GRAY GROUSE (XIV)
|| COV MASTERLIST || NEXT: CHAPTER XV ||
PAIRING: Kyle 'Gaz' Garrick x F!Reader
WORDCOUNT: 3.2K
WARNINGS: Blood, wounds, angst, mentions of guns & weapons, gore mentions, talks about shootings, etc.
*I do not give others permission to translate and/or re-publish my works on this or any other platform*
Your mind isn’t itself as you hear every clink of your cane hitting the floor. It echoes inside the cage of your skull—amplified like not even a brain sits there with its pulsing flesh.
You can hear every one of your broken footsteps taking you farther away from him.
“When you get in there…” Laswell’s words blur heavily.
Gaz was leaving. He was leaving now. The Brit was walking out onto the tarmac—entering the metal of a cargo hold before he settled down for the long flight to Russia. Joining back up with his Task Force. So why was a part of you still trying to make your feet turn around to follow?
Joey lowe.
The name snaps you out of your brooding thoughts—your shaky fingers as they strangle your cane.
“...Be watching the entire time.” Kate sighs under her breath, and from the corner of her eye, she glances at you. “You don’t have to worry about the possibility of him attacking you. He’s fully restrained to his chair.”
“I’m not worried,” you mutter. “Let’s just get this over with already.”
The woman’s stare narrows, glancing behind even if she knows that the Sergeant wouldn’t be sneaking after you. That wasn’t how Kyle was. But still…a part of her looked.
“I couldn’t agree more. Follow me.” Kate pulls ahead and guides you along.
Staring at the back of her head, you fight the sharp sting behind your eyes, but even you can’t force a knife out of your skin and expect it not to hurt.
When Laswell hears a stubbornly inhale, she doesn’t even mention it.
The walk isn’t long, and while the bullet wound on your thigh pulls, you welcome it as a distraction. Your other hand had slipped into your pocket, reaching for your coin, but when it had brushed the picture that you’d folded inside, that almost kiss flashing through your consciousness, it nearly left you bending over yourself.
A door appeared ahead of you, your pulse as loud as a roaring lion.
“Remember,” Kate moves her keycard from her lanyard. A firm glance. “We’ll have eyes on the entire time.”
Like a phantom, you enter the unlocked barrier just as it beeps.
Joey is just how you remember him—except now he was minus the bulletproof vest and the gun in his hands. Perhaps you’d just become used to all of this because the memory slips off of you like water to a metal surface; it doesn’t matter. There were only so many things that you could tear at your mind about at one given moment.
Gaz seems to take precedence, and you have a deadly knowledge as to why.
Lowe’s eyes move up as you slip inside, letting the door close behind you with a definitive lock. It’s a classic interrogation room—like the one you’d been brought to when all of this started. Sitting in a metal chair, the man that had been sent to kill you was reduced to a flushed mess of tanned skin and a bruised, bald, head. The sunglasses were gone, just as the lower face covering. Now, all that you saw was the round face directed right into yours.
“You,” Joey snarls, hands yanking at the handcuffs that leave him restrained to the table. Your eyes slip to his middle. The padding of bandages was thick—just like the ones on your thigh.
“You shot me,” you blankly comment, feet moving closer.
Like a droplet of blood hitting the floor, your heartbeat echoed through the tingle of your nerves; raced up and down your spine.
Answers.
You were done playing all of these pieces in someone else's game. The videos on your father’s laptop, every lead stopping at a brick wall just when the reveal was at the tip of your tongue—it was ending.
“Should’a done more than that, Brat,” Lowe snaps, hands swelling with blood.
“Careful,” you numbly glance upwards. Locking your eyes with his for but a moment. “You’ll break skin.”
“I don’t give a shit!” Lips flickering, you grasp the second chair’s back, peeling it out with a huff and delicately placing yourself down until you can sigh out the tension.
But the man’s words are more layered than he’d like to admit—you picked up on it instantly. Fear. You knew because, in every instance along the long line of this story, your own sentences had been dripping with it; that undertone like a sharp knife. It was bleeding from his heart.
“Alright,” you mutter under your breath, glancing at the large wall of one-way glass to your left. You can’t see anything, but you know people are back there. Waiting. Your head swivels back. “Then why are you shaking?”
Joey’s eyes burn you one glare at a time. The man only stops when he grunts in pain, midsection bending in as his throat clears quickly.
How quick you’d gone from the one in the very same situation as him, to the one holding the gun. It was almost poetic.
