CALIFORNIA DREAMS
Chapter 35—Laughter, The Best Medicine

It was supposed to be over, and yet there they were again, standing in the driveway, with Strickland pointing his gun at Gabriella and Jack. Troy crouched behind the gas company van, waiting for his opportunity to tackle Strickland and disarm him. Suddenly, Gabriella's eyes raised to meet Strickland's, and she hissed, "Go to hell!" With an angry shout, Strickland pulled the trigger, and Gabriella collapsed onto the sidewalk as blood pooled around her. An animalistic cry ripped from Jack's chest, and he dove toward Strickland. The gun went off again, and Jack dropped to the ground beside his daughter-in-law. "NO!" Troy screamed, running to where they laid. His hands worked frantically over first his wife's body, then his father's. He needed to stop the bleeding, but he couldn't attend to both of them at the same time. Helplessly he knelt between them, torn, paralyzed with indecision. Then he heard the gun cock behind him…

Troy jolted awake to find himself safe in bed, albeit sweaty and shaken to the core. He glanced down to see Gabriella asleep beside him, and sighed with relief that he hadn't awakened her. As long as he lived, he would never be able to erase from his mind the image of Strickland holding Gabriella and Jack at gunpoint. It could so easily have turned out differently. Worse. Life-shatteringly worse. He took a few deep breaths to slow his racing heart, and then laid back down, pulling his wife gently onto his bare chest. Even in her sleep, she naturally nestled into him, and he further calmed himself by breathing in the sweet scent of her skin and feeling the gentle rise and fall of her breasts against him.

Jack had been worried about Troy after he'd witnessed Strickland being mortally wounded by the police, but it had not been a particularly upsetting scene for Troy. He'd seen plenty of gunshot victims in the ER, and frankly, he had felt a bit of perverse pleasure to witness Strickland's death. What haunted him was how close he'd come, again, to losing the love of his life. It was unimaginable, and yet it had been so close. What if his dad hadn't stayed an extra day to take care of Gabriella? What if Troy had ignored the warning phone call? What if he hadn't made it there in time? Gabriella had said he was her hero, but saving her was really saving himself, because he was certain that he wouldn't have been able to live without her. The intensity of his love for her threatened to overwhelm him, and he suddenly wished he had wakened her so he could stare into her beautiful brown eyes and then kiss her senseless. Instead, he settled for watching her sleep and placing soft kisses on her upturned face. She'd still be there in the morning. Thank God, he added silently before closing his eyes once again.

The remainder of the night was not very restful for Troy, and when he met his father in the kitchen the next morning, he could see that Jack hadn't gotten much sleep either.

"Morning," Jack greeted.

"Hey," Troy returned, rubbing his scratchy eyes.

"How's Gabriella doing?" Jack asked.

"She had a peaceful night, thanks to the sedatives Dr. Sheldon prescribed," Troy replied. "Which is more than I can say for either of us."

Jack nodded. "Yeah, I did a whole lot more thinking than sleeping." He gestured his coffee cup toward the newspaper on the island. "Front page article about Strickland in the Chronicle."

"Great," Troy muttered. "Anything new in there?"

"Nothing we didn't already know," Jack answered. "There's no mention of the suspected accomplice… they must be keeping that information quiet to avoid scaring him or her off. Any more ideas about who it was that called you yesterday?"

Troy shook his head. "I've replayed it in my mind a hundred times, and I've got nothing. It was so short, and honestly, with everything that happened after that, I don't even remember what her voice sounded like. But I just don't feel like it was someone I know."

"Well, whoever she is, she helped you get here in time to save Gabriella," Jack commented.

"Yeah, that's another reason I want to figure out who it was," Troy said. "Besides finding out how she knew about Strickland… I want to thank her."

Jack nodded solemnly. "Hard to imagine what it would've been like to lose you or Gabriella. It was way too close for comfort—I have a feeling that's why neither of us could sleep."

"Yeah. Dad, I want to thank you for everything you did for us yesterday," Troy told him quietly. "Protecting Gabriella, holding Strickland off, and…" A small smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. "And telling me to 'get my head out of my ass.'"

