Morning Star
Chapter 18
As planned, at first light Texas Rangers Cordell Walker and James Trivette headed out of Dallas ready to search for Gage. They had each packed gear for camping overnight, with food and medical supplies to last for several days. They drove Walker's truck which had been recovered from a warehouse in the industrial district shortly after Rebecca Jenkin's had been arrested, much to Walker's relief. He hated being cramped in Trivette's sports car.
Neither spoke much on the long drive to the Psych Hospital, each lost in their own thoughts, each worried not only about Gage but about Sydney. Erica and Alex had both reported on Sydney's state of mind last night when they had left her and both the experienced Rangers worried that they may have lost both their junior partners.
Walker thought of how much alike he and Syd were, though they had never much talked about it. He knew from her personnel file that like him she had lost both her parents at a young age, but thankfully had been raised by a loving family member unlike Gage who had grown up in an abusive foster home. Still, however loving, an uncle or a grandmother could never make up for the loss of parents at such a tender age and Walker knew that well. It had made him hard and determined, almost to the point of shutting out people and the love they bring to your life. But Alex had slowly worked her way through that barrier that he had built; never daunted by its size or strength, and now he understood how much he had missed by remaining so aloof.
He had watched Sydney and Gage from the moment they came to work for Company B. He had seen Gage's repeated attempts to work his way into Sydney's emotions, and recognized that like Alex Gage was never daunted by the task ahead of him. And slowly, though she may not have realized it, Sydney had opened herself up to Gage and they now made a formidable working team slowly inching their way towards a lifetime partnership. But if they found Gage dead, Walker suspected that Sydney might just shut down, afraid to open her heart and trust anyone again.
For his part, Trivette thought about the fiery jealously he had recently seen in Syd's eyes when she had heard about Gage's date with the cheerleader and her attempts to hide her feelings. Was that the same woman who his wife reported had sat morosely in her hospital bed yesterday, refusing to eat, brushing aside the ministrations of her friends by stating that 'nothing mattered anymore'? Sydney and Trivette had never been close, though Trivette recognized that Sydney was a pretty private individual, but as soon as he had seen that jealous spark in her eye's he had immediately understood much more about the unique, sometimes wordless, working relationship that she had with her partner. And, as he had done so often in the past week, Trivette prayed silently that Gage and Sydney would get their shot at happiness.
Upon arrival at the Psych Hospital, Walker and Trivette showed their ID to the armed guard who now stood watch, the city having determined that cutting security service here may have been a bad idea.
"I think we should start where Sydney said she last saw Gage." Walker said as he collected his gear from the back and slung his well-laden pack onto his back.
"I agree. I don't know where specifically, she pointed to the wooded area of the property just before she collapsed. That's a pretty big area; I'm not sure where to start exactly. Last time I searched I was so frantic to find Gage I just ran everywhere, I wasn't thinking too clearly."
"Well, Syd was held captive in this building." Walker pointed to Building A where he and Syd had both suffered at the crazed hands of Rebecca Jenkins. "We know Gage got her out of here, and he would have taken the most direct route to the woods, so lets do that too and see where it takes us."
With a loud beep Walker automatically locked the doors of his vehicle and he and Trivette set off across the property, tilting their hats down slightly to shield their eyes from the blazing Texas sun.
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Gage was tormented with wild dreams of himself and Syd being chased, shot at, and chased again and finally Syd being pulled away from him, watching while he drowned in the river. He could hear her screaming his name, watched the fiery sparkle in her eyes fade as his lifeless body is pulled from the river. He kept trying to yell, to tell her it was a dream - that he was okay but, though he could hear his voice, Syd acted as though she could not hear his words. He observed her as she stroked the damp hair from his face, knelt down to kiss his forehead and then flung herself in the river.
"Syd!!!!!!!!!!!!" Gage woke up in a cold sweat, and despite the pain that immediately raced through his shoulder, he sat up straight.
It was early morning; he could hear roosters beginning their morning wake- up calls and the responding cluck-cluck of hens. To his surprise, his kindly caretakers did not come running. This was not the first time in the past day, since waking from his deep sleep, that he had woken shouting his partner's name. Perhaps they were used to it now; perhaps they were already outside and hard at work.
