About to be incognito for the rest of the day so here's another quickie…
Thanks for all the love!
Mike had been aware of his partner's presence for several minutes now, tuning his ears to the nervous shifting in the plastic hospital chair nearby, the occasional sigh and the incessant tapping of the young Inspector's cowboy boots against the sterile linoleum floors below.
Then there was that sweet, but slightly overbearing aftershave, a welcome reprieve from the antiseptic-filled hospital scents.
The trauma from the surgery along with the pain meds still made him feel sleepy, keeping his mind in a dense fog that took a long time to clear. The strong antibiotics had been messing with his system, causing his stomach to reject the idea of breakfast when he needed it the most, but Mike knew that healing would take time and that forcing things would do no good at this point.
So, he'd resigned to the fact that he'd spend a few extra days resting his worn-out body, using the time to catch up on some long-lost sleep and be ready to go when he returned to his desk.
At least that's what the rational part of his brain had told him.
The passionate, slightly more human part was growing nuts from boredom as he laid there, listening to the various machines and IV drips attached to his body, learning to tell which nurse walked by his room based on the cadence and length of their stride while wondering what was going on in the Homicide bullpen while he was "healing".
"Isn't it about time you start to give me one of those heartwarming motivational speeches to get me to regain consciousness and walk right out of here, Smiley? I've been waiting for an hour."
His carefully chosen words, aimed to spread some lightheartedness between both exhausted partners caused Steve to nearly jump out of his skin, the plastic hospital chair being pushed back a few inches, before a shaking hand appeared on his left forearm.
"Mike! I didn't know you were awake…"
Reaching over to cover the ice-cold fingers with the warmth of his palm, he slowly opened his eyes, blinking a few times to ward off the blurriness.
"I was listening to your gears grinding. There's a lot going on upstairs. Tell me about it, because brooding over it won't make it go away…"
"It's nothing worth mentioning…", the young Inspector quickly brushed off his concerns and leaned over some more, his curious green eyes taking in every square inch of his partner as if he had to reassure himself that Mike was still in one piece and would survive the ordeal.
"How are you feeling? Your pain level ok? I can get the doctor over here if you need anything. Just tell me what it is that hurts…"
"Would you quit that fussing? You're starting to sound like these nurses here. I am fine."
Accepting the answer with a halfhearted nod, Steve reached up to loosen his black tie, then straightened it out against his chest before clearing his throat again.
"Do you…do you want me to call Jeanie and let he know what happened?"
"Of course not. Why would I want her to worry unnecessarily? You're acting like I was on death's door. I will be fine. Relax. Have some coffee. Bring me some too, please?"
His shameless begging brought a mischievous smile to Steve's face, as he shook his head.
"Nice try…but you know that's off the list for now."
"What if I ordered you to get me one, for old time's sake?"
"What if I told you we're both off duty right now and you can't order me around? But if you asked me nicely to bring you some water, I'd be happy to."
"Keep the water…for now…"
Lowering his voice somewhat to mask his own impatience and aggravation with the current situation; Mike briefly ran a hand across his face, careful not to disturb the needle secured on the inside of his elbow.
"How are you feeling? I hear they ended up having to stitch you up pretty good."
Motioning toward the bandage on the side of Steve's neck, Mike cringed, the thought of all those cuts and blood loss bothering him greatly.
"I'm fine.", the young Inspector answered too fast, instantly earning himself a warning glare, "Just…sore. A bit…stiff perhaps."
"Whatever you do, do take it easy for a bit. You want that to heal properly and I need you in working condition when I…well, as soon as I get out of here. And do tell me, young Swami, how are things in the office? And you might as well forget trying to convince me that you haven't checked on things yourself by now…"
Coaxing another cheeky smile out of his partner, Mike joined in on the chuckles, relishing the hand that remained wrapped around his arm, a physical lifeline he needed more than ever these days.
"I didn't go in the office, if that's what you are insinuating, but I did talk to Norm this morning. He said Hi. Dan and he are planning on stopping by later this afternoon. Anyways, the place is crawling with IA personnel, and Devitt is ready to pull his hair out when it comes to cleaning up this mess. Press vans are parked up and down the street, so somebody leaked information on what went down. So far, everyone is shielding us but just beware in case Leroy Fallus or Gregory Gomez stop by for a welfare visit. They're after an exciting nighttime news story, not to check on your health and wellbeing."
"That figures…"
Biting his lip for a moment, Mike added a mental note to give Roy a call later on, seeing how things were going and whether or not he needed help explaining the situation to Condon. The next item on his agenda would include a brief call to Gerry's office to have the ADA issue a warrant for the bank accounts of all members of Davis' gang, then sweettalk the guys in the forensic accounting lab to see if they would have the manpower to process these records and prove that Davis paid his men for their participation beyond the access to the cabin and the horrors that took place there.
If they'd be able to prove that the disgraced MP Lieutenant laundered money or otherwise came up with funds to pay his men, no fairy tale in the world would protect him once charges would be pressed and he'd step in front of a judge.
