RUN AWAY
Chapter One
"What the hell do you mean 'she's gone'?" Oscar thundered into the phone. "How do you lose a comatose patient?"
Rudy could've held the receiver a foot from his ear and still heard every word, but he knew he had this coming to him. "I'm sorry, Oscar – she obviously woke up during the night. Security searched the building and the grounds; Jaime isn't here. We don't know if she walked out on her own or...not."
"Did you pull the Security tape?" Oscar demanded.
"They're looking at it now," Rudy said meekly. "Do you want me to call Steve?"
"Steve doesn't even know she's alive!" Oscar took a deep puff from his cigar, blew it out, and found it didn't help. "Rudy, I'm on my way." Oscar hung up, but before he could leave, he had two more tasks to complete. He arranged for an immediate air transport to Los Angeles, then had Callahan place a call to Steve, asking him to head for Rudy's complex. Oscar wasn't quite ready to talk to Steve himself, yet. He hoped that by the time his plane landed in California, he'd figure out what to say, how to tell Steve that his fiancée, whose death he'd been mourning for over a month, was really alive. Alive...and missing.
- - - - - -
She was lost, confused and completely alone. She wanted more than anything to just go home, but...where was home? She wasn't even sure what her name was, but 'Jennie' sounded ok, so in her mind, she was Jennie. She'd been wandering aimlessly for most of the day, and now it was starting to get dark. She was hungry and growing more frightened by the hour, and she sat down beside a small stream, to try and figure out what she should do next. She was so very, very tired, and within minutes she was fast asleep.
- - - - - -
Steve was stunned beyond words. Oscar and Rudy had very gently explained to him how Michael had used an experimental technique to revive Jaime, essentially retrieving her from death. They told him how Jaime had spent weeks in a coma, in extremely critical condition, and that they'd made the difficult decision not to tell Steve until they were certain she'd survive. They'd had only the best of intentions, trying to spare Steve the pain of losing her to death a second time.
Steve remained completely quiet as they gave him the details. His mouth opened and closed wordlessly as his face paled and blanched to grayish-white. When they'd told him everything that had led up to that morning, Rudy and Oscar fell silent, letting the enormity of all they'd said sink in before telling him why he'd been called to the hospital. Steve's eyes brimmed with tears that he made no attempt to hide.
"Jaime...is...alive?" he whispered.
"Yes," Rudy said softly.
"Is she here? Can...can I see her now?"
Oscar pulled his chair closer to Steve's and placed a hand on his friend's arm. "Pal, we don't know where she is."
"What?"
"In the last few days, Jaime's condition was finally beginning to stabilize," Rudy explained. "She apparently woke up in the middle of the night, because this morning, Jaime was gone. The Security tape indicates that she left on her own; we don't believe she was forced or kidnapped."
"I've got multiple teams spread throughout the area -" Oscar added.
"What kind of shape is she in?" Steve asked, his emotions barely under control. "All that time in a coma..."
Rudy lowered his head for a moment before speaking again; it was time to tell him the worst case scenario. "Steve, before Michael brought her back, Jaime's brain was without oxygen for a considerable length of time. It's possible she wasn't affected, but -"
"What, Rudy?" Steve asked, dreading the answer.
"The damage could be catastrophic."
"Meaning?"
"She may have suffered severe cognitive impairment, psychosis, total amnesia, or any combination of all three."
"And...she's out there somewhere...alone." Steve said, barely able to speak.
"We can't know the extent of these symptoms – or if she's been affected at all – without having her here for assessment."
"You said you've got a Security tape?" Steve asked, snapping himself into action mode, knowing Jaime needed him. "Can I see it?"
Rudy nodded, moved to the monitor and turned on the tape. When Jaime first appeared on the screen, Steve was nearly overcome with emotion. Rudy paused the tape until he was ready to continue. The images were brief, but Steve studied them intently.
"She's walking on her own power," Rudy narrated, "so I don't believe her physical abilities or her bionics were damaged -"
"She looks pretty shaky, though," Steve pointed out. "Does she know she's bionic?"
"She may not even know what 'bionic' is," Oscar said grimly.
"She didn't go straight for the exit," Steve noted. "She looks...lost." He leaned closer to the screen. "Something's wrong; look at her eyes. She's scared to death." He forced back his own growing sense of fear, knowing he had to concentrate – he had to help Jaime. "She didn't just wake up, decide she didn't wanna be here and walk out. She's terrified...Jaime ran away."
- - - - - -
'Jennie' woke with a start as she rolled over in her sleep, into the cold water of the stream. Her stomach grumbled its emptiness, and she forced herself to her feet and looked around. Was that an apple tree? She started eagerly toward it, but her legs began to wobble, her head spun crazily and she hit the ground with a quiet thud.
- - - - - -
