a complex and likely rather dirty feeling on its own.
Huruma says absolutely nothing while she helps Delia back to the bed, foremost setting her so that she is not liable to go flopping off if she gets dizzy. Second order of business is to unlock the door, wave a dismissive hand at the milling crowd outside, and promptly slam it shut again practically on their noses. Getcha'ass outta here, fools.
"…You are welcome." When Huruma does eventually speak again, it is with a slight croak in her usually so velveteen voice. Her lip curls at the sound, and one hand moves up to massage at her neck. The other hand props on the outward curve of her hip, weight shifting onto one leg and for a moment, expression appreciative. "…It'as been a while since you'ave manhandled me quite like that."
Though the man doesn't move, his eyes follow their every movement, like a predator watching prey. Ryans jaw is locked tight, he doesn't really speak, when she comments, his gaze drops to her throat, before he looks away, back to his daughter. "Agents will be posted at your door, I'll see what I can do about keeping you watched after til this case is finished."
It's easier for the old man to slip into the agent role, easier to deal with the emotions. Distancing himself from the worry and pain. "Don't worry Delia… whoever this is…" Is a dead man, but he doesn't say that aloud… instead, "…will be caught."
His gaze moves back to the amazon woman, his face stoney. There are things he'd say to her, if they were not around his youngest child, but he has to keep them to himself. What he asks of her is hard for him to say, he has to force them out, but he does. "You able to keep an eye on the girls as well? I have to work this case, I'll have agents help, but… the extra protection will be… welcomed."
Delia's solemn expression borders on heartbreaking, when her father turns stoney her lips twitch to an accepting grimace and then it falls from her face. She just nods in answer to him, not looking up from her fingers which have started twisting little pills into the fleece of the thin blanket over her.
She lets loose a long sigh and turns her head toward the window. "I think Lu's at the hotel still… I haven't seen her since we went there. Then I came here to pick up more shifts." She's changed the subject, much like he does when he doesn't want to talk about something with her or her sister.
A few minutes pass as Delia stares at her reflection in the window, she doesn't really recognize herself. She's gaunt, pale, over-tired. Even with all of the rest she got today, it wasn't good, they kept waking her up at regular intervals. "Dad… he said it was business… that you made him do it."
The painful thing to know is that whatever he is feeling, Huruma can see it as plain as day. Unlike telepaths, one cannot truly protect against observations of empaths. Huruma watches, listens, waits. Father speaks, daughter speaks, Huruma calculates. Fingers that have been massaging her windpipe are slow to move away. If she were not so much parallel in size to Benjamin, that would have hurt her in much more than in pride.
"Two more eyes tha'you jus'didn'know you already had." In layman's terms- Huruma will be keeping an eye on your girls- not that she hasn't been as it is. Why do you think she was there at such an opportune time? "Delia." The tall woman's eyes zero in and focus onto the redhead lying down nearby. "You would be best t'learn tha'things are not always as they seem. Including words coming out of men who try t'abduct you." Her tone is much too much like a practiced matriarch dismissing worry; somewhat ham-handed, but otherwise to the point.
"And you-" Huruma's lips form around the two words lovingly when her eyes roam back to her father. "Will tell me what you know. I'll return the gesture." A narrowing of her eyes implicates something likely not picked up by those that came into the picture after the fact.
Anger flashing across Ryans' features again at the last of his baby girls words, his lips twitch as if having to fight the urge to scowl. "I have no idea what he is talking about." He admits gruffly, the words bit out, though it is not completely true. He has an idea… A pretty good idea actually. "I'm only an agent doing his job."
A glance is slanted to Huruma, after he says that as if daring her to say otherwise. "But, I've kept you too long." There is some hesitation in the senior agent, shoulders and back stiff from what he had just done, but he moves to run a hand gently over her red locks, the same color as her mothers, another quick fatherly kiss to the top of her head, but he back away.
He finally glances at Ryans and gives a sharp single nod and jerks his head towards the door, moving that direction himself, after brushing a lock of red hair, behind the girls ear. A small show of affection, but about all he can afford at the moment.
"I know Dad didn't tell them to do it…" Delia mumbles, still not looking at either of them. It's her turn to act like a Ryans, go numb and the world can't get at you any more. She draws in a deep breath and then looks from one to the other slowly. "I think Dad hurt them, so they're trying to hurt him back. I'm not stupid, I can figure out stuff." Maybe.
