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Rick bolted upright as the phone rang. "Hello?"
"Rick, who is it?" Evy croaked, sleepily.
"The Doc," he whispered.
"Oh...ooooooh!" Evy suddenly remembered she hadn't called back to let the physician know everything was all right.
"Yeah, sorry about that, Doc. Think it may have been a false alarm, but let me go check on him before I let you go."
Rick handed the phone to Evy and climbed out of bed.
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Ardeth woke with a start as a distant phone rang. His muscles were stiff, and he started to stretch, sending pain shooting through his body. Thinking he was alone, he made no attempt to stifle a moan.
"Ardeth?! What's wrong?!" Groggy, but alarmed, Alex poked his head up. Startled by the child's presence, Ardeth flinched.
"Shhh," he whispered, "I am fine."
Alex reached over, placing a hand on the Medjai's arm. "You're warm."
"I am fine," Ardeth repeated, sleepily, closing his eyes.
"Ardeth..." Alex began, unconvinced.
"I am fine," Ardeth insisted, wearily. Not ready to face Rick and Evy, he didn't want Alex fetching them. "Please, young O'Connell, I want only to sleep."
"Ardeth? You awake?"
The Medjai barely suppressed a frustrated groan as he heard Rick's voice waft in from the hallway. It turned into a soft hiss as Alex hurriedly scrambled off the bed, joggling the mattress.
"Dad!" Alex exclaimed, breathlessly, meeting his father at the door. Worried about Ardeth, he forgot he wasn't supposed to be there. Rick raised an eyebrow, but decided not to comment. "Dad, Ardeth's warm! I think he has a fever!"
Rick's brow furrowed as he quickly stepped over to the bed. Turning on a lamp, he studied Ardeth. The Medjai was pale, but Rick noticed a slightly flush hue, as well.
"Ardeth?" The Medjai reluctantly opened his eyes and looked up at him. "How you feeling?"
"I am fine," Ardeth responded, almost pleadingly. Closing his eyes again, he shifted uncomfortably on the bed.
Concerned, Rick placed a hand on his friend's arm. He frowned as he felt the heat radiating up through Ardeth's sleeve.
"Sure you are," he responded, skeptically, before turning toward Alex. "I'll be back, all right."
Alex nodded and watched his father leave, before turning back toward Ardeth as he heard the Medjai sigh. Moving around to the other side of the bed, Alex scrambled back up and knelt beside Ardeth, reaching down to take his hand. Alex studied the warrior's weary features for a moment, before noticing a small trickle of blood seeping out from beneath the bandage covering the shoulder wound.
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"Rick?" Evy questioned, seeing the concern on his face as entered. He gestured for her to hand him the phone.
"Hi, Doc. Sorry to keep you waiting. Um...yeah." Evy anxiously listened to the one-sided conversation. "No, it doesn't seem to be. Yeah, all right."
"What?!" Evy demanded, as Rick hung up the phone.
"Ardeth's a little feverish," he explained, trying to sound unconcerned. "Probably nothing to worry about, but the Doc's gonna stop by to take a look, just to be safe."
"F..feverish!" Evy stammered, suddenly remembering the journal. Glancing around, she realized she must have left it in Ardeth's room. Scrambling from the bed, Evy to pace.
Rick frowned as he watched his wife grow increasingly agitated. "Evy? What's going on?"
"Oh, Rick! What have I done!" She wailed in response. "I've given him a fever... just like my parents did!"
"Just like...huh?" Rick responded, bewildered. Evy stopped, abruptly, and stared at him, her eyes filled with panic.
"What if he dies this time, Rick?! It'll be my fault!"
"Whoa! Evy, slow down," Rick soothed, as his wife drew closer to hysterics. "Nobody's dying! Ardeth's just a little warm. It's probably nothing, just his body reacting to everything it's been through today. He's gonna be fine."
Obviously unconvinced, Evy turned to leave, causing Rick to sigh. He knew she going to Ardeth's room and suspected that, whatever his condition, Evy would see it worse than it was. Doubting his presence would do anything but further agitate her, Rick decided to go downstairs and wait for the physician.