Turning around in his bed as best he could, Gage looked out the window. The night sky was fading quickly and with it the stars. All but one, and Gage fixated on that star. He remembered the morning star he had seen from the office window at daybreak after Syd had been taken and wondered, rather idly to himself, if that star was looking out for him and Syd. He had managed to find her the last time he saw a morning star, maybe this was a sign that he would find her once again.
Determined, Gage stood up from the bed and almost immediately fell down, he was so dizzy. He reached for a chair located near the bed and steadied himself. After taking a minute to catch his breath and regain control of his equilibrium, Gage began to walk towards the open doorway, all the while leaning on the wall with his uninjured arm.
Outside his room he found a small, but comfortable kitchen. The door to the only other room in the house, the master bedroom, was open, and there was no sign of his hosts inside the house. Quickly scanning his surroundings Gage also realized that there was no telephone. He had lost his cell phone somewhere between abandoning his bike and reaching the Psych Hospital, but even if he hadn't the battery would long be dead.
The fact that the home he was currently seconded in was without a phone, did not surprise him. It was clearly a rural homestead – a hand-pump in the kitchen sink, no electricity, and an outhouse visible just outside the kitchen window. The lack of amenities meant that they were probably quite far from any towns, certainly any cities. Moving to the main door of the house and looking out across the vast landscape confirmed Gage's theory. Miles and miles of desert, cactuses and chickens with the odd homestead dotting the horizon. He remembered the old man's word though, his boat and el rio – where was the river? Turning to look in the other direction Gage spotted a slightly greener, narrow winding pathway across the property and concluded that it must be what remained of the raging, roaring river that ran through the Psych Hospital property.
Just then both the old man and woman came around the corner of the house and shouted with joy at seeing Gage up and about. The woman began talking a mile a minute and Gage, though he could not really understand what she was saying, got the gist of it as she hustled him back inside and forcefully insisted that he sit down at the kitchen table. Within minutes she had prepared a plate of food from their meagre stock and she stood over him, watching as he ate each bite. Her husband sat down at the table with Gage and nodded approvingly.
As he began to eat, Gage discovered that he was absolutely ravenous. He cleared his plate within minutes, and humming the woman immediately refilled it when Gage gave her one of his charming smiles. When he had finally finished eating, Gage felt his strength returning as he patted his stomach in appreciation of the woman's fine cooking. Smiling and obviously pleased with herself she immediately set about cleaning her kitchen.
Looking to the old man, Gage asked. "Telefono?"
"No senor." He replied. "No telefono."
Gage nodded with acceptance, it was as he had expected.
"Mi amigos – mi amistades. They are looking for me. I need to contact them."
The man looked at him, confused. "No telefono. Afligo."
"Mi amante..." Gage finally said, remembering the word for lover. The man smiled broadly, love was something he could understand. He didn't need to speak English to see Gage's frustration - this young man wanted to find his woman.
Pointing to Gage's shoulder, he tried to make him understand that he was too weak to travel. He had only his boat and a very ramshackle cart; they would not get far on either.
Gage did not understand everything the man was telling him. Something about a broken cart and a sick donkey and the river.
"Si. El barco! Texas."
"No..." the man shook his head.
"Si!" Gage pleaded.
"No." The man stood up and motioned for Gage to follow him outside. Once in the blazing sun the two men made their way to the river area which ran through the property, and Gage finally understood what the man was telling him. The river was a mere trickle, a brownish murky snake that would barely cover his feet. It must have dried up since the rain storm the other night. A boat would do them no good.
Sighing Gage felt the pain in shoulder return. He imagined it had been there all along, but he had been so focused on a plan to get out of there that he had ignored it. Now though, his hopes for getting back to his friends and to finding Syd dashed, at least for the time being, he felt the dull roar of the healing infection.
Once inside Gage thanked his hosts and indicated that he was tired and wished to return to bed. Smiling kindly the couple encouraged Gage in his plan, the woman even bringing him a tall glass of water to keep beside his bed. Exhausted from his morning efforts, Gage fell asleep quickly and this time was not plagued by bad dreams.
