Chapter 4
Jack glared at Kensi and Deeks who had over the course of the last hour tried to talk to him. He sat as far away from them as the waiting room allowed. His knees curled up to his chest waiting as his father was dealt with by hospital staff. Sam came out his shirt still bearing the blood stains. He walked over to Kensi and Deeks who had stood up.
"In a minute," Sam said quietly and he walked over to Jack. "Jack?" he said.
Jack's head snapped up and he looked at Sam and looked at the blood on his shirt. "No! No…No…No!" he moved back and headed away from the man tears threatening to fall.
"Jack?" the boy backed up and knocked into Deeks.
"I don't wanna hear it…He's not…" Jack turned around and saw Hetty. "Grandma? Don't let him be dead…please don't let him be dead too!" he flung himself into her arms and sobbed.
"Shh, Jack. It's going to be alright." She handed him her handkerchief and he wiped his eyes. "Now you sit here with Mr. Deeks and Ms. Blye and I will talk with your Uncle Sam."
Jack flopped into the chair next to Kensi. "I'm sure he'll be ok?" Kensi said looking at the boy.
"He has to be, he's all I have." Jack whispered.
Kensi smiled, "So…Callen's your dad?" she asked.
Jack gave a curt nod. "Yeah."
"How long have you lived with him?" he asked.
"About a year…We're going to have a party next week at Grandma's…we were going to have a…I suppose it won't happen now. Mom's dead, Dad's hurt…Grandma's busy, they're gonna put me back into foster care…do you think Uncle Sam will take Hero for me?" Jack asked.
"Hero?" Kensi asked.
"His dog." Deeks answered, he looked at Jack, "I saw you the other day with the dog on the beach."
Jack nodded, "Hero will be good with Sam's kids. I only just got him, so he won't miss me." He said he sighed and looked at Kensi. "Miss…do you think they will let me see my mom, before they bury her?"
"I don't know Jack." She said honestly.
"Did she hate me?" Jack asked.
Kensi looked at Deeks in the hopes that he could answer the boy's question.
Deeks moved and sat next to Jack. "Your mother was confused, but I think in her own way she loved you." He said.
Jack looked out of the window his thoughts miles away.
"Jack?" Hetty came in with Sam behind her.
"Grandma!" Jack ran at her again and knelt down to hug her, "Is…is dad going to be ok?" he asked his voice afraid.
"I'm going to be fine." Callen said as he limped in the door.
"Dad!" Jack wrapped his arms around his father jumping a bit as Callen winced, "sorry…"
"You ok Callen?" Deeks asked.
Callen smiled, "Just a flesh wound. That's all." He said wrapping his arm around his son as he sat in the chair, he stood Jack in front of him and held his arms. "Are you alright Jack, Tracy didn't hurt you at all?" he asked as his eyes roamed every inch of his son to make sure he was ok.
Jack fell to his knees and started crying. "Jack, son…what hurts?" Callen asked.
"My…chest…I can't breathe…" Jack gasped as a nurse ran in.
They helped Jack onto a gurney and took him into a cubicle.
Callen looked at the others, "Kenz, Deeks, I know I owe you guys an explanation but not now ok?" he turned and followed the doctor into the cubicle, Hetty following behind him.
"How is he doc?" Callen asked leaning on the door frame for support.
"He's got a cracked rib; it seems to be pressing on his lung. It isn't punctured but he should have been looked at." The doctor said staring at him pointedly.
"Sorry," Callen looked distraught. Hetty maneuvered herself between her agent and the doctor.
"Agent Callen was shot protecting this boy, he was himself until moments ago a patient here, his son neglected to tell anyone he had been hurt, but your paramedics brought him in as well, so my question to you doctor is, why did you not notice he was injured before you ushered the child off alone to the waiting room?" She asked the menace in her words clear.
"He told us his parents had been killed, I was dealing with another patient, he was an orphan so I just assumes child services would come and get him." He said offhandedly.
"Doctor Shah," Callen said moving past Hetty and getting in the man's face, "Find my son another doctor…" he said in a low voice.
"Why? I am perfectly competent to look after the child." He said.
