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Restoring Faith	By : Lady_Kae Category: +G through L > Harvest Moon Views: 2535 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own any characters used from the game Harvest Moon: ToT. All characters ,game related material, and lyrics, save for original content is property of their respective owners and no money is being made from this fiction.

Chapter List
- 13
- 14
- 15
Chapter 14: Confrontation
Restoring Faith
A Harvest Moon: Tree of Tranquility Fanfiction

Gill was keeping vigil at Kohri’s bedside once more, watching her as she slept off the anesthesia. She had a smile on her face that he couldn’t help but mirror and his fingers tenderly caressed her cheek in her repose, tracing her soft, full lips.
By the goddess, she had tasted so sweet.
It seemed as if it was the fourth time that was the ticket, despite the fact that Kohri had fallen asleep once more while she had been kissing him senseless. Gill’s skin still tingled from the aftershocks of that tender, all encompassing moment. There were no interruptions, not unlike the other few moments where they had come close. There was no rush to learn the other’s flavor, no hastiness to finally feel a connection. That one kiss had been well worth the wait and all the frustration that had preceded it.
Even if Gill could have tried, he couldn’t imagine it going any other way. He didn’t want to question what had changed Kohri’s mind, but Gill knew better than to look a gift horse in the mouth. The curiosity lingered at the back of his mind nonetheless, but it was tempered and curtailed by the utter elation he felt.
With the state of mind, or lack thereof rather, that Kohri had been in, Gill was honestly wondering if she would remember any of it. Even if she didn’t, he now had something with which to tide him over until Kohri told him she was ready.
Her injuries were severe, but she would heal in time. Gill would be there for every part of the journey if she would have him there.
Luke entered the room, carrying two trays of food, and Owen entered behind him with another two. Without saying a word, Luke deposited his two trays on the mobile table, and he wheeled it directly in front of the flaxen haired man. “ You have barely eaten anything since we left Waffle Island, Gill. Kohri’ll wake up sooner or later. You not taking care of yourself isn’t going to speed that up.” He said softly. His golden brown gaze leveled on Gill sternly and he pointed down at the food. “ Eat.” He ordered simply
Gill had to admit that everything smelled delicious and he nodded silently to convey he understood. He hadn’t been able to bring himself to eat anything while Jin had been operating on Kohri’s leg. He had been much too anxious, completely beside himself with worry that he had paced the entire ten hours.
He wouldn’t be surprised if he had actually worn a groove into the floor outside the door leading to the operating room.
Luke and Owen however had insisted that Gill at least go into the bathroom to clean up at soon as Jin was done. Gill still had a thin film of silt and dust over him and he hadn’t changed out of the clothing that he had gone down into the mines in. That insistence had included some rather physical measures; which nearly had Gill outright brawling with the two men for that matter, but in the end the deputy mayor had cleaned up. It had been the fastest shower Owen had ever seen anyone take, but Gill looked somewhat refreshed when all was said and done. It was a sure sign to both men that he wasn’t even in his right mind, as Gill was seemingly neurotic about his image. For him not to care about being filthy for the better part of two days was not like the young man at all.
They weren’t sure if he had slept yet since arriving in the city, as Owen, Luke, and Jin were staying at a hotel five blocks away and Gill had not joined them once in the two rooms that they had acquired. It was close enough to walk, and helped the men to feel a little sense of home here in the city.
Gill cleared through the first tray, not realizing how ravenous he was until he had bit into the first sandwich. His gaze constantly flickered over to Kohri, as if he were afraid that she would wake while he was stuffing his face. Every bit of food was consumed however and Gill sighed contentedly at his full stomach. He’d feel better once Kohri woke up. He wanted to be the first person she saw again.
The silence between the three of them was something he wasn’t used to. Then again, all three of them were worried for Kohri in their own way. He thought over the last few days and Gill chuckled softly. He had no clue how Owen and Luke had put up with him, he had been a right terror. “ Thank you, both of you. I’ve been a pain in the ass to deal with since we got here and I know it.” Gill stated simply as he took Kohri's hand in his again.
Owen smiled at the admission and he chuckled. “ I’d call you out on it, but then I think of how I would act if it were Kathy in this position. In all honesty Gill, I could only wish to hold myself together as well as you have through this entire situation.” The russet haired man said, his tone full of admiration.
“ I’ll say. He was the first one at Kohri's side when he won’t even go near the mines for anything. He’s got closetphobia or something like that.” Luke added.
Gill snorted in mirth as he stood up to stretch. They were right that he wasn’t doing himself any favors neglecting his own needs, no matter how much he felt that Kohri’s superseded them. She was more than likely to chew him out for not taking care of himself while he was waiting. “ The word is claustrophobia, Luke.” Gill grunted as he stretched and did a few trunk twists to work out some of the kinks he had from sitting too long. “ I’m going to go ask them for a cot. I won’t leave her side if I can help it, but…”
Luke breathed in a sigh of relief as Gill yawned sleepily. All that food had done the trick. “ We’ll stay for a while, don’t worry Gill.” the younger Ashemore assured him earnestly. “ You’re not the only one waiting for her to wake up after all.”
Gill nodded as he left the room, and the two remaining men smiled at one another.
“ I was worried we were going to have to do to him what we did to Kohri.” Luke admitted softly.
“ Same here. But I think he’s past the worst of it.” Owen replied as he relaxed as much as possible in the chair, flipping through the channels available on the tv. “ Though I think Jin won’t resort to tranqing him if he feels Gill’s not getting the rest he needs.”
A chuckle from the door answered that statement as the doctor walked into the room, looking over Kohri’s medical record. “ You’re not wrong about that Owen. Did he finally eat something?” Jin asked.
“ Sure did, Doc. He’s trying to get his hands on a cot. I don’t think he means to leave the hospital at all.” Luke said, smirking a little.
“ I won’t cause a fuss as long as he’s cleaned up, eating, and sleeping.” Jin murmured as he began looking over Kohri’s vitals. Gill had told him that she had woken up for a brief moment from the anesthesia about four hours ago when he had been by last time. In fact, Kohri was still smiling in her sleep. Jin smiled at that, at least her dreams seemed to hold a happy thought or two still. The sound of wheels against tile made him turn and Gill walked back into the room with a folding cot, a few sheets, a pillow, and a heavy blanket.
All the nurses had been talking about how lucky their patient was to have such a handsome young man so dedicated to her. More than likely, they would do everything in their power to keep them both comfortable as possible.
“ Finally going to get some rest?” Jin quipped, his tone stern. He had told Gill more than once to get some sleep on the ride over, before he had rushed into the OR with Kohri, and even after the fact. The last two days had been draining on all of them and Gill hadn’t slept a wink.
“ Yes, doctor, I am.” he groaned. Gill didn’t need another person fussing over him. They all had enough on their plates.
“ It’s about time. I expect you to get out of this room for at least an hour after you wake up. You need to stretch your legs and move around.” Jin ordered imperiously. “ I have no qualms in asking these two to make sure that you do so.” He added as he motioned to Owen and Luke, who were smiling broadly at this news. This whole instance had them on cloud nine, knowing that they were getting a little of their own back for all the years that Gill had been bossing them around.
