A Week to Remember
by Timeguardian
Chapter One
The hospital cafeteria was a hive of activity given that it was just after one in the afternoon on a Friday.
For Dr. Benton Quest, none of that mattered.
For him, the confines of the hospital were a familiar home for him for the past week. Even the desserts in the cooler near the cafeteria register looked unchanged. He proceeded through the self service buffet line, looking at the options but really not seeing them. In the end Dr. Quest grabbed a protein, a vegetable, and a drink before moving to pay for his meal.
He wasn't hungry, but anything was better than the waiting.
Once he cleared the lunch line, he made his way to a table along the far wall of the cafeteria. The cafeteria itself was large, but simply decorated with simple wallpaper with random flower patterns throughout. Along the far wall was a bank of windows that overlooked another building that was part of the hospital.
Tables lined the wall, and he headed for the middle table in the group.
As Dr. Quest sat down at the table, he cast a glance at his two seatmates, who he realized looked as weary as he felt.
He moved his tray in front of him and stared at it, as if by some miracle it could provide him answers.
Race Bannon finally broke into his thoughts with a question. "Are you going to eat or stare at it all day?"
Dr. Quest looked up at him sharply. Across from him, his friend and bodyguard sat glaring at him.
For years now Race had simply been there, from when Intelligence One first assigned him to protect him and Jonny, until the time that they moved from Florida to Maine and he hired Race as a personal security for his operations. He also considered Race a friend, which made it easier to voice the fears that were on his mind.
"What am I supposed to do, Race? Jonny has been in a hospital bed unconscious with a concussion now for nearly a week. We know that he was taken close to a month ago along with the computer system we were planning to take to Florida. It took us nearly two weeks to track them as far as a warehouse near the marina where we found that Jonny had been abandoned. Now some criminal group is threatening to modify and use my system to hack the US military missile defense systems unless a ransom is paid. You and I both know that none of the government agencies has been able to locate this person."
Hadji Singh, who was sitting beside Race, looked up from his own meal and stared at him. "Letting your health go is not going to help anyone either, Dr. Quest."
Dr. Quest sighed. "You're right, Hadji."
Race gave him a sympathetic look. "Benton, I know this is a tense situation, and we are under a deadline. All we can hope for is that when Jonny wakes up he will be able to give us a clue to this group's operations. In the meanwhile the combined resources of Intelligence One, the FBI, and the CIA, are doing everything they can to find this group."
Although Race didn't say it, Dr. Quest knew those efforts did not amount to much so far. He wanted so much to be in on the search himself, but his need to be there for Jonny overrode everything else. "I know- I-"
The events of the past few weeks fast forwarded through his brain like a dizzying ride. Many mistakes were made, Jonny was injured, and his technology was in the hands of people who wanted control through fear.
It was then he felt a hand on his arm and looked to find that Race was now looking at him with a worried look. "Don't. Please, we need to move forward - for all of our sakes, including Jonny's."
"You're right."
But for all the assurances that Race was offering, Dr. Quest still sat there. He ventured a look back at his food, but made no move for it.
Race's voice was firmer this time. "We are not moving until you eat. Intelligence One agents are guarding his room so no one can see him except for us and the doctors. He's safe."
Jonny Quest woke up to plain green walls and a dull headache. A hospital.
There was no telling what time it was and even if he knew, he wasn't sure if he would believe it. There was a window at the far corner of the room and sunlight was streaming through - so it was daytime at least.
Taking stock in himself, Jonny realized that he was lying in what seemed to be a hospital bed. Testing his limbs, he found that his arms and legs were responsive but when he tried to move his head, the dull headache threatened to turn into something more. Better to keep still.
He slowly lifted a hand to find what looked like a sensor attached to his finger and an IV line coming out of his arm. How long have I been here?
Jonny then tried accessing his memories. Despite the headache, he could remember his name and things about his family and friends, which seemed like a good sign.
When he put his hand back down, Jonny noticed an oversized armchair in the corner of the room, and Jessie Bannon was sprawled in the middle of it sound asleep.
Dressed in a dark blue blouse and black jeans, Jessie was scrunched in one corner of the chair, her arms draped closely to her side.
There was no one else in the room that he could see, so Jonny called out to her. "Jess?"
His voice sounded weak but it was enough. Jessie stirred, righting herself in the chair and stretching her arms up in the air.
When Jessie looked over at him, Jonny noticed the look of relief in her eyes. "Hunh - oh Jonny, you're awake. Your dad is going to be mad that he missed you waking up. How do you feel?"
He smiled, tempted to give her a flippant remark, but couldn't quite manage it. "Actually, I feel pretty lousy."
She returned the smile, but Jonny could tell that there was something off about her behavior. Before he could question it, she replied. "I bet. Want me to go get your dad or Hadji? They're in the hospital cafeteria right now with my dad getting some lunch."
Jonny shook his head, much to the detriment of his headache. "Not yet. I'm still trying to get my thoughts together."
Jessie went silent on him, and that was when Jonny noticed something else weird. On Jessie's left wrist there seemed to be a cast. He couldn't ever remember her getting injured like that since she came to live with Race.
Jessie asked another question which distracted him. "Jonny, what's the last thing you remember before waking up here?"
He had not yet had an opportunity to try remembering recent events. Jonny did his best to focus - the memory was slow in coming but finally he latched onto the last viable memory he could come up with. "I remember helping dad pack up for our trip to see Professor Lawson over in Florida."
Jonny felt good about coming up with that memory until he saw the now haunted look in her eyes. He panicked. "Jess, what is it? You can tell me anything."
It was nearly a minute before Jessie finally told him. "Jonny, that was about a month ago."
Hi- it's been a while - it'll be slow goings, but I promise to try and make this worth the wait if you stick around.
Till next time,
TimeGuardian