Hidden Past

Chapter 17

My eyes flicker open, adjusting to the whiteness of the room. I wriggle my stiff fingers, feeling my bones aching and bruised. I glance up to see Steve stood at the end of the hospital bed, biting on his nails and he smiles at me. The cut under his eye has been cleaned with stitches, and his nose is blue with bruises. 

My head aches and when i move i feel the staples in my head tighten. There's a clear drip in my left hand and a black firm cast on my left leg. I feel dizzy from the big dose of painkillers and my whole body aches. 

"Hey." I mumble, sending Steve a small smile. 

"Hi, Hatz. How are you feeling?" He asks. 

"Sore." I admit. 

"Can you tell me something? Tony told me that you saw something and made him drive you home. What did you see?" 

"I didn't see anything. I heard you shouting for help." I whisper. 

"You saved me Hattie." 

"But i didn't. I wouldn't need to save you if you weren't with me." I mutter. 

"What do you mean?" 

"I understand partly what is going on. My dangerous father's friends are trying to find me and they thought i was in the house so they set it on fire. But you were inside and they hurt you." I explain, my voice trailing off at the end. 

"Im going to be honest with you, yes, that's right. But I promise you that whoever is after you, won't hurt you." Steve promises, pulling up a blue plastic chair and staring me straight in the eyes. 

I raise my head to him, Steve's eyes shine with care but I don't think he can keep the promise. 

There's a knock at the door and i see Natasha poking her head around, the Avengers are stood behind her with sympathetic smiles on their faces. 

"Can we come in?" She asks, showing her white teeth. 

"Yeah." I reply. 

Natasha opens the door and steps in, lining up at the end of the bed as Clint and Tony follow her in. Tony's hair is covered with grey ash and there is a cut above his left eyebrow. Clint smiles at Steve then leans against the white wall at the end of my hospital bed. 

"How are you doing, Hattie?" Natasha asks, sending me a questioning look. 

"Im fine thank you." 

"You didn't seem fine when we jumped in to save you from drowning." Tony mumbles and Steve sends him a glare. 

"Thank you." I smile. 

Suddenly, there's another knock on the door and a black haired nurse with a pale face marches in, holding a clipboard and a stethoscope around her neck. She enters and closes the door behind her, glancing around us and smiles at me. 

"Hello, Harriet." She reads from the file in her hand, her voice is full of kindness. 

"Hi." I mumble. 

"You aren't registered anywhere, is there a reason for that?" She questions, looking stare at me with a confused look on her face. 

"Actually, yes. Here, ring this number and he will explain everything." Tony takes control, pulling out a small white business card and handing it to her. The nurse looks him up and down, then glances at me, nodding. 

"Well, you had a piece of metal stuck in your foot that we had to remove through surgery. Within a few weeks you should be able to walk on it, but it will take patience and determination." The nurse explains.