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Evy quietly entered Ardeth's room and saw Alex kneeling on the bed beside him, holding his hand. The scene made her smile, but it didn't last. From the doorway, she could see a light sheen of sweat glistening on Ardeth's skin. She took a couple steps towards the bed, but hesitated when the warrior shifted uncomfortably. The awkward movement painfully reminded her of how badly she'd hurt him and, suddenly, Evy couldn't bring herself to face him. Turning away from the bed, she saw the journal lying crumpled on the floor. Wandering over, she picked it up and made herself comfortable in the over-stuffed chair.
Out of the corner of his eye, Alex glimpsed of his mother, but didn't look up. Part of him wanted to - the same part that wanted to curl up with her in the chair and just let her hold him and tell him everything was all right. But nothing was all right. Ardeth was supposed to be one of the good guys...and his parents were good guys. And good guys weren't supposed to try to kill other good guys. That wasn't the way it worked. Frustrated, Alex lay down on the bed and curled up, still clinging to Ardeth's hand.
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"Evy," Rick whispered, gently caressing his wife's cheek. He was relieved that she'd fallen asleep, assuming it to be an indication that she'd calmed down.
Waking with a start, Evy looked up at her husband and, then, past him to Dr. Hamilton, standing next to the bed. She let Rick pull her up and walked to the foot of the bed. Feeling her husband's arms wrap around her, Evy leaned back against him.
Dr. Hamilton frowned, noticing the exotic-looking black robe Ardeth was wearing. It had been lying at the foot of the bed when he'd last seen it. His patient had to have gotten up to put it on, and that didn't please the physician. Gingerly slipping a finger beneath a fold, he carefully slid away the fabric partially covering Ardeth's shoulder.
Ardeth's eyes flickered open as he felt a gentle touch. Looking up, he saw Dr. Hamilton examining his wound with a decidedly unhappy expression fixed upon his face. Ardeth closed his eyes again, unconsciously letting out a soft, frustrated sigh. The physician seemed to be a pleasant enough fellow, but the Medjai knew his presence meant more pain and less sleep.
"Doctor. You have returned to keep me from sleep once more," Ardeth croaked, in a loud whisper. The sound of his voice woke Alex, who poked his head up to see what was happening and, then, sat up to supervise.
Peeling back the bandage, Dr. Hamilton felt the heat radiating off Ardeth's skin. His frown increased as got a good look at the wound and saw that several of his carefully-sewn stitches were torn.
"Hmmm...had you only slept while I was away, I wouldn't have had to return," Dr. Hamilton distractedly chastised, still frowning. Despite his concentration, the physician noticed Ardeth's muscles tensed in response to the rebuke.
"Umm...that was my fault, actually," Evy explained, anxiously. "I came in to sit with him for a bit, fell asleep, and had a nightmare."
Dr. Hamilton wrinkled his brow, wondering what Evy's nightmare had to do with Ardeth's torn stitches.
"She jumped out the chair and stumbled and Ardeth caught her," Alex added.
"Ah, well then, it appears that keeping you from sleep has become a group effort," the physician quipped. He had a feeling that there was more to the story, but no one seemed particularly eager to share it, and he saw no need to push. Knowing how the damage had been done would do little to change it.
"Hmmmm...let's have a look, shall we."
"If we must," Ardeth replied, weakly, drained by the short conversation.
"Rick, could you...," Dr. Hamilton paused, feeling Ardeth tense, dramatically.
"I can manage, Doctor," his patient stubbornly insisted. Dr. Hamilton glanced at Rick and saw a sad, sort-of resigned looked his eyes as he shrug in reply. Returning to Ardeth, the physician skeptically shook his head. The Medjai's condition had visibly worsened just in the few minutes since his arrival, and the physician doubted he still had the strength to move his little finger, let alone any other part of his body.
"All right...well, if you could roll over a little, I'll just take a quick peak at your back."
Ardeth complied, biting his lip against the pressure on his ribs and abdominal wound. Even with his eyes closed, the shift made his head spin dizzily. He took a deep breath to settle it, sending a fresh stab of pain shooting out from his throbbing ribs.
