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Chapter 11
Sunday,
2:00 pm
Calleigh slowly opened her eyes and let her gaze drift across the room. It wasn't much of a surprise to find herself in a hospital although the last clear memory she really had was of leaving the shelter of that decaying shed. After that, things were a jumble. There was a confusing array of images and it was hard to decide what was fact and what was fever-induced fiction. Calleigh stared at the gauze wrapped around her wrists, then raised her left arm and studied the bandage across her forearm. That was a memory she could do without. Even though she'd been defending herself and the man's death had been accidental, she was ultimately responsible for taking someone's life. It was just one more burden to carry.
She knew she'd been pretty sick out in the Everglades - she still felt lousy - and it was the only explanation for the confusion in her memories. Apparently, she'd also been incredibly lucky. Eric and Horatio had found her before the Burrus brothers. Had they been caught? Calleigh glanced around the room again and then slowly frowned. The sights and smells were typical of a hospital but it was unnaturally quiet. There should be some sort of ambient noise. What was going on?
It was puzzling but not terribly alarming and, truthfully, Calleigh didn't have enough energy to care. Although she'd just woken up, her sleep had been far from restful. Nightmares had plagued her and she'd been unable to escape. Sometimes she dreamed she was awake, which made them that much worse - they'd seemed so real. Calleigh blinked suddenly and then her eyes narrowed suspiciously as she focused on her surroundings again. Was she really awake now or was this more of the same nightmare? The silence began to take on an ominous feel. It wasn't too much later when the door opened. It did nothing to assuage her trepidation. There'd been no sound at all.
"But what if her hearing doesn't come back?" Duke held open the door for Alexx. He couldn't help feeling like he was making a pest of himself. He'd been asking variations of this same question ever since he'd realized his baby girl was deaf. It was probably the lawyer in him, trying to find the right version of the question that would give him the answer he wanted most: that Calleigh would hear again and everything could go back to normal.
"We'll deal with it," Alexx replied patiently. "There's nothing physically wrong. You'll need to be strong for her, she's been through a lot already." In truth, she was worried too, but knew she needed to maintain a calm presence for Mr. Duquesne's sake. She could only imagine what he'd been through while they searched for Calleigh. He'd known the Burrus brothers and had probably seen first-hand exactly what they were capable of doing. He must have been scared out of his mind for his daughter. Mentally, she gave him points for holding together and not disappearing into a bottle.
They both stopped when they realized Calleigh was awake and staring at them. Alexx's hand went unobtrusively to Duke's sleeve, halting his rush to the bed. Calleigh looked tired and wary but her eyes were clear. The delirium seemed to be gone but what about her hearing? Alexx put on her warmest smile while murmuring quietly, "Easy does it."
Duke stopped, giving the ME a quick, nervous glance. Taking a deep breath, he settled his shoulders and turned back towards Calleigh with a smile, "Hey darlin', you're awake."
Calleigh's eyes widened as her breath hitched, "Dad?" His lips had moved but she hadn't heard a sound.
Kenwall hurried forward, "Right here, sweetheart." He hesitated when she didn't answer but continued to stare at him. Carefully, he sat down on the edge of the bed, never breaking eye contact, "Calleigh, sweetheart, can't you hear me?"
With a growing sense of shock, Calleigh watched her father continue to talk while never making a sound. Her eyes moved to Alexx standing quietly near the end of the bed and there she saw the truth. She wasn't asleep but it was definitely feeling like the beginning of a nightmare. Involuntarily, her hands went to the sides of her head as she looked back at her father, "Oh dear god. Daddy, I can't hear you!"
Heart breaking a little more at the horrified look on his daughter's face, Kenwall moved close enough to gather her into his arms. He could feel her trembling as she burrowed into his chest. Resting his cheek on top of her head, he shot a helpless look at Alexx, "What do we do now?"
The ME moved to the opposite side of the bed and sat down, reaching over to put a comforting hand on Calleigh's back. She looked at Duke, "We do whatever we have to. We answer her questions as honestly as we can and we make sure she knows she's not alone."
