After Elio got the shards out, the pain Carl experienced was much less. His pressure returned to normal, and his eyelids calmed down instead of flicking about from the pain.
Rick sat there watching Carl, still blaming himself for what happened until it physically hurt him to see his boy like that. He stood up and walked out of the room.
Shane followed Rick back into the living room where Elio, Maggie, and Otis sat.
" He's stable for now", Shane said, closing the door behind him.
Otis and Maggie let out a breath they didn't know they were holding.
Elliot sat in his chair, ignoring how much it hurt him to see the little guy in pain.
Rick looked over to Shane, trying to find the words he wanted to say: "Lori has to be here, Shane, she has to know."
" I get that, and I'm gonna handle it. Just stay here for Carl and leave the rest to me."
"No, you're not." The words came out from his mouth quietly, but Elio knew Shane had heard him. "I don't care if she needs to be here. I don't want her here, but Carl is Injured, so I'll let it pass. But I'm not letting you anywhere near her. She will dig her claws into you, and you won't realise it."
"Do you not trust me, Elio? After these past couple of months, you don't trust me to be around her?"
A sudden crash echoed throughout the room and glass shards were everywhere after a vase exploded.
Elio brought himself to a standing position and looked at Shane directly. "How can you ask that? Of course, I know I can trust you. I knew from the moment we met there was no one else but me for you. And it's not her, I'm worried about it's the people around us. That celestial is still out there waiting to sink his fingers into someone he knows that can hurt us. Excuse me for being cautious around the person who has had it out for me - and you - since the moment I came here."
"I will be going, but not for Laurie, for the group." He looks to Rick. "Does everyone still have their own sleeping arrangements?" Rick nods, affirming. "Good. They won't be allowed to stay in the house. They have to stay out. I won't let them do anything to what we have started here."
Rick looked at me like I had just spat in his face. "Don't you think that's a bit unfair? They would never hurt anyone here. They're not like that."
"I don't care." He looked to Shane. "Do you not remember what I told you? Who in this farm was originally supposed to die? And now someone out there is trying to fix the timeline and you think it is alright to accept people we haven't seen in ages. People who threw us out because we protected them?"
Shane looked away finally understanding Elio's worries. "Okay, you can go. But it's just there and back. You find them, point them in the right direction, and come straight back."
Instantly, the tension that filled the room vanished. Elio stood up straight, and with a smirk across his face, he raised his arm to his forehead, and saluted, " Yes, sir. Right away, sir."
Hershell came into the room, looked around and noticed the broken bits of vase all over the floor; he looked at Elio and received a smirk.
He turned to Rick. "He's out of danger for the moment. Luckily, Elio was there and was able to get all the shrapnel out with no complications, but there was something else: his belly was distended, and his pressure was dropping, which meant there was internal bleeding. A fragment must have nicked one of the blood vessels. I have to open him up, find the bleeder and stitch it. And he can't move while I'm in there. I mean, at all. If he reacts the same as before, I'll sever an artery and he'll be dead in minutes. To even try this, I have to put him under. But if I do, he won't be able to breathe on his own. Same bad results."
Rick stands straight, "What'll it take?"
Otis walks over, giving his input. "You need a respirator."
"What else?"
Hershell lists a bunch of medical supplies to be put on the shopping list. "The tube that goes with it, extra surgical supplies, drapes, sutures."
Rick's eyes start to light up. "If you had all that, you could save him?"
"If I had all that, I could try."
"The Nearest hospital went up in flames a month ago," Otis starts. Hershell looks at him with hard eyes, and the realisation hits Otis. "The high school."
"That's what I was thinkin'. They set up a FEMA shelter there. They would have everything we need."
"Place was overrun last time I saw it. You couldn't get near it-- Maybe it's better now." Said Otis with his never-ending helpfulness.
"I said, leave the rest to me. Is it too late to take that back?" Shane said with a smile,
Rick looked at him, annoyed with himself that his actions were putting his brother at risk. "I hate you goin' alone."
Choosing to ignore the comment Shane looks over at Hershel "Come on. Doc, why don't you do me a list, draw me a map.
"You won't need a map-- I'll take you there." Feeling guilty, Otis offers his services. "Ain't but five miles."
"No one is going anywhere." Elio speaks up from across the room.
Rick looks at him, starting to get annoyed with his attitude. "What do you mean?"
"I can save him." Everyone turns to Elio.
Elio has a look on his face as if it is the last thing he wants to tell anyone.
Rick's face lights up at the thought of him being able to save Carl. Ignoring the look on his face, Rick walks over to Elio, takes his hands, and begs him to.
"Before we do it, we need to talk." He looks over at Shane and moves his eyes to Rick. "In private."
Minutes pass, Shane and Elio sit opposite each other, and Rick is standing against the wall to their left. Everyone else had jobs to do. Maggie decided to be the one to go for Lori, and the others were tending to the farm, checking on Carl and cleaning.
"What is it that you wanted to talk about?" Rick asked.
Elio stayed silent, annoyed at how he is bringing this up. "The way I would heal Carl, it would make him different. And things would have to change in the future."
Rick looked at him, curious and nervous, "Different, how?"
"Well, for starters, he would be stronger, and for afters, when we leave, he will be coming with us."
Rick tensed and Shane's head shot to stare into Elio's eyes.
"What the hell do you mean he'll be going with you?"
"Yeh, Elio we can't take Carl away from his parents." Shane said, wishing he could do just that.
"We would have to, for his own protection."
"And what could he possibly need protection from that you think you can help." Rick said incredulously.
"Rick, you don't understand. There are much more dangerous things out there than the walkers."
Shane tensed, "Elio, why would 'they' be after him if you healed him?"
"Because he would become like us. And an honorary member of the clan. In familial terms, he would be my Godson," Elio said with a seriousness that felt out of place.
Rick looked dumbfounded. Turning his face to Shane he said, "Hey Shane, please tell me your boyfriend is crazy."
Shane looked at him with a pensive look and shook his head.
Elio let out a deep sigh, readying himself for his next decision.
"To start with, I will have to explain my past."
After the words had left Elio's mouth, silence followed.
He was scared as he had never thought of a situation like this happening. He didn't want anyone bearing the risk of his clan, or getting drunk off of power. But Shane saw Carl as a son, and that meant he had to mean something to Elio.
Shane looked at Elio with curiosity, he had always wondered what had happened to Elio before he came here. What happened in his past has turned him into an elite fighter, adapting to all situations and being able to discuss fighting omnipotent beings as if it were a typical Tuesday evening. He felt bad for having so much curiosity, he knew his soulmate didn't like remembering his past, after the last time Shane had talked to him about wanting to know more about him.
Rick stared on at Elio, Curious at the younger man's past and angry that he would suggest he would take Carl away from him. So much happened today, and Rick needed a moment to process everything, so he sat back, ready to listen to Elio's story.