A/N: Well, here it is; the end of the story. This is the final chapter. I enjoyed writing this story, and I'm very glad that you enjoyed reading it. Thank you so much for all of your reviews. Your suggestions were great, and your comments often made me laugh. Did you have a favorite scene (or scenes) overall? Favorite quote(s)? Character(s)? If so, who/what?
Enjoy this last chapter!
Chapter 37
ONE WEEK LATER
Jack shifted slightly in bed as he adjusted the sheets covering him. It was early enough in the morning that it was still dark, but he was wide awake. He had no idea what time it was, but he had a feeling that Dr. Holcomb's staff would be beginning their morning rounds soon. Once they did, chances were slim that he would be able to go back to sleep. Following the doctors' rounds, breakfast trays were delivered and the clinic came to life with a whirlwind of activity.
Dr. Holcomb had declared him strong enough to begin physical therapy, and he had met his therapist the previous afternoon. She was a dark-haired, cheerful young woman named Caitlin, with a friendly smile, and a determined and stubborn nature that easily matched Jack's.
Their first session together had been short, but for Jack it had been grueling. With the help of Caitlin, Audrey, and Dr. Holcomb, Jack had managed a short walk across the room to the bathroom. Even that pitifully short distance had left him trembling and exhausted, and Jack grimly realized that it was going to be a very long time before he would be able to return to work at CTU.
Jack pushed the blankets back and, with effort, sat up. He wasn't supposed to get out of bed without help, but this morning he felt like bending the rules. He slid forward until his feet touched the floor, gripped the bed railing tightly, and pushed himself upright into a standing position. His head reeled, and the floor lurched and swayed beneath his feet. Jack gripped the railing even tighter and closed his eyes until he regained his balance and the room stopped spinning.
Slowly, painstakingly, Jack hobbled the mercifully short distance to the window across from his bed. He was trembling by the time he had completed the short walk, and he grabbed the window ledge to keep from falling. He sank onto the wide, thickly padded window seat with a sigh of relief. The window glass was cool to the touch, and Jack leaned back and rested his head against the glass. It was too dark to see anything beyond the window, but he gazed into the murky blackness.
"Jack?" Startled, he turned to find Dr. Holcomb standing in front of him. "You're up early."
"I couldn't sleep," Jack said curtly.
Dr. Holcomb glanced at Audrey, who was curled up in the recliner next to Jack's bed. She was wrapped in a cocoon of blankets and sleeping soundly. "Did Audrey help you, or did you make it over here by yourself?"
"By myself."
Dr. Holcomb hesitated. "Please, be very careful," was all that he said. Jack smiled slightly as he nodded. "I came to do a vitals check," Dr. Holcomb added. Obligingly, Jack sat still as the doctor checked his pulse, heart rate, and temperature, and recorded the numbers on his chart.
"Your stats are a little high," Dr. Holcomb said wryly, "but that could be because you're still very weak and you just walked across the room by yourself." Jack ducked his head as his lips curved in a small smile.
"What time is it?" he asked.
The doctor checked his watch. "Just a few minutes past five o'clock. Sunrise will be soon. Would you like to go outside and see it?"
Jack nodded. "Yes, please."
Dr. Holcomb smiled. "All right, then. Let me go find a chair and some blankets for you." He left the room, returning shortly with a wheelchair and an armful of thick blankets. "Do you need help to get your shoes on?"
Jack stiffly opened and closed his right hand, and held up his thickly bandaged and casted left arm. "That'd be nice."
"No problem." Dr. Holcomb knelt and picked up the sturdy white tennis shoes that Caitlin had left, and slipped one onto Jack's right foot. Getting the left shoe on over the bulky cast and brace on Jack's left leg proved to be impossible, so the doctor left that one off. "One shoe on, one shoe off," he remarked, neatly tying the laces of the right shoe. "Isn't that a nursery rhyme?"
"Wee Willy Winky," Jack said with a small smile. "My daughter used to love that rhyme when she was little. I think Willy was missing a sock instead of a shoe, though."
"Close enough." Dr. Holcomb laughed. "Here, let's get you in the chair." Slowly, patiently, he helped Jack walk the short distance to the wheelchair and carefully settle into it. "There we go."
Audrey opened her eyes and sat up. "Jack?" she said sleepily. "Where are you going?"
"Outside, to see the sunrise," he told her. "Want to come?"
"Sure. Just let me get my shoes on and grab a jacket." Quickly, she slipped her feet into her shoes and pulled a light jacket on over her pajama top and pants. "There, I'm ready."
The long hallway was dark and silent. They moved as quietly as possible, trying not to disturb any of the sleeping patients in other rooms. Slowly, stealthily, Dr. Holcomb opened the door at the end of the hallway and maneuvered Jack's wheelchair over the threshold.
Behind the clinic building was a courtyard filled with beautiful, brightly colored plants and trees. A small fountain gurgled softly as water trickled through it, and birds and insects fluttered between the plants during the day. Patients came here with their families to share a quiet moment together, and staff often came for a brief escape from their hectic, busy schedules.
Dr. Holcomb brought Jack's wheelchair alongside the sturdy wooden bench that was positioned conveniently under a particularly large tree. "Here you go." He helped Jack climb from the wheelchair and carefully settle onto the bench. Audrey sat down next to him, wrapping them both tightly in one of the thick blankets that the doctor had brought.
Sensing that they wanted and needed to be alone, Dr. Holcomb parked the wheelchair next to the bench and quietly backed away. He slipped back into the building, pulling the door closed behind him.
The sky was beginning to lighten from a murky black to a dusky gray. Slowly, the gray gave way to a bright rainbow of colors splashed across the sky in streaks of red, orange, blue, and purple. In a few moments, the sun appeared on the horizon, a fiery orange ball of light. It was a breathtaking sight, peaceful yet so powerful. Jack closed his eyes and turned his face towards the sun, basking in the light and warmth.
Audrey moved closer, nestling into the crook of Jack's arm and resting her head against his chest. He felt and heard her soft laugh as he played with a silky strand of her hair, running it through his fingers. They sat silently together, watching as the sun's light spread around them, chasing away the night's shadows and illuminating the grass, trees, and plants.
Jack took a deep breath, filling his nose with the sweet scent of flowers and plants. After months of torture in a living hell, it had come to this. Instead of staring at steel bars and a cracked concrete wall, he was sitting with the woman he loved, watching the dawn of a new day.
At last, he was at peace.
THE END