The Witness
Chapter 6
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Cole felt himself waking up. He heard the sounds of the hospital before he even opened his eyes. He felt terrible. He wanted something to make him sleep more. He wasn't even sure he wanted to wake up. Finally, he opened his eyes and looked at his surroundings. A few moments later a nurse walked into the room. She noticed he was awake.
"Well, good morning, young man," said the woman, a warm smile on her face. "And, how are you today?" she said, reaching over to take his pulse. She proceeded to get the rest of his vitals and wrote in his chart. "Don't feel like talking yet?" she asked him.
He shook his head no and she replied, "Well, that's okay. Just let me know if there's anything I can get for you. I'm afraid that I can't give you anything to eat yet. The doctor has to come in and check you over. We have to wait and see if you're liver's gonna heal without surgery. But, that IV in your arm will give you enough nutrients and keep you hydrated. It shouldn't be too much longer before we know."
"Water?" Cole asked. His mouth was so dry. "Headache," he managed to say also.
"No water yet, but I can give you a wet washcloth to wet your lips. As a matter of fact, I wanted to wash your face and hands off good this morning. Get some more of that dried blood off your face if I can. I'll go get something for your headache. I have to give it to you through the IV, but it gets into your system faster that way anyway," she said cheerfully.
Cole continued to take in his surroundings. The last thing he remembered clearly was his friend Ronnie dragging him out of Raven's apartment. He'd gotten a pretty good beating if the way he was feeling now was any indication. He remembered somebody talking to him. "When was it?" he thought to himself. "Last night? Was it daytime?" he thought, realizing he didn't even know how long he'd been in the hospital. The nurse returned with a syringe that contained pain medication he guessed. He's wished it was something better than that, but he was pretty sure there was no chance of him getting any of that in here.
The nurse administered the pain medication through his IV and wet his lips for him. "How long have I been here?" Cole asked her while she was gently washing up his face. The nurse glanced over at the chart to look at the date he'd been admitted. "Looks like you came in yesterday afternoon. It's 8:30 in the morning on Thursday," she told him. "You were pretty banged up when you came in. Any idea who did this to you?" she said, receiving only silence in response.
"When can I get out of here?" he asked her.
She chuckled slightly. "Well, I don't think you'll feel like going anywhere for a couple of days anyway. But, the man who came to see you last night will probably be able to help you when it's time to go home."
"What man that came to see me last night?" Cole asked, thinking that this was probably what he slightly remembered. But, he remembered getting upset also.
The nurse glanced at the card on the nightstand and said, "An Officer Maurice Boscorelli. He left his card here for you. It has his home number on it also."
"Throw it away," Cole said meanly.
"Why?" the nurse asked.
"Because I don't want to talk to him," Cole simply said.
"He only wants to help you," she said to him again.
"Look, I CAN'T talk to him. Don't you understand?" he said, clearly become angry. The nurse thought it best to let it drop.
"Well, I can see the subject is upsetting you, so I'll let it go," she said, placing the card back on the bedside table. She picked up the items she used to bathe him and turned to leave. She paused at the door.
"Look, Cole. I know you don't know him, but I know Bosco. He's a little rough around the edges, but he really wants to help you," she said to him before turning to leave. "Just push the button if you need anything else. I'll check in on you in a little while."
Cole watched the nurse leave and just stared at the card on the table for a few minutes. The nurse walked by a few minutes later and looked in on the boy sleeping restlessly. She went to the desk to call the doctor on call and let him know that Cole was showing the first signs of withdrawl - irritability and restlessness.
*^*^*^*^*^*^*^
Bosco's phone rang at 9:00 a.m. He reached for the phone without taking his head out from under the pillow. It felt like he'd just gone to sleep. As he brought the phone under the pillow to his ear, it glanced off the side of his face and immediately he was reminded of his bruised eye.
"OW! Boscorelli!" he said abruptly into the phone.
"Bosco?" came the voice from the other end.
"Yes, Faith. It's me," he grumbled into the phone, his voice muffled by the pillow.
"Did I wake you up?"
"Uh huh," he replied.
