"Jack?" Maria Malone whispered, tenderly rubbing her husband's temples,
which were covered under a thick layer of gauze and dried blood. Jack
moaned and blinked several times. His vision was blurred, and he was
rather surprised to see his wife standing over him, looking very concerned.
"Last time I saw you...you said you'd had enough of me and my bullshit," Jack murmured, closing his eyes again. He and Maria had been legally separated for six months, and going through a fairly rocky divorce. Licking his dry lips, he opened his eyes again and tried to figure out what had happened to him and where he was. "My mouth is like cotton," he said hoarsely, looking around for some water. Maria handed him some ice chips, which he gratefully accepted. "So what do you want?" he finally asked, once he regained his voice some more.
"Is that what I get for being concerned about you?" Maria's voice hardened with obvious insult. Jack sighed and tried to rolls his blurry eyes. He had heard this speech far too many times in the past fifteen years.
"No, Maria...that's not what I meant," Jack began, trying to sit up. As he propped himself up on his pillows, he was overcome with a wave of dizziness and weakness, promptly falling back on the bed.
"Jack!" Maria gasped, putting a hand on his forehead. "Are you ok?" she whispered, tears filling her eyes. "I...I'm sorry," she whispered, stroking his hair as he slowly opened his eyes again, his pupils still dilated. "I don't mean to fight with you every time I see you..."
She was cut off by a quiet knock on the door.
"Come in," Jack hoarsely called out, trying to pull away from Maria's hands. It was Samantha. Jack managed a smile.
Tears spilling out over onto Maria's cheeks were quickly wiped away as she excused herself, mumbling something about sending the girls over for a visit whenever he got out of the hospital. Maria closed the door behind her, leaving Samantha and Jack alone.
"Everything ok?" Samantha asked, gingerly sitting down on the edge of Jack's bed. She grabbed his hand and squeezed it, smiling at his eyes which were still rolling from the dramatic exit of his former wife.
"She was the one who wanted a divorce..." Jack began, propping himself up a little bit higher on his pillows, wary of falling back down again. Samantha nodded and let Jack rant for a few minutes about the horror that was Maria. After he was finished, he grabbed some more ice chips and looked expectantly up at Samantha. She looked back down at him, inquisitively.
"What?" she asked, furrowing her brow.
"You mind telling me what the hell happened?" he asked, raising a bandaged eyebrow. Samantha laughed, relieved to see Jack wasn't too injured to still have his cocky sense of humor.
"Well, Sleeping Beauty, we've been waiting for you to wake up for two days now. We got Michael Juarez on assaulting you, which gave us the warrant to not only arrest him, but also to search his place, and guess what we found in that small closet..."
"Leftovers," Jack replied, while Samantha grimly nodded.
"We found the remains of four other bodies, too, and all of them can be tied to Michael Juarez, so we gave it to the DA, and he's in the process of building a case against him as we speak," she finished, looking triumphant.
"Who called the parents?" Jack asked, hoping it was already done and over with so he wouldn't get stuck with the job of informing the decedent's relatives.
"I did. They were devastated at first, but they were able to give her a burial and everything, so cutting to the chase, everyone's happy." Samantha frowned. "Well, as happy as can be expected." Jack nodded slightly, as to not disturb his delicate equilibrium again.
"So when do I get to get out of here?" Jack asked.
"Well," Samantha replied, "Considering you received a pretty big blow—" Jack's eyebrows raised and Samantha made a face, relieved to see that her boss' somewhat skewed sense of humor was there still, too, "—to your head, you'll probably be kept for the concussion that you already have, plus they'll want to run some tests on you." Jack fell back into the pillow, groaning.
"I can't stand being cooped up in here..." he grumbled, wondering if there were some strings he could pull to get out earlier. "Is my phone in here?" he asked, looking around for his clothing, blatantly ignoring the 'No Cell Phone' rule that was posted within five feet of his bed.
Nodding, Samantha reached over into a small paper bag which held his personal effects, sitting on a shelf below his nightstand. She pulled out his cell phone and handed it to him, getting up and patting Jack on the forearm. "See you later," she whispered, squeezing his hand once more before leaving.