Again your mind slips into images of Gaz’s brown eyes, a longing growing the more you can’t look over your shoulder and find him waiting for you. You nearly do just that—turn around. Head half-turned until it hits you like a strike of lightning.
Your father’s journal sits heavy, hidden in your coat.
“I don’t expect you to tell me anything worth my time,” Joey looks up at your words, face tight with aggression. “But I want you to listen.”
You let that pause linger, and the hired gun is about to yell at you again before you do the best thing you can: lie.
“We have the laptop,” you shrug, licking your lips as your thighs move over the chair to re-settle. A spark of heat moves through your wound. “And we also know who hired you and Samson. Nothing you tell me will be worth my time,” you tilt your head, “because we already know it all. The game’s over.”
“That’s bullshit,” Joey laughs. “You expect me to believe that? I had a deal in place���nothing’ll break it ‘cept my damn death.”
“We struck a new one,” you utter, and suddenly his eyes aren’t hard to look into at all. A bout of courage overtakes the raging waters of your hope that Kyle will come through the door and back you up on this.
But he won’t.
“You,” Lowe looks increasingly more panicked. “You’re lyin’. The fucking government would never take up a deal with Chiyou.”
Your eyes take on a sharp hue, honing in. The entire air goes tight with eagerness.
“It’s the government,” is all you dryly state, trying not to sound so excited.
Joey’s eyes dart to the one-way slashing around frantically. His pulling at the cuffs gets harder, and the blood that falls only moments later makes you stare. If it were someone else, maybe you would have cared.
“Now’s the time to clear your name,” you continue, motioning a hand as your other plays with the material of your cane. A flicker of something moves along your face—mimicking his very words from when the barrel of a gun was pressed into the back of your head. “You should be thanking me…”
“I’m not—”
“Tell me about Samson,” you interrupt, eyes stuck on him. Anger begins to overtake you—building. Your body leans forward in the chair stiffly. “Tell me about how he wasn’t strong enough to get the job done.”
“If you already know, why are you asking?!” Blinking, you send a glance up and down Joey’s body. He was shaking in pain, and you had no doubt that his stitches were pulling. No one had come in from the other room to tell you to stop.
And you were always so stubborn, anyway.
“I think we’re done,” you shrug. “I was right—you can’t tell me anything.” Standing, you move as if a walking bone to a chained dog, slinking through gore and blood until you’re already to the door. Feet slow and steady, you raise your knuckles to knock. Like clockwork, a thunk of the lock lets your hand shift to the handle, grasping it and adding pressure to—
“Wait!” You push open the door, head sticking out only enough for Kate’s stiff-eyed form to show from the room a foot away. She has herself half in and half out of the frame, watching you closely.
Raising a slow brow at her, your body pivots back and disappears once more.
Perhaps this was so easy because Lowe was retrained. If he hadn’t been, things could be wildly different. Gaz would have told you that even if he was cuffed, this was still not your job. You shouldn’t have to do this.
The door behind you closes once more.
Staying on your two feet, you tap your fingers against your cane and incline your head. “You have the floor, Joey.”
“You’ve just signed my death warrant,” he barks, eyes still unable to stay still. “You don’t know what you’ve done. I need a deal—I-I need witness protection.”
“Talk,” you hiss. Impatient nature rearing its head, you glare tightly.
Kyle must be on the C-17 by now—maybe it was even taking off as you were having this conversation. Why did you feel so anxious about it? Why were your feet still wanting to turn even when you were on the cusp of blowing this wide open?
He can’t really mean this much to you…can he?
“Samson was too good of a guy to get stuck in this, dammit!” Dark eyes lock with yours, and you frown. “All the decent ones are already dead, and it’s your fuckin’ fault.”
“I’m failing to see how I’m supposed to care at this point,” you dryly spit out.
Joey’s head shakes back and forth, bald head shiny in the overhead light. “Yeah, I’m not that surprised, Sweetheart. Samson let you live, but, hell, I’d have put a bullet in you a thousand times before I did that to your father.”
Your spine tightens up. Lowe keeps talking as your heart stops beating.
“Fuckin’ fool,” Joey’s jaw clenches, his wide face bright with rage. “He should have just gone through with the orders—it would have been quick; he would have been alive to see his girls grow up.”
You partially open your lips but stop yourself quickly. He has to keep going.
“I knew he was too damn righteous for that; knew he wouldn’t kill you like he was supposed to. Damn idiot went and shot the fucking husband instead. God. Served with him and everything—I know that bastard didn’t kill himself.”
