Blood on Her Hands

Chapter 11

Chapter 11 (Rhys)

      It was hours later. I was sitting in the hospital, waiting out my shift while deep in thought. It was silent in the cold room - the only sounds were Sky's weak breathing and the unsteady beeping of her cardiac moniter.

      I had seen Samantha fiddling in her pocket moments before the explosion. I was sure of it. Why did everybody doubt me?

      No, not everybody. The last words Derek spoke before O'Neill sent him home were to me; four syllables softly murmured as he walked past. 'I beleive you.'

      All the evidence was there. All I had to do was prove it.

      I glanced up suddenly as Emily entered the hospital room. She tipped her head slightly as she saw the way I had managed to fit my whole body curled in the tiny chair, but said nothing of it. She waved at the door dismissively.

      "Go get some rest. I'll take over for a few hours."

      "Thank you Emily." Without arguing, I got out of the chair and left.

  {Scene Change.}

      I pushed the key card into the electronic lock and opened the door after hearing the satisfied chime. Pushing the hotel room door closed behind me, I went straight to work.

      Snatching Emily's laptop from the bedside, I quickly turned it on. While I was waiting for it to power up I wandered over to the desk and uncapped one of the complimentary pens. Chewing my lip, I focused intensely on nothing at all. Then my photographic memory kicked in and I began to draw.

      In mere minutes there was a perfect duplicate of Samantha's wound scribbled onto my arm. I went back to the computer and opened the internet search engine.

      "If she was cooking, the oven must've been at least 660 degrees Farenheit, and that's more then enough to cause a third degree burn." Tapping the letter keys, I studied the grotesque wounds that came up after I hit search. They looked nothing like the deep cut on Sam's arm.

      "I've got you now..." Hopping off the floor, I went to the hotel room's phone and swiftly dialed Derek's number. As soon as he answered I began to speak.

      "She's guilty. Why would she lie about how she got hurt if she wasn't? She got hurt in the struggle, so she must be-"

      "Rhys." The strange undertone of his voice caught me off guard, and I immediately stopped talking.

      "Sky just died."

      My violet eyes closed, and my mouth twitched sadly. Of course, I wasn't that upset because I hadn't known her that well, but Derek was obviously shattered.

      "I... I'm sorry." Eyeing Emily's empty bed, I made a snap-thought decision. "Would you like company tonight?"

      There was silence on the other line, then Derek let out a snort of depressed laughter. "Yeah. I would, actually. Thanks for the offer."

      Smiling to myself, I told Derek the hotel name and the number of our room. He said he'd be there soon, then disconnected.

      I hung up the phone. Going into the bathroom, I attemped to scrub my arm clean.

 {Some Time Later}

      The door was pulled open almost before I heard the knock. Moving aside to let Derek in, I was siddenyl suprised by the feeling of strong arms around me and a slightly damp leather jacket pressing against my face.