"Oh, sorry. I just wondered how you made out at the hospital last night?" she said.
"You mean this morning? I didn't get in until about 4 a.m.," he told her, sitting up finally. He touched his eye and winced with the pain. He glanced into the mirror attached to his dresser and was glad to see that at least some of the swelling was down. He could open the eye fully, but it looked awful.
"Wow! I didn't think you'd be stuck there that long. They must have been busy, huh?" she said. She always was too damned cheerful in the morning, he thought to himself.
"Yeah, kind of," he said, not telling her that he stopped by to see Cole Taylor.
"So, what did they say about your eye?" she asked him, finally getting to the reason she called him.
"Uh, they took an x-ray and said that it was fine. Just a little crack in the bone, but not a problem. I just have to take it easy for a couple weeks," he told her.
"Oh, so you'll be working the desk for a couple of weeks. I wonder who I'll be riding with at work?" she said.
"No, I won't be riding the desk for a couple of weeks," he corrected her.
"But, you said that..." she said, only to be interrupted.
"Look, the doctor said I could go back to work. He said to just be careful of getting hit again. That's all. I'm not even going to mention it to Lieu. And neither are you, Faith. Hear me?" he said.
"If you're sure. You know, Bos, you don't want to mess around with your eyesight..."
"Faith, it's fine. Now, can I go back to sleep? I have to be up in... 3 1/2 hours to get ready for work," he said, irritated by lack of sleep.
"Oh, yeah. Sorry I woke you up," she said.
"It's okay. Thanks for checking on me. I'll see you in a while okay?" he said, sorry for biting her head off.
"Okay. See you there," she said before hanging up the phone.
Bosco hung up the phone and laid back on the pillow, pulling the other over his face to block out the light. He was just falling to sleep again when his phone rang again.
He reached over and snatched the phone off the receiver. "Faith! Please, I just want to get some sleep!"
"Somebody sure got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning. And, Faith better be your partner," came Katy's voice on the other end.
Bosco sat up again. "Sorry, Katy. I thought you were Faith calling back again. I went over to the hospital to get my eye checked after work last night and didn't get home 'til like 4:00. She called a few minutes ago to check on me," he said, rubbing at his forehead hoping that would make the headache go away.
"Oh. Sorry. I'll let you get some sleep then. Call me when you get to work today, okay?" Katy said to him.
"No, it's okay. I can't go back to sleep anyway. My head's pounding," he said, getting up and carrying the cordless phone with him into the bathroom to get some more Tylenol.
"So, how's your eye?" she asked him.
"It's okay. Just sore," he told her, skipping all the details. "So, what's up with you?"
"Well, I know your eye isn't the only thing you checked on last night," she said, and Bosco could hear the smile in her voice. "I talked to Sarah, the night nurse on Cole Taylor's floor and she told me you were in there last night."
"Yeah, well. I just wanted to check on him as long as I was there. You know, see if he was up to talking," he said.
"Yeah, I heard he wasn't," she said to him.
"Yeah, he got a little irritated. I left him my card with my home number on it," he told her.
"So, can I buy you lunch or are you gonna try to catch a nap before you go in to work?" she asked him.
He smiled. "Yeah, I'm up for lunch. Where do you want to meet? Or, do you want me to pick you up somewhere?"
"How about you meet me at Mercy's cafeteria. I have a couple other kids I need to check up on there and then I thought we'd go try and talk to Cole again," she said.
"Wow, hospital food. Now that's romantic," he said sarcastically.
"Yeah, well, you didn't just expect me to fall back into bed with you after your disappearing act last time, did you?" she said, reminding him what happened the last time they'd been together.
He didn't say anything and she continued. "You have to wine and dine me first, Boscorelli."
"I thought you said YOU were buying ME lunch," he reminder her, as he walked out to the kitchen and opened his refrigerator
"Yeah, well we'll negotiate further when I see you. Say, 12:30?" she said.
"I'll be there, but they better have something good to eat. I'm a starving bachelor you know," he said, looking at the emptiness inside of his refrigerator.
"Uh huh. See you at 12:30," she said, hanging up.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
TBC...
