Chapter 25

Jack and Tim walked into the hospital, determination in their stride, they rode the elevator in silence, and once on the ward they quickly walked over to Amy who was sitting in the waiting area, her head down, her eyes despondent.

"Amy, "Jack said softly, wrapping her small form in his arms, "what happened,"

"It's. Jeremy, "she sobbed, "he called me when I went to see Ty, he's done something to him grandpa" tears ran down her face as she buried her head into his chest.

Tim touched her shoulder gently, anguish on his face, he didn't know how to fix this for her,

"he's in a coma, "Amy finally said, "and they don't know why!"

It was another hour before the doctor came to see Amy,

He smiled at her, Jack and Tim, sitting in front of them.

"the blood tests are back, it seems Ty has received an overdose of benzodiazepine. This has caused him to lapse into the coma and not respond to stimuli, "

Amy looked at Dr Harrison, her hands clenched" how did this happen, he had a guard on his door!"

Dr Harrison looked down, and shook his head, "I don't know how to answer that Amy, but I can tell you that we have tightened the security around Mr. Borden now we are aware of the threat to his safety. I have spoken to Officer Parker and there will be tighter measures moving forwards,"

Amy smiled weakly, she knew it wasn't the doctors fault or the hospitals, it was Jeremy, he had found a way to get at Ty without them realizing, Amy could not allow him to hurt Ty again, she had to end this.

"so, what's going to happen to Ty?" Jack asked, "how can you fix this?"

"well, his blood toxicology report shows high levels of diazepam, double the prescribed amount that he was currently on for his pain management, "Dr Harrison paused, "there is no record of this double dose on his chart, so I can't answer you on how this happened,"

He looked at Amy and tried to reassure her, "Ty is currently unresponsive and experiencing low lung sounds. My concern is that as he is still recovering from the ECMO his cardiac system is not as strong as we would like it to be, "

"what does that mean?" Amy asked, holding her breath

"we have administered a Gastric lavage on Ty in an attempt to remove as much of the drug as we can from his system "

Amy looked at him in confusion

"a tube is placed into the stomach through the mouth and that is used to empty the stomach of its contents." He explained, "we have also used activated charcoal solution "

"so, he's ok then, you counteracted the drug?" Tim interjected, "the drug that was given to him in this hospital, under your watch!"

Jack looked at Tim and shook his head slowly. Tim's angst was not going to help this situation.

"Tys breathing and heart rate is a concern, I have put on a cardiac and brain monitor and we are assisting his breathing with an artificial respirator, "

Amy's eyes widened at the word respirator," your breathing for him!"

"Amy, until the drug is out of his system we run the risk of respiratory arrest, although Ty did not show signs of that at the moment, the respirator is precautionary, as soon as he regains consciousness, it will be removed,"

"and when will that most likely be?" Tim snapped, squeezing Amy's shoulder,

"I'm hoping to see some response to stimuli within the next 24 hours, if we don't, then we will look at other treatment options,"

Dr Harrison stood up and touched Amy's shoulder,

"he's responding well, we just need to wait and let the affects wear off and hope Ty can maintain his current status until then"

"Can I see him?" Amy asked, standing up also, Jack and Tim right behind her,

"of course, just be aware the respirator can look a bit scary, but it's just a precaution, talk to him, let him hear you voices, it will assist with keeping him calm and encourage him to wake up,"

Amy nodded and the doctor left, Jack, Tim and Amy went into Ty's room and she stopped dead, her feet planted to the floor.

Ty was lying flat on his back, his eyes closed, his mouth not visible under a respirators mask, a tube lead to a machine that pumped air through an artificial bladder bag, it clicked and wheezed as it breathed for him.

Jack took her hand and they walked to the side of the bed, Amy touched Tys hand that was lying motionless by his side, she noticed his fingernails had turned blue as had the corners of his lips which were just visible under the mask,

He had diodes on his temples and on his chest, and Amy could hear the familiar beep beep from the heart monitor again.

"this is all Jeremy's fault" she said calmly, the fear disappearing from her tone and a quiet anger now taking hold.