Calleigh turned her head enough to look at Alexx while staying in her father's embrace, "What happened?"
Alexx shook her head and then held up a hand, turning to the nightstand where'd she left the pad and pen from the last attempt to communicate with the blonde. Quickly, she wrote her reply and held it up for Calleigh to see.
"'Not sure - we're at Ryder - you've been sick - bacterial infection - you'll be fine. Last thing you remember?'" Calleigh read slowly, her brow furrowing. If she was at the Trauma Center, then it'd been serious. How sick was sick? Delirious? Damn, she couldn't remember. Had she been rambling? There were things she'd needed to keep to herself. She pulled back a little further, looking from Alexx to her father and then back. How much did they know? Calleigh was reluctant to mention the Burrus brothers in front of her dad. He'd know who they were but not why they'd come after her and she wasn't sure how to explain about the Ashbys. He'd been oblivious to so much back then, lost in the alcohol. Her mother hadn't been much better. Even when she wasn't fogged with drink, she had a tendency to see only what she wanted to see. The Ashbys were not part of her comfortable world.
Initially, it had been easier than she expected to keep her parents from realizing exactly how large a role she'd played. Her father had barely registered the turmoil in the neighborhood and her mother had been so horrified to learn that Calleigh had seen the attack that she never considered her daughter might have been more than just a witness. Tolley had willingly played down her part in catching the Burrus brothers in an effort to keep her from becoming too obvious a target. It had almost worked. They hadn't counted on Milo confessing he'd beaten Rad and gone after Maude and had forced his brothers to help. It'd given their lawyer enough leverage to get the two out on bail on lesser charges. The Darnell Sheriff's Dept. had done the best they could but they hadn't had the manpower to watch one 16 year-old girl 24/7 for the weeks before the trial. The brothers had bided their time before they finally struck. It'd been dumb luck more than anything else that Deputy Allen had happened by when he did.
Everything had gotten more complicated after Budge and Ray Don had made their attempt to keep her from testifying. Sheriff Jack had become an unwilling accomplice in continuing to deceive her parents. It had taken some fast talking to convince him to go along with her story of taking a header down some steps. As humiliating as it was that he knew about her home life, it had probably tipped the balance for his cooperation. While Calleigh had hated the pity she'd seen in his eyes, she hadn't been above using it to achieve her goal. The DA hadn't cared what she told her parents so long as she testified.
Her brothers had been a harder task. At first, Teej had wanted everyone to know what she'd done. He thought she'd been heroic. It had taken a while to make him understand there'd been nothing heroic in arriving too late. Mr. Rad was dead and it turned out she'd been depressingly correct when she'd told him Miz Maudie probably wouldn't recover. After Budge and Ray Don had tried to kill her, he'd been quite willing not to say anything at all. He'd been terrified someone else would try.
Pie had been another problem altogether. At eleven years old, the most he'd known about death was the passing of Great-granddaddy Burke, so the violence done to the Ashbys was well beyond the realm of his experience. Not knowing how to deal with his shock and grief, he'd turned to anger instead and, with the rationale of a child, he'd aimed that anger at his once infallible older sister. She should have done something. In hindsight, Calleigh realized she hadn't handled Pie well at all, although in her defense, she'd been more traumatized than he. Pie had been sullenly trailing behind her when the Burrus brothers made their move and to his credit, had tried to stop them. He'd had no chance against the two men and that added guilt to everything else that was festering. He'd become even more angry with her. Things had never been the same between them and even at this late date, they were still estranged.
Alexx frowned slightly, watching how Calleigh hesitated while looking at Kenwall. It was apparent she was reluctant to say anything in front of her father. The ME reached out and touched the blonde's arm, getting a startled look in reply. Alexx wrote quickly on the pad and then handed it over. Calleigh's eyebrows lifted high in surprise as she scanned the message and then stared at Kenwall, "You know? How? When?"
Confused, Kenwall glanced at Alexx. "The Burrus brothers," she clarified quietly.