When her father motions to the door, that's when she gives him the pleading look. "Dad, you'll check to make sure Lu's alright, won't you? If this can happen in the middle of a hospital…" Delia's voice drifts off but it's laced with fear and worry. "…Lu's just really nice to everyone. She's not careful."
Huruma watches him, and is one step ahead. She slinks silently towards the door just in front of him, turning slightly as Delia speaks to meet his gaze a moment; and then she completes her tiny pivot and is slipping out into the hall again. He can finish here, without her sitting in on it.
Pausing, his hand on the door, Ryans turns his head, but doesn't look back at his daughter, if he does… he might not leave and there is work to do. How many times did he have to do that in the past? More time then he'd ever admit, their entire life.
Silence reins for a long moment, but then Ryans head bobs in confirmation, "Get sleep," before he slips out of the door, his hand moving to grab Huruma again, but this time gently and only to guide her down the long white hallway, away from the agent standing at the door.
"My past is possibly catching up to me." Ryans explains softly, to the dark woman, his face, back to that neutral and unreadable expression, even if she knows better. The anger is still there, but there is a knot of fear. "I have agents looking in my files and others, to see if there is an connections."
The arm floating there to guide Huruma down the hall isn't entirely foreign, but when it comes to Ryans- she is surprised that he is getting so close and not being wary of only her at the same time. Progress, of a kind. It must be what just happened in there- she assumes. It probably looks completely strange to the agent posted there, to hear them going at it one minute and walking out like pals the next.
"I suspected tha'when I found out you were Lucille's father." Huruma says simply, brows quirking upwards and lips pursing sweetly. "Take th'anger you jus'showed me- and use it t'find whoever it is tha'urt your girl. I will do good by you now-" Such a thing coming out of her mouth is almost like bizarro-world. "However, you must do th'same f'me. You can begin, b'taking my advice." Sure, an agent of his caliber has learned over time to harness his anger in constructive ways; this time, Huruma figures it just may be cutting too close to the bone for him to see straight.
One can almost hear the teeth grinding as she speaks, the old agent is relieved for the help, and fearful of his acceptance of it. "I can't give you all the details." He explains softly, being sort of a cop, he's duty bound to that part of it. "However, I will tell you that I was recently, called in personally to pick up a man. He, I and one other were set upon by gun men. They had help either from someone in the building or a technopath." He goes silent, he head dipping down as he tries to figure how to explain it without too many details.
"Already talked to one technopath… Rebel. He swears that while his men were coming for my target, it wasn't the people that attacked me. His were murdered in cold blood." Ryans head tilts to the side a little, to look back Huruma to the agent down the hall, who is staring at them both. As soon as their eyes meet, the guard, glances away.
There is a narrowing of Ryans eyes before he pulls his attention back to Huruma. "The mercenaries knew who I was and that I had two daughters." Two fingers at held up, but then lowered slowly. "It's not easy to find that information out, my… loss of age, is not widely known. There are very few who really know."
His shoulders slump some and a hand lifts to rub fingers over his eyes, a sign of exhaustion and stress, "So either these people really want my target… me — god know what — or both. I am leaning towards both."
"Rebel." Huruma says, with a hint of a snort. "Skilled technopaths like Rebel are few an'far b'tween. It seems more likely tha'there is a physical presence involved." She shifts, subtle in her leaning closer to him. He can smell the frostiness of her clothes, and the tickling of just her. Her eyes, for a passing breath, appear lamplike. Will-o-the-wisps on a dusky canvas.
"Let me ask you jus'one last thing. How much d'you trust your people?" His people. Agents. Company. The spooks. Whoever he assumes her to mean.
It may surprise her that her question, gets a touch of a crooked smile. "Rebel asked me that exact thing Huruma…" He studies her, before he moves to step around her, "And I'll tell you as I told him, it depends on the people. Some I do… others not so much."
"I've been given options I'm tempted to take, but I won't. This young man I picked up, in the wrong hands, it would be bad." Ryans twists to glance over his shoulder towards his daughters room again. "If I hand him over this will all stop, but…" he turns that steely gaze to her, "I can't…"
He turns his back to Delia's room. "I need to go speak further with the police, find out what they have gathered, check on Lu… then I have to get back to work."
The agent doesn't even say goodbye as he starts down the hallway. "Keep her safe, Huruma."