CHAPTER 9

The team stayed with Face that night and they all had a good night sleep now that he was doing somewhat better. The very next morning, the medical team entered the room to start a battery of tests. The poor kid was nearly turned inside out! Luckily he was still unconscious but responding. The team was anxiously waiting to find out what the verdict would be.

"How is he?" Hannibal asked as soon as the medical team was done testing.

"We've been doing some thorough testing on Mr. Peck. The antidote seems to be doing its work. His temperature is stabilizing and he is able to breath on his own again. We'll be taking him off life-support soon. There are no signs of permanent damage to his lungs, his brain or any other organ for that matter. He is still in pain though, so we'll keep him sedated."

"What about the bruising on his chest?"

"It is still there and we are keeping an eye on that. We do believe it will start vanishing with the antidote in his system, but were not 100% sure about that. We also need to treat the burns on his chest. He is still a very sick young man, but we're hopeful that he'll make a full recovery."

"When will he wake up?"

"That I can't tell I'm afraid. His body is starting to recuperate and it takes all the energy he has right now. He is also heavily drugged up due to the pain he is in. As I said before, we'll be monitoring Mr. Peck's condition very closely. Maybe in a few more days we'll know more. I can re-assure you that he is doing remarkably well considering what he went through."

The team spent the next few days close to Face's side hoping he would wake up any minute now. It was all they could do just being there with him and talking to him. The doctors kept updating them on his condition and he was doing better every day. He was gradually re-gaining his strength and the pain slowly seemed to be fading too. He was taken off the life-support and was breathing on his own. He still had a slight fever and he was still hooked up to several IV's with fluids and antibiotics. Meanwhile, his burns were also treated. But still he hadn't regained consciousness.

Another day had passed and nothing had changed. The team was exhausted and they all tried to get comfortable for the night. But somehow Hannibal couldn't sleep that night. He was still very worried about the condition of his youngest team member, despite what Maggie and the team of doctors told him. What worried him the most was that Face still hadn't woken up. Hannibal grabbed a chair and sat next to Face's bed. He was still sleeping peacefully. Absentmindedly Hannibal ran a hand through Face's blond hair.

"I think you're enjoying this beauty sleep way too much, kid," he whispered softly. "You really should open up those bright blue eyes of yours. I miss you. I miss talking to you and arguing with you. I miss that radiant smile of yours that makes your eyes light up. You mean the world to me, son. I know I'm not always easy on you, but it's because I care about you so very much. You're my Lieutenant, my second-in-command and I trust you with my life. I consider you to be a very close friend after all we've been through together while being on the run. I've watched you grow up and become the fine man you are today and I'm truly proud of you. You might lie, steal and cheat to get the job done, but you're so much more than that. You are very smart and you have a great business instinct, but you also have a heart of pure gold. You would never do anything to hurt people, but rather risk your own hide to safe someone else's. I couldn't be more proud of you. I've never said this out loud before, but I do consider you to be the son I've never had. And it's really hard for me to see you suffer like this, because that's the last thing you deserve. I love you, son. I always will. And I'm here for you when you need me."

Hannibal had grabbed a hold of Face's limp hand while talking to him. The emotions mixed with the lack of proper sleep took its toll on him. A single tear silently made its way down the tough Colonel's cheek and he let it roll as nobody saw it anyway. Hannibal bowed his head and squeezed his eyes shut to try and get a grip when a small moan was heard in the room. Immediately Hannibal looked up.

"Kid? Is that you?"

Another moan escaped Face's lips.

"It's okay, Face. We've got you to the hospital. You're gonna be fine."

Face tried to open his eyes.

"That's it, kid. Open up those blue eyes of yours. You can do it. I know you can. Come on."

Face struggled some more to open up his eyes until he finally managed to do so for a short while. Meanwhile B.A. and Murdock had woken up to. They stood right beside Hannibal at Face's hospital bed. Two unfocused blue eyes peered at the team and a small smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.

"Hi there, kid."

His eyelids kept on slipping shut and Face did his utmost best to keep them open.

"Take it easy, littl' brother."

He was starting to get a little restless by now.

"Hey, Facey. Calm down. It's okay. Take your time. You have all the time in the world."

"Murdock is right, son. You need to slow your breathing or you'll start to hyperventilate."

But Face couldn't calm down. He somehow wanted to express what was going on. He tried to speak, but nothing came out. Yet he had to let them know what was happening.

"S-s-s-i-ck."

It came out so weakly nobody even heard he said something. He had to notify them and quickly.

"S-s-s-s-i-c-k-k."

Still nobody seemed to understand what he was trying to say. He desperately tried his body to keep from doing what it was planning to do, but failed miserably. He was far too weak to stop things anyway.

"Facey?" Murdock noticed at first that something was bothering his best friend. "Do you think you're gonna be sick?"

Face blinked his eyes as an answer to his best friend. Murdock grabbed a container from the table while Hannibal gently helped Face to sit up in his bed. He held him while his body convulsed heavily as he threw up.

"Oh, man. He ain't never been good with them drugs."

"We should have known he would react to the morphine. Remember how sick he got when he was treated in HQ after the camps in 'Nam?"