"Yeah, Bill? It's Jack. No, no, I'm fine. Look...I need you to do me a favor..."
"Last time I saw you...you said you'd had enough of me and my bullshit," Jack murmured, closing his eyes again. He and Maria had been legally separated for six months, and going through a fairly rocky divorce. Licking his dry lips, he opened his eyes again and tried to figure out what had happened to him and where he was. "My mouth is like cotton," he said hoarsely, looking around for some water. Maria handed him some ice chips, which he gratefully accepted. "So what do you want?" he finally asked, once he regained his voice some more.
"Is that what I get for being concerned about you?" Maria's voice hardened with obvious insult. Jack sighed and tried to rolls his blurry eyes. He had heard this speech far too many times in the past fifteen years.
"No, Maria...that's not what I meant," Jack began, trying to sit up. As he propped himself up on his pillows, he was overcome with a wave of dizziness and weakness, promptly falling back on the bed.
"Jack!" Maria gasped, putting a hand on his forehead. "Are you ok?" she whispered, tears filling her eyes. "I...I'm sorry," she whispered, stroking his hair as he slowly opened his eyes again, his pupils still dilated. "I don't mean to fight with you every time I see you..."
She was cut off by a quiet knock on the door.
"Come in," Jack hoarsely called out, trying to pull away from Maria's hands. It was Samantha. Jack managed a smile.
Tears spilling out over onto Maria's cheeks were quickly wiped away as she excused herself, mumbling something about sending the girls over for a visit whenever he got out of the hospital. Maria closed the door behind her, leaving Samantha and Jack alone.
"Everything ok?" Samantha asked, gingerly sitting down on the edge of Jack's bed. She grabbed his hand and squeezed it, smiling at his eyes which were still rolling from the dramatic exit of his former wife.
"She was the one who wanted a divorce..." Jack began, propping himself up a little bit higher on his pillows, wary of falling back down again. Samantha nodded and let Jack rant for a few minutes about the horror that was Maria. After he was finished, he grabbed some more ice chips and looked expectantly up at Samantha. She looked back down at him, inquisitively.
"What?" she asked, furrowing her brow.
"You mind telling me what the hell happened?" he asked, raising a bandaged eyebrow. Samantha laughed, relieved to see Jack wasn't too injured to still have his cocky sense of humor.
"Well, Sleeping Beauty, we've been waiting for you to wake up for two days now. We got Michael Juarez on assaulting you, which gave us the warrant to not only arrest him, but also to search his place, and guess what we found in that small closet..."
"Leftovers," Jack replied, while Samantha grimly nodded.
"We found the remains of four other bodies, too, and all of them can be tied to Michael Juarez, so we gave it to the DA, and he's in the process of building a case against him as we speak," she finished, looking triumphant.
"Who called the parents?" Jack asked, hoping it was already done and over with so he wouldn't get stuck with the job of informing the decedent's relatives.
"I did. They were devastated at first, but they were able to give her a burial and everything, so cutting to the chase, everyone's happy." Samantha frowned. "Well, as happy as can be expected." Jack nodded slightly, as to not disturb his delicate equilibrium again.
"So when do I get to get out of here?" Jack asked.
"Well," Samantha replied, "Considering you received a pretty big blow—" Jack's eyebrows raised and Samantha made a face, relieved to see that her boss' somewhat skewed sense of humor was there still, too, "—to your head, you'll probably be kept for the concussion that you already have, plus they'll want to run some tests on you." Jack fell back into the pillow, groaning.
"I can't stand being cooped up in here..." he grumbled, wondering if there were some strings he could pull to get out earlier. "Is my phone in here?" he asked, looking around for his clothing, blatantly ignoring the 'No Cell Phone' rule that was posted within five feet of his bed.
Nodding, Samantha reached over into a small paper bag which held his personal effects, sitting on a shelf below his nightstand. She pulled out his cell phone and handed it to him, getting up and patting Jack on the forearm. "See you later," she whispered, squeezing his hand once more before leaving.
"Yeah, Bill? It's Jack. No, no, I'm fine. Look...I need you to do me a favor..."