A/N: Thank yous to everyone who took the time to review and favourite/follow the story. It means a lot :-) I'd just like to IfUKnewUCouldNotFail and chezzie for your invaluable help in this week's update! Please everyone ENJOY!
Chapter 6
A couple of hours later,
Rachel looked over the preliminary results of Kate's bloodwork. It was incomprehensible to her, the amount and mixture of drugs in Kate's system should have put Kate into a coma with organ failure hours ago yet she awake and in agony as she was down to dry heaving into bucket in withdrawal from said drugs. She couldn't even put the pieces together as her mind and body were exhausted. She knew there was something she was missing, something that had Dr Milowsky interested in Kate and vis a vis herself. She hadn't missed the way he had looked at her with keen interest. It made her skin crawl and she felt uneasy about how trusting Tom was of Milowsky. But she was glad Tom had agreed with her about not giving Milowsky what he wanted. She could only imagine what he was looking for in Kate's bone marrow as she had a bad feeling it wasn't the cure.
"Please tell me you have those results and it's time for some drugs" Kate said snapping Rachel out of her mind back to the present. Rachel looked at Kate taking in the sight of her. She looked looked completely miserable and haggard as she leaned heavily on the door frame and held her IV pole in one hand parallel to the floor. Rachel inwardly shook her head as she stifled the urge to tell Kate that the IV fluids worked better when the pole was standing upright but couldn't given Kate's miserable state.
"Yes, it is" Rachel said as she pushed back the chair she was sitting in and gestured to the stool by the side of the desk.
"Good" Kate sighed in relief and she moved to the stool and sat down. Rachel couldn't help but give a closed lip smile at Kate's obvious relief.
"I'll get you maxolon for the nausea and it will hopefully stop you from dry heaving" Rachel told her as she stood up from the chair at the desk and moved to the medicine cabinet pulling out a small vial of Maxolon before pulling out a fresh syringe from storage. She placed the vial of liquid maxolon and syringe on the bed ad moved to Kate. She took the IV pole from her and stood it upright in it's correct position beside Kate before turning around to prepare the syringe ready.
"Sounds good to me though I wish we could take out the catheter in my hand and avoid the use of needles altogether" Kate said to her, Rachel turned around with syringe in hand and saw Kate visibly flinch in discomfort at the sight. Rachel gave her a kind smile as she knew not to take offence as she knew Kate was probably fighting her urges to rip out the IV and run from the needles.
"I know but that IV is the only thing that is keeping you hydrated and you'd not be able to keep down any tablets I give you" Rachel said as she quickly injected the IV bag and disposed of the needle for Kate's comfort.
"So out of curiosity what were the results?" Kate asked her as Rachel went back to the medicine cabinent to see what they had in stock to help Kate in her detoxification program.
"Well to be honest you should be in a coma or dead. I think it might have something to do with your-"
"Modified genes and good looks" Kate finished in a wry manner. Rachel smiled as she poked around the different vials reading labels.
"I'd say your genetics do play into it and given you were on this regime for two months. I think it's best we should taper you off the medication" Rachel said over her shoulder to Kate, she watched as Kate scrunched her face at the idea. Rachel didn't blame her for feeling that way.
"Not cold turkey? cause I reckon I could hack it" Kate told her in a confidence tone that didn't quite match her demeanour. Kate wanted a clear mind even if she was currently feeling miserable in every sense of the word. She really wanted to curl up in a ball preferably near a toilet so when she was sick she could just make it disappear from her sight and senses.
"I'm sure but given you had a seizure from withdrawal earlier today, I'd prefer taper you off the heavier narcotics over the next week and supplement with some other meds to make the transition smoother" Rachel said as she pulled out a few different vials that she would need for Kate before she moved to the desk with them.
"Only a week?" Kate asked in disbelief and relief.
"It's an estimation. We'll reassess your progress as I don't know what dosages you were given which will mean your recovery will be an exercise of hit and miss" Rachel said as she placed the vials on the table before she pulled a side drawer open and found more prepacked syringes. Dr Rios had no sense of order as he had supplies squirrelled away everywhere in the tiny room.
"I bet I could pry it out of that Doctor" Kate told her, Rachel's head snapped up and looked at the redhead with frown.
