Prohibited Devotion

Thirteen

She sat with her back resting against the sofa, Loki had his head resting on her lap. He had curled into her the moment she had settled with him. 

Cristina had fallen asleep shortly after the first film, completely spraweled over the large air mattress Meredith had bought in.

She couldn't stop thinking about the day she had experience. She had been attacked by her own father, welcomed into a family who despised her biological parents, been asked to change her name, disowned her family and had a moment of pure eye contact with Derek. Her mind was on a constant whirl.  She had never felt so confused before. 

She was lost in thought when a loud noise tore her from her imagination and awoke Cristina. The noises continued, like rocks hammering the windows.

"What the fuck"Cristina spoke quietly, Meredith's face was pale. She didn't need to think, she new he would answer her call.

Derek was sat awake talking to Mark, his father and best friend Owen. Classic guy talk, soccer, bars and life. 

His phone began to vibrate from where it sat on the table, everyone fell silent as a deep frown covered his entire face.

"Its Meredith"He answered as quickly as he could. "Meredith are you okay?"He asked 

"Derek..I..I am at the vets and there are five...maybe six people...men outside they are throwing things at the windows and I...I"He could hear the panic in her voice.

"Breathe for me. I am coming okay. I will be less than ten minutes. I will call you back okay. Stay with Cristina don't move" He ended the call. " Someone is trying to get into the surgery. Well a group of men" The end of his sentence caused the other three men to stand harshly.

Without a word Chris turned and unlocked a drawer pulling out four guns.

"It isn't often I do this but hell this girl doesn't deserve this. Lets go" Carolyn didn't say a word as the four men rushed past, she had heard each word. Her husband's behaviour toward the girl had shocked her. She hadn't expected him to be so open, welcoming and warm toward her. But it was the man he was Meredith reminded him of his own daughters. For him Family was everything, for him without his family there was nothing. 

Three cars sped down the high way, anger ran through Derek's veins as he thought about the blonde..his blonde being scared and alone without protection.

His hand gripped the steering wheel tightly as the large sign lit up his vision. He could see the men, the cars and a larger van.

Meredith was hunched into a corner panic running through her, until she heard the familiar voice of Derek. Even despite not knowing him long he and his family and bought her more comfort than she had ever had.

The voice that responded back to him was another she knew well, her older brother. Then a gun shot and another and another. She wasn't sure what the hell was going on, she wasn't sure what came over her but she remembered a small hand gun her father had given her years before.

She unlocked the file cabinet and pulled out a black case, followed by the gun. 

"Don't go out there Mer"A frightened Cristina spoke from under the desk. 

"It'll be okay, stay here and stay quiet"Every ounce of fear was gone, her legs were no longer shaking. She slipped out of the back door, she walked around the corner with caution. She could recognise Derek, his father and Mark. They had another man with them who she didn't know. Two men were on the floor probably dead. One was crawling in the grass leaving a trail.

The recognised the other three figures easily, her father, her brother and a so called 'gangster' from one of the garages David owned.

Max was the first to notice the presence of his sister.

"Here she is father" He clapped. Meredith swallowed the lump in her throat. Derek shook his head at her.

"Princess turn around for me, go back inside you don't need to see this"His eyes pleaded with her.

"Really Meredith. Fucking the enemy. I didn't ask you to do that which means out of choice you got into bed with him"David's voice was laced with anger and hatred.

She didn't stop walking until she stood between the men, her face still pale and drained, her own gun not visible yet.

"What the fuck happened to your face" Max spat. Meredith laughed. 

"Like you don't know"But the questionable look in his face proved he didn't "Your precious daddy beat me because I wouldn't sleep with someone." He looked to his younger sister who deep down he loved more than anything and then to his father, the man who had pressured him his entire life, forced him to be someone he didn't want to be.

"What...father you wouldn't surely?"Meredith stood back. Watching the angry exchange between them, which turned calm within seconds. David always got out of these situations.

"Come here"Derek opened his arms, which she ran into naturally. He placed a kiss to her forehead as if they were actually together. 

"I thought it was some joke. I didn't believe you were actually fucking him"David's anger rose with each second.

"You don't deserve your daughter Grey. She is too precious for you. Your loss but our gain. Our family will look after her and take her on"Chris had placed his gun into the band of his jeans which Meredith had noticed, as had Owen and Mark.  She watched each move her father made, she knew him more than he thought.

When he reached into his jacket she knew his next move, she didn't think because she didn't need too. She pushed past Derek and pulled out her own gun.

She held it to him as he held his up to Chris.

"Meredith sweetheart, its okay, i got this"Chris smiled although she couldn't see.

"No. None of you are taking bullets for me" She shook her head.

"You would really risk your own life for the likes of a Shepherd?"Her father laughed in her face.

"I would. I would risk each life I have. Because they have shown me kindness, they have shown me love, shown me respect, shown me that I don't need to change to feel accepted. They held me when I turned up beaten by you. What have you ever done for me except try and change me, lead me into disastrous situations and leave me to fend for myself. " Her hands didn't shake, she didn't show an ounce of fear.

"You don't have the guts to do it girl. You wouldn't do it" He laughed in her face.  

The events that unwrapped after were those that no one could have ever predicted.