Shades of Grey Chapter 37
Title: Shades of Grey Chapter 37
Author: TalliW
Characters: Stephen Hart, Tom Ryan, Nick Cutter, James Lester, Abby Maitland, Connor Temple, Jenny Lewis, Oliver Leek, Lyle, Finn, Helen Cutter, Ditzy
Rating: K+, T in later chapters
Disclaimer: Primeval is the property of Impossible Pictures. I write just for fun.
Lyle and Finn belong to Fredbassett.
Acknowledgments: Thanks to the wonderful Fredbassett for beta duty.
Summary: Ryan has survived but he isn't the man he was. Can Stephen and Cutter manage to work together to help him? Perhaps Ryan has changed in more ways than it appears on first sight.
AN: For the former chapters look at my Masterlist
Stephen cursed as the heavy traffic in the city slowed them down. Leek's call hadn't done much to alleviate his fears, especially as Leek had admonished Lester to hurry. Not for the first time, Stephen wished they were allowed to use sirens and flashing lights like the police or ambulance service in case of emergencies.
As soon as the car came to a halt, Stephen jumped out and rushed towards the warehouse where Lyle's team had already surrounded Helen and her cloned mercenaries just at the moment Helen had started to come around again.
Sneering, Helen looked at the heavily-armed Special Forces men as she groped for the small remote control in her back trouser pocket. It was good to be prepared for all eventualities. The future predators would enable her to escape and finish what she'd originally come for. One flick of her finger and the creatures would make short work of Ryan and Lester's troopers.
Stephen took one look at Ryan's swollen face and rage bubbled up inside him. Helen didn't know what hit her. With a shocked grunt she fell to the ground as Stephen launched himself at her. As the edges of Helen's vision blurred but before she succumbed to the darkness, her hand cramped around the remote control, pushing the button in the process.
It took all of Finn's and Cutter's efforts to keep Stephen from beating Helen to a bloody pulp.
"My God, Stephen. What's got into you? You almost killed her," Cutter gasped in horror. He'd never seen Stephen react so violently.
Stephen fought on against the arms holding him, the red haze in front of his eyes obscuring the sight of the bitch who had dared to hurt the man he loved.
"Stephen, Tom's watching. Do you want him to see you like this?" Cutter yelled although Ryan didn't actually seem bothered by Stephen's lose of control at all. Much too calmly, Ryan had watched Stephen's outburst from a few feet away, a ghost of a smile on his lips, as if it was perfectly normal that Stephen was beating up a woman. Apparently Stephen could do no wrong in Ryan's eyes.
Cutter's words finally registered with Stephen and he stopped struggling.
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done that," Stephen breathed in Ryan's direction, ashamed that Ryan had witnessed his violent behaviour. A great role model he was.
Seeing the distress in Stephen's face, Ryan was with him in a few steps and pulled him into a crushing embrace.
"It's all right. The bad woman deserved it. She gave the order to hurt me."
A new flash of anger surged through Stephen but Ryan held him tight whilst rubbing his hand soothingly along Stephen's back and whispering words of reassurance until Stephen calmed down. There was a soft smile on Stephen's lips as his desire to hurt Helen finally subsided. He had comforted Ryan in the same way dozen of times after Ryan had had an nightmare. Now Ryan was there for him.
Lester watched the scene with grim quiet. He'd noticed the subtle chances in Stephen's demeanour. Stephen's protective streak towards Ryan had grown considerably over the course of the last weeks and was by now exceeding the normal range by light years. Lester was sure that if no one had stopped Stephen, the young man would have killed Helen. The question he'd asked the medic, if it was possible for Ryan to turn Stephen into a killer, came back to Lester's mind. It appeared he'd just got his answer. Now the question remained whether Stephen reacted so strongly simply out of affection or if Ryan's pheromones were responsible. Lester hoped desperately it wasn't the latter.