Hannibal tried his utmost best to support his weak Lieutenant the best he could. The poor guy was exhausted and still his body didn't stop convulsing all together. Hannibal noticed how his eyes slipped shut for a few seconds before his body was hit with another wave of nausea.

"Oh, man. This ain't good. He ain't gonna be able to keep up no more soon. I'm getting' Maggie."

"Good idea, B.A."

B.A. ran out of the room and rushed back in with Maggie soon after.

"What is it? What's happening?" Maggie asked.

She immediately got her answer as she noticed Face throwing up. Hannibal practically had to completely support his bodyweight.

"Oh you poor thing," she said as she ran up to Face. "How long has this been going on?"

"For a while now," Hannibal answered her. "He has a tendency to react badly towards medication and especially to morphine. I just don't know where all this is coming from. He hardly has anything left in his body and he's exhausted."

"Yes, so I've noticed. I'll give him something to stop the nausea so he can get some much needed rest."

She walked out of the room and came back minutes later with yet another syringe. It wasn't easy for her to administer the injection. Hannibal was still trying to support Face's weakened frame and hold him up while his body was trembling and convulsing all at the same time.

"Temp, it's me Maggie," she said soothingly. "It's alright. You're just having a bad reaction towards the morphine. I'm going to inject you with something that will help you get rid of the nausea. Okay? If you can just try to hold still, I can administer the injection and you can get some rest again."

She softly caressed his cheek. Face desperately tried to stop his body from shivering, but it wasn't easy. Finally Maggie managed to inject him. Hannibal held him up a little longer and Maggie kept on caressing his cheek. The convulsions diminished and Face's body started to relax somewhat in the Colonel's arms.

"It's okay, kid. It's all over. Now you just close your eyes and get some rest."

Face managed a weak smile and closed his eyes. He was fast asleep within seconds. Hannibal kept a close eye on his second-in-command as he was still very worried about him.

"He'll be alright now, John. I've been discussing his condition with the medical team and he is slowly getting better. The antidote has done its job and now he merely needs to get his strength back. We're going to keep him in the hospital for a couple more days under observation and he might have to have one more operation. Afterwards, you can take him home with you but he'll need to rest some more."

When Face woke up the very next morning, he noticed that the entire team and Maggie were with him. He blinked and looked around the room. Where was he? How did he even get here?

"Hi, kid. Good to have you back?"

"Where am I?"

"You're at the hospital, Facey. Do you remember what happened?"

"Hospital? Why? Uh … what?"

"We were on a case with a tattoo artist. Remember that?"

"I can't … remember. Wait. I got punched …"

"Not just that, kid."

"You was stabbed with one of them needles. We nearly lost you. You was dyin'."

"Huh?"

"We were too late. Your heart stopped beating. But the doctors managed to get you back."

"You're kidding me, right? Oh boy. I've just had the 'Vette tuned and …"

"Face …"

"My heart … stopped. No. It can't be. I'm perfectly healthy and I'm in good shape. Really, I am."

"Face! Listen to me. You'll be okay, son. We got you the antidote and you're recovering right now. So stop worrying. You just had a bad reaction to the morphine last night and ended up getting nauseous. The doctors want to keep you under observation for a couple more days just to be safe."

"Do I really have to stay here? I hate hospitals."

"I know you do, kid, but you need to stay a bit longer. We'll be right here with you."

"They have real cute nurses, Facey. I'm sure they'll love to take care of you."

"They do?"

"They sure do, kid. Lots of young blond nurses. I bet you're feeling a whole lot better already. And they'll be happy too to see you've regained consciousness. Now is there anything we can get for you?"

"Yeah. Something to eat. I'm starving."

"That doesn't surprise me one bit. I don't think you have anything left in your system after last night."

"Huh?"

"You threw up, kid. You sure don't do well with drugs."

There was a knock on the door. One of the young blond nurses came walking in carrying a tray with breakfast.

"Oh Mr. Peck," she said softly. "I see you're finally awake. Would you care for some breakfast too?"

"I sure do," he answered smiling his million dollar smile.

"I'll go and get you some in a minute," she said.

Face watched as she distributed breakfast to his team mates. She left his room and came back a little while later with Face's breakfast. He noticed straight away that his breakfast wasn't the same as what his team mates got.

"What's this?" He said gesturing at his plate.

"You only get to have a light breakfast this morning, Mr. Peck, due to your stomach problems. We can't have you getting sick again. We have some toast for you and a nice cup of tea."

"Tea? What about bringing me some coffee?"

"I can't do that, Mr. Peck. I'm sorry. Those are doctor's orders. "

"So this is it. This is all I get? I'm nearly starving."

"For now, yes. I'm sorry. We have to make sure that you can digest a light meal first, before you can have regular food again. We also serve a light lunch with some soup and toast and you should drink plenty of water too."

"Oh great. My tailor is really gonna love this. I've just bought a bunch of new expensive designer clothes and now they just won't fit me anymore. They'll all be too big …"

"Oh stop complaining, Face."

"I'm hungry, Hannibal. I'm really hungry. And I'm in desperate need of coffee."

"Face! Listen to me. I know you crave coffee, but you're still recovering. If you want to get well again, you might listen to what the doctors tell you."

"I am planning on getting better again, but I can't do that without coffee."

"Eat your toast and drink your tea, Lieutenant. That's an order."