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Syd woke up the next morning in the hospital determined to get out of there and find Gage. After crying herself to sleep last night Sydney dreamt that Gage was drowning in the river. She kept trying to pull him out but the current was too strong and he kept leaving her arms. He wasn't talking to her but his eyes met hers and she could see his fear. She kept yelling to him not to give up, that she loved him, and then Rebecca Jenkins' bitter voice infiltrated her dream laughing at Sydney's futile attempts. Turning away from Gage for a split-second she swung around and connected her fist with Rebecca's jaw, just as she had in the basement of the Psych Hospital, and suddenly Gage was alive and well, running out of the river and picking her up in his arms.
She knew that Walker and Trivette were both out there this morning, but that was not enough. Gage needed her, and she needed to get out of this bed and begin looking for him. She had spent enough time yesterday moping and feeling sorry for herself. If Gage was alive and out there, as she had to believe that he was, then wallowing in self-pity over the fact that he might be dead seemed ridiculous. Sydney was angry with herself for being so weak – is this what love did to a woman? She had no time for this, no use for this kind of weakness. She was a Texas Ranger, and her partner was out there. If she didn't do her best to find him then she will have failed him and the badge they wore. And Sydney Cooke never failed.
Syd stood up, ignoring the pain in her leg, and did her best to remove the remaining monitors that were taped to her body. She couldn't remove the IV drip so she left that tube alone but was just reaching for the bag of solution to carry with her when the day nurse burst through the door.
"What do you think you're doing?"
"I am getting out of here – my partner is hurt, alone, and if he is even alive he is probably terrified and worried about me. I need to leave now!"
The nurse stared in amazement at the petite dark-haired woman in front of her. Syd's eyes were blazing, her fingers curled into fists and she looked as if she were about to stomp her feet. The nurse was taken aback momentarily but then regained her composure.
"Ranger Cooke!" She spoke in a commanding voice, thinking quickly about what she could say to this woman to calm her down. "Sit down right now or I will call security. You are jeopardizing the safety of the hospital equipment."
The nurse's ploy worked and Syd looked around, realizing that she had failed to remove all the monitors attached to her body. Sydney sat back down on her bed, but did not look defeated.
"Please remove all these monitors and the IV for me. I wish to leave the hospital - now." Syd spoke with as much calm and reserve as she could, her impatience just slightly buried under the surface.
"I understand Ranger Cooke. I will speak to your doctor and see when he has you scheduled for release."
"No." Syd tried hard to regulate the level of her voice. "I am going to leave right now. I need this IV removed or I will have to do it myself. Then I am going to put on my shoes and walk out of here and find my partner." The last words were uttered slowly, determination punctuating each syllable.
"I am going to go find your doctor. Now stay here Ranger Coo..." the nurse began to speak when the door opened, and in walked Alex and Erica.
"Sydney!" exclaimed Erica, delighted to see her friend sitting up and out of bed.
"Is she causing you trouble?" Alex, ever perceptive, asked the nurse.
"Yes, she is demanding that she leave to go and find her partner. But I can let her do that! She needs to be released by a doctor, sign proper forms, schedule follow-up visits...Ranger Cooke is in no shape to walk out of here."
"No, of course not." Replied Alex soothingly. "However, if my friend says she wants out of here to find her partner, then I doubt that nothing short of her partner walking in here will prevent her from doing that. Would you please page her doctor ASAP, and we'll take care of all the paperwork."
Nodding at Alex and turning to stare at Syd one more time, the nurse exited the room. Moments later they could hear Sydney's doctor being paged over the intercom.
As soon as the nurse had left Alex turned to Syd and like Erica was delighted to see her friend looking so much like her old self.
"Okay Sydney, what's going on?"
Syd took a deep breath, knowing that she needed to calm down or Alex and Erica would never agree to help her.
"I know that Walker and Trivette are out there, and I trust them, I really do. But I need to go out there and find Gage myself. I had a dream last night...Gage was drowning and then Rebecca Jenkins was there, laughing, and I punched her and then Gage was safe. I just know that I am one that needs to rescue him, wherever he is."
"Sydney, Rebecca Jenkins is locked up and so are all of her goons. They can't hurt you, or Gage or Walker or anyone anymore."
"But they already hurt him Alex! They might be locked up now but he's been shot by them, twice. They are the reason he is missing now. And somehow, I just know that if we don't get to him soon, he is going to die."
"Sydney, you can't know that. We just have to hope for the best; Walker and Jimmy are going to look under every stone, twice if they need to. They'll find him, let's have faith." Erica soothed.
