Chapter 8: Absolution
Date Unknown
Toronto Western Hospital, 399 Bathurst St, Toronto, ON M5T 2S8, Canada
"I've been in the hospital for over a month?" Scott stared at Jack in shock.
"About a month." Jack said.
"What's today's date?"
"Sunday, April 10th."
"God…" Scott covered his eyes and leaned against his pillow.
"The doctors were starting to give up on you. When comas last over a month, they expect them to drag on for a long time."
"Why am I here in the first place?"
"You remember that night we went to the Park Hyatt to confront Joel? After that we went to Wallace's place and you stayed there. I got a call from Ramona a few days later saying that Wallace was in the hospital and you were missing."
"Missing?"
"Yeah. Joel's flunkies took you. Ramona was worried sick, so I came back up here. It took us almost a week to actually find you."
"Why was I in a coma for so long?"
"You'd have to ask the doctors to know for sure, but I've read that victims of torture often retreat into a fantasy world where they-"
"Whoa, whoa, wait. Victims of torture? What the hell are you saying?"
"They must've really messed you up." Jack rubbed his eyes. "The doctors reported 2 broken ribs, a broken wrist, 4 broken fingers, 6 broken toes, a crushed hand, and several lacerations and burns along your body, including your back, thigh, foot, hand and arms."
"God..." Scott pulled off his covers and lifted up his gown, inspecting his body.
"They fixed you up pretty good." Jack turned away to avoid seeing Scott's genitalia. "You'll have some scars, but no nerve damage."
"I can't believe this." Scott rubbed his forehead. "Damn it…"
"Could've been worse, I guess. At least they didn't snatch any organs. You've still got your strawberry tart."
(A/N: Strawberry tart=heart.)
"If it makes you feel any better, I took out the guy who destroyed Ramona's house."
"Who?"
"The British cur Johnny. It was the day after they took you. I was walking with Kim and he got the drop on us. I killed him. We haven't heard a peep from them since."
"Is Kim alright?"
"She was a little shaken up, but I think she's more concerned about you."
"What about Wallace? You said he was in the hospital, too."
"He's fine. They didn't take him. His boyfriend found him lying unconscious on the floor. He had a bruise on his head. They thought it might be a concussion, but he was fine when he woke up. He's more concerned about you, though."
"How's Ramona?"
"Horrible. I've never seen anyone so stressed out before. She's been here every day since they admitted you. Comes over after work and doesn't leave until visiting hours are over. I think she was starting to lose hope, though."
"What time is it?"
"Four in the morning."
"Shit. I don't wanna wait for her to wake up."
"There's a good chance that she's still up, but if she's asleep then it'll be for the first time in days. I know you're anxious to see her, but you should give her a grace period. Wait a few hours and I'll give her a call and tell her you just woke up."
"Okay."
At that moment, the door opened and a man wearing a white overcoat came in.
"Ah, Mr. Pilgrim," he said, in a tone that reminded Scott of Agent Smith from The Matrix.
Zack Addy
Doctor
34 Years Old
Status: Happy that he finally got a date with Miranda.
"Great to see you're finally awake. We were all very concerned about you. To be honest, we weren't sure if you were going to wake up."
"Yeah." Scott said. "He told me that."
"Ah, yes, Dr. Midkiff." The doctor looked at Jack. "I've heard about you from the staff."
"What?" Scott asked.
Jack looked at Scott and inconspicuously rubbed his nose.
Oh, I get it. Scott thought.
"Dr. Midkiff is visiting from America. He's studying patients in comas and the effect it has on the relationship between the patient and their friends and family."
"Yes." Jack said. "It's a very interesting field of study. I think people should put more focus into it."
"You look very young to be a doctor."
"Yes, of course. I'm not a doctor yet. This is all part of my thesis."
"Well, then I should be addressing you as Mr. Midkiff."
"Go ahead—see if I care." Jack rolled his eyes.
"Yes, anyway, Mr. Pilgrim." Dr. Addy, as his nametag said. "Like I said, you gave us a bit of a worry. Most comatose patients we deal with wake up after a few weeks. Once stabilized, we focus on maintaining physical health, and then we move onto working out a way to reverse the coma and bring them out of it. You were a very tricky case. We just couldn't find the cause of your relapse. Without an apparent cause, we couldn't treat you to bring you out of it."