"What doctor?" Rachel asked as she felt her heart begin to pound in her chest. She wondered if Kate had remembered Dr Milowsky but needed Kate to tell her in her own words. Kate's eyes glazed for a moment and Rachel wondered if she was slipping into a fugue stat again. Rachel was deeply concerned for Kate's mental state as she couldn't help but think if Kate was broken; what would Rachel be like when she finally acknowledge what happened. But Kate seemed to return back to the room mentally speaking within seconds.
"5ft 8, Caucasian, brown eyes, salt and pepper hair. He was wearing a rumpled shirt and suit slacks. Kinda has a large nose and scared look on his face. I can't remember his name, but I remember him talking to me like we were friends before I shot him" Kate said in a matter of fact tone. Rachel fought the urge to be sick as Kate had just described a man who suited Dr Milowsky. It could be him Rachel thought. She knew if Kate corroborated her evidence that Dr Milowsky was not a man to be allowed to roam freely then Tom would believe them. He had to believe the two of them over Dr Milowsky, if he didn't; Rachel wasn't sure how she would feel staying on the ship. She pushed the thoughts of that away as she pulled out another syringe out of the draw and unwrapped it.
"You shot him?" Rachel asked in disbelief as she prepped the syringe with what she felt was a questionable mix of drugs. She wondered when that had happened as she didn't remember it. Kate made a face of disappointment and shrugged.
"Yeah, I had been aiming for his head but the drugs made me a crap shot; so it ended up his shoulder. I just wish I could remember his name" Kate said as she gave a small exasperated huff.
"Milowsky" Rachel offered Kate looked to her and once again shrugged. Rachel stood up and injected the IV bag and quietly prayed to the 'Powers that be' that Kate didn't have any adverse reactions to the cocktail she had put into the IV bag.
"I don't know. I was so bent on the drugs they gave me. I'm still having problems differentiating what happened and what was a nightmare" Kate said as she mentally kicked herself for not being able to remember the minor details like names when she could remember all the other events so clearly.
"All of it was a nightmare" Rachel murmured, Kate looked to her and nodded in agreement.
"Yeah, well I do know that I saw him here. It was before I hurfed on the Captain" Kate said as she ran a hand through her hair only to frown as it got stuck in the knotty mess. "Man, this is all a mess" Kate muttered referring to more than the state of her hair. She couldn't help but feel so utterly out of control of the situation.
"I know" Rachel said in a agreement.
"My hair is shit, I can feel half of it is gone." Kate said as she took a closer examination of her hair. Something in her brain just clicked that her hair was one thing she could definitely control on this case be a 'quick' fix.
"It's not half gone" Rachel assured her. Only partial of the left side of her hair had been hacked off. Though given the rough edges and the fact that she still had some singed parts Kate's hair looked incredibly frizzy on that side.
"I need a pair of scissors and a mirror" Kate said, she needed to do something other than vomit and sit in the Infirmary idle. For some reason her brain had decided it was going to be her hair. If she could fix her hair the she'd have access to scissors which she could use as a weapon in case the Doctor decided to return. If he did then he'd learn his lesson about touching and doing medical procedures on a person without their consent.
"I don't think that's wise" Rachel said as she had a real fear of Kate accidentally stabbing herself in the side of the neck while trying to cut her hair. She wondered why Kate was suddenly fixated on her hair. "When you're better-"
"That's not going to be for a while and this is going to drive me nuts" Kate said inspecting her hair and frowing as the knots were gnarly and hair damaged from not being treated properly. "I could cut my hair and wash it in that miniscule sink" Kate said making the plans in her mind. The sink was pretty small but Kate figured it would do in a pinch and that's what this was.
"I can't say that is a good idea" Rachel told her as she ruled out the drugs being the cause of Kate's current mental fixation as it was too soon after the drugs were administered.
"There is a shower on this level-"
"No, I will not be going into the men's shower with you again" Rachel said flat out as she didn't want a repeat of when they returned from the Vyerni.
"Well you could help me here in the infirmary. I'm sure there's a spray bottle. We can fill it with water and just wet the hair down and then snip snip" Kate said making the hand gestures of scissors.