His face cleared somewhat as he looked back at Calleigh and nodded. He gestured towards the pad and she handed it over. Pulling out a pen, he quickly scrawled, 'Tolley - long time.' Kenwall gave the pad back and waited uneasily, not sure how she would react.
Calleigh read the words twice before looking back up at her father, "All this time, you knew and never said anything?" She wasn't sure what to feel. It was so far in the past and yet still hurt. She could have used some sort of support during that awful time. She could have used a father.
Kenwall sighed, his eyes dropping down and then put his hand out for the pad. Silently, Calleigh gave it back and watched as he scribbled out his message. She sighed herself when she read what he'd written. 'After the trial - ashamed - didn't know how.' It didn't make it easier but it did make sense - now. His drinking had jumped around that time and he'd been both depressed and angrier than she'd ever seen him. Between him and Pie, the family had spiraled out of any semblance of control, pushing her to contemplate things she'd never considered before. Then Sheriff Jack started dropping in unexpectedly in the evenings. It had embarrassed the hell out of her but it also kept things from getting any more out of hand. He'd always made it clear the visits weren't official as he chatted with her father about past investigations and cases. Gradually, the family dynamic returned to about as normal as it had ever been. She found herself turning to Tolley like she had to the Ashbys for a much-needed adult voice of reason. He'd been patience itself and, as with everything else in her life, she'd been extremely careful on how and when she approached him. When she finally gathered her nerve to pursue college, she'd decided to get into law enforcement. Jack Tolley had shown her how to temper authority with compassion.
Kenwall waited until she looked at him again before saying, "I'm so sorry, darlin'."
Calleigh nodded slowly. She couldn't hear him but it was easy enough to know what he was saying. When he cautiously opened his arms, she didn't hesitate to move into his embrace and hug him tightly. "It's okay, Dad," she said quietly. It would be, eventually, as she sorted through everything. Pulling back after a few moments, Calleigh looked over at Alexx and smiled a little. The ME was studiously gazing in the opposite direction. She cleared her throat, "Alexx?"
Alexx turned back with a warm smile, "Yes, baby?"
"What's wrong with me? Why can't I hear?" She felt her father grasp her hand as she focused on her friend. Whatever was going on had to be temporary. She wasn't feeling that bad physically. Some things hurt a little more than others - her wrists, forearm, shoulder and she could feel the vestiges of what had to have been a killer headache. None of it compared to what she'd gone through with Owens and that hadn't affected her hearing.
Alexx shook her a head a little and then accepted the pad Kenwall extended towards her. This wasn't going to be easy. She wrote out her message and gave it to the blonde.
Calleigh read the note and then looked up at Alexx, confused, "What do you mean there's no physical damage? I CAN'T hear anything. It's not something you can just turn off and on." Her face flushed and a scowl started at the look Alexx gave her, "Are you kidding? You think I'm CHOOSING not to hear? That I want this? For god sakes, I'm NOT crazy! Why the hell would I want to be deaf?" She turned towards her father and her eyes widened at the look on his face. Shaking off the hand he'd placed on her shoulder, Calleigh glared at him, "You, too? I don't believe this! What's wrong with you two?"
Alexx took the pad, wrote furiously for a minute and then pushed it back. Calleigh accepted it reluctantly and frowned, "I know I was feverish out there. What emotional shock? I mean, I'm sorry that guy died. I didn't mean to kill him but it was self defense. He was trying to kill me." She stared at Alexx as she lifted up her arm, "And the fever didn't happen until later when this got infected."
She waited somewhat impatiently as Alexx wrote out her reply. What she read had her shaking her head, "No, I don't remember how I was rescued. I'm still alive so the Burruses didn't find me first." She shot a quick glance at her father, "Did they get away?" If they had, that would explain why Alexx was here and not Eric. He could still be out helping look for them. The last time she'd been hospitalized, it seemed like he was there every time she opened her eyes. She firmly quashed the little thread of despair that he was staying away on purpose, that he'd helped rescue her merely out of a sense of obligation or loyalty to Horatio.