Syd gave Erica a frustrated look, she knew her friend meant well but she just didn't understand the urgency of the situation. Then suddenly, jumping up and ignoring the searing pain in her leg, Syd exclaimed "The river! That's what my dream is telling me. Gage went down the river! Alex, call Walker. Tell him to look down the river – he's there, somewhere! Call him!"
"Sydney..."
"Alex...you know I get strong feelings sometimes about situations, this is one of them. Please call him; I know my instincts are right. Gage left the hospital grounds by using the river."
Syd looked at Alex with such conviction in her eyes that Alex nodded and immediately left the room to head for the lobby where she could use her cell phone.
While she was gone Sydney's doctor came and reluctantly agreed to release her into Erica's care and with the promise that she would stay off her leg. Sydney signed the release paper and the doctor was just leaving as Alex returned.
"What did he say?" Alex and Syd asked each other at the same time.
"You first." Syd laughed nervously, pleased with the doctor's acquiescence, but worried about what the Rangers might have, or have not, found.
"He said that just minutes ago he and Trivette came to the same conclusion - that Gage must have travelled, somehow, down the river. They've completed their search of the wooded area. They are going to start heading south, sticking to the river's edge. If he's there, they'll find him. Okay - now, what did the doctor say?
Smiling again, this time with relief at the news that Walker and Trivette would look for Gage in and along the river, Syd replied.
"You are looking at the ward of Erica Trivette. I have been released into supervised care."
"And she is not allowed to put weight on her leg for at least a week or get it wet for two!" Erica interjected. "I am going to go see the nurses about getting your IV out and getting you a wheelchair, and then we are out of here."
As soon as she had left Sydney turned to Alex.
"Alex if this was Walker missing you'd look yourself wouldn't you?"
"Yes, you know I would but..."
"No Alex, not buts. I need to go out there and find him. He's more than just my partner. I lo..." she stopped short, unsure if she was ready to tell everyone. It was still such a new revelation, even to herself.
"I know honey, you love him."
"You know?" Syd could feel her face flushing. "But how? I've never..."
Smiling tenderly, Alex looked down at her young friend. "I wasn't sure at first, but I've seen how close you two have become." She stopped for a moment and then continued. "He completes you Syd. And you complete him."
Nodding solemnly Sydney looked up at Alex. "Do you think Erica knows?"
Alex nodded as Erica came back into the room, pushing a wheelchair.
"Do I know what?"
"That I love Gage." Syd took the plunge, figuring she was going to have to face all of her friends with this news soon enough.
"Sure I do honey, I've just been waiting for you to realize it." Erica was grinning from ear to ear.
"Okay, well then, you obviously understand how I feel. If this were Walker or Jimmy who was hurt and lost, you'd be out there looking, not waiting around for news. We are going to get out of here, NOW, and we are going to go find Gage." Syd was now back into full Texas Ranger mode. "Alex, get in touch with headquarters for me, we need to charter the company helicopter – Walker and Trivette are out, Gage is missing, that leaves me with the authority to requisition equipment. Don't call and tell Walker – he can kill me later; right now we are going to do whatever it takes to find my partner."
For the second time today Alex nodded, and left this room. This time though, she left at breakneck speed. Suddenly nothing in world seemed as imperative as bringing helping Syd to bring Gage home.
"What can I do?" Erica asked, caught up in Syd's powerful command of the situation and eager to help. Despite the seriousness of the situation, this was rather exciting.
"I need a nurse to take this IV out now or I am going to rip it out myself." Syd threatenly began to tug on the tubing.
"Done! I don't know where the nurse went, she said she was coming." Erica turned and fled the room, as quickly if not quicker, than Alex.
The next few minutes were like a whirlwind. A nurse came and removed Sydney's IV. Erica and the nurse helped Syd to move into the wheelchair without putting any undo pressure on her injured leg, and Erica was rolling the chair out of the room when Alex returned, out of breath.
"It took some convincing, but I did it. The Ranger helicopter is on its way to the hospital to pick us up; it'll be here in about 15 minutes."
"Okay ladies, here we go!" exclaimed Sydney, and with Erica pushing on one side and Alex on the other, the three women headed to the elevator and pushed 'UP'.
