Mafia

12 Damon: After the Gallery: Part 3

Once I'd managed to clean up, eat something, and take a nap, I definitely felt better, but I was also restless. Steve and Tony weren't back yet, and Roxy had to go in to work to cover for her and Emma staying here at the apartment to help with Lupin. Emma was still here, but she'd gone to check on Lupin a few minutes ago.

I was just about to go to my office to try and distract myself with some work when Emma came running down the hall.

"Damon!" she said. I looked over at her and saw that she was slightly doubled over, holding her stomach. I jumped off the couch and ran over to her.

"What happened?" I asked, "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," she said waving me off, "Lupin's awake." Before she could say anything more, I took off down the hall, heading straight towards Lupin's room.

"Damon, wait!" Emma called out to me. I didn't listen until she was between me and the closed door.

"Move, Emma," I said.

"No," Emma said, "Not until you listen to me."

"Fine," I said.

"When I went in there," Emma said, "she wasn't on the bed—"

"What do you mean?" I said. Emma shook her head.

"She's in the middle of the worst panic attack I've ever seen."

"What do we do?" I asked. 

"I don't know," Emma said, "When I tried to help, she punched me in the stomach." I looked at Emma, shocked. Not many people can get the drop on Emma. She's one of the best fighters I've ever seen. It may not seem like it, but she can easily take down me, Tony, and Steve.

My phone vibrated in my pocket. It was Steve and Tony. They'd just gotten back and wanted to tell me what they'd found. I showed Emma the message.

"Can you go talk to them?" I asked.

"Fine," she said, "but be careful when you go in there."

"I will," I assured her.

"Seriously, Damon," she said, "if this goes on for much longer, I'm gonna have to get drugs and restraints."

"Okay," I agreed. I didn't want to, but Emma was right. If it was as bad as Emma said, Lupin couldn't stay like this forever. Emma stepped to the side and opened the door.

I glanced around the room, looking for Lupin. It didn't take long for me to find her. She was curled up in the corner with her legs pulled up to her chest and her head buried in her arms. I looked back at Emma. I was absolutely floored. I'd heard about panic attacks and anxiety attacks, mainly from Emma and Roxy while they were studying psychology in med school, but I'd never imagined they could be this bad.

Emma nodded and, with one last glance at Lupin, left the room, softly closing the door behind her.

I turned my back to the now closed door, and my eyes fell on Lupin, cowering in the far corner. She had her knees pulled up to her chest as she rocked back and forth. I didn't know what to do. I'd never seen someone look so scared.

I moved closer to her. Very slowly. She never looked up, but as I got closer, I could hear her whispering "This isn't real" over and over again, like she was stuck on repeat. I didn't know what to say, so I said the only thing I could think of.

"Are you okay?" I asked. She shook her head, but still didn't look up. I mentally scolded myself. Of course she's not okay. I thought. She's scared and probably in a lot of pain.

"Can you tell me what's wrong?" I asked, moving just a little closer to her. Before she shook her head, I thought I saw her jaw open behind her lips, like she was trying to say something but physically couldn't.

After a moment, I noticed the blood dripping down the old, oversized t-shirt that covered her body. I followed the blood with my eyes and discovered that her hands were bleeding again.

"Your hands are bleeding," I said softly. She opened her eyes. They were puffy and extremely bloodshot from crying. Most of her makeup had been rubbed off since the gallery, so I finally got to see what Lupin actually looked like. Her face was covered in acne scars and there were a few scabs on her forehead. They were small, but they were definitely there. When I looked at her eyes, I saw that they were a beautiful green with long lashes. Lupin was beautiful, but the bags under her eyes made me wonder what was really going on inside her head.

She held her hands up to her face and squinted really hard, like she couldn't see. She'd clenched her fists so hard that she'd reopened the cuts on her palms, which were now bleeding.

"Will you let me look at them?" She instantly wrapped herself tighter and, if possible, moved even further into the corner. I sighed. I wasn't going to get anywhere with her like this. She was practically catatonic, and right now, there's nothing I can do to change that. Reluctantly, I stood up and walked out of the room.

Emma was standing in the hall with Tony and Steve. In one hand, Emma held a syringe filled with what I'm assuming was some kind of sedative. In the other hand, she held a pair of Velcro restraints.

"Is she any calmer?" Emma asked. I just shook my head.

"Alright then," Emma said a grim but serious expression on her face, "I know you don't like it, but not doing this will do more harm than good."

"I know," I said. I stepped to the side, letting Emma, Tony, and Steve step into the room. It wasn't long before I heard screaming.

"Damon!" Tony yelled, "We need help in here!" I rushed into the room without hesitation.

Tony, Steve, and Emma had managed to wrestle Lupin onto the bed, but she was kicking and thrashing and screaming so much that Emma couldn't give her the sedative. Any other time, I might've been impressed with how she managed to make contact with the side of Tony's face and Steve's shoulder.

I went over to the bed and took Emma's place at Lupin's side, trying to hold her down without hurting her.

After a solid minute of her struggling, Emma somehow managed to sink the needle into Lupin's neck. I didn't think it was possible, but Lupin looked even more scared and panicked when the needle pierced her skin.

It didn't take long for the drugs to kick in, but nobody let go, not until Lupin was completely unconscious.

Once she stopped struggling and her eyes closed, Tony and Steve stepped back while Emma moved around the bed doing her doctor thing.

It wasn't long before Emma had replaced the bandages on Lupin's hands and set her back up with the IV and vitals monitor.

"How long will she be out?" Steve asked rubbing his shoulder where Lupin had kicked him. I smiled. She's not very big or strong, but Lupin's definitely a fighter. No doubt about it.

"I only gave her half a dose, just enough to knock her out for a few hours," Emma said as she wrapped one end of the restraints around Lupin's wrists and tied the other to the foot of the bed.

"Will she freak out again?" Tony asked. A small bruise was already forming where Lupin had managed to make contact with his jaw. To be honest, I was a little impressed. It's rare that anyone manages to hit Tony, and even then, it takes a lot of force for Tony to bruise.

"I don't think so," Emma said, "I used a different sedative this time. One that won't completely wear off until after she's awake. She should be calmer when she wakes up, but considering how she reacted, someone should probably be here when she wakes up."

"I'll do it," I said, without hesitation. All three of them looked at me. "I've already slept," I explained, "You guys have been up since we brought her here." They all agreed, but Emma gave me a look saying that she wasn't going to let this go quite yet.

After that, Tony, Steve, and Emma filed out of the room. I pulled a chair up beside Lupin's bed. I don't know why I said that I'd stay, but it wasn't because I'd already slept.

Ipulled out my phone and spent the next few hours distracting myself from thethoughts about Lupin that filled my head.