"How do you treat comatose patients?" Scott asked.
"Well, there are several methods." Dr. Addy said. "We can give medication to stop brain swelling, and in cases of patients who have a cardiac arrest, we can induce hypothermia."
"Hypothermia? How does that work?"
"Well, it-"
"Yes, yes, very interesting, doc." Jack cut him off. "What do you say, you sign the release form and we get Scotty outta here?"
"Oh, I'm not sure that's such a good idea right now." Dr. Addy said. "A coma is a very big deal and we should monitor Scott for a few days to make sure he's finally awake. In addition I'm going to have to assign him a physical therapist to help him relearn his motor functions."
"Why can't I just go home?" Scott asked.
"Well, this isn't a movie. You're going to have a tough time readjusting to normal life."
"Hey, doc?" Jack walked over to him, raising his left hand up near his face. "I may not be a real doctor like you, but I think it'd be great if you could let Scott go now. He's really eager to see his friends, and we just don't have the time to wait for your physical therapy. So, what d'ya say, you let him go right now?"
"Okay." Dr. Addy said in a trance-like state, fixated on Jack's hand. He took a pen out of his coat, looked down at the clipboard, and signed his name on the sheet.
"Great." Jack said. "Now fuck off."
"Okay." Dr. Addy left the room.
"How the hell did you do that?" Scott asked. "Are you a vampire?"
"Heh. Say that again and I'll kill you. Now come on, let's go."
"Alright." Scott jumped out of the bed—and promptly fell to the floor.
"HAHAHAA!" Jack busted up laughing.
"Could you give me a hand?"
Jack reached down and pulled Scott to his feet.
"I guess this is why he wanted to give you a physical therapist. Hold on, I can fix it." Jack put his hand to Scott's forehead and closed his eyes. After a few seconds, he removed his hand and took a few steps back. "Alright, try now."
Scott walked over to him without a problem.
"There—good as new."
"How do you do that?"
"Let's stop with the questions."
"Where are we going?"
"Where do you think? To see your girlfriend."
"I thought we were going to wait."
"The longer we stay the more attention we draw. Things are gonna get messy when they start asking questions. I already voided your bill, so we need to make ourselves scarce."
"Where are my clothes?"
"The garbage, probably."
"Aww! That was my favorite Black Crowes shirt."
30 Minutes Later…
Scott's Apartment
"Are you coming in, too?" Scott asked, as they climbed up the steps to his apartment.
"I should leave, actually." Jack said. "Ramona hasn't been too happy with me since April Fools' Day when I called her and said that you woke up."
"Whaat?" Scott stopped by the door. "Why would you do that? That's so mean!"
"Yeah, looking back, it wasn't very funny."
"Yeah. Well, whatever. I wanted to talk to you about something before you leave…"
"Your dream?"
"Yeah." Scott whispered. "You said something about it being a 'fantasy world.'"
"It has been reported by torture victims that during the act, they retreat into a fantasy world from which they could not wake up. In this catatonic state, the victim lived in a world just like their normal one, except they weren't being tortured."
"In my dream, we were still living in Ramona's house, and she claimed that she never lived in Seattle or met you or Joel."
"You lived in a world where you and Ramona lived without any problems."
"Yeah… Does that mean that if it weren't for this whole thing with Joel, then we would have gotten married?"
"I don't know, Scott. I really don't. But that wouldn't have happened if you stayed in a coma. You could've been asleep for years, and when you finally did wake up, everything in the world would have just passed you by. You would turn into Chuck from that movie Castaway."
"Maybe I should be thinking about something else. I mean, we do have bigger problems. Do you know where Joel's staying now?"
"No. He's gotten smarter about that. If he's anywhere, it's unlisted. Either that or he's moving around."
"He doesn't know we live here, does he?"
"He hasn't made a move since you were admitted into the hospital. With Johnny dead, you shouldn't have to worry about any more surprise visits from anyone with a machine gun."
"That's cool, I guess…"
"I have to go now." Jack turned down the steps to leave.
"Where are you going?"
"Home. I have a dog and a cat to take care of. Ramona has my number if you need me again."
"Thanks." Scott called after him.
