Chapter 24

Without Rudy or Doctor Corinth to assist him, Michael found Jaime's surgery especially difficult and treacherous. There were no more true 'gateways' (although in actuality, Michael knew nothing about those) but he had to approach one of her problems at a time, starting (of course) with the surgical site. It was, indeed, 'weeping' blood and needed careful attention and repair. He then moved on to her left arm, which at first glance had appeared broken but turned out to be only very badly bruised. She had suffered severe bruising and some slight internal bleeding in the areas where the straps had secured her to the gurneys, but he found that - for the most part - these had repaired themselves. Moving on to her already-damaged bionics, he found that thankfully they had sustained no further injury. The power packs were intact, the new plasticine had held everything in place and her legs required no attention other than a quick (but very thorough) once-over. She would be in considerable pain for a long time...and the road to recovery that she had so joyously, finally headed down would need to be begun all over again. But she was stable and he was gratified to be able to pass that news along to Mark (to give to Steve, who was not yet allowed out of his own bed in the surgical unit).

Jaime would be moved to the ICU, and with any luck, Steve would still be able to keep his promise to her, to be at her side when she woke up. For the time being, Michael made the somewhat difficult decision to keep her in a medically-induced coma, to allow her badly-insulted brain (and the rest of her injuries) some time to heal without movement or interruption.

Steve spent several hours in surgery, under the hands of a surgeon who'd been very carefully chosen by Michael for his credentials and his confidentiality. He'd spent a little time at Rudy's DC Facility a few years prior and thus was aware of the existence of bionics; he would not need to be debriefed or 'warned' by a team of OSI agents about the need to keep things quiet. Steve's liver had been badly lacerated but was able to be carefully repaired without any apparent loss of tissue. Other nearby organs were bruised but if they had bled it was only slightly and no repairs would be required. He would also experience some intense pain but - Steve being Steve - would insist on ignoring it to be with his wife and to help tend to his daughter. When he first opened his eyes after surgery, he found Mark directly by his bed (instead of in a quiet corner across the room) and Mark was holding a sleeping Becca in his arms. In spite of pain that would've made almost anyone wince and call for more painkillers...Steve smiled at the sight of his comfortable (and apparently happy) little girl.

''Jaime...?'' he asked Mark hopefully.

''She's pulling through nicely,'' Mark told him. ''Michael's still working on her - and it'll be awhile - but she's hanging in there, Steve. Much stronger than when she was on the plane already. She'll be in a coma for awhile, but everything looks very, very hopeful.''

''That's...wonderful...'' Steve whispered before giving in to exhaustion and falling back to sleep.

Rudy, too, was already fighting his way back to full consciousness - although he made no insistence at being released or even allowed out of bed. His own cardiologist had arrived right on schedule and was now working alongside the doctor who had kept Rudy stable for that first hour, on a treatment plan for a man who was known to be a difficult patient, once he'd begun to heal even a little bit. It would take longer this time - as it had been his first full-on cardiac arrest, rather than just an 'incident' - but his regular doctor warned the new man that recalcitrance and even cantankerousness could be just around the corner with this beloved but very stubborn patient.

Oscar was still back in Los Angeles, alternating his time between the OSI and NSB Headquarters. Russ was secured at OSI, as it was felt he'd been traumatized enough without being locked in The Hole on top of it all - and since he'd been locked up and had no further contact with Anna, there was no possibility he'd tampered with the plane. Jack Hansen was getting a taste of his own 'Hole' cell, while his possible complicity in all that had happened could be investigated and (hopefully) a conclusion reached. According to the pilot, he'd lost ALL functions in ALL instruments at once and had no way left to stabilize or regain control of the plane. There had been no lightning strike or even turbulence; this had been sabotage, clear and simple...but how? And who had done it?

Jaime was finally moved into her bed in the ICU and - deep in her medically-induced coma - she could finally hear as well as see her parents. They were smiling at her. ''You made the right choice, Darling,'' Ann confirmed. ''I know how difficult it was for you, but your young doctor is an excellent one; he'll ensure you suffer as little discomfort as possible while you recover.''

''Then...I will recover?'' Jaime asked. ''I'll still be able to walk and talk again - and not have lost everything I've already had to fight for?''

''There will be difficult times ahead,'' James explained. ''You will have to battle your way back...but you are our daughter - and Rudy's too, now - and you'll have the ability to do that. Just be patient with yourself - and even more patient with the people around you, who will do everything they can to help you. You just need to let them. Accept their help graciously and without argument, and Becca will have her mother back, Steve will have his wife back and - most importantly - you will have yourself back.''

''Promise?'' Jaime asked.

Ann nodded, with her brightest smile. ''That's a promise.''

END OF EPISODE 5 - TBC IN EPISODE 6

- - - - -