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Tags: taken sean bean/orlando bloom fiction
Published : 8 months, 2 weeks ago (Tue, 28 Oct 2008 14:40:11 PDT)
Searched: ♂orlando bloom
http://blueskydancers.livejournal.com/34275.html 3 links
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Author: ![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) blueskydancers
Pairing: Sean Bean/Orlando Bloom
Rating: NC-17 overall
Disclaimer: This is all fiction. Yes it's all made up.
Beta read by: The wonderfully talented haldoor
Warnings: Very AU. This is slash - don't read if it will offend you!
A/N: I am not a medical expert by any means so if what I have described here is wrong or not possible I plead artistic licence!
Summary: What happened next...
Previous chapters can be found here
Chapter 4
He’s alive. The most wonderful two words Sean could ever recall hearing.
Overcome with relief, he let his head fall forward to rest on the couch, the tiredness that fear for Orli had kept at bay returned ten-fold and he knew if he stayed in this position it would only be a matter of minutes before he was asleep. But he couldn’t let down his guard just yet; once they were safely aboard the Speedwell and she was on her way to Amsterdam, he could rest.
Climbing to his feet, he stood a little unsteadily. Forcing himself to focus on the matter at hand, he said, “Your technique was successful.” It wasn’t really a question; the evidence of the success was sleeping beside him.
Harris nodded vigorously, “Yes, yes, as I suspected, because there was no sudden drop, his neck didn’t break and even though he had stopped breathing when your men got to him, his heart hadn’t stopped. I was then able to restart his breathing in the coach. I’ve given him some laudanum for the pain and also because I didn’t want him to wake and panic before you arrived. He will sleep for several hours.”
“His neck was undamaged?”
“It appears so. Fortunately, he is slight in stature so there was little stress. He may find it difficult to speak for a few days and the bruising around his neck will worsen before it fades, but all in all a very successful experiment. I’m most grateful to you for giving me the opportunity to test my theory.”
Sean’s anger sparked during Harris’ final remarks, but he forced himself to remain calm; Orlando was not an experimental subject! But then, someone like Harris would have no notion of the feelings he had for Orli. Sean had known others like him, and none of them would understand what it was like to be willing to sacrifice everything – even your own life – for another. Even so, he couldn’t resist a jibe. “It was experiments like this that lost you your medical licence wasn’t it?” Sean shrugged, “Anyway you owed me a debt. Though I thought it more likely I would need you to remove a pistol ball.”
“None of us can predict the future," Harris said portentously.
Anxious to get rid of the man so that he could concentrate on Orlando, Sean said, “We’re going to put you off at the Tower pier; you can find a chair or carriage there.”
“Much obliged.”
Sean looked around for the saddlebags he had dropped when he came through the door. Retrieving them, he reached inside and extracted another pouch of coins. He threw it to Harris, “This is for your trouble and to ensure your silence.”
“My dear fellow, you don’t need to do that. I’m a gentleman and I owed you a debt of honour. My lips are sealed.”
Sean noted that Harris made no move to hand back the gold, despite his proud boast. “Well I’m not a gentleman and I’m not very trusting. So if rumours that Orlando is alive start to spread, I’ll know where they started. If I have to come after you, you’ll wish you’d never been born. As far as everyone is concerned Orlando is dead and it is going to stay that way.”
Harris looked at Sean nervously, “No call for threats. I think we understand each other perfectly.”
Before Sean could reply there was a thud and the barge rocked as it was brought alongside the pier. “Croaker!” Sean shouted.
In moments the door to the cabin opened and Croaker looked in. “Yes, sir?”
“Surgeon Harris is going ashore here; have Butcher make sure he gets home safely.”
“Sir.”
Harris picked up his bag and moved towards the doorway; once there he shuffled around uncomfortably for a couple of moments. “One more thing. I’ve left a small bottle of laudanum on the table. He can have three drops in water or wine every few hours should it be needed.”
Sean nodded.
Still Harris didn’t move.
“You have to go ashore now; we need to catch the tide before noon.” Sean spoke hurriedly, conscious that they could still be caught if they tarried for too long.
Suddenly Harris began to speak rapidly, running the words together in a continuous jumble so that Sean had to concentrate very hard to understand him.
“There might be a chance that when he wakes, his mind is muddled or that of a child... It’s a risk... I’ve seen it before with patients who’ve lacked air for sometime… In drowning cases… If that is the case you can use the laudanum to end things... Send him to sleep and ensure that he never awoke… He would never know... It would be a kindness…”
Sean felt himself go cold; that risk had never been mentioned. No wonder Harris had drugged Orli; he didn’t want Sean to know if his mind was gone. But then why was he telling him this now? How could this bastard think he would murder Orli, no matter the circumstance?
Sean clenched his fists. After the stress of the morning he desperately wanted to hit something, and right now Harris was looking like a good candidate. If only he wasn’t too tired to think clearly…
Croaker must have seen Sean’s expression become murderous because he grabbed the doctor’s arm and began pulling him from the cabin. Sean heard Harris muttering as he was dragged away, his voice fading into the distance. “A very small risk but is best known now...”