Wide-eyed, your thigh throbs as your entire body seizes up.
Joey tries to stand, growling and yelling becoming increasingly more violent; and still, that fear stays in his eyes—deep into his soul.
“You’re ex-military,” you whisper under your breath. Louder, “Tell me what you know about Chiyou,” you snap. “Who is it?”
“This is your fault!” He shouts, and the table jerks against the bolts holding it to the floor. You flinch, taking a small step backward as your face blankly of all else besides thinly veiled fear. “You’ve got your hands all in it! It’s you!”
Alarms blare over the speakers with the sharp screech of dying dragons.
Gasping, your head snaps to the one-way in shock—the lights flickering overhead as you blink quickly, confusion making your heart speed. The sound is so sharp your free hand has to physically snap to the side of your head to cover one of your ears—mouth releasing a fast yell.
Your back shifts to slap into the door, and with a quick hand, you reach for the handle. Yet, it opens before you can even touch it; fingers grapple for your clothes as you’re peeled out.
Joey screams above the alarm.
“Don’t leave me here! Don’t! It’s what they want—!” The door slams as Kate bullies you down the hallway quickly. Soldiers rush past.
In her hand, she holds the body of a small pistol.
“What the hell is going on,” your voice is smoother than you thought it would be, but nonetheless firm. You hurry along as fast as you’re able, adrenaline taking most of the intense pains and stacking them away for now. Namely, the one in your heart. There’s no time to think over what you’d just uncovered about this plot—no time to act on it.
“I’m getting you to a secure area,” Kate levels, not fully answering you.
“And are you going to explain on the way, or…?” You trail off, eyes digging into her and voice loud above the noise. A man rushing past clips your shoulder, and you stumble before your cane stops your fall. Laswell’s grip gets harder.
“Your mother was attacked in the medical ward. We don’t know who did it,” the woman explains in a swift breath.
Your face blanks, snapping over to her even as countless other people nearly run into you. Shouts and yells spring up—guns carried in hard grips as the sounds of boots connecting with the floor make you beg to hear more familiar ones.
But an instinctual glance behind you leaves nothing but electric air and millions of bodies of people you don’t know. You have to admit, that makes you more scared than anything that was revealed previously.
“Is,” you stutter, head jerking back to Kate. “Is she okay?! What happened, she was supposed to be safe here!”
“You need to focus on yourself,” is the harsh and blunt answer. Blue eyes grace yours, sharp as you’re taken down the next hallway on fast feet.
“How many times am I going to be told that before you people realize it’s not going to happen?” You shout, but it’s lost to the blaring, insistent, noise that makes your head ache the longer you’re out here—stuck in the bright lights and the screams.
It reminds you of the park.
Shoved into a side room, you’re released to stumble for a moment as Kate jerks the door closed with a rattling frame.
“It is going to happen,” she looks at you, hand low at her hip as she motions to you. “Kyle isn’t here anymore to watch you. Until this is over, you have to rely on your own skills to keep you safe.”
You narrow your eyes in disbelief, a sneer coming to your lips. Your body steadies itself as your breaths come quick.
“Isn’t that literally someone else's job? I’m sorry to tell you this, Laswell,” you growl, moving closer, “but I don’t know how to deal with hitmen!”
You’re given an unimpressed look before Kate shakes her head and frowns at you.
“You’re smart—Kyle saw that. But you make stupid decisions.” You move your hand out in a hostile gesture, teeth snapping like a dog. “You need to think, Spitfire. The pieces are all laid out, you know the answer to this.”
Confusion now overtakes that feral panic.
“What are you talking about?” Kate moves to you, grabbing at your shoulder with her free hand. You glare into her eyes, blinking away after a minute of contact.
“No one can figure this out but you. You’re the catalyst. It starts and ends with you—Lowe gave you the last of it. There’s an answer here, and you’re not willing to see it.”
“Where’s my mother,” you bark in question, annoyed at this line of conflict. “You’re not making any sense.”
Kate takes a step back and stares heavily at your face. She licks her lips and says slowly, the words nearly lost to your ears above the alarms, “Too many men and women have died over this already. You know that.”
“What I know is that you’re making my head explode!” You shout. “You’re going on and on about this—what about you?! You and your little Task Force that doesn’t even know the people they work with!” Your mouth moves in a laugh. “You send off the one person who I’m starting to trust, and then I find out Samson was meant to kill me.”
“We should be glad he didn’t,” Kate tilts her head. She’d gone too far in life to gain that sheen of guilt now. Her experiences were a long line of statistics and facts.