His father chuckled. "I heard that phrase from your mother enough when you decided to go to Berkeley instead of U of A."

Troy's eyes narrowed. "Dad, I know you didn't like that I supposedly gave up my dreams at U of A to follow Gabriella here, but it was the best decision I've ever made. If I'd stayed in Albuquerque, taken the scholarship, and listened to Chad's advice to let her go, I would have been miserable for the rest of my life."

"It may have taken me awhile to warm up to the idea of Berkeley, but it was absolutely the right decision for you," Jack told him. "Your mom and I love Gabriella as if she was our own daughter. She is part of our family now, and it's plain to see that you two belong together. A lot of couples wouldn't have been able to survive everything you've been through. The fact that you have shows how strong your relationship is."

Troy nodded philosophically. "It certainly hasn't been easy, but seeing how she's dealt with everything that's happened to her… If it's possible, I love her even more for it." His gaze became a bit dreamy, and his smile grew. "Speaking of the woman I love, I think I'll go check and see if she's awake."

Jack chuckled knowingly. "In that case, I think I'll plan to eat breakfast by myself."

When Troy returned to the bedroom, he was surprised to see Gabriella awake and sitting up on the edge of the bed.

"Hey, beautiful," he said. "I didn't know you were up."

She glanced up at him with concern evident on her face. His smile faded instantly. "Sweetheart, what's wrong?"

She lifted the pant leg of her pajamas to reveal that her injured knee was badly swollen.

"Whoa," he breathed as he knelt in front of her to take a closer look. "What happened?"

"I must've twisted it when I fell down the porch steps," she said quietly. "In all the excitement yesterday I didn't even pay attention to it hurting more than usual."

His hands moved carefully over the skin that stretched over the swollen joint, noting that it felt warm and squishy. "Does this hurt?" She shook her head. "Here?" Another head shake. "How about here?" Her sharp intake of breath answered his question. "I'm sorry, baby," he murmured. He reached for her hands, which were nervously knitting together in her lap.

"What if I messed it up again, Troy?" she asked, and he noticed the quiver in her voice. "What if I need more surgery? What if I have to start physical therapy all over again?"

He pushed to his feet and settled next to her on the edge of the bed, wrapping his arm around her waist. "Hey, sweetheart, don't get ahead of yourself here," he told her. "We'll ice it and see if we can get the swelling down. If that doesn't do the trick, then we'll go to the hospital and run an MRI to see what's going on. But in the meantime, I will be your personal valet." He stood and bent to scoop her up in his arms, but then oddly reconsidered and slung her arm around his neck. With his arm around her waist, he helped her into the living room, where he settled her on the couch and carefully placed pillows under her knee.

"You, Mrs. Bolton, need to stay right here," he instructed with a wink. "I'm going to make an ice pack for your knee, and then my dad can keep you company while I make breakfast." He glanced up to see that his dad had wandered in from the kitchen. "That all right with you, Dad?"

"Sounds good," Jack nodded. "Can I get you some coffee while we wait?"

"Okay," she replied, and after Jack retreated, she turned worried eyes back to Troy.

He halted her fretful questions by leaning over and covering her mouth with his. They both relaxed into the kiss, breaking apart only when Jack cleared his throat loudly from behind them. Troy straightened, and then bent once more to kiss her forehead.

"Don't worry, gorgeous," he told her. "Everything's going to be fine."

As the day progressed, Gabriella's knee continued to swell painfully, and Troy doted on his wife, waiting on her indulgently and doing his best to calm her anxiety. When it was time for Troy to take Jack to the airport, he bundled Gabriella into the car as well, and after Jack left for his return flight to Albuquerque, Troy took Gabriella to the hospital. Dr. Overman had agreed to meet them at the hospital even though the sports medicine clinic was closed that day.

After the MRI was complete, Troy waited with Gabriella in an exam room while Dr. Overman looked over the test results. He held her hand, and although she was quiet, she held herself together like a trooper. When Dr. Overman returned, he pulled up a seat next to Gabriella and took a deep breath.