Chapter 6
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Cole felt himself waking up. He heard the sounds of the hospital before he even opened his eyes. He felt terrible. He wanted something to make him sleep more. He wasn't even sure he wanted to wake up. Finally, he opened his eyes and looked at his surroundings. A few moments later a nurse walked into the room. She noticed he was awake.
"Well, good morning, young man," said the woman, a warm smile on her face. "And, how are you today?" she said, reaching over to take his pulse. She proceeded to get the rest of his vitals and wrote in his chart. "Don't feel like talking yet?" she asked him.
He shook his head no and she replied, "Well, that's okay. Just let me know if there's anything I can get for you. I'm afraid that I can't give you anything to eat yet. The doctor has to come in and check you over. We have to wait and see if you're liver's gonna heal without surgery. But, that IV in your arm will give you enough nutrients and keep you hydrated. It shouldn't be too much longer before we know."
"Water?" Cole asked. His mouth was so dry. "Headache," he managed to say also.
"No water yet, but I can give you a wet washcloth to wet your lips. As a matter of fact, I wanted to wash your face and hands off good this morning. Get some more of that dried blood off your face if I can. I'll go get something for your headache. I have to give it to you through the IV, but it gets into your system faster that way anyway," she said cheerfully.
Cole continued to take in his surroundings. The last thing he remembered clearly was his friend Ronnie dragging him out of Raven's apartment. He'd gotten a pretty good beating if the way he was feeling now was any indication. He remembered somebody talking to him. "When was it?" he thought to himself. "Last night? Was it daytime?" he thought, realizing he didn't even know how long he'd been in the hospital. The nurse returned with a syringe that contained pain medication he guessed. He's wished it was something better than that, but he was pretty sure there was no chance of him getting any of that in here.
The nurse administered the pain medication through his IV and wet his lips for him. "How long have I been here?" Cole asked her while she was gently washing up his face. The nurse glanced over at the chart to look at the date he'd been admitted. "Looks like you came in yesterday afternoon. It's 8:30 in the morning on Thursday," she told him. "You were pretty banged up when you came in. Any idea who did this to you?" she said, receiving only silence in response.
"When can I get out of here?" he asked her.
She chuckled slightly. "Well, I don't think you'll feel like going anywhere for a couple of days anyway. But, the man who came to see you last night will probably be able to help you when it's time to go home."
"What man that came to see me last night?" Cole asked, thinking that this was probably what he slightly remembered. But, he remembered getting upset also.
The nurse glanced at the card on the nightstand and said, "An Officer Maurice Boscorelli. He left his card here for you. It has his home number on it also."
"Throw it away," Cole said meanly.
"Why?" the nurse asked.
"Because I don't want to talk to him," Cole simply said.
"He only wants to help you," she said to him again.
"Look, I CAN'T talk to him. Don't you understand?" he said, clearly become angry. The nurse thought it best to let it drop.
"Well, I can see the subject is upsetting you, so I'll let it go," she said, placing the card back on the bedside table. She picked up the items she used to bathe him and turned to leave. She paused at the door.
"Look, Cole. I know you don't know him, but I know Bosco. He's a little rough around the edges, but he really wants to help you," she said to him before turning to leave. "Just push the button if you need anything else. I'll check in on you in a little while."
Cole watched the nurse leave and just stared at the card on the table for a few minutes. The nurse walked by a few minutes later and looked in on the boy sleeping restlessly. She went to the desk to call the doctor on call and let him know that Cole was showing the first signs of withdrawl - irritability and restlessness.
*^*^*^*^*^*^*^
Bosco's phone rang at 9:00 a.m. He reached for the phone without taking his head out from under the pillow. It felt like he'd just gone to sleep. As he brought the phone under the pillow to his ear, it glanced off the side of his face and immediately he was reminded of his bruised eye.
"OW! Boscorelli!" he said abruptly into the phone.
"Bosco?" came the voice from the other end.
"Yes, Faith. It's me," he grumbled into the phone, his voice muffled by the pillow.
"Did I wake you up?"
"Uh huh," he replied.