Closing the door to the cabin, Sean walked back and sat on the edge of the couch. Old habits died hard, and it was only now that they were alone, he felt able to touch Orli as a lover. Letting his hand rest on top of his head, he began to stroke the dark curls, the tension leeching from his body as he smoothed the tangles from Orli’s hair.
The slow movement was therapeutic and Sean soon found himself nodding. Giving in to his exhaustion, he lay down beside Orli and in moments he too was asleep.
~~~~~
The thud as the barge hit something solid woke Sean with a start, and it took a few moments for him to realise where he was. Orlando was a comforting weight against his side, having shifted a little while they were sleeping. Rubbing his eyes, Sean rolled off the side of the couch and onto his feet, staggering a little with the movement of the small craft.
A knock at the door was followed by it opening, Croaker stuck his head through the gap. “We’ve tied up alongside the Speedwell, sir. Will you want help to carry the lad aboard?”
Ignoring the question for a moment Sean asked, “Any sign of pursuit?”
“None, sir, and Captain Brown has a couple of his men on the dock keeping watch.”
“Very well, let’s get moving. Help me wrap him in a blanket so that he doesn’t get chilled.”
In moments they had Orli cocooned in two thick blankets and resting comfortably over Croaker’s shoulder. Sean hated to let him out of his grasp but realised that Croaker’s former service in the Royal Navy meant that he was much more likely to be able to move Orli safely from one vessel to the other.
Nevertheless, Sean waited with bated breath while Croaker climbed the rope ladder thrown over the seaward side of the Speedwell. He knew the advantage of being able to board the brig hidden from any watchers on shore far outweighed the possible danger of boarding in this way, but it didn’t mean he had to like it!
~~~~~
Being the owner of the brig, Sean had taken possession of the Captain’s cabin for their voyage and moments after they had boarded they were comfortably ensconced there with Orli sleeping peacefully in a large double bunk.
Time crawled while Sean waited for Orlando to wake, but his patience was finally rewarded when Orlando’s eyelids began to flutter and eventually, his eyes opened. He looked at his surroundings with confusion until his gaze finally settled on Sean. At first there was no sign of recognition and Sean feared the worst, but slowly a smile grew on Orlando’s face. Sean found himself smiling in return and then abruptly on the edge of tears.
Seeing his distress, Orlando opened his mouth to speak but Sean hushed him, his throat tight with emotion, “No, don’t try to talk. Your throat will be sore for a few days or more.”
Sean picked up a goblet of water and offered Orli some, which he drank gratefully, spilling a little.
Lying back against the pillow once more, Orlando looked around. His brow furrowed and he looked questioningly at Sean.
“You’re on board my brig, the Speedwell.”
Orlando nodded. He tried to speak again but Sean shushed him, resting a finger against his lips.
“You want to know what happened?” Sean suggested.
Orlando nodded again.
Sean took a deep breath and began to explain, “When I heard the news that you had been taken, I was frantic. It seemed most likely that because my enemies knew they couldn’t come at me directly, they were using you to ensnare me. How they knew about us, I have no idea.”
Orlando mouthed words, and Sean had to bend closer to make out what he was trying to say. “Croaker?”
Sean shook his head. “No I’m sure of his and Butcher’s loyalty. They were the ones who got you away from the gallows. If one or other of them had been responsible for your capture, they would have let you die there. They would know that your death would make me do something stupid.”
Sean stroked a hand over Orli’s hair. “I think my enemies were hoping I’d come rushing to Newgate and attempt some foolhardy rescue plan. I had to trick them; make them think you were dead to keep you safe.
“Fortunately, I’d made the acquaintance of a disreputable character called Harris. He’s a doctor, but he’s been discredited for some questionable activities involving experiments on living subjects. I’d done him a favour or two in the past, so he agreed to help me. He’d mentioned his theory that even if a man had stopped breathing, he could be revived as long as his heart hadn’t stopped. I’m sorry I allowed him to experiment on you. But there was no other choice.”
Sean knew he was talking too much, but he found that relief had loosened his tongue and now he couldn’t stop the words tumbling forth.
Orlando frowned, and Sean hurried to try to explain, “I couldn’t tell you because I couldn’t visit, or trust anyone else with the full story. Will you forgive me?”
Orlando nodded and reaching up, grasped Sean around the neck, pulling him close. He whispered in Sean’s ear, “Saved me.”
Sean looked in his eyes and was glad to see no sign of hatred there, “But if only for a moment, you must have thought I’d abandoned you.”
Orlando shook his head, and Sean just caught the mouthed words, “No! Trust you. Love you.”
Reaction and tiredness swept over Sean and he gathered Orlando into his arms. To the gentle rocking of the brig as it made its way out of the Thames estuary, he whispered, “Thank you, love. I’ll make sure you never have to regret it.”
“What now?” Orli’s soft whisper penetrated Sean’s reverie.
“Now we sail to Amsterdam. I’ve got property, business and goods in Holland; we’ll be welcome there. And, most importantly, we can be together openly.”
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