"There's no trace of Oliver Leek, sir," Lyle reported after his men had searched the area.
Hearing that, Ryan extricated himself gently from Stephen's arms and faced Lester.
"Uncle Oliver has gone with the Greys. I can tell you that he won't bother you ever again," Ryan declared.
"The Greys?"
"The grey monsters. Uncle Oliver said they aren't monsters. So I call them Greys now."
"Grey monsters? Do you mean the future predators?"
"Yes, that's them. I was so afraid of them. But they’re really nice. I tickled one."
There was a collective gasp whilst the Special Forces men grasped their rifles a tad tighter to be ready should the murderous creatures make an appearance.
"Leek led you to a pack of predators?" Stephen queried with narrowed eyes, his voice hitching in his throat at the thought of the danger Ryan had been in. The future predators had almost been successful in killing Ryan once before. Had they returned to finish their work?
Ryan, sensing the growing tension in Stephen, rushed immediately back to his side and restarted his earlier method of soothing.
"The Greys weren’t dangerous. Really not, Stephen. They had the same things on their heads as the kitties. Uncle Oliver is friends with them."
"That's just great," Lester muttered under his breath. "So we have a wannabe villain with a future predator army on the loose."
Ryan shook his head forcefully. "No, Uncle James. Uncle Oliver is a good man. He doesn't want anyone getting hurt. The bad woman was planning to use the Greys. Uncle Oliver just brings them back home."
"If you say so," Lester answered to avoid getting into a discussion about Oliver Leek's motives. But his expression indicated that he had quite a different opinion about the good nature of Oliver Leek than Ryan.
When they headed out to the cars to return to the ARC, Lester quietly reinforced to Lyle the order to arrest Leek should he show up and he told him to put any future predator to death, no matter how harmless it seemed on first sight.
Helen looked in confusion at the walls of the interrogation room. Why was she here? Why were she sitting in a wheelchair? And where were the future predators? She had been sure she had activated them to attack.
Someone nearby cleared his throat forcefully. Helen blinked a few times to clear her head and tried to focus on the man sitting on the chair across of her.
"Good evening, Mrs Cutter. I'm Mark. James Lester and I would like to ask you some questions. I hope you will cooperate."
Ryan hopped down from the examination table and scratched at the itching, rough patch on his elbow while Ditzy discussed Ryan's condition with Stephen and Cutter. Aside from a bruise on his ribs and face, and a bloody nose, there hadn't been any other injury. Ryan had got off rather lightly.
"Come on, I'll drive you home. That was enough excitement for the day," Cutter said to Stephen, the worried lines on his forehead softening slightly as he watched Ryan's enthusiastic reaction to the lollipop Ditzy was offering him.
"What about Helen?"
"She’ll be all right. Lester and Mark are with her."
"Maybe I should..." Stephen trailed off uncertainly.
"What? Apologise to her, interrogate her? Considering what happened at the warehouse I don't think it would be a good idea to face her right now. Let Lester do his job."
"Please can we go home? Away from the bad woman?" Ryan begged as he gently tugged at Stephen's arm.
When Ryan used his pleading eyes on Stephen the decision was made. Stephen grasped Ryan's hand tightly as they trailed after Cutter to the car park.
"She claims she doesn't know about Ryans miraculous recovery or any pheromones," Lester said by way of greeting when Cutter joined him at the railing.
"Do you believe her?"
"I trust Helen as far I can throw a stegosaurus. But she seemed genuinely baffled by our questions. Of course she masked her surprise quickly and then was her usual cocky self again."
"I'm surprised she answered you at all."
"Stephen's attack must have badly shaken her up. She was astonishingly cooperative."
"Well, it's no wonder. Stephen was always so...."
"... docile, gullible?" Lester finished the sentence as Cutter hesitated for a fraction of a moment to find fitting words.
Cutter gave a disgruntled huff. "...composed, placid, reserved, I was going to say. Watch out what you say about him in front of me."