"Good news and bad news, Gabriella," he began. Troy felt her tense, and squeezed her hand reassuringly. "There is fluid in several of the bursa sacs around your knee, caused by your fall yesterday. The good news is, your previous injury suffered no additional damage. The swelling you have now is treatable, and will only interfere with your physical therapy for a few days. Then you'll be able to get right back on track."

Gabriella blew out a breath. "That's a relief," she said, glancing up at Troy. He smiled down at her, but if the tightened muscles around his mouth were any indication, he knew what the bad news was going to be.

"Now the bad news," Dr. Overman continued. "I need to aspirate the fluid from the bursa sacs, and then I'll give you several corticosteroid injections to reduce the inflammation."

Gabriella frowned slightly, looking back and forth between the two men. "Okay, what are you not telling me? That sounds pretty straightforward… Why is it bad news?"

Troy squeezed her hand again. "Sweetie, it's a really painful procedure," he said regretfully.

Dr. Overman nodded, his serious face mirroring Troy's. "I'll insert a needle into each sac and draw the fluid into a syringe. Then the steroid injections will go directly into the bursa. It will be swollen and painful for a couple of days."

Gabriella sighed. "Are there any alternatives?" she asked, even though she knew that if there were any, they would have already been mentioned.

"Not really," Dr. Overman told her. "If we don't drain them and the bursa sacs get infected, we would have to consider surgery." He held up a hand to halt her protest. "I don't anticipate having to do that. This treatment, despite the level of discomfort it causes, is effective."

"Okay," Gabriella nodded resolutely. "Let's get it over with."

Twenty minutes later, Gabriella gritted her teeth as Dr. Overman inserted the first needle into her knee. He'd given her a local anesthetic to take the edge off, but she could still feel the heat and pressure of the needle probing beneath her skin. Beside her, Troy tightened his grip on her hand and rubbed her back reassuringly. She glanced up to find him watching her face, and gave him a tight smile.

"I'm okay, Troy," she told him just before her teeth sunk into her bottom lip as the second injection hit its mark. He grimaced slightly as his gaze shifted between her face and her knee.

When Dr. Overman was halfway finished, he paused. "How are you doing, Gabriella?"

"I think I'm coping better than Troy is," she observed. He was looking a bit paler than normal.

"What? No, I'm fine," Troy argued.

"I must say, Gabriella, you are handling this better than most patients I've treated," Dr. Overman told her.

She shrugged and glanced again at Troy. "Pain means that I'm alive," she said philosophically. "That's something I'm feeling particularly thankful for today."

Dr. Overman nodded and resumed his work, and Troy seemed to snap out of his daze long enough to resume his gentle rubbing of her back. Gabriella barely paid attention to the pain as the doctor finished the procedure, because she was watching the twitches and flinches on Troy's face. Something was definitely wrong, and he was obviously trying to hide it.

When Dr. Overman finally pulled out the last needle and reached for a swab to clean the area, he glanced up at Troy. "Dr. Bolton, I assume you know the follow-up treatment for your wife's knee?"

"Yeah," Troy answered automatically. "Rest, ice, compression, elevation."

"Good," Dr. Overman replied. "Gabriella, you can take your regular pain medication to ease the discomfort. If the swelling returns or the pain doesn't go away in a couple days, I want to see you back here. Barring any complications, you'll resume physical therapy on Tuesday. Rest until then." He waited for her to nod in understanding, and then turned to Troy. "Now, Dr. Bolton, are we going to take a look at that shoulder, or are you going to keep trying to act like nothing's wrong?"

Gabriella's gaze shot to Troy, and the pained expression on his face told her that the older doctor was right on target. "Troy!" she scolded. "You're hurt and you didn't tell me?"

"It's no big deal," he mumbled. "It's just a pulled muscle. Probably from when I tackled Strickland."

"Well, considering your profession, it's best not to take any chances," Dr. Overman told him. "Go get yourself an x-ray… Gabriella can wait here until you come back."

An hour later, Gabriella's phone rang as she watched Dr. Overman fit a sling onto Troy's left shoulder. She glanced at the screen to see that the call was from Albuquerque, and pressed the button to answer.