And if Mike could have his way, he'd nail that man four times over if it meant to keep him behind bars for the rest of his sorry life. Better yet, it would take some of the blame off Madison's shoulders, the detective used as a sacrificial lamb in a mess he was only partially aware of. It didn't justify his actions and certainly didn't mean he'd deserve to keep his badge…but it irked Mike that an enthusiastic and promising young detective had been turned by the system and crooks who'd learned to work around it.
"You talk about my gears grinding…", Steve complained and gave his arm another squeeze, "You're not going to try and do work from in here, are you? Don't think for a second that Roy isn't prepared to stop you. I've already gotten the whole speech about that last night. You are supposed to be resting and leave the work to your capable staff back at the office."
"Well, my capable staff is busy solving murders. We can't stop everything to get this thing cleaned up just because the two of us are under the weather…", Mike growled in return and shook his head, "Did they find O'Conner's body yet? Have they brought the lab guys up to the cabin?"
"No and yes…"
There was a slight shudder in Steve's voice when he said that, his eyes travelling up to the window overlooking downtown as he sorted his thoughts.
"Davis isn't saying where they hid the body but Milan has a vague idea, so they're bringing in cadaver dogs this afternoon to look for her. The lab guys are at the cabin as we speak, gathering more evidence. Oh…and they found our car down near Bodega Bay."
"At least one thing went to plan then…"
"Well, not exactly. So apparently somebody watched Mahoney and Sawyer drop it off, then decided to break into it and take it for a joy ride. They found it up in the vineyards. For a lack of a better explanation, it too is currently "under the weather" and released from duty. But at least all our paperwork was still in it."
"Good.", Mike grunted, unable to hide his disappointment on that dreary morning, "How about Sarah? Have you had a chance to talk to her…about things…? Get her ready for what's to come on the court level?"
Steve hesitated for a brief moment, grimacing as he pondered about the right answer, then shrugged.
"On and off. I ehm…I briefly talked to her when I found her but then…things got busy, you know, us trying to find you. We rode back into town together and they dropped us off at the ER, but that's about it. Her and I are going to hang out tomorrow, I am hoping to dig up some more then. That is if she's willing to talk."
Alarmed at the peculiar choice of words, Mike raised his eyebrows and cocked his head to look into his partner's eyes.
"Hang out? You and she aren't…you're not thinking of dat-"
"God no, that's not what I meant.", Steve retracted immediately, "No, I promised I would…accompany her to an…errand. It seemed that she was willing to trust me and I guess, any sort of offering of trust after what she's been through…well…I wasn't going to deny the request."
Relieved when his worries turned out to be unfounded, Mike leaned back against his pillows, feeling the medication robbing him of his energy resources faster than usual.
"Oh, and I forgot to tell you, mandatory shrink time for the two of us."
Upon his groaning, Steve shrugged, then slowly straightened back out again.
"No choice there, Roy's hands are tied. Because of the severity of the situation we were dealing with and the fact that fellow police officers were involved; IA is pushing for it and Condon is backing it. Just a couple sessions, get the all clear from Lenny and we'll be free again."
"Free, he says. You're not the one tied to a hospital bed."
"And yet, usually I am the one tied to a hospital bed while you just waltz right out of here with a few stitches and a band aid. So, this is a nice change…of scenery…for me…anyways."
Slapping the Lieutenant's shoulder amicably, Steve took a step back, noticing his partner's struggle with drowsiness, then pointed toward the parking lot.
"I'll ehm…I am going to let you get some rest. I'll be back this afternoon. Call me at home if you want me to pick something up from the house on the way. Oh…and just so you know, if you try to make any outside calls, I am having the nurses at the station down here write down the number. You know, track your activity, make sure you follow the rules. You're only allowed one outside call a day, and it better be to my apartment, not the office."
"What is this?! Am I in jail now?", Mike complained in feign anger and sat back up on his left elbow, putting one hand on the aching spot on his stomach when it protested the move, "I would have expected more support from somebody who calls himself my fellow warrior, my…my blood brother!"
His words, though meant to be cheery made Steve freeze in his tracks, the young Inspector's face losing all its color, his eyes turning unreadable almost instantly.
"You…you remember all that? You remember what you said? I thought you were…well…I don't know…delirious."
"Delirious? Now, who would tell you something like that? I may have been in pain and a bit more edgy than usual…but I sure as heck wasn't delirious."
Upon his explanation, Steve reduced his reaction to a slight nod, staying in place a few moments longer than usual, his right hand nervously playing with the seam of his beige sportscoat.
"What? You didn't like it? I thought it was catchy."
As if temporarily startled, Steve finally nodded insecurely, that charming smile returning to his face as he reached for the door knob.
"No, I like it…I like it. I just don't know if I like the underlying theme of us bleeding onto each other, but it is…catchy, I guess."
"You don't like it, do you? You just aren't a romantic, are you Buddy Boy?", Mike teased and laid back down, ready for another powernap.
"Not even half the romantic you are, Michael. Get some rest now. I'll see you this afternoon.", Steve returned softly, then disappeared in the adjacent corridor.
Slowly closing his eyes, Mike tuned his ears to his partner's even footsteps slowing down for a brief moment of deep contemplation, then speeding up again as he headed toward the elevators.
Little did the war protester know just how much of a warrior for the weak and helpless he'd become in a few short years, Mike mused proudly before falling into a deep, restful slumber.