"But you are agreeing with me that he's changed?"
"It hasn’t gone unnoticed. When it comes to Tom, he gets all protective."
"Today he behaved downright aggressively. Tom wasn't in immediate danger when Stephen attacked Helen."
"She tried to kill Tom. I think that warrants a little bit of aggression."
"If Stephen can't keep himself under control he's becoming a safety risk."
"Hang on a minute. We are talking about Stephen here. I trust him with my life."
"Cutter, I'm already treading a thin line by keeping Tom here. The last thing I need is a member of staff losing their temper and drawing attention to the ARC."
"I’ll talk to him."
"Do that. And make sure Tom isn't broadcasting his pheromones all over the city. There might be other people with a sensitive nose. I don't want them affected in the same way as Stephen."
"Finn didn't show any violent tendencies," Cutter pointed out. "I think it had nothing to do with Tom's pheromones. Stephen’s been under a great deal of emotional pressure lately. And Helen isn't exactly his favourite person either."
"Still, Tom should stay at home for now. And Stephen better had, too."
Cutter's hand tightened around the railing as Helen was rolled into the atrium down below in a wheelchair, escorted by Ditzy, Mark and a small contingent of Special Forces under Lyle's command. Her eyes were glazed and her head was lolling on one side, indicating that she'd been sedated.
"Where are they taking her?" Cutter asked hoarsely. Despite everything Helen had done, he still felt a small amount of compassion for her on seeing her in such vulnerable state. Helen had always hated to be helpless and had even endured the pain rather than take painkillers that made her drowsy.
"She will be committed to a secure mental health facility. Any objections?"
"No. Not any more."
Standing side by side, Cutter and Lester watched how Helen was rolled towards the swing doors, just like Oliver Leek not long ago. Then Cutter closed his eyes and tried to remember the Helen he had fallen in love with as he silently bade farewell to his wife. When he opened his eyes again the atrium was empty and he felt as if a weight had been lifted from his heart.
Author: TalliW
Characters: Stephen Hart, Tom Ryan, Nick Cutter, James Lester, Abby Maitland, Connor Temple, Jenny Lewis, Oliver Leek, Lyle, Finn, Helen Cutter, Ditzy
Rating: K+, T in later chapters
Disclaimer: Primeval is the property of Impossible Pictures. I write just for fun.
Lyle and Finn belong to Fredbassett.
Acknowledgments: Thanks to the wonderful Fredbassett for beta duty.
Summary: Ryan has survived but he isn't the man he was. Can Stephen and Cutter manage to work together to help him? Perhaps Ryan has changed in more ways than it appears on first sight.
AN: For the former chapters look at my Masterlist
Stephen cursed as the heavy traffic in the city slowed them down. Leek's call hadn't done much to alleviate his fears, especially as Leek had admonished Lester to hurry. Not for the first time, Stephen wished they were allowed to use sirens and flashing lights like the police or ambulance service in case of emergencies.
As soon as the car came to a halt, Stephen jumped out and rushed towards the warehouse where Lyle's team had already surrounded Helen and her cloned mercenaries just at the moment Helen had started to come around again.
Sneering, Helen looked at the heavily-armed Special Forces men as she groped for the small remote control in her back trouser pocket. It was good to be prepared for all eventualities. The future predators would enable her to escape and finish what she'd originally come for. One flick of her finger and the creatures would make short work of Ryan and Lester's troopers.
Stephen took one look at Ryan's swollen face and rage bubbled up inside him. Helen didn't know what hit her. With a shocked grunt she fell to the ground as Stephen launched himself at her. As the edges of Helen's vision blurred but before she succumbed to the darkness, her hand cramped around the remote control, pushing the button in the process.
It took all of Finn's and Cutter's efforts to keep Stephen from beating Helen to a bloody pulp.