Jack stopped and turned around. He didn't say anything for a moment.
"Sure. Try and spend some time out in the sun. You look like you the living dead." He turned around and went back to his car.
Scott didn't feel like retorting the snarky comment. He took out his key and put it into the door, and opened it. As he walked in, the glare from the moonlight focused on Ramona—lying asleep on the couch, with Gideon lying on top of her stomach. Gideon looked at Scott and jumped up to greet him.
"Hey there, boy." Scott whispered as reached down to pet Gideon as he closed the door behind him. "You been taking care of Ramona for me?"
"Mew." Gideon meowed at him.
"Good boy." Scott walked over to the couch and kneeled down next to Ramona. "Ramona."
Ramona remained asleep. Scott put his hand to her face and caressed her cheek.
"Ramona." Scott repeated. Ramona stirred and opened her eyes. She looked up at Scott, half-conscious.
Ramona Flowers
25 Years Old
Status: Sleepy and a little bit drunk
"Scott?" She asked.
"Yes?"
"Are you really there?"
"Yeah, I'm really here. I just got out of the hospital."
"Why didn't you call me?"
"Because you were asleep."
"Come here." Ramona sat up, and wrapped her arms around her boyfriend. "I missed you."
"I'm here now." Scott hugged her, tightly. "And I promise I'll never leave again."
Ramona began to sob as Scott held her in his arms.
Sunday April 11, 2011 (The Next Day)
Wallace and Mobile's Apartment
12:35 p.m.
"Thanks for the brunch." Scott said to his friend, as they sat at the counter. Wallace had been kind enough to serve them scrambled eggs, French toast and bacon.
"Sure thing, guy." Wallace said, pouring himself a cup of coffee. "You had us worried there."
"Yeah." Scott took a bite of his toast.
"Did Ramona give you a hard time about going off on your own?"
"No, she was asleep when I left. I'll probably catch hell about it when I get home."
"Heh. Well, I'm glad you're up." Wallace said. "I've been doing some research on our friends Joel and Maude."
"You find anything good?"
"I still couldn't find anything on Joel, but I have a theory on Maude. Based on what you and Jack told me, and several religious-related myths, Maude may be what they call a 'Seeker.'"
"A Seeker? What is she seeking?"
"According to the myth, a Seeker is a person appointed by a council of divine beings to protect the world from evil. They are given enhanced senses and the ability to absorb the powers of vanquished foes, and they are typically depicted wearing a combination of white and blue."
"If the Seeker is supposed to vanquish evil, then why is she working with the bad guy?"
"I don't know. It's just a myth, after all."
"Is there a way to beat her?"
"It says that the Seeker has self-regenerative powers, but that she is also mortal. In other words, it'll probably be hard, but you can kill her."
"That's good to know. With her out of the way, maybe we can take Joel out."
"On another note, you should probably start working out a little. Lying in that hospital bed for a month's made you scrawny. …More so."
"Jack also said that he can't find Joel. He said that he's either moving around or living somewhere unlisted. We need to find him before he finds us."
"He already knows where we live, Scott."
"Damn! He already has a head-start."
"Don't worry about it, guy. We've faced bigger problems."
"This guy is a professional psychopath, though. He blew up Ramona's house and he kidnapped me and tortured me. That tops the list of horrible stuff I've been through. I just want to get this over with."
"Is there something bothering you?" Wallace asked, taking a sip of his coffee. "I mean, really bothering you?"
"Well…" Scott set his fork down. "While I was in the coma, I had this dream where Joel didn't exist, and Ramona and I were getting married."
"That sounds like a fun time."
"Yeah. Jack said that it was just part of a fantasy world that my brain made up, but I just… I kind of miss it."
"It's perfectly normal to want a better life over a miserable one, Scott."
"Do you think that if it weren't for Joel, that Ramona and I would get married?"
"Absolutely." Wallace smiled. "There isn't any reason for you two not to get married."
"What if she doesn't want to marry me?"
"Bullshit." Wallace said, firmly. "I know her as well as I know you. If you ask her, she'll say yes."
"You really think so?"
"I know so."
"Thanks, friend."
"And if for some crazy reason, she says no, then I'll take you out for dinner and a night of hard partying."