There were somethings that just never changed, even if a friendship had sprung up.
Gill’s shoulders sagged a little at this news. This was karmic retribution at its finest, the deputy mayor under the thumb of two of the men he hadn’t even been able to stand a year ago. “ Understood, doctor. I’ll make sure to take a stroll around the flower garden later.” he promised.
“ We’ll join ya. I’m not used to spending so much time indoors.” Owen added with grin.
None of them saw the shadow at the door, listening in to the conversation that slinked away.

Kohri groaned miserably as she felt herself coming to. Her head was spinning still and nausea was setting in. Her eyes snapped open, full of clarity at the apprehension she was feeling. The only sound in the room was the soft, rhythmic beep from the machine monitoring her vital signs, but Kohri could feel that she wasn’t alone. There was someone here in her room that didn’t belong here. Her head was facing away from the doorway, hopefully maintaining the illusion that she was still sleeping and that she had only groaned in discomfort in her repose. She wanted to move her hand over to the call button, but she didn’t want to alert them to her wakeful state.
There was something about the smell of her surroundings that was putting her on edge, but it was more like a subconscious reaction. It was kicking her fight or flight instinct into high gear, though Kohri couldn’t figure out why. The smell of lemons, cloves, apples, and cedar suddenly pulled Kohri back to the night her parents had been murdered, almost drowning her in the fear that she felt from it, but her instincts for self preservation fought it off.
That scent had been the only thing she could smell besides the blood for months.
“ I know, you’re awake Kohri. Imagine my surprise when I saw you on Waffle Island a few weeks ago.”
Her cover blown, Kohri turned her furious sapphire gaze on the man who haunted her very existence. She went to sit up, only to find that she was strapped down to the bed by the padded leather cuffs that were used to keep patients from thrashing and harming themselves further. “ Wren! You snivelling, despicable pile of licentious putrescence!” she seethed as she struggled as hard as she could against her bonds.
The sharp edge of a scalpel was suddenly at her neck as Wren’s cold, bright green gaze met hers evenly. “ Now, now Kohri. I know I’ve told you once before not to resort to name calling.” he sneered, pressing the blade into her skin a little deeper. It wasn’t enough to draw blood, not yet, but it would if she kept it up. He was baffled at her reaction however. This was not the Kohri that he had seen at the festival two and a half weeks ago. Not the jittery, caged animal that he had taken such pleasure in tormenting for a few moments. “ Besides, didn’t I liberate you from your parents? Didn’t I set you free to pursue what you really wanted to do?”
Wren was absolutely correct that Kohri was not the same woman that she had been two weeks ago. She was tired of being afraid, she was tired of living life looking over her shoulder at every turn. Most of all, she was sick of this bastard. She was rapidly settling into what Gill had dubbed fight mode a few weeks ago, and she was now raring for battle. “ You did no such thing!” she whispered vehemently, still straining against the cuffs holding her. She covertly wiggled one foot. He hadn’t cuffed her feet because of her injuries, thinking she wouldn’t use them. “ You are nothing but a rapist and a murderer, and I absolutely refuse to be another one of your conquests! You know what else?” An evil smile formed across her face despite the fact that she was at his mercy, with a blade at her throat. “ I’m going to take so much joy in knowing that you’re going to be someone’s bitch in prison for the rest of your life. That you’ll be the one raped and screaming for help that will never come.”
Kohri didn’t flinch as Wren pressed the scalpel into her flesh, this time cutting into the skin and drawing blood. She could feel it running down her neck and into her hair and pillow. She raised her chin and kept her eyes to his defiantly.
Kohri would never show this bastard fear ever again if she could help it.

Gill was taking his walk as he had promised Jin that he would. Owen and Luke had managed to get him to leave the hospital completely, even if they were only right across the street browsing a department store. The uneasy feeling that had settled over him at the Harvest Festival came back with a vengeance and wordlessly he took off like a bat out of hell out of the store, not even hearing Luke and Owen’s protests at his sudden exit.
Something was wrong with Kohri and none of them were there with her.
Gill cut through the traffic, not caring at all at the horns of the cars blaring at him. He vaulted over the hood of one car that came to a screeching stop in front of him, his mind only concerned with getting to the woman he loved.
He tore through the lobby at high speed, ignoring the receptionist’s pleas that he slow down. Gill wasn’t going to stop until he got to Kohri’s room three flights of stairs up.
Gill only prayed that he would make it in time.

“ You will drop the charges, and I may let you live.” Wren seethed, pressing the surgical tool harder against her skin, rending the flesh apart a little more. He was livid at seeing this. He wanted to see the fear in her eyes again, not this blatant defiance.
“ Kohri?!” Gill’s footsteps were pounding as he ran full speed for Kohri’s room.
“ I will do no such thing! You can’t control me anymore!” Kohri said before taking a deep breath. “ Gill! He’s here!” she screamed shrilly.
Wren grabbed both of his ears as Kohri’s screech rattled both of his eardrums and disorientated him. Kohri, with a bellow of pain as her body protested the movement, brought her broken leg up and she kicked Wren square in the balls. Wren grabbed at his injured bits as he stumbled for a few steps and he looked up at Kohri with abject rage.
“ I’m going to kill you for that!” He seethed, stuttering all the while.
“ Like hell you are!” Gill bellowed as he ran into the room, tackling the injured man to the floor.
“ Gill! He’s armed!” Kohri cried out, struggling even more against her bonds than she had been before.
The sounds of them tussling below her filled the room as Gill and Wren were wrestling, both trying to get the upper hand. Wren was trying his damnedest to stab the scalpel into Gill’s jugular, but Gill was holding him off and pushing him the other way. Wren took a shot at shoving the knife down, and it pierced the skin and muscle of Gill’s left arm. A four inch wound began bleeding freely, making the dark blue shirt he was wearing black from the saturation.
“ I’m going to kill you for touching what is mine…” Wren hissed. His eyes had taken on a crazed mean when he recognized Gill as the man that had disappeared with Kohri at the festival. He would get rid of this poser so that he could claim his prize.
“ She’s not yours!” Gill hissed in pain, but he finally knocked Wren’s hand away, sending the scalpel skittering under Kohri’s hospital bed from the force he used. He brought his knees up and he kicked off of Wren, giving him space to get to his feet. Wren rushed Gill in an effort to get the upper hand, but the deputy mayor was ready for him.
Gill caught Wren by the lapels of his lab coat and he drove his knee up into the other man’s diaphragm. He did this twice more, and Wren collapsed to the floor in an effort to catch his breath. Gill couldn’t even feel the pain in his arm as adrenaline coursed through his system. “ Kohri isn’t an object to be used. She’s a human being. She doesn’t belong to anyone, let alone you.” he seethed, kicking Wren in the head to knock him out. Gill rushed over to the bed where Kohri was struggling against her restraints and he helped her to get the first one loosened.