Alex shifted out of Ardeth's way, but continued to hold the Medjai's hand. He frowned as he felt the pressure on his fingers increase a little.
"Gonna be all right, Ardeth," he whispered softly, "Doc'll be done in no time and you can go back to sleep. Promise."
"Insha'alla," Ardeth gasped in response. Still fighting dizziness, he had little attention to spare for Alex, but was still able to appreciate the child's efforts. ("God willing")
The physician pulled the robe away from the wound and noticed that both the garment and the bed sheet were spotted with fresh blood. Peeling the bandage away, he made a 'tsk, tsk' sound, discovering, much to his dismay, that the damage there was much greater than the few torn stitches on the other side. Not only had the wound partially reopened, the torn stitches left it jagged and inflamed.
"This will need to be re-stitched," Dr. Hamilton reported, glumly, earning a dejected sigh from Ardeth.
Evy also sighed, and Rick held her tighter, stifling his own remorseful utterance. That he'd thrown Ardeth against the wall, tearing the stitches, was bad enough, but he knew his wife felt responsible, and that made it weigh even heavier on his conscience.
"How long has it been since he last had any aspirin?" He could tell by the guilty looks on Rick and Evy's faces that the Medjai hadn't been given any since he'd left. "Hmmmm...well, perhaps now would be an opportune time to do so, and then we'll get started. All right."
Dr. Hamilton handed Alex a couple aspirin tablets and the glass of water still sitting on the nightstand from the last dose.
Opening his eyes, Ardeth painfully pushed himself up on his elbow. He allowed Alex to help him with the medicine, then, gingerly eased himself back down. Swallowing hard, Ardeth quickly closed his eyes as his head swam, sickeningly.
"We'll give that a few minutes. While we wait, Evelyn, would you mind fetching me some clean water and fresh towels?" Dr. Hamilton requested.
"I've got it," Rick volunteered, unwrapping himself from Evy.
"You'll need a hand," Evy stated, recalling the last time she'd run this errand. Catching hold of her husband hand, she followed him out the door.
Exhausted and weak, Ardeth made no attempt to follow what was happening. Each time he opened his eyes, the world seemed to be spinning more ferociously, so he kept them closed. Unaware that his fever was rising, he wondered why sounds around him and even the physician's touch were growing dim and fuzzy, like a dream.
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"More trouble?" Jonathan asked through a yawn, as he stumbled sleepily down the hallway towards Rick and Evy.
"No. The Doc's here to have another look at Ardeth. Nothing serious," Rick responded. Jonathan yawned again.
"Need me for anything?"
"No, I don't think so. You might as well go back to bed," Evy informed her brother. Dr. Hamilton had enough people to stumble over already.
Jonathan nodded, gratefully, and spun around to return to his room.
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"Here ya go, Doc," Rick announced, in a loud whisper, as he and Evy returned with the water and towels. Dr. Hamilton acknowledged with a nod, before starting to work.
Ardeth was only vaguely aware of the prick of Dr. Hamilton's needle. His brain had grown fuzzy enough that, although he was aware of the pain, it seemed as though it belonged to someone else. He pondered the unique sensation as he lost unconsciousness.
"Rick!" Dr. Hamilton exclaimed, feeling the tension abruptly leave Ardeth's body. Shifting quickly, the physician managed to get the needle out of the way as the Medjai's shoulder rolled back onto the bed.
Rick shuffled around to help the Doc roll Ardeth up, again. Then, with the help of his son, held the Medjai in position while the physician finished.
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Ardeth hissed as Dr. Hamilton's finger brushed against the inflamed abdominal wound. His head tossed back and forth as he muttered incoherently, but his eyes didn't open and, after a moment, he 'settled' back into his feverous dreams.
"Aren't you going to fix it, Doc," Alex asked, concerned as he watched the physician re-bandage the abdominal wound without repairing the torn stitches.
"No. The inflammation is preventing significant bleeding. It'll be better to wait until it's gone down," the physician patiently explained, opting not to add that it was the fever that concerned him most at the moment. Experience told him it was well over 103 degrees and steadily rising. "Evelyn, I could do with a cold compress and a basin of ice water."
