Dembe returned to the safe house around three in the afternoon. He had left just before eight to collect some cash from Ms. Hawkins the accountant and run several business and personal errands that needed to be done. Raymond had been serious about not wanting to be bothered with his empire and Dembe had taken over temporarily. He had Raymond's Power of Attorney to sign documents when needed and he was even able to convince some of Reddington's former vendors to conduct business with them again. On the surface, both Red and Dembe were quiet, calm men, but while Red's demeanor could and would quickly evaporate to reveal the violent, angry man underneath, Dembe truly was a safe port inside a swirling storm. He had the ability to make people feel secure and unthreatened, an ability Red envied, at times.
He greeted the security on the outer perimeter and once inside, the medical and nursing staff. He hung up his jacket, and went directly to Liz' room.
Raymond was sitting in his chair, socked feet up on the bed, jacketless with his shirt sleeves rolled up. He was reading aloud from a romance novel he had found in her bedroom. He looked up when Dembe appeared in the doorway and smiled. "Everything go okay? Any problems?"
"None at all," Dembe replied as he reached into his suit jacket inner pocket and extracted a thick business envelope and handed it to Red. "Here's the money."
"Thank you." He tore it open and counted what was there. "Perfect," he said as he handed half the cash to Dembe. "This ought to keep us away from the ATM," he joked half – heartedly.
"I have already instructed Smokey to begin purchasing safe houses in the US and showed Ms. Hawkins how to set up caches to store weapons and cash around the country. What we have left is compromised because we do not know if Kate told anyone about them. Once they have completed those tasks, we will expand to reacquiring international safe houses and caches. In time, Glen will sell what we currently have and he will retrieve what money is stored out there once he is convinced those stashes are not under surveillance."
"Excellent, Dembe! That's exactly what I would have done." He reached for the novel, but his arm was stopped by Dembe touching his shoulder.
"It is time for you to take a break. I've brought home lobsters, asparagus, and potatoes for dinner along with wine and ice cream for dessert. You've been in this room since six AM. I want to sit with Elizabeth for a few minutes. Please go downstairs and get the bags from the car trunk. I'll be downstairs shortly and we can prepare our meal together." He thought he going to get and argument again, but was pleased to see Red nod agreement.
"To be honest, I am hungry. I haven't had anything except coffee. If you decide to read this to her, prepared to be bored out of your skull. That drivel that she likes to read is terrible." His face became serious as he turned and kissed her forehead. "I'll be back soon, Sweetheart. Dembe insists that I eat and rest. He's completely unreasonable." He straightened up and patted Dembe's chest as he walked past. "See you in a few," he said.
Dembe sat in the chair and watched Liz for a few moments. A nurse came in and quickly took her vitals while he watched. Even though he knew the nurse meant Elizabeth no harm, it was in his nature to be protective and old habits die hard. When she finally left, he turned the recliner so that he faced her and began to speak. "Elizabeth, I do not know if you can hear me; I've read medical journals that state that coma victims can and do hear what's being said to them, so I will tell you a few things. You've been in this state for two months now. You are receiving the best care, Raymond has seen to it. Now, it is your turn to pay him back for all his help: You need to wake up, Elizabeth. Maybe you heard him and me talking; he made a couple of jokes, but he is putting up a facade for my benefit. If I am not here to monitor him, he does not sleep or eat. He would wear the same clothes everyday if I did not admonish him to shower and change." He reached over and stroked her face gently. "I love Raymond like a father and since you have accepted him as your father…that kind of makes us siblings. I bet you never saw that coming! So, as your older brother, I'm telling you that I really need you to awaken."
"He blames himself, Liz. He cannot forgive himself for what has happened to you. He starts drinking in the early evening and only stops to check on you. Once I make him leave your room, he heads to his to resume drinking. I have heard him in there crying, but I don't enter because he doesn't know that I know. If you don't wake up…I'll lose both of you." He swiped at the tears that had formed and fallen from his eyes and cleared his throat. "I spoke with my daughter yesterday," he said to change the subject, "She says that Agnes is thriving and that my granddaughter Ellie is thrilled to have a baby sister. But Isabella is concerned that if you don't wake up soon, the girls will bond and then be traumatized when they are separated. Between you and me, I believe that Isabella has fallen in love with your daughter. The two of you will have to schedule playdates for the girls once you have awoken and acclimated yourself to your situation."
Dembe took one of her hands into both of his. "I am so, so sorry about Tom. I know you love him a lot and I wish I could spare you the pain you're going to feel when you wake up and find out he's gone. I can promise you that I will be here when you need me." He stood and placed the chair back in its original position. "Right now I am heading to the kitchen so that Raymond and I can make dinner. I will speak to you later."
When he walked into the kitchen, he saw that Raymond had started prepping the meal; the asparagus was cleaned and trimmed, the potatoes were wrapped in foil, there was a large pot of water on the stove and the two two-pound lobsters were awaiting their fate in the kitchen sink. Just then, the oven beeped to indicate it had reached the correct temperature and the potatoes disappeared into it.
Raymond closed the oven door and reached for his glass of merlot. "The lobsters and the vegetables have about an hour and ten minutes before they go into the pots." He reached into a cabinet and removed another glass. "Join me," he said as he poured Dembe a drink. Wine while cooking is so relaxing."
Dembe accepted the glass and they clinked them together. "To family," he said.
"Here, here." The two men drank and then smiled at each other. "You want to make a salad?"
"Sure, Raymond." He went to the fridge and pulled out what he needed. As he chopped and sliced and placed things into a bowl he remarked, "Salad was the first thing you taught me to make when we were in France."
"I remember." He leaned against the counter and sipped his wine.
Dembe saw Red's expression change. "What is wrong, Raymond?"
"I don't want to teach Agnes to cook! I want her mother to do it, but what if she…" He struggled to control his emotions. "What if she can't? What if she never wakes up?"
Dembe put his glass down and put his hands on the smaller man's shoulders. "You have to have faith, Raymond. I do. I believe that Elizabeth will come back to us. Maybe not today or tomorrow, but she will. And she will love you and teach Agnes to cook and she will live. Raymond, she will live." He pulled Red into a hug. "Believe it, my brother."
Reddington allowed himself to be enveloped in his brother's arms. Finally, he raised his arms and patted Dembe's back. He was released and drank from his glass. "I want to, Dembe. I hope you're right, I really hope you're right."