"My God, Stephen. What's got into you? You almost killed her," Cutter gasped in horror. He'd never seen Stephen react so violently.
Stephen fought on against the arms holding him, the red haze in front of his eyes obscuring the sight of the bitch who had dared to hurt the man he loved.
"Stephen, Tom's watching. Do you want him to see you like this?" Cutter yelled although Ryan didn't actually seem bothered by Stephen's lose of control at all. Much too calmly, Ryan had watched Stephen's outburst from a few feet away, a ghost of a smile on his lips, as if it was perfectly normal that Stephen was beating up a woman. Apparently Stephen could do no wrong in Ryan's eyes.
Cutter's words finally registered with Stephen and he stopped struggling.
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done that," Stephen breathed in Ryan's direction, ashamed that Ryan had witnessed his violent behaviour. A great role model he was.
Seeing the distress in Stephen's face, Ryan was with him in a few steps and pulled him into a crushing embrace.
"It's all right. The bad woman deserved it. She gave the order to hurt me."
A new flash of anger surged through Stephen but Ryan held him tight whilst rubbing his hand soothingly along Stephen's back and whispering words of reassurance until Stephen calmed down. There was a soft smile on Stephen's lips as his desire to hurt Helen finally subsided. He had comforted Ryan in the same way dozen of times after Ryan had had an nightmare. Now Ryan was there for him.
Lester watched the scene with grim quiet. He'd noticed the subtle chances in Stephen's demeanour. Stephen's protective streak towards Ryan had grown considerably over the course of the last weeks and was by now exceeding the normal range by light years. Lester was sure that if no one had stopped Stephen, the young man would have killed Helen. The question he'd asked the medic, if it was possible for Ryan to turn Stephen into a killer, came back to Lester's mind. It appeared he'd just got his answer. Now the question remained whether Stephen reacted so strongly simply out of affection or if Ryan's pheromones were responsible. Lester hoped desperately it wasn't the latter.
"There's no trace of Oliver Leek, sir," Lyle reported after his men had searched the area.
Hearing that, Ryan extricated himself gently from Stephen's arms and faced Lester.
"Uncle Oliver has gone with the Greys. I can tell you that he won't bother you ever again," Ryan declared.
"The Greys?"
"The grey monsters. Uncle Oliver said they aren't monsters. So I call them Greys now."
"Grey monsters? Do you mean the future predators?"
"Yes, that's them. I was so afraid of them. But they’re really nice. I tickled one."
There was a collective gasp whilst the Special Forces men grasped their rifles a tad tighter to be ready should the murderous creatures make an appearance.
"Leek led you to a pack of predators?" Stephen queried with narrowed eyes, his voice hitching in his throat at the thought of the danger Ryan had been in. The future predators had almost been successful in killing Ryan once before. Had they returned to finish their work?
Ryan, sensing the growing tension in Stephen, rushed immediately back to his side and restarted his earlier method of soothing.
"The Greys weren’t dangerous. Really not, Stephen. They had the same things on their heads as the kitties. Uncle Oliver is friends with them."
"That's just great," Lester muttered under his breath. "So we have a wannabe villain with a future predator army on the loose."
Ryan shook his head forcefully. "No, Uncle James. Uncle Oliver is a good man. He doesn't want anyone getting hurt. The bad woman was planning to use the Greys. Uncle Oliver just brings them back home."
"If you say so," Lester answered to avoid getting into a discussion about Oliver Leek's motives. But his expression indicated that he had quite a different opinion about the good nature of Oliver Leek than Ryan.
When they headed out to the cars to return to the ARC, Lester quietly reinforced to Lyle the order to arrest Leek should he show up and he told him to put any future predator to death, no matter how harmless it seemed on first sight.
Helen looked in confusion at the walls of the interrogation room. Why was she here? Why were she sitting in a wheelchair? And where were the future predators? She had been sure she had activated them to attack.