"Okay, cool." Scott said, indifferently. "And if she says yes, I want you to be my best man."
"You got it."
"But don't start planning anything yet. I'm not making any long-term decisions until we've taken care of Joel and everything else."
"Well then, we need to get to work right away if you're gonna kick his ass."
"Get to work? What do I have to do?"
Five Minutes Later…
"You suck." Scott strained as he lay on the ground, performing Wallace's work-out program.
"Come on, man." Wallace sat in his lazy chair, watching a Law & Order rerun. "You still got 40 more push-ups to do."
"I remember this being a lot easier."
"You've been in a coma for a month. You've got to get back into the habit of being the best fighter in the province."
"Is this really necessary, though?"
"I just told you why it is."
Scott grumbled as he continued the push-ups.
"You're way off, Scott. Don't make me get out the Motivational Stick."
(A/N: The above statement is not meant to be interpreted as a sexual innuendo.)
As Scott reached the 19th push-up, he felt his arms begin to quiver and give away. As his body touched the floor, he found himself unable to push himself back up. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't muster the strength.
"Come on, guy!" Wallace pulled at the back of Scott's shirt. "You can do it!"
"No… I can't." Scott strained, pushing against the floor to no avail. He rolled over onto his back and sat up, leaning against the side of Wallace's chair.
"Pathetic." Wallace said, derisively.
"Screw you." Scott said, breathing shallowly and rapidly. Seconds later, he felt himself becoming light-headed and his vision began to fade. "Wallace…"
Sometime Later…
Scott stirred in bed. He opened his eyes, disoriented. He realized that he wasn't in his own bed, or rather his sofa. He looked up to see Wallace still sitting in the chair, still watching Law & Order. Wallace looked over, noticing the movement.
"Still with us, guy?" He asked. "You're not relapsing, are you?"
"What happened to me?" Scott asked, sitting up. He noticed that his arms were sore from the work-out.
"You passed out about half an hour ago. I guess you're not as durable as you used to be."
"Shit. You think this was all part of Joel's master plan? Soften me up so that killing me would be easy and humiliating?"
"I don't think that was what he was really aiming for. Mobile will be home in a little while. Maybe he can do some kind of psychic thing to speed up your physical recovery."
"When I woke up in the hospital, I couldn't even stand up. I think Jack did something that helped me."
"What exactly did he do?" Wallace turned his attention away from the TV to focus on Scott.
"He put his hand on my forehead and closed his eyes. I didn't really feel anything different, but when he took his hand away, I could walk again. Before that, he Obi-Wan Kenobi-d the doctor and got him to sign my release forum."
"Hmm."
"Do you think he might be psychic, too?" Scott asked.
"Maybe." Wallace scratched his chin in thought.
"Psychics are becoming a cliché with this series."
"Mobile could tell us, but I don't think it really matters, as long as Jack's on our side."
"Yeah, I guess."
About an Hour Later…
No-Account Video
"Hey, Kim." Sally said. "I'm taking a lunch break; did you want me to bring you something?"
Sally O'Malley
Shelf Organizer
22 Years Old
Status: She's only been working here for a few days, and she's very nervous and unsure about interacting with her co-workers.
"No, thanks." Kim said, leaning against the front desk, propping her head up with one hand.
"Are you sure? You have to eat, you know."
"I'm not hungry."
"Look…" Sally walked over to the front desk. "Hollie told me about your friend, and I know you're really worried about him and all-"
"Stop." Kim sat up. "I know you mean well, Sally, and I'm not trying to offend you here, but I just want to be left alone. Alright? I don't want anything to eat, and I don't need you trying to counsel me on the tragedy that I'm going through. My long-time friend is in the hospital, and I have enough trouble dealing with it without you or anyone else bringing it up. So, please. Just leave me alone."
"Uh… okay." Sally said, indecisively. "Hollie… also told me that you have a crush on him."
"Oh, for God's sake." Kim buried her head in her arms. "Just go."
"Sorry." Sally said, heading for the door. There was a ring as the door opened, and Kim heard her saying 'thanks' to someone. As the door closed, Kim heard footsteps approaching the front desk. She looked up from the desk, and was shocked at the person who stood before her.
"What are you doing here?" She asked, scornfully.
Joel.