"I think you need to lie down not have a makeover" Rachel told her feeling a little exasperated by Kate's ideas.
"Look, I've slept and vomited for the past god knows how many hours. I have no idea what's going on or how long we've been back on the Nathan James, I haven't seen Mike since I cried like an 8 yr old child in his lap and passed out. I don't even know how long ago that was. Have you gotten any sleep?" Kate asked her mid rant as she had been using her pity card to get a haircut but could see Rachel was tiring of their conversation.
"Not yet" Rachel told her.
"Then it's settled, haircut and then you are sleeping. I'll keep watch" Kate told her.
"I don't need you to keep watch as I sleep" Rachel told her even though she had to admit she liked the idea of being guarded just not by Kate given her current state. She needed a guard more than Rachel did. "Is it really so important, we can fix that with a brush and conditioner in a few days" Rachel said gesturing to Kate's hair.
"The first step to feeling good is looking good. My hair is something I can control right now. So please help me" Kate said, but Rachel knew when Kate said the magic word 'Control' that she was swayed to help her. Lt Bivas had helped Rachel keep some of her control over her privacy when dressing her wounds and even helping by brushing her long hair. Kate's plan was a little more radical but it still had the ultimate effect of reclaiming something that had been taken.
"I'm sleep deprived, I doubt I could give you a good haircut" Rachel told her.
"You're a perfectionist. I'm just asking for a straight line" Kate argued as she gestured to the bottom of her neck and moved it around the back of her head.
"Then you'll get some rest?" Rachel asked her.
"I'll lay in my bunk and not complain. Promise" Kate said to her making a crossing gesture over her heart.
"Fine" Rachel said as she couldn't believe she agreed to Kate's ludicrous plan.
Somewhere around 1am the following morning,
Tom came out of his bathroom frowning as his boots looked clean but he could still smell the vomit. But given his other boots were probably being aerated as he grimaced at his boots. He'd just have to suffer through it.
They moved the Nathan James out to open sea to skirt the edge of the storm. At first it had been easy sailing but soon it went from smooth sailing to breaking through heavy waters which had the ship rocking and rolling in an uncomfortable manner. Nothing the crew and it's Captain hadn't experienced before, it was what happened and while yes it could be avoided entirely but for that to happen they would have to move further out to miss the storm completely as it would mean a longer trip to Norfolk than earlier planned. It would also chew up a good chunk of their fuel and food reserves. Not wanting that Tom ordered that they maintain their course. It just seemed that he was being punished for it.
"It's definitely not your day Son" his father said with a chuckle, only he would find it funny that Tom had been vomited on multiple times by two different people. No, only his father had was game enough to laugh in his face about it. First Kate and then his daughter Ashley, at least with Ashley it was seasickness and his daughter so it was somehow a little less traumatizing. Maybe because Ashley was his daughter and he had more of a warning in the phrase of "I don't feel so good" before Ashley re-enacted a scene from the exorcist.
He could only imagine what Rachel and Rios were going through with Kate right now given she was in full blown withdrawal and the last time he spoke with Mike which was when he handed bridge duties to him. Mike had told him that Rio's update was brief and basically the message he received in the subtext was that Kate's condition had only deteriorated into a messier and crazier state. He made a casual comment that they would just have to roll with the punches something Tom hoped Mike hadn't meant literally but with Kate there was always a chance it could go there.
Luckily for him, the anti nausea meds he's given Ashley had not only stopped his little girl from being sick but helped put her to sleep which was a blessing given their current course was not getting any smoother sailing wise.
Once Ashley fell asleep he left a bucket nearby just in case and propped the door open so he and his Dad would be able to hear her; in case she woke up and needed them.
Sam was fast asleep in the quarters or at least that's what his father had told him when he last check in with the quarters he shared with Sam. Tom had expected his son to have seasickness given he was prone to being carsick but he was fine in the rolling waters they were experiencing. It was kind of relief given Sam's recovery from the virus had been a little longer than Ashley's and his father's.
"Yeah, it's one of those days" Tom said with a sigh as he rubbed the back of his neck, exhaustion was kicking in hard. But as he looked to the clock on the wall he knew he wasn't going to sleep.