"I'll get it," Rick offered, disentangling himself from Evie and slipping out of the room.
"What's that for," Alex inquired, suspiciously. Dr. Hamilton glanced up at the child, hesitant to answer.
"They're to help bring down the swelling and fever," Evy explained, letting the physician off the hook.
"Oh," Alex acknowledged, glumly. He'd distractedly noticed that Ardeth's fever getting worse, but had still been assuming that it wasn't anything serious. The look on his mother's face told him otherwise. A tearful lump formed in his throat, but Alex quickly swallowed it away.
"Here ya go, Doc," Rick announced, returning from his errand. Slipping over to the nightstand, he sat the basin of ice water down and tossed the physician the cold compress.
Dr. Hamilton caught it one-handed and gingerly placed it over the abdominal wound, but found his hand immediately shoved away as Ardeth deliriously reacted to the discomfort of the cold and pressure. Waiting a minute for him to settle, the physician applied the compress, again.
As before, Ardeth's hand moved toward the pressure, but this time it was stopped. Using both his hands, Alex held it, whispering soothingly. The child voice didn't have the calming effect it'd had earlier. The Medjai grew more agitated, but Alex held firm and, after a few minutes, felt Ardeth stop resisting. Continuing to hold his hand, as much to soothe himself as the Medjai, Alex curled up next to him and wearily closed his eyes.
Dr. Hamilton left the compress resting on the wound, watching for a second to be certain Ardeth's continued stirring wasn't enough to shift it. Then, turning toward basin, he soaked several of the remaining towels in the ice water. Letting them sit, he glanced around the room, looking for a chair he could move closer to the bed. It was going to be a long night, and he didn't want to have to spend it on his feet.
"Here, Rick, help me scoot this chair over," Evy requested. Grasping what the physician intended, she twisted away from Rick and moved to the over-stuffed chair. "I'll tend him, Dr. Hamilton. We're inconveniencing you enough without depriving you of sleep altogether."
"It's considerate of you to offer, Evelyn, but I wouldn't feel comfortable leaving you on your own," the physician responded, smiling appreciatively.
'Oh, no, of course not," Evy clarified. "I didn't mean you should go, but, please, let us fix a guest room for you."
"I don't mind...," Dr. Hamilton began to decline, but Evy cut him off
"I'm too worried to sleep a wink, anyway, Doctor," she insisted, telling herself it wasn't really a fib. As worried as she was, she knew the day had worn her out enough to sleep anyway. However, she desperately wanted to read more from the journal. Evy knew she could simply take it to bed with her, but without the job of tending to Ardeth, she knew she wouldn't be able stay wake for long. "Please, there's no need for all of us to go without sleep. You'll be just down the hall, if I need you."
"All right, Evelyn. Since you insist..." Seeing the determination in Evelyn's expression, Dr. Hamilton reluctantly agreed. "But only if you promise to wake me in a few hours, so I can see where we stand."
Evy nodded. "Rick..."
"Right this way, Doc," Rick stated, escorting the physician out the door and to another of their guest rooms.
"You should get some sleep, too. I'm all right," Evy whispered, as her husband quietly slipped back into Ardeth's room. Pausing to replace the damp cloth across Ardeth's forehead with a freshly wetted one, she glanced up at her husband.
"You sure?" Rick asked, skeptically, noticing her drooping eyelids.
"I'm sure," she answered. Rick didn't say anything, but raised an eyebrow.
"I'm fine. Really!"
Evy could tell he wasn't buying it. His posture told her he was contemplating dragging her to bed, despite her protests.
"Please, Rick. Let me do this. He wouldn't be lying here at all if it weren't for me."
Rick opened his mouth to object, but saw the resolute look in his wife's eyes and realized it wouldn't do any good. "All right, Evy. I'll just grab another chair and be right back."
"No!" Evy blurted. She wouldn't be able to read from the journal if Rick stayed; it wasn't something she was ready to share with him, yet. Rick's eyebrow rose, again, and Evy realized she'd alarmed him. Forcing herself to calm down, she tried to think of something to explain the outburst.