"Irritable much?" Joel asked. "I just wanted to see if you had Jacob's Ladder in stock."
"No, we don't." Kim lied. There was actually a copy in the return box under the desk, but she wasn't about to give it to Joel.
"You didn't check."
Kim put her hands to the keyboard and tapped them against the keys, not actually pressing them.
"Nope." She said.
"You didn't really check."
"I didn't have to."
"So mean." Joel feigned discontent.
"I don't think it's a coincidence that you show up at my work after putting my friend in the hospital."
"I just came to tell you how sorry I am with the whole situation. You see, it wasn't my doing that put Scott in the hospital. That was the combined effort of my subordinates Malcolm and the recently-deceased Jonathan. I never told them to kidnap or torture Scott, and I was unaware of the act until after the fact."
"You're full of shit." Kim snarled at him. "You tried to kill him, and now you have the balls to come in here and tell me that you're sorry? You're unbelievable. But I guess I should expect that from a certified psychopath."
"'Psychopath' is so biased. I prefer the term 'mentally evolved.'"
Kim almost laughed at the statement.
"Why don't you leave before I call the police and tell them to hall your ass back to the rubber room?"
At that moment, the door opened and the bell ringed. As Kim looked over, a look of shock spread across her face as she saw who walked into the store.
Scott.
The look on Kim's face caused Joel to look over to see what was so interesting.
"You." Scott growled.
"Me." Joel indulged in Scott's anger, turning to face him. Scott took several steps forward, until they were both face to face. Because of the obvious difference in height, Scott had to look up at him.
"Nice to see that you've made such a speedy recovery." Joel said.
"Funny." Scott said. "Your face is the last thing I wanted to see today when I got up this morning."
"I don't know why everyone's being so mean to me today. You don't think I had something to do with your being kidnapped and tortured and hospitalized. I was just explaining to Kim that I didn't have anything to do with that. Did you get the flowers I sent you, by the way?"
(Joel actually did send Scott flowers. It was a bouquet of dahlias. Scott didn't notice them.)
"I'm not in the mood for your games." Scott said. "I came here to see Kim, not you. And I'm really, really not in the mood to fight you right now."
"Alright." Joel said. "I wouldn't fight a guy who just came out of the hospital, anyway. When you start feeling better, have your people call my people, and we can make some kind of arrangement." Joel pushed past Scott and walked out the door.
Scott looked up at the ceiling and sighed in relief. He turned to Kim and walked towards the desk.
"Hey." Kim said.
"Hey." Scott said.
"I planned on being a lot happier when you got out of the hospital, but…"
"It's okay. I get it."
Kim stood up from her seat and walked around the desk to face Scott. As they looked into each other's eyes, Kim felt her emotions resurge. She wrapped her arms around Scott and pulled him into a tight hug. Scott wrapped his arms around her and returned the hug.
Later that Evening…
Sneaky Dee's
7:23 p.m.
"A toast!" Wallace cried, holding up his alcoholic beverage. "To Scott's recovery!"
Everyone held up their respective drinks and clinked them together against everyone else's drinks. In attendance were Scott, Ramona, Wallace, Kim, Stacey, Stephen, and Neil.
"You didn't have to throw a party." Scott said to Wallace. "I'm not really in the mood to celebrate."
"Don't be such a downer, Scott." Wallace said. "You're alive—that's a perfectly good reason to celebrate. Now stop being a pussy and have a beer."
"You drunk bastard." Scott turned to Stephen. "Stephen Stills, do I still have a job?"
"Uh, you can ask Dominique." Stephen said. "She really hasn't been looking for anyone to replace you."
"Okay, cool."
The rest of the evening went by with polite chatter and drinking.
Drinking Chart (in ascending order):
1. Scott drank half of a bottle of beer and Wallace forced him to order it.
2. Neil had one whole bottle.
3. Stacey had a glass of Coke because she's underage.
4. Kim and Stephen tied with four bottles.
5. Wallace had 5 bottles and a shot of tequila, and he felt fabulous while drinking all of them.
6. Ramona had 7 shots and the bottle that Scott didn't finish. She passed out and Scott had to call a cab to take them home. Ramona annoyed the cabbie the whole ride home, and then continued to annoy Scott until she passed out again.
End Chapter 8
End Act I