The delicate tink tink of the first cuff being undone swam in Wren’s ears. That kick has more than likely given him a concussion, but Wren was far from being done with either of them. He groaned as he pushed himself upright. Damn that bumpkin! No! There was no way in hell that Wren would stand to suffer such an indignity. He reached towards his back as he shakily got to his feet and the doctor shuffled over to where Gill was helping Kohri work at the second of her bonds.
The click of a gun made Gill stop short and he looked at Kohri, her gaze horror stricken. This was her worst fear come to life after all, that Wren would take someone else away from her. Someone she cared for.
“ There’s the look I was waiting for…” Wren purred as he drank in the aghast expression on Kohri’s face. That look was as potent as viagra to him. “ So it’s you she’s afraid for, not herself. Stupid little whore.”
Oh, he’s going to pay in blood for that one... he mused dangerously, his eyes locked to the side for any movement. Gill then looked at Kohri, silently pleading with her to stay calm. “ It’s going to be alright Kohri.” he told her. “ I have a promise to keep, remember?”
That nothing or no one would ever take him from her.
Kohri nodded silently after a moment.
“ Move off to the side.” Wren ordered, not even bothering to care that Kohri was finishing freeing her other wrist. He had read her file, she wouldn’t be moving anytime soon due to the severity of her injuries.
Owen and Luke had just arrived to the door and they were looking at the scene in shock. Owen recognized Wren in an instant and his coal gaze ignited with anger at the sight. “ You!” the mason hissed as he began menacing on Wren.
“ Owen! No!” Kohri screamed as Wren pointed the gun at Owen instead and reflexively he pulled the trigger. Her eyes filled with tears as Owen dropped to the floor, pain written all over his face as he held to the wound in his side, and he glared hatefully up at Wren.
Damn all of this! She couldn’t let then die for her!
“ You fuckin’ bastard!” Luke bellowed, charging the other man with fury blazing in his golden brown gaze. Luke managed to land a solid punch on Wren’s jaw and he had to dodge to the left as Wren leveled the gun on him next. Luke grabbed at both his wrists, holding them high above their heads. They wrestled with the gun as Wren tried level it out again for a kill shot and Luke winced as a bullet grazed his shoulder when the it went off once more. Luke spotted the chair nearby and he brought their hands down, hoping to force Wren to drop it.
Gill blindsided Wren from the right as Luke managed to get the gun pointed to the floor. He tackled the man down to the tile, and he quickly pinned the bastard down by sitting on his chest, his knees digging into either arm. The shock and sudden fear that registered in Wren’s eyes made Gill smile ferally.
It was about time this fucker had learned what fear was.
He didn’t even hesitate to start pummeling. The first sight of blood put him into a frenzy, and Gill let all of his hatred out in a hailstorm of blows. He couldn’t hear anything over the blood pounding in his ears, all he could see was red. The smell of copper fueled him further, as did the crunch of his fists and knuckles against this bastard’s face. His rage wasn’t something that could be easily quelled as he thought of every instance Kohri had broken down over the months because of the man beneath him. Gill felt as if he were landing a punch for every single tear Kohri had shed, the looks of horror on her face, for every anxiety attack. Most of all, for all the misery Wren’s very existence had caused for both of them.
For every moment that the thought him had kept Gill and Kohri apart.
“ Gill, stop! Dude, he’s down!” Luke said, pulling Gill up and off of him. He had grabbed Gill by his injured arm, but the deputy mayor shook him off as if he were just a fly. Luke had to put Gill into a full nelson and physically haul him off the downed man when he saw that Wren was wheezing for breath. “ Don’t kill him Gill! C’mon man! Let him serve time!”
Gill seemed to return to himself at this and he looked down at the nearly unrecognizable face of the crazed doctor. His chest was heaving and he looked over at Kohri, worried that she was going to see him as some sort of monster. “ Kohri, are you…” he panted heavily. He could hear the hospital security coming down the hall.
“ Gill…” Kohri whimpered her eyes filling with tears. She could reach him from where she was and her fingers grazed his. He had split his knuckles giving Wren the beating that was long overdue. Kohri brushed her lips tenderly along the back of his hand. Gill has promised that there was no one out there that would protect her as fiercely as he would. Every promise he had made to her, he had kept. She met his gaze again, hauling him in against her. “ I was so scared he was going to kill you.”
Gill let out the breath that he hadn’t realized that he had been holding as his arms wrapped around her protectively. “ I’m sorry you had to see that side of me.” he whispered sorrowfully. He wasn’t sure if his heart could have handled her turning away from him due to fear.
Kohri snorted derisively as she cupped Gill’s cheek with the hand not attached to the iv. “ What side was that? I was watching you beat the ever loving hell out of that flagrant mattress-soiling conglomerate of intellectual constipation. I’d pay good money to watch you do it again for that matter.” Kohri said with a tearful smile and she pulled Gill in once more, hugging him as close as she could. “ I’m just happy you’re all alive.”
Gill chuckled at the heavily worded insult before he pressed a kiss to the top of her head before he looked over to Luke and Owen. The taller man had towels pressed against the gunshot wound to stop the bleeding and even though he was pale, Owen was giving Gill a broad grin. “ Any one else feel as if Jin might kill us himselves for this?” he joked.
“ He might. I’ll tell you what though. You certainly held up to what you said about beating the shit out of him, Gill.” he chortled before wincing in pain.
A police officer stepped into the room and his eyes fell on the occupants of the room, almost dispassionately in Wren’s case it seemed. “ I don’t think I need to tell all of you not to leave the hospital. Young man, I’m going to need you to come with me however.”
He was speaking directly to Gill.
Kohri looked between the officer and Gill, utter panic on her face. “ No! He’s done nothing wrong. That man was trying to kill all of us! He was just protecting us!”
Gill kissed Kohri’s brow as he got to his feet, his arm and shoulder throbbing in pain. “ I’ll be fine Kohri.”
What went unsaid in that simple kiss had butterflies all aflutter in Kohri’s stomach. That hadn’t been the normal, innocent peck that he would do lately. There was an intimacy about it that made shiver in delight and she watched him as he began walking towards the door. “ Gill, wait...Please.”
Gill smiled, trying to assure her that he’d be alright. He had a good feeling about this officer. The look in her eyes made his words fall however. She looked as if she needed to ask him something. “ What is it Kohri?”
“ Did I do something different while I was coming off the painkillers? I don’t know why but it feels like something shifted again.” Kohri inquired nervously.
Gill smiled even as he walked back over to the hospital bed for a moment. That had just confirmed his suspicions that she had no recollection of what had passed between them in the early hours of the morning. “ Only the entire world, Kohri.” He whispered as he pressed his forehead to hers. It was as close as he would get to telling her what they had done when she had woken up from the anesthesia.
“ He won’t be leaving the hospital. Don’t worry. I just need to ask him a couple questions, get that wound in his arm checked and bandaged for now, a fresh change of clothes, and he’ll be back by your side. I promise you that Miss Phelps. Your friends need to get treatment too, and I’ll need to take their statements as well. All things considered, it’s best I speak to this young man first as he’s the one currently on his feet. Not only that, you’re going to have to be moved to another room while we process the crime scene.” the officer said kindly. She might not recognize him yet, if at all, but he had been the one to respond to Kohri’s hysterical emergency call a year ago. He had always known that Wren Matthews was guilty, and now there was no chance for bail or parole in this case. He had just tried to silence the only surviving witness to his case himself, and in turn had threatened the lives of three other people.