"I heard about the earlier wardrobe change" Jed said with an amused smile.
"Only you'd find it amusing that I was vomited on twice in the space of 24 hours" Tom said in an unamused for his father's sake. But it seemed like his wish for those closest to him to start laughing again was coming true.
"Well, it's not like it was the first time it's happened" Jed told him with a shrug.
"I'm hoping it'll be the last for at least the next 48 hours" Tom grumbled as he was going to run out clean clothes. At least some people were amused by it. Hell, he could feel the faint smile on his lips as it had been a real comedy of errors for him. At least none of them were fatal.
"Well, I doubt that but I'm proud of you for not letting it get you down" Jed deadpanned, that Tom gave an uneasy laugh at the off colour humour, it felt so foreign after two months of not finding the humour in anything.
"Thanks Dad" Tom replied dryly.
"So want to talk about it?" Jed asked.
"About Ashley? She'll be fine" Tom said.
"No about what's bothering you" Jed said,
"Nothing is bothering me" Tom told him.
"Ok" Jed said in that annoying tone that said he didn't believe Tom. Knowing better than to remain silent with his father Tom caved with no resistance.
"Fine, Dr Milowsky says he can recreate the cure" Tom said as he figured his father would find out sooner or later and given Mike was on the bridge; his father was the next best person to use as a sounding board.
"That's good" Jed said cautiously as he knew that given his son's expression that it wasn't exactly something to be celebrating.
"Would be but his methods to make the cure are questionable" Tom said choosing his words carefully as he knew what Dr Milowsky was asking was wrong but even he had found himself grappling with the complexities of the issue at hand since he wanted something substantial to give the crew. It's just that he remembered all the needle marks on her body and the fact that she had been on a steady flow of IV fluids and blood over the last few hours with no real sign of improvement except for now being conscious. It just made him uneasy to even ask her to donate bone marrow until the horrors of what she and Rachel left behind had faded. She needed to heal first before being asked for something.
"How so?" Jed asked him.
"He wants to use bone marrow to grow stem cells and recreate the cure from that" Tom explained, he didn't really understand the science of it at all. But Rachel knew what the man was talking about and seemed to think it wasn't possible for whatever reasons. It really needed further discussion so he understood the entirety of how the cure could be made and exactly what was needed.
"Doesn't sound too bad. Not that I understand any of that" Jed said, Tom's lips quirked into a faint smile as he wasn't the only one.
"You'd think but he can only get the bone marrow from one source" Tom said, his father sat back his chair and gave him an exhausted look of incredulity.
"I guess you have to find the source and it will be very difficult" Jed said in a slightly annoyed manner as he felt conflicted about Tom's mission. He wasn't against his son finding the cure and doing his duty to the country. He understood that the mission came first but even he knew the cost of duty. He couldn't help but feel that Tom needed to work on his relationship with his children first before gallivanting the world as he didn't want Tom making his mistakes.
Tom inwardly frowned as he wondered why his father was pissed off at the notion that Tom might have to go and find the one source but he brushed the thought away as it was irrelevant.
"No, he wants it from Kate Lassiter; one of the women who came on board today." Tom told him, his father relaxed at the news.
"Oh, Ok then just ask the woman. Where's the problem?" Jed asked.
"I think Kate was ready to kill Dr Milowsky before she got distracted with vomiting on me" Tom said.
"Oh" Jed said as he fought a smile given they were having a serious conversation. He couldn't help it as Tom's expression of concern, annoyance and seriousness was priceless as it had an air of 'This shouldn't happen to the Captain'.
"Yes and Dr Scott doesn't think highly of Dr Milowsky either" Tom added.
"Is it an ego thing?" Jed asked him, Tom thought about it for a moment but shook his head.
"No, I don't think so" Tom said as he knew Rachel could be competitive but she was always willing to hear out the other side of the argument before burning it to the ground with her opinions on what was 'better' or 'correct'.
She did hear Dr Milowsky out before she scoffed him but it was her genuine concern for Kate that struck a note in him as Dr Milowsky was lacking that sincerity. He just wanted to make a cure and get on with his work with no concern for Kate; the donor he needed to even do what he proposed. But even Tom could chalk that up to him just being single minded in reaching his objective. No one could begrudge him that.