You were the target, now the question had shifted as to why. You had never been involved in any illegal activities with your father—there was never any evidence of that, and everyone knew it to be true.
One question leads to another, and another, and another.
You knew something. Something that you maybe didn’t even know yourself yet. But time is rapidly coming to a close.
“We should be glad I didn’t leak your fucking file onto the internet when I had the chance,” you point, teeth bared. “I’ve seen it—I know how you work. It’s goddamn disgusting the things you do.”
“I’m not discussing this with you,” Laswell utters, frowning. “It’s my cross to bear.”
“Oh,” you laugh sarcastically, “so high and mighty. Kate Laswell—a martyr.”
Kyle seemed to have taken the key to your anger with him and left the door wide open. Your cruelty slipped through the frame to bleed its black blood over the hardwood floors like some possessed dog, dragging itself home time after time for only a faint memory of warmth. You were just so angry all of the time. Being here—around these people; these bases and the secrets.
Every ounce of you is bathed in wrath.
“Trust me,” you grin numbly. “My eyes are wide open.”
Blue stares into you, unblinking until the earpiece makes the woman move back and press her fingers up to it—to listen above the noise.
All she gives you is a firm and unemotional, “Are they?” Before her face turns away from you.
You clench your jaw and scoff, neck shifting as you tap your cane into the ground. The wound burns, but your free hand easily moves into your jacket pocket and presses into your coin—digging your palm into it. A distraction, maybe.
But all you can think about is how Gaz would be giving you that disappointed look and turning his head away. It makes you want to throw something.
His stupid hat; stupid voice. How he carries himself—how he felt so guilty about his part to play in this.
How he left.
He left you here.
With your mother, with Laswell. He regretted it, sure…and the worst part was that you’d entirely forgive him if he came through that door right now. For everything. But, God, please don’t make him leave you here alone after everything he’s done to make it right.
The realization makes your eyes water, a sting again forming. You wanted him here with you. You wanted his jokes and his smile—that smirk of his. Gaz’s stories about his trials and his achievements.
His history.
You could study all you wanted about that topic, but the section that was titled his own would always be the most interesting. He’d snuck in and grappled onto the place between your ribs; he’d stuck a knife into your heart and refused to peel it out—to let you bleed him away.
Damn him, damn him, damn him.
This wasn’t supposed to happen.
Kate’s face goes grim while you fight your own inner monologue. Her sentence rips you out of the bubble you’re stuck in.
“Lowe’s dead. Get ready, I’m moving you across base.”
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Seeing Joseph Quinn wearing glasses made me think of a typical father, opening Christmas presents in a warm jumper. So maybe Joe is spending Christmas with the reader and their little girl, who has drawn her daddy a picture of their whole family or some other sweet gift? Generally lots of sweets, fluff, cuddling together by the fireplace, watching movies, a blanket and kissing under the mistletoe. I'm already in the mood and I'm sure Joseph would make this Christmas even more wonderful ❤️🥹
Stop this is a total fucking mood and I'm living for it
I went for a Christmas Eve scenario, I hope it's what you wanted 😚 thank you for your request x
🎅🎄 Christmassy Daddy Joey it is
"Daddy, daddy! Look what I got!" Joe moved to watch from across the room, stood in the doorway looking upon his little girl receiving her Christmas Eve box especially sent by Santa Claus himself.
He pretended to look surprised, folding his arms, mouth gaping open. "What's that my darling?"
"Santa sent it for me so I'm all ready for the morning mummy said!"
You sat on the sofa looking back at your husband, totally excited that this is the first of the holiday's you'd spent as a family where your little girl truly understood the magic of Christmas. It made everything so much more special.
"Shall we take a look inside?" you smiled, Joe joining you on the sofa, he snaked his arm around your shoulder and you leaned into him, admiring her open her gift.
Inside were brand new pyjamas, slippers, a certificate which confirmed she had been put on Santa's nice list and a small Candy Cane patterned teddy bear for her to take to bed.
"Oh my goodness!" You both shouted in unison as your daughter's sweet brown eyes sparkled shooting looks at the two of you, just the way Joe's did when he happy. It brought an enamoured ache to your heart, watching your 4 year old practically cheering with pride at her new things.
"Shall we go put them on?" You offered and she quickly ran over, passing the teddy to Joe to hold and grabbed your hand to pull you up out of your seat and into the hallway. "Come on then." you sighed contently.