Not only that, but they were getting the CCTV footage. That would be the final nail in the coffin.
“ No worries son, I doubt any jury is going to find you guilty for what you did.” the officer said with a grin.
“ Thank you for the vote of confidence, Officer…”
“ Muffins. Theo Muffins.”
Both Kohri and Gill reacted when they heard the name, and Theo smiled kindly at the two of them. Kohri’s smile grew huge as she let her grip on Gill loosen.
“ You’re Amelia’s husband.” she whispered and her voice grew thick in remembrance. He had been the only one to believe her about Wren’s guilt in killing her parents and he had promised her that his wife would take her on herself if she chose to go to trial.
And so Amelia Muffins had. Even her unit had been skeptical until the first assassination attempt.
“ That’s right, Miss Phelps. I think that besides you, Amelia, and the rest of her team, I’ve wanted to see him get his just desserts.” Theo said with a wink. His gaze was full of pride as he looked at the young man. He was obviously the one responsible for Wren’s state as he had massive amounts of blood spatter on his shirt. “ What’s your name, son?”
“ Gill Tamelin, sir. Kohri, I’ll be back in a bit. You’ll see.”
Luke walked over to Kohri’s bedside as both of them watched Owen be loaded onto a stretcher. More than likely, he’d be taken right to surgery to have his wound taken care of. “ I think after all this, a kiss ain’t just gonna be enough.” Luke murmured with a cheesy grin.
Kohri looked at him with a glare that all but screamed ‘Really?’ and she smacked his arm for the not so subtle hint.
No one saw Wren stirring slightly on the floor, nor did they realize that the gun was still in his hand.

Gill was in a separate hospital room having his arm bandaged. His shirt and pants were missing, he didn't know where it had disappeared to in all honesty, but that was neither here nor there. His knapsack was in Kohri’s room, so getting a fresh set of clothes was nothing. What he had been wearing was ruined beyond cleaning or repair as it stood. Theo was taking his account of the events of what happened when the three of them heard another gunshot ring out.
“ LUKE!”
Gill, not even caring about his state of dress, held the padding to his arm, and he ran right for Kohri’s room with Theo on his heels. Why had they all forgotten about the damn gun?!
The sight they came to was not what they were expecting. Luke was holding Wren’s hand up high and it looked as if an officer had just taken the gun from him.
“ You are not taking the coward’s way out, mother fucker!” Luke hissed. Blood was running down his face where the bullet had grazed his forehead when he pulled the gun away from Wren’s chin. “ You are going to pay for everything you’ve done to her. The goddess as my witness, you will pay.”
Gill met Luke’s eyes from across the room with a nod Luke snorted at seeing Gill in just his socks and boxers. The other man was quickly realizing his hasty decision to not grab a hospital gown as Kohri turned a fetching shade of crimson and she tried to look elsewhere. Luke shrugged as if to say ‘Ah well’.
Jin was definitely going to kill the three of them for this.

“ What the hell were you three thinking!” Jin railed even as he placed an anesthetic into Gill’s long gash. “ He had a gun! He could have killed all of you! Of all the inconceivable, asinine, downright foolhardy things to do! You three engaged him! No all four of you did!”
Gill, Luke, and Owen; who was being kept overnight for observation even though his gunshot wound was through and through, all looked at one another for a moment. Luke’s grazes had been stitched shut as well, though the stab wound was not the only thing Gill had suffered.
He had broken two knuckles beating Wren’s face in.
“ That nothing was happening to Kohri on our watch.” they declared simultaneously.
Jin looked over at Kohri for help, as she was in the same room as Owen at her behest, and she crossed her arms stubbornly. “ Nope. I agree with them one hundred and ten percent, Jin. You’re not going to get me to say anything to the contrary.” she declared as Jin quickly stitched the large gash and then bandaged it.
Jin groaned in defeat. Scappers, all four of them! He grumbled under his breath as he set Gill’s knuckles for him. He definitely ascribed to the adage ‘Doctor, heal thy patient’, but Jin couldn’t help but take a little perverse pleasure as Gill grunted in pain from it. “ I still can’t believe you beat him that viciously Gill.” he whispered. Jin couldn’t even try to fathom how deep Gill’s hatred of the man had been for him to have turned, as one officer had put it, Wren’s face into pudding. He shot another glare over to Kohri. “ Don’t think you’re in the clear either ma’am. I haven’t even had a chance to tell you the extent of your injuries yet, and you kicked him with your bad leg nonetheless!”
“ I got my revenge on the offending party is more like it. It might’ve hurt like hell, but I’d do it again and again, all day long if given the chance.” Kohri retorted, her eyes narrowed.
Luke and Owen couldn’t help but clench their legs together at that statement. Thank the goddess that they had never pissed Kohri off to that extent.
“ It was the heat of the moment, Jin. He had hurt Kohri, had her in a position where she was almost completely at his mercy, and he was threatening to kill her. That’s enough to make any man lose himself.” the deputy mayor shot back unrepentantly. “ What’s done is done, Jin. There’s no way I’m going to feel guilty for protecting someone that didn’t have the strength to do so herself. If Kohri hadn’t been hurt, she probably would have taken him out on her own.”
“ Damn straight.” Kohri piped up as Jin began applying a waterproof cast to Gill’s hand.
Luke smiled at that thought. “ If you think Gill, was vicious, just think about it Jin. Kohri was the one with the ax to grind. She could have done much worse than kicking him in the nads. ” the carpenter said proudly. Gill, as far as Luke was concerned, had risen to the occasion admirably. Not only that, it had been badass to watch him pummel the ever loving hell out of the bastard. Even if he did wear some dorky ass shorts in warmer weather, Gill was as cool a guy as they came in his estimation.
Jin shook his head as he finished setting Gill’s cast, but he smiled as he saw the way Gill and Kohri were looking at one another from across the room. Luke and Owen had also been on their best behavior today for that matter, and knowing how they were with Kohri could only mean two things.
They were either waiting for Jin to leave, or they were giving Kohri a break of sorts until she made it back to Waffle Island.
The door to the hospital room burst open and Amelia looked at all the occupants there. Her eyes fell on Kohri and she felt her breath hitch in her throat when she saw the huge cast on her leg. “ Kohri! Theo told me Wren tried to kill you again! Oh my goodness, are you alright?”
Kohri smiled as Amelia rushed over to her bedside and she gave the other woman a long hug. “ I’m fine Amelia. My boys kept me safe, just like I told you they would. You can add three more counts of attempted manslaughter to his billet for that matter. Luke and Owen were shot, and he stabbed Gill.” the rancher replied.