"Oh, sorry. I just wondered how you made out at the hospital last night?" she said.
"You mean this morning? I didn't get in until about 4 a.m.," he told her, sitting up finally. He touched his eye and winced with the pain. He glanced into the mirror attached to his dresser and was glad to see that at least some of the swelling was down. He could open the eye fully, but it looked awful.
"Wow! I didn't think you'd be stuck there that long. They must have been busy, huh?" she said. She always was too damned cheerful in the morning, he thought to himself.
"Yeah, kind of," he said, not telling her that he stopped by to see Cole Taylor.
"So, what did they say about your eye?" she asked him, finally getting to the reason she called him.
"Uh, they took an x-ray and said that it was fine. Just a little crack in the bone, but not a problem. I just have to take it easy for a couple weeks," he told her.
"Oh, so you'll be working the desk for a couple of weeks. I wonder who I'll be riding with at work?" she said.
"No, I won't be riding the desk for a couple of weeks," he corrected her.
"But, you said that..." she said, only to be interrupted.
"Look, the doctor said I could go back to work. He said to just be careful of getting hit again. That's all. I'm not even going to mention it to Lieu. And neither are you, Faith. Hear me?" he said.
"If you're sure. You know, Bos, you don't want to mess around with your eyesight..."
"Faith, it's fine. Now, can I go back to sleep? I have to be up in... 3 1/2 hours to get ready for work," he said, irritated by lack of sleep.
"Oh, yeah. Sorry I woke you up," she said.
"It's okay. Thanks for checking on me. I'll see you in a while okay?" he said, sorry for biting her head off.
"Okay. See you there," she said before hanging up the phone.
Bosco hung up the phone and laid back on the pillow, pulling the other over his face to block out the light. He was just falling to sleep again when his phone rang again.
He reached over and snatched the phone off the receiver. "Faith! Please, I just want to get some sleep!"
"Somebody sure got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning. And, Faith better be your partner," came Katy's voice on the other end.
Bosco sat up again. "Sorry, Katy. I thought you were Faith calling back again. I went over to the hospital to get my eye checked after work last night and didn't get home 'til like 4:00. She called a few minutes ago to check on me," he said, rubbing at his forehead hoping that would make the headache go away.
"Oh. Sorry. I'll let you get some sleep then. Call me when you get to work today, okay?" Katy said to him.
"No, it's okay. I can't go back to sleep anyway. My head's pounding," he said, getting up and carrying the cordless phone with him into the bathroom to get some more Tylenol.
"So, how's your eye?" she asked him.
"It's okay. Just sore," he told her, skipping all the details. "So, what's up with you?"
"Well, I know your eye isn't the only thing you checked on last night," she said, and Bosco could hear the smile in her voice. "I talked to Sarah, the night nurse on Cole Taylor's floor and she told me you were in there last night."
"Yeah, well. I just wanted to check on him as long as I was there. You know, see if he was up to talking," he said.
"Yeah, I heard he wasn't," she said to him.
"Yeah, he got a little irritated. I left him my card with my home number on it," he told her.
"So, can I buy you lunch or are you gonna try to catch a nap before you go in to work?" she asked him.
He smiled. "Yeah, I'm up for lunch. Where do you want to meet? Or, do you want me to pick you up somewhere?"
"How about you meet me at Mercy's cafeteria. I have a couple other kids I need to check up on there and then I thought we'd go try and talk to Cole again," she said.
"Wow, hospital food. Now that's romantic," he said sarcastically.
"Yeah, well, you didn't just expect me to fall back into bed with you after your disappearing act last time, did you?" she said, reminding him what happened the last time they'd been together.
He didn't say anything and she continued. "You have to wine and dine me first, Boscorelli."
"I thought you said YOU were buying ME lunch," he reminder her, as he walked out to the kitchen and opened his refrigerator
"Yeah, well we'll negotiate further when I see you. Say, 12:30?" she said.
"I'll be there, but they better have something good to eat. I'm a starving bachelor you know," he said, looking at the emptiness inside of his refrigerator.
"Uh huh. See you at 12:30," she said, hanging up.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
TBC...