Chapter 18
As planned, at first light Texas Rangers Cordell Walker and James Trivette headed out of Dallas ready to search for Gage. They had each packed gear for camping overnight, with food and medical supplies to last for several days. They drove Walker's truck which had been recovered from a warehouse in the industrial district shortly after Rebecca Jenkin's had been arrested, much to Walker's relief. He hated being cramped in Trivette's sports car.
Neither spoke much on the long drive to the Psych Hospital, each lost in their own thoughts, each worried not only about Gage but about Sydney. Erica and Alex had both reported on Sydney's state of mind last night when they had left her and both the experienced Rangers worried that they may have lost both their junior partners.
Walker thought of how much alike he and Syd were, though they had never much talked about it. He knew from her personnel file that like him she had lost both her parents at a young age, but thankfully had been raised by a loving family member unlike Gage who had grown up in an abusive foster home. Still, however loving, an uncle or a grandmother could never make up for the loss of parents at such a tender age and Walker knew that well. It had made him hard and determined, almost to the point of shutting out people and the love they bring to your life. But Alex had slowly worked her way through that barrier that he had built; never daunted by its size or strength, and now he understood how much he had missed by remaining so aloof.
He had watched Sydney and Gage from the moment they came to work for Company B. He had seen Gage's repeated attempts to work his way into Sydney's emotions, and recognized that like Alex Gage was never daunted by the task ahead of him. And slowly, though she may not have realized it, Sydney had opened herself up to Gage and they now made a formidable working team slowly inching their way towards a lifetime partnership. But if they found Gage dead, Walker suspected that Sydney might just shut down, afraid to open her heart and trust anyone again.
For his part, Trivette thought about the fiery jealously he had recently seen in Syd's eyes when she had heard about Gage's date with the cheerleader and her attempts to hide her feelings. Was that the same woman who his wife reported had sat morosely in her hospital bed yesterday, refusing to eat, brushing aside the ministrations of her friends by stating that 'nothing mattered anymore'? Sydney and Trivette had never been close, though Trivette recognized that Sydney was a pretty private individual, but as soon as he had seen that jealous spark in her eye's he had immediately understood much more about the unique, sometimes wordless, working relationship that she had with her partner. And, as he had done so often in the past week, Trivette prayed silently that Gage and Sydney would get their shot at happiness.
Upon arrival at the Psych Hospital, Walker and Trivette showed their ID to the armed guard who now stood watch, the city having determined that cutting security service here may have been a bad idea.
"I think we should start where Sydney said she last saw Gage." Walker said as he collected his gear from the back and slung his well-laden pack onto his back.
"I agree. I don't know where specifically, she pointed to the wooded area of the property just before she collapsed. That's a pretty big area; I'm not sure where to start exactly. Last time I searched I was so frantic to find Gage I just ran everywhere, I wasn't thinking too clearly."
"Well, Syd was held captive in this building." Walker pointed to Building A where he and Syd had both suffered at the crazed hands of Rebecca Jenkins. "We know Gage got her out of here, and he would have taken the most direct route to the woods, so lets do that too and see where it takes us."
With a loud beep Walker automatically locked the doors of his vehicle and he and Trivette set off across the property, tilting their hats down slightly to shield their eyes from the blazing Texas sun.
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Gage was tormented with wild dreams of himself and Syd being chased, shot at, and chased again and finally Syd being pulled away from him, watching while he drowned in the river. He could hear her screaming his name, watched the fiery sparkle in her eyes fade as his lifeless body is pulled from the river. He kept trying to yell, to tell her it was a dream - that he was okay but, though he could hear his voice, Syd acted as though she could not hear his words. He observed her as she stroked the damp hair from his face, knelt down to kiss his forehead and then flung herself in the river.
"Syd!!!!!!!!!!!!" Gage woke up in a cold sweat, and despite the pain that immediately raced through his shoulder, he sat up straight.
It was early morning; he could hear roosters beginning their morning wake- up calls and the responding cluck-cluck of hens. To his surprise, his kindly caretakers did not come running. This was not the first time in the past day, since waking from his deep sleep, that he had woken shouting his partner's name. Perhaps they were used to it now; perhaps they were already outside and hard at work.