"So the problem besides him not being a fan with the ladies" Jed said snapping tom out of his head as he was easily finding excuses to defend Dr Milowsky. Maybe it was that he wanted to know that not everything related to Mrs Granderson was poisonous. Especially given how much trust they given to Dr Milowsky over the last couple of months.
"Kate and Dr Scott were held prisoner in a medical facility on the outskirts of the city for the past two months. A facility Dr Milowsky claimed had been abandoned months and wasn't worth checking out" Tom said.
"Maybe that's what he was told" Jed offered playing devil's advocate.
"Dr Scott met him" Tom said, he'd seen the fear in her eyes when she saw Dr Milowsky. Her pale face the way she recoiled from the man.
"Her memory of the location could be inaccurate" Jed said though he really couldn't believe someone who was intelligent enough to create a cure for one of the worst pandemics would have muddled brain.
"I don't think so. And all of Milowsky's intel has been accurate to a certain extent and he's been invaluable to us in getting a make shift lab back up and running in Helo bay two. He's helped Rios when we had injured crewmen and the infirmary was overloaded. His intel on Mrs Granderson's camp has helped us-"
"Except the part where it took two months to find two missing women and he sat on the intel" Jed said.
"Yeah" Tom said in agreement, all it would of taken was for the man to point it out on the map and say 'try here' but he hadn't and part of him thinks it was because he and Mike hadn't asked him. But two months was a long time for Dr Milowsky watching them fail without mentioning the idea of checking out the location even if it was 'abandoned'.
"I still don't understand why you expended so much energy on finding these women" Jed said, pointing out rather callously that Tom's motives were rather skewed given Kate and Rachel were insignificant to the larger picture. There were helo pilots and other doctors out there, they could have been in norfolk for the last two months doing what they needed to do. Finding the crew's families and bringing them a safe zone and holding the zone secure until a cure was made.
But no, Tom had ordered they stay because he needed Rachel back. He knew in his bones it was for more than the cure. He believed it was ego, he lost his wife. He'd been too last for her but couldn't abandon Rachel not when there was a sliver of hope. After everything that had passed in the previous months; she was an honorary part of the crew much like Kate. No one would be left behind. A small voice inside him said that it was more than that but he ignored that voice.
"Dr Scott was the priority in the mission given she's the only one who knows how to make the cure and Kate-" Tom stopped as he really had no valid reason for having back on the ship except that they needed a Helo pilot but really finding her was personal thing for Mike than about him and the crew. "was a side bonus" Tom said.
"Really?" Jed asked, he had watched his son fall into a dark depression for last two months from the him internalising his grief over losing his wife. It was infectious as he felt the pain, grief of Darien's death. He was the one who failed tom and his grandkids but Tom took his burden and had made it his own. For two months, he felt the dark and weary ache in his bones that made everyday hard to push through but somehow today it had eased. It wasn't gone but it was lighter, he smiled and chuckled with meaning as felt the success of recovering Kate Lassiter and Dr Rachel Scott.
It was like a change that rippled through the ship as they had hope again. But he could see the change in his son too, it was onyl aslight change but it was enough for Jed to see that he was on the mend. He couldn't help but wonder if Kate was the reason for that given the way Tom spoke of the woman made him sound annoyed and used her first name instead of using a more formal title like 'Ms Lassiter' as he did when talking about Dr Scott. He could only imagine that Tom finding himself attracted to another woman so quickly after Darien's death would anger him.
"She's an exceptional helicopter pilot" Tom commented as he really didn't want to talk about Kate and Mike's relationship to his Dad. One; because it was none of their business and two because Tom really didn't understand it. "Either way Dr Milowsky didn't mention the place Kate and Dr Scott were being held. He said it was that it had been an abandoned post. He even suggested strongly that we not waste our time and resources checking it out"
"So what are you going to do about Dr Milowsky?" Jed asked.
"I don't know. I need to reassess the situation because I'm thinking that I didn't look at all the angles. Maybe the ops were too clean, that were just handed what we wanted with just enough of fight to make us believe it's real and as a result I've given access to my enemies by allowing Dr Milowsky into a trusted position in my ranks" Tom said begrudging admitting that he had failed yet again. He was wondering when he was going to finally get something right.