"You won't be in a moment." Callen growled.
Sam put a hand on Callen's arm, "G…you aren't well enough…" he said softly trying to calm him down.
"My son just saw his mother shot in front of him, and this….he thought it would be ok to leave him, injured in a waiting room."
"The boy is young he would get over it eventually." Dr. Shah said turning away.
Sam grabbed Callen as he launched himself at the doctor.
"GET HIM OUT OF HERE!" Dr. Shah yelled pressing the security button.
"Sam, get him away from my son!" Callen snarled.
"G go outside, cool down." Sam said pushing Callen towards the door. He turned to the doctor, "you heard him, get another doctor to see to Jack."
Callen paced up and down outside the room as the security guards slowed down and walked towards him, hand open trying to calm him down.
"You wanna tell us what just happened in there sir?" The taller of the two security guards asked.
"Stupid doctor." Callen ranted, Deeks and Kensi looked over at him, something was off.
"Callen?" Deeks asked.
Callen balled up his fist and smashed it into the hospital wall leaving a gaping hole. "Should a been his head." He grumbled.
"Mr. Callen, you are supposed to be resting the painkillers should be kicking in right now, but you really should not be punching holes in our walls?" a passing Nurse who had treated him earlier said. "Come and sit down." She said putting her hand gently on his arm.
Callen shook her off, "Stupid doctor knows nothing…Didn't help him, Jack's gonna have nightmare's now. He'll hear the gun, see the blood…he's too little won't know it wasn't' his fault." He slurred.
"Then you can tell him when you're better." The nurse moved him into a chair.
"Callen, Jack knows it wasn't his fault. He was with me nowhere near Tracy when she got shot." Kensi said.
"The pain'll tear him up looking at her face, smiling in the sun, hearing the gun and seeing the light go from her eyes…every night she'll stand at the edge of his bed, he'll see the hole in her forehead…she'll blame me, I didn't stop it…I didn't mean to be too small to help!"The nurse took Kensi to one side, "What just happened there?" the nurse asked.
"Callen's ex-wife was shot this afternoon by a sniper as she held his son hostage, from what I know when Callen was five, his mother was shot in front of him on a beach, he may be reliving that, I'm not sure what your doctor said to set him off but with those painkillers in his blood he's not thinking right, right now."
"I will talk to the doctor." The nurse said and walked into the room.
Dr. Shah brushed past her as she entered, and walked over to Callen, "I have seen trauma victims, you don't know what it's like I've seen them get past what happened to them, he's a boy he won't remember, you have no idea, and you're not a doctor."
With a cry Callen shot up and pinned Dr, Shah to the wall, "I was five, my mother was shot in front of me, I remember the bullet embedding itself into the sand behind the chair, I remember the bit of her skull that landed on my face and how squidgy the piece of brain was that was attached to it, I remember trying to get her to turn her head and look at me, to take me off the beach and take me home. I remember the cry that left her throat for the last time….I remembered all of that! Even today, I don't remember my name, I didn't remember where but every night for my whole life I remembered that! DON'T TELL ME HE WON'T REMEMBER, BECAUSE YOU DON'T HAVE A CLUE!" Callen screamed at the doctor.
Dr Shah went white, as another man walked up, "I think Dr. Shah you need to leave." He said sternly as he looked at the doctor who turned and left.
"My apologizes, Mr. Callen." He said, "My name is Harry Armstrong, I am the administrator here. I have already arranged for counseling for your son, we will foot the bill for it; hopefully it will help in his recovery. I have talked to our head nurse, Jack is being patched up, he will be physically fine, but I was wondering if maybe you would like to join him for therapy sessions too." The older man looked at Callen sadly.
"I don't need therapy, I'll get over it." Callen snapped, it wasn't just because of what the doctor had said, it was what he himself had been told as a child.
Dr. Armstrong, who himself was a child therapist noticed the signs that Callen was giving off. "I understand that. You are an adult, but as a parent, I know you want to do your best for your son; it might help him if you were there. Shall we say tomorrow at noon, It's best to start early, here's my card I will see you and your son then" he smiled as he turned and walked away hoping against hope he could help the poor young man…and his son.