"geez," Tim said under his breath, "this kid can't catch a break, look at him Jack! we have to do something! This isn't right,"

Jack locked eyes with Tim, their gaze speaking to each other without the use of words,

"he said I have to meet him, "Amy said coolly, still staring at TY,

"when?" Tim responded turning her to face him, "where?"

" George Lane Memorial Park, "Amy said, her words lost in her solace. "4:30pm tomorrow"

"Right, then he's going to meet me instead of you!" Tim vented, "let's see how he handles a taste of his own medicine!"

"Tim!" Jack interjected, shooting him a warning glance, then returning his gaze to Amy," have you told the police about this message?"

Amy slowly shook her head, "not yet, I didn't want to make it any worse, but now, seeing what he's done, he has to be stopped Grandpa, they have to catch him and make him pay for this"

Amy slowly moved forward, and kissed Tys cheek, "hey you, "she breathed, "please don't leave me, I can't do this without you,"

The heart monitor beeped the respirator inhaled, but there was not response from Ty,

"I'm going to call Officer Parker, "Jack said coolly, and motioned to Tim to follow him out of the room,

The two older gents walked past the guard and slightly down the hall, leaving Amy with Ty,

"so, we go and meet up with this pony boy and end this, right?" Tim said, watching for Jacks reaction,

"We will tell the police about the text, but I'm not putting Amy in any more danger, we handle this now ok, "he said, a steel glint in his eyes, "we end this"

Tim nodded and they shook hands, cementing their pact.

"So, what do we do if the Police tell us to keep out of it?" Tim interjected,

"we respect their authority, "Jack replied, placing his hand inside his jackets pocket and pulling out Amy's phone" we respect their right to arrest this little git after we have a few words to him ourselves"

Tim smiled as he saw the phone, "Jack!, you old dog! You're more devious than I am"

Jack rolled his eyes, and handed the phone to Tim, "Tell him we have his money and we want to meet tonight, "

Tim nodded and started to type on Amy's phone, briefly looking up to smile at Jack who straightened his hat and called the police with his own cell.

"Officer Parker, I have some information for you regarding Jeremy Hughes, he's contacted Amy again, a text this time, wanting to meet up tomorrow, "he paused listening to the police on the line "I have another idea though, I think it's time we put the ball back into our court, what do you say?"

Tim chuckled under his breath determination on his face, and hit SEND

Jeremy heard his phone beep, but he didn't get up, his head was killing him, he shut his eyes, and tried to focus, but the throb behind his eyes just continued.

He slowly sat up, and got off the bed, his hand on his temple, rubbing it slightly in a circular motion,

He walked over to the table in his hotel room and popped the pill jar, spilling the little blue pills across its surface,

He fumbled two into his mouth, unscrewed the cap of a bottle of water and drank them down.

The pain was getting worse, it was making it harder to concentrate, to focus, he needed a clear head, especially now he was so close to ending this mess.

Jeremy lent against the wall, squinting his eyes up in pain, then in an attempt to free himself from the agony, he hit his head hard against the wall.

Stunned for a moment, he slid down to the floor, ending up siting with his legs splayed out against the wall.

He opened his eyes, and looked towards the balcony door, the curtain blowing in the winter wind,

"this will all be over soon" he breathed, shutting his eyes and trying to turn off his brain.

It was another 30 minutes before Jeremy opened his eyes and looked around the room, the pain in his head had subsided, and normality had returned to his mind,

These attacks where getting closer together, and more intense, the pain medication didn't seem to be as effective as it used to be.

He rubbed his eyes and stood himself up, feeling the slight bump on the side of his head from where he had hit the wall.

He walked over towards the bed, and picked up his phone from the bedside, looking at the message

{I have your money, it's today or its never, I'll be at the main gazebo at George Lane 5pm}

Jeremy looked at the message, a uncertain smile playing on his think lips.

Could this all be over by the end of the day. He was expecting Amy to push the boundaries on this, maybe his demonstration towards Ty had made her realize how futile is was to fight him.

He touched his phone, his fingers pressing the screen

Tim tapped Jack on the shoulder and showed him Amy's phone

{5:30pm don't be late}

"he took the bait!" Tim smiled, "I can't believe he's that's stupid!"