"Then lock him up" Jed said bluntly.
"If I do I won't know what he's up to and I have zero proof except for Dr Scott's word against his" Tom told didn't know why but he felt that maybe in giving Milowsky the illusion of freedom he'd reveal his plans or at least give Tom time to uncover them. But he had to ask himself if he had that time and could he afford to alienate Rachel and possibly Kate when he needed them both on his side.
"How much stock do you put into Dr Scott's opinions?" Jed asked.
"What does that matter?" Tom asked slightly defensive as he didn't want his father to read him. Last thing he wanted was his father to know his shame at being attracted to another woman especially given that attraction happened long before Darien died. He wasn't sure he was ready to disappoint his father by revealing what kind of man he was.
"It matters because if you trust her enough to take her word then you should lock him up. He's an outsider and this Dr Scott has lived on your ship-"
"She's not got a stellar record with me Dad" Tom said cutting his father off as he didn't want to point out that Rachel had been a prisoner and frankly he wasn't sure what was going on to make a proper decision let alone trust Rachel at her word. He couldn't help but think it could be just a simple mistaken identity or clashing personalities. He didn't know but his brain just wanted to hold onto Dr Milowsky being a sound character.
"Oh because she lied about the true purpose of the mission" Jed said baiting him.
"Yes and she's lied about other things as well" Tom reminded him, he and his father had talked about this before when he shared the trials and tribulations of finding the cure and how Dr Scott happened into the Nathan James' world.
"No, you insinuated from what she told you." Jed said referring to when Tom had told the crew that they had the monkeys and a cure would be made in a few days only for it to go incredibly pear shaped leaving him facing a mini mutiny. "As for lying about the mission that's hypocritical of you to judge her for that given you've been in that position before" Jed pointed out as it true. Tom hadn't had many missions like that but he had to sit on classified information pretending to be stupid when he knew the truth of the situation. When he could have spoken up but because he was ordered not to he kept his mouth shut only to watch the fallout or the successes of that decision.
"It doesn't count. It's my job to obey and follow orders." Tom argued.
"Semantics and you know it. She didn't pledge her allegiance to your navy or our country so of course it's different" Jed scoffed, Tom felt very small as his Father continued to dress him down. "This Dr Scott belonged to a bigger organisation who made her sign a non-disclosure and I'm sure a dozen other agreements just to do her work. Work that saved your kids and me, you need to stop finding these excuses and pick a side. You can believe what Dr Milowsky tells you or you can take Dr Scott's side and lock him up until you have more proof." Jed said.
"and if there is no proof to be found?" Tom asked him.
"It doesn't matter, just gotta make a choice" Jed told him as he wondered why Tom was being so indecisive and stewing on the matter when it was pretty clear to him what he had to do. He had to lock up Dr Milowsky. He didn't care if the man might be innocent. It wasn't like he was being tossed into a cold room with no food or water to suffer. It was just isolation until it was sorted out. Frankly Jed would think it was an easy choice. "Have you spoken with Kate?" Jed asked, Tom blew out a breath and shook his head.
"No, I haven't asked. She's in withdrawal from the medications they had her on to keep her 'docile'. I don't think she'd be a reliable source of information" Tom said.
"It's worth asking her" Jed said, Tom shook his head as Rachels words about what he would do if his daughter or even Darien had returned to him in the state Kate was in. It was an easy answer given as he knew Kate was a natural fighter. Guilt tore at him to know that her roughed up state was partially his fault for being too late with the rescue.
"You should of seen her Dad. She's a shadow of herself; covered in bruises and needle marks. When she was conscious she was mentally checked out, she's got the 1000 yard stare nailed down" Tom said before he ran his hands over his face as he wished he could wipe away those memories of Kate and Rachel looking so completely broken. At least Rachel was holding up better than Kate but it wasn't exactly comforting given she was hiding it better. She had the luxury of being mobile and conscious.
"Don't write her off yet. People need time to process what's happened to them" Jed said to Tom, he reached out and gripped Tom's forearm and gave it a gentle reassuring squeeze.