Someone nearby cleared his throat forcefully. Helen blinked a few times to clear her head and tried to focus on the man sitting on the chair across of her.
"Good evening, Mrs Cutter. I'm Mark. James Lester and I would like to ask you some questions. I hope you will cooperate."
Ryan hopped down from the examination table and scratched at the itching, rough patch on his elbow while Ditzy discussed Ryan's condition with Stephen and Cutter. Aside from a bruise on his ribs and face, and a bloody nose, there hadn't been any other injury. Ryan had got off rather lightly.
"Come on, I'll drive you home. That was enough excitement for the day," Cutter said to Stephen, the worried lines on his forehead softening slightly as he watched Ryan's enthusiastic reaction to the lollipop Ditzy was offering him.
"What about Helen?"
"She’ll be all right. Lester and Mark are with her."
"Maybe I should..." Stephen trailed off uncertainly.
"What? Apologise to her, interrogate her? Considering what happened at the warehouse I don't think it would be a good idea to face her right now. Let Lester do his job."
"Please can we go home? Away from the bad woman?" Ryan begged as he gently tugged at Stephen's arm.
When Ryan used his pleading eyes on Stephen the decision was made. Stephen grasped Ryan's hand tightly as they trailed after Cutter to the car park.
"She claims she doesn't know about Ryans miraculous recovery or any pheromones," Lester said by way of greeting when Cutter joined him at the railing.
"Do you believe her?"
"I trust Helen as far I can throw a stegosaurus. But she seemed genuinely baffled by our questions. Of course she masked her surprise quickly and then was her usual cocky self again."
"I'm surprised she answered you at all."
"Stephen's attack must have badly shaken her up. She was astonishingly cooperative."
"Well, it's no wonder. Stephen was always so...."
"... docile, gullible?" Lester finished the sentence as Cutter hesitated for a fraction of a moment to find fitting words.
Cutter gave a disgruntled huff. "...composed, placid, reserved, I was going to say. Watch out what you say about him in front of me."
"But you are agreeing with me that he's changed?"
"It hasn’t gone unnoticed. When it comes to Tom, he gets all protective."
"Today he behaved downright aggressively. Tom wasn't in immediate danger when Stephen attacked Helen."
"She tried to kill Tom. I think that warrants a little bit of aggression."
"If Stephen can't keep himself under control he's becoming a safety risk."
"Hang on a minute. We are talking about Stephen here. I trust him with my life."
"Cutter, I'm already treading a thin line by keeping Tom here. The last thing I need is a member of staff losing their temper and drawing attention to the ARC."
"I’ll talk to him."
"Do that. And make sure Tom isn't broadcasting his pheromones all over the city. There might be other people with a sensitive nose. I don't want them affected in the same way as Stephen."
"Finn didn't show any violent tendencies," Cutter pointed out. "I think it had nothing to do with Tom's pheromones. Stephen’s been under a great deal of emotional pressure lately. And Helen isn't exactly his favourite person either."
"Still, Tom should stay at home for now. And Stephen better had, too."
Cutter's hand tightened around the railing as Helen was rolled into the atrium down below in a wheelchair, escorted by Ditzy, Mark and a small contingent of Special Forces under Lyle's command. Her eyes were glazed and her head was lolling on one side, indicating that she'd been sedated.
"Where are they taking her?" Cutter asked hoarsely. Despite everything Helen had done, he still felt a small amount of compassion for her on seeing her in such vulnerable state. Helen had always hated to be helpless and had even endured the pain rather than take painkillers that made her drowsy.
"She will be committed to a secure mental health facility. Any objections?"
"No. Not any more."
Standing side by side, Cutter and Lester watched how Helen was rolled towards the swing doors, just like Oliver Leek not long ago. Then Cutter closed his eyes and tried to remember the Helen he had fallen in love with as he silently bade farewell to his wife. When he opened his eyes again the atrium was empty and he felt as if a weight had been lifted from his heart.