"It's silly for both of us to stay up all night. Get some sleep and you can relieve me in a couple of hours."
Rick frowned, not certain he trusted her to wake him.
"I promise I'll wake you when I wake Dr. Hamilton."
"All right. Wake me sooner if you need me," Rick told her, finally relenting. Even if she were inclined to let him sleep, he figured she would at least wake the physician. Rick trusted Dr. Hamilton to send her to bed if she looked about to crumple.
Rick kissed her tenderly before heading out the door, and Evy smiled reassuringly, hoping he didn't see how relieved she was that he was going. Evy patiently waited for him to get all the way out the door, before grabbing another cloth from the basin. Ardeth stirred slightly as she dribbled the cold water onto his chest.
"Shhhh," she whispered, bathing the un-bandaged areas of his chest and shoulders.
Finishing up, Evy sighed softly, noting that the heat radiating off Ardeth seemed to have increased since the last time she bathed him. Refusing to follow that train of thought, she glanced at Alex, still curled up contentedly near the Medjai. Ordinarily, Evy enjoyed watching her son sleep, but, at that moment, his peaceful little features reminded her too much of the peaceful little features of the dead child Ardeth had held in her nightmare. Closing her eyes, she shook her head to clear the image from her mind.
Evy waited until she'd turned back toward the basin to open her eyes. Taking a moment to submerge the cloth, she picked the journal up from nightstand and settled comfortably in the chair. Finding the dog-eared page, Evy flipped the journal open, but paused for moment as Ardeth mumbled a long string of incoherent babble. She watched him, to see if he was waking up. When he quieted back down, Evy skimmed the last section she'd read, took a deep calming breath, and continued on:
"Nameer has since passed from our midst. He left us so peacefully, that even as Badi'a prepares his body, is seems as though he might still awaken and greet us with one of his radiant smiles."
"Nameer."
Startled to hear the name spoken out loud, Evy's mouth hung agape as she glanced towards the voice.
"Na...meer," Ardeth muttered, again, tossing his head.
Evy wondered what he was dreaming; surely it couldn't be what she was reading. The possibility sent a tingle down her spine, and she closed her eyes. They opened again just in time to see Ardeth's uninjured arm reach out, deliriously seeking...something. Jumping up as his strength failed and the arm dropped weakly, Evy caught his hand an instant before it struck his injured ribs.
"Shhh, it's all right," she soothed, giving his hand a tender squeeze.
Evy pressed the back of her free hand against the towel across his forehead. Even though it had only been there a few minutes, the heat radiating up from him had already dissipated its coolness. Gently setting Ardeth's hand on the bed, she let go, intending to re-soak the towel. However, before she could move, Ardeth's hand shot up from the mattress and grabbed it. With more strength than she'd have thought possible, he clung desperately to her.
"NAMEER!" He gasped, loudly, and Evy flinched as his eyes suddenly opened. With the images from his dream still lingering hazily in brain, Ardeth was surprised to find himself staring into Evelyn's eyes. Locking his troubled gaze on her, he intently studied her, wondering why she would be at his bedside. Keeping his eyes open long enough to speak the question seemed too daunting to attempt, so Ardeth settled for a single word, instead. "Leyh?"
The whispered word sent a cold chill through Evy's body. As Ardeth's eyes closed and his hand dropped onto the bed, she collapsed back into the chair, trembling. Closing her eyes, Evy took several deep, shaky breaths. It was just a coincidence...had to be. Taking one more deep breath, she opened her eyes and studied Ardeth. Of course it was just a coincidence. Beginning to feel silly for her reaction, Evy rose, unsteadily, from the chair, snatched the cloth off his forehead, and exchanged it for a new one. Turning back toward the bed, her heart skipped a beat as Ardeth's eyes flickered open again. Outwardly, she forced herself to remain calm.
"Ahlan," she whispered, softly, and smiled, reassuringly. Grabbing another cloth, she gently bathed his face. "Keyf il-hehl?" ("Hi" "How are you feeling?")
