15. A SURPRISING VISIT.
Horatio Caine shifted uncomfortably in the hospital bed. With his free arm lacking strength and accuracy he had nothing to push himself up with in order to find a better position.
The meds he was receiving took the edge off the pain from his multiple injuries, but couldn't prevent the sharp stabs of agony shooting through his torso and back each time he moved.
The tennis ball Alexx had brought him that morning lay on the sheets, next to his hip. He'd been trying to hold it and roll it in his hand, a task that proved to be difficult enough. He could just forget about the squeezing part for now. Hopefully it would improve with practicing, though.
The most annoying thing was that he couldn't even lift a magazine, let alone hold it up. This left him with absolutely nothing to do. Nothing, except playing the same movie over and over in his mind. A movie he'd rather forget.
All in all, he was bored and it made him cranky.
At least that itching thing in his nose had been removed that morning. As long as he didn't take too deep breaths, he was okay. Now if only he could lift his arm, and grab the glass of water all by himself. That would be an improvement. Calling for help was just not something he easily did.
Horatio debated about going back to sleep despite the fact that he'd slept forever. He wasn't that tired, yet somehow each time he closed his eyes, he drifted off to sleep. His body obviously had other ideas than his mind.
Just as he closed his eyes, the door to his room opened. Welcoming the distraction, Horatio opened his eyes again, then stared in surprise at the person shyly stepping inside.
"Well, hello," he said, taking in the younger man's hesitation.
The visitor kept his head down, staring at the floor. He apparently was afraid to step any closer.
Horatio suddenly knew who he was looking at. "Ned? You're Ned Sante, aren't you?"
The student's shoulders trembled. He had his hands shoved deep into the pockets of his jeans. "I..." he started with a slight timbre in his voice. "I don't know why I'm here. I'm..." he lifted his head, throwing a glance at the man lying in the bed before quickly finding another point of interest on the floor. "I'm probably the last person you want to see."
"Ned," Horatio said. "Ned, why don't you come closer and sit down?"
Scared and confused eyes found the Lieutenant's gaze. "You mean," Ned hesitated. "You're not going to kick me out?"
"Well, to tell you the truth, Ned," Horatio responded gently. "To tell you the truth, I can't. Not even if I wanted to. So here's what I want you to do. Come and sit down. Can you do that?"
Wavering, Ned approached the bed and reluctantly sat down on the chair. "We were wrong," he muttered, still afraid to look up.
"Yes," Horatio agreed. "You were."
"I... I couldn't do it anymore. I thought that we'd killed you." Ned stammered. "I know it's too late, but I realized you were right all along. He controls us. For me, it had to stop, right there..."
"My team told me how they found you," Horatio spoke quietly. "You left the group."
"I couldn't do it anymore. It was wrong."
"Well, Ned. I'm glad you came to that conclusion."
The kid snorted and shook his head. "A bit late, isn't it?"
"Yes," Horatio agreed. "But Ned, better late than never."
"I..." Ned looked up now, searching the Lieutenant's gaze. "I came here to apologize. To tell you how sorry I am that I didn't stop it when I should have." He shifted in his chair. "I should probably go. You must hate me..."
"No, I don't," Horatio interrupted the kid. "I don't hate you, Ned. I think you have enough trouble with you hating yourself right now, am I right?"
The teenager sniffed, a faint nod following. His eyes widened, though, determination showing through. "But I'm going to do things right from now on."
"And what's that?"
"I'm going to testify. I'm going to tell the truth. And I'm going to prison. I've been talking to detective..." he hesitated, not remembering the man's name.
"Tripp?" Horatio guessed.
"Yes. Detective Tripp said I had to go to jail. He also told me about the possibilities to study in prison. To do things right. Even there. And that's what I'm going to do. I still have a life ahead of me, when I come out."
Horatio smiled. "Yes, you do. The rest of your life, Ned. Keep that in mind."
"I will."
"You know what I think?" Horatio asked, and Ned looked at him, wondering what was coming. "I think you're going to do fine. It took a lot of courage to come here, Ned. And I appreciate it that you did. I really do."
"You do?"
"Yes," Horatio nodded. "And remember, there will always be people around willing to help. Just don't hesitate to ask, all right?"
"Thank you," Ned smiled now. "I hope you get well soon, Lieutenant Caine." He scrambled to his feet, preparing to leave. "I just wish it wouldn't have come this far."
"Me, too, Ned," Horatio agreed. "Me too."
With that, the student left, leaving the Lieutenant behind with something else to think of that afternoon.
XXX-XXX-XXX
Ned Sante had done a lot of thinking the past couple of days. He'd screwed up, and he'd screwed up badly. He knew that now. That kind lady from the police department had been right, though. It was time for him to make the right choices.
The detective had been not too bad either. He'd been honest, telling Ned exactly what was going to happen, but also had been kind enough to give him options. Something he could live with.
So he was going to prison. It served him right, for being part of something he shouldn't have agreed to from the beginning.
Professor Metzger's death should have been the limit. Yet, Barbosa had convinced them to take this one step further. One step further from humanity, Ned knew now. It was shocking, really, how easily the whole class had followed Barbosa's lead and did what he demanded. As if nobody had a mind of his own.
He shivered at the memory of that awful night.
How could he have been so blind? How could he have been so stupid to take part in this?
Going to the hospital yesterday to visit the Lieutenant who, with what he'd said that horrible night, had opened Ned's eyes, had been the most difficult task in his entire life.
It had been the right thing to do, though. It made him feel a little bit better about himself. Now, he had to continue following the path he'd chosen, take responsibility for his actions, or rather, lack of it, and then maybe, when he came out of prison, maybe then he could look at his own reflection in the mirror.
He was lost in his thoughts as he wandered through the streets, heading for home after his short walk through the park. He hadn't noticed the car approaching, hadn't heard the footsteps coming closer.
The windshield of the car was lowered, and John, his fellow student, called out from behind the steering wheel. "Hey, Ned! There you are. Come on, we're going to have some fun."
Next thing he knew, Mitchell Robins jovially placed his arm around Ned's shoulders. "Hi, Ned. We've missed you. Let's go, man."
Mitch steered Ned to the car, and Ginny swung the door open. Mitch pushed Ned inside, jumped in himself and the car rushed off into traffic.
XXX-XXX-XXX