Turning around in his bed as best he could, Gage looked out the window. The night sky was fading quickly and with it the stars. All but one, and Gage fixated on that star. He remembered the morning star he had seen from the office window at daybreak after Syd had been taken and wondered, rather idly to himself, if that star was looking out for him and Syd. He had managed to find her the last time he saw a morning star, maybe this was a sign that he would find her once again.
Determined, Gage stood up from the bed and almost immediately fell down, he was so dizzy. He reached for a chair located near the bed and steadied himself. After taking a minute to catch his breath and regain control of his equilibrium, Gage began to walk towards the open doorway, all the while leaning on the wall with his uninjured arm.
Outside his room he found a small, but comfortable kitchen. The door to the only other room in the house, the master bedroom, was open, and there was no sign of his hosts inside the house. Quickly scanning his surroundings Gage also realized that there was no telephone. He had lost his cell phone somewhere between abandoning his bike and reaching the Psych Hospital, but even if he hadn't the battery would long be dead.
The fact that the home he was currently seconded in was without a phone, did not surprise him. It was clearly a rural homestead – a hand-pump in the kitchen sink, no electricity, and an outhouse visible just outside the kitchen window. The lack of amenities meant that they were probably quite far from any towns, certainly any cities. Moving to the main door of the house and looking out across the vast landscape confirmed Gage's theory. Miles and miles of desert, cactuses and chickens with the odd homestead dotting the horizon. He remembered the old man's word though, his boat and el rio – where was the river? Turning to look in the other direction Gage spotted a slightly greener, narrow winding pathway across the property and concluded that it must be what remained of the raging, roaring river that ran through the Psych Hospital property.
Just then both the old man and woman came around the corner of the house and shouted with joy at seeing Gage up and about. The woman began talking a mile a minute and Gage, though he could not really understand what she was saying, got the gist of it as she hustled him back inside and forcefully insisted that he sit down at the kitchen table. Within minutes she had prepared a plate of food from their meagre stock and she stood over him, watching as he ate each bite. Her husband sat down at the table with Gage and nodded approvingly.
As he began to eat, Gage discovered that he was absolutely ravenous. He cleared his plate within minutes, and humming the woman immediately refilled it when Gage gave her one of his charming smiles. When he had finally finished eating, Gage felt his strength returning as he patted his stomach in appreciation of the woman's fine cooking. Smiling and obviously pleased with herself she immediately set about cleaning her kitchen.
Looking to the old man, Gage asked. "Telefono?"
"No senor." He replied. "No telefono."
Gage nodded with acceptance, it was as he had expected.
"Mi amigos – mi amistades. They are looking for me. I need to contact them."
The man looked at him, confused. "No telefono. Afligo."
"Mi amante..." Gage finally said, remembering the word for lover. The man smiled broadly, love was something he could understand. He didn't need to speak English to see Gage's frustration - this young man wanted to find his woman.
Pointing to Gage's shoulder, he tried to make him understand that he was too weak to travel. He had only his boat and a very ramshackle cart; they would not get far on either.
Gage did not understand everything the man was telling him. Something about a broken cart and a sick donkey and the river.
"Si. El barco! Texas."
"No..." the man shook his head.
"Si!" Gage pleaded.
"No." The man stood up and motioned for Gage to follow him outside. Once in the blazing sun the two men made their way to the river area which ran through the property, and Gage finally understood what the man was telling him. The river was a mere trickle, a brownish murky snake that would barely cover his feet. It must have dried up since the rain storm the other night. A boat would do them no good.
Sighing Gage felt the pain in shoulder return. He imagined it had been there all along, but he had been so focused on a plan to get out of there that he had ignored it. Now though, his hopes for getting back to his friends and to finding Syd dashed, at least for the time being, he felt the dull roar of the healing infection.
Once inside Gage thanked his hosts and indicated that he was tired and wished to return to bed. Smiling kindly the couple encouraged Gage in his plan, the woman even bringing him a tall glass of water to keep beside his bed. Exhausted from his morning efforts, Gage fell asleep quickly and this time was not plagued by bad dreams.
