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"Yeah, I'm awake," Asher replied, yawning a bit. "How are you feeling?" It didn't look like Leo had been injured, as far as he knew, and the fact that he was here should be proof enough that there was nothing too serious, so the question had been redundant. But Asher had no mind to smack himself in the head; he had just woken up.

From the doorway, he could hear people crying in relief, most likely family members of the rescued women, who were celebrating a long-awaited reunion. Somehow, that just made their mission so worth it, even at the near-death experience the brothers had put themselves through.

Asher returned the embrace and patted Leo's head, trying to calm him down. "Leo, what are you apologizing for? You didn't do anything to me," he said, lifting his brother's head so he could look into his eyes. "Besides, I'm still alive. My back hurts like hell, but I'll be fine. And what about the rescued women? They're with their families again thanks to you." Of course, he didn't add that he hoped they wouldn't go into any other investigations sometime soon, but he wasn't sure how well he could count on that.

"I'm not goin' anywhere, okay, Leo?" Asher promised, ruffling his brother's hair. "I'll be here, in this very spot, when you come back. You don't have to worry about a thing." He took a nearby tissue and started wiping the tears away from Leo's eyes. He contemplated getting something to cover them, just in case the family his brother wanted to talk to would be scared of his eyes, but they probably wouldn't mind as much, considering the wounds on the women were also disturbing.

Needless to say, the family members had stared at the blind boy in an almost complete disbelief. A boy who couldn't see had somehow found the location of their loved one... It was a hard fact to take in. Some of the males talked among themselves, muttering and asking how it was possible, but the others felt such gratitude that they just didn't care. They could afford to suspend their disbelief for now.

The first to speak up was the woman's mother. "She'll be alright now," she answered, trying to keep her voice in check. "You... you two found her just in time..."

The woman made almost no hesitation in nodding, but then she realized the boy wouldn't be able to see it. "Yes, of course. I'm sure my daughter would like to know who had found her," she replied before letting out a bit of a choked sob. "Sorry. I can't even begin to explain how thankful I am... The doctor had said that if she had been with that terrible man even a moment longer..." She had to stop before she burst into tears, and then her husband had to comfort her.

"I'm here," Asher said, currently watching the recent news. "Sheesh, they sure are quick with the stories." The TV currently showed a newscaster declaring that the missing woman and a few survivors had been found at the Ragnarok Hotel. The scene then changed to the hospital they were currently at while the neascaster described how two reckless brothers had been lucky enough to escape being killed after finding the women and calling the police, but the condition of the elder was still unknown. As for the kidnapper, now identified as Jeff Sussleton, he was currently in that very hospital, having sustained severe broken bones and head trauma from a metal pipe. "How in the world are they getting this info so quickly?"

Asher let out a wry laugh, changing the TV channel to a nature documentary before he decided to speak. "It was just a stupid mistake on my part," he began, though he wondered if he should stop. Was it really a good idea to tell Leo about this? "I could have just beat his face in with the pipe and it would be enough, but I just had to go for the axe. It was too heavy and when the guy recovered he threw me into a wall. I just happened to hit it back-first. I didn't have time to let my back rest before that axe blade was at your neck. You pretty much know the rest from there." He took a deep breath, the pain in his back increasing for a moment and then subsiding. "If I had just left that axe alone, you wouldn't have had to worry about me and I wouldn't be stuck in this hospital." There was a small part of him that dreaded what would happen now. If he had to stay here for months, how was he going to work? How could he pay the rent for the apartment? It was going to take a miracle if they were to avoid being homeless.

Suddenly, memories of his insane moment rushed back to him and his eyes widened a little. "Leo, is it true that I almost... killed him?" he asked, his voice shaking just a slight. "I know I was protecting you and all, but I can't get over that I almost killed someone. I would have been at his level..."

Asher couldn't help but stare at Leo, surprised at how defensive he suddenly became, and it didn't help that his eyes were practically staring into his soul. Nonetheless, he was strangely comforted and couldn't stop a smile. "Okay, I get it. I had a legit reason for trying to kill the guy," he said, pushing his brother slightly away. "Thanks. I guess I needed that."

He decided he wanted to change the subject right there. "So, how's the woman you visited?" he asked, trying to keep his mind in the optimistic side. Unfortunately, he was growing increasingly more focused on how to pay for the hospital bills and the rent while he was stuck here and unable to work. The boss and the landlord were both very strict and rather unforgiving, and Asher feared he might be fired and he and Leo would be evicted before the few months were up. It was hard enough to look for a job that would take in a high school dropout and a cheap apartment complex that he could pay for with the income from said job. He didn't want to have to look for another one.