"well we want him to be stupid" Jack retorted, "not a word of this to Amy ok, not a word,"

They walked back towards Tys room,

"I'll delete the messages, "Tim said quietly as they nodded at the guard and entered the room.

Jack saw Amy leaning forward in her chair, her arms folded over Tys chest her head down fast to sleep.

He slowly walked over to her and touched her shoulder,

"Amy, "He whispered,

She opened her eyes, looking back up at Ty who hadn't changed,

"Grandpa." She smiled weakly,

"how is he doing?" he asked touching Tys still hand gently.

"no change, but I've been talking to him, that helps, right?"

Jack nodded and smiled at his granddaughter,

Tim's came to her side, touching her shoulder and handed her the cell phone,

"you left this in the waiting room" he lied, holding it out to her,

"oh really? Thank you, dad, I don't remember doing that,"

She pushed it into her pocket,

"Amy, "Tim said to his daughter," We are going to head out now, got to take care of the cows, do you want a lift back to heartland?"

Amy shook her head, she had come to the hospital in Tys truck and would drive back later in the evening. She was reluctant to leave Ty.

"we will see you later then "Jack said, motioning to Tim and heading to the door,

"stay with Ty Amy, He needs you "

Amy smiled at them as they left, then rested her arms across Tys midsection, she lowered her head and rested in on his chest, she felt so safe when she was near him,

Amy reached up and brushed the hair out of his eyes, caressing his handsome face,

"I love you Ty Borden" she whispered to him. Closing her eyes again and allowing her breathing to sync with his.

It was late afternoon when Amy woke, she had turned her phone to silent and put in in her pocket, so she would not be disturbed from her time with Ty.

Her eyes blinked open and she looked up at Ty who still was lost with in his coma. He hadn't moved at all from when she first came into the room.

Amy sat back, stretched her arms and arched her back, rubbing in slightly.

She reached for his hand and held it in hers, "Ty?" she said softly, watching his face,

"you have to wake up love, "Amy's head dropped, hiding her tears, she knew he couldn't see them, but Ty had told her his heart broke every time he saw her cry,

Suddenly, while she took a breath she felt a slight twitch in his hand, his fingers moved against hers.

Amy quickly looked up towards his face and watched as his eyes moved from side to side under his eyelids.

"TY!" she exclaimed, clasping his hand tighter, "yes, come on, come back to me"

The heart rate monitor started to pick up an increase in activity and sent out a beep. Amy rubbed his hand, trying to bring him around.

"Ty, come on" she pleaded, "open those eyes"

Slowly they flickered open, he looked dazed and seemed to look past her for a second. As the focus returned and he became aware of his surroundings and Amy, a look of panic filled his green eyes as he also became aware of the respirator that was breathing for him. He choked against it, fighting to breathe for himself.

"It's ok "Amy try to calm him, as his hand went up to the tube and mask that covered his mouth, trying to unclip it, his hands fumbling.

"TY, no, shh, "she tried to take his hands in hers but he fought against her, panic over taking him.

Ty felt like he was suffocating, with each attempt to inhale he could feel the tube down his throat, blocking his way, his lungs where burning as the machine forced air into them against Tys control.

The monitors where going mad when the Doctor and nurses came, in, Amy stepped back, terrified for Ty, she could see how much distress he was in.

"Ty!" Dr Harrison said sternly to him, leaning forward, gaining his attention. "you need to stop fighting the machine and let it do its job,"

Tys chest was moving quickly, he was struggling to control his body's reaction.

"you need to calm down TY, So I can take it out for you" The doc continued, "relax, just try to relax"

The two nurses held his arms gently by his sides as he shut his eyes and tried to let the machine take control.

When calm was restored, Dr Harrison, touched Tys arm "ok, I'm going to turn the respirator off now, I need you to hold your breath while we extract the ventilation tube, it will feel uncomfortable, but Ill do it as fast as I can, you must try to stay calm"

TY nodded, fear in his eyes, but he trusted Doctor Harrison,

The Doctor, touched the monitor and the machine went dark, Ty held his breath as the machine took its last pulse, the feeling of wanting to gag almost unbearable.