She sighed a little to herself. If she'd had any backbone at all when it came to Eric, she would have made the break with the lab permanent after John killed himself. Left to herself, she probably would have but Horatio had appeared on her doorstep and refused to leave her alone until she agreed to come back. That had been such a horrible time - she'd felt completely out of control of her emotions. The man had been damn lucky she hadn't just shot him for being so annoyingly stubborn. Calleigh had finally acquiesced on the condition that she took some leave first. She'd desperately needed to get away from Miami. Calleigh had used the time off to re-evaluate her life and to do some traveling. During that time, she'd also interviewed at a couple different labs across the country. It certainly helped her self-esteem to find that most were willing to hire her right on the spot. It was Mac Taylor in New York who cautioned her to take more time before jumping into anything. He was a perceptive man.
In the end, she'd found herself in Germany for a three week visit with her brother, Teej. He'd joined the army right out of high school and been stationed overseas for the last seven years. Teej was a mustang. He'd started out enlisted, gone to night school and worked his way up to become an officer. He'd just made Captain and she happily helped him celebrate with his family and friends. Teej had married about five years earlier while stationed in Japan and now had a son and daughter, four and two, respectively. His wife, Ioki, was a lovely woman. She was a medical doctor and worked on base, part-time. It gave the family a little extra income without cutting too deeply into time spent with their children.
Calleigh fit right in with his circle, military and law enforcement mindsets were remarkably similar. It didn't hurt that his fellow officers weren't shy in vying for her attention. Their admiration only increased when Teej bragged about her proficiency with firearms. Knowing she was just there for a visit kept things light as they turned their pursuit into good-natured competition. It was flattering and downright therapeutic.
Although Calleigh had kept up with her brother's life by phone, email and letter, she hadn't really talked that much with his wife. It had been a little awkward at first as she and Ioki searched for common ground but each was determined to like the other and in the end, they were well on their way to becoming good friends. Teej was a lucky man - a fact Calleigh enjoyed pointing out to him as often as possible in front of Ioki. It eased her heart to see him so happy. Here was one life she hadn't somehow ruined. It wasn't until the day before she was scheduled to leave that Teej managed to drag her away for some serious one-on-one conversation. Truthfully, she'd been doing her best to avoid it, preferring to bask in someone else's happiness. He'd seen through it, of course, and had been waiting patiently. He knew her too well for her defenses to work and in the end, she wound up telling him everything - from Tim's death to Hagan's suicide. It hadn't been easy on either of them. She'd had to relive things best forgotten while he'd cycled between being sad, appalled, furious and guilty for not being there to help. She tried to keep Eric out of it but Teej had become irritatingly perceptive over the years and figured that part out, too. He'd been sympathetic but he'd also told her to go back to Miami - her life was there and she needed to deal with it.
She'd come back, determined to handle whatever else life could throw at her and life, in its perversity, had thrown quite a bit. Alexx had been a rock. Ryan and Frank had continued to hover as unobtrusively as possible, attempting the near impossible task of watching out for her without actually incurring her wrath. It was warmly exasperating. The only one who limited contact with her was Eric, despite his words about remaining friends. Stoically, she'd watched as his relationship with Natalia developed. She'd sucked it up, telling herself it was no more than she deserved. Horatio and Marisol provided a welcome distraction. She was both glad he'd finally found someone and worried about how he would handle her eventual death. The marriage announcement after only a few months took her and everyone else by surprise. Knowing how Eric felt about it dampened her pleasure somewhat. She picked up a wedding gift for the two but declined to attend the wedding itself. If Eric did show up for his sister, it would have been terribly awkward. She didn't want to mar a day of happiness for her mentor and his soon-to-be wife.
Then the Mala Noche had struck, shattering both Horatio and Eric's lives. She'd been with Eric at the scene of the probable sniper's nest when he got the word that his beloved sister had died of her wound. She'd stood there and offered empty words of condolence. He'd been brittle with barely suppressed rage and sorrow. She'd been afraid to physically touch him, not knowing if he'd shatter or explode. She'd hadn't been sure she could handle either one. When he and Horatio had flown to Rio to seek revenge, she'd done nothing to stop them. She understood what they needed to do even if she didn't believe it was the smartest move for either of them. Instead, she took over the lab and did her best to restore some equilibrium. It was all she had to offer.