Amelia looked over to Gill with something very close to pride in her eyes. She had told Hamilton that Gill and Kohri were going to get along famously when Kohri had first arrived to Waffle Island after all. Theo had told her at how the flaxen haired man had viciously beat Wren down. Not even she could recognize him at first. “ So I heard. Theo already took all of your statements and handed them over to me and my unit so we could get them added to the case we’ve been building up. Kohri, now that Wren’s been arrested, that might mean that the court date just got jumped up and you’ll have to stay here on the mainland until everything’s concluded. Is that going to be alright?”
Kohri looked over to Gill as he came to sit on her bedside. “ What do you think?” she asked.
“ It depends on the court date to be honest. I don’t know if our budgets could handle hotel living for anything longer than a month. Not only that, you’re going to need something that’s wheelchair accessible for that matter.” he said, trying to pull together a plan.
“ No need to worry about that. Both of you are welcome to stay with Theo and I until everything has been concluded. I already know that the two of you need to return back to Waffle Island either tomorrow or the day after.” Amelia was looking over at Luke and Owen as she said this and she smiled at the sight they all made before she started laughing uproariously. “ It’s looks like the musketeers went into battle after all.”
Kohri, Gill, Owen, and Luke all shared a look before they too joined in, much to Jin’s consternation. Amelia had been right on the money that they all looked like they had been through hell. Owen winced a bit as he held his wounded gut, though he couldn’t stop laughing.
“ Oh yeah, we are definitely dressing up as the musketeers for next Halloween.” Luke snickered as he sat down comfortably in the chair. His expression grew serious after a moment. “ I wanna know when the date is now that it’s gonna be sooner than we thought. Kohri’s going to need as many people there as possible for support.”
Amelia smiled kindly. “ I’ll come tell you personally Mr. Ashemore.” she agreed.
Luke made a face between a grimace and a laugh. “ Do not call me that. Mr. Ashemore is my dad! Just call me Luke, Mia.” he finally chortled. “ I’m not old enough to be called that yet.”
Amelia nodded silently as she looked over to Gill. He was being subtle with as solicitous as he being with Kohri. Kohri as leaning into him now that he had taken a seat on the bed with her, her eyes closed with the contact. “ Kohri, I’ll be back in a day or two to check on you, but I will need to talk to you one on one. Wren’s probably going to be drugged up for a few days so that he doesn’t try to kill himself or escape. Even if he did get out of his room, I doubt that he’d come to your room. You’ve done the one thing he wasn’t expecting, you took a stand. He’s the kind of predator who is used to his victims just rolling over. You just might give others the hope to come forward as well.”
Kohri smiled at that thought. “ I hope that’s the case Amelia. They deserve justice as much as I do.” she said earnestly. Gill gave her shoulder a soft squeeze as she said that and Kohri looked up into his tender gaze.
It was as Angela had said. The clouds were clearing and she wasn’t alone.

Owen was released two days later, much to the chagrin of a good chunk of the nurses. He was such a handsome young man, wholesome too. Definitely not the type they saw in their wards all that often. Both Luke and Owen promised to be there for the trial, which had been moved up to take place in three weeks. As Theo had predicted, the CCTV footage had been the final piece of evidence that they needed. It even had audio, which damned Wren all the more. Amelia had watched the footage and she had smiled with pride when Kohri had nailed Wren in the dick with her heavily bound foot, despite the pain it had caused her charge. Her brow rose when she saw just how ferocious Gill had been in beating the other man to a pulp. She would have never thought the deputy mayor had it in him, but it was obvious that the two of them were close. They were going with what Gill had said as well if the Matthews clan tried to press charges for Wren’s vicious beating.
Any man would lose himself if someone he cared about were threatened the way Kohri had been.
Newspapers were hounding Kohri and Gill for interviews about what had happened, and they refused every time, stating that everything would come out at the trial. Amelia played interference every single time, expertly sending off the news hounds to the best of her ability, seeing as how Kohri was still in the hospital.
Finally, Jin decreed that Kohri could be released, as he needed to return to Waffle Island as well. Irene could only do so much and he needed to be on hand.
“ Just remember, your tibia broke in three places, your fibula in two. I had to set them with steel plates. You were exceedingly lucky that your pelvis wasn’t shattered. However, both of your hips were dislocated and you have three long, jagged fractures on your ilium. An MRI revealed some swelling on your spinal cord as well, but that will abate over a few months. You’ll be in a wheelchair for at least twelve weeks though so that both your leg and hips can heal and you’ll need to go through physical therapy. You’re not going to be able to work your farm over the winter months Kohri, nor should you be on your own. I understand your need to be independent, but you’re going to be in a wheelchair. You’re going to need help. If you refuse, I will ask the mayor to house you over at Tamelin Manor.”
Kohri sighed heavily. There really wasn’t any way around this. “ I understand Jin. I’ll make the arrangements for a live in nurse while I’m here.”
“ You don’t need to go that far, Kohri.” Theo said with a snicker as all eyes settled on Gill. “ I’m pretty sure Giloof!” Amelia had elbowed him hard in the ribs to shut him up. Even Theo had seen that there was something on the cusp of budding between the two.
“ What Theo is trying to get at Kohri is that I was already making the arrangements to stay with you as it was until February, and that I would be more than happy to do so even with the change that happened.” Gill said.
“ That was the offer you told me about a few weeks ago?” Kohri asked.
Gill nodded and Kohri smiled, nodding brightly. Owen and Luke had promised to fix her house up to be wheelchair accessible and that they were going to make her office into a master bedroom.
Gill had to admit that he couldn’t wait to get her home. He was looking forward to some one on one time with her. They hadn’t had even a single chance to talk alone. Someone always had to be nearby just in case. Kohri had been under twenty four hour surveillance ever since it had come out in the papers that she was back in the city. Amelia’s unit had their hands full, but they had been prepared for this. It was just happening sooner than anyone had planned.
A soft knock brought the five’s attention to the door. “ Excuse me. I’m Jessica Runnels, I’m with the Herald’s Post. I was wondering if I could ask Miss Phelps some questions.”
Amelia opened her mouth to tell the reporter to wait, but Kohri quieted her for a moment. There was something about this woman’s attitude that had Kohri interested. “ What kind of questions?” she answered.
“ I was hoping to have a candid interview of what your family life was like before your parents’ murders and how you’re coping a year later. The anniversary of their deaths is coming up the day you go to trial and I want to remind the people of the kind of man Senator Phelps was.” Jessica replied honestly.
Kohri smiled as she looked over to Gill, Amelia, and Theo. “ Can Miss Runnels and I have a word in private? Five minutes tops Amelia.”
Amelia nodded. Kohri had a knack of knowing if someone was trustworthy or not. It seemed she felt that Jessica was a good one.
The door closed and Jessica stood nervously at the door.
“ That’s not the actual question you had in mind.” Kohri stated simply.
Jessica’s head shook and she looked up to Kohri with tears in her eyes. “ How did you do it? Get past the fear? How did you stand up to him? What did you do that I could have done differently?” She cried softly.
Kohri sat up on the bed a little straighter and she patted the spot right beside her. Jessica took the offered seat and she burst into sobs as Kohri pulled her into a supportive and comforting embrace.
