Chapter Four
"Jaime?" A voice, sounding distorted and far away, yanked Jaime out of the darkness. "I think she's finally waking up. Can you hear me, Honey?"
"Steve?" she mumbled, not yet fully conscious. She opened her eyes and was struck by a blinding pain that forced her to close them again. "Steve..."
"No, Honey; it's Rudy."
"Have to...find...Steve..."
Rudy shook his head and turned to Oscar. "She's out again." He took a reading from the monitor by her bed and motioned for Oscar to follow him out of the ICU cubicle.
"She's pulling out of the coma," the doctor noted, "and her vital signs are stronger."
"How soon do you think I can talk to her?" Oscar asked.
"Probably in a few hours, but not for very long; she'll be pretty weak for a while. And I've got a feeling that when she realizes Steve is missing, she'll have to be sedated."
Oscar nodded. "She'll want to look for him herself."
"Exactly." Rudy knew the answer, but asked anyway. "Have you heard from Steve?"
"Not a word. Graves is still missing, too, and it's been more than 48 hours..."
Rudy grimaced. "I'm surprised the NSB isn't waiting outside Jaime's cubicle with handcuffs."
"No - even Jack Hansen realizes no one who'd cause that much destruction would stop long enough to rescue a toddler. He knows Jaime had nothing to do with this."
"And Steve?"
Oscar frowned. "Put it this way: we need to find Steve - and the Secretary - yesterday."
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Oscar didn't mention it to Rudy, but Hansen was in the medical building, in a basement office, waiting for an update on Jaime's condition. He and Oscar were - for once - working together.
"Is she awake yet?" he asked, rising to his feet as soon as he saw Oscar.
"Almost," Oscar told him. "Her doctor says she should be able to answer a few questions by tonight. What about the receptionist?"
"She didn't make it. The Vice President doesn't know anything other than what he already told us, so that leaves one person who may or may not have seen anything in the lobby. Hopefully she'll know something."
"We can't push her too hard, though," Oscar replied.
"Goldman, I know Colonel Austin isn't the sort of person to go around blowing up government buildings, but until we have evidence to the contrary..."
Oscar nodded grimly. "I know."
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Jaime tossed restlessly in her sleep. Steve's face moved in and out of her smoke-filled dreams, smiling at her but always, maddeningly, just out of reach. Oscar, seated at her bedside, listened as she kept calling out Steve's name, sounding more frantic each time, and when tears began streaming down her face, he reached out to gently awaken her and hopefully end her torment.
"Hi, Babe," he said, smiling at Jaime as her eyes slowly opened.
"Where's Steve?"
"We haven't found him yet," Oscar told her softly. "I was hoping you could help us, if you're feeling up to it."
"What do you need me to do?" she asked, swinging her legs over the side of the bed and trying to sit up.
"Easy, Babe. You can't help anyone if you're passed out on the floor. Just lie back and rest."
"But...you said you need my help." Jaime's face was pale, but her eyes were determined. "Steve needs my help." She began to stand, wobbling severely. Rudy and Oscar caught her, one on each side, just as she plummeted toward the floor.
"Jaime, you need to stay in bed," Rudy told her. "Oscar just has a few questions for you. Then I'll give you something to help you rest. Ok?"
Jaime nodded.
"When you first got to the Truman Building, was the Vice President's ambulance still there?"
"No. I think it had just pulled away."
"So you and Steve ran up the stairs from the lobby," Oscar said gently, not wanting to push Jaime too hard, but desperately needing any information she could give him.
"No," she answered, straining for the memory, "he was already upstairs, pulling the elevator cable, trying to get the Secretary out."
" He didn't go up when you did? Are you sure?"
"Positive." Jaime closed her eyes, returning in her mind to the smoke-filled lobby.
"Are you in pain, Honey?" Rudy asked, stepping quickly to the bed.
"No. Just...picturing it. Oscar, he wasn't down there."
"Maybe he was in the lobby and went upstairs when you were bringing the little girl outside?" Oscar theorized.
"No - I couldn't really see, but he could, and he'd have helped me, or at least said something..." her voice trailed off.
"That's probably enough for tonight," Rudy said, closely eyeing the monitors.
"More than enough," Oscar confirmed with a smile. "Jaime, thank you. I think you just solved the case."
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Hansen stared incredulously at Oscar. "Are you sure?"
"Jaime is. Besides, you know as well as I do that the pieces didn't fit, the way he put them together. This is sad, but it also makes sense."
Jack Hansen nodded. "Well, then let's go get him."
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"Excuse me - Sir?" Oscar said, stepping in front of the man who was coming down the sidewalk.
"Yes?"
"Where was Colonel Austin when you left the Truman Building, the day of the fires?"
"I've already given my statement," the man said, brusquely. "Excuse me."
Oscar was not one to be easily deterred. "You don't have anything else to add? Anything you might want to correct?"
"I'm late for an appointment."
"You'll be missing that appointment," Jack Hansen said, stepping out to block the man's path. "Mister Vice President, you're under arrest."
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