Gradually, Calleigh realized someone was lightly rubbing her shoulder. Blinking rapidly, she took a calming breath before looking over at Alexx with a half-smile, "Sorry, got lost in thought for a minute."
Alexx nodded with warm smile of her own. From Calleigh's expression, Eric had been occupying a good deal of those thoughts. She'd seen that half-despairing look before. As much as Alexx thought of Eric, she could have also strangled him when he turned to Natalia Boa Vista. It had complicated everything between him and Calleigh. The blonde had predictably been hurt, and also predictably, had been upset with herself about feeling hurt.
And then there was Horatio - since Marisol's death, he'd changed. Alexx wasn't particularly happy about it but his self-isolation had been harder on Calleigh. It wasn't just the extra responsibilities that had been dumped in her lap. He'd practically stopped talking to her altogether and Alexx knew that had hurt her young friend. Some days it seemed like he had more concern for the victims than the people he led. Compassion was commendable but not at the expense of his team. It had taken the Burrus brothers to bring back a semblance of the man he'd been. Taking a breath to brace herself, Alexx slowly pushed the pad towards the blonde. This wasn't going to be pretty. It was apparent her friend was suppressing a good deal of what happened out there in the 'Glades. As Calleigh began to read, the ME directed a look at Duke, "Be ready. I don't think she's going react well."
Kenwall refrained from rolling his eyes. As far as he was concerned, she already wasn't reacting well. It was going to get worse?
Calleigh's face blanched as she started to read what Alexx had written. Her head shot up, staring at the ME, her voice was barely above a whisper, "No! That can't be true! I'd remember!" Her gaze dropped to the pad again, "How could I...?" She looked from Alexx to her father, "It's not... this is a mistake. It must be."
Alexx put a hand on Calleigh's shoulder again and shook her head when the blonde looked her way, "Baby, I'm sorry. It's true."
Calleigh pulled away, shaking her head. How could she forget?
Alexx tapped the pad, repeating slowly what she'd written for emphasis, "He's alive, baby. He's going to recover."
Calleigh concentrated on Alexx as she spoke. It was getting easier to get the gist of what the ME was saying even if it wasn't any easier to take. How the hell could she not remember Horatio getting shot? That the EMTs had taken him here to Ryder told her what Alexx hadn't elaborated on, that he'd been badly wounded. "Can I see him?" If she could see him, it might be easier to believe that he'd be okay. Would he forgive her for nearly getting him killed? Considering the distance lately between them, she didn't have a hell of a lot of hope. Assuming he didn't fire her outright, he'd probably sever all contact with her until she gave up and either transferred or quit.
Alexx shared a look with Kenwall. This kept getting worse. Yelena hadn't softened her stance at all and Horatio hadn't recovered enough to handle the stress of dealing with her. Eric was still the only one getting in on virtue of being family. As much as Yelena might have liked to stop him, her claim to Horatio was no stronger than his. Delko had pointed that out to her rather forcefully when she had attempted to curtail his visits. He'd also told Alexx he didn't think Horatio could handle being as angry as he'd probably be when he found out what Yelena was doing. They'd have to wait a while longer.
Duke patted her leg and gestured for the pad. Quickly, he scribbled down a reply, handing it back while glancing at Alexx. Calleigh's shoulders slumped a little as she read. She looked at her father, "They're limiting his visitors to family only?" Damn, she didn't qualify by any stretch of the imagination.
Kenwall nodded, saying slowly, "For now." He didn't look at Alexx. She and Eric had told him about Yelena's issues with his daughter as gently as they could. He'd been annoyed that all her animosity was based on a fallacy but, he'd also conceded that she was entitled to her opinion. Now, however, it seemed as if Calleigh's recovery might be facilitated by seeing that her mentor and boss was recovering, too. That was all the reason he needed. It was time he confronted Ms. Salas.