“ I was there sweetie. It’s okay. It gets better. It will get better.” Kohri whispered as she let Jessica cry herself out.
Amelia poked her head through the door after the five minute mark and her expression and her heart softened when she saw the two women embraced on the bed. “ We best give them a few more minutes.” Amelia said simply as Gill and Theo both looked at her expectantly.

Kohri gave Jessica the exclusive right to interview her after the trial was finished with, something that every newspaper had been clamoring for. She also gave her the candid interview Jessica had asked for, going in depth on how wonderful her parents had been and how hard it was adjusting to knowing that they weren’t in her life physically any more.
‘ The ones we love never leave us. Not truly. They’re always right here in our hearts. We will see them again. I know it. But as long as you hold your heart open to love, whether it be familial, romantic, or platonic, you realize that you were never alone in the first place. It took me the better part of a year to realize that. I just hope that the love I’m looking for knows I’m waiting.’
Amelia smiled as she read the article and she looked over to Kohri. It was amazing how much she had grown in under a year. That last bit though had been aimed right at Gill and he had barely looked at the article. Then again, if he were to do anything, they needed privacy. Something he and Kohri couldn’t get for more than a few moments because of her security detail.
Gill was probably biding his time for now.
A jury found Wren Dallas Matthews guilty of one count attempted rape, two counts manslaughter in the first degree, one count of intimidation of a witness, and four counts of attempted manslaughter in the first degree on top a slew of other charges. The judge presiding had sentenced him to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
The next day had papers quoting Kohri and Gill on how they felt about Wren. They had some very heavy worded quotes that the journalists had been tickled pink with.
“ Wren Matthews is a cruelly licentious delinquent and a masturbatory one dimensional orgy of indecency.”
“ He’s a cruelly ill-bred neanderthal and a primitive blood-curdling blackguard who has delusions of adequacy. Trust me, some of the men are definitely his better in many cases."
“ Wren Matthews is nothing but an indescribably lascivious miscreant and a glaring monotonous solitaire playing proof that evolution can go in reverse.”
“ He’s an unconscionably contemptible fiend and a maniacal feeble-minded pulp of stultifying inanity.”
Kohri was sitting in the bed that she and Gill had been sharing in Amelia's home, clutching the paper to her bosom as she laughed hysterically. “ Oh sweet goddess I can only wish I had thought of that one! You...solitaire playing proof...Oh goddess, I’m gonna piss myself!” Kohri howled as she fell on her side.
“ I say your shot at his adequacy was the money maker.” Gill said as he laughed along. He wondered if every store would be out of Merriam Webster dictionaries by morning as people tried to understand just what they had said. The thought made him laugh even harder and he leaned onto the bed to face Kohri.
Kohri smiled as she reached over to smooth a blonde lock from his face. “ We’re finally going home tomorrow.” she said happily.
Gill nodded and he gently pressed his lips to Kohri’s palm. It would take a week or two, but everything would quiet down after their return. He was anticipating being kicked out of the house for a celebratory girl’s night to be held within days of her return. Hopefully, he and Kohri would get a chance to be alone for longer than a few minutes once they got home. Sure they had some time here, but Amelia’s home wasn’t where the next major discussion they needed to have was the right place. Gill wanted to be in someplace comfortable for both of them. Quite frankly, the feeling of the lack of privacy with Kohri had lingered even though the trial was concluded.
Kohri felt as if she were on cloud nine. She was finally free of everything that she felt had been chaining her to the past. It was because of Gill that she had finally cast off those shackles. Kohri shifted closer, pulling Gill in closer all the while. She wanted to deepen that happiness, make the memory eternal in the only way she could think of.
A quick knock on the door almost had Kohri seeing red and Gill chortled softly as he sat up. “ Yes?” he answered.
Amelia poked her head in and she smiled at the irritated look on Kohri’s face. Well, she had definitely interrupted something. “ Pascal just moored at the pier. Is everything ready to move over to the ship? Theo’s offering to help you load everything.”
Gill got to his feet and he slipped on his trainers. “ That sounds good to me. Why don’t we make a night of it once we’re done? Go get some dinner? My treat. We have a reason to celebrate after all.” he offered.
Kohri opened her mouth to tell him no, and to demand that he get back here and finish what should have rightly been concluded on her kitchen table almost a month ago, but she held her tongue. Amelia was chuckling at the irate, petulant glare in her eyes. “ Sounds good Gill. Before you leave can you take me down stairs so that I can get into my wheelchair?” she asked.
Gill smirked as he scooped Kohri up into his arms, his eyes glittering promisingly. “ Best part of the night.” he purred so that only she could hear him. He heard movement heading down the hallway, accompanied by the sound of laughter as a door shut.
Amelia hadn’t been able to hold back after watching Kohri turn seven different shades of pink and red in the matter of a few seconds.
Kohri’s arms were locked around Gill’s neck as he held her tightly to him. Even with the injuries he had sustained in her defense, Gill seemed to have no trouble lifting her. She could feel his musculature under his clothing, pressed against her softness invitingly. Kohri wanted to feel him in other ways, to taste his mouth and skin, to…Kohri’s blush deepened to scarlet when she realized just where her thoughts were going.
Damn it all for her accident in the mines. These next few months were going to be nothing but torture! Pure, absolute torture!
Gill was still smirking sexily at her and Kohri’s fingers twirled the silken blonde strands that fettered along his neck. He had to know where her thoughts had gone. Kohri pulled herself up so that she could come in closer.
She needed that kiss like her next breath.
“ Kohri...I need to ask you to be patient just a little longer.” Gill whispered before she could press her lips to his. “ Believe me, I want this just as badly, and like you I am sick of being interrupted at every turn. Just hold out until we get home...Let me savor the moment and not have it marred by someone else.”
Kohri groaned in acquiesce as her head fell into his neck. Sometimes she hated his vulcanesque logic. She looked back up to him, a small grin in place. “ Nervous?” She teased.
Gill’s gaze was intense as it locked to hers and Kohri felt the color rise to her cheeks in the wake of that hungry look. “ Hardly Kohri. If I start kissing you right now, no one is getting either of us out of this room until morning. And as lovely as a thought is, Amelia’s home is hardly the place. I want us somewhere that we both know.” He said softly, the tone heavily laden in desire and promise. His voice was like a caress in of itself and Kohri’s hold on Gill tightened as it shot through her. His eyebrow quirked as did a small grin at the corner of his face.
This could make things interesting…
“ Got it Gill. You want us in our bed.” Kohri hissed. Damn him and that voice. Her snickers had almost gotten soaked from the sultry, dulcet tone. “ Did you have any ideas for dinner?”

Luke and Owen surprised Kohri at the pier when the pair came bounding off of the boat from out of nowhere. Sea ice had nearly locked Pascal’s ship to the dock and it had caused the two to miss the last leg of the trial. Kohri’s wheelchair almost skidded along the cold ground as she raced over to them in her excitement. Both of them had been recovering when she had seen them last after all. Kohri hugged her boys tightly as happy tears raced down her cheeks at the sight of them. She hadn’t realized how much she had missed them.