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Syd woke up the next morning in the hospital determined to get out of there and find Gage. After crying herself to sleep last night Sydney dreamt that Gage was drowning in the river. She kept trying to pull him out but the current was too strong and he kept leaving her arms. He wasn't talking to her but his eyes met hers and she could see his fear. She kept yelling to him not to give up, that she loved him, and then Rebecca Jenkins' bitter voice infiltrated her dream laughing at Sydney's futile attempts. Turning away from Gage for a split-second she swung around and connected her fist with Rebecca's jaw, just as she had in the basement of the Psych Hospital, and suddenly Gage was alive and well, running out of the river and picking her up in his arms.
She knew that Walker and Trivette were both out there this morning, but that was not enough. Gage needed her, and she needed to get out of this bed and begin looking for him. She had spent enough time yesterday moping and feeling sorry for herself. If Gage was alive and out there, as she had to believe that he was, then wallowing in self-pity over the fact that he might be dead seemed ridiculous. Sydney was angry with herself for being so weak – is this what love did to a woman? She had no time for this, no use for this kind of weakness. She was a Texas Ranger, and her partner was out there. If she didn't do her best to find him then she will have failed him and the badge they wore. And Sydney Cooke never failed.
Syd stood up, ignoring the pain in her leg, and did her best to remove the remaining monitors that were taped to her body. She couldn't remove the IV drip so she left that tube alone but was just reaching for the bag of solution to carry with her when the day nurse burst through the door.
"What do you think you're doing?"
"I am getting out of here – my partner is hurt, alone, and if he is even alive he is probably terrified and worried about me. I need to leave now!"
The nurse stared in amazement at the petite dark-haired woman in front of her. Syd's eyes were blazing, her fingers curled into fists and she looked as if she were about to stomp her feet. The nurse was taken aback momentarily but then regained her composure.
"Ranger Cooke!" She spoke in a commanding voice, thinking quickly about what she could say to this woman to calm her down. "Sit down right now or I will call security. You are jeopardizing the safety of the hospital equipment."
The nurse's ploy worked and Syd looked around, realizing that she had failed to remove all the monitors attached to her body. Sydney sat back down on her bed, but did not look defeated.
"Please remove all these monitors and the IV for me. I wish to leave the hospital - now." Syd spoke with as much calm and reserve as she could, her impatience just slightly buried under the surface.
"I understand Ranger Cooke. I will speak to your doctor and see when he has you scheduled for release."
"No." Syd tried hard to regulate the level of her voice. "I am going to leave right now. I need this IV removed or I will have to do it myself. Then I am going to put on my shoes and walk out of here and find my partner." The last words were uttered slowly, determination punctuating each syllable.
"I am going to go find your doctor. Now stay here Ranger Coo..." the nurse began to speak when the door opened, and in walked Alex and Erica.
"Sydney!" exclaimed Erica, delighted to see her friend sitting up and out of bed.
"Is she causing you trouble?" Alex, ever perceptive, asked the nurse.
"Yes, she is demanding that she leave to go and find her partner. But I can let her do that! She needs to be released by a doctor, sign proper forms, schedule follow-up visits...Ranger Cooke is in no shape to walk out of here."
"No, of course not." Replied Alex soothingly. "However, if my friend says she wants out of here to find her partner, then I doubt that nothing short of her partner walking in here will prevent her from doing that. Would you please page her doctor ASAP, and we'll take care of all the paperwork."
Nodding at Alex and turning to stare at Syd one more time, the nurse exited the room. Moments later they could hear Sydney's doctor being paged over the intercom.
As soon as the nurse had left Alex turned to Syd and like Erica was delighted to see her friend looking so much like her old self.
"Okay Sydney, what's going on?"
Syd took a deep breath, knowing that she needed to calm down or Alex and Erica would never agree to help her.
"I know that Walker and Trivette are out there, and I trust them, I really do. But I need to go out there and find Gage myself. I had a dream last night...Gage was drowning and then Rebecca Jenkins was there, laughing, and I punched her and then Gage was safe. I just know that I am one that needs to rescue him, wherever he is."
"Sydney, Rebecca Jenkins is locked up and so are all of her goons. They can't hurt you, or Gage or Walker or anyone anymore."
"But they already hurt him Alex! They might be locked up now but he's been shot by them, twice. They are the reason he is missing now. And somehow, I just know that if we don't get to him soon, he is going to die."
"Sydney, you can't know that. We just have to hope for the best; Walker and Jimmy are going to look under every stone, twice if they need to. They'll find him, let's have faith." Erica soothed.