Ardeth mustered a slight, weak smile. As the cloth pleasantly caressed his skin, his heavy eyelids slowly closed again, but he didn't fall asleep. The sound of Evy's voice reminded him that something important had happened...but his fuzzy brain couldn't quite grasp the illusive memory. Deciding that perhaps Evy could tell him, Ardeth forced his eyes open and tried to ask, but the words eluded him.
"Shhh...naiyam," Evy whispered, seeing puzzlement, then, frustration on Ardeth's face as he attempted to say something, but failed to get it out. ("Shhh...go to sleep.")
Not ready to give up on the effort, Ardeth's brow furrowed as, again, he tried to speak. But the fog in his brain had grown thicker, and he could no longer remember what he'd wanted to ask.
"Shhh...kifeyah kida. Naiyam," Evy gently instructed, hoping he would listen. She found it painful to watch him struggling so hard to speak. ("Shhh...that's enough. Go to sleep.")
Despite Evy's words, frustration made Ardeth resist. But even as he tried to force his thoughts to focus, his eyes slowly closed. Wandering into a dream, Ardeth didn't even realize sleep had won the battle.
Evy sighed, relieved, as the tension drained from Ardeth's features. Dropping the towel in her hand back into the basin, she sank back into the chair and, a little hesitantly, opened the journal.
"As I sat by Ardeth's bedside this morning, I did not think it possible that a fever could burn any hotter within a man without consuming him completely. Yet with each passing hour, my nephew's fever rises. It does not seem that there is any strength left in his body. I see each breath catch in his throat as though he has not the power to force it out, but then, somehow, he does. I do not know how it is possible that he still lives except that it is by the force of his will. May it continue to be Allah's as well."
Evy wasn't aware that she'd begun to tremble, but she did feel the tickle of the tears welling in her eyes. Blinking them away, she took a deep breath and reminded herself that no matter how bad it sounded...Ardeth didn't die. Almost as if needing to confirm it, she glanced up at him. He lay still...too still, and Evy held her breath waiting for him to take one. His chest didn't seem to move at all, and panic flooded her.
"Ardeth?!"
Rising unsteadily from the chair, Evy reached out to touch him. Her knees nearly buckled with relief as he stirred slightly, muttering something unintelligible, before sighing softly and settling again. Shaking her head, Evy smiled, feeling a little giddy as the panic left her. Pausing to place a fresh cloth across his forehead, Evy dropped back into the chair, the fading adrenaline leaving her too weak to ease into it gently. Shakily picking up the journal, she opened it once more.
"Allah be merciful! Never would I have thought that a day would come that I would pray for my nephew to be released from this world, but it seems cruel to do otherwise. It is torture to watch each desperately fought for breath leave his body when it seems so impossible that he will manage another. That Ardeth refuses so tenaciously to let go of this life makes its all the more agonizing. Dabir grieves for his eldest and heir as though he had already passed. Likewise, Badi'a holds no hope. She does not grieve, yet, but in her eyes I see acceptance. Fathi alone still refuses to accept that Ardeth will not live. However, it is not hope that I see in him, but a desperate fear that at any moment he will find himself to be his father's only son, left alone to carry the full burden his family and his people's future upon his unprepared shoulders. He sits resolutely at his brother's side as though his will, and not Allah's, will decide Ardeth's fate."
Seeing that the remaining space on the page was blank, Evy sighed and gazed up at Ardeth. Letting her head drop and rest against the high back of the stuffed chair, Evy continued to simply gaze at him, while attempting to convince herself there wasn't any reason to be afraid to turn the page. Ardeth didn't die. She had the proof right there in front of her. He DIDN'T die! She silently repeated over and over again, but it didn't ease feeling of dread knotting her stomach. As ridiculous as she knew it was, it felt somehow possible that the journal would say that he did...and if she read it, it would somehow become reality, and the Ardeth before her would cease to be. Evy sighed, again. Feeling her eyelids droop, she decided that it was just exhaustion making her irrational and allowed her eyelids to close. She'd just rest for a few minutes...
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