If this was her reaction to seeing her friends, how was she going to feel once she saw home for the first time in a month?
They hadn’t changed much over that time, with the exception that Luke now had a scar across his brow where the bullet had grazed him. Selena had nearly killed him herself when she had heard what he had done, but she was happy that he had returned to her alive nonetheless. Kohri talked with the two, catching up, while Theo and Gill loaded their things with a smile. There wasn’t much to put there after all and Gill understood how close the friendship was between the three. They had done just as much to help Kohri when Wren had attacked her in the hospital after all and had opened the way for Gill to put the bastard down.
Luke and Owen smiled devilishly at one another as the mason pushed Kohri down the road. The poor rancher didn’t see the look they shared.
“ So Kohri…” Luke began as he sauntered beside her, but just out of reach.
Uh oh... Kohri thought. Here we go. I'm in for it now. She recognized that tone of voice. She was in for some of their special brand of teasing and quite heavily for that matter. They had needed to be on their best behavior while she had been in the hospital, and they wouldn’t have dared done this with Gill in the same room.
“ Has anything happened while we’ve been gone? You know…” Luke said with a grin. “ Spit swapping?”
“ Necking?” Owen added from behind her.
“Bussing?”
“ Petting?”
“ Smooching?”
“ Spooning?”
“ Canoodling?”
“ Any mattress symphonies?”
“ The horizontal mambo?”
“ Copulation?”
“ Fornication?”
“ Pollination?”
“ Being pierced by the divine ray?”
All these synonyms were rattled off at rapid fire between the two, leaving Kohri to wonder if they had practiced this. The last one had Kohri in utter conniptions as they walked down the road, for Luke had popped a stupid pose where he ghosted his hand across the sky as if following the sun. They drew the confused gazes of other pedestrians for it, but Kohri didn’t care. She had been anticipating this and she had missed it, well a little at least. Kohri’s ribs began to ache from her laughter when Gill finally caught up to them and the look on his face was worth a thousand words.
It clearly said ‘You couldn’t wait one more day to do this?’.
All three friends were laughing at this point and Gill couldn’t help but smile at the sight they made. They really were the three musketeers and he had been roped in as D'Artagnan. Gill took over pushing Kohri’s chair so that Owen could walk beside her and engage her better, and he just watched the three. No matter what, even if he wasn’t pursuing a relationship with Kohri, Gill would have been stuck with them. The three men had her in common after all.
Kohri looked up and over her shoulder at Gill. “ So where are we doing dinner?” she asked.
“ I was thinking of the little bistro off of fourth.” he replied as Kohri snorted in amusement. They specialized in italian food. Gill could hear Amelia, Theo, and Pascal talking behind them, but not what they were saying entirely. The only thing Gill was thinking of was how he and Kohri would finally get a moment alone tomorrow.
Well, after the inevitable homecoming party that was sure to encompass the entire island that was.

Gill had been pensive the entire boat ride back to Waffle Island, and he had been looking out over the bow for the last three hours. Luke had wanted to engage him more than once in conversation, but Kohri had stopped him.
“ Leave him alone, Luke. This is the first chance Gill’s had to himself in about a month, let him enjoy it.” she hissed as she yanked him back into his chair after grabbing him by the ponytail.
“ Owowowowow! Shit Kohri! C’mon! That’s as bad as grabbing a saiyan’s tail!” Luke whined as he reluctantly sat back down.
“ Saiyans don’t exist, Luke, therefor there’s no comparison to how much it actually hurts.” Kohri retorted with an amused snort. She should have never gotten him hooked on the anime. He was forever browsing her extensive dvd collection it seemed. “ Besides, he’s probably got the same thing on his mind right now that I do.”
Owen was shuffling a deck of cards for them to play whatever game Kohri picked next. Admittedly, they were running out of options on which card game to play from here. “ What would that be Kohri?”
“ Gill and I need to have a long talk in private about where we’re going to go from here. The problem is, well, I can see this talk going one of two ways and quite frankly I am not in any sort of physical condition for it.” she said with a blush.
Luke and Owen burst into great peels of laughter at that as Kohri crossed her arms and looked off to the side in her embarrassment.
“ I can hear Jin now!” Luke howled as his chair teetered backwards precariously. “ Don’t engage in any rigorous horizontal activity until I’ve given you a doctor’s note!”
Kohri’s bottom lip quivered as she tried her damnedest to stave off her mirth. She could even see Gill’s shoulders shaking. He must have heard Luke all the way over there. Finally it was all for naught as she joined her friends in their hilarity. “ Rigorous horizontal activity?” she finally questioned.
“ Doctor’s note! Oh sweet goddess, Jin would do something like that!” Owen wailed as tears of mirth and joy streamed down his cheeks.
“ I know right? Oh shit...Whoa!” Luke cried out as his chair finally toppled. This renewed Owen and Kohri’s laughter, as Luke was doing the same at his own clumsiness while holding his aching head.
Gill looked over his shoulder towards the three with a small grin. Kohri was right that he needed some time to himself. He was thinking about the promise that he had made to Kohri last night. She was also right in what she had said about the talk that they needed to have.
Maybe it just wasn’t time yet…
That didn’t matter to Gill. He was willing to wait as long as it took for her to be ready. He had already told her as such. He just hoped Kohri’s patience didn’t wear thin over the oncoming months.

Gill had right on the money that there was a huge celebration waiting for them as soon as they got off the boat. Luke had carried Kohri’s wheelchair down the plank as Gill followed with Kohri in his arms. He stopped for a brief moment, only to look over at Kohri with an amused glance.
Something unspoken passed between them as Gill and Kohri began laughing for all they were worth as he carried her down to the dock.
“ Is that couple’s telepathy again.” Luke whispered with a grin as he set the chair up for Kohri, and he made doubly sure to set the wheel locks.
A massive amount of cheers, catcalls, and whistles followed the two down and Gill eased Kohri into her wheelchair. Once she was comfortable, Kohri caressed Gill’s cheek as they shared another humorous look.
Who would have thought that clumsy moment almost a year ago would have led to this?
Gill kissed Kohri’s knuckles debonairly, drawing cackles and whistles from the womenfolk gathered, before he straightened and he had no choice to follow as everyone began making their way to the inn.
The party lasted most of the afternoon and well into the evening before Gill saw that Kohri was getting tired. Couples had started taking to the floor when the music came on, and Kohri looked out upon them all longingly.
“ Did you want to dance before we leave, Kohri?” Gill asked her as he leaned over.
“ I can’t even stand supported yet. Doctor’s orders, remember?” Kohri replied with a melancholy grin. She’d love to be dancing right now, but alas, she was bound to her wheelchair for another eight weeks.
Gill set the locks on either side before scooping her up into his arms. “ Who said anything about you standing?” he inquired playfully. Understanding dawned on Kohri’s face as she smiled brightly at him and she kissed Gill on the tip on his nose. “ Would you care to dance with me, Ms. Phelps?”
