Relative Strangers (Book 2) No Man Is An Island

3. Asking For Help

When E woke up, she found herself lying in the medical bay, with all the ARC team crowded round her bed, and they all wore matching worried expressions on their faces.
E smiled at the familiarity of the situation. She then tried to prop herself up with her elbows, which is when she realised that one of them was in a sling.
She frowned and tried to flex her left arm, which caused her to wince loudly as pain shot through her body.
"You need to be careful" warned Matt.
"Don't worry about me, I'm indestructable remember" replied E, forcing a smile, and using her right arm to push herself up into a sitting position.
"No you're not. You might think that you are. But you are still human, like the rest of us" reminded Becker.

"You guys worry too much. I'm fine" reassured E.
"You'll need to take it easy for the next few days, and keep the arm in the sling, so that the wound in your shoulder can heal" instructed Abby.
"Yes ma'am" mocked E.
"We're serious E. You could've died" admitted Matt.
E sighed, "I'm aware of that. I'm just trying to lighten the mood, but you guys seem intent on bringing it down".
"Did you expect us to be jumping for joy? You return after 6 months with a gunshot wound in your shoulder, and no explanation, and you expect things to go back to the way they were before you left?"
"No. I don't".

"Well, are you going to tell us where you've been? Because that bullet hole isn't the only new wound we found. Your body is covered in bruises, and they look too placed to have been caused by accident. It looks like they were- like you were..." Matt faltered, unable to finish his sentance.
"Go on, say it" encouraged E.
"O.K, it looks like you've been beaten up. Or more suspicfically, tortured" finished Matt.
"Well, I'd be lying if I said you were wrong".
"Someone tortured you?" Gasped Jess.
"Not someone. It was several people. One man couldn't do all this damage" admitted E.

"Who did this to you? Who are these people that hurt you?" Questioned Becker.
"It's complicated" sighed E.
"Oh no, you're not keeping secrets from us anymore. We deserve answers. You can't just leave without saying goodbye, then come back and act like nothing happened" snapped Matt.
"I left you a note" E said quietly.
"A short note that said you were going but would be back soon. That was it. You didn't tell us where you were going, or how long you'd be"
"That's because I didn't know how long I was going to be. I thought I was going to be a few days or a week at most, which is why I didn't write a more detailed note. Besides, it shouldn't matter how long I was gone for. You knew when I joined the team that I might have to leave at a seconds notice. I never agreed to stay here forever".

"You promised that you wouldn't leave without saying goodbye" reminded Matt.
"What did you want me to do? Wake you up in the middle of the night, say goodbye, and then hop through an anomaly?" Asked E.
"You could've at least told us where you were going. I've been worrying about you for the last 6 months, ever since I woke up that morning and found that you'd dissappeared. I didn't even know if you were dead or alive" replied Matt.
"Look, I'm sorry I made you worry. But I never asked you to worry about me. You're not my father Matt, nor do you own me. I am free to come and go as I please. I don't owe you a goodbye or an explanation. I had to leave when I did, because I have other responsibilties outside of the ARC. I didn't mean to be gone so long, but I can't change the past".

"Why didn't you use the anomalies to come back straight away? You could've been gone 2 years in your life time, but come back a day later in our time, and we never would have known. Why didn't you do that?" Quizzed Connor.
"In case you hadn't noticed, I got shot. I didn't have the time to mess about with my anomaly detector, to find the day I left all those months ago. Besides, I haven't been in the past these last 6 months. I've been in the present. So going back to the day I left would not have been an option, because then there would have been 2 of me in that time zone" explained E.
"You've been in the present?" Questioned Lester.
"Yes" answered E.

"That means that whoever shot you is out there right now" admitted Matt.
"Yes. It does. Which is why I have to go back there once I'm healed. My mission is time sensitive, and still not completed" revealed E.
"Wait! You want to back to the people who tried to kill you?" Questioned Becker.
"I have to. Like I said, I have not succeeded in my mission yet" replied E.
"You can't go, not when you've only just got back. Besides, it's clearly too dangerous for you to do alone. Look at the state of you. If you go back again, you might not get out alive" warned Matt.
"I know, but it's a risk that I'm going to have to take" insisted E.

"No. Not if I don't let you go" announced Matt firmly.
"We both know that I can't be held against my will. Eventually I always find a way to escape" reminded E.
"But what if this mission kills you and you haven't done what you needed to do?" Asked Emily.
"She's right, you can't do this alone. Let us help you" begged Abby.
"I don't like asking for help" admitted E.
"I know, but this time, I think that you're going to have to. Or you're going to end up dead" warned Matt.
"You're right... This time I'm going to need help, from all of you. For 6 months I've been trying to do this alone, but I've failed. So this time I'm going to need assistance" relented E, rather begrudgingly.