Syd gave Erica a frustrated look, she knew her friend meant well but she just didn't understand the urgency of the situation. Then suddenly, jumping up and ignoring the searing pain in her leg, Syd exclaimed "The river! That's what my dream is telling me. Gage went down the river! Alex, call Walker. Tell him to look down the river – he's there, somewhere! Call him!"
"Sydney..."
"Alex...you know I get strong feelings sometimes about situations, this is one of them. Please call him; I know my instincts are right. Gage left the hospital grounds by using the river."
Syd looked at Alex with such conviction in her eyes that Alex nodded and immediately left the room to head for the lobby where she could use her cell phone.
While she was gone Sydney's doctor came and reluctantly agreed to release her into Erica's care and with the promise that she would stay off her leg. Sydney signed the release paper and the doctor was just leaving as Alex returned.
"What did he say?" Alex and Syd asked each other at the same time.
"You first." Syd laughed nervously, pleased with the doctor's acquiescence, but worried about what the Rangers might have, or have not, found.
"He said that just minutes ago he and Trivette came to the same conclusion - that Gage must have travelled, somehow, down the river. They've completed their search of the wooded area. They are going to start heading south, sticking to the river's edge. If he's there, they'll find him. Okay - now, what did the doctor say?
Smiling again, this time with relief at the news that Walker and Trivette would look for Gage in and along the river, Syd replied.
"You are looking at the ward of Erica Trivette. I have been released into supervised care."
"And she is not allowed to put weight on her leg for at least a week or get it wet for two!" Erica interjected. "I am going to go see the nurses about getting your IV out and getting you a wheelchair, and then we are out of here."
As soon as she had left Sydney turned to Alex.
"Alex if this was Walker missing you'd look yourself wouldn't you?"
"Yes, you know I would but..."
"No Alex, not buts. I need to go out there and find him. He's more than just my partner. I lo..." she stopped short, unsure if she was ready to tell everyone. It was still such a new revelation, even to herself.
"I know honey, you love him."
"You know?" Syd could feel her face flushing. "But how? I've never..."
Smiling tenderly, Alex looked down at her young friend. "I wasn't sure at first, but I've seen how close you two have become." She stopped for a moment and then continued. "He completes you Syd. And you complete him."
Nodding solemnly Sydney looked up at Alex. "Do you think Erica knows?"
Alex nodded as Erica came back into the room, pushing a wheelchair.
"Do I know what?"
"That I love Gage." Syd took the plunge, figuring she was going to have to face all of her friends with this news soon enough.
"Sure I do honey, I've just been waiting for you to realize it." Erica was grinning from ear to ear.
"Okay, well then, you obviously understand how I feel. If this were Walker or Jimmy who was hurt and lost, you'd be out there looking, not waiting around for news. We are going to get out of here, NOW, and we are going to go find Gage." Syd was now back into full Texas Ranger mode. "Alex, get in touch with headquarters for me, we need to charter the company helicopter – Walker and Trivette are out, Gage is missing, that leaves me with the authority to requisition equipment. Don't call and tell Walker – he can kill me later; right now we are going to do whatever it takes to find my partner."
For the second time today Alex nodded, and left this room. This time though, she left at breakneck speed. Suddenly nothing in world seemed as imperative as bringing helping Syd to bring Gage home.
"What can I do?" Erica asked, caught up in Syd's powerful command of the situation and eager to help. Despite the seriousness of the situation, this was rather exciting.
"I need a nurse to take this IV out now or I am going to rip it out myself." Syd threatenly began to tug on the tubing.
"Done! I don't know where the nurse went, she said she was coming." Erica turned and fled the room, as quickly if not quicker, than Alex.
The next few minutes were like a whirlwind. A nurse came and removed Sydney's IV. Erica and the nurse helped Syd to move into the wheelchair without putting any undo pressure on her injured leg, and Erica was rolling the chair out of the room when Alex returned, out of breath.
"It took some convincing, but I did it. The Ranger helicopter is on its way to the hospital to pick us up; it'll be here in about 15 minutes."
"Okay ladies, here we go!" exclaimed Sydney, and with Erica pushing on one side and Alex on the other, the three women headed to the elevator and pushed 'UP'.