Kohri smiled as her arms locked over his shoulders and around his neck. “ I believe I would be so inclined, Mr. Tamelin.” she replied happily as she played with silken blonde strands on his neck again. She loved the feeling of his hair between her fingers.
The two were so lost in their own world that they didn’t even care that people were watching, waiting, anticipating any sign that would indicate that they had come together during their month long absence. The younger women were sighing dreamily, wishing they had someone that looked at them like that. The older ones were smiling happily at them, their joy was contagious. All the men were placing bets to see just when Gill got a ring through his nose. It was a running bet, as Owen and Luke were thinking of proposing to their girls as well. It was a race to see who would be the first to the alter.
Kohri yawned sleepily in Gill’s embrace and at the end of the song he settled her back into her wheelchair. It was time for them to go home.
They made their rounds, thanking everyone for the party, and Gill eased Kohri back out into the winter chill. The silence they shared was companionable, no words needed as they both relished in the fact that they were finally back where they belonged.
Gill unlocked Kohri’s front door and they both sighed as the warmth of the fire in the grate washed over them. Kohri took in the changes to her home, and she felt a little stab of pain that she had been gone for so long. All of her plants had been lovingly attended to however and she smiled at the sight of all the flora. Their bed was nowhere in sight, and Kohri wheeled herself over to where her living room was. The bookshelves were still in the same place, but her television, the sofas, coffee table and dining table had all been set up to offer her easy access to everything. The marble hutch had been carefully moved over near the fireplace and Kohri smiled as she came to a stop before it. “ It’s over.” she whispered to them. “ He won’t hurt anyone else ever again.”
Again, the way Kohri was positioned in front of the glass made it look as if her parents were right behind her. She swore the pictures of them were beaming with pride as they looked back on her. When Gill turned around however, as he had been hanging up their coats and scarves, he stopped dead in his tracks.
Her parents were there, glowing with a soft angelic light as they looked down on their daughter proudly.
Kohri turned towards Gill after a moment, wiping a stray tear or two from her cheeks. He looked like he had just seen a ghost. “ Gill?” She asked, worried at the shocked look on his face.
“ Did you...They were…” he stammered out. The visions of Burdock and Damiana Phelps has faded from sight when Kohri had turned around. Gill crossed the room in three great bounds to sit at the table. His knees felt weak after that.
“ Gill, what’s going on?” Kohri inquired as she wheeled over.
“ They were right behind you. That was…” Gill couldn’t even put it to words properly. “ Wow.”
Kohri looked back over to the hutch, and the pictures of her parents smiled back at her. They had been right behind her? That was why they had looked as different as had! It was no wonder that poor Gill had nearly had a coronary at the sight of them. Kohri smiled softly as she turned her attention back to her housemate. “ Let’s take a look around. I want to see just what changes were made to my house to accommodate my wheelchair. They had better be temporary.”
Gill looked over to Kohri through his fingers. She wanted to go exploring when he had seen her parents spirits? He was more than ready to just call it a night!
They needed to talk first.
“ Before we do that though, we need to talk about something important.” Kohri said as she positioned herself in front of Gill.
Gill turned in the chair to face her and Kohri took his hands in hers. “ Ironic, seeing as how I’ve been doing quite a bit of thinking myself as well.” he replied.
“ I know you said we would continue from where we left off in the room we were sharing at Amelia’s, but I…” Kohri paused for a moment, as if trying to find the right words. “ I don’t want to continue this chat just based off of the physical response we had to one another. I want it to be because of what you told me that night on the way back to here last year. I don’t want to lose focus on what really matters, Gill. If we go forward from here, the physical will be put on hold until Jin’s cleared me to get back to work back on my farm. I don’t want to force you to wa..”
Gill was losing patience with her at this point. Had she not believed him when he told her it didn’t matter how long he had to wait? The only thing he wanted was to be with her. Kohri was still rambling, and Gill did the only thing that came to mind. He cradled both sides of her neck and he pulled her forward just enough to press his lips to hers.
“ I’d be lying if I said that I haven’t thought about sex with you, Kohri…” Gill whispered as he rubbed his nose to hers. “ I can promise you that it’s only been an occasional thought on the same note. When I didn’t see you for a month, you were at the forefront of my mind every waking moment. I would catch myself staring at the phone. I wanted to call you, to see how you were doing but I wanted to respect your request for space. I can’t tell you how often I thought of coming over here, just to tell you that I wanted to be with you, Kohri. All I want is you, just as you are. Nothing more, nothing less.” Gill brought her hands up to gallantly press sweet kisses to the tips and the knuckles, and he could see Kohri waiting for him to continue. She knew he wasn’t done yet. “ It wasn’t the promise of the physical that drew me to you completely, it was you just being the way you are. I can’t get you out of my head or out from under my skin. My heart had been untouchable for years, but then you unlocked everything that I tried to hide away after I lost Angela. It’s only fair that it’s yours now.”
Kohri watched his hand, mesmerized, as he laid hers over his heart. She could feel the steady rhythm against her palm as it hammered against the confines of his chest. She weighed his words, thinking over her own irrational musings. She was so worried that Gill would want to jump right into a physical relationship. He admitted he wanted her body, but he also made it clear that he found her mind just as equally, if not more so, appealing. He also was putting the decision in her hands again, leaving himself open and vulnerable. Gill was offering her a fully committed relationship, but only if she wanted it.
Did Luke like spinach?!
Kohri smiled as she pulled Gill in close. “ So you’re suggesting that we go steady?” she purred as Gill smiled, rubbing his nose to hers once more. He hummed an affirmative as Kohri kissed him deeply, slowly memorizing the flavor that seemed unique and for some reason familiar.
He tasted like a cool, crisp winter day, of lavender infused honey, and... Oh sweet goddess ...she thought with a small laugh.
Tomatos.
Gill smirked, his brow raised in curiosity for what had caused her to giggle after a heartfelt confession like that. Kohri sat back in her wheelchair, unable to keep herself from laughing and Gill folded his arms as he waited patiently. To an outsider he would seem cold and distant, but Kohri knew better. The look in his eyes was saying ‘Well?’.
“ You love tomatos way too much.” She finally got out. “ You actually taste a little like them.” Kohri pulled him in by his collar and she smiled the moment they were face to face. “ Let’s go to bed Gill. I think you said something about holding me hostage until morning if you were to start kissing me.” Kohri hummed happily as Gill captured her lips with his once more, and he got to his feet to push her chair for her.
“ I may have said something along those lines…” Gill purred flirtatiously in her ear as he pushed her forward.

A/N: I was going to end the chapter a little sooner than this, but I had to let Owen and Luke get a little of theirs in seeing as how they couldn't do anything while Kohri was in the hospital. And the insults? I had a blast with those! Intellisult is a long winded insult generator that I fell in love with and I picked the best five and tweaked them just a little so that they didn't all look the same. Thanks for reading!
11/6/17: I went in and edited the end of this chapter. No matter which way I tried to do it, I couldn't make the next chapter work, but I needed these scenes in there. I apologize to the ones who have to go back and reread this chapter, but I should have some more out this week to try to make up for it.
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Restoring Faith