Amy watched as the medical team removed the respiration tube from his throat she winced as she heard Ty gag and gargle as it was pulled out.

When it was finally done, Ty inhaled quickly and the nurses wiped his mouth with gauze, releasing his arms from their grip.

"there you go, "Sister Bennet said, "now breathe in and out, I,2….3….4"

Ty's mouth was dry and his throat was raw from the tube, he swallowed and winced, but tried to stay calm, his eyes searched the room, past the doctor, the nurses.

"she right here Mr. Borden" Sister Bennet said, a slight smile on her red lip lined mouth, she motioned for Amy to come closer, which she did so she was in Tys field of vision.

As soon as his eyes found her, he calmed, Ty couldn't take his eyes off Amy.

"try not to talk for a little while ok, give your throat some time, I'll get you some ice shards" Dr Harrison said as he checked the heart rate monitor.

Amy came forward and took his hand, tears in her eyes, Ty watched her intently, his mouth slightly open, breathing slower than before.

"I'll come back in a while and check on you "Sister Bennet said as the medical team left the room.

Ty swallowed and tried to speak, but the words wouldn't come,

"Shhhh Ty," Amy soothed, pulling closer to him" you heard the doctor, don't try to talk!"

He nodded reluctantly, and reached over to her his hand finding her waist,

Amy readjusted the bed setting for him so he was sitting up slightly, His eyes never leaving hers.

Amy knelt on the bed next to him with one knee and he pulled forward to embrace her, his head nuzzling into the nape of her neck. TY wrapped his arms about Amy, holding her tight, never wanting to let her go.

"shhh, "she soothed, running her hand through his hair as his head rested on her chest. He could smell her scent, feel her soft Skin upon his face, the fear and panic subsided from his mind. All he could focus on was her, and being in her orbit.

The door opened again and a nurse came in, she stopped abruptly when she saw Amy embracing Ty.

Amy turned to look at her, seeing the look on her face.

"he's awake?" she said quietly, disbelief in her tone.

Ty heard the voice and opened his eyes seeing her from where his head rested upon Amy.

He smiled weakly, recognition on his features.

"he just woke, up," Amy replied. Still cradling his head. Not wanting to let go.

"oh, that's great, "she stammered, and came over to the bed to check his chart, Amy noticed she look worried and a little apprehensive.

"ok, well, um, Ill check with the doctor and get your meds," she said, stepping away from them and walking back to the door.

Ty slowly sat back up, Amy watched her curiously.

"what meds?" Dr Harrison didn't say anything about meds," Amy queried.

"oh, yes, that fine, Ill check with him first then" she smiled and quickly left the room.

Amy looked back at Ty who was now leaning back against his pillows again. He still had hold of her hand.

"is she one of your usual nurses?" Amy asked,

Ty nodded slowly, a small smile playing on the corner of his mouth,

"j…j….j"he croaked, wincing as his throat grated like sandpaper "jeal…..ou"

Amy rolled her eyes at him.

"no not jealous! just curious, "she said shortly, "I just haven't see her before today"

Tash ran into the staff bathroom and locked a stall. She put the toilet seat down and sat on it while she frantically dialed.

"he's awake," she whispered

The voice answered her,

"Yes, he's awake and conscious, she's in there with him now," She looked around the stall, panic on her pretty features, "what do I do, what If he remembers I gave him the pills? What if he tells the Doctor?"

She started to lose it, tears in her eyes.

"don't tell me not to PANIC!" she almost screamed under her breath, "it's not you who gave them to him!"

She heard the wash room door open and quickly quietened herself.

"tell me what to do? I need you to help me Jeremy!" she pleaded.

The voice talked to her for a few minutes and Tash nodded along.

"my shift finishes in 20 mins, "she said quietly, "I suppose I can do that, I'll meet you tonight ok, in our secret spot. "she paused as the other Person left the wash room, "I love you Jeremy"

There was silence on the line, then it went dead.

TO BE CONTINUED...