When you returned, Joe was just putting on her favourite Christmas movie, as promised you would all watch it together before she went to bed. A small bowl of popcorn lay on the coffee table with a a glass of chocolate milk each and a bigger bowl for both of you to share. "Look at my beautiful little angel, all ready for Santa coming."
"Where's Bear Quinn?" she moved along the room, searching for her stuffed toy.
"Bear Quinn?" Joe barked a laugh at her, pointing in the direction of the middle of the sofa, there it was snuggled up under a blanket waiting for her arrival.
"Yes he's part of the family now, so he needs my last name." She showed Joe what only could be described as a teenage death stare, as if he was supposed to know that.
"Of course, silly me." Joe nodded slowly, smirking, his eyes twinkling between you and Y/D/N, their bond was something phenomenal.
Joe sat one side and you sat the other of her, she pushed the blanket over for you all to share and Joe started the movie. The living space had never felt so cosy, the lights were dimmed, the fireplace provided the welcoming heat with your named stockings hung above it, keeping the cold outside where it belonged.
"Daddy, I almost forgot what me and mummy did together for you today, can I show you?" She didn't even wait for his reply instead she escaped from the middle of you, racing to the dining table to collect the piece of paper, a chaotic little busy body, again just like her dad.
She came scooting back in, edging herself between the tight space in-between you. "Close your eyes." she braced herself as she placed a drawing of the 3 of you on his lap. "You can open them now."
Joe looked down, a hitch in his breath as he fell in love with it instantly. "Oh my goodness, look at this! My talented girl" Joe flashed a wink at you and placed a kiss down onto Y/D/N's cheek, she blushed a little looking so proud of herself and fell straight into his side snuggling down into him, her legs laid flatly across your lap, he placed his arm around her and found your hand to intertwine his fingers with. No matter how far apart you were placed, he'd always find a way to caress you one way or the other. Touch was absolutely his love language and it was hers.
You watched half of the movie in complete silence, looking down you noticed she was dropping to sleep, you figured now would be a good time to end the pleasant evening and get her up to bed so you could begin to prepare for tomorrow. You shot a look at Joe and his eyes fell straight down to her. Joe picked her up in his arms, cradling her as if she was still a new born baby and stood up to take her upstairs.
She stirred, waking up slightly when you both got half way up. "Daddy." she let out a huge yawn in-between her words.
"Yes princess?"
"We forgot to do milk and cookies for Santa and a carrot for Rudolph."
"Oh no! Well we must do that before you get your beauty sleep mustn't we." Joe halted onto the stairs, nodding for you to head back down.
He put her down onto her steps that huddled against the countertop so she had enough height to help do her duties. You handed her the carrot and cookies to set out onto a plate and Joe helped her pour a glass of milk into a small cup. She took the plate into the living room and set it beside the tree, Joe placed the milk onto the top of the fireplace which was beginning to burn out.
"There, now he'll have something to keep him going on his long journey." He nodded in acceptance at her and she beamed a sleepy smile so bright. Joe offered his hand back to your daughter as she rubbed her eyes.
"Mummy, will you come up and tuck me in with daddy please?"
"Yes of course I will." you smiled down at her, she reached her other hand to yours so you were both holding one side. A happy family.
You put her to bed, wishing her the sweetest of dreams, stroking her hair and singing her the same lullaby your mum sang to you as a child. Joe watched in complete awe, his heart could burst at any given second with the beautiful view in front of him, you two were his life, his happiness and he felt so lucky, more than ever right in this moment. Both of you kissing her goodnight, you closed the door and headed back downstairs.
"How long shall we give it?" Joe asked, obviously too eager to get the presents downstairs.
"We'll check on her in a little bit Joey. I can't wait to see her face in the morning."
"Me neither. But for now I've got something for us to enjoy."
"What's that?" You scrunched your face up, a little smile rising onto your features.
Joe ran into the kitchen himself just as your daughter had done to bring him her drawing, hiding the object behind his back he mimicked the words your little girl had said to him earlier. "Close your eyes, my love."
You closed them and Joe hung his arm in the air, giving you the all clear to open them once more. You did, taking your gaze from his face up his arm and what was being held above the two of you. Mistletoe.
"Merry Christmas, here's to the best one yet, my perfect wife."
"Merry Christmas, my most amazing husband."
You slowly moved towards one another, closing the gap when your lips magnified together. A slow and impeccably sweet kiss beneath the mistletoe was shared, just like in the movies, this Christmas Eve was joyful and bright and you couldn't wait for the day ahead.
Santa was on his way.
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