"Hi, Lucille," she greeted. "Jack made it in safely? Good, glad to hear it. No, I'm okay. No permanent damage, just some excess fluid that Dr. Overman drained. Yeah." She paused to look at Troy, who was pouting at his mentor. "We're still at the hospital… Troy has a mild shoulder sprain that the doctor is taking care of. No, Jack didn't know about it. Troy was trying to keep it to himself." Troy's gaze shot daggers at his wife, but she smiled sweetly at him. "Honey, your mom wants to talk to you."

"Great," he muttered before making his voice falsely cheerful. "Hi, Mom. No, I'm fine. It's no big deal. I know, but… yeah… No, Mom, I'm not trying to be Superman… Okay, yes, I promise… okay… Bye, Mom." He handed the phone back to Gabriella. "I'm so going to get you for that," he hissed.

She simply winked at him and ended the call just as Dr. Overman finished adjusting the sling. "Okay, Troy, you know the drill. Rest, ice, pain meds as needed, use the sling for at least twenty-four hours, whether you want to or not. You're off rotation until Tuesday."

"What?" Troy protested. "I can't be off that long! Dr. Gould will kill me!"

"Trust me, I've considered it," Dr. Gould interjected as she walked into the room. "But good residents are too hard to find." She winked at Gabriella, and then her face resumed its mock-sternness as her gaze shifted back to Troy. "Bolton, now that the psycho is gone, can I safely assume that you won't be running out in the middle of your shift again?"

"Yes, ma'am," he sighed.

She turned her attention to Dr. Overman. "Tuesday, huh?" He nodded, and she chuckled.

"Why is that funny?" Troy demanded.

She gestured at the young couple in front of her. "You two are like a walking advertisement for the Ortho Clinic," Dr. Gould snorted.

Gabriella's laughter bubbled behind him, and Troy realized with a start that it'd been a long time since he'd heard that sound. It filled him with warmth, and he chuckled in spite of himself as he turned to see the beautiful smile on her face.

"I'm not so good at the walking part right now," Gabriella replied, causing the laughter to erupt anew.

"And hey, if we're going to advertise for you, the least you can do is give us a discount for your services," Troy added.

"I've already given you the two-for-one special," Dr. Overman teased.

With a final guffaw, Dr. Gould turned to leave. "I'm glad things are finally resolved for you two," she told the couple sincerely. "See you Tuesday, Bolton."

Dr. Overman pulled off his gloves. "All right, does anyone else have any undisclosed injuries that we need to check out?" Troy and Gabriella shook their heads dutifully. "In that case, I'm heading home. We're having leftover turkey for the third night in a row… You've got to love the holidays, huh?"

"Thank you, Dr. Overman," Gabriella told him sincerely. "For taking care of both of us." He shook hands with Troy and left the room.

"Well, Mrs. Bolton, I don't know about you, but the mention of leftover turkey has my mouth watering," Troy said, smiling as she giggled again. He'd forgotten how much he loved that sound, and decided that while they were home together for the next couple of days, his top priority would be to provoke as much laughter as possible.

He helped her up and sat her in a nearby wheelchair, knowing he couldn't offer much help in supporting her weight. Pushing the wheelchair with one arm made steering difficult for him, and Gabriella had several near-misses with the corridor walls. Another giggle escaped her lips as she realized how ridiculous they looked.

"Troy, we really do look like a walking advertisement for the Ortho Clinic!" she laughed.

"Or a tipsy old couple with a list of ailments a mile long," he added with a grin.

"Come on, Ernie, let's go home," she played along.

"Right behind you, Maude," he laughed. "We need to get home before it gets dark."

"Oh, and Ernie," she replied, turning to wink at him. "If you play your cards right, I'll wear that flannel housedress you like so much."

"All right!" he beamed. "Looks like my teeth will be staying in at bedtime tonight!"

When they reached the car and Troy settled her inside, he bent to kiss her adoringly. "I love you, Maude."

"I love you too, Ernie," she giggled. "And I hope you're better at driving a car than you are with a wheelchair!"