Chapter Text
You were so tired. Your bones ached, your mind was torn. 5 months you’ve been here. 5 cruel, punishing months. You’d survived so much and Despite recently being in your SECOND helicopter crash since being here, you were still fighting. You had just finished helping Grace at the Lamb of God church. As always, you forced a smile and said goodbye. Another “no problem, happy to help” as you made your way across Hope County.
Jacob was right.
You were a tool.
A tool for both the cult and the resistance.
You made your way through the forest, out of the sight of Grace and anyone nearby... You took a deep breath and gritted your teeth, holding back tears of pain.
Pain.. You were in so much pain. The back of your head felt like it was on fire, your legs were cut and sliced from the crash and you were pretty sure that your wrist was broken.
But nobody cared about how you were feeling.
You couldn’t hold back the tears anymore... They poured down as you limped through the thick underbrush. You needed help... but you couldn’t seem weak to your friends who relied so heavily on you. Their Deputy... You thought about where you were... and one place popped into mind. One person.
Your mind had been torn since arriving in Hope County. You didn’t want to arrest the man in the yellow aviators, you were made to.
You didn’t want to kill all of those people. You were made to.
Nobody ever asked you what you wanted to do, what you felt, how you were doing.
It was all “Deputy can you do this” “Rook do this. Rook do that”
“Go help so and so do so and so”
You were fed up.
You’d spent many a night thinking about this whole situation. The cult... Edens Gate... You’d even picked up a copy of The Book Of Joseph on your travels and had read it on nights where sleep avoided you. Reading about the enemy was much better than being left alone with your thoughts.
You continued your painful journey. Stumbling countless times and even thought about dragging yourself the rest of the way... and even more sinister thoughts popped into your head to end the pain. You breathed heavily as your legs wobbled,
“Nearly there...”
You hissed through gritted teeth, limping down the dusty drive way. You pulled your weapons to your front and held them. You’d have to surrender them to receive help.
“ITS THE DEPUTY! STOP HER”
You heard yelling as you approached the building, Peggies came from all directions. Their weapons pointed at you.
You quickly threw your weapons to the ground, your rifle, bow, handgun and your bag of explosives. You breathed heavily, your head low as you held your hands up shakily
“I’m un-unarmed..”
You breathed out
“Joh-John... fetch me John..”
“I’m already here, sinner. Come to atone?”
He walked towards you smirking, but keeping his distance. He was heading out of his ranch when you had caused the commotion. His confusion sparked as he stared at the weapons on the ground.
Your hand went to the back of your head.. since your last tumble you had felt something dripping down your neck but your goal of getting here left it un-investigated. Pulling your hand back you saw blood and your vision went blurry.
“J...John...”
Your eyes rolled,
“H-help me...”
Before you knew it you had collapsed to your knees. The last thing you saw was John lifting your face
“SOMEONE GET JOSEPH”
as everything went black.
______________
Your eyes fluttered open... Your head pounded as you tried to adjust your vision. You had no idea where you ended up or how long you had been out.
You let out a soft groan as you reached to rub your eyes,
“Good morning, my child.”
A soft voice called and made you freeze.
You turned your head and got a blurred image of someone sat beside your bed. You didn’t need full vision to know who it was.
“J-Joseph? Where am I... Why are you here..”
You spoke with a wheeze, attempting to sit up but a hand pushed your shoulder back down.
“Easy, child.”
He cooed,
“I was called when you showed up here. You’re at Seed Ranch. We are taking care of you, Deputy.”
He spoke as you settled back down. Your vision becoming clear again.
“How long have I been out...”
Your head was still pounding as you reached up, feeling the bandage around your head and neck.
Joseph watched you quietly, admiring the calmness he had not seen from the Deputy before. He had fears she would lash out at him, but right now she seemed subdued.
“Careful with your wounds, Deputy.”
Joseph guided your hand away as it reached to the back of your head.
“When the doctor examined you.. He was surprised you were alive.”
Joseph sighed and picked up the notes beside your bed.
“You’ve been out almost 2 weeks. 2 broken ribs, a fractured wrist, severe bruising all over as well as some deep wounds.”
He flicked the page and shook his head at the list of injuries.
“The worst one was a small piece of shrapnel lodged in the back of your head.. How you did not notice it is beyond our comprehension, Deputy.”
You closed your eyes as you remembered the pain that you kept getting in the back of your head, but there was only a cut there. That crash was worse than you thought.
“Your people shot down my Helicopter... I had to run from the scene and never had time to tend to my wounds...”
You hissed, avoiding eye contact with the man. It was his fault you were in this mess to begin with... but him and his family had looked after you instead of killing you, or locking you up... You owed him thanks for that. You glanced as he sat back down in his chair and turned on your side to face him.
You reached your hand out towards him and stared him in the eyes.
“Joseph...”
You were cut off as he grasped your hand. You didn’t know why it sent a shiver down your body. You expected his touch to be cold and aggressive, But it was warm, soft and welcoming. He squeezed your hand as a sign he was listening.
“Thank you... Thank you and John for helping me.. You could have killed me and be done. But you helped me.”
You closed your eyes and breathed. It felt good to have this peace for once.
You opened your eyes again, catching the vivid blue of his bright eyes and Josephs a genuine smile plastered on his lips.
“There is no need for thanks, my child.”
He spoke sweetly and placed his other hand over yours, cupping your hand gently.
“God sent you to me for a reason, I intend to keep you safe and well no matter how much you resist. Now rest, you still need to heal”
Joseph squeezed your hands before standing and leaving.
You felt something different inside.
You felt peaceful.
You let the calm wash over you as drifted back to sleep.